Sheffield firefighters battled a fire at an apartment building at 17 Center Street for 14 Hours this past Saturday. The Warren Times Observer reports the initial call came in just after 3am. The fire was spotted and called in by a resident of the building and the tenant was able to evacuate his building and another apartment building located about 30 feet from the scene. The apartment house was a total loss, but all of the residents were evacuated safely with no injuries. The Cause of the fire is still under investigation by state fire marshalls. Firefighters from Cherry Grove, Kane, Ludlow, Clarendon, Starbrick, Youngsville, Lander and Pleasant Township all played a part in putting the fire out. The Red Cross was not needed as all of the tenants have family had family or friends to stay with.
Falling temperatures and snow slicked up roads in the Jamestown-area late yesterday afternoon... triggering a few minor accidents. A car rolled onto it's side... sending one person to the hospital in the town of Busti. Lakewood-Busti Police were called to the scene at the intersection of Southwestern Drive and Baker Street Extension about 4:30 PM. Officers say the woman driver was taken to WCA Hospital as a precaution. Police say two other cars also went off the road at the same time... but, no one in those vehicles was hurt.
A Jamestown man has been arrested on several charges for allegedly assaulting a woman last weekend at a home on the city's southside. City police were called to the scene at 170 Baker Street about 7:30 AM Saturday for an "in-progress" domestic violence incident. On arrival... officers say they spotted the suspect -- identified as 34 year-old Michael Hecht -- trying to flee from a second-story window. They contacted the victim... and, then found Hecht trying to hide in an attic crawl space. Police say their investigation resulted in Hecht being charged with counts including second-degree unlawful imprisonment... and, criminal obstruction of breathing or blood circulation. He was arraigned and sent to the county jail on 7-thousand dollars bail. Police say Hecht is also wanted in the Buffalo-area on several outstanding warrants.
A New Year's day raid of a home in the north county has led to the arrest of a Forestville man for allegedly running a Methamphetime Lab. Sheriff's officers say they had an arrest warrant for 34 year-old Shaun Ellison of 8 Lodi Street for allegedly running the lab. Deputies say they and the Southern Tier Regional Drug Task Force had been called to that location earlier for an unrelated incident. While investigating the initial incident... police say they allegedly found a "Meth Lab." Once it was located... officers brought in State Police C-C-SERT Team to collect evidence... and, clean-up the toxic residue from making Meth. Sheriff's officers and Task Force members say they found more than 8 ounces of "Meth Oil" and, the lab. Ellison is charged with one count of third-degree Unlawfully Manufacturing Methamphetamine. More charges are pending. Police say Ellison was arraigned and sent to the county jail on 5-thousand dollars bail. Task Force officials continue to ask members of the community to call their number at 1-800-344-8702 if they spot any illegal narcotics-related activity.
The three new members of the Jamestown Board of Public Utilities for the next four years have very diverse business and education backgrounds. The three new members replace long-time board members John Zabrodsky, Carl Pillitierri, and Wayne Rishell. Mayor Sam Teresi's appointments -- including the three new members -- were approved unanimously by City Council at last Friday's reorganizational meeting. Teresi says the first appointee is Tyler Case... who comes from the world of Human Resources. Teresi says the other two are: Terrance Horner... a retired Biomedical Technician at WCA Hospital... and, Vietnam Veteran... and, Jamestown Metal Products Operations Manager Ralph Wallace. Wallace was also a member of Teresi's original Budget Advisory Committee. The mayor also took time to thank the former board members... who served 12, 14, and 16 years on the panel... saying they were "good board members." He also thanked them for their service and accomplishments. Zabrodsky, Pillitierri and Rishell became known for opposing the city taking a Dividend Payment from BPU profits.
The out-going Third Ward City Councilman in Jamestown says he'll remain involved in civic matters... while pushing for more involvement in the community. Pastor Alfonso Pagan was on the City Council for just over a year... and, while it was challenging... he enjoyed what he did. Pagan adds he "learned a lot" about how the city operates. He also complemented his fellow council members for their commitment. Pagan... who is pastor of the Hispanic church affiliated with First Covenant Church in Jamestown... says he will now try to encourage more people to get involved in the community, and run for office. Pagan was the first member of the Hispanic community to be on council in several years. He admits that sometimes "it takes something bad to get people to come together..." or say they'll do something about it. Pagan was defeated in a close race last November by former County Legislator and Jamestown Youth Bureau Director Vickeye James.
New York lawmakers returning to Albany this week face a long list of challenges as they seek to move past a disastrous 2015. The Legislature kicks off the 2016 session on Wednesday. It will likely be dominated by debates about a 15-dollar-an-hour minimum wage, education funding and efforts to address a chronic corruption problem that last year toppled the leaders of both the Assembly and the Senate. Also expected are proposals to let the ride-hailing service Uber expand upstate and to address homelessness in New York City. Lawmakers are eager to turn the page on 2015. But... it remains to be seen whether they will heed calls to pass tougher ethics rules. Last year they passed only modest changes.
A town of Stockton man has been arrested for allegedly making Methamphetime in a lab inside his West Railroad Avenue home. Sheriff's officers say they initially went to 34 year-old Jesse Erhard's home back last December 22nd to serve an unrelated warrant. However... deputies say they found items used to manufacture Meth. Another warrant was obtained... and, agents with the Southern Tier Regional Drug Task Force raided the home shortly before 9 PM on New Year's Eve. The county's HazMat Team was also called in to clean-up the residence. Erhard was arraigned in Stockton Town Court on one count of Unlawfully Manufacturing Methamphetime... and, sent to the county jail on 25-thousand dollars bail. Task Force members say that if you know of any illegal narcotics activity in your area... call them at 1-800-344-8702.
A 25-year-old Republican has been sworn in as the mayor of Oswego, New York, becoming the youngest mayor in New York state. Billy Barlow was sworn in Friday and promised to support small business owners. According to WSYR-TV... Barlow said he wants to reform the city's code enforcement and building and permits process to make it easier for businesses to expand. Barlow won a four-year term in November. He received 2,216 votes to Democrat Amy Tresidder's 1,728. The salary for the mayor's post is 40-thousand dollars. Barlow graduated from Arizona State University and is a co-owner of his family's business, Barlow's Concessions. Oswego is a city of about 18,000 on Lake Ontario in north-central New York.
New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman is turning up the heat on a pair of daily fantasy sports websites. Officials confirmed late last week that Schnedierman filed a lawsuit seeking that FanDuel and DraftKings give back all the money the sites won in New York State. The attorney general is asking that the money be returned to the users who lost it and that the sites pay a fine up to $5,000 per case. The sites took in about $200 million in entry fees last year from about 600,000 New Yorkers. The lawsuit is the latest battle between Schneiderman and the increasingly popular sites. He has attempted to stop them from operating in New York, saying they are operating an illegal gambling operation. Neither site immediately returned a request for comment.
A Cassadaga man was arrested just before the New Year for assault following a party in the town of Charlotte back on December 12th. State Police in Jamestown say 22 year-old Benjamin Torres allegedly got into a fight with "intent to cause serious physical injury." Troopers say Torres allegedly broke the victim's jaw and nose... and, caused a concussion. He was arrested following a two-week long investigation... and, charged with second-degree Felony assault. Torres was arraigned in Charlotte Town Court... and, sent to the Chautauqua County Jail in lieu of 3-thousand dollars cash bail.
Students attending JCC in Jamestown will be getting a new cafeteria in 2016. College President, Dr. Cory Duckworth says the current cafeteria on Falconer Street hasn't been touched in decades. While the Collegiate Center facility is shut down, a temporary cafeteria will be up and running in the Weeks Room in the Arts and Science Center. The other major construction work at the local college in 2016 will be for maufacturing technology. Work is expected to begin on expanding the Manufacturing Technology Institute in Jamestown in the next few weeks. And the first ever MTI facility in Olean is already under construction, and will open this fall. Dr. Duckworth says these projects are a response to communities needs. A smaller construction project will be taking place at the Physical Education Center on the Jamestown campus. Some offices and a classroom will be added to support the new 'Sports Management' curriculum JCC is putting together. Dr. Duckworth made his comments on a New Year's edition of Media One's High School Bowl.
