MAYVILLE — Sometimes the most forward-thinking among us are those first to realize they took a wrong turn, and then reverse course and take the right road. In that light, congratulations go to the Chautauqua County legislature. Let’s set the stage. During its regular meetings, the ...

The tiny village was named after its tranquil little lake. My dictionary defines placid as serene, gentle, calm. Writing last week’s column about the 1980 Olympics brought back memories that were anything but peaceful. The downtown streets were loud, crowded and fun. It doesn’t seem ...

The front page of a recent Friday edition of the OBSERVER was loaded with a lot of very interesting news. The first thing that caught my eye, as it usually does on Friday, was John D’Agostino’s Editor’s corner. It was another of his takes on the budgetary insanity that continues to ...

This Valentine’s Day has brought some great news to love with an increase of 1.2% in spring enrollment for the SUNY Fredonia campus under the leadership of the current administration. This is indeed very positive news amid the nationwide enrollment crisis, especially for the regional campuses ...

Our State Senator, county officials and others have advocated that the old NRG power plant in Dunkirk be reopened as a natural gas/electric plant. It is a proposal that should be considered. I can still remember the day when then Governor Andrew Cuomo went to Dunkirk and promised a big crowd ...

Last weekend’s papers had the County Legislature’s Republican majority leader, Jamie Gustafson, critical of the three provisions of the “Affordability Act of 2026” introduced at the January County Legislature meeting by me as the assistant minority leader and Bob Banksoski, the minority ...