The Firefighter of the Year for the East Pembroke Fire Department is Andrew Martin, who received his award last night during the annual installation banquet for the department. He's pictured with the chiefs who selected Martin for the award, Chief Don Newton, 1st Assistant Chief Stephen Smelski and 2nd Assistant Chief Charles Chatley.

Sworn in as firematic officers for 2017 were Newton, Smelski, Chatley, William Torres as captain, Matthew Florian as fire police captain and James Gayton as training officer.

The administrative officers are Donald Newton Sr., president, Ken Marble, vice president, Joycelyn Perry, secretary, Dan Vania, treasurer, Ryan Worthington, sergeant of arms and parade marshall, Julie Waldron, assistant parade marshall and Pastor Bloom as chaplin.

Members of the board of directors are Steve Smelski, Don Newton, Jr., William Torres, Andrew Martin and Charles Chatley.

Auxiliary officers: Diane Winters, president; Shannon Ferguson, vice president; Steven Petty, secretary; Amber Winters, treasurer; Millie Marble, sergeant of arms; Gordie Petty, standard bearer; and Mary Dix, chaplin.

District representatives: Robert Yungfleisch, William Lawerance, William Joyce, Thomas Dix and Paul Fenton.

The department also received an award, presented by Emergency Management Coordinator Tim Yaeger, for most training hours -- at 1,180 -- of any department in the county.

The department responded to 330 calls in 2016.

William Torres responded to the most calls for the year, more than 200. He responded to 212 calls.

Chief Don Newton, who has been chief for eight years, received a gift certificate from the department to take his family on an all-expensed-paid trip to a theme park in Pennsylvania. 

Alexander Trojans 69 -- Lyndonville Tigers 51

Alexander key players:

Dustin Schmieder 33 points  (Tying his career high) 4-4 3-point FGM, eight rebounds;

Matt Genaway 11 points, six rebounds, four assists, three 3-point FGM;

PJ Brennan six rebounds;

Chris McClinic eight points, four assists, three steals.

Lyndonville key players: Jacob Hoffee 18 points, Eric Neace 15 points.

Coach Josh Bender -- "Great team win for us, proud of the effort that everyone put forward. We got off to a great start shooting the ball in the first quarter and that confidence stayed with us throughout the game. We have been playing good basketball of late and guys keep working hard in practice and its paying off in games."

"I thought defensively we got after it and I told the guys at halftime we needed to apply pressure in the second half in order to finish the game and we did just that."

More pictures from the game: click here.

The suspect got away with an undisclosed amount of cash and fled on foot.

Deputy Chris Erion with K-9 Destro helped track the suspect and he was located a short time later at a nearby residence.

Taken into custody was Ricky L. Miller II.

At the time of his arrest, Miller was allegedly found in possession of a needle.

He was charged with robbery, 3rd, petit larceny, and possession of a hypodermic instrument.

He was jailed without bail.

Batavia chiroprator Tom Mazurkiewicz, in plaid shirt, is pictured above next to national recording artist Joey Belladonna (far left), former lead singer of Anthrax. Belladonna is playing at 10 tonight at T.F. Brown's, 214 Main St., Batavia, with his cover band Big Chief Way.

Also pictured next to Mazurkiewicz is Dave Mickelson, bass player, and Joe Precourt (far right), lead guitarist. They were having dinner this evening at Yume Bistro in Batavia.

Mazurkiewicz says his friendship with Belladonna started 15 years ago when he was working backstage at Darien Lake Performing Arts Center, and Belladonna, a five-time Grammy Award nominee, needed a chiropractic adjustment. The two guys became friends instantly and regularly meet for dinner or attend local sporting events in Western New York, such as Buffalo Bills and Buffalo Sabres games.

Belladonna says he enjoys making stops in Batavia to play and visit with friends.

Batavia PD is looking for the public's assistance in identifying and locating this man for questioning regarding an overnight burglary in the city. The burglary was sometime after midnight at Rancho Viejo on Ellicott Street. The police are not releasing further information at this time. People with information that may assist in the investigation are asked to call  Detective Sgt. Crossett at (585) 345-6353, or the Confidential Tip Line at (585) 345-6370.

Batavia Blue Devils boys varsity basketball had a home game against the Greece Odyssey Leopards tonight. What started as a blow out and continued that way into the fourth quarter was almost an upset loss. 

In the first quarter Batavia did about anything they wanted at either end of the court, easily leading by 13 to 5. After the nice easy warm up of the first quarter, Batavia cruised through the second and led 35 to 17 at the half. 

Once play started in the third,Greece’s’ John Mathis III came out scoring with 14 points, outscoring Batavia by himself. Batavia still led by 47 to 36 at the end of three quarters.

The fourth started slow for Batavia. With about four minutes remaining in the fourth, Greece had caught up to Batavia and tied the game. A few seconds later Greece was in the lead.And Batavia called a time-out. Turnovers and missed shots were causing a lot of damage to Batavia at this point in time. Greece was out rebounding them and clearly in control.

The final minute of play began with the scored tied at 53-53. Antwon Odem (16 points on the night) stepped up and drove hard into the paint with the go ahead two-pointer with 20 seconds left. After that Greece was not able to rally again. Final score: Batavia 57, Greece Odyssey 55. Other standout Batavia team members were Tee Saun Ayala with 15 and Jonathan Liciaga with 12. 

Alex Patrick Wells, of Read Road, is charged with burglary, 2nd, and menacing, 2nd.

The incident was reported at 11:52 p.m., Thursday.

Well was arraigned in Pembroke Town Court and jailed on $25,000 bail or $50,00 bond.

Members of the Pembroke Lady Dragons presented a check today for $19,085.12 to the Roswell Park Cancer Institute in Buffalo. The funds were proceeds from their annual fundraiser held last night at the school.

UPDATE: Tonight the team received an anonymous $685.05 donation, making the total raised this year $20,020.17.

Previously: Shooting for a Cure aims high and hits new record in fundraising for cancer research

Press release:

Congressman Chris Collins (NY-27) released the following after reintroducing three legislative items to help improve our nation’s Medicaid system. The legislative items include the Prioritizing the Most Vulnerable Americans Act (formerly H.R. 6462), Better Accounting for Medicaid Costs Act of 2017 (formerly H.R. 5021), and the Improving Oversight and Accountability in Medicaid Non-DSH Supplemental Payments Act (formerly H.R. 2151). These bills will lower costs, increase oversight, and give patients better access to Medicaid coverage.

“We need to improve Medicaid in order to expand coverage for those who need it most and lower costs that are increasing at an unsustainable rate,” Congressman Collins said. “These legislative items will raise accountability standards and ensure Medicaid supports the most vulnerable Americans, which is what it was designed to accomplish.”

Prioritizing the Most Vulnerable Americans Act (formerly H.R. 6462)

Requires the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), in approving Medicaid demonstration projects to:

• Prioritize projects that have been proven effective in improving care and outcomes with respect to uninsured, Medicaid-eligible, or low-income individuals;
• Require participating states to make publicly available data regarding the health outcomes for individuals it serves;
• Ensure that projects are not duplicative of any federal program or funding opportunity;
• Require participating states to make publicly available an analysis of the degree to which such projects preclude private and charitable sector efforts to improve care and outcomes with respect to uninsured, Medicaid-eligible, or low-income individuals.

Better Accounting for Medicaid Costs Act of 2017 (formerly H.R. 5021)

• Requires CMS to follow regular notice and comment rulemaking procedures when issuing sub-regulatory guidance that is estimated to cost the federal government more than $100 million or states more than $50 million.

Improving Oversight and Accountability in Medicaid Non-DSH Supplemental Payments Act (formerly H.R. 2151)

Requires the Secretary of HHS to:

• Establish annual reporting requirements for non-DSH supplemental Medicaid payments to providers;
• Issue guidance to states that identifies permissible methods for calculation of non-DSH supplemental payments;
• Establish requirements for state making non-DSH supplemental payments to conduct an annual independent audit of these payments.

Each of these legislative items is cosponsored by members of the House Energy and Commerce Committee’s Medicaid Task Force. The Task Force was established during the 114^th Congress by former Chairman Fred Upton and is led by Congressman Brett Guthrie. Members of the Task Force were charged with devising ways to strengthen and sustain Medicaid for the nation’s most vulnerable citizens.

There was a bigger crowd and more money raised than ever before by the Pembroke community in the Pembroke Girls Basketball Team's annual fundraiser for Roswell Park Cancer Institute, Shooting for a Cure, last night.

The event generated $18,635.12 in donations, bringing the total raised since the annual event started in 2012 to more than $40,000. UPDATE: Officials have revised last night's figure to $19,085.12.

“These girls are the driving force behind this fundraiser and it’s become the identity of Pembroke Girls Basketball," said Coach Ron Funke.

The annual event was founded to support Funke's wife when she was diagnosed with cancer.

"(The event has) continued to grow each season," the coach said. "This season was one for the record books! We were able to raise over $18,000 and I’m speechless. The girls on this team are incredibly compassionate individuals and believe firmly in service over self.”  

The players this year have also volunteered at the Carly’s Club Christmas party and also helped with the “Check Out Hunger” campaign at Tops Markets in Batavia.

Funke and the team will deliver the latest check to Rosewell today at 3 p.m.

“I have to say that the most meaningful part of Shooting for a Cure is always visiting Roswell to donate what’s been raised," Funke said. "The girls put their pink jerseys back on and travel to Roswell to present a check to hospital officials. Being there at the hospital, surrounded by people who are actually fighting their own battle against cancer never fails to inspire the girls. It’s a tangible reminder of how their efforts off the court are saving lives.”

DJ Jickster, of 97 Rock, a former Genesee County resident, was part of the opening ceremonies to help get the fans charged up.

A tradition during the half-time program is for Pembroke players to present flowers to cancer survivors. Mackenzie Jurek present a flower to Ann Bennett.

Ray Stoldt receives a flower from Aaron Brown. Stoldt is just out of treatment for throat cancer.

Part of the hallway activities was face painting.

The team presented a plaque to the family of Scott Humel, a former district employee, who succumbed to cancer during this past year.

In the basketball game, Notre Dame beat Pembroke, 33-27. For Pembroke, freshman MacKenzie Johnson had 12 points and Olivia Kohurst had nine. Margaret Sutherland led Notre Dame in scoring with 16 points. Callie McCulley had seven.

At halftime, winning tickets were pulled for several prizes. John Molnar won a bike.

To purchase prints of photos, click here.

The two drivers involved in an accident yesterday afternoon on Route 33 in Bergen are both in guarded condition at Strong Memorial Hospital.

Strong lists all patients being cared for in the intensive care unit as "guarded."

The drivers are identified by State Police as Donald L. Bausch, 74, of Batavia, and Otavia M. Bell, 18, of Rochester.

Troopers believe Bell failed to yield the right of way to Bausch, causing a T-bone accident.

There was an engine fire in Bell's car and among the first people on scene were employees of Genesee Lumber. They used a forklift they were transporting to tilt Bell's car enough to get her out of the vehicle. Bell was in-and-out of consciousness and when she regained consciousness, she was incoherent and said she thought there was another person in the vehicle with her.

Since a second person wasn't found in the vehicle, the Genesee Lumber employees used the forklift to raise her vehicle so firefighters should check under it for another patient. There was no second person.

Bausch had to be extricated from his vehicle.

UPDATE: Don Bausch is the brother of Legislator Bob Bausch.

Previously: Accident reported on Route 33, Bergen

Mercy Flight is being dispatched to Pembroke for a serious injury accident on the Thruway Route 77 at the Thruway interchange.

Pembroke, Indian Falls, and East Pembroke fire all dispatched. Mercy EMS dispatched.

One vehicle involved in the accident.

UPDATE(S)(By Billie) 7:32 a.m.: East Pembroke is going to set up the landing zone at the Highway Department garage at routes 5 and 77. A second ambulance is requested.

UPDATE 7:51 a.m.: Mercy Flight #5 is on the ground. One patient is said to be in and out of consciousness and has right side pain.

UPDATE 8:04 a.m.: Mercy Flight is airborne and headed to Erie County Medical Center.

UPDATE 8:05 a.m.: East Pembroke is returning to service. Mercy medics are transporting a patient to UMMC. The assignment is back in service.

UPDATE 8:18 a.m.: This accident involved two vehicles. It was not on the Thruway; it occurred on Route 77 at the Thruway toll booth intersection. A deputy at the scene said a northbound car turning left failed to yield to a southbound vehicle, causing the accident. The driver of the southbound vehicle was the one in and out of consciousness and air-lifted to ECMC with non-life-threatening injuries. The female driver of the northbound car has minor injuries, complains of left knee pain and is now arriving at UMMC.

UPDATE 10:53 a.m.: The drivers have been identified as Jennifer L. Say, 44, of Sliker Road, Corfu, and Susan L. Squires, 52, of West Avenue, Medina. Say allegedly failed to yield the right of way while making a left-hand turn to enter the tollbooths off Route 77 and was issued a citation. She was transported by Mercy EMS to UMMC. Squires was southbound on Route 77. She was transported by Mercy Flight to ECMC. The accident was investigated by Deputy Kevin McCarthy.

Reader-submitted photos:

A $26.8-million plan for a wide range of improvements and upgrades within the Batavia City Schools is moving to the next phase of the approval process after getting a funding guarantee from the state and unanimous approval of the school board.

The next phase, a public hearing followed by a vote of district residents in March.

The public hearing will be at 6 p.m., Wednesday, Feb. 15 at the high school. The public vote will be Thursday, March 2.

The district will use $7.5 million saved in the capital reserve fund and the balance of the expenditure will be covered by the state.

This funding plan, said Scott Rozanski, business administrator, will mean the district can complete a number of projects without a local tax increase specifically for this project.

Rozanski compared the project to something a homeowner needs to do periodically, basic maintenance, replacing old and worn out parts of the house and making general improvements.

"It allows us to move into the 21st century in a lot of different ways," Rozanski said. "There will be technology upgrades and we can take care of our facilities for the long run. There are some things that need fixing and some things that needed fixing after our consolidation in 2012. After living in it for four or five years, things fit but they could be a better fit."

All of the schools will get fixes specific to those locations.

Batavia Middle School (floor plan above) will receive:

• a renovated building entrance and improved entrance security;
• expanded music area;
• upgraded finish on gym floor, stairway halls, auditorium and classrooms;
• improved indoor air quality;
• upgraded lighting and PA system;
• replacement of roof areas.

Batavia High School:

• auditorium upgrades, including lighting and sound system and improved orchestra pit;
• upgraded fire alarm system;
• expanded restrooms;
• roof replacements;
• improved parent drop-off configuration.

Jackson School:

• upgrade finishes in classroom;
• expanded restrooms;
• upgraded lighting system;
• exterior window replacements.

John Kennedy School:

• classroom addition;
• reconfigure interior spaces;
• window replacements, roof repairs;
• upgraded lighting system;
• improved parent drop-off;
• improved sound system.

Upgrades to Richmond Memorial Library, including ventilations and the fire alarm system, are also part of the scope of work.

A big part of the project is a proposal to demo the current Van Detta Stadium and reconfigure the location of the stadium (still to be called Van Detta) and Woodward Field.

Woodward Field would get artificial turf and the surrounding track would become an improved synthetic material. 

Without this rebuild, Rozanski said, the 70-year-old Van Detta will become a bigger and bigger money pit. The current estimated costs of repairs and upgrades to improve accessibility and safety are nearly as costly as what the district is proposing now.

An improved, all-purpose facility will also help Batavia become a destination location, being halfway between Rochester and Buffalo, for regional sports competitions.

Even now, he said, the district gets requests to host events but can't because they conflict the the high school's own use of the facilities.

"We could keep repairing it or we could fix it permanently for 30 or 40 years and have very little maintenance expense," Rozanski said. "(Given the location) we should be able to draw a lot of different activities and that should benefit all businesses in the community. We should have increased (numbers of) people coming into the area to hotels, restaurants, retail and whatever other types of business. That will have a long-term positive impact on the community."

Genesee Council on Alcoholism and Substance Abuse will receive $820,000 in state money for an opioid treatment program. The money will fund 150 treatment slots.

Press release:

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today announced more than $8.1 million awarded to eight addiction treatment providers in seven counties across New York State. Funding will support construction needs and operational assistance for treatment programming, and the development of up to 80 new residential treatment beds and 600 new Opioid Treatment Program slots. These awards build on the Governor’s aggressive efforts to combat opioid misuse and heroin use, and the disease of addiction. 

“This administration continues the fight against opioid and heroin addiction and this funding will help ensure more New Yorkers will get the help they need to get on the road to recovery," Governor Cuomo said. “These new beds will help change lives and save lives, and bring us one step closer to a stronger and healthier New York for all." 

"Governor Cuomo is leading the charge to combat the devastating heroin and opioid crisis affecting families all across New York State. That includes ensuring immediate access to the supports and services needed for a successful recovery,” said Lt. Governor Kathy Hochul, co-chair of the Governor's task force to combat heroin and opioid addiction. “This is about saving people’s lives and these new treatment opportunities will provide even more people with the critical services they need to overcome addiction.”

Press release:

The New York State Senate has passed legislation (S365) to enact into law a permanent cap on state spending. The bill would further increase savings from a self-imposed restraint that has already saved taxpayers a cumulative $31 billion since the 2010-11 budget. Senator Ranzenhofer voted in favor of the proposal.

“A state spending cap ensures fiscal discipline and saves taxpayers billions of dollars,” Ranzenhofer said. “Enacting a long-lasting limit on state expenditures would allow taxpayers to keep more of their hard-earned dollars.”

Since 2010, six on-time budgets have restricted spending growth at or below 2 percent. Maintaining this level of fiscal responsibility has fostered major investments in education by abolishing the Gap Elimination Adjustment (GEA) budget cuts, infrastructure projects by delivering Upstate’s fair share of state transportation dollars, and economic development projects to create jobs. 

The legislation would control spending to a three-year rolling average of inflation and increase the maximum capacity to the state’s rainy day fund. This approach helps end the historic pattern of “boom and bust” cycle budgeting.

The bill will be sent to the State Assembly.

A motor-vehicle accident with injuries is reported at Route 33 and West Bergen Road, Bergen. A person was briefly trapped inside and is now out. The engine was on fire. Bergen fire and Mercy medics are on scene. 

Nearby, a fender-bender is reported at Old State Road and Route 33 in Bergen.

UPDATE 3:25 p.m.: This was a T-bone collision between a station wagon and a sedan, both newer models. Both sustained heavy damage. Each driver, one male and one female, was taken by ground ambulance to Strong Memorial Hospital, according to Bergen Fire Chief Garrett Dean. The State Police crash reconstruction unit is being brought in. A vehicle owned by Genesee Lumber happened by at the time of the accident and its occupants helped out by using its forklift to maneuver the station wagon, tilting it, thereby allowing the Genesee Lumber workers to help extricate the female driver before firefighters arrived. The woman was slightly disoriented and told first responders she had a passenger, which turned out not to be true, but the forklift was used to raise the station wagon off the ground to make sure no one was trapped underneath. The male driver of the sedan also required extrication.

UPDATE: The accident involved an 18-year-old woman from Rochester and a 74-year-old man from Batavia. Both suffered significant injuries and though not believed life-threatening, State Police are not yet releasing their names. The female driver is suspected of failing to yield the right of way when entering Route 33. 

Super solid and so pretty! This charmer is located in an awesome City location, close to everything and within walking distance to one of Batavia's favorite coffee shops and City park! This home is move-in ready, with little to do but try to figure out what to do with all the storage space! There is great space and cozy floor plan for such a large home --everyone has their own spot! This home has been well taken care of through the years with maintenance of the everyday "stuff" and yearly maintenance of the things that matter --roof, insulation and furnace! This is an excellent home for the money, you are going to want to check this one out! Click here to view the complete listing for 27 Ellicott Ave. in Batavia. Call Lynn Bezon at Reliant Real Estate today at 585-344-4663!

Wednesday night the Batavia Blue Devils Boys Varsity Basketball (7-3) played a home game against the Canandaigua Braves (8-6). There was a lot of hustle from both teams early on in the game.

Canandaigua did a good job of moving the ball around on offense to create shooting opportunities by getting a man wide open for a two- or three-point jumper. Canandaigua led most of the first because of this ball movement on their offense. The game was tied at 10-10 at the end of one.

Going into the second quarter, Batavia’s defense started to figure out Canandaigua offense and made the time of possession a little more even, causing some turnovers on defense. At the half Batavia led 22-20.

The third quarter looked like a different game. Batavia’s defense continued to stop Canandaigua and their offense turned red hot. Half way through the third Batavia led by 10. At the end of three Batavia led 47 to 30. Batavia’s Naz Pratt #2, put the exclamation point on the quarter by hitting a nothing but net, at the buzzer, three-pointer from the other side of the court, he was almost in another ZIP code. It was a spectacular shot.

Batavia never lost control of the game in the fourth, but Canandaigua rallied a bit and put the pressure on slowly climbing out of their 17-point deficit to come within three points. Both teams increased their intensity for a hard played last few minutes with Batavia triumphing. Final score, Batavia 55 Canandaigua 49. Batavia’s double-digit scorers were Tee Sean Ayala with 20 and Antwon Odom with 12.