Neighbors in the Taylor Road area are worried about Willow Woods, a proposed 49-lot subdivision development they say does not belong in their backyard.Residents came out to the Hamburg Planning Board meeting once again on Wednesday (Feb. 15) to voice their concerns. The proposed subdivision has been discussed at meetings for two months. The priorities of those working on the project are the adjoining wetlands and a nearby dump. Neighbors say they have those, and many more reasons to worry about the Willow Woods project. Becky O’Brien lives on East Eden Road and she wrote a letter that was read... more

Southtowns Live•American Legion Post 928 Newcomb Long — 7353 Erie Road, Derby (947-0928) Fabulous Fifties Band Thursday, Feb. 23 at 2 p.m.•Armor Inn Tap Room — 5381 Abbott Road, Hamburg Lil’ Ed and the Blues Imperials Friday, Feb. 24 at 9 p.m.•Four Aces Bar and Grill — 3314 Lakeshore Road, Woodlawn (824-1111) Jony James Blues Band Wednesdays at 6 p.m.; Widow Maker Friday, Feb. 24 at 10 p.m.; Sundays is “Open Mic” at 7 p.m.•Hamburg Casino at the Fairgrounds — 5600 McKinley Parkway, Hamburg (646-6109) Flipside Friday, Feb. 24 at 10 p.m.; Disco Duck Saturday, Feb. 25 at 10 p.m.•Hideaway’s Bar and... more

Frontier, Hamburg, Lake Shore, Eden and N. Collins begin Section VI playoffsFor Ed Hoak, there is nothing quite like beating St. Joe’s on the hardwood.The 1968 graduate of St. Francis has watched as all four of his sons struggled to accomplish that feat during the 1990s and mid 2000s, then dealt with it himself as the varsity head coach the past five seasons.So it couldn’t be more special than to have his team send him off in his final regular season game as head coach with a 51-50 win at St. Joe’s on Feb. 16. The win was also one of the bigger upsets of the Western New York season with St. Francis... more

AMHERST - It’s kind of mystifying, really, if you think about. The Frontier Falcons went to the Western New York Varsity Hockey Federation finals last year, before losing to Williamsville North.This season, they won their division, earned a number three seed for the playoffs and went 14-3-2 (8-3-1) in the regular season.Yet, when it came to the playoffs, many thought Orchard Park was going to pull the upset.So much for respect.“There is no question about it. The other division thinks they are better than our division,” stated Frontier coach Bob Klimowicz. “We are 2-3 against that division. We lost... more

Earlier this season, longtime boys basketball coach Gary Domzalski accomplished a major coaching milestone but maybe just as much of an impressive feat was keeping it quiet so not to deflect the focus from his team.Without fanfare or acknowledgment, the 26th-year head coach of Frontier earned his 300th win while with the program during a thrilling 49-45 victory over Williamsville North back on Jan. 20.I was there to cover that game and spoke with Domzalski afterward but all he uttered was a heaping of praise for his team while exuding pride in his players’ resiliency to come-from-behind to pull... more

Frontier extended its longest win streak of the season to seven with a victory at rival Orchard Park on Feb. 13 but it was what the Falcons accomplished last week that raised many eyebrows around Western New York high school basketball.Frontier upset Western New York large school third-ranked Jamestown 52-51 with a furious fourth quarter come back on Feb. 9. The Falcons moved a game within the ECIC I front-runner and handed Jamestown its first loss in division play by winning its sixth game of the season by five or less points.“We’ve won a bunch of tight games this season so we’re not world beaters,”... more

Lake Shore upsets Iroquois; Hamburg with big fourth quarter against East; St. Francis bests NicholsPanama was the one team this season to make North Collins go back to the drawing board. But nearly a month after their worse loss of the season, a 39-point drubbing from Panama, the Eagles made a case for why they won’t be an easy out in the postseason for the likes of Class D’s top teams.North Collins fought back from several large deficits, getting to within four points with three minutes left in the game, before succumbing on its Senior Night to Panama 73-64 on Feb. 10. On a night in which the... more

Lake Shore splits with Iroquois; Hamburg can win its division; Eden back in ECIC IV top spotEven in the midst of losing six of seven games, Andrea Drabik had been telling her Immaculata team how close it was to pulling it all together.The Bears proved their head coach right in a 72-58 victory over defending Catholic small school state champion St. Mary’s on Feb. 11. In winning a second straight game, Immaculata scored a season-high, which included a 27-point second quarter, and maintained that cushion by playing high pressure defense. Also during that second quarter, the Bears recorded eight steals... more

A proposed 1.5 percent tax increase by Blasdell Mayor Michael Petrie would mean no “Family Fun Day” in 2012, while the salary of Clerk-Treasurer Janet Plarr remains in limbo after the board met to discuss the budget during a special meeting Saturday morning (Feb. 11).“We looked at doing a zero percent increase,” Petrie said, who noted the areas which would be cut in a budget with no tax hike would have a negative impact on residents.Among the items which Petrie removed from the initial proposed budget was adding a splashpad.“We’ll have to look into it for next year,” Petrie said.According to Petrie,... more

Hot tempers on a cold night ended with a member of the Eden School Board resigning Monday (Feb. 13). Brian Burgstahler stepped down following a hostile exchange of words between board members. “I can no longer support the decisions that come out of this meeting. As of tonight I am resigning,” Burgstahler said.The move followed a heated discussion that began with Eden School Board President Steven Cerne’s recommendation to hire a consultant to study the scheduling process, a project that would cost the district $6,500. Burgstahler immediately inquired about the reasons behind the recommendation,... more