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VOLUME 2 ISSUE 28
JULY 14 - 20, 2017
Your Hometown Newspaper & The Official Newspaper of the Springville-Griffith Institute Central Schools
Griffis Sculpture Park Hosts 10,000 Maniacs This Weekend
Progress On Heritage Park, Franklin Street
By Alicia Dziak
Griffis Sculpture Park is truly one of the hidden gems of WNY. If you’ve never been there before, this will become apparent as you head up and down rural roads to get there. While the park is located only a short distance off Route 219 between Springville and Ellicottville, at 6902 Mill Valley Road in East Otto, upon arrival, you feel miles from modern civilization. Open May through October, the park features over 250 large scale sculptures dispersed through miles of hiking trails. Each sculpture was placed with the natural setting in mind, creating
By Derek M. Otto
a truly unique experience between art and nature. But a memorable day trip is not the only reason to visit the park. They also offer special events throughout the season. History repeats itself at Griffis Sculpture Park this weekend when the 10,000
Maniacs return for a sure-tobe-epic benefit concert. In 1991, over 6,000 people attended a benefit concert for the park hosted by alternative rockers 10,000 Maniacs. It was a legendary day that is etched in Western New York music See Griffis page 6
Ridesharing Arrives in WNY
By Elizabeth Riggs
Ridesharing is finally here! And that means in the Southtowns, too. After a bill allowing ridesharing was approved as part of the state budget in April, ridesharing officially commenced in WNY on June 29. And lucky for the Southtowns, we’re not just talking about the city of
Buffalo. The benefits spread to Springville, too! So, what are Uber or Lyft to begin with? They’re smartphone apps that provide on-demand car services that allow users to request private drivers for wherever they may feel like going. The apps use your location to find the nearest driver to you, who will pick you up and drive you to
your destination. Interested? It couldn’t be easier to get in on the fun! Just download the Uber or Lyft apps on your smartphone and follow the steps to create accounts. Provide your name, contact information, location and payment information, and when you’re ready to venture out, enter your desired destination. Uber and Lyft both use GPS to figure out the rider’s destination, and locate a driver nearest you to pick you up. Uber offers the opportunity to select a vehicle type, which in the Springville area is limited to UberX or UberXL, which are vehicles with seating for four or six people. (In bigger areas, UberPool is also an option – allowing you to share a ride with strangers for a lower fare.)
See Ridesharing page 4
BBQ Fest and Softball to Benefit Boys & Girls Club
By Alicia Dziak
On Saturday, Aug. 12, join friends old and new at the first annual BBQ Fest & Softball Tournament to benefit the Boys & Girls Club of Springville. The Community Park will play host to this event, which will feature food and fun! “Due to the lack of snowfall for our 13th Annual Snowshoe Softball Tournament this past winter, the Boys & Girls Club needed to find an alternative fundraiser,” said Andy Bobseine, director of the Boys & Girls Club of Springville. “ The BBQ event was added to bring more spectators to the
softball tournament.” Local WNY BBQ vendors Jake and the Fatman, Rebel Yell BBQ and Babz BBQ will be selling their award-winning
items from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. The $10 ticket gives you 10 individual tickets to purchase a BBQ sandwich, brisket or See Boys & Girls Club page 3
JOIN US FOR CRUISE NIGHT THURSDAY JULY 20 5PM-8PM
The regular meeting of the village of Springville was held on Monday, July 10. Trustees Robert Moriarty, Terry Skelton and Officer-in-Charge of the Springville Police were not present. In the village administrator’s report, Liz Melock asked the board to approve $2,420 in budget transfers to close out the fiscal year ending June 30. She asked the board to approve
the advertising for bids for the CDBG project that close on Aug. 7 at 2 p.m. The project is for water main replacement on Franklin and Church Streets. Melock then asked the board to approve the preliminary spending for the TAP grant. TAP grant monies will be used to better improve pedestrian and bicycle traffic in the village between parks and schools. Eighty percent of the grant is
See Village Board page 4
A LOOK BACK: The Oldest Houses in Springville
Upcoming Events July 16 10,000 Maniacs Benefit Concert Griffis Sculpture Park July 21 Bike Night Kissing Bridge July 28 Springville Stampede SGI High School July 29 Fiddler’s Green Bluegrass Festival July 31-Aug. 6 Cattaraugus County Fair Aug. 9-20 Erie County Fair
The Eaton/Joslin House is tied with the Cochran house as being one of the oldest houses in Springville. By Derek M. Otto
I often hear the question asked, “what is the oldest house in Springville?” Luckily in Springville, we have been fortunate enough to have preserved some of our Main
Street and downtown areas. Houses are a bit different than a business district, and in Springville, some of the houses were once part of the business district. By that, I mean that See A Look Back page 7
Aug. 12 BBQ Fest and Softball Tournament to benefit Boys & Girls Club
The Summer Bucket List By Jennifer Weber
Outdoor Theater
Act One: Browse through our list of outdoor theater performances around town and in Western New York. Act Two: Pack a picnic dinner, perhaps a bottle of wine and most importantly blankets (one for sitting and one for cuddling under after the humidity clears and temperatures cool and enjoy some open-air Shakespeare. (And if you aren’t a fan of the Bard, keep reading—there’s a few eclectic options out there too!) Shake on the Lake: Romeo & Juliet On Thursday, Aug. 10 at 6:30 p.m., Shake on the Lake:
Western New York’s Rural Theatre company from Silver Lake, NY presents a free performance of Romeo & Juliet at Springville Youth Inc. Park located on South Buffalo Street.
This is Shake on the Lake’s second visit to Springville. Last year, the company performed Twelfth Night for a full house at Springville Center for the Arts (due to the rain, the See Outdoor Theater page 2
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