Journal:City Council will sell Knox, Grove properties

The saga continues! Sell the house, so we can put

it behind us and move on!

Journal:Plans for 36th Expo under way

Expo 2012 - Entertainment, Food, and Vendors

Time to buy your tickets for the 36th Boys and Girls Club Expo.  I have 3 and will end up with 5 tickets by the time Expo starts. This is a great fundraiser and a great event for the community.  Bring venders to the customers and giving them a chance to show off what services they offer.

Journal:Budget cuts mean more fundraising for OFA

School Fundraising Getting Bigger

Fundraising has been an innate part of extracurricular activities and usually the first step in the creation of a new organization. Is funding for all these organizations coming out of State Aide? 7/8 grade activity fund, 7/8 grade council, Varsity Club, Earth Fund, NJHS have always been supported by fund raisers. I would like to know how much of the funding for these programs actually came out of last year's budget?

Mr. Bushey, also spoke on the $2,826,780 proposed for buildings and grounds; William Cavanaugh, Technology Coordinator discussed another $611,993 budgeted for computer-assisted technology. Now this is the money part of the budget process, the $92K of fundraising makes up approximately 1/300 of the budget.

Journal Fundraising

Journal:Jury finds Oxley innocent

Two hours later and the jury find Oxley Not Guilty! Now Wayne can start his life and the OPD to can start looking for the killer.

Journal:Ogdensburg's Waterfront Plans Moving Forward

Local Waterfront Revitalization Program (LWRP)

Ogdensburg's waterfront steering committee is on pace to create an updated vision of our waterfront. There will be three public meetings, the first on March 1, at 6 p.m. in the Dobisky Center. I encourage residents to participate or at least attend the meeting. There will be many complainers when the meetings end and most of them will never attend a meeting.

Local Waterfront Revitalization Program (LWRP) offers assistance, grants, and insight from various organizations depending on the design concepts. Developed, Natural, Public, or Working waterfronts are various concepts; Ms. Rice indicated it does not always mean brick and mortar development.

I wonder how many will show up for these meetings? The steering committee currently has public input on the development of industrial areas and the first meeting on March 1 could set the course of waterfront development in Ogdensburg. Waterfront development does not mean much if the City continues to deteriorate from within.

Journal Waterfront

Journal:Ogdensburg Polar Bear Plunge set for Saturday

Get Your Swimming Trunks Out

Saturday February 18th at 1 pm at the City Docks bring your swimming suit.

Journal:Oxley to testify today in murder trial

Oxley May Put Himself in the Hot Seat

Wayne Oxley, 7 years later and he is getting a chance to tell his story about the Trickey murder. Is this a good decision on his part or the hot seat? The verdict will be his answer! I see we have a couple more surprise witnesses that further darken the crime scene and the cops are accused of coercing Mrs. Disotell's testimony. This continues to spin out of control!

Journal Oxley Testify

Journal:Ogdensburg council ready to review housing administrator

Grant Money, Not This Year

Everyone has the obvious ideas on how the grant money should be handled. The City has all the players in place to manage the grant process and the employees to check the quality of work performed. Total payment should be withheld until the homeowner and the City signs off on the work.

We will not have to worry about grant money next year, because of this fiasco the River City received a big Goose Egg.

WDT Administrator

Journal:Ogdensburg Council members upset over use of housing program funds

Never Made Sense!

Everyone is an expert now! Spending that kind of money on two houses may have been within the criteria of the grant but made no sense. I keeping asking why the City continues to purchase houses instead of auctioning off the property. 

Journal Housing Funds

Journal:NNY schools struggle with “educational bankruptcy”

They Have a Name for it, Educational Bankruptcy

Educational Bankruptcy =
·         Cost of living raises every year of the teacher's contract.
·         Teachers get step raises every year they work (30 years of step raises).
·         Big raises for administrators.
·         Let us not forget 10 and 20K payouts for superintendent notice of retirement.
·         Only paying about $25.00/pay check for a premium health insurance plan.
·         Only graduating 100 students in a school that supported over 200 when I graduated.
Vouchers, Mergers, Something besides raising taxes.

Journal Educational Bankruptcy

Journal:Defense witness says someone else killed Trickey

Two Key Witnesses in Oxley Trial

This was a big week for the defense in the Oxley trial. Ms. Disotell testified that Chase Webb a black drug dealer from NYC told her he was going to kill Mr. Trickey and was at Mr. Trickey's house the night of the murder. It was hard to believe the judge would not allow this testimony in the first trial...reason for the release of Mr. Oxley after the first trial. Ms. Disotell indicated she and her children were threatened by Chase.

Ogdensburg City Councilman Daniel E. Skamperle was also called to testify. D.A. Duve tried to discredit Skamperle by bring up an alleged affair with a married woman. Judge Richards stopped this line of questioning before Duve could continue. He testified that he and Oxley witnessed Shannon entering Oxley's house when he was not at home. Plus another witness testified that Oxley was very intoxicated and could hardly walk or talk prior to the murder.

Looks like the D.A. is getting desperate, trying to discredit witnesses. Remember most of the people involved in this murder case were drug dealers, drug addicts, drunks, crack heads, and a murderer, and she is trying to discredit Skamperle.

Journal Defense Oxley

WDT:Ogdensburg Foreign Trade Zone expansion gets approval

Senator Ritchie and Senator Griffo

Foreign Trade Zone = St. Lawrence County

Senator Ritchie and Senator Griffo both representing parts of St. Lawrence County co-sponsored legislation that expanded the Foreign Trade Zone to include all of St. Lawrence County. This could be the first step to increase prosperity and jobs in the County. This is not a guarantee but with the right marketing by the County this opportunity may be a fructuous endeavor.

 Mr. Ma has made significant investments in the area, expansion of the foreign trade zone may spark further investment in the area.  As a successful businessman from Hong Kong, he has many contacts and associates that may also see St. Lawrence County as an opportunity for expansion.  

WDT Foreign Trade Zone

WDT:Ogdensburg authority secures car rental agreement for airport

Countrywide Rental Cars at Ogdensburg's Airport

Flying into Ogdensburg has always been an experience. My last flight I had the privilege of riding in the co-pilot seat. When you eventually land at Ogdensburg's International Airport you called a cab, have someone pick you, or walked but not anymore.  John Tardelli, general manager of Countrywide Rental Cars has agreed to have cars at the airport...from plan to vehicle all in one motion.

This is a service long overdue!

WDT Car Rental