Press release:

WHO: College Village Student Residential Community -- graduating & incoming student residents​

WHAT: College Village Swap Shop

WHERE: The Root / Basement of Hemlock Hall, 8170 Batavia-Stafford Townline Road (adjacent to Genesee Community College, Batavia)

WHEN: Ongoing through May 19

HOW: A FREE take-something / leave-something opportunity for student residents

WHY: At the end of every collegiate year, the dumpsters at many college residential communities are overwhelmed as outgoing students attempt to pack up all of their acquired goods from their apartments and dorm rooms and stuff them into suitcases, totes, cars or boxes, and then toss away what they cannot carry home. This annual process can be an environmental tragedy, especially since in two months the next group of incoming residents begins to acquire many of the same items that were just tossed away!

College Village, the residential community adjacent to Genesee Community College, introduced the "Swap Shop" in 2015 to help stem the environmental waste and also help incoming students.

In its third year, Swap Shop encourages residents to donate any unwanted items that are in good condition, including clothing, kitchen utensils, college gear, electronics and even unopened nonperishable foods and sundries. Swap Shop has passed along everything from working microwave ovens, hair dryers, favorite snacks (just in time for final exams or traveling home), clothing and many other valuable, reusable products.

"Last summer, our incoming international students, many who had just traveled 20-plus hours from very faraway places, were excited and very appreciative of the left-behind ethnic foods and kitchen utensils from the recently departed students," Mary-Clare Stokes, assistant director of Residence Life and Learning recalled.

"They do not have cars and having a few basic items in their new apartments during those first few days is a real asset to them. Swap Shop is a win-win-win for all and we are delighted to continue this program this year."

What remains from the Swap Shop later in the summer will be donated to a local charity. Last year, an entire truck load of reusable household items were donated to Clothes Closet of Varysburg.

A two-car accident with minor injuries is reported at Judge and Alleghany roads in Alabama. Two Mercy medic units and Alabama Fire Department are responding.

Ahhhhh…the senior prom – the date was set, the theme selected, the venue secured, the attire had been picked out for months. And even though it appears that some couples will naturally go to the prom together, Kristy Mell decided she didn’t want to leave things to chance, she was going to ask him. But Kristy decided to ask him in a creative way.

Kristy and Bo White are both seniors at Attica High School, who attended their final prom Friday night. 

On April 6, Kristy and Bo, who, as they admit, are huge Taco Bell fans, were enjoying a meal at the Batavia restaurant when Kristy asked Bo to the prom. Before sitting down to eat their meal, Kristy told Bo she had forgotten something in the car. When he sat down, she went out to retrieve it. When she came back to their table, she was holding a sign that read:

Bo, you are HOT, so, lets TACO Bout Prom? Think outside the Bun. Ingredients: You & Me.

The local franchise group, Hospitality Syracuse Inc., that owns the Batavia Taco Bell was so impressed with their creativity and passion for Taco Bell that they rolled out the red carpet for Bo, Kristy and eight of their friends on prom night.

“For us to be included for the process is awesome,” said Dennis Beutel, Rochester market manager for Hospitality Restaurant Group. “It’s such a big occasion for teens, we are glad we can make it even more memorable. It’s a nice feel good story.”

So on May 12, Bo, Kristy and friends were picked up in a sleek white limousine, courtesy of Taco Bell, and driven to the Batavia restaurant. When the teens arrived, they were greeted by management from the franchise, but also walked a red carpet to the front door. 

The students all received a Taco Bell swag bag loaded with a Taco Bell T-shirt, beach ball, sunglasses, a $25 Taco Bell gift card and more. Additionally, they all enjoyed pre-prom appetizers, courtesy of the establishment, before being whisked off to their prom in Buffalo.

“We are grateful for Kristy and Bo’s passion and love for Taco Bell and are honored to be able to help them celebrate this special day,” said Steve Pinkerton, vice president/owner of Hospitality Syracuse.

According to Kristy’s mom, Kristen Kriger, the pair are always together and she just wanted to do something different.

“We are really surprised they did this,” Kristy said. 

“It’s really cool they did this,” Bo said. “It’s really rad. We’re super stoked.”

Voters will be asked tomorrow whether they support the 2017-18 Batavia City Schools budget, with a spending plan of $49,870,585.

That's an increase of 12.41 percent over last year, due entirely, school officials say, to a change to record debt service expenditures in the general fund as recommended by the comptroller's office.

Even so, local property owners will not be hit with an increase in school-related property taxes. The property tax levy isn't being increased at all.

This is the fourth straight year the district's tax levy is below the state's increase cap, so homeowners will be eligible for a state property tax rebate, sent directly to homeowners in the fall of 2017.

The budget represents a $10,859 per student in general education, $28,502 per Special Education student, or $19,241 per student on average. All three figures are below state averages, which are $11,949 and $30,667 and $22,536, respectively.

Of the district's total revenue, more than 52 percent comes from state and federal aid. The tax levy is 37.1 percent of total revenue. This budget calls for use of $2.7 million of fund balance (reserves).

Polls are open Tuesday, May 16, from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. at Robert Morris (residents north of Route 5) and Batavia High School (residents south of Route 5).

Two 16-year-olds, one a resident of Jerico Road, Bergen, and the other a resident of Shady Lane, Batavia, are charged with criminal mischief, 3rd. The youths are accused of using a sledgehammer to damage a concrete picnic table and bench seats in Hickory Park, Bergen, causing more than $250 damage.

Brian Wayne Giambrone, 27, of Byron Holly Road, Byron, is charged with unlawful possession of marijuana. Giambrone was stopped at 11:42 p.m., Friday, on Route 237, Stafford, by Deputy Howard Wilson.

Ahmed Dhalfallah Alshami, 37, of Ludington Street, Buffalo, is charged with aggravated unlicensed operation, 2nd. Alshami was arrested on a warrant for alleged failure to appear on his case in Pembroke Town Court. He was jailed on $3,000 bail or $5,000 bond.

Tony Gene Marsh, 47, East Boston Road, Mamaroneck, is charged with unlawful possession of marijuana. Deputy Jeremy McClellan was dispatched Lewiston Road, Alabama, to check on a report of a suspicious vehicle in the lane way of a farm field. Marsh was allegedly found in possession of marijuana and smoking paraphernalia.

Stephanie Ann Bonin, 22, of Denio Street, Batavia, is charged with petit larceny. Bonin was arrested on a warrant for alleged violation of probation and jailed on $5,000 bail.

The Genesee Region USBC bowling association inducted Robert J. "Bob" Foss Jr. posthumously into its Hall of Fame at an awards banquet Saturday night at Batavia Downs Gaming. Representing him are, from left, his brother, Jim, and children Cassidy and Curtis. Foss won many tournaments, including the GRUSBC Masters and Memorial Scratch Eliminator. He died last October at the age of 55. For more, click on the Pin Points tab at the top of this website's home page.

A caller has a pig cornered at 3600 Batavia-Oakfield Townline Road.

A deputy who has responded is going to check with neighbors to see who might have lost a pig.

UPDATE 9 p.m.: It sounds like the pig's owner has been located.

A 57-year-old man was pronounced dead at he scene this afternoon after the 2002 Ford F-150 he was driving struck a power pole in the area of 7032 Route 262, Bergen. 

Charles R. Grower, of Scottsville, was eastbound when his pickup truck left the south side of the road and struck the pole.

Power is still out in the area as a result of the crash. The traffic light at Route 237 and Route 33 is without power and law enforcement is on scene directing traffic. 

The initial dispatch was for Byron and South Byron fire departments, but a Bergen chief responded after it was determined that the accident was in Bergen's district. 

Mercy EMS was also dispatched, but soon after the initial dispatch, responding units were told to proceed non-emergency. 

Live power lines kept responders away from the vehicle until National Grid could arrive on scene. 

The accident is under investigation. The cause has not been determined and a medical emergency has not been ruled out pending autopsy. 

Press release:

The Genesee County Chamber of Commerce once again is offering the community the unique opportunity to travel to China for a nine-day tour of China. This will be the 11th trip that chamber has offered.

The trip is from Oct. 7 to 15 for the low price of $2,199. Price includes air fare (from JFK), bus to/from JFK, hotel stays, three meals a day, bus tours (with guides), admission to tourist spots, and airport taxes throughout the trip.

Some of the highlights on the trip are Tian An Men Square, Temple of Heaven, and the Great Wall just to name a few. For an additional $200, you will have the opportunity to explore the Terra-Cotta Warriors at the Tomb of the First Emperor.

The trip is filling up quickly! Final payments are due by July 15^th. The Chamber believes this trip to be an exceptional value. For more details call Tom or Melissa at the Chamber at (585) 343-7440.

Details on the trip can also be found at http://geneseeny.com/Trips/CHINA2017.aspx

David L. Handley Jr. is indicted for the crime of third-degree burglary, a Class D felony. On Feb. 12, it is alleged that the defendant entered a convenience store on Telephone Road in the Town of Pavilion with the intent to commit a crime. In count two, it is alleged that on the same day, Handley commited the same crime at a construction company on Route 237 in the Town of Stafford. In count three, Handley is accused of petit larceny, a Class A misdemeanor, for allegedly stealing "a white trash can and tools" from the construction company in Stafford.

Tracy A. Hilton is indicted for the crime of first-degree criminal contempt, a Class E felony. On Feb. 18 in the Town of Alexander, the defendant allegedly violated a duly served order of protection to stay away from a certain person. In Special Information filed with the indictment, District Attorney Lawrence Friedman accuses Hilton of having been convicted of the same crime within the previous five years, on June 2, 2014.

An accident is reported in the area of 7032 Route 262, Byron.

A car has struck a pole and there's smoke coming from the vehicle.

Byron and South Byron departments responding along with Mercy EMS.

UPDATE 4:33 p.m.: Units can come in non-emergency.

There was no rain today, but there were a few tears. There were also memories and smiles as Coach Dan Gilbert was honored by his former colleagues and players in a ceremony on the field where he won games and molded men for more than a decade.

The ballpark will now be known as the Daniel Gilbert Memorial Field.

Gilbert passed away March 1 at the age of 47.

"It’s with mixed emotion that I say I’m the varsity baseball coach here at Oakfield-Alabama this year," said Nathan Klos, who took over the varsity team this season after Gilbert's passing. "On one hand, it’s a dream come true for me to come home to the program that built me and that has a great tradition in this community. On the other hand, Dan and I were supposed to coach these boys together this year."

The stories Klos told during his remarks were the stories that perhaps encapsulate the impact Gilbert had on the community. Gilbert became his P.E. coach when Klos was in the first grade and taught him sports and fitness until fifth grade. Klos spent his middle school years looking for ways to impress Gilbert, hoping it might serve him well when his turn came to play varsity baseball.

Gilbert put him on the varsity squad just before the end of the regular season in Nate's sophomore year and it was Klos who came to bat in a Section V playoff game with the game on the line, down by one run, runners on first and second, and on a 3-2 pitch, Klos delivered the decisive base hit and won another Section V championship for the Hornets.

Klos said it was the biggest highlight of his baseball life, and one made possible, because he knew, he said, that Gilbert believed in him.

Klos, Brandon Hall, and James Patrick all said Gilbert was the kind of coach who made great players better and elevated the lesser athletes into top contributors. He had a way of making every player believe that he believed in him.

"He got the very best out of every single us one of us," Hall said. "He focused hard and had more determination than any player actually on the field."

Patrick said Gilbert taught him how to be a family man and how to be a coach.

"One thing that is always in our lives that shows today is the support we have for each other because of an amazing man," Patrick said. "He was a loyal, hard-working guy who believes what is right is right and what wrong is wrong and he always treated kids fairly."

Gilbert was a 1987 graduate of O-A and returned to the school after college to be a teacher's aide and Special Ed instructor. After a stint in another job, he returned and became a teacher and coach.  

He loved baseball and his former players described a man who knew the game better than anybody they've met. That passion, they said, came through.

Sue Gilbert said the family will always be grateful for the day in his honor and the field that will carry on his memory.

"Our hope is that all who knew Dan will remember the passion he had for life," Sue Gilbert said. "Whether he was teaching his students, coaching his players or loving and caring for our children, he stayed true to what he believed -- the belief that every child had the potential to be great. Dan had a passion for helping each child become just that, through hard work, determination and drive. His students and athletes overcame obstacles and learned to believe in themselves."

Such a humble man, Superintendent Mark Alexander suggested, might not expect a day like today.

"I’m not sure how Dan would feel about the celebration here today, but he’s earned it and it’s well deserved," Alexander said.

Hall, who played for Gilbert from 1989 through 2003, thought maybe Gilbert was looking down on the day and making sure just this one time, rain didn't ruin something good.

"There’s only two times in all the years I played for him where I seen him upset," Hall said. "That was my freshman year after we lost in a torrential downpour. We had a stellar team and we would have went to states that year. The second time was my senior year, the day we got rained out at states. We were fired up and he was more fired up than anybody. I was watching the weather forecast this week and saw it was going to rain and I thought, ‘you know what, there ain’t no way he’s going to let that happen.' The two times I seen him the saddest was then. He ain't going to let that happen to us today and sure enough," he said as he held his palm skyward, "look."

Mark Alexander, superintendent

Jeff Schlagenhauf, athletic director

Brandon Hall presented Sue Gilbert with a plaque he made to commemorate the day.

James Patrick

Sue Gilbert

The 4H Swine Club held its annual pulled pork lunch sale at the Genesee County Fairgrounds today.

Whiskey 7, the World War II-era plane based in Livingston County, was practicing touch-and-gos at the Genesee County Airport this afternoon.

Previously: Photos: D-Day plane stops for fuel at Genesee County Airport

Thousands of people -- high school soccer players, coaches, officials, and parents -- are in Batavia this weekend for the Empire Cup, a soccer showcase that gives high school players from throughout the Northeast a chance to play against other top players and display their skills for college recruiters.  

In the parking lot were license plates from New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Ontario, Canada, and, of course, New York.

Players were at both the Batavia Sports Park on State Street Road and at Genesee Community College.

The event brings an estimated $500,000 into the local economy. The Empire Cup is supposed to go for two weeks, but the boys' event was rained out last weekend.

Area volunteer firefighters and staff from Emergency Services were at Kiwanis Park in Batavia this morning to learn about setting up a system of booms over water that would be deployed in the case of an oil spill.

The idea is, say, a tanker overturns and accidentally dumps its cargo and it flows into the Tonawanda Creek, which could cause significant environmental damage, including damage to farm fields.

The booms would float on the top of the water and divert the water into an outlet where it could be collected for proper disposal.

The boom system is deployed with a rope gun and consists of booms that are each 50-feet long and can be locked together.

The instructor was David Sweeny, of Gallagher Marine.

Press release:

The newly established NY-27 Chapter of Citizens’ Climate Lobby (CCL) is offering a Climate Advocate Training workshop from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Saturday, May 27, at Richmond Memorial Library, 19 Ross St., Batavia.

The session is free and open to all residents of NY’s 27th congressional district. It will teach citizens of NY-27 the nuts and bolts of building political (impetus) for a livable climate.

The workshop will mark the beginning of the first CCL chapter in NY’s 27th congressional district, which includes all of Genesee, Livingston, Orleans, and Wyoming counties, and parts of Erie, Monroe, Niagara, and Ontario counties.

James Hansen, Ph.D, former director of the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies, says: "Most impressive is the work of the Citizens’ Climate Lobby, a relatively new, fast growing, nonpartisan, nonprofit group… If you want to join the fight to save the planet, to save creation for your grandchildren, there is no more effective step you could take than becoming an active member of this group.”

According to Nicholas Kristof in his April 13, 2017 OpEd in The New York Times: “Citizens’ Climate Lobby [has had] an [outsized] influence on policy."

Citizens’ Climate Lobby (CCL) is completely nonpartisan and achieves change by building respectful relationships with lawmakers and focusing on specific market-based, consumer-friendly solutions that have received support from conservatives and progressives alike.

The May 27th workshop will include a mini-training on lobbying congress. Citizens’ Climate Lobby has an active and growing Conservative Caucus. We are interested in welcoming new conservative members who want to support the growth of clean energy infrastructure, and protect families and communities from the risks of the extreme manifestations of climate change.

“I’ve heard from many Citizens’ Climate Lobby members that joining the organization has made them into truly empowered citizens, and that they can see the results of their work on climate policy,” says Paige Dedrick, of East Aurora, who is taking on the role of group leader for the NY-27 Chapter.

“I am deeply concerned about climate change, and I’ve found CCL to be a great way to impact policy and work with strong, engaged citizens toward a healthy climate and economy. We are hoping to find other members of our community looking for that same kind of opportunity.”

In addition to meeting with our members of Congress, CCL offers many varied roles for volunteers. All are welcome to attend the workshop to learn more. Refreshments will be served at the May 27th meeting; please RSVP to Paige Dedrick, 716-863-3373.