Business Of The Month - January 2010

Thursday - January 28: Wellsville's Sells Auction Service was recognized at the Business of the Month by the Chamber-of-Commerce. Pictured here is C-of-C President Randy Allmon (r)presenting the Business of the Month plaque to Dick Sell, owner/auctioneer.

Located at 409 Broadway, Sells Auction has been in business since 1991. They offer a full line of auction services from appraisals, antiques, households, property and their speciality, estate auctions. They even offer moving services and are licensed and bonded in the State of Ohio.

Each Wednesday evening they hold auctions at their facilities on Broadway, the former home of Ace Hardware. They are also a Federal licensed fire arms operations. For more information visit their web site at http://www.sellsauction.com/.

At Sells they "like to think of the auction business as a timeless classic". They even have a couple of authentic Ford Model Ts available for any occasion. Congratulations to Dick Sell and all the members of Sells Auction.

ole nib

BWD Board of Trustees Annual Meeting

Thursday - January 28: The BWD Board of Trustees held their Annual Meeting Thursday morning at Wellsville Village Hall. The meeting was pushed back a week due to the trial for the Susany law suit. Normally this is called the Regular Meeting. Present at the meeting was Board President Mike Ryan, Members Bob Wines, Jack Whittaker, Cal Carney, Jack Call and Tim O'Hara. Also present was District Manager Al DeAngelis, BWD Attorney Fred Emmerling, Fiscal Officer Sara Crouch, Project Inspector Mark Allison and Tracy Allen. With an air card & the Skype program Board Member Chuck Bibbee was able to take in the meeting from the deck of his boat in the Florida Keys, through the internet. Legalities do not permit Bibbee to have any input or vote in the meeting. The hook-up was for observation purposes only. Bibbee reported it was around 70 degrees with partly cloudy skies at his location.

In the Public Speaking portion of the agenda Washington Twp. Trustee Pete Sambroak addressed the Board saying he has been approached by individuals asking how members are appointed to the Board. Mr. Sambroak was accompanied by fellow Trustee Jim Sevek. Sambroak noted that the new water line to Salineville goes through Washington Twp. and Salineville itself is located in the township.

At present there are no openings on the nine member Board. V.P. Bob Wines explained that three members are appointed by the CC Commissioners, three from the municipalities and three from the townships. Wines, from St. Clair Twp., is one of the township representatives. Currently Wellsville is the only municipality in the system. Wellsville Mayor Joe Surace just reappointed Board Member Jack Call to another six year term. When consolidated into the system Salineville will be included with the municipalities.

Wines went on to say that Yellow Creek Twp. Butch Kontinier usually co-ordinates with all the township trustees when it comes time to vote on Board members. When questioned Attorney Emmerling advised it would be considered a conflict of interest for any township trustee to be a member of the Board.

The Trustees then went into a 56 minute Executive Session for Personnel matters. At the 35 minute mark BWD Project Inspector Mark Allison was called into the session. When the Trustees returned to the meeting President Ryan announced no decision has been made. Interim changes were made late last year when Allison indicated he may retire.

Three resolutions were passed. The first was to enter into agreement with the County to assume the $13,022 semi-annual payments of Issue II funding that A&L Salvage defauted on, on the Route 45 water line. The County assumed the payments when this happened. See our Finance Committee report dated 1-7-10. Trustee Cal Carney remarked "Bert went out on a limb for us and we don't want to leave him hanging". Carney was referring to County Engineer Bert Dawson.

The second resolution passed was for modifications of the Operating/Construction Budget which was set in June 2009.

The third resolution was passed making changes in the Rules & Regulations adding clauses for ACH payments and up-dating some wording. Wines commented there were 25 changes and commended F.O. Crouch for her efforts. See our Finance Committee report dated 1/30/10.

A "then & now" invoice for $2,193 was approved for engineering work performed by Dallis Dawson & Assocs. on the now unused Hibbetts Mill pump station. With the new reservoir and Water Treatment plant that pump station is no longer needed. Plans are underway to move it out to the West Point area to boost water pressure to district customers north of there. That pump is now designated the Mobil Booster Pump (MBP) station.

The Engineering Committee reported there will be a final Progress Meeting for Part A of the Salineville Water Line Project but no date has been set. That will be announced later.

Bob Wines reported the settlement reached with the Susany law suit for the Litigation Committee. See our Special Meeting report dated 1/21/10.

For Project Reports District Manager Al DeAngelis reported Part A of the Salineville project is completed. All that is left is pressure and bacteria testing. That is expected to be completed in the next few weeks. Approval for the Crews Road extension was received from the Ohio EPA 1-14-10. It is installed and all that is left is testing and customer tap-ins. Installation for Part B of the Salineville project is to begin Monday, February 1.

The meeting was adjourned at 10:20 A.M. Next Regular Meeting is scheduled for Thursday, February 18, at Wellsville Village Hall.

ole nib

Full Moon Over The Ville

Got this shot last night. It was clear skies and very cold. Couldn't stop shivering!

ole nib

Wellsville 7th & 8th Grade Basketball

Wednesday - January 27: Wellsville Daw Middle School's 7th & 8th Grade teams played host to the Lisbon Blue Devils this past Wednesday. It was our first opportunity to see one of their games this season and now we're sorry we waited so long. Let us assure you, from what we saw, the future of "Wellsville basketball" tradition is in good hands.

In the preliminary 7th Grade game the Tigers jumped out to a 13 - 3 first quarter lead. By half time they had a commanding 40 - 11 lead and finished the game winning 50 - 22. The win improves the 7th Grade record to 6 & 5 on the year.

The 8th Grade game was a little closer and by the end of the third quarter the Tigers held a slim three point lead with a score of 26 - 23. We were hoping we didn't jinx the undefeated 8th Graders by showing up but they played good defense and worked the ball on offense to put it away in the fourth. With a final score of Wellsville 37 to Lisbon's 28 the 8th Grade Tigers remain undefeated. Good game guys.

Congratulations to both teams. We know 7th Grade Coach Emery Brewer & 8th Grade Coach Randy Thrasher are both very proud of you. You guys are just as serious and work just as hard as the Varsity.

The Middle School teams return to action next Wednesday, February 3, at Beacom Memorial hosting Crestview. Tip-off for the 7th Graders is 5 P.M. Good luck guys.

ole nib

BWD Financial Committee

Wednesday - January 27: The Finance Committee of the Buckeye Water District met Wednesday at the Water Treatment Plant. Present at the meeting was Board President Mike Ryan, Committee Member Bob Wines, District Manager Al DeAngelis and Fiscal Officer Sara Crouch. The meeting was mainly in preparation of the regular month meeting of the Board of Trustees.

The first item on the agenda was a proposed resolution changing some wording in the Rules & Regulations to include Automatic Clearing House (ACH) charges and other minor wording changes. The ACH charges will be the same as those applied to check payments. ACH payments are set up by Water District customers to have their bills automatically deducted from their bank accounts. It will be recommended the full Board accept the wording changes to include ACH payments and the other minor changes. When approved the District will soon begin to make the ACH payment option available to its customers.

It was decided to further review a $23,316 invoice from Arcadis Engineering for extended contract work done by Cattrell Co. on the Water Treatment Plant.

Financial Reports for December 2009 were reviewed and the Committee will recommend they be approved by the Board. Time consuming year end reports are being worked on at this time. Some budget adjustments will be recommended to reflect the recent settlement of the Susany law suit and a few minor construction items.

Fiscal Officer Crouch reported that December's Accounts Receivables were down with increased no pays. Paid overtime was up in December due several water line breaks and the Salineville project. Water Treatment Plant Cost Analysis will be held off until Salineville is on-line and consolidated.

Among the various reports submitted it is shown that over 58% of Water District income is from customer's only using the minimum 2,000 gallons per month or less. In December Wellsville customers used 6,117,000 gallons of water.

Discussion was held on rounding out the funding for the Hibbetts Mill project with a representative from the Rural Community Assistance Program. That project is the water main replacement from Hibbetts Mill into Wellsville. It was reported that an Environmental Study will be required and later on a similar study will be required for the anticipated Frederick Heights area expansion.

The regular monthly meeting of the Board will be held Thursday, January 28.

ole nib

WHS Tigers Win A Tough One

Tuesday - January 26: It was one of those games that was never out of reach for either team until late in the fourth quarter. It was one of those games that had you biting your nails and praying at the same time. In the end it was a Wellsville victory but we weren't sure until the final minutes ticked off the clock.

The Lowellville Rockets travelled to Wellsville and held a slim lead at the end of the first three quarters. They led by three at the end of one, by four at the half and by one at the end of three. They weren't going away easy but the Tigers never said die. They stayed with the Rockets through out the game and put up the win in the fourth. The Orange & Black were playing aggressive, making sharp passes and running so much it makes you tired just watching!

To show you the balance this team has the Tigers once again had four players scoring in double figures with two of them getting double - doubles. Jeremy Carter took the honors with 21 points and 14 rebounds. Jalen DeSarro followed with 16 points and 11 rebounds. Nunzio Lombardozzi contributed 15 points and Mike Johnston got 14. Lombardozzi had two treys included in his points. All season the Tigers usually have four or five players scoring double figures. They're not selfish shooters. Carter had the hot hand but he also recorded five assists. Jordan Dalrymple filled in for the ailing DeShon Pullie who only played a little. Dalrymple had a good game himself with three assists and a couple of points. The final was Tigers 71 - 65.

Wellsville lost the J.V. game 52 -32. The Tigers travel to Western Reserve tonight and to McDonald on Tuesday, February 2, before coming home. We feel sure they'll bring home a couple of victories before returning home February 5. They got the talent to do it even if the virus is playing against them. WHS Sports Station will have the games on the internet.

Good luck fellows. We'll be listening and we'll be here when you get home. Show 'em what they mean when they say "Wellsville basketball".

ole nib

WHS Lady Tigers Varsity Lose Two

Last Monday evening the Lady Tigers played host to the Lady Rockets of Lowellville. Wellsville led at the end of one quarter 16 - 14 and then it went down hill. At the half it was Lowellville 41 -34 and then the Lady Rockets came out of the locker room outscoring the Tigers 22 - 10 in the third. At the end of three it was Rockets 63 -44. Final score was Lowellville 85 - 63. Those three pointers are a killer. The Rockets had six of them.

The Lady Tigers played hard all evening but just couldn't get out of the hole. It was one of those nights when you couldn't buy a basket. They were getting off good shots but they just wouldn't fall through the hoop. They were playing aggressive all night but it wasn't meant to be. Rilee Livolsi picked up her fifth foul with 5:11 to go in the fourth to show you how aggressive they were playing. They weren't sloppy fouls.

Mikyla Tipton lead all scorers with 24 points. Irene Kiser added another 17 and the Ladies had four from outside the three point line.

The bright spot on the evening was the Reserves. They buried the Lady Rockets by a score of 48 - 12. Meika Dalrymple outscored the Rockets herself with a game high 18. Dawn Johnson contributed with six steals and Amanda Coles recorded six rebounds. The Reserves are now 10 & 1 for the season.

The pictures are from the Lowellville game.

Last night, Thursday, the Lady Tigers travelled to Western Reserve. There was no Reserve game played. They were without the team's top scorer. Mikyla Tipton could not make the trip. Lavolsi was top scorer for the Tigers with nine points. The Tigers lost that game 61 -23. The two loses put the Ladies at 6 & 8 on the year. Being a much improved team they'll improve on that too. We just know they will. The Ladies travel to McDonald Monday night and will be back home Thursday.

Go Ladies...

ole nib

East End Viaduct

Before there was the Wells Avenue Bridge there was the East End Viaduct. It was a bridge for the trolleys that went back and forth, up and down the valley. Remember last summer's story about the Yellow Car? If you wanted to go from Beaver via Midland, East Liverpool, Wellsville, Toronto and on to Steubenville or back you took the Yellow Car. The traction companies used a color coding system for the different trolley routes.

We don't know when this bridge was replaced with the one that is still here today. The one pictured here was the first. This is a copy of a copy of what we think was one of those post cards dated back to the early 1900s. This view is looking east. The houses below were on Wells Avenue and the ones on the hillside was Highland Avenue.

Thanks to Bonny & Brassy and the Wellsville Historical Society for the loan of the picture.

ole nib

Not Even Close

Last Monday we got a call that "they" were putting up the flood wall. We checked with WFD Chief Bill Smith and he advised no one told them about it! He advised they have been closely monitoring the water level after the heavy week-end rain and checking with the National Weather Service for conditions up river.

We were fortunate that all the snow melted the week before when the temperatures warmed up enough. That water was gone before the rain hit. Believe the river crested at 7' 2".

Not even close...

nib

Thursday Morning Skyline

Thursday - January 21: Thursday morning started out to be a cloudless sky with the sun rising brightly. Along around 7:30 we just happened to glance out the window to catch this scene. It was unusual, pretty and unique.

Those pink lines making this unique pattern in the sky were jet streams from the super heated vapors from their engines. There were two or three jets making the high altitude design.

We don't know if it was training exercises or something going on with Homeland Security or what. We just know it was one of those rare opportunities to catch a unique picture.

ole nib

WHS Men Go Three For Four Last Week

Counting J.V. action the Tigers won three of four games played last week. Wednesday night the Tigers traveled out to Williamsport to take on the Fighting Beavers. The clock ran out for the Reserves. They lost their game by only two points. Final in that contest was 42 -40 in favor of the Beavers.

We were able to listen to the Varsity game courtesy of WHS Sports Station on the internet. That contest was a back & forth battle until late in the fourth quarter. The WHS annoucer Joe Surace said the Tigers appeared to be a little lazy on defense with 3:29 left in the third period. At the end of three the Tigers were trailing 35 -30. The Tigers picked it up on defense but were still behind five points with 2:22 left in the fourth. Then they woke up and poured it on. The Orange & Black showed the Beavers they have some fight, outscoring them 27 - 11 in the final frame. Surace said the last four minutes was all "Wellsville basketball".

Wellsville Varsity won that road game by a final of 57 - 46. There were four Tigers with double figures in the scoring department. Mike Johnston took game high with 15 points. Jalen DeSarro had 14, DeShon Pullie 13 and Nunzio Lombardozzi had 11. DeSarro also grabbed nine rebounds. Senior Jeremy Carter is usually on that list but saw limited action due to lingering effects of a virus he came down with a few days before the game.

Like the Ladies the night before it was a different story Friday night when the Tigers took on Leetonia at home. With Sean Hudson leading the way with game high honors the Reserves beat the Bears by a score of 44 -31 in the preliminary match. Hudson scored 18 and one veteran Tiger sports fan told us he considered the Junior Hudson the most improved player on this year's team.

In the Varsity game it was all Wellsville. They opened the game out scoring the Bears 30 - 11 in the first frame. By half time the score was Wellsville 53 - 30. The Tigers never trailed at the end of any one quarter and finished the game with a cool Nick Broughton sinking one of two fouls shots with only 21.6 seconds left on the clock. See our post below. For the first time this year the Tigers reached the one hundred point mark winning the game 100 - 61.

Mike Johnston had game high honors with 28 points. Eighteen of those points came from the 3-point range. Johnston also had five assists. Jalen DeSarro grabbed 13 rebounds and 18 points, mostly under the basket. Feeling better, Jeremy Carter had 17 points. Jordon Dalrymple also had 17 with two treys included. Dalrymple recorded seven assists. With five assists DeShon Pullie added another 10 points. Nunzio Lombardozzi was slowed down by the virus in this game.

It was all Wellsville on offense and mostly on defense. We saw a couple of easy Leetonia lay ups with no one around them. That's disturbing. Those mental lapses could make the difference in other games. However, even that can't take the shine off the game. As Surace likes to say it was "Wellsville basketball".

With the lead Coach "Bug" Thompson was able to get some experience for players off the bench. We like what we saw. We figure young Josh Carter is going to be a force to be reckoned with in the near future.

With the win the Tiger men go to 11 & 1 for the season. They host visiting Lowelllville next Tuesday night. Stay healthy guys. The first group of pictures is J.V. action and the second shown above is the Varsity. Mrs. Maria McNicol was honored between games in thanks for her years of service being the athletic trainer for WHS sports teams. She was presented a plaque from Athletic Director Don Elliott and a bouquet from High School Principal Linda Rolley on behalf of just about everyone associated in the WHS Sports Dept. McNicol resigned the position to accept a teaching job this year.

ole nib

Scoring The 100th Point

You don't often see a high school basketball team, especially in our division, put 100 points on the board. With 21. 6 seconds left and leading by 40 points there was nothing left but some confidence building and pride to prove they could do it.

This man, #12 Senior Nick Broughton, is shown here as he scores his only point in the Varsity game against Leetonia Friday night. It was point number 100 as he went 1 for 2 at the line. You have to admire his poise. You just know it was a very tense moment. He made the point on his first shot. Congratulations Nick.

Nick got his nose busted by a team mate in practice a couple of weeks ago. It was an accident but it goes to show this team practices just hard as they play. If you say basketball is a non-contact sport you're only fooling yourself.

ole nib

Lady Tigers Even Up On The Week

The Lady Tigers basketball team was even up on their two games this past week. Tuesday night they traveled to Beaver Local. It was a "never say die" game. According to newspaper reports the Lady Beavers jumped out to an early lead to start the game but the Ladies from Wellsville fought back to get within three points in the second quarter. For playing a school in a higher ranked division the Lady Tigers made a game of it. They lost the game by a score of 65 - 58 but have nothing to hang their heads about. They made the team in red & white work for that win. The paper said the Beavers won the game at the foul line making 25 of 36 free throws. With that many trips for free throws it tells me the Tigers never backed off. The orange & black got right in their face.

Mikyla Tipton lead all scorers with a game high of 31 points. Senior Sarah Drysdale added another eight points. There was no Reserve game played in spite of what the papers said.

Thursday night was a different story for the Ladies. Hosting the Lady Bears from Leetonia Wellsville had a two point lead at the end of one quarter. Going into the locker room at the half the Lady Tigers were leading by five. The third quarter was fatal for the Bears. Wellsville buried them, outscoring the Bears 22 - 2 in that frame and and finished the game winning 52 - 29.

Mikyla Tipton had another 30 points for game high honors. It was her third game this year with 30 points or more. The papers said she now leads all area scorers with a 23.3 ppg average. Courtney Cook had six rebounds and four points in the win and Meika Dalrymple contributed another nine points.

The pictures above are from the Leetonia game. We really like what we're seeing with the Lady Tigers. They are playing with confidence and learning they can win. We knew all along they could. They're aggressive. The passing game is vastly improved and they like to run. They are now 6 & 6 on the season and with only 10 players and only one of them a senior, that's pretty darn good.

In Reserve action the Ladies chalked up a 41 - 25 victory. Meika Dalrymple and Irene Kiser both scored 12 points each in that game. The Ladies will be back in action tomorrow night, Monday, hosting Lowellville at Tiger Drive.

You go Ladies!

ole nib

Wellsville Native Files For Common Pleas Seat

A lady that grew up on Chester Avenue, went through the Wellsville school system and went on to become a lawyer announced to the newspapers Tuesday that she is going to file for judge of CC Common Pleas Court. That seat is going to be vacated by Judge Dave Tobin some time this summer. He announced his retirement not too long ago.

Hoping to fill that vacant seat is a Wellsville child, Judge Melissa Byers-Emmerling. She is the daughter of the late Ed & Dorothy Byers and grew up in a house her father built from the ground up at 1786 Chester. She graduated from WHS in 1974, got her B.A. from Miami U and her law degree at Akron U's Law School. She started practicing law in Cleveland and then relocated to hang her shingle in East Liverpool. She did time as an Asst. County Prosecuting Attorney from 1984 to 1989. According to the newspapers she prosecuted just about the whole range of felons from drug dealers to murders to child sex abusers. In 1989 she was first elected to EL Muncipal Court judge and has held that position to this day.

This past summer Byers-Emmerling was the keynote speaker at a Wellsville Chamber-of-Commerce luncheon. Her topic was a litter control program that she initiated in EL. Instead of sentencing some of the misdemeanor cases to jail time and hefty money fines she gives them community service time. We remember her telling us she has assigned them to some of the townships in addition to just having them clean up East Liverpool. At the luncheon she offered to assign some work parties to Wellsville. All that is needed is some garbage bags and supervision.

Melissa is not only a Judge she's a mom too. Her and husband Fred are the parents of son Bo. He must be a big kid. We remember when they dedicated the Shoe Tree she brought a pair of Bo's old tennis shoes. Barges came to mind at the time. The last time we saw her was at the Martin Luther King Birthday Celebration at Village Hall. She said her morning was full of grief only a Mother can experience. She thanked everyone there for picking up her spirits with the program. The grief was resolved when the keys and wallet was found just before she got there.

We can't tell you when our paths first crossed but we can tell you Melissa is a good friend of the village. We've seen her at several Wellsville events, even before Tobin decided to go fishing. What do they say, you can take the girl out of the village but you can't take the village out of the girl? Something like that... We can tell you Melissa is Orange & Black Wellsville Tiger through and through. We think her record on the bench speaks for itself. With over two decades of service in Municipal Court we hope she gets the chance to move over to Lisbon.

Shown here with Leetonia PD Chief John Soldano is Her Honor at Wellsville's Italian Festival this past summer. Soldano is also a Wellsville native. Isn't it exciting to see Wellsville kids do good?

Good luck kid...

ole nib

Wellsville Girl's 7th & 8 Grade Basketball

Wednesday - January 20: We're beginning to appreciate what a good basketball program means to future varsity teams. Wednesday evening we caught the Girl's 7th & 8th Grade games at Beacom Memorial. We saw some good basketball and was visioning what the future can be. We recall when one of our daughters was playing at the age. Catching a rebound under the opponents basket and dribbling down the court our daughter one time actually stopped to fix her hair! Ole dad just about croaked.

We didn't see any of that Wednesday. What we did see was some good hustle, aggressiveness, nice passes and some good shooting. It's all the things a coach could hope for from his or her team.

The 7th Grade girls won their game by a score of 40 - 4 and stand at 5 & 5 on the season. The 8th Grade girls chalked up another win with a 48 - 5 win and are now 7 & 3. Angelica Scarabino took high point honors for the 7th Grade & "gelly" recorded 10 assists. Domenica Cartwright was high point scorer for the 8th Grade with 11.

The girls go on a three game road trip and play at Lisbon next Wednesday, followed by games at Crestview and Leetonia. They will be back home Wednesday, February 10, against Crestview.

Congratulations on your wins Ladies. We're excited with your game.

ole nib

WHS Alumni Committee

There's a group of dedicated WHS alumni that make up the Alumni Committee. Every third Wednesday of the month they hold a spaghetti dinner as a fund raiser to help keep the Alumni Center up and running and to support some of the Alumni activities. Of course one of the activities they are working toward is the 5 Year All-Class Reunion this summer. We're working on that too and will fill you in on what we've learned so far.

Being basically nibby we stopped by the Alumni Center yesterday to see what it was all about. Looks like they got it down pat with a very efficient operation. Shown above in the collage is Toni & Carrie keeping busy with the carry-out orders. Ruth Gibson has the door covered. Dan & Rose Tice along with Phyllis Metz are shown enjoying their supper. Doesn't it look like Rose is say "umm, umm good"? John Gibas is keeping up with the pots & pans at the sink. Mary Clair McNicol is getting ready to serve a dinner while in the kitchen (L) Jean Traina, Shirley Shanks, Bill & Carmella Boyce keeps things under control. Mary Stone entertains the customers on the piano with Big Band tunes played from memory. Host Kenny DeLauder & Hostess Mary Heaton handle the greetings and make sure everyone is happy. Kenny is a member of the Class of '45 while Mary claims Class of '49/'57.

The All-Class Reunion officially starts Wednesday, June 30, and runs through Saturday, July 3. Tuesday and Wednesday there's suppose to be performances by the Alumni All-Star Lip Sync folks. Thursday, July 1, is the induction ceremonies for the WHS Athletic Hall-of-Fame. We'll have more on that later. Final details are still being worked on. When time permits we'll have a feature on this years selection. Gotta scan some pictures. Although we've been told there will not be a Riverside Reunion this year we've been told there will be a Legends ceremony at the 4th St. Square. We have to get confirmation on that. Friday is the parade & bed races. There's suppose to be an alumni football game following the parade. Saturday is the big dinner at the high school. For all four days there will be food & beverage wagons.

That's what we've learned so far. As details are finalized we'll try to keep you informed. The next Alumni Reunion Committee meeting is set for February 16. Letters for the dinner and scholarship ceremonies are suppose to be ready to be proof read and sent to the printers for that meeting. Carmella says they're hoping to get those in the mail in March.

There's lots to do. Anyone willing to lend a hand to help is welcome. In the mean time keep the third Wednesday of the month in mind for spaghetti.

ole nib

New Business In Wellsville

Within just the past couple of weeks we learned of two new businesses coming to the ville. In addition to Tri-County Ambulance there is a new barber shop located at 458 Main Street between Holley Construction and Mills Ins. Someone asked at Tuesday's Council meeting who had the new shop. Well, here's the answer to that question.

Summitville resident J.C. Coulter just recently opened his door at the Main Street location. Coulter is a Southern Local alumni and a graduate of the Akron Barber College. J.C. says that before he got in the hair styling business he was a mortgage broker.

Besides just cutting hair J.C. offers a full line of services from intricate designs, hot shaves and facials. He can anything from a dragon design to a double neck line. He'll even shine your shoes. A price list is shown above in the collage. J.C. is also shown above standing behind Wellsville resident Shawn Osborn in the chair.

By way of introduction J.C. is offering free hair cuts until the end of the month. For the waiting customer he has reading material, television and starting Wednesday he will have free Wi-Fi if you bring your lap top. He even has a mechanical singing Dean Martin to entertain you. If you're an early morning customer he may even offer you a cup of coffee. He also has x-box movies. He's an ESPN fan but he'll change to anything you would like.

J.C. welcomes all customers. The shop is open Tuesday - Friday 8 A.M. - 6 P.M. and Saturday from 8 A.M. - 3 P.M. No appointments are necessary. Phone number is 330-341-9308. Check out his myspace page at www.myspace.com/wellsvillebarbershop.

Welcome to the ville & Good luck!

ole nib

Buckeye Water District Settles Susany Lawsuit

Wednesday - January 20: A settlement was announced at a Special Meeting of the BWD Board of Trustees held yesterday at the Water Treatment Plant. The settlement was for the Craig Susany Inc. lawsuit filed against the district in 2007. Present at the meeting was Trustee President Mike Ryan, Trustees Jack Call, Cal Carney, Gene McGaffick, Bob Wines, Chuck Bibbee, Tim O'Hara and Jack Whitacre. Also present was BWD Attorney Fred Emmerling, District Manager Al DeAngelis and BWD Fiscal Officer Sara Crouch.

Craig Susany Inc. was contracted to install a water line from the new Raw Water Pumping Station along the river to the new Water Treatment Plant in late 2006. In a dispute between the District and the Susany company over wrapping the new pipe and detectable tracer tape the company's contract was cancelled. Another company was brought in to finish the project. Susany claimed he was verbally told those two items were not needed and officials of the District claimed they were part of the specifications for the job.

Susany filed suit in CC Common Pleas Court for breach of the $4.18 million contract against the Water District. That trial began with jury selection on Monday, January 11, 2010, in Judge Dave Tobin's courtroom. According to the newspaper account the trial was suspended shortly after the lunch break this past Tuesday, January 19, pending a possible settlement. Jurors were sent home and told to be back today. The suit was for $1.9 million plus.

Following an Executive Session of the Trustees yesterday Attorney Emmerling announced that a settlement has been accepted by the Board. Emmerling said the settlement was in the best interest of both parties in the dispute.

Emmerling went on to read the BWD resolution passed by the Trustees. In the out-of-court settlement BWD will pay the contractor $425,000. All claims asserted against each party will be settled and released, including any bonding company claims against the contractor. The court case will be dismissed with prejudice and court costs will be evenly divided between the two parties. Each side will be responsible for their own litigation costs.

Emmerling said payment will be made to Susany as soon as all documents are signed. Trustee Chuck Bibbee advised money has been held in a reserved fund pending this case. Emmerling advised the Court that the settlement was accepted immediately following the Executive Session.

In wrapping things up Emmerling said he wanted to commend the jurors for this case. He said they did an excellent job. There were a lot of technical details submitted by each party. Emmerling said the jurors were extremely attentive to all those details.

The District will have a Personnel Committee meeting this Friday with no announcements expected to follow. The next regular monthly meeting of the BWD Trustees has been rescheduled for Thursday, January 28, at 9 A.M at Wellsville Village Hall.

ole nib

Wellsville Historical Society

Tuesday - January 19: The Wellsville Historical Society got the New Year started with a regular monthly meeting held at the River Museum Tuesday evening. President Robert "Brassy" Beresford presided. Regular meetings are held the third Tuesday of the month at 7:30 P.M.

Prior to the member's regular meeting the Trustees met. Beresford announced that Jim Lawrence will serve as Chairman of the Trustees this year. Tom Davidson will be the Trustee Secretary.

Volunteer Committees were selected for two projects. The first is to inquire into the purchases of two plaques to be placed at the museum. One will be for the newly named Mary Clark Room. That room was formerly known as the Victorian Parlor and was renamed in honor of the late Mrs. Clark. The second plaque is for the original bell from the Central/McDonald School which is now on display next to the Country Store, located behind the museum. An interesting foot note we failed to mention from the November meeting is the fact that bell arrived in Wellsville in 1873 at a cost of $325. Wonder what that would be in today's dollars?

The second committee is to decide how to raffle off a home made quilt currently under construction that is being donated for a fund raiser. There will be three items for that raffle. In addition to the quilt there will be two good sized portraits that were donated to the Society some time back. It is planned to hold the raffle during the All-Class Reunion.

The museum will be open during the reunion for tours. However, being off the beaten track for reunion activities there are no special programs being planned for that time. Although plans are underway for the Summer Schedule. They will be announced once they are finalized.

Dues are due for 2010. It remains a very affordable $5/year. Jim Lawrence reported as of Tuesday there have been 37 members pay so far.

Donations to the Society this month was a copy of a 1785 map of the Seven Ranges. Wellsville, East Liverpool and west toward Salineville was part of the Seven Ranges. Parts of northern Columbiana County were not in the Seven Ranges. The copy was donated by the Historical Society Consortium which Wellsville is a member. The Consortium also donated a copy of a book entitled "Ohio Land Book" which is a history of the state.

EL Historical Society President Tim Brookes donated a copy of the Civil War Morgan's Raid route. The raid started in Tennessee and followed a twisting, back & forth route to out near West Point where General Morgan and his Raiders were captured. Beresford reported that permanent markers are being placed along that route. Civil War buffs will be able to follow his route. The markers should be in place in time for the summer travel season. Brookes recently presented a program on Morgan's Raid at Wellsville's Carnegie Library.

Member Frank DaLonzo donated original newspapers he recently acquired. One is announcing the end of WWII and another about the JFK assassination.

The next meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, February 16.

ole nib

Wellsville Council Meeting

Tuesday - January 19: The Village Council met in regular session last night. Present at the meeting was Mayor Joe Surace, Council people Sue Haugh , John McMahon, Rosie Goss, Tony Cataldo and Randy Allmon. Also present was Fiscal Officer Dale Davis, Village Solicitor Andy Beech, Acting Administrator Rick Williams, and WPD's Chief Joe Scarabino & Lt. Ed Wilson.

United Methodist Pastor Bob Phillips, representing the Wellsville Area Ministerial Assoc., offered the opening prayer.

After the roll call and approval of the minutes of the previous meeting the Mayor turned the meeting over to WPD Chief Scarabino & Lt. Ed Wilson. See our post below.

In the Public Speaking portion of the agenda Commerce St. resident Jeffrey Ori expressed his appreciation for the Village's public forces and reminded everyone that a Fire Levy will be on the ballot which will need everyone's support this year.

Don Clutter representing VFW Post 5647 petitioned Council to convert two existing parking spaces in front of the Post to handicap spaces. Stating that many of their members are aging veterans with some having served in WWII and the Korean Conflict there is a need for the reserved spaces. Even the Viet Nam vets are getting up there in years. Former Councilman Don Brown stated the VFW will purchase the posts and signs and take care of the installation. John McMahon made a motion to approve the request. The motion passed without opposition.

Aten Avenue resident Diane Dinch thanked the WPD, the Sheriff's Office and other agencies "for lack of a better word, cleaning up the trash in her neighborhood". Dinch related that just recently five individuals living in one house were taken into custody on Aten. She gave a very emotional appeal for Council to do everything in their power to enact ordinances preventing landlords renting to undesirables. She said she never thought she would see the day when her 15 year old nephew would hide, armed, in a bedroom with his mother in fear of their neighbors. It happened when those five were arrested. Having lived there for sometime she said she has seen sex offenders and drug dealers renting houses and asked Council to "please find a way to hold landlords responsible".

Councilman Joe Soldano remarked "there is no way this should be happening" with landlords willing to rent to anyone who can come up with the money. He related he has seen raids conducted by the police, Sheriff Deputies, ATF agents and U.S. Deputy Marshalls in his neighborhood in recent years.

The Mayor related it's an ongoing problem in the Village and help is needed from the landlords. Surace stated they need to forget about the almighty dollar and consider the safety of Wellsville residents.

Soldano reiterated "there is no way this should be happening" and advised he is already working with Village Solicitor Andy Beech to see what can be done.

Main St. resident Blaine Fields questioned why it isn't just put into a Village ordinance. Fields stated he worked for a resort out west about the size of Wellsville and back ground checks were required . It had to be done. Solicitor Andy Beech confirmed that an investigation of the legalities for such an ordinance is in the process.

Dave Bucher of 12th St. voiced a complaint against the Village. The Mayor advised it will be looked in to.

Rose Maple of Campground Rd. addressed Council about the up-coming census stating she is a recruiter for census takers, crew leaders and assistant crew leaders. She said April 1st is Census Day. Testing is currently going on for the part-time jobs. They hope to soon have a testing location in Wellsville but are already testing in East Liverpool. The jobs are for anyone 18 years and older. They pay from $10 to $16 per hour and if travel is required mileage is paid at .50 cents per mile. More information can be obtained by calling 1-866-861-2010 or visiting http://www.2010censusjobs.gov/. Census headquarters for this region is in Canton, OH.

The only Administration Report was from Rick Williams advising Council that the Zoning Board approved the variance request for Tri-County Ambulance to locate in Wellsville. See post below. Williams also praised the Street Dept. employees for the great job they've been doing keeping the streets in good shape with the snow and ice we've had.

In the Mayor's Report, Surace asked for a motion to reappoint Lincoln Ave. resident John E. Call as one of Wellsville's representatives on the Buckeye Water District Board of Directors. The appointment is for a six year term. A motion was made and it was approved unanimously. Call thanked Council saying it's been a learning experience with the water district expanding.

The only Committee Reports were from Susan Hall & Rosie Goss. For Property, Equipment & Cemetery Haugh reported on last week's Committee Meeting. See our post dated January 16. Haugh commended Cemetery Caretaker Mike Lombardozzi for the planned expansion in Springhill, stating that making room for 1,800 additional grave sites would eventually mean $900,000 in new revenue at today's prices.

Haugh also stated the Committee is compiling a complete list of unused equipment that the Village can try to sell.

For Claims, Rules & Ordinances, Rosie Goss recommended that a Money Claim from a Meadow Woods resident be denied. Again see our post dated January 16 for a report on that Committee Meeting. The motion to deny the claim was approved.

Goss also reported that she is scheduled to meet with Andy Beech next week to see what can be legally done to beef up the ordinances on rental properties. She then told Diane Dinch to "hold on". She had a similar incident in her neighborhood that was eventually taken care of by the authorities. Surace added it takes time to gather enough evidence for these situations. It's a tough job but you can be sure it's being worked on. Goss assured Dinch if it takes new ordinances or changing existing ordinances to get it accomplished it will be done.

There was no new legislation on the table.

For New Business, McMahon, speaking for all his fellow Council members, wished former Mayor Nunzio Lombardozzi the best in his recovery. McMahon said over the years Lombardozzi has done a lot for our village. Surace remarked that over the years Nunzi has had more titles serving Wellsville than the License Bureau over in Lisbon.

Haugh asked if Council would be interested in her looking into the village selling used equipment on http://www.govdeals.com/. It's an e-bay type site for old, used and broken equipment that was written up in last Sunday's newspapers. Haugh said it appears to be a legitimate site for selling unwanted government agency's equipment. Soldano suggested she check with the Village Solicitor first before proceeding. Surace asked her to please pursue it and report back.

Tony Cataldo mentioned the signs seemingly springing up everywhere advertising various business and asked if the Street Dept. employees could remove them. Soldano remarked they are illegal without the Zoning Department's approval and Haugh stated she would like to see them fined for littering. As mentioned in the Zoning Meeting reported on below, isn't there a fee required to post commercial signs?

The meeting was adjourned at 6:44 P.M. Next Council meeting is scheduled for February 2 at 6ish.

ole nib

Wellsville Police Officers Honored

Tuesday - January 19: The agenda for Wellsville's Council meeting was diverted last night for a very good reason. Two of Wellsville's finest, WPD Officers Glen LaClair and Justin Wright, were honored for their heads up work in the wee hours of the morning of January 7, 2010. Some are even calling it heroic and we can't argue with that.

The night of January 7 was one of those bitterly cold nights with blowing snow and wind. It was 23 degrees and the wind chill factor made it much more colder, especially for a young five year old boy with just a thin jacket and his blankly to keep him warm. The young man left home to find his daddy according to the report in the paper. It was around 3:30 in the morning.

Seeing what they first thought was just a trash bag blowing down the street Officers Wright and LaClair discovered it was the young boy. Only a short distance from his home the boy was already shivering cold. While one officer held the lad close to his body to warm him up the other concentrated on tracking his foot steps through the snow to find his home.

The two officers were presented with commendations and plaques by WPD Chief Joe Scarabino and Lt. Ed Wilson for what Scarabino said "surely averted a tragedy saving the life of one of Wellsville's youngest citizens". Mayor Joe Surace proclaimed January 19 LaClair & Wright Day and presented each of them with a copy of the proclamation.

Surace commented that the whole Village, Council and he were very proud of the two officers. Councilwoman Rosie Goss added she believes God sent them to find that child and she thanked God that they where there. Goss said she's "feels a little more safer knowing you guys are out there".

What started out to look like another routine Council Meeting turned out to be a very special night for Wellsville realizing that with our police officers we are in good hands. We have to agree with all the accolades bestowed on these two officers yesterday evening. They are truly two special men. It's just another reason that the ville is someplace special.

Shown above is Lt. Ed Wilson (L) with Officers LaClair (middle) and Wright. With Councilman Tony Cataldo looking on Chief Joe Scarabino reads the commendations. In the green shirt is Councilman Joe Soldano reading the proclamations with the Mayor to his left. The last picture is the Mayor presenting the proclamations to the two officers with Village Solicitor Andy Beech in the lower right corner.

Congratulations and thanks guys. You earned every bit of the praise.

ole nib

Wellsville Zoning Board

Tuesday - January 19: Wellsville's Zoning Board met last night to hold a variance meeting. Present at the meeting was Board Chairman Jack Call, Members Gene Beadnell & Jack Cataldo and Zoning Administrator Rick Williams.

The purpose of the meeting was to hear any objections to rezoning property located at 853 Aten Avenue from residential to commercial. Tri-County Ambulance Co. owner John Diddle purchased the property to locate part of the company to that address. Mr. Diddle stated there presently is two crews located in East Liverpool on duty at all times. To better serve the area the Aten Ave. property was purchased to put one of those two crews in Wellsville.

There was no one present at last evening's meeting to object to the rezoning. Zoning Administrator Williams advised the Board he only received one anonymous call from a lady that wanted to complain about possible noise at all hours of the day and night. Chairman Call remarked that could not be considered since the identity of the caller is unknown. Mr. Diddle remarked with the property located on the western side of Route 7, off the beaten path, use of a siren would be unnecessary at least 99% of the time. Sirens would only be needed if traffic is blocking getting onto to road. He added he would instruct his personnel not to use sirens unless it is absolutely needed.

Board member Beadnell inquired about the placement of a sign for the business. Diddle advised they are in the process of having a 3X4 foot sign made that will be mounted on two posts in the middle of the yard located back far enough not to impede visibility of any motorist. Beadnell reminded him that there is a permit requirement for commercial signs.

Jack Cataldo made a motion to permit the variance with the stipulation that if the property is later sold it will revert back to residential status. The motion was approved by all members present.

Diddle advised they are in the process of replacing a garage door and making repairs to the water system. It is hoped they would be ready to open at the new location by mid-February.

ole nib

Notes From Last Week

Well, the weather finally broke for us and got back to what they tell us is normal for this time of the year. Temps got above freezing and we even had a couple of days of sunshine. Most of the snow is gone. Life is good! Thank you Lord.

Piece in the paper last Wednesday was about applications being accepted for the Homestead Exemption Act. The Homestead Exemption gives homeowners age 65 and older and the permanently disabled a break on real estate taxes. Renewal applications have been mailed but no action is required if there are no changes. Tom Giambroni reported that anyone turning 65 this year should visit the County Auditor's office to fill out an application. If you're that age you're eligible regardless of your income.

In the MJ's Loose Ends column last Sunday Giambroni was speculating if EL Municipal Court Judge Byers-Emmerling does file and wins in the May primary she would probably be appointed to fill out the expected unexpired term of Common Pleas Court Judge Dave Tobin. Although no one has announced or filed yet Giambroni was questioning the wisdom of such a move. Byers-Emmerly would have to resign her Municipal Court position. If she does file and wins the primary she would be out of a job should she lose in the General Election. Good Lord man, what are you thinking? Being an incumbent in an election is extremely advantageous even if appointed. Even if it does turn out like that she still has her law degree to fall back on.

Lets see, according to a Jo Ann Bobby article last Friday Union officials, Village officials and consultant Joe Lencewicz met last Thursday in a negotiating session. According to the report there were at least two councilmen there. That means to us that the Sunshine Law was once again violated. Even though they meet in a closed session for negotiating notification of the meeting is required per the Sunshine Law. We didn't know anything about it until we read Mrs. Gilbert's newspaper report the next day. We're wondering what part of the law don't they understand?

The mother of the young five year old lad found wandering the streets at 3:30 in the morning has been charge with one count of endangering children. Her arraignment is scheduled for Thursday. Hopefully lessons will be learned from this. We shutter to think what could have happened if it hadn't been for two of Wellsville's finest.

Kudos to Wellsville's Nikki D'Atri for being one of the ones instrumental in starting a local
support group for families with members that have Downs Symdrome. She has been working on it for months. Until now the closest support group was either Mahoning or Jefferson County. The new group is called The Ups & Downs. They're meeting tonight at the EL Moose Lodge. You can call 330-532-3684 for more information.

Also a big thanks to the EL Quota Club for their help in getting a first grade Garfield student hearing aids. We're sure that young man's quality of life has been vastly improved with their efforts.

When reporting on the Wellsville High School's Ohio Graduation Test results at last week's Board of Education meeting, Superintendent Rich Bereschik remarked that the goal is to have 100% graduation. Those 14 seniors that have to retake the test and are now working with intervention tutors should thank their lucky stars to have such quality educators looking out for their interests. That doesn't happen everywhere.

Brassy answered our question about the location in a New Year's Eve post we did called The Wellsville Bus. Brassy told us it was known as the Wooster Stop and was indeed at the corner of 25th & Clark before Route 7 wiped it out. The Wooster family lived on one side and had a store on the other side according to the Historical Society President. Brassy grew up in that neighborhood.

Haven't seen any coverage on the Susany vs BWD trial since it started. Wonder what's going on with that?

Just wanted to remark on the great job Pastor Darlene Zanders did on putting together the Martin Luther King event yesterday. It was very well organized and interesting. We were impressed. With threatening overcast skies the march to Village Hall was cancelled.

It was nice to Nunzio back to attending the games last Friday. He's a devoted Tiger sports fan and when you don't see him you know something is amiss. Even recovering from surgery on a broken ankle can't hold Nunz down for too long.

On the calendar this week starting with a busy Tuesday evening is a 5:00 Zoning Variance meeting at Village Hall, followed by the 6:00 regular Council Meeting and the Historical Society at 7:30. The Lady Tigers Basketball Team travel to Beaver Local tonight and the men go out there tomorrow night. The men's game will be on WHS SS. If they had the money the Lady's game would be too. On Wednesday from 4 - 7 the WHS Alumni Committee is holding a spaghetti dinner fund raiser at the Alumni Center. Thursday evening the Lady Tigers host Leetonia. Tip off for the Reserves is at 6. The men's team host Leetonia Friday evening. Good luck Tigers. Next Sunday at 4 P.M. the Potter Players Community Theater group is holding a meeting for all members at the theater on 15th St. Sunday evening at 7 the Touchdown Club is holding a meeting at DaLonzo's. Anyone interested in supporting the Wellsville football team is invited to attend. The library is still taking reservations for the children's story hours set to begin February 9. Call 330-532-1526 for details.

Lastly, we wanted to mention pictures. We get out and take a lot of pictures at the different events. We mostly put them into collages to maximize the number we can show. We also save every one we take. If there's a picture you would like a copy of just e-mail us at olenib@gmail.com. We'll be glad to e-mail a copy back to you. Of course any picture you see on here you can just right click to save it to your own file.

ole nib

Wellsville Celebrates Martin Luther King's Birthday

Monday - January 18: In a lively, meaningful and spirited atmosphere about 40 people helped Wellsville celebrate the birthday of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. today at Village Hall. Mt. Sinai FBH Pastor Darlene Zanders hosted the event and was the Master of Ceremony. Zanders is the Village Liaison from the Wellsville Area Ministerial Assoc.

Born January 15, 1929, in Atlanta, Georgia, the "father of Civil Rights" never formally graduated from high school. He skipped his freshman and senior years. At the age of 19 he received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology from Morehouse University in 1948. Three years later he earned a Bachelor of Divinity degree from Crozer Theological Seminary. In 1955 he was awarded a Doctor of Philosophy from Boston University. That same year he became just the 20th pastor at the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery, AL.

That was the same year a lady by the name of Rosa Parks was arrested for refusing to give up her seat on a city bus. Her case brought on the 385 day Montgomery bus boycott led the young pastor from the Dexter Avenue church. The rest is history.

In a spirit of fellowship and unity today's celebration was led off signing Lift Every Voice and opening prayer by Nazerene Pastor Dirk Hall. An entertaining performing arts dance was done by the young Raven Davis and Jalisa Farley under the direction of Melissa Davis. Wellsville Councilman Joe Soldano read a poetic message from the working Councilwoman Rosi Goss entitled "Think About It", expressing hope that the dream of the Rev. King lives on in all of us. Aaron Smith offered a prayer to Keep the Dream Alive. Mayor Joe Surace introduced special guests Municipal Court Judge Melissa Byers-Emmerling, County Treasurer Nick Barborak, Asst. County Prosecutor John Gamble, EL Mayor Jim and Mrs. Amy Swogger, Wellsville School Superintendent Rich Bereschik, S.O. Detective Sgt . Jeff and Wellsville Councilwoman Susan Haugh and Soldano.

First Baptist Church Deacon Terry McCuen was the keynote speaker. McCuen gave a brief history of Dr. King and his involvement in the early days of the Civil Rights movement. For his efforts in the deep south King was jailed 20 times, stabbed, had his home bombed and his life sacrificed in the cause of equal rights for all. In 1963 King was named Time Magazine Man of the Year. In '64 he became the youngest man to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. King never once swayed or advocated from his firm principle of non-violent activism. McCuen summed up his address quoting that "heroes and martyrs never die". As with the Rev. Dr. Marting Luther King, Jr., "their memory lives on forever". King was assassinated on April 4, 1968, in Memphis, TN.

In 1983 President Ronald Regan proclaimed King's birthday as a National Holiday. It was first celebrated as a National Holiday in 1986. President George H.W. Bush proclaimed the holiday will be held the third Monday in January in 1992.

Today's celebration concluded with First Baptist minister Rev. Kathy Beckwith offering benediction and everyone joining hands and singing We Shall Overcome, the theme of the Civil Rights efforts. It was a very nice celebration for the birthday of the icon of Civil Rights. If he had lived King would have turned 81 this past Friday.

ole nib

WHS Tigers Go to 9 & 1

Friday - January 15: Reaching the mid-point of the season the Tigers go to 9 & 1 on the season defeating visiting Jackson Milton 82 - 60. Their only lost of the season was a heart breaker by only two points to McDonald and that was at the buzzer.

Although Wellsville never trailed in the game the Blue Jays kept within a respectful distance through three quarters of the game. They were only trailing by four points at the end of both the first and second quarter. Coach Thompson remarked after the game he was not holding them back. From our vantage point from what we saw in the first half Jackson Milton was slowing things down to take the Tigers out of their game. It worked for three and half quarters and then, as WHS SS announcer Joe Surace said, the Tigers put on a basketball clinic in the last half of the fourth.

The Tigers only had five turn overs for the night but Thompson remarked there was no pressure from Jackson Milton. Trying to get them out of their zone defense Thompson had the orange & black freeze the ball in the closing minutes of the second quarter. The Blue Jays wouldn't bite and just sat back around the key waiting. With five seconds to go Mike Johnston missed a three pointer only to have Dalrymple tip it in for two at end of the half.

Wellsville had five players to score in the double figures. Mike Johnston was high point man for WHS with 21, followed by DeSarro with 19. Getting into foul trouble early Jeremy Carter rode the bench for nearly two quarters. Nunzio Lombardozzi & Johnston had two three pointers a piece and DeShon Pullie had another one. All three are listed in the Area 3-point Leaders.

Thompson said the Tigers "got to want to do it. They're better athletes than anyone they played". We agree and believe the Tigers do want to do it. They're awesome when they want to be and we think they want to be.

ole nib

P.S. Forgot to mention the Reserves also won against the Blue Jays 53 - 33. The Tigers return to action next Wednesday, January 20, traveling to Beaver Local.

Pullie Is Winter Homecoming Queen

Friday - January 15: With the luck of the draw WHS student Christina Pullie is crowned the 2010 Winter Homecoming Queen. Other members of the court were Celeste Hanselman, Britne Thomas, Rachel Vallera, Taylor Buzzard and Jean Wilson.

The selection and crowning ceremony took place during half-time of the Wellsville - Jackson Milton basketball game. After each member and their escort was introduced they were handed a box containing one long stem rose. One of those boxes had an orange colored rose and the others had white ones.

Queen Christina reigned over the Homecoming dance Saturday evening at the high school. The theme of this year's Homecoming was "A Whole New World".

Congratulations Christina...

ole nib

Wellsville Council's Property, Equipment & Cemetery Committee

Friday - January 15: Wellsville's Property, Equipment & Cemetery Committee also met yesterday at Village Hall. Present were Committee Chairwoman Susan Haugh, Committee Member Rosie Goss, Mayor Joe Surace, Councilmen Joe Soldano & Tony Cataldo, Acting Administrator Rick Williams and Cemetery Caretaker Mike Lombardozzi. Committee member Randy Allmon sent word he could not attend yesterday's meeting. The purpose of the meeting was to discuss cemetery issues.


Chairwoman Haugh stated she just recently learned that the Cemetery Board has been considered dissolved as of the first part of January. Haugh related she contacted a former member of the Board to ask for an introductory meeting only to be told the Board no longer exists. The former Board was made up with three Wellsville residents. Haugh stated she has learned that a letter of resignation needs to be submitted by each former member. The letter will be kept on file and the Mayor will not appoint new members. Then it will be considered dissolved.


The Mayor advised the former Board members did not realize what they were responsible for under Ohio Revised Code and decided it was too much. Surace went on to suggest a Cemetery Advisory Board be formed which will have no legal authority in the operation of the Cemetery but will be able to make suggestions on the up-keep and improvements. Councilman Cataldo said that the Village Administrator is responsible for the cemetery. Members of the Committee present stated they liked the idea and would seek the approval of full Council. Councilman Soldano stated that although he was not a member of the Committee he would support recommending that a Cemetery Advisory Board be formed.


Discussion then moved on to the Cemetery House. Up until this past summer it was the residence of the caretaker and his family. With the Village unable to make needed repairs the insurance carrier advised they would have to drop the coverage on the house. That forced the caretaker's family to move out and the house has been vacant since then. An office and bath room at the back of the house is the only part that is being used.

Haugh stated that she has been told the house is not being heated. Lombardozzi responded that the house has been winterized with water drained from the lines and anti-freeze put in the commodes. Currently the only part being heated is the back part. With no heat runs a hanging heater has been installed. Previously it was heated with kerosene floor heaters.

A furnace that was removed to make room for a privately owned wood burner is in the process of being restored as per an agreement made at the time. Lombardozzi added it will be put back in working order and reinstalled. Lombardozzi cautioned the Committee that the gas company advised him the monthly budget would be $780 before the wood burner was installed.

Mayor Surace inquired what is going to be done with that house. Haugh responded she would like to see it stay in Village hands and possibly be used for functions related to funerals. She further stated that she would hate to see it deteriorate back in to the condition it was in before the Lombardozzis refurbished much of the house. Lombardozzi stated doing that would bring them back to the insurance issue and Soldano stated he would only support it being repaired if it was to be used a caretaker residence.

With limited space left in the cemetery Lombardozzi advised the Committee that they are in the process of making additional grave space available by putting in a new road and clearing land behind the Memorial Section. That is located behind the chapel and is restricted to flat grave markers only. Stating that many families want upright grave memorials and plots of four or more graves sites the new area would allow for that. It would have to be surveyed but Lombardozzi is estimating the new area would provide enough space for 150 lots with 12 grave sites in each lot. Today's price is $500 per grave.

Lombardozzi advised the Committee that there are four pieces of equipment that are not being used that could be sold off. Hopefully there would be enough proceeds to pay for a new truck for the Village and the cemetery can get one of the ones the Street Dept. is currently using. On the list of equipment is a grader, a 1972 dump truck, a 1982 dump truck and a 1997 flatbed truck. Soldano suggested maybe the Village Administrator can look into selling it with Council's approval. Sealed bid would be tried first.

Haugh suggested the Mayor form a Christmas Decorating Committee stating she was disappointed plans fell through this past year. Her thinking is that an inventory can be made of what is on hand and then be ready for next Christmas. The Mayor responded that plans for this past Christmas was a little to late with not much help. He said some of the decorations were rewrapped already but time ran out. Stating that the Chamber-of-Commerce bought many of the decorations plans are being made to start in July to get them ready for the next Christmas Season. Haugh stated that the Village can be beautifully decorated and all that is needed is a group of dedicated people.

Haugh went on to discuss cleaning up the appearance of the town especially along Main. Surace said he would like to see that happening especially with the All-Class Reunion taking place this summer. Haugh responded she agreed but would also hope that it would possibly attract some new business. Surace remarked not much of that will happen until Baard gets started and Haugh countered saying we have to pretend Baard is not coming and move on from there. It's been done in other communities up and down the valley. Goss commented she would at least like to see the empty store fronts being used for storage to be covered in black & orange window coverings in time for the reunion. Soldano inquired about the proposed Town Hall meeting. Details are still being worked out for that. Haugh wrapped things up saying once some of these places get cleaned up, if the owners were interested in renting them, she would offer to take pictures of available spaces and advertise them for free on the Wellsville web site. She later remarked she would make the same offer to anyone who already keeps their storefronts clean & professional looking. In our opinion it's a win/win situation - free advertising hopefully attracting a new business to locate in the village. It certainly shows members of Council are willing to work with the owners.

Council meets next Tuesday at 6 P.M.

ole nib

Wellsville Council Claims, Rules & Ordinance Committee

Friday - January 15: Wellsville's Claim, Rules & Ordinance Committee held the first committee meeting of the New Year yesterday at Village Hall. Present at the meeting was Chairwoman Rosie Goss, Committee Members Joe Soldano & Susan Haugh and Acting Administrator Rick Williams.

The first order of business was to review a Money Damage Claim submitted by Meadow Woods apartment resident Betty Farnsworth. Farnsworth submitted a claim for medical bills saying she broke her left foot by falling in a pot hole at 10th St. & Commerce she didn't know was there. The accident occurred on November 30, 2009 and Goss said a Police Report was filed. The claim was turned into Village officials on December 16 and on January 3 Farnsworth furnished copies of medical bills.

Goss reported she talked to Farnsworth and asked her how much the claim was for. Goss said she was told $2,073.40 and when asked where she got that amount Farnsworth replied it "was off the top of her head". Goss also advised Farnsworth told her some bills were "paid by the state" and no insurance claims were filed. Farnsworth supplied copies of bills totalling $1,362 related to the broken foot and additional bills for $775 for cat scans on the abdomen and pelvis and related expenses dated 9/24/09.

Goss proposed the Committee recommend Council deny the claim at the next regular meeting. Member Joe Soldano agreed advising he's not saying she didn't fall but there were no witnesses listed on the claim. Haugh agreed stating the submitted bills didn't match up.

Susan Haugh announced that the Committee is going "to start pushing for the enforcement of ordinances regarding unkempt properties around the village, starting with the most serious of violations. The laws are on the books, we just need to encourage and support the Administrator in enforcing them". Haugh remarked that in all fairness many are not aware of the existing ordinances. To correct that she offered for Haugh Designs to publish a copy of the ordinances, free of charge, on their web site http://www.wellsvilleohio.net/. Developed a few years ago the site has no ties to Village government or any other organizations. It is an excellent reference source of just about everything Wellsville and the surrounding area, compliments of Haugh Designs. The Building Regulations are already on there. Just click on the words "Building Regulations" a couple of times and it will take you to the six pages of ordinances that are part of Wellsville's code.

Haugh went on to Village Ordinance 30.03 entitled Preference For Local Contractors For Village Contracts. It was approved by Council 9-21-2004 establishing a special preference for local contractors, provided no state or federal funds are involved. Haugh stated she understands not many local contractors bid on local projects and would like to invite them to take part in the bidding process for Village projects. Doing so would keep Wellsville money in the village or at the very least in the county. Haugh stated that would benefit everyone involved.

Summing up the meeting Haugh said she would like to see the Committee look into lowering the $25,000 maximum allowed to be spent by Village officials without Council approval. Haugh stated that with a Village the size of Wellsville with limited income it is a recipe for financial trouble. It is entirely too much and feels $3,000 to $5,000 is an ample amount to handle routine emergencies. If a higher amount is needed a Special Council Meeting can be called to deal with those situations.

Soldano agreed that $25,000 is too much but stated it is Ohio Revised Code and believes it can't be changed. Haugh responded that she believes the amount can be lowered but can not be increased by the local authority. Goss stated she likes the idea. That way Council will have a better idea of what is being spent before the funds are committed. Haugh will research the legalities with the Village Solicitor as the next step in the process.

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Amato Accepts Plea Deal

As announced in this past Thursday's newspapers a deal was reached with the prosecution and J.C. Amato and his defense team. A troubled man with a fascination for guns Amato admitted to authorities that he shot and killed his wife in their Wellsville home the morning of July 1, 2007. Amato claimed it was in self defense, saying his wife shot at him.

According to Mary Ann Greier's newspaper report Amato plead guilty to voluntary manslaughter in the shooting of his wife Tonia. Special Prosecutor Lynn Grimshaw was quoted in that account saying the Prosecution will recommend an eight year sentence and a lifetime ban from ever owning another gun. If the judge accepts that recommendation at the scheduled March 5 sentencing date Amato will not be able to apply for judicial release or appeal the conviction per the deal made according to Greier's report. Amato has been held at the County Jail since September, 2008, following a second arrest for additional charges while being released on house arrest. The plea deal reached will cover all charges filed against Amato.

The March 5 sentencing will bring an end to two and half years of drama going back to the shooting. Will justice be served? Who on earth can say? There are some that will say no with comparison to the Eric Dillard case. Some will say Amato is privileged. However, they have to remember that Dillard turned down a similar deal.

We'll probably never know all the details of this tragic death. Even though we want to know everything maybe it wasn't meant to be. It will bring additional closure to the Brundage family. Tonia's parents were quoted in the papers saying "Nobody can make up for the loss of Tonia" but both Kathy and Rick said they forgave J.C. God bless them. We don't know if we could be as strong as that.

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WHS Lady Tigers Reach .500

Thursday - January 14: The Wellsville Lady Tigers Basketball team continue to show improvement with each game. Thursday evening they hosted the Jackson Milton Lady Jays. By the end of the evening the Lady Jays didn't consider the Tigers as being very gracious hosts.

The Lady Tigers put in a strong first three quarters. At the end of one it was Wellsville 13 - 9. In they second quarter they went on a tear out scoring the Jays 23 - 9 to take a 36 - 18 lead into the locker room for the first half. The dominance continued in the third with the Tigers ringing up another 10 points with only one for Jackson Milton. With the score at 46 - 19 going into the fourth the Lady Jays come back was a little too late. They outscored the Tigers 13 - 10 in that frame but when the buzzer sounded it was all Wellsville with a final 56 - 32.

Mikyla Tipton almost outscored the Lady Jays with her game high of 30 points. Tipton had 14 field goals and was two for two from the foul line. Senior Sarah Drysdale and Freshman Francesca Colella both had eight rebounds a piece. Irene Kiser recorded six assists in the Varsity action. The win moves the Tigers to 5 & 5 for the season.

The J.V.s also had a win beating the Lady Jays reserves 57 - 29. Sarah Drysdale had game high honors with 14 points in that contest. Colella collected seven rebounds and Dawn Johnson grabbed five steals.

Good going Ladies. We knew it was only a matter of time. We're proud of you. The Lady Tigers travel to Beaver Local this coming Tuesday, January 19. With three wins in a row they're on a roll. Good luck...

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WHS Sports Station Changes

After the crowning of the Winter Homecoming Queen at half time at the basketball game we were running out of space on our photo card. Some dummy forgot to bring the extra card. With a newspaper photographer and a reporter being there we left to come home and listen to the second half on the Wellsville Alumni web site.

That's when we discovered Sparky has changed things around a bit. All in all it is a very impressive change, if you know how to find it. We liked what we saw and think you will too. We wanted to take you through a step-by-step on how to pull it up.

Step 1 - go to www.wellsvillealumni.com
Step 2 - on the left side of the web page scroll down Sparky's menu column. It's right under today's date. You'll see some gray boxes with black lettering that are links to other sites or pages.
Step 3 - Click on the box that says "Sports Menu". That will take you to a page entitled 2009 -2010 Season, Wellsville Tigers Sports Menu.
Step 4 - The third line of the titles says 'Live Audio "Only" Broadcasts'. Click on that. That will open another page on top that says Wellsville High School Sports Channel. In the middle of the page there will be a large black box with a white tri-angle in the middle when they are broadcasting.
Step 5 - Click on that tri-angle and you should quickly hear the guys broadcasting the game. If you don't, double check that you're computer speakers are turned on.

If you have a sound card in your computer you'll experience some of the finest internet broadcasting in the world. The announcers have really stepped up to the plate and do an outstanding job. It's all free thanks to the generous sponsors listed. If you can't get to the game it's an excellent alternative.

We didn't know about the changes until we got home last night. Those rascals didn't give us a heads up. It took us a few panicky moments to find it. As mentioned above we think you'll like the improvements. Sparky did a first class job.

Now back to our regular reports...

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