CANTON — Paolo Magro of Saranac Lake has a passion for cooking and he’s looking forward to sharing his love of Italian food with the community.

For the past several months, Mr. Magro has been renovating the former Blackbird Cafe, a downtown building at 107 Main St. that will reopen as Little Italy Pizzeria.

The eatery will have seating for 30 and is expected to open in three to four weeks, serving lunch and dinner.

Besides full meals, customers will be able to buy pizza by the slice.

“When I cook, I cook with love,” Mr. Magro said during an interview Thursday. “I thought the location had a lot of potential. The community is nice.”

Mr. Magro said the Canton eatery will be similar to the Little Italy he operates in Saranac Lake which offers 30 kinds of pasta, a variety of pizzas, salad, garlic knots, chicken wings, submarines, desserts, beverages and more.

He also owns Little Italy Pizzeria shops in Potsdam and Tupper Lake. He’s been in the restaurant business since emigrating to the United States in 1984 from Sicily when he was 24 years old.

When the Blackbird Cafe came up for sale, Mr. Magro said he purchased the building from former owner Kenneth Hebb for $180,000. He has been doing much of the renovation work himself, including installing new floor tiling, expanding the size of the kitchen and building a new counter.

“It’s rustic and modern at the same time,” he said. “It’s going to have a relaxed, casual atmosphere.”

The building’s upstairs is being renovated into an apartment.

Mr. Magro plans to run the restaurant when it opens and then hand over the reins to a manager. He expects an estimated 15 full- and part-time employees will work there.

“In the beginning, I will have to train a lot of people,” he said.

Initially, the restaurant will be open Tuesdays through Sundays, but will likely expand to seven days a week at some point.

After the restaurant is up and running, Mr. Magro plans to apply for a beer and wine license.

More information about his Little Italy Pizzeria shops can be found at: www.littleitalypizzeriainc.com.

CANTON — A St. Lawrence County grand jury on Thursday indicted seven Utica residents involved in a Massena traffic stop in March that led to the seizure of $34,300 worth of narcotics, a revolver and an undisclosed amount of money.

The grand jury charges Daquon J. Holmes, 21, Jamar L. Carter, 17, Shimeek J. Loadholt, 18, Janera D. Carter, 18, and Keishla M. Rijos, 24, Deronn R. Pool, 21, Roger D. Smith, 21, all of Utica, each with the A-II felony of second-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance and felony third-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance. Mr. Pool was charged with a second count of third-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance. Janera Carter was also indicted on one count of felony second-degree assault.

The indictment charges that on March 30 in the village of Massena, the suspects were in possession of more than 4 ounces of cocaine and an unspecified amount of heroin, with the intent to sell it.

Individually, Mr. Pool was found to have a bag containing more than half an ounce of cocaine in his pocket.

According to the original arrest report by Massena Village Police, at 11:52 p.m. on March 30 at South Main and Hatfield streets in the village, they pulled over a vehicle for failing to stop at a stop sign and failure to signal at Leach and South Main streets.

The traffic stop led to the seizure of 129 grams of crack, 21 grams of heroin, 86 grams of powder cocaine, a revolver and a “large amount of currency.” The exact dollar figure was not immediately available.

Police Chief Adam J. Love said just after police initiated the traffic stop they received a report of an overdose at an address on Romeo Avenue in the village, which he said was linked to the drug arrests.

Following the arrests, and while being held in the St. Lawrence County jail, Canton, on the charges, on April 10, the grand jury charges that Janera D. Carter struck Corrections Officer Katie Rafferty in the face, causing injury. Sheriff’s deputies said Ms. Carter struck the officer in the face multiple times, resulting in a broken nose.

The prospect of a regional food hub that has been in the works for years will be assessed through pilot projects, including a small-scale trial operation, conducted by producers and Cornell Cooperative Extension offices.

The Jefferson, Lewis, St. Lawrence and Oswego county extensions are working with 30 producers in three advisory councils, which they formed earlier this year, to identify the resources, opportunities and challenges for creating a hub that would allow farmers from all four counties to store and sell their products to large distributors and customers throughout the state, said Cornell Cooperative Extension of Jefferson County Executive Director Kevin J. Jordan, who is leading the initiative.

“It’s really the vision of the producers we are working with,” Mr. Jordan said. “There would be an opportunity to be able to expand their market potential.”

The state Department of Agriculture and Markets, which was given $1,064,000 in the 2015-16 state budget for the regional food hub, gave the extensions a contract in September that allowed them to make investments and obtain the necessary infrastructure, which may include smaller facilities in the region to support production for the regional hub.

Discussions between the extensions and their south advisory councils resulted in three pilot projects: a small-scale pilot warehouse operation, a production project and marketing project.

“Everyone said that was a good way to look at doing that,” Mr. Jordan said.

The small-scale warehouse pilot project would provide cold storage and value-added processing equipment and allow farmers and the extensions to develop methods for handling large quantities of products, collaborate to meet larger demands and ship products to different markets.

Mr. Jordan said they are looking for experts to manage the warehouses’ operations and experts who can provide technical assistance and marketing assistance. These experts will also need to have product handling expertise and be familiar with producers in the four counties. The extensions also are looking for experts who know what resources are available for the project.

“(We) would be able to test whatever the barriers are,” Mr. Jordan said. “We hoped there would be an existing operation where we could rent some space.”

The extensions are collaborating with Martin’s Farm Stand in Potsdam for its second project to determine the feasibility of producing enough products to meet the large customer demands.

Daniel Z. Martin, one of the owners and managers of the stand, said one of its members will grow a few thousand tomato plants and 9,000 pepper plants to sell wholesale. Some tomatoes and peppers will be sold to Renzi Foodservice and the rest will be sold to a prospective client in New York City and local markets.

Mr. Martin said it’s difficult for north country farmers to sell their products to other markets, comparing the situation to a highway with no entrances.

“That’s what the food hub is going to do for us — be an entrance point,” he said.

The extensions are working with state Sen. Patricia A. Ritchie, R-Heuvelton, and her staff to locate potential customers in New York City and other areas outside of the north country and determine the cost of shipping to those markets for the third project, Mr. Jordan said.

“Stay tuned. We’re working on it right now,” he said.

While the state awarded the extensions funding for a regional food hub in 2015, Paul T. Halderman, an owner and partner for Zoar Asparagus Farm and Zoar Tapatree Syrup Co. in Rodman, said farmers have been discussing plans for a food hub for 20 years.

Mr. Halderman, who serves on the Central food hub advisory committee, said the hub would provide a new distribution outlet for farmers and allow them to expand production.

“I’m hoping to maximize what I can grow for a guaranteed market,” he said. “Everybody always wants to plant as much as they can.”

Across Jefferson, St. Lawrence and Lewis counties, as well as in several counties across the state, levels of food insecurity are on the decline.

“Food insecurity” is a term coined by the United States Department of Agriculture to measure a lack of access to nutritionally adequate foods. It exists in every county in the country — some more than others.

“In general, food insecurity has been dropping across the country and the state in recent years due to an improving economy,” said Gloria McAdam, executive director of Garden Share, Canton. “You will see the same trend with Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) enrollment which also has to do with the improving economy.”

Food-insecure households are not necessarily food insecure all the time, and it doesn’t always go hand-in-hand with poverty. For example, food insecurity may reflect a household’s need to temporarily make trade-offs between important basic needs, such as housing or medical bills, and purchasing healthy food.

“In all three counties, there are at least some food-insecure individuals whose level of income likely prevents them from qualifying for federal nutrition programs, such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and free and reduced-priced school meal programs,” said Kathleen Stress, executive director of the Food Bank of Central New York, Syracuse. “For these food-insecure households, the charitable food assistance network may be the only source of support.”

Feeding America, a nonprofit organization that hosts a nationwide network of more than 200 food banks, released its annual report on food insecurity last week.

The research report, titled “Map the Meal Gap,” attempts to measure the rates of food insecurity down to the county level and project how much it would cost to close the “meal gap,” or purchase just enough food for every food-insecure person to meet their food needs.

Overall, according to recent data, the food insecurity rate across Jefferson, St. Lawrence and Lewis Counties is trending downward.

“Any time there is a decrease in food insecurity it is good news,” said Tina M. Cobb, executive director of the North Country Prenatal/Perinatal Council, Watertown. “The decrease allows for improved health and reduced chronic disease, increased productivity, better educational attainment, and improved economic impact.”

According to the 2017 Feeding America report released last week, which deals with data compiled from two years prior, 16,630 people, or 14 percent, were food insecure in Jefferson County in 2015. This is a decrease from 14.4 percent of Jefferson County residents in 2014 and 15.4 percent in 2013.

In St. Lawrence County, 15,550 people, or 13.9 percent, were food insecure in 2015. This is the same percentage as last year, but a decrease from 14.8 percent of St. Lawrence County residents in 2013.

In Lewis County, 3,150 people, or 11.6 percent, were food insecure in 2015. This is a decrease from 12.2 percent of Lewis County residents in 2014 and 13.1 percent in 2013.

Jefferson and St. Lawrence County food insecurity rates were higher than the state average.

New York state as a whole had a food insecurity rate of 12.6 percent in 2015, compared with 13.5 percent and 13.9 percent in 2014 and 2013 respectively.

“The north country is more challenged than some other parts of the state because of socio-economic issues,” Ms. McAdam said. “The brain drain of young people leaving the area for better jobs had been going on for years. So our population is getting older and poorer as young people and good paying jobs leave the area.”

Even though the rate of food insecurity is on the decline, experts say there is still a lot to be done.

“While Food Bank of Central New York does make a difference, national programs like SNAP reach far more people. In fact, charitable food programs provide only 10 percent of the meals that SNAP does,” Ms. Stress said. “While Food Bank of Central New York works tirelessly to provide emergency food assistance to families at risk of hunger, the problem is simply too big to fix without national government programs that are proven to lift people out of hunger.”

MASSENA — A bus monitor for the Massena Central School District was assaulted by a student on the bus, according to district officials.

“We did have an elementary-age student assault a bus monitor on the special needs bus,” Superintendent Patrick H. Brady said. He said the situation was handled well by all of the employees on the bus.

“All of the involved employees performed their jobs appropriately during this difficult situation,” he said.

An email that had been sent to the media, reporting the incident, contained inaccurate information about what transpired, according to Mr. Brady.

“The content of the correspondence ... is inaccurate,” he said.

The state’s deer harvest was up 5 percent in the 2016-17 season, according to officials with the state Department of Environmental Conservation.

Hunters took 213,061 deer during the season, up from 202,973 in the 2015-16 season.

“Deer hunting in New York is a proud and economically important tradition that is safely enjoyed by hundreds of thousands of residents and visitors each year,” DEC Commissioner Basil Seggos said in a statement. “Not only is deer hunting important for providing high quality local protein to families, it is an essential conservation tool that helps reduce negative ecological impacts of deer on forests, farms and communities throughout the state.”

However, the figure was less than the five-year average of 231,306 deer.

The 2016 deer take included 106,055 antlerless deer and 107,006 antlered bucks, the DEC said.

Overall, 5,964 deer were taken in Jefferson County in 2016, along with 4,563 in Oswego County, 4,292 in St. Lawrence County and 2,639 in Lewis County.

The DEC said nearly half of the adult bucks taken this past year were older than 2.5 years. The department said it started a campaign last year to encourage hunters to voluntarily pass up shots at young bucks to increase the population of larger bucks.

A total of 2,447 deer were tested for chronic wasting disease, with none testing positive for the illness.

The Armed Forces Day Parade hit the streets Saturday in Watertown.

PAUL SMITHS — Two area colleges signed an agreement last week enabling all past and future North Country Community College graduates to enroll at Paul Smith’s College at a discounted tuition rate.

North Country Community College graduates who enroll at Paul Smith’s full-time would pay no more than $8,000 per year in tuition under the new scholarship program. The agreement reflects both colleges’ commitment to attract and retain students and alumni in the region.

Interested North Country Community College alumni should email admissions@paulsmiths.edu or call 800-421-2605 to learn more about the program.

POTSDAM — Before SUNY Potsdam graduates made their way across the stage on a breezy but sunny Saturday morning, Massena native Jim “Ace” Deshaies, a broadcast analyst for the Chicago Cubs and a former major league baseball pitcher, provided some motivating words to all during his keynote address.

Mr. Deshaies’s speech carried nostalgia when he asked the graduates to perform a simple mind exercise.

“Let your mind drift back through the years and conjure up images of all those classrooms, the classmates, the teachers. Think about all those hours poring over homework at the kitchen table, wishing you were anywhere but sitting at that table. All the exams, the projects, the term papers, SATs, ACTs — draining Red Bulls so you can pull an all-nighter before finals,” he said. “I can tell you this: you are ready.”

More than 800 undergraduate and graduate SUNY Potsdam students were awarded degrees.

During her commencement remarks, President Kristin G. Esterberg addressed the students and told them they attended SUNY Potsdam during a year of many firsts.

“All of you can proudly claim to be the first class to graduate in Potsdam’s third century,” she said. “But many of you participated in other firsts for SUNY Potsdam students: the first class to perform in the Performing Arts Center; the first classes to travel to Cuba; the first to perform in Carnegie Hall in more than 60 years; and the first to backpack through the Gila Wilderness in New Mexico.”

Prior to the conferring of degrees was a Native American greeting from Taiawenton:ti Chelsea Sunday and her daughter Kaneniokwas Mya Cree, both of the Akwesasne Mohawk Nation.

Before the duo sang “Ohen:ton Karihwatehkwen,” Ms. Sunday briefly announced it was young Mya’s birthday.

Almost immediately, the crowd of soon-to-be graduates loudly belted out an impromptu round of “Happy Birthday,” much to the glee of young Mya as well as the large crowd of students, staff, faculty, and friends and family of the students.

During the ceremony, two awards were presented to members of the Potsdam community.

Sen. Joseph A. Griffo, R-Rome, along with Ms. Esterberg, presented the Leadership Through Service Award to Saverio “Sam” and Carmela Spagnolo, founders and owners of Sergi’s Restaurant.

“Potsdam wouldn’t be Potsdam without Sergi’s pizza,” Ms. Esterberg said.

In addition, philanthropists Joy MacDonald Dorf ‘58 and Richard Dorf received the Roger B. Linden Distinguished Service Award.

In her speech to graduates, Ms. Esterberg asked the crowd to remember their time at SUNY Potsdam.

“You have all taken away lessons, friendships and memories to last a lifetime,” Ms. Esterberg said. “You have already had an indelible impact on SUNY Potsdam. And we are eager to see the changes that you, the class of 2017, will make in the world.”

CANTON — The village has dispersed a request for qualifications for contractors who want to bid on projects funded by the New York Main Street Program.

The village has been awarded a $300,000 grant through New York State Homes and Community Renewal’s New York Main Street Program. This grant allows the village to assist owners of commercial, mixed-use properties in a defined target area in downtown Canton with significant building renovation and façade restoration projects.

Economic Developer Leigh B. Rodriguez said the village will need a wide range of contractors to complete projects that involve anything from roofing and masonry to heating and plumbing.

There are seven projects that are in the works as part of the village’s New York Main Street Program, and some are at more advanced stages than others.

“Three of the projects went through the Planning Board and got the go-ahead,” Ms. Rodriguez said.

The three projects that have local approval so far will help renovate property owned by Frank Sergi, owner of Sergi’s Italian Restaurant; Nature’s Storehouse, owned by Rainbow Crabtree, and a property on Main Street owned by Brooke E. and Charles Rouse.

Ms. Rodriguez said the Nature’s Storehouse project is closest to beginning its building process.

“Hers is kind of the simplest one,” she said.

The Nature’s Storehouse project will include replacing any mismatched or deteriorated brick, removing paint or stain from bricks, performing minor roof repairs and painting and replacing some trim boards, among other small maintenance measures.

The three projects that have been approved by the Planning Board now require state approval on environmental tests and other clearances.

“There are several components to that. We had to get a site contamination review done, so we had to get an environmental firm in to do that. We had to do radon testing; we had to get state historic preservation sign off; they had to get zoning sign off,” Ms. Rodriguez said.

Ms. Rodriguez said construction could begin within six to eight weeks after receiving the requests for qualification. She said the project is still on schedule.

“All of the projects are supposed to be done by December,” Ms. Rodriguez said. “I am hoping to still be on that timeline.”

Requests for qualifications must be returned to the village no later than 4 p.m. Friday. Contractors wishing to be considered for inclusion are required to submit paperwork to Village of Canton, Leigh Rodriguez, Director of Economic Development, 60 Main St., Canton, N.Y. 13617. Ms. Rodriquez can be contacted by email at lrodriguez@cantonny.us or by phone at 315-386-2871, ext. 5. The request for qualifications can be found on the village’s website at www.cantonnewyork.us.

WATERTOWN — The spring shuttles in another offering of the Greater Watertown-North Country Farm & Craft Market.

Beginning Wednesday, the farmers market will for the first time in its 40-year history use a shuttle bus service to pick up marketgoers at three downtown public parking lots and take them to the weekly events along Washington Street.

Last month, the City Council unanimously agreed to start the shuttle bus service to help ease a parking crunch during the 20-week event.

Farmers market manager Stephanie J. Mason said she believes the shuttle will particularly help downtown workers looking to pick up a quick lunch and ease traffic in the process.

“It won’t be as bad to drive through the traffic during lunch,” she said.

Even without the farmers market, parking can be at a premium in the downtown business district, she said.

Councilman Stephen A. Jennings suggested the shuttle bus to help with some additional parking problems that will be caused by the loss of parking spots from an ongoing construction project at the Roswell P. Flower Memorial Library.

Plans call for the first pickup at 9:45 a.m. at the J.B. Wise parking lot and a final pickup at City Hall at 3 p.m. The runs will occur every 20 minutes.

The cost for the city will be $125 for each Wednesday and a $150 startup expense for signage and other materials. There will be no charge for riders who use the shuttle.

The longest-running and largest farmers market in the north country, it will be open from 6:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesdays through Oct. 4.

More than 50 vendors will join the farmers market this season. Ten new vendors will be part of the activities, Miss Mason said. They include Eat This, a food vendor specializing in “famous beer can chicken tacos,” Agbotic organic foods and Once Fired homemade American jewelry.

The Jefferson County Historical Society is sponsoring weekly acts. For the first time, vendors also will offer hands-on demonstrations.

Miss Mason, who is in her first year as the market manager, expects attendance to continue to rise. For the past several years, it’s drawn thousands of shoppers each week and benefits farmers and local businesses. She replaced Alekzandra Huttemann-Kall.

Miss Mason is still working on continuing a longtime tradition of the Lunch Box revue, free entertainment performed by a variety of musicians. The chamber is taking over that responsibility from the Downtown Business Association, which bowed out this year.

As in previous years, vendors will accept EBT and WIC, which allows people who have redeemed food stamp benefits to buy fruits and vegetables.

WELLESLEY ISLAND — Although it has not been done in recent history, the U.S. Coast Guard opened its doors to the public Saturday in honor of National Safe Boating Week. The Landon Road station, located across the St. Lawrence River from Alexandria Bay, has been in operation since the mid-1970s. Visitors were given an opportunity to meet with Coast Guard crew members, tour the facility and interact with the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Royal Canadian Mounted Police and local law enforcement. Each group provided information about its programs and safe boating.

“They could put an eye on what we do on a daily basis,” Petty Officer Carlo J. Masi said. “We live here. They can see our work environment.”

The station is manned 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

As a branch of military service, members of the Coast Guard are required to have daily physical training. There is a workout room at the station and an outdoor fitness trail.

“As in any military service, cleanliness is important,” Petty Officer Masi said. “We are always cleaning something — the boats, picking up sticks.”

However, their main duties involve keeping the nation’s waterways safe — and for the Wellesley Island station, that means Lake Ontario at Cape Vincent up the St. Lawrence River to the Canadian border.

“We protect the waterways, conduct search and rescue, do recreational boating safety checks — in fact, we have a crew in Sackets Harbor this weekend doing recreational safety — and we do the shiprider program.”

As described by Capt. David Charbonneau of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, the program, officially called Integrated Cross-border Maritime Law Enforcement Operations, allows Canadian law enforcement members to serve alongside Americans on their vessels and vice versa.

“This way we can enforce the law on both sides of the border,” Capt. Charbonneau said. “It’s a good partnership.”

He said when an American vessel is used there are three Coast Guard or border patrol members and one Canadian officer, and the ratio is reversed on Canadian boats.

The Canadian said the open house was an opportunity to educate the public about the joint program and to answer questions about policies.

“When recreating in Canadian waters, you must report in to the Canadian Border Services Agency,” he said.

Senior Chief Brandon B. Liesen said the main purpose of the open house was to “let the public see what we do and meet our partners.”

He said holding it during National Safe Boating Week gave the groups an opportunity to stress some important messages.

“We want to promote wearing life jackets,” he said. “Just like when you are in a car accident it is too late to fasten your seat belt, when you are boating it is best to wear the life jacket. It is required to have a life jacket onboard, but it is important to wear it.”

He said another danger on waterways is inattentiveness.

“You need to pay attention and be aware of your surroundings while boating,” Chief Liesen said. “Alcohol and boating do not mix.”

He noted the Coast Guard also encourages people to seek training for paddler safety.

“The sport is really taking off, but people need to be safe. We’ve made it a priority for the season,” he said. “We are urging people to wear a life jacket and carry a whistle.”

Flotilla Commander John C. “Jack” Augsbury of the Coast Guard Auxiliary said last year there were nine paddle craft accidents that caused Coast Guard Rear Admiral June E. Ryan to mandate making paddle craft safety a priority.

Partnering with Jefferson Community College, Watertown, Commander Augsbury said there will be a guide to paddle safety course offered this summer.

Commander Robert M. Laurer, Coast Guard Auxiliary public education directorate, said the most important things to remember about being out in a paddle craft is to “be aware of your surroundings and know the rules of the road.”

“They don’t call those things Texas speed bumps for nothing,” he said. “They can be seen on the open water by bigger boats and get run over.”

He said operators of paddle boats need to practice defensive boating.

Coast Guard veteran Robert J. Stepien and his wife, Mary Lou, of Alexandria Bay, attended the open house to visit the “new station.” According to his wife, Mr. Stepien had served while the station was housed next door.

Sharon Brown of St. Petersburg, Fla., who owns a camp in the Thousand Islands, said she and her husband, Schuyler “Pete,” came to learn more about their “obligations when crossing the border while boating.”

“I’m glad they did this,” she said, noting they also had garnered information for Mr. Brown’s grandson, who is interested in joining the Coast Guard.

Petty Officer Masi, a nearly 10-year member, said he would encourage anyone to join the service.

“My passion is driving boats and I get to do that every day,” he said. “I’ve learned leadership and humility, and it has been a great way to take care of my family.”

OLD FORGE — The seventh annual Black River Watershed Conference will be held June 14 in this Herkimer County village.

The event — organized by the Tug Hill Commission, Lewis and Jefferson County Soil and Water Conservation Districts and state Department of Environmental Conservation Region 6 — will be held at the View Arts Center, the first time the event has taken place within the Adirondack Park.

It will include a continental breakfast, presentations on current projects and other watershed-related topics from 9 a.m. to 1:45 p.m. and a guided boat tour from 2 to 4 p.m.

The cost of registration is $25 per person, and spots must be reserved by June 5.

Registration forms for participants or interested exhibitors may be accessed at www.tughill.org or by contacting Carla Yaw at 315-376-6122 or by email at carlayaw@lewiscounty.ny.gov.

POTSDAM — Village Mayor Reinhold J. Tischler appointed Abby Lee as a village trustee, effective Friday. The appointment is to fill the balance of the term vacated by Trustee Eleanor F. Hopke with her resignation.

Mr. Tischler also appointed Steve Warr as deputy mayor, also due to Mrs. Hopke’s departure.

In addition, James Corbett has been appointed as the new Department of Public Works superintendent.

CARTHAGE — The block party scheduled for June 1 in conjunction with the Carthage Area Chamber of Commerce Business After Hours event for June has been canceled due to unforeseen circumstances.

The Carthage Chamber is seeking a host for the June Business After Hours. Any interested member business should call chamber Executive Director Lori A. Borland at 315-493-3590.

COLTON — Police, fire and rescue squads responded to reports of a plane crash near 4604 Route 56 shortly after 4 p.m. Saturday.

There were two unidentified male passengers in the aircraft, which was described as a small fixed-wing plane with a propeller.

Troopers said both passengers escaped the plane crash without injuries except for a few minor cuts.

“They were lucky,” Colton Fire Department Chief Aaron Johnson said.

Mr. Johnson said the aircraft possibly was flown out of the Tupper Lake area and the destination was the Hannawa Falls area.

The cause of the crash is still under investigation.

According to officials on the scene, there was no oil spill because fuel tanks were located in the wings of the aircraft.

State police said the St. Lawrence County Sheriff’s Office was handling the investigation. Sheriff’s deputies did not respond to requests for information.

Route 56 was temporarily turned into a one-lane road while sheriff’s deputies, state police, Colton Fire and Rescue Squads and Pierrepont Fire Department responded to the scene of the crash. The road was reopened with both lanes about 6 p.m.

This is the second plane crash in the Colton area this month.

On the night of May 3, Eric Carrier, 35, of St.-Gedeon-de-Beauce, Quebec, was the sole victim of a plane crash in the vicinity of 327 Windmill Road in South Colton.

The Sandy Creek softball team was awarded the No. 1 seed in the Section 3 Class C playoffs during a Sunday morning meeting at league headquarters in Syracuse.

The Comets (14-1 overall) — who have won a sectional title 15 times in the last 22 years, including a stretch of five in a row before suffering a 1-0 loss to Cooperstown in last year’s final — will begin their latest quest on Tuesday by hosting the winner of No. 16 Sauquoit Valley and No. 17 Weedsport.

Sandy Creek received the highest seed among 13 Frontier League teams who will compete in the open sectional playoffs. The regular 40-percent win requirement to qualify was waived by league officials on May 8, for this year only, because the high number of game postponements presented difficulty for some teams to complete their schedule.

Two other area teams accepted bids in the Class C bracket. South Lewis (8-9) is the No. 13 seed and will open at No. 4 Frankfort-Schuyler (13-6) Tuesday, while No. 14 Beaver River (7-9) will host No. 19 Onondaga (2-12) in a first-round game Monday.

The Class C semifinals are scheduled for Saturday and the title game will be played at 5 p.m. next Wednesday at Gillette Road Park in Cicero.

In Class B, Frontier League champion Lowville (12-2) is the No. 4 seed and will receive a first-round bye before hosting either No. 13 Chittenango or No. 20 Jordan-Elbridge on Tuesday.

South Jefferson (12-5) was seeded sixth and will host No. 11 Marcellus (10-7), while No. 7 General Brown (11-5) will host No. 10 Westhill (10-9). Both of those second-round games are slated for Tuesday.

The Class B semifinals are scheduled for Saturday in Rome with the title game set for 5:30 p.m. next Tuesday at a location to be determined.

LaFargeville (12-3), fresh off winning the Frontier League “D” Division regular-season and playoff titles, is the defending sectional champion and received the hightest seed among five area teams in the Class D bracket.

The fourth-seeded Red Knights will begin defending their title by hosting No. 13 Belleville Henderson (8-9) in Tuesday’s second round.

Sackets Harbor (7-7) received the No. 11 seed and will open at No. 6 Oriskany (14-5), while No. 12 Immaculate Heart (6-6) begins at No. 5 DeRuyter (9-2) and No. 15 Alexandria (3-8) will play at No. 2 Stockbridge Valley (12-4). Each of those second-round games is slated for Tuesday.

The Class D semifinals will be played May 27 in Rome and the championship is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. next Wednesday at Gillette Road Park.

In Class A second-round games, No. 6 Indian River (5-6) will host No. 11 Central Valley (3-12) Tuesday and No. 10 Carthage (3-9) will play at No. 7 Fulton (7-9) on Monday.

The Class A semifinals will be played on Saturday and the championship is slated for 5 p.m. next Tuesday at Gillette Road Park in Cicero.

Immaculate Heart Central received the top seed in the Section 3 Class B playoffs following a meeting Sunday morning at league headquarters in Syracuse.

The Cavaliers (12-1 overall), who won the Class C title en route to a state semifinal appearance last year, were awarded a first-round bye and will open Tuesday by hosting the winner of a first-round game between No. 17 Cazenovia and No. 16 Jordan-Elbridge.

IHC is one of 16 Frontier League teams in the field for this year’s open sectional tournament. League officials waived the 40-percent win requirement to qualify on May 8, for this year only, because the high number of game postponements and cancellations presented difficulty for some teams to complete their schedule.

South Jefferson (12-4) is the No. 4 seed in Class B and will begin Tuesday by hosting a second-round game — against the winner of Monday’s first-round matchup between No. 13 General Brown (8-7) and No. 20 Marcellus (3-15) in Dexter.

Lowville (10-9) is the No. 14 seed in Class B and will host No. 19 Chittenango in Monday’s first round.

The Class B semifinals are slated for Saturday at Onondaga Community College and the title game is 3 p.m. Monday in the same location.

LaFargeville (13-2), which won the Frontier League “D” Division regular-season and playoff titles, was awarded the second seed in Class D and will host a second-round game against No. 15 Remsen (3-11) on Tuesday.

The other area teams playing Class D second-round games Tuesday are No. 8 Sackets Harbor (9-7) hosting No. 9 West Canada Valley (6-7), No. 11 Lyme (5-9) at No. 6 Hamilton (11-3), and No. 13 Copenhagen (4-9) at No. 4 Fabius-Pompey (8-2). Alexandria (4-11) is the No. 17 seed and will play No. 16 Blessed Virgin Mary Monday in a first-round game.

The Class D semifinals are slated for Saturday at Murnane Field in Utica and the title game will be held at 4:30 p.m. Tuesday at OCC.

Class A is utilizing a double-elimination format following its first-round games. Area teams involved in Monday’s single-elimination round are No. 6 Watertown (11-7) hosting No. 11 New Hartford (5-11), No. 10 Carthage (9-8) at No. 7 Cortland (9-7), and No. 15 Indian River (0-14) at No. 2 Whitesboro (14-4).

The Class A semifinal featuring teams from the double-elimination winner’s bracket is scheduled for Saturday, and the semifinal matchup from the loser’s bracket is Sunday. The Class A championship is slated for 6 p.m. Monday at OCC.

The Class A semifinal featuring teams from the winner’s bracket is scheduled for Saturday, and the semifinal matchup from the loser’s bracket is Sunday. The Class A championship is slated for 6 p.m. Monday at OCC.

Four area teams will open play in the Class C second round on Tuesday, led by fourth-seeded Thousand Islands (11-5), which will host No. 13 Sandy Creek (6-10). Fifth-seeded Beaver River (11-7) will host No. 12 Dolgeville (10-6) and No. 8 South Lewis (8-6) will host No. 9 Cato-Meridian (6-6).

The Class C semifinals are scheduled for Murnane Field in Utica on Saturday and the championship will be played at noon Monday at OCC.

If anyone knows how important Twitter is to Donald Trump, it’s the president.

“Without the tweets, I wouldn’t be here,” he told the Financial Times last month.

To which Twitter’s co-founder says: Sorry about that, world.

Evan Williams, who still sits on the company’s board of directors, recently told The New York Times that he wants to repair the damage he thinks Twitter and the broader Internet have wrought on society in the form of trolls, cyberbullies, live-streamed violence, fake news and — yes — Trump.

“I thought once everybody could speak freely and exchange information and ideas, the world is automatically going to be a better place,” Williams told the Times. “I was wrong about that.”

“If it’s true that he wouldn’t be president if it weren’t for Twitter, then yeah, I’m sorry,” he said.

Is it true? Hard to say.

Since Trump became president, his incessant, aggressive and sometimes inaccurate tweets have seemed as much a liability as a political boon.

His aides held a social media “intervention” a few weeks ago, according to The Wall Street Journal, trying to convince Trump that unfounded accusations like “Obama had my ‘wires tapped’” could endanger him politically and legally.

On the campaign trail, Trump once described his rapidly growing Twitter following not only as a means to get the truth out, but also as a way to get even with his enemies.

“Someone said I’m the Ernest Hemingway of 140 characters,” he told a crowd in South Carolina, air-typing into a pretend phone. “If someone says something badly about you: Bing, bing, bing! I say something really bad.”

CANTON — The music from bagpipes filled St. Lawrence University’s campus Sunday morning as the commencement procession made its way around Gunnison Memorial Chapel and onto Creasy Commons, where graduates walked through a parted crowd of proud family members, friends and mentors.

Members of the class of 2017 took selfies, laughed and cheered together before taking their seats.

“Your world, your expedition, your life begins with our ultimate optimism, confirmed in so many happy ways, but it is also accompanied by the provisional reality that treacherous water is ahead,” President William L. Fox said during a welcoming speech. “When you go ashore to portage the load you bear, you’ll find the trail is well worn. St. Lawrence has marked it for you and Laurentians will be ready to walk it with you.”

The processional began at 10 a.m. followed by the university’s commencement ceremony, which included the presentation of 633 degrees, 601 of them bachelor’s degrees.

Special speaker and honorary degree candidate U.S. Sen. Susan M. Collins, R-Maine, gave an address to students and a “thank you” to the faculty.

She graduated Phi Beta Kappa from St. Lawrence University in 1975, where she was a classmate of Mr. Fox.

“I ask that you use the critical thinking skills you have learned here to constantly broaden your horizons, to understand and respect views that differ from your own, and to restore civil discourse to our national debates,” Ms. Collins said.

Caroline Welsh, an art historian and director emerita of the Adirondack Museum in Blue Mountain Lake, was awarded the college’s North Country Citation. She is the author of numerous books and articles on Adirondack artists and other subjects.

“Graduates, I hope that you and everyone here will join me to make a bold reaffirmation of our commitment to preserving arts and culture,” she said to the crowd. “Without them, none of us will reach our full potential.”

Rutendo Chabikwa, a graduate who won the Joan Donovan speech contest, delivered the senior oration during the ceremony.

“Remember how differently we all began this adventure,” she said. “Today too, we begin all from different places. This new beginning is one that will show us that what we have is enough and what we do not have, we do not need — unless you are from a warmer continent; then you really need to purchase a bigger coat.”