Neighborhood Legal Services Inc. will present a FREE virtual legal clinic via Zoom on housing and evictions from 5 to 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 18.

Know your rights!

Presenters are Allyssa Bergsten, Esq., and Michael Garrett, J.D., and topics include:

• Types of evictions
• Eviction process
• Tenant Safe Harbor Act defenses
• CDC defenses
• Resources

There are two ways to access the presentation.

1. Facebook Live
2. Call in on Zoom: phone 1-646-558-8656; when you hear "Enter meeting ID," enter this code -- 920 7422 0762; then when you hear participant ID, press the # key.

Neighborhood Legal Services has an office in Downtown Batavia at 45 Main St. Phone is 343-5450.

For more information on the Zoom legal clinic, call Katelyn Niedermier at (716) 847-0650, ext. 252, or email her at:    KNiedermier@nls.org

The Genesee County Legislature’s Public Service Committee this afternoon approved the acceptance of a $758,980.80 bid by Concrete Applied Technologies Corp. of Alden – one of 12 bids submitted to Highway Superintendent Tim Hens – to replace the Upton Road over Bowen Creek bridge in the Town of Batavia.

Due to COVID-19 precautions, the meeting was held remotely via Zoom videoconferencing.

In a highly-competitive bidding process, CATCO’s bid was just $650 less than the next lowest bid, Hens said, adding that he is aware of the company’s solid reputation.

“We have never worked directly with them but they have been involved with the City (of Batavia) on a few projects,” he said. “They did the Main Street project about 20 years ago and they have a very good reputation. They’re a well run company and they do a lot of work in Buffalo and Rochester.”

According to the resolution that was voted upon, 95 percent of the cost will be covered by federal aid with the remaining 5 percent to come from the county’s Reserve Fund.

Hens said CATCO’s bid is $68,000 less than the engineers’ estimate of probable construction costs.

Work is expected to begin next spring or summer.

In other action, the committee:

• Voted in favor of a one-year contract with Safe Driver Solutions of Dansville, effective Jan. 1, for federally required drug and alcohol testing, terminating a previous pact with Partners in Safety of Middletown.

Hens said a couple issues factored into the decision, including having a company closer to Genesee County and Safe Driver Solutions’ pricing procedures.

Partners in Safety charges the county for all of its drivers, even if they aren't selected for random drug and alcohol testing, he said.

“It just happens to be the timing of our renewal of our annual contract, and their (Safe Driver Solutions) pricing structure is different because they only charge you for the actual people who get selected randomly,” Hens said.

He explained that "the pool is actually much (larger) because the way they operate under federal rules, they basically create a driver pool with all of their clients – so we get lumped in with the towns in Livingston County and Livingston County highway.”

“It’s a bigger group of people so we’re not hitting as many employees on an annual basis, and essentially not getting charged for that.”

Hens said he anticipates saving around $1,000 annual with Safe Driver Solutions and likes the fact that the county will be working with a local company to address issues concerning screening, post-accident responses and reasonable suspicious responses. Per the contract, Safe Driver Solutions staff members travel to the highway department to do the testing.

• Voted to add a second citizen representative to the Criminal Justice Advisory Council, following up on CJAC’s decision at a meeting in September to make the committee as diverse as possible.

To make room for the citizen rep, the Genesee County Bar Association delegate has been removed in light of the appointee’s recent retirement and a sufficient number of attorneys and law enforcement members on the committee.

The CJAC, created in 1981, services to promote public good and safety through improved coordination and cooperation among criminal justice agencies and other organizations in the community. More than 30 people from law enforcement, human services and social services agencies are on the committee. 

Owner Kathy Ferrara now expects to keep Batavia's Original closed through Thursday, opening again on Friday.

Ferrara said closing the extra days -- she originally anticipated closing only for a weekend -- is a matter of extra precaution.

Five employees tested positive for coronavirus, with all the cases contracted away from the workplace, and multiple employees were placed on mandatory quarantine.  That created an immediate staffing problem for Ferrara. 

She said in an email today that all employees who tested positive are recovering nicely and that the Health Department is conducting contact tracing.

Batavia's Original will reopen on Friday, she said.

UPDATE: Owner Derek Geib notes that the individual who tested positive had not been in the building for the prior 48 hours prior to the positive test. He said there is no evidence the employee was positive while at Bourbon and Burger. He said no other employee required testing.  No employees were placed on mandatory quaratine.

Bourbon and Burger remains open for business.

Health Alert

The Genesee County Health Department has received a positive COVID-19 test from an individual who was at Bourbon & Burger Co. restaurant in Batavia on:

• Thursday, Nov. 5 between 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• Friday, Nov. 6 between 2 and 9 p.m.
• Saturday, Nov. 7 between 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
• Monday, Nov. 9 between 4 and 8 p.m.  

Contact tracing is in progress; however unidentified individuals may have unknowingly been in contact with the positive case. 

We advise all individuals who were at Bourbon & Burger on the stated dates and times to monitor their symptoms for 14 days. If symptoms of COVID-19 develop, contact your primary care provider to seek testing immediately and self-isolate until you receive your test results.

Symptoms of COVID-19 include but are not limited to: fever or chills, cough, shortness of breath or difficulty breathing, fatigue, muscle or body aches, headache, new loss of taste or smell, sore throat, congestion or runny nose, nausea or vomiting, diarrhea.

For more information please visit: https://coronavirus.health.ny.gov/home.

From Marianne Skye, director and yoga teacher at Blue Pearl Yoga:

What’s a Little Free Pantry and Freege?

A place and a way for people to share what they have, and to take what they need with dignity, without income guidelines, and without judgement. Everyone is encouraged to give and take.

It is located at 180 Washington Ave. in the City of Batavia, open 24/7. And they are having a food drive!

How did it come to be?

A whole lot of coincidences in a row that added up to this! Interesting story. It started with the Blue Pearl Yogo Studio shutdown in March. Around the studio we call it practical magic, lol.

My friend Tom (of Ryan’s Rose Organic Farm) and I have been playing music and gardening for years.

I always thought it would be nice if I had the time to overplant the vegetable garden and find a food pantry to donate farm-to-table.

So with nothing to do in Spring, a football-field size garden was tilled up and planted. 

Not that I knew a little pantry to donate to yet. But empty bellies are everywhere.

Just when the veggies started coming. ... (Oh those zucchinis!)

I got a call from the sweetest lady on State Street about doing yoga at community event. We’ll call her Jenn, she tries to stay anonymous, good luck with that.   

And the conversation quickly turned to gardening (tree huggers and dirt worshipers are like that) and a little food pantry she started in her front yard, just to connect with her neighbors and lend a hand.

Jenn’s family member gave her the idea, she ran with it, and the veggies showed up right on schedule as did donations of nonperishable food from friends and neighbors.

Beacon of Hope Amid Growing Food Insecurity

You see, food insecurity has become an even bigger problem in this coronavirus pandemic. The idea for the Little Free Pantry and Freege is to be a beacon of hope in these trying times.

The Pantry operates with this philosophy in hopes, not only to fight food insecurity, but also help reduce food waste, sharing our resources wisely, as almost half the food in America goes to waste.

Then mid-growing season, I saw a piece on the news about “Community Refrigerators,” a way for people to share what they have, where everyone is encouraged to give and take.

Jenn was all for it; my neighbors Cindy and Mo on the Southside were all about it; and within a week they had a donated fridge for us and offered to move it. Then Sharon Kubiniec heard that the "Freege" needed a home (I think from Julie W. who coordinates the Community Closet at Robert Morris School.) and offered to give it a home.

More People Pitch In

Then the Just Kings showed up to build a structure around the fridge, and Brian from T-Shirts Etc. showed up to do some art work on the structure, Ashley from CASA, City Church, St Anthony’s, Sharon and Laurie of Schwab Farm are pitched in, so there you have it.

The Little Free Pantry and Community Freege is located to the side of dentist Michael A. Kubiniec’s office (180 Washington Ave.) and is accessible 24 hours a day, all year round. It is stocked with both fresh and frozen food including produce, meats and dairy items.

How do you like them apples? I love this city, it’s so full of neighborly love, and so full of folks who love to get together and have a blast lending a hand to their neighbors! 

I am over-wowed at the adventure and fun this has been and for the good things and good people that came together.

Take care, Marianne 

For any questions or to volunteer feel free to message the page @https://m.facebook.com/lfpbatavia/

Photos courtesy of Blue Pearl Yoga.

The Oakfield Betterment Committee is holding its inaugural Christmas Decorating Contest for Oakfield and Alabama residents.

Register by Dec. 7 via the committee's Facebook page or this online signup form.

Judging of this debut event begins Dec. 14 and winners will be announced on Dec. 19.

The overall winner gets a hundred bucks in cold hard cash.

Three runners-up will each get one $50 gift card -- your choice of Santino's Pizza, Alabama Hotel, Caryville Inn or Alabama Holley Farms Fresh Meats and Grocery Store.

Ready. Set. Go Google some inspiration and haul out the holly!

Press release:

“Business Planning during the Covid Crisis” will be the subject of the Genesee County Chamber of Commerce’s latest business workshop on Dec. 3.

“Never has been business planning more important or more challenging than during this pandemic,” said Tom Turnbull, president of the Genesee County Chamber of Commerce.  “This workshop is designed to help our local businesses plan and navigate through this difficult future.”

Richard Petitte, a Certified Business Advisor for the SUNY Brockport Small Business Development Center, will discuss taking a look at how your business can realize success in these uncertain times.

He will be concentrating on developing your business ideas through the business plan process and evaluating the feasibility of those ideas before investing time and money in them.    

The workshop will be held via Zoom and is scheduled to start at 9 a.m. and should last approximately one hour.

This event is free for Chamber and Downtown Batavia Business Improvement District members. There is a $10 charge for non-members. To register, contact Kelly Bermingham at the Chamber by phone at (585) 343-7440 or by email at kbermingham@geneseeny.com

Press release:

The Community Crisis Fund, which has distributed $6.1 million since it was mobilized in March, is closing out 2020 with a final grant application deadline of Nov. 20.

The Crisis Fund was launched by United Way of Greater Rochester and Rochester Area Community Foundation to raise money and rapidly deploy resources to nonprofits adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. This helps them continue to provide critical services to our region and/or reopen once they had the necessary personal protective equipment and safety protocols in place.

Grants have been awarded to nonprofits in Genesee, Livingston, Monroe, Ontario, Orleans, Seneca, Wayne, Wyoming and Yates counties.

The Nov. 20 deadline for grant applications will allow the Community Crisis Fund’s Governance Committee, comprised of representatives of several local funders, to review applications and determine how the Fund’s remaining dollars will be distributed. 

Since March, $6,529,976 was raised from local foundations, businesses, institutions and thousands of individuals. ESL was the lead contributor to the Crisis Fund with $2.4 million, including a match to local funders to encourage continued support.

Press release:

The Batavia Business Improvement District Board of Directors regretfully announces cancellation of Christmas in the City and the Holiday Parade.

Due to the uncertainty of COVID-19, the need for social distancing, and our concern for the health of the community, vendors, volunteers and attendees, we have decided to cancel this event for 2020. 

We encourage our community to continue to shop small and support our small businesses that need us now more than ever.  

For more information on B.I.D. and Downtown events please visit our website at www.downtownbataviany.com.

Press release:

Mark your calendars and be sure to stop by Crossroads House on Black Friday and Saturday! We will be having a “Pop-Up” sale on Friday, Nov 27th from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. and on Saturday, Nov 28th from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Our garage at 11 Liberty St. in Batavia is bursting at the seams with beautiful Christmas decorations, vintage glassware, collectibles and many other treasures.

Our “Comfort Foods” cookbook will also be available for purchase ($14). This is a hardbound collection of more than 200 recipes including one for a spaghetti sandwich! (Did you ever have one of those when you were growing up?)

We would like to thank the community for coming out to support our mission of comfort care by attending our fundraisers, dropping off items from our “Wish List,” and by remembering Crossroads House with memorial giving and monthly donations. We could not do what we do, without you!

Hoping to see you at our sale! Masks will be required.

Press release from AAA:

Today’s national average price for a gallon of gasoline is $2.13, up 2 cents from one week ago. One year ago, the price was $2.60. The New York State average is $2.23 – up 1 cent from last week. A year ago, the New York State average was $2.69.

AAA Western and Central New York (AAA WCNY) reports the following averages:

• Batavia -- $2.19 (up 1 cent since last week)
• Buffalo -- $2.20 (up 2 cents since last week)
• Ithaca -- $2.19 (up 1 cent since last week)
• Rochester -- $2.23 (up 1 cent since last week)
• Rome -- $2.31 (up 1 cent since last week)
• Syracuse -- $2.15 (up 1 cent since last week)
• Watertown -- $2.28 (no change since last week)

The national average for a gallon of regular gasoline has increased by two cents in the past week, though it is still significantly cheaper than last year (-47 cents). In a report from the Energy Information Administration (EIA), gas demand increased while total domestic stocks decreased leading to that national average increase.

However, EIA’s weekly demand estimate is lower than last year’s rate at this time. Low overall demand will likely contribute to pump prices remaining low this season.

Domestic crude prices are fluctuating amid rising coronavirus infections worldwide, which could reduce global crude demand as countries impose new restrictions meant to stop the spread of the virus.

From GasBuddy:

"For the first time in seven weeks, GasBuddy data showed average gas prices rose last week, unsurprising given the previous 18-percent jump in the price of crude oil on promising vaccine news," said Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis for GasBuddy. "This year has been anything but normal and such news of promising vaccine results will likely rekindle gas prices for a short while.

We're likely to see prices inch up slightly again this week as gas stations continue to try to pass along the rise from last week to retail, but ahead of Thanksgiving, prices should be mostly stable. For now, motorists shouldn't expect too many fireworks at the pump, but the upcoming release of GasBuddy's Holiday Travel survey highlights some big changes motorists are making for the last six weeks of the year."

Alex Morris of Batavia came within a pin of his first United States Bowling Congress-certified perfect game last week in the Sneezy's Monday Night League at Oak Orchard Bowl in Albion.

The 31-year-old right-hander strung 11 strikes before coming up high on the final ball -- leaving a 3-pin -- for a 299 game. It is the second 299 for Morris, who will receive an award from the Genesee Region USBC. He finished with a 691 series.

High series for the week included Scott Gibson of Oakfield, 750 in the Wednesday Men's Handicap League at Rose Garden Bowl in Bergen; Curtis Foss, 749 in the Sneezy's League, and Jim Pursel, 741 in the Toyota of Batavia Thursday 5-Man at Mancuso Bowling Center in Batavia.

For a list of high scores, click on the Pin Points tab at the top of the home page.

Drone shots of yesterday's field fire by Glenn Adams.

Previously: Cornfield fire reported off Creek Road in Bethany

In the '80s, I was a fourth-grade teacher for the Batavia City School District, and one of the many highlights of my career was teaching local history. This year, I was again able to show children where they came from through the lens of local history.

I had the opportunity to take my second-graders from St. Joseph Regional School on walking field trips to the Holland Land Office Museum. I am fortunate to meet with my students physically every day; this is not a reality for many schoolchildren.

Even though it is 2020 and the children use technology every day with Chromebooks, a tablet, or a computer, they still enjoy going back in time and learning about their history.

Every child chose a famous local person to learn about and research. With the help of their parents, the students visited various famous places in Batavia.

Since I had children from LeRoy, we also added their local history; they researched Ingham University, Orator Woodward, Herman LeRoy, and Stein Farms. I know the children and parents found this interesting. 

As we walked down Main Street and stopped at The First Bank of the Genesee, I told the story of Trumbull Cary. Our next stop was James Brisbane’s Mansion. They also enjoyed looking at the Upton Monument and learning about our famous Civil War hero, Union Colonel Emory Upton.

On our trip to the Historic Batavia Cemetery, the children connected with where their renowned person was buried. To see the children looking up at the height of William Morgan’s monument was priceless, or connecting the Richmond Memorial Library with the Richmond Mausoleum was a wonderful moment.

So, as they say, some things change, and some things stay the same; the children are the constant in my life as a teacher. Children haven’t changed. 

What is different in 2020 for all of our children is the coronavirus pandemic -- they sit at a desk 6 feet apart; they walk the halls wearing their mask and sanitize their hands entering the classroom and going out of the classroom. When they get a chance to go on recess, the children can run and skip, play tag, enjoy the playground equipment, and, most of all, just laugh.

I mostly enjoy their laughter and watching them run. I am so proud of them, so even though we live with the tangible specter of COVID-19, the children are still children and want to hear about Joseph Ellicott, Dean Richmond, and take a visit to the beautiful Historic Batavia Cemetery.

What I find so sad is that these young children don’t know what it was like before coronavirus.

They are missing sitting on a rug listening to a story, working in groups, singing in Glee Club, or playing sports. What they hear now is the humming of room air purifiers and the smell of disinfectants. Good thing that our history will never change.  

Hopefully, we will be able to return to “normal times,” and this, too, will become part of our past, not our day-to-day lives.

Photos courtesy of Anne Marie Starowitz.

Top, St. Joseph Regional School second-graders on the steps of the Brisbane Mansion, now housing the City of Batavia Police Department.

Below, St. Joseph Regional School students at the gravesite monument of Joseph Ellicott in Batavia Cemetery.

Bottom, teacher Anne Marie Starowitz stands behind her class in front of the Holland Land Office Museum.

Enough players showed up at Williams Park in Batavia this afternoon for an eight-team informal flag football tournament.

http://www.greatkutz.com

When Natalie Cervone's boyfriend first proposed that she become the owner and operator of her own hair salon, Great Kutz in Valu Plaza, she resisted the idea.

Her boyfriend, Ryan Pyatt, is a local entrepreneur -- a real estate agent and owner of WNY Powerwash. He's always looking for business opportunities. He saw that Great Kutz was for sale and suggested Cervone seize the day and go into business for herself.

The more she thought about it, though, the more it made sense. She could walk into an established business doing what she already knew how to do.

"I’ve been in small salons the past eight years," Cervone said. "This is the biggest place I’ve been in and I’m loving it so far"

Great Kutz was opened in 2009 by Byron and Chris Ariyaratnam to primarily provide haircuts and stylings to a walk-in clientele. Cervone said the shop will continue to serve those who prefer walk-ins to appointments but she is looking to focus more on appointments, more coloring, and more specialized service.  

"We want the girls building up their clientele because they’re all very talented," Cervone said.

Currently, there are six stylists working at Great Kutz with a seventh joining the crew in December.

Great Kutz is located at 4152 W. Main St. Phone is (585) 201-7070. 

Bryn Luckey became Le Roy's all-time leading scorer in girls soccer last Saturday and she was honored last night at home before the Knights' quarterfinal sectional game against Waterloo in Class B2.

Luckey's road to 80:

• 2016-13
• 2017-22
• 2018-21
• 2019-13
• 2020-11

Le Roy beat Waterloo 5-0 to advance to the semifinals.

Photo and information submitted by Tim McArdle.

The YWCA honored local residents who have been making a difference in the community with the inaugural Frances G. Frances Empowerment Awards in a breakfast at Batavia Downs on Friday.

Executive Director Millie Tomidy-Pepper said of the winners:

Dorothy “Cricket” Avery: Cricket personifies the true spirit of this award in every sense. In August of 2018, Cricket founded GlOW Women Rise an organization who’s mission it is to "Engage, Elevate, and Empower Women of the GlOW region" while promoting social justice for all. Cricket spearheaded and organized the first ever Women’s March in Batavia; organized a highly successful Women’s Empowerment Forum, and has collaborated with us on Stand Against Racism, Voter Registration, an Anti- Racism Workshop. Cricket and the women of GLOW Women Rise have also supported our Safe House clients by helping them attain household items and help move them into their new homes. GLOW Women Rise are in the process of incorporating and we could not be happier for the success the group has achieved in such a short time. We have built a strong partnership to address the needs of women in our community and therefore it is our honor to select Dorothy “Cricket” Avery as a recipient of the Frances G. Francis Empowerment Award.

Our next recipient is Nancy Brach, Nancy has been co-owner of Brach Machine since 1993. Nancy’s co-ownership in this male-dominated profession came long before it was common for women to do so. She and her husband, Bill, have built a very successful business together. While this alone is an amazing accomplishment, Nancy also chose to become involved in the YWCA in 1997 when she joined the Board of Directors and served until 2005. I think it is safe for me to say that while Nancy may have left the Board, the YWCA never was far from her heart. In 2018, Nancy came to the YWCA’s rescue. When Nancy heard of the agency's financial plight, she didn’t waste a minute reaching out to me to offer assistance. Her extraordinary generosity and belief in the mission and programs of the YWCA assisted us at a critical time and literally saved the organization from closure. I personally cannot thank Nancy enough for putting her faith and trust in me and the Board of Directors. We are here today because of you, Nancy. 

Our next recipient is Jill Kratz. Three years ago, Jill saw a need in our community for easy access to fresh, nutritious prepared meals for people who wanted to keep up with their nutritional needs but were too busy to come home and prepare meals themselves. Jill seized the moment and opened Commit to Well, preparing and distributing meals out of the YWCA kitchen. Her clients are both young and old, some have special dietary restrictions and just want to maintain better overall health and wellness. Since its founding, Commit to Well has been donating to organizations such as Habitat for Humanity, United Memorial Hospital, and the YWCA’s Safe House. When a family arrives at our Safe House, they can put one worry aside and not have to think about what they are going to prepare for dinner. Jill’s meals welcome them so they can focus on settling in, feeling safe and eating a healthy meal as they begin to build a new life free from abuse. We are so thankful for you and your generosity!

Jill, would you please stand to be recognized for being a Woman-Owned Business that provides a healthy way of eating to the community and also for your charitable giving to local agencies including the YWCA’s Safe House.

Our next award recipient is The Rotary Club of Batavia! The motto of Rotary is “Service Above Self” and this was clearly evidenced in late February of 2019. President Laurie Mastin called me and said that we were being awarded a small grant to “fix-up” the Safe House. What happened next was something right out of a movie. I received another phone call not long after the first and Laurie said they received a District Designated Matching Grant, doubling our funding, and (and being the keyword) the Rotarians wanted to do a hands-on project and complete all the work! As Laurie put it …. “We are People of Action.” The project commenced in February and took almost eight weeks to complete. Every room of the house was tended to with love, care, strength, and old-fashion elbow grease. Rotarians, staff and board members worked side by side, and after hours of coordinated efforts to repair and replace items in need from the roof to the basement, the “Safe House” was transformed into a “Safe Home.” Their commitment, energy, and “get it done” philosophy created a home where families escaping abuse will find warmth, shelter, and safety while they work to rebuild their lives.

We have built an unbreakable bond of friendship with this amazing group of people from Rotary.