Skip to main content

Muckdogs have radio home on WBTA

By Howard B. Owens

WBTA will broadcast all 38 home games for the Batavia Muckdogs this season, the local radio station announced this morning (the station's web site doesn't offer permalinks, so eventually that announcement will scroll down and off the page ... for anybody who finds this item weeks from now).

The station will also broadcast some away games. Wayne Fuller will handle play-by-play.

Memorial Medical Center announces Spring Gala.

By Howard B. Owens

Via the Buffalo News:

The third annual Spring Gala, a major fundraiser for United Memorial Medical Center, will be held starting at 6:30 p. m. Saturday in the Hampton Inn’s Ambassador Banquet and Conference Center on Commerce Drive.

This is a black-tie event sponsored by the United Memorial Foundation, St. Jerome Foundation, the Jerome League and the UMMC League.

The Buffalo News item includes no information on cost or if tickets can still be purchased or where (we presume there are tickets that cost money -- they expect to raise $50,000).

WBTA auction this Saturday

By Howard B. Owens

Several neat items available this Saturday in WBTA's auction.

  • YMCA Camp Hough
  • Casino bus trip
  • Martin's Fantasy Island
  • Tim Horton's coffee mugs
  • A Mother's Day brunch
  • Party at The Gravel Pit
  • Plenty of booze and food

Having run these type of auctions before, events/places-to-go always do well, especially in the spring, so bid early and bid often (or bid high).

Too bad you can't bid online.

UPDATE: No online word on who won what items, but the next auction is June 6.

 

Street tacos found in Batavia

By Howard B. Owens

During our years as residents in San Diego, my wife and I developed a strong preference for "street tacos".

You might say, street tacos are a Tijuana delicacy. If you visit any town immediately south of the San Diego border, you can buy street tacos.

Where you do you get street tacos?  On the street, of course. In New York, you find hot dog stands on many corners.  In Tijuana, there are taco stands.  What they serve mainly are grilled steak (spiced and called carne asada), tomato, white onion and cilantro piled on two small corn tortillas -- adding anything else to a street taco is like making a martini with vodka instead of gin ... it's just not as good, not as pure (and absolutely forget chocolate or apple).

A lime on the side is nice, but not required.

Of course, throughout most of California you can find many restaurants and taco stands that serve street tacos.  In New York, not so much.

The closest thing we've found so far (after much searching in the Rochester area) is at Margarita's on Jackson.  Printed on Margarita's menu is an item called tacos de asada.  When ordered, you receive two or three (I've been there twice -- got two once, three the first time) tacos -- double corn tortillas piled with carne asada.  The tomatoes and onions are served on the side with green sauce.  To get a true street taco, you must carefully fork out the onion and tomato, leaving the green sauce behind.  There is no cilantro. :-(

That said, I'm very happy I found Margarita's.

Here's one of the great things about Batavia (among many we've found so far) -- lots of family owned, non-chain restaurants. We've been to three of them so far (Margarita's, Jackson Street Grill and Central BBQ) and they've all been a treat.

There's nothing particularly wrong with chains, of course. They have their place and serve their purpose, but nothing beats a good meal at an independent restaurant.  Here's to hoping the city leaders act responsibly to protect Batavia's family restaurants.  They are important to a community's identity and help give it it's own flavor.

Leave your restaurant recommendations in the comments. I want to try them all.

We're in Google and getting comments

By Howard B. Owens

Patrick Burk finds The Batavian minutes after launch (amazing that we're already showing up in Google) and leaves the first comment.

He wants you to know about this:

Batavia Players, Inc. present: "COME BACK TO THE 5 & DIME, JIMMY DEAN, JIMMY DEAN" BY Ed Graczyk

May 8 - 10 at Stuart Steiner Theater, Genesee Community College, Batavia, New York

This is a fun filled PG - 13 Romp of the aftermath of the filming of the movie "GIANT" which starred James Dean in Marfa, Texas. The story takes place in the year 1955 AND 20 years later in 1975 and reunites the Disciples of James Dean. A touching, poignant play that looks at the best and worst of friendship and love. The Batavia production stars: Valeria Antonetty Shawnie Euren Lynda Hodgins Brittaney Lang Nikole Marone Peggy Marone Joan Meyer Patti Michalak and Introducing Jake Bortle as "Joe"

Tickets are $10 General Admission and $8 Students and Senior Citizens. Tickets can be ordered by calling 585-343-9721 or they can be purchased at Roxy's Music Store or GO ART! on Main Street.

UPDATE: We don't think we're in Google yet.  No search we do reveals thebatavian.com; we're not sure how Patrick found us.

Wednesday news roundup

By Philip Anselmo

From the Daily News (Wednesday):

• Karen Gerace Rowland joined the family business, Gerace's Hair Care on Vine Street, run by her father, Joe. No mention of how long Gerace's has been around.

• Batavia Sertoma granted district awards to two of its members Tuesday. Len Walker was named Sertoman of the Year. His wife, Cheryl, received the District Secretary's Appreciation Award. Len is also the group's president. Sertomans are an international group that was founded in 1912. The Batavia chapter has been around since 1960.

• Notre Dame High Scool's Mock Trial team made it to the quarterfinals of a competition held at the Genesee County Court. It appears from the article that Notre Dame was knocked out of contention by Pembroke and Avon, but there is no mention of when the quarterfinals took place. The competition — the Daily News mentions no name — is an annual event that welcomes 16 teams from schools in Genesee, Orleans and Livingston counties.

For the complete stories, the Daily News is available on local newsstands, or you can subscribe on BataviaNews.com.

The Batavian is launched

By Howard B. Owens

Ladies and Gentlemen, The Batavian is on the air.

We're launching in beta mode -- lots of bugs to work out, and we still need to establish our business in beautiful downtown Batavia, New York.

Today has been mainly about administrative tasks -- ordering busienss cards, advertising, signage and buying some electronics.

At the moment, we're hanging out in Main Street Coffee.

We'll share more later about who we are and what we're doing, but if you happen across this site and this post, please register and leave a comment.  Tell us what you think The Batavian can and should do to best serve the residents and businesses of Batavia.

Official launch date slated for May 1.

Top Items on Batavia's List

Town Court Clerk Below are two lists: one details the myriad responsibilities that fall within the purview of the court clerk; the other summarizes the knowledge and abilities that court clerks possess or acquire through training. These lists are provided so that a judge and municipality can intelligently discuss the benefits that a court clerk can provide. The items below can also form the basis for a list of job duties should a municipality need to fill a vacancy in a court clerk position. Primary Responsibilities A. Maintain confidentiality of records and information when required to do so B. Prepare court calendar C. Collect monies, reconcile daily receipts, deposit receipts, prepare reports for monthly disbursements, reconcile bank accounts, and prepare administrative reports D. Enter convictions on drivers' licenses and prepare conviction reports electronically transmitted to the Department of Motor Vehicles E. Enter criminal conviction on NCIC reports and electronically send same to Division of Criminal Justice Services F. Respond to inquiries-in person, by phone, by e-mail and by mail-and provide assistance to lawyers, litigants, media, and members of the public G. Prepare monthly reports that are electronically sent to the Office of the State Comptroller H. Prepare orders, summonses, warrants and other court forms i. Communicate with outside agencies in order to coordinate the Court's activities and provide services to litigants. Such agencies include: ii. Law enforcement agencies, such as local police departments, New York State Police, Sheriffs office, FBI and CIA, US Armed Forces, and the Office of the District Attorney; I. Other courts, including superior courts and other local town and village courts; and i. Miscellaneous county agencies, such as Community Service, Community Dispute Resolution Center, Pre-trial Release, Probation, Stop DWI program, Victim Impact Panel, and Youth Court. ii. State agencies that require periodic reporting, including the New York State Unified Court System, the Department of Motor Vehicles, the Office of the State Comptroller, the Division of Criminal Justice Services, and the Office of Court Record Retention. J. Examine court documents to ensure their accuracy and completeness K. Receive and file summonses, traffic tickets and other documents for court proceedings i. Assist the Justice at the bench during all Court proceedings Knowledge of: 1. The functions and organization of the Unified Court System ii. Basic legal terminology, codes and abbreviations iii. Court forms, practices and procedures, including those set forth in the Uniform Justice Court Act and the Uniform Civil Rules for the Justice Courts (22 NYCRR Part 214) 2. Ability to: i. Prepare judicial orders and decisions ii. Effectively communicate information orally and in writing iii. File and retrieve materials, extract data from various sources for entry onto court form iv. Research and interpret laws outlined in court documents and litigants' motions and other papers v. Perform mathematical tasks in order to compile court activity reports, total receipts, accept payments, and verify bills vi. Refer to appropriate documents, statutes, citations or other sources in order to respond to specific questions from attorneys, litigants and members of the general public vii. Interpret policies, statutes, rules and regulations and apply them in specific contexts viii. Establish work priorities ix. Constructively manage conflict with court users Qualifications: Highschool diploma recognized by the NYS Dept of Education or appropriate equivalent. Along with 4 years of college, specialization in criminal justice, law, business administration or related field. -OR- 2 years college with specialization in Business Administration or related field. Please email your resume to abrownell@townofbatavia.com no later than 12/16/2024. Pay is based on experience.
Tags: Jobs Wanted

Authentically Local