Water — whether there’s too much of it through flooding out west or not enough with the drought right here in Bethany, or the materials used for it, such as the case in Newark, NJ, which spent nearly $200 million to replace residents’ lead water lines, and now has become an issue for the city of Batavia — is no doubt a force to be reckoned with sooner or later.

Newark’s officials were lauded for creating a lead line replacement program — replacing all 23,000 lines — and the Environmental Protection Agency is enforcing a Lead and Copper Rule Revision that Batavia must follow by developing a service line inventory, city management says. 

Although they’re not certain about a timeline to follow, the first step is to get that inventory completed by Oct. 24, 2024, Public Works Director Brett Frank said. 

“What we're basically asking the public to do is, we've got to gather a bunch of landline inventory, it's your water service inventory that we're looking to obtain. So right on the city website underneath the Public Works page, if you click that ... that'll take you to a flyer that explains what a water service line is, and what the common materials are. And we're looking to have people scan a QR code and take a picture of their water service line," Frank said. "Easiest way to tell what kind of line you have is, if it's old galvanized steel, you take a magnet, and it'll stick right to your water service line, which runs directly to your water meter. It’s typically going to be one of four materials, it's either going to be galvanized steel, copper, plastic, or in extremely rare cases, it's going to be a lead service line inside the home, which we rarely ever run into. So it's not anything for people to be alarmed about."

Earlier this week during City Council’s business meeting, Frank and City Manager Rachael Tabelski reviewed the program and plan to gather service line information from residents. This doesn’t mean that city water is unsafe; to the contrary, the city provides high-quality drinking water, Tabelski said: “We test the water several times a day,” she said.

The city has an effective corrosion control process tore cue the risk of lead leaching from lead plumbing materials, and the city routinely tests the water and results are consistently below the EPA action level for lead, according to that water pamphlet Frank mentioned.

This first step is just about getting an idea of how many property owners in the city have pipes with lead in them, either the pipe itself or having been soldered together with lead. Using a magnet will identify the pipe material, because if it sticks, the pipe is galvanized steel versus copper, plastic, or lead. 

Due to this being a potential monster of a project, Frank is hoping that residents will use the city website and/or pamphlet and QR code, take and submit a photo of their water lines, and reduce that portion of work from city staff. Eventually, it may come to hiring an intern or seasonal staff to assist with gathering inventory if citizens aren’t responding to this appeal for assistance, he said.

Meanwhile, the city has applied for grant funding to do a “potholing” project to discover the existence of lead lines between the public side — the city’s responsibility — on the street over to the private side — the homeowner’s property, which runs from the curb line through the basement to the water meter. 

“So if that grant comes through, that would give us enough data to where we could plug it into what's called a predictive modeling platform,” he said. “So that's the goal is to get this grant to do roughly, 1,100 to 1,200 potholes, plug that into what's called a predictive modeling platform, and then we could use that data, which is accepted to kind of map out where we believe we will find lead services. A complicated process, right?”

Right. All of this process has to happen before the city even gets to the point of discussing lead line replacement. And once that arises, the city, while nowhere near where Newark was financially, is still looking at a $30 million project cost, Tabelski and Frank said. 

Lead has been a hot topic of the moment, not only with water lines, but also within the home. Genesee County Health Department has devoted funding for the dangers of exposure to lead-filled paint in older homes, as lead is a toxic material, and can cause health issues, especially in children. 

Perhaps that’s why it was “one of the big items” for discussion at a recent New York Conference of Mayors that Tabelski and Frank attended. While they don’t want to sound any alarms, nobody wants to see issues from undue lead exposure down the road either. 

“We're facing about $30 million of lead replacements, not only on the public side but on the homeowner side. We are meeting weekly now to try to deploy a plan because by October we need to identify as many lead or non-lead services in the city to gain a better understanding of what our replacement will actually look like. And to hone in on that $30 million cost,” Tabelski said. “There's been new rules that have come out that basically say you can't replace the city side and not replace the owner side. So legally, we need to work through some of those challenges.” 

If anyone has questions or would like to schedule to have your pipe checked in your home, call 585-343-6345 or email leadservice@batavianewyork.com.

Press Release:

Please be advised that Bank Street, from Main Street to Washington Avenue, will be closed until midday on Friday as the Bank Street Water project nears completion.

We apologize for any inconvenience and thank the public for its patience and cooperation as we work to improve our community.

If you've ever been interested in becoming a school board member, and think that perhaps it would be a great way to be connected to your community, Genesee Valley School Boards Association is hosting a program designed to answer your questions and provide details to help you decide if it’s something you might like to try.

An information night has been set for 6:30 p.m. Feb. 27 at Genesee Valley BOCES Service Center, 80 Munson St., Le Roy.

“We will go through the process of the election and discuss expectations and outcomes once you are elected,” GVSBA Executive Director Patrick Burk says. “If you have a basic interest, this is step one to learn what your commitment would be, as well as what to expect from this much-needed community service position.”

He invites anyone with interest to join the board for an informal discussion and presentaton that will “enlighten you on what to expect, and the important duty of seeing our public educational system.”

Registration is required. To register or for more information, contact Burk at pburk@gvboces.org.

Press Release:

Assemblyman Steve Hawley (R,C-Batavia) was joined by his colleagues in the state Senate and Assembly to unveil a proposal to delay the requirement for school districts to purchase all-electric school buses from 2027 to 2045.

 The group also called for a cost-benefit analysis to assess this policy's impact on schools and taxpayers. While the state has set aside roughly $500 million to help with this transition, the cost of these new school buses would come out far higher, with a nearly $20 billion price tag for school districts across the state. 

Rural schools have also raised concerns that these zero-emission buses would not be reliable enough to handle long commutes and challenging weather. Hawley believes this mandate must be pushed back so that school districts can properly address these concerns.

“The Majority in Albany is at it again,” said Hawley. “This zero-emission busing mandate for school districts is unworkable, unreasonable and unattainable. Not only are these new electric buses not reliable enough for rural areas but they also cost triple the price of a standard school bus. This is why the Majority refuses to do any kind of study on the effectiveness of the policy because they know this regulation will not work and come straight out of the pockets of local school property taxpayers. Our children should not be guinea pigs for these extreme climate policies. We need to slow this process down to assess the effectiveness of this policy so we keep our students safe and don’t deprive schools of their much-needed resources.”

Press Release:

Congresswoman Claudia Tenney (NY-24) today, with Congressman Brad Schneider (IL-10), introduced the Promoting Affordable Childcare for Everyone (PACE) Act to update federal childcare incentives and improve access to affordable and high-quality childcare for American families.

The PACE Act would modernize the Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit and enhance Dependent Care Flexible Spend Accounts (FSAs) to make the credit refundable and allow for annual updates to keep both incentives effective and provide more financial support for working parents.

“Families shouldn’t have to jeopardize their finances to enroll their children in quality childcare,” said Congresswoman Tenney. “The current federal childcare incentives have not kept up with the rising costs plaguing hardworking families and sometimes rival college tuitions. This pro-family bill updates federal childcare incentives, expands accessibility, and ensures lower-income and working families can provide quality care for their children. On top of that, our legislation will enable parents to go back to work, helping to combat our nationwide worker shortage.”

“It is hard to find quality, affordable child care – and when workers can’t afford child care, they can’t pursue work opportunities, take care of a loved one, or attend college," said Congressman Schneider. "We need to make child care less expensive, which is why I’m proud to introduce the bipartisan PACE Act with my colleague Rep. Claudia Tenney. This important legislation would directly provide working families with money in their pocket to put towards child and dependent care."

"Working families continue to struggle with the costs of child care," said Radha Mohan, Executive Director of the Early Care and Education Consortium. "A lack of access to high-quality, affordable child care means parents cannot participate in the workforce. The bipartisan PACE Act helps working families pay for child care by expanding and modernizing the Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit and increasing the amount of pre-tax dollars families can set aside in Dependent Care Flexible Spending Accounts. Childcare providers applaud Reps. Tenney and Schneider for introducing this bill."

“The bipartisan Promoting Affordable Childcare for Everyone (PACE) Act is a crucial step to supporting families with young children while ensuring greater economic stability across the country,” said FFYF Executive Director Sarah Rittling. “The Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit (CDCTC) is the only provision of the tax code specifically created to help working parents afford child care. Together with expanded Dependent Care Assistance Plans (DCAP), enhancing the CDCTC and ensuring its refundability will help ease the burden of the cost of child care for families who truly need it most. We are so grateful for the bipartisan leadership of Reps. Tenney and Schneider, in coming together to introduce the PACE Act and helping America’s young children and their families find and afford the care they need."

“It is critical that federal tax incentives intended to support access to child care meet the needs of the nation’s workforce,” said Linda K. Smith, Director of the Early Childhood Initiative at the Bipartisan Policy Center. “We applaud Representatives Tenney (R-NY) and Schneider (D-IL) for their leadership in introducing bipartisan legislation that enhances the Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit (CDCTC) and increases the Dependent Care Assistance Plan cap to better support low- and middle-income working families. The PACE Act makes meaningful changes to help both businesses and working parents meet the demands of today’s economy.”

Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit (CDCTC):

• Makes the credit refundable in order to expand the credit’s reach to working parents.
• Enhances the value of the credit for working parents through an increase in the credit rate.
• Indexes the credit to inflation to ensure the value of the credit will not be eroded over time by rising childcare costs.

Dependent Care Flexible Spend Accounts (DCFSAs):

• Increases the amount of pre-tax dollars parents can put into the accounts from $5,000 to $7,500. 
• Indexes the new cap to inflation so DCFSAs can keep pace with the cost of childcare.

Byron-Bergen will go into sectional play as the #1 seed in Class C2 with a 16-4 record after beating Kendall on Wednesday, 66-61.

Braedyn Chambry scored 35 points to lead the Bees. Colin Martin scored 15.

Photos by Jennifer DiQuattro.

Elba beat Lyndonville in Boys Basketball on Wednesday, 69-34.

Ashton Bezon scored 19 points for the Lancers. Bing Zuber and Angelo Penna scored 12 each. Nicklos Scott scored eight points.

Photos by Debra Reilly.

On Senior night, one win-shy of a .500 season, Batavia came out strong against Geneva and came away with a 59-19 win.

The game began with a 6-4 early in the first quarter lead for the Blue Devils but trailed at the end of the quarter 11-8.

With a strong second half, Batavia turned out the light on Geneva, going into the half with a 33-12 lead, and the game was never close again.

After a couple of consecutive seasons where wins were hard to come by, Coach John McCulley sees progress in a 10-10 season and a group of young players developing winning habits and gaining experience.

"The season started out pretty good," McCulley said. "We had a light schedule. We started out with a bunch of girls that hadn't played at the varsity level. The senior girls that I had, that's what made it so special throughout the season. The senior girls I had were a huge help for me, as far as the right attitude, and teaching the young girls the right way to handle things. And so the season went pretty well. We had our ups and downs but as far as I'm concerned, from last year to this year, leaps and bounds. We've learned a lot, everything, every game, we progressively got better."

There are nine freshmen in the program, between varsity and JV and McCulley believes they have high ceilings.

"The freshmen are going to be phenomenal for me," McCulley said. "And I got Jamie (Macdonald) coming back another year that she just took leaps and bounds towards the end of the year. I think she's going to accept this role as a leader and just be a powerhouse next year."

To view or purchase photos, click here.

Press Release:

Please be advised that Blue Heron Construction will continue to work on interconnections for the Jackson Street Water project today, Thursday, February 15, on Jackson Street.  

Loss of water should be expected in the surrounding area depending on valve closures.  If discolored water occurs when water pressure is regained, please avoid doing laundry or cooking until the water runs clear.

We apologize for any inconvenience, and thank the public for their patience and cooperation as we work to improve our community. 

Press Release:

Join us for our annual FeBREWary Beer Walk Downtown Saturday, Feb. 24 from 4 - 8 p.m. with 23 participating businesses. Registration is to be held at GO ART!

Come walk The Downtown Business Improvement District, sip some delicious craft beer, and visit local businesses. Shop our downtown as you visit with friends and family, eat some great food, and see what is new. 

FeBREWary tickets are $35.00 per person, and you must be 21 or over to attend. No one under 21 will be allowed entry. 

Tickets are available at Adam Miller Toys & Bicycles, Yngodess Shop, and Eventbright. For more information, visit our Facebook page or at www.bataviabid.com.

An attorney representing Western Regional Off-Track Betting Corp. Wednesday called it “a wise decision” by lawyers representing a former chief operating officer at WROTB to seek dismissal of a false claims' lawsuit against current and former directors and senior management.

“That was a wise decision for them to withdraw the lawsuit … because it would have been without merit, and what have faced immediate dismissal motion,” said Aaron Saykin of Hodgson Russ LLP of Buffalo, speaking of a legal action filed in U.S. District Court for the Western District of New York by Michael Nolan.

In July 2021, Nolan filed a false claims act lawsuit against the corporation, naming current and former board members (including Richard Siebert, Genesee County) and senior leaders – claiming WROTB improperly spent public funds on directors’ health insurance, sporting and concert tickets and other management perks.

On Jan. 4 of this year, Western District Court Judge William M. Skretny ruled that a dismissal was in order due to the fact that the court lacks diversity jurisdiction over the claims since Nolan is no longer a resident of Florida. Reportedly, Nolan has moved back to New York.

An affidavit from Nolan’s attorney, Edward Yankelunas of Tiveron Law of Amherst, dated Jan. 3, indicated that “although (Nolan) is not proceeding with the state qui tam action in federal court for the reason stated above (change of residence) and seeks to voluntarily dismiss this action, the plaintiff respectfully reserves the right to (a) proceed with state qui tam action New York State Supreme Court and (b) proceed with the plaintiff’s individual action against WROTB and the other named defendants, which is pending in this court.”

A call to Yankelunas was not returned at the time of the posting of this story.

Saykin said that former State Sen. George Maziarz filed a similar lawsuit in 2022 in Erie County Supreme Court.

“Maziarz’s suit had extremely similar allegations and we moved to dismiss that,” he said. “Before the judge even decided it, the other side withdrew it quickly because we pointed out that it was completely meritless under the False Claims Act.”

Saykin said cases involving the False Claims Act normally are “sued on behalf of the government, and that the Office of the State Attorney General declined to intervene and take the (Nolan) case.”

The court issued a summons to nearly two dozen defendants in May 2023, but those people were not served summonses because, according to Yankelunas’ filing, Nolan’s citizenship changed from Florida to New York, “thereby apparently eliminating diversity jurisdiction.”

Saykin said he views it differently.

“They waited on it for months and months and months and didn’t do anything. I think that tells you everything you need to know about how strongly they felt about it,” he surmised, adding that if Nolan refiles in state court, WROTB will move to dismiss it.

WROTB President/Chief Executive Officer Henry Wojtaszek said the lawsuit was “frivolous and we’re glad it was dismissed.”

Nolan previously filed a wrongful termination lawsuit against his former employer following his firing in December 2020. He is claiming he was let go for sharing information about the company’s policies with federal and state authorities.

He is seeking $14.5 million in compensatory damages plus reinstatement to his former COO position, reinstatement of full fringe benefits and seniority rights, damages sustained due to the violation including, without limitation, the compensation for lost wages, benefits and other remuneration, and payment of all reasonable costs, disbursements, and attorney's fees.

Press Release:

The City of Batavia Water Department is repairing a water main break on Bank Street, between Main Street and Washington Avenue.

The length of time the water will be off is unknown.

Traffic may be closed in the area while the repairs are being made.  Please use an alternate route.

As always, when the water is restored it may be discolored.  Please refrain from doing any laundry until the water runs clear.

We apologize for any inconvenience and the public’s patience is greatly appreciated.

Press Release:

From Jan. 26 to Feb. 24 a land owner may submit a request to include entire parcels of predominantly viable agricultural land within a certified New York State Agricultural District.

NYS Agricultural and Markets Law requires that the County Legislature designate an annual thirty-day time period within which a land owner may submit a request for inclusion of property within a certified agricultural district. 

This annual time occurs in Genesee County from Jan. 26 to Feb. 24 and is exclusively designed to incorporate property that is predominantly viable agricultural land – defined by Genesee County as lands that are composed of at least 51% prime farmland soils and/or are contiguous to the main farm operation.

Applications for the inclusion of land are available at the Genesee County Department of Planning in County Building No. 2 (3837 W Main Street Rd, Batavia) or can be downloaded or printed by visiting the website:

http://www.co.genesee.ny.us/departments/planning/agricultural_farmland_protection_board.php#annualenrollment

The application must be completed and signed by the landowner and returned to the Genesee County Department of Planning by 5 p.m. on Feb. 24. Due to the language of the NYS Agricultural and Markets Law, no applications can be accepted before Jan. 26.

PLEASE NOTE: Requesting enrollment of property during this thirty-day time period is not a guarantee that your property will be added to an existing Agricultural District, and it will not automatically qualify your property for a reduced agricultural property tax assessment. For information on obtaining a reduced agricultural property tax assessment, you must contact your local assessor. Please remember, that the Taxable Status Date is March 1.

Press Release:

GO ART! is hosting a Creative Arts Camp during February Break (Feb. 19 - 23). This camp is tailored to students in grades K-6. 

Grade school students will create and maintain positive connections while enjoying hands-on exploration of various disciplines including culinary arts, visual arts, performing arts, and literary arts. 

Participants will build upon problem-solving and critical thinking skills while increasing their knowledge about different mediums and forms of art in a safe, inclusive, and structured environment. 

In the past, we have done visual arts projects while learning about famous artists and art movements, created puppets and put on plays, played in the musical garden, learned about different styles of dance, as well as various arts and crafts projects.

Please drop off your camper between 8:45 and 9 a.m. and pick them up between 2:45 and 3 p.m. GO ART! will provide snacks and water but don’t forget to send your camper with lunch. Registration is required to attend Creative Arts Camp and spots are limited. https://goart.org/programming/exlporeart/exlporeart-children/, call (585) 343-9313 or email Jodi at jfisher@goart.org.

Of the sundry tools that artists gravitate toward, from chalk and colored pencils to watercolor and acrylic paints and brushes, Bryan Wright has chosen a lesser-known and more expensive pursuit.

Wright, a Batavia resident who was first introduced to his ever-increasingly favorite method to create art during a BOCES basic-advanced welding class 15 years ago, has fallen for the plasma cutter.

"I got this machine in 2008. I made mostly Christmas gifts for family and have been making things for people, I was just kind of giving a lot of the stuff away,” Wright said to a group of about 15 people that attended his Batavia Society of Artists talk Tuesday evening at GO Art! in Batavia. “So, just this last year, I've started putting stuff in exhibits and trying to make some money, because this is not cheap. It's not cheap.”

He made a major investment with his first plasma cutter — a heavy-duty welding torch that can cut through steel, aluminum, and similar materials with precision — for $1,000, and said that related supplies of a cap and electrodes go for $10 and $15 each, respectively.

Parts of the torch include the electrodes, a narrow piece of copper that receives the electrical current, a retaining cap, and a shield cap. Batavia Society of Artists hosted him for a demonstration that didn’t pan out due to the cold, snow, and wind, Teresa Tamfer said.

He instead offered a video that illustrated what he did and how he did it, followed by a question and answer session with many of his supplies and pieces of equipment on hand.  

An audience member asked how long his materials last. 

"So what I have found is that it's really up to you to determine when you think you need to replace this. But I would probably say, I could probably go through … in a five pack, it probably maybe lasts like six or seven months, I don't know, maybe once a month you might go through a new set," he said. "But the problem that you have is when you don't have a new end and a new electrode, the cut is a little more dispersed, it's kind of, it's not a very clean, precise cut. And you just can't compare a used one to a brand-new one right out of the box. So you’ve really got to be picky and choosey on when you want to change this, and when is it appropriate to just need to make that change?

“If I'm cutting something purely on the outside, it really doesn't make a difference. But if you want to cut like an eyeball out or something in the middle, you really want to make sure that cut isn't just splattering out and kind of making a mess. So there's an appropriate time to replace it,” he said.

Other considerations are having a compressor, which goes "hand in hand" with the plasma cutter, and the height of the materials because that can distort your cutting line, he said.

“Because if you pull back, you're not really sending that amount of heat directly to that material. So if you're not back far enough, you're not really going to have a nice precise cut, but the closer you are to that material, you will get that nice cut,” he said. 

Samples of his work are on display and available for purchase through March 30 in the 2.o.1 Tavern Gallery at GO Art!, 201 E. Main St., Batavia. 

Elba beat Lyndonville on Tuesday in Girls Basketball 67-44.

Sydney Reilly scored 35 points. Mariah Ognibene scored 12.

Also in Girls Basketball:

• Notre Dame doubles up on Wheatland in Senior Night win
• Pembroke beat Oakfield-Alabama 58-50. Seneca Calderon scored 17 points, Peyton Liss, 12, with five rebounds, and Elle Peterson, seven points and five rebounds.

In Boys Basketball, Batavia beat Greece-Olympia 65-62. Estavan Lovette scored 16 points, Carter Mullen, 15, and Justin Smith, 12.

Photos by Debra Reilly.