Press release:

The region’s largest seasonal employer is looking to fill approximately 2,500 open positions across its operations, including the amusement park, water park, lodging, entertainment, food, and retail departments.

More than 50 percent of eligible employees from 2013 plan to return to Darien Lake this season, including local area teachers, seniors, high school and college students. Returning employees, along with new team members, will support weekend and holiday operations starting May 10, with daily park operations beginning June 13. Staffing levels adjust during these time periods and increase once the season is in full swing. 

"There’s something special about working a summer job at Darien Lake,” said Jan Peters, Darien Lake director of human resources. “We’re looking for energetic, friendly applicants of all ages and backgrounds who are interested in learning new skills and helping to create memorable experiences for our guests. It’s hard not to have a fantastic summer when you’re around great people in an environment that’s as fun as Darien Lake.”

Immediate opportunities are available in food services, park services, ride operations, retail, accommodations, campground housekeeping, games, gift shop sales, aquatic operations, skilled trades and park maintenance, entertainment, guest services, safety and security.

Interested applicants can apply online at www.DarienLake.com/jobs or call the Darien Lake Job Line at 585-599-5108.

Press release:

Western Regional Off-Track Betting Corporation today reacted to media reports of the Seneca Nation of Indians’ purchase of 32 acres in the Town of Henrietta as a potential site for a gaming casino.

“Today’s announcement by the Seneca Nation of a significant land purchase in Henrietta for a casino gaming facility should not come as a shock to anyone,” said Michael P. Nolan, executive vice president/COO of WROTB. “Despite the fact that the casino compact of 2002 specifically allows them to operate only three casinos in the region, the Senecas never had any intention of abiding by the terms of that agreement. This land purchase only reinforces that point. The compact also provides that they will not use any of the Seneca Settlement Act funds for another casino. The use of these funds for another casino shows another potential breach of the compact by the Senecas.”

In 2002, the Seneca Nation signed a gaming compact with the State of New York, under the federal Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, which allowed the Seneca Nation to operate three “class III gaming” casino facilities. The Seneca Nation currently operates casinos in Buffalo, Niagara Falls, and Salamanca. 

With the land purchase by the Seneca Nation, Nolan believes that community opposition will grow exponentially.

“There is already significant opposition to the casino from residents of Henrietta, the business community, church and civic organizations, and a multitude of town boards and county legislative bodies throughout the region,” Nolan said. “Now that the Senecas’ intentions have taken a much more serious turn with the land purchase, I fully expect opposition to grow in terms of both numbers and intensity.”

Nolan vowed to work with local communities and opposition groups to stop casino gaming in Henrietta.

“This region is oversaturated with casino gaming, and another facility will cause irreparable harm to thousands of businesses, families, and municipalities throughout the region,” Nolan said.

Owned and operated by 15 Western New York counties and the cities of Rochester and Buffalo, Western Regional OTB is a public benefit corporation with headquarters in Batavia, NY. WROTB owns and operates 31 branches, as well as Batavia Downs Gaming, a standard bred racetrack and gaming facility.

Press release:

Vibrant Batavia and City leaders have scheduled meetings to include four designated neighborhoods in the series “Bringing Neighborhoods Together.” The purpose of the series is to follow up from the Coffee Talk hosted last fall and allow more opportunity for questions and sharing concerns. Other topics will include crime prevention and brainstorming on street-wide events and beautification projects for the Spring 2014. Postcard invitations will be mailed to residents within the designated neighborhoods.

Bringing Neighborhoods Together will encourage discussions about neighborhood concerns and start to list projects that will build confidence and pride in their community. Candidates will be recruited in each neighborhood to lead future neighborhood functions, such as block parties, neighborhood clean-up, neighborhood garage sales, etc.

Refreshments and snacks will be served at each of these events hosted 6-8 p.m. at City Hall. Residents living in the designated neighborhood are invited to attend on the following dates:

Southside (South of Ellicott Street, east of Tonawanda Creek)
Date: March 19

West Wedge (Southwest of the Tonawanda Creek)
Date: March 26

West End (North of Tonawanda Creek, west of Oak Street)
Date: April 2

Central Park District (North of Main Street, east of Oak Street and west of Bank Street)
Date: April 9

Vibrant Batavia is a community network organized to celebrate the past, build on the present and to create a more vibrant future. The volunteers work side-by-side with the City of Batavia, NeighborWorks® Rochester and the business community to strategically improve the City's neighborhoods and to promote a livable community of choice.

It's been another chilly day in Genesee County, but at least the sun's been out.

There is a wind-chill advisory in place for tonight starting at 6 p.m. Single-digit temperatures combined with winds of 10 to 15 mph should produce a wind chill of minus 15.

Photo: Kibbe Park, Batavia.

Three trees were removed by National Grid contractors today from Farrell Park as part of a project by the city this winter to take out 31 problem trees.

Two of the trees were diseased and the falling branches presented a hazard for children playing in the park. Another tree was a black walnut and the walnuts on the ground were a hazard for children, but also some youths were throwing them against the bathroom building and pavilion causing damage and trying to flush them down the toilets, causing damage.

The city intends to plant new trees, perhaps cherry or some other springtime flowering tree.

The Pavilion Fire Department received a $2,500 donation today from the Monsanto Fund, thanks to Roberta Klapper, of Noblehurst Farms.

Nate Holt, district sales manager for Monsanto, explained that the company started a program four years ago of making a donation to the charity of a farmer's choice in select counties across the nation. Each year, there are donations in more than 1,200 counties in 39 states.

It's not unusual for the selected farmer to pick a local fire department for the donation, Holt said.

"As I've done this over the years, it's been a chance to educate myself about volunteer fire departments," Holt said. "We tend to think that being a fire department they get funding through taxpayers, but no, that's not entirely the case. A good amount of their funding comes from chicken BBQs, pancake dinners, fundraising events that get them the money they need to support us when we need them the most."

Klapper said she appreciates what the volunteers in Pavilion do to keep the community safe.

"It's one of those organizations we all hope we never have to call upon, but when we do, we're glad to know they're there," Klapper said. "As a volunteer organization, we know they struggle with funds and we wanted to do what we could to help them."

Pictured are Roberta Klapper, representing Noblehurst Farms, Nate Holt, regional sales manager for Monsanto, Chad Freeman, Pavilion fire chief, and Doug Wright, Pavilion Fire District president.

A two-car accident with injuries is reported at 7170 Norton Road. Elba Fire Department and Mercy medics are responding, along with mutual aid from Town of Batavia fire. The location is between Edgerton and Ford roads. One subject "is now conscious but not alert."

UPDATE 1:39 p.m.: A crew is asked to be ready to set up a landing zone for Mercy Flight, if it is needed.

UPDATE 1:41 p.m.: Fire police are asked to shut down Norton at Ford Road and at Edgerton Road.

UPDATE 1:53 p.m.: Mercy Flight was called to the scene and is about to land.

UPDATE: Patient transported to ECMC. Elba cleared the scene shortly after 2 p.m.

Joshua Lee Baltz, 37, of Tracy Avenue, Batavia, is charged with unlawful possession of marijuana. Baltz allegedly was found to be carrying marijuana while entering the City Court facility.

John Robert Gerhardt, 64, of Centerline Road, Varysburg, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater and moving from lane unsafely. Gerhardt was stopped at 6:32 p.m. Friday on River Street, Batavia, by Deputy James Diehl.

Lisa M. Durham, 42, of Thorpe Street, Batavia, is charged with misapplication of property and falsifying business records, 1st. Durham allegedly rented merchandise from Rent-A-Center and pawned it at Pawn King.

Steven Michael Meyers, 34, of East Bethany - Le Roy Road, Bethany, is charged with menacing, 2nd. Meyers allegedly displayed a firearm during a dispute with another person.

Jenae M. Macleod, 29, of Genesee Street, Corfu, was arrested on a bench warrant out of City Court. Macleod was located by deputies from the Erie County Sheriff's Office during an investigation of an incident and discovered to have an active warrant. She was turned over to the Genesee County Sheriff's Office, arraigned, and jailed on $500 bail.

Tracy A. Hilton Sr., 33, of Jackson Street, Batavia, is charged with harassment, 2nd. Hilton was allegedly involved in a domestic incident at 12:07 a.m. Saturday.

Tyler D. Macey, 18, of Grandview Terrace, Batavia, is charged with strangulation, 2nd, acting in a manor likely to be injurious to a child and assault, 3rd. Macey is accused of being involved in a domestic incident.

Joshua A. Laraby, 23, of Byron, is charged with unlawful possession of marijuana and a traffic violation. Laraby was stopped at 5:56 p.m. Friday by State Police.

Daniel J. Laudico, 20, of Elba, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater, failure to keep right and speeding. Laudico was stopped at 1:02 a.m. Sunday on North Byron Road, Elba, by State Police.

After losing five starters from last year’s state semi-final team, not many people expected Batavia to reach the sectional finals this season…but they did.

Unfortunately, the magic ran out in the Class A2 at Blue Cross Arena tonight, as Geneva rolled to a 63-30 win.

The Blue Devils never led in the contest, as the Panthers dominated from start to finish.

“They’re very good, they have a lot of weapons,” said Batavia Head Coach Buddy Brasky. “Their game plan was good. They sat a few guys in the paint, and whenever Justice (Fagan) and Jeff (Redband) would get by their man, there would be two more waiting for them.”

Batavia hung tough in the first quarter, trailing by just five. But the second quarter was all Geneva.

The Panthers outscored the Blue Devils 17-3 in the frame and cruised into halftime with a 30-11 lead.

Batavia struggled to find their shot all night, as Redband scored all 11 of the team’s points in the first half and the team shot just 32 percent from the field for the game.

Geneva also cleaned the glass with ease all night, keeping Batavia without an offensive rebound until midway through the third quarter as James Sims Jr. and Terrell Johnson Jr. had their way.

“They were bigger and stronger than we were,” Brasky said. “They doubled our rebounding total; they killed us on the boards. They played better than us in every facet of the game.”

While Sims and Johnson took care of business inside, that left Steven Dolgos open all night and he responded with a season-high 19 points.

“Our concern was keeping Johnson and Sims away from the basket,” Brasky said. “We wanted to close out short and sag in to keep them away from the basket. He took advantage of what we were giving him.”

Dolgos was name tournament MVP after going 5-of-8 from behind the three-point arc.

While Redband had a respectable game, scoring 16 points, Justice Fagan never got going.

The senior who has been reliable all season long, was held to just five points on 2-of-7 shooting by Geneva’s Akia Johnson.

“He did a nice job, but it was more than just him,” Brasky said. “Any time Justice beat him, they had an extra guy standing right in the lane. They weren’t guarding a couple of our guys; they just stood them in the lane, so it was tough for Justice to get to the basket.”

Despite a tough end to the season, Batavia far surpassed many expectations from the start of the season.

“They’re a great group of kids,” Brasky said. “They were a true team, they played their role. We had no problems; they did everything I asked them to do. All they wanted to do was win. If they didn’t play their roles like that, they wouldn’t have gone to a sectional final this year. My hat is off to my team and I’m very proud to be their coach.”

Batavia finishes the season 14-6, while Geneva (19-2) advances to play Rochester East in the Class A regional play-in game.

Photos by Howard Owens.

To purchase prints, click here.

The basement of a home at the end of the street on Dawson Place in Batavia is flooding. According to city fire command on scene, it's already a foot deep and more water is flowing in with no way to stop it. So a city public works crew is going to have to shut down the water supply on the street temporarily to repair a broken pipe. It is said to be an ongoing problem on that street because of the configuration of the pipes. "We'll keep our fingers crossed," says command, hoping that the problem can be resolved quickly.

A one-vehicle rollover, just a minor injury, possibly a sign-off, is reported at 10719 Bethany Center Road. Bethany Fire Department is responding. The location is between Linden Road and Route 20.

UPDATE 3:48 p.m.: The Bethany assignment is back in service.

What more can Notre Dame Head Coach Mike Rapone accomplish in his career?

He became the first coach in Section V history to reach 600 wins. He’s won two state championships, 30 Genesee Region League championships, and after a 62-37 victory over Jasper-Troupsburg in the Class D1 final, he tied the Section V record for most sectional titles with nine.

“It’s all about the kids,” Rapone said. “The kids are the ones who earn it. We’re just along for the ride. It’s fun coaching these kids. It’s fun coming to practice every day. It’s the small reward I have for the great opportunity I have.”

Things looked bleak early for Notre Dame, as they found themselves down by 7 after the first quarter and as many as 10 at one point. But then they got some instant offense from perhaps an unlikely source.

Senior reserve Jason Hart (and Rapone’s neighbor) came off the bench to knock down four three-pointers in the first half to help propel the Irish back in front.

Hart would finish 5-for-5 from long range for the game and finished with a season-high 15 points.

“I was nervous coming into the game,” Hart said. “Coach made me the sixth man this year. He told me my role was to come off the bench and be a spark. Everybody knows their roles on this team and I filled mine today.”

The Fighting Irish outscored Jasper-Troupsburg 19-8 in the second quarter and were able to take a 30-26 lead into halftime and never looked back.

“We made a couple of changes on defense,” Rapone said. “That’s the way we’ve been playing all year. We’ve been playing good defense all year. And we have a few players that can make shots if they’re left open.”

The second half was all Notre Dame.

The Irish came out on fire to start the third quarter, opening on an 18-3 run.

Senior Alec Covel was a huge part of the surge, as he scored all 11 of his points on that streak, knocking down his first four shots of the second half.

If you are wondering why Tim McCulley hasn’t been mentioned, don’t worry.

McCulley had another monster game, scoring 16 of his game-high 24 points in the first half, while pulling down nine rebounds, dishing out four assists and making four steals.

“Tim is so steady, you don’t even notice what he’s doing,” Rapone said. “He kept chipping away and getting some baskets. Then Covel got hot to start the second half and broke it open.”

McCulley’s effort earned him tournament MVP honors, making him just the third player in school history to be selected to three sectional all-tournament teams.

“We’re on a big stage,” McCulley said. “Everyone was just so excited to be there. It’s just something so special. These are like my best friends, it means a lot.”

With his 9th sectional title in 18 championship game appearances, Rapone ties former Lyons Head Coach Dean Schott for most championships in the open tournament era (1975). It is quite remarkable, considering that Notre Dame had lost two out of three and was just 4-2 when the New Year began.

“We have seven or eight kids that are really good players, who don’t have every aspect of their game,” Rapone said. “We have a lot of good role players, and that showed tonight. I’m just so proud of these guys, because at the beginning of the year I didn’t know if we’d get there. We were struggling with people accepting their roles, but since January I couldn’t have asked for anything more.”

Covel and Hart joined McCulley on the all-tournament team, as they combined to go 8-of-10 from beyond the three-point arc.

Bryan Guild led the way for Jasper-Troupsburg (18-3) with 11 points and five rebounds, while Dalton Cady added 10 points and seven rebounds.

Notre Dame (18-3) will next take on Houghton Academy (12-10), who defeated RCMCS in the Class D1 title game 75-55.

The game will be played Tuesday at Letchworth High School, with tip-off at 7 p.m. The winner will represent Section V in the Far West Regional next Saturday at Buffalo State College.

Photos by Howard Owens.

To purchase photos, click here.

The historic run by the Pembroke Girls Basketball Team came to an end just one victory shy of their goal…to win the first sectional championship in school history.

The Lady Dragons were out-muscled all night long, as they fell to Lyons, 50-36, in the Class C2 championship game.

It became apparent very early in the contest that Lyons would have the upper hand on the glass, as they out-rebounded Pembroke 30 to 9 in the first half, with 17 of them coming on the offensive boards.

“We knew that rebounding was going to be the key,” said Pembroke Head Coach Mike Wilson. “We planned for it. We tried to take some of their bigger kids out of it, but we weren’t able to do that. They just out-rebounded us.”

Despite the massive advantage on the boards, the Lady Dragons kept things close, trailing by just three at halftime after a pair of back-to-back three-pointers from Breanna Johnson to end the second quarter.

Pembroke got off to a strong start coming out of halftime as senior Chance Alexyn scored four quick points, but things quickly slid down hill.

Lyons would hold Pembroke to one point in the final 7:07 of the third quarter as they used a 12-1, to pull away for good, as turnovers doomed the Dragons.

“We’ve been turning the ball over 15 times or less per game for the last month,” Wilson said. “But we probably had 15 in that quarter. We were sloppy with the basketball. We gave them too many second-chance opportunities.”

Tournament MVP Abbie Shields dominated all night for the Lions, as she scored 17 points, grabbed 23 rebounds (12 offensive), and three blocks.

Meanwhile, Pembroke star Breanna Johnson struggled to find her shot throughout the match.

The senior class valedictorian managed just three points in the second half and was held without a field goal.

“We didn’t make enough baskets,” Wilson said. “We just didn’t finish. We’ve been finishing shots; we’ve been playing well down the stretch. Unfortunately we came up short.”

Despite the loss, the Dragons had one of their most successful seasons in school history and perhaps the best player to play in the program has played her final game.

Johnson finished with 11 points and four assists in her final high school game and her performance was good enough to earn her all-tournament team honors alongside her sister, Aralyse, and Alexyn.

“All of my seniors are very special to me,” Wilson said. “Bre and I definitely have a special connection. We’ve spent a lot of time developing her game. She has been nothing but dedicated to what we have wanted to do.”

Alexyn had a solid outing in her last game, scoring 10 points, pulling down four rebounds and three steals for Pembroke (15-6).

Lyons out-rebounded the Dragons 54-21 for the game, with 28 of those coming on the offensive boards.

Taniqua Johnson was also named to the all-tournament team for Lyons, as she scored a game-high 18 points and added 15 rebounds.

Photos by Howard Owens.

To purchase prints, click here.

It was five years ago today that Billie and I took over ownership of The Batavian.

The Batavian began May 1, 2008 as a project I headed for Fairport-based GateHouse Media, but at the end of February, 2009, GateHouse changed directions with their internet strategy and The Batavian became available to us if we wanted it.

As transplants from California, Billie and I found we really loved Western New York and didn't want to leave, and I also firmly believed in The Batavian and the need to prove that there was an audience in a typical American community for local online news and advertising.

The Batavian is now one of the leading online-only news sites in the country -- the subject of books, national media columns and news coverage and closely watched by those in the news industry who fret over the future of local journalism.

But most importantly is how Billie and I have been welcomed and embraced by the Genesee County community.  We're so grateful for the support of local residents and local businesses.  We've made so many good friends and received so much appreciation for what we do with The Batavian that we sometimes feel amazed by the support.

Thank you to all of you for five great years. We look forward to covering the news of Genesee County and doing all we can to promote local businesses for years to come.

The way Head Coach Dave Peru figured it, if his Fighting Irish girls could hold Bishop Kearney to 60 or fewer points, Notre Dame could walk away with the Section V Class B2 title.

While ND held Kearney to 55, what Pero didn't count on was his team hitting less than 15 percent of its shots from the field.

"I don't think it was a case of nerves," Pero said of his team, which won a Class D state championship last season. "It's just a matter of us not being able to put the ball in the basket. You're going to have games like that."

Kearney took the title with a 55-31 win.

In all, the Irish missed 55 shots.

Pero thought Notre Dame had a good plan for dealing with Kearney's press and the Irish even seemed to have the Kings winded at the half.

The Irish got some great opportunities to score as a result of breaking through the press, Pero said, but the ball just wouldn't drop through the hoop.

"They've got a great team over there," Pero said. "I'm very proud of what we brought to the table. Our kids played hard. I think if we could have gotten a few shots knocked down for us, who knows what could have happened."

This was the final game for five Notre Dame seniors, and coming out with two minutes to play was clearly an emotional moment for team leaders Laurie Call and Mel Taylor.

"I'm so proud of (the team)," Pero said. "They're a great group of girls. I'd take these girls anywhere. For the seniors, we're going to miss them, but for next season, we start working again tomorrow."

Taylor finished with eight points, as did Shea Norton. Taylor and Norton where named to the tournament's all-star team. Emma Francis scored six.

For Kearney, BriAsia Mason scored 15, Emmanuella Edoka, 11, and Arianne Smith, 10. Mason hit three threes.

To purchase prints of photos, click here.

Fire police are shutting down all westbound traffic on Route 5 at Lake Road to accommodate emergency traffic following a structure fire in the 5000 block of Main Road, Pembroke. It was a fire in an apartment over a garage which is now out. A code enforcement officer is requested to the scene. East Pembroke and Pembroke fire are among the responders.

UPDATE 1:20 p.m.: Corfu Fire Chief Brian Schollard told Alecia Kaus at the scene that when firefighters arrived they saw smoke and flames coming from a second-story window above the garage. The structure is a single-family home with two separate sides, above a garage. Two people were inside at the time, a mother and her son. One was watching TV and the other was sleeping. They were able to exit the building safely. The fire started in a bedroom closet. The right side is uninhabitable. The power is off and if it can be restored, the occupants plan to stay in the left side. But that remains unknown at this point. Route 5 was closed for a couple of hours and seven fire departments responded to the scene -- Corfu, Pembroke, East Pembroke, Indian Falls, Alabama, Darien, as well as Akron. A Crittenden crew stood by in their quarters.

Christine Crocker doesn't have a lot of patience for people who steal bottles of booze from her store.

She's posted the mug shots of shoplifters inside her store and yesterday she chased one down Main Street onto Jackson and confronted him.

Crocker owns YNGodess Shop in Batavia.

Yesterday, at about 2 p.m., a man came into the store and walked up to the counter with a bottle of whiskey he wanted to buy.

The man was obviously intoxicated, Crocker said, and so she told him she couldn't sell him the bottle.

"But I'm not driving," he said, according to Crocker.

"It doesn't matter. It's the law. I can't sell to you," Crocker told him.

The man said he was sorry and walked out.

"I was still concerned for other people in the city that he could be driving while he was loaded," Crocker said.

Crocker looked out her front door soon after he left. At that point, she said, she saw him pull a bottle of Jack Daniel's Honey from his pocket.

She chased him down and caught up with him on Jackson Street. He tried hiding the bottle behind his back, denying he had it, she said.

She told him she knew he had it and then he admitted he did and gave it back.

"Prepare to be arrested," Crocker told the man.

At that point, the man took off running.

Crocker returned to the store, called the police and officers responded immediately. 

Later today, Crocker said, she will be providing police with surveillance photos to help police identify the suspect.

It seems hard to believe, but Tompkins Insurance has outgrown its space in the Bank of Castile building at 90 Main St., Batavia, according to Executive VP David Boyce.

Boyce confirmed this afternoon that Tompkins is in the process of acquiring the two-story commercial building at the corner of Main and Center streets with the intention of expanding its call center in that location.

"We have had great success in the bank building across the street, but I didn't think we would outgrow it in nine years," Boyce said. "I guess that was a little short-sighted on my part and Jim Fulmer's, but we've had great success hiring great people from the area."

The call center, Boyce said, is a "care center" in Tompkins vernacular. It's where customer service reps field incoming phone calls from the company's 36,000 private insurance clients.

Tompkins is acquiring the building from Ken Mistler, who owns as many as 10 Downtown properties. Its primary tenants are both on the first floor -- WBTA AM-1490 and Optique Optical.

Boyce said he would defer for the time being in sharing the purchase price but said the company will be making a significant investment in renovating the second floor of the structure.

The property at 113 Main St., is assessed at $325,000.

Boyce said the company is likely to apply to Genesee County Economic Development Center for a sales tax exemption on the building renovations and a PILOT on any increase in accessed value.