Community Spotlight, the area's longest running local public affairs radio program, airs on all six Media One Radio Group stations each weekend and is also available to hear in our Podcast Section.  Each week we sit down with a community leader or another special guest to talk about issues within our community.  


Weather Forecasts are available across our radio stations each day and also as your fingertips! 

Connect with The National Weather Service's Buffalo Office or with WGRZ-TV for accurate weather information!

 

 

 


 

WJTN News Headlines

Chautauqua County officials say their official presentation of proposed projects in their application for the state's $20-million in Municipal Consolidation and Efficiency Competition went well. 

 

County Executive Vince Horrigan says he County Legislator George Borrello and, his Executive Assistant Dan Heitzenrater made a 20-minute presentation to a six-member review panel in Albany Wednesday about the 13-projects in the application. 

 

Horrigan says the county partnered with 23 local governments to develop the final application.  He says they had videos of mayors and supervisors who helped make the pitch to Gov. Andrew Cuomo's six-member review panel for the grant. 

 

Horrigan says the projects include the dissolution of the village of Cherry Creek into the town of Cherry Creek... merging the Portland and Brocton Fire Departments  and the proposed consolidation of the towns of Gerry and Charlotte into one town and, Sinclairville dissolving into that single town.  He says they aren't ready to announce how much each project would receive but, he says the county's Regional Solutions Commission would also receive some money for future project development. 

 

Horrigan says the panel told him the winner of the "winner-take-all" grant would likely be sometime between late August and early to mid-September.


Forecasters with the National Weather Service have now confirmed that two tornados struck parts of western New York, just south of Buffalo early Thursday afternoon. 

 

No injuries were reported as severe storms ripped through the area shortly after Noon... uprooting trees and knocking down power lines.  Governor Andrew Cuomo traveled to Hamburg to assess the damage.  He says additional utility crews had been called in to help restore electrical service there and other parts of the region. 

 

The first storm struck the Hamburg area at the Erie County Fairgrounds while the second hit in the town of Holland.


A Stockton man had to be hospitalized after his car slammed into another vehicle from behind on the Stockton-Cassadaga Road in the town of Stockton earlier this week. 

 

Sheriff's deputies say they were called to the scene about 8 p.m. Monday and, determined that 29 year-old Joshua Burke of Bowen Road was southbound when his car struck the car in front of him. 

 

Officers say the driver of the other car, 40 year-old Andrew Hall of Sherman, was not hurt.  Burke was taken to Westfield Memorial Hospital and treated for non-life-threatening injuries. 

 

He's been charged with aggravated unlicensed operation and, having no insurance. Burke was issued appearance tickets for Stockton Town Court.


Some unexpected retirements in the Police Department and overtime in the Fire Department has led spending to be over-budget for the first half of 2017. 

 

That from City Comptroller Joe Bellitto who presented first-half budget figures to the City Council at this week's work session.  Bellitto says they are about $300,000 over budget in Police buy-outs. 

 

While that's the case he believes the city will make up at least "some" of those costs once new hires are in place.  Bellitto adds that the fire department's overtime budget is up about $40,000 due to several arson fires this year. 

 

However he says they are still pretty much on target on salaries overall.  Bellitto also says the city had hoped to be presenting it's new incentive program to get Medicare eligible city retirees off the city's insurance plan by now. 

 

However he says their proposal was just recently approved by the state's Restructuring Board.  That means it won't be implemented until the fourth-quarter of the year because the attorney general's office has to sign off on it.  Bellitto adds that the city's health care spending is about half-a-percent over budget right now.


Two new Jamestown Police officers will be added to the ranks soon. 

 

However they won't be going onto the streets but, into the city's middle and high schools.  That from City Council Finance Committee Chairman Tony Dolce, who says his committee this week approved the hiring of three officers total to be School Resource Officers for the distrct. 

 

Dolce adds their cost will also be taken on by the school district at $95,000 for each of the three, total SROs.  He says once the hirings take place the Jamestown Police Department's ranks will increase to 62 officers. 

 

That's above the minimum staffing requirement in the city's IMPACT Agreement with the Kendall Club-PBA... the city policemen's union.  Dolce says with the increase in the number of officers it will decrease the city government's IMPACT Payment to the union membership. 

 

The hirings will be formally voted on by the full City Council at it's July 31 voting session.


A Warren, PA native who served in the U-S House of Representatives with Senator John McCain is wishing him well and, believes if anyone can beat Cancer it's him. 

 

Retired Congressman Bill Clinger served with McCain in the House from 1982 to 1986 when McCain was elected to the Senate.  During our Chautauqua Now program yesterday morning he told us that the Arizona Republican is a man of independence and integrity and, says if he's not able to serve any longer it's the Senate's loss. 

 

It was announced late Wednesday that McCain has the same type of Cancer that killed former Senator Ted Kennedy.  Clinger served in the House from 1980 to 1997.  He is a past president of the Chautauqua Institution Board of Directors.