The ReAwaken America Tour has arrived in Batavia.

Among the opening events this morning was a truckers' convoy on Bank Street Road past Cornerstone Church, where the event is being held.

Pastor Paul Doyle, who agreed to host the event after it was canceled at a venue in Rochester, has denied that the tour promotes political extremism.  Critics say event speakers peddle conspiracy theories and racism and that the rhetoric can lead to violence, such as the racially-motivated mass murder at a supermarket in Buffalo in May.

Today's speakers include retired General Michael Flynn, pardoned by President Donald Trump after being convicted of lying to the FBI during investigations into his dealings with foreign nations.  Flynn is scheduled to speak in the morning on "Why now is the time to act without fear and hesitation to save this God-given republic."

Other speakers include Kash Patel on "what is actually going on in America," Doctor Bryan Ardis, on COVID-19 protocols involving remdesivir and midazolam, Christie Hutcherson on why we must protect our borders, Julia Flynn, on a "practical plan to save America," Lance Wallnau, on God's "chaos code," Mel K on the "great reset," Dr. Rashid Buttar on the "COVID-19 chaos," Jim Meehan on fighting back against "medical corruption."

Eric Trump is speaking in the afternoon on "why the Trump family has committed their time, talent and treasure to help save America."

In the early evening, Roger Stone, also pardoned by Trump after his conviction on charges of obstruction, making false statements, and witness tampering, will speak about how Jesus can save America.

As things were getting underway this morning, a number of vendors were already in place offering books, t-shirts, hats, jewelry, paintings, and other wares to the attendees (photos below).

The Batavian will have coverage throughout the weekend of the event at Cornerstone as well as counter-events at other locations in Batavia.

The stage in the main event tent ready for guests and speakers.

Rochester Regional Health and United Memorial Medical Center officials would like Genesee County on board to assist with a $2 million grant for the Healthy Living project in downtown Batavia.

Working through Ed Flynn of LaBella Associates, hospital officials plan to apply for the grant and, if approved, funding would “flow through the county,” County Manager Matt Landers said Wednesday.

“There would be no county match, and no county cost,” he said to legislators during their Ways & Means committee meeting at the Old Courthouse.

Restore NY grant
The grant is to go toward some of the demolition costs of the GLOW YMCA site between Wiard and Bank streets, he said. The county can charge up to $10,000 for administrative costs, “which should be more than enough for us to cover our costs,” Landers said.

“I would liken this similar to a (Community Development Block Grant) project where the (county’s Economic Development Center) usually comes to us and has a private business out there that wants to secure funds for a project for economic development and their job creation,” he said. “And then we basically utilize grant ministries, grant administration services … So this will be a very similar arrangement, but less intensive. According to Ed Flynn, the CDBG project is a little more intensive. This is less intensive. So I don't see a drawback.”

The unusual part, he said, was that this request is to approve an intent to apply before actually applying for the grant. That letter of intent was due Thursday, and the next step would be to get the Legislature’s blessings on the actual grant application, he said.

“So if there are reservations around, they can still be raised,” he said. “So it's a little nontraditional process where I'm coming to you with the intent to apply. And then we'll be voting on formal permission to apply, within the attached resolutions, that will come forward probably in September.”

The committee approved his request, and Genesee County will be submitting a Restore NY round six grant to support the development of the Healthy Living Campus. United Memorial Medical Center – Rochester Regional Health (UMMC-RRH), and GLOW YMCA have partnered to develop a $33.5 million, two-story 78,000 square-foot regional health and wellness facility, which will integrate a new YMCA facility with state-of-the-art medical space for the Healthy Living program.

New versus old YMCA
Restore NY funds will be used by the development team to demolish the old 40,000 square-foot YMCA, and an 8,500 square-foot obsolete boiler house owned by UMMC-RRH, which will provide space to accommodate a new downtown park and parking lot. The project was selected as a priority Downtown Revitalization Initiative project and is also supported by the Batavia Brownfield Opportunity Area plan. UMMC/RRH will lead the development team.

Demolition of YMCA won’t be for a while, as the new building site at the former Cary Hall and Elks Lodge needs to be in place for the facility’s members to use, said Rob Walker, CEO of GLOW YMCA. There shouldn’t be any downtime for members, as they will transition over to the freshly completed site while the older YM building is taken down, he said.

“And continue operations without hurting the community and our services to the community — that was important to us, both from a mission standpoint and service standpoint, but also fiscally being responsible as well,” Walker said Thursday to The Batavian. “So the demolition is all dependent on completion of, and a certificate of occupancy for, the new YMCA UMMC building.”

The facility has previously been outlined — a pool, updated exercise equipment, and brand new amenities alongside Healthy Living’s teaching kitchen, classrooms and offices — and Walker described the outside space being “a nice streetscape park area” with benches, trees, lighting and an open grassy area for some outdoor activities, plus additional parking space.

“That's the beauty of what we're doing. There'll be additional parking there that kind of complements the site. There's two main entrances to the facility, one is on the northwest section, and then one is on the south section, that both enter into and through a nice corridor to the welcome desk, where a member services representative will direct them to where they need to go.”

He also emphasized that the nonprofit’s board and volunteers have talked about this eventual move for the last four or five years, and the county’s Senior Center was always part of the vision.

“Our true hope is that we can add on to the YM space where the current one is to include the Senior Center. It’s really important to volunteers and board members,” he said. “It’s our hope that the Genesee County Senior Center would join the Healthy Living campus.”

The former Cary Hall and Elks buildings have been razed, and new construction is to begin this fall. It was important to YMCA leaders not to disrupt the many services offered, including childcare, swimming lessons and exercise classes and offerings to varied age groups, he said.

“We want to be able to continue to do those services and keep the momentum that we have with those programs as well. They're all doing really well, there's a lot of wait lists, and we're going to be able to serve more people in the new facility. So that's going to help. Our capacities are pretty much limited in the existing YMCA,” he said. “It takes a little while to line up these contractors. We'll have a better idea this fall, or even late summer, on the timing of that lineup. Obviously, there's a lot of labor shortages, supply issues, that are affecting all these contractors.”

Construction plans
As has been said early on, the plan remains for completion to be in late 2023, or early 2024, depending on the labor and supply availability. A project such as this typically takes 16 to 18 months, and that’s if “everything flows under the construction timeline,” he said. But it’s a fluid timeline, he added.

Walker is grateful for the local support of municipalities and donors. Project costs are about $23 million for YMCA and $10 million for the RRH-UMMC portion.

“We appreciate the county and the city support on earmarking, this. Our escalation costs have been tremendous in the last two years. So we've had to dig deeper than we already have. We've raised over $14 million on our side, on the Y side, so we've got to keep going,” he said. “And we will, but we've got 95 percent of what we need. So we're confident that in the next four months we'll be able to close the small gap.”

Top photo: 2022 File Photo of demolition for the new Healthy Living Campus in downtown Batavia. The next phase to knock down YMCA is set for this fall, and officials are in the process of applying for a $2 million Restore NY grant to help with costs. Photo by Howard Owens.

In its 25th year, Batavia Players’ Summer Youth Theater program returns from a pandemic year off with something spectacular to behold, Director Pat Burk says.

He chose the musical “Godspell” to give prominent and ample opportunity for the 15 youth actors to fully embrace their characters and bring the Gospel of Matthew to life in an atypically festive and colorful atmosphere.

“It’s about parables and things, and also excerpts from the Gospel according to Matthew. But you know, the whole premise of the show is just a very beautiful premise, and the show itself is physically gorgeous. I think people will be surprised at our setting this year … during Mardi Gras in New Orleans,” Burk said during an interview with The Batavian. “And that's another nice thing about the show, you can kind of put it into the setting you want it to be in. Originally it was in a junkyard in New York City. It was a bunch of homeless, kind of hippie vagrants, in the junkyard in New York City. We've changed that, and ours is very New Orleans, Mardi Gras-themed. and it is a very beautiful show. So I think people will enjoy it.”

The musical is a retelling of the Gospel of Matthew set in New Orleans during Mardi Gras. The disciples of Jesus spread his message of love and tolerance through the city streets as the time gets closer to Jesus's betrayal at the hands of Judas and his eventual crucifixion. Parables are interspersed with music set primarily to lyrics from traditional hymns, with the passion of Christ appearing briefly near the end of the show.

With its debut on Thursday, Summer Youth Theater’s production continues at 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and at 2 p.m. Sunday at Batavia First Presbyterian Church, 300 East Main St., Batavia.

"Godspell" began as a project by drama students at Carnegie Mellon University and evolved from off-off-Broadway to being rescored for an off-Broadway production, which became a long-running success.

Don’t let the actors’ ages, from 12 to 21, fool you; most are fairly well versed in theater and in working with Batavia Players, Burk said. There have been challenges, though, with the venue — First Presbyterian Church in Batavia. The widespread choreography and sets were too much for the Players’ makeshift stage while the new one is under construction, he said.

The troupe was invited to perform at the East Main Street church and accepted, meaning a complete transplanting of sets, the light and sound boards, costumes, props and stage setup, he said. They had to rent sound equipment, move and reset lights, and faced more challenges with designing a set for this particular show, he said, “which we want to really highlight the design and the costumes and the coloring, the colors involved in the show and how we're setting the show.”

“We had to bring in a bunch of really expert people to make that happen,” Burk said. “And I think people will be amazed. It's pretty expansive, and it's pretty impressive, actually.”

There also wasn’t room for the pit band that accompanies vocalists, he said. Their current, temporary digs consist of a small stage area inside Batavia City Centre until the theater construction is finished.

“Because the only shows that we do in there … we can have drums and guitars and bass and two pianos, and there's no room for that in our temporary space,” he said. “So the shows that we've done in there, if there is music, have either band recorded music that you purchase, and/or an individual piano. So, this show really requires a fuller pit, plus the choreography and dance numbers are, in our version, are fairly extensive, and they would not have worked in that space.”

That being said, the church performance space has worked out nicely for a breathtaking production that, contrary to what some people may think of biblical prose, is anything but boring, he said.

“It's absolutely gorgeous. And the music is amazing. Absolutely amazing, and it allows a lot of individual moments to shine within the show,” he said. “It's kind of an ensemble cast, which, there's obviously, one big important role. And then there's a bunch of ensemble roles, but they all have lines, they all have solos, they all have songs. It's also a good one to highlight the kids that are in it.”

"Godspell" takes Burk back — nearly 50 years — to when he was first cast in it at 16. He found it then — as he still does today — to be a “beautiful, beguiling, and bold” over-the-top celebration that was an immediate success amidst a swirl of controversy, he said.

“It certainly was not a traditional telling of biblical parables. What many did not realize at the time was that this musical was not about the life and times of Jesus, it was about how Jesus created this loving and caring

community from a wide array of people,” he said. “Instead of being the universal story of the life of Jesus, it used Jesus as a vessel for the story of how a community is created and how it can include all.”

Ticket information is available at showtix4u.com

Batavia Players' Summer Youth Theater cast readies for a debut of "Godspell" Thursday evening; Elise Baumer, Crystalina Baumer, Melania DeSa e Frias, Maia Zerillo and Jocelyn Coburn; front row featured actors Deacon Smith, Kai Hoag and Gabriel Burk Flanagan; Matthew Stevens as the lead of Jesus, with Samantha Jane Balbi, who is also the show choreographer; Matthew Stevens and Dorothy Sue Flanagan, the youngest member of the cast. Photos by Howard Owens.

The pandemic exposed a weakness in the U.S. economy, Sen. Charles Schumer said today while at a car dealership in Genesee County -- not enough computer chips are manufactured in the U.S., leading to a shortage in the semiconductors that help cars, along with phones, computers, and appliances, run.

Currently, only 12 percent of chips are manufactured domestically, according to Schumer, compared to 37 percent in the 1990s.

Many foreign competitors, including China, are investing heavily to dominate the industry, Schumer said. Nearly 75 percent of global semiconductor production is now occurring in East Asia, and foreign government subsidies drive the majority of the cost difference for producing semiconductors overseas and in the U.S.

In response, Schumer, the majority leader in the Senate, introduced the CHIPS and Science Act, which with the president's signature this past week, is now law.

It provides over $50 billion in federal incentives to get more chips made in the U.S.

"We say (in the bill), not only do they have to make the chips here, but they can't make any more of them in China," Schumer said. "That is very, very good for America. We're saying we want to build the future in Batavia, not Beijing, in Syracuse, not Shanghai. So I wrote this legislation with upstate in mind."

Schumer is bullish on WNY STAMP, the 1,250-acre technology park that is now shovel-ready in the Town of Alabama.  He believes that before long, there will be a semiconductor plant at the park.

"Companies are seeing upstate New York is the place to be," Schumer said. "We hope there'll be many more. And we're fighting very hard to get one at STAMP. It is seen as a great opportunity at some of the chip companies -- I'm not allowed to say who -- but they have already visited here a couple of times. The bottom line is that manufacturing chips here in New York has the potential to be our 21st century Erie Canal."

He promised to do everything he can to attract chip manufacturers to upstate New York.

"We have more shovel-ready sites, including the STAMP facility right here in Genesee County than any place in the country," he said. "I'm gonna use my clout as majority leader in making (upstate New York) the center of the country with $5 billion of federal money for all of our semiconductor advanced research and development, which attracts people here. We have a great workforce here. We have great universities here. We have cheap water and cheap electric power, which these chip plants need as well, so you put that all together, and we are ideally suited now that this bill passed."

From a press release, highlights of the legislation:

Specifically, Schumer highlighted that the bill includes:

• $39 billion for the CHIPS for America Fund to provide federal incentives to build, expand, or modernize domestic facilities and equipment for semiconductor fabrication, assembly, testing, advanced packaging, or research and development to help attract major chip manufacturers to shovel-ready sites like STAMP in Genesee County.  
• $11 billion for Department of Commerce research and development including creating a National Semiconductor Technology Center (NSTC) a public-private partnership to conduct advanced semiconductor manufacturing, with Albany Nanotech primed to be a top contender to serve as a major hub for the NSTC, and other specialized R&D programs that universities across the state are in a strong position to compete for.
• $2 billion for the DoD CHIPS for America Defense Fund.
• $200 million for the CHIPS for America Workforce and Education Fund to kick start the development of the domestic semiconductor workforce, which faces near-term labor shortages, by leveraging activities of the National Science Foundation.
• A new Investment Tax Credit for semiconductor manufacturing facilities and equipment.

Schumer explained that New York is uniquely suited to take advantage of these federal investments to reassert America’s global technological leadership. New York is currently home to over 80 semiconductor companies that employ over 34,000 NY workers, including global industry leaders like GlobalFoundries, Wolfspeed, onsemi, IBM, and other major microchip and innovation companies that support them like Corning Inc. in Monroe County which just announced a $139M, 270 job expansion in anticipation of this bill. Schumer said investments like these are only the beginning though, and now that his bill has finally become law, the ripple effects from more chip fabs and their supply chains being built in places like Upstate New York will give companies like Baxter and the American economy the stability it needs to avoid shocks like this again in the future. 

After a weeklong investigation, cracks in the roadway and on the property at 445 Scribner Road in Pembroke are not the result of a sinkhole, according to the Genesee County Director of Emergency Management Tim Yaeger.

Geologists have classified the event as a catastrophic movement of earth.

“Will it keep occurring? We are not sure,” Yaeger said.

Yaeger said the last time they noticed any shift or movement in the ground on Scribner Road was this past Monday and Tuesday. Monitoring equipment will be installed in a well to check water levels in the affected area and a seismograph will be placed to see if the ground is still moving.

On Monday, an excavation crew will arrive and dig up the 70-foot section of the road that is cracked to see if there are any other visual signs of movement. Earlier this week, there were core samples taken from about 30 feet deep with the assistance of Nature’s Way Contracting. Geologists and engineers from Clark Patterson Lee have also been assisting the Town of Pembroke, along with Genesee County and NYS DEC.

A Batavia woman accused of allowing her dog, Oddey, access to narcotics, leading to emergency veterinarian treatment for overdoses three times, was a no-show in City Court on Thursday afternoon.

Cassandra Elmore may be in the hospital, acording to a friend who called court about four hours before Elmore's case was to be called, but City Court Judge Thomas Burns had no proof that the claim was true, so he issued a warrant for her arrest.

Elmore's court time was at 1:30 p.m., and there were several other cases then as well. Burns finally called her case at 2:40 p.m., and she was not in court. Her friend was informed that the court would require proof of Elmore's admission to a hospital -- a call an email or a fax from the hospital.  The court received no proof of the claim prior to her case being called.

According to police reports, Elmore showed up at veterinarian offices on May 21, May 25, and June 21 with Oddey unconscious.  

Investigators believe Oddey consumed cocaine on two of those occasions and either cocaine or another narcotic on the third.

Elmore, 30, a resident of River Street, Batavia, faces three counts of injuring an animal under New York Ag and Markets Law Section 353.

Previously:

• Woman charged after dog treated repeatedly for narcotics overdose
• Vet told police Oddey was showing signs of drug intoxication during emergency visit
• Elmore asks for time to hire attorney while Oddey waits at shelter

Press Release

Everyone is invited to the grand reopening and fourth anniversary of Eden Café & Bakeshop at 2 p.m. August 16 at 242 Ellicott St., Batavia. Activities include:

• A ribbon-cutting at 2 p.m.
• Tastings from 2 to 8 p.m.
• Cookie decorating with Pam from 2 to 4 p.m.
• Facepainting and more with Marcia from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.

“It felt (at times) like we would never find a place of our own; we’re so excited to share our new space with the public,” said owner Judy Hysek. “We’ve sold thousands of carrot dogs so far. If you haven’t tried one yet, stop over this week and grab a free sample.”

We first opened in 2018 in the incubator kitchen inside Eli Fish Brewing Co. and we finally found the perfect spot to adopt as our own. We’re located on the corner of Ellicott Street and Liberty Street, right across from the Pok-A-Dot and Southside Deli. Our space has a fresh yet relaxing vibe, seating for over 20, ample street parking and a private parking lot in the rear.

We’re still making the same great menu items from our original location and added some fun new items like Italian Cream Sodas, and ready to eat meals and snacks for anyone in a rush. We are planning on also getting a beer and wine permit.

Currently, you can dine in, carry out, or order online for pickup or delivery! Our hours are Tuesday through Saturday 11am-8pm.

About Eden Café & Bakeshop:
Eden Café & Bakeshop is a woman-owned business and has been serving Batavia, Genesee County and beyond for over four years. The plant-based restaurant was born out of the 2017 Foodie Challenge and raised in the freshLab incubator. Eden specializes in innovative plant-based dining including carrot dogs, crunchwraps, cauliflower wings.

For additional information visit CarrotDogCafe.com

Submitted photo of Eden Cafe & Bakeshop.

Business is booming this summer at Genesee County’s six public libraries, which are having to adjust their budgets to account for rising costs of materials – especially when it comes to eBooks.

Two local librarians – Kim Gibson of Haxton Memorial Library in Oakfield and Diana Reding of Corfu Public Library – joined Thomas Bindeman and Lisa Erickson, officials with the Lockport-based Nioga Library System, at the Genesee County Legislature’s Human Services Committee meeting earlier this week to submit a request for funding and update lawmakers on library activities.

The county appropriates funds to each one of the six libraries to support the purchase of materials such as computers, books, music, movies and magazines. For 2023, the libraries are asking for $41,680 (the same amount as last year), which represents about 13 percent of their cumulative budgets.

Broken down by library, the dollar amounts are as follows:

• Byron-Bergen Public Library, $4,570 requested, $32,780 materials budget, 13.94 percent;
• Corfu Public Library, $3,500 requested, $16,255 materials budget, 21.53 percent;
• Haxton Memorial Library, $3,200 requested, $10,000 materials budget, 32 percent;
• Hollwedel Memorial Library, Pavilion, $1,950 requested, $14,700 materials budget, 13.27 percent;
• Richmond Memorial Library, Batavia, $22,210 requested, $182,210 materials budget, 12.19 percent;
• Woodward Memorial Library, Le Roy, $6,250 requested, $62,000 materials budget, 10.08 percent.

The bulk of funding for the libraries comes from the residents of their municipalities. In the case of Corfu, Hollwedel, Richmond and Woodward, their budgets are put to a public vote. With Haxton and B-B, the town/village provide most of the funding at this point, but progress is being made toward changing the designation of those libraries to enable a public vote.

Bindeman said libraries are being challenged by increased costs for transportation – “Our fuel expenses are up by $19,000 this year,” he said – and for eBooks, a popular reading option.

“eBooks are costly to libraries,” he said. “People can go online, or they can go online at the library and download them. A consumer could go online and possibly get a book for 15 to 20 bucks, but the library’s cost for the same book might be 80 to 150 dollars.”

He said it’s what publishers and authors call “intellectual content” that drives up the price.

“Publishers and the authors feel that if a library gets it, they're getting ripped off because it's in the electronic world. And they feel once it gets on the internet, people will lift the book and all that,” he said. “And plus, normally if a consumer buys an eBook, he or she will only read it once or twice. And they see if a library buys it, it's going to have multiple uses.

“So, they're going to lose money on that, and that's why they charge so much. Also, we really don't own the book. It's only a lease for two to three years.”

He said electronic publishers “control the agenda” and it’s hurting the library system.

“We really don't have much voice. Because eBooks cost more for libraries, that means we won't be able to buy as many titles (books in print),” he noted. “Sometimes, it's kind of counterproductive to whatever they're thinking.”

Gibson and Reding used terms such as “amazing” and “come full circle” as they described how their libraries have bounced back from the COVID-19 pandemic regulations that severely limited onsite interaction.

“We're getting back to pre-COVID levels -- getting our hours back to pre-COVID hours and getting staff and all that back to normal, whatever normal might be,” said Bindeman, who has been with Nioga for more than 40 years, the last 17 as the system’s director.

He said the Genesee libraries appreciate the county’s funding, understanding that government entities are facing similar financial challenges.

For more about the Nioga Library System, a non-profit cooperative library system that supports the 21 independent public libraries in Niagara, Orleans and Genesee counties, go to www.niogalibrary.org.

A Batavia man accused of starting fires on three different occasions in January entered guilty pleas in County Court Wednesday to counts of arson in each, the second and third degrees. 

Matthew Zakrzewski, 42, is likely to be sentenced to 10 years in state prison on Sept. 14 as part of a plea agreement he accepted.

Zakrzewski was facing several other felonies -- which have not yet been presented to a grand jury for possible indictment -- and without the plea deal could have been sent to prison for up to 25 years.

In court today, Zakrzewski admitted to starting a fire at Washington Towers on Jan. 16, and on the same date, setting a 2009 Jeep Patriot on fire.

As part of the plea, Zakrzewski agreed to pay more than $10,000 in restitution to the arson victims.

His attorney, Fred Rarick, raised a concern about the restitution agreement because Washington Towers made a claim for replacement property in new condition, which the law doesn't require.

Rarick said he was looking for legal, fair, and equitable restitution.

District Attorney Kevin Finnell said the plea offer included stipulation to restitution as claimed, and if Zakrzewski didn't want to accept those terms, Finnell was ready to present the case to a grand jury.

At that point, Zakrzewski piped up and said, "Mr. Rarick, it's fine."

Previously:

• Batavia man accused of setting fire in Washington Towers, stealing a bike
• Law and Order: Batavia man charged with arson following fire on Bank Street
• Law and Order: Batavia man facing new arson charge
• Defendant has done 'his own research' so rejects plea offer that would reduce prison term

When Shelley Stein heard about Senate Bill 9509 to eliminate the Farm Laborers Wage Board, she had to jump on it immediately, she says.

The 2019 Farm Workers Fair Labor Practices Act contained a provision to create a Wage Board to evaluate lowering the overtime threshold for farm laborers below 60 hours a week. In January 2022, the Wage Board recommended lowering the threshold to 40 hours over 10 years starting in 2024.

Not only was the Wage Board’s creation and the ensuing recommendation ill-conceived, but the provision also went against the majority of public hearing testimony that opposed the board in the first place, Stein said Wednesday.

“(Testimonies) indicated that nobody wanted any change to the overtime threshold of 60 hours of the work week, that was from farmers, farm workers and industry stakeholders. However, the wage board did vote to reduce the number of hours and to continue to reduce it until it got down to 40 hours of work,” she said during the Ways and Means meeting. “The Commissioner of Labor has been given the responsibility to make the final determination and what this Senate bill does is, it recognizes that there is only one person who is familiar with agriculture on the three-member board. Their actions do not mirror what the major request was during this process. And so, it’s time to throw out the wage board.”

Legislator Christian Yunker, also from a farming family, agreed, adding that the wage board had flaws from the start.

“The idea of the wage board was a set-up from the beginning,” he said. “And it is timely because we're late on the way here … and so any noise we can make throughout the state is fantastic.”

The Genesee County Legislature chairwoman and part of the family-run Stein Farms in Le Roy knows that of which she speaks. An average farm work week is 60 to 65 hours, she said, and the first proposed cut shaves up to nine hours off of that with a total of 56 hours a week. The state is supposed to make up for those hours worked between the maximum and 60, which would mean paying out time and a half for each worker (four hours a week) on each farm in the state. The reduction of hours goes down from there, for an eventual maximum of 40/week, which means the state is to pick up even more hours in the future.

Though she has concern about whether the state is really financially equipped to pay out the difference, it isn’t Stein’s primary reason for opposing the Wage Board conception. It will damage Genesee County’s economy for years to come, she said, and the “good work that farms are doing for climate change will be lost forever.”

The committee agreed to support the bill that was just established on July 25, and it will be forwarded on to the whole Legislature for vote during its meeting on Aug. 24. An adopted resolution will then go to an inter-county consortium of 13 Western New York counties, and to stakeholder agricultural groups for further support and endorsement, Stein said during an interview with The Batavian after the meeting.

“And then, as the result indicates, we will be sending this on to the governor and to the Senate majority leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, and also our assembly speaker, Mr. (Carl Heastie), along with our local representatives who we know feel the same way that we do, and and we are assured of their continued support.,” Stein said. “The wage board not taking into consideration 70 percent of the testimony, and doing exactly the opposite, makes no sense to how our democracy is supposed to work. And here in New York State, of course, the area where we are known for making and producing food to feed the rest of our state, it makes us shake our head because this puts food at risk.”

She is hopeful that such resolutions to eliminate the Wage Board will sway the governor and downstate elected leaders, since (they) do not want to put their constituents at risk "any more than we do" with food.

“Part of what really will hurt them is the fact that farmers are the largest donation source for food pantries and New York State feeding programs, especially Nourish New York. What this overtime threshold reduction of ours does is it puts at risk those programs that New York State touts and is so proud of, but they don't happen without the produce coming from the farms,” she said. “So this is a balancing point. And we recognize that in agriculture, but we also recognize that our workers want to work. And that is the American Dream for them that they are reaching to, and they are aspiring to, and for the New York State government to be determining when you can work and how long you can work in a field that has seasons. It does have the plant that determines the season, or the animal that  determines the season.”

Does this create competition with other states, since migrant workers may want to work elsewhere without a weekly limit?
“That is an issue, and a lot of the articles that you'll see being released in the media currently is that those who follow a crop are avoiding New York State because their wages are being held down by foreign producers who are price takers of their product, and cannot keep up with the overtime hours required after 60 hours in a week. So those states like Pennsylvania, and Ohio, and Massachusetts, and Vermont, are really benefiting from the great skill sets that we had developed here in New York State,” Stein said. “And those workers are off to Michigan, and they're off to Ohio and Wisconsin. And some of them even into Canada, which of course makes that international competition. And it's a disadvantage that our state is actually putting the farmers under at this point.”

A Commissioner of Labor is appointed, and a union leader is elected by union members, but Stein takes issue with the “one sole agricultural involved person” who represents agricultural interests.

“Our Commissioner of Agriculture certainly should have had a position on this wage board so that there could be an actual balance at the start,” she said. “New York State already imposes a higher minimum wage than any of the states around us. So we start off already being disadvantaged and on a back foot, because the farm gate prices do not allow us to set our prices for our foodstuffs that we are so proud to make here in New York.”

Even if the new farm bill is successful, the weekly working cap could remain, yes?
“The cap could remain. However, I would think and I would hope and have faith that then that would actually be repealed,” she said. “We have learned to live at the 60-hour threshold; it is not easy. We are limiting the hours of our staff, and we are paying overtime to staff at a much higher minimum wage rate than most other states around us. And anecdotally, when our staff go to file their taxes — and this is staff that works year-round — they're told that they actually earn too much to be afforded any help through any programs that might have been available to any other citizen of a community of New York State. So the reality check needs to happen as to the income levels of our farm workers, and to recognize that they are well paid for the work that they come here to do so that they can provide for their families back home.”

“And if they intend to work just six months a year and have six months of the year off, they are willing to do the work in that vein, and that is their preference. It is hard for me to understand how the state can say that they're ready to pay the difference between the 60 hours and the first reduction to 56 hours. I don't know of any other private industry that the state is willing to pay payroll for that aren't state workers,” she said. “So all of this is very messy. And it need not be if the government would just step out of the food production hours of labor, we would all be better off here in New York State. And we could continue to provide that high-quality local food on the precious ground that we have here, especially in the Finger Lakes area, because we are making the highest and best use out of our natural resources, our land and our water here.”

Stein is grateful for her fellow legislators’ support, and that of state Assembly leaders on the Agricultural Committee and Senator George Borrello (R, C, I, LIBT), who is promoted as “an unwavering advocate for rural New Yorkers and a champion of agriculture” and is behind the farm bill, she said.

“There are a lot of moving parts in this. And it could just be simpler by the removal of that decision of the wage board, and also the wage board itself,” she said. “That's our issue today. And that's our request.”

The resolution will move onto the Legislature next week. It reads, in part:

“Whereas, Genesee County is urging state legislature to provide the farmers and farm workers relief from the already onerous burden the Farm Workers Fair Labor Practices Act and other existing government mandates which have placed our farms at a competitive disadvantage with neighboring states and Canada. Now, therefore, be it resolved Genesee County emphatically opposes any decrease to the 60-hour farm worker overtime threshold proposed by the Farm Laborers Wage Board.

Be it further resolved, Genesee County urges Governor Hochul to strongly consider Senator Borrello’s request of repealing the act, section 674-a of the labor law, relating to establishing the Farm Laborers Wage Board and eliminating the three-member Farm Laborers Wage Board.

Furthermore, be it resolved, Genesee County Legislature directs the Clerk of the Legislature to submit a copy of the adopted resolution to Governor Hochul, Senate Majority Leader Stewart-Cousins, NYS Assembly Speaker Heastie, Assemblyman Hawley, Senator Borrello, Senator Rath, NYS Labor Commissioner, NYS Agriculture and Markets Commissioner, NYS Farm Bureau, Genesee County Farm Bureau, NYSAC and Inter-County Association of Western New York.”

File Photo of Genesee County Legislature members, with Chairwoman Shelley Stein, front, who is urging county and state leaders to support a farm bill that would repeal the current Farm Laborers Wage Board. 

Next week’s employee recognition festivities have been a long time coming, county leaders say, and the list of recipients has grown to an impressive size.

Genesee County Legislative Chairwoman Shelley Stein gave major kudos to the Human Resources staff charged with event planning Wednesday.

“It’s been 10 long years in the making, and you guys are knocking it out of the park,” Stein said during the Ways & Means Committee meeting. “People are super excited about it … over 200 of our employees are going to receive a milestone recognition. And that just speaks volumes about the employer that the county is, and all of our manager and department heads make that possible.”

That announcement may seem like a glorified promo for the county; however, maintaining more than 200 employees at the municipality for 10 years or more flies in the face of today’s job-hopping mentality. Stein believes it is a testament to worker satisfaction. And perseverance on the part of staff wanting to ensure a recognition event finally happens.

For 10 years, Genesee County ceased such celebrations because of its financial situation, she said.

“We had shared more of our revenue than perhaps we should have at that point, and we had the stress of a nursing home still. We had more of a Medicaid/Medicare responsibility … at that point, we stopped all employee appreciation or recognition,” she said. “And so now with the ability to address a thank you, and to recognize our staff that has chosen to work with the county for the years that they have, this is just an absolutely phenomenal opportunity for us to say, thank you.”

The county’s newsletter issued a written thanks from County Manager Matt Landers and Stein. One of his first goals after being hired as manager was to reinstate the annual recognition event, Landers said.

“Unfortunately, COVID had a different set of plans in mind,” he said. “However, after a couple of years on the job, we are bringing back this event to recognize longevity milestones of the dedicated Genesee County employees who have given so much to our county and residents.”

He referred to the Legislature for allocating funds “to bring Human Resources’ vision to fruition,” he said. Employees are being highlighted for work records of 10 to 60 years. They will be treated to a lunch from Red Osier, an ice cream truck visit and other goodies next week.

After the decade-old pause, summer is the time to bring out the party hats and express “our appreciation and accolades,” Stein said.

“It’s never too late to start anew. During the pause, the county has experienced fiscal stress, the sale of the county nursing home, water restrictions (which continues), and the latest hurdle — a pandemic that truly turned all of our lives on end. During our lives, we have never encountered a true-life pandemic like 2020 through today. We were scared for our health, families, and shutdowns. We banded together, took steps to continue providing services, and were bold in our approach to serving each other and our community members,” she said. “Our frontline public safety and health department members took the brunt of daily information whiplash. Through the constant requests for tools to empower us to respond, we banded together giving courage to each other.

"The fear and fright faded aside as services could be provided. The ability to fight for good health provided strength to us all. Partnerships all across our county were formed and engaged us all. Our confidence was recovered," she said.

Press release:

Standing in front of a Faithful America mobile billboard calling on Christian nationalist speakers at an event headlined by disgraced General Michael Flynn to “stop twisting our faith to attack democracy,” a group of local faith leaders and national clergy will speak at a press event and answer questions at 11:30 a.m. ET on Friday, August 12. 

The faith leaders will gather at First Baptist Church (306 E. Main Street, Batavia, New York) as a part of their ongoing effort to warn their communities and congregations of the dangers posed by the anti-democracy Christian nationalism, potential political violence, and disinformation on display at the upcoming stop of the ReAwaken America Tour (RAT) hosted by Flynn, Eric Trump, Clay Clark, and other notable far-right figures who helped to inspire the January 6, 2021 insurrection. The tour, which features stops across the country, arrives Friday at Cornerstone Church in Batavia for a two-day event. Flynn is expected to speak Friday morning following a worship time led by Sean Feucht, who has used members of the Proud Boys for his personal security.

Religious leaders speaking at Centennial Park in opposition to RAT will include both local and national leaders: 

• The Rev. Dr. Roula Alkhouri, Presbyterian Church (USA)
• The Rev. Dr. Shiela Campbell McCullough, chaplain, Batavia resident and representative of the New York State Council of Churches
• The Rev. Dr. William Wilkinson, teaching elder and pastor, First Presbyterian Church, Medina
• Sareer Fazili, president of Pittsford Youth Services, past president of the Islamic Center of Rochester, and member of the Barakah Muslim Charity Board of Trustees
• The Rev. Nathan Empsall, executive director, Faithful America
• Pastor Doug Pagitt, executive director and co-chair, Vote Common Good
• The Rev. Jennifer Butler, founder in residence, Faith in Public Life

The tour stop in Batavia comes after organizers of the anti-democracy tour had to scramble to find a new venue following the cancelation of its originally planned stop in Rochester.

"Many might be unaware of the type of negative stereotypes and radicalization that are being brewed by the ReAwaken America Tour. In a time already full of division, this has the potential for a significant negative impact on our community’s ability to talk with one another,” said the Rev. Laurel Nelson, speaking on behalf of the Racial Justice Working Group of the Presbytery of Genesee Valley. “In fact, those who have spoken out against the tour have already been subject to vitriol and threats. Although few of the tour’s speakers expose themselves to prosecution by explicitly calling for violence, they allow their audience to connect the dots by downplaying past political violence committed in God's name, associating themselves with extremist groups, demonizing their political opponents, and urging supporters to win the battle for God against their fellow Americans. This kind of division builds hate, hurts communities and makes our democracy vulnerable to more violence.”

“We reject General Flynn and his allies’ hijacking of the Gospel for political purposes. This tour is a dangerous and immoral political event in Jesus’ name that promotes misinformation, lies, and even out-right violence, and has no place in the church of God,” added the Rev. Nathan Empsall, executive director of Faithful America, which sponsored the mobile billboard and has been working closely with clergy in Rochester and Batavia to oppose the tour.  

Nationally, more than 21,000 Christians have signed petitions from Faithful America, rejecting the ReAwaken America Tour and asking churches not to associate with the event. Another 25,000 Christians -- including the presiding bishops of the Episcopal Church and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America -- also signed a previous statement from the Christians Against Christian Nationalism initiative denouncing the ideology that now underlies the tour.

Press release:

The Genesee County Branch of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) is organizing an antifascist teach-in on Saturday, August 13, from 1 to 4 p.m., at Austin Park to stand against the local stop of the “ReAwaken America Tour” (RAT).

The tour is “an opportunity for fascists to spread hate and recruit,” said Gina Schelemanow, a member of the ROC DSA Genesee County Branch Organizing Committee. “It is important to understand why they are doing this and actively stand against it.”

The August 12 and 13 stop was originally planned for the Main Street Armory in Rochester. A grassroots effort led by Rochester DSA (ROC DSA) [https://rocdsa.org/] and the Rochester Mutual Aid Network (RMAN) [https://rocmutualaid.com/] successfully pressured the owner of the venue to cancel the stop. The stop was then moved to the Cornerstone Church in Batavia.

During the teach-in speakers will argue that “demagogues like the RAT speakers take people’s justified anxiety and anger about the state of the country and the world and blame the weak for the decisions of powerful elites,” said Logan Wyatt Cole, a member of the ROC DSA Genesee County Branch Organizing Committee. “These people are desperate to stop working people from banding together to make the government work for us. They spread hate to turn us violently against each other—while they laugh all the way to the bank,” Cole added.

Schelemanow put the teach-in in context: “This is also a moment to come together as a larger Western New York community that has resisted the RAT for months and reflect on victories, as well as how to fight fascism locally in the future.”

The teach-in organizers have worked closely with organizers from the ROC DSA and RMAN. Several other organizations have urged supporters to attend the teach-in, including, locally, GLOW Women Rise.

Gina Schelemanow of Genesee County DSA urged opponents of fascism, opponents of Christian nationalism, and opponents of white supremacy to attend the teach-in. “While we will be three miles away from the hatefest, people who attend far-right events do have a history of aggressive behavior.” Schelemanow, therefore, suggested that parents exercise caution when deciding whether to bring children along. 

Press release:

The GLOW Region Solid Waste Management Committee is currently accepting appointments for the 2022 Household Hazardous Waste Collection Event but spots are going fast. The collection will be held on Saturday, September 17 in Batavia, Genesee County. Pharmaceuticals, will NOT be accepted.  In order to participate in the Household Hazardous Waste Collection, residents must make an appointment. Appointments can be made online by going to GLOW’s website, www.glowsolidwaste.org and clicking on the link for the collection they want to attend. Those without internet access can call the GLOW office. Four hundred eighty (480) spots are available. The appointment process has worked extremely well at past collections. GLOW’s revised online system is making the process fast and convenient.

A separate Electronics Collection will be held one (1) week later, September 24, also in Batavia, also by appointment and also online (as noted above). Because of cost there will be a limit of four (4) CRT TVs and/or monitors. Both collections are open to residents in Genesee, Livingston and Wyoming Counties. With the exception of tires, materials are accepted at NO CHARGE.

Acceptable materials include at the Household Hazardous Waste Collection:

• LATEX  and Oil base paint, varnishes and shellac
• Household chemicals and cleaning products
• Household pesticides and insecticides
• Aerosol cans (partial or full)
• Vehicle fluids, oil filters, vehicle batteries EXCEPT for MOTOR OIL
• 20 lb. propane tanks and 1 lb. canisters
• Pool chemicals
• Driveway sealer
• Tires ($5.00 each)

Unacceptable materials include:

• Empty containers, latex paint, farm pesticides, asbestos and radioactive waste and explosives

Press release:

Paul Pettit, MSL, CPH, Health Director of the Genesee and Orleans County Health Departments in New York, has been newly elected to the National Association of County and City Health Officials’ Board of Directors for a three-year term as a Director for Region 2, representing local health departments in NJ, NY, PR, and the USVI. NACCHO is the voice of the country’s nearly 3,000 local health departments. Mr. Pettit’s term began on July 1, 2022.      

“Being elected to serve on the NACCHO board is a very humbling and exciting opportunity. I’ve had the privilege to serve as a local public health director for over 14 years in the communities where I live,” said Paul Pettit. “Local public health is where we see the true impact of our work and have the direct interaction with our residents.  Serving on the board will allow me to represent my colleagues in Region 2 and work collaboratively with my fellow board members and the staff of NACCHO to continue the advocacy work for funding and services that will directly impact and improve the lives of those in our communities.” 

“I am very pleased that Paul Pettit’s colleagues around the country have voted to have him join our board,” said NACCHO Chief Executive Officer Lori Tremmel Freeman. “He is a past president of the New York State Association of County Health Officials and is especially active in public health policy and advocacy. We greatly appreciate the experience and insight he will bring to our organization’s leadership.”

About Mr. Pettit
Mr. Pettit has a bachelor’s degree from the University of Rochester in Environmental Health, a Master of Science degree in Strategic Leadership from Roberts Wesleyan College and a certificate in Public Health from the University at Albany. 

Mr. Pettit has worked in public health for over 23 years, starting as an environmental health technician and advancing to the public health director role for Orleans County in January 2008. In 2012, he also became the public health director for Genesee County through a collaborative cross-jurisdictional sharing (CJS) arrangement between the two counties. This unique CJS partnership was supported and developed with assistance from the Center for Sharing Public Health Services. 

In addition to serving on many local, regional and state Board of Directors, Mr. Pettit is a Past President of the New York State Association of County Health Officials (NYSACHO), he was recently appointed to the New York State Rural Health Council, and he is very active in statewide public health and policy advocacy. Mr. Pettit is also an adjunct professor, teaching various public health classes at both SUNY Brockport and the University at Buffalo.

Press release:

In light of the disruptions that may occur from the “ReAwaken America” Tour in Batavia, Independent Living of the Genesee Region (ILGR) will be providing programs and services remotely this Friday, August 12th.

ILGR will not allow the event to interfere with its continued advocacy and service for all members of our community. Out of an abundance of caution, though, staff will conduct business as usual on Friday by telephone, E-mail, and video and web conferencing.

Last week, the governing board of the Independent Living of the Genesee Region released an anti-hate and racism statement in reaction to recent violent events in Western New York and across the country.

Director Rae Frank said “The Governing Council of ILGR felt that it was time to stand up and make it known that the people with disabilities will stand by our friends and neighbors who find themselves marginalized in our society, regardless of their religion, color, sexual identity, and other characteristics.  They have, and always will have, a friend and a partner at ILGR.” 

As a member of the Western New York Independent Living, Inc. Family of Agencies, Independent Living of the Genesee Region offers an expanding array of programs and services to help individuals with disabilities take and keep control of their own lives.

The Holland Land Office Museum is proud to announce its next edition of our Java with Joe E morning coffee presentation on Thursday, August 25 at 9 am. This month’s presenter is Ryan Duffy who will be presenting on Henry Glowacki. Glowacki was a Polish immigrant to Batavia in the 1830s. He became a prominent Batavia citizen and went on to become a lawyer, a clerk for the Holland Land Office, was a recruiter for the Civil War, Village Trustee, and school board member amongst many other things. The event is free to the public and coffee and donuts will be available. If you wish to attend, please contact the museum at 585-343-4727 or hollandlandoffice@gmail.com.

Photo by Lisa Ace.