Playing host to more than 50,000 people at ball games, plus youth, high school and college baseball games, dance clinics, concerts, a fundraising awareness walk, challenger sports activities, and an epic Halloween trick-or-treat event gave Batavia Muckdogs owner Robbie Nichols plenty to brag about Monday.

But then he saved the best for last, he said. Nichols and General Manager Marc Witt announced that a World Championship ice racing event was just confirmed for early next spring. But no ice skates are involved.

“We're working with the arena with Matty Gray. And I think that he's done a great job from what we've seen. We've been over there a bunch of times, working with him, trying to bring more business and people to the arena,” Nichols said. “And we were gonna announce today that on Friday, March 31, is going to be something Batavia has never seen before. We are bringing the World Championship XIIR, which is Extreme International Ice racing. So we're bringing motorcycles on ice, these motorcyclists go 60 miles per hour, and they'll be in the arena. And they go all around the country to big arenas, and we're gonna bring it here to Batavia on March 31.”

What did it take to get this world event here? As Witt sort of shook his head at the thought, Nichols said it wasn't easy.

“It takes a lot. They're coming from all across the world. So Scotland, England … some of these racers, their Speedway bikes, they go zero to 60 miles per hour with no breaks. They have studded tires. So there'll be Speedway bikes," Nichols said. "There'll be a quad-riding class. So there are people around here that race on ice. They’ll be invited to come out and race too we'll have a go-kart series. So it's going to be really neat.”

There will be more public announcements about the event and “very limited” tickets, he said. There are an estimated 450 to 500 people that can fit into the arena, he said, and he fully expects the venue to be “packed and sold out.” Tickets are likely to go on sale just before Christmas, he said.

Being classified as a world championship, this event next year means more than just a unique happening for Batavia. It also signals a potential uptick for the city’s economy due to people traveling from all points of the globe and staying and eating locally.

Speaking of numbers, Dwyer Stadium hosted 50,000 people for Muckdogs games this season, which made for a total of 84,000 visitors to the Bank Street park. There were more than 40 high school games, challenger division baseball, 30 youth baseball games, a showdown game between the city police and fire departments, an Alzheimer’s walk kick-off, use of the field in September and October by Geneseo State College, and the Zac Brown and Margaritaville concerts.

Costumed visitors swelled from last year’s 500 trick-or-treaters and 2,000 families to this past Saturday’s 2,100 trick-or-treaters and 5,000 families for the annual spooky fun festivities with vendors and free candy.

“It was a zoo,” Witt said.

Staffers had to go out and buy more candy — some $500 more — to feed the masses that formed a line all the way down Denio Street and wrapping its way along State Street toward Batavia High School.

The Dwyer to-do list includes additional netting to ensure that spectators aren’t hit by foul balls and a party deck, and several items have already been completed, such as painting locker rooms, power washing, adding a new bullpen to the vision team area, new cooking appliances, the addition of 30 tables and 100 chairs in the main office, and even the finer details of updating toilet paper rolls and paper holders in the men’s and women’s restrooms.

With a track record of hosting 120 events this season, averaging 20 events per month from April to October, including 22 picnics, Dwyer Stadium “has something going on,” Nichols said. He and the staff have set a goal to have something going on every single day, he said.

Events weren’t just about drawing crowds to the stadium, but also about team participation in parades and Nichols’ favorite event, Challenger Division Baseball. Staff and team players work alongside people with various disabilities to enjoy a real game as participants.

“This is our favorite event. We take a day out when we play with the challenger divisions, we have a real game,” he said. “They're the stars of the show.”

Season ticket holders have risen from 100 to more than 500 since taking over operations as owner in 2021, he said. Nichols, who is also the owner of CAN-USA Sports since 2012, is well prepared for next season with the Muckdogs, having 30 players in place already for a championship next season, he said.

He is looking to extend his lease with the city, after two years down and three to go. He and Witt thanked council members and management for “trusting CAN-USA Sports.”

Councilman Bob Bialkowski encouraged them to “keep up the good work” while member John Canale suggested that the enterprise "is your baby.”

“You’ve created that; we’re very grateful for what you’ve done,” Canale said.

A modest Nichols said it wasn’t about him and Witt.

“It’s the community that makes it possible, “ he said.

Top Photo: Batavia Muckdogs General Manager Marc Witt, left, and owner Robbie Nichols present a recap of this year at Dwyer Stadium in Batavia (by Joanne Beck); photos of the Halloween trick-or-treat event this past Saturday, including Robbie and wife Nellie, above. Photos by Howard Owens.

Assistant City Manager Erik Fix has proposed a new form of communication for his colleagues.

While they weren’t using anything like rotary phones, Fix said the current phone system is “antiquated” and in need of a boost. Also, the current phone system is no longer being provided by CISCO Systems, he said.

He had met with a committee comprised of the city manager’s confidential secretary, Angela Dickson, Police Chief Shawn Heubusch, Manager Rachael Tabelski and KI Consulting and Bolder IT Strategies to ferret out the best options for a new phone system.

Four vendors submitted applications, and the committee scored each one according to weighted cost, functionality, and usability, plus five other criteria, he said.

“In the end, all members agreed that Ring Central, Inc. scored the best out of the four proposals,” Fix said during City Council's Monday meeting.

The cloud-based phone system would cost $22,920 per year for five years, or 60 months, according to the contract. That includes the phones, training and installation, he said.

One of the committee’s tasks involved talking to Steuben County’s IT staff regarding that county’s usage of Ring Central. There were also conversations with the city’s own IT staff to ensure that staff members could assist with Ring Central’s installation if necessary.

All that is to say that Fix recommended that council go with this new company, which is based in California. A vote will be on council’s future business meeting, and, if approved, the new phone system would mean a budget amendment of $22,920 of contingency funds, to take effect Nov. 8.

Another spending vote to be on the next business agenda is the purchase of a new Pitney Bowes folding machine, used for automatic folding of letters, bills and other written materials being sent out from the city.

A current Pitney Bowes folding machine that was purchased in 2000 is no longer in working order, Deputy Finance Director Lisa Neary said. She recommended a machine that is a step down from a top model, but can do the required work at a savings, Neary said.  The top model was priced at $10,435.80, whereas the next one down is $6,841.58.

There is no definitive cause that fire investigators have determined for the fire Sunday at Baskin Livestock, 9778 Creek Road, Batavia., said Tim Yaeger, Genesee County emergency management coordinator.

Yaeger said the origin appears to be in a bay area of the facility where paper -- typically paper that contained waste food items being converted at the factory into cattle feed -- is stored prior to shipment to a landfill. 

If that is the origin of the fire, what could possibly have caused the ignition of the fire is undetermined at this time.  There is no obvious ignition source.

There were no employees in the building at the time of the fire, Yaeger said.

Because Baskin Livestock is self-insured, fire investigators are unlikely to return to the scene for further investigation unless requested by the company, Yaeger said.

There is a fire suppression system installed in the building, Yaeger said, and Baskin Livestock is going to investigate to try and determine why is seems to have malfunctioned.

Photos by Howard Owens

The Jurassic Wonder Tour, a display of animated dinosaur models, stopped in Batavia over the weekend, offering a self-guided car tour of the pre-historic world through Genesee County Fairgrounds.

Photos by Howard Owens.

The Batavia Cemetery Association held its annual Ghost Walk on Saturday, which is both a fundraiser and a chance to provide area residents with an entertaining history lesson about the people who shaped the development of Western New York.

Photos by Howard Owens, Top photo, Michael Gosselin as Rev. John Yates.

Tim Buckman as Maj. Philemon Tracy.

Patrick Weissend as Joseph Ellicott.

Dan Snyder as Albert Brisbane.

The line for the Halloween trick-or-treat event at Dwyer Stadium on Saturday stretched from the front gate to State Street throughout most of the event.

Various businesses and organizations were spread out around the grandstands and onto the field handing out candy to costumed kiddies.  Many of the organizations had to send out members of their party to retrieve more candy from local stores after bringing only enough for 1,000 or 2,000 children.

The event was sponsored by the Batavia Muckdogs and the team's owners Robbie and Nellie Nichols. Robbie said that 2,100 kids and 5,000 families showed up this year. 

A caller in the area of Rite Aid on West Main Street and Lewiston reports an encounter with a man who may have had a gun who said he was a police officer chasing someone and was last seen heading toward Tops.

He is described as a thinner white male wearing jeans, a red windbreaker and a black of blue ball cap.

Troopers and deputies are responding with Batavia PD.

UPDATE 9:13 p.m.: A responding officer reports detaining a subject fitting the description behind Tops.

Mercy Flight/Mercy EMS hosted an open house at its facility on Call Parkway on Saturday, with Cub Scouts selling hot dogs, a craft room where kids could paint coupons, a basket raffle, a mum sale, games, and displays and apparatus from State Police, and fire departments from Town of Batavia, Stafford, Elba, Alabama, and Pavilion.

At 10 years old, throwing a baseball against the wall of a brick building, Brian Kemp never imagined he would someday own a 25-year-old business making custom T-shirts and that he would also own that building on Center Street, as well.

It's all very humbling, said Kemp, a Batavia HS graduate who spent much of his youth living in a house on School Street with a backyard that abuts the building that now houses T-Shirts Etc.

"To think like, I'm probably driving the people inside the building crazy," Kemp said during a 25th Anniversary celebration for T-Shirts Etc. on Thursday evening. "I'm not thinking of it as a kid like that but now if somebody started throwing a ball against my wall, I might say, 'Hey, what's going on?' you know. But I would have a little empathy for him because I did it, too."

Kemp and a partner, with the help of his girlfriend at the time, started T-Shirts Etc on the third floor of the Harvester Center three years after Kemp graduated from high school.  Soon they moved into a larger space on the first floor, then to the former WBTA building at Harvester and East Main, then to the former Newberry's building (now Eli Fish) on Main Street, and finally to his current location at 37 Center St.

A lot of people -- a whole community, really -- he said, helped him reach this milestone.  He gave credit to his former partner John, his former girlfriend, Heather, and to his ex-wife, Beth Kemp.

"Beth and I were married for seven or eight years," Kemp said. "We're not married anymore but it was a great time that helped me turn the business into where we are today. We moved the company three times, so she was a very integral part of the business."

Kemp also said he couldn't sustain any success without his employees.

"I have a great crew that has weathered the storm of the last few years," he said. "My current crew consists of my son Parker who runs the print production department, Melissa Flint, who runs the embroidery, shipping, and receiving departments and lastly, Mikah Burdic who is currently working as a production assistant.  I am truly honored to work daily with my crew that puts in the work on a daily basis, producing quality products for our customers.  I come here to the shop, hang out and make stuff, and these people make it enjoyable."

His younger sons, Myloh, 10, and Aslan, are also helping out in the shop these days, he said.

He noted that a lot of his customers were at the celebration.  

"All these relationships with our business are personal and have all impacted on my life," Kemp said. "I've got these great boys and this amazing business that we call home here in Batavia. We got our own little piece of Batavia. It's been fantastic."

Photos by Howard Owens.  Top photo, Kemp, left, with Tom Turnbull, Chamber of Commerce interim president.

Students from Batavia High and Notre Dame participated in “Project Sticker Shock” this morning to kick off Red Ribbon Week, the annual end-of-October alcohol, tobacco, and other drug and violence prevention awareness campaign.

Red Ribbon Week began in 1985 as a tribute to Enrique Camarena, a fallen U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency special agent. According to the DEA, it is the nation's largest and longest-running drug awareness and prevention program.

“It’s just the right thing to do,” said ND sophomore Jack Weddle (photo above) as he placed warning stickers on multi-packs of beer and hard seltzer at Tops Friendly Market in Batavia.

He was joined by ND senior Greg Narburgh and members of the ATOP (All Types of People) social club from Batavia High. The exercise was supervised by Carol Nicometo and Shellye Dale-Hall, prevention educators at Genesee/Orleans Council on Alcoholism and Substance Abuse, and Heidi Meides-Judge, counselor at Batavia High.

The stickers were colored bright orange and featured the following message:

Warning! It is illegal for any persons 21 or older to purchase or provide alcohol to minors. Fines up to $1,000 and/or 1 year in jail.

Prudence Favalora, one of the ATOP members, said that she will be reading the Red Ribbon Week honor code prior to tonight’s Batavia High junior varsity football game (6 p.m. start) at Van Detta Stadium.

Additionally, the Batavia City School District board of education issued a proclamation in observance of Red Ribbon Week and Batavia Middle and Batavia High parents signed pledges to keep their kids drug- and alcohol-free.

GCASA officials reported that Red Ribbon Week activities include special events at The Recovery Station on Clinton Street Road.

Photo: Students taking part in Project Sticker Shock are, front from left, Casey Reynolds, Kassandra Kessler, Prudence Favalora, Abbigayle Leone, Issac Tidd and Jen Ewert; back, Greg Narburgh and Jack Weddle. Photos by Mike Pettinella.

Disclosure: Mike Pettinella is the publicist for GCASA.

Press Release

City-wide leaf collection will begin Oct. 31, and will continue until Nov. 30.

Residents are asked to rake leaves into piles and leave them in the parkway (un-bagged). Please, place close to curb line/edge of roadway without placing in the street. Do not pile around fire hydrants, trees, utility poles or signposts. Leaf piles should only contain leaves and no branches, grass clippings or other materials.

Leaf operations typically have one crew on the Northside working from Grandview Terrace moving West, North of Main Street, and a second crew on the Southside beginning on River Street moving East in areas South of Main Street. A third crew will work using a vacuum along main roads and numbered routes. It takes about 2 weeks to go through the entire city.

Any resident with leaves can also bring them to the Yard Waste Station until it closes for the season on Dec. 10. The Yard Waste hours are 12 to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday through Oct. 29, and then 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. from Oct. 31 through Dec. 10 due to the hours of daylight. The Yard Waste Station will be closed Nov. 24 (Thanksgiving) and will officially close for the season after Dec. 10, 2022.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT LEAF COLLECTION:

· Leaf piles must be clear of sticks and other debris.

· Leaf piles must be clear of all animal waste – if animal waste is found in the piles, they will not be picked up

· Grass clippings, Flower potting’s, Branches, Pumpkins cannot be picked up and residents may bring those items to the Yard Waste Station on Law Street (which will be open through December 10th, 2022)

· Leaves should not block traffic.

· Leaves should not be piled near intersection corners. This causes sight issues for motorists/bicyclists/pedestrians.

· Keep leaf piles clear of drainage ways and catch basins. Blocked drainage leads to localized flooding.

· Leaves should not be piled around mailboxes, power poles, fences, fire hydrants or other obstacles.

· Do not park on leaf piles. The heat from a vehicle exhaust system could start a fire.

· Do not wait to get your leaves out. We will normally collect leaves twice within the month of leaf collection.

· If it is snowing, we plow first. If it continues to snow, then leaf operations will be suspended.

There is no leaf pickup in the spring.

Contact the Bureau of Maintenance at 585-345-6400 option 1 if you have any questions.

Fire investigators believe, preliminarily, that a malfunction in a furnace at 8920 Batavia Stafford Townline Road is the source of a fire that destroyed the home this morning.

The structure was fully involved before firefighters were dispatched shortly before 8:40 a.m.

"(The furnace is) propane-powered and forced hot air," said Tim Yaeger, Genesee County Emergency Management Coordinator. "(The homeowner) had left to go and give assignments to her crews for the business that they run here. When they came back, she said she smelled something funny, something hot, and one of her employees saw smoke exiting from the garage. They entered the garage, opened the door into the house and there was heavy black smoke in the house itself. So right now we're leaning towards, based on an investigation, preliminarily, we're looking at the furnace that may have had a malfunction."

Nobody was injured as a result of the fire and an employee reportedly rescued two dogs from inside the house.

The initial dispatch for the fire reported that two people had entered the house and may be trapped but when a Stafford assistant chief was first on scene, he informed dispatchers that both people were out of the house and that it was believed nobody was in the house at that point.

Town of Batavia Chief Chris Strathearn said the heavy, tall column of black smoke from the fire was visible well before he arrived on scene. He called for a second alarm.

Companies dispatched included Town of Batavia, City Fire, Stafford, Le Roy, and Alexander's FAST Team. Mercy EMS, Sheriff's Office, and State Police assisted at the scene.

The ranch-style home was built in 2016 and is owned by William and Stacy Corcoran. The 2,387-square-foot house sits on a 3.7-acre parcel. The Corcorans also own other adjoining farm property. 

Photos by Howard Owens. For more photos, click here.

Batavia left-hander Brian Green and Honeoye Falls right-hander Scott Culp set the pace during a high scoring week in Genesee Region USBC league action at Mancuso Bowling Center.

The high-revving duo each posted 299 games, with Green topping the 800 mark with 801 and Culp falling just short with a 794 series.

Green rolled games of 246, 256 and 299 in the County Line Stone Friday Trios League -- leaving a 6-pin on the last ball.

Culp registered 299, 228 and 267 in the Mancuso Real Estate Monday Doubles League -- leaving a 4-pin on the final ball of the opening game.

Other big scores last week:

• Mike Pettinella of Batavia rolled a 775 series in the Turnbull Heating Triples League at Mancuso's on games of 279-229-267.

• John Lowe of Le Roy rolled a 791 series in the American Legion Men's League at Le Roy Legion Lanes on games of 278-246-267. A 4-pin after a strike in the 10th frame of game three cost him a shot at 800.

For a list of high scores, click on the Pin Points tab at the top of the home page.

Town of Batavia Fire dispatched.

UPDATE 8:34 a.m.: There was initially a report that two people had re-entered the house and were entrapped.  They are now reported out of the house.  There was also an explosion reported not attached to the structure.  A second alarm is requested.

UPDATED 9:20 a.m.: The fire has been knocked down.

UPDATE 11:05 a.m.: Batavia Stafford Townline Road has been reopened.

An investigation stemming from the report of a vehicle that was damaged while the owner was at a City Council meeting on Sept. 12 has resulted in charges for Jill M. Turner of Batavia.

Turner, 40, was charged with criminal mischief, second-degree, upon her arrest on Oct. 13, city police said. She was arraigned in Batavia City Court and released on her own recognizance, to return at 1:30 p.m. Thursday.

The unidentified owner of the defiled automobile filed a claim after that September meeting, stating that someone had poured nail polish on her vehicle while she was at the meeting and a public hearing about a current law that allows farm animals within city limits.

Some residents, including the claimant, who lived near Turner had complained that her goats and other animals were a nuisance to the neighborhood. Turner was not at the meeting that drew some 30 people to the second-floor City Council chambers that evening. Shannon Maute, one of her neighbors, said she "was happy to see that an arrest had been made."

"We are tired of being tormented and bullied by Jill," Maute said to The Batavian Sunday evening. "I hope that this will send her a message that she can't get away with it any more. There are consequences for her actions and her behavior."

Detective Eric Hill had confirmed at the time when the damage was first noted that there was “an open investigation into the matter right now,” after The Batavian inquired about the damaged vehicle that was parked in Jefferson Square.

“I’m not sure on the level and location of polish and we don't have an estimate (of the value of the damage) at this time,” Hill had said in an email to The Batavian.

UPDATED 3:20 p.m.: According to a source close to the vehicle owner, the damage has been assessed at nearly $2,000.

The Pembroke Dragons improved to 7-1 by defeating CG Finney/Christian Northstar 47-12 Saturday.

Tyson Totten rushed for over 200 yards for the fifth time this season. Felski added three touchdowns while Sean Pustkulla caught a 48-yard pass from Cayden Pfazler for TD right before halftime. 

Nate Duttweiler had a sack and forced a fumble on defense while Cayden Pfalzer had an interception with Joe Gibson recovering a fumble. 

Tyson Totten, Jacob Von Kramer, Jayden Mast, Octavius Martin, Jacob Dulski, Caleb Felski, Jayden Bridge, JJ Gabbey and Cayden Pfazler all had five or more tackles on the day. 

Photos courtesy of Kim Dulski.

For the seventh time in seven games, the Oakfield-Alabama/Elba Aggies scored at least 38 points on their way to a dominating win.

Only once has an opponent scored more than one touchdown against the Aggies.

This time, OAE beat Notre Dame 48-0.

Scoring:

• Bodie Hyde runs for 2 yards.
• Bodie Hyde passes to Kyle Porter for 55 yards.
• Bodie Hyde runs for 67 yards.
• Noah Currier runs for 27 yards.
• Bodie Hyde runs for 27 yards.
• Noah Currier runs for 33 yards.
• Noah Currier runs for 41 yards.

Avery Watterson hit six of seven point after attempts.

Hyde was 7-9 passing for 154 yards, a TD and an interception.

Currie rushed for 169 yards and three touchdowns on 12 attempts.  Hyde gained 145 yards, scored three times, on 12 carries.

Porter had three receptions for 74 yards and a TD.

"This was a great game to wrap up the end of the regular season with," said Head Coach Tyler Winter. "It was a solid performance on the scoreboard and we took a step in our team's process.  However, there is still plenty to take back to the film room and dive into as we prepare for our second season."

The Fighting Irish finish the regular season 4-3.

Photos by Kristin Smith.  For more, click here.

In a season in which no opponent has even come close to beating Batavia, for the fourth time in seven games the Blue Devils held a challenger to fewer than seven points.

This time it was Newark/Marion that Batavia dominated for a convincing 54-6 win.

Scoring: 

• Ja'vin McFollins 30-yard pass to Aidan Anderson.
• Cam McClinic, six-yard run.
• McFollins 6-yard pass to Brendan Burgess.
• Anderson, 3-yard run.
• McFollins 15-yard pass to Carter McFollins
• Anderson, 6-yard run.
• Newark scores on a kickoff return.
• Bronx Buchholz 30-yard run.
• Devan Flanagan, 7-yard run.

McFollins was 10-11 passing for 141 and the three TDs.

Mekhi Fortes gained 67 yards on six carries. McClinic, 54 yards and a TD on six carries. Anderson 34 yards and two TDs on five carries.  Bucholz, 45 yards and a TD on three carries.

To view or purchase photos, click here.

Photos by Steve Ognibene