Two days after more than 100 local residents turned up at a town of Pembroke board meeting to protest increased property assessments, the board voted in an emergency session on Saturday to roll back the increase for 2024.
Assessments will remain at the 2023 levels for 2024, said Supervisor Thomas C. Schneider Jr.
Property owners will receive written notice of the rollback to the 2023 assessments.
All scheduled meetings with the town's assessor have been canceled. A taxpayer information session scheduled for Wednesday was also canceled.
So many people turned out at Thursday's board meeting that the session was relocated from the board's chambers on Main Road to the Town Hall in the village of Corfu.
Rachel Doktor attended the meeting and provided The Batavian with photos of the full house. She said people are reporting the same experience she's had -- an astronomical assessment increase.
"Ours was raised over $100,000 just last year, and now they want another $84,000," Doktor said on Friday. "Basically, they're raising our assessments like crazy, and they're doing it again ... everyone is pissed about the assessment."
Doktor said she thinks property values have been going up because people are moving to the area from Buffalo and Rochester and "overpaying" for their new homes.
"All of these city people, they buy a huge home for $250,000 that in Rochester could cost a million dollars," Doktor said.
Schneider said his own assessment has gone up $350,000. He said the factors driving up home prices include the desirability of the Pembroke Central School District, Pembroke's proximity to Erie County, and easy access to the Thruway.
Pembroke has been a hotbed of growth the past couple of years, with new apartment buildings going up, a new mixed-use development opening, a new distribution center by the interchange, and a planned new travel plaza.
Property by the interchange, Schneider said, is going for $30,000 an acre. He expressed concern that those high commercial property values may have played too big of a role in determining residential property assessments. That was why he suggested on Friday, before the emergency meeting on Saturday, that a rollback to 2023 assessments might be in order.
"That needs to be looked at as part of the increase in her calculations," Schneider said.
The assessor is appointed for a seven-year term, and outside of hiring the assessor, the town board has no role in assessments, Schneider said.
"The board should remain independent of the assessor," Schneider said. "We don't want politicians assigning values to properties in my opinion and in the state's opinion, too."
The rollback, Schneider said, will allow a reassessment of the assessments.
"We need to dig into the data and see if there are structural deficiencies (in the calculations)," Schneider said. "We will roll it back for a year and talk with the assessor about where things might have gone awry."
Alexander resident Sandra Wolfley won The Batavian's prize drawing Sunday at the Genesee County Home Show, which was on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday at the David M. McCarthy Memorial Ice Arena in Batavia.
Wolfley won a pair of VIP Pilot's Lounge Tickets for the Wings Over Batavia Air Show, set for Aug. 31 and Sept. 1 at the Genesee County Airport.
There were more than 160 people in the contest, which required home show attendees to fill out an entry form and stamp it with The Batavian's logo.
Thanks to Wings Over Batavia for partnering with us on this promotion.
For 2023, the Firefighter of the Year in the Stafford Volunteer Fire Department was a collective award, going to the Top 10 responders (11 members, counting a tie) for the year.
The Firefighters of the Year are Brian Breemes, Randal Henning, Tim Eckdahl, Chris Penkszyk, Mark Dougherty, Ashley Swartzenberg, Jason Smith, Ken Collins, Brian Pocock, Don Hall, and Ben Pocock.
The firematic officers installed for 2024 are:
Timothy Eckdahl, chief
Brian Pocock, 1st assistant chief
Brian Breemes, 2nd assistant chief
Kari Breemes, 3rd assistant chief
Jason Smith, 4th assistant chief
Randal Henning, rescue squad captain
Chad Rambach, rescue squad lietuenent
Donald Hall, fire police captain
Ben Fox, fire police lieutenant
Brian Pocock, master mechanic
Brian Breemes and Matt Hendershott, training officers
Julie Bobo and Ashley Swartzenberg, chief's secretary
The administrative officers:
James Call, president
Kari Breemes, vice president
Bonnie Logsdon, secretary
Stephanie Call, treasurer
Trustees: Stanley Gere, Jason Smith, Ashley Swartzenberg, Chad Rambach, Stephanie Call
Auditors: Ben Fox and Kenneth Collins.
The dinner was held on Saturday at the Batavia Country Club.
These are photos from Saturday's Genesee County Home Show, which the Genesee County Chamber of Commerce hosted and organized.
The final day of the home show is Sunday (today), and it runs from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Saturday's show was well attended, and about a dozen new vendors, plus many of the usual locally owned home improvement-related vendors, were on the floor of the David M. McCarthy Memorial Ice Arena.
As part of Fan Appreciation Night on Thursday, the Buffalo Sabres honored Sgt. Thomas A. Sanfratello as the team's Fan of the Year.
Sanfratello, a 34-year veteran of the Genesee County Sheriff's Office, died in the line of duty on March 10 while dealing with a disturbance at Batavia Downs. Two Batavia residents are accused of resisting arrest. Michael Elmore is accused of using a heavy piece of jewelry, a chain necklace, to hit Sanfratello during a struggle.
The tribute included a video highlighting Sanfratello's career in law enforcement and the bond Tom and his son Ian shared through their love of the Sabres. Ian and his sisters, Kyla and Alexis, were on the ice for a presentation of a memorial jersey to the family. The Sheriff's Office Color Guard presented the colors and the National Anthem was sung by by Buffalo resident Cami Clune, who also has a bit of a connection to Batavia in that she has performed at Eli Fish Brewing.
For previous coverage of the passing of Sgt. Sanfratello, click here.
Two people did different things, but the right things, which led to Walmart being evacuated Wednesday afternoon even though there was no threat to life or the safety of people at the store, said Chief Deputy Brian Frieday.
A local man had purchased a pellet rifle and, after apparently throwing out the packaging, decided to return it to Walmart. Frieday said the man did the right thing. He called the store in advance to let them know what he was doing.
A customer saw the man get out of his truck and walk into the store with the gun. That customer called 9-1-1 and reported a person had loaded a shotgun and was walking into the store.
"Patrols converged on the Walmart store," Frieday said. "In that response, we're able to clear the store, locate the individual and locate what was not a shotgun. It turned out to be a pellet gun that they were returning to the store that didn't work properly. There is no fault whatsoever. I'm glad the person called in because that's the 'see something, say something.' I'm glad they called it in. I know it creates a little bit of an inconvenience for patrons of the store, the store itself, and anybody around, even traffic around. But that's a great outcome. It's just a little bit of an inconvenience compared to everything we're seeing around the country now."
The man was located by patrols outside the store without the gun. He had left it at the gun counter in the store. He is not facing any charges.
"It seems very innocuous," Frieday said. "It's a misunderstanding. It was an observation by somebody that they rightfully called in because it appeared that it could be something threatening."
The Sheriff's Office was the lead agency on the call, assisted by Batavia PD and New York State Police. At least 10 patrol units responded, according to a witness.
During the incident, the store was evacuated -- all employees and customers were asked to leave the building. Once police officers determined there was no threat, employees and customers were allowed back in.
Photos by Howard Owens.
While the man did the right thing by calling the store in advance, Frieday suggested people who need to return a potentially threatening item that isn't in its original packaging can go a step further by asking an employee to meet them outside with some sort of bag or packing for the item.
The work of the coalition has raised awareness of the importance of local journalism and the challenges facing the local news industry. (New York has lost half of its newsrooms since 2004.)
In just the past month, the coalition rallied in Westchester, where residents were stunned by the abrupt closure of three community newspapers. We went directly to Albany to appeal to lawmakers and rallied with elected officials from the Senate and Assembly. Numerous localities have adopted resolutions expressing their support for legislation that would support local journalism, and more municipal resolutions are in the pipeline. Even unconventional allies like Microsoft have joined our calls to save local news.
Thanks to these collective efforts, the Local Journalism Sustainability Act – which would provide tax credits to local news organizations for retaining and creating newsroom jobs – was included in the State Senate’s recent budget proposal for fiscal year 2025. This is a key step for inclusion in the state's final budget, which is currently being negotiated by the Senate, Assembly and Governor Hochul.
However, there is a lot of work to be done over the next few days, when the final budget will likely be announced, to ensure the bill is actually included in the state's final budget. It is crucial that the Local Journalism Sustainability Act is included; otherwise, communities throughout the state risk thousands of newsroom jobs being lost and even more important stories going untold.
The Local Journalism Sustainability Act is sponsored by NYS Senator Brad Hoylman-Sigal with the bipartisan support of Assemblywoman Carrie Woerner and more than 70 co-sponsors. As newspapers shutter and layoffs roil the industry, the bill is necessary for incentivizing job creation, returning reporters to many of the state's emptying newsrooms. The bill is content-neutral and designed to ensure that truly local news outlets will receive this assistance. The leadership of the Legislature’s Black, Puerto Rican, Hispanic, and Asian Caucus has also endorsed our bill, which is a major testament to the fact that this bill will improve access to news for all communities.
New Yorkers are standing with local news, and now lawmakers must answer the people’s call to save community journalism. To get the Local Journalism Sustainability Act across the finish line, lawmakers must hear from you about why our newspaper matters and why this bill is meaningful to you and your family.
So, if keeping local news alive in our state is important to you, please contact Governor Hochul and your local representatives to let them know you support local news. Budget negotiations are wrapping up imminently—the time to act is now!
If you were in Genesee County on Monday were teed off that you didn't get to actually see the total eclipse that passed over the region, at Terry Hills, they were really teed off.
In the midst of the darkest minute, golfers hit glow-in-the-dark balls of the first tee, apparently just to say they played golf during a total eclipse of the sun.
Terry Hills Golf Course hosted an eclipse party, including a special menu with food items such as Total Eclipse Burger, Blackout Caesar Salad, and Supernova Nachoes.
Golfers also received a commemorative "I Saw the Eclipse at Terry Hills April 8th 2024" golf ball.
Danielle Rotondo said about 150 golfers hit the links on Monday, with about sixty playing during the eclipse. The three people teeing off from the first tee during the totality were Mary Brown, Casey Brown, and Rotondo.
"It was a great day, an amazing experience playing and teeing off during totality," Rotondo said. "My aunt, Mary Brown, had the idea to use the glow golf balls, which make for an epic tee shot! We had people come from all over New York State to experience it at our facility."
Even with a forecast of clouds, the dim prospects of actually seeing a fairly rare total solar eclipse were enough to draw a few visitors to Genesee County and the Genesee County Fairgrounds to see what they could see.
There were a couple of dozen groups of people at the fairgrounds on Monday to see the eclipse.
Denise Auker, of Lancaster, Pa., and her family of six picked Batavia because it seemed affordable and the five-hour drive was reasonable.
"The Genesee County Chamber of Commerce's website was very helpful and had a lot of information," Auker said. "We were at the maple farm this morning. They (the chamber) recommended that, and then they had this location on (the site). They had several locations to choose from, but we picked this one."
For Mike from Northern Virginia and his friend Aram, Genesee County seemed like it might be a place with fewer crowds, easier to get to and leave after the event.
"We also wanted to go somewhere where there were we knew there were places to see the eclipse," Mike said. "We didn't want to get stuck in the middle of a place with just roads and no cleaning, no place to park and see it. We figured this was a good place to end up."
I got a kick out of Joanne Beck's report in The Batavian of March 26, "City property owners to receive updated assessments," accompanied by Assistant City Manager Fix's ecstatically (probably in anticipation of the whopping increase in city revenues due to increased assessments), yet maddeningly (probably because, as my mother used to say, he "knows exactly what he's doing" to the city property owners), grinning face.
Joanne, "You go, girl," and The Batavian, "You rock"!
"Gettin' down to brass tacks", I'm ecstatic too, "I'm singing like a bird, dancing like a fool, you make me smile", as Uncle Kracker sings, as I read the article on The Batavian. Why? Unlike Batavia city government management officials, Ms. Beck and The Batavian know simple arithmetic. City property owners aren't interested in tax rates per $1,000 of assessed property value, percentage increases in city expenses, interest rates on mortgages, 100% equalization, or even increases in property values or assessed values, except when we're ready to sell (and anyway, where would we go or live, or how could we possibly move all our junk).
What are we property owners interested in? And Ms. Beck gets this right: the "bottom line," "cash on the barrel-head," what will our tax bill be this year, how does it compare to last year's tax bill, and how will it potentially compare to next year's bill?
My good man, Mr. Fix, we property owners don't pay tax rates, assessments, equalization, or percentage increases in property values. We pay dollars and cents, and I trust you do, too. So stop all your foolish gibberish, gobbledygook "putting lipstick on a pig," or any of your confounding nonsense and make-believe!
Simple as can be: assessment goes up, tax dollars paid go up, not down (we property owners like "down", but we'll bite for "stay the same", as I'm sure you too would agree!). All the factors that I listed above, the "mish-mash", the pleasing words camouflaging the ugliness lying in their meanings, you know, the ones that city property owners don't care about, are just smoke and mirrors used by city government officials to confuse property owners, change the subject, and otherwise obfuscate the clear fact that you, city property owners, are about to get whacked and walloped, yet again, with a bigger tax bill, just how much bigger, you've yet to find out
Allister L. Gunter, 28, of Batavia, is charged with attempted assault 2nd, attempted robbery 3rd, four counts of unlawful imprisonment 2nd, two counts of criminal mischief 4th, three counts of endangering the welfare of a child, resisting arrest, two counts of obstructing governmental administration 2nd, and harassment 2nd. Gunter was charged following an incident reported on March 17 on Thomas Avenue. Patrol officers responded to a report of a disturbance. A victim reported a fight. Gunter is accused of barricading the door, requiring officers to make a forced entry into the residence. When officers attempted to take Gunter into custody, he allegedly resisted arrest and fought with officers. The victim alleges that Gunter attempted to assault her and would not allow her or her children to leave the residence. He allegedly prevented her from calling the police for help. He was arraigned and released under supervision.
Jorgia A. Fotiathis, 30, of Batavia, is charged with assault 1st and criminal possession of a weapon 4th. Fotiathis was arrested on March 19 following an investigation into an incident reported on March 4 on Hutchins Street. Fotiathis is accused of stabbing another person. He was arraigned and jailed.
George J. Budzinack, 44, of Batavia, is charged with burglary 3rd and petit larceny. Budzinack is accused of entering Tops on March 29 after being barred from the property and stealing merchandise from the store on March 29. He was arraigned and jailed without bail.
Luc A Baillargeon, 42, of Batavia, is charged with menacing 2nd, criminal possession of a weapon 4th, and criminal contempt 2nd. Baillargeon is accused of throwing a knife at another person on March 27 during a fight on Prospect Avenue. He allegedly violated an order of protection by sending unauthorized text messages. he was arraigned in City Court and released.
James R Briggs, 48, of Walden Creek Drive, Batavia, is charged with criminal possession of a forged instrument 2nd and criminal possession of stolen property 5th. Briggs was arrested following a traffic stop on March 24. He was allegedly driving a vehicle with a stolen license plate and forged registration sticker. He was arraigned and released. Briggs is also charged with petit larceny. He is accused of shoplifting from Walmart at 7:34 p.m. on March 14.
Mark L. Farley, 55, of Batavia, is charged with criminal contempt 1st and harassment 2nd. Farley allegedly threatened another person on March 23 in violation of an order of protection. He was arraigned and released. On March 25, he was charged with harassment 2nd in connection with an incident reported in February where he allegedly grabbed another person. He was issued an appearance ticket.
Miya R. Houseman, 23, of Batavia, was arrested on March 27 on a warrant. Houseman was initially arrested on a charge of DWI Nov. 21, 2021. A warrant was issued after she allegedly failed to appear in court. She was arraigned in City Court and released.
Martin J. Rodgers, 40, of Batavia, is charged with criminal contempt 1st. Rodgers is accused of violating a stay-away order of protection. He was arraigned in City Court and ordered jailed on $4,000 bail.
Carl E. Canterbury, 53, of Batavia, was arrested on March 22 on a warrant. Canterbury was charged on Jan. 23 for allegedly operating a motor vehicle with a suspended registration. A warrant was issued after he allegedly failed to appear in court. Canterbury was arraigned and released.
Joey A. Evans, 33, of Batavia, was cited for riding a bicycle on a sidewalk. Evans was charged after an accident on March 22. He allegedly struck a pedestrian while riding his bike. He was issued an appearance ticket.
Mark. A. Constable, 35, of Batavia, is charged with harassment 2nd. Constable is accused of grabbing another person by the arm during a dispute on Ganson Avenue on March 23. he was issued an appearance ticket.
Mark. A. Constable, 35, of Batavia, and Kayleen M. Laird, 28, of Batavia, are charged with theft of services. Constable and Laird are accused of leaving Gilliana's Diner on Jackson Street on March 19 without paying for their meals. They were issued appearance tickets.
Kenneth H. Avery, 53, of Byron, is charged with DWI. Avery was charged following a traffic stop on March 17 on Clinton Street by a Batavia patrol officer. He was issued an appearance ticket.
Ronald W. Lewis, 36, of Ogden, was arrested on March 20 on two warrants. The first warrant stems from a larceny complaint in July of 2023. Lewis allegedly stole merchandise from Tim Horton’s. The second is the result of a trespass charge in September of 2023 at UMMC. He was arraigned and released.
Canden J. Thomas, 29, of Albion, was arrested on March 20 on a warrant. Thomas was initially charged on Nov. 22 with aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle 3rd, leaving the scene of a property damage accident and other traffic violations after a motor vehicle crash on Bank Street. He was arraigned and released.
Nathan W. Campbell, 43, of Batavia, is charged with trespass. Campbell is accused of entering Save-a-Lot on March 28 after being barred from the property. He was issued an appearance ticket/
Lewis A. Morris, Jr., 69, of Batavia, is charged with criminal obstruction of breathing and harassment 2nd. Morris is accused of putting his hands around the neck of another person and of striking that person in the face during a disturbance on Brooklyn Avenue on March 15. He was arraigned and released.
Patricia M. Anderson, 39, of Batavia, was arrested on April 1 on two warrants on charges of criminal possession of a controlled substance 7th. The first warrant is related to an incident in August of 2023, where Anderson was allegedly found in possession of cocaine while being arrested on an unrelated warrant. The second warrant stems from an incident in October of 2023, where Anderson was allegedly found in possession of methamphetamine and fentanyl while again being arrested on another unrelated warrant. She was arraigned and released.
Douglas G. Bryant, 52, of Batavia, was arrested on a warrant on March 29 on a charge of criminal contempt 2nd. Bryant is accused of violating an order of protection by posting about the protected person on social media. He was arraigned in City Court and jailed.
Michael C. Smith, 32, of Batavia, is charged with petit larceny. Smith is accused of stealing merchandise from Tops on March 29. He allegedly fled the store. Store employees followed him to West Avenue and Union Street, where police took him into custody. He was issued an appearance ticket and turned over to the Sheriff's Office on a warrant.
Thomas Joseph Mitchell, 34, of Chestnut Street, Batavia, is charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance 7th, aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle 3rd, unlicensed driver, and no inspection sticker. Mitchell was stopped at 3:50 a.m. on March 22 on Route 33 in Bergen by Deputy Jacob Kipler. He was issued an appearance ticket.
Jennifer Lynn McCoy, 46, of Main Street, Attica, is charged with grand larceny 4th, three counts of unlawful possession of personal identification information 3rd, and petit larceny. McCoy is accused of stealing $2,800.67 from a location on South Main Street, Oakfield, between Oct. 19 and Jan. 28. She is also accused of stealing a donated bicycle from a non-profit organization in Stafford on July 25. McCoy was issued an appearance ticket.
Joshua John King, 34, of Ross Street, Batavia, is charged with DWI and driving with a BAC of .18 or greater. King was stopped at 1:57 a.m. on March 24 on West Main Street Road, Batavia, by Deputy Jeremiah Gechell. He was processed at the Genesee County Jail and released.
Scott Robert Stine, 40, of Alleghany Road, Pembroke, is charged with DWI, reckless driving, open alcohol container in vehicle, speed unreasonable, and failure to keep right. Stine was allegedly involved in a single-vehicle property damage accident at 9:22 p.m. on March 28 on North Lake Road, Pembroke. He was arrested by Deputy Ayron Blankenberg, processed at the Genesee County Jail, and released.
Michael Anthony Sweet, 38, of Raymond Avenue, Batavia, is charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance 7th. Sweet was stopped at 11:38 p.m. on March 26 on Clinton Street Road, Batavia, by Deputy Ryan Mullen. Sweet was allegedly found in possession of methamphetamine. He was released on an appearance ticket.
Jared Ryan Burns, 37, of Clinton Street Road, Batavia, is charged with falsely reporting 3rd. Burns is accused of calling emergency dispatch at 3:26 p.m. on March 31 to falsely report an incident that was "about to occur" at a location on Clinton Street Road. He was issued an appearance ticket.
James Thomas Cooke, 30, of Sandy Beach Road, Grand Island, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater, and unregistered motor vehicle. Cooke was stopped at 12:59 a.m. on March 30 on West Main Street, Batavia, by Deputy Jeremiah Gechell. Cooke was issued an appearance ticket.
Paul Lee, 52, of Helen Street, Rochester, is charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance 7th. Following a complaint at 3:41 p.m. on April 2 on Buffalo Road in Bergen, deputies Mason Schultz and James Stack made contact with Lee. He was allegedly found in possession of narcotics. He was processed at the Genesee County Jail and released.
Matthew O'Neal Bader, 41, of Maple Street, Batavia, is charged with identity theft, 3rd, and criminal possession of stolen property, 4th. Bader is accused of stealing a credit card and using it to make purchases in the city of Batavia on March 15. Bader was processed at the Genesee County Jail and released.
Nickolas Adam Figlow, 22, of Oak Street, Batavia, is charged with making a threat of mass harm. Figlow is accused of making a threat of mass harm against a business on Lewiston Road, Batavia, on April 2. Figlow was processed at the Genesee County Jail and released.