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The OBSERVER’s View

ENDORSEMENT: Assembly race has new faces

There have been a lot of issues thrown around in the race between Michael Bobseine and Andrew Molitor to see who will replace the retiring Andrew Goodell in the state Assembly. Bobseine comes with a lengthy history of public service and experience through his time as a Chautauqua County legislator and Fredonia school board member. He has stated his support for Proposition 1 on this year’s election ballot, redesigning health care in New York state, amending the state’s Freshwater Wetlands Act to more clearly states activities exempt from state regulation, and gun safety that he ...

FOOTBALL: New trophy adds to atomosphere

A more than 100-year-old rivalry will add a new piece on Friday. Fredonia Mayor Michael Ferguson announced the Hillbillies-Dunkirk Marauders football game will now include a trophy. “Hopefully, it will be a trophy that will be passed around for years between the two schools,” he said. Plaques with the scores and winners of each game will get engraved on the trophy. All things considered, it is a nice touch. Many rivalry games — especially those in the college level — play for something. Michigan and Minnesota play for the Little Brown Jug while to the east, Cortland and Ithaca ...

ARKWRIGHT Small town keeps chugging along

Arkwright Supervisor Brian McAvoy offered some insight that many do not consider when it comes to putting together a spending plan. His thoughts came after the town reduced its tax rate by 1.8%. Though the town’s biggest claim to fame may be that it was one of the first to venture into deals with wind-turbine companies, McAvoy recently remarked about assessment, fair market value and equalization rates. He said the fair market value of the homes in the town have increased 67% over the last 10 years. His point: the town offers a “competitive” tax rate compared to neighboring ...

RIPLEY: Time will tell if land investment pays off

We’ve long called for investment into shovel-ready sites in Chautauqua County. So it’s hard to be critical of a $1,999,999 federal investment in the site announced last week by U.S. Rep. Nick Langworthy and Sen. Charles Schumer. We’ve heard a lot about the Ripley site over the years. Now, we may see some action come spring now that the county has secured about $13 million of the project’s original $16 million price tag. County officials are looking for another $3 million from the federal Economic Development Administration to fully pay for the work. We hope this investment ...

STATE Regents need more urgent regional plan

Taxpayers should want to see the state Board of Regents’ latest push for collaboration succeed. But we fear the Regents aren’t seeing the big picture with the push announced by the Regents in September. A proposed amendment creates a new section of state Education Commissioner’s recommendations regarding BOCES and a separate subsection for regionalization plans. Each school district that is part of a BOCES district will work with the BOCES superintendent to develop and implement a regionalization plan at least every 10 years. Plans have to include initiatives to increase ...

DUNKIRK Assessor ignores major property

There is one major option the city of Dunkirk assessor needs to consider before making a push for a reassessment of properties in the municipality. It involves an almost abandoned parcel that once paid the highest taxes in Chautauqua County. For the record, a Payment in Lieu of Taxes agreement with the county Industrial Development Agency expired in 2023 that involves that prime plot near the waterfront and is owned by NRG Energy Inc. that includes a mothballed power plant. Payment last year to the city by NRG, according to those documents, was only $134,000. That’s a drop in the ...