WCDO Radio News

P.M. NEWS FRIDAY 7-23-21

The Chenango County Sheriff's Office announced this afternoon that the stolen Excavator that was stolen from the Town of McDonough on July 19th has been recovered.  No arrests have yet been announced, the investigation is ongoing.

The National Weather Service announced that they are changing the way severe weather alerts will be issued for thunderstorms. Starting July 28th, the National Weather Service will be issuing wireless emergency alerts. Cell phones in the warning zone will be alerted to the danger, typically, a white box with plain text will show up on your phone, and the NOAA logo will appear at the bottom of the screen.

State Comptroller Tom DiNapoli's Office audited the Town of Otselic, the report showed that The Supervisor did not maintain complete, accurate and timely financial records and reports,  did not provide the board with accurate financial reports and did not record deposits totaling $127,000, cash withdrawals totaling $199,000 and fund transfers totaling $874 in the accounting records.  Auditors also found, the required 2016 through 2019 annual financial reports were not filed with the Comptroller’s office; also a board member had a prohibited interest in the contracts between the town and his auto parts businesses.

The Friends of Rogers announced a free Shredding Event tomorrow at the Rogers Center in Sherburne.  The event is free to the public & is sponsored by Preferred Mutual Insurance Company, it runs from 9:00 AM to 12:00 Noon tomorrow.

The Chenango County Fair Board is reminding area fairgoers that there will be tractor pulls on Thursday & Friday of Fair week.  Fair spokesperson Mary Weidman gave WCDO a timeline of highlights at this year's fair:

(Mary Weidman 7-23-21)

Weidman said that the Tractor Pull on Thursday will begin at 10:00 AM, the Empire State Pullers begins at 7:00 PM, and The Friday Chenango County Truck Pull is new this year and will be run with the New York Hot Farm Tractor Pull at 6:30 PM, more information is available at nyhotfarm.com.

A.M. NEWS FRIDAY 7-23-21

The ARC of Delaware County is seeking to add up to 25 people for a variety of positions, and they are holding their 3rd & 4th job fairs this month, ARC director of Community Relation Catherine Tweedie commented:

(Catherine Tweedie 7-23-21)

The next ARC Job Fair is today from 4:00 to 8:00 PM & another will be held tomorrow from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM, at their location on State Highway 10 in Walton.

The Rotary Club of Sidney and the Cullman Developmental Center are teaming up to create a series of events that will engage kids in curious, stimulating educational fun filled activities this summer.  The 2nd of 4 events will be held this Sunday for "Dairy Day" at Keith Clark Park, Rotary Spokesman Larry Halbert explains:

(Larry Halbert 7-23-21)

Halbert said that The Dairy Princess and her Court, Future Farmers of America students and advisors will provide hands on opportunities for kids to learn about the importance of Dairy Farming, the event will run from 1:00 to 3:00 PM on Sunday.  The 3rd event of the series will be held August 7th.

Delaware County Public Health released their weekly Statistics regarding COVID 19, with an increase of 8 new cases, 9 Active cases, no one is hospitalized & 3 are quarantined.  Delaware County has had 2445 total cases & 52 deaths since the pandemic started.

State Police & the Sidney Village Police announced the arrest of 29-year-old Kristina Hyer of Unadilla, following a lengthy investigation involving the possession, forgery & use of stolen checks & credit cards. Hyer was charged with 4th & 5th degree criminal possession of stolen property, petty larceny, criminal possession of a forged instrument & forgery. Hyer was arraigned in Sidney village court and was remanded to the Delaware County Jail on $10,000 cash bail, pending future court action.

The State Department of Labor released local area unemployment rates for May. The state’s unemployment rate was unchanged at 5.7%, Locally, Chenango county's unemployment rate was at 5.4%, Delaware county at 5.9% and Otsego County at an even 5% for the month of may.

The city of Oneonta announced that construction to install a new storm sewer system on East Street, between Spruce and Cedar Street, beginning on Wednesday. New concrete curbs will also be installed on East Street between Spruce and Mary Street/Hickey Street. During the project, through traffic on East will be diverted to Maple Street during the work hours only. On street parking will be prohibited during working hours as well. In August, city crews will engage in “Hot-In Place” recycling of the asphalt pavement on East Street between Center & Cedar Street, followed by chip sealing weeks later. More information is available at 432-6465.

Delaware County Sheriff’s Deputies arrested 34 year old Dawn Mattice of Arkville, for Grand Larceny, for allegedly taking over $1000 from a home while employed as a home health care nurse. Mattice faces court action on July 21st.

Governor Cuomo today announced that maple syrup production in New York reached its highest level in 70 years, allowing the state to retain its standing as the second highest producer of fresh maple syrup in America. New York’s maple farmers persevered through a challenging winter to produce a modern record of more than 601,000 gallons of syrup from more than 2.3 million taps across the state during the 2015 season. Vermont is still the top Maple producer with 1.39 million gallons of syrup. More information can be found at nysmaple.com.

Cornell Cooperative Extension of Delaware County will be sponsoring three farmers’ markets for the 2015 season in Sidney, Walton and Deposit. The Deposit Farmers Market will be located at the 1st United Methodist Church, 107 Second Street on August 20th & September 17th from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm. The Sidney Farmers Market will be at the Video Entertainment Plus parking lot, at 89 Main Street every Thursday between July 2nd & September 24th from 2:00 to 6:00 pm and at the Sidney Civic Center on July 28th, August 25th & September 22nd from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm. The Walton Farmers Market will be located at the Delaware Valley Hospital parking lot, on the 1st & 3rd Wednesdays from July 2 to October 15, from 10:00am-2:00pm

State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman announced agreements with 4 liquid nicotine companies whose products were being sold in New York in violation of a law requiring that nicotine must be sold in child-resistant packaging. Liquid nicotine is used in electronic cigarettes, or e-cigarettes, to create the vapor that the user inhales. Liquid nicotine is highly toxic, and ingestion or even skin exposure to very small amounts can lead to serious illness and potentially coma and death, particularly for children. Companies will now be required to remove from all liquid nicotine sold in packaging that does not meet child-resistant standards & retail stores must also train their staff on the requirements of the legislation.

Lawmakers and Upstate Poison Control officials called for the ban of synthetic drugs yesterday in Albany.  Synthetic drugs are mislabeled and sold as products as bath salts, shoe deodorant and incense, but they are intended to provide a high for the user.          The legislation addresses mislabeling, chemical swapping and creates penalties for possessing and selling synthetic drugs equivalent to their “street drug” counterpart.  The bill gives broader power the Commissioner of Health to add synthetic drugs and their chemical compounds to the controlled substance list, more power to the Attorney General to act on complaints that the drugs are being sold in store, who can be penalized for selling the mislabeled products.

State Senator Jim Seward joined senate colleagues to unveil the “Young Farmers NY” plan to address issues related to preserve the future of family farming.

(Seward 3-5-14)

“Young Farmers NY,” will include Loans, grants, and tax credits for the sale or lease of land and equipment, as well as for new technological innovations; Estate tax reforms to encourage farm preservation from generation to generation; and Agricultural education efforts including an apprenticeship program, student loan forgiveness and increased funding for the in-school Future Farmers of America program.

With the increased demand by New York Yogurt manufacturers for local fresh milk, state lawmakers are working to help dairy farmers increase the size of their herd without incurring former costs associated with environmental impact studies.  Assemblyman Bill Magee explains:

(Magee 5-22-13)

The news comes as a German manufacturer is looking to locate another yogurt plants in western new York, that will also require more fresh local milk from New York dairy farmers, new York already leads the nation in yogurt production.

The Bainbridge Chamber of Commerce announced a New Memorial Day Weekend  Event in Bainbridge Saturday from 9:00 to 3:00 PM.  Chamber Vice President Lori McGraw explains:

(Lori McGraw 5-22-13)

McGraw said that there would be community wide yard sales throughout the village, Saturday in addition to all the activities at General Clinton Park during the canoe regatta.

Governor Cuomo today announced an agreement between New York State and the Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe to resolve a three-year dispute over gaming issues.  Under the agreement, the State will remove the 8-county Saint Regis Mohawk exclusivity zone from the proposed casino-siting legislation, and the Tribe will pay $30 million of payments owed and 25% of future gaming revenues to the State. The agreement also initiates discussions between the State, the Tribe, and local governments to resolve unrelated land claim disputes.

State Senator Jim Seward paid tribute to Kenneth Taylor of Franklin as a 2013 inductee to the New York State Senate Veterans Hall of Fame.  Sergeant Taylor served as team leader of 6-man long range reconnaissance patrols in Vietnam, he earned the Combat Infantry Badge, Vietnam Service Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Vietnam Campaign Medal, and Air Medal.  Sergeant Taylor returned to home & served as a 45 year member of American Legion Post 1689, along with the Vietnam Veterans of America and the Disabled American Veterans in 2005.  Taylor was recognized during a special ceremony at the Capitol along with other inductees to the New York State Senate Veterans Hall of Fame, his biography along with other inductees can be found at www.nysenate.gov/veterans-hall-of-fame.

The next Commerce Chenango Business After Hours event will be today FROM 5:00 PM TO 7:00 PM at M&T BANK, 118 State Highway 320 in Norwich.  Refreshments will be courtesy of the North End Deli.