genesee county

Friday, July 19th – CELEBRATE 4H DAY

• 9 a.m. – 4-H Horse Show – English & Dressage Division (Horse Arena)
• 9 a.m. – 4-H Beef Team Fitting Competition (Main Show Ring)
• 10 a.m. – Exhibition Halls & Buildings Open
• Noon – 4-H Horses must be removed from 4-H Horse Barn
• Noon – 4-H Livestock Master Showman Contest (Main Show Ring)
• 1 p.m. – 4-H Dairy Club Butter Making Activity (Kennedy Building)
• 4 p.m. – Midway Opens
• 5:30 p.m. – 4-H Tractor Driving Contest
• 6 p.m. – NIOGA Dairy Showmanship (Main Show Ring)
• 7 p.m. – Demolition Derby (Grandstands)
• 7 to 11 p.m. – Band – MAC (Entertainment Tent)
• 10 p.m. – Exhibit Halls & Buildings Close

Events & times subject to change. Follow us on Facebook to keep up-to-date with changes.

The National Weather Service this afternoon issued a heat advisory for noon Friday, July 19, through 6 p.m. Saturday, July 20. for portions of Western and North Central New York.

A few brief rounds of thunderstorms are also expected Friday through Sunday night. A few of these storms may be severe, with isolated damaging winds and torrential downpours.

Heat index values of up to 100 degrees are expected during the day Friday and Saturday. Overnight low temperatures in the upper 60s to low 70s with continued muggy conditions Friday night.

Prolonged exposure or any strenuous activity may lead to heat related illnesses that require immediate medical attention.

A Heat Advisory means that a period of hot temperatures is expected. The combination of hot temperatures and high humidity will combine to create a situation in which heat illnesses are possible.

Drink plenty of fluids; stay in an air-conditioned room; stay out of the sun; and check in on relatives and neighbors.

Take extra precautions if you work or spend time outside. When possible, reschedule strenuous activities to early morning or evening.

Know the signs and symptoms of heat exhaustion and heat stroke. Wear light weight and loose-fitting clothing when possible and drink plenty of water.

Thursday, July 18th – KId's Day / HP HOOD DAY

• 9 a.m. – 4-H Dairy Cattle Show (Main Show Ring)
• 9 a.m. – 4-H Horse Show – Western Division (Horse Arena)
• 10 a.m. – Exhibition Halls & Buildings Open
• 12 - 10 p.m. – Midway Opens - Kids 16 & Under Ride for $10/wristband
• 12:30 p.m. – Small Fry Tractor Pull (Exhibition Building) Sponsored by Upstate Niagara Cooperative, Genesee County Pamona Grange, and Duane Schmigel
• 6:45 p.m. – 4-H Market Animal Auction Awards Ceremony (Main Show Ring)
• 7 p.m. – 4-H Market Animal Auction Sale Begins (Main Show Ring)
• 7:30 – 10 p.m. – Band – Savage Cabbage (Entertainment Tent)
• 10 p.m. – Exhibit Halls & Buildings Close

Events & times subject to change. Follow us on Facebook to keep up-to-date with changes.

Wednesday, July 17th – EMERGENCY RESPONDER’S NIGHT

• 8:30 a.m. – OPEN Class Swine must be in place
• 9 a.m. – 4H Horse may arrive
• 9 a.m. – 4-H Hog Show (Main Show Ring)
• 10 a.m. – 4-H & Open Class Goats must be removed from Goat Barn (Except Market
• Auction Goats)
• 10 a.m. – 4-H Milking Dairy Cows must be in place
• 10 a.m. – Exhibit Halls & Buildings Open
• Noon – 4-H Sheep Show (Main Show Ring)
• 4 p.m. – Midway Opens, (Weather permitting)
• 2 p.m. – 4H Horses must be in place
• 5:30 p.m. – Fair Parade Line Up (Racing Pit Area)
• 6:30 p.m. – Fair Parade
• 7 p.m. – Band – Red Creek (Entertainment Tent)
• 10 p.m. – Exhibit Halls & Buildings Close

Events & times subject to change. Follow us on Facebook to keep up-to-date with changes.

Tuesday, July 16th – sponsored by ROCHESTER REGIONAL HEALTH

• 9 a.m. – Halter Class – Draft Horses (Horse Arena)
• 10 a.m. – 4-H Cloverbud Rabbit Show (Merton Building)
• 10 a.m. – Exhibition Halls & Buildings Open
• 11 a.m. – 4-H Dairy & Meat Goat Show (Main Show Ring)
• Immediately followed by Open Class Goat Show
• Noon – OPEN Draft Hitch Show (Horse Arena)
• 1 p.m. – 4-H Dairy Judging Contest
• 4 p.m. – Midway Opens
• 2 – 10 p.m. -- Faith at the Fair (Entertainment Tent)
• 5 p.m. – 4-H Market Auction Hog Show (Main Show Ring)
• 7 p.m. – Fair Barn Dance (Open Dairy Barn)
• 9 p.m. – 4-H & Open Class Goats Released (Except Market Auction Goats)
• 10 p.m. – Exhibit Halls & Buildings Close

Events & times subject to change. Follow us on Facebook to keep up-to-date with changes.

Monday, July 15th – VETERAN’S DAY AT THE FAIR

• 9 a.m. – 4-H Market Auction Goat Show (Main Show Ring)
• 10 a.m. – Exhibition Halls & Buildings Open
• 10 a.m. – 4-H Cloverbud Poultry Show (Merton Building)
• 10 a.m. – 4-H Dairy Fitting Clinic & Master Fitter Competition
• 10 a.m. – 4-H Goat Agility Contest (Goat Barn Show Ring)
• 10 a.m. – 4-H Market Auction Lamb Show (Main Show Ring)
• 4 p.m. – Midway Opens
• 4 p.m. – 4-H Market Auction Dairy Steer Show (Main Show Ring)
• 5 p.m. – 4-H Market Auction Beef Steer Show (Main Show Ring)
• 5 p.m. – North American Classic Six-Horse Hitch (Horse Arena)
• 7 to 9:30 p.m. – Band – BB Dang (Entertainment Tent)
• 10 p.m. – Exhibit Halls & Buildings Close

Events & times subject to change. Follow us on Facebook to keep up-to-date with changes.

• 10 a.m. – 4-H Beef Show (Main Show Ring)
• 10 a.m. – Exhibition Halls & Buildings Open
• 11 a.m. -- Skyhunters Birds of Prey (until 2 pm)
• Noon – Open Class Beef Show (Main Show Ring)
• Noon – 4-H Club Exhibits must be in place
• Noon – Midway Opens
• 3 p.m. – Six Horse Hitch Classes (Horse Arena)
• 4 p.m. – 4-H Rabbit Show (Merton Building)
• 4 p.m. – 4-H Market Auction Lamb Final Weigh In
• 7 to 10 p.m. -- Band – TBD (Entertainment Tent)
• 10 p.m. – Exhibit Halls & Buildings Close

Events & times subject to change. Follow us on Facebook to keep up-to-date with changes.

• 9 a.m. – 4-H Dog Show Demonstration (Horse Practice Arena)
• 10 a.m. – Exhibition Halls & Buildings Open
• 10 a.m. – 4-H Kennedy Building Exhibit Judging (Kennedy Building)
• 11 a.m. – 4-H Livestock must be in place (Dairy Heifers/Calves, Dairy Steers, Beef Steers/Heifers, Sheep, Goats, Hogs, Poultry, Rabbits)
• Noon – 4-H Market Auction Beef, Hog & Goat Final Weigh In
• Noon – Midway Opens
• Noon – Talent Show
• 4 p.m. – 4-H Poultry Show (Merton Building)
• 6 p.m. – 4-H Livestock Costume Contest (Main Show Ring)
• 6 p.m. – Genesee Speedway Racing
• 7 p.m. – Karaoke FINALS
• 11 p.m. – Exhibit Halls & Buildings Close

Events & times subject to change. Follow us on Facebook to keep up-to-date with changes.

• 4 p.m. – Midway OPEN
• 7 p.m. – Karaoke Qualifier

Daily at the Genesee County Fair:

• Mechanical Bull Riding – try your hand at bull riding on the mechanical bull
• Balloon Display and Demonstrations
• Pig Racing
• Entertainer – Wade Henry

Events & times subject to change. Follow us on Facebook to keep up-to-date with changes.

From the Genesee County Health Department:

Health Update -- Rabies Awareness

Summertime is right around the corner. The anticipation of vacations, warm long days, and relaxation are just ahead. As we prepare to spend more time outside, Paul Pettit, Public Health director of Genesee and Orleans counties, would like to share a message with the community.

“This is a good time to remind folks about the dangers of rabies and how to prevent humans and domestic pets from contracting this deal disease," Pettit said. "When spending time outdoors this summer, it is important not to feed, touch or adopt wild animals, stray dogs or cats.

"Rabies is almost always fatal but the good news is that it’s 100-percent preventable.”

Rabies is a deadly disease caused by a virus that attacks the central nervous system (brain and spinal cord). The virus is usually transmitted through a bite or scratch of an infected animal.

Rabies is most often seen among wild animals such as raccoons, bats, skunks and foxes, but any mammal (human/ warm-blooded animal) can be infected with rabies. Pets and livestock can also get rabies if they are not vaccinated to protect them against the infection.

In Genesee, Orleans, and Wyoming counties, there have been 37 animal specimens tested for rabies thus far in 2019. In Genesee County, testing was done on three bats, seven cats, one cow, one dog, one fox and one raccoon.

Of the 37 animals in the GOW area, three raccoons and one horse tested positive for rabies in Orleans County and three raccoons tested positive for rabies in Wyoming County. No animals have tested positive for the virus in Genesee County.

Although you cannot tell if an animal has rabies just by looking at it, you may notice the animal acting strange.

“Animals with rabies may show a variety of signs, including fearful- ness, aggression, affection, excessive drooling, difficulty swallowing, staggering, paralysis and seizures," said Sarah Balduf, Environmental Health director of Genesee and Orleans counties.

"Animals with rabies may lose their natural fear of humans, and display unusual behavior – for example, an animal that is usually only seen at night may be seen wandering in the daytime.”

There is no treatment once the clinical signs of rabies appear. Infected animals usually die within one week after showing signs of rabies. Rabies infection of an animal can only be confirmed after death, through microscopic examination of the animal’s brain.

In humans, rabies may take up to three months to fully develop. The virus presents itself as flu-like symptoms such as a fever, headache, muscle aches, loss of appetite, nausea, and tiredness. Tingling, prickling, or itching around the bite area is also common.

After a few days, neurological (brain/ nerve) symptoms develop including agitation, anxiety, confusion, hyperactivity, difficulty swallowing, excessive salivation, hydrophobia (fear of water), hallucinations, insomnia, and partial paralysis.

If you are bitten, scratched or have contact with an animal you believe to be rabid, immediately wash the wound, seek medical attention and report the incident to your local county health department.

A doctor or health department officials will determine if vaccination with rabies post-exposure prophylaxis (RPEP) is necessary.

A person who is exposed and has never been vaccinated against rabies should get four doses of rabies vaccine; one dose right away, and additional doses on the third, seventh, and 14th days. People who have weakened immune systems may require a fifth dose of vaccine, as determined by their doctor.

Once symptoms of the disease develop, rabies is fatal. There is no cure, only prevention.

Review these tips on how to keep you, your family, and your pets safe from rabies:

• Do not feed, touch or adopt wild animals, stray dogs or cats. This includes baby animals.
• Be sure your pet dogs, cats and ferrets as well as horses and valuable livestock animals are up-to-date on their rabies vaccinations. Vaccination protects pets if they are exposed to rabid animals. Pets too young (less than 3 months) to be vaccinated should be kept indoors and allowed outside only under direct observation.
• Keep family pets indoors at night. Don't leave them outside unattended or let them roam free.
• Don't attract wild animals to your home or yard. Keep your property free of stored bird seed or other foods that may attract wild animals and tightly cap or put away garbage cans.
• Board up any openings to your attic, basement, porch or garage. Cap your chimney with screens.
• Be aware that bats have small, sharp teeth and in certain situations people can be bitten and not know it. Do not release a bat when found in a room with a person or pet sleeping or unable to speak. If you are able to safely capture the bat, bring it to your county health department where it will be transferred to the state for rabies testing. Click here to watch a video on how to safely capture a bat.
• Teach children not to touch any animal they do not know and to tell an adult immediately if they are scratched or bitten by any animal.
• If a wild animal is on your property, let it wander away. Bring children and pets indoors and alert neighbors who are outside. If possible, try to contain the wild animal.
• Anyone who has been bitten by any animal or who otherwise may have been exposed to rabies, needs to Capture and Call. If you can do so safely, being careful to not damage the head/brain, capture the animal and call your local health department or a doctor to report the incident. Capturing the animal is vital in order for it to be tested for rabies.

Above, Michael Eula, Ph.D., Genesee County historian, looks at a letter from the New York State Bar Association, inviting Genesee County to participate in the Historical Society of the New York Courts’ County Legal History Project.

Genesee County is among more than a dozen counties which have been invited by the New York State Bar Association to participate in the Historical Society of the New York Courts’ County Legal History Project.

The project entails documenting the law itself in each county and how it has changed through the years, said Genesee County Historian Michael Eula, Ph.D.

Eula received a letter April 1 from Leah Nowotarski, of Warsaw, a member of the Committee for Bar Leaders of New York State, requesting Genesee County’s participating in the history project. According to Nowotarski, a number of counties, including Clinton, Dutchess, Franklin, Rockland and Westchester, have already completed their histories, which are posted on the Historical Society of the New York Courts website.

Other counties which have also joined the project are Albany, Broome, Columbia, Essex, Franklin, Hamilton, Nassau, Ontario, Putnam, Queens, Rensselaer, Saratoga, Schenectady and Wyoming.

The history project is being led by Jonathan Lipmann, retired chief judge of the New York State Court of Appeals; Stephen P. Younger, past president of the New York State Bar Association; and Marilyn Marcus, executive director of the Historical Society of the New York Courts.

“This is an opportunity to showcase Genesee County’s rich and fascinating legal history, and how that legal history functions within the wider context of New York and national history,” Eula said. “Genesee County laws, and the courts that administer them, are examples of how the traditions are continuously being adjusted to the changes evident in the development of Genesee County’s history.”

Eula has chosen the title “Flexible Tradition: the History of the Courts in Genesee County, New York, 1802 to the Present” for his submission to the project.

While he has already begun research on the project, he anticipates it will take him a year to complete.

“Being county historian is not the only thing I do,” Eula said. “I am also the County Records Management Officer, so at best, I get to spend an hour and a half a day on the Legal History Project.”

Eula said he is happy Genesee County was included in the Historical Society of the New York Courts’ County Legal History Project.

“I’m going to look at courthouses we have had in Genesee County, their architecture and the famous cases which were held there,” Eula said. “I will also look at the law itself in Genesee County and how it has changed to keep up with a changing society.”

Eula said he has a whole archive of documents from the 1800s to search through. There is information on civil cases, criminal cases and much more, he said.

He will also explore how punishment has changed over time and how we define family law.

One of the most famous cases in Genesee County history is that of local businessman R. Newton Rowell, who walked into their bedroom and found his wife with her lover Johnson Lynch, the great-grandson of President John Adams. Rowell shot and killed Lynch, but the jury acquitted him.

“That is an example of how society and views have changed,” Eula said. “He probably wouldn’t have been acquitted today. I will also be looking at the law in terms of what is and isn’t acceptable behavior in Genesee County.”

Another interesting fact -- most people don’t realize we had slaves in Genesee County until New York abolished slavery in 1827.

“Even before then, as far back as 1813, slaves who were accused of a crime were given the right to a trial by jury,” Eula said.

The historian said it is interesting to note how a court itself is structured.

“You always have the judge on a platform, so we have to look up,” Eula said. “That tells us we are in a place of authority. Words used by lawyers in a courtroom, as time has gone on, have become almost like a foreign language.”

Eula will also explore how the legal world affects a typical resident of Genesee County, such as a hard-working farmer who is summoned as a juror. When he comes off the fields into a courtroom, it is a very different world from his normal one, Eula said.

Eula will also be submitting photos with his essay.

“I am very happy the Bar Association included Genesee County in its project,” Eula said.

Photo by Virginia Kropf.

The County Legislature is poised to accept more than $2.5 million in federal grants to help pay for two bridge replacement projects, one in Pembroke and the other in Alabama.

In Pembroke, the current steel girder bridge with a steel grate deck over the Tonawanda Creek will be removed and replaced at a total cost of 2,033,050. A federal grant will pay for $1,651,100 of the replacement with state aid covering $389,200, and the county picking up the final $9,550 of the tab.

In Alabama, the county will replace the Judge Road Bridge over Whitney Creek. The cost is $1,183,000. Federal aid is $946,400, with state aid at $177,450 and a local share of $59,150, which will come from sale tax revenue.

In both cases, the federal aid is capped at 80 percent of the cost of the project.

The Pratt Road Bridge was built in 1971, the Judge Road Bridge in 1978.

Lu Engineers, in Rochester, will be retained as consultants on the Judge Road Bridge at a cost of $162,063.91.

The resolutions for these projects were approved unanimously by the Public Service Committee on Monday and will now go to the full Legislature for approval.

Also on Monday, the committee recommended the county accept a $200,000 grant from NYS Ag & Markets for improvements to the Animal Shelter, which is now 20 years old.

The committee also authorized the transfer, pending full Legislature approval, of $40,000 oil and stone funds to the salt fund. Deputy Highway Superintendent Dave Wozniak said the transfer is necessary to help replenish the road salt supply before the fall and that the transfer would have no significant impact on planned road resurfacing projects this summer. A couple of minor projects, including a parking lot at the County Park, would be delayed for a season.

Press release:

Batavia and Genesee County have continued their streak of being recognized as one of the nation’s top micropolitan regions for business growth, as the area was ranked third in Site Selection magazine’s annual rankings.

The ranking of “Top Micropolitans” is based on cities of 10,000 to 50,000 people which cover at least one county. It is the 16th consecutive year Batavia and Genesee County have been recognized and the fifth consecutive year ranked in the top five.

The area received its highest ranking ever in 2017 as it climbed all the way to number two among the annual survey of micropolitans across the country. 

“We are thrilled that the hard work that Genesee County and our partners in the public and private sector continues to be recognized as making Batavia-Genesee County the top micropolitan for business in New York,” said Steve Hyde, president and CEO of the Genesee County Economic development Center.

“Our region is focused on building the shovel-ready sites, active business attraction, expansion and retention, and workforce talent development to continue our economic growth.”

Site Selection magazine recognized 13 of the GCEDC’s project “wins” in 2018 across several stages of project development. The GCEDC closed on 16 projects in 2018, securing $33.7 million in capital investment, 99 new jobs, and more than 189,000 square feet of new construction in Genesee County.

Since 2003, the GCEDC has provided similar assistance and incentives for 465 projects which have generated $1.3 billion in capital investment and the creation and/or retention of approximately 4,627 jobs.

According to the National Grid Outage Map, which they update every 15 minutes, there are currently 1,018 Genesee County customers without power. They are still assessing damages.

A total of 26,948 customers are served here by the utility company.

To view the interactive map, click here.

UPDATE 4:03 p.m.: Checked the map and nothing has changed since we first posted it at 3:24 p.m.

UPDATE 5:16 p.m.: There's been an uptick in the number of Genesee County customers without power. National Grid reports 1,066 customers without power, up from 1,018 almost two hours ago.

A proposal to reduce funding from the state for towns and villages, known as AIM (Aid and Incentives for Municipalities) could wind up as just another cost burden for Genesee County, County Manager Jay Gsell told the Ways and Means Committee at its meeting Wednesday.

If the funding cut goes through, the County could make up the $230,000 in difference for towns and villages from its own revenue.

Gsell said the governor’s office is being somewhat disingenuous about how cuts are being presented to municipalities.

What the state says it will do and what it actually does will be two different things, Gsell suggested.

The governor’s office is proposing a new sales tax on products sold digitally, an e-commerce tax, and that new revenue stream -- the theory goes -- will allow counties to share a portion of sales tax with municipalities.

Genesee County is one of the few counties in the state that currently shares sales tax but the proposal by the governor would mandate an obligation, perhaps above current revenue sharing, and force the rest of the counties to start sharing sales tax.

But there’s no guarantee New York will be successful in instituting an e-commerce tax – something state officials have sought for years, and it would certainly be difficult, Gsell said, to institute before the state’s new fiscal year starts April 1.

That could leave the counties, including Genesee County, with another unfunded mandate.

Under the governor's budget proposal, only municipalities that use a lower percentage of AIM for their annual budget would have funding cut. If that holds, neither the Village of Le Roy nor the City of Batavia, which receives more than $1 million in AIM funding, would have that funding cut.

The Legislature will be asked to vote on a resolution opposing the proposed cut to AIM.