Breaking news... Firefighters are tackling a blaze at a home in Byron right now. Genesee County sheriff's deputies have confirmed that the residence is at 6999 Bank Street Road in the town of Byron. We will update with more information as it becomes available.

UPDATED (Thursday at 7 a.m. by Howard): WHAM reports:

A family that provides foster care for children escaped from a house fire Wednesday afternoon on Bank Road in Byron, Genesee County.

Firefighters said 10 children and 3 adults got out safely from the 100-year-old home.

It turns out the mall merchants aren't the only group in town who want the city to buy them a sign, according to the Daily News. Youth Football has made a request for the city to get them a sign—at a cost of about $3,800—to make up for the scoreboard and concession stand they have to leave behind at Dwyer Stadium, both of which they paid for.

Councilman Bob Bialkowski said he knew of a new city sign that was purchased but not used. That sign is "over at the DPW," he said, and could be used by the football group.

No one from youth football has yet seen that sign.

In other news:

• Cregg Paul, co-owner of the Center Street Smokehouse, was in court the other day to answer charges of failure to file corporate tax returns, offering a false instrument for filing and filing false returns on corporate taxes.
• Assemblyman Steve Hawley will continue his community outreach program Tuesday at Bergen Town Hall, 13 South Lake St. Residents are encourage to come by with questions or comments. A liaison representing the assemblyman will be there to meet residents between 4:00 to 6:00pm.

For more on these and other stories, pick up a copy of the Daily News at your local newsstand. Or, better yet, subscribe at BataviaNews.com.

City Council President Charlie Mallow said in a Daily News article today that the consolidation of dispatch services "handicaps our police a bit." Council OK'ed consolidation Monday, and the county legislature will vote on it tonight.

[Harriet] Scopano, a senior citizen, felt safer with someone at the station around the clock. Mallow, City Council president, said the city would lose its small-town appeal and become more like his native crime-ridden Buffalo.

Now that the station at 10 W. Main St. will close for nights and weekends, both of them feel the same, they said.

That just doesn't sound right.

Moving the dispatchers 1.7 miles away will make Batavia like "a crime-ridden Buffalo"? That just doesn't sound right. Scopano is quoted later on in the article as saying that "we'll have to watch ourselves, especially in the parking lot." It doesn't seem reasonable to suggest that just because dispatchers will no longer occupy the facility at all hours that the parking lot outside of headquarters will become more of a risk for violent crime. Heck, there's hardly any violent crime in Batavia as it is. It's one of the reasons why Batavia is a better place to live than, say, Buffalo. Do we really believe that criminals will now congregate outside the police station?

Police Chief Randy Baker makes a good point.

"For citizens, you're not going to see much of a change. We locked the doors after hours anyway for dispatchers to let (visitors) in," he said. "If someone is in immediate danger, they can go to the lobby at the jail. That's a manned area. They've always had that."

Don't people just call 911 when they're in trouble? Who goes to the police station? We call the police. They come to us if we're in trouble. That's why they've got the fast cars with the loud sirens and the bright flashing lights.

City officers are certain to shift their perspectives to go along with the changes, Mallow said. "They're going to do what they need to do to protect the citizens," he said.

Exactly. Especially since what they do won't change. Nor will what the dispatchers do change. The only thing that will change, really, is that when you call the police for an emergency, they'll pick up your phone a mile and a half away from where they did it before.

Katelyn M. Pawliske, 21, of Eden, was charged with driving while ability impaired by alcohol early Sunday morning, Genesee County sheriff's deputies said. Pawliske drove into the rear of a vehicle stopped in traffic on Route 77 in the town of Darien after she had exited the concert at Darien Lake. She was also ticketed with following too closely.

Jeffrey M. Brodsky, 37, of Covington, was charged with a felony county of third-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance Friday, Genesee County sheriff's deputies said. Members of the Genesee County Local Drug Enforcement Task Force allegedly found over a half ounce of crack cocaine on Brodsky when they searched his home and his vehicle last week. About a quarter pound of marijuana, some powder cocaine, more crack cocaine, other illegal substances, illegal weapons and several pieces of drug paraphernalia were also allegedly found at Brodsky's home.

Darrell G. Plichta, 21, of Oneida, was charged with unlawful possession of marijuana Wednesday, August 20, sheriff's deputies said. Plichta was stopped on Route 89 in the city of Batavia. He was also ticketed with moving from the lane unsafely.

Conor P. Wilkes, 20, of 8303 Lewiston Road, Batavia, was charged with unlawful possession of marijuana Saturday, sheriff's deputies said. Wilkes had been stopped on Route 5 in Batavia for an alleged traffic violation.

Brandy L. Hamill, 34, of Depew, and Jeffrey D. Nicosia, 29, of Corfu, were charged with seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance, unlawful possession of marijuana and possession of a controlled substance bu ultimate users not in original containers Tuesday, August 19, sheriff's deputies said. Hamill and Nicosia had been stopped on Route 77 in Pembroke for an alleged traffic violation.

David J. Roma, 25, of Cheektowaga, was charged with exposure Friday, sheriff's deputies said. Roma allegedly urinated on the seats in front of him at the concert at Darien Lake that night. He was sent to Genesee County Jail in lieu of $500 bail.

Steven C. Brooks, 21, of Amherst, was charged with third-degree unauthorized use of a vehicle Friday night, sheriff's deputies said. Brooks allegedly took a golf cart owned by Darien Lake, drove it into a parked car and fled the scene. He was also ticketed with leaving the scene of a property damage accident.

John H. Lobaugh, 30, of Kenmore, was charged with fourth-degree criminal mischief and second-degree harassment Saturday, sheriff's deputies said. Lobaugh allegedly got into a fight with his girlfriend in Pembroke following the concert at Darien Lake and pushed her down an embankment where she landed in a ditch and struck her head on a rock. When she tried to call 911, he allegedly grabbed her phone and threw it away causing damage to the phone, too. She refused medical treatment.

Kenneth J. Anderson, 35, of Brockport, was charged with driving while intoxicated Saturday, sheriff's deputies said. Anderson was stopped on Route 33 in the city of Batavia for an alleged traffic violation.

Carlton K. Stewart, 64, of Basom, was charged with a felony count of driving while intoxicated Sunday, sheriff's deputies said. Stewart was stopped on West Main Street Road in the town of Batavia. He was also charged with consumption of alcoholic beverage in a motor vehicle.

Eric M. Lawrence, 17, and Phillip E. Garrett, 27, both of Amherst, were charged with unlawful possession of marijuana Firday, sheriff's deputies said. Garrett was driving the vehicle that was stopped on Route 77 in Corfu. Deputies found that his license was suspended. Garrett was also charged with third-degree aggravated unlicensed operator and operation with a suspended registration.

Raymond D. Scott, 43, of Wyoming, was charged with unlawful possession of marijuana Friday, sheriff's deputies said. Scott was stopped at a DWI road check on Route 33 in the city of Batavia. Deputies then discovered that his license was suspended. He was also charged with aggravated unlicensed operator and operation with a suspended registration.

Brandon C. Dodd, of 3 Maple St. (Apt: Lower), Batavia, was charged with driving while intoxicated Tuesday night, city police said. Dodd was stopped after he allegedly drove through a red light. He was also ticketed with passing a red light.

Roy D. Hooten, 47, of Oakfield, was charged with two felony counts of fourth-degree grand larceny and one misdemeanor county of petit larceny Tuesday, sheriff's deputies said. Hooten was arrested at his home and sent to the Genesee County Jail in lieu of $1,500 cash bail. Hooten is alleged to have stolen copper grounding wires and other scrap metal on at least seven occasions from three sub-stations on Maple Avenue in Oakfield over the course of nine months. Further charges are pending.

All of the above arrests were issued in published releases from the various departments.

This may be my favorite video at the Holland Land Office Museum so far—and Map Measuring Madness is not easy to beat! I won't say anything about this one. As Pat Weissend said to me: You don't want to ruin the surprise factor. Enjoy!

You've likely already read our coverage of last night's City Council meeting, when we posted it last night, so we won't bother with a recap of Joanne Beck's articles about the meeting in today's Daily News. Instead, we'll jump right to the local section...

Reporter Paul Mrozek tells us that the fire Friday at Willow Specialties caused more than $100,000 in damage—but it could have been much worse. Willow CEO Jeff Daggs said: "Ninety percent of our product is not damaged. That's what we believe right now."

Matt Surtel put together a nice tribute piece about Jenny Snow, the news director at WCJW, Warsaw's AM radio station, who died unexpectedly at her home Saturday at the age of 53.

The Genesee County Legislature will meet Wednesday in a special session to vote on the proposed consolidation of dispatch services that was approved last night by Batavia's City Council. City police dispatchers will make the move to the sheriff's office on Park Road complete by Monday. That meeting will be at 7:00pm at the Old County Courthouse.

Roger Muehlig was in Le Roy Monday when Republican Congressional candidate Christopher Lee stopped by Stein Farms to chat with area farmers about labor issues. Muehlig writes: "Lee, a political newcomer, said he didn't have all the answers, but one of the reasons he was successful in business was that he listens to everyone." That's well and good. But there are already plenty of politicians in Albany who are good at listening. Anyone can listen. We don't need more people to listen. We need people to act.

For these and other stories, pick up a copy of the Daily News at local newsstands. Or, better yet, subscribe at BataviaNews.com.

Maybe you've spotted them. They're more than 200 strong, and they rolled into Byron last night. From there, they left for Romulus this morning via Routes 5 and 20 through Avon. They're the cyclists of the Sea to Sea bike tour to end poverty. They're from all over the country, and Canada, too, and they've raised more than $2 million in their journey from the waters of the Pacific, just west of Seattle, to those of the Atlantic just east of Jersey City.

Many of the cyclists have kept a blog on their journey. Plenty of great photos—such as the pair you see here—can also be viewed on the site hosted by the Christian Reform Church.

How do I know all this, you ask? Well, I was over at the Holland Land Office Museum earlier this morning shooting the next episode of our history series with Pat Weissend—look for it this afternoon, it's a good one—when a kindly couple stopped to ask if I was with the local television station. Long story short, the Templetons are following their grandson who is one of the cyclists in the tour. They told Pat and me all about the race.

All 220 cyclists started in Washington on June 30, with their back tires literally dipped into the Pacific Ocean (see the photo below). Sixty-one days and 3,881 miles later at an average of about 72 miles per day, the cyclists roll to an end in New Jersey, where they will dip their front tire into the Atlantic Ocean. Unfortunately, they've already passed through Genesee County by now, and we didn't have a chance to catch them and maybe sit down for a video interview with some of the participants. But if the little bit we've told you about here has piqued your interest, as it has mine, you should check out the site and poke around. As I said, there are blogs and photos. There are also profiles of the cyclists, news clips, maps and a whole lot more. Much fun.

They're back.

Students returned to class yesterday as Genesee Community College opened for the first day of classes of the fall semester. Enrollment was up over last year. First day totals came in at 4,098, up from the 4,032 from last year, and the college expects those numbers to increase as courses in area high schools get underway in the coming weeks.

Among those 4,000 students are nearly 100 from 19 countries around the world, proving once again that the college is an international destination. "Students came from Belarus, Canada, China, Columbia, El Salvador, India, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Korea, Mali, Mongolia, Saudi Arabia, Slovakia, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Trinidad and Tobago, United Kingdom, and Venezuela."

In addition, Genesee Community College is among 21 other campuses across the state to welcome 150 students from China.

[They come] from the city of Chengdu in the Sichuan Province of western China, which was the site of a massive earthquake in May. The students will have the ability to continue their college studies for one year in the United States and then return to their homeland to help with the rebuilding effort.

WBTA's Dan Fischer picked up some great audio of last night's concluding debate about the mall sign—which was approved for purchase by a vote of 6-2. He has posted the views of two City Council members who held opposing views on the mall: Rosemary Christian and Charlie Mallow.

In other news, the former highway superintendent of the Erie County town of Marilla, David Pierce, told a judge yesterday that "alcoholism and greed" made him break the law. Pierce was sentenced to seven months in jail for using town employees to work on his property, doing such things as building a fishing and swimming pond.

After weeks of asserting that he would not recuse himself from a City Council vote to purchase a sign for the mall, Councilman Bob Bialkowski abstained when it came his turn tonight, doing what everyone had been saying was the right thing to do and nullifying any purpose to convene the city's ethics board. So ends that debate.

That vote, by the way, won with a clear majority, and the city will purchase a new sign advertising the mall, not to exceed $20,000. Council members Charlie Mallow and Marianne Clattenburg voted against the purchase.

"I'm really frustrated with this whole situation," said Clattenburg. "I'm ambivalent on the sign. I was for it when we voted for the budget, but I don't know now that this has become so hostile."

After the vote, Bialkowski said that in the end he abstained so as not to hold up procedure.

"Everything else aside," said Councilman Frank Ferrando, "We took the sign down. We should put it back up."

If I may be allowed a moment to digress... Sometimes, folks, things just work out. Even in such municipal farces as these, what we all know ought to happen happens despite the rancor, despite the bitter clash of personalities and despite the obstinacy of otherwise good people who inexplicably act contrary to common sense. God bless America.

Council was also supposed to appoint a five member board of ethcis, but that was postponed owing to the efforts of Rosemary Christian who said she "didn't even know" the city was "looking for an ethics committee."

"My concern," said Councilman Tim Buckley, "is that nobody here can explain to me what exactly the ethcis board does. It might be spelled out, but there has been no action. I'd like to spend some more time on this and make sure it's done right. I'd like to define their job a little more, instead of just saying that these are members of a board that do nothing."

Council members Mallow and Clattenburg sounded the sole votes against postponing the appointments. Clattenburg said that such a move "means we're rejecting these members."

Mostly optimistic talk about Batavia's financial upswing at tonight's council meeting took on some shades of gray when the topic turned to the fate of the city's ambulance corps.

City Manager Jason Molino warned council that "we have to get a financially stable point" before the city looks forward to reacquiring services that have been cut down to keep a sinking ship from going under altogether.

"We talked about a surplus," he said, "but when you look at the cash perspective, there is no surplus. ... We're going to have to take another month to look at this [amublance service] and decide if you want to continue to supply this service or not. It's extremely expensive, and we cannot maintain it."

Little specifics were given—we will fill in more details tomorrow—but it was understood that the council would get together sometime in the coming weeks to consider whether to continue paying for its ambulance service.

Council President Charlie Mallow said that the city received a letter from the fire and ambulance union about the poor state of its emergency vehicles. We will get that letter.

"The ambulances are in disrepair," said Mallow. "There has been a lot of pressure to abandon this."

City Manager Jason Molino had a few words for the mall merchants in an article by Joanne Beck that appeared on the cover of the Daily News Saturday. Beck starts the article with a lengthy quote from Mitchell Chess, president of the Mall Merchants Association.

What Chess has to say can be boiled down to a single sentiment: "The situation needs to be resolved. Since we can't have those type of negotiations to resolve this amicably, we have to take the city to court." Chess has said this before: in news articles, in a letter to the editor, and here on The Batavian. In other words, this isn't really news.

What it is, instead, is a springboard, fashioned by Beck to allow Jason Molino a high dive into the foray—and that he does, with no lack of bravado.

But first a little background supplied by Beck: Following a somewhat productive meeting of the city and mall merchants in April, the relationship between the two sides quickly soured, and Molino blames it on the merchants, who in turn, blame the city.

Molino says the city was supposed to have six months to "gather information" related—I presume, as this "information" is never qualified outright—to a request by the merchants for repairs to the mall and replacement of the sign.

Not only has the merchants group not allowed the time necessary to do that, but it has fueled the matter by making negotiations public, he said.

...

It all became a "soap opera" that has done nothing to rectify the situation, he said. He stressed the importance for merchants to perhaps not to be so vocal.

"If you [the mall merchants?] continue with the unprofessionalism and badgering ... it's not going to move forward," [said Molino]. "We had identified the issues to be discussed, and we had a timeframe. This is very simple. If we want to resolve this issue, we can. If not, that's up to you. I will not engage in this public hysteria."

Fine bit of euphemism there: "the importance for merchants to perhaps not be so vocal." I like that. That's nice. A lot better than the more direct route: "Keep yer mouths shut!"

The saga continues tonight at 7:00pm at City Hall, when the Council will vote on whether to replace the mall sign, among other matters. I'll be there. Will you?

Batavia bids an early adieu to another of its downtown amenities. Last week, the city announced the closure of the spray park two weeks early due to mechanical problems. Today, the Daily News tells us that the downtown public market is closed for the season, several months early—it was supposed to run through October 11.

Business Improvement District (BID) Manager Don Burkel said the decision was made Friday due to "a shortage of vendors and the lack of community support." The market that opened in late June ran from 9:00am to 2:00pm Saturdays in the parking lot at Ellicott and Jackson streets. On opening day there were maybe 10 vendors total. Lorraine Schaub said she was one of only three vendors when she showed up for the market most days. Schaub owns Cookies & Milk inside the mall. She blamed Burkel and the BID for the poor support, citing a lack of planning and promotion.

Says Schaub: "I don't think they worked on it ahead of time. It's a good thing we had tents; otherwise nobody would've known we were there."

Another vendor, Joan Shuknecht, owner of Ole Barn Country Market of Elba, said the BID did a fine job of promoting the market. She said she was doing well at the market though she could have done better. That sentiment is contrasted with Shuknecht saying elsewhere that during the Summer in the City festival she had to throw out 10 crates of produce because of a lack of sales, in part due to a lack of access to the market because of all the efforts concentrated on Summer in the City. She then told Burkel she would not be returning to the market.

We have not yet been able to reach Burkel for further comment, though he told the Daily News that he is not sure the BID will again support the market in 2009.

In other news:

• Area farmers assessed the damage from this summer's repeated hailstorms and found a beaten crop: whole fields of tomatoes and cucumbers wiped out, apples dented and bruised. They will seek additional federal disaster aid. Check out the extensive article by Tom Rivers for more details. One aspect of the issue not dealt with in much detail that would be interesting to hear more about is the affect the loss of so much produce will have on the market. Will it be strictly local? Will the local market not be affected at all?
• Batavia Downs hosted its fourth annual wiener dog races Sunday. Defending champion, Rudy, owned by Ann Schiller of Lancaster, won his first heat but came in second in the finals to Bambi, owned by Grace De Valder of Bergen.

As always, we encourage you to get out and pick up a copy of the Daily News at local newsstands. Or, better yet, subscribe at BataviaNews.com.

Batavia's City Council will meet tonight at 7:00pm at City Hall, according to WBTA. The meeting, originally scheduled for August 11, was postponed twice. Council is expected to vote on whether to fund the replacement of a sign for the mall. Also meeting tonight at 7:00pm is the Board of Education. They will assemble at the administration building on Washington Avenue.

No cause has yet been determined in the fire at Willow Industries at 34 Clinton Street that erupted Friday night. The fire was brought under control shortly after midnight. Damage was confined to the warehouse, and some of the materials inside are reported destroyed by fire. Steve Ognibene was driving by that evening when he spotted the fire trucks. He put together this video footage of the scene, which was sent to the Batavian over the weekend:

Starting on September 1, the Batavia police station at 10 W. Main St. will only be open to the public from 8:30am to 4:30pm. A desk clerk will be on hand during those hours. A call box will be set up outside the station to contact dispatch at the Genesee County Sheriff's Office on Park Road. City police has also opened a new non-emergency number and for contacting police personnel: (585) 345-6444.

Derrick G. Ryzner, 19, of Pennsylvania, was charged with unlawful possession of marijuana Tuesday, Genesee County sheriff's deputies said. Deputies had responded to a suspicious vehicle complaint when they allegedly found the drugs in Ryzner's vehicle.

A couple's complaint about a stolen bank card and an account robbed of its funds led to charges against the couple themselves, Genesee County sheriff's deputies said. Twenty-five-year-old Jennifer and 23-year-old Christopher Cummings, both of Pavilion, were charged with third-degree falsely reporting an incident. After reporting the theft of bank card and money, deputies discovered that the two had allegedly taken their own money out of the bank and reported it stolen.