Sandy Williamson knows what it’s like to live out of a trailer on the road, and by this summer, she’ll know what it’s like to live in her own, brand-new house.

A 14-unit development that will provide housing for 52 migrant farm workers opened in Aspers on Tuesday.

The development, dubbed Jonathan Court Apartments, consists of seven single-story duplex buildings at 1731 Center Mills Road.

Most migrant workers will tell you it’s the best job they ever had–earning minimum wage trimming and packing cabbage.

Miguel Rodriguez has been working at similar jobs since he was 16, and though he says he is in America legally now, still, he is afraid everyday.

He said, “I was afraid of being sent back and of never being allowed to come back.”

Farmers, workers worry about enforcement team.
A “Fugitive Operations Team” formed late last year has removed hundreds of illegal aliens across the state - and could explain why area farmers and their immigrant employees have recently felt more scrutiny from immigration officials.

The peaceful neighborhood feel of Elmside Street was disrupted Friday afternoon.

Stuck in the middle of the street on the northern border of Alliance was a white tent, what proved to be an unnecessary precaution against foretasted rain. Inside the tent, Rural Opportunities Inc. and its partners celebrated.

Celebrated the completion of Alliance Homes II, the construction of 37 three- and four-bedroom homes in the city.

In Rochester, hundreds turn out for march and rally. They came with placards, T-shirts and an immutable grudge against lawmakers who want to criminalize illegal immigration.

Thousands come to work; some stay for good. Josefino Paz’s journey began in the early 1980s when he was a teenager and came into this country illegally from Mexico.

It was not an easy journey, but he persevered, worked hard and made a life here.

Immigration laws are being debated at the national level as the US Senate works through recommendations to change the law.

The House already has its own version of a law with tougher penalties for illegal immigrants.

Librada Paz arrived from Mexico in 1989 to work in the farm fields. She said, “Our parents could not afford us, support us…I came with a big hope. I was lucky.”

Strategy for Marketview Heights revival calls on residents to pitch in. Georgia Nesmith attended one meeting and they pulled her right in.

Now she’s a full-fledged community activist, caught up to her ears in an effort to revitalize one of Rochester’s most troubled neighborhoods.

Several changes to the proposed Canal View apartment complex were approved last night by the joint town/village planning board, but some taxpayers still are concerned about the project, which will be built at the site of the old Riverside Apartments along the Erie Canal.

The 36-unit senior housing complex was originally to be accessed from Elm Street, but under the revised plans that were approved last night, the old Montezuma Street entrance to Riverside will be used.

My dear friend, the Rev. Ivory Simmons, who lived from Dec. 31, 1933, to June 1, 2002, was a minister, social activist and civil rights advocate.

He worked tirelessly for his entire life on behalf of the dispossessed.