Food drive makes the news

Be sure to watch WGRZ's report about how the students at Royalton-Hartland School District Middle School stocked the shelves of the Gasport Community Food Pantry & Clothing Closet. This is why I'm always thankful to live in the community where I do. Gasport/Roy-Hart is a great place to raise a family!

Breakfast With Santa

Holahan retires from Roy-Hart

I was fortunate to have Mr. Holahan as a teacher back in my junior high days. Great guy. He's been an accomplished, impactful teacher and coach for Royalton-Hartland School District. He led Roy-Hart's varsity volleyball team for 44 years (he also coached basketball and softball). He retires today. Thank you, Bill, for positively impacting so many lives.

The 13th annual Mitten Tree

The Mitten Tree is up!

When you’re out and about shopping for Christmas, please extend your giving beyond your family. Please buy a gift for a needy child in Gasport.

This is the thirteenth year for this awesome program that is run by the Gasport Lions Club.

Here’s how it works…

The tree is located out front of the Gasport post office at the corner of Main Street and Route 31.
Take a mitten from it and give a gift that is appropriate to the age/gender of the child noted on the mitten.

Attach the mitten to the unwrapped gift and drop it off at Absolut Care or Drum Oil (they have drop boxes) or at the Elementary School (under the tree in the lobby). The Lions Club will distribute the gifts in time for the holidays.

Please participate and make Christmas a little better for a child – maybe even your neighbor – who is in need. That’s what the holiday is all about.

Fireball visible in Gasport

On Sunday, November 24th, I witnessed a very large, very green fireball in Gasport, in broad daylight...7:15 AM.

After posting this observation on Facebook, two other Gasport residents said they saw it.

And, the American Meteor Society's reports page showed that quite a few people saw it in a wide area.

Replacement trees being planted

Here's a photo that Dr. Stopinski posted on Twitter. These are trees being being placed at the High School to replace those removed by FMC remediation

WGRZ comes to Roy-Hart

WGRZ's Heather Ly was at Royalton-Hartland School District's Middle School to film a story about the highly successful food drive that benefits the Gasport Food Pantry

Food Drive at the Elementary School

Looks like there could be some friendly competition going on. Do you think the Elementary School can beat the Middle School in items collected? You know who wins when it's all said and done, though? Families in need of the towns of Royalton and Hartand who use the services of the Gasport Food Pantry. These drives teach kids great lessons about charity and service that hopefully lead to a lifetime of the same.

Thanksgiving Eve in Gasport

The evening before Thanksgiving is one of America's biggest bar/nightclub nights of the year as snowbirds, expats, etc. return home for the holiday and want to catch up with friends while in town.

Gasport certainly has its share of Thanksgiving Eve events.

The Canalside Inn's party features Last Call (unplugged) from 9 until midnight. The event page is: https://www.facebook.com/events/2540613929364346/

Chop Shop Bar and Grill features DJ One Ten from 10:00 PM until 1:00 AM. The event page is: https://www.facebook.com/events/532708667295109/

Becker Farms and Vizcarra Vineyards has a shindig from 6 until midnight with live music from Dave Stockton, drink specials, and food specials. The Facebook page is here: https://www.facebook.com/events/621556582000543/

Nerds Gone Wild

FMC award

FMC has been recognized for leadership in environmental, health, safety and security performance by the American Chemistry Council (ACC) with the Responsible Care® Company of the Year Award for its TH!NK. SAFE.™program, which is at the core of the company's safety commitment. TH!NK. SAFE. fosters a dynamic safety culture through interactive programs that engage all levels of the organization. A visible example of FMC’s commitment is this signage prominently displayed at FMC’s Middleport plant. FMC also received a Sustainability Leadership Award for 2019 from ACC.

Music Club fundraiser

The Roy-Hart Music Parents Club is selling gift cards in time for holiday gift giving. All proceeds earned from the sale of the gift cards support the Roy-Hart Music program. Details can be found on the following webpage or you may contact rhmusicparents@gmail.com for more information. The website is: https://www.royhart.org/Page/271

PORC video on hunting around solar

Protect Our Rural Communities has produced this video that offers their assessment of how solar will affect hunting and recreational use of firearms:

https://vimeo.com/374076340?ref=fb-share&fbclid=IwAR1Zz0BS7mUYRNEP-y-sdaGNKrwvIJU12ncWYrN76P7WEFmuwYziWyYxC-M

Hartland solar open house; November 20

 

Food pantry: November 23rd

Monthly food pantry distribution is this Saturday, November 23rd.

It will be a two-part distribution: The regular monthly allotment and a special Thanksgiving meal package. The Thanksgiving package is only available to those who had signed up for it (registration for it has closed).

At Saturday's distribution you can also sign-up for the special Christmas meal package.

Mills Jewelers contest coming to Gasport

Mills Jewelers has been in business for 90 awesome years. As a part of their anniversary celebration they've been hiding gift cards throughout various communities. Tomorrow is Gasport's turn. George Fritz's team will be hiding $100 gift cards all over Gasport. Find one, share it, and they'll validate the card. Follow the directions inside the box. Check out Mills Facebook and Instagram page for clues on Tuesday, November 19

Spaghetti dinner: Tuesday, November 19th

Scouting For Food nets huge results

Scouting For Food was super-successful! The Gasport Food Pantry got 1,023 items thanks to the donations by the community and the collection efforts of Pack 18 and Troop 18. Wow!

Roy-Hart musicians are among the best!

Mike Outten: 'War is on to save Hartland'

Here's a US&J report about Ridge View opponents seeing a mandate in 2019 election results:

https://www.lockportjournal.com/news/local_news/mike-outten-war-is-on-to-save-hartland/article_c95dc2e2-d88f-573a-af0f-7c008748430e.html

Victor Wainright and the Train in Geneseo this weekend

If you want to see Gasport's own Pat Harrington in action with Victor Wainright and the Train, the band is in Geneseo this weekend

https://www.thedailynewsonline.com/bdn05/ticket-to-ride-victor-wainwright-amp-the-train-celebrate-musics-roots-20191114

Roy-Hart FFA at Nationals

Our Royalton-Hartland FFA members represented our school and NY FFA very well at the 2019 National FFA Convention in Indianapolis!

In the National Environmental and Natural Resource Career Development Event, Roy-Hart earned a silver ranking - placing 25th of 44 schools. Individual results include:

- Ashton Becker - Gold Ranking - 31st Place
- Aidan Covert - Silver Ranking - 100th Place
- Tagen Decker - Silver Ranking - 122nd Place
- Lorna Becker - Bronze Ranking - 134th Place

Christmas auction

This Sunday, November 17th, Covenant United Church on Main Street will have their Annual Christmas Auction to help fund mission projects for their youth group. There is a wide variety of new items and gift certificates available. It's a great opportunity to work on Christmas shopping (or something for yourself!) while supporting CUCC's teens. Item preview and luncheon at 11:30. Auction starts at noon.

Here's the Facebook event page:

https://www.facebook.com/events/532155167622911/

Holiday Farm Trail

Unique, small, niche, and organic farms in eastern Niagara County are having a Holiday Farm Trail event next month:

https://www.facebook.com/events/2448863618723249/

Solar projects in the news

Tuesday's Buffalo News features this cover story about the solar projects in Hartland and Royalton (and elsewhere):

https://t.co/nQedmPtyBo?amp=1

Middle School food drive

Wow! Check out the charity of the middle school students and staff at the Royalton-Hartland School District. 6,184 items were collected for the Gasport Community Food Pantry & Clothing Closet. This collection will benefit the Pantry immensely...last month alone it served 120 people. THANK YOU, students and staff, for showing why Roy-Hart is a community of big hearts!

Always Christmas open house

Why is the Christmas season so special?

How about Dan Bragg dressed up as one of Santa's helpers?

The annual Always Christmas Open House will be held at Standish Jones on Saturday, November 16, 2019 from 11 am - 4 pm. Enjoy games, giveaways, and activities while the little ones visit Santa Claus. 

If you haven't been to Always Christmas (the all-year Christmas store on the top floor of Standish-Jones) in a while, you are in for a surprise....there are many new Christmas items, toys, and games.

Here is the Facebook event page: https://www.facebook.com/events/2138601406436395/

Roy-Hart food drive

Our community has big hearts. Royalton-Hartland School District middle school principal Danielle Alterio reports that the Middle School's food drive is getting competitive in the final hours. This photo is a donation Mrs. Austin’s students brought in today. So far, the Middle School has collected over 4,000 items -- keep in mind there are only 375 students in the building!

Christmas Cupboard

Hartland election results

The results from Tuesday's elections are in.

Hartland supervisor Ross Annable retains his position, staving off a strong write-in campaign by Mike Outten, 505 votes to 407 votes.

Hartland's councilmen will be Cliff Grant and David Hill. They received 697 and 548 votes respectively. Write-in candidate James Minner received 364 votes.

Royalton hits the polls

Kudos to voters in the town of Royalton on how they embrace their civic duty. Despite none of the town and county positions being contested and State Supreme Court Justice being the only race of choice, nearly 880 voters still took to the polls! Impressive.

Ross Annable video

Here is a campaign video submitted by Hartland Supervisor Ross Annable

https://www.facebook.com/gasportnewyork/videos/516396909268751/?__xts__[0]=68.ARDLvbmpJrisMYcSTdnleQh_oYyCWJ8U2ioP8MfJ191ZzkQ5x1raRluIXH89p-S3oX28_G7bHi6Itb6x894ZeDZn_Dm6yJN1AxY13XSFB7c0JvMqRjaVw04GjO2ZSSG0VtoarsHIIHVEr-_zf-YH0UxXKTBNE9lDOh6Yg3E4ApbFhTVWXpnaa0aPW-zqFR08kwwKxcn1h4Du3ya7RxdrPLNle2jg6CThJzD3IqswljvGnRVFw1kF5kzAro0RrmLfaczJOc8xbNdafqJ0xjUAHYHOKEEvlfhtkE29bkeasbPLlLUQ8b0vTer3vss2TaLDUm4Z&__tn__=-R

Solar open house

A second video about Mike Outten

The Friends of Mike Outten have produced a second campaign video:

https://www.facebook.com/100011436477996/videos/1109894272735111/

Mike Outten video

Here is a campaign video produced by the Friends of Mike Outten

https://www.facebook.com/100011436477996/videos/1109383842786154/

Letter from Ross Annable

This message comes from Hartland Town Supervisor Ross Annable...

Re-Elect Ross Annable Town Supervisor

Dear Hartland Voter:

I am writing to ask for your vote for Town Supervisor on November 5th.

I have been your Supervisor for the past eight years. During that time many improvements have been completed. These include lights for our ball diamonds through a Niagara Greenway grant, also a new pavilion and splash pad added using casino revenue funds. Interactive playground equipment is also planned for the future. Our park is a true gem for the town and is used by many residents including the July 4th celebration.

In addition, many improvements to the highway department have been made including storage facilities, the use of army surplus vehicles and equipment resulting in large savings. The highway and water departments were merged resulting in a more efficient operation. When possible shared services are utilized such as a shared assessor with the Royalton and snow removal contracts with the state and county.

The Town of Hartland is a great place to live. My family has lived in Hartland for several generations. I was raised in a Christian home and grew up at Hartland Baptist Church. Throughout a 40-year career in law enforcement, honesty, treating people fairly and equally has been a priority.

My goal has been to provide an efficient operation while keeping taxes stable. The town has no debt and the tax rate has remained stable for the last several years. The town is in sound financial shape. We have been able to stay under the state tax cap since its inception.

My opponent is running on a platform against a solar project that has been presented to the town. He is using distorted facts as to the introduction of the proposal. He has painted me as the face of solar and that this project was secretly planned.

The real facts are EDF Renewables presented a proposal to the town board in the spring. The board studied the project and felt this proposal should go to the residents for input. As supervisor it is not possible for me to enter into any project without the board and the public’s input. I have a neutral position until I hear from all the residents. It is vital that we get every ones opinion.

As far as secrecy, there is none. In August, two newspapers announced and reported on an open meeting as well as 1500 mailers sent to introduce the project. The town board met with both planning and zoning boards for input as well. The responsibility of any board member is to look at all proposals with an open mind before making decisions that impact the town.

I want the town residents to decide on this important issue. This project is in the early stages of study and several open meetings will be held to hear residents’ opinions. This study will take many months to provide meetings for residents to learn information on the impact to the town.
The town currently has solar laws limiting solar farms. These laws would need to be amended before the project could progress.

Benefits of this project would assist our local farmers by providing them a steady income revenue. The other benefit to the town would be annual payments upwards of half a million dollars with annual 2 percent increases. This funding would allow the town to keep taxes stable for 25 plus years, and help maintain our roads and an aging water system. It would also provide additional funding for our fire departments.

This project needs further study to understand the impact. It is the board’s obligation to consider all the facts and make a decision based on our resident’s response.

My opponent is using many inaccurate facts regarding the proposal, and trying to smear my leadership. I met with my opponent on this issue and informed him of my position, yet he continues to spew his misinformation. I attended the PORC open information meeting, but was not allowed to speak.

I have always looked out for the town and would never consider anything of this proportion without your input. I invite you to come to an open house meeting on Nov. 20th from 4pm -8pm at the Hartland Fire Hall to hear the facts and decide for yourself.

Don’t let one person’s agenda decide this issue. No matter who your board members are, they are obligated to look at all projects and listen to all the residents. The position of supervisor has many day to day responsibilities and financial oversight to be considered. My opponent has no experience in town government and is only running to stop the study of the solar farm before you can make an informed decision. Don’t let one person decide this important issue.

I ask for your support and your vote to help me continue to provide quality service to our residents, thank you.

W. Ross Annable

October's rainfall

October continued the trend of an incredibly wet 2019 for Gasport. During the month we saw precipitation on 15 days for a total of 7.1" of rain. The three wettest days were the 2nd (1"), 27th (1.25"), and 31st (1.4").

Solar meeting: November 20

This message was posted in the town of Hartland's Facebook page...

Dear Hartland Resident:

This notice is to invite you to a meeting November 20th, 2019 from 4:00 pm – 8:00 pm at the Hartland Fire Company located at 8945 Ridge Rd. regarding a solar proposal by EDF Renewables. This is one of several meetings over the next few months to inform the public on a solar farm that has been proposed in Hartland. EDF presented the project to the board in early summer. An initial public meeting was held August 14th at the Hartland Fire Hall. The project proposed is a 2000-acre 350MW project utilizing agricultural property.

A proposal of this magnitude has many facets to learn and consider. It is an obligation of the board to thoroughly investigate any and all projects presented to the town or we would not be doing our due diligence. Benefits to the town are twofold. First is the benefit that would provide steady revenue for the landowner. As for the town, it is estimated revenue would be in the area of $500,000.00 annually with a 2% increase each year of the project. This would allow the town to stabilize taxes for 25 years or more.

As town officials it is our job to do our due diligence on projects that will impact the town. To do this we want to hear from our residents. This is a lengthy process to educate our residents and receive feedback on the project. It will take several months before any decision will be made. Currently the town has zoning laws in place that do not allow large solar farms. These laws would have to be amended in order to allow the project to proceed. Your feedback to the board will allow us to make a sound decision on the future of this project. Please plan on attending this meeting, or future meetings to address this important issue.

Sincerely,

Hartland Town Board