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Of the hundreds of incidents and memories that retiring Genesee County Sheriff William Sheron will be taking with him, there’s no one particular instance that he holds dear, he says.

“I think it’s kind of cliche, but the people you get to work with, not only here in the sheriff’s office, but the fellow law enforcement officers, the emergency responders, the volunteer firemen, are incredible,” Sheron said Monday during his last day at the sheriff’s Park Road office. “Those are the things that really stand out to me, and just the opportunities I’ve had over the many years I’ve been here and the great people I’ve had to work with.”

Sheron began his career on June 4, 1977, at the age of 18 as an emergency dispatcher. On Monday, he was preparing for the official “walk-out.” Several deputies, county officials, friends and family members lined the sidewalk to salute and applaud the outgoing sheriff’s accomplishments and nearly five decades of service in law enforcement.  

Before that could happen, he gave the final call over the radio: “Genesee One. GS-1, after 47 years of service, is out of service. Thank you to everybody. I appreciate the opportunities I’ve had, and God bless you all.”

Dispatch responded, “GS-1 out of service. Thank you for your 47 years of service and dedication to the community of Genesee County. Best of luck on your future endeavors.”

And, with that, Sheron pulled his hat on, topping off his dress uniform, and he and wife Shari linked arms and began to walk down the sidewalk during an emotional salute. 

“I’m very proud of what he's accomplished, starting from dispatcher all the way up to Sheriff,” Shari said. “And I'm just very proud of him.”

Frank Riccobono has known the sheriff for nearly all of his time with Genesee County, having also worked his way up from an auxiliary police officer in 1980 to director of emergency communications. 

“I’ve had a long career with Bill. He’s been a great leader. Not just a leader, but a good friend, and he's often helped me out, been great in guidance. Obviously, I've worked my way up through, and he's been there every step of the way. And I can't thank him enough,” Riccobono said. “It’s going to be different, especially because now I'm the old guy. So it's definitely going to be different with both Bills — both Bill Zipfel and Bill Sheron — retiring. That's a lot of experience that's gone out the door, and luckily, we have good people still here, but they both have big shoes that we're going to have to fill.” 

Batavia City Police Chief Shawn Heubusch described Sheron as a “consummate gentleman” and someone who was “always there to lend a helping hand.”

“Any time there's a major incident or a major critical incident, Bill's always been there with whatever we needed. He's always been able to help us out. And personally, I've leaned on him for support and guidance through helping me become the chief that I am. So he's a good man, a real good man,” Heubusch said. “He’s got a really good successor in place, and Joe, Sheriff Graff, I think he's got big shoes to fill, but he's been around a long time. He's not like he's only got three years on the job; he’s been around for 20-plus years, and he's been around this organization for 20 years, which is important. He knows the inner workings. We have a great working relationship now. I don't expect anything to change, I think our relationship will just continue to grow.”

Meanwhile, Sheron said it would take some time to figure out what to do next. He has “mixed emotions” about leaving and plans to spend some time in warmer weather for a while.

“I love working here; it's my second family. I've always said that the people here are like my children now, brothers and sisters. So it's mixed emotions. I know it's time to move on, it's time for new blood in here, and I just think that I don't know, I'm gonna wait till the dust settles, and then it'll hit home, and I'll decide what I'm going to do from here. There are a few things going around in my head, but nothing concrete right now,” he said. “We're going to take a little time in Florida, and then I'm sure I'll come up with something. Between my wife and I, we’ll find something for me to do.”

To the many people who knew former Batavia High School teacher and principal Glenn Young — from family and friends to students and colleagues — he served as an inspiration. He made a difference as a favorite teacher and fair administrator.

“This man was an amazing person to work with and for. I have nothing but respect for him,” Burton Howell said. “My thoughts and prayers are with the family and I remember so fondly him telling everyone about his nephew that might get drafted from Arizona and how cool that story ended up.” 

As a former Batavia resident and BHS graduate, Young grew up on a dairy farm outside of Potsdam before that and joined the Army after he graduated high school. He served in Germany during the Korean War and worked his way through college at Potsdam University as a police officer for the city of Potsdam. 

After graduating with a bachelor’s degree in 1964, he took a position at BHS as a history teacher. In 1985, he became principal of the school until he retired 10 years later. 

Glenn Young died Dec. 27 in Tucson, Ariz., where he lived during retirement. He was 91.

There were certain things about Young that Howell isn’t likely to forget, he said, such as the sound of Young’s cowboy boots coming down the hallway: they announced his arrival before he ever showed up. He also talked about how excited he was about his nephew John Fina, a tackle at the University of Arizona when the boy was being considered for the NFL draft.

“It was awesome when he got drafted by the Bills, and even better when he had a remarkable career here,” Howell said. “My fondest memory as a teacher with Glenn as my principal was at a parent meeting where the parent began attacking me. Glenn literally stood up between me and the parent and told them they would never speak to one of his teachers that way, and dismissed me. As I walked away, I heard him tear into the parent about how his teachers wouldn’t be treated that way.”

He had nothing but good words for this former administrator, Howell said. Former Board of Education President Patrick Burk shared a similar sentiment in that Young "was always kind, inclusive and welcoming.”

“I was honored to work with him as a member of the Board of Education,” Burk said on a social media post. 

Batavia school teacher John Kirkwood also posted, adding, “You were a difference maker for the Batavia City School District, and you will be remembered fondly by those who had the pleasure to work with you.”

Former student Cheryl Kowalik told The Batavian that Young “cared about the students and staff he worked with.” He was an excellent teacher and principal, she said, and was an educator who made learning fun.

Another former student, current school Superintendent Jason Smith, credits Young as a bridge for Smith’s longtime friendship with a foreign exchange student from the 1980s.

“My best memory of Mr. Young was when he met with me in his office in early December of my junior year in 1988 to discuss a foreign exchange student at BHS, who was also a friend of mine. He was having difficulty at his present home placement, and Mr. Young was looking for ideas, somehow knowing we were friends,” Smith said. “The following week Hiro Yamabe moved in with my family and I on Elm Street for the rest of the school year. 

“That conversation initiated by Mr. Young about Hiro resulted in a wonderful 37-year friendship,” Smith said. “Hiro, my family and I are so grateful to Mr. Young for showing such kindness and caring, as Hiro would have likely returned to Japan, and instead, it led to a wonderful and special friendship.”

There were a number of things that came to mind for Ginny Tiede when she thought of Glenn Young, though her clearest memory was of him patrolling the halls of BHS, walking “very softly in his cowboy boots.” He also had quite a green thumb, planting clumps of white birch in the courtyard and converting his home porch into a year-round automatic vegetable watering system.

“We visited him and Rosemary at their home in the foothills near Sabino Canyon in Tucson several decades ago,” Tiede said. “There was a hummingbird nest in the frame of their basketball hoop. Glenn liked to go hiking.”

Apparently, Batavia High School had carved out a spot in his heart just as he had impacted that community. He shared many memories with his grandson on return visits to Batavia after his retirement, Dawson Young said. 

“My grandfather lived an amazing and accomplished life,” Dawson said in an online post. “My grandfather loved Batavia High School. In his time there, he told me how he had helped build the courtyard adjacent to the cafeterias; that courtyard was named ‘The Glenn’ in honor of him. My grandfather talked very fondly of several teachers he had hired and worked with. My grandfather was close with many teachers and former students at the school. 

“He would tell me his experience every time he returned to Batavia; he would walk down some of the streets and be recognized and admired. He was a remarkable person and I am so extremely proud to have had him as my grandpa,” Dawson said. “I love you, Grandpa, so very much. Thank you for everything you’ve done for me and for being an inspiration to me.”

Glenn Young is survived by a brother, Dale Young of Spring Valley, Ariz.; a sister, Carol Sullivan of California; a son Douglas Young of Clinton, Ill.; and daughter Vicki Hoover of Springfield, Ill.; a son, Mike Young of Longmont, Colo.; and a son, Jeffrey Young of Tucson, Ariz.

When Pete Zeliff’s team presented a plan to host the World Aerobatic Championships in rural Batavia, he was clinging to hope that something might sway the Commission Internationale de Voltage Aerienne (more commonly known as CIVA) delegates.

After all, the competition has been in places such as Las Vegas, and the last time it was in the United States, it was in 2013 in Sherman-Denison, Texas, a metropolitan area with a population of more than 137,000.

“I was really surprised, I thought it was a long shot,” Zeliff said to The Batavian Thursday. “When it’s been here in the U.S., it’s been in places like Las Vegas. So, to go from Las Vegas to Batavia, New York, is a long stretch.”

And surprised he was, along with planning team members Shad Coulson, John Smutny, Doreen Hillard-Zeliff, Jennifer Vukovic, Monique Hartmann, and Rob Holland, a past world participant. Now, there will be one right here from Aug. 22 through 31 in 2026. The last event was in 2024 in Poland, and they are held every two years.

The team flew to Greece to make its pitch for the international event to be held at Genesee County Airport. One major reason why this site was chosen, Zeliff believes, “had to do with how well the Air Show went the last two years,” and an important logistical detail that there’s no tower or commercial air traffic.

Add to those assets the number of hotels and restaurants in the surrounding area, and Batavia made the cut, Zeliff said. 

“There’s normally anywhere from 3,000 to 5,000 people over the 10 days that they compete that will attend the competition. And there will be 40 to 60 competitors from around the world,” he said. “There’s three to five Americans that will compete, and the rest of them will be from Europe and Australia and New Zealand. The competition goes for 10 days, and the competitors will get here four days early and practice before the competition starts.”

Part of the set-up includes nearby practice sites at Bethany Airpark (8NK4), Geneseo (D52), LeRoy (5G0) and Perry-Warsaw (01G). Part of practice means having an aerobatic box set up to line up the arena for competition. That block of airspace is approximately 3,300 feet long by 3,300 feet wide by 3,300 feet high, according to an “In The Loop” article on the CIVA website. 

For safety, a minimum height above the ground is established, and severe penalty points are assigned if the pilot flies below the minimum height. The minimum height above the ground is 1,500 feet for the Primary and Sportsman categories, 1,200 feet for Intermediate, 800 feet for Advanced, and 328 feet for the Unlimited category, it states. 

At the start of each category flight, the first pilot will fly past the judges at the minimum height to give them a visual reference for that height. When the pilot flies into the box, he looks down at a marked playing field. The aerobatic box markings are an L-shape in each of the 4 corners, a T-shape in the middle of each side, and an X-shape in the center of the playing field.

“When competitors compete, they have to stay within those guys; it protects the air space and the people on the ground,” he said. “They’ll fly three different routines in each category or class.

Given that this will be a first for Zeliff to actually watch a World Championship event himself, what prompted his interest in it for Batavia? He first mentioned Rob Holland, quite the skilled pilot from New Hampshire who has won the national competition 13 times in a row, he said. 

“But he’s never won the overall world. And he’s one of the ones that came to us and asked what we thought about putting in an application to hold it in Batavia,” Zeliff said. “I thought it would be great to have a really world-class competition in Batavia.” 

He described this competition as “the Olympics of aerobatics,” and medals are awarded to the winners in the end.

CIVA will be sending its own panel of judges for the event, and Zeliff said there are already various committees set up locally to handle the organization of the event. The proposed schedule begins with an unofficial practice day on Aug. 18, the Opening Ceremony on Aug. 22 and official contest flights to run through Aug. 31. It will end just five days before Wings Over Batavia 2026 is to begin on Sept. 5, which is the beginning of Labor Day weekend that year, he said. There has been talk about possible packages for attending both events, but no details have been finalized, and ticket sales will be announced closer to the end of 2025, he said. 

In addition to the county airport being a non-towered airfield surrounded by mostly farmland, there are four hangars available for use with a total of 20,800 square feet to hangar aircraft, providing office space and a hospitality area.

The team’s presentation listed Batavia as being “blessed with an abundance of hotels within 1.5 miles of the contest site,” and being able to provide meals, transportation, shelter and dedicated team villages, Wi-Fi, judges’ stations at major points of the compass, portable restrooms, hydration and snacks for the event.

During late August, the weather has historically been “quite favorable for a successful contest,” with average temperatures at 70.3F, a wind speed of 7 mph and average precipitation of .13 inches.

The planning team has also proposed to Live Stream the contest, modeled after the U.S. Nationals experience for the last three years. The addition of the Live Stream has many benefits, the team said in a news release, including commercialization of the sport, benefits to the local economy, viewing access for friends and family of the competitors, additional sponsorship opportunities, and the video remains accessible online after the end of the event.

There was no application fee, however, the budget for this event is estimated at $400,000, Zeliff said. Competitors pay a fee to participate, and other revenue will be raised through sponsorships and ticket sales. Unlike the air show, there won’t be tents and concession stands on the airport grounds, so participants and visitors are likely to visit nearby restaurants and stores to buy food and other necessities. 

“The big thing is, if you’ve got 3,000 people, you have to put them up in hotel rooms,” he said. “They’re gonna eat breakfast, lunch and dinner every day, and have rental cars and all that.” 

This past week, just before the holiday break, 16 sixth- through eighth-grade students from Batavia Middle School’s My Brother’s Keeper program livened up the nearby neighborhoods with some caroling around the BMS neighborhood. 

From 4:30 to 6 p.m., the students and Extended Day Director/My Brother’s Keeper Facilitator Kristen Gomez, moderators Tom Bringenberg and Daniel Rhodes, social worker Sheri Crossett, and BMS Principal Megan Crine stood in front of homes as their neighbors stepped outside to listen to holiday favorites. 

Those involved said it brought out some holiday cheer, and the neighbors “absolutely loved it.”

The event was open to families, and some students brought along siblings and grandparents. Participants enjoyed pizza that was donated by Dominos, Pizza 151, and Main Street Pizza, and munchkins donated from Dunkin Donuts, plus  hot cocoa and cookies.

Submitted Photos

Thursday was carved out of the week to celebrate a partnership that literally has merged Rochester Regional Health United Memorial Medical Center and GLOW YMCA programs under one roof to provide a holistic approach to wellness through educational, physical and supportive offerings in one Downtown Batavia space.

Chip Davis, chief executive officer of RRH, spoke of pride in the movement to help reshape rural health care in the United States and closer to home in New York.

“Our organization has a purpose to uplift humanity through care for the community. As an organization, I would tell you, we try to live that way each and every day. And I believe that this facility and all the things that Dan and his team and our sponsors at the Y are doing really represent what we're trying to facilitate in Batavia and beyond,” he said during a ribbon-cutting of the new Healthy Living campus at Main and Wiard streets. “A lot has changed since 2014 when we first announced United Memorial Medical Center would merge into Rochester Regional Health. It has been quite a 10-year journey, as I understand it, and I do believe that both organizations have been firmly committed to truly some remarkable activities for the residents of Batavia and beyond." 

Expanding telemedicine options and leveraging innovative approaches to help facilitate access to world-class quality care sets the ultimate goal “to help improve the quality of life of all the residents within the region,” he said.

“Our efforts are absolutely grounded in a spirit of collaboration and partnership. The Healthy Living campus here at Batavia is truly, I think, a testament to that collaboration overall ... we have tried to create a space that is not just for medical care but for our comprehensive wellness experience. And I will tell you that there are a few places around the country that have this type of model where you can go from your workout to your primary care," he said. "There's a number of innovative activities here, including an intergenerational center, group exercise room, and, of course, the preschool facility.

 "So at Rochester Regional Health, we truly believe that treating illness is not just about medical care, it is about healthier outcomes for everyone," he said. "We believe that this is the future of healthcare. This is what it looks like. It's innovative, it's collaborative, and it's focused on the needs of each and every one of you.”

Dan Ireland, president and chief operating officer of Finger Lakes Rural Hospitals, thanked Davis for helping to fulfill the vision and “champion the idea of innovation and thinking differently.”

This new place is a location where one can feel the out-of-box thinking that came together for the group of people he worked with, Ireland said. That included Rob Walker, chief executive officer for GLOW YMCA.

“And I think, as Rob and I have talked over the years, this concept, this idea, came from our community voice from the day we came together to talk about a simple idea of what more could we do to the hundreds, and I mean hundreds of people in the Batavia and Genesee County community that came together to really bring forth what's important. What do we want to see, even down to where should it be?" Ireland said. "We really decided through a voice of this community and really helping us grow and develop along the way. I want to thank you, especially for our partnership. As I referenced Rob, we've been along this journey. We talk about the fact that as the date this will open, it will have been 10 years from that first conversation and such an important journey along the way, and I can't think of a better partner." 

Healthy Living has moved several programs under the roof of this new $33.5 million building next to the old YMCA awaiting demolition this spring. Programs include diabetes education, prevention and support groups, nutrition and basic life support classes, a cancer services and MOMS program, childbirth and infant feeding class and Baby Cafe.

“From the early morning phone calls to the drive on the way home phone calls, we had to say, 'let's solve this hurdle. Who do we get involved there?' And you know, the nicest part about that is we've been able to lean on you, our partners in the community, to help us solve challenges that every project has along the way, and I’m so, so grateful for that,” Ireland said. “Our work here in Batavia, from a health system standpoint, is not just providing that medical care, but it's really providing an integrated health care model, and that's the vision this was built on."

 He said they would integrate primary care medicine and healthy outreach, two of Rochester Regional's core services, to partner with the wellness community. They answered that the Teaching Kitchen helps teach people to cook better for healthier lifestyles so "they can live to be the very best that they can be."

 "And that ripples out into our community, that ripples out into a healthier community that can really do wonderful things as we go down the road,” he said.

“This is just the shell of the future of how health and wellness come together,” he said. “But this shell will grow into something that we will do to make a difference in healthcare, make a difference to you, your friends, neighbors and our loved ones, and help us grow health and wellness in a rural community such as Batavia.”

The new GLOW YMCA has preschool and child care programs, a pool and splash pad, and boasts “state-of-the-art” weight and cardio equipment and an EGYM station, walking track, full court gym, dance and exercise studios, and men’s, women’s and family locker rooms.

This type of project was talked about for years — creating a space where people of all ages could come together and build lasting connections — Walker said.

“And now, thanks to your unwavering community support and the hard work of countless individuals, that dream has become a reality,” he said. “This Healthy Living campus will create a hub of activity, offering first-class programs and services for our youth, resources for our seniors and spaces for our families to create memories, from aquatics programming to youth sports to fitness programs and the medical services provided by Rochester Regional Health UMMC, these walls will echo with the sounds of laughter, learning and healthy living. 

"But let's not forget the journey that brought us here," Walker said. "It took the vision of our community leaders, our donors, the city and community support and the state acquiring DRI funding and other grants, and the sweat and determination of our construction team.”

Vincent Esposito of Empire State Development said that it's been a long time coming and has taken a lot of work and a lot of vision to get here. Batavia received a Downtown Revitalization Initiative grant in 2017, nearly eight years ago, and this project was one of the main reasons this community was selected, he said, because of a winning application.

“And to see it come to fruition, and to see it be, honestly, bigger and more beautiful than I even expected it to be, is really gratifying,” he said. “I can only imagine how good it feels for those of you who’ve been involved in this project. I'd like to thank my colleagues in New York State government who helped work on this … It really is transformational for a lot of communities," he said. "I know it's helped to really spur a lot of great things in Batavia. You know, there’s well over $5 million from New York State just in this one project. It's pretty cool to see it happen. So congratulations. Best of luck to everyone who gets to utilize this facility. It's really spectacular.”

The Healthy Living campus is now open, and the new YMCA opens Jan. 2. The old YMCA is set to be demolished in the spring. 

If you've been hearing helicopters overhead Thursday evening in Genesee County, often in Batavia, there's an explanation, according to a source.

The CH-47 Chinooks are partaking in military drills, the source said.   

With just a week to go before Christmas, the folks at St. James Episcopal want to throw one last musical get-together to feature the church’s grand organ and three pianos, plus vocalists, during a concert this week.

Carols and Keyboards will be at 7 p.m. Friday at the church, 405 E. Main St., Batavia. 

Led by choir director John Novak, the one-hour concert includes four musicians performing “mostly familiar Christmas carols,” with piano duets, piano and organ duets and vocal solos, Novak said.

Church musicians Peter Geise, Jeff Thompson, and Tim Smith, all from the Western New York area, will join Novak to perform and lead some songs and sing-alongs with the audience.

The line-up includes “O Holy Night,” “Sleigh Ride,” “Go Tell it on The Mountain,” “Hark the Herald Angels Sing,” “and other seasonal favorites,” Novak said.

“There will be a piece with all four musicians playing ‘We Wish You a Merry Christmas,’” he said. “It’s a fun closing piece.”

Novak, the business administrator at Letchworth Central School District, has been the choir director at St. James for about three years. He had been commuting to a church in Buffalo, and when he moved to Silver Lake, he found a job and a closer location in Batavia.

“It’s a great fit,” he said. “There are a lot of wonderful people.”

Church member Maureen Scoville added that, in addition to carols and keyboards, cookies will be served in the parish hall after the concert. 

She and Novak hope to see community members there to enjoy some festive music and sweet treats as the calendar draws closer to a busy Christmas week.

There is no admission to the concert. A free will offering will be taken. 

Pavilion Central School’s $24.5 million capital project vote passed Monday night by an overwhelming 100 to 18, which means future renovations, upgrades and replacements to several areas at the elementary and middle-high schools both inside and out on the properties.

“The Pavilion Central School District Board of Education and District Planning Committee have worked hard to ensure the items in this project will support our mission to provide a challenging educational environment that prepares every child for a productive life in a global society,” Superintendent Mary Kate Hoffman said in the district’s video presentation. “This project updates our instructional spaces and prioritizes educational opportunities. It also improves and maintains our beautiful school facility, something we at PCS are very proud of.  Projects like this are necessary to improve both the programming and facilities in which our children grow and learn.”

Highlights listed for the project include:

• A refresh of the main gym floor, bleachers and backstops; a kitchen update; restoration of roofs, media center/library, the cupola and tennis courts; upgrading the clock and public address systems, theatrical lighting, fire alarm and soccer stadium lighting to LED; and replacing the 1936 plumbing at the middle-high school. 
• Renovation or replacement of the main office, media center/library, boiler plant, band room air heating unit, playgrounds, office carpeting; relocating the art room; upgrading the fire alarm system; restoration of roofs; and improving main entry sidewalk at the elementary school.

Funding for the project is to include no additional tax from district residents by using $5.51 million in capital reserves and receiving 77.5% in state building aid for the total $24.5 million cost, school officials said.

This is considered to be “the first project of this size” in at least 25 years, Hoffman said.

Monday’s vote included an energy performance contract, which also passed by 103 to 14.

That contract is to update lighting to LEDs for energy savings that will pay for project costs, officials said, and increase energy efficiency at the district. Perhaps most important is the point that “by putting this project before the voters, our school can gain an additional 10% of aid on the energy performance contract project,” Business Official Don Childs said.

“The exciting thing is if we go to the public and the public approves the project, just improving the savings and efficiencies to the district will save us an additional 10% on the project,” he said.

Visitors from near -- and very far -- stopped by The Batavian's booth outside of Adam Miller Toys & Bicycles Saturday during a toy and food drive for Salvation Army. Even Santa and Mrs. Claus said hello on their way into the toy and bicycle shop in downtown Batavia to greet children during the afternoon. 

The collection reaped more than $1,500 worth of goods, many in the form of anonymous donations, and all from generous community members. 

Howard Owens, publisher of The Batavian, expressed his gratitude and appreciation for all who participated in this collection, and the many others that take place throughout the area. All contributions to Salvation Army in Batavia remain in Genesee County. 

"We were happy to do our part and help out Salvation Army's annual Christmas program to provide food and toys to families in need," Owens said. "Thank you to those who donated money, food and toys to the cause, and to John Roche for offering a discount on toys at his store. This is a great community, and we enjoy being part of it." 

While members of Ascension Parish attend the remaining noon mass on Sundays, they are clinging to an appeal process that has reached the second phase in steadfast efforts to fight the Buffalo Catholic Diocese’s attempts to permanently close the doors of Sacred Heart Church in Batavia.

The group Friends of Ascension has been working to keep members informed, signing petition mandates, contributing through participation and financial support, and not letting the light die out at their south side parish. 

Longtime member Nancy Brach sent out an email this week providing an update to all.

“Thanks to everyone who has assisted us in this process. This includes our core group, parishioners, those who signed mandates, who attended events and masses, who wrote letters, who volunteered, who proudly wore their buttons, who provided information for our appeal, who publicized the challenges we are facing and who encouraged and supported us in this effort,” she said. “While our main focus is keeping our church open, there is much more to this fight.  It is about how the Diocese, and Dioceses across the country, are treating their parishes.  And we are not so unaware that we do not realize that some churches should close, whether because of their physical condition, their financial viability or their underutilization.

“But to close healthy churches that are needed, cared for and loved in their communities is another story,” she said. “It is clear that individual parishes are being closed due to the transgressions of the Diocese.”

She referred to a “Buffalo News” article quoting attorney Ilan Scharf about the Diocese, defendants in sex abuse lawsuits that have their own assets, including cash investments, and real estate, that should be considered in any settlement discussions.

“If the diocese is going to survive as an entity, other parishes, even those without claims directly against them, can make a contribution to help fund a settlement,” Scharf said. “It’s been done in every other settlement across the country.”

While this may be legally correct, it is ethically wrong to punish people for the sins of others, Brach said.  

“It is obvious that she is just looking for a bigger pot to divide among the legal team and those she is representing,” Brach said. “But she intends to take the money from people who are not responsible for the crimes.  That is wrong.

“We hope we will be successful in our appeal,” she said. “But it is also important that we can serve as an example of standing up for what is right and that we can encourage other parishes to fight back, instead of giving up.”

Liz Zilbauer of Save Our Buffalo Churches posted to that article and also emailed the Ascension group her thoughts about the situation with the Diocese and notion that other parishes can help to pay for these ongoing sex abuse lawsuits. 

“Claimant attorney Ilan Scharf is quoted as explaining Canon Law allowing for 'the assets of merged or suppressed parishes to be used elsewhere within the diocese.' What? Used elsewhere? Actually, with each parish, a separately incorporated entity, the sale money and assets of a parish belong to that parish unless and until that parish is (legitimately) extinguished and its property sold,” Zilbauer said. “Then that money can go to the bishop, but only under certain circumstances, and when legitimate grave cause justifies the closure."

Zilbauer concluded that there is no grave or just cause in the great majority of these closures or that a grave cause could actually have "been accurately determined by the process inflicted on us.” 

She included an excerpt from an appeal letter to the dicastery that a canon lawyer encourages parishes to send. It "really sets the record straight" regarding "what is legitimate here and what is not," she said.

“In his decree for [name of] Parish, Bishop Fisher notes the need to amass a substantial sum of money to settle numerous civil claims in Federal Bankruptcy Court, and that the possibility of alienating [parish's] properties has been suggested,” she said. “We strongly object to the potential of our longstanding parish community being sacrificed to satisfy the temporal and pecuniary obligations of the diocese for civil claims that are unrelated to the actions and activities of our parish community. We have informed the Bishop of this objection within our appeal letter. 

“I think we diocesan parishioners need to be vigilant against the loopholes ripe for exploitation suggested by ‘net assets’ especially considering it seems to have been the plan all along to use the settlements as pretext for a mass-reduction of footprint … continuing to threaten the parishes, and in fact, deepening the threat, when they have less and less rational/practical justification for doing so,” she said. "Ironically, this is happening during the Christmas season and at the door of the 2025 Jubilee Year — which is defined, in part, by a forgiveness of all debts. It will be during this year that the diocese doubles down on the collection of debts we neither owe nor they have any right to take.” 

This second step of an appeal went to the Holy See, which has 90 days to respond. If Ascension receives a denial or no response, it can appeal to the Church's Supreme Court, the Apostolic Signatura, which follows its own regulations “in a different process that requires appellants to hire an advocate in Rome approved by the Signatura.” 

There is no strict timeline or constraint for the response, and the Signatura may give extensions during this process. 

For previous story about the process and remaining church mass, go HERE.

Health and wellness have always been important to family nurse practitioner Renee Marie Robbins. However, it wasn’t until a close family member became critically ill that it took on a deeper meaning.

“I was interested in it and went and did some training and really loved what I did. And then, the whole weight loss thing kind of blew up around here, and I have a personal love for it because, seeing my brother at 45 have a heart attack and almost not be with us, I've really delved into nutrition and health,” Robbins said Friday while doing last minute set-up of her new place at Batavia City Centre. “Also, just being in family practice, helping others, and then having issues with them being denied from their insurance when they really could use the help. A lot of people have been where they just need that little extra push and motivation, and to be held accountable and have someone really care about their health and their journey.” 

A Batavia native and 1997 Notre Dame High School graduate, Robbins has more than 20 years of experience in the healthcare industry. She most recently worked at Oak Orchard Health, which she left one and a half years ago. She continues to work at Guler Cardiology in Batavia while debuting her Renee Marie Aesthetics and Wellness next door at 47b in the City Centre. 

Robbins is having a grand opening to introduce herself and her offerings, including a Dyson supersonic raffle prize, beginning at 3 p.m. Saturday.

She first rented space at a salon in Elma and ran it for two and a half years, drawing clients from the area and her hometown. However, she said, few practitioners offered the weight loss or aesthetic services she is now bringing to Genesee County. 

Those include individualized counseling, use of supplements, an FDA-certified compounding pharmacy to mix two medications together when needed, and finding alternatives when one’s insurance won’t cover a service or someone doesn’t want to go the drastic route of a gastric bypass or end up with diabetes before the insurance company might provide more coverage.

“Bottom line is, I'm willing to try to help someone with their weight loss or their health needs, we'll say, in any way that I can, whether it's through insurance, and if insurance doesn't cover weight loss, then I have alternative means,” she said. “There’s a lot that goes into it; it’s not just what you eat, it’s not just exercise, but it’s also habits. More mindful eating is what I try to teach, we need to always be conscious about what we’re putting into our bodies, about portions. And that’s, I think, where people struggle a lot.”

On the aesthetics side, Robbins has trained with the American Academy of Facial Aesthetics and keeps up on techniques with continued trainings, she said. Services include lip and facial fillers, wrinkle relaxers including Daxxify and Dysport, microneedling, glow facials, EMS body sculpting of various body parts (the abs are especially popular, she said, with electrical stimulation of the muscles to simulate doing 30,000 sit-ups in 30 minutes to strengthen the core).

Some of those body sculpting procedures can be part of a weight loss package. She offers single-session and package prices for services and is available for free Telehealth consultations. 

“I hope to help others achieve their health goals. I am proud to own and operate my own aesthetics and wellness clinic, taking pride in providing exceptional service and delivering results to my clients … and how much I care to help others be more healthy, happy, have confidence and be more successful in their goals,” she said. “It’s about helping others. People were coming out to me in Elma, and I live out here and they live out here, and it was like, all right, through a lot of encouragement, I decided just to go ahead and do it, because it’s just the best feeling, it really is.

“My vision is to empower other practitioners … like massage therapists. I really would like to make it a wellness center,” she said. “There’s no better feeling than to hear ‘you’ve really changed my life.’”

Robbins works with individuals, couples, groups, people of all ages, and people with various medical conditions and provides “complete confidentiality,” she said. Hours are by appointment, Monday through Friday. 

For more information, call 585-483-0038, email reneemarieaesthetics@gmail.com or go HERE.

Village and town property owners left Genesee County on the hook for delinquent water, sewer and school taxes worth more than $2.3 million for 2024, and the respective amounts are to be included in the county and town/village tax levies -- some of which for an extra fee.

The Legislature approved several resolutions Wednesday, including those related to the unpaid tax and utility payments.

Legislators agreed to add the following delinquent water/sewer accounts to town tax levies:

• Alabama $14,144.17
• Alexander $3,718.89
• Batavia $75,310.57
• Bergen $1,746.83
• Bethany $417.69
• Byron $33,419.52
• Darien $17,233.81
• Elba $4,468.89
• Oakfield $390.72
• Pavilion $13,508.75
• Pembroke $1,151.80
• Stafford $370.35

Total: $165,881.99

Budget Impact: The County’s share of the total amount collected is $10,852.11. 

The Real Property tax law requires that, by Nov. 15, 2024, all rural Genesee County school districts return their respective unpaid 2024-2025 school taxes to the county treasurer for inclusion in the 2025 county and town tax levy. 

The following amounts are to be re-levied against the various towns of the County of Genesee as specified:   

• Alabama $79,068.82
• Alexander $141,811.41
• Batavia $148,045.22
• Bergen $128,073.33
• Bethany $58,052.06
• Byron $106,514.76
• Darien $266,217.04
• Elba $98,654.88
• LeRoy $340,266.50
• Oakfield $103,677.72
• Pavilion $72,882.73
• Pembroke $390,049.17
• Stafford $99,346.79

Total: $2,032,660.43

Budget Impact: The county makes the school districts whole for their portion and retains a 7% fee. The 2024 total was $2,081,259.37.

The unpaid village taxes will also be re-levied as part of the 2025 town and county levy.

The following amounts are to be re-levied against the various villages in the County of Genesee as follows: 

• Alexander $2,336.63
• Attica $190.13
• Bergen $4,624.48
• Elba $4,038.26
• LeRoy $91,659.49
• Oakfield $5,695.34
• Corfu $2,009.25

Total: $110,553.58

Budget Impact: The County makes the Villages whole for their portion and retains a 7% fee. The 2024 total was $127,544.41.

In related tax collection resolutions, the Legislature also approved the county treasurer assisting in collecting the 2025 town/county tax bills for the Town of Alexander, per the supervisor’s request. The Genesee County treasurer is willing to collect the 2025 Town/County taxes on behalf of the Town of Alexander for a fee of $7,500 to cover the cost of providing the tax collection services.

In turn, Treasurer Kevin Andrews has requested to hire a temporary financial clerk-typist to assist with collecting these taxes. The position will be funded by the revenue received from the tax collection agreement with the Town of Alexander.

The Genesee County treasurer and Human Resources director were then directed to amend the 2025 Employee Salary Schedule by establishing a temporary position of financial clerk-typist, CSEA Grade 9, in the Treasurer’s Office, with varying hours not exceeding 37.5 hours per week from Jan. 6, 2025, to April 30, 2025.

The 2025 Genesee County budget is to be amended as follows:

• Increase Appropriation A.1325 1010.0000 Personal Services by $6,967
• Increase Appropriation A.1325 8010.0000 Social Security Tax by $432
• Increase Appropriation A.1325 8011.0000 Medicare Tax by $101
• Increase Revenue A.1325 1230 Treasurer Fees by $7,500

Budget Impact: Increased appropriations of $7,500 offset by increased revenue from the Town of Alexander in a like amount.

In an unrelated approval, the Legislature agreed to renew the county’s Economic Development Center contract for $233,513 plus $25,000 for workforce training program administration. The contract runs from Jan. 1, 2025, to Dec. 31, 2025, and will be paid in regular installments upon receipt of proper vouchers. 

The financial history of payments to GCEDC includes a low of $193,513 in 2017 and 2018, which then jumped to $233,513 in 2019 and has remained for subsequent years. The additional $25,000 began in 2022.

• 2024 = $233,513 + $25,000 workforce training program administration
• 2023 = $233,513 + $25,000 workforce training program administration
• 2022 = $233,513 + $25,000 workforce training program administration
• 2021 = $233,513
• 2020 = $233,513
• 2019 = $233,513
• 2018 = $193,513
• 2017=$193,513 – 10% reduction in funding or $21,501 less
• 2016=$215,014
• 2015=$215,014
• 2014= $215,014
• 2013= $215,014
• 2012 = $215,014; 5% reduction in funding or $11,317 less
• 2011 = $226,330; 15% reduction in funding or $29,942 less
• 2010 = $266,271; 5% reduction in funding or $14,014 less
• 2009 to 2006 funding = $280,285
• 2005 to 2003 = $275,285

During a presentation Monday about putting the Brisbane Mansion — aka current police station — out for a request for proposal, City Councilman Bob Bialkowski raised the question of what happens if a developer takes on the project and then lets it sit idle.

His scenario seemed to mirror what has happened with the stalled Ellicott Station apartment complex on the city’s Southside, and he wasn’t the only one thinking about it.

“We don’t plan on marketing it to Savarino,” City Manager Rachael Tabelski said of Ellicott Station property owner Sam Savarino. 

City Council President Eugene Jankowski added that “we wouldn’t let it go into some sort of a problem” because the city would have a clawback or some kind of recourse for a developer who would not follow through after obtaining the property. 

Ed Flynn, consultant and vice president of LaBella Associates, and Batavia Development Corporation Director Tammy Hathaway presented a tentative plan for what to do with the property to be vacated by the city police by the end of 2025 when the new police station is completed downtown.

They recommended putting the site up for an RFP to determine developer or investor interest in redeveloping the property and provide information about the existing conditions, characteristics and feasibility study options by an Insight Architecture report for use as apartments or a boutique hotel. 

“This can provide a lot of information for the developers that they'll be looking for in terms of the existing condition of building the site, as well as what are some opportunities for redevelopment,” Flynn said. “We also want to make sure we establish some community goals for the project before it goes out so the developer knows what the community goals are for the project. And the ones we kind of have listed here are, preservation of the building and site.

"It's an important historic property in the city of Batavia; it’s very visible. A lot of heritage and history to the building," he said. "And so that's kind of a key goal that we want to maintain compatibility with downtown.”

Another goal is to put it back on the tax roll, he said, for the first time since 1917 when it was established for city government, non-taxable use. 

“So, obviously, you don’t want a nonprofit to go in there, and then we want to make sure we get an experienced developer with financial resources,” he said. “So that would be part of the RFP, part of the process of reviewing the proposals when they come in, and talking to the banks and whoever they’re using for their financial back.”

What they don’t want is for someone to buy it and hold it for five years, with nothing happening to the property during that time, he said. The right developer will have the financial means and capacity to complete the renovations and be experienced in having completed other similar projects.

A tentative schedule would be finalizing the RFP by January 2025 and releasing it by February, with an application deadline of April. Staff would review submitted RFPs in May and June, have developer discussions and select a preferred developer to submit to City Council for authorization to sell by the summer of 2025. By fall, agreements with a developer would be executed, and funding would be sought.

“Because there’s probably going to need to be funding to make sure this project happens,” he said. "Then I put a list of some of the past RFPs that we have done in the city and how successful they were. And you can see all of those buildings. There's five buildings there that have been sold in the city. They were either foreclosed properties or properties on city parking lots ... at the time, we sold them zero value in terms of taxable value and available value to the city. Now they're worth 3.5 million in the city, so they're generating taxes.”

That list includes 19-21 Jackson St., Valle Jewelers, valued at $255,000; 20 Center St., Center St. Smokehouse, at $300,000; 61 Jackson St., Angotti Beverage at $315,000; 20 Main St., Tim Horton’s, $550,000; and 90 Main St., Tompkins Insurance, $1.85 million.

“And you can see the types of properties we have there. The building owners are still there. Some of these are 10 or 20 years old. They're still in the building,” he said. “They've been investing in the building. They create character downtown. They create a lot of vitality downtown. And so we’re trying to do the same thing with the Brisbane Mansion, and this is a first step in doing that.”

Hathaway said that the BDC is working with LaBella to “shrink up any vacant time” from when the police department moves out and a developer could move in and take ownership.

That’s important, Jankowski said, “because the longer it stays vacant, the more likely things are breaking down,” and “pipes freeze, and things can happen.” 

Flynn asked for questions. 

“Okay, so you put out an RFP, find a developer. Looks good. You turn it over to the developer. Eight months later, all of a sudden, work stops on the project. Project starts stagnating. Developers telling you one excuse after another. What recourse do you have?” Bialkowski said.

“You should have a good, solid agreement,” Flynn said. “In the agreement, there should be some kind of opportunity to take the property back if there's no action on the property.” 

He deferred to City Attorney George Van Nest. However, Tabelski said that there would be clauses for nonperformance.

“Hopefully, we can get this moving forward,” Jankowski said. 

For as much detail as there’s been for newly configured flood maps in the city of Batavia, there are still unknowns that city officials want to get their hands on, City Manager Rachael Tabelski says.

One key detail is the list of structures being added to the 100-year floodplain. Out of the total 147 structures, “60 are potentially commercial,” which could have a huge impact on the city’s economic growth, Tabelski said during an interview with The Batavian.

She wanted to first define the difference between the city experiencing more frequent flash floods and more severe overflowing creek floods.

“Sometimes we have severe flash flooding that occurs where our storm system can't drain the water away quick enough, but then it goes down really quickly, totally separate from when the creek actually floods and goes above the banks of the creek,” Tabelski said. “And I'm just looking up some of the dates of the last flood. Since I've been manager, we have not had any creek flooding. So that's since I've been with the city, that's at least five years. 

“And the maps were set in the 80s, and they were, I'll call them paper maps,” she said. “As a way they're doing it now, is with LiDAR, and that's electronic, and it takes a lot of measurements of cross sections of the creek every 1,000 feet. And then what their model does is try to predict where the water will move throughout the city, if it does press over the banks of the creek, and then that becomes your flood zone in the city.”

FEMA established a new floodplain map using the new technology and asked for feedback with a 30-day public comment period. Preliminary maps will be issued, and homeowners who would be affected will be invited to a presentation early next year to learn more and have the option to challenge the findings if they have been inserted into the flood plain. 

“We also had our engineers get the baseline data from FEMA and make sure how their modeling was scientifically standard, which they agreed, but they had one finding that they believed that the floodway was too expansive and that they were asking in this draft round of proposals to reduce the floodway,” City Fire Chief Josh Graham said. “So the floodway is once you cross the banks of the waterway, that immediate area that will be flooded, I guess, that's the best way I can explain it. It's the area where the water flows in a flood. So this is what they have for the updated maps.”

So, what does this updated map signify to the city? 
“In terms of development in the city, it's much more difficult to get a building permit in a floodway than it is just in a flood zone, so it would hinder development efforts of any of the properties in the floodway, and that could be properties the city owns; commercial properties or residential for structures such as sheds, barns, things of that nature,” Tabelski said. “So the larger the floodway is, the more properties will have difficulty developing in any way, is one way I like to look at it from an economic development standpoint.”

When a property owner wants to get a permit for home renovations and lives in a flood zone,  they would have to fill out a separate Department of Environmental Conservation permit application, she said. And there are other restrictions for commercial buildings that aren’t compliant or don’t have flood insurance — they can only invest 49% of their building’s value, either by an independent appraisal or their assessed value, she said. 

“So I find this a critical issue for our businesses on Route 63 and our buildings. I mean, on Route 63, who the majority of them are in the flood zone, and when they want to make investments, they can be hindered by higher costs to become flood compliant, to be insured or to only invest up to 49% of their appraised value of their building,” she said. “And we've seen that a lot on the economic development side successfully. It has been done by Stephen Valle and his sister Carrie, with the building on the corner that houses the vegan bakery and apartments upstairs, so they were able to get an appraisal and invest in the building after that appraisal, but they are in a flood zone.”

For homeowners and renters, being added to the flood zone signals the push for buying flood insurance to ensure coverage in the event of damage from a flood, since regular insurance doesn’t usually cover that type of damage; and it serves as caution for when people are considering a construction project, since the city has an ordinance covering development in the floodplain or flood hazard area. 

Other challenges exist for commercial property owners, such as the inability to invest more than 49% of the property’s assessed value. So, for 60 additional commercial properties, that’s a potential problem, she said.

Properties that are and were in the 500-year flood plain did not have to buy flood insurance, and while those 147 structures are moving into the 100-year flood plain, another 282 are being removed since the map has been recalculated.

“Under the new draft, there’ll be 917, so we end up losing 135 structures,” Graham said. “At the end of the day, there’s going to be 135 less structures in the flood zones than there are right now, 282 that will no longer be identified, but 147 new ones that will be.”

How did that happen?
An electronic survey was done using LiDAR technology, a remote sensing method that uses light to measure ranges and map out the flood zone every 1,000 feet, predicting where water will move within the city, he said. That reconfigured the original number of 1,052 people and reduced the total to 917 by shifting—and reducing the footprint—of the overall floodway. 

The flood zone is predominantly on the south side, with the largest flooding happening on Law and Walnut streets in recent years. If you live on the South Side, you may be, or want to become, familiar with a few common acronyms that might come in handy when dealing with flood zones and flood plains:

Property owners can challenge a finding by paying for a survey to determine if they live on a higher elevation than previously established. This is called a LOMA — a letter of map amendment — and the process will involve the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

Does that mean they will no longer need flood insurance if they were required to have it while classified in a flood zone?
“If your property is no longer in a flood zone, you can drop insurance with proper documentation from FEMA,” Tabelski said.  “So there is a process that those properties will have to take. And that’s why, when we have FEMA host these preliminary meetings, we’ll be inviting anyone in the areas of the flood zone area, the new ones that are coming in will have to be educated now that they’re in a flood zone, and they can … go through that process, and when the  property sells, it is my understanding if you have a mortgage on it, you’re going to need that flood insurance.”

They want city property owners to know that not only will FEMA be on hand during a meeting in early 2025 to work with folks and answer questions, but city officials also want to help out.

“Nothing's final, but there are changes coming,” Tabelski said. “You'll be getting some hands-on assistance early next year straight from FEMA, absolutely, and we'll do our best to interpret it and be the go-between and be as informed as we can to help residents.”

Batavia Development Corporation, which established the real estate company Creek Side Batavia, LLC, has put the sale of the property behind the McCarthy ice rink and along Tonawanda Creek on hold due to this change of floodway.

More than a dozen people showed up to the city’s brownfield opportunity area open house Monday, offering an overall thumbs-up for increasing the housing stock while also differing on items of concern, such as devouring too many parking spots, not considering community needs, and lack of privacy from looming apartment complexes.

After perusing the renderings for the Batavia City Centre parking lot adjacent to the Bank of America drive-through along Bank Street, Richard Beatty noted what was missing.

“Looking at the existing parking lot, I'm concerned about the public market; its location right now in the O’Lacy’s parking lot is not good. I think there's a battle between O’Lacy’s and Angotti’s and the other places for parking. And it's just really not a pleasant experience,” Beatty said during the event at City Hall. “Whereas at the market, its last year's location was all right, it was much better where the police station is now. But that's gone; that issue has flown away. So, yeah, I would like to see more focus on the public market space. I think that's a good draw to the city, good draw for vendors. So I don't see anywhere in this that takes a look at that.

“It should be downtown, somewhere, somehow. And I think that's where it draws people into the city, and they're going to go to other places when they're in downtown,” he said. “I like public markets. I think, you go anywhere around Western New York, you go to public market sites, they're popular.”

The plan is to build an apartment complex along Bank Street from the corner of Alva Place south, across from the police station. That would bring more of the urban back into the city and bring it closer to the street that urban renewal removed, said Ed Flynn, vice president of LaBella Associates and project consultant. 

Flynn walked through all of the plans, beginning with Batavia Creek Side right behind the ice rink on Evans Street. There’s Concept A, with buildings closer to the water and to Ellicott Trail.

“This has the images of the concepts right here the trail is right next to where the market rate apartment would be. And then over here, this is kind of the view looking where the current gazebo is, and then there’s a space for a potential cafe as well,” he said. “Another concept (B) which has all the buildings kind of right next to them, not along the trail, and a little bit more green space. And the ice rink is a little bit to the south of the current ice rink right now, still the gazebo there, still a lot of green space.”

City resident Janice McFollins liked the first concept because the buildings were more separated and didn’t seem as crowded together. She and City Councilwoman Tammy Schmidt agreed that the rendering was more appealing, and Schmidt suggested that perhaps one row of buildings could be for tenants age 55-plus and the other set for families with children.

“I just think it is very nice looking,” McFollins said. “Very neat.”

They also liked the idea of a first-floor parking garage that would be part of the development, since nothing could be built on the first floor due to the flood zone, Flynn said.

He continued on with the tour of conceptual plans.  

“And then over here we have some reorganization of the City Centre parking lot, a little bit more pedestrian friendly, a bit more efficient in terms of the traffic flow. And then potential liner buildings along Bank Street for potential apartments or more innovative retail on the first floor,” he said. “And then this is an idea for the former JC Penney site, which would also do some more housing as well, or hotel.”

The city doesn’t own the Penney’s building, and that is to go up for auction by the lender, but city officials are hoping that these concepts will help provide prospective developers with ideas and some plans to pursue, he and Batavia Development Corporation Director Tammy Hathaway said. 

The parking lot is owned by the city, and there will be future discussion about the bank drive-through, Flynn said.

“So I still need to talk to the bank, have some conversations with them. The idea is they have kind of liner buildings like that between (Bank of America and the police station),” he said. “So more urban, more back to rebuilding the urban grid that used to be here.”

Taking up more parking spaces concerns RaeAnn Engler, treasurer for the GO ART! Board of Directors. She has seen how busy the parking lot can get and wonders how it would handle an apartment filled with tenants in need of parking spots. 

“I’m a little concerned about that, and I'm not sure exactly what it's doing to parking space for people. I don't know if there's underground parking in these buildings the way they are over by the creek, so those people are going to need to park in that parking lot,” Engler said. “And what's it going to do to draw people downtown? A concern.”

Other aspects that people liked included:

• Creek Park Development (Concept A) looks great
• Underbuilding parking
• JC Penney/parking lot concepts
• Love apartments

Concerns included:

• Kayak/boat launch for Creek Park
• Perhaps some sort of incentive to property owners on the west of the creek to maintain their backyards
• Maybe condos
• No privacy for homes across the creek, junk in the creek
• What happened to the park that was going to be there?
• Where is the city snow going?
• How does this impact properties on the other side of the Tonawanda? 
• Upkeep?
• Parking plan for Alva and Jefferson — don’t cut off access
• Is City Centre east parking shared between residents and visitors? 

All public comments will be taken back to a committee to work out the “best use of this area, reinventing the area for revitalizing it,” Hathaway said. 

“If we can incorporate them into changing any of the renderings, that's what we'll do. Then we'll change them. I would say it's going to happen in January … and then we'll probably do some sort of a press release after the public comments (to say) this is what we came up with,” she said. “It's really up to a developer, but this gives us guidance for a developer as to what the committee is determined is best use for an area.”

These latest comments will be combined with input from the county’s housing study this fall, and “we will put that all together,” she said. " All of our conversations going forward with developers will incorporate those thoughts.”

Have developers expressed interest in these projects? Hathaway takes a phone call from one at least once every other week, she said. Creek Park Batavia LLC cannot be sold just yet until the flood map and newly zoned floodway are settled and city officials have more answers from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, she said. 

“So the city is waiting for answers to come back on the questions that they asked regarding the change in the floodway, how that impacts the area, if it was already in a flood zone, so developers know they've had to build a flood compliance,” she said. “But now you add on the extra engineering fees and everything because of the floodway. So we want to make sure that if there's any way that we can have something changed ahead of time, we want to do that.”

A call was put out Sunday for members of Batavia Players to rally together and attend Monday’s City Council conference session to support Norm Argulsky and Jo Coburn as they spoke on behalf of the nonprofit.

The two members wanted council to know how much the organization means, not only to Batavia Players themselves, but also to area businesses and the community at large, in light of financial troubles and owing the city back rent, Coburn says.

“I just want everyone on council … to see all the other positive things in the community that we do. We do a lot, I don’t think everybody realizes it. We are involved in every bit of it,” Coburn said after the meeting. “We’re just asking for more time to bounce back. We are just getting known on Main Street. It’s not that we don’t want to pay it. We’re limited in the ways we can raise money.”

The Players have paid $160,000 in rent from 2020 to 2023, however, during the COVID-19 pandemic, the theater was shut down and they were unable to perform and therefore unable to make money, she said. So they fell behind in rent. 

“We’ve been in discussions with the city since November about rent renewal and repairs,” she said. “It came to our attention that maybe not everyone on council has the information about what we do.”

The city had asked Batavia Players for a five-year financial projections plan, and one was submitted without enough detail, Coburn said. Another one is being drafted to include more of what happens at the theater — newly built and celebrated at Batavia City Centre — such as open mic nights, civic organization meetings, education sessions, dance recitals, college productions, stage combat lessons, the recent Hometown Christmas festivities, a scavenger hunt collaborating with other city businesses, Halloween trick-or-treating and tours, and live performances.

About eight members of the Players, including their attorney Ted Graney, showed up to the council meeting. “We just want the city to know how deep the support goes,” Coburn said.

She understands the city’s position, and officials have been patient and supportive, she said. She hopes that they will “please continue so that we can be the flagship live performance” venue for downtown. She doesn’t want it to get contentious and hopes that both sides can work something out, including leaks that have erupted from the green room ceiling. 

Batavia Players will be celebrating a 100-year existence in 2032, Argulsky said, and Batavia is "very, very luck to have a group" like it that performs 12 productions a year and brings a "cultural-plus" to the city.

The Players can only raise so much money and sell so many tickets, though, he said, and it's quite an expensive endeavor to operate a theater, and he wanted city leaders to keep that in mind. He and his fellow troupe members hope a friendly solution can be found. They are having a fundraiser specifically to raise $25,000 for the back rent through donations and sponsorships.

City Manager Rachael Tabelski said that the theater owes approximately $27,000 in back rent. The Batavian asked what the city's next steps would be, and if it would take legal action against the organization. 

 “We are awaiting an executive summary and five-year financial projections of the Players' plan moving forward,” she said.

City Council members said they have nothing against the theater, but that there are expenses involved in operating City Centre and unpaid bills fall on taxpayers to cover. 

Of all the things that BHS grad James DiLullo has done in his storied life so far, perhaps one of the bravest has been to occupy 20 high school seniors for 80 minutes — a fleeting thought that came to the film writer and director 12 minutes into his visit Friday afternoon.

He soon learned there was nothing to worry about as Laura Tenebruso’s creative writing class began to glean tidbits of a business major-turned-writing enthusiast’s career and watch his locally produced film, “Kitty,” while discovering some realities of their own class.

“Mostly, the writing is the basis for all of the things we see in life, communicating ideas for the written word; it's pretty much the greatest advancement in technology, right? And we shouldn't take that for granted,” DiLullo said. “And no, you're not a writer now; maybe you hate this class; maybe you're only here because you have to be here. But there's advantages to paying attention to this class in particular.”

He shared his own varied path to get where he is today, living in Los Angeles with film studio Beauty View Ranch in the Southern Tier, four movies under his belt as producer — two penned by him — and has acted in several.

“I never expected to necessarily be a writer. I was a business person, and still am a business person, but I found something I enjoyed and was good at, and I like pursuing and thusly studied it,” he said. “Don't be afraid to keep educating yourself. The opposite of writing is reading. If you want to be strong in one, you participate in the other.”

He talked about a few books that inspired him, including “Write for Life” by Julia Cameron; a practical, holistic approach to writing; “Screenplay” by Syd Field, a master screenwriter from the 1930s and 40s; and Joseph Campbell’s “The Hero with a Thousand Faces,” an anthropology book at its core, he said, but “is really about storytelling” and basis for the hero’s journey of Luke Skywalker in “Star Wars.”

Tenebruso appreciated hearing about his personal and professional background, and that he offered up a scenario of taking imperfect steps while reaching the appropriate location for him -- from going to college as a business major, working at Microsoft and being involved in other aspects of business before finding his way back to writing.

“I was really most interested in him sharing his journey as a writer because he said that he used to write in high school, but it had kind of fallen by the wayside, and his path was, is pretty interesting,” Tenebruso said. “And so I really appreciated that he shared that journey with the kids and that he talked about how he didn't know when he was their age that this was what he was destined to do, and it's just a great story about how through networking and being in the right place and meeting the right people, can just completely change your life.”

His central message — no surprise here — was the idea that “everything is story,” she said, and what he's been able to accomplish has developed from an idea into that fleshed out story. Even his mother, who has found her way to writing later in life, gives him a lot of great ideas for writing, he said.

Superintendent Jason Smith, who helped to set up DiLullo’s visit, stopped in to visit for awhile.

“I did see the film and found it to be creative and imaginative — and of course, I loved all the Batavia shots!  James’ enthusiasm is contagious, and we loved his passion for his career,” Smith said. “We are proud of our fellow BHS grad, James, on his well-earned accomplishments. James’ message was one of persistence and setting goals and working hard to attain them. He is proud of his Batavia roots and it’s awesome for our students to hear from a successful Batavian. It was our honor to be part of this project.”

Part of DiLullo’s visit included a contest for students to guess the number of pages in the film’s script. The film itself is six minutes and 40 seconds long. There were two winners guessing a script of six and a half pages, so they ended up having a tie-breaker of guessing the number of lines on the last page.

“Screenplays are not as big as you think. It's not as many words as you think. It's a visual medium. The words are just there to guide the visual sense. So I got numbers from 70 to 80, 100. It’s an exercise to kind of incorporate, what does it look like in the industry, in time and in money? Because that's how everything's measured by us … how many scenes is that? And how many times per day can you do that, and how many shots?” he said. “It all relates back to the written word, 100% it's all measured in written words.”

So what was the final answer? There were 14 lines. Senior Makayla Balonek gave the correct answer and won a “Kitty” sweater. The movie was filmed at John Kennedy Intermediate School earlier this year and featured one superstar feline and both adult and child actors. It showed the class how to build suspense, create a soundtrack and do product placement within a movie, which was done, for example, when a refrigerator door closed and flyers on the front door displayed local business names. 

“I do think they are encouraged by his story,” Tenebruso said. “A kid from Batavia who’s not just a writer … but can inspire other people.”

About Kitty
Local band GumShoe, featuring Tim McJury, Todd Townsend and Dan Eick, plays the song “Psycho Kitty” in the movie.

There will be a special showing after the Christmas in the City parade at approximately 6:45 p.m. Saturday at GO ART!, 201 E. Main St., Batavia, and possibly a second one later on during an open house from 6 to 9 p.m. 

During the 6 p.m. parade, DiLullo’s team will be pulling a cart and handing out free hot chocolate.

Back at GO ART! after the parade, DiLullo and members of the cast and crew will be on hand to answer questions and mingle, plus Volunteers For Animals members will be available to collect donations of pet food and supplies and answer questions about dogs and cats at Genesee County Animal Shelter. 

Watch the trailer HERE.

Former Genesee County Manager and longtime volunteer and community advocate Jay Gsell was honored Friday by the Jerome Foundation with the 39th Health and Humanitarian Award.

Among his many involvements have been Batavia Rotary Club, leadership roles in United Way and county government, dedication to United Memorial Medical Center and YMCA, his environmental efforts and as cupcake maker and best neighbor ever.

County Legislative Chairwoman Shelley Stein said that he had the responsibility to “hold us all together, and he did that for a good long time.”

“So thank you for being the girdle of your time, because we all needed it, and sometimes you held us pretty tight, Jay, and we appreciated that very, very much. To the fact that you've shared your family with us, we feel like we are your family of friends here,” Stein said during the awards lunch at Terry Hills in Batavia. “So thank you for that, for the foundations that you have laid in this room with all these organizations and to put the caring into us today. On behalf of the county legislators, those that are here with me today, and for all of the residents, congratulations.”

There were some two pages of accolades that City Council President Eugene Jankowski Jr. wasn’t going to completely cover, he said, but he did want to say thank you to Gsell for “all that you’ve done in the community.”

Gsell devoted 37 years to the Rotary Club, and was past president leading numerous initiatives, and helped clean up Ellicott Trail, Rotary Park and city streets. 

“I do remember seeing you when you worked for the county, walking back and forth to work and walking through our neighborhoods, checking everything out, keeping an eye on things. You spend so much time giving back to your community. I really appreciate that you continue to inspire me and everyone I run into through your leadership, and your dedication to making a difference,” Jankowski said. “I mean, you really do so much for the community, I do want to say thank you from the bottom of my heart.”

Gsell’s Washington Avenue neighbors, the Patricks, nominated him for the award, and the family spoke of him fondly, from how he accepted and welcomed them from day one; was understanding of sports equipment in the driveway and hockey pucks through windows; and was an exemplary role model of a good citizen who walked the walk of caring for the earth, people and animals. 

“You know, he always is focused and knows what's going on and when he's needed," his neighbor said. "In conclusion, humanitarian efforts are essential for fostering compassion, promoting justice, creating a more equitable world by recognizing individuals such as Jay, who embodies values of integrity, empathy, leadership and not only honor his contributions, but also inspire others. Jay Gsell exemplifies the highest standards of humanitarian service and leadership. 

Gsell gave a grateful nod to his wife Ann Marie, "the wind beneath my wings" who has been on a 47-year journey with him across nine different states, ending their nomadic lifestyle for the last 31 years in Batavia. 

“It's the longest I've ever lived in the same home, and also the longest place I ever worked in. So that's a testament to what this community is, and how much I feel the commitment to this, it is something that's always given back tenfold by the people in this community and the people that we help,” he said. “It makes a difference, and that's what we're here to do, is make that difference. I am humbled and honored and pleased. Be well, be safe, go out there and keep volunteering. Thank you.”

Photos by Kara Richenberg

The visit from Santa Claus at the State Street Christmas tree house in Batavia has been canceled for this evening due to the cold and wind, “but we plan to see everyone on Friday, Dec. 20 from 6-8 p.m.,” host Angelina Pellegrino said.

For the last decade, Lisa Wittmeyer has come to know Sacred Heart and Ascension Parish as her home church, and she is not about to give it up easily, she says.

Although the Catholic Diocese of Buffalo had issued orders to close the parish in November, Friends of Ascension filed an appeal -- and are "packing the mass" --to stall that measure in an effort to remain open permanently. 

“We had written the first appeal, and the time expired for the bishop to answer, and we have 10 to 15 days for the next appeal … we are to file that next week.  We are still packing the mass; there’s one mass at noon on Sunday, the worst possible time, but there’s 200 in attendance; it’s been standing room only,” Wittmeyer said Thursday to The Batavian. “We’re still supporting the church, we just had a bake sale, we’re still hosting Bingo. We do have a lot of revenue, we were very fiscally responsible with our money. Right now we are kind of in a wait-and-pray; they can’t close us while we’re in appeal. We’re doing what we can to ‘Pack the Mass. We’re wearing the buttons.”

Almost immediately, the Friends of Ascension was formed after the Diocese began announcing local closures, which originally did not include Sacred Heart. Once that Southside parish was placed on the chopping block, members rallied to form the group and began to file paperwork for a nonprofit organization.

They wanted to ensure that mass and church events were continued to be supported, which has included faith formation for kids and adults, although it has mostly been kids in attendance, getting them ready for their sacraments, Wittmeyer said. 

“We’re still doing holy communion, baptisms, weddings, funerals, all of that is till going on,” she said. 

Confirmation class is part of church school for grades two through 11, and includes penance, communion and confirmation, so nothing is getting lost in the shuffle of the Diocese and appeal actions, she said. 

As a child, Wittmeyer attended St. Joseph’s School and Church. After graduating from high school, she eventually moved to her father’s home parish, St. Anthony’s. It was there that she got married and had her boys baptized, so she has already experienced the closure of a church that meant something to her and many other members. 

Wittmeyer then discovered Sacred Heart and doesn’t want to see this gem close or go back to St. Joe’s, she said. 

“As long as we are in the appeal, they cannot close us. The surprising part was, we were not on the chopping block, that’s the surprising part, it wasn’t part of the original plan … (and later) they said then why not close Ascension, and we can go to Resurrection, which is St. Joe’s. But we’re two very different churches. St. Joe’s doesn’t have a church hall. I think the difference in our churches is that we’re smaller, we’re very welcoming, we’re very homey, we are like a church family,” she said. “At St. Joe’s, the acoustics are horrible, it’s hard to hear in there. It’s not aesthetically pleasing … it’s not as personable as Ascension. There’s no hall to fellowship in. I don’t want to lose another church. There is room for two Catholic churches. We used to have four, so I think we can definitely have two.” 

The Diocese had given reasons of lack of financial means and participants as potential reasons for closure, both of which are not true at Ascension Parish, she said. The 4 p.m. Saturday mass was taken away, and it was “very popular,” leaving only the one Sunday mass, which people have steadfastly attended, even having to set up chairs in front when the pews fill up, she said. 

“We are using the church, supporting the church, hosting activities. We are still fighting the fight,” she said. “I have hosted for the past three years the lenten soup supper on Wednesdays. It’s open to the public, and it’s very popular. We donate the funds to different charities. I hope to do it again, and I’m sure we’ll be open through then.”

A cocoa and caroling event scheduled for Thursday was canceled due to the snow that blew in Wednesday night. Members hope to reschedule it. 

In the meantime, the second step in the appeal process is to send it on to the Holy See, which has 90 days to respond. Suppose Ascension receives a denial or no response. In that case, it can appeal to the Church's Supreme Court, the Apostolic Signatura, which follows its own regulations “in a different process that requires appellants to hire an advocate in Rome approved by the Signatura.” That means use of funds likely for an attorney to represent Friends of Ascension. There is no strict timeline or constraint for the response, and the Signatura may give extensions during this process. 

Ascension Parish is not alone with its appeal to the Diocese. St. Brigid’s in Bergen has also filed an appeal, which has kept its doors open to date. Church member John Cummings didn’t want to comment too much about that process, other than it could take a year, and that it “has to really be fought for.”

He has been more immersed in a project to bring solace to the congregation and world at large with a musical production inspired by his son Ryan, who came up with the idea in time for Christmas. 

The Cummings family formed a namesake band with family and friends 10 years ago, performing barbershop type and 50s-60s melodies, and this year Ryan suggested a more universally comforting number to embrace all that’s going on in the world today: “Let There be Peace on Earth.”

A video was recorded at St. Brigid’s with the Cummings family, including son Johnny on piano, community members, Byron-Bergen Central School music teacher Joe Paris conducting the group, and school students and alums.

“It’s just a conglomeration of people in general in the Byron-Bergen community,” the elder John said. “It’s just for everything in the world, life in general. Ryan just thought it would be a great song to do right now. They used the church to do it; it gave a beautiful background.”

The Cummings Family and Friends band performs annually and invites the community to attend, whether it’s at their home or at the Bergen park.