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Darien Lake seeks seasonal help

By Billie Owens

Darien Lake, New York's largest theme park and water park resort, will be hiring more than 2,000 positions for the 2011 season and participating in several career fairs at local colleges and universities.

Interested candidates are encouraged to first call the Darien Lake Human Resources office for an application at 585-599-5108. Then, visit a local college job fair and find the Darien Lake table.

In Genesee County, Darien Lakes will be participating in the job fair at Genesee Community College, Batavia Campus, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Tuesday, April 12.

Photos: Blowing glass at Glass Roots

By Howard B. Owens

One of my longtime goals has been to stop by Glass Roots at 12 Center St., Batavia, some time when Jeremy Almeter is blowing glass. Today, I happened to catch Jeremy in action along with Josh Taggart (bottom photo).

Almeter told me he and Josh can create any kind of glass object a customer might want -- just draw a picture and they'll make it.

Farmers rallied in Albany to make New York more 'farm-friendly'

By Billie Owens

Here's a news release from the NY Farm Bureau.

Hundreds of New York farmers rallied in Albany this week to urge the legislature to make New York a farm-friendly state.  
 
“New York Farm Bureau is extremely concerned about last week’s news that the number of farms in New York decreased for the first time in recent years,” said Dean Norton, president of New York Farm Bureau, the state’s largest agricultural advocacy organization.
 
“Our family farms not only produce local food for local consumers to enjoy, we contribute to New York’s economy by shipping farm products up and down the East Coast and even to overseas markets,” Norton said.

“Just as important, our family farmers produce the raw materials that help keep thousands of New Yorkers employed in our food and dairy processing plants, trucking industries, agri-business supply stores, as well as contribute to local tourism economies with our consumer-friendly farms and wineries.”
 
New York Farm Bureau strongly believes that the state must do more to keep farm families in business in New York State, through fundamentally changing the way the state thinks about farming and agriculture, and all of the associated economic benefits.  
 
New York’s farm families have been struggling with the impact of the global economic meltdown and New York’s slow recovery, along with New York’s unfriendly business climate.
 
“The impact of helping New York farmers to grow their businesses will be felt up and down the food and employment chain. For example, the recent establishment of Chobani’s Greek Yogurt processing plant in Chenango County, bringing jobs in an economically challenged area, would never have happened without the available supply of milk from local dairy farmers.

"It is that synergy that we need to encourage, by reducing the cost of doing business in New York, while at the same time maintaining our agricultural program infrastructure.
 
“The average New York farmer pays more in taxes than our competitors in most states, and certainly has a higher regulatory burden. Our members are coming to town this week to ask the governor and the legislature to make New York farm-friendly again, by adopting policies that encourage growth and a revitalization of the farm community and our agricultural infrastructure.”  
 

New York Farm Bureau members will be making the case for the following priority issues:

  • Supporting a property-tax cap, coupled with mandate relief, to control seemingly endless increases in year-to-year property-tax bills;
  • Restoring critical agricultural program infrastructure through the state budget process;
  • Supporting the Farmers’ Regulatory Relief Act, which will help roll back overzealous regulatory and paperwork burdens for family farmers;
  • Calling for a revitalization of the Hunts Point Terminal Marketplace, to update the largest distributor of produce to NYC and make it more accessible to New York farmers;
  • Advocating for extending and amending several ESDC programs to make them more farm-friendly.

New York Farm Bureau’s annual Reception and Issues Forum will educate policymakers and members of the public on the importance of agriculture to New York, as well as provide an excellent opportunity for New York’s family farmers to showcase locally grown products.

More than 300 farmers will be at the State Capitol to convey the message that farms are important, and more needs to be done to make New York truly “farm-friendly."

"While we generally support Governor Cuomo's efforts to rein in the excessive spending, taxes and regulations that have contributed to the decline in farm numbers over the past year, our members will be expressing their concerns about the proposed 92-percent cut to agricultural funding in the governor’s budget."
 
These core agricultural infrastructure programs have long helped the state's farm sector compete with other states and exporting nations. Over the past four years, these same agricultural programs have seen budget allocations cut from a little over $15 million to a mere $1.2 million this year.

Many of these programs help keep family farms able to sell their products, through concentrating on meeting the environmental, economic, research and marketing challenges faced by New York’s farmers in a high-cost state.  
 
"Eliminating these key agricultural investment programs will not make a substantial impact in New York's otherwise massive fiscal challenges. We're a drop in a bucket in the larger scheme of things. But in the rural economy, and in the heart of Long Island’s Suffolk County, these programs have a big impact, and we'll feel it when they're gone."
 
Norton said farmers are pleased that the Governor’s Executive Budget did provide level funding for animal health programs, and support several economic development initiatives such as the regional economic development offices, paperwork reduction on diesel gas credits and clean energy incentives.

Town of Batavia holds public hearing

By Billie Owens

A Public Hearing will be held by the Town of Batavia Planning Board regarding the application of Larry Abaire, 3282 W. Main St. Rd., for a Special Use Permit to operate a motor vehicle sales, service, repair and impound yard. This district is zoned Commercial, Tax Map #11-1-62.1.

The hearing will be held at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, March 15 at the Batavia Town Hall, 3833 W. Main St. Rd., Batavia. All interested persons will be heard. A copy of the application is on file at the Town Hall for review. Written comments will be accepted prior to that date.

Batavia Area Jaycees Home Show & Food Drive

By Billie Owens

The Batavia Area Jaycees will be collecting nonperishable items at the upcoming Home Show and everything collected will be donated to Stephen’s Table in Batavia.

Any patron that brings in a food item will also received $1 off admission price. (You can bring in more then one food item, but it will only be $1 off the $4 admission price!)

The Home Show is scheduled for March 19-20 at the Batavia Downs. Hours are Saturday from 10 a.m. – 7 p.m. and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

There is still room available for vendors!

Contact Cathy at 343-5775 or e-mail at bajhomeshow@yahoo.com <mailto:bajhomeshow@yahoo.com> for more details.

Chamber presentation -- 'Social Media for Your Organization'

By Billie Owens

The Genesee County Chamber of Commerce will present Social Media for Your Organization on March 15.  Kevin Manne, the Genesee Community College new media specialist will be the speaker.

Facebook was the No. 1 most visited Web in the nation last year. Twenty-five billion messages were sent on Twitter last year. All kinds of people -- from potential customers to long-lost cousins or classmates -- are talking with each other and the world through social networks.

This presentation will explain what social media is, what the major platforms are and how they can be leveraged for marketing, customer service, media coverage, or just plain good fun. Manne will explain how to measure the effectiveness of your efforts.

This event will take place beginning at 7:30 a.m. Tuesday, March 15 at T.F. Brown's restaurant, located at 216 E. Main St. A continental breakfast will be provided.

The cost is $10 for chamber members and $15 non-members. Space will be limited to the first 15 people, so you don’t want to miss out. Please contact Melissa at the chamber of commerce to register.

Genesee County Chamber of Commerce, 210 E. Main St., Batavia

343-7440, ext. 27

e-mail to chamber@geneseeny.com

Gillibrand offers multi-point plan to help dairy farmers

By Billie Owens

Saying solutions to the state's dairy crisis can't wait until the 2012 Farm Bill, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand today unveiled a comprehensive plan she claims will provide farmers with immediate support.

That can't happen soon enough according to those in the industry. New York State lost nearly a quarter of all its dairies during 2002-07, according to information Gillibrand included in her news release, dropping from nearly 7,400 to about 5,700 five years later.

The number of Genesee County dairies dropped from 98 to 68, a 31-percent decline.

“New York is home to the hardest working farm families and the finest dairy products in the world, but outdated regulations, broken pricing structures and a bad economy are hurting our dairy farmers, and farming communities across the state," Gillibrand said. "We need to act now to support New York’s dairy farms.”

The full specter of the problem was gleaned after the senator held six agricultural "listening sessions" statewide in preparation for next's year farm legislation.

"I appreciate the senator taking the the time to have listening sessions for the dairy industry and for trying to help New York dairy farmers," said Dean Norton, an Elba dairy farmer and president of the New York Farm Bureau. "I look forward to working with her in preparation for the 2012 Farm Bill."

Gillibrand's plan intends to: make dairy pricing more competitive for New York producers; prevent cuts to the MILC program; help boost exports; improve storage reporting standards; and increase trading price stability.

The current pricing system is obscure and the discouraging result often means dairy farmers pay more to produce their products than they get from selling them.

Farmers say the high costs of feed and fuel make even the existing safety net -- Milk Income Loss Contract (MILC) -- inadequate. Further cuts would increase the numbers of farmers taking on massive debt to cover their costs or go out of business.

Gillibrand is urging the federal Department of Agriculture to collect and publish data on alternative measures of dairy pricing, such as competitive-pay pricing, "so that everyone can see if this would be a better way to price milk." The current system of end-product pricing has reportedly contributed to more volatility in milk prices for producers.

Under a competitive-pricing scenario, the price of milk would be determined by a survey of prices paid to farmers for the milk used in cheese production in a competitive market wherein there are counties with at least five different milk buyers.

New York is one of only three states with competitive counties today.

In noncompetitive areas, the existing Federal Milk Marketing Order (FMMO) system would take effect, however base prices would still be established by the competitive-pay pricing system.

To both improve America's milk quality and boost exports, the senator wants to lower the most basic measure of milk quality -- known as somatic cell counts -- so milk has "a longer shelf life, better taste and greater cheese yield."

Another area needing reform, according to farmers are the inventory methods for certain types of cheese, which can "significantly influence trading activities on the Chicago Merchantile Exchange."

For example, cold storage facilities are not required to report their inventories of dairy products to the USDA Natural Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), and only do so on a voluntary basis. This purportedly creates an environment of volatility and uncertainty for dairy trading.

Senator Gillibrand is introducing legislation that would make the Cold Storage Report to NASS mandatory, and give the USDA authority to audit warehouse inventories to help bring more stability to dairy trading prices.

She is also introducing the "Democracy for Dairy Producers Act," which would require dairy cooperatives that engage in bloc voting to provide their member farmers with written notices and other information when certain kind of votes occur.

The bill also would establish an information clearinghouse to provide information regarding any proposed milk marketing order reforms. The information would have to be published on a Web site and distributed to producers through a fax list, e-mail distribution list, or U.S. mail list, at the discretion of individual producers.

Historic Masonic Temple will no longer hold Masons

By Brittany Baker

The sturdy red brick building at the corner of Center and Main streets was built by Batavia's Masons in 1908 and has been their home ever since.

That will change this summer.

Members of Batavia Lodge No. 475 of Free and Accepted Masons have made the difficult decision to leave their finely crafted and ornate temple to merge with the Olive Branch Lodge in Le Roy.

Jim Rosenbeck, master of the 151-year-old lodge, explained that since the Batavia Masons' lease expires this year, they are working on a merger with Le Roy to hopefully, "...get greater strength in numbers and get a higher profile for Masonry by merging and doing collaborative things."

In the process the lodge -- formed on April 9, 1859 -- will be dissolved.

The move is necessary because it's not financially viable for the 50-member lodge to pay rent. The lodge has occupied the building rent free for at least 15 years.

Rosenbeck said he wished nothing but the best for the Masonic Temple building and hoped that owner David Howe could find the right tenant to take care of it in the future.

Howe, who also owns Charles Men's Shop, acquired the building 15 years ago.

He gave The Batavian a tour of it earlier this week.

I was most impressed with the look of the "Lodge Room." Walking through the double doors and into the great hall, a view of throne-like chairs at the opposite side gave an almost humbling feeling. History seems to ooze out of the cracks of the walls in that place.

Theater seats line the sides of the great hall and a balcony that once held a pipe organ overlooks the room. The carpet is a fittingly ornate pattern and one of the earliest of "dimmers" can be found hulking underneath the light switches. When the giant crank is turned, the lights soften to a haunting glow.

"I love the history of this building and anything historic -- anything that is bigger than life," Howe said during our tour.

From the beginning, the Masons rented the first floor of the building to retail businesses and the second floor has always contained rented office space -- mostly used by attorneys until a few years ago.

The third and fourth floors have been shared by the Masons and Blue Pearl Yoga.

What happens next, Howe isn't quite sure.

He guessed that a theater group could work well, and apartments are possible, but improvements will be needed with either scenario.

At the time Howe acquired the building, the roof was in bad shape and a portion of the southeast corner of the building collapsed down to the basement. That's all been fixed, but other repairs are yet to be made.

As for the Masons, making tough choices to ensure their survival certainly isn't a new thing. The Le Roy Masons sold their lodge to make way for a Walgreens a few years ago, and after months of searching, decided to make 12 Bank St. in the village their new gathering place.

Historically, the Masons have found ways to keep their society thriving despite hardships. Former Holland Land Office Museum Director Patrick Weissand tells an interesting tale of William Morgan -- who learned the Masons' secrets but wasn't allowed to remain part of the lodge because he had a tendency to "shoot off his mouth" after drinking too much.

Although no one can prove exactly what happened to Morgan -- historians do know he was kidnapped and silenced after threatening to publish a book about the rituals of the freemasons. Weissand tells the riveting tale in a three-part video series here.

Although the Masons may have been a secretive society with an alleged political agenda in the past, Rosenbeck says that isn't what being a Mason is about.

"Basically, we are a benevolent organization that makes good men better," he said. "One of our goals is to provide services to the community that we're in and it's been sort of an issue with us lately because we have so few active members to do anything meaningful."

A good portion of the Batavia lodge treasury will be donated to local charitable groups, once the lodge disbands, Rosenbeck said. The rest will go to the Le Roy lodge, probably to help with construction of a kitchen there.

Rosenbeck says they do their best to donate to worthy causes. He pointed out that in order to be a Mason, one criteria is the belief in a Supreme Being.

"It's unique that the brotherhood of Masonry doesn't discriminate between religions. Christianity, Catholics, Muslims and Jewish beliefs and a few others can become Masons.

Rosenbeck said he regrets having to leave "the glorious old building" but it was a choice made out of necessity.

"Our decision to merge and join Le Roy has nothing to do with our feelings towards David Howe or the lodge building. We are going to really miss the beautiful place but this is something we need to do for our survival."

The permanent fixtures of the building -- such as distinctive door handles and the carved wood of the temple -- stay with the building. But the Batavia lodge owns all of the furniture -- such as the palace-like chairs in the temple and the two couches in the hallway -- and those will be taken to Le Roy. 

Photos by Howard Owens. Top, interior of the Masonic Temple. First inset, Jim Rosenbeck and his son Mike Rosenbeck. Mike is the last member of Lodge No. 475 to complete his Third Degree and sign the charter. Other insets, details from inside the building. Postcards provided by Dave Howe.

FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH ORGANICS HOLDS GRAND OPENING MARCH 5, 2011 FROM 10 A.M. – 3 P.M.

By

BROCKPORT…Fountain of Youth Organics, a new health food store in the village of Brockport will hold a grand opening celebration for Saturday, March 5 from 10 a.m. until 3 p.m. Product samples, give-aways, and a basket raffle are planned for the day. SUNY Brockport’s radio station, WBSU will be broadcasting a live remote from the store at 46 Main Street, Brockport.

Visitors can also sign up to become a “FoYO Member” and receive $15.00 off the usual sign-up fee. Members can take advantage of members-only sales events, receive a quarterly newsletter, recipe-of-the-month, and will also get a free FoYO t-shirt and biodegradable jute FoYO shopping bag.

Fountain of Youth Organics focuses on unique gluten- and allergen-free products, organic dairy, and a full line of vitamins and supplements. Patty Hawley, co-owner of FoYO along with her husband Ted says, “We work hard to seek out small, independent labels. Many of our products come from local, organic sources with an eye toward originality. We carry a vegan, gluten free chocolate sauce that hails from Ithaca, 100% grass-fed yogurt from Maple Hill Creamery, and a brand new Kombucha from BAO Organics, born in Brooklyn and available - until recently - in greater metropolitan New York exclusively.”

Hawley continues, “Customers will have the opportunity to sample various local foods like Whole in the Wall Pesto (Ithaca, NY); BAO Kombucha; Lively Run goat cheese (Finger Lakes), and break-the-mold-delicious gluten-free cookies from WOW Baking Co. Organic, fair-trade coffee and cocoa will also be available to sample.”

While the Hawley’s have recently opened the Brockport store, they are no strangers to business. Together they owned and operated Personal Storage Systems, the Bank Street Road business was the first self-storage facility in Genesee County (which they later sold in 2006). Mr. Hawley currently owns Genesee Data Management, a record retention and shredding service in Batavia. “We’re passionate about health, wellness, and fitness; we knew that we wanted to open a health food store. The question was ‘where?’,” according to Ted.

A few months of research led the couple to Brockport where they purchased a building in the historic district on Main Street. After extensive exterior and interior restoration, the couple opened February 8. “We’re very pleased with the response so far and look forward to serving the community well into the future.” For more information about Fountain of Youth Organics contact 585.637.3696 or email patty@foyorganics.com.

Mistlers add subs and salads to menu at Main and Jackson location

By Howard B. Owens

Ken and Andrea Mistler have made some big changes to their former coffee and smoothie shop at the corner of Main and Jackson streets.

The former Daily Grind is now Espresso Salads and Subs.

Ken Mistler said it was time to expand what the shop offered. While a prep area has been added for food service, much of the food prep -- including baking fresh sub rolls daily -- takes place at Mistler's other food establishment downtown, South Beach Restaurant.

Andrea manages day-to-day operations for the  sub and salad shop.

Subs and salads are made to order with fresh ingredients.

For the coffee and smoothie crowd, the full selection of the Daily Grind remains on the menu.

Mistler has also added free wi-fi and there are now leather chairs and couches available for customers. In the summer, Ken said, he will add outdoor seating.

Margarita's closes

By Howard B. Owens

Margarita's Mexican Restaurant on Jackson Street has closed.

Owner Carlos Hernandez was not available for comment today.

NOTE: If you bought a Margarita's gift certificate from The Batavian within the past 30 days, return it to us for a refund. No refunds will be issued without return of the physical gift certificate and the purchase must have been made in the past 30 days.

Oil Doctor on West Main wants to expand to motorcycle sales

By Howard B. Owens

A public hearing has been set with the Town of Batavia Planning Board to discuss a proposed change to the location of Oil Doctor, 4003 W. Main St. Road, Batavia.

Owner Ben Thompson has requested permission to convert a portion of the existing building to an area for motorcycle sales.

The hearing will be at 7:30 p.m., March 1, at town hall, 3833 W. Main St. Road, Batavia.

A copy of the application is available at town hall for review.

Construction begins on indoor water park at Clarion Hotel, Batavia

By Howard B. Owens

Construction has begun on a $2 million project to add an indoor water park to the Clarion Hotel on Park Road, Batavia.

Owner Chan Patel (above) said he is looking forward providing year-round recreation to the region. He expects to draw customs from Buffalo and Rochester, not just Genesee County.

"We have a big staff," Patel said. "Even in the winter, we have 60 people on staff. During the summer there's plenty of work, but in the winter I have to cut down their hours. It's not fair because they have to support their families, too."

The 12,000-square-foot facility -- Palm Island Indoor Water Park -- includes a 197-foot and a 169-foot water slide, a pool equipped with basketball hoops, a spa, a play lagoon with waterfalls, small slides and dumping buckets, as well as birthday party rooms, a food and beverage concession and an arcade room with 15 games.

Patel said he planned the park so that there would be activities that would appeal to all ages.

"This will bring more business into town," Patel said. "It will be a benefit to the whole community."

He's even partnering, he said, with local businesses to help ensure his guests patronize those businesses.

He's also using local or regional contractors. The design was completed by Smart Design, of Batavia. Whitney East, of Rochester, is the general contractor, and Batavia's Arctic Refrigeration is handling all of the mechanical work.

The project received tax abatements from the Genesee County Economic Development Center worth about $91,600. That includes partial abatement of property taxes for 10 years worth $18,800, a mortgage-tax abatement worth $12,800, and exemption from sales tax on materials for construction of the park worth $60,000.

GCEDC estimates the $91,600 in tax abatement will have more than a $5 million multiplier-effect benefit for the local economy.

Batavia Area Jaycees Home Show

By Melissa George

The Batavia Area Jaycees are looking for vendors for the 58th Annual Home, Garden & Trade Show taking place on March 19 & 20 at Batavia Downs.

All businesses are welcome!

Visit www.jci.cc/batavia for your vendor packet!

Pavilion company working to revolutionize how we use computers

By Billie Owens

This story is based on information provided by Pavilion-based Syntec Optics.

Syntec Optics is hard at work on a project that could revolutionize the way we interact with computers. It's the nation's largest independent manufacturer of custom plastic lenses whose motto is “Precision Plastic Optics for Tomorrow’s Technologies."

The Pavilion-based company is working on the Eye-Com EC7T™ eye-tracking system -- designed and developed by Eye-Com Corp. This advanced eye-tracking platform uses frame-mounted microcameras to not only record eyelid and pupil activity, but also to track head movement. The integrated, wearable system is a versatile device with all video, lighting, and electronic components encased within the uniquely designed, unobtrusive eye frames.

Even in a universe of lighting-quick technological changes, this stuff is mindboggling. (Perhaps a bit "Borg-like" -- but in a good way.)

Entertainment, transportation and disability-assistance industries are among those expected to be significantly impacted by advancements in eye-tracking and biometric technologies such as this.

In the rapidly emerging "augmented-reality" industry, people are presented with information about their surrounding environment through various visual displays, including computers, TV screens, smart phones, or even through a pair of eye-tracking glasses with a heads-up display.

In the foreseeable future, a user wearing an eye-tracking device could look at a building such as a movie theater and be presented with information like show times or even watch movie trailers.

Imagine driving a car that has eye tracking, augmented reality, biometrics and oculometrics all integrated -- where the system is able to determine if you are in a traffic jam or cruising down the highway -- and selectively allowing phone calls to go through based on your level of fatigue, stress or the amount of attention needed to be devoted to the road.

“In the near term, the EC7T will enable many disabled individuals greater use of computers with a device that can be used in place of a traditional mouse and allows them to use their eyes to select objects on the screen," says Eye-Com Founder William C. Torch, Ph.D.

Syntec Optics has been working with Eye-Com for more than a year and is currently manufacturing and assembling the set of plastic optics used in the EC7T.

Since the device is worn by the user, the optics need to be light in weight. Using plastic as opposed to glass made sense. Syntec was able to produce a set of prototype lens from Zeonex E48R™.

One of the challenges was the size of the lens, which is roughly 3 millimeters in diameter according to Syntec Optics’ VP and General Manager Rick Arndt.

“We have significant experience manufacturing and assembling small optics but as technology progresses, we see parts getting smaller and smaller,” Arndt said.

As for the technology itself, Eye-Com CEO Ky Good says “Eye-Com’s eye-tracking technology has established a new level of biometric performance with both advanced hardware and innovative software, which offers a platform for the future.”

The EC7T provides a mechanism and platform for enhancing applications that have yet to be imagined. Good believes that the device will eventually integrate optical, audio and neural sensors that will drive many applications in the next 10, 20 to 50 years.

“Our intention,” he explains, “is to leverage and collaborate with many companies, ideally bringing those pieces together to provide a cost effective, usable product for a multitude of end-users.”

("Make it so," said the captain.)

To find out more visit <http://www.eyecomworld.com> or <http://www.syntecoptics.com>.

GCEDC pushes onward to establish county as foreign-trade zone

By Billie Owens

If all goes well, Genesee County could become a foreign-trade zone by year’s end.

That would be a boon for some local companies, including those looking to grow their business in international markets because it evens the playing field with foreign competitors, according to proponents.

The Genesee County Economic Development Center Board has approved a request to take the initial steps to establish a foreign-trade zone (FTZ) here.

Although this has been in the works for some time, new federal rules have made it easier to move forward, according to Chris Suozzi, vice president of business development at GCEDC.

The application process takes about eight months and it’s quite extensive. Applicants are screened by the Foreign Trade Zones Board of the U.S. Department of Commerce.

"The whole county can be deemed a foreign-trade zone, instead of targeted areas of the past,” he said. “We would act as a public utility. There are fees associated with this for filings, attorney fees, application fees, etc. Those numbers aren't known yet. That will be part of the application process.

"Each (business) applicant has to be able to recoup those costs – realize at least $10,000 in savings – to justify participation.”

A business would have to do its own due diligence to determine if the math works in its favor, Suozzi said.

There are several economic advantages of a FTZ, including reduced customs, deferral or avoidance of duties and federal excise taxes, tariff inversions, weekly customs entry and reduced value on scrap, waste and obsolete products.

Participants are able therefore to reduce the costs of doing business in the United States – distribution, manufacturing as well as non-manufacturing activities – thereby reducing the attraction or need to do business at a foreign site. Companies also have an opportunity to grow sales through increased exports.

The GCEDC maintains that not only will existing companies stand to benefit from a FTZ, but it will serve as an incentive to attract other companies. GCEDC officials are exploring the possibility of expanding the trade area to the entrie GLOW region, which includes also includes Livingston, Orleans and Wyoming counties.

"A lot of U.S. companies can grow their sales internationally, instead of maintaining the status quo, they can grow both by retention and the attraction of new businesses,” Suozzi said.

Liberty Pumps is an example of one local manufacturer that is keen on establishing a FTZ. Suozzi said he would like to meet with any business interested in learning more about foreign-trade zones.

"We’ll set up a meeting and walk you through it,” Suozzi said. He can be reached at (585) 343-4866, ext. 11, or e-mail to csuozzi@gcedc.com.

Photos: Snow clean up on Main Street, Batavia

By Howard B. Owens

City DPW workers were busy Monday night in Downtown Batavia. Crews hauled off a good deal of the snow that was blocking walkways between parking and the sidewalk along Main Street. Tim Walton supplied the picture below of the snow removal.

Military veteran takes over Batavia's Edward Jones office

By Howard B. Owens

John Baldwin is getting settled in as the new financial adviser for Edward Jones Investments in Batavia.

Working out of the EJI office on Jackson Street, Baldwin said he's already picking up new clients as well as helping out those clients who were already with Edward Jones.

Baldwin is from Carthage, near Fort Drum. He attended Roberts Wesleyan College and has a B.S. in business management.

He met his wife Jillian in college.

He joined Edward Jones after six years in the Army National Guard.

"Finance has been my life-long passion," Baldwin said. "I love helping people truly understand their money and how to make it work for them."

He said he's excited to be in Batavia.

"Batavia has been very welcoming and I look forward to many great years of involvement, service, and friendship here with the community," he said.

Wanted: 200 acres near Batavia

By Howard B. Owens

If you're a landowner with at least 200 acres in the Batavia area, here's your chance to sell it.

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs is trying to secure a plot of land that is central to Buffalo and Rochester for a new veteran's cemetery, according to a report in the Buffalo News.

When it was pointed out that most of the land east, west, north and south of Batavia is wide open, he said, “Apparently no one wants to sell.”

At present, the closest VA cemetery for those who have served in the armed forces is more than 100 miles away in Bath.

The parcel being sought by the VA needs to be within seven miles north or south of the Thruway and no farther than 20 miles east of the Thruway and Route 77 or 18 miles west of that rural crossing.

Prospective sellers -- even a mile outside the boundaries -- should call Gary Rothfeld, a VA real estate official at (202) 495-5534.

The deadline for proposals is Feb. 16.

Pair of Batavia hotels get sales tax break for new windows and doors

By Howard B. Owens

A pair of Batavia hotels are getting some tax relief through the Genesee County Economic Development Center because they are installing new energy-efficient doors and windows.

A GCEDC news release says the project will mean 21 retained jobs.

The Days Inn and Super 8 at 200 Oak St., Batavia, are expected to spend more than $220,000 on the project.

The owners will save about $9,000 in sales tax on materials under terms of the GCEDC arrangement.

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