Press release:

Recently the United Way of Genesee County created a Women United group.

While the United Way campaigns for funding to subsidize viable and critically needed programming in our community, the Women United group will campaign for items to help alleviate additional needs that our agencies are experiencing with their clients.

Our Women United group is collecting winter garments on Wednesday, Nov. 20^th. This date is to be considered our debut Day of Sharing.

Affordable winter garments continue to be in short supply and many agencies find their clients will go without. Please consider sharing the warmth this winter by donating new or gently used coats, snowpants, snowsuits, hats, gloves, mittens, scarves, thermal socks, and infant car seat covers.

The Women Unite group would appreciate any and all efforts you can extend prior to Nov. 20^th to collect winter wear items that are needed.

Collected items can be delivered within two different time slots -- 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. & 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. -- on Nov. 20^th to one of three drop-off sites:

• United Way office parking lot -- 29 Liberty St., Batavia
• Liberty Pumps parking lot -- 7000 Appletree Ave., Bergen
• Boy Scouts of America -- 102 S. Main St., Oakfield

Items will be dispersed to those in greatest need through nonprofit agencies in Genesee County on a waiting list basis.

If you have any questions at all, please do not hesitate to reach out. Email United Way Executive Director Tammy S. Hathaway at:   tammy.hathaway@uwrochester.org

Press release:

The Genesee County Economic Development Center (GCEDC) Board of Directors will consider approving incentives for two capital investment projects in the Town of Le Roy and an application for incentives for a project in the City of Batavia at the board’s Oct. 31^st meeting tomorrow.

Wright Associates is requesting incentives for a proposed $9.5 million capital project that would include the purchase of an existing 139,000-square-foot building on Wright Avenue in Le Roy. The beverage distribution company based in Rochester in seeking approximately $854,452 in mortgage, sales and property taxes. (Previously, Wright's project was estimated to cost $8.9 million, but additional costs in the final application pushed the projected total to $9.5 million.)

The project would create 125 new full-time jobs in Genesee County.

Wendt Propane Gas Service is requesting incentives in order to build a new 9,600-square-foot facility at the corner of Route 19 and North Road in the Town of Le Roy. The company will be expanding its propane service to local residential, commercial, industrial and agricultural customers. The company is seeking approximately $120,000 in mortgage, sales and property taxes.

The project would create four new jobs.

The GCEDC board also will consider accepting an application for incentives from Fraser-Branche Property LLC, which is seeking to purchase and renovate the YWCA building on North Street in the City of Batavia.

The company will renovate approximately 67 percent of the 13,000-square-foot facility and is proposing to lease back the remainder of the facility to the YWCA and two other existing tenants.

The total project capital investment is $1.4 million. Fraser-Branche Property LLC is seeking approximately $105,000 in mortgage, sales and property taxes. The project will be part of the Batavia Pathway to Prosperity (BP2) program.

The GCEDC Board meeting will take place at 4 p.m. Thursday at its offices at 99 MedTech Drive in Batavia. The meeting is open to the public.

A hazardous weather outlook was issued shortly after 3 p.m. today by the National Weather Service in Buffalo for portions of Western New York, including Genesee County and specifically the City of Batavia.

There's a high wind watch in effect from Thursday evening through Friday evening.

Southwest winds 30 to 40 mph are expected with gusts up to 60 mph possible.

Damaging winds could blow down trees and power lines. Given the wet antecedent conditions that will be in place, shallow rooted pines will be most vulnerable.

Widespread power outages will be possible. Travel could be difficult, especially for high profile vehicles.

Fasten loose objects or shelter objects in a safe location prior to the onset of winds.

Press release:

Early voting for the Nov. 5 General Election continues through the weekend at County Building 2, located at 3837 W. Main Street Road, in the Town of Batavia.

Early poll hours are:

Today -- Wednesday, Oct. 30th -- now until 8 p.m.
Thursday, Oct. 31st -- 12 to 8 p.m.
Friday, Nov. 1st -- 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Saturday, Nov. 2nd -- 12 to 5 p.m.
Sunday, Nov. 3rd -- 12 to 5 p.m.

All registered voters from Genesee County can vote early at County Building 2. The Early Voting location is accessible to the disabled.

Please contact the Genesee County Board of Elections at (585) 815-7804 with any questions. www.co.genesee.ny.us

Lorie J. Longhany -- Democratic Commissioner

Richard E. Siebert --  Republican Commissioner

MOORESVILLE, N.C. -- After 56 games over five days, five competitors, led by Sean Rash of Montgomery, Ill., have advanced to the championship round of the 2019 U.S. Open.

The quintet conquered four challenging oil patterns at Victory Lanes and now will battle for the $30,000 top prize, coveted green jacket and final major championship on the 2019 Professional Bowlers Association Tour schedule live on CBS Sports Network on Wednesday at 8 p.m. Eastern.

TELEVISED STEPLADDER FINALS
(Will be live Wednesday on CBS Sports Network at 8 p.m. Eastern)

Match No. 1: O'Neill vs. Anthony Simonsen
Match No. 2: Jason Belmonte vs. Match No. 1 winner
Semifinal: Francois Lavoie vs. Match No. 2 winner
Final: Sean Rash vs. semifinal winner

For more details, click on the Sports or Pin Points tab at the top of this page.

A man on Cherry Street in the city called emergency dispatch to report that his neighbor "came onto his property and cut down his tree." The complainant wishes to speak with an officer, so one is en route.

Traffic congestion at Richmond Avenue and Union Street – adjacent to the new Van Detta Stadium – and along the S-curve between Jefferson Avenue and Main Street has struck a nerve with at least one Batavia City Council member.

Speaking at Monday night’s meeting at City Hall, Council Member John Canale said he has firsthand knowledge of the current situation at both locations, and requested city management and the police department to explore ways to rectify it.

Canale said he expected “fine tuning” of the traffic flow and parking plan at Van Detta Stadium, but he said that leaving the parking lot along Union Street proved to be “very difficult” since cars are parked right up to the corner of Richmond Avenue.

“It’s congested with no line of sight to the intersection,” he said. “It’s a very dangerous situation.”

He said he turned right out of the parking lot to head south on Union Street to avoid the intersection, and then was suddenly met with a couple of young people who darted out in front of his vehicle.

Canale suggested a parking ban from Richmond to the end of the parking lot.

“I think it’s something we need to look at,” he said, which prompted Council President Eugene Jankowski to hand the ball off to City Manager Martin Moore and Police Chief Shawn Heubusch.

Council Member Robert Bialkowski said there was a “no parking” sign near the Richmond intersection but he thinks that the sign is gone.

Turning to the S-curve behind Wendy’s and Tim Hortons, Canale said he wondered if a reduced speed limit would help prevent the “near misses” of broadside crashes, maybe dropping the limit to 20 or 15 mph.

He said he negotiated the curve at both speeds and “felt that 15 miles per hour was a comfortable speed to react to a pedestrian or vehicle” – and added that he saw two cars in front of him almost get broadsided before his car almost was hit as well.

Canale also spoke of the number of cars and children at Austin Park during the summer months, and asked if the police department could “at least look at changing the speed limit there.”

Moore said the City did a three-day speed assessment of vehicles traveling south along the S-curve and found that the average speed of the 1,467 vehicles was 18.6 mph, with a maximum of 29 and a minimum of 10.

Heubusch then reported that there have been two traffic accidents there in the past five years, and that NYS Vehicle & Traffic Law allows officials to limit the speed only to 25 mph within the City limits.

Jankowski asked to see more data and for management to make recommendations to Council, adding that maybe a flashing yellow light or caution sign would be beneficial.

In other developments, Council:

-- Heard an update from DPW Director Matt Worth about the National Grid Light Conversion program that he has been exploring for the past several months.

Worth said the City is investigating whether to purchase the entire street lighting system of about 1,600 lights from National Grid at a cost of $113,000. He said that it would cost another $800,000 to $1 million for a complete conversion to LED lighting.

“We would have to weigh the (upfront) costs against the savings that would be realized,” he said. “The City would receive a $45,000 rebate in addition to the energy savings and better light quality.”

He also mentioned new technology that is available, features such as individual monitoring of lights, the ability to reduce light strength during non-peak times and measures to help law enforcement.

“This has become complex very quickly,” Worth noted. “We’re looking at the best long-term solution.”

-- Conducted a public hearing for the purpose of amending the zoning code to include self-storage facilities in I-1 and I-2 zones. No one from the public spoke.

The hearing followed several meetings in response to a request by Peter Yasses (54 Cedar St. LLC) to erect a self-storage business on Cedar Street, across from the DeWitt Recreation Area. County and city planning boards both gave the go-ahead for the zoning change.

Is there a “secret plan to roundup civilians” with the City of Batavia’s recently-acquired Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) military-style armored vehicle?

“No," Batavia City Police Chief Shawn Heubusch emphatically replied in response to a question Monday night from City Council President Eugene Jankowski.

Heubusch reported to Council on the police department’s Oct. 11 receipt of the MRAP, stating that it will be used exclusively as a rescue vehicle.

“It is not an assault vehicle – no firearms are attached to it – and the department is not patrolling with it,” said Heubusch, adding that the vehicle is in “exceptional condition.”

The chief said it cost only $1,600 to get it to Batavia from Maryland – with the price tag much less than the budgeted amount of $7,000.

He said $900 was spent to replace a couple batteries and that a Buffalo business will be donating a lighting package. He also said that the plan is to paint the vehicle to remove the “military look” and with lettering indicating that it is for rescue operations.

All costs to get the truck ready will be split 50-50 with the Genesee County Sheriff’s Department, Heubusch said.

“This vehicle cost $854,000 new; that’s what the federal government paid,” he said. “For a comparable (model), you’d spend $200,000 to $300,000. We got it at a fraction of the cost (transportation to Batavia and other maintenance/painting charges).”

Heubusch said the Department of Defense owns it – “we’re renting it,” he said – but it’s not costing taxpayers because the money came from asset forfeitures and court-ordered drug seizures.

(File photo.)

The proposed county budget for 2020 includes a 7-cent property tax rate increase for county residents, up from $10.04 to $10.11, while the county grapples with new state spending mandates but manages to keep the tax levy under the state's 2-percent cap.

The proposed tax levy is $31,015,658, up $759,567.

Mandated expenses, from Medicaid to law enforcement functions, will consume 72 percent of the levy.

Total anticipated general fund expenditures are $114,048,256, or $13,030 less than 2019's.

New mandated expenses include additional services related to the Raise the Age legislation, which now requires most criminal cases involving 16- and 17-year-olds to be referred to a youth court, at $318,373. The state is expected to provide the county with full reimbursement for these expenses.

What is not reimbursed are expenses related to bail reform and new evidence discovery requirements, which require the District Attorney's Office to add additional staff, including a new full-time assistant district attorney, a part-time ADA, and a new paralegal.

The Public Defenders Office is also adding an attorney but this expense will be covered by state aid. 

The county will have 452 full-time-equivalent employees. 

While the state is pressuring municipalities to enter into more shared services agreements, the county has pretty much exhausted those opportunities, County Manager Jay Gsell suggested in his budget statement.

The county has been sharing services with County Highway and other county highway departments for 21 years. There are also shared service agreements for the Health Department with Orleans County and combined youth services between the county, city, and Orleans County. 

The Chamber of Commerce Tourism Bureau has an anticipated budget of $420,000, entirely funded by the bed tax. 

A motor pool agreement with Enterprise Fleet Management and energy savings initiatives as a result of consulting with Johnson Controls currently gives the county an anticipated $200,000 in savings.

A public hearing on the proposed budget will take place Nov. 6 in the Old Courthouse. The Legislature will vote on the proposed budget Nov. 25.

Press release:

The City of Batavia is looking for residents of the City of Batavia to fill seats on the Deer Committee.

The City of Batavia and City Manager Martin Moore, Ph.D., are seeking interested candidates to join this committee in an effort to develop a workable deer management plan to mitigate the deer issue in the City. 

“We expect the work of this committee to take about six (6) months,” Moore said. “Once the deer management plan is completed, it will be presented to the City Council, and ultimately New York State for approval, in order to further our mitigation efforts.”   

Applicants must be residents of the City of Batavia. Applications are available at the City Clerk’s Office or online here.

Harper Ferris, a third-grader at St. Joseph School, got to ride to school in a City of Batavia fire truck because she was one of the winners in the City Fire Department's annual Fire Prevention Poster Coloring Contest.

Over the next week, two more poster contest winners will get to ride to school in a fire truck.

Submitted photo and press release:

The Auto Extrication training program for emergency responders provides hands-on training in motor-vehicle rescue and extrication techniques while stressing the need for scene safety and vehicle stabilization.

It includes rescue theory, rescue life cycle, new technology in automotive design and rescue tools as well as their uses. A four-hour annual review of these skills is recommended for all emergency response personnel.  

The following emergency responders completed the four-hour refresher held on Oct. 21 at the Genesee County Fire Training Center on State Street Road in Batavia.

• ELBA

Nicole M. Boldt                  

Sydney R. Brown                    

Jennifer A. Cardinali                    

Ryan D. Hart                    

Michael G. Heale                  

Timothy J. Hoffarth                    

Christopher P. Lane                    

John D. Mudrzynski                   

Michael Pfendler                    

Michael Schad                    

Oliver R. Shuknecht                    

Eric S. Vick Jr.                    

• OAKFIELD

Sean T. Downing

Joshua M. Finn

Garrett M. Gibson

Pete A. Scheiber

Andrew J. Steel                    

Noah R. Toal

• PAVILION

David J. Clor                    

Paul M. Dougherty                    

Chad H. Freeman                    

Bryen D. Murrock                    

Dewey A. Murrock                    

Kelly A. Murrock                   

Codey L. O'Neill                  

Donald A. Roblee                  

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) today announced the opening of the 2020 scholarship application cycle for the USDA/1890 National Scholars Program.

The program aims to increase the number of students studying agriculture, food, natural resource sciences, and other agriculture-related disciplines. The program is available through the USDA Office of Partnerships and Public Engagement (OPPE).

The USDA/1890 National Scholars Program was established in 1992 as part of the partnership between the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the 19 1890 Land-Grant Universities (PDF, 1.2 MB).

The program provides full tuition, fees, books, room and board to students pursuing degrees in agriculture, food, natural resource sciences, or related academic disciplines. When the student has completed the academic and summer work requirements of the scholarship, USDA may convert the student to a permanent employee without further competition.

Currently, USDA and 1890 Land-Grant Universities are providing scholarships to 109 students.

“The Scholars Program is an important way to collaborate with historically black land-grant universities and train the workforce for 21^st century agriculture.” said Mike Beatty, director of USDA’s Office of Partnerships and Public Engagement.

This program is among several USDA efforts to build the capacity of Historically Black Colleges and Universities. Since the passage of the Second Morrill Act of 1890, USDA has supported scholarships, research, education, extension activities, and grants for facilities and equipment at these institutions.

The USDA/1890 National Scholars Program is available to high school seniors entering their freshman year of college, and college sophomores. General requirements include U.S. citizenship, a GPA of 3.0 or higher, a score of 1080 or more on the SAT or 21 or more on the ACT, and acceptance to, or currently attending an 1890 University to study agriculture, food, and natural resources.

The scholarship is renewable each year and is contingent on satisfactory academic performance and normal progress toward the bachelor’s degree. Additional requirements are listed in the application package.

All application materials must be postmarked by Friday, Jan. 31. See the 2020 high school application (PDF, 337 KB) and the 2020 college application (PDF, 347 KB) for details. For other questions, email: 1890init@usda.gov

Press release:

The Genesee Amateur Hockey Association invites children to the Falleti Ice Rink on Evans Street in Batavia on Saturday, Nov. 9^th for a Try Hockey For Free clinic as part of Hockey Week Across America.

Starting at 11:40 a.m. to 1 p.m. local youth, ages 4 to 9, are encouraged to experience ice hockey for the first time and learn the basic skills in a fun, safe environment.

“We look forward to welcoming families to Falleti Ice Rink to try our great sport of ice hockey,” said Dale Hutchins, president of GAHA. “Our goal is for these families to enjoy watching their kids learn new skills with big smiles on their faces.”

USA Hockey’s Try Hockey program, with the support of the National Hockey League and NHL member clubs, among others, is designed to provide youth hockey associations with a national platform for introducing children to the sport, free of charge.

All your youngster needs is a helmet (bike or sports) and winter gloves. Skates are available at the Rink. The GAHA organization does have some used hockey helmets available for the event as well as a few hockey sticks.

Players in attendance will be given a free hockey jersey to take home.

To register for this Try Hockey For Free event, please visit www.TryHockeyForFree.com

For more information, please contact:  Sharon at svgray@rochester.rr.comor 585-344-2248 (coordinator for Try Hockey For Free).

Press release:

One of the greatest privileges we have as American citizens is to vote for the elected leaders that we choose – but for many individuals with disabilities who wish to do so in person, getting to their polling place may be a challenge.

In Erie, Niagara, Genesee, Orleans or Wyoming counties, Western New York Independent Living (WNYIL) can help!

Independence Express, the transportation branch of WNYIL, will provide van rides, free of charge, to people with disabilities who need one to vote on Election Day (Tuesday, Nov. 5^th).

Independence Express has wheelchair-accessible vehicles for those with mobility challenges, and ambulatory people can get transportation, too. While we can’t help anyone up or down stairs, and they must rely on friends or relatives for that, we can take people to their voting place and then back home or to work, between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 8:30 p.m., (except during drivers' lunch from 12 to 1 p.m.).  

If this is appealing, please email transportation@wnyil.org with “Election Day” in the subject, and provide this information:

• The rider’s name;
• Address;
• Phone number;
• If rider uses a wheelchair (or write "WC"), or if rider is ambulatory ("AMB");
• The name and address of the polling place (i.e., Ascension Parish, 15 Sumner St., Batavia, NY 14020);
• If anyone is going with them, such as a Personal Care Attendant (PCA).
• [If more than one extra person or PCA, give the number of PCAs -- we can only take up to three people at one time];
• The rider's first choice of the time to go to the polls.

Alternately, one may call Christian at 716-836-0822, ext. 108, to set up a ride. If there is high demand at times, requests will be honored on a "first-come, first-served" basis.  

Voting is your right – and we can help you exercise it!

The Western New York Independent Living Inc. family of agencies offer an expanding array of services to aid individuals with disabilities to take control of their own lives.