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The OBSERVER’s View

Celebrating village icon’s 100 years

Gowanda’s Historic Hollywood Theater in the heart of downtown is giving the community a reason to celebrate. Three days of festivities, beginning Friday, have been planned to celebrate 100 years since the Hollywood Theater was first opened in 1926. “There will be lots to look at to see where we were and where we are now, so we made it into a three-day event,” said Deb Harris, Project Coordinator at Gowanda’s Historic Hollywood Theater. Friday’s happening includes a Centennial Gala while Saturday is the Centennial Hollywood Happening – a throwback to pay homage to the ...

FREDONIA: Rejecting partnership still haunts village

For the moment, a ruling has allowed the village to move ahead with its Fredonia Water System Improvement Project. Last week, state Supreme Court Justice Grace Hanlon rejected claims by three village residents who sought to overturn a September resolution. Another appeal may be in the works, but there is no denying the embarrassment that comes with constant boil-water orders — 10 in the last 37 months. The most recent, at the end of March, came at a very inopportune time for the State University of New York at Fredonia. During an open house for those who were admitted to the ...

No meeting, results from council

Never before has a canceled Dunkirk Common Council meeting caused such a commotion. About five hours before the scheduled event Tuesday, the city sent out a notice announcing no gathering will take place. Frustrations on social media from the story posted by the OBSERVER seemed over the top. Whether the issue has to do with the quitting of the dog-control officer or a lack of morale inside City Hall, there really is nothing the council can do. Their hands are tied. Dunkirk — a $30 million entity — is barely getting by due to its very public fiscal crisis. In some instances, the ...

Welcome news for Westfield industry

An important cog in the economy of Westfield received some significant news earlier this month. Empire State Development announced that Renold Inc. at 100 Bourne St. will undergo a $2.975 million transformation to include a dedicated advanced manufacturing cell, optimizing the production of high-demand industrial couplings. Renold designs and manufactures custom gear spindles, couplings and specialized gearing. Its products are used in industries ranging from cement and chocolate manufacturing to subway trains and power stations. Specifically, the area facility produces a unique ...

Taking action with rural suicide

In 2024, Gov. Kathy Hochul vetoed legislation that would have created a Rural Suicide Prevention Council to address increasing rates of suicide in rural counties. The reason for the veto, you may ask? Money and concerns about duplication. Those were unconvincing reasons in 2024. If the reintroduced legislation passes the state Legislature during this session, Hochul should correct her mistake and sign the legislation into law. All one needs to do is look at the increased rates of rural suicide to see that existing state efforts wouldn’t be duplicative since they rarely make much ...

NEW YORK STATE: Tier 6 reform is costly proposition

Public employee unions are pushing hard for changes to the way pensions for government jobs are funded. If your social media feed has been flooded with calls for Tier 6 reform, here’s a primer. In 2010 former Gov. David Paterson’s Tier 5 plan rolled back pension benefit sweeteners approved by the state Legislature in the early 2000s, while in 2012 former Gov. Andrew Cuomo pushed through legislation creating Tier 6 in the state pension system. Cuomo further restructured benefits, restored and increased employee shares of pension fund contributions, capped “pensionable” overtime, ...