Porter Board moves on park improvements

by Terry Duffy

With the town's Sept. 6 Labor Day Festival fast approaching, Porter Board members moved on a number of improvement initiatives eyed for Porter on the Lake Town Park at their otherwise routine session Monday.

Council member Larry White, speaking for the town's Porter on the Lake Park Committee, reported on a multi-purpose "stage" pavilion the group has been discussing at the park as well as bids received. Under consideration is a 16-by-32-foot structure with a roof, open sides and a railing around the platform. It would be a fixed structure that could also be moved around, White said, depending on need. The complex would replace a portable stage the town rented over past years for events.

"It can be used as a stage or a pavilion," depending on the event, said White. "This way it can be rented out much easier."

White said the lake committee had been considering various locations for its siting. He said the stage at 32 feet wide would not restrict water access if placed lakeside at the park, which has 650 feet of frontage on Lake Ontario, nor would it call for any removal of trees. White said the group did have some concerns regarding access by vehicles to the structure and possible lawn damage. Final siting was still under review.

As far as cost, White offered presented bids, with $15,873 submitted by Parco Building Systems of Newfane deemed the best for the town's needs.

The structure would be a standard pole barn type with open sides, stationary, but capable of being moved as needed. Added costs for a concrete pad as well as electrical service were not included. It reportedly would not involve any Greenway funding. The board went on to approve the low bid to enable construction to get under way over coming weeks.

Also approved for the park:

• Fence repairs by Fox Fence at the north gate park entrance, road widening and fence repairs/replacements at the baseball diamond. Total cost approved would not exceed $2,396, a figure Town Highway Superintendent Scott Hillman called "a very reasonable price for that work."
• Road upgrades to allow for two-lane traffic on the park road, at a cost not to exceed $8,000, by Tru Dec, via a highway department state bid. The work was expected to follow repairs at the park gate.
• Materials totaling $1,639.21 to enable Boy Scout T.J. Maries to build a stairway leading to the lakeside beach area at the park as a community project he is pursuing (see related story). Winning bid went to 84 Lumber, which was expected to deliver the materials this coming week for work to begin.

All projects are expected to be complete in time for the Labor Day Festival.

In other news from Monday's session:

• The board approved new sliding scale Over 65 Low Income Exemption criteria on tax rates, to match those used by Niagara County. Supervisor Mert Wiepert reported the current rates had not been changed in more than 10 years and revisions were requested by the assessor's office. "This matches the county and several other municipalities," he said.

"This hasn't been changed since 1999 at the least," added Norm Ault, the supervisor's assistant and budget officer.

The new scale provides from a 50 percent exemption on incomes less than $18,025 to a 10 percent exemption on incomes of $24,625 to $25,524.99. The numbers would be in effect for the 2010 tax roll year and applicable to all applications received before March 1, 2011. For further information, call the town assessor's office at 745-3730.

• Hillman reported that Ransomville Road between New Road and Braley Road would close from Aug. 23 to Sept. 3, to allow for culvert installations by the Niagara County Highway Department.
• The town will be holding a public hearing on land use updates, Monday, Aug. 16, at Town Hall, beginning at 7 p.m.
• The Niagara County Board of Elections will have a demonstration of new voting machines Monday, Aug. 30, at Town Hall. Times are 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 4 to 7 p.m.