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An outdoor project that’s taken quite some time in the creation mode seems to be coming along now, city officials say, teased by warmer weather and sunnier days.

City Manager Rachael Tabelski recently reported to City Council about “a really positive meeting on Jackson Square.”

“The redesign is going extremely well,” she said, adding that by working with Architecture Unlimited and an engineer who works with them have been creatively frugal in the design phase. “We hope when we go out to bid we can create substantial cost savings for the project. One of the items was the original project had footers in the stage, and by just placing concrete blocks instead of these footers is going to save us upwards of $150,000 on the project.”

Architect Kenneth Pearl said the Jackson Square stage was a type of pre-engineered wood (photo above) in a rather eloquent description, she said.

“So it'll be a very nice finish that will hold up the roof, and will be very similar to what we use on our buildings, on a rubber roof with kind of tongue and groove panels above it, and that will hopefully have a 20-year warranty,” she said.

A handicap ramp will be removable, so that it won't be built directly into the structure, will be something that can be “absolutely safe to roll up gear and or persons that need to use that ramp,” she said, and will also be removable so that it won’t jut out into the audience.

Another cost savings measure is to analyze the brickwork that is there, and some of the concrete larger slabs which architects have discussed, they are going to try to remove and salvage them in lieu of a concrete base so they don't sink again, Tabelski said.

“Because what happened before is they were just placed there and they sink like they might in a residential project. And with reusing those, we should save another significant amount of money. We want to look at different concrete dye colors to add just a little bit of textual and color elements to the flooring,” she said. “But overall, Jackson Square is really the paintings on the buildings, there's not much that needs to be done there. The catenary lighting, which is the lighting that goes above will still be part of the project.”

There will be LED performance lighting on the stage with color changes per holidays and special events. For example, Fourth of July would feature red, white and blue lights. Cobra heads will also be used, which are outdoor fixtures mounted to poles and mainly used for street and roadway lighting but can be used for other general area lighting.

“We’d have control over that. We also have one or two Cobra heads, (DPW Director Brett Frank) hooked me up to that,” she said. “As soon as we take possession in the phase two LED light changeover from National Grid, we'll be able to put dimmers and timers on that so we can turn those Cobra heads off during performances.”

The Jackson Square project has been at least three years in the making, reaching a point of requesting bids and City Council approving one in June 2022. But Mark Cerrone Inc., after receiving word that the company’s bid of $654,000 was selected, backpedaled with last-minute revisions and add-ons, hiking the bid up to $847,950.

Council then rescinded its approval and rejected that and two other bids for the project. The design went back for what Tabelski called a “deep dive” into potential cost-cutting revisions since it had to go back for a whole new bid process anyway.

The project is to be primarily funded with a $750,000 Downtown Revitalization Initiative grant, plus $225,000 from National Grid, Tabelski said.

“When we go out for bid, they look at the scope of work, and they put a price to that with the materials and the labor … so it necessarily doesn't always line up with the budget we have,” she said at that time to The Batavian. “So we will be re-examining our bid specifications to make sure we think that pricing can come in within that.”

She was hopeful that a contractor with an acceptable bid could be approved for construction to possibly begin in 2022.

Well, that hope has come and gone, and city officials are hanging onto the expertise of Pearl and his architectural firm.

“So we’re really, really happy of the work that Ken and his firm has been able to do to bring this project into where the DRI Committee asked it to be and to be able to bid it out in what we think will be on budget,” Tabelski said. “So the hope is if everything goes well, which I absolutely hope it does, you'll see bid awards in July.”

The plan is for the Business Improvement District to host the Thursday and Friday night concerts in Jackson Square series throughout the summer, and begin construction at the end of August, she said.

Photo of a similar Jackson Square stage image, with pre-engineered wood ceiling and LED lights, courtesy of City of Batavia. 

More than 400 area residents hit about 40 sites in Genesee County to volunteer their labor to make the community a little bit better as part of the annual United Way Day of Caring on Thursday.

The Batavian stopped by a handful of the volunteer locations, such as Adam Miller Toys and Bicycles, GO ART!, the YMCA, the War Memorial, Dwyer Stadium, and the Community Garden.

Volunteers also went to six different locations for Arc GLOW, the Batavia Cemetery, Cornell Cooperative Extension, Cross Roads House, the David M. McCarthy Memorial Ice Arena, Eagle Star Housing, Ellicott Trail, the Peace Garden, Gilliam Grant Community Center, Holland Land Office Museum, Machphelah Cemetery, Purple Pony, Resurrection Parish, St. James Episcopal Church, St. Paul Lutheran, UMMC, and the Village of Elba, among other locations.

All photos by Howard Owens.

It's an annual rite of spring: Fire hydrant flushing, which helps keep the hydrants servicable for emergencies.  City Fire crews flushed hydrants in a couple of city neighborhoods this morning.

In a release, City Fire explained the necessity of fire hydrant flushing:

This annual testing is essential to maintain the communities class III Insurance Services Office (ISO) public protection classification, and to assure that fire hydrants are operating efficiently for fire protection purposes. Along with maintaining the fire rating, the test monitors the health of the city's water system, identifies weak areas in the system, and removes material that settle in the water lines. 

A work crew was in the parking lot off School Street in Downtown Batavia this afternoon, making repairs to lights in the lot.

Photos by Howard Owens.

Press Release:

Northgate Church is excited to announce that they will be hosting a Rummage Sale on Friday, May 12, from 8 a.m. - 4 p.m. and Saturday, May 13, from 8 a.m. - noon in the gym at the Northgate South Campus, 350 Bank Street Road. 100 percent of the proceeds from this event will benefit Northgate’s ‘Connected Community’ in Gahanda, Rwanda, Africa.

Northgate will be funding food and agricultural projects throughout the village, helping many of the families learn to grow and maintain sustenance for their loved ones, which is something that is not prevalent in Rwanda.   For more information, call the office at 343-4011 or visit https://fb.me/e/13p4dKgCc

At the Richmond Memorial Library, the Batavia Society of Artists is displaying some of the best works of its members for the spring, and on Tuesday, at the annual Spring Show's opening, the best of the best were honored, including a GCC student who received the Virginia Carr Mumford Scholarship Award.

The art show was judged by Le Roy artist Lori Longhany.

The show runs through Friday, May 26.

Work crews have been busy paving the parking lot between Court Street and Jackson Street this week, completing the Jackson Street side on Wednesday, after weather delayed the work a day or two. 

Out of the approximately $200,000 project, 85 percent is for paving operations, and the remaining 15 percent is for milling, Public Works Director Brett Frank said.

Project funding is from Parking Lot Reserves, he said, for wear and tear that broken down the lot's exterior.

"The main issues with the parking lot were simply the age and condition of the parking lot," Frank said to The Batavian. "Quite simply put, it was time to mill and pave the entire parking lot, and we're past the time in which filling potholes and putting Band-Aids on the lot are considered sufficient repairs." 

City work crews have been milling and paving the Court Street parking lot this week next to Save-A-Lot between Court and Jackson streets in downtown Batavia. Photos by Howard Owens.

Click here to view 334 West Main Street, Batavia.

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Fifteen young Genesee County residents celebrated their first communion on Sunday at Resurrection Parish in Batavia.

"Communion, also known as the Eucharist in the Catholic Church, is the source and summit of the Catholic Faith," said Jason Smith, director of Faith Formation at the church. "Catholics believe in the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist, and when students receive their First Eucharist, they have been thoroughly prepared through Faith Formation classes so that they understand and appreciate this concept.  It is a significant event in the Catholic faith, and is one of our seven Sacraments.  Sacraments are designed to draw us closer to God and experience God's love and grace."

Photo by Steve Ognibene.

Press release:

Progress on the South Lyon Street Bridge is moving at a good pace as today over 120 cubic yards of concrete were poured for the bridge’s new deck. Union Concrete, the contractor on-site, will have to “wet-cure” the new concrete with burlap sacks and sprinklers for the next 14 days. After that is completed, approach slabs can be formed and poured between the roadway and the bridge to keep the project on schedule for completion in June.

Submitted photos.

Press release:

On May 9, the Genesee County 911 Center took a call from a local business that had received a call from what was believed to be a juvenile stating there was a "bomb on a school bus" at a location in the City of Batavia. 

Through the investigation of patrol officers and detectives, it was determined that the call was false and that an eight-year-old child on a bus made the call, knowing it to be false. 

Officers located the school bus in question, which was empty of students at the time. Out of an abundance of caution, the bus was cleared by an NYSP K9 that specializes in explosives detection, and none were found. 

The case has been turned over to the Juvenile Detective for the Department, and no further info is available at this time.

Work crews completed repaving the public parking lot off of Court Street, by Save-a-Lot and Main Street businesses in Downtown Batavia.

Photos by Howard Owens.

There just isn't enough room in the Genesee Valley Ag Park on the east side of the Town of Batavia for a project as large as the Fairlife plant announced today in Monroe County.

The 745,000-square-foot facility will be built by Coca-Cola and create an estimated 250 jobs in the Town of Webster.  The company is expected to invest $650 million in the project.

Asked if the Genesee County Economic Development Center competed for the project, Jim Krencik, senior director of marketing and communications for GCEDC, said it is against agency policy to discuss what companies might have looked at Genesee County as a possible site location for a facility.

"The huge winners here are the dairy farmers," Krencik said. "Wherever it's located in our region, the dairy farmers are the biggest winners."

When asked a follow-up question, he said with HP Hood and Upstate Niagara Milk Cooperative operating in the park along with planned expansions, the Coca-Cola facility wouldn't fit in the park.

Asked about potential sites in Genesee County for such a facility, he said there could be, but that would depend on available infrastructure, and he reiterated the policy of not discussing negotiations with businesses.

HP Hood is the largest land owner in the Ag Park. Its current facility sits on 80 acres, and the company also owns a 22-acre parcel to the factory's north, and 30-acre and 17-acre parcels to the west. All three of those parcels are currently vacant.

The Coca-Cola project in Monroe County has echoes of another soda company's foray into the dairy business -- when Pepsi Co teamed up with the Theo Muller Group to build a Greek yogurt factory in the ag park.  Pepsi and Muller invested $206 million into the project only to close the doors less than three years later.

Pepsi sold the 363,000-square-foot plant to the Dairy Farmers of America for $60 million.

Hood purchased the plant in 2018 from DFA for $54 million. Hood immediately expanded the plant by at least another 100,000 square feet.

The other failed Greek yogurt project, the plant built by Alpina, is now a dairy processing facility for Upstate Niagara Milk Cooperative.

The big difference, perhaps, between the Pepsi and Coke projects is that Pepsi was trying to start a new business line and enter the emerging and competitive market of Greek yogurt. And the product, some critics pointed out, wasn't really Greek yogurt. Pepsi Muller found it hard to get its products on grocery store shelves. 

In Coke's case, its Fairlife brand was launched in 2012 and is widely distributed, having already hit $1 billion in sales.

According to the company's website, Fairlife is an ultra-filtered, flavored dairy drink. The process reportedly removes the lactose and much of the sugar and leaves behind more protein and calcium.

Gov. Kathy Hochul praised Coca-Cola for selecting Monroe County as the location for its new plant.

"This decision by Fairlife to expand their operations in Monroe County marks the next chapter in New York's agricultural success story," Hochul said. "New York's dairy industry serves as a crucial economic engine for our state, and this $650 million investment from Fairlife will create jobs and drive economic impact, particularly in the Finger Lakes."

Flames and smoke are showing from a second floor at 39 Manhattan Ave., Batavia.

Unknown if occupied.

City Fire on scene.

UPDATE 10:12 a.m.: Fire is out.  Visually, no apparent significant damage to the structure. 

UPDATE 11:32 a.m.: The cause of the fire is under investigation, said Chief Josh Graham. Nobody was home at the time of the fire, and there were no animals present, Graham said. No injuries reported. "At approximately 9:46 this morning, we are alerted to a possible structure fire," Graham said. "Before we arrived on location, they called and updated us and said there was actual flame showing. Crews made entry and quickly extinguish it. It was a small room-and-contents fire on the second story. Right now, they're doing salvage and overhaul through the structure."

Graham praised the work of the firefighters. "We were actually given a tour at the fire station at the time. And so they were out ready to go and got here within a couple of minutes, and that speaks volumes to our ability to be able to go in there and knock these fires out before they get out of hand. They did a fantastic job today."

Two Town of Batavia projects — the Kings Plaza Pump Station and Force Main Upgrade —  originally planned for completion in 2020 had been put on hold due to Covid-19 and increased pricing, city officials say, pushing it out to December 2021 when additional funding was available.

During that same time, the town’s wastewater flows increased to approximately 1.2 to 1.4 million gallons per day, which exceeded the town’s current contractual limit of .85 million gallons per day, as established in the Wastewater Facility Agreement dated in February 2015, city officials said.

“So basically what you’ve got, the Town of Batavia was awarded a grant from the New York State Community Development Block Grant to upgrade the Kings Plaza pump stations and make improvements to the existing water main that connects to the city's sewer system. They are over capacity right now,” Public Works Director Brett Frank said during City Council's conference meeting Monday at City Hall. “The pump station has a maximum capacity of .54 million gallons per day (MGD), and the town would like to plan for future growth … there’s concern with their current exceedance of the contractual former limits in the full capacity of the plant, and we believe we should not yet approve a capacity of one million gallons per day. This agreement will address these concerns and proposes modifications to ensure that the town adheres to the current capacity flows of point .54 MGD.”

City Council was asked to approve a resolution of agreement between the town and city of Batavia that the town will stick with an average .54 million gallons per day, and that if it goes above that, “daily monetary penalties will be levied by the city.”

City Attorney George Van Nest said that the city has “the ability to have penalties for going over that, which it’s in there, but we haven’t stipulated what those penalties would be.”

The town is also asked to agree that a new 12-inch force main will be installed from Kings Plaza Pump Station to River and South Main streets, and that the city may inspect the project.

“The upgrades at the Kings Plaza Pump Station will include a new master sewer meter,” the resolution states.

Council members Bob Bialkowski and Eugene Jankowski Jr. said they were concerned about the town paying the penalty, “and that’s not solving our problem,” Jankowski said, “and they’re getting away cheap to cause a problem for us.”

They wondered if the town should have to do its own water treatment, and Frank said that’s already in the plan.

“We’re actually engaging in those engineering services to potentially expand the wastewater treatment plant, and that would all be at the cost of the town of the Batavia to do those engineering services,” he said.

The matter was forwarded on to a business meeting that followed, and Council approved the resolution for the city manager to execute a related state Department of Environmental Conservation BSP-5 form.

Carla Laird can’t wait to move into her new apartment at Ellicott Station. She was the first name called during the lottery on May 2.

After having her own share of life’s struggles, all Laird wants to do is find a place that’s more affordable, safe and friendly.

“There’s a community room, so maybe I’ll get to know other people,” she said.

A resident of Batavia paying rent that’s nearly $1,000 a month, Laird felt blessed to be chosen for Ellicott Station. She drove to Buffalo and was one of only three people to show up for the drawing.

“I’ve been trying so hard for a very long time, and I’m still kinda in shock because people like me never get chosen first for anything, even in school, I never was chosen -- first out of 102 applications. I’ve been praying hard for this to happen, and finally, it did,” she said during an interview with The Batavian. “And on Monday night, I woke up at 3 a.m. from a dream or a sign that I was gonna get this apartment, and I drove all the way to Buffalo for the live lottery, and that’s when they called out number 49, and my name corresponded with it, and it was the very first number that was drawn.

“And I talked to a few of my Christian friends, and they all told me it was God answering my prayers for that apartment. So yea, I’m still in shock a little because, like I said, this doesn’t happen to someone like me. And I’m very happy.”

Laird has worked part-time jobs, as many hours as she could per disability law. She just received good news that she’s been hired as a cashier associate at a travel plaza on the Thruway, and found her letter of congratulations for the apartment in the mail on Saturday.

She needs to return an acceptance letter, and Savarino Companies will complete a background and employment check, she said. But she’s not worried about any of it, as she has a clean record and has been gainfully employed as much as possible.

Another great perk of her new home is that it accepts one small pet. Sophie, her white Shih Tzu, will be her moving-in companion.

“I chose these apartments because I’m on disability, and all my kids are grown, and I can’t afford the rent at my current place or anywhere else, because it’s very expensive. It will help me a lot because of me being on a fixed income, which is extremely low for this market we live in,” she said. “It will serve me better because it will make it more affordable for me to live in my own place, and it’s ADA accessible, and they won’t make me have to choose my small puppy over a place to live like most places do. They also won’t judge me on account of me being on disability. And it looks like it’ll be a very safe place to live.”

Her current living circumstances include a two-bedroom apartment, a shared garage and a single driveway with a neighbor who “tries to intimidate me.” She doesn’t feel very safe at present and looks forward to this new adventure. Her new rent will be $569, which will allow her to accrue some savings, she said.

Laird will turn 50 at the end of this year, and getting a new apartment is the perfect birthday present, she said.

“So it’s gonna be a big and new experience for me for sure,” she said. “But with the support I have from my friends and family, I should be all right.”

Laird has read news articles about Ellicott Station, and related online comments, and can’t help but feel that some people are “degrading” her when they talk about the housing complex and issues surrounding it. There has been a lot of chatter about the new housing complex being built at 50 Ellicott St., Batavia, but most of it has had to do with unfulfilled promises of the developer, Savarino Companies.

Ellicott Station was originally discussed as market-rate housing, which evaporated quickly into workforce housing as being more viable for this area’s needs and economy.

City officials were on board with that, but when the final plan was unrolled, and applications opened for submissions, the complex was for very low to low-income tenants, which came as a surprise to city officials, they said.

Council President Eugene Jankowski Jr. was one of the first to publicly express he was angry and disappointed with that news, not about the tenants moving in, but that developer Sam Savarino didn’t fulfill his end of the perceived promise, he said.

All eight council members sent a letter to state Homes and Community Renewal officials, which funded a portion of the project, asking them to increase the area's median income level. It was at 50 to 60 percent of the area median income (AMI).

“The city of Batavia is requesting that HCR work with us to present a better mix of incomes on the property with apartments that rent for 80 percent and 120 percent AMI,” the letter stated. “We feel that this will encapsulate the workforce housing that we were promised, better align with the city’s vision of the DRI strategy, and still provide affordable housing for residents.”

City Manager Rachael Tabelski has previously described the project as being “a moving target over the last several years.”

“As the developer made various and multiple overtures to funding entities with regard to making the project financially viable. In 2019, the City supported the project’s housing component as being mixed-income that would provide housing for residents that were employed in local manufacturing in an application submitted to New York State Homes and Community Renewal from the developer,” Tabelski had said. “Furthermore, in 2020, it was confirmed that people living at Ellicott Station must be employed and not receiving government assistance."

That mixed-use component has yet to materialize, as a Buffalo brewery ended up pulling out of the deal, and though there was plenty of talk about a restaurant, none have committed, Savarino said during a prior interview.

Rentals have been promoted as being available in May on the complex sign, and by the summer to fall 2023 during interviews. Laird said that she was told it wouldn’t be until sometime between December to February 2024 before she could move in.

Photo of Carla Laird of Batavia, the first person to be selected in a lottery for Ellicott Station, with her dog Sophie, in front of the housing complex on Ellicott Street in Batavia. Photo by Joanne Beck.

Jacob W. Patterson, 27, of Kilian Road, Pembroke, is charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance, obstructing governmental administration and operating a motor vehicle while impaired by drugs. Patterson was arrested after officers William Yung and John Gombos were dispatched to a gas station on East Main Street on April 24 to check on a report of an intoxicated driver. Patterson allegedly tried to run from officers before being subdued and apprehended.  He was issued an appearance ticket.

Jordan E. Hamilton, 26, of Baker Road, Kent, is charged with tampering with physical evidence and criminal possession of a controlled substance.  Hamilton was reportedly a passenger in a vehicle at a gas station on East Main when Officer William Yung dispatched on April 24 to check on a report of an intoxicated driver. Hamilton was allegedly found in possession of a controlled substance. He was issued an appearance ticket.

Tonya Marie Ficarella, 36, of Lovers Lane, Batavia, is charged with petit larceny. Ficarella is accused of stealing merchandise from a store on Veterans Memorial Drive at 1:44 p.m. on May 2. The Sheriff's Office withheld the name and address of the store. Ficarella was issued an appearance ticket. UPDATE: The Sheriff's Office has released that the location was Walmart.

Jaime Leigh Ayala, 43, of Walnut Street, Batavia, is charged with criminal contempt 2nd. Ayala is accused of entering a store where a protected party worked at 8:28 a.m. on May 2. Ayala was released on an appearance ticket.

Jakob Neale Abrams, 18, of Indian Falls Road, Darien, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater, leaving the scene of a property damage accident, driving while using a mobile phone, failure to keep right. Abrams was reportedly involved in a property damage accident at 1:59 a.m. on April 30 on Harper Road, Darien. He was arrested following an investigation by deputies Ayrton Blankenburg and Jeremiah Gechell.

Christopher John Gulczewski, 33, of Thomas Street, Holley, is charged with endangering the welfare of a child. Gulczewski is accused of threatening to kill a mother in front of her children at 3:20 p.m. on May 3 at a location on South Main Street in Elba.  He was held pending arraignment.

Jerrol Paul Newell, 53, of West Main Street, Batavia, is charged with criminal contempt 2nd.  Newell was arrested while incarcerated in Genesee County Jail for an incident reported at 2:29 p.m. on May 2. The nature of his alleged offense was not released by the Sheriff's Office. He was arraigned and remanded back to the custody of the jail.

Auntunez Jaime Antunez, 35, of Dewey Avenue, Batavia, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater, failure to keep right and speeding. Antunez was stopped at 11:25 p.m. on May 5 by Deputy Ryan Mullen on Route 33 in Batavia. He was issued and appearance ticket.

Danielle Florance Reed, 34, of Standart Woods, Auburn, is charged with felony DWI, felony driving with a BAC of .18 or greater, speeding, failure to dim lights, and moving from lane unsafely. Reed was stopped at 1:50 a.m. on May 7 on Route 20 in Pavilion by Deputy Zachary Hoy.

Casey T. Vaughn, 33,of East Main Street, Batavia, is charged with harassment 2nd, strangulation 2nd, criminal mischief 4th and aggravated family offense. He is also charged with criminal mischief 4th and criminal tampering 3rd. Vaughn allegedly struck another person and broke a mirror on April 28 during a disturbance at a location on East Main Street, Batavia. That same day, while in custody, Vaughn allegedly spit on a wall, floor, bench, and desk in an interview room at the Batavia police station. He is also accused of pulling molding off the wall.  On the first set of charges, he was ordered held on $10,000 bail. On the second set, he was issued an appearance ticket.

Cassandra F. Smith, 37, of Manhattan Avenue, Batavia, was arrested on four warrants issued by Batavia City Court. Smith was first arrested on April 8 on two counts of petit larceny after she allegedly stole property from different yards on Manhattan Avenue. On April 14, Smith allegedly committed criminal tampering and trespass at a residence on Ross Street by being on the property after being trespassed earlier by police and throwing garbage/other items at the residence.  A warrant was requested.  On April 23, Smith allegedly trespassed again at the residence on Ross Street and was captured on Ring cam.  A warrant was requested. 

Tanika N. Avant, 21, of Bank Street, Batavia, is charged with two counts of harassment 2nd and endangering the welfare of a child. Avant is accused of being involved in a disturbance on April 28 at an undisclosed location and engaging in a physical altercation with another person. During the course of the altercation, he allegedly struck a juvenile. He was arraigned in City Court and released.

James T. Hardaway, 39, of Utica Street, Brockport, is charged with speeding, unlicensed operation, and DWI. Hardaway was stopped on April 30 on Clinton Street, Batavia, by Officer Joseph Weglarski. He was released on an appearance ticket.

Misty R. Scutt, 34, of Exchange Street, Attica, is charged with driving while ability impaired by drugs. Scutt was the subject of a traffic stop by Officer Joseph Weglaski on Jan. 28 in the City of Batavia and arrested on April 28 following the return of a lab analysis of a blood sample. She was issued an appearance ticket.

Hunter M. Passage, 22, of Dellinger Avenue, Batavia, is charged with no headlamps, speed in zone, and driving while ability impaired by drugs. Passage was stopped at a gas station on West Main Street, Batavia, by Sgt. Mitch Cowen on April 27. He was issued an appearance ticket.

It's doubtful the folks who gathered at Churchill Downs in Louisville had much more fun than the nearly 250 people who gathered at Terry Hills on Saturday for the 10th Annual Derby Day to benefit the Michael Napoleone Memorial Foundation.

Before the big race, attendees socialized and participated in a fast-paced live auction led by Todd Jantzi from Bontrager's Auction House.

The bidding was quite competitive. For example, a four-night stay at Palm Harbor in Florida for up to 11 guests attracted a lot of attention.

Keith and Jill O'Neill, from Pendleton, were particularly excited to win the vacation package.  Keith said he wasn't sure how much it was worth, but he was sure it was a bargain at $4,000.

He beat out at least four other bidders.

"This is the first time I've ever done anything like that in my life," Keith said. "So I feel good. It is so worth it. The charity the money is going to, the money couldn't go to a better place."

It is a fun event, but also bittersweet, said Laurie Napoleone, whose son Michael would have turned 25 this year, possibly graduating from college, if not for the cancer, Burkitt’s Lymphoma/Leukemia, that claimed his life when he was eight years old in 2007.

"We wish we could have Michael back with us," Laurie said. "It was tragic and the worst thing that happened in my life, but people rallied around us, they came together to help us and supported us, and supported us financially, and out of that came the foundation so we could pay it forward."

The foundation has paid out more than $900,000 to families in circumstances similar to the Napoleones.

As fun, as Derby Day is every year, there is a moment of serious contemplation every year when one of the families assisted by the foundation tells their story. This year, Laurie said, it was the Waterman family from Middleport.

"We work hard to make this a great, fun event," Laurie said. "But the flip side is, we have to help out families with kids who are facing the challenge of cancer. Every year, we have somebody come and tell their story, and it's always hard to hear. It's emotional. It's heart-wrenching, but it's why we're here."

The Richmond Memorial Library is a community center, and so a place where everybody should find a fun and friendly place to visit, said Beth Paine, the library's new director.

Paine started her job in February but has been busy the past several months getting settled into the job. On Saturday, community members were invited to the library to meet her and socialize.

"No one should ever feel they are not welcome here," Paine said. "We're a happy place. So much is going on in a world that is depressing and upsetting, and here we're happy, and we love our patrons, and we're an open source for any kind of information."

The previous director, Bob Conrad, took a new job downstate, and after an extensive search, New York native Paine was selected by the library board. 

Paine has held the director's position at three other libraries in New York -- Sydney, Watkins Glen, and Prattsburg.

She said she's impressed with the Richmond Memorial Library and its staff.

"The programming here is amazing," Paine said. "The staff is very good with the patrons."

There are a few things she would like to upgrade, she said.

"We're looking at getting more Wi-Fi access points and adding in a little bit of more security, and expanding the collections in certain areas that have been not used as much," Paine said. "Right now, there's really not a whole lot to improve. It's a great library, I'm really excited to be here."

She said she has an open-door policy for patrons and wants to hear from them when they have suggestions or issues to discuss.

Now that she's settled in, she plans to be out in the community more.  She is going to a Batavia Rotary Club meeting soon to make a presentation, and she also plans to start volunteering at the animal shelter.

"That's what I've done for many years," Paine said. "I volunteered at the Yates County shelter when I lived in Penn Yan, and then when I moved to Delaware County, I volunteered at the one there, and so now that I'm here, I plan on offering my dog walking services. That's usually what I do."

Previously: New director invites you to 'stop by and say hi' at RML

Before sending him to prison for 10 years, Judge Melissa Lightcap Cianfrini wondered at the criminal history of Arthur Brown, 45, of Le Roy, whom she observed is clearly intelligent, is well-spoken, and knows to advocate for himself.

Why, she wondered, why he keeps engaging in criminal activity when Brown could do so much more with his life.

Brown was sentenced on three separate criminal cases, the most notorious, an incident in September 2021 when he fled from a traffic stop after being seen driving erratically on Route 33 through Bergen and Stafford.  Brown ran into a cornfield, and Deputy Kevin Quackenbush started a foot pursuit but stopped when he apparently saw Brown pull a handgun from his waistband.  Quackenbush retreated, and then there was a loud bang.

Quackenbush reported to dispatch, "shots fired." This was the start of a several-hour, multi-department manhunt that eventually led to the arrest of Brown and the recovery of a handgun.  The loud bangs turned out to be from a wildlife scare cannon.

Brown has consistently maintained that the gun officers found was not his, and on Friday, he accused of Quckenbush of not telling the whole truth about the incident, such as, he said, Brown's DNA wasn't on the gun nor were his fingerprints.

ADA Joseph Robinson noted after Brown's statement that the gun wasn't checked for fingerprints.

After initially indicating he intended to take the charges against him to a jury, in February, he entered guilty pleas to multiple charges, including second-degree attempted criminal possession of a weapon, a Class D violent offense, third-degree attempted criminal possession of a narcotic drug with intent to sell, a Class B felony, in connection with an arrest in January of this year in the City of Batavia, and to one count of violating the Sex Offender Registration Act, a Class E felony, for failing to register as a sex offender upon a change of address.

In arguing for the maximum possible sentence against Brown (the 10 years Cianfrini eventually imposed), Robinson said that Brown's long criminal history and habit of saying things that attempt to explain away or minimize his criminal activity made him a danger to society.

Robinson listed Brown's past criminal activity:

• In 1994, Brown was adjudicated a youthful offender in a criminal case and violated probation within a year.
• In 1995, he was sentenced to a year in jail.
• In 1998, he was sentenced to seven years in prison on a robbery 2nd conviction.
• In 2005, he was convicted of rape 3rd and sentenced to 18 months to three years in prison.
• In 2010 he as conflicted of criminal sale of a controlled substance 4th and sentenced to two years in prison.
• In 2015, he was convicted of two sexual offender registration violations.
• In was released from prison on that conviction in 2021 one, just weeks before the incident on Clinton Street Road.

The plea Brown accepted, Robinson said, satisfied not only the pending charges already filed against Brown but also four ongoing drug dealing investigations being conducted by the Local Drug Task Force that had not yet led to charges.

Robinson said Brown seems to spend more time in prison and free.

"If he's not serving time on a conviction, he's out committing more crimes," Robison said.

Robinson noted that Brown hasn't accepted responsibility for possessing a gun in September, and he said that when Brown was accused of possessing a bag of cocaine, Brown told probation officers during his pre-sentence interview that officers found the bag in a bush and not on his person.  That was an example, Robinson said, of the defendant minimizing his responsibility for his actions. 

Another dealt with Brown's SORA violation.  Brown said, according to Robinson, that he didn't think he needed to register a change of address because he merely moved from one room to another in a hotel complex.  

Defense attorney Joseph Lobosco said his client did accept responsibility for his actions and suggested that Robinson was mischaracterizing Brown's interview with probation officers. He said the interview took hours, and the report didn't include direct quotes from Brown but paraphrases from officers written after the interview.

Brown said it was unfair of the ADA to he didn't accept responsibility for his crimes. 

He said there was the DNA of three other people on the gun but not his.  He also complained that a confidential informant used in the drug sales investigation was facing six criminal charges, which wasn't disclosed, he said. 

"I take responsibility for what I've done, and I don't make excuses," Brown said. "But I don't take responsibility for what I didn't do." 

Cianfrini said she hopes Brown will use his time in prison to better his life, to learn new skills, and reflect on the direction his life has taken.

"You could do something worthwhile with your life," she said.

On the SORA violation, Cianfrini sentenced him to 2 to 4 years in prison. On the attempted criminal possession of a weapon conviction, seven years in prison. On the criminal possession of a controlled substance conviction, 10 years in prison.  All sentences are to be served concurrently.

Previously:

• Le Roy man in 'shots fired' case accepts plea deal
• County ADA offers seven-to-eight-year sentencing deal to LeRoyan facing numerous felony charges
• Criminal cases against Le Roy man, including 'shots fired' case, hinge on missing video evidence
• BREAKING NEWS: Shots fired after vehicle stopped on Route 33, near Mill Road