Notes From The Past Week

There's been a lot of talk lately of finding funds for repairing and building new streets in the ville. Village officials were looking at Stimulus funds with chances of getting any seeming to be less and less. Then the mayor went on his "mission impossible" to Cambridge and the OMEGA meeting. Help from that source doesn't seem likely. With the tight budget village officials are working with it is mostly cost prohibitive to get much paving done. They are working with the idea of a long term loan with payments over 20 years or so from the license plate permissive tax. Even that got quiet lately. It's frustrating for all concerned and just to give you an idea what they are facing a couple of officials recently got a bid on just a small portion of what they would like to do.

A paving contractor was in the ville this past week and gave the village a bid to pave 12th Street from Main to Riverside. That's just 292' X 23' width of street using 2 -2-1/4" of asphalt pavement. Total cost of the bid for that small portion was $8,750. It's easy to see why they are getting migraines over street rehabilitation.

A while back we mentioned that plans were being formulated to convert the Boy-In-The-Boot area into a mini-park to compliment the flood wall murals. This was going to be accomplished with a generous donation given to the village. Since then questions have arisen on who owns what land in that area. A professional survey would be required to answer any questions before they could proceed. The cost of that professional survey would just about wipe out the donation. That idea has been scrapped. Instead the money will be used to enhance the memorial on the square at 4th St. They are looking at a 9/11 memorial and new flag poles to commemorate each branch of the armed forces. I think that includes new lighting for the area. From the pictures I've seen it is really going to be a more attractive memorial. The Memorial Council does a heckuva job on that site and I believe they are working with those that are planning the renovations.

WHS will have new principal come August. At this past week's BOE meeting it was announced that Linda Rolley will be moving into that office. Linda has been with the school system for 35 years as a math teacher. With her rapport with the students that have passed through her class room and her dedication to providing a quality education I feel they couldn't have found a better person to fill that role. Congratulations and good luck Mrs. Rolley.

While on the subject of education the Penn Hills School District up around Pittsburgh recently found out that jamming cell phone signals would be illegal if they went that route. They were looking at that as a way to prevent students from "texting" doing school hours and class time. For safety & security reasons it is against FCC regulations to jam cell phones. Guess they will have to use other methods of discipline in the class rooms up there. Can you say "cell phones are not permitted" boys & girls?

With the downturn of the economy the doom & gloomers announced the demise of Social Security again in a recent AP release. They say the retirement fund will be broke by 2037 and Medicare programs will be insolvent by 2017 at today's rate of reduced payroll deductions. Social Security was created back in FDR days and those deductions were to be held in separate accounts for that and nothing else. Over the years the politicians in DC have been borrowing from those funds and now they're threatening it won't be there in the future. If they had left it alone like they were suppose to it would be one of the largest funds in the world. There would never have been a question of it going broke.

Coming up next Saturday, May 23, is the rabies clinic the Chamber-of-Commerce is sponsoring at the old Sky Bank parking lot. Proceeds for the clinic is going to the St. Francis Animal Shelter.

The Modern Striders Track Club will be holding registrations for their upcoming season this coming week at Nicholson Stadium. Registration will take place Tuesday, May 19, from 6 - 8 P.M. and again on Saturday, May 23, from 11 A.M. - 1 P.M. It is for children from age 4 up to age 18. They will need to see a birth certificate for age verification. The cost is $20 for the first child and $10 for each additional child in the family. You can call 532-1258 or 532-3473 for additional information.

Congratulations to Wellsville residents Frank & Rhoda Leyda on 65 years of wedded bliss. The Leydas celebrated their anniversary May 7. They were married in 1944 at the Covenant Presbyterian Church.

The parishioners at the Immaculate Conception Parish and St. Als have a new priest in town. He's Fr. Peter Holideaux and I was told that is pronounced holiday. Welcome to the ville Father. Look forward to meeting you.

In yesterday's MJ there was a report of a robbery at a gas station in town. They got a good description of the perpetrator and pictures from a surveillance tape. They need to get those pictures circulated in the newspapers and on television.

Finally, who says cops don't have a heart? In the Pittsburgh Trib-Review last week was a story of police executing a search warrant on a man's trailer home and found a prom dress in the process. Remembering the theft report on that dress and being the day of the prom, PA state troopers rushed the dress back to the rightful owner. I'm sure their heads up action made that girl very happy. Mom & Dad were probably happier!

ole nib