The Niagara River Region Chamber of Commerce will honor 10 businesses and individuals at its annual Chamber Awards Gala Friday, May 16, at the Niagara Falls Country Club in Lewiston.

The popular Lewiston Village Pub and Restaurant will soon have a new owner or owners.

Ken Scibetta and Ed Webster, owners of the restaurant/bar, released this statement on Facebook:

Virginia Wolbert, director of the Mount St. Mary's Child Care Center since it opened in 1987, was recently named the employee of the quarter.

Food truck owners will have to park their mobile eateries someplace else.

After receiving feedback from local business owners opposed to food trucks, trustees let it be known they will not allow such an operation in the village.

"I think our minds are pretty much made up," Mayor Terry Collesano told members of the River Region Chamber of Commerce prior to the trustees' monthly work session Monday.

Jan. 25 marked a special evening for Lewiston No. 2 Volunteer Fire Co. at its 72nd installation of officers' dinner at the firehall on Saunders Settlement Road. It was a time for the fire company family to remember and honor one of its own.

William Paladino met with the Village of Lewiston Planning Board Wednesday to update members on the status of his development plan. The Ellicott Development CEO intends to create a U-shaped plaza with three main units: 1) two restaurants (one fast food) and a retail store; 2) a two-story retail/bank/commercial building; and 3) a drug store. He may build condos on the lot's west end, too.

"It's taken us long to get to this point, because every time we move or tweak anything, it has to go back to the engineers and they've got to redo everything because of the site grades and slopes and things of that nature," Paladino said.

Earlier this week, Niagara Frontier Publications learned Beatles drummer Ringo Starr & His All Starr Band were booked to play this summer at Artpark in Lewiston. The group will perform in the outdoor amphitheater Tuesday, June 24.

Wilson has a new coffee shop. The Wilson Brew Co. held its grand opening Saturday, Jan. 18. There were drawings and giveaways for the large crowd that came out on a snowy morning to attend the opening.

Town of Lewiston Supervisor Dennis Brochey officiated the Jan. 14 swearing-in ceremony of the Lewiston Senior Center officers. Officers for 2014 include:

"Cute little buggers, aren't they?"

The Niagara River Region Chamber of Commerce is participating in its first strategic planning process.

"With changes happening in health care and the way that our funding is, I wanted to make sure that we would have a plan in place for the next three to five years to follow and to grow," Chamber of Commerce President Jennifer Pauly said.

Artpark & Company is seeking schools, Scout troops, regional artists, community groups and families to create fairy houses for display at Artpark's annual Fairy House Festival. The popular event returns to Artpark Sunday June 8.

Trustees in the Village of Lewiston have asked The Great Foodini owner/operator Michael Attardo for more time before granting his facility contract to operate a food truck on Center Street.

Descendants of the Townsend family of Lewiston recently donated an original 1815 Village of Lewiston map to the Historical Association of Lewiston. It is the oldest original map now at the Lewiston Museum.

Eighty-seven school districts - 13 percent of school districts statewide - have been designated as fiscally stressed under State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli's Fiscal Stress Monitoring System, in a report released this week.

And Lewiston-Porter has the unfavorable distinction of being ranked the second-worst school district in New York state in terms of "significant fiscal stress," the report finds.

DiNapoli's office evaluated 674 school districts with fiscal years ending on June 30, 2013.

Heart of Niagara Animal Rescue's second annual "Heart to Heart" fundraising event, "A Taste of The Niagara Region," will take place Saturday, Feb. 8, from noon to 7 p.m. at the First Presbyterian Church social hall, 505 Cayuga St., Lewiston.

At the recent board meeting of the Niagara River Region Chamber of Commerce, elections were held to fill open positions. Also, the Chamber of Commerce has hired Marlo Briglio of Lewiston to fulfill the part-time administrative assistant position.

Monday night, before family and friends, Daniel R. Gibson was sworn into office in the Village of Lewiston. Mayor Terry Collesano appointed Gibson, a Republican, to assume a portion of Democrat and former Trustee Dennis Brochey's term.

Local residents had a brief, but enjoyable ride in the lower Niagara gorge on New Year's Day as Niagara Jet Adventures held another of its test runs for its new jetboat "Gonago:go:h."

The Center for Women at Mount St. Mary's Hospital welcomed its first baby of 2014 at 11:15 a.m. on Thursday, Jan. 2, with the arrival of Charles James Arthur Farrell. Charles is the son of Ellen Gromoll and Kevin Farrell of Niagara Falls.

Town of Lewiston Justice Hugh Gee administers the oath to Dennis Brochey as the new supervisor's wife, Cathy, holds the Bible. The ceremony was held New Year's Day at the Lewiston Senior Center.

St. Peter R.C. School students in Lewiston decided to give back to families in need during the holiday season. Instead of exchanging gifts among themselves, the students decided to purchase new clothing and toys and household items for families in the area.

Pictured are the Mount St. Mary's Hospital and Health Center board of associates officers for 2014. Shown from left: President Steve Broderick, Secretary Alfred Frosolone, Past President Ron Villani, Treasurer Don Thurman and Vice President Robert Fagiani.

The 3F Conservation Society recently held its annual Christmas party at the Swann Road clubhouse. A very popular event, each year the 3F party sees Santa Claus visiting with gifts for every boy and girl who attends.

Before the Erie Canal, early local merchants successfully did business relying upon wagon shipments and handwritten accounts.

Old Fort Niagara recently held its annual "Castle by Candlelight."

Several homes in the Village of Lewiston have big, bright, colorful Christmas displays on their front lawns.

It's been a busy couple of days for Mike Fox of Niagara Jet Adventures in Youngstown. Fox reports the first in his fleet of custom-built, advanced-tech Gatling series jetboats, manufactured by Bohnenkamp's Whitewater Customs of Meridian, Idaho, arrived in Youngstown this week following a 2,233-mile cross-country trip via trailer.

Winners of the 2013 DiMino Tops Lewiston-Niagara Frontier Publications holiday coloring contest were recently announced.

The Lewiston-Porter Board of Education recognized Ashli Dreher for being named the 2014 New York State Teacher of the Year. Dreher is a special education teacher at Lew-Port, and the first special education teacher to receive the state designation.

Early Thursday morning, more than 100 British soldiers marched down River Road, from Stella Niagara to Old Fort Niagara, to re-enact the taking of Fort Niagara by the British on Dec. 19, 1813. One hundred and ten spectators in the fort watched as the British came through the postern gate and proceeded to wrest the fort from the Americans after a short battle.

Youngstown's Veterans of Foreign Wars Lake Ontario Post 313 held its annual Christmas Party. Among the activities was a toy drive spearheaded by Gary and Lynn Zanardi to benefit the children of local veterans who are served by Western New York Heroes.

Water Street Landing is unquestionably one of Lewiston's most popular spots to dine in the warm months. But what do patrons do in the winter?

The restaurant recently debuted an outdoor seating area that is lit by a fire pit, which also provides warmth.

The Lewiston Dance Center dance team and a group of younger students from the dance school kicked off holiday festivities in the Village of Lewiston at the Christmas tree lighting in Hennepin Park.

Santa Claus made a special pre-Christmas visit to the Village of Lewiston Saturday as part of the annual Christmas Walk. St. Nick arrived by helicopter to greet children and families. Click the link for video highlights.

The Lewiston Family Ice Rink welcomed each of its sponsors to a grand opening preview to cut the ribbon and open another season of skating at Academy Park.

A record number of runners in The Mighty Niagara Half Marathon traveled safely through Lewiston thanks, in part, to Lewiston Volunteer Fire Co. No. 1. Paul Beatty, race chairman of The Mighty Niagara Half Marathon and Hospice Dash 5K, recently recognized the fire company with a thank you plaque.

St. Peter R.C. School spent a morning creating cards for servicemen and servicewomen, and wreaths for the residents at Our Lady of Peace nursing home.

Living in northern Niagara County, one of neatest attributes seen in area residents is their ability to get creative.

With the November elections now history and changes in the town looming for January, the Lewiston Town Board held a "nuts and bolts" type meeting Monday to address old business, ongoing drainage problems and set the stage for cooperation under a new Dennis Brochey administration.