ST. BONAVENTURE — The St. Bonaventure University Polar Plunge Crew team braved the elements Saturday to rally the forces for another year to plunge into Lake Erie for Special Olympics New York.

PLATTSBURGH (TNS) — Until early last week, Vive Shelter in Buffalo was full to bursting. Many of its residents are families preparing to seek asylum in Canada; pre-pandemic, they would stay in New York for a matter of days before heading north.

A new family model for Catholic parishes in the Diocese of Buffalo to work closer together has been announced.

ROCHESTER (AP) — Rochester Mayor Lovely Warren said she had “no regrets” as she prepared Wednesday to leave office a month early after pleading guilty to a misdemeanor campaign finance charge.

BUFFALO — In 2021, people in Western New York and across the country faced great emergency needs as the ongoing pandemic exacerbated the challenges related to severe disasters, blood shortages and global conflict.

CATTARAUGUS — The new $2.1 million Tannery Street bridge, which was completed a year ago, is expected to open to traffic by Dec. 3.

Legislation sponsored by Sen. George Borrello to make the Nourish New York farm-to-foodbank program permanent was signed into law Saturday by Gov. Kathy Hochul during a ceremony at the New York Hall of Science in Queens.

JAMESTOWN — Santru Mohan watched with glee as the leaves changed colors and fell from their branches in recent weeks. He smiles when talking about the cooling temperatures that have arrived on campus.

ALLEGANY — Two years to the day after the explosion of a West Branch Road home, the state Department of Environmental Conservation issued a report Thursday that suggests nearby oil drilling “most likely” led to combustible methane migrating into the home’s basement, leading to the blast.

Earlier this month, Rep. Tom Reed was subjected to partisan anger and even threats after he joined a handful of House Republicans to vote for the Democrats’ $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill.

Acorns often are a key to a successful deer hunt. In 2021, with New York’s big game game season getting underway Saturday, acorns are hard to find.

The emergency culvert replacement project that has closed Interstate 86 between Exits 23 and 24 for the past three weeks, requiring a 7-mile detour, is progressing quickly.

ALBANY — While state Sen. George Borrello believes a state ethics panel did the right thing earlier this week in voting to rescind approval of the former governor’s $5.1 million book deal, continued scrutiny of the deal is warranted.

WELLSVILLE — Several dozen residents of the village and town attended a meeting Wednesday night in which application criteria for the state’s multi-million-dollar Downtown Revitalization Initiative were outlined.

ALLEGANY — It was two years ago today that Ronald and Betty Jo Volz’s home on West Branch Road was shattered by a violent explosion soon after everyone had left.

OLEAN — An increasing number of COVID-19 cases are popping up in Cattaraugus County schools this month.

Rep. Tom Reed was on hand Monday at the White House as President Joe Biden signed a $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill that would not have passed without the votes of a handful of House Republicans.

PORTVILLE — Four generations of a Portville family have kept the fruits and vegetables available to local residents for about 80 years, and the tradition continues to grow.

STEAMBURG — The release of a herd of bison at a farm run by the Seneca Nation of Indians near Steamburg was canceled Thursday after the death of two animals during transport to the site.

U.S. Rep.Tom Reed was getting beat up on Facebook again Tuesday by constituents upset with his vote on the $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill the House passed 228-206 late Friday.

ALLEGANY — Ben Weitsman of Allegany announced plans for a $1 million investment in the company’s scrap yard at 34 W. Union St.

NEW YORK (TNS) — Some workers in New York’s tourism and hospitality industries will get over $2,700 in payments under a new program announced Monday by Gov. Kathy Hochul.

Assemblyman Joseph M. Giglio called Gov. Kathy Hochul’s plan to close six prison facilities across the state in March 2022 “a disastrous leap forward down the path forged by former Gov. Andrew Cuomo.”

BUFFALO — For the first time since March of 2020, the Buffalo and Erie County Botanical Gardens, along with the Niagara Frontier Orchid Society, will host their biannual Orchid Show this weekend at the Botanical Gardens.

Cattaraugus County health officials reported two new COVID-19 deaths and 66 new cases of infection over the weekend.

Thirteen Republicans in the U.S. House helped provide the margin to get the Democrats’ $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill passed late Friday, including Rep. Tom Reed.

BUFFALO (AP) — Striking nurses and other employees at Mercy Hospital in Buffalo could be back on the job next week under a tentative agreement between their union and Catholic Health System.

ALBANY — The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation announced the adoption of new regulations governing the public use of Wildlife Management Areas.

ROCHESTER — American Girl Dolls and the strategy board game Risk were inducted into the National Toy Hall of Fame on Thursday in recognition of their influence on the toy industry. Sand, which the group called perhaps the most universal and oldest toy in the world, was also inducted.

OLEAN — The Cattaraugus County Health Department wants to establish additional monoclonal antibodies infusion sites for residents with COVID-19 to try to reduce the number of hospital patients with the coronavirus.

ITHACA — A partnership between industry, government and academia is bringing a state-of-the-art lab upgrade to Cornell University’s Department of Animal Science.