Playing Chicken with the Water Supply . . .

This is not an unprecedented drought . . . if drought is even an appropriate word . . . but the water level in Hinckley Reservoir is at an all time low. Canal Corp. has now decided to switch from Hinckley and draw more on other reservoirs. Per the OD:

Near-miss at Hinckley: The move relieved drainage pressure on depleted Hinckley Reservoir, where outflow has been cut more than 60 percent. On Thursday, the reservoir dropped to within 3 feet of the point at which drinking water for Mohawk Valley Water Authority customers might have been disrupted, the state said.

Within 3 feet? After dropping 11 feet this past month? That’s too close for comfort!

Canal Corp. certainly has a bone to pick with the Mohawk Valley Water Authority’s failure to replenish the flow with water from its own (now demolished) reservoir . . . but playing with the safety of 130,000 people is a bit over-the-top don’t you think? Not to mention that water levels in the West Canada Creek are now reported as going below 160 CFS — the minimum needed for maintaining aquatic life. Ever do an environmental impact statement on that move, Canal Corp.? How about our environmental laws? How about the riparian rights of people living along West Canada Creek? Did the state condemn the entire flow of the West Canada (minus the reserve for the Water Authority) so it could dry the creek up? That is doubtful.

If the Canal Corp. is trying to prove a point in its dispute with MVWA, it is losing a lot of potential allies.

Troubled Bridges Over Waters . . . and Other Things…

The Sentinel reports that Oneida County has 180 structurally deficient or functionally obsolete bridges.

In Rome, there were 15 bridges that were given one of the two possible negative grades. Nearly all of the bridges in the city with poor grades are open to traffic.

Curious about Utica . . . or New Hartford?

Go to N.Y.S.D.O.T’s Oneida County list and count ‘em yourself.

Utica Author Plagiarized by Paris Hilton?

That’s the accusation . . . the story is in the LA Times . . .

Goodbye Summer . . .

End of the Summer – Sylvan Beach

Just What Upstate Needs to be Competitive . . .

. . . a “tax increase,” tailored to Upstate, in the form of an increase in the Thruway Tolls. Call it a fee increase if you want, but I call it a tax on transportation between our major Upstate cities. . . .

And the State needs conferences to figure out ways to make us competitive?

Rome Helping Utica . . .

The story about Rome police helping Utica police is a welcome bit of news, especially for the besieged people of Cornhill.

What isn’t quite understood is why no help from New Hartford, Whitestown, or the various Villages nearby. Those areas will have a lot to lose if Utica goes under.

Perhaps it takes a City to understand the problems of another City, and know what to do.

Taking Incompetence to New Heights . . .

From the Sentinel we find out that the proposed lease of the Old Oneida County Airport to the State for 15 years will be voted on, on Wednesday. All the prime land will be going to the State, leaving little for industrial development.

“Some lawmakers and business officials had hoped benchmarks would be inserted into the lease so the county could take the land and buildings back for reuse if the state center did not develop as expected. There are no such milestones in the proposed agreement.”

Why are there no Milestones?

If the State was sincere in its efforts, it would consent to milestones — and consent to the County canceling the lease if milestones are not met within a specified period.

It appears that the County has not insisted on milestones. WHY NOT? Could it be to ensure that the old airport is no competition for Griffiss?

Let’s see what the Greater Utica legislators do with this one since they have the most to lose on this deal. Will they speak out against it and vote against it . . . or will they do what they usually do and play Nice Nice to protect their political behinds?

Like the Sewer subterfuge, our County Legislature — and the Utica legislators especially — take incompetence to new heights.

Politically Correct Pinwheel Pinhead Pacifists . . .

I really got riled when I saw this story in last night’s OD: Students plant pinwheels for peace.

Students at Frankfort-Schuyler High School and Middle School participated in a world-wide gesture of peace Friday morning by planting pinwheels in the school’s courtyard during the Pinwheels for Peace project.

Pinwheels for Peace is an international art and literacy project where students make pinwheels, write creative and artistic messages of peace on them and then place them on display as an art installation at the school.

This is just more of the politically correct indoctrination going on in our schools that is burning up valuable time when children should be learning the “3 Rs,” wasting our tax dollars, and ultimately undermining our society by producing generations unable to think.

Let’s give our children the knowledge that they will need to figure out the world for themselves when it’s their turn to run things, instead of brainwashing them into a particular way of thinking.

OD on Open Meetings in NH

In tonight’s Utica OD re the Storm Water Advisory Group : “New Hartford panel should open meetings“

Sweet!

“The contract is going to be passed next week.”

“The contract is going to be passed next week,” said Board of Legislators Chairman Gerald J. Fiorini regarding the contract between Oneida County and Mohawk Valley EDGE. Mr. Fiorini held things up just to make sure that the contract met with his satisfaction concerning the promotion of the Griffiss industrial park in Rome. But how about the Old Oneida County Airport property? Or how about the Marcy “Nanocenter” site? Or how about the Bossert and Bendix sites in Utica? Will they be getting the same treatment? Who knows?

“The contract is going to be passed next week” . . . I guess it doesn’t really matter about the other sites because Rome is what Mr. Fiorini cares about and he already knows that the contract will pass. Nice for Mr. Fiorini that he can take the votes of the entire Legislature for granted.

Too bad for the people . . . they have paid for a rubber stamp.