Fifty or sixty years ago, in small cities like Batavia, barbershops were one of the hubs of the community. Every man and boy (unless their wife, mom or aunt was a hairdresser) generally went to the barber at least once a month and sometimes more often. But the barbershop was more than a business. It was a gathering place for the males of the community, just as the hairdresser was for the females.

The barber was often, in addition to a haircutter, a person to tell your troubles to if you'd rather not use a bartender. Men gathered in the shop would talk politics, (especially the local kind), sports, or fishing and hunting. Today you will be more likely to witness that in a diner or coffee shop where groups of usually older retired gentlemen will sit around a table with their cup of joe complaining about “ how the world has gone to hell in a handbasket.” In his later years, my dad and his cronies called it the “ coffee klatch,” and their main forum was Sport Of Kings Restaurant.

If you were a kid in the 1950s, there were really only 2 choices of haircut you could have – the regular trimmed on the sides and combed neatly on the top kind or a crew cut (today called a buzz cut). There were no mohawks, mullets, or, god forbid, long hair. I had both at various times, and each required a different kind of care.

For the regular cut, you'd add some Brylcream ( “A Little Dab'll Do Ya”) to keep your hair in place. Many crewcuts like mine would leave some raised hair in the very front. That's where “Butch Wax” was utilized. You would add the gooey wax to the front and then comb it upward. In the winter, if you walked to school, the wax might freeze, so you looked like you had brown, red, or blonde chia grass on the front of your head. Then when it melted, it smelled like bubble gum as it oozed down your forehead.

When you got to be a teenager, a third possibility became available, but only if you wanted to be considered a “hood” or “greaser” or Elvis wannabe. This was the ducktail or D.A. (duck's “rear end”). The type of guy who had this hairdo might be seen with a leather jacket, white T-shirt with a rolled-up sleeve bulging a pack of Lucky Strike smokes and, if he was way cool, driving a '57 Chevy.

We Reilly kids went to Mr. (Warren) Parker to get our haircuts. He was located upstairs at 114 Main St. near The Dagwood Restaurant. There were closer barbers to where we lived, but I think we went there because our dad did. I remember that when we were little, he had a booster seat to put in his chair to raise us up high enough (I'd guess all barbers had something similar). As we got a little older, the main attraction was his supply of comic books. I recall that he kept them in a drawer, and you had to ask for them -- probably to prevent their disappearance.

I was never a fan of the Action Comics “superhero” genre. I was more of a Donald Duck/Scrooge McDuck, Popeye, Bugs Bunny kind of kid. Since this was recently post-World War II, my favorites were “ army” comics, of which I had a huge collection at home. Like some other things I “lost” over the years, I wish I would have kept them as they would be worth some decent money today.

I'm pretty sure Mr. Parker, like most barbers back then, had another drawer for certain of their men customers, which contained “Playboy” and other risque adult magazines of that type. That collection was off-limits to kids, though.

As proof of the importance of the local barbershops of that time, Batavia in 1960 had a population of about 18,000 people. At any given time there were probably about 20 to 25 shops in town. Some operated solo, while others had 2 or 3 chairs, “no waiting,” they advertised.

Haircut prices at that time were usually in the $1.50 to $2.00 range, with an extra charge for a shave. My brother tells a story that when he was about 10, he sneaked into a barber who was cheaper because he wanted the extra money for something. But the barber buzzed him with a crew cut that my mom didn't want him to get. So, he got in trouble besides being scalped.

My barber Warren Parker's brother John (called “Shorty”) had a shop on West Main Street near the corner of North Lyon next to Ann's Paints.

Ben Meleca was hired as a chemistry teacher at Notre Dame High. He was my teacher the second time I took the subject (I was more of a language/history student than math and science. I actually had to take geometry three times! Good thing I taught elementary school my whole career). Ben went on to become a professor at Ohio State University.

Carl Meleca

Another popular barber, Ray Fisher or “Stub,” was on East Main by Pontillo's Pizza. He was an avid fly fisher and used to tie his own flies right in the shop between customers.

Also on East Main was Tom Varco, who in addition to cutting hair, apparently had quite a repertoire of off-color jokes for the men.

On the North side of Main Street, up above Thomas and Dwyer Shoes, was Tony Mancuso. He also had a shop by the bus station.`

Bill Cecere was another north side of Main Street guy. Kids loved going to him because he'd give out a pack of Juicy Fruit gum with every haircut. He also stocked Mad magazines for your reading enjoyment.

Over on Oak Street was Charlie Puccio and Louie Fanara was on Ellicott Street by the Pok-A-Dot Restaurant (still there today) and across from Ange's Italian Restaurant.

Jack Burling was on State Street and later on East Main by The Miss Batavia Diner (also still there). Reportedly he was cutting hair into his 90s.

Joe Deni was on Ross Street by the Richmond Library. Kids would go get books and then get their hair cut or vice versa.

Chuck Wood had a shop on the corner of Bank Street and Washington Avenue above a TV repair store (those don't exist anymore). Dads could drop off the television for some new tubes and then get a haircut.

So, if the barbershops were so useful, popular, and necessary, why are there so few remaining, not just in Batavia but everywhere? Well, you could blame it on The Beatles, for one. In the early 1960s, when The Fab Four took the world by storm with their longish Beatle Cut hairdos, many boys (to the dismay of their parents) jumped on the long hair bandwagon. Then when the “Hippie” culture spread out from San Francisco, and long hair became synonymous with the Vietnam War protests, it was the beginning of a decline for the barbers.

As we progressed into the 1970s and the rise of “Disco,” it was no longer considered a stigma for men and boys to get their hair cut by a “stylist,” particularly female ones.

Today rather than the old-fashioned barbershops, there are “Hair Zoos,” “Super Cuts,” “Sport Clips,” “Fantastic Sams,” and many other similar franchises literally on every corner or in every mall where men or women can get their hair needs taken care of.

There are still a few barbers in Batavia, such as Canzoneri's and Royals on Ellicott Street and My Cut on East Main. All are throwbacks to days gone by. They will not disappear like Photomat, Blockbuster, or Borders Books because men will always need their hair cut. But, it doesn't seem that in today's fast-paced world where people are always in a rush that, the barbershop will ever regain its place as a de facto clubhouse for the men and boys of the town. That might be the unkindest cut of all to barbers.

Author's note: Thank you to all who responded to my inquiry on Memories Of Batavia and provided me with recollections of Batavia barbers which made some of this story possible. I apologize for some that I omitted.

Photos provided by David Reilly. Top photo: Louis Fanara cutting hair in his shop by The Pok-A-Dot.

And he has deemed Genesee County as a top place to live.

“The strengths that I see, really, I can kind of equate a little bit to my personal life. Cherie and I have traveled quite extensively, but every time we come home, we've physically looked to each other and said that we live in the best place on earth. It's got the best climate. It's got the best area. You can either stay in the city of Batavia or one of the villages and kind of have that village environment or that close but not overwhelming metropolitan feel," he said during an interview Friday with The Batavian. "Or you could be out in a rural area and have your space and be able to relax. So we've got the four seasons that play very well ... Agriculture obviously is the number one industry in the county, which is great because people always need to eat.”

It’s important for Cousins to care about the county’s attributes, given that he is the new president of the Genesee County Chamber of Commerce as of Dec. 19. A longtime employee of various departments — from seasonal and sales to marketing, entertainment and his most recent position as director of accommodations — at Six Flags Darien Lake, the Corfu resident steadily grew professionally from his four seasonal gigs and then a first full-time job working as an inside sales rep.

Initially thinking he would work the mic for a radio station after testing the waters at Genesee Community College and then pursuing Communications at Fredonia State College, Cousins eventually followed the trail that led to a steady job. And then to a successful career at Darien Lake, where he comfortably remained for 25 years.

There’s also the other important element of meeting his wife Cherie. She also worked at Darien Lake.

“She was working there seasonally and has worked there seasonally ever since. So that's been kind of near and dear to my heart. Obviously, whatever place you meet your significant other that will always mean something to you,” he said. “She was a Pembroke graduate. She had never worked at the park until the couple of years that I met her there. So that was kind of neat. She's obviously local. And we still live in Corfu.”

So why leave now?

That’s an interesting question, he said. He has shared a similar career story with former President Tom Turnbull and Chris Suozzi of the county Economic Development Center, Cousins said.

“You get to a point in your career and in your life that you stop, and you kind of take a look around you, and you say, ‘Where have I been? What have I been doing? And what do I want to do for the rest of my, working career?’ And I … was going to work for Darien Lake until, you know, retirement age,” he said. “But as you stop and you kind of do a little self-reflection, and you realize, you've lived in a county for the majority of my life, all my career working age life, and you look around, and you've been working so hard, but you don't really know anybody in the county or, you know, places around it.”

So he thought about his time with Leadership Genesee back in 2018, and how he worked alongside so many business people to effect change or help people achieve what they’re trying to do. Being a glass-half-full kind of guy, Cousins saw the Chamber vacancy as an opportunity for a whole new “second path career” to do those things again.

“The Chamber job checked all those boxes. And so that was what really drew me to it,” he said.

There were long conversations with Cherie, he said, since their current lifestyle has been two and a half decades. On the other hand, it “quite literally feels like a blink of an eye.”

His first two weeks have meant learning everything “from soup to nuts” from Interim President Tom Turnbull, “basically showing me everything that I  needed to know, the high-level stuff,” Cousins said.

“I really look forward to trying to make sure that I protect this place and carry on in his footsteps and make him just as proud of the organization as he was when he was here,” Cousins said. “The staff is incredible here. They just want to work hard. So out of six people here, four of us are new within this las year … And what’s great about it is everyone’s open. And people are here with that interest, and industrial knowledge to be able to show us the way.”

He hasn’t always been what he now describes as a “happy-go-lucky person,” but the 49-year-old has learned that you can only control so much in life, and there comes a point when you have to let things go.

“And if you let those things get you down that you can't control, then you can never overcome those things that you can control,” he said.

What he can control are drafting goals and a to-do list that include observing how the staff works together as an overall organization and creating an “incredibly strong team,” he said.

“First and foremost is learning what has been done before, seeing how it works, understanding how it works, and talking with not just the staff here, but talking with the board, listening to what they would like to achieve and seeing what they would like to do and understanding what has worked and what hasn't," he said. "But also talk to all the members and seeing why they liked the chamber, how it helps." 

Part of his philosophy is to have a vision, and he sees the Chamber embracing customer service for everyone -- no matter if from out of county or from Canada -- and providing proper and accurate information.

“To somebody that is having a business challenge that walks into the door and wants to talk about a different resource or something else that we could do for them — just being able to lean together as a team to be able to answer that call,” he said.

Cousins believes in systems — systematically addressing issues and operational elements, he said. That being said, he also has an open door policy with communication as a tried and true tenet, “the lifeblood,” of any organization, he said.

There will be a change in one of his routines, and that’s his and his wife’s travel schedule. They typically have had to work around Darien’s busy summers, and can now plan to enjoy a Fourth of July and other warm weather getaways. As for his work style, folks can count on the status quo.

“An open door, a smiling face, an extended hand,” he said, quoting the Chamber’s mission. “If a business calls us, we will do anything we can to promote, support and connect. That’s our job, to figure out how to connect them.”

Cousins filled the vacancy left by former President Erik Fix, who is now Batavia's Assistant City Manager.

Photo of Brian Cousins in his new Chamber of Commerce office on Park Road in Batavia, by Howard Owens.

A 37-year-old man who once lived in Wyoming County and Erie County, and is already facing 13 years in federal prison on a sex crimes conviction, admitted on Friday in County Court to a rape at Darien Lake Theme Park in 2014.

Nicholas Brian Turnquist, who came into court in an orange Alleghany County Jail jumpsuit, accepted a plea offer that doesn't limit his potential prison sentence on the rape in the third-degree conviction but will allow him to serve the sentence at the same time he serves his sentence in federal prison.

A decade ago, Turnquist, who most recently lived in West Falls, reportedly engaged in sexual activity with a minor in multiple jurisdictions, including Genesee County, Wyoming County, Erie County, Pennsylvania and Canada.

He was indicted by a grand jury on counts of rape in the third degree, a Class E felony, and sexual abuse in the first degree, a Class D violent felony, in connection with a crime in Darien on Aug. 23, 2014.  He was arrested locally in 2020 following an investigation by Howard Carlson of the Genesee County Sheriff's Office.

He was also charged with predatory sexual assault of a child and second-degree rape in Wyoming County.  That case went to trial, but the charges were dismissed halfway through the trial based on conflicting statements made by the victim during her testimony.  The statements related to the timeline of events, which had bearing on her age -- and hence the nature of the criminal charges under New York's penal code -- at the time of the rapes.

The course of rapes involving a single victim started in 2012, when the victim was 14, according to prosecutors, and continue for at least two more years.

Turnquist was sentenced in federal court in November following his conviction for transportation and attempted transportation of a minor with the intent to engage in criminal sexual activity.  He will be on parole for 15 years following his federal prison term.

Robert L. Williams, found guilty in a jury trial of animal cruelty, will spend six months in jail followed by five years on probation, and during that time, he is to have no contact whatsoever with any animal, Judge Melissa Lightcap Cianfrini ruled on Friday.

"You, sir, are in need of significant supervision," Cianfrini said. "I don't trust you around animals." 

She told him, "no dog sitting" and that he wasn't even to go over to a neighbor's house "to pet the dogs."

The evidence presented at trial, recounted during Friday's hearing, is that Williams was at another person's house, and there were two dogs in crates there, and Williams poured bleach into the eyes of the dogs. 

Both dogs required medical treatment, and both dogs fully recovered, though Assistant District Attorney Robert Zickl noted, "there's no vision test for a dog."

Williams was convicted under New York's Ags and Market Law, and while the counts are felonies, the maximum sentence on each count is two years.  The terms could have been served consecutively.

Cianfrini said she struggled with the decision because what Williams did was reprehensible.  However, in another pending case, where dogs were left in cages to potentially die -- and one of them had to be euthanized -- the defendants accepted plea offers that could mean they avoid any jail time.

The sentence Cianfrini handed down, she said, "significantly punishes you and ensures society that you're not going to be around animals and will not own animals and not have contact with animals for a long time."

The dogs belonged to the girlfriend of a person Williams was living with at the time of the incident.  Williams paid $158 in restitution for veterinary bills.

Cianfrini also ordered Williams to undergo a mental health evaluation and abide by any recommendations for treatment.

Any deviation by Williams from the term of his probation, Cianfrini said, would carry harsh consequences.

Zickl argued for the maximum jail term -- and even though animal cruelty is a felony and carries a maximum of more than a year, the sentence cannot be served in prison -- because of the depraved nature of the crime. 

"His conduct was absolutely pointless and cruel," Zickl said.

Zickl said there is an incident report filed by Le Roy PD prior to this incident that also contained an allegation that Williams poured bleach into a dog's eyes.  In that case, the owner declined prosecution once the dog quickly recovered.

The ADA said Williams should be removed from the community for as long as possible.

Fred Rarick, representing Williams, called the Le Roy report "hearsay" and encouraged Cianfrini not to consider it in her decision.

He provided Cianfrini with about a dozen letters from community members in support of Williams that described Williams as a good person who treated animals well (which led to Zickl, when he next got an opportunity to speak, to say that if the Le Roy report was hearsay, so were the letters).

Rarick said his client, "accepts the verdict of the jury though he respectfully disagrees with the verdict," and while not discounting the harm done to the dogs, they did recover. 

His client, he said, sought a probationary sentence because he loves his daughter dearly and wants to be able to care for her.

"Given the opportunity, he has shown he has the ability to comply with any court orders," Rarick said. "The record shows he will do so and that he is an asset to other people."

When Williams addressed the court, he "respectfully" requested to be placed on probation, noting that he had no other criminal history, no domestic violence charges, that he's abided by the terms of court orders during his divorce proceedings, and that he wants to be able to continue to work so he can take care of his daughter.

At the end of the hearing, Williams was handcuffed and taken to the Genesee County Jail to begin his six-month term.

It's part of Notre Dame's mission statement for the students, faculty, and staff to help others, and Principal Wade Bianco said on Friday evening to see the school come together to raise $486 for The Chasing M's Foundation, a charity set up by Damar Hamlin.

Hamlin is a second-year defensive back with the Buffalo Bills who went into cardiac arrest during the Bills' game against the Bengals in Cincinnati on Monday night.

CPR was performed on Hamlin, and he was transported to a Cincinnati hospital, where he was initially listed in critical condition.  He is recovering well, according to news reports.

But his plight drew attention to his charity, and the folks at Notre Dame wanted to join forces, and express support for Hamlin, the Bills, and the community.

Kristen Gomez and Kate Edwards helped organize Friday's fundraiser, Bianco said.

It was "Wear Blue and Red Day."  For a $2 donation, students could ditch their school uniforms for the day and wear the colors of the Buffalo Bills.  Their donations were supplemented, Bianco said, by donations from faculty, staff, and alumni for usually more than $5 and $10 each.

There are currently 230 students enrolled at Notre Dame.

That afternoon, the whole school gathered and formed a #3 in honor of Hamlin for a school photo.

"The whole idea was to honor #3 and to honor Buffalo," Bianco said. "We wanted to say, 'we love you. We pray for you. And we're going to support you to the best of our ability.'"

Bianco said he was proud to see everybody come together and "do what's right."

"Doing what’s right is a big sell, especially nowadays, when a lot of people don’t want to do what’s right," Bianco said.

The $486 from Notre Dame is now part of more than $8 million that has been raised through Hamlin's GoFundMe page, with donations pouring in from all over the country.  The money is used for toy drives, back-to-school drives, kids camps, and more, according to a statement on the page. The 24-year-old player is from McKees Rocks, Pa.

"How fortunate we are to live in a community that cares about each other and extends our care beyond our city limits to the entire Western New York community," Bianco said.

Submitted photo.

Press release:

This Sunday, Jan. 8, at 6:30 p.m., the City of Batavia Police Department and Fire Department are squaring off for a hockey match-up. 

The two agencies have battled it out on the softball diamond in years past. 

The game will take place at the David M. McCarthy Memorial Ice Arena. 

The board of directors at the ice rink has gone above and beyond to make this event both successful and memorable.

Robbie Nichols (owner of the Batavia Muckdogs) brought this idea to both departments.  Nichols hosted similar events in Binghamton.  Marc Witt (employed by Nichols and the Muckdogs) has taken lead on organizing the game. 

The doors at the ice rink will open at 5:30 p.m.  Patrons will be welcomed by some high-energy music to set the tone for the evening.   The teams will take the ice for warm-ups around 5:50 p.m.

At around 6:30 p.m., the show starts.  Team introductions will have all patrons on their feet.  The National Anthem is being played by Miles Meyer on electric guitar.  Puck drop is scheduled for 6:35 p.m., directly after the ceremonial puck drop. 

The ice rink secured a one-day liquor license and will be stocked with your favorite food/beverages.  The night will include 50/50 drawings.  Staff is still trying to work out the logistics of the fan favorite “chuck a puck.”  The Batavia Rampart Mite Teams will keep fans entertained by playing during intermissions. 

All proceeds will benefit the David McCarthy Memorial foundation.    

Submitted photo.

It has been decades since Batavia Downs hosted a winter race meet at the oldest lighted harness track in North America, but that all changes on Monday when the 2023 harness racing season gets underway in Western New York. The 15-day session will run through Monday (Feb. 27) and operate on a Monday-Thursday schedule. Post time for each race day is set at 3 p.m. 

All the Downs favorite local drivers and trainers will be back in action along with a host of ship-in talent, who already have a strong presence on day one. The wagering menu remains the same and will feature (on a 13-race card) five Doubles, 13 Exactas, 13 Trifectas, 12 Superfectas, two Pick-3s, two Pick-4, one Pick-5 and one Jackpot Super Hi-5 pentafecta. 

“I am happy to have Batavia Downs host a live winter racing meet for the first time in over 20 years. And I was also very pleased with the trainer’s response to the first draw, with 127 horses entered for our opening day program. That card will feature two divisions of Open pacers and two divisions of Open trotters,” said Don Hoover, General Manager and Race Secretary at Batavia Downs. 

“The 13th and final race of the day is a very competitive upper-level conditioned trot featuring a nine-horse field. It also has a $17,500 guaranteed pool in the Jackpot Super Hi-5 pentafecta with a 20-cent minimum wager.”

That Jackpot Super Hi-5 pentafecta had a carryover of $10,733 going into the final night of the 2022 season and was required to be paid out as it was the last card of the year. But when racing was canceled due to weather prior to that race, the carryover was moved to opening night of 2023 (Monday, January 9) and will again be offered as a "must pay". But the pool has also been guaranteed at $17,500 through the United States Trotting Association’s Strategic Wagering Program and as such, a free program page for that race can be downloaded at the USTA website under the “Handicapping” tab. 

Full card past performance forms for all live race nights at Batavia Downs can always be downloaded for free from the track’s website at bataviadownsgaming.com under “Live Racing”. You can also stream all the live action as it happens for free on the Batavia Downs YouTube page.

Caitlin Ryan, with 25 points and eight rebounds, helped lead Oakfield-Alabama to a 56-53 win over Elba on Elba's home court in Girls Basketball on Thursday night.

MacKena Reding added 10 points and seven assists and Alea Groff scored nine, for O-A, while Brooke Reding and Emma Ray added five a piece. 

For the Landers, Sydney Reilly scored 21 points, six rebounds, three assists, and three steals. Halie Scouten scored 15 points and snagged 14 rebounds. She also blocked five shots.  Lydia Ross scored nine points.

The Hornets are now 8-1 and Elba drops to 2-6.

Photos by Kristin Smith.

Thursday's Rotary Girls Basketball Tournament championship game was everything hoops fans could hope for -- timely shooting, aggressive defensive, top players playing hard, and a final outcome that wasn't certain until the buzzer at the end.

Notre Dame beat Pavilion 44-43.

"It's been a while since we've had a nail-biter like that," said Tom McCulley, head coach of the Fighting Irish. "You've got two good teams that are well coached and with some players that can do special things and who are competitors, so at the end, you know you never feel comfortable as a coach with a two-point lead with 10 seconds left. It's never over in that situation."

Avelin Tomidy won the tournament's Ray Shirtz Service over Self Award, and the two free throws she made with eight seconds left may have swayed a few judge's votes.  Those free throws gave Notre Dame a four-point lead. If she missed either shot, it may have been a different game. Karlee Zinkievich, who was already having a big night and a bigger second half, hit a three-point shot with four seconds left. The Gophers were out of position to foul to stop the clock on Notre Dame's inbound pass eliminating any hope, how small it might have been, of getting another possession.

"It makes it exciting for the fans and the players and gets my heart pumping a little bit," McCulley said.

Pavilion's head coach Ben Schwenebraten would like to have notched the win, of course, but it was an exciting game.

"We knew it would be tough playing against Notre Dame," he said. "Notre Dame is in our class this year, and they're really tough, so it's a good game. It came right down the end, and we had a chance it just didn't go our way a couple of shots. We missed a couple of shots, missed a couple of box outs, and they finished, so it was a good game."

Schwenebraten said he was proud of how his team overcame a 10-point half-time deficit.

"It's all you hoped for in a game, that you have a chance at the end," Schwenebraten said. "We wanted to battle back and be in the game, and the girls did go right back out in the third quarter and played hard and then we had a chance at the end."

A big reason Pavilion had that chance was the play of Karlee Zinkievich in the second half, who played fearless basketball.

"She's a workhorse," Schwenebraten said. "She drives the bus for us. Once she gets going it helps everybody else out and she really did in the second half. She played great. She was attacking on offense, driving to the basket, taking jump shots, and she made that shot at the end of the game."

The difference maker for Notre Dame on Thursday was Emma Sisson, who was named the tournament MVP.  

"We needed her," Tom McCulley said. "Amelia had a big night the other night, but she's been sick, and it really hit her today. Emma had the opportunities, and she took full advantage of them. I mean, she made big shots, and she drove to the basket, so we started to adjust the game plan a little bit because we couldn't run everything that we needed to run because another one of our starters was out sick. We kind of had to go a little bit vanilla tonight and just run some basic stuff. Emma did a really good job of freelancing and getting to the basket and getting us some big layups at some big times."

Notre Dame is now 7-1 and Pavilion is 6-2.

Notre Dame scoring: 

• Emma Sisson, 23 point
• Amelia McCulley, 10 points and four rebounds and four steals
• Avelin Tomidy, eight points, nine rebounds and nine steals

Pavilion scoring:

• Lauren Kingsley, 16 points
• Karlee Zinkievich, 15 points
• Kylie Conway, eight points

In the consolation game earlier in the evening, Pembroke beat Batavia 45-41.  

Pembroke scoring:

• Karli Houseknecht: 13 points, 4 assists, 5 rebounds, 2 steals
• Elle Peterson: 11 points, 7 rebounds, 1 assist, 4 steals
• Olivia Breeden: 8 points, 1 assist, 4 rebounds, 3 steals

Photos by Howard Owens.  For more, or to purchase prints, click here.

Emma Sisson was named tournament MVP. The all-tournment team was Anna Varland, Batavia, Karli Houseknecht, Pembroke, Amelia McCulley, Notre Dame, Lauren Kingslee, Pavilion, and Karlee Zinkievich, Pavilion. Avelin Tomidy received the Ray Shirtz Service Above Self Award.

Press Release:

The State University of New York at Fredonia has announced the appointment of David A. Stringham, Ph.D., as Dean of Fredonia’s renowned School of Music.

“The Fredonia School of Music has a long history of excellence, and Dr. Stringham brings experience that will continue that success,” said Executive Vice President and Provost David Starrett. “We were impressed by David’s vision for new programs that will only enhance the stellar student experience. I look forward to working with Dr. Stringham to continue moving the Fredonia School of Music forward.”

Dr. Stringham, who grew up in Corfu, most recently served as the Executive Director of the Office of Creative Propulsion at James Madison University. He has been a part of the School of Music and College of Visual and Performing Arts at James Madison University since 2010. In addition to being a full professor of music, Dr. Stringham co-founded JMU’s Center for Inclusive Music Engagement and served as its founding director. He was also the Assessment Coordinator for the School of Music, and the Director of Research, Entrepreneurship, and Engagement in the College of Visual and Performing Arts. His work has been supported through dozens of grants from such institutions as the Mid-Atlantic Arts Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the 4-VA Collaborative.

“I am honored to accept President Kolison’s invitation to serve as Dean of Fredonia’s School of Music,” Dr. Stringham said. “As a Western New York native, a student and colleague of Fredonia graduates, a former New York State public school music teacher, and a music teacher educator and researcher, I have long been keenly aware of and impressed by the Fredonia School of Music, its faculty, and its alumni. It is exciting and meaningful to join Fredonia’s School of Music as it seeks to build on its rich history and stellar reputation through self-examination and re-imagination. I look forward to working with Provost Starrett, Vice Provost Horowitz, and my new colleagues in the School of Music, across campus, and in the community, to help facilitate the School of Music’s next steps.”

Dr. Stringham received his Bachelor of Music (Music Education), Master of Music (Music Education), and Doctor of Philosophy (Music Education) from the University of Rochester.

Dr. Stringham will begin his role at SUNY Fredonia during the spring semester.

Photo of Dr. David A. Stringham by Cody Troyer

While gathered around a table in the middle of the mall concourse Thursday, a group of stakeholders reminisced about the “hits and misses” during an impromptu mall market for several Saturdays last fall.

The group was led by Tammy Hathaway, director of Batavia Development Corporation, who had surveyed participants for feedback about how the market went in a first-time trial run.

“What a great group of people, it's the right group of people to assess that small little field test of using the City Centre concourse, as a little bit of momentum, like a market vendor space. We had fantastic feedback, and it was positive,” Hathaway said. “We want hits and misses, so that we can make it better, and everyone wants to move forward."

She appreciated their honesty about the critiques, and also about the one unanimous sentiment, Hathaway said.

“Every single one of them enjoyed being in here,” she said.

Issues to be worked out include pricing — which vendors said was too high at $40 per day — and the market’s hours of 8:30 to 11 a.m.

“Batavia doesn’t wake up until 10 a.m.,” vendor Adam Garner said.

Garner, a fifth generation member of Garner Farms of Le Roy, has participated in other markets in Le Roy and Rochester, and offered his perspective about what seems to work elsewhere.

Garner Farms was a regular at Batavia’s mall market with heritage pork and chicken products, and he looks forward to continuing to be part of it.

“Overall, it was good. There were weeks that were slow, but weeks, there's weeks that were above, that we had a lot more people than I expected. We’re hoping to get to expand as we have more people coming in here,” he said. “So we have an indoor market. There's nothing around here. The only indoor market I know is down in Ithaca. So we do Le Roy farmers market. We're looking into doing a couple in Rochester. I do one in the South Wedge. And then we do vendor events that we do in Le Roy. Our farm began in 1932 and it will be 100 years old.”

The group discussed moving the hours so they would linger into the early afternoon, say from 10:30 a.m. to around 1:30 p.m. Hathaway received a lot of feedback that a majority of vendors thought the total hours should be capped at three hours, with a rationale of preferring to make $150 in three hours versus $175 in four.

City maintenance worker Tom Phelps said that the mall facility used to be open to 2 p.m., and that was eventually reduced to not being open at all on Saturdays during COVID season, and now is back to being open to noon.

Other areas of consideration involve requiring vendors to have insurance coverage, making access easier for vendors with larger or bulky items, including some type of coffee station, how best to promote the event, and making it a family-friendly market with rotating activities and themes.

The general consensus of group members Loretta Delpriore of Batavia Stagecoach Florist, Katie Hobbs of Genesee County Chamber of Commerce, Garner, Phelps, Pat Burk of Theater 56 and Hathaway was to resume the market on Feb. 4 with a focus on Valentine’s Day, and integrate themes from there onward. Hobbs manages a market for the village of Corfu and offered ideas to include kids in these events as well.

“So we created a very large to do-list of items to make this move forward. And it's great to have participants, everyone who sat at this meeting today participated in the meeting, and has the same passion for seeing this building full of life,” Hathaway said. “The goal is February 4 to reinstate the Saturday mall market and have revised hours and make it totally revised.

“I think we'll definitely go to mid to end of May,” she said. “So we'll have a little bit of time to let everybody breathe, regroup and everything before the outdoor farmers market begins.”

Photo of Tammy Hathaway of Batavia Development Corporation, left, Loretta Delpriore of Batavia Stagecoach Florist, Pat Burk of Theater 56, Katie Hobbs of Genesee County Chamber of Commerce, Adam Garner of Garner Farms and city maintenance staff Tom Phelps evaluate last year's Saturday mall market in an effort to move forward with the concept beginning Feb. 4. Photo by Joanne Beck. 

Press release:

The director of the Prevention department at Genesee/Orleans Council on Alcoholism and Substance Abuse is applauding the results of the alcohol compliance checks conducted last month by local law enforcement.

“Of the 60 retail establishments that were visited, 57 of them were in compliance,” said Shannon Ford, who also serves as GCASA’s director of Communications & Development. “Overall, we think these are pretty great results.”

The City of Batavia Police Department visited 20 stores and found that all 20 were compliant. Thirty-seven of the 40 establishments visited by the Genesee County Sheriff’s Office were in compliance – meaning that the store employee did not sell alcohol to the underage customer taking part in the exercise.

Ford said that GCASA prevention educators are using the latest round of compliance checks as an “educational opportunity.”

“Responsible Server Training will be offered to anyone who wants it,” Ford added.

RST courses focus on several aspects, including the effects of alcohol on the brain and nervous system, state Alcohol Beverage Control laws, levels of intoxication, and the proper way to check IDs and spot false IDs.  All those who take the course will receive Responsible Server certification.

The rates for the training are as follows:

-- For businesses – Individual rate, $75 per person; group rate, $375 (five or more employees);

-- For not for profits – Individual rate, $50 person; group rate, $250 (five or more employees).

To schedule RST for an establishment, contact Diane Klos at 585-815-1883.

Press release:

Senator George Borrello was sworn in as the representative of the 57th State Senate District on Wednesday, Jan. 4. The ceremony took place in the Senate Chamber just prior to the official start of the 2023 Legislative Session.  

“It is a tremendous privilege to have the opportunity to represent and serve the residents of the 57th Senate District and to continue my work on behalf of the betterment of our state. Going into this new session, my priorities are centered around making New York State safer, more affordable and more supportive of its job creators,” said Senator Borrello. “I also am excited about representing the residents of Genesee and Wyoming counties, who are now part of the newly expanded 57th District.  

The boundaries of the newly drawn district include Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, Genesee, Wyoming and the western half of Allegany County. The district is one of the largest in the state, spanning approximately 4,500 square miles.  

Senator Borrello also announced that he will continue serving as the Ranking Member on the Agriculture Committee, a role he first assumed in July 2020. He will also continue serving as the Ranking Member on the Banks Committee and as a member of the Finance Committee. Additionally, he was appointed as a new member of the following committees: Commerce, Economic Development and Small Business; Elections; Housing, and Insurance.  

“I appreciate the opportunity to continue my instrumental role on the Agriculture Committee at this pivotal time for our farmers and agribusinesses. The new overtime mandates approved by the Labor Commissioner in 2022 are poised to present a whole new set of challenges to this industry and multi-generational farm families. Our fight against these changes was one of the most intense efforts of the past two years. Now that they are set to take effect, we need to take steps to mitigate the impact or we will lose more of our family farms,” said Sen. Borrello.  

“I also look forward to bringing my perspective as a small business owner to the Commerce, Economic Development and Small Business Committee. The pandemic response created many challenges for employers that continue to persist. The most critical of these is the billions in unemployment insurance debt owed by the state to the federal government. Currently, small businesses are being forced to shoulder the burden of repaying the debt and replenishing the fund, which is unacceptable,” said Sen. Borrello.  

“There are so many important issues facing our state right now, which I look forward to addressing in all of the key committees I’ve been appointed to. I am grateful to Leader Ortt for entrusting me with these responsibilities and opportunities to shape the legislative agenda in Albany.”  

Batavia Notre Dame United captures the David McCarthy Memorial Hockey Tournament with a 6-5 victory over Section VI powerhouse Niagara Wheatfield.  

United found themselves in unfamiliar territory early in the second period trailing 3-1.

“We were playing well. We just needed to stick with it and stay positive," said Head Coach Marc Staley. "They are a great team. We knew this would be a battle.”

BND rattled off four goals in the second period, flipping the lead in the game from down by one to up by one.

“Our PowerPlay has been so strong this year," Staley said. "They took a few undisciplined penalties and made them pay”

BND went 4-6 on the PowerPlay during the game.

BND was only called for three minor penalties in the game and outshot NW 41-22.  

"This was a great night for the program," Staley said. "Winning your home tournament is always fun, but beating one of Section VI’s top teams in the meantime gives a nice confidence boost moving forward”

Now onto the next challenge.

Next, United takes on 2022 Section V Class A Champion Victor (7-1) on Friday night at the Rochester Ice Center.  

“This is the schedule we want," Staley said. "We want to play the top teams and see how we stack up.  Taking care of Bethlehem (8-0) from Section II, now beating Niagara Wheatfield (7-1-1) from Section VI, now another huge test with Section V’s best, Victor.

“The kids are hungry," he added. "They are focused.  And I love that they aren’t content.  We are still getting better.  I know we have another level up from here.  Our biggest tests are still in front of us.  We are building nicely towards those games”

Photos by Erin Staley.

Batavia Blue Devils beat Greece Arcadia on Wednesday in Rochester and picked up a win, 66-40.

In the opening quarter, Aiden Bellavia scored eight points, and Ja'Vin McFollins scored five to help push Batavia out in front early.

Second-quarter defensive mishaps by Batavia along with some turnovers helped Arcadia regain the lead, making it 24-23 at the half.

In the third quarter, Carter McFollins scored six points and Mikey McKenzie hit two threes to get Batavia off to a rolling start.

"The third quarter was the key to the game," said Head Coach Buddy Brasky. "We came out of halftime and really increased the ball pressure.  That led to them turning the ball over, which led to us getting out on the fast break. Once we got rolling, we started hitting a few threes, and it was game over."

Batavia added points from Sawyer Silverling, Rashad Christie and Bellavia to give the Blue Devils 25 points in the quarter while holding Greece scoreless, which gave them a 48-24 lead after three.

Blue Devils' scoring leaders were Mikey McKenzie, and Aiden Bellavia, who both tallied 16 points.  Carter McFollins scored 8, Sawyer Silverling 7 

Batavia's record improves to 5-2

The team's next game is at home against Southwestern Central at 3 p.m. on Saturday.

To view or purchase photos, click here.

Photos by Steve Ognibene

If you’re in the market for an apartment later this year, but can’t afford a market rate, Ellicott Station may be the answer.

The Ellicott Street apartment complex has been taking names, Batavia Development Corporation Director Tammy Hathaway says.

A project that began last fall on the south side of Batavia, the 55-unit complex is expected to be ready for occupants by summer of this year, she said.

“There is an income qualification,” Hathaway said Tuesday. “People can go to ellicottstation.com and sign up.”

When the time comes that apartments are finalized, Savarino’s management will review the list and contact potential tenants, Hathaway said.

Once thoought to be more upper scale market rate rentals, the 55 units are considered “affordable housing,” 52 of which come with a balcony and nine with Americans with Disabilities Act mobility units. Units also are equipped with laundry amenities, and the complex has an elevator, community room, bicycle storage, covered off-street parking, and a playground, according to the website.

During the time of groundbreaking later last year, CEO Sam Savarino of Savarino Companies said that “It’s difficult for people to afford housing, and then there’s a shortage of quality, affordable housing.”

“In any event, the market study showed that there was a top end of the market that people could afford to pay in this area, otherwise, it wouldn’t be successful,” he said.

Abatement, demolition of two dilapidated buildings, land remediation, reconstruction of public storm drainage infrastructure, and construction of a 55-unit apartment building was — and still is — on the way toward a summer 2023 completion. The $22.5 million project site is to also offer adaptive reuse of the building to be used as a brewery, restaurant and/or events facility, plus improvements made to a public ‘Rails to Trails’ walking trail.

Workers have been busy constructing the four-story apartment complex, and it has been exciting to see the progress, Hathaway said.

“It’s a gorgeous building,” she said last fall during a tour of the defunct Della Penna site that’s part of the project.

The total apartment project cost is $20.7 million for 74,000 gross square feet, four stories, 55 units, 52 balcony units, nine units meeting Americans with Disabilities Act requirements, 37 garage parking spaces and 44 surface parking spaces.

Defined as “workforce housing,” with one and two-bedroom units, the Ellicott Street complex will most likely attract people earning about $20 an hour or below, otherwise deemed as affordable housing.

The project is part of Batavia’s Downtown Revitalization initiative and is located within a state-designated Brownfield Opportunity Area, which requires abatements and remediation from prior use of toxic materials on the property.

Top Photo of the current Ellicott Station project in Batavia, by Howard Owens; and file photo of the groundbreaking by Howard Owens. Bottom two photos also from today of construction by Howard Owens.

City officials are getting off to a good start in the new year with news of receiving $2.5 million to go toward a new police station for downtown Batavia.

The much debated station — whether to renovate the current site at Brisbane Mansion on Main Street or build anew — was finalized with a City Council vote in 2021, and designs have been in progress ever since.

Toward the end of 2022, City Manager Rachael Tabelski had spoken with high hopes of receiving funding as part of a federal omnibus legislation, which came through and was announced Thursday.

“We are grateful for the support from Senator Chuck Schumer and former Congressman Christopher Jacobs for advocating on behalf of our efforts to secure this critically important funding for a new police headquarters,” Tabelski said in a press release issued Thursday. “They both understood how important this funding was to our efforts to build a modern and welcoming facility that will be an integral part of community.”

The money will go toward the estimated cost of up to $15 million for new police headquarters and community complex to be constructed on Bank Street and Alva Place.

City Council President Eugene Jankowski Jr. was also thankful for the financial assistance and local support.

“As a retired Batavia Police Lieutenant I’m keenly aware of the importance of replacing the outdated 1850’s era police building with a modern purpose built police facility,” Jankowsk said. “The new building will be a huge asset to our police force and help them to better serve the members of our community.  Thank you to Senator Chuck Schumer and former Congressman Chris Jacobs for supporting the City of Batavia and our Police Department.”

The City estimates that the cost to build a new police department will be approximately $13 to $15 million. The 19,000 square-foot facility will be constructed on city owned property on and would provide connectivity and enhance the area between City Centre and the emerging Medical Campus.

Once completed, there would be 115 public parking spots available in nearby lots, in addition to free public parking on surrounding streets to serve the needs of existing businesses on Washington, Alva and State Streets.

“The current police headquarters was constructed in 1855 as a private residence and is out of date and inefficiently suited for a modern-day police department to properly serve the community,” Batavia Police Chief Shawn Heubusch said. “We want a new facility that people from the community feel welcomed, and provide space for more engagement with the residents we serve.”

As for the current city police station, Batavia Development Corporation Director Tammy Hathaway will be working with architectural firm In.Site: Architecture of Perry to conduct a feasibility study "to determine a best use for the building," she said.

A $20,000 grant will go toward the cost of the study, Hathaway said, and Rick Hauser of In.Site will be able to merge information from prior studies for this project. A former police station task force had authorized building studies for renovating the current site compared to building a new facility elsewhere.

For most recent coverage of the station's progress, go HERE.

Rendering of the new police station at Bank Street and Alva Place in downtown Batavia provided by City of Batavia.

As it can go with large construction projects, the new county jail’s price tag is to ring in the new year with ka-ching and an estimated $80,000 of additional work needed for exterior insulation.

Genesee County Highway Superintendent and senior Engineer Tim Hens outlined the problem during Wednesday’s Ways and Means meeting. A six-inch gap at the top of a foundational area was discovered by architects and engineers that, as it stands, would not meet code, he said.

“It’s a very difficult construction detail,” he said. “Cold air would not be coming in, but the concrete would conduct the cold. Two to three feet of that floor would feel really frozen.”

The suggested remedy is to glue stainless steel flashing all the way around four precast pods.

“That does solve the problem. If they can do it before the precast units are installed, it’s easier,” Hens said. “The quicker we can get the go-ahead, the cheaper it will be for us.”

Assistant Engineer Laura Wadhams added that there will be people “out in the field” to ensure that the work is done in as timely and financially efficient way possible and that it may be less than the $80,000 capped estimate.

With the backing of her committee, Genesee County Legislature Chairwoman Rochelle Stein authorized a time and material change order with a cost not to exceed $80,000.00 for LeChase Construction, for costs related to additional insulation installation and protective flashing around the base of all pod areas for the new Genesee County Jail.

The total amount of the final change order will be determined in the field, with documented time and receipts for materials. The cost of the change order is not to exceed $80,000, per the resolution.

To follow progress on the jail project, go to the county's Jail Updates page. 

2022 File Photo of the early stages of the $70 million Genesee County Jail project on Route 5 in the Town of Batavia, by Howard Owens.

Press release:

Officials from Batavia Downs Gaming & Hotel formally closed the books on a record-breaking 2022.  Credits played topped $1 Billion for the first time ever.  Net win totaled just over $76 Million Dollars.  That was up 14.5 percent or $9.63 Million over 2021’s numbers.   Surcharge & Earnings to be distributed to member municipalities are projected to total $9.2 Million, with earnings projected to be $8.6 Million, a record amount since the Corporation’s inception in 1974.  This is an increase of 48 percent over the 2021 Surcharge & Earnings distributions to member municipalities of $5.8 Million.

Batavia Downs Gaming contributed $37.25 Million to State Education via the New York State Lottery.  This number was also a record, beating 2021’s number of $32.55 Million by $4.7 Million.

The Hotel at Batavia Downs, which was purchased by the corporation in the spring of 2021, has generated projected bottom-line revenues to the Corporation of $675,000.  The occupancy rate for the hotel was 78%, beating out last year's rate of 61 percent.

Batavia Downs’ Food and Beverage outlets generated projected bottom-line revenues to the Corporation of $1.2 Million, a new record.  Several improvements to Fortune’s Steakhouse and a rebranding of the Homestretch Grill provided guests of Batavia Downs with new options when dining onsite.

“We are very encouraged by all we’ve accomplished in 2022,” said Jacquelyne Leach, Chief Financial Officer for Western OTB/Batavia Downs.  “Our total distributions to municipalities are projected to be $9.2 Million, bringing our total since our inception in 1974 to $251 Million. At a tax rate of 49%, almost half of the money generated at Batavia Downs goes to NYS to help fund the State Education Budget.  We’re proud to have given the highest amount we’ve ever had back to the citizens of New York.”

“These numbers showcase the positive direction of our facility, “said Henry Wojtaszek, President and CEO of Batavia Downs.  “In the post-Covid economy, we have begun adding events and expanding our promotions.  By utilizing our onsite hotel and improving our food and beverage offerings, we have made Batavia Downs an entertainment destination.”

“With our Summer Concert Series, Harness Racing Dates and marquee promotions all in the upcoming months, we’re looking forward to contributing more to our member municipalities and the State Education Fund this year, “ Wojtaszek continued.

Batavia Downs had their three busiest days of all time, with each day reaching over $5 million in credits played.  Several record weeks topped $24 Million in credits played.

In a separate table listing county-by-county distribution, Batavia Downs reported a projected distribution to Genesee County of $194,821, bringing the total distribution since 1974 to $12,911,504.

Photo: File photo by Howard Owens