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West Side Phase II sewers ready to go

This past week, a ribbon was cut and the county officially announced that the Sewer Extension Phase II for the West Side of Chautauqua Lake is now ready for hook-ups. If this had been a church setting, you might have been tempted to shout “Hallelujah!” or “Amen!” but, in any event, it was an important occasion. I don’t think that the general public realizes what it takes to bring such a large project of this type to fruition. A Sewer District expansion requires the approval of the municipalities involved. It also requires the creation of or expansion of sewer district ...

Lakewood should fund additional EMS services

The Post-Journal editorial in the August 17, 2026, edition was right on point concerning the changing Emergency Medical Services (EMS) situation throughout Chautauqua County along with resultant governmental cost implications, including saying “But one thing is clear – we should get used to paying for a service that we used to get for free.” The question currently on the table is whether Chautauqua County should increase its payout to provide an additional EMS service for a specific portion of the county. Two aspects about such a payout arise. First, there is an on-going ...

County historian saves historic voting machines from scrap yard

Chautauqua County is about to lose another piece of history and nobody except County Historian Norman Carlson seems to know about. The 21st Century history of voting winds through western New York and most specifically Chautauqua County’s Jamestown where the world headquarters for the now defunct Automatic Voting Machine (AVM) was once located. An erected historic marker on the city’s Jones & Gifford Ave. states, “At this site from 1895 to 1993, Jamestown-based companies pioneered in developing, manufacturing and servicing of mechanical-lever voting machines and electronic ...

Thoughts on Lakewood’s sidewalks, taxes, rentals

LAKEWOOD SIDEWALKS Jamestown just celebrated a great week with the hosting of the annual Lucille Ball Comedy Festival at the Comedy Center. It surprises me that during the comedy fest nothing was mentioned about the sidewalk installation in Lakewood. Because the sidewalk issue is a comedy. In a recent NYSDOT letter to the mayor of Lakewood it said and I quote "Installing sidewalk segments between Chautauqua Ave and Green St are not currently included in the preferred alternative." Since that letter was sent I have heard two different things that make me say, "What is the state doing"? ...

Weed Herbicides Biodegrade In Lakes

CHAUTAUQUA LAKE — Herbicides are an effective tool against weeds and algae in lakes, including Chautauqua Lake. Yet what happens to those herbicides once they’re introduced into a lake? That question arose at an Aug. 18 Chautauqua-Lake-focused public-information session in the Casino ...

The tails that wag the political dogs

There has been a lot of “hoopla” recently about how the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) are taking over the Democratic Party. At least that is what conservative tabloids like the New York Post and their allies would make you think. In truth, the history of the Democratic Party, at least in New York State, is that there has always been a “free-for-all,” especially in New York City, between the liberal wing of the Democratic Party and what are called the “regulars,”—those with a more centrist view of politics. Back when Franklin Delano Roosevelt was Governor of New ...