Ferguson echoes Hochul wariness on data centers

July 25, 2026

Fredonia Mayor Michael Ferguson has echoed New York Gov. Kathy Hochul’s cautious approach to large-scale data centers. Ferguson told the village Board of Trustees that he participated in a Hochul roundtable discussion Monday afternoon about the centers. Hochul just announced a year-long moratorium on state regulatory approval of new data centers. “They’re popping up,” Ferguson said. “This came up when we had the windmill issue, then we had the solar farm issues, and now data centers and hyper-speed data centers are becoming part of the mix.” Ferguson mentioned ...

ImmunityBio says it is ‘incredibly committed’ to Dunkirk

July 25, 2026

In 1940, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill famously said, in relation to the Battle of Dunkirk, “Wars are not won by evacuation.” A special guest at a recent Dunkirk Town Board meeting referenced that quote in relation to Chautauqua County’s own Dunkirk – rather than the ...

Dunkirk residents fear disaster with frequent bridge mishaps

July 25, 2026

For the past two months since the Route 5 detour was implemented to divert traffic away from the Canadaway Creek Bridge while it is being replaced, drivers have been ignoring road signs and using local underpasses for target practice with their vehicles. Local residents have become ...

Getting a taste of Spain while on the trail

July 26, 2026

Editor’s note: This is the second of three parts. On our way north along the Portuguese Camino we crossed into Spain after crossing the river Minho in a small open boat at the town of Caminha, Portugal. The wind had whipped up a pretty good chop on the water, and although it was a rather ...

A lesson from the fourth grade talent show

July 26, 2026

When I was in 4th grade I had a wonderful teacher. She was young, beautiful, kind and caring. My classmates and I could never pronounce her name and we certainly couldn’t spell it. I think I could pen it correctly now but it was her maiden name and we kids often just referred to her as Miss M. It was early in Miss M’s career when she taught me. It may have even been her first year of teaching. I don’t remember the exact details of her teaching career. I do remember sitting on the carpet in her classroom in Cluster One and listening to her read to us. My classmates and I were ...

County’s finest

July 24, 2026

A couple of Dunkirk’s finest were recently honored for saving a life last year. Fire Department Captain Tony Thomas was named Co-Firefighter of the Year by the Chautauqua County Fire Advisory Board. Retired Police Chief Chris Witkowski was presented with the Citizen of the Year Award by the ...