FREE! TAKE ONE!
VOLUME 6 ISSUE 24
JUNE 16 - 22, 2017
The Official Newspaper of the Village of Ellicottville, the Town of Ellicottville, Ellicottville Central Schools and the Towns of East Otto, Great Valley and Mansfield, New York
www.EllicottvilleTimes.com facebook/theEllicottvilleTimes
Your Hometown Newspaper Serving Ellicottville, East Otto, Great Valley, Little Valley, Mansfield, Olean, Randolph, Salamanca, Springville and Beyond
Mudslide and Paddlefest June 17
Upcoming Events
By Alicia Dziak
Competition? Obstacles? Mud? Bring it on! The annual Mudslide makes its way back to Holiday Valley this weekend, June 17. Get ready for some fun! Competitors can choose from two distances—a 3.5 mile or a 5.4 mile course. Both courses start by Spruce Lake and racers even get a ride up the Spruce chairlift to the starting line. From there, runners must navigate 11 obstacles, ending with the famous mudslide down the bottom of the Yodeler slope. As always, HV has some new things on the docket for this year’s race. “Some new obstacles include the double barrel just before the mudslide and a bubble bath after the slide,” said Jane Eshbaugh, Holiday Valley’s Marketing Director. She also added that, “The long course is changed with runners going down the ropes, with a teeter totter and tube obstacle. There’s still plenty of MUD!” According to Eshbaugh, the Mudslide is different than other area obstacles races in that it offers “fun obstacles that are not like torture (barbed wire, fire or carrying bags of cement), and the number of runners is just right – not too many so it is too crowded and hard to park and not too few so there are lots of other people to laugh with.” The event will start in waves of 100 people per wave at 10 a.m. from Spruce Lake, beginning with the long course runners. A ride to the start on the Spruce Lake chairlift is included in the entry fee.
June 17 Holiday Valley Mudslide Obstacle Trail Run Holiday Valley June 17 Paddlefest Holiday Valley June 29 Gazebo Series The Buffalo Five featuring Carolyn Lamson
© 2017 Ellicottville Times / Keystone Designers Inc.
June 30 Stroll the Streets 5 - 8pm Ellicottville June 30 - July 2 Summer Music Festival Ellicottville July 6 Gazebo Series Miller and the Other Sinners July 28 - July 30 Jazz and Blues Weekend Ellicottville August 11 Shakespeare in the Square Ellicottville
Proposed Code of Ethics EVL Yurts and Recreation Opening Soon Stirs up Village Board
See Mudslide & Paddlefest page 2
By Caitlin Croft
This month’s regularly scheduled Village Board meeting opened with a Public Hearing on the new proposed Code of Ethics (CoE). This proposed CoE is almost identical to the one adopted by the Town of Ellicottville back in 2012. New York State mandated that all municipalities adopt a CoE, yet the Village has failed to comply. Before the April 2017 Village Board Meeting, it had come to attention of Mayor John Burrell that it was necessary to adopt one. At this meeting, Burrell presented the Town CoE to the trustees for their review and to discuss at the May 2017 meeting. During the May 2017 meeting, newest Board Trustee Spencer Murray presented a revised CoE that he drafted himself. The draft, he said, is essentially the same as the town’s law except for Article VII about Recusal and Appointments. In Murray’s version, the ability to appoint
See Code of Ethics page 6
Send the Kids to Camp This Summer See page 10
By Alicia Dziak
Looking for a unique way to connect to the great outdoors? Want to be close to Ellicottville, Griffis Sculpture Park and nature? Tucked away in the foothills of the Enchanted Mountains, located at 7756 Route 219, adjacent to the old Riley’s restaurant,
is EVL Yurts and Recreation, where meandering trails, old willows, a babbling brook and oh yeah—yurts!—await. Dictionary.com defines a yurt as “a tent-like dwelling... consisting of a cylindrical wall of poles in a lattice arrangement with a conical roof of poles.” See Yurts page 5
Ward Looks Back at 42 Years of Educating By Elizabeth Riggs
On Friday, June 30, Mark Ward will walk out the doors of Ellicottville Central Schools for the last time as the ECS superintendent, as he officially hands over the reigns to Bob Miller on July 1. This week, the Ellicottville Times sat down with Mr. Ward to talk about his vast history with the district,
various roles in the school, highlights as superintendent, and advice to others who are thinking of embarking on a similar career path. Here’s what he had to say: ET: How did you start out at Ellicottville Schools? MW: I was born and raised here, and graduated
Celebrate Dad This Weekend By Mary Heyl
Give Dad a memorable Father’s Day this year by taking part in any one of the great activities taking place this weekend in Cattaraugus County. Whether you’re looking for an outdoor adventure, a leisurely
See Ward Looks Back page 4
afternoon on the golf course, or a relaxing evening of local theater, there’s something fun for the whole family to enjoy (not just Dad!). How about an aerial adventure? Holiday Valley’s Aerial Park at Sky High is a See Dad page 4