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Freezing rain advisory for tonight and tomorrow morning

By Howard B. Owens

The National Weather Service is predicting freezing rain starting at 11 p.m. with an advisory in effect through noon Sunday.

An accumulation of a 10th of an inch is possible.

Lows will be in the lower 30s overnight and upper 30s Sunday afternoon.

Driving and walking conditions could be hazardous.

Car fire reported behind M&T Bank, Batavia

By Howard B. Owens

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A car fire is reported in the Court Street Plaza parking lot behind the M&T Bank in Batavia.

City fire is responding.

UPDATE: Photo via City of Batavia Firefighters -- IAFF Local 896. Firefighters reported a quick knock down. No injuries. This was also the first fire for two new members of the department, Sean Huggins and David Pollock.

Third Annual Eve Conference to be held at Northgate in March

By Howard B. Owens

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The women organizing the third annual Eve Conference at Northgate Free Methodist Church are excited about the event next month that they believe will help bring more joy into the lives of all the women who attend.

The conference is March 25 and will feature keynote speaker Pam Washburn, whose talk is titled "Defending Our Joy."

The Eve Conference is open to teen girls and women of all faiths. 

There are also 12 breakout sessions, including three specifically for teens, two worship services, and an optional lunch.

Sessions include "The Interruption of Joy," "Surviving Divorce," "Marriage," "Living the Full Life," "Daughters of Miriam: Hearing the whispered heroism of the women of the Old Testment," and "Jesus 1st."

Registration is $25, $15 for teens and the optional lunch is $7.

“We’ve had people’s lives transformed in here in one day," said Jennifer Berry. "It’s amazing. It’s a day where you walk away thinking anything is possible and you have the tools you need to improve your life.” 

For more information and tickets, click here.

Photo: Jennifer Berry, Jessica Barone, Meg Hoistington, Gloria Roorda, and Julie Varland.

Two solar projects in Town of Batavia move forward in approval process

By Howard B. Owens

Two solar farm projects in the Town of Batavia were recommended for approval by the Genesee County Planning Board on Thursday night.

One project is at 3833 W. Main Street Road. It is an 11.6-acre project on a 83.5-acre parcel.  

The other is at 8169 Bank Street Road, Batavia. It is 11 acres on 93.3 acres.

Both projects are being developed by Forefront Power, formerly SunEdison, with Forefront agreeing to leases of 25 years with the property owners.

The projects are expected to produce enough electricity each to power the equivalent of 300 residential homes.

Timothy P. Ahrens, in charge of project development for Forefront, said the projects will help create additional renewable energy sources for the region.

The projects will be eligible for state and federal incentives to help offset the costs.

Planning Board members asked questions about what happens to the farm if it's ever decommissioned and Ahrens said part of the agreement with the landowners is to remove all of the infrastructure and return the land to its prior use.

Both lots are less-than-prime farmland.

Pending final approval by the Town of Batavia, Ahrens said Forefront hopes to begin construction by the fall.

Watson Street resident accused of selling crack cocaine

By Howard B. Owens
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     Thomas Gibson

Thomas L. Gibson, 29, of Watson Street, Batavia, has been arrested on suspicion of drug dealing and jailed on $20,000 bail or $40,000 bond.

Gibson was arrested on a warrant. The arrest stemmed from an investigation by the Local Drug Task Force into the alleged sales of crack cocaine in the City of Batavia.

He is charged with two counts of criminal sale of a controlled substance, 3rd, and two counts criminal possession of a controlled substance, 3rd.

Le Roy Girl Scouts create 'Bright Board' for Wolcott Street School

By Howard B. Owens

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Girl Scouts with Trop 42123 in Le Roy created a Bright Board for students at staff at Wolcott Street School. The board is filled with positive messages on bright sticky notes. Students and staff are invited to take a note to brighten their days or leave positive words for someone else to take. The scouts made a prototype and presented it to the principal, scheduled shifts and created the final project. The project took hours and hours to complete.

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Literacy agency opens new office in City Centre

By Howard B. Owens

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Literacy Genesee-Orleans held a ribbon cutting and grand opening yesterday at their new location at 27 City Centre.

Director Bob Curtis said the agency had been at a location on North Street, but they wanted to find a space that was more centrally located. The new location is larger and $200 a month cheaper.

"Not only did we save money, but we also enlarged our facility from one large classroom to two classrooms plus office space and in a location that is more convenient for everybody," Curtis said.

Clients of the center range in age from 18 to 74. While there are some volunteers, many on the teaching staff are older adults, 55 and over, who receive a wage paid for through a federally funded program.

The center offers help in reading, math, and computers as well as classes and tutors for people learning English as a second language.

Photo: Tom Turnbull, president of the Chamber of Commerce, Assemblyman Steve Hawley, Jim Owen, Sandra Gillard, Bob Curtis, Jay Grasso and Ben Bonigrigo. Photo by Kelly Bermingham.

New superintendent selected for Le Roy Central Schools

By Howard B. Owens

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Press release:

The Le Roy Central School District’s Board of Education (BOE) has named Merritt Holly as the district’s next Superintendent. Pending final contract negotiations, Holly is expected to begin in his new post on April 1.  

“I am excited and honored to have been chosen as the new superintendent of the Le Roy Central School District and look forward to working collaboratively with the school board, teachers, staff, parents and community. I’m committed to providing all students with exceptional educational experiences, which will assist them in having a varied skill set in order to be college and career ready," Holly noted.

School Board President Don Hobart said Holly possesses the key qualities that the Board is seeking in a Superintendent.

“As a visible and engaged leader, we are confident that Merritt Holly is the best choice for our district. We look forward to working with Merritt as we deliver the best education possible for our students,” Hobart said.

Merritt Holly has served as principal of Caledonia-Mumford High School (HS) since 2011. Previously, he was the principal of Oakfield-Alabama Middle School and was the Dean of Students at Oakfield-Alabama Middle and Senior High School from 2007-2008. Holly started his teaching career in 1999 as a ninth-grade Social Studies teacher at Oakfield-Alabama Central Schools, a position he held for eight years.

As principal, Holly is responsible for the supervision of faculty, staff, and students for grades 9-12. During his tenure as principal of Caledonia-Mumford HS, the school was designated a New York State Reward School three times. The New York State Department of Education presents this award to schools that are high achieving and high-progress schools. He is presently a Central Committee member of the New York State Public High School Athletic Association and represents Section V.

Holly holds a Bachelor of Arts from The College at Brockport, a Master of Science in Education Curriculum and Instruction from Medaille College and a master’s in Educational Administration from The College at Brockport. Holly holds a number of certifications including New York State Provisional and Permanent Certification in Secondary Social Studies grades 7-12 and an Advanced Certificate as School District and School Building Leader.

Kevin MacDonald, District superintendent of the Genesee Valley Educational Partnership, acted as the search consultant and noted that the search process was a true collaboration between the Board of Education, district staff and community.

Bergen's ladder truck needed in Riga to assist worker stuck 40 feet in air on a lift

By Howard B. Owens

Bergen's ladder truck has been dispatched on an emergency call, asked to expedite, to the Town of Riga, where a man is stuck in a lift 40-foot in the air.

The emergency response is requested because the lift is leaking hydraulic fluid and workers are afraid it's going to come down.

UPDATE 11:30 a.m.: Our news partner 13WHAM sent a reporter to the scene and they tell us that man trapped in the lift is on the ground, safe and uninjured. He was 60 feet in the air, he said. He said there was a hydraulic fluid leak and the lift wouldn't budge. His partner on the ground called for help. He was in the air for about 45 minutes. He said he wasn't afraid of the height, but it was cold up there. He is a tree trimmer from Monroe County.

Photos: Girls basketball, Batavia vs. Wellsville

By Howard B. Owens

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The Lady Blue Devils' record fell to 4-15 on Thursday night with a 42-53 loss to Wellsville. Batavia closes the season at home Tuesday, game time 7:15 p.m., against Odyssey.

No stats available for the game.

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Judge rules in favor of developer building duplexes in the Village of Le Roy

By Howard B. Owens

A building permit for a duplex near Presidential Acres in Le Roy was legally issued, a judge has ruled in a multi-party lawsuit over the development in the subdivision.

The ruling is a victory of Pete McQuillen, a Le Roy businessman, who has been embroiled in legal battles with property owners in the area for years.

The latest round of legal action began in 2014 when 11 property owners in Presidential Acres filed an Article 78 proceeding against the Village of Le Roy, various officials in the village, and McQuillen and his business.

At the time, McQuillen had already completed two duplexes on 10 lots he owned on the west end of Presidential Acres, near Robbins Road. There had been no challenge to the building permits for those structures.

When a code enforcement officer issued a permit for Lot 18, that's when neighbors got together and tried to stop further development of duplexes in the neighborhood.

David Boyce, one of the plaintiffs, said in an affidavit that when he bought his lot on Filmore Drive, nothing in the record nor in the documents he researched, indicated that the neighborhood was zoned for anything other than single-family residences. He believes, he said, the presence of the duplexes lowers the value of his property. 

The plaintiffs also alleged that the duplexes run contrary to the comprehensive plan for the village.

In his affidavit, McQuillen said he relied on village board meeting minutes from when the subdivision was created to conclude that the subdivision was planned from the beginning to include 10 duplexes.

Judge Emilio Colaiacovo, who inherited the case from Judge Robert C. Noonan upon his retirement, ruled that based on the fact that the first two duplexes went unchallenged, that the code enforcement officer was acting within his authority to issue the permit, and nothing in the record indicated that the zoning board of appeals, upon reviewing the permit, acted in an "arbitrary and capricious manner" so he was compelled to rule in favor of McQuillen. 

Case law is clear, he said, that in the absence of evidence of an arbitrary or capricious decision, courts should respect the decisions of local bodies, such as the ZBA.

Before the duplex issue, McQuillen was involved in another legal battle over a planned senior community on property he owns next to Presidential Acres called Robbins Nest. He eventually lost that case, then subsequently built a storage shed on the back property line of Town Supervisor Steve Barbeau. A dispute over that structure resulted in a bit of shoving and the arrest of Barbeau. The storage shed was a subject of this lawsuit, alleged to be an illegal auxiliary structure, but Colaiacovo ruled that issue became moot once McQuillen built his single-family home on the lot once intended to be Robbins Nest.

We emailed Amy Kendell, an attorney for the plaintiffs, to ask if there was going to be an appeal of the ruling and we have not received a response.

UPDATE: We received an email response from Amy Kendell. She said there will be an appeal of the decision.

Le Roy teen charged with rape in the first degree

By Howard B. Owens

A 17-year-old resident of Le Roy has been accused of sexual intercourse with a person less than 11 years old and charged with rape in the first degree.

Leonard Edward Hahn, of South Street, was arrested by the Sheriff's Office and jailed on $25,000 cash bail or $25,000 bond. 

The alleged crime reportedly occurred on April 15, 2016 at a location in Alabama.

City manager isn't sure what chair of legislature means by 'putting city on notice' over sales tax share

By Howard B. Owens

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In his State of the County address on Wednesday evening, County Legislature Chairman Ray Cianfrini said the City of Batavia has been "put on notice" about the county's desire to reduce how much sales tax revenue it shares with the city.

Reached later that evening, City Manager Jason Molino said, "I don't know where those comments are coming from because the City and the towns and villages have been very engaged in an open, constant and engaged discussion about these issues."

There is a working group of legislators, council members, along with two town supervisors and members of both county and city staff, who have been working diligently for months on a new sales tax agreement and water services agreement, Molino said. Cianfrini is a member of that oversight committee. 

Molino shared with The Batavian a 42-page PowerPoint presentation titled "20 Identities ... One Genesee County Community" that goes into comprehensive detail about the process, timeline, history of the issues involved, and milestones that need to be reached to hammer out a new agreement covering how sales tax will be allocated and water issues handled.

Molino said he thought the whole process over the past several months has been cooperative and productive but repeated several times over the course of the conversation, "I just don't know where he's coming from."

The committee had seemed to be on the same page, he said, about reaching a mutually beneficial agreement, taking into account the shared needs -- which includes a possible new jail and infrastructure repairs for roads and bridges -- facing all of the municipal entities in the county.

"We made it very clear in the beginning that bridges and roads and a new county jail is more than just a county responsibility," Molino said. "It's all of our responsibility. There is an ownership responsibility that we all agree we must find a solution together. It's been a very cooperative process with the staff and oversight committee."

Currently, the county sales tax rate is 4 percent. That revenue is shared with the city and other municipalities in the county. The city gets 16 percent of that 50 percent and the other 34 percent is split among the other entities. The 10-year agreement expires in a year.

In his speech, Cianfrini said the county is facing some difficult financial issues in the future and suggested the county needs to keep more of the sales tax revenue for itself. He noted that Genesee County's share is more generous than Orleans, Livingston or Wyoming counties. He mentioned specifically the need to fund a potential new jail, a cost of $34 million to $42 million, and the backlog in repairs to roads and bridges, at a cost of $17 million. 

"Negotiations for a new agreement began eight months ago, in July of last year, and the pace has been excruciatingly slow," Cianfrini said. "I can certainly understand the City’s desire not to have changes made to the agreement, but the needs of the county today and for the future are much different than they were when the last agreement was signed 10 years ago."

Cianfrini said changes need to be made that benefit the county.

"The county has put the city on notice that if a new agreement is not in place by February of next year, the county will consider the current sales tax sharing agreement to be terminated," Cianfrini said. "We await the results of the negotiations, but again, I want to be clear, time is of the essence and changes need to be made."

Among the milestones the oversight committee has agreed to, Molino said, is a review in May that will determine if any changes in the process need to be made. The May deadline was selected because if there is a new agreement, the state's comptroller needs six-months notice to implement changes.

The committee is also working on water supply issues for the county and the city, assessing the needs and challenges that may be faced in the future. 

The document outlining the scope of work for the committee recognizes that are different goals and needs for the various entities involved, and each faces significant constraints, such as reduced staffing, the need not to increase property taxes and growing expenses. It also lays as a ground rule for the committee's work that everybody is going to have to give up something -- the people involved must focus on the big picture. 

The oversight committee includes Cianfrini, legislators Bob Bausch and Marianne Clattenburg, council members Eugene Jankowski Jr. and Kathy Briggs, and representing the towns and villages are Darien Supervisor David Hagelberger and Bergen Supervisor Don Cunningham.

The working group, which meets regularly and reports back to the oversight committee, includes Molino, County Manager Jay Gsell, Assistant County Manager Matt Landers, Assistant City Manager Gretchen DiFante, County Highway Superintendent Tim Hens and City Director of Public Works Matt Worth.

If the process yields an agreement, the timeline for approval includes presentation to elected officials in each entity in June and approval by July.

"This was an approach that everyone bought into," Molino said. "Everyone is committed to a mutually beneficial agreement that benefits the towns and villages, the city and the county. Everyone bought into this and everyone was supportive of this process."

Click here for a PDF of the oversight committee document.

Text of Ray Cianfrini's State of County address

By Howard B. Owens

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Full text of Legislator Ray Cianfrini's State of the County speech, delivered yesterday evening in the Old Courthouse in Batavia:

I would like to begin my program as I have in the past by recognizing individuals who are serving in new leadership positions in our county government.

We first want to welcome Bill Sheron as our new county sheriff. Bill is not a new face but a veteran who has served as undersheriff for many years and has over 38 years in the department and he brings experience, dedication, and stability to the office. We wish you and your new undersheriff, Greg Walker, nothing but success and we’ll continue to pray for the safety of all your deputies. A new face in an important position in our county government is Kevin Earl, our new county attorney. Kevin comes prepared with many years of experience in municipal law and he has hit the ground running knowing that he comes into office at a crucial time with the new sales tax and water agreements to be resolved. Welcome on board Kevin.

The last new county positions to be filled are those of county court and surrogate’s court judge and we were proud to see our former colleague and former county attorney, Chuck Zambito, elected to that office in November. It is reassuring to have someone so eminently qualified as Chuck to serve as our county court judge and know that the county is in good hands with him on the bench.

Last year in my state of the county address I  indicated that 2016 would be a year of challenges and I was right. In looking back on 2016, I  reflect on the disappointments and successes we faced. It was truly a year of highs and lows.

I originally intended to bemoan our failure to complete the sale of our nursing home by the end of the year as a major disappointment and in some respects, it was. However, as we are now all aware, at 7:56 am on Thursday, February 2, the sale was completed; the balance of the purchase price was deposited into our account and the county is no longer in the nursing home business. Let us all rejoice!

The long wait is over and all our hard work has paid off. However, with that door closed, another now opens and we must now go forward to ensure that we allocate these net proceeds in an effective and cost-efficient manner.

As you know, Genesee County suffered through a severe drought last summer that tested the resiliency of our local farmers. Many took a major financial hit in combating the drought, but with determination and hard work, and a little help from the weather, it looks like the worst is over.

Also, because of state mandates and an ever shrinking tax cap from the state, it was disappointing that we, as a county legislature, found it necessary to override the tax cap and pass a budget that included a tax rate increase for 2017. No one likes to raise taxes, especially me.

Our county manager presented us with a budget that kept us under the tax cap and included a tax rate decrease, but a majority of my colleagues felt strongly that we were continuing a policy of deficit spending and a need to raise rates to meet our future demands. We can only hope that in 2017 we return to a healthy fund balance from the use of our nursing home proceeds, that we find increased sales tax revenues and that we have decreased spending by having eliminated the nursing home as a fiscal “dark hole” and hopefully we can avoid having to raise taxes again.

It was a major disappointment last year when we saw no relief from the dreaded state mandates that eat up over 75 percent of our county tax levy.

How disappointing was it when both houses of the state Legislature approved a state takeover of indigent legal defense only to have the governor veto the legislation when it came to him for his approval? How disappointing and frustrating wait when the state approved pay raises for district attorneys in our state only to discover that we, the counties, must pay the raises? And how disappointing was it that our state-imposed tax cap originally set at 2 percent was reduced to only .68 percent this year?

Quite frankly, upstate counties, including our own, are getting sick and tired of being the governor’s “piggy bank” that he can tap into whenever he wants to fund or promote a part of his downstate New York City-centric agenda.

Governor, enough is enough! But for all these disappointments, we had great progress and successes on the county level last year.

Our unemployment rate continues to remain the lowest in the GLOW region; the City of Batavia, in collaboration with the GCEDC and the county, has begun its “pathway to prosperity” with hopes for a revitalized downtown and new economic growth; we opened our new $5 million airport terminal that enhances the airport’s ability to be a major revenue source; construction has begun on the River Street bridge much to the delight of Legislator Dejaneiro; construction started last year on our new state of the art Chamber of Commerce headquarters that had its grand opening just last month: construction also began on the new success center and the wellness and event center at Genesee Community College, both scheduled for completion this summer; and in a move to attack the devastating opioid and heroin addiction crisis affecting not only families in Genesee County but across the state, our own Genesee Council on Alcoholism and Substance Abuse, better known as GCASA, has received an $820,000 state grant for an opioid treatment program that can handle 150 treatment slots.

And finally, in the public safety sector, a new cell tower in Le Roy has been approved and funding became available to enhance the performance our public safety radio communication system. With 2016 behind us, what do we have to look forward to in 2017?

1. Because the nursing home sale is now complete, we face a new challenge as to how to best allocate the proceeds to best meet our current and future county needs.

2. Genesee County is responsible for the repair and maintenance of over 250 miles of roads and we own and maintain 379 bridges with over a five-foot span. It is no secret that this infrastructure is failing. We desperately need to fix our country's roads and bridges and the nursing home proceeds and hopefully sales tax revenues will go a long way in accomplishing that goal. I note that our current president and our governor are both advocating for major infrastructure improvements and we can only hope that federal and state funds will find their way to Genesee County to help us rebuild our roads and bridges.

3. I’ve referred to it as the “elephant in the room,"  but I think it's time to begin discussions with Orleans County, as informal as they may be, about the feasibility of a new regional jail. The governor talks about sharing county assets and services and I think we should take him seriously on this matter and “go outside the box” about looking to share the cost of such a large undertaking with our adjoining county. I have had a brief conversation with my counterpart in Orleans County and I can say with certainty that they share our concerns regarding a new jail and they too are interested in beginning the conversation.

4. Let’s get serious about shedding some county owned real estate that continues to be a drain on our finances. Specifically, I’m referring to the former engine house property and the Holland Land Office building. The engine house property is little used and its loss would be insignificant to the county. This is low-hanging fruit. Let’s sell it! I understand that the Holland Land Office is more controversial and there has been a recent campaign of misinformation coming from their board making the public think the county wants to close the Holland Land Office Museum. Let me be clear about one thing: Neither I nor any other member of the Legislature has advocated closing the museum. But I find it difficult to accept paying over $60,000 a year to own and maintain the building when it could be better served by being owned by the Holland Land Purchase Society or some other nonprofit entity. As a historical building, I recognize that it has a place in our local culture and continues to be a major tourist attraction. However, other towns and village share their own historical buildings and museums that we don’t subsidize or support and it is increasingly more difficult to justify having the county own, insure and maintain the building. We should transfer ownership to the Holland Land Purchase Society for a nominal fee and leave it to them to make it successful. The society has to learn to stand on its own or we need to pass ownership to someone who has both the means and desire to house the museum.

5. It now appears rifle hunting for big game will become permanent in Genesee County this year. Our legislature has passed the necessary resolution seeking permanent status and the next move is for the state legislature to give final approval. Our state senator and state assemblyman will be working diligently to make this happen. Now if only we could repeal the SAFE Act!

6. STAMP is moving forward. We haven’t seen ground breaking for 1366 Technologies yet, but GCEDC has approved the engineering work necessary to have the infrastructure work begin on the water lines to Alabama and the STAMP site and bids will be solicited soon with groundbreaking expected in early spring. Let’s continue to be optimistic that STAMP will become reality.

7. It’s hard to believe that in today’s fast-moving technological world there are still areas of Genesee County that are without high-speed Internet services. In the words of Governor Cuomo, “…Internet connectivity is no longer a luxury – it is a necessity as vital a resource as running water and electricity.” The state is currently investing $500 million into a new broadband program that provides funding for high-speed Internet access to unserved and underserved areas across the state. Also, it was recently announced that more than $170 million in federal funds for rural broadband services will be coming to upstate rural communities in New York. Because it is both essential and critical to the furure of our local economy, our children’s education and the safety of our citizens, it is imperative that we in Genesee County, together with private enterprise, take all necessary steps to go after these broadband funds to ensure high-speed Internet access to every household, business and farm currently unserved or underserved so that they may be able to participate in the global community.

8. A huge issue confronting the county this year is the current sales tax agreement with the City of Batavia, which expires a year from now in February 2018. Under the current agreement, sales tax revenues are shared 50 percent to the county, 16 percent to the City and the remaining 34 percent is divided among the towns and villages proportionate to their assessed valuations. Let’s keep in mind that Genesee County is one of the most generous counties when it comes to sharing its sales tax revenue. For example, in the GLOW region, Orleans County retains 77 percent of 3 percent with a cap of $1.367 million and the other 1 percent is retained by the county; Livingston County keeps 93 percent of 3 percent and retains their 1 percent for Medicaid expenses and Wyoming County keeps 100 percent of their 4 percent local sales tax. Negotiations for a new agreement began eight months ago, in July of last year, and the pace has been excruciatingly slow. I can certainly understand the City’s desire not to have changes made to the agreement, but the needs of the county today and for the future are much different than they were when the last agreement was signed 10 years ago. While not directly tied into the sales tax agreement, our current and future water demands and our ability to pay for water and complete Phase 2 of our countywide water project are major components of our future sales tax needs. Throw in the need for a new county jail projected to cost between $34 and $42 million and infrastructure repairs to our roads and bridges projected to cost over $17 million and it becomes evident that an increased source of revenue is needed, without raising property taxes, and it is imperative that the county make the best deal possible with the new sales tax agreement. In other words, changes must be made to benefit the county. The county has submitted a plan to the city and towns that keeps their sales tax revenues capped at the current level together with a phased-in reduction or elimination of water plant rent and payments for lost water currently paid to the city. The county has put the city on notice that if a new agreement is not in place by February of next year, the county will consider the current sales tax sharing agreement to be terminated. We await the results of the negotiations, but again, I want to be clear, time is of the essence and changes need to be made!

And in closing, I feel it necessary to respond to the governor’s recent proposal (which is really nothing more than another state mandate) that requires counties to prepare a plan for shared or consolidated services among the units of local government contained within the counties, excluding school districts, resulting in a countywide referendum for approval.

This proposal is not only an affront to all the counties, like Genesee County, that have worked diligently over the years to find shared efficiencies and limit spending. But it is also a blatant attack on our sacred principle of home rule! As NYCOM recently stated regarding this misdirected and unworkable proposal “the last thing New York needs is another mandate from Albany; particularly one that would circumvent local democracy via a county-determined, all-or-nothing referendum. New York’s strength is our representative form of democracy, not government by plebiscite.” Somehow the governor has this warped view that local governments do not or will not work together to share or consolidate services. Maybe he should get out of Albany and come to Genesee County to see what we’ve done with our health department, youth bureau, highway department and police communication systems.

If it is his goal to shrink the size of government, why not start with his own bloated state bureaucracy? And don’t tell us you’ve “done all you can to reduce property taxes in the state” and then throw the counties under the bus. You saddle us with an unrealistic and ever shrinking tax cap; you handcuff us with unfunded mandates; you limit our ability to choose how to administer them; you force us to either make drastic cuts in services or raise our local property taxes; and you hinder our ability to achieve maximum economic growth and then you have the audacity to proclaim you’ve “done all you can to lower property taxes.” How many times do we have to tell you we need mandate relief and why do our pleas continue to fall on deaf ears?

Genesee County has survived, is surviving and will continue to survive while we wrestle with these burdensome unfunded state mandates, but just think, if only for a minute, what we could accomplish without them. Thank you.

Local pinstripe artist gets some international recognition

By Howard B. Owens

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One time when Shirley Taylor was pinstriping a man told her, "I've never seen anybody pinstriping like you before."

She knew the man wasn't being negative, but she still wasn't sure how to take the remark.

When the publisher of a UK-based hot rod magazine, "Pinstriping and Kustom Graphics," contacted her on Facebook and said she really liked her work, Taylor thought maybe she had found her own style that people like.

This month, Taylor is featured in that magazine, a bit of recognition only six years after she took up the art form.

"I always loved art, ever since I was a little kid," the Batavia resident said. "I’ve always loved painting and drawing, but I never knew about pinstriping until six years ago and I was first introduced to it. I never knew it existed."

Pinstriping is the art of creating designs using thin, precise lines, usually as decoration on objects. The art form is tied closely to hot rods and motorcycles, but pinstripers will also paint on sheets of metal and just about any object that might be of interest. Taylor's mailbox, for example, is pinstriped, and her collection of work includes Christmas tree ornaments.

She got started while attending an annual hot-rodding event hosted by her brother and a pinstriper there offered her a lesson. She's been hooked ever since, she said. After she learned the basics, she started to develop her own style.

When she attends the Syracuse Nationals this year, it will be her fourth year participating, painting panels along with pinstripers from all over the world. She said all of the items painted are auctioned off with the proceeds being donated to the Ronald McDonald House. Over the three days, she said, on average, they raise $75,000.

Last year was her first trip to a panel jam (a group of pinstripe artists gathering to paint) in Cleveland and she's been invited to an event in Chicago this year.

"It's a good community of people who come from all over the world for panel jams," she said.

Taylor's work can be found on her Facebook page.

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Photo: Lombardi bust of veiled woman at county history department

By Howard B. Owens

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I've been in the county's history department a few times but never noticed this sculpture before.

It's by Giovanni-Battista Lombardi, an Italian sculptor who lived from 1823 to 1880.

The bust was originally the property of the Dean Richmond family, and the last family to live in the Richmond Mansion, Watts Richmond, sold it to C.C. Bradley Sr., who donated it the history department in 1978.

It's striking because the veil looks so natural from a slight distance, but step closer and you see it's also marble.

The technique was popularized by sculptor Rafaelle Monti (1818-1881).

Based on a Google search, Lombardi seems to have made several copies of this bust. This one is dated 1866. The Metropolitan Museum of Art lists one in its collection from 1869. Earlier versions seem to exist as well.

History department receives 19th century transit that belonged to local engineer, inventor

By Howard B. Owens

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The Genesee County History Department has received an interesting donation. It is a surveyor's transit that once belonged to Joseph W. Holmes.

Holmes was born in 1831 in Alabama and would eventually become the village engineer for Batavia. He became a preeminent engineer in Western New York, according to Michael Eula, director of the History Department. He was also an inventor, manufacturer and served one term representing Genesee County in the NYS Assembly.

He died in 1919.

The transit probably passed to his son, Glenn D. Holmes, also born in Alabama, in 1873, and a graduate of Batavia High School and Cornell University. He eventually became city engineer for Syracuse.

A resident of Hamilton discovered the transit along with some books that belonged to Glenn D. Holmes in his residence and made the donation to Genesee County. The transit is inscribed with the name of Joseph Holmes and "Batavia, NY."

It bears a striking resemblance to a transit Holmes used in a patent filing in 1883 for modifications and improvements to a transit for the purpose of better acquiring an accurate solar time. In an article on the evolution of the transit, Holmes is cited as one of several inventors who made modifications to the device during that era.

“This instrument is a wonderful example of the place that engineers held both in Western New York and indeed in the United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries," Eula said. "Engineers were really at the forefront of economic modernization that was taking place around the country."

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In the collection of material donated was a sales receipt from Joseph W. Holmes.

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City schools making fast work of tech rollout

By Howard B. Owens

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The rollout of technology in the classroom is going faster than expected at Batavia City Schools, Director of Technology Jeffrey McKinney told the school board during its meeting on Tuesday evening at the Richmond Memorial Library.

There are now more than 2,100 Chromebooks distributed among students at the school, and with the delivery of Chromebooks to Jackson School, the rollout is six months ahead of schedule.

McKinney was joined during the presentation by teachers who are "tech mentors" for other teachers and staff members. They shared the various ways that Chromebooks and related software are being used to help drive learning and lesson plans.

High school Science teacher Bert Hall said he thinks the program is going really well and it's great to see.

“I would be remiss to say if I didn’t mention how proud I am to work for a community and a school district that cares so openly and so deeply about their students," Hall said.

Teacher John Mangefrida talked about how students are better able to organize their work on the Chromebooks.

"Where there was disorder, now there is order," he said.

Asked by a board member if parents can access their children's lesson plans and homework online, Mangefrida said they could. All it takes is for them to request access and they will be sent an email with instructions and a link.

The board member asked if that happens much, Mangefrida said it doesn't.

"The kids don't share that information," he said.

Jessica Korzelius and Cynthia Morgan shared their process for taking students through a lesson plan for a day, using Hyperdocs, which ends with a survey-like assessment that will help students gauge their own progress and give teachers feedback on how the lesson is working for the students.

“One of the best things about Hyperdocs is knowing that one of the hardest parts of our jobs is differentiating and making sure we reach all of our students and this really allows those who struggle to have extra support and those who can fly a little bit higher can do some more on their own," Korzelius said.

The district as also made tremendous progress on upgrading infrastructure and rolling out broadband, McKinney said.

"Everything is running at top speed," he said. "We have enough bandwidth right now for every teacher, student, parent, staff member to have eight devices on the network. ... We are flying as far as that goes."

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