Island Dispatch, 2005-08-12

              ISLAND Dispatch For Nome Delivery of the Island Dispatch Call 7737676 Niagara Frontier Publications proud publishers of Island Dispatch Lewiston-Porter Sentinel Grand Island Penny Saver Niagara-Wheatfield Tribune www.wnypapers.com nm August 12, 2005 24 Pages Vol. 61 No. 21 Thrills and Chills Ricky Yager enjoys the new Crazy Mouse at Fantasy Island. Story and additional photos on page 7. (photo by Holly Yager) A long-awaited honor Harold Lansbury gets his j. Purple Heart - 62 years later, i page 24 ! I Town Justice race heats up by Karen Keefe Rossi, Frentzel trade charges over petitions The fur is flying in the race for Grand Island Town Justice, with politicians trading charges over challenges to the nominating petitions of candidate Michael Anthony Eossi. Two little words, "Grand" and "Island," did not appear on Rossi's petitions, but a lot \ of words have been exchanged over the lack of them. The petition objections were ultimately rejected by the Erie County Board of| Elections, and Eossi remains on the ballot on five lines: Republican, Democratic,! Conservative, Independence and the Working Families parties. \ I But while the issue of the objections is resolved, the rhetoric over Rossi's petitions i still resounds. Last year, Sybil Kennedy ran unopposed for town justice. However, this year's race is shaping up to be interesting, and one that Eossi says pits him as David against the Goliath of party politics. Interference Charged Rossi claimed in a July 29 ad in the Island Dispatch that his opponent, attorney Mark Frentzel, husband of Grand Island Town Clerk Patricia A. Frentzel, had personally tried to knock him off the ballot and attempted to "interfere with the election process." Frentzel says that's not the case, adding that he only dropped off documents downtown that were filed by someone else. "My ad is absolutely accurate," Rossi counters. "There is no question that Mark Leffler's name is on the objections; there also is no question that Mark Frentzel personally went down to the Board of Elections and filed the objections.'' Each candidate takes exception to the other's characterization. . .■ - Concerned About Reputation "What deeply concerns me as a judicial candidate is that when Mr. Rossi's petitions were upheld, he splashed it in the local papers Mark Frentzel Michael Anthony Rossi A work in progress Falconwood home going from abandoned to livable Photos and story by Karen Keefe The call came into the newsroom as a potential story about a "slumlord" and a vacant house at 24 Schwegler Road. As it turned out, this story has two protagonists, and ends up with no bad guys, although things initially didn't look good for the property owner. First, there is the irate neighbor, Joe Massaro, whose neat, wellmanicured Falconwood home on Whitney Lane backs up to the Schwegler property. He was upset. He told the Dispatch he had called Town Hall "to no avail" about an eyesore he felt ruined the neighborhood he has lived in since 1975. "The house should be torn down," was what Massaro said. Donald Braun, who owns 24 Schwegler, is the other protagonist. "I put over $25,000 into the property," he told the Dispatch. "New roof, new windows, new garage door." Braun, a West Seneca resident who also owns some apartment complexes, bought the home on Schwegler last year. The previous owner was the federal Housing and Urban Development Department. Not a Pretty Sight A curbside look at the property at 24 Schwegler earlier in July showed a house with no siding, just tarpaper; a garage "door" made up of a couple of pieces of plywood; no gutters; and a badly cracked cement driveway. The house looked unlivable and unredeemable. It stuck out in the neighborhood like a sore thumb. At Town Hall, a check into the records shows Braun was listed as the owner as of July 2004. Before that, the owner was the federal secretary of HUD. Before that, in November of 1990, the owner was listed as Joanne Munro. The feds acquired the property in an auction. Years of Neglect When Braun bought it, he bought into years worth of neglect and foreclosure. The town Building Department logged complaints from neighbors about the property in November 2004. Then this summer, there were more complaints - about overgrown grass and bags of garbage. A town inspector went out in early June, found there was a new roof and noted that the owner was doing repairs, including replacing windows and siding. The town signed off on the repairs thus far, but said "It is being watched." "I will comply with all the rules and regulations of Grand Island," Braun told us. Previous Owners Cried Massaro said, "I've seen three people own that house," in the past four or five years. He said he went over to extend a welcome to one couple who bought it, and found them outside, crying, on their porch. He said they lamented, "I can't believe the work that has to be done." Massaro said he has done extensive remodeling of his own home, BEFORIsThe property at 24 Schwegler looked rough on July 26. There was no siding on the house, and bags of construction debris were piled up in the back yard. AFTER: On Wednesday, the progress was quite noticeable. White siding and a new garage door dressed up the exterior. Work is planned to update and fix the porch. continued on page 2 continued on page 3 ! I..I «««»».«...«._....■«.._ ~ j Linda EK3 j Associate Broker Bt'mSg #1 Island Agent ll'_4§§f|lf # 1 Company in WNY 745-73X1 or §28-1719 Q* Do you need to buy or * sell a home? it* Call Linda Kutzbach, * she knows how and would love to help you, Call Joan iggggjl Needs!