A grand jury has again handed up a criminal charge against Robert Wiesner, the husband of Monroe County Executive Maggie Brooks. Today, Wiesner was arraigned on a single felony count of combination in restraint of trade and competition, which is legalese for bid-rigging; he pleaded not guilty. The indictment, which will be prosecuted by the […]
Jeremy Moule
Covers county government and whatever else comes my way. Greyhound dad; vegetarian; attempted photographer with a love for film and fixer; sometimes cyclist.
Posted inNews & Opinion
Utility regulators direct RG&E to negotiate power contract with Ginna
Rochester Gas and Electric customers will probably have to temporarily prop up the struggling R.E. Ginna nuclear power plant. This morning, the state Public Service Commission directed RG&E to negotiate a temporary electricity purchase contract with Ginna. Earlier this year, Ginna’s owner, Exelon subsidiary Constellation Nuclear Energy Group, filed a petition with the PSC requesting […]
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State’s Comcast-Time Warner review extended
The state Public Service Commission has postponed its decision on the proposed Comcast-Time Warner Cable merger. The decision had been expected today. In a filing yesterday, Comcast and Time Warner Cable agreed to a request from commission staff to delay the decision, as long as the matter concludes by the end of 2014. The commission […]
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Brooks budget reduces funding for day care subsidies
Monroe County Maggie Brooks says she expects to take heat for decreasing county funding for day care subsidies in her 2015 budget proposal. Brooks presented the proposal tonight. As part of Brooks’s $1 billion-plus plan, the county would spend approximately $42 million on child care programs. But most of the money would come from state […]
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Slaughter tops Assini
Democrat Louise Slaughter has won her House of Representative re-election bid, but by a very narrow margin. This afternoon, the Monroe County Board of Elections counted approximately 2,800 remaining absentee and affidavit ballots cast in the 25th Congressional District race. After the tallies, Slaughter held an 869 vote lead over her Republican opponent, Gates Supervisor […]
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Contaminated houses coming down
Sometime in the next couple of months, a crew contracted by the Town of Irondequoit will knock down two adjoining houses on Timrod Drive. The lots will be cleared and seeded with grass, creating a small green space. The town took ownership of the houses approximately two years ago as part of a legal settlement. […]
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Obama pushes for aggressive net neutrality policies
President Barack Obama says that he wants broadband Internet service treated just like other utilities, such as land-line telephones and electricity. Yesterday, Obama called on the Federal Communications Commission to reclassify broadband under Title II of the federal Telecommunications Act. That would give broadband providers “common carrier” status, and would impose certain key regulations with […]
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Untangling the 2014 election results
The election was influenced by a mishmash of national and state issues, the appeal
of individual candidates, and low turnout — all of which resulted in a
Republican wave.
Posted inNews & Opinion
Study assesses child care subsidies in Monroe County
The need for child day care subsidies is growing locally and the availability of the subsidies is dwindling. Yet Monroe County is serving a higher percentage and number of eligible children than other urban counties in New York, outside of New York city. Child care subsidies are the subject of a Center for Governmental Research […]
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WEDNESDAY EVENING UPDATE: Slaughter holding on to slight lead
UPDATE: The next batch of absentee ballots has been counted and Slaughter is, so far, holding on to her lead. As of 5:20 p.m. on Wednesday, November 3, Slaughter leads Assini 95,289 to 94,638. That’s a difference of 651 votes, which means that Slaughter has extended her ever-so-slight lead. Another batch of absentees won’t be […]
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The D&C’s new newsroom
By December, the Democrat and Chronicle’s newsroom should be completely reorganized. News staff will have new titles and job descriptions, as well as reconfigured beats. But it’s not entirely clear what this new newsroom will look like and how the D&C’s web and print products may change. And it is unclear how many staff members, […]
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Let’s talk turkeys in Brighton
Brighton Supervisor Bill Moehle was tending to town business on Runnymede Road a few months ago when he spied turkeys in a nearby yard. Turkeys are a pretty common sight in the neighborhoods between Elmwood Avenue and Westfall Road, he says. In fact, the birds are well-represented in Brighton as a whole, though nonresidents most […]
