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WJTN News Headlines for Oct. 8, 2019

Jamestown Mayor Sam Teresi will unveil his 20th, and final budget proposal later today for the new year starting next January 1st....  

Teresi will outline the $35-million-plus spending plan on the Charter-mandated deadline date of October 8th.  During last night's City Council work session, he said the presentation will begin at 4 PM in the Mayor's Conference Room at City Hall.

There will be no tax increase in the spending plan, because the city is at 100-percent of the city's constitutional taxing limit.  Lawmakers will begin looking to see what cuts and other changes could be made starting at the work session on October 21st.  Finance Committee Chairman Tony Dolce says the two biggest budgets will be reviewed at the first meeting in November.  Those are the Police and Fire Department budgets and, they'll wrap up initial looks at budgets on November 18th with Department of Development, the Fenton History Center and Senior Center among those being reviewed.  Dolce says, on October 21st, the council will review the Public Works and Parks budgets.  The final budget must be adopted by the City Council by December 1st.


Jamestown city officials are looking into the possibility of providing some free on-street parking adjacent to the Chautauqua County Department of Motor Vehicles office on West Third Street....  

That after County Clerk Larry Barmore recently asked the City Council to consider the move to relieve traffic congestion in their "very cramped" off street lot next to the DMV offices.

Barmore asked council to consider removing the meters on up to 6 or 7 spaces on West Third Street that could be designated for "DMV Parking Only."  He says few of the metered spots in that part of the city are used daily and, could be used for this.  Barmore says there are three seldom-used spots across the street, and seven on their side of West Third.  He says they would be happy with three or four of those.  
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City officials are still looking at the matter, but Mayor Sam Teresi says it's unlikely they can legally provide "designated" parking because every business wants that.  However, he says they are looking more at the idea of some limited, free, short-term parking on street in that area.  More on this story later today.


A city woman is being held on drug possession and obstruction charges following an incident of Cherry Street in the early hours of Monday morning...  

Jamestown police say they spotted multiple people trespassing near the Prendergast Library at midnight.  During the investigation, officers spoke to the subjects and one female reportedly gave a false name.  Police say the woman began walking away to keep from being arrested and was located a short distance away when she allegedly began to run away from officers. Later identified as 27 year-old Crystal Depew, she was taken into custody and found in possession of cocaine, fentanyl and a digital scale.  She's being held in the city jail pending arraignment.  


A shooting incident that occured in the village of Sherman Sunday morning that left a Mayville man dead was not a random act....  

That from Chautauqua County Sheriff Jim Quattrone, who says 25-year-old Julio Montanez of Jamestown has been charged with first-degree manslaughter after the shootin, which occured after an altercation in the area of 114 West Main Street in the village.

Quattrone says the victim, 29-year-old Justin Gibbons, was targeted by Montanez in the shooting.  However, he says they are not releasing a motive at this time.  Quattrone says the investigation is continuing.  Montanez is being held in the county jail on $100,000 cash bail.


Cornell Cooperative Extension in Chautauqua County -- the last tenant at the Ag Center -- will leave that facility by the end of the year....  

That from Extension Executive Director Emily Reynolds, who say after many years at the Ag Center, they are moving to the Carnanhan Center at Jamestown Community College.  Reynolds says some Four-H and Extension meetings will be held at JCC beginning this month.  She says their offices will move at the end of the fall semester.  The Bratt Agriculture Center, near the Jamestown airport, was built 40 years ago, to bring ag related services together under one roof.  The U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Soil and Water Conservation Service left the ag center six years ago.  The future of the county-owned building in unknown.  


The Chautauqua County League of Women Voters is gearing up for a series of political debates that will be held in Dunkirk, Jamestown and Fredonia over the next couple of weeks....  

The League's Marcia Merrins says the first debate will be this evening at 7 PM at Dunkirk City Hall and, adds that'll be followed by a debate the following Tuesday in Jamestown.

The final debate will be in Fredonia on Wednesday, October 23rd.  Merrins says they encourage the public to attend the forums and ask questions of the candidates.  She says they encourage that.  Merrins says the league does not give the questions to the candidates prior to the debates.  Election Day is Tuesday, November 5th.

 
New York is taking most 17-year-olds with offenses out of the adult criminal justice system.... 

The change is effective this month under the second part of 2017 legislation that raised New York's age of criminal responsibility to 18.  The first part of the law addressing most 16-year-olds went into effect last year.  New York had been among the last states that automatically prosecuted 16- and 17-year-olds as adults.  Supporters say incarcerating youth alongside adults is connected with higher suicide rates and increased recidivism.  This year's state budget includes $200 million in funding for programs such as diversion services.  Under the legislation, such young people charged with misdemeanors would have their cases tried in family court proceedings.  Those charged with violent felonies would remain in criminal court under some circumstances.