A chimney fire has been reported at 2225 Bennett Road, Alexander.
The location is just east of Simmons Road.
Darien Fire, all equipment, with one tanker from Alexander and one from Corfu, requested to the scene.
Mercy EMS also dispatched.
UPDATE 4:34 p.m.: Chief on scene says, "no smoke showing."
UPDATE 4:37 p.m.: Fire appears out. A thermal camera is requested.
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At the request of The Batavian, the Genesee County Economic Development Center sent over a one-page summary of a compensation survey completed in 2008.
The survey gathered compensation information from 26 IDAs from across the United States, comparing budget, staffing and executive compensation.
Handwritten notes on the summary indicate GCEDC CEO Steve Hyde earned a base salary of $134,550 and the average salary of the 26 agencies was $148,000, with his total compensation set at $171,600 compared to an average of $166,600.
Download (PDF).
Previously:
A one-car rollover accident has been reported at Griswold Road and Route 33, Stafford.
One person is trapped in the car, but is not believed to be injured.
Stafford Fire is responding.
UPDATE 3:45 p.m.: Driver is out of the car and reportedly suffered minor cuts on his or her hand.
A one-vehicle rollover accident is reported at 4591 Batavia-Elba Townline Road in Elba. There are reportedly minor injuries.
The location is between State Street and Norton Road.
Elba Fire Department and Mercy EMS are responding.
UPDATE 12:14 p.m.: The female driver has wrist and leg injuries. The car is on its side. She is not trapped, but needs assistance to get out of the car.
UPDATE 12:17 p.m.: The victim is out of the car. A flatbed tow truck is called. The westbound lane is shut down.
UPDATE 12:26 p.m.: Route 98 is being closed at its juncture with Batavia-Elba Townline Road (Daws).
UPDATE 12:47 p.m.: All units back in service. Road is reopened.
A pre-trial hearing, called a felony hearing, was postponed today for Patrick Donahue, the 21-year-old Batavia man accused of rape in the first degree.
Donahue made bail, removing the legal requirement to have the felony hearing within a few days of his arrest.
The hearing is the first chance his attorney gets at challenging the evidence against him.
Donahue is accused of raping a 30-year-old woman at a residence on Walnut Street on Jan. 10.
Above, Lorie Longhany with Dr. Maidul Kahn and the opening tonight of the "Young at Art" show at the Senior Center. Kahn is one of Longhany's newer students. He's holding one of his paintings. It's of Centennial Park in the fall.
Other artists on display are Marie Washburn, Kathy Roblee, Carol La Valley, Longhany, the late David Rice, Sue Morgan, Farrel Ann Burdick, Joan Scherff, Rosemary Christian, Pat Fletcher and Elisa Di Pietro.
Below, Christian talks with visitor's about another artist's work.
A motor-vehicle accident with injuries has been reported at the intersection of Ellicott and Liberty streets, City of Batavia.
UPDATE: The accident was actually about 100 yards west of Liberty on Ellicott. One person was hurt, but the injuries are apparently minor. It appears that one car rear-ended another.
A state report critical of compensation practices of the Genesee Economic Development Center is neither fair nor accurate, county and agency officials are saying today.
"We've done nothing wrong," said Jim Vincent, vice chairman of the GCEDC board of directors. "Nobody likes to be criticized, but we stand by what we've done. We are being criticized for our success."
The Authorities Budget Office report strongly condemns how more than $344,000 in bonuses have been awarded to GCEDC staff since 2005 and also expresses concerns about the $153,000 annual base salary paid to Director Steve Hyde. (Read: Previous Story)
Vincent said everything the GCEDC has done was cleared by an attorney and performed in accordance with state law.
"This is a difference of opinion," Vincent said. "They (the ABO) thinks we did it the wrong way. We think we did it the right way. We truly feel we have a dynamic organization.
"We've done everything legally, properly and transparently, and we continue to produce results."
While referring most questions to Vincent, the director said everything about compensation is a board decision and Vincent should speak for the board. Hyde was also critical of the ABO report.
"The report is using only half-truths in a lot of ways and disregarded a lot of the facts and information we provided them," Hyde said. "But that's the regulatory environment we live in."
Hyde said the ABO disregarded performance models provided by GCEDC and a compensation survey that showed his salary was right in line with 26 other similar IDA's across the nation.
The GCEDC claims it has generated $409 million in capital improvements for Genesee County businesses (full list, PDF).
In a memo released by the GCEDC late this afternoon, GCEDC attorney Robert J. Ryan said the ADO's report is wrong in stating the board didn't have the authority to set compensation as it sees fit and issue bonuses according to its own guidelines.
Ryan:
... the ABO Report concludes that the Agency does not have the legal authority to pay incentives or additional compensation. This is the opinion of the ABO and not based in law. The General Municipal Law explicitly provides the Agency the ability to establish and pay compensation out of Agency funds. We are unaware of and the ABO has not provided any legal authority that would prohibit the Agency’s compensation package being based upon salary and a performance incentive.
ABO Director David Kidera said his agency was really trying to get across two points in its report:
Because the bonus payments were not appropriate, Kidera said, the report recommends that the payments be "recovered."
That means, he said today, the board should ask employees to return the $344,000 in bonus payments they've received since 2005.
He implied he realizes that isn't necessarily a realistic expectation.
"I think we're required to say that because these bonuses were paid inappropriately, that because in the absence of any proper procedures for paying bonuses -- and these are taxpayer funds -- the board should seek to rectify that," Kidera said.
"Is that going to happen? I don't know. I realize we're talking about employees here and this might not happen in the private sector, but we would be remiss in our responsibilities if we just said, 'it's wrong,' and then let it go."
Kidera acknowledged that the ABO has no real authority to enforce its recommendations. It's up to the GCEDC board, he said, whether to implement its recommendations, or up to the legislature to replace the board if it doesn't like the board's response to the recommendations.
Otherwise the only thing the ABO can do is issue a follow-up report on the board and county's response to the initial report.
He did say a copy of the report was sent to District Attorney Lawrence Friedman with the idea that the DA's office could investigate any potential legal wrongdoing.
Friedman said that he's received the report but that it's really too soon to say if any sort of legal proceedings would follow.
Mary Pat Hancock, chairwoman of the Genesee County Legislature, said it is not the legislature's role to act in an oversight capacity of the GCEDC. She said the procedures put in place creating IDAs, put the IDAs at arm's-length from county legislatures. The legislature doesn't approve the budget or operations of the GCEDC.
While GCEDC board members are appointed by the Genesee County Legislature, the time for dealing with issues related to any appointee are when it's time to renew a term or make new appointments.
The county just finished a budget process that required sacrifice from several departments and nearly led to the elimination of the county's nationally recognized, pioneering restorative justice program, Genesee Justice. In order to save the program, the agency's director, Ed Minardo, volunteered to resign.
Hancock said the county's share of funding for GCEDC was cut by 15 percent, reducing it to about $266,000, and Hancock said that is money well spent.
"It has been demonstrated that the magnification of each dollar we put into GCEDC, because of their success in attracting business, we've found that contribution has come back to us many times over," Hancock said.
Legislator Hollis Upson, who is also a member of the GCEDC board of directors, also defended the agency as an important engine of economic growth in Genesee County.
"Arguably, Steve Hyde brings something of value to Genesee County," Upson said. "The compensation and bonuses came strictly from performance and results. (Staff) compensation came out of generated income"
Pointing to a previous post on The Batavian listing the salaries of the top 25 public officials in Genesee County, Upson noted 20 of the top 25 were education executives.
"The superintendents and officials at BOCES work a lot fewer hours, I would suggest, and they don't generate income," Upson said. "We are helping them (school officials) by generating a tax base.
"So while the perception would be that (Hyde makes a lot more money than other officials in the county), someone who would look at it from only that standpoint, well there's a lot more to it."
It was the end of a very hectic day at St. Joseph School in Batavia. The building was nearly empty, and teachers John and Margaret Volpe were finally on their way home when Principal Karen Green approached them and said: "Oh by the way, you know that award (NBC newsman) Tim Russert started that they give out every year? You two won it this year."
Who and what
Russert, who died in 2008, was a former Catholic school student. He created the Making a Difference Award for the purpose of honoring former teachers who had an impact on his life. It is given annually to a Catholic school teacher in the diocese of Buffalo.
"We had no idea we were even being considred," John said.
Green's announcement that they had won this award was a surprise for another reason as well: It's only supposed to go to one person each year.
This is the first time two teachers are receiving the award together. Green nominated both John and Margaret, who teach sixth- through eighth-graders at the Summit Street school, after finding herself unable to choose between them.
"After working with John and Margaret as a teacher and then observing them as a principal," she said, "I can say that when it comes to making a difference in students' lives, that's exactly what they do. It's a daily occurrence, and you can see it in how the kids relate to them."
High expectations
John and Margaret teach social studies and English, respectively. Green commented that they spend a lot of extra time preparing for each week's lessons and always make sure to update their teaching tools and styles to make learning more exciting for the kids (using the latest classroom technology, etc).
Academically, the kids in John and Margaret's classes are held to high standards and, in Green's words, are "always busy."
In Mrs. Volpe's English class, students are continually honing their writing skills with weekly literature logs and various writing assignments throughout each grading period. As a result, they typically leave St. Joe's with excellent writing skills and high expectations for their academic performances.
"I like to see the students desire and expect a lot of themselves, and not just settle for crummy work," Margaret said.
In Mr. Volpe's social studies class, students become engaged in the material by discussing it in relation to current events -- which is one area of instruction where new technology comes in handy.
Commenting on the availability of news online, John said: "An event can happen on, say, Thursday morning, and I can present it to the class by that afternoon."
He enjoys the "give-and-take" relationship he has with his students, who are still young enough to question things rather than being strictly "goal-oriented."
"My hope for them is that they will ask questions and pursue the answers," he said. "And I hope they'll explore things a bit instead of just automatically accepting the obvious answers."
Not only do John and Margaret have expectations for their students in terms of academics and conduct, they also consistently follow through with those expectations.
"I've seen very few discipline problems on their side of the hall," Green said. "Their students know they need to behave a certain way, and that there will be consequences if they don't."
Beyond the books...
The Volpes' committment to their students extends beyond the classroom. Margaret oversees the school newspaper staff. John is in charge of the student debate team (both of which meet every week), and the couple spends a lot of time with students who need extra help after school.
Additionally, Margaret serves on the school's Academic Excellence Committee, which is designed to offer students educational opportunities that they would not get in the classroom. It also helps provide particularly gifted students with more opportunities to challenge themselves. Activities the committee sponsors include the annual spelling bee, Career Day, and peer tutoring.
Colleagues have benefitted from the Volpes' presence at St. Joe's as well as the students. John, for example, acts as assistant principal on days when Green is out of the building, serves as a "backup" for the other teachers and helps with discipline when needed.
Even as their boss, Green goes to the Volpes for advice every now and again.
Formerly a St. Joe's teacher, Green's experience is mostly with younger students. When she started her job as principal, she was a bit...well, green when it came to working with the older kids.
"John and Margaret have so much experience, so I always go to them for help and trust their judgment."
A great team
The Volpes have worked in Catholic education together for more than 40 years, and have taught at St. Joe's for more than 20 years. They met in the early 1970s as teachers at the Cathedral School in Buffalo, and were married not long after.
While combining professional and personal relationships can be awkward, the Volpes have found that, in their case, the two reinforce one another.
"There's that kind of natural trust you have going into the job (when you work with your spouse)," John said. "I know that if I have a problem, I can talk to Margaret about it. And as a teacher, I think I've learned more working with Margaret than anyone else. She's very inventive and creative, and she's helped me all along."
Likewise, Margaret has always had tremendous respect for her husband on a professional level.
"Since before we were married, I've noticed that John has an unusual rapport with the kids," she said. "He has a certain warmth (with his students) that I notice right up to today, and I've learned from that."
Without wanting to "overstate (the) influence" she and her husband have on the kids' lives, Margaret said that working with the students at St. Joe's is almost like raising a family.
"I notice that in eighth-grade, the kids form even closer friendships than before," she said. "And I really think John helps to foster that."
From Green's perspective, the Volpes' working relationship as husband and wife sets a positive example for their students.
"To see a married couple working side-by-side and having such a healthy relationship is good for the kids, especially in an age when a lot of families seem to be falling apart."
In the right place
St. Joseph School offers the Volpes an environment in which they feel they are able to "flourish" more than any place else. For one thing, the majority of kids who attend St. Joe's come from what Margaret called "very solid families."
The students themselves, according to Green, are what "make St. Joe's such a wonderful place to work," to which Margaret replied, "Amen!"
John, for his part, talked about how impressed he has been with the way in which the kids welcome and accept new students.
"Each year, within a very short time, new students are assimilated and welcomed."
Teaching at a Catholic school is also very important to both John and Margaret, the latter having come from a family of six children who attended Catholic schools from grade school all the way through college.
"I remember my father would work two or three jobs to put us all through Catholic school," she said, "and he never let up. That always left a big impression on me."
Margaret has always felt that Catholic education should be a choice for parents and families. And she always knew that if no one was willing to accept the sacrifice of a smaller salary (compared to a public school teacher's salary) and teach at a Catholic school, then that option would be gone.
In terms of how things are done, John and Margaret like the discipline and focus on values that Catholic education offers, while at the same time emphasizing the development of skills.
"There's a basic emphasis on value (in Catholic education) instead of just fact and procedure," John said. "And it's nice that we're able to talk about religion. (As a Catholic school teacher), you incorporate the values of religion into your lessons without 'preaching' religion."
John and his students talk about current events with concern for ethical issues and implications.
"I enjoy being able to do that, rather than having to stay neutral on everything."
Margaret's students explore Catholic values in many of their writing assignments. After a visit to Genesee ARC, for example, they wrote an essay about how their faith teaches compassion toward, and acceptance of, people with special needs.
Faith also comes into play with the teaching of literature. Margaret and her students discuss the books they read with religion in mind, asking what a practicing Christian would do in a given character's situation. Margaret also works with parents in determining which books are good for the kids to read, and which are not.
"There are books out there that promote the wrong values and glorify bad behavior," Margaret said. "I tell the kids that certain books they might be reading (on their own time) aren't good for them, and I work with parents to determine what's appropriate. And the parents are right on board with it."
A fitting tribute
John and Margaret will receive their award at the 2011 Making a Difference Dinner, which is next Thursday -- Jan. 27 -- at the Adam's Mark Hotel in Buffalo.
Two tables will be filled by those coming to support them, including family members, parents and faculty (including Batavia City Council President Marianne Clattenberg, who teaches third-grade at St. Joe's).
Green was very happy that the Volpes will be recognized for their work with the students.
"'The school wouldn't run as well as it does without them," she said. "They do an amazing job here, and I don't think they're told that often enough."
Ronald J. Wendt, convicted last year in the drinking-and-driving death of an 18-year-old Dansville girl, appeared in County Court today to have his sentence on two of his charges corrected.
On two charges of assault, 2nd, Wendt was given two-and-a-half to seven years as an "indeterminant" sentence, meaning he could serve any portion of that range and be eligible for parole.
Since his initial sentence, however, authorities realized that on charges of assault, 2nd, a defendant cannot receive an indeterminate sentence.
Today, Judge Robert C. Noonan sentenced Wendt to a two-and-a-half years determinant sentence on those charges.
The change doesn't effect Wendt's sentence on other charges and since the sentencing on all 11 counts were concurrent, Wendt could still be eligible for parole in little more than a year (he served more than a year in jail while awaiting trial prior to his conviction).
For previous sentencing coverage, click here.
Also in court this morning, Patricia Hardesty, accused of shooting her husband in the knee during a domestic dispute in August, entered not guilty pleas to three felony charges, including assault, 1st, and assault, 2nd. Hardesty is out of jail and under the supervision of Genesee Justice. Her husband requested that no order of protection be placed in the case, so none was issued. The couple continues to reside together in their County Line Road home.
Jody B. Gillett, 50, of Pine Hollow Drive, Batavia, is charged with DWI and driving with a BAC of .18 or greater. Gillett was arrested after allegedly being observed by Le Roy Police Officer John Duyssen driving at an excessive speed and spinning the car around in the Tops Market parking lot.
The Genesee County Economic Development Center should recover more than $344,000 in bonus payments to employees made from 2005 through 2009, according to a report issued Wednesday by New York Authorities Budget Office.
The ABO is responsible for fiscal oversight of certain local agencies, including industrial development agencies.
In a scathing report (pdf), ABO officials say that GCEDC made bonus payments that do not comply either with state law or guidelines.
In the case of one bonus payment, the report recommends the matter be referred to a local law enforcement agency for further review.
"GCIDA (aka, GCEDC) officials justified its bonus practices as proper and comparable to bonus incentive plans in use by private industry," the report reads. "GCIDA officials continue to show a lack of understanding that the GCIDA is a public entity and not a private industry."
The report is also critical of the $153,000 annual salary for Executive Directory Steve Hyde. Hyde's base salary is the highest in the state for any IDA, the report states, and significantly higher than any IDA director in Western New York, and higher by far than any other public employee in Genesee County.
In 2009, GCEDC paid out $91,000 in bonuses, with $60,000 going to Hyde.
The report is critical of how the board of directors arrived at its bonus structure, not using an individual's performance goals set at the beginning of a calendar year, but instead basing bonuses on available funds at the end of the year and whether overall group goals were met.
The report says that criteria violates a state comptroller's advisory opinion issued more than 10 years ago, though the state law governing IDA's does not specifically address bonus compensation.
According to the report, up until 2010, an informal subcommittee of the GCEDC board would meet and determine the bonus amount and structure for the agency's employees. Generally, the decision would be made in December with bonuses paid at the beginning of January. But in January 2007, more than $54,000 in bonus payments were disbursed even though the bonuses were not approved by the board until a month later.
While officials told ABO investigators that bonuses were paid based on agency performance, the report states that in 2008 the GCEDC did not meet its job creation goals, yet $91,000 in bonus payments were approved; and, for 2005, $55,000 in bonus payments were approved, even though GCEDC met neither goals for job creation nor capital investment.
For 2008 a $500 bonus was paid to a consultant even though there was no provision in the $60,000 contract for a bonus.
"Although we make no judgment as to whether such an expenditure of public funds is legal," the report reads, "we are referring this to local law enforcement officials for further review."
The report recommends that the $500 be recovered from the consultant. The consultant is not named in the report.
The report notes that Hyde's salary has increased from $82,950 in 2004 to $153,000 in 2009. In comparison, the IDA director in Orleans County earned $58,000 in 2009 and the Erie County director received $133,911. Among other Genesee County public employees, the District Attorney has the highest salary after Hyde at $118,187.
The report reads:
The GCIDA justified its practices, both in regard to bonus payments and salary structure, by referring to private industry standards and principals, and pointing out that GCIDA has its own private revenue source, and that payments are made with private funds. We are disheartened by this attitude and perspective.
The GCIDA relies extensively on Genesee County for financial support. For the five-year period 2004 through 2009, the GCIDA received more than $1.3 million in operating funds from Genesee County, almost 20 percent of its total operating revenues. Salary and compensation are part of the GCIDA's operating budget. So, directly or indirectly, the taxpayers of Genesee County contribute to the cost of supporting the GCIDA.
According to the GCEDC's 2011 program budget, anticipated revenue is $1.5 million with $266,217 coming from Genesee County. The remaining revenue is comprised of fees, grants -- including $475,000 from National Grid and $750,000 from the Town of Pembroke (over three years) -- and other unspecified sources.
The budget statement says that through August 2010, GCEDC supported 16 economic development projects, generated commitments for 50 new jobs over the next three years and $18.5 million in capital investment.
Among its ongoing projects: Gateway II, Buffalo East Technology Park, Med & Tech Park, Apple Tree Acres, Genesee Valley Agri-Business Park and WNY Stamp.
Genesee County's six village's could face a substantial expense if they want to use the Board of Election's modern voting machines, Election Commissioner Richard Siebert told the Ways and Means Committee this afternoon.
The exact cost per village hasn't been determined yet, but it starts with more than 56 cents per ballot to feed into the machines and includes staff support and security.
Only certified staff can supervise the machines in order to ensure there is no tampering, Siebert said.
While school districts can continue to use the old lever machines through the 2012 elections, villages and fire districts are prohibited from allowing voters to pull on the old levers from now on.
The Board of Elections will bring forward a resolution to the Legislature to declare the lever machines surplus property, at which point they can be donated to school districts, if they want them.
For villages and fire districts, they have two choices: shoulder the costs of using the new election computers or use paper ballots.
Legislator Bob Bausch said that Bergen will use paper ballots for its next election.
A proposal to license home improvement contractors who do work in the City of Batavia is being put on hold while further research is done into how the proposed law should be implemented.
The matter has been referred to City Attorney George Van Nest.
City Manager Jason Molino told the City Council about the change in direction during the budget review meeting at City Hall tonight.
While Councilman Bob Bialkowski spoke out against the proposal and Councilwoman Rosemary Christian said she's received a lot of calls on the matter, Council Bill Cox said given the trouble he had with a contractor last year, he leans toward support the proposal.
The proposal was included in the 2011/12 budget. The plan was to impose a $125 annual license fee for contractors doing a variety of home improvement projects, from painting to driveway paving and several other types of improvements.
Christian said there was a lot of confusion about the proposal, such as some people calling her expressing concern that the kid who mows lawns during the summer would have to pay the city $125 per year.
Molino said it's those kinds of definitions that the city attorney will clear up in the research and review process.
There's no timeline for when the proposal might be brought back to the council for consideration.
Police are looking for a hit-and-run driver who struck a pedestrian on Ross Street on Tuesday night.
The 16-year-old girl who was struck was treated for minor injuries at UMMC.
The car is described as a dark colored "old style" sports car. The driver is described as a dark-skinned male.
According to Batavia Police, the pedestrian was walking east on Ross when the car, which was heading east on Washington Avenue, failed to stop at the stop sign. The driver made a right-hand turn to head south on Ross and struck the pedestrian.
Anybody with information that might help with the investigation is asked to call Batavia PD at 345-6350.
A two-car accident, without injuries, is reported at the intersection of Main and Oak streets in the City of Batavia. It is blocking the intersection.
Police are on scene and requesting additional manpower to handle traffic. Two flatbeds tow trucks are requested.
UPDATE 6:34 p.m.: The Batavia Fire Department is called to the scene because one of the vehicles is leaking fluids.
A Batavia mother who admitted that she tried to smuggle oxycodone into the Genesee County Jail for her son will spend five years on probation, County Judge Robert C. Noonan ruled today.
Kathleen Catino, 60, of Seven Springs Road, entered a guilty plea in November. She tried to bring the drugs in September to Cain Catino, 39, who had recently been arrested for an attempted robbery of prescription drugs from the Oakfield Pharmacy.
I’m sorry," she told Noonan. "Would I do again? No. It’s very hard to watch your child suffer. It’s been a very long 15 years."
Dressed all in black, Catino also complained to the judge that officials at Oneida State Prison are not providing her son -- serving one-and-a-third to three years for attempted robbery -- with the substance abuse treatment Noonan ordered.
He responded that in some areas the legislature has not granted him the power to require corrections officials to do everything he might require of a convict.
"Short of that authority, they're on their own and know more about the business they conduct than I do," Noonan said.
As for Catino's actions, the judge told her "You have to understand, and everybody needs to understand, that just because you see somebody suffering you can’t take the law into your own hands to correct the difficulty."
Noonan did allow Catino, who has no prior criminal history, to retain her driver's license, finding that taking it from her would have posed a significant hardship.
As part of the plea agreement, Catino agreed to be searched or have her home searched by probation at any time.
This is the view of the Tonawanda Creek behind the court house at about 3 p.m.
The weather advisory is lifted. There is about a 40-percent chance of snow showers tonight.
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