FULTON – Mayor Ronald Woodward made four proclamations at last night’s common council meeting, Tuesday, Oct. 1, to recognize Knights of Columbus, school board members, principals and Domestic Violence Awareness Month.
Knights of Columbus, #254 St. Joseph’s Council, is celebrating 122 years. Knights of Columbus, #748 St. Joseph’s Assembly, is also celebrating its 109th anniversary.
Mayor Woodward recognizes the work both have done in service to the area by proclaiming the week of Oct. 7 to 13 as Knights of Columbus Week in the City of Fulton.
Fulton will be joining several school districts throughout the state in recognizing the district’s school board Oct. 21 to 25 during School Board Recognition Week.
In the proclamation, Mayor Woodward thanks President Robbin Griffin, Vice President Fallon Cooper, Clerk Timothy Crandell, Brenda Abelgore, Lynn Lyons, Nicholas DeGelorm and David Cordone, who give their time advocating for the students of Fulton. He encourages everyone to thank school board members, both past and present, for their commitment.
October 2019 is recognized as Principal’s Month in the City of Fulton, in coordination with the National Association of Elementary School Principals and the National Association of Secondary School Principals.
Mayor Woodward thanks Fulton School District’s principals:
- Donna Parkhurst (G. Ray Bodley High School)
- Marc Copani (Fulton Junior High School)
- Gina Salerno (Granby Elementary School)
- Jeff Hendrickson (Lanigan Elementary School)
- Elizabeth Stoddard (Volney Elementary School)
- Jean Sampsell (Fairgrieve Elementary School)
He also thanks assistant principals:
- Amy Stephenson (G. Ray Bodley High School)
- Nathan Murray (G. Ray Bodley High School)
- Eric Koproski (Fulton Junior High School)
The fourth proclamation was in regards to Domestic Violence Awareness Month. Domestic violence is one of the most common calls for a police officer to respond to.
Oswego County Opportunities’ program, Services to Aid Families, served over 600 domestic violence victims and survivors last year. Just over 25% of the people served are from Fulton and its surrounding communities.
“We must do everything we can to support and believe these courageous survivors,” Woodward said in the proclamation. “We will work to assist and respond to survivors, acknowledge their strength and courage, offer resources to maintain safety and collaborate with SAF to provide and coordinate community response to victims.”
The Fulton Police Department will show its support in raising awareness by placing a purple ribbon magnet on their patrol vehicles during the month of October.
During public comment, Carolyn Mosier, who is on the Board of Trustees for the Fulton Public Library, gave an update on what the library is doing to move forward digitally.
Mosier said the library has 12 computers, free Wi-Fi, a new self-service kiosk to check out books and a staff member will now
conduct a computer class, all of which is available for free.
There will be registration for the class, which will be Fridays 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturdays 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., in one hour blocks per class. Call 315-592-5159 to register.
Mosier said they also have new LED lighting, new paint, roofing, flooring and chimney stabilization. The library has applied for grants to allow for more renovation.
Fourth ward resident and Oswego County legislator, Frank Castiglia, brought up concerns regarding the demolition of unsafe buildings, regulation of electric bikes, paving the roads of Fulton, and keeping up with code enforcement.
Castiglia offered to lend a hand in getting a break on asbestos fees to move along the process of taking down a building on Pratt Street.
Although he does not like to have more laws than needed, he does want some sort of city ordinance to regulate electric bikes to protect the public and the people operating them, as they can reach speeds up to 40 mph with no requirement for a license. Woodward said he will see how other municipalities have handled this issue to determine how to go about it.
Instead of removing the first layer of the roads and repaving as many as can be done with the available funds, Castiglia recommended to instead take that money and repave one section at a time more thoroughly so it will last longer than just handling the first layer and potholes, which lasts about two years.
“We have to start doing it a little bit better, so we take a quarter of them one year and a quarter of them the next year so that they’ll last longer,” Castiglia said. “We can’t keep going over them every two years. It’s costing us too much money. We’re going around with potholes with no repairs.”
Castiglia also expressed concern with a house in the sixth ward in regards to its exterior paint.
The next scheduled Common Council meeting will be Wednesday, November 6 due to the general election. Meetings are normally held at 7 p.m. in the Fulton Municipal Building the first Tuesday of each month.
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E bikes are already regulated by wattage. They cannot acheive 40 mph unless going downhill, just like a regular bike. Most e bikes have governors to prevent going over 20 mph. Most top speed are around 28mph with a light rider and an expensive bike.
Bikes are treated on the streets legally as cars and must obey the same laws as cars. It is the risk of the rider that does not obey them. Other drivers on the road should be cautious as these fat tire bikes will be operable in the winter.
No more legislation is necessary, just enforced.
To Tracey: What are the NYSDMV requirements for e-bikes in regards to turn signals, lights, and horns?
It should have been the gas powered converted bikes, that we have seen an influx of as of late in the city. Riding on sidewalks,going wrong way on streets, reaching speeds of up to 35 to 40 mph. These are a hazard to the pedestrians,motorist, with no regulations.The city must regulate them some how.
Mr Castiglia? We have that regulation already! It’s called the Fulton Police Dept. As would be the case with a car, bicycles are required by law to obey the laws and “rules of the road”. Start writing tickets. Impound repeat offenders. And, oh by the way – did you know that the city code still requires the licensing of any bicycle? Just like with codes, ENFORCEMENT and accountability are the keys. Fines for noncompliance are a great way to generate revenue! Someone simply needs to have the “stones” to do something other than talk!