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YOUR HOMETOWN NEWSPAPER • Volume 37
www.CommunityPress.us
JANUARY 2022
Apalachin Lions Club Is Little Meadows Santa’s Workshop?
Lion Vince Hawley (left) and Lion John Whiting (right). The Apalachin Lions, which serves Apalachin, Campville, and Little Meadows, successfully completed its annual Christmas Basket program. The club delivered toys and grocery gift certificates to families throughout its service area This significant undertaking is supported by many local people and institutions, and could not be undertaken without community support.
Every year, the Little Meadows community is a major contributor to this program. This year, coordinated by Rusty’s Cabin, and White Tails Bar and Grill, the community collected and donated two pickup trucks of toys plus a significant amount of cash all of which will be distributed to local families in need of assistance. Thank you one and all for your continuing support.
Tioga Co. Legislature Recognizes Retiring Legislators
Tioga County Legislators Clifford Balliet, Jr. (District #1) Michael A. Roberts (District #3), and Loretta A. Sullivan (District #4) retired on on December 31, 2021. The Tioga County Legislature recognized and honored
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the Legislators at their Twelfth Regular Legislature meeting on December 14, 2021 and thanked them for their years of dedicated service to the citizens and employees of Tioga County.
Yes, Christmas is over but... Small businesses are still here for birthdays, anniversaries, and holidays! Shop Local to find that special gift or eat local on that special day!
Shop Local, Eat Local, Stay Local
Number 1
Castellucci Sworn in for Final Term as Owego Town Supervisor
On January 1, 2022, Donald Castellucci, Jr., was sworn in as Town of Owego Supervisor for his final term. “As you may know,” stated Castellucci, “2022 will be my 27th year in office and the beginning of my final term. I
just turned 60 and I honestly did not think my journey would take me this far. I always have said to myself, I would not be one that would stay too long and hinder the next generation from taking the reins.”
Town of Owego - by Supervisor Donald Castellucci, Jr. There has been a lot of activity at the Town of Owego. We are near completion of the Shared Services Building and moved most of the equipment and manpower in. The salt dome is near completion and we expect to have salt delivered there soon. At that point the highway dept. will be fully operational from that location. The Parks Dept., the Utilities Dept. Administration, and Customer service for Highway and Utilities are now in this building. In the spring there will be a cold storage building constructed and a location for brush drop off. Space will be completed for the storage of highway materials. The Planning and Zoning office issued 165 building permits which included 11 new homes, 10 agricultural buildings, 7 mobile homes and 10 roof mounted solar panels. Other permits include Watson Engineering Offices on 434, the rebuilding of Taylor Recycling center, a new greenhouse at Tioga Gardens and a twobay garage at Niko’s Automotive. Also approved was a new cell tower on Summit Rd. which will help eliminate the gap coverage in Apalachin. The assessor’s office remains busy keeping up with legislative changes at the state level. Beginning with the 2022 roll, manufactured homes in a mobile home park will no longer be eligible for the STAR exemption. They will have to apply to NY for the STAR credit check. On 11/11/2021 legislation passed that changes the beginning of the Vietnam War from 2/28/1961 to 11/1/1955. This impacts many Veterans who previously did not qualify for the exemption of war time. The Town of Owego passed a local law for all Cold War Veterans, honorably discharged. The exemption will be $4,000 off the assessed value of your home. This exemption is only for the Town portion of your taxes. Stop by the Assessor’s Office for a Cold War Veteran’s form - it must be submitted by March 1 to be eligible for the 2022 roll. The Parks Dept. was busy. I believe everyone understands the value of Hickories Park and our park system. This year we set a record at the campground with camping revenues of $309,902. The town
in conjunction with S.C.O.R.E. will install a small ice rink in Hickories Park. It will be available for public use. Thank you to Jim Tofte for his help with this. We will also revamp Tioga Park behind the Red Apple this spring. The 2022 Walk to End Alzheimer’s will be held at Hickories Park on Sept. 18. We look forward to working with Tioga Arts Council and our annual Summer Concert Season. The town attorney’s office is intertwined in all aspects of town business. The Owego Town Clerk’s Office is consistently the first face of the Town that most residents interact with. Whether paying taxes, utility bills, dog licenses, hunting licenses or other services, most of us need this office at some point during the year! Inevitably, tax season is off and running again! Check townofwego.com for payment options. Mark Clark, the Town Highway Superintendent retired Jan 1, 2022. I welcome Mike Roberts as the new highway superintendent and look forward to working with him. Councilwoman Barb Roberts stepped down Jan. 1 to begin her new position as Tioga Co. Legislator. Barb was an asset to the town with well thought opinions on issues and dedication to the town and its residents. I wish her the best of luck in her new position. The Town is facing many of the same issues that are affecting our way of life, our freedoms and the economy. Employment is difficult to maintain, COVID illness in the workforce, mandates and edicts to “comply” with. The Town also has to wait for products that are backed up or construction supplies not available. It is difficult to thread the needle between our freedoms and mandates and rules. I think we have done a good job here, not perfect but good. With all of these going on, we have had state audits, our scheduled annual audit, FEMA projects and the Shared Services Building construction and our everyday business. I hope 2022 is the year we get back to normal! Thank you for your support, comments and suggestions. They are helpful in making the difficult decisions. I wish you and your family a year of happiness, blessings and good health.