Island Dispatch, 2008-04-25

              ISLAND Dispatch 773-7676 $1,00 Niagara Cn dI Fron!,'er YJ Publications proud publishers of Island Dispatch Lewiston-Porter Sentinel Grand Island Penny Saver Niagara-Whealfield Tribune www.wnypapers.com For Home Delivery of the Island Dispatch Call 773-7676 April 25, 2008 20 Pages V01.64 No. 6 Eat up! page 2 Relay Letter page 4 Rock On! page 9; Open House page 12 Inside The Dispatch School 8 Business ~ .12 Sports 13 Classifieds. 15 Crossword..... 16 Service Directory., 19 Picture Page 20 Proposed development sparks debate by Alice E. Gerard The Grand Island Town Board accepted the final environmental impact statement for the proposed Country Club Cottages cluster development, to be located on the Fix and Baseline roads area, but not before receiving an earful from concerned citizens.According to Lois Shriver, a Snyder resident, several swales at the site were not delineated in the final envi- ronmental impact statement. She added that the Town Board visited the site during the summer of 2007."Y0u also saw the very large cattail swale at the southwestern corner of the parcel. Mr. McMahon, you looked at it, and you said, 'Oh my gosh, that's got to go back about 100 feet' There's no place where that was delineated. Just to the east of it is another very large wetland. I call it a swale. Right now, there has to be at least a foot or a foot and a half of water in it It is not delineated." Shriver said, "I know that this is taking a long time for this project." She asked why developers seem to get their projects pushed through the approval process. "The citizens have something to say, too." Shriver also hadcrificismforthe U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. "I want you to know that an official complaint has been filed with the inspector general's office down in Alexandria, Va., against the Army Corps of Engineers, and the complaint has been forwarded to the Buffalo office here." Another speaker, Gerald Wochadlo of Fareway Eane, said that the final environmental impact statement does not take the wetlands into account The result is structural damage to residences, Wochadlo said. "I have heard many horror stories across Grand Island from the residents," he said. "Foundations are suffering crackmg and settlement." Wochadlo urged Stickl Construction Co. Inc. of East River Road, to "guarantee foundations for a lifetime." After the Town Board voted to accept the final environmental Lois Shriver makes at point to the Grand Island Town Board Monday, (photo by Alice E. Gerard) Roast beef dinner features fun, food by Alice E. Gerard Ifs a bird, it's a plane... itfsahuman sized hot dog? Yes, that*s right. A human-sized hot dog will be present at the roast beef dinner from 2 to 7 p.m. April 26 at the Knights of Columbus Hall, 1841 Whitehaven Road. The roast beef dinner is a fundraiser being put together by The Record Breakers Featuring the Polka Dot CMx, one of 49 teams that will participate in the June 6 Relay For Life, to be held on the Grand Island High School track, to raise funds for the American Cancer Society. Tickets for the roast beef dinner are $6. According to team co-captain Alicia Sornmer, "We're doing the roast beef dinner and the basket raffle and the 50-50 split and the silent auction. For the silent auctionj we have two beautiful paintings that are made in purple for Alicia Sommer and Dan Mcßride of The Record Breakers Featuring the Polka Dot Chix flank Relay For Life chair Mary Dunbar-Daluisio. Bullet found at GIHS indicates no threat to students by Kathleen Duff Superintendent Robert Christmann informed the Grand Island Board of Education at its regular meeting Monday evening of a minor security issue at the high school earlier in the day. Christmann said that a student found a rifle bullet in a school hallway and turned it into the office, resulting in a "hold in place," during which halls were cleared and state troopers had their dogs sweep the halls for the presence of a weapon. None was found. "This was a routine handling of the situation," Christmann told trustees, saying the matter was never considered a serious threat to student safety. He also stated that the student responsible for leaving the bullet on school property "will be identified over the next few days." In other business, Christmann said new regulations governing the participation of homeschooled students in intramural sports are now available online. Basically, the rules are in place through June 2009, when the board has the option to continue or discontinue them. Rules of conduct and vaccination standards for these students will be the same as for district students. An application for intramurals is also available at www.grandisland-cs.kl2.ny.us. The superintendent also spoke about Wicks Law revisions. Because of this New York state law, enacted in 1912, school districts have been required to award multiple contracts for construction projects totaling $50,000 or more. Schools have found this process to be cumbersome and, ultimately, costly to their respective budgets. The limit, Christmann said, has now. been raised to $500,000. Christmann had news regarding scholarship awards as well. Grand Island High School has been selected by General Motors for two of its students to receive $45,000 scholarships and a promise of work after college graduation. Christmann said that GM picked Grand Island because of its academic reputation and for its new pre-engineering program called "Project Lead the Way." As well, two Grand Island High School seniors have been selected by EMEDCO, anationalanational manufacturer of signs, tags and other safety products for businesses, to receive substantial college "scholarships. Jordan Toth and Ciara Morreale will receive the awards on the basis of their excellent academic records and for participation in many extracurricular activities. Kudos also went to high school math teacher Dan Sweeney as he receives the University of Rochester's Singer Family Prize for Excellence in Secondary School Teaching. Janet Schuster, secretary to the superintendent and district clerk, reports that three candidates have handed in completed petitions for the two available Board of Education seats in the next district election. Voters may choose from between current trustees Myrna Blair and Richard Little Jr. and newcomer Penny Moher in the May budget vote and district election. The next board of education meeting will be Monday, May 12, at 6:30 p.m. in the Veronica E. Connor Middle School Little Theater. First on the agenda will be a budget hearing, followed by a regular business meeting at 7 p.m. SEE BOARD, continued on page 2 SEE FUN, continued on page 5 Jfy Law Enforcement  ' 'W: Week May 16-18 th l 1 ''** At Center Court: FREE Safe Child 4 »E3-i fBIMKSCTfIiiiSWI" ' ;I ID Tags & Dog Demonstrations r""""""^^^HIMMGHM goturdoy, May 17th & Sunday May ■ f&jM£^^^W^^s^f^S^^^ES£a99 Linda Kutzbacli >3ji&gl ■-— uSr"""! -Associate Broker Wlfbii tfk wJt B 628-1719 /doW %?*#©! 773-2573 / C»*W«f| 2423 Grand Island Blvd. / W*r«iWfc6, I www.iindakurzbaeh.com / oyif ta*ecare i Each cfSoe independently - ■-—nm ®**tQ¥&f t North owned & operated l''Wllllllllll(l1111111