The SOS (Save Our Surroundings) group used newsletters in its early days, and in more recent times has used email to reach each other more quickly. Email is still the fastest way, but when complex issues occur, such as faced now regarding 6166 South Vine Valley Road… and the people affected, it is also useful to assemble resources and information and enable comments and thoughts to be shared, commented on, and archived for reference. 

Comments:  You may offer a comment on most subjects by clicking on “comments”.    You will need to give your email address but it won’t show publicly.  You may choose a “screen name” for yourself or use your own name, as you choose.  Each email address will have only one screen name.  You need not provide “website” information.  Just leave it blank.   The first time you comment, it will be held until approved by the administrator, to be sure it isn’t spam.  After that, your comment should appear automatically.

Here are some of the subjects on which you might wish to offer comments:

Your personal thoughts on the situation

Your ideas, concerns, fears, hopes

Resources including your own help/skills which are useful to the effort

Encouragement of those working on the community’s behalf.
Please do use this opportunity to be heard, and to be participative in a difficult situation which is facing our community.

2 Comments

1.   moved   |  Thursday, 01 March 2012 at 7:29 pm

   Notinvinevalley | Sunday, 05 February 2012 at 1:58 am edit
   Albany County prohibits registered sex offenders from residing within 1,000 feet of a public or nonpublic elementary or secondary school or child care facility. Broome County’s law prohibits registered sex offenders from maintaining a residence, either permanently or temporarily, within 1,000 feet of any school grounds, and facility or institution primarily used for the care or treatment of persons under the age of 18 or public park. The Town of Chenango, located in the County, also adopted this language. The Village of Franklinville in Cattaraugus County provides that sex offenders shall not newly occupy any real property, acquire any real property by lease or otherwise or establish a place of lodging within ¼ mile of a school, daycare center or playground, park or school grounds. The City of Dunkirk in Chautauqua County prohibits registered level 2 and 3 sex offenders from residing within 1,000 feet of a public or private school, a nursery school, pre-school, child care facility, playground or park. The Town of Amherst in Erie County has a similar law. The Village of Depew and the Town of Aurora in Erie County use 1,500 feet rather than 1,000 feet as the measure of distance for residency restrictions. The Town of Lancaster, also in Erie County, 1,500 is used for the residency restriction and in addition to schools listed above, it prohibits sex offenders from residing near teen clubs, ten centers, Boy & Girls Clubs, YMCA facilities, town parks and playgrounds and any other structure or open space where minors congregate for sponsored, programmed activities and any community centers where minor congregate. Restrictions in the Town of Cheektowaga and the Village of Sloan include dance halls and skating rinks, and the Town of Elma chose to use 2,000 for their distance requirement. The Towns of Brandt and Eden as well as the Village of Blasdell add a prohibition on residency within 1,500 feet of a church which operates any child or youth centered program, and the Town of Hamburg restricts residency within 1,500 feet of swimming pools. The Village of East Rockaway in Nassau County prohibits registered sex offenders from living within 1,000 feet of ay school, place of worship, child day-care center, community center, public library, public park, playground and other recreational facility as well as another registered sex offender. The Village of Waterloo in Seneca County adds a residency restriction near land operated as a camp. A number of the local laws also prohibit registered sex offenders from maintaining employment within 1,000 feet of specified areas where children are likely to congregate (see for example Rockland and Saratoga

   Notinvinevalley | Sunday, 05 February 2012 at 2:00 am edit
   Could town of Middlesex have a new playground or daycare. Near said add.

   harris | Thursday, 16 February 2012 at 12:21 pm edit
   Dear “NotinVineValley” — you have made some wonderful points and we’d like to pursue them further with you, including anything we might learn about how such legislation of restricted zones gets passed, when NYS seems to claim no local municipalities can restrict them at all. Please email to to share whatever you can on this subject. Thanks!
2.   moved   |  Thursday, 01 March 2012 at 7:32 pm

   Laurie Mark | Thursday, 16 February 2012 at 10:12 pm edit
   The poem ends with:
   Turn your back on the city, leave worry behind
   Cast away all your troubles and ills,
   For you will find comfort, peace and rest,
   In Vine Valley here in the hills.
   The poem refers to the picturesque south east side of Canandaigua Lake. Vine Valley is located between Bare and South Hills.
   The beauty and peacefulness of this area will be changing quickly. As told to the residents of the community, the State home on 6166 South Vine Valley Road may soon become a medium security housing for level 2 and 3 sex offenders. Apparently, the current facility which housed developmentally disabled members of the community, was unsafe and did not meet fire codes. The current residents, one of which resided for 17 years at this facility, has already been
   relocated. I feel as though the current residents are being treated as “throwaways.” The house is located a quarter a mile from a public beach, boat launch, church, a seasonal family mobile home park, a seasonal camp for adults and many homes and cottages. I pay to enjoy the luxury of living in this area, what gives these people the same privilege I have? The peace and safety I felt in this community will soon be gone.

   Please encourage everyone you know to attend the next town meeting on February 18, 2012 at The Middlesex Fire Department at 10:00 a.m .

   Laurie Mark | Thursday, 16 February 2012 at 10:14 pm edit
   Here is the email address to Commissioner: