More than 35 vendors participated today in a Vendor Blender inside City Centre as a fundraiser for All Babies Cherished.

Press release from the Old Hippies:

GONE FISHIN'! Kay and I have come to a difficult decision to pause our Home to Home Concert Series for the Common Good livestream after this evening's show -- #60 in a row -- May 22 at 7 p.m.

Thank you to everyone who has joined in our fun and music.

We will keep you posted on our website when the livestreams will start again, www.oldhippiesmusic.com, facebook old hippies, and billmcdonald, instragram Oldhippiesbillandkay, and twitter Ohippies.

The livestream can be found as follows:

• www.oldhippiesmusic.com
• https://www.facebook.com/bill.mcdonald.188

We appreciate all your support,

Bill and Kay McDonald

An Alabama resident was arrested Friday morning after members of the Local Drug Task Force searched his home and allegedly found brass knuckles, "kung fu stars,"* and two revolvers.

Marc C.J. Cook, 30, of Church Street, Alabama, is charged with five counts of criminal possession of a weapon, 3rd, and two counts of criminal possession of a firearm.

The task force obtained a search warrant based on an ongoing investigation of Cook into possession of illegal firearms.

Cook was also taken into custody on two warrants. One, out of the City of Batavia, was based on a charge of criminal use of drug paraphernalia, 2nd, and the other was a Family Court warrant on an alleged Family Court violation.

On the weapons charges and the city warrant, Cook was released under the supervision of Genesee Justice. On the Family Court warrant, Judge Charles Zambito, based on state guidelines, set bail at $100.

The task force was assisted by uniformed deputies, the State Police response team, and the District Attorney's Office.

*A shuriken (Japanese: 手裏剣; literally: "hidden hand blade") is a Japanese concealed weapon that was used as a hidden dagger or metsubushi to distract or misdirect. They are also known as throwing stars or ninja stars, although they were originally designed in many different shapes.

Yesterday, JoAnne Rock spotted a swarm of bees buzzing down North Spruce Street in Batavia before taking up temporary residence in a tree in front of her house. She said she was told the hive follows the queen and would likely move on soon.

If you’ve been driving around lately, no doubt you’ve been seeing those words plastered on signs on the windows of numerous businesses.

The perception that people aren’t entering the workforce because they are receiving extended unemployment checks is partly valid. But there are other reasons while business owners are pulling their collective hair out trying to find employees.

Theresa Van Son, (photo at right), director of the Genesee County Career Center (Job Development Bureau), indicated as much earlier this week as she reviewed her agency’s 2020 activity to the Genesee County Legislature’s Ways & Means Committee.

“I think that (enhanced unemployment benefits) are part of the issue,” she said, “but I think there are other things that are affecting it as well."

Two of those “things” are the parental need to take care of their children in a remote or hybrid school setting and the New York State Department of Labor being too busy to track if the unemployed are seeking work.

“If schools aren’t fully back again, those parents may not have those options (for childcare) so they may be wanting to stay on their unemployment,” she said. “Another piece of it is when you register for unemployment every week, you have to say that you’re ready, willing and able to work and that you’re doing job search activities. But, right now, the Department of Labor is focused on, still, processing all of those claims and nobody is checking that.”

Van Son said she expects job seeking to “kick into high gear in September when everybody is scrambling to find a job and they don’t have that extra money (when federal unemployment insurance runs out).”

“And we’re prepared for that. We’re doing everything we can to assist local businesses who are looking to find job seekers. You see the (help wanted) signs everywhere. The outlook right now for businesses is that they will look at any candidate,” she offered.

She said that those out of work and receiving benefits are required to come to her office at the Eastown Plaza “to do employment activities and they’re not doing that right now.”

In looking back at 2020, Van Son said the COVID-19 pandemic is putting a huge dent in revenues.

Noting that Genesee County does not directly fund the services of the Job Development Bureau, she said she anticipates a funding shortfall of $70,000 this year compared to 2020. That mostly stems from lost income from the agency’s access contract with New York State Department of Education and its Working To Success program with the Genesee County Department of Social Services.

“It certainly has been a year of challenges and we are justly proud of the work the Job Development Bureau Team has accomplished during the unprecedented time …,” she reported. “We have modified programs, rearranged our space, and adapted plans and schedules multiple times, while adjusting to telework and a virtual environment.”

She said she has cut back on expenses wherever possible, with the plan to use $70,000 of reserves to offset the deficit. Currently, the agency’s cash on hand is about $92,000, she reported.

As far as staffing is concerned, Van Son said three of her five employees are “provisional” and another is of retirement age. She said she hopes all will be staying on for a while longer.

The news wasn’t all gloomy, however, she said, mentioning the cross-training of employees (no more specialized counselors for adult, youth and access) and the signing of a new five-year lease.

“Upgrades were negotiated to increase our building security,” she said. “We added a bathroom off the resource room, which will allow us to limit building traffic, we installed an emergency exit in the back of the building, and we have new carpeting.”

Van Son also said the department has met all contract requirements two months in advance, is “exceeding all of our benchmarks and performance measures” and is serving more citizens than ever.

Other highlights of her report are as follows:

• The agency financially supported 32 people enrolled in occupational training, providing $53,400 for tuition, books and other items. Sixteen more dislocated workers received nearly $35,000 using Trade Act Assistance, which has increased dramatically due to the closing of several local trade-affected businesses. And another 21 people received around $36,500 in work training subsidies as they embarked upon new jobs in the county.

• Thirty-seven youth in jobs at 25 local businesses and nonprofit agencies were subsidized with more than $56,000 in wages during the summer program. The agency began a work ethic awards process and 90 percent of participants received awards. Additionally, two youths were hired into ongoing unsubsidized employment at the end of the summer.

• Five job fairs were conducted, connect 130 job seekers to 56 employers that attended the fairs. Virtual job fairs, however, had to be cancelled due to a lack of registrations.

• The GLOW Workforce Development Area is receiving an increase in funding for this year from the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act Grant. It includes a 33-percent increase for dislocated workers, offsetting slight reductions in funds for adult services and youth services. This contract covers salary, fringe, equipment, and operational expenses for WIOA services, which make up 66 percent of the Career Center’s annual budget. 

• The Job Development Bureau was awarded a five-year contract with NYS Department of Education ACCES-VR to provide Assessment, Work Readiness Services, Job Development and Placement Services, and Work Experience Services. The contract is for a maximum of $102,100 per year. Van Son said referrals to the program have been low during COVID-19, resulting in the agency being $46,560 behind on planned revenue.

Press release:

GO Health Departments will be on the road with Pop-up Clinics. The Pfizer vaccine is approved to vaccinate anyone 12 years old and older. All clinics are now available for walk-in and registration.  

“We have been very successful with the Pop-up Clinics,” said Paul Pettit, Public Health director for GO Health. “We are finding many people are happy to be getting their vaccination closer to where they work and play.

"The scheduling is a great opportunity for more people to get vaccinated. Being fully vaccinated, two weeks after the second dose for Moderna and Pfizer and two weeks after the single dose of Johnson & Johnson will help us enjoy the spring and summer activities with less restrictions.”

Pfizer, J & J and Moderna clinics offer walk-in opportunities; however, we encourage you to register via links below and choose the vaccine that best works for you to guarantee your dose and make your appointment quick and easy. Walk-ins are available on a first come, first serve basis. You can also click on the direct links below.

For those who do not have internet they can call the GO Health Vaccine Registration Help Lines:  

• Genesee: (585) 815-7168
• Orleans: (585) 589-3170

These lines are ONLY to make vaccine appointments, are not able to answer COVID-related questions, and are not associated with either Health Department.  

“With everyone looking forward to the summer and the looser restrictions we encourage everyone to get vaccinated now,” Pettit said. “There continues to be plenty of options to get any of the three vaccines offered. For your health and the health of others, we encourage everyone who is able to be vaccinated, to get vaccinated now.”

If you are a business/church/organization that is interested in hosting a vaccination clinic at your location, please fill out the survey: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/GOHealthPopUpVaccineClinic. One of our staff members will be in contact with you.

For those who are seeking testing, both health departments provide limited free rapid testing for those without symptoms at the respective Health Departments.

For Genesee County, a rapid test drive-through clinic is scheduled for May 27^th 1:15-3:15 p.m. at County Building #2, 3837 W. Main Street Road, Batavia.

For Orleans County, a rapid test clinic is scheduled for May 26^th 10 - 10:30 a.m. at the Orleans County Health Department at 14016 Route 31 West, Albion.

To register for testing for the Genesee Test Clinic: http://bit.ly/GeneseeTests. To register for the Orleans Test Clinic: https://bit.ly/OCHDRapidTest.

********************************

• Tuesday, May 25   /  10 a.m. - 12 p.m.   /   Ridgeway Fire Hall -- 11392 Ridge Road, Medina

Moderna: Walk-ins & Appointment

http://bit.ly/ModernaRidgeway

J&J: Walk-ins & Appointment

http://bit.ly/GOHealthJJVaccine

********************************

• Wednesday, May 26   /    1:30 - 3 p.m.  /   GCC Athletic Arena -- 1 College Road, Batavia

Pfizer: Walk-ins & Appointment

http://bit.ly/PfizerGCC

J&J: Walk-ins & Appointment

http://bit.ly/JanssenGCC

********************************

• Thursday, May 27  /  11 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.  /   Holley American Legion -- 5 Wright St., Holley (Entrance on Parkway Street)

Moderna: Walk-ins & Appointment

http://bit.ly/HolleyModerna

J&J: Walk-ins

********************************

• Thursday, May 27  /   2 - 3:30 p.m.  /   Kendall Fire Department -- 1879 Kendall Road, Kendall

Moderna: Walk-ins & Appointment

http://bit.ly/KendallModerna

J&J: Walk-ins

Press release:

The Salvation Army in partnership with Northgate Free Methodist Church will be hosting a drive-through food distribution at 2 p.m. on Monday, May 24th.

This distribution will begin at 2 p.m. at Northgate Church’s north campus, 8160 Bank Street Road in Batavia.

The FDA food boxes will contain milk, produce and frozen meat. We don’t know exactly what will be in the boxes until we get them.

This will be a no contact distribution. Be sure your trunk/hatch are cleared out so the volunteers can place the boxes in your vehicle. Please present a photo ID for each household you will be picking up for.

An one-vehicle accident with minor injuries is reported at 6737 Lewiston Road, Oakfield. Traffic will be shut down at Lewiston and Bliss Road. There is a truck and debris in the roadway, blocking the northbound lane.

Oakfield fire is on scene. Mercy medics are told to respond in nonemergency mode.

Notice of Application
5/18/2021
Cider Solar Farm
Genesee County, New York

Hecate Energy Cider Solar LLC (Applicant) hereby provides notice that, on or about May 27, 2021, it intends to file an Application with the Office of Renewable Energy Siting (ORES) for a permit for the siting, construction and operation of a major renewable energy facility pursuant to Section 94-c of the New York State Executive Law. The Applicant proposes to construct an up to 500 megawatt (MW) photovoltaic (PV) solar energy generating facility, referred to as the Cider Solar Farm (the Project), in the Towns of Elba and Oakfield, Genesee County, New York. The Applicant is publishing this notice at least three (3) days prior to the filing of the Application, in accordance with 19 NYCRR §§ 900- 1.6(c).

A Notice of Intent to File an Application was published in accordance with 19 NYCRR §900-1.3(d) on February 26, 2021.

Brief Project Summary

The Project is a proposed solar-powered electric generating facility in the Towns of Elba and Oakfield, Genesee County, New York. The Project is located on an approximately 3,000-acre area located north-centrally in the County, approximately five (5) miles north of the City of Batavia. Lockport Road bisects the Project from east to west, while State Route 98 traverses the eastern portion of the Project. Project components include photovoltaic solar panels, inverters, buried electrical collection lines, gravel access roads, security fencing, and a substation. If the Project’s application to ORES for a permit is approved, the Project will interconnect to an onsite New York Power Authority (NYPA) 345 kilovolt (kV) transmission line. Project components will be located on leased private land. It is anticipated that the Project construction will commence in 2022, with commercial operation commencing in 2023.
The Project is a zero-emission, renewable source of energy that will assist the State in meeting the goals of both the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act and State Energy Plan, which include obtaining 70% of the State’s energy consumption from renewable sources by 2030, and 100% of the State’s energy from clean sources by 2040. Project benefits also include increased revenues to local tax bases, temporary and permanent employment, and purchase of local goods and supplies. While the construction and operation of the Project may result in certain temporary and long-term environmental impacts, as will be fully described in the Application, the Applicant has designed the Project to minimize impacts to land and the community by avoiding forestlands and wetlands to the extent practical.

Applicant Representative

The designated contact person for this Project is:
Hecate Energy Cider Solar LLC Harrison Luna, Development Manager
621 W Randolph Street
Chicago, IL 60661
(833) 529-6597
CiderSolar@HecateEnergy.com
The website established for this Project by the Applicant is www.cidersolarfarm.com.
 
Availability of Funds
Pursuant to 19 NYCRR §§ 900-1.4(a)(8) and Subpart 900-5, upon the filing of the Application, the Applicant will provide funding to be disbursed by ORES to local agencies and potential community intervenors to defray expenses for experts, including attorneys and consultants, associated with participating in the Section 94-c process. Within thirty (30) days of the date of the filing of the Application, any local agency or potential community intervenor seeking funding from the local agency account must submit a request for initial funding to the Office of Renewable Energy Siting at 99 Washington Avenue, Albany, New York 12231, Attention: Request for Local Agency Account Funding.

The Batavia Town Board on Wednesday night voted in favor of a resolution supporting the initial phase of a five-year plan to widen Route 98 (Oak Orchard Road) and possibly to construct a roundabout at the intersection of West Saile Drive, north of the New York State Thruway interchange.

The town has entered into a “federal aid local project agreement” with the state Department of Transportation – a contract that calls for 80 percent of the work to be paid through federal funding and the other 20 percent to be paid with town money.

Per the resolution, the town board authorized and approved the preliminary engineering phase of the project at a cost of $187,000, with $149,600 to be reimbursed by federal aid and $37,400 as the local share.

Town Engineer Steve Mountain indicated the municipality will handle at least 50 percent of the project design and engineering in an effort to keep some of the funding in the town’s coffers.

Mountain said he anticipates the work being completed in 2023.

In other action, the board:

• Approved a proposal from Western Regional Off-Track Betting Corp. to pay the town for additional property enhancements in connection with the Park Road Reconstruction Project scheduled for this fall.

The project, which will rehabilitate the road from Lewiston Road (Route 63) to Oak Street (Route 98), will improve traffic and aesthetics for those coming to Batavia Downs Gaming and its hotel, as well as other businesses in that section of the town/city.

In March, WROTB directors passed a resolution in favor of payment to the town of up to $395,000 for the installation of sidewalks, a promenade, tree-lined area, street and parking lot lighting, landscaping, road work, valet improvements and infrastructure.

Major work to be contracted out by the town includes new pavement, curbs and curbing from Lewiston Road to Richmond Avenue with sidewalks on both sides of Park Road; pavement overlay and sidewalks on one side of the road from Richmond Avenue to Route 98, and new water lines and street lights on Park Road between Route 63 and Richmond Avenue.

Requests for bids for the state-funded venture are expected to go out in August.

• Passed a local law establishing a Town of Batavia Remote Work Policy following a public hearing on the matter (at which no one from the community spoke).

“We’re committed to working remotely as a majority of our staff has been doing that, so we just needed to consolidate what we propose and advise to make sure that everyone is doing what is appropriate,” Supervisor Gregory Post said.

Filed the with the Department of State, the document outlines guidelines, terms and conditions for town employees who work from a location other than our offices and provides an agreement between remote work employees and their department head.

Sections of the policy include eligibility (getting prior approval, subject to a list of stipulations); work expectations; schedule; equipment (computer, software, cell phones), and insurance/compensation/benefits.

• Agreed to the issuance of serial bonds not to exceed $500,000 to purchase a jet/vacuum truck for the highway, water and sewer departments. The expense would be added to the town budget, potentially to be part of the tax levy.

As COVID-19 restrictions ease, more and more local venues are hiring, once again, musicians to perform live for patrons.

Thursday, the Sky Cats performed an outdoor show at Dave's Ice Cream.

VENUE OWNERS: If you are scheduling live music, send the time, date, location, and name of the music act to howard@thebatavian.com and we'll include the date on our calendar. If we get enough participation, we'll post upcoming shows on a weekly basis on Thursdays.

Press release:

Data Update – Covering May 18-21

• Genesee County is reporting 22 new positive cases of COVID-19. 
  • The individuals are in their 0-19s, 20s, 30s, 40s, 50s, 60s and 80s. 
  • Nine of the current positive individuals are hospitalized.
  • Twenty-five of the previous positive individuals have completed their 10-day isolation and have been removed from mandatory isolation.

​

Orleans County is reporting 13 new positive cases of COVID-19.  

• The individuals are in their 0-19s, 20s, 30s, 40s, 50s and 60s.
• One of the current positive individuals is hospitalized.
• Seventeen of the previous positive individuals have completed their 10-day isolation and have been removed from mandatory isolation.

Emily Underhill-Carlson, a graduate of Alexander High School and lifelong Batavia resident, was honored by Consulting Magazine on Thursday, May 20 as an award winner for Women in Technology, Excellence in Innovation.

Underhill-Carlson serves as the VP of Technology for Divurgent, a healthcare consulting firm based in Virginia Beach, Va.

In response to the COVID-19 crisis, she led the creation of TOBIAS, Divurgent’s first AI chatbot.

It enables real-time chat, screen sharing, and video support, which helped clients respond to the coronavirus pandemic in an efficient, economical way, often leading to a 30- to 50-percent reduction in response costs.

As the world has responded to the COVID-19 crisis, the use of technology has been and will continue to be a lifeline for clinicians.

Telehealth has grown rapidly out of necessity and has changed the way healthcare is delivered. 

A two-vehicle accident is reported at 385 W. Main St. in the city. It is blocking traffic. City fire, Mercy medics and police are responding.

The caller is a driver with a possible head injury.

It's in front of Falcone Electric.

Empire Hemp, which has operated a CDB processing facility in Batavia off of Swan Street for two years, held a grand opening and ribbon-cutting ceremony yesterday at its new retail store at 204 E. Main St., Batavia.

The store sells a variety of products containing CDB extracted from locally grown cannabis.  

Owners Chris VanDusen and Shelly Wolanske said they don't know yet whether they will get into the business of processing and/or selling recreational marijuana, now that it's legal in New York. They're waiting to see what requirements and guidelines are issued by the state before deciding.

The video also includes a tour of their production facility.

The county took numerous steps to mitigate the impact on its bottom line, including reducing contributions to outside agencies, freezing new hires, instituting furloughs and holding off on previously scheduled capital projects.

It also, through the health department, has kept a close eye on coronavirus positivity rates and has been diligent in the testing and (now) vaccinating of its residents.

As a result of these measures, county leaders have learned that the Office of the New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli gave a passing grade to Genesee County’s strategic planning in an “Adequacy of 2021 Budgets” review released earlier this week.

The report’s “key finding” was that county officials adequately assessed the impact of the pandemic on financial operations while developing estimates for significant expenditures in the 2021 adopted budget.

Going forward, the review’s recommendation can be boiled down to “keep doing what you’ve been doing," as follows:

In consideration of the continually new and evolving impacts caused by the pandemic, County officials should carefully monitor their budgeted-to-actual revenues and expenditures and make amendments to the budget as needed throughout the year.

County Manager Matt Landers (photo at right), said he and his staff, in concert with the Genesee County Legislature, took a “commonsense approach” to preparing the 2021 budget – recognizing early that things were going to be much different as the coronavirus pandemic took hold and analyzing any and all data and information to make educated decisions.

“Genesee County put together the 2021 budget using honest, conservative and realistic estimates,” he said. “We are happy to see that the Comptroller’s Office agreed with our process, and agree that we must continue to monitor the actual results in 2021 as compared with our budget, which is something we do every year.

“The county took very conservative cost-cutting measures in 2020 leading up to the 2021 budget, including instituting a hiring freeze, furloughing county employees and putting off capital projects. These proactive 2020 moves put us into a better position to weather the difficult 2021 budget."

County Legislature Chair Rochelle Stein also said the conservative approach worked well in finalizing a $143,712,993 overall budget ($110,276,137 general budget) and reaching a property tax rate of $9.80 per thousand of assessed value – 31 cents less than the 2020 tax rate. About $2.4 million was appropriated from the county’s fund balance to balance the budget.

“The strategy that Matt and the legislature employed was one of very clear, concise and transparent communication,” Stein said. “Matt has provided to the legislature, in his reports and updates during that budget process, every piece of information that we could glean from the New York State Association of Counties, Office of the State Comptroller, daily conversations that the governor held – every place that we could possibly pull information from – along with all of our department heads and outside agencies.”

Stein said she is “proud” of the job that Landers, his team, department heads and outside agencies did in putting the budget together “because we used the best information that we could possibly have at that time.”

Landers said the county continues to face challenges as it deals with circumstances and situations coming out of the pandemic.

“We are bracing for additional state budget cost shifts as we work on Phase 3 Water Project to ensure water supply keeps up with demand and as we seek to fund the new county jail,” he said.

The Office of the Comptroller selected 20 municipal governments in New York for budget reviews, noting it sought to understand how municipalities worked through difficult times and understanding that the pandemic affected local governments at different levels.

Click here to read the full review.

Press release:

New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Commissioner Basil Seggos and State Department of Health (DOH) Commissioner Howard Zucker, M.D., J.D., issued an Air Quality Health Advisory for Western New York, Eastern Lake Ontario, and Central New York regions for Friday, May 21.

The pollutant of concern is: Ozone.

The advisory will be in effect 11 a.m. through 11 p.m.

DEC and DOH issue Air Quality Health Advisories when DEC meteorologists predict levels of pollution, either ozone or fine particulate matter are expected to exceed an Air Quality Index (AQI) value of 100. The AQI was created as an easy way to correlate levels of different pollutants to one scale, with a higher AQI value indicating a greater health concern.

OZONE

Summer heat can lead to the formation of ground-level ozone, a major component of photochemical smog. Automobile exhaust and out-of-state emission sources are the primary sources of ground-level ozone and are the most serious air pollution problems in the northeast. This surface pollutant should not be confused with the protective layer of ozone in the upper atmosphere.

People, especially young children, those who exercise outdoors, those involved in vigorous outdoor work and those who have respiratory disease (such as asthma) should consider limiting strenuous outdoor physical activity when ozone levels are the highest (generally afternoon to early evening).

When outdoor levels of ozone are elevated, going indoors will usually reduce your exposure. Individuals experiencing symptoms such as shortness of breath, chest pain or coughing should consider consulting their doctor.

Ozone levels generally decrease at night and can be minimized during daylight hours by curtailment of automobile travel and the use of public transportation where available.

New Yorkers also are urged to take the following energy-saving and pollution-reducing steps: 

• use mass transit or carpool instead of driving, as automobile emissions account for about 60 percent of pollution in our cities;
• conserve fuel and reduce exhaust emissions by combining necessary motor vehicle trips;
• turn off all lights and electrical appliances in unoccupied areas;
• use fans to circulate air. If air conditioning is necessary, set thermostats at 78 degrees;
• close the blinds and shades to limit heat build-up and to preserve cooled air;
• limit use of household appliances. If necessary, run the appliances at off-peak (after 7 p.m.) hours. These would include dishwashers, dryers, pool pumps and water heaters;
• set refrigerators and freezers at more efficient temperatures;
• purchase and install energy efficient lighting and appliances with the Energy Star label; and
• reduce or eliminate outdoor burning and attempt to minimize indoor sources of PM 2.5 such as smoking. A toll-free Air Quality Hotline (1-800-535-1345) has been established by DEC to keep New Yorkers informed of the latest Air Quality situation. 

Additional information on ozone and PM 2.5 is available on DEC's website and http://www.health.ny.gov/environmental/outdoors/air/ozone.htm on DOH's website.

Today's Air Quality Health Advisory region consist of the following: Region 6 Eastern Lake Ontario, which includes Monroe, Wayne, North Cayuga, Oswego, and Jefferson counties; Region 7 Central New York, which includes Allegany, Broome, Southern Cayuga, Chemung, Chenango, Cortland, Delaware, Southern Herkimer, Livingston, Madison, Onondaga, Oneida, Ontario, Otsego, Tioga, Tompkins, Schuyler, Seneca, Steuben, and Yates counties; and Region 8 Western New York, which includes Chautauqua, Cattaraugus, Erie, Wyoming, Genesee, Niagara, and Orleans counties.

Press release:

Congressman Chris Jacobs (NY-27) cosponsored the Broadband for Rural America Act developed by the House Agriculture Committee.

"Increasing broadband access in Western New York has been a top priority of mine since taking office, and I continue to work to advance rural communities' access to this critical service," Jacobs said.

"The pandemic has made it more clear broadband expansion is critical to moving our region forward, and the Broadband for Rural America Act brings us one step closer to closing the digital divide and bolstering our students, farmers, and small businesses."

This legislation authorizes $3.7 billion per year for broadband expansion and connection programs, including the USDA's Broadband ReConnect Program. In addition, it codifies a set standard for internet speeds at the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) target of 25/3 Mbps upload and download speeds.

Finally, the legislation invests in the development and deployment of future-proof technologies to support the long-term needs of residents and focuses funding to expanding access in the hardest-to-reach rural areas.

Press release:

For many years, Community Action of Orleans and Genesee has been a resource supporting reliable and affordable transportation services to community members in our two counties via the Community Action Transportation System, better known CATS.

But the current system of providing bus transportation has become exceedingly expensive for Community Action. Over recent years, many of our bus trips contain only one or two riders. Using buses to transport a single rider is extremely expensive and the costs have continued to rise with increases in insurance, bus maintenance, fuel and wages.

It is with a heavy heart that Community Action has made the decision to downsize the CATS Bus transportation system. With costs exceeding revenue, it is deemed necessary to protect our ability to provide the many unique and essential services we bring to our customers. This will be difficult and this process will take time.

“Fuel and bus maintenance is costly, while ridership is low due to COVID and new conveniences such as remote work, grocery delivery, and telehealth,” said Community Action Executive Director Renee Hungerford.

The CATS program has been providing to residents, bus transportation service for established routes and for “on-demand” rides year-round, five days per week.  Destinations included community health centers, doctor and hospital visits, treatment centers, clinics, dialysis, and retail store shopping.

The caring and courageous staff continued services throughout the COVID-19 pandemic despite a drastic reduction in riders along with the added effort of sanitizing buses between trips. 

Community Action services have been able to support clients who are elderly or disabled and who remain independent in their homes but do not own/drive a vehicle. 

CATS bus transportation services have evolved where experienced and professional staff have dedicated themselves not only to ensuring maintained vehicles but have also provided very caring door-to-door and door-through-door service for some of our clients.

Today however, our friends at Rochester Transportation Services (RTS) and others are helping to fulfill this need. 

Community Action will work with partners to do everything possible to ensure transportation needs are met by offering other transportation options to our Community Action clients. We will continue to provide busing for our Head Start program.

As we go through this process, we will research the possibility to evolve our community transportation support to vans and energy efficient vehicles that meet the special needs of valued customers.

Dear Batavia,

Bourbon and Burger here, this Saturday, May 22nd is our 10-year anniversary. We wanted to take this time to thank some people. 

Thank you to our parents, who without them, this would never have been possible; thank you for believing in us. Thank you to our staff members over the past ten years and especially this most recent year, without you there is no Bourbon & Burger. Your hard work and dedication never goes unnoticed.

Thank you to our friends who came in everyday for a year to make sure we made it. Thank you to all of you, the community of Batavia and surrounding neighbors. Thank you for all of the support you’ve given us over the years. Thank you for making us a part of your lives, from first dates to engagements, from births to losses. You’ve come here to celebrate and to commiserate.

Thank you for allowing us to be there for you just as much as you’ve been there for us. At some point it becomes more than a restaurant, it’s a safe place, a livelihood, a hangout, a home. Thank you for helping us turn hamburgers into something so much more. BourbonAndBurger.com