In light of our story Tuesday about the sad state of our roads and bridges, at the candidates' forum yesterday, I wanted to ask the candidates what they would do about the problem.

Jane Corwin said we have a big problem with infrastructure and we need a comprehensive, long-term plan for funding from the federal government. She said infrastructure should be one of the highest priorities of the federal government.

But, she said, the government is spending too much money, driving up debt.

"We're spending too much money that is going toward interest payments not enough toward infrastucture," Corwin said.

Hochul's response contrasted the government's infrastructure spending with current foreign policy.

"I’m going to go out on a limb here," Hochul said. "We are probably spending more on roads in Pakistan and places like that where they’re not exactly our friends than we are right here in Genesee County. We’ve got to get our priorities straight. I’m starting to reexamine a lot of our commitment internationally."

Jack Davis and Ian Murphy did not attend the forum.

More than 20 advocates for independent living for people with disabilities were at a candidate forum Tuesday morning with the four candidates vying for the NY-26 congressional seat.

All four candidates were invited and expected to attend, but only Jane Corwin and Kathy Hochul made it. Jack Davis sent a spokesman who said Davis had an emergency at his manufacturing plant and Ian Murphy just didn't make it.

Both Corwin and Hochul opened with statements about their support for independent living, weaved in their usual stump speech remarks about jobs, Medicare and taxes, and then took questions.

In her opening, Corwin said as an Assembly member she has supported legislation benefiting independent living, including pushing for more group homes.

"I am certainly very supportive of the issues that are important to you," Corwin said.

Melissa Golpl (pictured above), disability rights advocate for Independent Living of Niagara County, came prepared with detailed questions for the candidates.

One of her questions was about Corwin's position on federal legislation to assist people with autism.

Corwin said she had a son who used speech services when he was young, "so I've seen from the inside how the system works and how important it is to get those services to children, especially at young ages."

As for autism, Corwin said that cases of autism in children have increased dramatically and in the Assembly, she said she worked to raise awareness among her colleagues to be more sensitive to the needs of people with autism. She also said she sponsored legislation to get more services for students with autism, including make it possible for them to participate in sports.

Greg Bruggman asked Corwin about her position on block grants for Medicaid, a proposal from Rep. Paul Ryan but opposed, Bruggman said, by Gov. Andrew Cuomo.

Corwin said she supported the block grant proposal because there is a lot of fraud and waste in New York's Medicaid system and a competitive block grant formula would be the best way to eliminate it.

Hochul opened by saying she strongly supported the people who provide services to people with disabilities.

"I feel strongly the 26th district needs somebody in Washington looking out for people like you and the people you work with," Hochul said.

She said her concern with people with special needs is why she opposes the Ryan budget plan, which she said would decimate Medicare and Medicaid.

"What kind of community are we if we don’t supply support for people with special needs," Hochul said.

While Medicare and Medicaid need to be reformed, Hochul said, it's a matter of priorities and ensuring the programs are fixed in a cost-effective way that still takes care of people of people with special needs.

"I guarantee I will be a strong advocate for people with special needs," Hochul said.

Golpl asked about housing for people with disabilities and Hochul said there needs to be more housing built to accomodate the needs of people with disabilities and said she favored offering incentives to builders to construct such houses and apartments.

Above, Curtis Ellis, spokesman for Jack Davis, speaks to the gathering at the YWCA for the candidates forum. Media from Rochester and Buffalo were on hand, as well as a reporter from the D.C. bureau of the Los Angeles Times and a cameraman from CNN.

Press release from David Bellavia:

(BATAVIA, NY) - Decorated Iraq combat veteran David Bellavia today challenged Congressional candidate Jane Corwin to come clean on her involvement in a gambit to disrupt a veterans' event in Greece, NY. The former Army Staff Sergeant whose actions during the Battle of Fallujah earned some of the nation's highest honors also pointed out the second Corwin staffer caught by WGRZ-TV videotaping the candidate's chief of staff as he repeatedly called a U.S. Marine a "coward."

"Media reports indicate the second camera was operated by Rep. Chris Lee's former Congressional staffer Emily Hunter, a native of Rochester," Bellavia said. "This is further proof Corwin has ordered the local GOP machine to push the edges of common decency in a desperate attempt to help her buy this seat."

Military veterans are hunting for Michael Mallia, Corwin's Assembly chief of staff, in Florida, where Corwin sent him to hide from the media after he embarrassed himself and his candidate in a Youtube video edited to look like he was assaulted. Angry veterans in the 26th Congressional District have taken to referring to Corwin's dirty trick as "CowardGate."

"I urge Jane Corwin to come clean on why she ordered her chief of staff and Rep. Lee's staff assistant to disrupt the Greece veterans' event," Bellavia said. "I also beseech her to release the unedited tapes of CowardGate, reveal where she has hidden Mallia from the media and produce the second shooter and her video."

"It was bad enough that Jane Corwin ordered this dirty trick - now she's lying. Corwin is the architect of a cover up designed to deceive voters and duck the media," Bellavia said. "The veterans of Western New York will not give her a pass on this despicable prank."

"Jane Corwin is failing her CSPAN audition: if she will not tell the truth about CowardGate, she is not ready for prime time and cannot represent our Congressional District with honor and effectiveness," Bellavia said.

Veterans in Florida have offered a $5,000 reward for information on Mallia's whereabouts that leads to a media interview of the Corwin staff chief. They have published a Web site offering a WANTED poster to help in the hunt (www.WheresMallia.com). Broadcast quality b-B-roll of the Florida search is available at http://vimeo.com/23776422.

Lisa Barrett, of Batavia, is very grateful to everyone who voted for her song in the international contest, "Best Original Song." Thanks to her voters, she has made it to round four and is now a top 12 finalist.

Voting for this round starts at 8 p.m. on May 23 and runs through May 30. To vote, follow these simple steps:

1. Go to www.bestoriginalsong.com

2. Click on either of the two bars on the homepage that read "Click Here to Listen."

3. Select Show #1 -- May 23rd Show Date

4. Vote for and/or download "When You Look at Me."

This information was submitted by Barrett. If she makes it to the next round, she will be one of six finalists and have only two more rounds to go before she wins the competition.

See the April 29 article, "Batavia singer/songwriter has high hopes for very personal song," for previous coverage.

Nearly 250 people braved a little wet weather this morning to show up at Dwyer Stadium to kick off the Day of Caring, sponsored by United Way.

The event sends people out into the community to perform a variety of volunteer tasks for nonprofit organizations, such as painting, cleaning, gardening and minor construction projects.

The organizers this year are (in no particular order): Jamie Rada, Chris Fix, Jane Scott, Susie Boyce, Debbie Fischer, Theresa DeMars, Lori Stupp, Shelley Fallitico (not pictured), Dave Cecere, Katie Betters, Scott Neff, Sue Boss, Carol Boshart, Jay Gsell, Erik Fix, Susan Schuler and Donna Saskowski.

As I mentioned yesterday, The Batavian is offering to donate $100 to Genesee Justice if Genesee County has the highest voter turnout in the NY-26 on May 24.

Since then, Jeff Allen has offered to match it with $100 to Care-A-Van Ministries, Dan Jones has offered to match it with $26 dollars to Care-A-Van ministries and another $26 dollars to the USO and a reader e-mailed me offering a $25 matching donation.

There's still time for others to jump on the bandwagon.

Yesterday was a bigger than normal turnout for the school budget vote, and of course there was an even bigger turnout to reject the Van Detta project.

If people are coming out to vote to protest the direction of things, May 24 presents another opportunity to send a message.

I can think of reasons for each of the four candidates that somebody might think a vote for that peson would be a protest vote against the direction of the country.

Regardless of who you support or what you believe, get out and vote.  You're not making a difference or sending a message by sitting at home on May 24.

With the eyes of the nation on this election, let's demonstrate that Genesee County cares about who represents us in Washington.

Jim Owen, who taught 35 years in Hamburg and is now a substitute teacher in Batavia City Schools, came to the candidate forum at the YWCA today to see his former typing student, Kathy Hochul. She is running for Congress and was one of Owen's students in the mid-1970s. (Previous Story.)

All four candidates for the NY-26 special election race on May 24 were scheduled to appear at the YWCA on North Street this morning at the invitation of the Western New York Independent Living Project.

Only Jane Corwin and Kathy Hochul actually made it. Curtis Ellis, spokesman for Jack Davis, claimed that Davis couldn't make it because of an emergency at his plant. Ian Murphy, well, by the time I left, nobody knew what happened to him.

Each of the candidates were scheduled to speak in 15 minute increments with each of hopeful arriving and leaving separately. Corwin was up first and exited before Hochul entered the room.

When Corwin reached the parking lot, another reporter asked Corwin a question and when Corwin kept walking without saying a word, he said, "Can you stop?" Corwin said, "I'm on my way to another meeting, Dave, thank you."

I had one question I wanted to ask Jane Corwin, "where is the second tape?"

The second tape is one shot by a GOP operative in Greece last Wednesday when Corwin's Assembly chief of staff, Michael Mallia, confronted Jack Davis and produced a 15-second YouTube video in which Davis is caught on tape saying, "hey, you want punched out," then takes a swipe at the video camera and Mallia reacts by wailing like a banshee.

We know there was a second camera operator because she was caught on tape by WGRZ-TV.

Nobody from the Erie County GOP or Jane Corwin's camp has denied that there was a second camera operator and that she was there on behalf of the GOP.

When other reporters pressed Nick Langworthy, ECGOP chairman, on the second tape -- under the assumption that it would tell the full story of what really happened during the incident -- Langworthy said there was no tape because the battery was dead.

However, the WGRZ footage shows the GOP operative is operating a camera, something no reasonable person would do if the battery was dead (as Judge Judy says, "If it doesn't make sense, it's not true").

Since there must obviously be a second tape, the logical question is, where is it and why hasn't it been released? The most logical person to ask about it is the CEO of the Corwin Campaign, which is Jane Corwin.

Certainly, Corwin, with all of her busienss experience, understands that the buck stops with the CEO. She's the one who needs to explain the conduct of the people she's chosen to surround herself with, which is something she hasn't done yet.

The result of my attempt to ask the question of Corwin can be seen in the video posted above.

Meanwhile, after Kathy Hochul (picture below) finished speaking, rather than rushing to get into her car, she stayed for another good 20 minutes and answered every question every reporter could think to ask.

As soon as I can, I'll post a story on what Corwin and Hochul said during the forum.

Nearly 1,000 voters showed up at the polls today with 53.14 percent of them rejecting a proposed $3.9 million Batavia City Schools budget.

The tally: Yes, 448; no, 508.

In the board of education election:

(Incumbent ) Wayne Guenther - 594
Amy Barone - 764
Alfred McGinnis - 427

A Le Roy resident caught dealing methamphetamine from his home during a multi-agency law enforcement investigation will spend 210 months in a federal penitentiary.

Donald G. Vanelli II, 48, was sentenced to 17-and-a-half years in a Rochester federal court today.

Vanelli had previous entered a guilty plea to conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute, and to distribute, 500 grams or more of methamphetamine.

Documents released by federal authorities at the time of his arrest indicated that Vanelli, president of the Road Agents Motorcycle Club, was head of a meth ring involved in acquiring meth in Monroe County and distributing in Genesee County.

The operation, headed by the FBI with assistance for the Local Drug Enforcement Task Force, included wiretaps and a video camera positioned on a pole near his house and well as the use of an informant.

As a result of the investigation, authorities concluded that Vanelli obtained between five and 15 kilograms of methamphetamine from drug suppliers.

Arrested the same day -- July 13, 2010 -- as Vanelli were David H. Cohen, 49, of 918 Goodman St., Rochester, Donna L. Boon (aka Donna McAuley), 44, of 3658 Batavia-Oakfield Townline Road; Andrew W. Chapman, 40, of 5 Cedar St., Batavia; and Kerry A. Ball, 51, of 7202 Meadville Road, Basom.

The cases against the other defendants are still pending.

In late April, Boon's husband, James Henry McAuley Jr. (aka "Mitch"), 62, was accused by federal authorities of being a leader in the Rochester Hells Angels and charged with racketeering.

One of Le Roy's biggest fundraisers of the year begins at 6:30 p.m. this Friday at The Greens of Le Roy.

It's time for the annual "Graze to Raise," sponsored by The Rotary Club of Le Roy, The Greens of Le Roy, and The Le Roy Village Green.

All proceeds benefit The REA Milne Scholarship (a registered 501 (c) 3 that is tax exempt).

The event is at The Greens of Le Roy and the cost is $15. Admission includes beer, wine, Red Osier roast beef, food stations, hors d'oeuvres and desserts -- plus entertainment.

There will be live, silent and Chinese auctions. The silent auction has more than 100 items and gift certificates from some of the area's finest shops and restaurants. The live auction includes: an eight-day stay in Orlando, Fla., including Disney Park Hopper passes; a helicopter ride over Letchworth State Park, including breakfast; 2012 Sabres tickets; Van Miller Club Bills tickets; a 48-inch flat screen television, and much more.

You can get tickets from any Rotarian, or by calling 502-0450, or e-mailing club Secretary Samantha Vagg at svagg@bhcg.com

Last year more than 200 people attended.

The goal of The R.E.A. Milne Scholarship is to help students who reside within the Le Roy Central School District to further their education. Currently, each scholarship student receives $750 each year for four years. The scholarship is a four-year award as long as the student remains in college, and is awarded based on financial need. The club's hardworking committee members follow carefully outlined guidelines to award the scholarships.

If you would like to learn more about the R.E.A. Milne Scholarship, please visit <http://www.leroyrotary.org/>.

The Greens of Le Roy is located at 1 West Ave.

Press release:

ERIE COUNTY – Kathy Hochul, candidate for New York’s 26th Congressional District, today released a new television advertisement entitled “Look For Yourself.”

The 30-second ad speaks to the false attacks Jane Corwin has made about Kathy Hochul’s plan to preserve and protect Social Security and Medicare.

“In a desperate attempt to distract voters, Jane Corwin has created a false attack on Kathy Hochul that the Buffalo News has called an ‘attempt to deflect attention from her support’ of the Republican budget that would decimate Medicare, while giving massive tax breaks to multi-millionaires and billionaires,” said Fabien Levy, Director of Communications for Kathy Hochul for Congress.

“Independent sources have said ‘don’t believe’ Jane Corwin’s ad and called it ‘bogus.’

“The Buffalo News agrees, Kathy Hochul has the right approach to fixing and protecting Medicare for future beneficiaries and that ‘she understands health care for seniors to be an appropriate federal issue, while Corwin does not,’” Levy continued."

Press release:

Assemblyman Steve Hawley (R,I,C – Batavia) recently voiced his opposition to Assembly Bill 1157, which would place new mandates on firearms producers through the process of microstamping. The bill would require companies to add expensive new technology leaving imprinted marks on discharged rounds which could lead to the loss of jobs and increased costs to Western New York’s sportsmen.

“Placing onerous, costly mandates on New York’s business owners fails to increase public safety and only succeeds in giving these job-creators another reason to pack up and leave New York,” said Hawley. “Furthermore, as costs rise for arms producers, so will the prices of their products, passing the cost on down to our proud sportsmen exercising their 2nd Amendment right to bear arms in a safe manner. If we want to address gun safety, we should be aiming to remove illegal, unregistered guns from our community, rather than burdening the business owners and sportsmen that are properly utilizing this equipment.”

Hawley has consistently voted against prior legislation seeking to impose microstamping mandates against arms producers.

PHOTO CAPTION: Genesee ARC Mary Anne Graney Memorial Scholarship recipients Alyssa Cole (seated), Justine Saraceni and Jennifer Wright (standing) with Charles Graney and Molly (Graney) George.

BATAVIA -- Three teens from Oakfield-Alabama, Notre Dame and Pavilion high schools are the recipients of the 2011 Genesee ARC Mary Anne Graney Memorial Scholarships. The $1,000 scholarship awards were presented at the Genesee ARC Annual Meeting & Awards Banquet to: Alyssa Cole, Justine Saraceni and Jennifer Wright.

A member of the Oakfield-Alabama Class of 2011, Alyssa plans to attend SUNY Geneseo to become a Special Education Teacher. Justine, a resident of Le Roy and senior at Notre Dame High School, will study Childhood and Special Education at St. John Fisher College and senior Jennifer, of Pavilion, is planning to become a social worker and will begin her studies at Genesee Community College.

The Genesee ARC Mary Anne Graney Memorial Scholarship is open to area high school seniors, planning to further their studies in human services, special education or related fields. It is in honor of Mary Anne Graney, a special education teacher, who died in 2004. According to Genesee ARC Scholarship Committee Chair Charles Graney, “The scholarship is a living memorial, honoring Mary Anne’s commitment to Genesee ARC and enriching the lives of people with disabilities.”

The scholarship program is funded by the Genesee ARC Friends & Family 5K, scheduled for Sept. 24 at the Genesee ARC Day Habilitation Center in Elba.

This is a news release from Genesee Community College.

Genesee Community College is offering a new agriculture class this fall. The new Western New York Agriculture (AGR190) course is the first of its kind at the college.

It will involve a vibrant blend of classroom lectures and labs along with multiple field trips to local farms and agriculture-based businesses to provide extensive hands-on experience and onsite information gathering.

Among the topics for new AGR 190 course will be agronomy, animal care, integrated pest management, dairy, fruit, vegetable and organic food production, high-tech farming equipment, labor issues and conservation planning to name a few.

Overall, the new class focuses on the challenge of feeding an ever-growing world population and the changes needed to increase food productivity through better crops and farming efficiencies. According to the AGR course coordinators and instructors: "If you eat, this course is for you."

The Western New York Agriculture course has been developed in a collaborative effort by GCC and Cornell Cooperative Extension -- Dairy, Livestock and Field Crops Team. Together, these educators are at the forefront of knowledge and new developments of what farmers in our area face each season, according to James Kingston, a specialist on the team.

The course will not only explain critical aspects of today's agriculture, but also take students right to the farms and many regional businesses that serve and depend on agriculture. Students will have the opportunity to observe all levels of employment and investigate agricultural career paths as they progress through the Western New York Agriculture course.

Students will also use today's computer technology for a portion of the course. Online discussions, readings, assignments and assessments will be conducted through Genesee's Blackboard computer system.

"We're so excited to be able to offer a course of this relevance," Kingston said. "Our area has diverse agricultural needs that will face many challenges as production must continue to grow in the future in response to population growth."

The course will delve into agriculture's economic impact in our region and touch on bioengineering, environmental issues, harvesting, storage and distribution, the biology of livestock, grazing, farm economies, and agricultural careers. Half of the classes will be farm field trip exercises to develop a comprehensive understanding of the importance and scope of the agriculture industry.

Serving the four county GLOW region, which includes Genesee, Livingston, Orleans, and Wyoming counties, GCC's seven campus locations are in the heartland of New York's most fertile and abundant agricultural area.

From this strong farming base, GCC students will have a chance to embrace their farming community and truly understand how "AG business" is not only the backbone of the local economy but that these fertile valleys are intricately linked to a prosperous future.

"This course represents significant new opportunity for the both the college community and the agricultural community to fully engage one another in the teaching–learning process," said Maureen Leupold, instructor of Biology and Environment Science.

"The diversity of agriculture in Western New York and its economic impact in the region is a topic of great concern and importance to all of us, and I am delighted that GCC students will soon be on the front lines of exploring this critical frontier."  

The AGR190 class will be held from 2 to 5 p.m. on Mondays in room C303. For further information on the AGR190 course, go to:  http://www.genesee.edu/academics/catalog/AGR/190/201109/

To register for the class online go to: http://www.genesee.edu/depts/admissions/apply/

Leupold can be reached via email at MALeupold@genesee.edu  <http://MALeupold@genesee.edu> or by calling 585-343-0055, ext. 6394.

This Great Blue Heron was standing motionless when Claudia began taking his picture....but the master stalker of the shallows didn't remain still for long.

Moments later, the heron appeared to have spotted prey and began a slow and deliberate stalk.

Skulking through the shallows, the heron is intently focused on its quarry.

We obviously couldn't see what the heron was hunting. They feed mainly on small fish but their diet has been known to include, among others things, frogs, crayfish, small mammals, birds and snakes.

The Great Blue Heron's bill is not only large but sharp as well and a dangerous weapon -- the heron's thrust is lightening quick.  

With its back to us, the heron displays its promiment black crest.

A car has reportedly struck at pole in the area of 128 Vine St., Batavia.

If there are injuries, they are apparently minor.

No wires are reported down.

City fire and Mercy EMS asked to respond non-emergency. City police are on scene.

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Genesee County is facing a problem of aging roads and bridges and not enough money to fix them, according to Tim Hens, county highway superintendent.

Hens made a presentation Monday to the legislature's Public Service Committee and said the average rating of county-owned roadways is 5.32, and for the nine bridges with spans of 20 feet or greater, the average rating is 5.02.

A rating of five on a scale of 1-9 is considered "deficient."

Funding for roadways and bridges comes from three primary sources: federal grants, state grants and local taxes.

Typically, the state has provided $1.3 million per year, but it's not clear if those grants will continue at all or at the same level.

"If we don’t get that money from the state next year, we’re looking at either differing that amount of highway maintenance next year or coming up with funding ourselves," Hens told the committee.

There's also talk of cutting federal funds by as much as 30 percent, Hens said.

As for the bridges, many of them were built in the 1950s and 1960s are reaching the end of their expected life. Some of them are eligible for federal grants for repair and replacement, but those grants are spread out over several years.

And because of the formula used by the Fed to determine eligibility, some bridges aren't eligible for funding because they haven't uniformly fallen to a 5 rating.  

The bridge over the Tonawanda Creek at River Street is an example, Hens said. While parts of the bridge rate below a 5, other parts of the bridge rate well above 5. 

Hens said he's been trying to get a grant to replace the bridge for years. At some point, the county may just need to close it.

Bridges and culverts that are less than 20 feet in length are not eligible for federal grants, so the county must pick up the entire tab.

An example is a culvert bridge on Linden Road over the Little Tonawanda Creek. It's near the end of its life cycle but it would cost the county more than $3 million to replace it.

"Our choices are not replace the bridge and force residents in the hamlet to be separated forever and find alternative routes," Hens said, "or pay for it."

Other problem bridges are on Kilian Road in Pembroke and Griswold Road in Stafford.

With the Griswold Road bridge, school buses are no longer allowed to drive over it and snow plows won't go over it. It simply can no longer support that much weight. (The rusted beam picture above comes from the Griswold Road bridge.)

As for roadways, an asphalt road is expected to have a 50 35-year life span with resurfacing every eight to 10 years and preventative maintenance (crack sealing, for example) on a regular basis.

Currently, the county is behind schedule on preventative maintenance for more than 56 miles of roadway.

In all, 26 percent of the county's roadways are considered deficient.

Besides cuts in funding and many of these roads and bridges reaching the end of their useful life all at about the same time, the cost of materials, Hens said, are skyrocketing.

He recommended that the county develop a long-term needs analysis and then consider funding options, which may include bonds.

The committee was not asked to take any action on the report.

Photos provided by Tim Hens and were used in his report.

A Batavia man is accused of entering the home of a friend on Washington Avenue and trying to steal booze, and when confronted, the man allegedly returned to the house with a shotgun.

Taken into custody early Sunday morning was Andrew J. Rock, 24, of 206 State St. Batavia.

Rock is charged with burglary, 2nd, criminal possession of a weapon, criminal criminal use of a firearm, 2nd, and menacing, 2nd.

According to Batavia police, Rock entered the home on Washington Avenue, took alcohol and then was confronted by the resident outside. The resident retrieved his property.

A short time later, a little before 1 a.m., Rock allegedly returned to the residence and knocked on the door and when the resident opened the door, Rock was standing on the porch holding a shotgun.

Rock fled the scene before police arrived and was arrested at his house soon afterward.

He was jailed without bail.