Select Year:

A Hot Time in the Old Town Hall

At the request of Walter Brown, Granger Town Justices, 10 kilowatts of electric heat was installed in the town hall.

Previous to this the heat was supplied with a kerosene space heater. In winter, the temperature was below freezing after the heater was on for two hours. Judge Brown had to hold any case which took more than a few minutes in his home. Otherwise, the people involved got quite cold, but worse, the pens stopped writing and nothing more could be done.

The Town Board first considered all of the alternate methods of heating before going to expensive electric heat. However, furnaces of the needed size, cost three times as much as electric heat to buy and install. Installing walls or insulating the downstairs of the town hall all cost more than thirty years worth of electric for the amount of time the building is used. If the heat were on full time for all of the hours of use during the colder six months, the electric is still less than thirty dollars a winter. This is what makes installation of any other form of heat impractical. For the same reason, installing insulation costs more than it would save in a lifetime.

We do not heat the building when it is not in use Judge Brown said. This amount of heat in the uninsulated building should be enough to be comfortable in the spring and fall. In the cold part of winter the temperature should come well above freezing. It will not get warm quickly when it’s real cold because the wood of the building itself will have to heat. Insulation would not change that either.

The heating has a locked master switch to keep unauthorized people from turning the heat on and perhaps leaving it on for several days. Each heating unit has a thermostat, which turns it off and on for milder spring and fall heating. This reduces the electric use and prevents overheating. In severe weather, the units will just stay on full time whenever the master switch is turned on.

The Sap Is Running

How could you live in the Town of Granger with all of its beautiful maple trees and not look forward to the month of March? Many Granger residents have at one time or another boiled some sap down for maple syrup. Virginia and Ronald Cartwright have made a thriving business out of it. They draw people from all over Western NY, right through our beautiful tree covered town.

Their Maple Tree Inn, usually referred to as “the pancake house,” is actually in the Town of Allen along with most of the Cartwright’s land. However, they do have about 300 acres in our town. I wonder how many of the 3000 trees they tap each spring are in Granger? If you’re looking for something to do during their six week season, drive on over and enjoy some buckwheat pancakes made and served with freshly evaporated syrup. Take a friend or two along if you go at rush hour so that you can chat while you wait for earlier patrons to finish gorging themselves on all the pancakes they can eat for as little as $2.70.

Or visit when the evaporator is running and learn more about making your own syrup from the trees on your own lawn. They are located on Fink Hollow Road (County Rd. 15A) just south of Short Tract and have been attracting people to our town for 23 seasons. Open for breakfast, lunch and dinner every day but Monday.

Gas Wells Are Coming

Columbia Gas has been leasing much of Granger’s gas and oil rights for years. The typical lease now pays $2.00 an acre per year, plus $10.00 an acre at the 5 year sign-up time, for an effective $4.00 an acre per year.

About 4 years ago three other companies entered the Granger gas and oil leasing business. In some cases they paid considerable higher prices. However, Columbia tied up the pipeline use contract and thus froze out the competition, unless they truck the gas. This is perfectly legal and might even be considered customary.

Columbia also drilled their first Granger well about 2 years ago. That is important because they have approximately one more year to start using the well or lose it back to the owners. The alternate option of making payments in place of royalties is available, but not likely to be used for any length of time. A plastic pipeline will likely go in this summer. Columbia will probably start drilling a few more wells in the north end of the Town near that pipeline not too long after they start using the existing well. Gas drilling will be a mixed blessing. Those who get wells can expect perhaps $30.00 an acre per year in royalties and a lot of problems at drilling time. In most areas drilling results in a whole flock of lawsuits. The leasers mean well, but the actual drillers are contractors in a business that is hard to supervise. The workers did not get the name “roughneck” by accident. All kinds of damage can result. For example, if it’s a rainy day when they come to drill, they will probably just add one more bulldozer to the equipment until it does move through the mud. You are left with a grand trench through the clay forever, and in Granger, that might mean all kinds of water run off problems. If you signed the standard lease, the above practice is fully legal and furthermore, they can put the trench wherever they want it across your property to the well site.

What can you do? If you recently signed a new lease, you can sit and hope you are lucky. However, leases are constantly running out. Before you sign a new lease, look it over. Do not hesitate to insist on changes in the standard language, which gives them sweeping rights and you none, except that which is guaranteed by law. You cannot blame the leaser for loading the situation in their favor if you are foolish enough to sign away your rights. Leasers routinely change the standard contract to one which gives both parties reasonable protection, when the owner refuses to sign away his reasonable rights. Read the free gas part very thoroughly. The gas companies would much rather sell that gas and give you royalties. A standard contract may make the actual hook-up expensive enough to discourage you from using the gas. A lawyer’s fee might be much cheaper than the alternatives. The one thing the leaser will rarely change is the approximately one eighth of the gas revenues royalty. This is standard, and considering the leaser’s investment over time, quite reasonable.

The Columbia leases we have read contained a 600 acre pooling privilege. This compares with a usual 40 acre pooling privilege. While we have heard Columbia’s reasons, we do not accept or understand the need for this large pool. The only benefit we can see from it is a way to tie up all the property for a very long period of time without paying lease fees. This could easily save Columbia over $60,000.00 a year for many years in Granger alone. A well would have to produce twice the typical royalties just to equal the lease fee you get without them drilling. Since we will not sign anything we do not understand, our property is not one of those currently under lease. We are quite happy with that. We will negotiate our lease when they are ready to drill, and be sure to include the lost fees. Meanwhile, they set a figure of 600 acres. Let them stay 1200 feet from our property line. If they get closer, we will have our attorney arrange for all revenues to be held by the State until the State is sure our rights are not being violated. Alternatively, if their typical deep well pays over $18,000.00 a year in royalties, we will admit we were unduly suspicious, apologize, and agree to a 600 acre pool.

“Our Town” Boy Join Peace Corps

Bob Bentley, son of Althea and Oliver Bentley, long time residents of Short Tract, has finally been able to reach his ultimate goal to do something useful with his life by accepting an assignment to serve in the Peace Corps in the province of Quito, Ecuador – South America. He left for that post on September 14th and spent 3 days in Miami, FL where he went through an orientation period watching films and listening to lectures regarding the customs and laws governing his assignment. This group was about 80 strong – half women and half men; some teachers and nurses among them. The training he will go through will include learning Spanish, the native language in Ecuador, and to help him with this effort he will be sent to live with an Ecuadorian family who speak no English. He will be working out of the province capitol in the Water and Sanitation Department, helping to put in sewers and water lines for small villages that have no running water (something which we all take for granted.) His assignment is for two years in length and at the end of that time he has the option to stay there for another year or to come home for a year and then sign up a year later for continued service.

Bob is sure he is going to enjoy working with the Peace Corps since he likes meeting people and seeing things he hasn’t seen before. So far he has already been able to visit the world’s largest volcano and since he is only 3 miles from the Peru border, has made a trip there also. He says he goes to church every Sunday and has been fortunate in finding a congregation of between 250 – 300 people where the Pastor’s wife is an American. Just a week ago he gave a talk at church which was well received and appreciated.

Bob graduated from Alfred College with a degree in Basic Construction in May of 1986. While attending Alfred he heard a lecture on the Peace Corps and became interested in becoming a part of it. He has been offered jobs in Thailand and Africa but had to turn them down, as they were located in poor climate conditions and would have been dangerous to his health. Finally this past fall the assignment in Ecuador was presented to him and he accepted it.

As a community, we wish Bob all best wishes for an endeavor towards helping others and trying to promote a little “Good Will” and “Peace on Earth” at this time when it is so sadly needed in the world. Keep up the good work, Bob, we’re proud of you!

NOSTALGIA

Everyone, picture the Town of Granger in the late 1920’s and early 1930’s – self-contained. Any recreation planned was by the residents, especially by the male population who gathered at the stores, the Town Hall, and different homes for their fun.

Russell (Buck) Kellogg and Milton (Mick) Roof arrived from the Watertown area to visit Aunt Lucy Voss, and “stayed.” The “cousins Kellogg and Roof” participated in the “free for all” boxing matches, before they arrived in Short Tract. Right away, word got around and the challengers were many. Believe it or not, matches were held in the Town Hall, (Colonel Pitt’s Hall). The men gathered from near and far to watch the boxing matches. In one instance, a farmer was coerced into boxing with a “local.” Nervously he stepped up, threw up his arm, and low and behold, a “knock-out!” Everyone, including the farmer, was amazed.

The matches were just held for entertainment and clean sport. Art Myers, “Bob” Robinson, Lloyd Voss and Mick’s father, Cedric, challenged the cousins. Also, Harold Voss was a constant competitor, being a large, strong man with very long arms. “Mick” learned quickly how to duck under those arms and step in close. Once he didn’t duck quickly enough and got a bad punch on the nose. Mick retaliated on Harold’s jaw. Harold also wrestled. Even as late as the latter 1940’s, he put a hip lock on Bill Schmidt. The weight of both of the wrestlers was the cause of a broken leg for Harold.

Buck and Mick were undefeated in these long ago boxing matches, so now I’ll mention what happened when they opposed each other. They would box, then “time out” to rest, never reaching a decision. Buck was the better wrestler, even though Mick got a lot of experience on construction jobs, during the noon hour.

Alton Barney, a young lad, was always in the front row of spectators, his eyes wide with excitement. I wonder if he was dreaming of the day when he would “take on” the cousins “Mick and Buck.”

Bump The Dump – You Bet!

Concerned Citizens of Allegany County is the volunteer organization formed to fight against establishing the radioactive waste disposal site that must open for business on or before January 1, 1992. The Siting commission has already selected the towns of Granger, Caneadea, Allen, West Almond and Ward in Allegany County as a “Candidate Area” which may host a radioactive waste disposal facility on a 640 acre site.

However, since we have an element of time on our hands we have been busy with past, present and future projects being put into effect to help fight this enterprise. There was a bake sale held at the Market Basket on February 25, 1989 that netted $200.00 and a spaghetti dinner held at the Fillmore Central School on April 6, 1989 brought in another $200.00. On May 6, 1989 a refundable can and bottle drive was held. The Community Circle of Short Tract donated a quilt to be auctioned off. On Memorial Day weekend a craft sale will be held at the Fillmore Fire Hall where the Rotary puts on a chicken bar-b-que. Another craft sale is being planned for July 4th at the Fillmore fire Hall. On June 17, Earth Day, at the Angelica Fair Grounds there will be a Countywide Nuclear Awareness Information Booth stationed. Aren’t these rewarding efforts when a community bands together for a very worthwhile purpose? It just goes to show that we appreciate our clean, healthy environment and will most certainly fight any cause that threatens to pollute it.

The Concerned Citizens’ trip to Albany met with Governor Cuomo on April 29, where one thousand people marched on the Capitol. On May 9 another meeting was held directly with governor Cuomo, attended by representatives from ten counties, three from each site. The governor promised to present this information at a federal level, so all the states are involved. However, Relax, we must not! We need continued enthusiasm and support. Any time now the Siting commission is planning to make a “windshield inspection” of these candidate sites, which means they will be sending a car around to visually look at the candidate areas. Therefore, this should be clean-up time for us. Be proud of your town. We need to make a general clean-up so that it appears we do take pride in our area and do not wish to have it spoiled with a nuclear waste disposal facility!

Gazette's Salute to Citizen Involvement

Throughout history “little people” have always struggled to persuade government to fairly represent them. It was true when people DUMPED tea, and it still holds for people trying to BUMP the DUMP. Those of us living in northern Allegany County can be proud of the fact that many local people and businesses have taken an active part in the ever widening fight against the siting process.

In a recent interview with Eugene Hennard, the local president of North Nine Concerned citizens of Allegany County (CCAC), the work of many area residents was commended. Some of the more active individuals that immediately come to mind are: Irene Hennard, Charlotte Banish (local secretary-treasurer), Gerald, Melva, Clair and Mary Lou Luckey. Some area businesses that have taken a stand by acting as collection points for cans/bottles, or by distributing literature for CCAC are: Prentice’s General Store, Audio Vision, Winchip’s Mobil, Market Basket, and the Fillmore Mill. Additionally, our area churches and the Wide Awake Library Club have worked to inform area residents.

Asked what is the key to attaining CCAC’s goal Mr. Hennard unhesitantly said, “getting people INFORMED. When people learn the truth, if they don’t get INVOLVED, there is something wrong.” He acknowledged that there are a few area people who oppose CCAC’s goals, but “they seem UNINFORMED. Likewise, they think CCAC’s members are UNINFORMED.”

As local president, Mr. Hennard sees a wide range of involvement which area residents can choose from. Here are some actions he suggests a citizen may take if they support CCAC’s goal: go to meetings, write letters, make signs, post literature, join a phone tree, distribute literature, make a donation to CCAC, deposit cans and bottles, and pick up literature.

“No matter which amount of involvement a person chooses, getting informed is essential.” So, when you see the signs that the “little people” have left and realize the sacrifice many unnamed workers are making, think about how you can become involved. Knowledge is the archenemy of tyranny; citizen action its destroyer. Be sure to support the newspapers, TV, radio stations and other businesses that promote your views as to what the future of our town should be. And, as your knowledge grows, act on it!

Pollock Family Hosts AFS Student

The afternoon of August 10th, 1990 brought the long awaited arrival of a student from Greece to be hosted by Bill, Carolyn, Allison and Dawn Pollock through the AFS program. Luisa Tsoureka comes from a small town in northern Greece, Metsovo, known as “the Switzerland of Greece” for its similar climate and terrain. Her family became familiar with the AFS (American Field Service) program when they hosted a student from Germany last year. She dreamed for a long time of visiting the United States, and that dream became a reality when she was accepted into the program.

Luisa’s town is quite exceptional, as it was a stopover point for Caesar’s army during its many campaigns. As some of the soldiers intermarried into the town, a new dialect developed, a mixture of Latin and Greek which is only spoken there. Luisa is quite an accomplished linguist, as she speaks not only her native tongue, but also modern and ancient Greek as well as liturgical, New Testament Greek. She learned her English from American movies and TV programs, and this year decided to take Spanish I in school. After only 10 weeks she was advanced enough to move to the Spanish II class.

Having graduated last year, Luisa is working toward a diploma here. She hopes to be attending university in England next year, and would like to be a kindergarten teacher like her mother. Her father owns his own cheese making company which employs about 16 people. She also has a sixteen year old sister, “Pepi.”

Luisa has easily adjusted to life in a fast paced family. She likes to be on the go, especially to weekends which bring the other 11 AFS students from the western region of New York together. The Pollock family has also enjoyed the interaction with students from such diverse countries as Yugoslavia, Brazil, Denmark, Japan, Mexico, etc. We have also particularly become aware of how much our culture has derived from the Greeks and how much has been incorporated into our everyday lives which we take for granted.

Highlights have been family trips to the usual tourist sights in Orlando, Florida and Washington DC, in both cases being able to stay with new “aunts, uncles and cousins.” Her photo albums are filling up and she wonders how she’ll be able to really convey to her friends back home all the “awesome” new things she’s been experiencing in her stay here. It will be a sad day in July when we wish this lovely girl bon voyage for her trip back to her “other family.” Perhaps we will visit her in her own setting. She has told us, if we come for her wedding, to be prepared to stay for two weeks, the time it takes for the traditional festivities surrounding that event. We are learning that good things like Greek cooking, lovely needlework handicrafts and festivities, like relationships, take time to develop. We are all richer for the experience.

Are We Getting Old?

During the assignment discussion for this issue of the Gazette someone noted that seven of our citizens were in the Houghton Care Center and that two others were undergoing heart operations that week. The natural question becomes, is Granger getting an older citizenry

Deeper thought does reveal many changes that have taken place during the lifetimes of the seven at Houghton Nursing, ever more rapid changes which effect the lives of our typical property owner.

The ages of the nursing home seniors range from late seventies to mid-nineties. During their lifetimes the average life span increased from fifty-two to seventy-two, or about one year for every four years of life.

While it is difficult to move a loved one to a nursing home if we see this as mere existence, we can recognize that they have “lived” a long life already.

Another major change took place in their lives at the peak of the depression. Roosevelt invented Social Security. The average life span at that time was sixty-three and a half and his plan set retirement at sixty-five. Brilliant politician that he was, Roosevelt created a source of revenue that took pennies from the very first dollar of each income to finance the CCC and keep the country’s economy afloat. Perhaps more important to us, the nation accepted sixty-five as the age to retire. Before this there was no recognized age to retire.

People started to build retirement plans aimed at age sixty-five. Employers started retirement plans as a form of tax free compensation. Then government made laws to protect retirement plans from business failure or cheating. Money had to be put in place to fund the plans as it was actually spent on payroll. Times were good and the funds grew to tremendous amounts from their investments.

When times recently turned bad the employers chose to spend the money, that really belonged to the retirees anyway, to give many an early retirement. Now we have many late middle aged people out of work with not quite enough money to live on until they turn sixty-five. Perhaps more important, many will not look forward to twenty-five years of retirement. Except to see a few move to Granger to start their own small businesses as most employers will not hire at that age.

It would seem Granger is getting older people on the average, just like the rest of America. But, from what I see, our people are “living” and not just existing longer. Since life in Granger requires a bit more independence than most places, Grangerites are probably “living” longer than other people their age.

E-911 System Gets OK'd for Allegany County

Belmont – Legislators in early February approved implementing an E-911 telephone system throughout Allegany County.

A crowd of about 40 attended a public hearing before the vote was taken. Most were emergency personnel, expressing support for the system. However, a few expressed opposition, saying the current central dispatch center is adequate and the expenditures involved would be uncalled for.

Ron Doerschug, an Alfred firefighter, said all emergency numbers should be consolidated to avoid confusion. “We have six emergency numbers in Alfred,” he said. “It’s total chaos.”

The cost of installing the system would include a one-time $27,000 equipment and installation charge and $114,000 in annual telephone line rentals. That would be offset by a monthly 35 cent surcharge on resident’s telephone bills, starting April 1, 1992. Keith Barber, county fire coordinator, said the system will be operational in early 1995.

The surcharges collected up to that point will be put into an escrow account. Thus, county dollars won’t be needed to fund the project for an estimated eight years.

Voting no on the resolution was Alton Sylor, R-Allen. He said that the current emergency system where residents call the dispatch center in Belmont, is adequate.

Timber Talk - From a Tree to a Chair

Did you ever wonder what happens to that tree before it becomes a chair? You, as a landowner, are the first important step in that process. The trees need to be purchased from the landowner first. This is done in several ways. The landowner calls and tells us, the sawmill, that they want their land harvested of timber. A stump diameter is decided on, and one of our experienced foresters goes through the woods looking at every tree, measuring it for volume and quality, and marking it for cutting. A price is then determined by the condition of the timber and a quote is given to the landowner.

There are many things to consider when setting a price on timber; the kinds of trees, quality of the trees, how tall and how big they are, how accessible are they, and is making roads necessary, do we have to contend with wet ground, and other considerations. He will have to estimate the cost of harvesting and trucking, all of which help in determining the price of the timber. Our forester does this free as a service to you, the landowner, or you may hire a state forester or an independent consultant to mark and measure the trees to be cut.

After the trees have been purchased from the land owner, we send in a crew of two or three men to cut down the trees and skid them out of the woods to a landing where they are then cut into log lengths and pushed into a pile for the log truck drivers to pick up and take to the mill. Care has to be taken on cutting the trees down, that no damage is done to other trees or to the property. We also need to go back after the job is completed to make sure all roads and trails are smoothed and the lot is cleaned up.

Every tree has a lot of small branches in the top that are of no value for making lumber. These are left for the land owner to cut up for fire wood, or we recommend that they be left in the woods to rot down naturally, giving food value to the forest floor, which in turn makes the other trees more healthy. When the tops are left in the woods they also create food and shelter for the animals. Deer feed on the buds and branches that they could never reach if the trees had not been cut down.

You now have the first step in following that tree to the chair in your home. Watch the next issue to see what happens when the log goes to the saw mill.

Granger Receives Grants to Study Town hall Preservation

Notice has been received from the Granger Town Board that a $3500.00 grant has been received to do a historical preservation study of the Town Hall. When the Town Hall was partitioned off because of the weak floor, Councilman Richard Hollis made inquiries and applied for the grant. The grant study will determine what repairs need to be done to stabilize the building so that it can continue to be used as a meeting place for Granger’s citizens. This project is funded (in part) by the Rural New York Historic Preservation Program, administered by the Preservation League of New York State with the support of the J.M. Kaplan Fund.

In addition, as a show of community support for preserving the Town Hall, The Town Theatre of Short Tract has contributed $300.00 towards the total cost of this study. The study will be done by the firm of Flynn Battagglia Architects, PC, of Buffalo, NY. The approximate total cost of this study is $5000.00. With the two grants in hand, the Town Board of Granger unanimously voted to fund the difference between the amount of the grants and the total cost of the project.

We would like to thank the Town Board of Granger for showing the vision to authorize applying for this grant and providing the necessary funding to complete this study. We also thank the members of the Town Theatre for their generosity to help defray the cost of the study. A special thank you to the citizens who took time to write letters of support for this project. With this strong showing of community involvement goes our commitment of the citizens to completing this project. When this study is completed, the Town will be able to apply for Environmental Protection Fund moneys to assist in covering the cost of the actual repairs to the structure.

Town Board Sez...

New York State was declared a disaster area on January 20, 1996, including Allegany County. This declaration enabled our tow to apply for funds over and above local taxpayer dollars. Our Superintendent of Highways, R. Paul Beardsley went from road to road assessing damages. Each site with damage of $1000 and over was listed by priority. Next, applications for each and every damaged site was filled out and informational meetings got underway.

We listed the following projects: Holiday bridge and creek, Botsford Hollow tube and creek, Dutch Settlement Rd., Knibloe Rd., Gardener Rd., Walbridge Rd., Miss Joy Rd., Parker Rd., Hooker Rd., Kemp-Shaw Rd., Davis Rd., Sonnleitner Rd., Aylor Rd. and Schneider Rd.

The work to receive the funding has been a joint effort by the Environmental Conservation Agency and Soil and Water District of Belmont, the Agriculture District Engineer, FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency), SEMO (State emergency Management Office), Guy James, County Engineer, and our road crew, managed by Paul Beardsley, Superintendent. Paul and Melody worked especially hard to secure needed funds for Granger. The Supervisor and Deputy Superintendent went to required meetings and eventually it came together. Granger was damaged more than some of the nearby towns. All of our filed applications amounted to $124,068. Of the $112,041 we actually received, FEMA funded 75%, SEMO covered 12.5% and the other 12.5% came from Granger.

Funding for the damage done to the Otis Smith Rd. will hopefully be covered by the Hazard Mitigation Committee of FEMA. Applications have been submitted for graveling and guide rails, but the allocations are awarded to areas of the state with the most severe needs first.

The regular spring work is far behind schedule. Honing, mowing and salt brining had to be put aside for the disaster repairs. The patience of the tax payers is appreciated. Anne Voss, supervisor.

Town Hall Update

Driving by the Short Tract Town Hall, the casual observer has no clue as to the major construction that is taking place inside those weathered walls. About nine months ago under the capable and dedicated leadership of Zane Barth as construction chief, the Town Hall reconstruction project began. Although no one has officially kept tract of the man hours invested in this huge undertaking, Zane alone said he “stopped counting at 300, and that was a long time ago.” Every Friday morning between 9:00 and noon, or even 1:00, you will find a contingent hard at work, among the faithful count Dick Rees, Ron Richards, Jay Stevens, Bruce Smith and Clair and Gerald Luckey. Anne Voss is on hand to keep the coffee supplied and run errands.

Last summer lumber was purchased at a very reasonable price from state lands and Dick, using his equipment to skid it out, was assisted by Zane and Ron. Ron subsequently donated his time and saw mill to cut the lumber to specified sizes and the town truck delivered it to the project site.

In late September the ripping up of the floor boards began, revealing a much more serious problem than even the architectural study showed. Over the years ground water had destroyed the supporting piers and eroded away the foundations, resulting in a sagging structure. Paul Beardsley donated his time, using Gary Ricketts’ backhoe, to dig a perimeter drain on one side to alleviate future water problems. In October the jacking of the building was begun, a process that took about 7 weeks to bring it level. Meanwhile Zane used his auger to drill the 21 footer holes, set forms, and poured concrete footers and piers. By the time the concrete set, it was now December. The rotted lower siding lumber was also replaced though the flashing still needs to be done.

The next big project involved replacing one rotted 40’ sill plate (laminated 2x6’s) on the north side of the building. Originally there were only 2 main supporting beams in the building, (one of which was also totally rotted), so 4 structural beams were also built to make a new total of 5, greatly adding to the strength of the floor. As soon as it is warm enough to work without heat, the furnace will be moved to a back room. Duct work and cold air returns have been installed under the floor. New electrical wiring has also been installed in conduits under the benches along the side walls, and a new electrical service panel installed. The electrical inspection passes last week.

Because there is ventilation under the floor to the outside, for warmth, 8" of cellulose insulation will be blown in, and the plastic sheeting to hold it is already in place. The next step will be replacing the sub-flooring and then the floor itself.

Although an immense amount of work has been done to this point by a relatively small crew, none of them have looked for praise or recognition. Although at times it might have seemed like an easier option to “burn it down” and start from scratch, Zane philosophically states, “The town doesn’t have many historical buildings left besides the Town Hall and the church. Without money, the town’s only options would be to go into enormous debt to raise property taxes if we had opted for a new building instead.”

How can we as members of this town adequately thank Zane and his crew? We probably can’t, but we could volunteer some hours ourselves to lighten their load. Even after this initial job of getting the Town Hall usable again is complete, there are more projects on the list such as painting inside and out, re-roofing sections and flashing work around the chimney, digging two more perimeter drains, and possible adding an inside bathroom. As the summer comes, Zane will have no trouble filling his time with his own construction business. So let’s give a hand to hurry the day when the project will be done and these diligent workers can get on with their own business. Just show up on a Friday morning (or call Anne Voss or Zane Barth first).

The Difference is Water

Last week my wife and I rode down Shongo Valley Road. We slid all over the half inch of ice, ruts and light snow. Then we came to where the Town of Caneadea had paved the road with stone chips and tar. The road was bare.

For the first time my wife appreciated what I meant when I wrote, “Paved roads take considerably less winter maintenance.” The immediate question was, “Is all this because the road is black?” The answer was, “No. All this is controlled by the complex interaction of reflectance, conduction, specific heat, freezing points, latent heat of fusion and masses.” All these natural principles are present in both kinds of roads.

The difference is water! Water is nature’s special material. It stands out as different from other materials whenever it appears in scientific work. In the case of roads, you need something to hold the surface in place. On dirt roads it is small powdered stone particles (dirt). This powdered stone soaks up water whenever it is present.

In winter the dirt road is a four foot deep block of ice with embedded stone. It takes a lot of heat to melt the surface of that ice before the ice and snow on it will melt. In the case of paved roads the binder is tar. The non heat conducting tar and stone of the paving separate the surface from the underlying material. In addition, water runs to the sides of the paved road. The sun only has to begin to heat a small amount of stone and tar, not melt it, and the snow or ice can begin to melt. This year the difference has been weeks of maintenance free paved roads while working extra hard to have your block of ice roads passable in the morning.

Preparing for Re-Evaluation

Granger Tax Assessor Duane Aylor is preparing for a town wide property tax reassessment to actual cash value or 100% evaluation. No one is quite sure when Granger last had a reevaluation, but it was over 25 years ago. Granger’s present tax evaluation is set at approximately 6% of actual value.

Granger is believed to be one of two towns in Allegany County which has not gone to a 100% property tax evaluation. Fillmore School Business Manager, Tom Ricketts, says Granger is the only town in the school district that has not had a recent reevaluation.

Why is evaluation important? We pay property tax to support four public entities: Allegany County, Fillmore Central School, the Town of Granger and the Short Tract Fire Department. Since the town and fire department are supported solely by Granger taxpayers, the percentage of fair property value does not affect the amount of tax you pay to them. An assessment out of line with other local taxpayers does affect your taxes to all four bodies.

Every town in the school district or every town in the county can be at a different percentage of full value. To correct this your local assessment has to be adjusted to 100%, to set your school and county tax amount. Those of us who own property in different towns have noticed that an increase in county or school spending falls somewhat heavier on taxpayers whose tax evaluation is further from 100%.

Duane has been going around and updating his data cards. He is trying to be sure his data on number of rooms, bathrooms, square footage of buildings and acreage are accurate. When reevaluation time arrives, all that data will be put into a computer and in theory each property will be compared with similar properties which have been sold recently to arrive at a fair value for every property in Granger. Assessor Duane Aylor says one more step will be necessary for him. When Duane gets all those figures together, he says he will drive by each property and ask himself is that what he would consider a fair price if he were buying or selling that property. He, of course, has the power to adjust the final figure. This is needed because the data card information does not include uniqueness of location, the location of the property in question, or the comparables.

I do not envy Duane in making those final adjustment decisions. No matter what figure he arrives at, Duane should be complimented on his personal verification of the existing data cards, on keeping assessment under the control of the town assessor (himself), and upon his determination to review what the computer cranks out.

Town Supervisor, Anne Voss, isn’t sure exactly which year the town wide reassessment will take place because of the costs and availability of funding grants, but she is hoping it will be within two years.

Supervisor's Report to the Town ('00)

January 1, 2000 came and went with no big surprises. On January 3 the Granger Town Board held its annual organizational meeting. At that meeting several appointments were made, including Calvin Carmer as Deputy Supervisor, Leonard Fletcher as Building Inspector, and David Pullen of Fillmore as attorney for the town.

The Town Board meetings will have a new format. We will open every meeting with the Pledge of Allegiance followed by ten minutes of public time in which residents will be permitted to address the board. We will then move forward with our regular meeting and offer ten more minutes of public time at the end. A sign up sheet will be available for public time. If you have issues that need extra time, they can be added to the agenda with two days’ prior notice to me.

Several Town Board committees have been formed. They are: Audit Committee, Emergency Preparedness Committee, Highway Equipment committee, Highway Roads and Bridges Committee, and Junkyard Committee. It is my intent that these committees will assist the Town Board in its efforts to govern Granger. The more input on any one subject, the better the decision that will be made.

We have chosen the Cuba Patriot as the official newspaper for the town and Fleet Bank as the depository for town funds. Our regular meetings will be held on the second Monday of the month at 7:00 PM at the Town Hall. Notice of any special meeting that may be necessary will be posted at the town Clerk’s Bulletin Board and the Town Hall.

On January 10, 2000 the first regular meeting was held. Former Supervisor Anne Voss was presented with a plaque commemorating her twenty-eight years of community service. She served for sixteen years as Tax Collector and for twelve years as supervisor. Thanks for all your efforts, Anne.

The position of Dog Control Officer was again offered to Jesse VanName and he has accepted this position.

An issue that came to light at this meeting, which requires the vigilance of all residents, is the theft of town road signs. These signs are required for 911 emergency personnel and proper traffic control. A bill was presented for six signs at $24 per sign, totaling $144. Every resident is paying the bill for these signs. I am asking each of you, if you see someone stealing a sign, get a license plate number and a description and call 911. The town has a policy to prosecute to the fullest extent of the law anyone caught stealing or vandalizing road signs.

We are off and running with a good start to the year 2000. Please feel free to attend the Town Board meetings on the second Monday of the month.

Supervisor's Report to the Town ('01)

Spring is just around the corner and the days are getting longer. In my last report I spoke of the effort it takes to sand all the town roads in an icing event. Unfortunately, we have had a number of these events this winter. Please drive carefully and if you can, wait until your road is sanded before venturing out.

Just a reminder about the free rabies clinic that will take place at the Town Highway Department on Wednesday May 23, 2001 from 7 – 9 p.m. Also, please remember that all dog license renewals will come due in June. Please renew promptly.

I have been in touch with the ACCORD Corporation on the status of our Small Cities Grant application. They will be sending out an income survey in late February and need to get it back by mid March. This survey is very important for the success of the application for this grant. As many as possible should be returned so that the need in the town of this program can be established. ACCORD will be advertising for two public hearings, one on March 12 at 6:00 p.m. and the other on April 9 at 6:00 p.m. Both of these will be held at the Granger Town Hall, weather permitting.

Speaking of meetings at the Granger Town Hall, our regular meetings are held the second Monday of the month at 7:00 p.m., weather permitting. The reason I say “weather permitting” is that sometimes due to extreme cold, we have to relocate to the Town Highway Department. If you should ever come on meeting nights in winter to the Town Hall and the building is dark, please go to the Highway Department as that is probably where the meeting will be held.

The town had received $110,878.72 from FEMA and SEMO for the flood damages that occurred during the last year’s flash flooding on August 6 and 9. Many of the repairs that we have received money for have not yet been completed, so a substantial portion of this money will have to be used to purchase the necessary materials and supplies. Most of this money was received in late December and January. The goal for the use of this money will be to return the town’s infrastructure to the pre-storm condition, or better. In addition, due to the extra wear and tear on town equipment caused by the storm, we will be investigating the replacement of some of our older equipment.

The town has been offered the opportunity to join the Code Enforcement Consolidated District. This district includes the towns of Angelica, Belfast, Caneadea, Hume, Rushford and the Village of Angelica. At our regular Town Board meeting on February 12, 2001, we voted to join this district. All building permit applications will still be obtained from Loreen Bentley, Town Clerk, but the permits for construction will be issued by Clair Beeman, who is now our full time Building Inspector. Clair can be reached at the Rushford Town Hall during the day on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays until noon. This service will be the most cost effective means for providing building code enforcement for the town’s taxpayers as required under New York State Law. The cost of a building permit will be the same in the towns of Caneadea, Hume, Rushford and Granger. The cost of a permit in the towns of Angelica and Belfast, and Village of Angelica is slightly higher.

I would like to review a few of the accomplishments of the last year. In addition to joining the Consolidated Code Enforcement District, we replaced all of the approximately 40 year old overhead doors on the Town Highway Department with new energy efficient overhead doors. This had meant that in the month of January we purchased approximately 189 less gallons of heating oil than in the previous two Januarys. With the ever increasing cost of heating oil, this should go a long way to controlling our heating bills. In addition, we purchased an automatic set back thermostat for the building, which is offering more savings. The grant that we received from Senator Pat McGee for the overhead doors is also being expanded to include new windows for the building, all at almost no cost to local taxpayers. Our Assemblyman, Dan Burling, provided a grant for the purchase of two new computers and software for the operation of the town government. Both of these computers are getting used extensively to help reduce costs. We have had a busy year, but there is much more to be done. The Supervisor and Town Board are committed to stretching our limited resources as far as possible to accomplish the overall goal of keeping Granger a nice place to live.

Support Those Who Support You!

The community has been trying to pull together to build a new fire hall. As most of you know, the fund drive is progressing very slowly. Right now the building fund stands at about $50,000. The firemen have taken concept building estimates of about $175,000, which they hope to raise in order to start construction on a four bay building to house their fire equipment. The plan would include a kitchen area, bathroom and community room, if the budget allows. Otherwise, it would be scaled down. There is not much in the way of grants available at this time. However, the fire company may be eligible for a low interest loan, providing they have 50% of the funds available to match the cost of the structure. Politicians are working with our firemen and they will allow some monies for the project, but there is nothing in writing and there are no guarantees. The fire company owns the land, which has a well and septic system on the premises.

We need to make the firemen’s fund jump up a bit. A good way to do that is to purchase the Short Tract Fire Company’s 50th Anniversary Memories Book. See pictures and read transcripts of firemen’s meetings from the past fifty years. You will learn that the women of the short Tract Fire Co. were recognized as the first group of ladies to volunteer and complete the necessary training to be added to the NYS roster of firemen! This book also gives a history of Short Tract and the surrounding areas, with many photos of people and events that took place. Did you know there was a “hunt for gold” in the hills of Granger? You can purchase this book from the firemen at the June yard sales. It is a bargain, priced at $15, considering the wealth of fascinating information you will get from it! And while you are at the fire hall, don’t forget to pick up some hot, delicious BBQ chicken halves for dinner! Support your local fire company. The Granger Gazette is donating $200 to the fund and issues a friendly challenge to encourage others to match that amount for a good cause.

I asked some of the firemen, “What does being a fireman mean to you?” Their responses were overwhelmingly the same: that it gave them a great feeling to be able to help their neighbors and community. They willingly give of themselves to protect and comfort us in our times of need, be it fire, emergency, medical or natural disaster. The Short Tract Fire Company and the EMS Unit are always ready for action when we call – we should be supportive of them also. After all, they are there for us.

Short Tract Fire Company News ('03)

Last March we applied to FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) for the Fire Act Grant, and were notified in December that we would be awarded a grant for fire operations and fire fighter safety. As stated in the Supervisor’s report, the grant pays for 90% ($72,754) and our 10% portion comes to $8, 083. With this money we will be able to buy much needed turnout gear for all our members as well as breathing equipment (SCUBA) for our interior firemen. We will also purchase protective jackets for our EMS personnel.

We are grateful that we were one of the 5,500 departments awarded out of the 30,000 that applied. We are in the process of evaluating new turnout gear and will make an order in the near future. Our only disappointment is that none of this money can be used for our new hall. There were only a few programs that we could request funding from and none of these programs were providing funding for new fire halls. In this next month the new listing of the fire act grants will be out and we will hope that building a fire hall has been added. If not, we will continue to apply for grants that not only help us protect you and your possessions, but ourselves as well.

Our Mother’s Day chicken barbecue is soon approaching. Mother’s Day is May 11 this year. We serve a full dinner consisting of chicken, potato, salad, baked beans, roll and drink. So give Mom a break from cooking and join us for lunch. We start serving at noon and continue until the food is gone. One word of warning – the food goes very quickly, so be sure to come and enjoy before it’s all gone.

Thank you again to all those who generously support the fire company.

The New Look of the Gazette

As we begin 2004, of providing the Granger Gazette, many changes have occurred. After devoting much dedicated work and time to their printing business, Big Tree Graphics, Walter and Alberta “Bert” Brown will be closing the business and heading into retirement. The halting of the press of Big Tree Graphics caused the staff of the Gazette to feel sad because of the change. But also we feel a sense of gratefulness to both Walter and Bert for their decision to begin publishing the Gazette. The Gazette was a very special gift to the community; providing communication from Town Government, the Fire Department, the Town Theatre and local news of interest. It is a real asset that has made Granger a better place. Although the publishing of the quarterly paper will not be at Big Tree Graphics, the staff of the Gazette will continue to publish the paper in a new, smaller format. It’s our hope to continue the great tradition that was initiated by Walter and Bert to provide news of our part of Allegany County. We wish the Browns all the best in retirement but we still plan on inviting them to the Gazette meetings once every three months.

Short Tract Fire Company News ('05)

We are happy to announce that the fire hall is nearly completed. Watch for an upcoming announcement for our dedication of the building. We plan to be able to use our new building for this year'’ fundraisers, hopefully starting with the Mother’s Day chicken barbecue, May 8th. We will start serving at noon. The chicken dinners go quickly, so be sure to come and pick up your meals before they’re all gone!

We will be printing more Fire Company Anniversary Books very soon. We are always looking for additional pictures. If you have anything of interest to add to our book, please contact Jeff Luckey at xxx-xxxx.

Haiti Medical/Dental Mission Trip

Early Monday morning, January 16, 2006, Dr. Calvin, Paulette and Adrienne Schierer set out on an adventure to provide medical care and eyeglasses to the people in the southern mountains of Haiti. There were 14 on the team (mostly from the Houghton area) and as we set out on our trip, we knew that the Lord was with us, as we experienced some airport security problems with some medications and supplies we took to accomplish our work there. But the Lord truly took care of many of those small snags and was with us throughout our trip to provide safety, working lights, filtered water and good health.

During the eight days of clinics that we held, the medical team saw 937 people, did 6 surgical procedures, and delivered a baby boy – that was the highlight of the trip for me. Dr. Schierer saw 189 people for eye related problems and dispensed 93 pairs of reading glasses. The dental team saw 622 people and extracted 1,419 teeth. So we kept very busy and were able to help a lot of people while there.

Riding up and over the mountains, along the rocky river bed and through the river, crossing it 41 times, and then through the trees and up the last mountain was truly an adventure. The best part of all of it was seeing the smiles on the faces of the Haitians, knowing we could provide a good service to the people there.

Town Meetings

In colonial days, as today, town citizens in New York held town meetings so they could address the problems and issues they faced collectively.

Town meetings also serve as a social function. It brings people together who might not otherwise know each other, which can strengthen social ties within a town and help people work together to tackle community problems.

Attendance at town meetings has generally declined through the years. A trend that has officials in many town wondering what to do.

In colonial times attendance was mandatory and towns fined eligible citizens for not attending. Today, towns rely on their citizen’s sense of civic duty to motivate attendance.

Since Revolutionary times our military has fought and died for our freedom to hold town meetings and for our right to choose if we care to attend or not.

Thirty-five citizens attended the last three town meetings. The November meeting was attended by 15 citizens, December, nine attended and in January 11 attended. Of the 589 citizens (July 2005 www.ecanned.com), approximately 130 are under the age of eighteen. This means that only about 7.6% of the eligible-to-vote usually attend town meetings. Granted, this is not the best time of year to count attendance, but oppressed people in other countries would consider it a privilege and an honor to have open town meetings and be informed on the workings of the local government any month of the year.

At best, out patriotism is still a work in progress, one that, in the end, is defined by deeds and not words. We are not just fans in the stadium; we are each a player on the field.

When is the last time you attended a town meeting? When is the last time you stayed for the entire meeting? When was the last time you asked a question during the meeting? Proposed an amendment to an article? Asked the town council to include an article in the warrant?

Is there a night that would be better for you to attend? Why not come and present that to the Board? Why not run for a position on the board during the next election…especially the women of our community? Did you know the Board is comprised of all men?

Inside the Town of Granger - Supervisor's Report

The Town Board has finalized the 2008 budget, which will call for a tax increase of about 2.9%. The increasing price of fuel is a concern for the town just as it is for most of you. We also need to continue to replace some of our old, high repair cost equipment.

We have finally passed a water use agreement with the Short Tract United Methodist Church to allow the Town Hall access to water from the church. Once we get water hooked up, the new bathroom in the Town Hall will be functional at last. We hoped to get this done earlier in the summer, but we still hope we can get water piped into the town hall before winter.

The Highway Department rebuilt about one mile of the Old State Road as part of their CHIPS project this summer. It is just north of the intersection with Walbridge Road. I often drive over that section of road and know that they did a great job on the project. Kevin had the highway department preparing the trucks for plowing and sanding now. They have been out and sanded twice so far this fall, so we know full time snow removal is in the near future. The town bought a used 1999 Volvo dump truck from the Town of Cincinatus a few weeks ago for $38,000.00. We hope it will get us by for a few years. Our problem now is that our part time employee has quit, so we don’t have a third driver.

The people of Granger should thank Clair Luckey for many years of service as town councilman. We also need to welcome our new incoming councilman, Josh James, as he will be taking office January first.

The Town Board meets on the second Monday of every month at 7:00 PM at the Town Hall. These are open meetings, please feel free to attend if you wish.

Uncle Sam Here We Come!

Two of our local Fillmore graduates are entering the Service to protect what we call “Our’s” and hope it stays that way.

Jacob Mueckl left July 28th to join the Marines at Boot Camp, Paris Island, South Carolina. He is scheduled for 13 weeks. Will have a 10 day leave to come home and will then return to camp for further Advanced Training.

Hawk Chandler also left July 28th to join the Army at Fort Benning, Georgia for 13 weeks. A short leave will follow and afterwards he will return to camp for Advanced Infantry training.

We congratulate both of these young men for having the courage to defend our country and we send our prayers in their direction to help them accomplish this. Congratulations, fellows. Thumbs up – always!