genesee county

Press Release:

Genesee County is seeking input from residents and users of its website, co.genesee.ny.us, to improve the overall citizen experience online. The County is committed to making the website more user-friendly and relevant to the community's needs.

The survey, accessible at this link: https://bit.ly/GenCoWebSurvey, is designed to gather feedback on various aspects of the current website, such as layout, content organization, and functionality. Genesee County encourages community members to participate and share their thoughts on improving the website.

"We want to make our website more efficient and user-friendly, and we need the input of those who use it most – the residents of Genesee County," said Steven Falitico, Public Communications and Web Design Specialist for Genesee County. "This survey is a straightforward way for people to provide their insights and help shape the future of the online platform."

The survey will remain open through Feb. 26, and all responses will be confidential. At the end of the survey, there will be an option to sign up as a “test user.” This test would take approximately 5-10 minutes to complete.

Individuals who sign up as test users will receive an email in early March. Genesee County appreciates the community's involvement in this effort and looks forward to implementing changes based on the feedback received.

A need for space, and to more efficiently use what’s already available at the Engine House at 3 West Main St., has prompted Genesee County officials to map out plans for an approximately $4 million project to add several more offices and amenities, install an elevator, extend the second level, and temporarily move out all of the attorneys.

If the project is approved and construction begins in April, everyone will vacate the premises, and the Public Defender’s Office will move over to the current Genesee Justice site, which is set to move over to the new county jail on Route 5.  That will also mean finding a new home for Batavia Peace Garden folks after planting their roots at the site for the last seven or eight years, Barb Toal says. 

“We’re looking for a place; we’re going to be homeless,” Toal said Friday. “We talked to the city manager, we’re trying to keep it as close as possible to the Peace Garden as we can.  The town of Batavia is working with us as well. We can get by with an 8 by 10 space, all we need is a desk and a computer.”

Toal and County Manager Matt Landers each said that he gave the nonprofit advance notice that this would likely be happening once the project was officially approved by the County Legislature. It has gone to one county committee already, has received a loose nod of approval from legislators to proceed, and will go to the Public Service Committee for review Feb. 20 as architectural plans get adjusted and bids are sought before final cost estimates are brought back to the county leaders for a final vote later this spring.

“We’ll be putting a change order to our existing engineering contract, to finish the full engineering and then follow through with the project afterward. And that means bidding it out, and all that comes along with that, and then we'll bid it. Once we bid it, and those bids come back, then we will go to the full Legislature for approval," Osborn said.

That gives the Peace Garden volunteers until April to find a small space with similar minimal rent that the county was charging. The town of Batavia has freed up a space for the group’s meetings, Toal said, but again, it would be ideal to find a location closer to the garden that’s alongside Holland Land Office Museum for use as an office. 

A walk-through of the Engine House, which certainly has had its share of renovations over the years — being used initially for municipal services, including to house pumps that forced water from the Tonawanda Creek into the water mains, and perhaps most notably for locals, as Engine House #1 Restaurant and Lounge from 1980 to 1991, and in more recent years housing the county’s History Department and then the Public Defender’s Office. For more about 3 West Main St., go HERE. 

Sadly, for those who frequented the restaurant and bar, that iconic booth with an inlaid wooden circle will be removed during future construction. The heavy-duty black, intricate wrought iron gates at either end of the entrance may get sold or repurposed, Landers and Osborn said, and many pieces of the house, such as a quarter moon stained glass window now hidden in a ceiling truss, will be incorporated as pieces of nostalgic history. 

Due to the funky steps that wind around and are not handicap compliant, an elevator will answer that call, and allow attorneys and visitors, when necessary, better and safer access to the second floor. That upper level now stops short at about a third of the way over the first floor, and will be extended some 10 more feet to about halfway, Osborn said. 

The eastern wall will get more lighting with glass windows on the upper portion so that staff can have an outside view and look down, he said. The hallway leading toward West Main Street will include an elevator and three single bathrooms closer to the entrance.

“One of the coolest spaces that you’d want to see is the Turret Room,” Landers said, of the small tower-like room that almost seems like a standalone entity unto itself. Tall and slender, it takes a couple of small steps to get into this room, traditionally used as a defensive position allowing covering fire to the adjacent wall in the days of military fortification. This particular room contained a fire pole for firefighters to slide down during emergencies and later served a more refined purpose as private dining for a table of six. 

“The pole was for the fire department; it came from upstairs where their sleeping quarters were. That's where they would slide down,” Osborn said.

That room’s future calling is to be a kitchenette and break room for employees, and the remaining hallway will lead to offices and a conference room toward the west end of the building.

Public Defender Jerry Ader has obtained a grant for just under $1 million to put towards the project cost — an elevator in particular -- to allow better access to the second floor, and although the deadline has been extended, Landers believes that if it can proceed and officials can demonstrate that it’s on track, another extension is possible so as not to lose that funding. 

There’s also additional potential funding to come, he said. The remaining expense would be paid for with county reserves, Landers said. 

Given its varied levels, steps, and spacing — not to mention the outside layout of little to no public parking — selling the property has not proven successful, leaving a renovation and creation of at least 14 offices with room for more as the most feasible option, Landers said. 

“There's always been a desire to try to find a way to put an elevator in this building to make it accessible and find grant funds to do it. So I’d say, what, 12 months at least that Jerry has been looking at, 12 to 18 months, that we've been kind of looking at this more seriously with Jerry having this money, and it could be a little longer than that. But it's been a goal for a while to try to find a way to utilize the space,” Landers said. “It was out on the market for a little bit years ago, but there wasn't a lot of interest in the space because of the challenges of parking, and the cost of renovating an old building like this. So we have come to the realization that we have a need for employees over in the current court facility and that this is probably the best use of it to stay in county hands.

“One of the deterrents from developing this building before was not having accessibility to the second floor. And now that we have the ability to utilize the funding to the Public Defender's Office to get an elevator in here, that opens up the entire building, but the public defender is still going to be utilizing half the building for their own needs to justify them putting the money into the building,” Landers said. “But that helps us open up the back end. And we're doing some renovations here in this corner of the building to allow for other county offices to start spilling over into this location. And the ultimate goal, if the Legislature approves the contract coming up later in February, is that we would be renovating this building fully for county purposes.”

There will be a handicap-accessible ramp built at the south end of the building for a proper ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) compliant egress, Osborn said. 

“So if we have an elevator that allows them into this space, they can't just drop themselves down off the steps. So we have to create them a means of egress for them out as well,” he said. 

Press Release:

Leadership Genesee welcomed 29 individuals from all walks of life representing our community’s public and private organizations, on January 24 and 25 for the 2-day Opening Retreat.  

First time organizations include LeRoy Ambulance Service, Oakfield Betterment Committee Inc., WNY Rural Area Health Education Center, and DelPlato Casey Law Firm, LLP. The class represents a broad cross-section of the community, including education, finance, manufacturing, healthcare, service industry, not-for-profits and the public sector.

Leadership Genesee Director Peggy Marone said, “Leadership Genesee believes we owe it to future generations to provide a community with people who are knowledgeable, able to have civil conversations about both sides of an issue, and create trusting and respectful relationships!” 

She continues, “There is a lot going on in our world, we must have leaders who embrace inclusion, listen generously, and understand that it takes little or no effort to allow others to have their feelings and opinions. This kind of respect is missing in many conversations, it’s up to each of us to bring that respect back to our relationships.”

The retreat was sponsored by Leadership Genesee Alumni and was facilitated by Skip Helfrich of Human Energies. Leadership Genesee is a program of CCE Genesee County, an employer and educator recognized for valuing AA/EEO, Protected Veterans, and individuals with Disabilities, and providing equal program and employment opportunities.

For more information, visit LG’s website at http://genesee.cce.cornell.edu/leadership-genesee; “like” LG on Facebook at www.facebook.com/leadershipgenesee; or contact Director Peggy Marone at (585) 343-3040, ext. 118 or mem77@cornell.edu.  Up next for the Class of 2024: Our Business, Our Economics on February 28.

Positives about last year’s Wings Over Batavia certainly outweighed any negative comments, according to Genesee County legislators, but lead organizer Pete Zeliff still addressed the couple of concerns expressed about the resurrected air show before getting a strong showing of support for this year’s event during Tuesday’s county meeting.

Legislator Gary Maha had received a message from someone who owns a hangar at the county airport, and he shared that he was unable to access his hangar for six days during the time before, during and/or after the Labor Day air show, Maha said. Zeliff countered that it was three days, and that the situation was being rectified for this year. 

“It must have been a communication issue,” Maha said.

The other issue was handicapped parking, Maha said, as he and his wife Susan had attended the show and saw a woman struggling to push her husband in a wheelchair over a grassy area. Zeliff said that that, too, was being addressed for this second annual event. 

Further, Zeliff said there were issues with having all of the sponsored and VIP tents on the west end of the event venue, and some of them will be moved to the east end, along with some local bands, to spread out the foot traffic and layout on the ground. 

“We will split it up this time,” Zeliff said. “And we will also have a Kids Zone on the east end. As far as traffic, I don’t think it could have gone any better.”

Some gates were apparently not open, which didn’t allow for some handicapped parking that will be available this year, he said. 

“Can you have a wheelchair zone, for wheelchair access?" Legislator Marianne Clattenburg said.

“Yes,” Zeliff said. 

Legislators wanted to know how performers responded to the show hosted in Genesee County. 

“They said it was the best show they’ve ever done in the United States,” Zeliff said.

Organizers booked 73 rooms for them at Batavia Downs, and 50 rooms elsewhere, some of them that would accommodate guests with pets, he said. They have already booked many performers for this year, including the same pyrotechnics show, and they have sold 1,200 tickets already, he said, a testimony that “the community is very much behind” the air show. 

Legislator John Deleo, who works at Batavia Downs, shared some of what he heard during that weekend.

"They were really appreciative, and they were really nice people. And they said you've got some top entertainment here. And you've got some top entertainment from all over," Deleo said. "So I was very excited to hear that."

Legislators agreed that the air show committee, volunteers, and sponsors for the first-year made it “a tremendous success” and that the event brought in a lot of people from out of town, which spurred additional economic activity.

With all of that in mind, the committee members voted to push the resolution for vote by the full Legislature “to grant permission to the Wings over Batavia Foundation LLC to use the Genesee County Airport to host the Wings over Batavia Air Show from Aug. 30 to Sept. 2, 2024, in accordance with the Rules and Regulations adopted for the Genesee County Airport.” The county support costs total are estimated at $19,500, which are covered by the Air Show through Memorandum of Understanding with the Sheriff and local EMS operations.

There is no added cost for the current airport liability policy. There will be increased revenues for the airport during the event for additional fuel sales, tie downs and rentals, the resolution states. The county will also see increased sales tax because of the air show. The 2023 show generated over $6,000 in profit from fuel sales. The estimated increase in sales tax and bed tax related to the event is to be approximately $40,000.

As for Wing Ding, the downtown city street festival that many people seemed to be looking forward to for decades past, that will not be turning after all. City officials had formed a committee last year to resurrect Wing Ding along with the air show, as it once happened some 25 years ago. However, that was put on hold in lieu of needing more planning to fully prepare and gather volunteers for the effort, Assistant City Manager Erik Fix had said at the time.

The Batavian confirmed with City Manager Rachael Tabelski that Wing Ding will not be happening this year either, due to not having enough staff to organize or execute the event. 

County legislators gave a thumbs up and fingers crossed Tuesday for a grant application to make mandated and costly upgrades to Genesee County Animal Shelter per recently passed state legislation requiring at least two sets of ventilation systems, isolation areas, treatment rooms, washing facilities and other amenities at the Route 5 facility. 

Undersheriff Bradley Mazur made the request during the Public Service Committee meeting, as Deputy Highway Superintendent Paul Osborn helped to explain the need for funding. Gov. Hochul recently signed the Companion Animal Care Standards Act, prompting New York State shelters to ramp up their to-do lists to meet new compliance orders. 

Osborn reviewed some of the physical aspects of those tasks, including the need for a new HVAC system that keeps the air temperature between 60 and 80 degrees, separate ventilation systems  -- three, Osborn said -- for the adoption and stray side of the shelter, larger kennels for both dogs and cats, isolation rooms for sick dogs and cats, treatment rooms for dogs and cats, separate washing facilities for both dogs and cats, additional wash sinks for volunteers, and daylighting for diurnal lighting. 

The upside, county Manager Matt Landers said, is that the building footprint itself won't have to be enlarged, as the work can be done -- with necessary reconfiguring of rooms, an added wall, and such -- within the current site.

The deadline for applying for a maximum award of $500,000 is Jan. 29, and work must be done by December 2025. Osborn said estimated expenses for those mandates would easily meet or surpass half a million dollars, which prompted Legislator Marianne Clattenburg to ask who pays if they go over cost.

“We do,” Landers said. 

The Batavian asked him what would happen if the county couldn’t pay the tab and didn’t make the required upgrades. Could the shelter get shut down?

“I am confident we will find a solution that is cost-effective and meets the new requirements from NYS Ag & Markets,” Landers said.  “The State has stated it is not their goal to close down shelters.”

“The county is confident that between the next couple of NYS budget years that it will secure necessary grant funds to largely offset the required improvements,” he said.

The Batavian wanted to clarify Clattenburg’s comment made during the meeting about whether the shelter should even be where it is. Would she like to see it shut down?

She didn’t mean that, she said.

“No, not closing it. But, you know, reimagining it. Maybe shared services with other counties, maybe a different location and a better building, you know, something along those lines, because it's going to be very expensive to retrofit where it is now,” she said. “And so, I was just thinking along those lines. We're always looking for shared services models, and maybe, if the state wants better ventilation and better cages, better everything, then maybe it's time to look at regionalizing, that was my thought.”

The Batavian also asked Landers his thoughts about a future shared animal shelter facility, per Clattenburg’s comment, to save on costs.

“Legislator Clattenburg is a huge proponent for sharing services when it makes sense.  We will always examine when a shared service model may work and save municipal resources,” he said.  “At this point, our focus is on securing state funds for the required upgrades, but we will always keep an open mind for opportunities to share services with other municipal partners.”

Legislators had no problem with the grant application and passed it onto the Ways & Means Committee and the Legislature to authorize the submission of the proposal for a maximum of $500,000 award, with a 10 percent county match for required upgrades at the shelter. Other provisions in the new law include changes to animal bedding, transportation, behavioral record keeping and mandatory training.

After what he considered to be an extensive search for funding of unserved county Broadband customers, County Manager Matt Landers put forth a resolution Tuesday to move forward with a two-year, $6.6 million plan to fulfill more than 700 “address points” and close the gap of internet service across Genesee County.

A contract for high-speed internet access could alleviate issues for everything from, according to legislators, students when relegated to doing homework by computer in cyber dead zones, to entrepreneurs trying to make a living conducting business at home.

“I’m still negotiating and having discussions with state officials trying to find outside pots of money that we could access even after contract award. Local representative for the governor's office, J.W. Cook, has been working with me recently, trying to find possibilities for additional funding,” Landers said during the county Public Service meeting that was postponed due to Monday's holiday. “But at this point in time, I think we've exhausted all of our attempts to find outside resources. Our office does get relatively quite a few calls, asking where we stand. So I think that we're at the point now to move forward with the 24-month contract, from start to finish. And this will be before you today for consideration.“ 

Legislator Gary Maha was in favor of the move, especially after hearing about how students struggled to do homework during COVID and the resulting pandemic when forced to do use whatever technology they had at home during school shutdowns, he said.

“I think it’s very important that we proceed with this,” Maha said.

Fellow legislator Christian Yunker agreed: “Just like many of us, many of us field a lot of calls, especially in the rural areas. There's a lot of holes in the kind of units sold on that access.”

“A couple of years ago, we started talking about this. We said we will fill all the address points. This is something that I think we've all talked about. This is a two-year process. It's time to start construction,” he said. “So with that, if we sign this now … when do they say construction will begin?"

Landers said that, potentially, it could be two to three months, up to six months, for the installation to begin. Once completed, “we would cover all addresses in the county.”

“We would be covering every single address,” he said. Residents can hook up to it if they choose, “it’s not obligating anyone,” Landers said. 

That was something the county “should be proud” of, Yunker said. 

“And there's probably not a lot of other counties out there can say that,” he said. “It's a service that we're providing to every resident. And I think it's something we should be proud of. It's a lot of money, but everybody knows how important it is, not only for residential people but also businesses.”

Legislature Chairwoman Shelley Stein added a kudos for Landers’ attempts to try and root out as much funding as possible while providing a needed service before pushing for a contract. 

“I would just like to thank the unprecedented amount of time that Matt, and energy, research, commitment that you have put into the contract, and understanding that the need is real for these address points in our community,” Stein said. “And at the same time, you've been very judicious in safeguarding the actual cash that needs to go into this program. Thank you for valuing both sides of the equation.”

She also asked if any other municipalities were pursuing internet service for their residents, and “none of the towns are doing anything,” Landers said.  “We’re only connecting unserved households,” he said of the 711 addresses to be covered.

“We were looking at a two-phase process, which would have decided which towns go first. We have done away with that to make this go as quickly as possible. So this is left in the hands of Charter (Communications) as far as their path. I can get updates as they go through the process to kind of get an idea of the direction. So I can sort of get an update and report back,” Landers said. “It's whatever is the quickest and most logical, economical for Charter to roll this out.”

The contract stems from a request for proposals issued in 2022 and an extensive process and input led by a committee that included three county legislators, IT Director Michael Burns, Richard Sutherland from Genesee Finger Lakes Planning, and Assistant County Manager Tammi Ferringer and other staff. 

Funding will come from the American Rescue Plan Act and state shared services monies and county reserves, Landers said. The resolution must still go through the Ways & Means Committee and onto the full Legislature for a final vote. 

The committee recommends that the award in the amount not to exceed $6,603,107 go the Spectrum Northeast, LLC, located in the State of Delaware, and the County of Genesee desires to obligate and use $2 million of its total ARPA allocation and $250,000 of shared services funding, plus $4.75 million of reserves for the project.

In a move that would surely come as no surprise to many folks in Genesee County, the United States Department of Agriculture has declared the county as a drought disaster area, qualifying farm operations for emergency loans to recover from any drought-related losses. 

The natural disaster designation allows the USDA’s Farm Service Agency to extend “much-needed emergency credit” to agricultural producers. Loans can be used to meet various needs, including the replacement of essential items such as equipment or livestock, reorganization of the farming operation or refinancing certain debts, a USDA press release stated late Thursday.

Farmers have until Sept. 9 to apply for a loan. Eligible counties also include Wyoming, Allegany, Cattaraugus, Erie, Livingston, Monroe, Niagara and Orleans.

Residents in pockets of Genesee County have been hit hardest by drought and resulting dry wells since summer 2023, including in Pembroke, Pavilion, and especially in the town of Bethany -- which has declared a State of Emergency -- with at least 100 households, and several businesses and a handful of farms with little to no water on their properties.

As Bethany Town Supervisor Carl Hyde Jr. has said, it’s hard enough to have no access to water, but then to have to spend the time and money to drive — for some farms on a daily basis — several miles roundtrip to fill containers with up to 60,000 gallons of water and haul it back, it takes a big toll financially. 

“That’s not sustainable for a farm,” Hyde has said in a prior interview with The Batavian. “And if they were to sell off the dairy herd, they’ve got 100 employees. What are you gonna do, kick them to the curb? And it’s not just like one dairy farm.”

Bethany has about five of them, all battling the elements of no rain and dry wells, he said. 

The town is in progress with paperwork for Water District 5 and a public hearing since the project had to be budgeted for increased costs, which will be covered with grants for $16.5 million and an infrastructure improvement grant for $5 million, which was just awarded at the end of 2023. 

Hyde will be formally announcing that public hearing, which has been set for 7 p.m. Feb. 7 at Bethany Town Hall. Water District 5 runs north to Route 20 and includes 440 residential properties. Two-thirds of town residents will have public water by the time the district is completed, and then the town will pursue District 6 next, he said.

The Town of Le Roy also received a $5 million water infrastructure grant for its Water District 12, and Genesee County was given a $30 million bond for its Phase 3 water project to ensure a strong water system throughout the county. 

As for Pembroke’s water shortage, Town Supervisor Tom Schneider said that there were a dozen residents having issues with dry wells that the town was aware of in mid-December. The town offered them an option to fill water totes at the town hall.

“We have been (getting) one or two people every other day coming to fill water totes,” Schneider said. “We always will seek funding for any new water districts. Grants and low-interest loans are the only way to make water districts work in low-density areas.”

Water District 4, which covers most of the roads north of the Thruway, has been approved by the state Comptroller, and the town is in progress with putting it out for bid. Water District 5, covering Pratt, Kilian and Slusser roads south of the Thruway, is awaiting the Comptroller’s approval “due to the proposed debt service being a few dollars higher than the Comptroller’s automatic approval threshold,” he said.

“We have very preliminarily looked at the cost of water districts to the parts of the town, but do not have any concrete plans for any new districts,” he said. “We’re hearing some residents have drilled their existing wells deeper with success.”

Press Release:

The Genesee County 4-H Program is now accepting registrations for its 2024 4-H Youth Tractor Safety Program. The program is open to youth aged 14 and over and covers farm safety, tractor safety, tractor operation, and other related topics.

This program is a part of the National Safe Tractor and Machinery Operation Program, which is a certification program that allows youth ages 14 and 15 to be certified to legally operate farm equipment for hire. After completing the training course, youth will need to pass a written knowledge test and driving test to receive the certification.

The program is scheduled to run Saturdays, 8 a.m. to 12 p.m., January through April at farm machinery dealerships throughout Genesee County. The fee for the program is $25 and youth must also be currently enrolled 4-H members. Registrations are due Jan. 27. 

To register for the program or receive more information, please contact the Genesee County 4-H Office at genesee4h@cornell.edu or (585) 343-3040 ext. 101.  Registration forms are also available online at http://genesee.cce.cornell.edu/4htractorsafety

This is part two of a Christmas lights photo series.  This one features Batavia residents' houses.

Photos by Steve Ognibene

This is part one of a two part series featuring Christmas lights around Genesee County.

Photos by Steve Ognibene

In what Genesee County Manager Matt Landers labeled a “spirited but good process,” the county settled a three-year deal with the Deputy Sheriffs’ Association that lands at just under a half million dollars for the first year.

The agreement between the Deputy Sheriff’s Association and the county includes raises of 7.5 percent for 2024 that will have a budget impact of $480,546 for items such as overtime salaries, hourly on-call, holiday and special pay, social security and Medicare taxes, and retirement expenses.

“I think at the end of the day, both sides are getting everything they want with the signing of the contract. So I'm pleased that we can get this done,” Landers said during Wednesday’s Ways & Means meeting. “I think the vote was very favorable, It was better than the CSEA contract. I think there was one no."

The union contract also includes raises of 5 percent for 2025 and 3 percent in 2026. 

The agreement was negotiated with the county Legislature, Sheriff’s Office and Deputy Sheriffs’ Association. The Ways & Means Committee agreed to pass it onto the full Legislature for a final vote next week. That meeting will be at 4:30 p.m. Wednesday.  

Committee Chairwoman Marianne Clattenburg said that the contract serves two purposes: not only to “show our appreciation to the workforce and to retain, but also to recruit,” she said. 

If approved, the total total budget expense would be broken down as follows:

• $ 257,567 to Sheriff, personal services
• $ 25,925 to Sheriff, overtime salaries
• $ 1,020 to Sheriff, overtime drug
• $ 3,522 to Sheriff, overtime Darien Lake
• $ 1,275 to Sheriff, overtime court
• $ 34,000 to Sheriff, additional police
• $ 6,227 to Sheriff, hourly on-call
• $ 12,070 to Sheriff, special pay holiday
• $ 2,295 to Sheriff, special pay training
• $ 7,395 to Sheriff, briefing
• $ 24,572 to Sheriff, social security tax
• $ 5,747 to Sheriff, Medicare tax
• $ 98,931 to Sheriff, retirement

“It’s a three-year deal, just like with the CSEA. And the logic now is, any kind of adjustments you could do in year one and then we go through and smooth it out. We've learned from prior ones not to go into a five-year deal, and I'm pleased with it,” Landers said. “It was a spirited process, but based on how the vote went, our team and internal management team was happy. It was a good process.”

Think what you will about the use of artificial intelligence for making up silly random songs and possibly helping to write that late-night term paper, but there are certainly more cutting edge, time-saving uses for the technology.

Just ask Genesee County Highway Superintendent Tim Hens. He recommended that the county purchase a $30,000 subscription to an AI service that will analyze state Department of Transportation bridge and culvert reports, identify problem areas and help county personnel potentially whittle a job from 12 months down to two or three weeks.

"So after the first of the year, we're going to upload all of our bridge inspection reports to the company. And they're going to use the AI software to just quickly analyze all the pictures and the data. And there's, I mean, each bridge probably has a 15- to 20-page report that comes with it, they're gonna go through each report, look at all the pictures that AI literally scans the photos,” Hens said after Monday’s Public Service meeting. “And I don't know how exactly it works. Yes, the software can detect things. I mean, you know, a human could detect it as well if we were going through it, but it's literally 1000s and 1000s of pages. And we only have two or three people. And we have other stuff like a jail and a water project that are being built. So you just nip away at it. And you might get through two or three a week. But we've got 374 bridges and culverts that have got to be inspected. And then someone's got to go through those reports. So this is kind of a quick way. 

“Again, using AI software, which is brand new to the industry, to review all of those pictures and photos and then just spit out a report saying okay, you've got 20 bridges that have concrete abutments that need repairs, you've got 10 bridges that have bad bearings, you've got two bridges that should be painted, and here's the costs, and here's the locations,” he said. “It's got to be fixed. And it's pretty impressive. It literally will do in two to three weeks what it would take two to three humans to do all year long.”

He’s got faith in the company, Dynamic Infrastructure, which is just breaking into New York State, with Genesee County being one of the first counties to use this technology. He knows that some are using it in Iowa and Minnesota, with some counties here investigating it, “but I think we’re one of the fist ones in New York State” to be using it. 

“I’ve seen a demo multiple times. I’ve been through an hour-long presentation on it. It’s very impressive,” he said. “It’s gonna be, I think, a good tool for us, hopefully moving forward.”

It is about prioritizing, he said, and will also involve some strategy once he can see what kinds of repairs are needed and where.

“Because if you have similar repairs on bridges, but they're spread out in seven or eight different locations, you might just issue one contract. You know that the contractor might go from bridge to bridge to bridge fixing the exact same thing in six different locations, which is a heck of a lot cheaper than putting out six different contracts and then having six different contractors, piecemeal, yeah, so it's going to allow us to kind of, you know, kill two birds with one stone, and probably get a little bit of bang for our buck too, because you're gonna be hiring a contractor to do 10 locations as opposed to one at a time,” he said. “So I think it's gonna be a really powerful tool.”

The Public Service Committee agreed with his recommendation and moved the resolution on to Ways & Means, and then it will go to the full Legislature for a final vote that Hens recommends further analyzing county bridge and culvert inspection reports with artificial intelligence software to quantify and estimate repairs identified in the reports.

Hens has evaluated a proposal for this work and has recommended the purchase of an annual subscription to this service from Dynamic Infrastructure of New York, NY, at a cost not to exceed $30,000 for the period from Jan. 1, 2024, through Dec. 31, 2024.

He doesn't believe that it will be necessary to have a yearly subscription, so once the brunt of the work is done and details obtained, it can be canceled until the county needs updated information, he said. 

The contract will be funded by the Large Span Culverts Capital Project, which has an available balance of $2,739,357.

Press Release:

The Genesee County 4-H Program is now accepting registrations for its 2024 4-H Youth Tractor Safety Program. The program is open to youth aged 14 and over and covers farm safety, tractor safety, tractor operation, and other related topics.

This program is a part of the National Safe Tractor and Machinery Operation Program, which is a certification program that allows youth ages 14 and 15 to be certified to legally operate farm equipment for hire. After completing the training course, youth will need to pass a written knowledge test and driving test to receive the certification.

The program is scheduled to run Saturdays, 8 a.m. to 12 p.m., January through April at farm machinery dealerships throughout Genesee County. The fee for the program is $25 and youth must also be currently enrolled 4-H members. Registrations are due Jan. 27. To register for the program or receive more information, please contact the Genesee County 4-H Office at genesee4h@cornell.edu or (585) 343-3040 ext. 101.  Registration forms are also available online at http://genesee.cce.cornell.edu/4htractorsafety.

Press Release:

The Genesee and Orleans County Health Departments (GO Health) are alerting residents that cases of respiratory syncytial virus, known as RSV, are rising throughout Genesee and Orleans Counties. GO Health has also seen an increase in the presence of RSV in wastewater throughout both counties.

RSV is a common respiratory virus that can be mild for most people, but can be very harmful and serious for very young children, older adults, people with medical conditions, those born premature, or with underlying lung conditions.

Symptoms of RSV include fever, fatigue, decreased appetite, coughing, sneezing, and runny nose. These symptoms usually appear in stages and not all at once. In young infants with RSV, the only symptoms may be irritability, decreased activity, and breathing difficulties.

Severe illness can result in bronchiolitis, an inflammation of the small airways in the lung, and pneumonia, an infection of the lungs. Hospitalization due to RSV is needed when a person is experiencing difficulty breathing or is dehydrated.

A vaccine is available to prevent and protect against RSV for adults aged 60 and older, infants and young children, as well as pregnant people to protect their unborn child. If you are interested in the vaccine, you are encouraged to talk with your healthcare provider and for the best protection, you should get the vaccine as soon as possible.

To protect against all respiratory viruses including RSV, COVID-19, and the flu, practice the following precautions:

• Avoid close contact with people who are sick.
• Stay home when you are sick.
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth.
• Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when coughing/sneezing. This may prevent those around you from getting sick. Use your elbow or shoulder to limit the spray when coughing/sneezing.
• Wash your hands often with soap and water for 20 seconds. It is especially important to wash your hands after you have coughed or sneezed into your hands or blown your nose. If soap and water are not available, use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer.
• Frequently disinfect shared items, like doorknobs, handrails, phones, pens, remotes, etc. 

Practice these other health habits for general health:

• Clean and disinfect touched surfaces at home, work, and school.
• Get plenty of sleep.
• Engage in 30 minutes of physical activity 3-4 days a week.
• Manage your stress. Read a book, chat with a friend, take a walk, etc.
• Drink plenty of non-alcoholic beverages.
• Eat nutritious foods.

For more information about RSV, visit the New York State Department website. For the Genesee and Orleans Counties Wastewater Dashboard that tracks RSV, COVID-19, and flu in local sewer sheds, visit the GO Health Wastewater Dashboard.

For more information on GO Health programs and services, visit GOHealthNY.org or call your respective health department at:

• Genesee County: 585-344-2580 ext. 5555 
• Orleans County: 585-589-3278

Follow GO Health on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at GOHealthNY.

Press Release:

The Cornell Cooperative Extension of Genesee County Board of Directors meeting will be held at 5:30 p.m. on Nov. 28. The meeting will be held at the Association at 420 E. Main St. in Batavia and is open to the public.

For more information, please contact Yvonne Peck at ydp3@cornell.edu or 585-343-3040 x123.

It looks like 25 bucks may have been standing in the way of Genesee County getting more job applicants, and county legislators and the Human Resources department have no desire to return there.

After a trial run of suspending the $25 fee for Civil Service exams since June 2022, HR Director Anita Cleveland reported a 31 percent increase in job candidates.

The experiment was due to a lackluster showing of candidates after a longtime belief that having no application fee lessened applicants’ resolve to show up and follow through on the process, county officials had said more than a year ago.

A $25 fee for all exams for police, sheriff, fire, probation and dispatch and $20 for all other competitive exams had been established in 2011 for that reason. During that prior discussion, Cleveland said that when people don’t pay for exams, “they don’t show up for exams either.” 

But on the other hand, candidates at one point just stopped showing up anyway. At that time, she then proposed to temporarily waive the fees — something that several other counties had also been considering — to ramp up candidate interest and get more viable prospective job applicants.

The county has struggled to attract candidates for several departments over the last couple of years, including the sheriff’s office, which is growing with a new, larger jail facility in progress, and the mental health department.

The trial period was to run from June 1, to Dec. 31, 2022, and is current through all of 2023. The Ways & Means Committee agreed on Wednesday to push it onward through 2024 and 2025. 

If the county Legislature adopts the measure during its Monday meeting, the county will lose an estimated $24,000 in revenue. 

It was an old show that made for quirky and funny scenarios, but Night Court is a newly organized and costly theme being played out in Genesee County. 

District Attorney Kevin Finnell shared with cou

nty legislators Monday how his slate of assistant district attorneys will answer the call and provide due justice for the county, no matter the time of day or evening. 

“It’s a CAP Court arraignment, so, during the call, they'll do any arraignment for any jurisdiction. And then our system is set up so that they will fill out a memorandum and hand it to the responsible attorney the next day together with a copy from the file,” Finnell said, answering a question about how long CAP Court lasts. “It’s supposed to be from 7:30 to 9-9:30, but I'm told, I've talked to some of the judges that they are sometimes there well past that, including up to 11 o'clock. It depends on how arraignments are scheduled and depends on the judge because some are able to process faster than others, until the work is done.”

Judges used to handle arraignments in their own municipalities until New York State more recently put CAP — Centralized Arraignment Part — Court into play, which means that judges and attorneys rotate shifts during after-hours and meet at one primary court, in this case, often at the new Courts Facility in Batavia. 

Finnell’s staff is scheduled to provide the public with representation during arraignment even when it happens past the end of the typical work day. His staff will be on a rotating, on-call schedule to take those arraignments and represent the people for cases throughout the county, but at a centralized location, and also at the new arraignment room being built as part of the new county jail facility.

A legislator asked about charges that happened during Darien Lake concerts. 

“My understanding is a lot of the Darien Lake charges are a violation of local councils, which wouldn't even make it to CAP Court, but it would certainly, if there's arrests made anywhere in the county, including Darien Lake after business hours, they're going to be part of the CAP agreement,” Finnell said. “If they’re misdemeanors, they're likely going to be appearance tickets, if they're a nonviolent felony, same thing, appearance tickets.

“We’ve tried to do it remotely. We've encouraged law enforcement to call us during the night so we can convey our recommendations,” he said. “But they're not getting to the judges in the proper way, I’ll say, in the way we like them heard, and so I think this is going to help us tremendously.”

County Manager Matt Landers proposed a salary schedule amendment to create a stipend for six of the attorneys in the DA’s office for the purpose of “arriving, showing up and participating in nighttime CAP Court and going to the new arraignment room at the new county jail. 

The funds have been budgeted for the 2024 budget for this allocation, Landers said. 

“And this was something that was requested by local law enforcement. And something that I think is overdue,” he said. “And we worked through Kevin to make sure that it was a fair, compensation to be in line with what the assistant public defenders do by writing at the same court.”

Finnell’s staff is mostly from this area, with only two exceptions, one person lives in Livingston County and the other in Greece, so they may take longer to get to court during their on-call shifts. 

“That’s why I asked how long it’s going to take them, but he said only two lived out of town, and really, it’s about a half hour away, so that’s not too bad,” Legislator Marianne Clattenburg said. “But then if somebody gets arrested in the middle of the night, they’re arraigned in the morning at the City Court, under the CAP Court. So it’s a new kind of way that the courts are really working. And it’s a new dynamic of having public defenders at arraignments at all times, and we need that balance.”

“Everything has changed so much over the last, even five years,” she said.

CAP Court stemmed from the Hurrell-Harring Court of Appeals decision of 2010-11 that granted access to defense counsel at arraignment as a fundamental right. To fulfill this legal requirement, New York Executive Law 832(4)(a) required the New York State Office of Indigent Legal Services to “develop and implement a written plan to ensure that each criminal defendant who is eligible for publicly funded legal representation is represented by counsel in person at his or her arraignment.” The eventual plan was unveiled in 2017 and was to be first implemented by April 2023. 

On Monday, the Public Service Committee approved the county’s plan of additional compensation of $15,000 each annually for night appearances of the six assistant district attorneys at $576.92 per pay period effective Nov. 20, to be prorated at $11,180 for each of the six in 2023.

The committee also approved a 3 percent increase in prosecutorial services effective Jan. 1, 2024, through Dec. 31, 2026, taking the rate from $68,917 in 2024 to $70,985 in 2025 and $73,115 in 2026.

Both measures will go to the county Legislature for a final vote. 

Overall, citizens throughout Genesee County supported measures to keep incumbents in place, add a tax to ensure services at Byron-Bergen library, and include Batavia and all small city schools in removal from special constitutional debt limits.

The totals for Byron-Bergen Public Library’s proposition vote have changed, though citizens of the towns of Byron and Bergen are still leaning toward approval of a new tax, with votes of 689 yes to 618 no.

Results from the general election were not complete in the Town of Byron as of Tuesday night, according to the Board of Elections. 

The library vote for Proposition 3 to establish an annual 55-cent per $1,000 assessed valuation was supported at the time by a vote of 545 yes to 467 no. As of Wednesday afternoon, those numbers shifted to 689 yes to 618 no from the towns of Byron and Bergen.

Library board President Sally Capurso has not responded to requests for comment about what that will mean for the library as of Wednesday afternoon.

Genesee County Republican Committee Chairman Scott German stepped into the role for his first general election, filling the seat of resigning chair Dick Siebert.

Several Republican incumbents retained their seats, and German was “obviously, very pleased” with Tuesday’s results, he said.

“First, I’d like to thank our previous county Republican chairman Richard Siebert for providing us with excellent candidates. Then once in office, our Republican candidates do a great job, starting with our chair of the legislature Shelley Stein, who provides great leadership to our county government,” German said Wednesday. “Our legislators have led our county through some tough times while keeping our county taxes under the tax cap for several years. I think the voters of Genesee County appreciate what a great job Republicans do for the taxpayers of this great county.” 

Likewise, Batavia City Schools Superintendent Jason Smith was happy with the news that voters, not only locally but across New York State, approved Proposition 1, which will have a direct impact on small city schools.

The Batavian asked Smith a few questions about the vote and related new law.

Are you surprised at the outcome? What does this mean for Batavia City Schools?
“Given the positive advocacy and support that occurred for this proposition, I am not surprised at today’s outcome. We at BCSD are grateful for the support of the voters of New York for supporting this important proposition,” Smith said. “The passage of this ballot will essentially place small schools on equal footing as our other district counterparts, where we are now allowed to borrow an additional 5 percent of our assessed value for future capital projects. However, this will not impact the current capital improvement project we recently proposed.” 

Why do you think voters went this way, given that it means small city districts can incur more debt to take on more/bigger capital projects?
“It is an antiquated law that needed to be updated, and again, we at BCSD are grateful that voters recognized that,” Smith said. “Small city school districts should have the same limits as others, and our students and programs will only stand to benefit.” 

What realistic impact will this have on future tax rates if school districts are acquiring more debt to do more projects?
“As with the project that we have currently proposed, which if passed will result in no tax increase, our Board and I recognize the need to be conservative in planning for budgets and capital projects,” Smith said. “That being said, had this law been in effect for this current project, we would have been able to borrow additional funds to support more improvements and upgrades while keeping our commitment to no additional taxes.” 

Do you already have ideas for what BCSD needs in terms of future capital projects? When could Batavia put this new debt limit change into effect, given you have a capital project on the books and up for vote right now?
“There are several items on our recently completed building condition survey that did not make it into the  BCSD Reimagined Project (our current proposal), and we will undoubtedly revisit those items again,” he said. “However, essential and critical safety items were included in this project. I would suspect it would be at least three to five years before we consider another capital project, assuming we have a positive vote on Thursday, December 14.”

Unofficial voting across the state showed that nearly 57 percent of residents supported the measure of Proposition 1 to allow for the removal of small city school districts from special constitution debt limits, with 1,381,911 voting yes and 31.4 percent, or 766,036 voting no.

Locally in Genesee County, district residents also approved, with 3,153 yes votes and 2,460 voting no. 

The Democratic Party won a few seats in Tuesday’s election, all three local propositions on the ballot got a thumbs up from voters, Republicans held onto a number of incumbent seats, and a City Council newcomer received his first 158 votes for office during Tuesday’s general election in Genesee County.

Candidates Michelle Krzemien came out on top with a combined total of 334 votes for Darien town justice against  Republican candidate Jennifer Nunnery, with 258 votes, and, at the time of this article being published, Candace Hensel, running on the Democratic and Republican tickets, was winning with a total 168 to incumbent Peter Yasses’ 97 for Byron town supervisor. Byron's results were not completely in by the time this was published, according to the county's Board of Elections website. 

Genesee County Democratic Committee Chairman Michael Plitt said the committee spoke to several people about also running for City Council, but “it was just not the right time to devote themselves to running in an election,” he said.

“However, the next election starts now, and the Genesee County Democrats would love to talk with anyone who might consider running next time,” he said after unofficial results were posted Tuesday night. “Regardless if you want to run, we encourage people to attend local government meetings.”

Batavia resident Derek Geib received 158 total votes for Ward 3 on City Council, and he will take his seat on council on Jan. 1 to fill the spot to be vacated by incumbent John Canale, who opted not to run. All positions on the council were unopposed, as were all Genesee County legislator positions.

Other races:

Voters kept Thomas Sanfratello, with 234, and Gerald Krupa Jr., with 216, in Alexander Town Council seat, while Sarah Kohl had 132 votes.

Voters gave Joel Pocock the Bergen highway superintendent seat with 547 votes versus 198 for Chad Roggow, and Teresa Robinson 461 votes for town clerk versus 278 for Marcy Vanderstow. 

Republican candidates Alfred Klycek and Nathan Knickerbocker garnered votes of 179 and 167, respectively, for Byron town council, and Sarah Stockwell had 108.

Michael Grant came out on top with 432 votes for Darien town council, with Timothy Benton in second with 399 and Benjamin Kohlhagen in third with 191 votes. 

Pembroke Town Council candidate Kathleen Manne received 451 votes, Thomas Dix 350, Helen Trowbridge Haines received 239, and there were write-in votes of 118.

There were three candidates for Stafford Town Council, and Terry Young, with 253, and Robert Pacer, with 201, took the two seats, with Cathy Worthington receiving 150 votes.

Plitt thanked the poll workers and “folks who stepped up to run this year to give voters a choice.” The Batavian asked what he thought about this year’s voter turnout, which by early voting, seemed to be on the low side.

“Voter turnout is always lower in local election years, although an individual vote could change the results in the local election,” he said. 

Voters approved all three propositions on the ballot, which were: Prop. 1 to allow for the removal of small city school districts from special constitutional debt limits, 3,153 yes to 2,460 no; Prop. 2 to extend sewage project debt exclusions from the debt limit, 3,265 yes to 2,337 no; and Prop. 3 to establish an annual tax in the amount of $0.55/$1,000 (fifty-five cents per one thousand dollars) of assessed value in order to support the operation of the Byron-Bergen Public Library, to begin Jan. 1, 2024, 545 yes to 467 no.

Election results are unofficial.

Genesee County Republican Committee Chairman Scott German was not available for comment Tuesday night.