The Peru Gazette

Plattsburgh, NY – 3/03/14 – On Saturday, April 5, 2014 the United Way of the Adirondack Region, Inc. is teaming up with the Adirondack Coast Visitors Bureau and Project H.E.L.P. at SUNY Plattsburgh for the Annual Day of Caring.  This volunteer-driven event has hosted projects ranging from cleaning homes of senior citizens, helping complete projects for regional human service agencies, building homes through Habitat for Humanity and cleaning up local attractions. Focused on addressing some of the urgent needs facing our community, the event is still looking for projects of all types throughout Clinton, Essex and Franklin counties.    Read more »

The League of Women Voters of the North Country announces the fourth annual Meet Your State Legislators (MYSL) event to be held on Saturday morning, March 15, 2014, 9:30 AM-12:00 noon at the Peru Central High School auditorium.  For the fourth consecutive year,  Senator Betty Little and Assemblywoman Janet Duprey have agreed to assist in educating students from Clinton and Essex Counties about the structure and function of our New York State Senate and Assembly, and this year, Assemblywoman Teresa Sayward (2003-2012) will also participate as a special guest.

We have asked the legislators to explore the following areas in their remarks to students:

What are the steps to becoming a legislator or how did you get elected?  What is your job?

What is your role as a member of the Women’s Advisory Committee as appointed by Congressman Bill Owens?

What committees do you serve on? How do you get to be on a committee? Introduce a Bill?

What is the impact of election year on your job?

What role do citizens and party loyalty play in influencing public policy?

The program will consist of these components: Read more »

The farmer-driven Northern New York Agricultural Development Program has posted its 2014 Economic Impact Report online at www.nnyagdev.org. The two-page report offers a concise snapshot of the value of the 2013 projects funded by the research, technical assistance, and outreach program. The NNYADP receives funding from the New York State Legislature through the support of Senator Betty Little, Senator Patty Ritchie, Senator Joe Griffo, the state agriculture committees, and other regional and state legislators.

The NNYADP–funded projects include groundbreaking initiatives, including the development of a ‘superfruit’ and the extension of proven-successful practices to farmers across the Northern New York region.

The benefits of the research include opportunities to increase production efficiency and revenue, reduce costs and labor, and enhance animal health, soil health and water quality.

Learn more and find project reports online at www.nnyagdev.org.

MORE INFO
The 2013 projects of the Northern New York Agricultural Development Program included: Read more »

Federal military sex crime bill will pass, says Sen. Gillibrand – NY Daily News.

Land buy advances Albany Convention Center project – Times Union.

Bad driver crackdown as Cuomo provides driving records to courts | New York Post.

Diversity and the Adirondacks: Moving Forward – The Adirondack Almanack – The Adirondack Almanack.

Flu sufferers younger, sicker in New York, reflecting U.S. trend – Times Union.

Out-of-network plan proposed – Times Union.

Uneven split of donors’ money – Times Union.

Chief Prober For Gov. Cuomo’s Anti-Corruption Commission Stepping Down | New York Daily News.

Capitol Confidential » This week on ‘NYN’: A highway through the North Country?.

The Superintendent and Board of Education appreciate the community’s involvement in the budget process. They encourage residents to attend monthly meetings, the community budget forum, budget advisory committee meetings, and budget workshops.

Relevant dates include:

Tuesday, March 11^th       6:00 PM                Community Budget Forum

Tuesday, March 11^th       7:00 PM                Regular Monthly Board Meeting and Budget Workshop

Tuesday, March 18^th       6:00 PM                Budget Advisory Committee (BAC) meeting

Tuesday, March 25^th       6:00 PM                Budget Workshop and BAC recommendations

Tuesday, April 1^st              6:00 PM                Budget Workshop

Tuesday, April 8^th             7:00 PM                Regular Monthly Board Meeting

Budget workshops for April 8^th, 10^th, 22^nd are tentative.

Please also note that information involving the Gap Elimination Adjustment (GEA) can be found at:

http://www.perucsd.org/site/default.aspx?PageType=3&DomainID=4&ModuleInstanceID=65&ViewID=047E6BE3-6D87-4130-8424-D8E4E9ED6C2A&RenderLoc=0&FlexDataID=2833&PageID=1

The District also encourages the community’s involvement in contacting their elected officials to advocate for the elimination of the GEA.

Churchill: Stewart’s looks west to Syracuse – Times Union.

PLATTSBURGH, NY— Following the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia, Congressman Bill Owens congratulated American Olympians with local ties.

“Every Winter Olympics, New York’s rich Olympic history and the region’s pride in our local best-in-a-generation athletes come together as we watch the Olympic Games and root for our friends and neighbors,” Rep. Bill Owens said. “Our local athletes rose to the occasion in Sochi and showed what makes our nation and New York great. Congratulations to our Olympic athletes and their families on bringing to fruition years of hard work and sacrifice and for competing on the Olympic stage.”

The Adirondack Daily Enterprise recently published a list of Olympians with ties to the 21^st Congressional District. They are as follows:

LUGE

Chris Mazdzer, 25, Saranac Lake

Jayson Terdiman, 25, Lake Placid

Bronze Medalist Erin Hamlin, 27 Remsen

Summer Britcher, 19, attended the National Sports Academy

Tucker West, 18, attended National Sports Academy

Kate Hansen, 21, La Canada, Calif. and a part-time Lake Placid resident

Preston Griffall, 29, Salt Lake City, Utah and a part-time Lake Placid resident

Christian Niccum, 36, Woodinville, Wash. and a part-time Lake Placid resident 

SPEED SKATING Read more »

Paul Smiths and Gouverneur, NY – New York strawberry growers are hearing about a promising treatment for their fruit crop based on the success of a Cornell University entomologist with applying microscopic worms to beat back a highly-destructive alfalfa crop pest. Dr. Elson Shields expects to confirm the success of field trials with native-New York nematodes to control two species of weevils in Northern NY strawberry crops this year. 
 
‘Like alfalfa snout beetle, strawberry root weevil and black vine weevil are difficult to control with conventional pesticides, but they are very susceptible to attack by the biocontrol nematodes,’ says Shields, who received an Entomological Society of America Award for Excellence in Integrated Pest Management in 2013.
 
Strawberry growers interested in learning more about Shields’ research, funded by the Northern New York Agricultural Development Program, will have the opportunity to hear him speak on ‘Using Native Nematodes as Biocontrol of Root Weevils in Strawberries’ as part of the 9:30am-2pm Advances in Field Strawberry Production Workshops set for March 4 at Paul Smiths and March 5 at the Cambry Court Activity Center in Gouverneur.
 
Shields estimates weevil damage at $20,000-$30,000 of economic loss at the regional berry farm hosting the nematode research trials. 
 
The Shields Lab at Cornell will complete a series of soil tests this spring to confirm the effectiveness of the nematodes for controlling the berry pests.
 
‘Based on our years of experience with biocontrol nematodes, we expect to document an excellent level of control in the berry fields in May 2014. We also expect the nematodes to persist within the soil of the strawberry production environment for a number of years to continue to minimize the root damage by the root weevils,’ Shields says. 
 
The March 4 and 5 workshops focus on new ways of growing strawberries in field soil, detecting and mitigating soil-borne pests, and utilizing biological controls such as Shields’ nematode application treatment. Eastern NY Commercial Horticulture Program Berry Specialist Laura McDermott will present information on June bearing and day neutral growing systems, strawberry root problems, and spotted wing drosophila.
 
For more information and to register for the $5 strawberry production workshops, contact Cornell Cooperative Extension Horticultural Specialist Amy Ivy at 518-561-7450, adi2@cornell.edu.
 
To learn more about the farmer-driven Northern New York Agricultural Development Program which receives funding through the New York State Senate for agricultural research, technical assistance and educational outreach in Clinton, Essex, Franklin, Jefferson, Lewis and St. Lawrence counties, visit the website at www.nnyagdev.org <http://www.nnyagdev.org> . The website includes a manual for the on-farm rearing of biocontrol nematodes. 

Cornell Cooperative Extension will present pre-season farmers’ market training to help North Country growers develop their salesmanship, labor management, social media skills and compliance with food safety regulations. Sessions from 10am to 2pm with Cornell Cooperative Extension educators will help growers create a compelling personal story to connect to consumers. To grow to the next level, many farmers need to learn how to comply with legal requirements for adding a farm labor force. To expand beyond family labor, this is critical.
 
How to reap sales from Facebook and the latest information on how to meet federal Food Safety Modernization Act regulations for the prevention of food contamination are also on the workshop agenda.
 
The training will take place as follows:
March 15 in Keeseville at the AuSable Valley Grange, register with Laurie Davis, 518-962-4810, lsd22@cornell.edu

Obesity Rate for Young Children Plummets 43% in a Decade – NYTimes.com.

Half a million New Yorkers enroll in Obamacare – Times Union.

By John T. Ryan

The Board appointed Bruce R. Germain, Timothy St. Pierre and Steve LaBounty to the Zoning Board of Appeals and Nicholas J. Zagrodzki and Kim Budwick to the Planning Board. Counselor Donald McBrayer favored tabling a vote stating that the Zoning Board members had indicated that they would like to see prospective board members attend at least one Board meeting and if possible they would like to meet prospective members. McBrayer said that to the best of his knowledge the candidates had not attended meetings and had not met with either board. Supervisor Peter Glushko said that Code Enforcement Officer Frank Slycord, Zoning Board Chairman Rob Bashaw and Planning Board Chairman Richard Williams recommended approval. Counselor Jim Douglas said that it was hard to get volunteers for any position, therefore he would not be in favor of delaying the vote. Counselor Kregg Bruno concurred. Glushko, Douglass and Bruno voted yes. McBrayer voted no saying he had no objection to any of the appointees, but objected to the boards not having input.

A new tandem dump truck/snow plow will be arriving in Peru this spring. The Peru Town Board approved the truck’s purchase at its Monday, February 24, 2013 meeting.  The winning bid of $120,435 submitted by R.R. Charlebois Inc. of Milton, Vt. Clark’s Truck Center of Plattsburgh was the only other bidder.  The Freightliner truck will be outfitted with a snowplow package, which the town purchased in November 2013 at a cost of $71,231. Highway Superintendent Michael Farrell said he expects the truck will be delivered in May.

Bids will be advertised this week for construction of the Heyworth/Mason Park to Sullivan Park Walking Trail.  They will be opened on March 19^th and awarded on March 24^th.  Grants are expected to fund 80% of the project cost. Walking Trail Map

The Town’s procurement policy was changed with the passage of 2014 Local Law #2. Referred to as the Best Value Law, it will permit the Board to accept a bid, which is not necessarily the lowest bid, if the Board determines that the higher bid represents a better value to the town. Supervisor Glushko cited the example of a geographically distant bidder submitting a low bid but not being in a position to provide prompt maintenance or service.

Section 1.2 of the law reads: “Goods and services procured and awarded on the basis of best value are those that the Town Board determines will be of the highest quality while being the most cost efficient. The determination of quality and cost efficiency shall be based on objectively quantified and clearly described and documented criteria, which may include, but shall not be limited to, any or all of the following: cost of maintenance; proximity to the end user if distance or response time is a significant term; durability; availability of replacement parts or maintenance contractors; and longer product life; product performance criteria; and quality of craftsmanship.” Local Law #2 of 2014

Security cameras will be installed at the Little Ausable River Park and Heyworth/Mason Park in the very near future. Electrical service will have to be installed at Heyworth/Mason Park to power the cameras.

Contract engineer Peter Gibbs is still working plans and specifications for the New Town Hall entrance stairs. Counselor Jim Douglas said, “I’d like to get moving on that project as soon as possible.”

The Board held a twelve-minute executive meeting to discuss an individual’s employment history.

The meeting adjourned at 8:15 PM.

Watertown Daily Times | Fort Drum faces cuts as DOD budget calls for massive Army soldier reductions.

Watertown Daily Times | Death of American Eagle at Watertown airport in May will mean birth of Philadelphia flights.

Advocates tour hard-pressed schools – Times Union.

IBM makes job deal – Times Union.