Stories from

A three-vehicle accident, believed to be with injuries, is reported at Lewiston Road and Batavia Oakfield Townline Road, Batavia.

A camper has rolled over and a person is believed to be trapped.

Town of Batavia Fire and Mercy EMS responding.

UPDATE 1:39 p.m.: The location is in Oakfield's district. Oakfield Fire responding, Batavia to continue. Non-emergency response.  Minor injuries.

UPDATE 2:50 p.m.: The red Buick was westbound on Batavia Oakfield Townline Road and the white Ford pickup was north on Route 63.  The Buick pulled out in front of the pickup, according to Trooper Michael Machniak.  There were only minor injuries. All occupants were sign-offs.

Photos by Howard Owens

Genesee County Sheriff's dispatch reports that he's received walk-up complaints of a person in a green hoodie and black pants on Main Street near Center Street walking up to people and spitting on them.

Batavia patrol officers responding.

UPDATE 2 p.m.: Sheriff William Sheron received a phone call reporting that a man was on Main Street spitting on people. He radioed the report to dispatch. Police on scene said that upon arrival, they were told that the man had spit on two women. The first woman had left the scene, and the second woman declined to press charges. The police interviewed the man and sent him on his way.

Police officers unselfishly protect the community, Batavia Det. Matthew J. Wojtaszczyk said Monday at St. Joseph's Cemetery during a ceremony to honor those who worked the streets of the city and were eventually laid to rest.

"I want to sincerely thank everyone who had a hand in this process of locating and honoring former members of the city of Batavia Police Department," said Wojtaszczyk, who is president of the Batavia Police Benevolent Association. "They dedicated their lives to a career of service for our community. From the inception of our police department in 1915 to today, the world of policing has certainly changed. But a constant throughout time has been the continued sacrifice of our men and women in blue. The officers we honor today face the daily risks of being police officers. They knew that when they put on their uniform, they would selflessly protect our community and our citizens, and that often meant placing themselves in dangerous situations."

The ceremony's purpose, said Chief Shawn Heubusch, was to honor those who gave a good portion of their lives to protect Batavia's people and property.

"Members we're recognizing today spent a significant amount of time as members of the department," Heubusch said. "Generally, they all retired from the department with at least 20 years of service to our community, many in excess of that. There are approximately 50 deceased officers buried in four cemeteries across Genesee County, including 34 here at St. Joe's and in Elmwood Cemetery."

Flag holders and Batavia PD flags, donated by H.E. Turner Funeral Home, were placed at the gravesite of each of these officers.

"It took an extraordinary effort and commitment to research the names of our deceased brethren in their final resting places," Heubusch said. "I want to recognize the two individuals who rightly deserve our gratitude and thanks. That's Rich Schauf and Steve Robinson."

Steve Johnson, of H.E. Turner, said the funeral home stepped in to assist with the donation because of the company's history, going back to 1910, of supporting local law enforcement. 

"We're honored to be here to be a part of today's event, and are committed to ensuring that no Batavia police officer's final resting place goes without recognition," Johnson said. "To that end, I'd also like to announce that we have extended this offer to the Genesee County Sheriff's Office and both the Le Roy and Corfu police departments, to provide resources and funding for similar memorials at their officers' graves." 

At the gravesite of Anthony Horsch, Batavia's first chief of police, his great-great-grandson David Pixley noted that seeing the gravesite flags was meaningful to his family because so many of its members, in various parts of the nation, have or do serve in law enforcement. 

Wojtaszczyk said local officers were grateful for the recognition because they give up a lot to serve their community.

"There are many things a police officer knows when they sign up for this career,"  Wojtaszczyk said. "Police officers know they will work difficult hours. Police officers know they will miss birthday parties, family events and holidays. Police Officers know that at a moment's notice they will run toward danger without hesitation. Police officers know that we'll see people who are at their worst and perhaps lowest points. And finally, police officers know that we'll be expected to make split-second decisions that will be scrutinized and critiqued afterward. In spite of this, they all choose a life of service and sacrifice."

Table: Former Batavia PD officers whose gravesites are located locally.  Heubusch invited family members of former police officers were weren't included this year to contact the department to correct the unintentional oversight.

Name

Date of Birth

Date of Death

Years of Service

James J. Aquino

1920

2003

1950 – 1974

Gasper S. Baudanza

1906

1983

1931 – 1969

Robert G. Casper Sr.

1929

2008

1957-1977

Robert L. DeFreze

1927

2010

1959-1980

Albert G. DelBridge

1897

1960

1915-1952

Larry J. Falkowski

1921

2009

1942-1975

John J. Gravante

1934

2021

1959-1979

Anthony J. Horcsh

1854

1919

1890-1916

William C. Krantz

1901

1971

1933-1946

Frank A. Lachnicht

1937

2008

1966-1996

Andrew J. McCulley

1854

1931

1886-1931

Anthony J. Monteleone

1927

1984

1956-1977

Peter N. Nichols

1929

1980

1952-1978

Richard F. Pastecki

1928

1994

1957-1979

Frank S. Rodon

1911

1993

1936-1966

Bernard J. Ronan

1933

2015

1963-1985

Frank J. Rugala

1924

1990

1952-1974

Edward J. Santora

N/A

2007

1948-1969

Milford J. Smith

1904

1961

1923-1961

Grandview Cemetery:

Robert R. Currier

1930

2012

1964-1984

Earl F. Davis

1923

2001

1947-1981

Robert S. Dombrowski

1939

2016

1962-1993

Matty W. Hamera

1927

2002

1957-1976

Arthur J. Luplow

1881

1962

1915-1941

George K. McCurdy

1907

1977

1936-1971

Salvatore I. Sanfratello

1915

2001

1950-1972

Lloyd “Bud” G. Silvernail

1959

2013

1987-1993

Herbert Snyder

1887

1966

1915-1944

Richard F. Vanderwalker

1931

1996

1962-1987

Elmwood Cemetery:

William J. Lewis

1944

2019

1966-1987

Carl Salway

1890

1945

1921-1944

Charles Lewis Snell

1907

1979

1942-1971

Top photo: At the gravesite of Anthony Horsch, the first police chief of Batavia PD, he is saluted by his great-great-grandson David Pixley

Photos by Howard Owens

Chief Shawn Heubusch

Steve Robinson

Steve Johnson

Eugene Jankowski

Matthew J. Wojtaszczyk 

Brayden Smith (top photo) of Elba grinded his way to his first sectional title in Class C in golf on Saturday with a round of  82 at Clifton Springs Country Club.

After finding himself four over par after the first two holes, Smith settled in and used his short game to secure par-after-par, finishing out the front nine with four straight followed by five pars on the final six holes to move ahead of teammate and two-time defending champion CJ Gottler who lost ground with penalty strokes down the stretch. Gottler shot an 86.  

Byron Bergen's Ryan Muscarella finished third with a round of 90.

Photos by Kristen Smith.  For more, click here. 

CJ Gottler

A 60-unit housing development in a R-3 zoned area off of Lake Road in Le Roy received unanimous approval on Wednesday.

Eric Biscaro, who built and operates Clinton Crossings in Batavia, has said the complex will consist of  30 duplex homes on 16 acres off Route 19. The complex will be open only to people aged 50 and older.

Of the 16 acres, only about five acres will be developed.

Even though the property is zoned R-3, Biscaro did need to seek a one-time special use permit from the planning board, which the board approved 5-0.

Previously: Housing community in Le Roy will be neighborly, developer tells nearby residents

 

State Police Troop A held its 41st Memorial Day for fallen troopers at the Batavia Barracks on Thursday.

Photos by Alecia Kaus/Video News Service.

Sunset shots from Thursday by Chris Crocker in Stafford (top) and Joannne Meiser in Indian Falls (below).

A Rochester man was arrested yesterday on a charge of petit larceny after allegedly stealing two crossbows from Dick's Sporting Goods on Veterans Memorial in Batavia.

Staff at Dick's reported a theft of crossbows as the suspect drove away and provided dispatchers with a description of the vehicle. 

A car driven by William Jefferey Gould, 39, of Affinity Lane, Rochester, was later stopped by State Police on I-490 and the crossbows were recovered.

Gould was also reportedly driving a stolen car from Freece.

The theft of the crossbows was investigated by Deputy Eric Meyer and Deputy Ayrton Blankenberg.

Gould was released on appearance ticket and turned over to police officers in Greece.

More than 300 community volunteers turned out today for United Way's annual Day of Caring to perform a variety of tasks for local organizations.

Photos are from Crossroads House and Justice for Children.

At Crossroads, a family paid for a new cement walkway and patio and volunteers are planting a garden so that those staying at Crossroads can be taken outside and enjoy a bit of nature.

The groups receiving assistance: 

• Purple Pony
• Peace Garden
• Holland Land Office
• Town of Batavia
• Machpelah
• Crossroads House
• St. Max Kolbe
• GO ART!
• All Babies Cherished
• UMMC
• Gillam Grant
• ABCD
• Eagle Star
• Lifetime Assistance
• Community Garden
• St. Joe's
• St. James
• Justice for Children
• Batavia Cemetery
• BEA- Jr. Achievement
• CCE
• Notre Dame
• Batavia Housing Authority
• Warrior House
• Arc Glow-Elba House
• Tops Food Drive-Arc GLOW

Christopher C. Say is indicted in counts of assault 2nd, criminal possession of a weapon 3rd, attempted arson 3rd, criminal mischief 2nd, making a terroristic threat, and criminal mischief 4th. Say is accused of using a dangerous instrument to cause serious injury to another person on Dec. 26 in the Town of Stafford. He is accused of using brass knuckles. He is attempting to start a fire to damage a detached garage at a location on Main Road in Stafford. He is accused of damaging the property of another person in excess of $1,000 in value. He is accused of threatening several troopers, deputies, and firefighters. He is accused of damaging an armored police vehicle. (Click here for previous reports of this incident.)

Adam E. Bortle is indicted on counts of promoting prison contraband 1st and three counts of criminal possession of a controlled substance 7th. Bortle is accused of bringing narcotics into the Genesee County Jail on March 20, specifically Alprazolam, Fentanyl, and cocaine.

Gerard H. Altenburg is indicted on counts of felony DWI, felony driving with a BAC of .18 or greater, and reckless driving. Altenburg is accused of driving a 2006 Dodge on Route 5 in the Town of Pembroke while intoxicated on Dec. 1. He was previously convicted of DWI in the Town of Pembroke in June 2016.

Eric T. McGrain is indicted on a count of felony DWI.  He is accused of driving a 2019 Chevrolet on Jan. 8 in the Town of Batavia. He was previously convicted of DWI in June 2012 in the Town of Greece.

Marcella F. Greene is indicted on counts of criminal possession of a controlled substance 3rd and criminal possession of a controlled substance 7th. Greene is accused of possessing cocaine in a quantity significant enough to sell and a quantity of Fentynal on Dec. 21 in the Town of Batavia.

Edward S. Demetsenaere is indicted on counts of felony DWI and aggravated unlicensed operation. Demetsenaere is accused of driving drunk on Oct. 27 in the Town of Pavilion.

David B. Kenjockety is indicted on counts of felony DWI, felony driving with a BAC of .18 or greater, and aggravated unlicensed operation. Kenjockety is accused of driving drunk on Aug. 13 in the Town of Darien. 

Jason P. Gorton is indicted on a count of assault 1st. Gorton is accused of causing serious injury to another person by use of a dangerous instrument, a mobile phone.

Isaac D. Abrams is indicted on counts of burglary 1st and assault 3rd. Abrams is accused of entering a dwelling on Bloomingdale Road, Town of Alabama on Dec. 28 with the intent of committing a crime. He is accused of causing injury to another person.

Stephen S. Bogle, 35, of Batavia, is charged with grand larceny 3rd and falsifying business records 1st. Bogle is accused of going to his place of employment on Bank Street, Batavia, and punching in, then leaving for eight to 12 hours, then punching out, without ever physically being present at work. He is accused of stealing $13,148.63 as a result of this scheme.  He was arraigned in City Court and released on his own recognizance. 

Gerald Brinson Jr., 33, of Rochester, is charged with burglary 2nd, grand larceny 4th, criminal mischief 3rd, criminal possession of a weapon 3rd, endangering the welfare of a child, falsely reporting an incident 3rd, and menacing 2nd. At 9:30 a.m., May 17, Emergency Dispatch received a call of a disturbance and burglary in progress at a residence on Oak Street. Brinson is accused of entering the residence of a woman he knew and attacking her. According to Batavia PD, he was wanted on a gun case in Monroe County.  When patrols arrived, officers determined the victim and her year-old son had escaped from the residence but Brinson was still inside, refusing to exit. Officers from the Genesee County Sheriff's Office, NYS Police, and NYS Environmental Conservation arrived to assist. While Brinson Jr was inside the residence, he allegedly called in a fake report of gunfire on Ellicott Avenue. Eventually, Brinson Jr came out of the residence and was taken into custody. Brinson was arraigned in City Court and ordered held on $25,0000 bail, $50,000 bond, or $100,000 partially secured bond.

Tonya M. Weber, 38, of Batavia, is charged with petit larceny. Weber is accused of leaving a business on West Main Street, Batavia, at 5:40 p.m., April 13, with a bag of groceries without paying for them. She was released on an appearance ticket.

Steven M. Lindner, 49, of Albion, was arrested on a bench warrant. Lindner was wanted on a warrant out of City Court.  Linder was arraigned and the case was disposed by the judge. Lindner was released and does not need to return.

Dierdre A. Louchren, 56 of Batavia, is charged with failure to appear. Louchren was arrested on a warrant. She was originally arrested in 2020 on an abandonment of animals charge. Louchren was arraigned in City Court and ordered to appear on May 19.

Cheryl M. Figoura, 42, of Batavia, is charged with petit larceny. Figoura is accused of stealing money from her employer on Oak Street at 5 a.m., May 5.  She was issued an appearance ticket.

Christopher P. Thomas, 38, of Batavia, is charged with criminal mischief 4th. Thomas is accused of damaging another person's property on State Street, Batavia, at 1:22 p.m., April 23.  He was issued an appearance ticket.

Cynthia C. Richardson, 42, of Batavia, is charged with failing obligation of parent or guardian. On 12:59 a.m., May 5, Richardson allegedly failed to stop her child from going outside without a parent or guardian past curfew. Richardson was issued an appearance ticket.

Ashley M. Davis, 33, of Batavia, is charged with failing obligation of parent or guardian. On 12:59 a.m., May 5, Davis allegedly failed to stop her child from going outside without a parent or guardian past curfew. Davis was issued an appearance ticket.

Ronnie J. Flinchum, 63, of Batavia, is charged with harassment 2nd. Flinchum is accused of threatening physical contact with another person during a dispute reported at 8 p.m., April 28, on Bant Street, Batavia. Flinchum was issued an appearance ticket.

Jonathan Chisler, 31, of Bacon Street, Le Roy, is charged with aggravated harassment 2nd. Chisler was arrested following a complaint regarding an incident reported at 9:38 a.m., May 13, at a location on Union Street, Le Roy. He was issued an appearance ticket.

Ethan Thomas Cifeill, 24, of Bernd Road, Le Roy, is charged with petit larceny. Cifeill is accused of stealing something from a location on South Street, Le Roy, at 8:02 p.m., May 14.

Latoya Denise Jackson, 36, of State Street, is charged with criminal contempt 2nd, resisting arrest, obstruction of governmental administration, and criminal trespass 2nd. Jackson was allegedly at a property on West Main Street Road at 10:11 a.m., May 17, and refusing to leave. Jackson was arraigned in Town of Batavia Court and released on her own recognizance.

Michael David Wiedrich, 52, of Boyd Road, Pavilion, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater, and driving left of pavement markings. Wiedrich was stopped at 1:45 a.m., May 18, on North Street, Le Roy, by Deputy David Moore. He was released on appearance tickets.

Suzanne Marie Kennelly, 32, no address specified, Batavia, is charged with unlawful fleeing a police officer 3rd, DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater, speeding, and moving from lane unsafely. Kennelly is accused of failing to pull over at 7:14 p.m., May 6, when Deputy Trevor Sherwood attempted to stop her on Wight Road, Alabama.  She is scheduled to reappear in Town of Alabama Court at 6 p.m., July 5.

Michael James Fox, 37, of Park Avenue, Oakfield, is charged with forcible touching. Fox was arrested following a complaint lodged at 5 p.m., May 9, on Park Avenue, Oakfield. An order of protection was issued and he was released on his own recognizance.

Maria Lynn Dimartino, 56, of Rollin Circle, Batavia, is charged with petit larceny. Dimartino is accused of using the bar code on a 32-inch TV to purchase a 50-inch TV at BJ's Wholesale Club at 7:25 p.m., April 21.  She was issued an appearance ticket.

Pembroke High School held a special "assembly game" of its United Basketball team against the Pioneer Panthers, of Section VI, on Wednesday afternoon.

Unified Basketball, sanctioned by the NYS High School Athletics Association and Special Olympics, brings together teams of students with disabilities and those without to compete regionally.

"The purpose of an Assembly Game is to help spread the word about Unified sports and encourage more involvement, as well as provide some student-athletes with a once-in-a-lifetime experience to compete before a packed gymnasium of their peers," said Principal Nathan Work.  "This is a pretty big deal in the world of Special Olympics and Unified Sports."

Pembroke won 44-38.

After Town of Batavia Planning Board members gave the final approvals to Benderson Development for two new commercial buildings in the former Kmart parking lot on Lewiston Road, they had but one question: "who is it?"

The rep from Benderson wouldn't say.

He said he couldn't release the names until leases are signed. He said that lease signing could come soon for at least one potential tenant, with construction to begin on that building in July.

Benderson is planning:

• A 4,000-square-foot restaurant with a drive-thru and bypass lane to be located in the southwest corner of the property;

• A 6,752-square-foot retail/restaurant building with a 2,000-square-foot endcap coffee shop with drive-through in the southeast corner of the property.

On Tuesday, the planning board approved the project's environmental review, special use permit for a drive-through, and site review plan.  With those final approvals, Benderson is ready to sign agreements with the intended tenants of the buildings.

Before the vote on the special use permit, Chairwoman Kathy Jasinski noted that the only opposition had come from pizza shop owner Jerry Arena, who objected to the entire project.  She said it was her understanding that Arena had modified his position and town engineer Steve Mountain said that is correct. 

"He's not here tonight so I'm assuming that he's okay with that," Jasinski said. "So we really don't have any opposition." 

UPDATE: Jerry Arena said he was not aware of the meeting and that his position hasn't changed at all.  He still opposes the project.

Mega Properties is planning another massive warehouse for the Gateway II industrial park east of Route 98 in the Town of Batavia.

This time it will be a 200,000 square-foot warehouse available for area retailers to store inventory overstock.

Lucas Bushen, with Marathon Engineering, presented initial plans to the town planning board on Tuesday.  

He said there will be few employees at the warehouse at any one time, so only about 20 parking spaces will be needed.

A full environmental review is required for the building, and the planning board approved a resolution to be the lead agency on the review.

The 22-acre parcel is off of Call Parkway. It will be a Butler Building with typical remanufactured metal building elements: concrete foundation, metal siding, and sloped roof. 

The building will be constructed in phases with Phase One including 71,000 square feet of warehouse space and 3,200 square feet of office space.

There are two ponds on the property. In order to construct the building, one of the ponds will be relocated. There are also two federally designated wetlands on the property.  The wetlands will not be disturbed.

Mega Properties intends to invest more than $3 million into the project.

Mega Properties has long-standing ties to Batavia, having launched in Batavia’s Harvester Business Incubation Center more than 30 years ago. The business is currently based at the Gateway I Corporate Park in the Town of Batavia.

In 2020, just prior to the start of the pandemic, Mega Properties sought financial assistance from GCEDC for the project.  At the time, they were seeking approximately $558,497 in assistance, including a property tax exemption of $400,497, a sales tax exemption of $128,000, and a mortgage tax exemption of $30,000.

There was a public hearing on the request but the application did not go any further because of the disruption of the pandemic.  No announcement has been made yet on when the GCEDC board will next take up the application.

Top photo: Lucas Bushen presents plans for a warehouse off of Call Parkway in the Town of Batavia to the town's planning board. Photo by Howard Owens.  Below, drawings of the project from planning documents.

Benito Gay

Batavia PD responded to Subway, 412 E. Main St., at 5:56 p.m. after receiving a report of a robbery in progress, and upon arrival learned the suspect had fled in an easterly direction.

After obtaining a description of the suspect, officers located a man matching the description at an apartment complex on East Main.  He was taken into custody and identified as Benito A. Gay, 34, of Batavia.

He is charged with robbery and another unspecified charge. He was arraigned in City Court and ordered held without bail.

There were no weapons displayed during the robbery, police said. 

Additional evidence was recovered after Gay's arrest, according to police. 

He is scheduled to appear in City Court again at 1:30 p.m. May 19.

Gay has other prior arrests in Batavia, most recently in March when he was accused of stealing three beers from the Kwik Fill at Jackson and Ellicott.

This evening's sunset somewhere in Pembroke by Joanne Meiser.

A decision by the Alabama Town Board in April 2019 to oppose the installation of a roundabout at the intersection of Ledge Road and Route 77 has led to a lawsuit filed by an Oakfield woman who sustained severe injuries in an accident at that intersection on Oct. 2, 2020.

Marianne Molaro sustained permanent injures, "including but not limited to, a fracture of the cervical spine at the C-2 level," according to the suit filed in November by attorney Bradley D. Marble of Lockport on her behalf.

Also named is Genesee County; the other driver, Amber M. Messervey, of Naples; the owner of the car Masservey was driving; and Victor Chase, of Rochester. 

The amount of damages, if the plaintiff prevails, are left up to a jury, the suit states.

At the time of the accident, the DOT had not yet announced its decision to drop its proposal for a roundabout, or a traffic circle, at the intersection.  That decision wouldn't be made public until May 2021.

It's not clear that Molaro can recover damages from the town since Route 77 is property of New York State, and the Town has no authority to install or block a traffic circle at the intersection. Marble did not respond to a request for comment on the suit.

The state is not named in the suit.

The town's insurance agent is handling the legal response to the suit.

The suit seeks to hold both the town and the county liable for "negligent reckless and careless" action in "failing to provide a safe roadway" and in failing to "correct a known safety risk," in failing to "perform an adequate highway safety plan study; in failing to abide by a highway safety plan that provided a reasonable basis for the decisions made; failing to follow the guidance of the NYS DOT to install a roundabout at the location of the collision" and to fail to take any other reasonable action that could help prevent serious accidents at the intersection.

In 2019, the town sent a letter to the Department of Transportation opposing a proposed $1.8 million roundabout out of concern that "while it may decrease high-impact accidents, it will increase low-impact accidents, which will, in turn, increase the amount of emergency calls for our volunteer firemen."

The letter raised concerns about farmers moving equipment through the roundabout, plowing it in winter, increased noise from trucks slowing and applying their jake brakes, and the danger of traffic slowing as vehicles approach the roundabout.

"The proposed roundabout will be approximately 30 feet from a residence," the letter stated. "This poses a significant safety hazard to this property owner."

Supervisor Janet Sage signed the letter, along with Deputy Supervisor Kevin Fisher, board members Gordon Linsey, Jill Klotzbach, and William Cleveland.

The county is named in the suit even though the County Legislation declined in May 2019, when the Town of Alabama requested the County to join Alabama in opposing the roundabout.  Members of the Legislature listened to Highway Superintendent Tim Hens when he outlined why roundabouts help save lives.

Traffic engineers generally support roundabouts, they say, because roundabouts lead to a 60 percent reduction in all types of accidents and a 99 percent reduction in fatal accidents because they eliminate head-on and right-angle, high-speed collisions. 

On Oct. 2, 2020, Molaro was driving northbound on Alleghany Road when her vehicle was struck by one driven by Messervey, according to the suit, when she failed to stop for a stop sign in the eastbound portion of Ledge Road.

The Batavian requested a copy of the accident report, which is public record, from State Police, which, contrary to the state's open records law, declined the request.

During the state's proposal process for the roundabout, the DOT stated that between April 1, 2013, and May 31, 2018, there were 56 crashes in the area and 31 of them at the intersection. Two of the accidents were fatal.

The DOT said at the time of the proposal for a roundabout that they did consider alternative solutions and had implemented minor safety enhancements, such as upgraded signs and modified striping, but proposed a modern roundabout as the best solution to the propensity for accidents at the intersection. The engineers proposed an elliptical-shaped roundabout.

The intersection of Route 77 and Indian Falls Road is deemed safe in that it meets or exceeds all state and national design standards, according to a draft report released this week by the Office of Veterans Affairs.

The latest report is based on data and a study by an independent engineering firm, Larson Design Group.

The location is outside the Western New York National Cemetery, which opened a year-and-a-half ago and where two veterans (Christopher Rowell and Arnold Herdendorf, both of Lockport) were killed in a motor vehicle accident in September of 2021.

Glenn Elliott presented the report at a meeting hosted Monday in Corfu by Rep. Chris Jacobs. Elliott is the environmental director in the office of facility planning, construction and facility management at the VA.

"The draft study concludes that the intersection meets NYSDOT standards for sight distances and the US Federal Highways Administration Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices," Elliott said. "This is the standard used by roadway managers nationwide to install and maintain traffic control devices on all public streets, highways, bikeways and private roads open to the public."

He also said, "It finds that the sight distance is at the State Route 77 in Indian Falls Road intersection for greater than design criteria. Concluding sight distances do not propose a safety issue for traffic turning off Indian Falls Road. It concludes neither an all-way stop nor a traffic signal are required for the applicable criteria of METCB. It finds the expected crash frequency not significantly higher than the predicted crash frequency. Therefore safety performance is consistent with what is expected at this intersection. Since November 2020, when the cemetery opened, the crash frequency incident rate did not increase."

And, "The study finds that the expected crash frequency is not significantly higher than predicted crash frequency. Therefore, the safety and performance of the intersection is consistent with what is expected for this type of intersection."

However, because of the interest within the veterans' community in the safety of the intersection, the report reviews seven potential changes to the intersection.

• Eliminate the existing departure passing zones at the Indian Falls Road intersection.
• Install a flashing intersection control beacon or alternatively install side-mounted flashing warning devices along Route 77 intersection warning and involves road stops.
• Install rumble strips on the shoulder and centerline on State Route 77.
• Eliminate the existing departure and passing zone mentioned earlier.
• Installed larger right and left stop signs with reflected posts on Indian Falls Road, including placards for cross traffic does not stop at stop pavement markings on Indian Falls Road.
• Install larger intersection signs on State Route 77.
• Install a roundabout at the intersection of route 77 and Indian Falls Road.  

None of the possible changes are explicitly recommended though flashing beacons, signage and pavement markings, and a roundabout all score the best when mathematically weighted for effectiveness in reducing accidents.  Roundabouts reduce accidents by 60 percent and fatal accidents by 99 percent.

One suggestion by the study explicitly deemed ineffective is reducing the speed limit approaching the cemetery.

Jacobs said he organized the meeting in order to give community members a chance to review the report and make their own comments about it and potential changes to the intersection. 

"It is clear that more needs to be done to make this intersection safer for our veterans and our families who come to pay respects to our fallen heroes," Jacobs said. "I am committed to working with the veteran community to ensure meaningful changes are made."

For more details and for comments from among those who attended, watch the video above.