Some Batavia High School seniors have completed the design and painting of their parking spaces. Here are a few photos to share before the official full day of school starting next Thursday, Sept. 6th.

Assemblyman Steve Hawley is doing pretty much what the rest of us in the 27th Congressional District are doing -- waiting to see if the regional GOP leadership can come up with a plan to remove the name of Chris Collins from the November general election ballot.

If that happens, he hopes the GOP chairs will select him as the Republican candidate for Congress to replace Collins, currently under federal indictment on counts of securities fraud and lying to the FBI about an alleged insider trading scheme.

"I know nothing more than when we met last Tuesday," Hawley said, referring to a confab of GOP chairs from the eight counties in the NY-27 at Batavia Downs. At the gathering, the candidates hoping to replace Collins on the ballot were interviewed. "We each gave a presentation. We talked about how each of us viewed what a congressman should be, we reviewed backgrounds, reviewed finances, reviewed whether we’re ready to go or not, which I am, and I haven’t heard anything since then."

David Bellavia, the other Batavia resident who considered a run for Congress if the GOP chairs could get the Collins name off the ballot, withdrew his name before Tuesday's meeting. Mike Ranzenhofer, the state senator for Genesee County, withdrew his name yesterday.

Hawley is by no means certain the county chairs have figured out a plan for getting the current congressman's name off the ballot.

"I have to say, the longer this goes on the chances of A) getting his name off B) having the court challenges, which there will be, makes me more and more happy that I’m running for reelection to the state Assembly," Hawley said. "If the process doesn’t heat up here pretty quickly, I’m going to be serving, hopefully, another term in the state Assembly."

That isn't to be read, apparently, that Hawley has any intention anytime soon of withdrawing his name from consideration. He wouldn't say that when pressed on the question, or at what point he might decide to withdraw.

"We'll play it by ear," he said.

Hawley said residents of the 139th Assembly District have been wholly supportive of his request to be considered for the Republican line on the November ballot in the congressional race.

"I’ve received nothing but encouragement from the moment Mr. Collins suspended his campaign and, as I mentioned before, all kinds of emails, all kinds of Facebook posts, all kinds of personal visits from constituents," Hawley said. "This is all about people I’ve been able to serve the past 12 and a half years. They’re the ones who encouraged me to look at it and that’s what I try to model myself after, what people want."

L&M Speciality Fabrication is moving from Albion to a new, bigger location on East Saile Drive, Batavia, and today, company owners and local officials officially broke ground on the site of the new 23,000-square-foot facility.

The company specializes in onion harvesting equipment, custom farm machinery and repairs of farm equipment.

The company is investing $2.2 million in the project. The new facility will include a production area and retail space for farm equipment parts.

Co-owner Lee Schuknecht said the new location was attractive because it's central to three rural counties (Orleans, Genesee and Wyoming), Batavia is already a central location for businesses that support farmers, and West Saile Drive has easy Thruway access.

While the company might be known for its onion harvesting equipment, L&M works with farmers to meet a variety of needs. They've built harvesters for other crops as well as custom conveyors and wagons for a variety of produce.

"With most farmers, we try to figure out their needs for different growing areas and try to meet those needs," Schuknecht said. "A lot times people come to us with something they need or a problem they have and we try to engineer a solution for their problem, so a lot of things we do, we may only build one or a couple."

Genesee County Economic Development Center assisted the project with a sales tax worth $84,000 for building materials and supplies, and property tax abatement valued at $158,656. The company currently has seven employees and plans to hire two more once they are in their new building.

Photo: Chris Suozzi, VP of business development for GCEDC, Assemblyman Steve Hawley, Lee Schuknecht, Matt Geissler, Sarah Geissler, Robin Schuknecht, and Dale Schuknecht. Lee, Matt, and Sarah own the business. Dale and Robin, parents of Lee and Sarah, assist in the business.

Press release:

Sleep Insights, a local sleep medicine practice, is now offering testing at their Batavia sleep center.

The sleep center provides board-certified sleep physician appointments (ages 5+), home sleep apnea testing, overnight/daytime sleep testing and CPAP services. They are the only sleep medicine practice in Batavia and the surrounding area to comprehensively offer all these services all at one location. Sleep Insights is neither owned by nor affiliated with a hospital system.

In January, Sleep Insights moved into 47A Batavia City Centre and has been remodeling ever since: new interior paint, exterior lit signs, and the creative use of space for patient appointments and sleep testing offers a welcoming environment. The bedrooms resemble upscale hotel rooms with cable TV, WiFi, and sinks.

A small snack and beverage area is available, as is curbside parking for testing patients.

“We want people to feel relaxed and comfortable at our practice, particularly our overnight/daytime testing patients,” said Dr. Jacob Dominik, Sleep Insights’ medical director.

In addition, Dr. Kenneth Murray, a board-certified sleep specialist and neurologist, joined Sleep Insights and began seeing patients at the Batavia location in response to patient demand.

“We’ve seen a steady increase of new patients since we opened here, so that tells there was an unmet need,” noted Dr. Dominik, “People come to us for all types of sleep issues and questions. Testing isn’t always needed, so that definitely shouldn’t deter people from seeking help.”

People go to a sleep specialist when they aren’t regularly waking up and feeling refreshed or when they suspect they have a sleep disorder, such as obstructive sleep apnea, shift work disorder, insomnia or parasomnias such as sleep walking, nightmares or sleep paralysis. Many patients are referred by their healthcare provider or dentist, but patients can self-refer to Sleep Insights for a physician appointment. 

Their new location provides a soothing, upscale environment with expanded room for CPAP supplies and support from a Registered Respiratory Therapist. Their phone number is 585.219.4330. New patient appointments are available and no healthcare provider referral is needed.

About Sleep Insights

Founded in 2005, Sleep Insights is a regional, comprehensive sleep medicine practice offering consultative, diagnostic testing and sleep therapy services. Sleep Insights is an independent sleep center, not owned by or affiliated with a hospital. The company’s main site is in Rochester, with 10 locations throughout Central and Western New York.

Press release:

Assemblyman Steve Hawley (R,C,I-Batavia) is again calling on Gov. Cuomo to remove the illegal blue I Love NY Thruway signs before the state loses the ability to recoup the $14 million it was fined this winter. The Cuomo administration previously installed the signs despite knowing they were against federal highway codes. New York has until Sept. 30 to remove all the signs.

“This charade has gone on far too long. New York taxpayers are already down over $8 million for these bogus signs, and if the governor doesn’t accept reality and take them down by the Sept. 30 deadline, taxpayers will be down another $14 million,” Hawley said.

“The governor can put up all the signs he wants but the reality is that his policies have perpetuated the highest taxes in the nation and are rotting Upstate New York from the inside out. That is why no one wants to move here,” Hawley continued.

“It is bad enough that many of these signs were not even built in our state, using our tax money to bolster jobs in Arkansas, but the fact is that the governor knew these signs were illegal and he put them up anyway. We have about four weeks to comply, but if he takes them down with the same urgency as he did to put them up, there shouldn’t be any problems.” 

There was little disagreement on issues Monday night at Genesee Community College among the four candidates hoping to get the most votes in the Sept. 13 Democratic primary for attorney general.

They all favor issuing drivers licenses to undocumented residents. They will use the AG's office to help protect the environment and fight climate change. They oppose tariffs that are hurting farmers. They will continue to pursue lawsuits against pharmaceutical companies over prescription pain pill marketing. They will work to preserve the Affordable Care Act (ACA).

And, they all agree the Donald Trump Administration is corrupt and both democracy and the rule of law are under assault.

"We are at a crisis moment in our democracy," said Zephyr Teachout. "Donald Trump is actually ripping families apart. He cannot be trusted. We cannot trust federal regulation of the financial markets when Washington is controlled by the financial industry, which is surrounded by people like Chris Collins who use political offices to enrich themselves."

In all, the four candidates were a collegial group who kept their discussion civil and answered a half dozen or so questions from members of the Democratic Rural Caucus, which organized the event, and another five or six from audience members.

The first topic was about helping and protecting farmers and the candidates immediately jumped on Trump's tariffs, which are making it more difficult for farmers to export their products and reducing prices, which hurt or eliminate profits.

Sean Patrick Maloney, a member of Congress, said he represents 1,500 family farms, and many of them are smaller farms, 200 acres or less, that grow specialty crops. He said he's introduced 30 bills to assist farmers, especially in the area of crop insurance. Current crop insurance programs, he said, favor big Midwestern farmers.

"I will fight to end tariffs that are putting a terrible burden on New York farmers," Maloney said. "I hear that all the time. This is a self-inflicted wound and we need to fix it."

As AG, he said, one of the most effective things he can do is work to improve and protect access to markets for farmers.

Both Teachout and Letitia James said monopolies and corporate concentration are burdens on farmers that reduce competition. 

"A lot of people are making a lot of money in food," Teachout said. "It’s just not farmers."

She criticized Monsanto for its patents on seeds, John Deere for his copyright claims on software that keep farmers from repairing their own equipment or going to less expensive repair services, and the lack of competition among food distributors.

James also said she would work to break up these big companies and end non-competitive practices.

She also favors eliminating Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) or reining in its enforcement power to help ensure farmers are able to hire the immigrant workers they need to stay in business.

"It's really critically important the next AG stand up for their (immigrants) rights so they can come out of the shadows and seek work and feel safe," James said.

Leecia Eve said she is mindful of the need to protect the environment but she is also mindful of Washington's tendency to design environmental regulation around large, corporate farm operations, that then place an unnecessary burden on small farmers.

All of the candidates said they would use the power of the AG's office to protect the ACA and ensure New Yorkers maintain access to affordable health care. Maloney said while the Trump administration has done much to damage the ACA there are still issues to defend.

"The nice thing about the Trump Administration is while they are way radical they're also incompetent," Maloney said.

Lorie Longhany, a member of the RDC and former county chair of the Democratic Party, asked what the candidates would do to protect seniors.

Eve recalled her years working for former AG Bob Abrams. Abrams required staff to travel throughout the state and set up mobile offices in supermarkets and other public locations and the staff would answer questions and assist people as best they could with any problem. That's the spirit, she said, she wants to bring to the office.

"We need to put that effort on steroids," Eve said. "New York is under assault by Donald Trump. We have an economic crisis, a housing crisis, an environmental crisis. I will use the full weight of the office to protect the rights of New Yorkers. It's important to have an office in the community so New Yorkers feel like the attorney general's office has their backs."

Maloney said that protecting seniors from scams is the "bread and butter" function of the AG's office.

"If you’re not doing that right, you're not doing this office right," Maloney said.

The AG's office is especially important in the age of Trump, Teachout said.

"There are seven consumer protection agencies that the Trump Administration is in the process of gutting," Teachout said. "The Consumer Protection Finance Bureau is being run by somebody who doesn't believe in consumer protection. This job becomes more important when you can't trust the federal government because this office is the last line of defense against frauds and scams."

To deal with the opioid crisis, the candidates favor decriminalization and putting more resources into treatment.

"We need to decriminalize mental health issues," Eve said. "We need treatment for people who are in crisis and have enough courage to ask for help. If they ask for help and somebody says you have to wait six months to get help, that's a recipe for disaster."

Voters in the Le Roy Fire District are being asked this evening to decide whether to approve a plan to purchase a new ladder truck for the Le Roy Volunteer Fire Department.

The polls are open from 6 to 9 p.m. at the district office, 4 Clay St., Le Roy.

The district is asking voters to approve a loan of $1 million, an expenditure of $400,000 from reserve funds, and the sale of an existing ladder truck.

The two resolutions:

Resolution  1: “Bond resolution of the Board of Fire Commissioners of the Le Roy Fire District in the Town of Le Roy, Genesee County, New York, authorizing the acquisition of one firefighting vehicle at a maximum cost of $1,400,000; and authorizing the issuance of up to $1,000,000 in serial bonds of said fire district to finance a portion of the cost thereof.”

Resolution 2: “Resolution of the Board of Fire Commissioners of the Le Roy Fire District  in the Town of Le Roy, Genesee County, New York, authorizing the disposition of the fire district’s 2002 Pierce 100-foot ladder truck  including incidental equipment and apparatuses to be used in connection with such vehicle.”

In a letter of support for the resolutions, commissioners said now is the time to act because of anticipated increases in the costs of manufacturing, additional mandated certificates, and economic conditions that will drive up the cost of replacement of the current ladder truck.

At the same time, the resale market value of the existing truck, which will be 18 years old by the time it is taken out of service, will only decrease. 

The following people were arrested by the Genesee County Sheriff’s Department during the G-Eazy Concert at Darien Lake Performing Arts Center on Friday.

Terrance L. Falk, 19, of Watson Street, Batavia, is charged with disorderly conduct, harassment, 2nd, and resisting arrest after allegedly yelling several obscenities around other individuals while being ejected from the concert venue causing a disturbance; head-butting a Live Nation employee in the face; and fighting with law enforcement while being placed under arrest. Falk was arraigned in Darien Town Court and jailed in lieu of $500 bail. 

A 16-year-old of Audubon Drive, Amherst, is charged with false personation, obstructing governmental administration, and resisting arrest after allegedly being refused entry into the concert venue, running into a restricted area, fighting with law enforcement while being placed under arrest, and then giving a false name to law enforcement. The youth was arraigned in Darien Town Court and jailed in lieu of $2,000 bail.

Kaitlyn M. Kist, 19, South Creek Road, Derby, is charged with criminal trespass, 3rd, after allegedly reentering the concert venue after being ejected and told not to return. Kist was arraigned in Darien Town Court and jailed in lieu of $200 bail.

Brittany J. McGruther, 22, of Lower Mountain Road, Lockport, is charged with criminal trespass, 3rd, after allegedly reentering the concert venue after being ejected and told not to return. Brittany was arraigned in Darien Town Court and jailed in lieu of $200 bail.

Michaela R. Bohn, 18, of Clinton Street Road, Batavia, is charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance, 7th, after allegedly being found in possession of a small quantity of cocaine and heroin.

A 17-year-old of South Main Street, of Angola, is charged with trespass after allegedly climbing on top of a concession stand and entering a restricted area.

Adam L. Vargas, 20, of Coleman Street, Barker, is charged with trespass after allegedly attempting to reenter the concert venue after being ejected and told not to return.

A 17-year-old of South Union Road, of Williamsville, is charged with trespass after allegedly attempting to reenter the concert venue after being ejected and told not to return.

John J. Rozmus, 23, of Laird Avenue, Buffalo, is charged with disorderly conduct for allegedly yelling several obscenities around other individuals trying to enter the concert venue, causing a disturbance.

Kaylin M. Carlson, 19, of Route 64, Bloomfield, is charged with harassment, 2nd, after allegedly punching another individual in the face.

Timothy D, Trask, 19, of Wilkinson Road, Erin, is charged with harassment, 2nd, after allegedly pushing and shoving law enforcement while being ejected from the concert venue.

Ashley R. Jolliff, 22, of Lowell Road, Tonawanda, is charged with harassment, 2nd, after allegedly shoving a law enforcement officer while another individual was being arrested.

Able Nazareem Supreme Jones, 18, of Falls Street, Seneca Falls, is charged with unlawful possession of marihuana after allegedly being found in possession of a small quantity of marijuana.

(Name redacted upon request), 19, of Woodmore Court, Lockport, is charged with unlawful possession of marihuana after allegedly being found in possession of a small quantity of marihuana.

Cornelius Lawson III, 21, of Middle Street, Geneva, is charged with unlawful possession of marijuana after allegedly being found in possession of a small quantity of marijuana.

Morganville United Church of Christ Pastor James Morasco, above, will conduct a special service next month to bless animals. 

Submitted photo and press release:

In recognition of the relationship and love between people and their pets the Morganville United Church of Christ invites all to bring their pets (or a photo) to our special 10 a.m. service on Sunday, Sept. 16, for them to receive God’s blessing.

Each pet blessed will receive a Certificate of Blessing from Pastor James Morasco. Pets need to be on a leash or safely in your care.

Animal blessing services were started as a result of Saint Francis of Assisi’s love for all creatures. He is the patron saint of ecologists – honoring his love of animals and nature.

Refreshments and fellowship will follow the service.

The church is located at 8466 Morganville Road in Stafford.

For more information, contact Pastor Jim at 585-813-7416 or jmorasco@rochester.rr.com

Photo, from left: Mason Werth, Mary Sweeney, Addison Norton, Caroline Luft, Georgia Luft, Chloe Lamb, Amelia Brewer, Bing Zuber, Carolyn Sybertz, Justin Deleo, Jillian Brewer, Otto Uberty and Maggie Winspear.

Submitted photo and press release:

The Genesee County 4-H Dairy Club competed in two 4-H contests at the New York State Fair. After two days of contests that included more than 200 4-Her’s from across New York State, the results for Genesee County participants are as follows.

New York 4-H Dairy Challenge Contest

Genesee Novice Team: 5^th place

• Team Members: Otto Uberty and Justin Deleo

Genesee Junior Team: 5^th Place

• Team Members: Amelia Brewer, Jillian Brewer, Maggie Winspear, and Renee Uberty     

New York 4-H Dairy Judging Contest

Genesee Novice Team: 2^nd Place

• Team Members: Caroline Luft 5^th, Justin Deleo 9^th, Otto Uberty 13^th, Chloe Lamb 14^th

Genesee Junior Team A: 10^th Place

• Team Members: Amelia Brewer 10^th, Addison Norton 30^th, Carolyn Sybertz 32^nd, Bing Zuber 40^th

Genesee Junior Team B: 5^th Place

• Team Members: Jillian Brewer 11^th, Maggie Winspear 14^th,  Mason Werth 34^th, Georgia Luft 43^rd

Congratulations to all of the 4-H’ers who competed! To learn more about 4-H in Genesee County contact the Cornell Cooperative Extension at 343-3040, ext. 101, or visit our website: http://genesee.cce.cornell.edu/

Press release:

Don’t miss out! Spots for the GLOW’s 2018 Household Hazardous/Pharmaceutical Waste Collection Event are going fast.

Residents who want to dispose of materials at the Saturday, Sept. 15 collection in Rock Glen, Wyoming County, must have an appointment in order to attend.

GLOW accepts a wide range of household chemicals, oil base paint, propane tanks and canisters, vehicle batteries and other materials. The collections are open to residents in Genesee, Livingston and Wyoming Counties.

For the ninth year, thanks to the assistance of the Wyoming County Sheriff’s office, pharmaceuticals (unwanted, outdated, unusable and over-the-counter medicines) will be accepted. These materials are accepted FREE OF CHARGE. There is a nominal fee for tires.

Funding is provided by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), GLOW’s County contributions and Covanta Energy.

Instead of accepting electronics at the Household Hazardous Waste Collection, as GLOW has done for many years, this year GLOW will hold a separate Electronics Collection, two weeks later on Sept. 29 at the Wyoming County Highway Department, located at 4328 Route 19 South, in Rock Glen.

It will run from 9:00 a.m. to 12 p.m. on a first come, first served basis. Due to the cost of disposal there will be a limit of four CRT (tube type) TVs and/or monitors. As long as it is from a household, there is no limit on other electronic equipment. Contact the GLOW office for a complete list of acceptable items.

This is a great opportunity for residents to dispose of household chemicals and medicines they no longer want or need. Past collections have resulted in the safe and legal disposal of thousands of tires, thousands of gallons of solvents, cleaning products and paint, not to mention vehicle batteries, propane tanks and computers. Whenever possible materials collected are recycled.

To make an appointment residents are asked to call the GLOW office at 585/815-7906 or 800/836-1154. Or email glow@co.genesee.ny.us

An odor of natural gas is reported at Arby's in Batavia.

At least one person reports feeling ill.

City Fire and Mercy EMS responding.

UPDATE 1:47 p.m.: National Fuel on location.

UPDATE 2 p.m.: City Fire is turning the scene over to National Fuel and is going back in service. Mercy EMS has five sign-offs.

Bergen Mayor Anna Marie Barclay has “put her foot where her mouth is,” so to speak.

After years of seeking grants for downtown revitalization and urging business owners to spruce up their properties, the mayor and her husband David have purchased one of Bergen’s downtown buildings and begun renovation.

“We decided it was our turn to give downtown a boost,” Anna Marie said.

The building on the southwest corner of South Lake Street and Buffalo Street is on the National Register of Historic Places, as is most of downtown Bergen. The first thing the Barclays did after becoming owners was to contact the Landmark Society for the name of an architect familiar with historic buildings. They were referred to architect Rick Hauser, of Perry.

Until two years ago, the building housed Grace Baptist Church, until the owners took it back by default.

The Barclays purchased it in June and had to do a site plan for a change of use.

Anna Marie said the inside of the building is in pretty good shape, so they are going to work on the outside first.

The Barclays already have a potential tenant who wants to set up his studio upstairs, artist David Burke. Burke painted the murals on the back wall of the Byron-Bergen Public Library and the old fire hall.

Anna Marie said the village has applied for a Main Street grant at least 10 times and was turned down. She isn’t giving up, however, and has submitted another application this year. She is optimistic about their chances this year, as she said they had more input from building owners than in the past.

“We also have a technical grant under our belt, which allowed us to do drawings of our facades,” she said.

If they get the Main Street grant, it would include all the buildings on the west side of the street from the Masons’ building north to the railroad tracks, except the Tully Building, which houses village offices and has been restored.

“Getting the grant would be a plus, but even if we don’t, there are two buildings downtown that will have considerable work done on them,” Barclay said, referring to her building and the one across the corner being restored by Phillip and Brette-Ashley Wilcox.

Photo: Bergen Mayor Anna Marie Barclay and her husband David have purchased this building in Downtown Bergen, across from the village offices. Workmen have already begun restoration. Photo by Virginia Kropf.

Press release:

"After a great deal of reflection, and consultation with my family, friends, and community over the last several days, I am removing myself from consideration in the search to find a replacement candidate for the 27th Congressional District. I’m not giving up this opportunity lightly, but the decision is easier because there are so many other qualified candidates. These last few weeks have been a whirlwind. It has been an honor to have been asked by so many to consider a run for Congress.

"The chairmen and chairwomen who will make this very important decision have been thrust into unchartered waters and a very difficult situation. They have taken their responsibilities seriously and have been very thoughtful and deliberative. No other group of individuals is better able to handle this challenge. I want to commend those who have answered the call. Many are my friends, some are my colleagues, and each would make an exceptional member of Congress. Each has strengths and weaknesses which have to be carefully weighed by the chairs charged with finding a solution.

"These last few weeks have been quite an experience for which I am grateful and will always remember. I wish the eight chairs Godspeed as they work their way through this process. All candidates seeking to become the next Congressional Representative are to be commended for accepting this challenge. I wish them good luck and will wholeheartedly support whoever is chosen.

"It was an honor to have been asked by so many to consider this opportunity. I am blessed with the opportunity to serve the residents of Erie, Genesee and Monroe counties and look forward to continuing to represent them in the New York State Senate."