After all of the hopeful visions and dreams for developer Yong Guang Ye’s possible plans for the former JC Penney building, the site is now likely to go up for auction after going to foreclosure.
Ye’s former realtor, Jonathan Mauer of Pyramid Brokerage Co. in Fairport, no longer represents the California developer, who “didn’t really have a business plan” when he bought the department store property for $500,000, Maurer said. It was then put up for sale at a selling price of $750,000.
After the purchase became public, others chimed in with hopeful wishes that it could be turned into a boutique or micro hotel or a concert venue, citing its downtown location and midway point of Buffalo and Rochester as being a perfect setup for travelers. There were no takers for the property, apparently, and Ye let property taxes lapse into what may be eventual foreclosure, Maurer said. He wasn’t certain which out-of-state bank was the lender.
City Manager Rachael Tabelski briefly mentioned that it looked like the property was going up for auction during a recent City Council meeting. The Batavian requested further confirmation about the site's status at 40 Batavia City Centre on Friday afternoon.
"I believe they are one year out of back taxes, so foreclosure requires two years delinquent. I’ll need to check records to confirm," Tabelski said Friday. "I have heard that the lending company may be auctioning the property off. But I also have not found any details of this yet."
JC Penney closed its doors at City Centre in the fall of 2020 in an onslaught of closings due to corporate bankruptcy proceedings. Batavia’s site then sat quietly as local shoppers mourned the loss of another department store.
According to Genesee County assessment records, Yong Guang Ye of San Jose, Calif., purchased the 38,524-square-foot site on Feb. 2, 2021. The property has been assessed at $400,000.
JC Penney was built in 1978 along Alva Place and remained a strong anchor for the former Genesee Country Mall-turned-Batavia City Centre until its doors were permanently closed in late 2020.
Genesee County municipalities can expect a share of the half million dollars in mortgage tax that the county will distribute after the Legislature approved a resolution of payments this week.
The county clerk/treasurer reported that $504,734.48 is available from mortgage tax—the one-time tax paid when a mortgage is recorded—and the Legislature agreed during Wednesday’s meeting to distribute that lump sum of the respective mortgage tax amounts to the city of Batavia and each of the towns and villages within Genesee County.
The breakdown is as follows:
The city of Batavia will receive - $83,983
Town of Alabama - $11,275.13
Town of Alexander - $15,680.53
Town of Batavia - $50,704.70
Town of Bergen - $31,432.60
Town of Bethany - $7,805.15
Town of Byron - $23,154.70
Town of Darien - $14,484.98
Town of Elba - $12,676.74
Town of LeRoy - $30,712.91
Town of Oakfield - $16,642.28
Town of Pavilion - $20,423.81
Town of Pembroke - $136,785.84
Town of Stafford- $21,895.93
Village of Alexander - $1,410.28
Village of Attica - $484.87
Village of Bergen - $4,174.35
Village of Corfu - $7,870.05
Village of Elba - $1,542.34
Village of LeRoy - $8,932.81
Village of Oakfield - $2,661.48
The county has records of these payments since 2011, with a total of $264,130.74. The totals have been a rollercoaster of ups and downs, with a high of $636,882.14 in 2022, which decreased to $562,507.30 in 2023, and that fell again this year.
In other action, the Legislature also approved overtime costs of $100,000 for the Sheriff’s Office to cover a current shortage projected through the year-end. This is due to police services for outside agencies and the need for overtime pay and fringe expenses.
The overtime cost, plus $6,200 in social security tax, $1,450 for Medicare tax, and $23,200 in retirement expenses, will have a total budget impact of $130,850.
Starting the week of October 28, the Batavia City School District, in partnership with a certified arborist, will begin needed work on the beloved and historic willow tree on the front lawn of Batavia High School (260 State St. Batavia).
According to the arborist, while the tree appears healthy, several dead branches are adding too much weight to the trunks. Without this work, we run the risk of a strong storm irreparably damaging the tree.
Our goal is to proactively maintain the tree and preserve it for generations of Batavia High School students and staff to come.
Work on the tree should only last a few days and will not impact school arrivals or dismissals.
The City of Batavia Fire Department is proud to announce the winners of our 10th Annual Fire Prevention Coloring Contest. With over 400 entries from Batavia Schools, this contest was very difficult to judge.
Congratulations to the following winners:
Grade K-1:
First Place- Isabelle Herdlien - 1st Grade Jackson Elementary, Miss Wahr
Second Place- Massiah Ayala - Kindergarten St. Josephs Regional School, Mrs. Case
Third Place - Ada McCracken - 1st Grade Jackson Primary, Mrs. Harloff
Grades 2-3:
First Place- Amara-Lee Thomas - 3rd Grade John Kennedy, Mr. Coke
Second Place- Cecilia Dejaneiro - 2nd Grade John Kennedy School- Ms. Wirth
Third Place- Payton Ford - 3rd Grade St. Joseph's School- Ms. Dumuhosky
Grades 4-5:
First Place- Josie Varland - 4th Grade St Paul Lutheran School, Ms. Austin
Third Place - Blessing Brobey - 5th Grade Batavia Middle School, Mrs. Consagra
An awards luncheon will be held Saturday, October 26, from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the City of Batavia Fire Station located at 18 Evans St. for all 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place winners. The 1st place winner of each group will receive a ride to school on a City of Batavia Fire Engine. Congratulations to all the winners!
CEO Byron Brown during Thursday's OTB board meeting. Photo by Howard Owens
Shortly after the board of directors for the Western Regional Off-Track Betting Corp. approved Steve Casey as the first chief of staff at Batavia Downs on Thursday, his new boss, Byron Brown, reiterated that he had no involvement with Casey getting a job in marketing before Brown was named the new president and CEO of the corporation.
"I did not know he applied for a gaming license," Brown told a gaggle of reporters after Thursday's board meeting. "I did not know he was hired at Batavia Downs prior to me applying for the position.”
Casey's new position was created by an executive reorganization based on recommendations from consultants at True North. The board on Thursday approved a payment of $30,000 to True North for their consulting work.
Based on those recommendations, the board created a new executive organization with the following job titles:
Chief Executive Officer
Chief Administrative Officer/Chief of Staff
Chief Operating Officer
Chief Financial Officer
Vice-President of Operations
Vice-President of Business Development
Vice-President of Human Resources
Executive Office Manager
Director of Communications
Executive Business Administrator
The board eliminated the following job titles:
Director of Marketing
Director of Human Resources
Executive Chef
In addition to Brown as CEO and Casey as Chief of Staff, Ryan Hasenaurer was promoted from marketing director to vice president of business development. Danielle Fleming was named VP of Human Resources. Michael J. DeGeorge, who handled communications in the office of Mayor Byron Brown, was named director of communications at a salary of $130,000.
Timothy Callan Photo by Howard Owens
Brown said that based on the reorganization plan, he recommended Casey and DeGeorge for their new positions, which the board approved. Erie County's representative on the board, Timothy Callan, voted against the reorganization measures.
A number of media outlets have mistakenly reported that Brown hired Casey. On Wednesday, outgoing CEO Henry Wojtaszek told The Batavian he hired Casey not long after Casey first contacted him about a job back in May, months before there was an announced plan to replace Wojtaszek. Wojtaszek told Casey he would need to get a gaming license, which he did. Casey started working in marketing at Batavia Downs before the board hired Brown to replace Wojtaszek.
In an exclusive interview with The Batavian on Thursday, Casey confirmed that series of events with some additional details.
At 58, Casey said he started thinking about his retirement and that perhaps he should try to get back into the state's retirement system. While he's never been close with Wojtaszek, he's known him cordially for years, so in May, he decided to give Wojtaszek a call.
Casey said, "I'm thinking, 'Okay, it might be time to get back in. Where would I like to do that?' I think you saw a bit of chaos in Erie County. So I'm thinking, 'Where would a good spot be to go?' I knew Henry. We weren't close, but Henry and I, over the years, crossed paths, and I know him pretty well, so I reached out to Henry. 'Hey, any openings? I'd like to get back in the pension system.'"
Getting a gaming license normally takes weeks. Casey's was approved in about a week. Casey wasn't ready to start that soon so he didn't start working at the casino until September.
One of the issues Erie County reporters have raised regarding Casey is a wire fraud conviction against his former consulting company, LSS Strategies, in 2021. That came after a five-year FBI investigation that resulted in a $69 fine.
"That application was the most comprehensive document I've ever seen," Casey said. "I literally sat with my attorney, and together, we went through it, answering all the questions, disclosed everything we possibly could so they could then make a decision. And fortunately, they came back and said, there's nothing there.”
Casey said the Gaming Commission was "100% fully informed."
"The most important factor was Steve Casey, as an individual, I don't have a point on my driver's license. I don't have a misdemeanor. I don't have a felony. There's nothing against me as an individual,” he said.
Casey said he didn't learn that Brown was a potential candidate for the job until August or September.
"I've kept in touch with the mayor over the years since I left city government, but when I first came here, it was not based on whether the mayor would come here," Casey said. "He was still in the middle of his budget stuff in May. You're looking at April, May, June. So, my coming here solely had to do with me looking at opportunities for my pension and getting back into government."
Casey is excited, he said, to take on his new role at the OTB and is already impressed by the quality of the people he will be working with.
"I can tell you, I started at the bottom level here," Casey said. "I was seeing everybody on the floor, talking to all the employees here. They didn't know who I was. They didn't know my background. Extremely professional, incredible staff, very talented.
I'll tell you one specific example," Casey added. "The CFO here. I've worked in Albany, in Albany for nine years and in government for 24 years. I've seen some of the best budget directors you've ever seen, from the speaker's budget director to the governor's budget director. Jackie Leach is by far one of the single most talented CFOs I've ever seen. She knows everything about this place, the institutional knowledge, and her ability to do what she does here. I mean, it's a top-notch staff, and I'm looking forward to working with such a talented staff."
HomeCare & Hospice Foundation is preparing for their 29th Annual Tree of Life ornament sales and ceremonies.
Every year during the holiday season, HomeCare & Hospice Foundation and the communities they serve, come together to honor and remember lost loved ones.
“We look forward to bringing the communities we serve together,” said Melissa Sullivan, Chief Executive Officer at HomeCare & Hospice in Allegany. “We want those who have lost loved ones to feel support during the holidays – we encourage anyone to attend one of our ceremonies regardless if they have an ornament or if their loved one was on our services.”
Ceremonies will be held in Allegany on Thursday, November 14 starting at 5:30 p.m. at the St. Elizabeth Motherhouse, located at 115 E. Main St., and on Wednesday, December 4 starting at 5:30 p.m. at the Richmond Memorial Library in Batavia, located at 19 Ross St. Batavia.
To purchase an ornament or for more information, please visit https://2024treeoflife.givesmart.com or contact Sarah Negron at 716-372-2106.
The Board of Elections will be open this Saturday, October 26, from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. to accept registration forms.
This is the last day to register to vote in the November election. The office will also be able to assist with absentee requests. Please use the west facing door.
Early Voting begins this Saturday. There will be 9 days of early voting at the ARC Community Center, 38 Woodrow Rd., Batavia. Schedule is as follows:
City-wide leaf collection will begin on November 4 and continue until December 6.
Residents are asked to rake leaves into piles and leave them in the parkway (un-bagged). Please place it close to the curb line/edge of the roadway without putting it in the street. Do not pile around fire hydrants, trees, utility poles, or signposts. Leaf piles should only contain leaves and no branches, grass clippings, or other materials.
Leaf operations typically have one crew on the Northside working from Grandview Terrace moving West, North of Main Street, and a second crew on the Southside beginning on River Street moving East in areas South of Main Street. A third crew will work using a vacuum along main roads and numbered routes. It takes about 2 weeks to go through the entire city and fluctuates depending on the size of the leaf loads.
Any resident with leaves can also bring them to the Yard Waste Station until it closes for the season. The Yard Waste hours are 12 to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday until November 2 and will change to 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. from November 4 through the end of the season due to daylight savings time ending.
The Yard Waste Station will be closed on November 28 & 29 to honor Thanksgiving and will officially close for the season on December 14.
IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT LEAF COLLECTION:
Leaf piles must be clear of sticks and all animal waste – if animal waste or other debris is found in the piles, they will not be picked up
Grass clippings, flower pottings, branches, and pumpkins cannot be picked up and residents may bring those items to the Yard Waste Station on Law Street (open through December 14)
Leaves should not block traffic or be piled near intersection corners. This causes sight issues for motorists/bicyclists/pedestrians.
Keep leaf piles clear of drainage ways and catch basins. Blocked drainage leads to localized flooding.
Leaves should not be piled around mailboxes, power poles, fences, fire hydrants or other obstacles.
Do not park on leaf piles. The heat from a vehicle exhaust system could start a fire.
Do not wait to get your leaves out. We will normally collect leaves twice within the month of leaf collection.
If it is snowing, we plow first. If it continues to snow, leaf operations will be suspended.
There is no leaf pickup in the spring.
Contact the Bureau of Maintenance @ 585-345-6400 option 1 if you have any questions.
Steve Casey, former deputy mayor in Buffalo under Byron Brown, has been appointed chief of staff for Western Regional Off-Track Betting.
The board approved creation of the position and hiring Casey as part of an executive restructuring plan.
Casey applied for a job with OTB in May and obtained a part-time job. He was deputy mayor under Brown, until 2015. Brown was recently named CEO of OTB.
Casey is receiving a one-year contract worth $190,000.
Michael DeGeorge, also a former assistant to Brown, has been hired by the board as director of communication, at a salary of $130,000.
Musicians of Note, an event honoring past Batavia High School graduates who have made an impact in music, will host its 5th annual ceremony on Thursday, October 24, at 7 p.m., at the Frank E. Owen Auditorium at Batavia High School.
Rose Caccamise
Honorees will be recognized with a video presentation and performance ensembles to celebrate their achievements. A plaque featuring their accomplishments will be displayed on the new Musicians of Note wall at Batavia High School.
This year’s recipients of the Musician of Note Award include:
Rose Caccamise (posthumous, Class of 1958)
Owner of Roxy’s Music Store and supporter of local musicians
First BHS alumnus to be inducted into both Athletic and Music Hall of Fames
Daniel DeLuca
Daniel DeLuca (Class of 1985)
B.A. Music, M. Ed. Elementary and Music Education
Music Teacher
Band Member/Leader
Neil Hartwick
Neil Hartwick (posthumous, Music Educator 1966-1982)
Batavia CSD and Brockport CSD Music Educator
NYSSMA Adjudicator
Organizer of the Batavia High Jazz Ensemble and Batavia Pageant of Bands
Deborah Russell Silverstein (Class of 1977)
Deborah Russell Silverstein
Passionate Music Educator
Flutist
Church Musician
The ceremony is open to the public and free to attend.
The alleged victim of sexual abuse by Batavia pastor Marty Macdonald has filed a report with the Genesee County Sheriff’s Office in a step that brings questions to an open investigation while only further confirming Hobson’s own stance on her accusations, she says.
“The Sheriff’s Office contacted me. So I spoke with them, and after speaking with them, that’s when I filed,” Hobson said to The Batavian Monday.“So, currently, it's still an open investigation. You know, honestly, my motivation hasn't changed, so I still stand on the side of truth. I will no longer be silenced, and I want to encourage others to come out of the shadows of guilt, shame and fear and let their voices be heard.
“I’ve talked to law enforcement several times over the last few weeks, in September and October. It’s still an open investigation, so I’m letting them do their job.”
Joseph Graff, chief deputy of the Criminal Investigation Division, confirmed that the case has drawn some attention in the Sheriff’s Office. The Batavian specifically asked whether the statute of limitations might apply to the allegations.
“We are looking into her case to determine if there are any statutes that are still applicable,” Graff said.
In criminal law, the statute of limitations is not straightforward and depends on the section of penal law cited and the facts of the case, which is information not yet available, according to legal sources.
Macdonald has forcefully denied the allegations through a public statement provided to the media and members of City Church.
Hobson’s story is not new. She first raised it in conversations with a local reporter and other community members more than 20 years ago.
She has said that from the age of 12 to 18, she was groomed and sexually abused by Macdonald, she said. She hadn’t told anyone until years later. She only came out publicly in September when emboldened by a similar case in which a teen, Cindy Clemishire, had been sexually abused by a powerful pastor at the time, Robert Morris, and that became widely publicized when the Clemishire shared her story, and Morris resigned from his church.
That cease-and-desist letter also went to The Wartburg Watch, an online publication that has kept the Hobson articles and related posts intact.
Meanwhile, online chatter about the Hobson articles has included many posts of support for Hobson and some questions about why she hadn’t come forward sooner or filed charges against the well-known Batavia pastor.
None of the comments have deterred her newfound spirit, she said. Now that she has taken this step to file a police report, Hobson isn’t certain “what avenues yet, but I plan to continue to tell my story.”
Attorney Anjan Ganguly, who has been representing Macdonald and The City Church, was not aware of any investigation into the allegations against his client, he said.
“Neither Pastor Marty nor I have been notified of any police report or investigation,” Ganguly said Wednesday.
Byron Brown had no involvement at all in Steve Casey landing a part-time marketing job at Batavia Downs, said Henry Wojtaszek on Wednesday night.
Wojtaszek is the outgoing president and CEO of the Western Regional Off-Track Betting Corp., and Brown, a former five-term mayor of Buffalo, is his successor.
Steve Casey, until 2015, was Brown's deputy mayor.
Multiple media outlets in Erie County and Genesee County reported over the past few days that Brown either hired Casey or implied that Brown was involved in the decision to give Casey a job.
Both Wojtaszek and Brown provided information that contradict those reports.
"I had no influence in hiring Steve Casey at all," Brown told a gaggle of reporters outside a closed committee meeting at Batavia Downs on Wednesday.
Wojtaszek said that while he's not friends with Casey, they've known each other for several years. In May, Wojtaszek said, Casey asked about a job, saying he wanted to get back into the state retirement system. After going through the application process for the job, Casey applied for a state gaming license and received his license about a week later, Wojtaszek said. He started work in late July or early August. Casey received his harness racing license in August.
In late July, the OTB board voted to negotiate a buyout of Wojtaszek's employment contract and announced the formation of an executive search committee.
Board Chairman Dennis Bassett refused to share the names of candidates with reporters throughout the search process, even while there was speculation that Brown was a candidate. Brown said he didn't even consider applying for the job until he learned of Wojtaszek's eventual departure (Wojtaszek's last day is Dec. 31).
Wojtaszek told The Batavian that Bassett even kept the names of candidates from him. He didn't know Brown was a candidate until Brown's name was brought to the board in September for a vote.
Media reports suggest Casey is a controversial hire. In 2015, the FBI launched a five-year investigation into an allegation that he stole funds from one of his political consultant candidates, Charles Swanick. The result of the investigation? A conviction for wire fraud with no jail time and no probation. He was ordered to pay a $69 fine and fork over $8,283.59 in restitution. The crux of the dispute, according to a report by WGRZ: Swanick thought Casey had agreed to work for free.
Asked about the conviction on Wednesday, Brown defended Casey's employment at Batavia Downs.
"When you look at Steve Casey's actual record, he has no record, so there is no prohibition to him being able to work here, as I understand it," Brown said. "He was hired prior to me being hired, and he has a gaming license, which I understand he got before me getting one."
Pressed to discuss the conviction, Brown said the issue is more complex than sound bites can convey.
"Again, I'm not going to go into those details in a sound-bite fashion," Brown said. "It would be unfair to that individual. There's a lot more to it than that. I don't think it would be fair for me to try to discuss in, you know, a 20-second soundbite."
For those questioning whether Wojtaszek, a Republican, would hire Casey, a Democrat, Wojtaszek said party affiliation is not part of the hiring process.
"Honestly, I can tell you this -- I mean, I know Steve is kind of a high-profile guy -- but I have no idea what the political affiliation is of the people we hire," Wojtaszek said. "I have no idea."
He said that outside of one staff member Wojtaszek has known for years, he never talks politics with his staff.
"I have no idea what they're registered," he added. "I believe that this organization is not a political organization. That's why I love Dennis (Bassett). He's like, 'I'm a Democrat. That's my ideology. But when I come here, we don't, we don't discuss that.' He says, 'I know where you come from. You know where I come from, but let's work through this thing.'"
Brown told reporters on Wednesday that he has no idea what future position Casey might hold at Batavia Downs. There was no promotion or switch to full-time proposal before the board at Wednesdays meeting.
"As I move forward, I would certainly consider him for a position," Brown said.
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