Island Dispatch, 1994-05-06

              X-PRESS 1 HOUR DRY CUEANERS 'Trust the X-Perts" Drop off your clothes with confidence 2275 Grand Island Blvd. Town Hall Square 773-4114 Mon-Fn • 6:30-7 PM; Sal - 8 AM- 6 PM THE ISLAND DISPATCH  Furniture Inc. Interior Design Service limn Mm, Wed , * Ihurt. 99 Fn * S«. 9 u> !S • Tim. 9 til Noon 6001 Porter Rd ■aMMWad PUh • Nl-. NY 14)04 297 6666 Middle School Community Program Fosters Tree Planting Students at the Grand Island Middle School hold a Community Service Program annually offering five areas of interest. This year students could make 800-800 Bunnies (ice packs) for Children's Hospital, collect register tapes for the Grace J. Parks Project, collect pennies for the rain forest, work on a mural for the front entrance of the Middle School or plant trees at ECO Island, the schools nature center at the Nike Base on Staley Road. Judah Gibson organized the ECO Island plantings and more than 20 students interested in the environment took part. Eighth-graders planted more than a dozen trees on April 27. Marie Kronenwetter was the teacher coordinator of the project. Students at work are Kristin Hildebrandt, Judah Gibson, Elizabeth BlundeU. Janine Banas and Rachel Hamlin. Photo by Barbl Lare Isle Loses Ail-American City Award Bid THE FIRST phase of the judging process for the AU- American City award has been completed and 30 finalists from 140 applications were chosen. Grand Island was not among them. Town officials, however, have been invited to come to Oakland, CA, June 9-11 to observe the AAC Jury Hearings and Civic Action Fair. Announcement of the ten AU- American Cities (or towns) will be made at the awards banquet June 11, Grand Island has been informed. Greater Buffalo is among the 30 finalists. MEK Nanula Says "No Budget, No Pay" STATE Senator Anthony R. Nanula has announced he is introducing legislation that would prevent state legislators from getting paid for each day the state budget is late. The state's 1994-95 budget, which by law is to be passed by April 1, is now 33 days late. This is the 10th consecutive year the state has failed to pass a budget on time. Nanula said: "As a businessman, I learned very early on that if you don't complete a job you don't get paid. Why should it be any different for elected officials? "Funny business has become business as usual' in Albany, and unfortunately the joke is on every taxpayer in the state." Taxpayers will be liable for interest costs on the hundreds of millions of dollars the state is borrowing to pay its bills without a budget in place. "Just yesterday," Nanula said, "Mayor Masiello was forced to release his budget without a firm commitment for emergency aid from the state. Other local governments, school systems and not-for-profit agencies find themselves in the same boat. Businesses considering moving to New York don't know what their tax rates will be." Later this week in Albany, Senator Nanula will write a check to the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance returning more than $5,000 of his salary to the state treasury. Isle Property Owners Face Indian Lawsuit Together US MAGISTRATE Judge Carol Heckman Tuesday signed a provisional class certificate order covering property owners in the area involved in the Seneca Indian lawsuit The Senecas, represented by Joseph F. Crangle, are attempting to claim Grand Island based on a 20-year old treaty and their contention that the Island was illegally sold to New York State in 1815. The Seneca Nation will now have to notify 8700 land owners here and on nearby Niagara River islands that they have until June IS to let the federal court know if they do not want to be part of the class action. Those not wishing to be part of the class action status will have their day in court June 28, according to Judge Heckman. According to County Attorney Kenneth E. Schotz, the next step is pretrial. The class action ruling should speed the process to have the case resolved. MEK SEQR Committee To Meet Tuesday On Ransom Rd. Project THE STATE Environmental Quality Review Committee and Town Board members will reconvene Tuesday at 7:30 P.M. in Town Hall to review the adequacy of the DEIS for the Ransom Estates subdivision and Parklane Plaza project at Ransom and Stony Point roads. The proposed development by Parkland Enterprises Inc. of Grand Island has drawn much interest due to its proximity to the Grand Island School complex and the meeting is a continuation of the April 28 meeting where there was much input from citizens. The project is in accordance with zoning laws and a town hall spokesman indicated that traffic concerns could be mitigated with the installation of two traffic signals. The DEIS for the proposed development is open to public review in the town clerk's office. Verbal and written comments on the proposal may be made prior to May 13. MEK-JL Town Youth Court Now In Effect AN AGREEMENT approved by the Town Board Monday and signed by Supervisor James H. Pax put into action a youth court on Grand Island. Coordinating the effort here is Dennis Albert, who provides the same service for the Town of Tonawanda. Agreed upon by the board at its April 4 meeting was establishment of the court as a delinquency prevention and community diversion program. Its primary goal is to prevent juvenile offenders between the ages of seven and 15 from being sent to Family Court, Pax said at that time. The court is to be comprised of young people between the ages of 14 and 19 serving as judges, law guardians and clerks in court cases ol ineir peers. Albert is to be paid $1,000 per month for the supervision, training and maintenance of the piogram with funding from a $1500 grant and other similar sources. MEK Town Meetings: Monday, May 9: • Parks & Recreation Advisory Board Meeting, 7 P.M. • Planning Board Meeting, 8 P.M. Tuesday, May 10: • Architecture Review Advisory Board Meeting, 7:30 P.M. • Traffic Safety Advisory Board Meeting, 8 P.M.