Star-Gazette from Elmira, New York • 9

TI 1 Obituaries 2B TF)) For the Record 2B 1 Neighbors 3B UJ mm Metro Editor Paul Brooks, 607734-5151, Ext. 275 Star-GazetteSunday, July 5, 1992 L(saJiReg if Museum's new home has room to hold more wings City likely to collect data for revaluation V- ill- p- if 4. I By ED BOND Corning Bureau i r- m. By WAYNE T. PRICE Star-Gazette the doors opened for the first day at the new location.

Saturday also was the 84th anniversary of Curtiss' one-kilometer flight of the Junebug in Pleasant Valley Field near Hammondsport, the first witnessed flight of that length in the United States. The museum had been housed in 20,000 square feet of space at the former Hammondsport Free Union School in the village for about 30 years. With four Flights of steps and small rooms, it was not accessible to the handicapped or convenient for large groups. The new building, a warehouse, has the open space needed to display Curtiss planes and replicas as well as the aviator's motorcycles, Dunn said. "It was so difficult to get anything in and out of the building," Dunn said of the former museum site.

The museum had shared space with village and town of Urbana offices. The museum's board of trustees has begun a $1 million fund drive to finance site and exhibit developments. The first to contribute was Jeanne Curtiss of Florida, the daughter-in-law of ED BONDStoraittlt NEW QUARTERS: The Glenn H. Curtiss Museum reopened Saturday in new and larger quarters, the former Gold Seal Winery warehouse. HAMMONDSPORT Finally, the memorabilia of naval aviation pioneer Glenn H.

Curtiss has a proper home. On Saturday, the Glenn H. Curtiss Museum opened in a new location, the former Gold Seal Winery off Route 54, south of Hammondsport, that is nearly three times the size of its former quarters. "It was very cramped in the other building," Lindsley Dunn, senior curator of the museum, said Saturday morning just after night, said Ed Vought, a museum trustee and spokesman. Jeanne Curtiss also was elected honorary chairperson of the fund drive.

See MUSEUM2B Curtiss. She had initially given $220,000, then added $50,000 to that when she saw the new museum during a reception there for more than 400 people Friday 7 1 I 51 It GOTn! 1 i i 1 1 -Is I 3 ir-n, -t Elmira city officials are preparing to move one step closer to revaluation. At 7:30 p.m. Monday, in a special meeting, City Council is expected to approve awarding a contract to Coles Burin Appraisals Associates Inc. of Elmira to begin data collection for a possible revaluation.

"(Data collection) is a major effort and we want to make sure it's done wisely and carefully and accurately and that's why we've set aside a special meeting," said Mayor James E. Hare. If council members approve hiring Coles Burin, data collection would begin in August and continue through February, said Diane Davies, Elmira's assessor. After that, the council could vote to go the next step, revaluation, a procedure that provoked controversies in the city and town of Corning and the town of Elmira earlier this year. "They're scared of it because I don't think they fully understand it," said Elmira Councilman Joseph M.

Cascio D-3rd. Revaluations are meant to correct inequities in assessments and to make assessments as close to full market value as possible. Some property taxes go up and some down, and others stay the same following a revaluation, depending on how much an individual assessment changes in relation to other properties. However, before that takes place, a laborious property data collection must be done. Data collectors will look at all the property in the city, both commercial and residential, and take notice of square footage and details such as the number of bedrooms, bathrooms, fireplaces and characteristics like whether a home has aluminum siding.

Data collection isn't cheap. The city plans to pay Coles Burin $230,661, the lowest of three bids. Cole, Layer and Trumble, a firm with a home office in Philadelphia, asked $248,981 while Finnegan Associates of Concord, bid $252,814. Elmira last did a citywide reassessment in 1959. Elmira officials are concerned that they'll be walking into the same firestorm that recently swept through some neighboring communities.

After a revaluation in the city of Corning, residents caused such a fuss over the numbers that the assessor agreed to delay implementing the new property values for a year. A similar outcry took place in the town of Corning, but Assessor Althea Roll refused to cave in to public pressure and placed the numbers on the tax rolls. A group of citizens from the town have hired a lawyer to fight those figures. In West Elmira, a similar controversy ensued after revaluation earlier this year. There, a number of residents are considering appealing to the state.

Hare said he plans to have several public meetings explaining the process from data collection to revaluation so if a reassessment is indeed undertaken the citizens won't feel they've been left in the dark. That also played into hiring a local firm to collect the data. "We believe that it's extremely important that we have someone who is, first of all, competent and can do the job of data collection," Hare said. What's next: The special meeting begins at 7:30 p.m. Monday at the Armory, next to City Hall on East Church Street.

The area schedule for the Rochester Diocese synod: Sept. 20-26: Strengthening Christian marriage and faith. Sept. 27-Oct. 3: Supporting local parishes as faith-filled communities.

Oct. 4-10: Helping those facing violence, addiction, unwanted pregnancy or terminal illness. Dec. 1 2: First regional synod, St. Mary Our Mother Church, Horseheads.

Feb. 28-March 6, 1993: Meeting the needs of youth and young adults as well as the elderly and those who care for them. March 7-13: Improving efforts in faith development. March 14-20: Fighting racism, sexism, poverty, unemployment and lack of affordable housing and health care. May 22: Second regional synod.

Oct 1-3: General synod, Rochester. STEVE KEESEEStor-Gazetts HI UP: Linda Baron, left, and Jenny Gover, both if Troy, wave to friends below as they ride the Ferris wheel at the Mansfield Fourth of July Celebration In Smythe Park Saturday. Day of food, fun and flags Lay people, members have rare chance to speak out on issues By ED BOND Corning Bureau CORNING If you are Roman Catholic, your church wants to listen to you. The Rochester Diocese, which includes Catholic churches in the Southern Tier, has declared a synod a time to solicit input from member churches. The purpose: to draw up a general mission statement for the diocese.

"We want honest opinions," said Sharyon Fye, chairwoman for the synod committee of the Corning-Painted Post Catholic Faith Community. A synod a Greek word meaning "walking together on a journey" is a massive undertaking requiring the input of every parish throughout the diocese. The last synod in the diocese was in 1954, before the reforms of Vatican II in the 1960s. Then, only clergy participated. But this synod seeks the opinions of lay people even those who have walked away from the church.

3e says it is a chance to bring many disillusioned Catholics. "Now is the time for the church to listen to you," she said. The synod will be held in two Twin Tiers mark Fourth of July old-fashioned way Star-Gazette play at Hill's Department Store in Horseheads had cars backed up on Latta Brook Road to the Route 17 overpass Saturday night, said Chris Parent, an assistant manager at the store. Parent estimated 1,000 cars had overflowed the parking lot and lined the roads around the store. More fireworks were set off in East Smithfield for the Smithfield Township Volunteer Fire Department's 44th annual Fourth of July celebration.

See DAY2B dancing. John Kerbein of the American Legion estimated 700 to 800 people attended. This year, the event will benefit Dollars for Dunn Field. Kerbein said he won't know how much was raised for several days. The Dollars For Dunn campaign is seeking to raise $200,000 from the general public to help fund necessary improvements to Dunn Field, which is owned by the city of Elmira and home to the Elmira Pioneers.

Finding something to do Saturday in the Twin Tiers should have been easy for most people. Day activities in the Elmira area included a celebration at American Legion Post 154 in Elmira Heights that featured chicken, sausage, games and rides, three bands and lots of blocks from Sept. 15 to Oct. 15 and again from Feb. 25 to March 25 simultaneously in parishes throughout the diocese.

Bishop Matthew Clark declared that for the two three-week sessions of the synod, no other church activities, such as festivals or fund raisers, may be held. Each local parish chooses its hours for synod sessions. See CHURCHES2B The annual fireworks dis- The day in photos3B Hornell man dies, three hurt in pickup accident By ED BOND Corning Bureau Hornell City Ambulance and the New York State Police. Robert Vickery, Steuben County coroner from Hornell, was also called to the scene. Kepner's body was removed by the Bishop and Johnson Funeral Service in Hornell.

The sheriff's department said the investigation is continuing and charges are pending. Investigating the accident are Ordway, Inv. Thomas Crossett and Sgt. Ron Bates. the accident on Turnpike Road in Hornellsville.

The driver and two others riding in the cab of the pickup truck suffered only minor injuries, the sheriff's department said. Kepner's body was taken to the Monroe County Medical Examiners Office for an autopsy. The sheriff's department said Michael J. Curtis, 24, of 59 Crosby Hornell, was driving east on Turnpike Road and lost con trol as he rounded a curve at 1:57 a.m. The pickup truck, a 1987 Dodge, went onto the right shoulder and as Curtis tried to correct it he started sliding sideways.

The truck then slid completely across the highway and went into a ditch on the opposite side of the road and struck an earthen embankment. The truck then spun around and Kepner was thrown from the back of the vehicle, deputies said. The truck came to rest with the back end still in the ditch in the front end in the roadway, deputies said. The other passengers were Thomas Chriscaden, 28, of 35 Elm Canisteo, and Jeffrey Fal-zarano, 23, of 32 Park Hornell. All three survivors were treated at to St.

James Hospital in Hornell and released, a hospital spokeswoman said. Assisting at the scene were the South Hornell Fire Department, HORNELLSVILLE A Hornell man riding in the back of a pickup truck was killed early Saturday morning when he was thrown from the truck in an accident. Timothy S. Kepner, 24, of 1 Dennis Hornell, was dead when Steuben County Sheriff's Deputy Joel Ordway arrived at the scene at 2 a.m., minutes after 11 1 1 1 -i MORNING STAR improving drainage. Sealand Contractors Corp Rush, N.Y., bid $1,865,993.

Scheduled for completion by Dec. 31, 1992. Following detailed departmental analysis and verification of bids, processing of legal papers and review by the state officials and the Federal Highway Administration, contracts can be awarded and work can begin. Lottery numbers PA Daily Number: 5-8-2. PA Big 4: 6-0-9-4.

NY Daily Number: 9-6-3. NYWinFour: 1-4-2-1. NY Lotto: 14-1 6-27-31 -43-51. Supplemental: 47. NY Pick 10: 4-6-8-1 0-1 7-20-22-29-32-33-36-42-45-48-51-53-56-68-72-77.

For New York lottery: 518388-3300. For Pennsylvania lottery: 7 1 7986-4 700. mall officials said. Garage fire in W. Elmira reported WEST ELMIRA West Elmira firefighters were called to garage fire at 402 Arcadia Ave.

at 11 p.m. Saturday and were able to extinguish the blaze before it spread to the attached house. Fire Chief Howard Stage II said the fire was under control within five minutes of the arrival of the department. The investigation is continuing to determine the cause of the fire, Stage said. Low bids received for S.

Tier projects ALBANY Low bids on transportation-related improvement projects in Southern Tier and Finger Lakes counties have been announced by state Transportation Commissioner Franklin E. White. The planned work, part of Governor Mario M. Cuomo's multi-year, multi-billion dollar Rebuilding New York infrastructure initiative, includes: Install or upgrade traffic signal detectors at various locations in Allegany, Chemung, Schuyler, Steuben, Tioga and Yates counties. Three bids were received.

Scheduled for completion by Dec. 31, 1993. Install underdrain on Routes 17, 15U and 1-390 at various locations in Chemung, Steuben and Tioga, N.Y., counties. Lancaster Development Cobleskill, N.Y., bid $3,106,520. Scheduled for completion by Dec.

31, 1992. Remove and replace road shoulders on Route 17 between the Hornell and Howard interchanges in the Towns of Howard, Fremont and Hornellsville in Steuben County. The project also includes upgrading guiderail and signs and i I IN THE TIERS Improvement work to begin at mall BIG FLATS Repaying and restrip-ing of the parking lot and roadways at Arnot Mall here is expected to begin this week and be completed in September, mall officials said. Work will be done by Dalrymple Contracting Co. of Elmira.

Repaving will require temporary closure of some parking areas but mall officials said plenty of free parking will be available to shoppers. The 14-year-old parking lot and roadways cover 42 acres, or the equivalent of 11 miles of a 30-foot-wide highway, Dancing Grannies CORNING The Dancing Grannies of Corning brought joy into the lives of the residents of Founders Pavilion, Corning. Helen Emilson of Founders Pavilion says the residents were entertained by the Dancing Grannies on June 10. "We appreciate these lovely, gracious ladies' giving of their time to entertain us. The music and their dancing brought back a lot of good memories.

This group was lead by Jennie Tarantelli of Corning," Emilson says. Morning Star pays daily tribute to people who have done good deeds. To nominate your Morning Star, caH 800836-8970. 607734-5151 or 607 535-6909 and ask for ext. 238, 8 a.m.

to 4:30 p.m. Compiled from staff and wire reports..