A motorcyclist is seriously injured and down in the roadway after a collision with a vehicle at 9114 Alleghany Road, Corfu. Mercy Flight is called to the scene, ETA three minutes. Corfu, Pembroke and Indian Falls fire departments and Mercy medics are responding.

The location is between Cohocton Road and "Corfu Plaza." Fire Police are asked to shut down the roadway at routes 5 and 77 and routes 5 and 33.

UPDATE 9:14 p.m.: Mercy Flight has landed.

UPDATE 9:45 p.m.: Mercy Flight is airborne with the patient to Erie County Medical Center.

While no longer on the payroll, outgoing Genesee County Manager Jay Gsell gave himself a new title as he bid farewell this afternoon at a ceremony attended by about 50 dignitaries, current and former legislators, local government colleagues and friends in front of the steps of the Old County Courthouse.

Gsell, directing his remarks to City Council members Eugene Jankowski Jr. and Kathleen Briggs, said that “Geno, since I walk the streets of Batavia on a regular basis, I’m on weed patrol now. So, Kathy (Briggs) you don’t have to worry about sending the city crews out. I’ll take care of this side – you get them to just do the Southside, and we’ll be good.”

The 45-minute event marked the end of a 27-year (actually 26 years and 364 days) career as the county’s chief administrative officer – a tenure that saw the county grow exponentially under Gsell’s guidance, energy and optimism.

After the presentation of proclamations, commendations and gifts, Gsell and his wife, Ann Marie, led a balloon launching, which served as a touching tribute to their daughter, Claire, who passed away in March 2009 at the age of 27.

“It was going to be her 28^th birthday (on Sept. 6), so we decided that every year we would put 27 balloons out,” Gsell said. “In this case, we’re going to do it now. We figured why not, this is our favorite place.”

Getting 'Guidance' from Mary Pat

In a four-and-a-half-minute speech that capped the festivities – remarkably short for the effusive New Jersey native, Gsell talked about his daughter’s driving experiences, recalled meeting (the late legislator) Florence Gioia when he was about to be hired in 1993, expressed his pride in the team that leads the county and assured all that he and Ann Marie were in Batavia to stay.

“As it turns out, her (Claire) consistent guidance at Batavia High School was (guidance counselor) Mary Pat Hancock, and we always knew when we got a phone call, it was because Claire had gone to her first before coming to us with regard to what was or was not appropriate – including wrecking a car and also hitting somebody else in the parking lot. In fact, I think it was B.R. DeWitt’s wife,” Gsell remembered.

Hancock was the legislature chair when Gsell was hired and was one of today’s guest speakers, along with U.S. Congressman Chris Jacobs, State Sen. Michael Ranzenhofer, State Assemblyman Stephen Hawley, City Council President Jankowski, NYS Association of Counties President Jack Marren, current Legislature Chair Rochelle Stein and former Legislature Chair Robert Bausch.

Gsell said Claire went to Hancock first “to break the ice” before informing them of what had transpired.

“And, also, Rosalie Maguire, our insurance agent (who also was in attendance) had to keep changing the cars that were in our portfolio because Claire went through six cars in five years at one point,” he said. “She never got hurt except when one of our sheriff’s (deputies) had to actually pull up to her on Dodgeson Road and her car was facing the opposite direction from where she was headed to Darien Lake to work out there.

“She went to avoid a squirrel and ending up wrapping herself around a tree. So, needless to say, Frank Falleti (of Falleti Motors) was also our best friend as far as cars were concerned.”

Teamwork: 'It's How I was Raised'

Gsell said he knew he made the right choice when taking the Genesee County job – “the teamwork and cooperation, and how we get things done. This is really what I wanted to do. It’s how I was raised and also we as a group … things are in good hands with Matt (Landers, his successor); Vicki (Muckle, executive assistant to the county manager), and Tammi (Ferringer, recently appointed assistant county manager).”

As far as life after retirement, Gsell said “we call this home.”

“People keep saying, ‘So where are you going next? When’s the for sale sign (going up).’ There’s no for sale sign. The house is paid off, the dogs are happy, Ann Marie is reasonably happy except when I get anywhere near the television or the remotes, and as far we’re concerned, Genesee County and the City of Batavia are home, plain and simple,” he said.

Ann Marie took a few minutes to affectionately “roast” her husband, rattling off a number of his idiosyncrasies, including his technological impairment when it comes to Wi-Fi and TV remotes – “We call his TV chair the handicap parking spot,” she joked – and compulsive clearing of the dishes before people are done eating.

On a serious note, she went back 44 years ago when she was a single mother.

“I was a single mom with a 2 ½-year-old son and I couldn’t have chosen a better dad for my son,” she said, speaking of Christopher, who lives in Brooklyn.

Now It's on to the Next Chapter

Jay Gsell acknowledged that things will be “different come Monday, for the first time in 46-plus years.”

“And I’m not sure how I’ll react to that, but I think I will find a way,” he said. “And I know there are certain things like United Way and Rotary (Club) and also HomeCare & Hospice that will keep me busy at least on a volunteer basis.”

In closing, Gsell, who turns 69 on Saturday, said it was an honor to serve in Genesee County and the City of Batavia.

“We’re still going to be here, just know that – and again I can’t thank you enough,” he said. “It has been an honor and a privilege to work for this public sector government here for pretty much more than half of my career. So, thank you, thank you and thank you.”

Tributes from State, Local Lawmakers

• Marren presented Gsell with a mirror, coffee cups and a T-shirt with the words “Whisper words of wisdom … Let it be” on the front.
• Ranzenhofer mentioned Gsell’s expertise in working on the county water project, and extended the hope for “a great retirement with days filled with pleasure and joy.”
• Jacobs congratulated him on his “career of service in professional governing and the many other things you do for the community.”
• Hawley harkened back to the “Men of Rotary” calendar before saying that “no one has given more service to the Rotary Club and to the community than Jay Gsell. ... The guy is a workaholic … and an asset to the community,” he said.
• Jankowski said he will miss Gsell’s “enthusiasm and energy” and thanked him for helping the city whenever it needed help.
• Stein, calling it a special day for us, said “we all appreciate who he is and all he has done for our lives,” noting that Gsell served under six legislative chairs and 39 different legislators. “He wore us down with his enthusiasm and ability to keep going,” she said.
• Hancock recalled realizing Gsell’s professional experience, education and moral fiber during the interview process, “but we had no idea about the energy. ... He certainly was the man for the job, and he put his heart and soul into it,” she said, adding that she hopes Gsell starts his retirement with a nap.
• Bausch applauded Gsell for moving the county forward, mentioning Genesee Community College, the County Court Facility, Genesee County Airport, bringing water into the county and overall economic development.

Previously: Jay Gsell, 'Dean' of county managers, enters final week of his distinguished career

Photo at top: Jay and Ann Marie Gsell standing next to a chair, specially hand-painted for the occasion by Batavian Ed Leising; Photos at bottom in order -- Gsell (at right) and others releasing balloons in memory of the Gsell's daughter, Claire; U.S. Congressman Chris Jacobs congratulating Gsell; Batavia Police Chief Shawn Heubusch, left, and Fire Chief Stefano Napolitano sharing a moment with Gsell; Assemblyman Stephen Hawley and Mary Pat Hancock with the Gsells and the flowers presented to Ann Marie.

Photos by Mike Pettinella.

Graham Corporation (NYSE: GHM), a Batavia-based global business that designs, manufactures and sells critical equipment for the oil refining, petrochemical and defense industries, on Thursday announced that it secured $11 million in orders for three oil-refining projects in Asia.

Two projects are in Southeast Asia while the largest project is the first large order received in India by the Company and is with a new customer.

James R. Lines, Graham’s president and chief executive officer, said, “We believe our effective execution on strategy and our consultative selling platform enabled us to capture these awards during a period of intense competition and focus on price.

"We believe that our decision to localize in India provided us the opportunity to successfully compete on that project and is also keeping the bid pipeline in that country quite active. We continued to leverage our global fabrication supply chain where appropriate in order to compete effectively, and we stayed engaged throughout the nearly two year pipeline cycle with both buyers and end users to ensure we addressed their requirements.”

Ten years ago, Bill Hume told The Batavian he was living his dream.

He had just opened Foxprowl Collectables at 440 Ellicott St., Batavia, and was excited to translate his passion for action figures and comic book heroes into a real business.

In 2020, the dream is still alive even if there have been challenges over the past decade.

Hume expanded his Ellicott Street location for awhile, tried a location at Jackson and Main for awhile tried selling just online for awhile, even hosted a couple of collectible conventions in Batavia. Each step of the way he's had to make adjustments, but all along he kept the dream alive.

"People started shopping on the internet more and my sales were going down and then sales started going down because the merchandise that I carry started becoming predominate in Target and Walmart and more mainstream with the success Marvel and Star Wars movies," Hume said. "I came to what was kind of tough realization that you’ve got to teach an old dog new tricks. First, it was, ‘what’s wrong with the people?’ and then I came to the realization that it's me not changing with the times. It was a little difficult to swallow."

He made the changes needed, reducing overhead, switching up inventory, and changing his marketing message, and even so, despite the challenges of a global pandemic, the dream is still alive.

He intends to be around for Foxprowl's 20th anniversary in 10 years, he said, as a "staple in the community."

Top photo: Bill Hume, wife and co-owner Joy Hume, and staff member Brenden Gillard.

File Photo: Bill Hume shortly after Foxprowl opened in 2010.

Previously: Batavia native opens pop culture collectibles store on Ellicott Street

For all of our Foxprowl coverage over the years, click here.

Press release:

Assemblyman Steve Hawley is celebrating the state’s decision to allow local bowling alleys to reopen at 50-percent capacity this upcoming Monday.

All bowling alleys will be able to start up with food being served by wait staff, ensuring that local economies receive the boost in revenue they need while also allowing locals to get in some exercise and play after being cooped up inside for so long.

“I’m thrilled to hear that progress continues to be made with the reopening of the state,” Hawley said. “I had written a letter some time ago to the governor asking for bowling alleys to be opened as soon as possible for the sake of local economies alongside the service they provide citizens in stretching their legs and having some light fun.

"Our conference had then sent another letter requesting much of the same. It’s good to hear that the governor is hearing us and taking into account the steps needed to ensure that people are protected and remain healthy during this continually challenging time.”

Press release:

New Cases – As of 2 p.m. 

• Genesee County received one new positive case of COVID-19.
  • The new positive case resides in Elba.
  • The positive individual is in their 60s.
  • The individual was not on mandatory quarantine prior to testing positive.
  • Thirteen new individuals are on precautionary quarantine due to travel from restricted states.
  • Three of the positive individuals are hospitalized.
     
• Orleans County received zero new positive cases of COVID-19.
  • Six new individuals are on precautionary quarantine due to travel from restricted states.

Mechanically home is in great shape not a lot to do interior besides your own decorating. Rooms were just painted. Gas bill is $81 on a budget plan and electric average is $65.00.

Home sits on awesome partially fenced in back yard with plenty of room to play. Large double wide driveway for you and your guests -- an affordable city home!

Press release:

Iroquois National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) announces online permits for the youth waterfowl hunt and COVID-19 waterfowl blind draw procedures. Additionally, the Refuge announces the 2020 Final Hunting Plan for Iroquois NWR has been approved and awaits publication in the Federal Register.

The Iroquois NWR Youth Waterfowl Hunt remains the same except permitting will now be done online. Permits are available first-come, first-serve from Aug. 15 until Sept. 15. The permit is free, but space is limited to 15 participants this year.

You will receive your permit letter and Parental Consent Form upon checking out on RecAccess. 

The preseason waterfowl lottery draws will once again be on RecAccess. However, morning blind draws for the entire regular season will now be held at the Refuge Shop at 1101 Casey Road in Basom to ensure the safety of staff and the public during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Details of how we will safely proceed will be disseminated through our website, Facebook, and RecAccess as opening day approaches.

The 2020 Final Hunting Plan has been approved and posted on our website. This plan includes changes to the 2020-2021 hunt seasons on Iroquois NWR, including other migratory birds, small game, fall turkey, and the second session of the waterfowl season.

Once these changes are published in the Federal Register, we will be able to implement them. This will be reflected on our website and fact sheets as appropriate. Please continue to check our website periodically for updates. 

For further information please see our website or email Iroquois National Wildlife Refuge or phone Visitor Services specialist Eric Schaertl at (585) 948-5445, ext. 7036. Iroquois NWR is located midway between Buffalo and Rochester and is managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Press release:

United Memorial Medical Center Department of Cardiology in Batavia has been granted an additional three-year term of accreditation by the Intersocietal Accreditation Commission (IAC) in echocardiography in the area(s) of adult transthoracic, adult stress.

This latest accreditation awarded to United Memorial Medical Center Department of Cardiology demonstrates the facility’s ongoing commitment to providing quality patient care in echocardiography. 

Echocardiography is used to assess different areas of the heart and can detect heart disease or signs of serious conditions. Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States, followed closely by stroke as the fourth highest cause of death.

According to the American Heart Association (AHA), more than 2,150 Americans die each day from cardiovascular disease, which amounts to about one every 40 seconds. 

There are many factors that contribute to an accurate diagnosis based on echocardiography. The training and experience of the sonographer performing the procedure, the type of equipment used and the quality assessment metrics each facility is required to measure, all contribute to a positive patient outcome.

IAC accreditation is a “seal of approval” that patients can rely on as an indicator of consistent quality care and a dedication to continuous improvement. 

Accreditation by IAC indicates that United Memorial Medical Center Department of Cardiology has undergone an intensive application and review process and is found to be in compliance with the published Standards.

Comprised of a detailed self-evaluation followed by a thorough review by a panel of medical experts, the IAC accreditation process enables both the critical operational and technical components of the applicant facility to be assessed, including representative case studies and their corresponding final reports.

Press release:

Beginning this month, Tops Friendly Markets* began offering another 1,800 new reasons for its customers to use the convenience of curbside or home delivery -- the bonus of adding alcohol to their online order.

Order all your favorite beers, seltzers and more adult beverages online with Tops! Shop online, sit back and we’ll be at your door in as little as one hour!

“This digital evolution will bring an enhanced shopping experience for our customers, and sets Tops apart in the marketplace as the first retailer to offer this added convenience to its customers,” said Ed Rick, director, consumer marketing & digital for Tops.

Customers will be asked to provide a valid driver’s license in order to close out their order whether it is a curbside pickup or a home delivery. Deliveries will not be left at a customer’s residence until this transaction is completed.

Visit instacart.topsmarkets.com https://instacart.topsmarkets.com/store/tops-markets/departments/32211/aisles/173099 to schedule same day delivery or a pickup order now!

*Available in NYS Tops Grocery Pick Up & Delivery stores only.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo today said that bowling centers will be allowed to reopen starting Monday.

"Bowling is back, now let's back bowling," proclaimed Randy Hanks, proprietor of Oak Orchard Bowl in Albion, upon hearing the news that bowling center owners have been waiting for since the middle of March. Hanks said he plans to open his establishment on Aug. 21.

Cuomo said that center proprietors will be required to limit capacity to 50 percent and bowlers will have to stay at their assigned lanes, Cuomo said. Additionally, it is being reported that everyone must wear face coverings and every other lane must be closed.

Food and alcohol service will be permitted, but only by wait service at individual lanes.

In a telephone briefing with reporters, published reports indicated that Cuomo said, “They (servers) come to you. You don’t go to a bar. They come to you.”

Press release:

Congressman Chris Jacobs (NY-27) is releasing the following statement in response to the Peace Agreement announced today between Israel and the United Arab Emirates.

“Today’s announcement of an agreement between Israel and the United Arab Emirates represents a major step toward stabilization of the Middle East and showcases American leadership on the international stage. President Trump has consistently worked toward combatting Iranian aggression in the region, and this agreement moves us closer to unifying more Middle Eastern countries against one of the largest threats to regional stability, major allies, and American troops.”

Tom Williams, president of the Genesee County Bar Association, issued the following announcement this week:

Hon. Paula L. Feroleto, administrative judge of the Eighth Judicial District, has announced that effective immediately, all Treatment Court proceedings in Genesee County will now be held in County Court.    

The Honorable Michael M. Mohun, Wyoming County Court judge, has been assigned to preside. This change will allow both misdemeanors and felonies to be addressed effectively using an established Treatment Court model.

The Treatment Court coordinator is Sarah Welker. 

Court proceedings both virtual and in-person will be held Monday mornings at 10 o'clock in the Supreme Court Courtroom at the Genesee County Courts Facility, commencing this Monday, Aug. 17, before Judge Mohun. 

Because removing Treatment Court from Batavia City Court seemed rather unexpected and we were curious why a judge from another county was being put in charge of Treatment Court, The Batavian reached out to Judge Feroleto for a more detailed explanation of the decision. She issued the following statement:

The Treatment Court model in the smaller counties of the Eighth Judicial District is to have a county court judge handle the Treatment Court. County court judges can handle felony matters that arise under Article 216 of the CPL, which provides for judicial diversion. These are felony cases over which a county court judge would have jurisdiction. City court judges handle misdemeanors. Rather than having two separate drug courts, one felony level in county court and another in city court, it makes sense to have one drug court handled by one judge. Judge Michael Mohun has handled conflict cases in Genesee County for many years for both judges Noonan and Zambito. This experience has familiarized him with the Genesee County courts and the various stakeholders involved in the Treatment Court model. He has been running the Treatment Court in Wyoming county since 2013. Judge Mohun was honored by the New York State Bar Association in January 2020 for his leadership and innovation with treatment courts. He is ideally suited to handle this change to the Treatment Court model in Genesee County. 

As you are well aware, it has been somewhat of a unique year in terms of challenges. The city courts were unable to process misdemeanor appearance tickets for many months, and Batavia City Court will have no shortage of work as the year moves forward. This change is not a reflection on the city court judges but will hopefully be an enhancement and improvement as the number and types of cases can be expanded. The timing worked out well as Judge Rogers had graduated 10 participants on July 30, so a substantial number of the participants graduated before the program was taken over by Judge Mohun.  Judge Rogers has also taken on all after-hours arraignments of town and village matters during the pandemic, so his plate is full. In my role as administrative judge, I review the caseloads of all the courts and assignments and sometimes it helps to balance workloads or try something different. This seemed like a good time to try something different with the Genesee County Treatment Court model. 

Press release:

Democratic candidate Nate McMurray released the following statement as reports circulated that Wednesday, Aug. 12th, Conservative candidate Beth Parlato would vacate her ballot line in NY-27. Under significant pressure from GOP party bosses, Parlato is reportedly willing to accept a nomination for a State Supreme Court judgeship using an often abused loophole in New York election law.

“I do not agree with Beth on much, but I admire her strength and tenacity. The same party bosses that attacked her and pressured her to bow to Jacobs in the primary want a unified political machine because they’re nervous about Jacobs in November. She told them ‘No’ before, and I hope she’ll do it again.”

McMurray hopes that Parlato stays true to her principles regarding party corruption.

“I talked with Beth a few times, and she was as disgusted by these party insiders as I was. These are the same men who made excuses for Chris Lee, still defend Chris Collins, teamed up against David Bellavia, and traded their principles for Jacobs’ deep pockets — a guy who up until a couple of months ago didn’t have a conservative bone in his body.

"She knows Jacobs is a fake. She knows that his allegiance isn’t to conservative morals or Republican ideals, his only loyalty is to the pursuit of money and power. I hope today she won’t do what Jacobs has done so many times, changing herself and her positions on a dime for political expediency.”

The Batavian attempted to give Parlato a chance to respond. We sent an email to her campaign email address and the email bounced. We sent a direct message through Facebook to her campaign more than 24 hours ago and the message doesn't appear to have even been read. 

The Batavian received the following complaint from a reader:

I dropped off paperwork at the Batavia DMV. They say it takes 2-3 weeks to get it back. You're telling me that something that takes normally 20 minutes to do in person takes weeks due to the COVID? Could you please help shed light on this for all of Genesee County.

County Clerk Michael Cianfrini responds:

Very simply, the volume of dropbox work has increased exponentially since we were able to reopen and began processing them, while at the same time we are seeing an increase in dealer work, providing great service to our in-office customers and manning the phones all day long. We are currently receiving approximately 20x the normal daily volume of dropbox transactions, in addition to seeing a significant increase in the volume of our dealer work.  Every day we allocate staff to focus on the dropbox work, but when 200 or more transactions are received each day, including many, many from out of county, we can only do our best to process them and return them as quickly as we can. We have to dedicate staff to the dealer work to ensure that those transactions are processed and returned in a timely fashion, and we obviously have to assign staff to service the in-office customers who have made appointments. We also currently hand deliver dozens of license plates to Genesee County residents at the curb outside every day, in order to avoid them having to come into the office and unnecessarily placing themselves at risk. Factor in the fact that we now receive well over 600 phone calls per day that someone has to try to answer, and we, unfortunately, end up with approximately a 2 week turnaround time. 

While some customers may view this as an unusually lengthy turnaround time, I assure you that given the situation it is not.  In fact, we are receiving so many out of county transactions via mail and the dropbox precisely because many of the surrounding counties are experiencing an even longer lag time. Based upon conversations I have had with other county clerks, two weeks is actually a shorter turnaround time than many other county DMVs can provide. I would also like to add than in the case of registration renewals submitted with the renewal invite that the customer received in the mail, we are able to process them and mail them back usually the same day. We are also one of the only counties that have phone lines still open to the public to answer questions, as many other counties have turned off their phones completely, a fact that out-of-county residents express to us on the phone countless times each day. 

In summary, while the situation may not please every customer, Genesee County is absolutely not alone in experiencing a backlog on submitted transactions. I am very proud of the job we are doing and the service we are providing given the circumstances. We are in the same situation as almost every DMV statewide and are handling the extreme volume of work in an efficient and timely manner all things considered. If one were able to even reach a neighboring DMV on the phone, they would find that Genesee County is as fast or faster in most cases in processing and returning work. While one transaction may only take “20 minutes to do in person,” that transaction must now take its place in line with the hundreds and hundreds of other transactions that were submitted before it. For every complaint that you may hear from an anxious customer, I assure you we receive many times that number of "thank you’s" and compliments on our fast and courteous service. 

I hope this sheds some light on the situation, and I thank the residents of Genesee County for their continued patronage and patience.

A driver whose pickup truck burst into flames following an accident on Route 33 in Stafford on Monday said she wasn't paying attention and failed to notice an uninvolved vehicle slowing down in her lane ahead of her so she hit the brakes and swerved left to avoid a rear-end collision.

Her eastbound 2019 Dodge pickup traveled off the south shoulder of the roadway and struck a signpost and then a culvert.

Possible citations are pending for Justine D. McWethy, 33, of Batavia.

McWethy was transported by ambulance to UMMC for evaluation.

The accident, which was reported at 12:37 p.m., was investigated by Deputy Travis Demuth.

There was a secondary accident on Clinton Street Road at Horseshoe Lake Road about 30 minutes later that sent two people to area hospitals for evaluation. The Sheriff's Office has not released that accident report.

A spokesman for Gov. Andrew Cuomo advised Chris Jacobs to “take a course on basic math” after the freshman congressman on Thursday accused the governor of sitting on $3 billion of unspent federal stimulus money that is intended to help New York state counties, cities, towns and villages.

“I know he just got there, but clearly the congressman should take a course on basic math and budgeting because in about 120 days the state spent $2.2 billion on COVID-19 expenses, nearly half our allocation, and simple math would tell you we’ll spend it all by the end of year,” Deputy Communications Director Jason Conwall said.

Conwall said the money is going for personal protective equipment, food banks and coronavirus testing efforts.

“This is just misdirection by a congressman who knows Washington has yet to deliver and will ultimately determine the depth of the state’s spending reductions and how damaging they will be to the schools, hospitals and our most vulnerable neighbors that are supported by the state,” Cornwall added.

Earlier in the day, Jacobs issued a statement indicating that Cuomo is “hoarding” the CARES Act funding that was intended to help local governments, and wants to see stronger language in any additional stimulus legislation to demand greater accountability in the utilization of these funds.

“This is taxpayer’s money intended to help people during this crisis; it is not the governor’s personal ‘piggybank,’” Jacobs said.

Jacobs said he was “shocked” to learn that New York has spent only 42.3 percent of the $5.1 billion in CARES Act funding. An additional $2.1 billion was allocated to seven large municipalities, including Erie and Monroe counties, which received $160 million and $130 million, respectively.

According to Genesee County Manager Jay Gsell, the state’s 50 other counties did not qualify for any of the CARES Act money, other than funds to help offset Medicaid expenses and to reimburse specific agencies for COVID-19 costs.

The CARES Act was set up to compensate states and municipalities that had populations of at least 500,000 or that met Community Development Block Grant requirements.

“We got our FMAP (Federal Medical Assistance Percentages) money – reducing our Medicaid weekly shares by $24,000 well into next year – and about $100,000 for the Office for the Aging and health department,” he said.

Gsell continues to urge the federal government to pass another stimulus bill, this time with funding for local governments. Today is the final day of his 26-year, 364-day career as the county’s chief administrative officer.

He also said there’s no guarantee that the state will release any of the $3 billion that Jacobs says is in its coffers to local governments, so he is imploring the feds to step up with what looks like a final federal stimulus package to support counties, cities, towns and villages. Gov. Cuomo also has warned that the state may reduce its aid to municipalities by 20 percent or more.

“We have been arguing that if there is going to be a Fed Stim 4-5 that part needs to change,” he said. “The HEALS Act that (Sen. Mitch) McConnell put together brings us nothing – it only suggests that the state still has some money and they might be able to give some of it to other jurisdictions in the state.”

Gsell said if Congress passes one last stimulus bill, they need to do it quickly.

“This is the time and this is now. Not after November; not two and a half months from now, before the election. Address it now, before you go home and start doing the hand shaking and baby kissing at the legislative levels,” he said.

In a related development, John F. Marren, president of New York State Association of Counties, reinforced the need for assistance to counties as he commented on the quarterly state budget update for 2021. The financial plan projects a $14.5 billion revenue decline in the general fund and a 15.3 percent decrease in “all funds” tax receipts.

“This quarterly state budget update is bad news for New York, and bad news for every local government, service agency and local taxpayer in the state,” Marren said. “The loss in revenue and budget gaps will decimate every local health, safety and human service program, construction project, and job in their path.”

Genesee County planners didn’t need any comments from the applicants on their way to recommending approval of four business-related referrals on Thursday night.

At their monthly meeting conducted via Zoom videoconferencing, the planning board looked favorably upon 13 referrals -- with eight of them involving private matters such as home additions, sheds and barns and another being a request by the Oakfield Town Board to rezone 10 parcels on Albion Road from Land Conservation (LC) to Residential & Agricultural (R+A).

As reported on The Batavian earlier this week, the four remaining referrals were a new professional office building in the Town of Alexander, addition at PCORE Electric, Inc., in Le Roy, a community center in the Village of Oakfield and an auto repair/print shop associated with a ministry in Darien.

Planners recommended approval of all four, with the lone modification tacked on to A/C Associates’ application for a special use permit to construct a 92- by 50-foot one-story office building at 11198 Alexander Road. (Route 98).

The modification stipulates that the applicant obtains a driveway permit from the state Department of Transportation for the reconfigured driveway prior to approval by the Alexander Town Planning Board.

The plan is for A/C Associates to occupy part of the space, with additional offices to be made available for leasing.

The three other referrals stamped for approval were as follows:

• A special use permit request from the owners of PCORE Electric Inc., in Le Roy (on the Lapp Insulator campus) to build a 2,800-square-foot addition and a new 6,700-square-foot asphalt pad. Planners also recommended that the applicant be aware of the vegetative buffer to Oatka Creek when creating the new pad.

• A site plan review submitted by RWNY Property Group to place a community center (food pantry and farmers’ market) in an existing building at 33 S. Main St. (Route 63).

• An area variance application from John Kula of Freedom Fellowship LLC, to put up a 3,200-square-foot three-bay auto repair garage and print shop at 254 Broadway Road (Route 20) in Darien.

The public garage will support a faith-based organization for those in recovery from substance use disorders. Work would be limited to light repair, tires, brakes and routine service.