COWS GO LOOSE IN LEWISTON ::Thursday, July 10th::

Cows on the loose caused a major headache for police at Reservoir State Park Wednesday. Several law agencies spent most of the day trying to corral three bovines wandering in the park and trying to keep them off surrounding roadways. Lewiston Police arrived on the scene at about 9am and had to kill one of them. The two other cows were reportedly in the area of Upper Mountain and Military Roads, close to the I-190 and the Robert Moses Parkway. Police say the cows are owned by a Utah Company and were having them inspected at a US Department of Agriculture facility on Witmer Road. The truck driver told officers they weren't dealing with normal cows. They made their escape after pushing a release button. The driver said quote, "They were smart cows and must have been planning this for a while." The two other cows were later found and also destroyed.

TOPS GAS STATION GETS SHOT DOWN...AGAIN ::Thursday, July 10th::

Tops Market - whose efforts to add a gas station near its South Transit Road store last year were blocked by the Town Planning Board - is trying again. In a plan presented Wednesday, Tops proposed building a six pump station under an 82' by 28' canopy to be built in the northwest corner of its parking lot. The station would adjoin the main entrance driveway to the store and would wipe out 32 parking spaces. Last year, the Perna family (owners of the Lockport Tops) sought to install the gas station on the opposite side of South Transit on a narrow lot between a dentist's office and an insurance office. That plan failed. Under terms of the lease for the Tops Plaza, certain parts of the parking lot are off-limits for development, but architect Bob Dollman says this is outside the no-build area in the parking lot. But the town's consultants weren't thrilled with the idea, saying quote, "We feel there's a lot of potential for traffic conflict." Town Attorney Daniel Seaman scorned the project, telling Tops it's not the obligation to give direction for a site that's so far out of whack.

COMPANY PLANS TO BRING WASTE TO NIAGARA COUNTY ::Thursday, July 10th::

The state is sending almost $75,000 tons of toxic waste from a superfund site north of Glens Falls to a Niagara County landfill. The PCB-Laden waste will be dug out of an existing landfill and scraped from a former salvage yard for General Electric, according to state officials. It will take about 1,500 truckloads to transport the waste, criss-crossing Western New York highwats and roadways to get to CWM Chemical Services in Porter, over the next year. The amount of waste to be hauled here - about 75,000 tons - is the equivalent to the weight of more than 478 Statue's of Liberty. Work began last month in the Town of Queensbury in Warren County as part of a $22.3-million taxpayer funded cleanup. None of the waste has yet arrived in the county.

LOCKPORT FIGHT SENDS TWO TO JAIL ::Wednesday, July 9th::

In Lockport, a fight that reportedly broke out in the middle of a city street late Monday resulted in two arrests. Officers responded to Locust Street at about 9:45pm where they found a woman lying flat on her back in the middle of the street. A crowd had gathered around the woman, and officers saw 42 year old Johnetta Dix of South Street yelling at another woman in the middle of the group. Dix allegedly punched the woman twice in the face. When an officer grabbed Dix to stop her from punching the victim again, she began scratching at his face and tore his officer shirt. Dix was arrested and charged with resisting arres, disorderly conduct, and two counts of harrassment, among many other charges. As officers were dealing with Dix, 37 year old Ronnie Coonce of South Street approached them yelling and swearing. Police told her several times to stop, but she refused and was also arrested. Coonce is being held in lieu of $100 bail. Dix is being held in lieu of $500 bail. Both are due Wednesday in Lockport City Court. The woman lying in the road was taken to Lockport Memorial Hospital for treatment. She reportedly didn't regain consciousness until arriving at the hospital.

SABRES OWNER PLEDGES TONS OF MONEY ::Wednesday, July 9th::

In three unsuccessful campaigns for governor, Sabres owner Tom Golisano spent nearly $100-million of his own money trying to halt the state's overspending, insider trading, and special interests. Now, after sitting on the sidelines for several years, Golisano returned Wednesday to the political scene. In front of reporters near the state capitol, Golisano held up a check for $5-million made out to his self funded entity, name "Responsible New York," which he contends will be a major force in this fall's elections for the state legislature. Quote, " Don't we have any pride in this place?" listing such recent problems and scandals as the resignation of a governor, a guilty plea by a former state comptroller, rising debt & property taxes, and bloated budgets. Golisano is expected to pump money into at least two senate races in Western New York that could shift control of the chamber to democrats after seven decades of dominance by republicans. Two candidates who could benefit from Golisano's Political Action Committee are Kathy Konst - who is considering a run against veteran state senator Dale Volker - and 'Baby' Joe Mesi - who is running for the seat vacated by Mary Lou Rath.

FURTHER CHARGES TO BE FILED AFTER FATAL MOTORCYCLE ACCIDENT ::Wednesday, July 9th::

More charges could be filed after a fatal motorcycle accident in the Falls Monday night that claimed the life of a young woman. Falls Police say 24 year old Kelly Miller died as a result of injuries she suffered in the crash. 37 year old Anthony Adams remains in serious but stable condition at ECMC. Miller was a passenger on a 1995 Harley Davidson being driven by Adams on Niagara Falls Boulevard at 10:47pm Monday when the bike collided with a car making a left turn. That car was driven by a New Jersey man, who was charged with failure to yield. Now that Miller has died, investigators say he and Adams could face additional charges. Stay Tuned.

14 YEAR OLD BREAKS RECORDS ::Monday, July 7th::

Natalie Lambert emerged from Lake Erie Sunday and walked straight to her father, who had a bear-sized hug ready for his recording setting daughter. As the two embraced on an empty beach at Sturgeon Point Marina in Derby, it didn't resemble the type of fanfare that might be expected for a teen who just set three world records. The 14 year old spent almost eight hours swimming her way across Lake Erie, and as she exited the water, she looked energetic enough to swim her way back. "My body is tight and I'm hungry, but other than that I'm pretty good", says Natalie. She swam from Crystal Beach, Ontario to Sturgeon Point in seven hours, 47 minutes, and 30 seconds. She is now the fastest and youngest person to make the 19 Km swim. What makes it more impressive is that she is the first to do it using the butterfly stroke, considered one of the most demanding styles of swimming. Natalie says she loves the challenge, and that's why she used the tough stroke.

LOCK CITY TO PAY ENTIRE TROLLEY BILL IN 2008-09 ::Monday, July 7th::

The city of Lockport plans to foot the entire bill for the 2008 and 2009 seasons of the Tour Lockport Trolley. The common council approving budget adjustments last week that will make two annual $23,000 payments to the Niagara Tourism and Convention Corporation. The trolley takes visitors between tourist attractions and on narrated city tours free of charge. A previous deal would have split costs with the NTCC, but the organization never billed the city. Mayor Mike Tucker says this will even everything up. The money to run the trolley service comes from the city's share of the bed tax.

FORMER FRANBILT COMPLEX SOLD AT AUCTION ::Thursday, July 3rd::

In Lockport, a Cheektowaga businessman bought the vacant Franbilt Metal Fabricating plant at a foreclosure auction Wednesday, while a Canadian businessman made him a lease offer. Brian Schectman -President of Industrial Realty and Funding - bid $925-thousand. It was the only bid made after Scott Robbins - special assests manager of First Niagara Bank - set the minimum bid at $899-thousand. Schectman says, "I didn't think I was going to own it, but I do. I thought there were other bidders that were going to bid it up." One of those was Brian Mitchell - President of Pop and Lock Corporation, the Welland Ontario auto parts maker and defense contractor - who has been seeking a US plant since last year. Mitchell handed Schectman a letter offering to lease the 45-thousand square foot Akron Road plant from, and Schectman said he'd reply by Tuesday.

WE MAY HAVE THE HIGHEST TAXES, BUT WE HAVE THE BEST HOSPITALS ::Thursday, July 3rd::

The Buffalo Niagara region has been ranked by a national healthcare information company as the nation's best market for the value of hospital care. Western New York beat out 97 other metropolitan areas, including Boston, New York City, Philadelphia, Cleveland, Chicago, and Washington DC, many of which are renowned for their health care and hospitals. In particular, eight Western New York hospitals, including Falls Memorial and Mount St Mary's in Lewiston - were named among the nation's 100 best values for medical care based on Data Advantage's inaugural hospital value index. Other local hospitals cited were all four hospitals of the Catholic Health Systems, Buffalo General, and ECMC. The survey is not a pure measure of the best medical care, but balances that quality with affordability. In addition, it's based on how efficiently the hospitals operate, the satisfaction of their patients, and the hospital's local reputation.