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Our opinion: Embrace past, future of Sheffield

It is good to see Sheffield students and coaches making the best of a rough situation. Melissa Bullock, varsity cheerleading coach, and Mike Barr, football coach, are working to make homecoming special this year in case it is the last before the high school students possibly transition to Warren Area High School. A spirit week with a list of special events, a community parade and bonfire were part of the efforts to recognize alumni who attended Saturday’s homecoming football game. Kudos to all those involved in creating these events that touched the community. As we give kudos to ...

Our opinion: Economics, learning tied to closings

School consolidation simply has to happen. The real question is which high school in the Warren County School District will be closed. Last week’s school board meeting featured supporters of Youngsville High School arguing to keep that school open and to close Eisenhower instead. There is a good case for keeping Youngsville High School open - it’s more centrally located in the county, there is more in Youngsville than there is in the area surrounding Eisenhower and faster emergency response times. But there is one key argument against keeping Youngsville that didn’t come ...

Editor’s corner: City mayors have hands full with adversity

Securing election to the highest-ranking post for three city mayors in two counties may have been the easiest part of the job. Since taking office, it is hard to ignore the troubles that have faced Warren’s Dave Wortman, Jamestown’s Kim Ecklund and Dunkirk’s Kate Wdowiasz, all of whom ...

Our opinion: No ‘jokes’ in school threats

Enough is enough. It’s time to play hardball with the miscreants who wreak havoc on school districts here and across the country by making threats of shootings or bombings. Almost every time, the threats turn out to be unfounded and were simply an attempt to disrupt the educational process. But because we live in these times when school shootings are all too familiar, school and law enforcement officials must take them seriously. When a threat — real or perceived — is made, the people and entities charged with keeping our children safe must operate with an abundance of ...

Our opinion: Tobacco ban hits nerve once fine is added

The Warren City Council didn’t really change its policy regarding tobacco use in city parks recently. Smoking in parks has been illegal for years. It includes, by the way, cigars, pipes or other tobacco products in any manner or in any form - so yes, e-cigarettes and vaping devices are illegal in city parks, too. But the recent addition of a fine has upset some city residents who had no problem smoking in parks because they knew the worst consequence they would face was a warning. Attitudes changed when the city changed city ordinance to include a fine for violating the city’s ...

Our opinion: Some protection for restaurants

There’s good and bad in the food truck regulations being discussed by Warren officials. It’s good to reduce licensing requirements by accepting a state license rather than requiring a separate city license for food trucks. That was one of the main complaints raised by one food truck operator who preferred to operate in New York state because, somehow, it’s actually easier for the business to operate in New York than in the city of Warren. That’s unheard of. What needs work is ways to provide some sort of protection for brick-and-mortar restaurant owners who pay taxes and ...