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Grand Island Town Board: Tufillaro replacement appointed

by jmaloni
Thu, Jun 13th 2013 05:00 pm

by Larry Austin

REPUBLISHED FROM THE JUNE 7 GRAND ISLAND DISPATCH

Islander Joe Menter was appointed Monday by the Grand Island Town Board to replace Linda Tufillaro as director of parks and recreation.

Tufillaro, who retired May 24, will serve the town in a part-time capacity during a transition period in a new position that the board created Monday.

Menter is the boys swimming and diving coach at Grand Island High School. A graduate of SUNY Cortland, where he studied physical education and health education, Menter has spent the past nine summers working at a sports camp in Canada.

Menter worked for Tufillaro when he taught swim lessons in the Parks and Recreation Department he now heads. He also worked in the park's maintenance department.

Menter said after the meeting in which he was appointed that he hopes to build on the town's rec. department and utilize its natural resources.

"She's laid a great, great foundation," Menter said of his predecessor. "I have a great foundation to build off of with the rec. sports programs, the community events and some of the ceremonies and special events that she's put on."

The board meeting was business as usual, even though the Town Hall was flooded with wastewater over the weekend (see report on page 3).

Town Clerk Pattie Frentzel said all the cabinets in her office had to be lifted up, carpets discarded, and two feet of drywall at the base of the walls that had soaked up the water had to be removed.

The office was a maze of fans, electrical cords, and dehumidifiers to try to remove dust from the air.

"This was just chaotic," Frentzel said.

Only essential town business was conducted Monday, but Town Court and the Department of Motor Vehicles mobile station went on as scheduled Wednesday.

"Vital records were all secured," Frentzel added.

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