batavia

Author and journalist Tom Rivers was at Present Tense books and gifts on Washington Avenue, Batavia, today to sign copies of his newest book, "All Ears."

The book is a collection of some of Rivers' best pieces about community life during his 15 years at the Batavia Daily News.

Rivers is now editor of OrleansHub, an online news source serving Orleans County.

"All Ears" is available at Present Tense.

Pictured with Rivers, his 7-year-old daughter, Lucy.

Press release:

The City of Batavia is proud to announce the promotion of Officer Jason Davis to the rank of Sergeant in the City’s Police Department effective April 21. Officer Davis will fill the Sergeant’s position created on April 1, 2013 by City Council resolution.

Officer Davis joined the Batavia Department in 1999 after having served as a Police Officer in the Town of Ellicottville and Deputy Sheriff for the Cattaraugus County Sheriff’s Department. During his career with BPD Officer Davis has served as a Field Training Officer, has been a member of the Department’s Emergency Response Team, served as the Department’s Drug Recognition Expert and recently became a NYS Certified Instructor.

Officer Davis will provide veteran leadership and skill to the Department. Officer Davis lives in the Town of Batavia, is married with four children. When not on the job Officer Davis enjoys being a Cub Master for Cub Scout Pack 650.

The wall of a commericial building on Federal Drive in Batavia has collapsed. Town of Batavia Fire Department is responding.

UPDATE 1:31 p.m.: The chief on scene says the eastside exterior wall collapsed outward, but the building itself is still standing. A code enforcement officer is called and National Grid is on location. "All units can back it down. There's no emergency at this time."

UPDATE 2 p.m.: The actual location is 4330 Commerce Drive. The building is an automotive parts facility. Code enforcement is on scene. Town of Batavia's engine that was on scene left  responded to an automatic alarm of fire at the Quaker Muller factory, which turned out to be nothing.

Jamie R. Bachorski, 18, of Webber Avenue, Oakfield, and Matthew J. Vandorn, 23, of Trumbell Parkway, Batavia, are charged with burglary, 3rd. Bachorski and Vandorn were arrested yesterday as the result of an investigation into a burglary reported July 5. The investigation began with the report of a barn being broken into and several items stolen. Both suspects were jailed on $5,000 each. The investigation was conducted by Juvenile Officer John Dehm, Investigator Timothy Weis and deputies Timothy Wescott, Cory Mower, Chad Minuto and James Diehl.

Carl Joseph Shelter, 25, of Lewiston Road, Alabama, is charged with unlawful fleeing a police officer in a motor vehicle, failure to stop for stop sign, speeding (139 mph in a 55 mph zone), operation of a motor vehicle by an unlicensed driver and failure to keep right. Shelter was arrested following a pursuit that started on Feeder Road, Alabama, at 12:56 a.m. and concluded later on the Tonawanda Indian Reservation. He is also charged with uninspected motor vehicle, no/inadequate plate lamp and failure to dim high beams.

A Batavia man entered a guilty plea in federal court yesterday to one count of transporting an individual in interstate commerce for the purpose of engaging in illegal sexual activity.

Timothy Logsdon, 29, of Dewey Avenue, Batavia, faces a sentence of up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

The Sheriff's Office initiated an investigation in September after receiving a report that a 16-year-old girl was missing. The girl's parents suspected their daughter might be with Logsdon.

The FBI assisted in the investigation and obtained a court order to allow a trace of Logsdon's mobile phone.

Logsdon was located by Kentucky State Police in Bowling Green.

When located, Logsdon admitted to officers that he was in the process of transporting the victim to the state of Tennessee where the two planned to live together and carry on a relationship. The defendant was placed under arrest and remains in custody.

Sentencing is set for Aug. 5.

The Batavia High School Boys Tennis Team beat Honeoye Falls-Lima today, 6-1.

Head Coach John Kirkwood thinks this team will be notching quite a few more wins this season.

"I see us going very deep in sectionals and I see us representing very well in the Class B  tournament as we've done the past three or four years," Lockwood said.

Batavia is now 1-1 in Monroe County league play and 1-0 in its division.

In this early part of this season, with all the bad weather, Lockwood is letting his younger guys play a few more matches so they can gain some experience before the team heads into a tougher part of the schedule.

"That helps young guys develop and that will pay dividends for us down the road," Lockwood said.

The top three singles players are Nate Palmer, Jeff Redband and Samir Jain.

Palmer hasn't played yet this year, but Redband and Jain are off to good starts. Today, the two sophomores won their matches easily, 6-0 and 6-0 for Redband over Max Wilkinson, and Jain beat Leo Orsini 6-0, 6-1.

"We've got one of the tougher schedules we've had in five or six years," Lockwood said.
"We picked up Fairport. We picked up Webster-Schroeder. We've picked up the top programs for our top three or four guys. We need to make sure we had the best teams on our schedule for them to develop."

Advancing in sectionals will take a couple of the younger guys stepping forward and forming a strong doubles tandem.

Palmer, Redband and Jain are all candidates to go deep in singles play when sectionals arrive, Lockwood said, if not make it to state qualifiers.

Also today, Ken McMaster won over Alex Lazarus-Hall 6-1, 6-0.

In doubles, Tim Martin and Jon McMaster defeated Brett Peters and Garrett Fletcher 6-1, 6-0; Avery Midla and Caleb Jackson defeated Joe Moore and Ed Schauber 6-0, 6-0; and
David Knaudt and Ross Chua lost to Austin Ainsworth and Josh Geary 6-0, 6-0.

To purchase photos from today's match, click here.

A structure fire is reported 735 Genesee St., Corfu.

Corfu fire along with Pembroke, East Pembroke, Darien and the City's Fast Team all dispatched.

Firefighters on scene say people are still in the house and they're trying to get them out. The fire is at the back of the structure, possibily on a porch.

UPDATE 11:34 p.m.: The City's Fast Team is cancelled.

UPDATE 11:35 p.m.: The fire is knocked down. Crittendon and Akron were also called, but now are cancelled.

UPDATE 12:15 a.m.: Corfu returning to quarters.

A one-car accident with injuries is reported at Law and Chestnut streets. City fire, police and Mercy medics are responding. This is at a sharp curve in the roadway.

UPDATE 9:59 p.m.: The scene is clear. The woman driver did not appear to suffer any serious injury. She may have had a medical injury prior to the accident. A utility pole was badly damaged and National Grid was on scene.

Meet Dave. Dave is an employee of Waste Management, tasked with walking every residential street in Batavia to hang door hangers promoting the company's garbage collection service.

Starting June 1, city residents will be responsible for contracting with their own refuse and recycling company.

Besides Genesee ARC, local companies such as Gardner Disposal and PSI (and a third one that will announce its new business soon), are competing for customers.

Asked if WM will offer totes, Dave said only if enough customers sign up for WM's service.

Dave's worked nearly the entire city since Saturday by himself, with just some help on Saturday and Monday. He had only two more blocks to visit when we spoke.

Press release:

The Batavia Business Improvement District will hold its annual meeting and awards luncheon on Friday, April 26, from noon to 1:30 p.m. (registration is at 11:45 a.m.) at the City Church Generation Center, 15 Center St. in Downtown Batavia.

The agenda will include a review of the B.I.D.’s accomplishments and the announcement of the newly elected members to the Board of Directors.

The “Downtown Spirit” Business Awards are to be presented to: Michael DelPlato & Peter Casey of DelPlato & Casey Law Office, Howard Owens of The Batavian, and Harry Wortzman of Wortzman Furniture.

The “Downtown Spirit” Volunteer Awards are to be presented to: James Isaac (Crossroads Abstract), serving as B.I.D. vice-president and on the Organization Committee and Michael Marsh (Edward Jones Financial), serving on the BID Promotion / Taste of the Holidays committees. 

Guest Speaker: Patrick Finan, Founder & Principal of Block Club (Buffalo-based branding and marketing agency). His topic will be:  Downtowns and the Importance of Building Strong, Local, Living Economies.”  Patrick business was named "The Third Fastest Growing Company In WNY" and he's the youngest recipient of Business First 40 Under 40 Aaward. 

All B.I.D. members and area business are invited. A special buffet will be served at T.F. Brown’s. Price is $15 per person. RSVP and payment by Monday, April 22. To make reservations contact Don Burkel, B.I.D. Director, at 344-0900 or e-mail at  dburkel@downtownbataviany.com.

Pembroke native Rich Funke, who started his broadcast career at WBTA, will receive a lifetime achievement award from St. John Fisher College.

The award is named after Jack Palvino, a member of the university's first graduating class who became well known in Rochester media.

The award ceremony is this evening.

Funke's broadcast career in Rochester and Batavia spans 40 years.

His first big assignment in broadcast news was covering the Attica prison riot for WBTA.

(via WHEC)

A white-haired man estimated to be in his 70s was struck be a vehicle within the last half hour in front of Burger King on West Main Street in the city. But he got up and walked away from the scene.

City firefighters went to the location and could not find him, so they returned to quarters. City police scoured the area of Oak and Main and found him in front of Parise's Automotive & Towing. A medic was sent to check him out. Police are back in service.

UPDATE 2:49 p.m.: Mercy medics are transporting the 71-year-old pedestrian to UMMC. He was "lightly struck" by a vehicle and is complaining of left knee pain.

Batavia Middle School is in lock-down. No one is being allowed to leave or enter the buildings but law enforcement is not giving a reason just yet.

Law enforcement told WBTA's Dan Fischer that "there's nothing to be concerned about at this time."

The incident began within the last hour and four city police cars and a State Police K-9 unit responded to the Ross Street school.

UPDATE 2:27 p.m.: The students are safely inside the school. Howard is now on scene.

UPDATE 2:34 p.m.: The lock-down is over. According to Superintendent Chris Dailey, there was a verbal threat made and authorities investigated it and determined it to be unfounded. Responders are back in service.

UPDATE 2:59 p.m.: Superintendent Dailey made this statement to the media: "We contacted the police. They came in, did an assesement and we were given the all clear. Now we’re out of the lock-down. And they are following up on the verbal threat as we speak."

The lock-down lasted about 45 minutes.

"There was a verbal threat against the school. We'll have more to say when they are done with the investigation."

Asked if the tragic bombing Monday at the Boston Marathon made people all the more edgy today, he said it did.

"We're all on edge, absolutely, and looking to make sure everyone is safe, which is our number one priority. That's why we went through all the policies and procedures and made sure we followed through on everything and made sure the students were safe."

UPDATE 3:45 p.m.: Here's a press release from Police Chief Shawn Heubusch:

"At approximately 1325 hrs. the Batavia Police Deparetment responded to a 'bomb threat' at the Batavia Middle School. The threat was called into the school by an unknown person.

"Upon arrival Asst. Chief Yaeger and Sgt. Camp directed patrols to perform a cursory search of the interior and exterior of building with the assistance of Middle School staff, looking for anything suspcious. Nothing was located. The Bomb Disposal unit from the New York State Police was requested to the scene. Trooper Jackson responded and performed a more detailed search utilizing a K-9 trained in explosive detection. No device was located and the school returned to normal activity.

The Batavia Police Department is currently investigating the matter and has developed leads from the investigation.

The Batavia School District should be commended for its quick response and action taken during this event."

In addition to Yaeger and Camp and Trooper Jackson, the investigating officers are: officers Davis, Lawrence, Richards and Hill.

UPDATE 4:28 p.m.: Below is a copy of a letter that is being sent to middle school parents.

Dear Middle School Parent/Guardian,

Today the Middle School received a verbal threat to the school via the telephone. Law enforcement officials were notified immediately and the building was placed in a low level shelter in place situation until we were cleared by the authorities.

Although we cannot plan for every type of emergency that might occur, we want you to know that we have increased our surveillance, including locking the outside door of the attendance office.  Please feel free to call an administrator if you have any questions about this or about our Emergency Management Plan.  The safety of our students and staff is of the utmost importance to us all.

Sincerely,

Sandra C. Griffin
Principal
 

Robert Thomas Seager, 43, of East Main Road, Batavia, is charged with felony DWI, driving with a BAC of .08, leaving the scene of a property damage accident, failure to stop at stop sign, consumption of alcohol in a motor vehicle and refusal to take breath test. Seager was arrested following the investigation into a property damage accident reported at 9:51 p.m. Tuesday at Putnam and Creek roads, Bethany. (Initial Report)

Autumn Marie Sierra, 19, of 77nd Street, Brooklyn, is charged with criminal nuisance, 2nd, and unlawful possession of marijuana. Sierra is suspected of covering the smoke detector in her room at College Village making it inoperable. Upon investigation, Sierra was also allegedly found to possess marijuana. Also charged was Mona'e Kristin Damon, 18, of Thompkins Avenue, Brooklyn, as well as Oumou Sy, 18, of East 102nd Street, New York City.

Christopher Leo Stone, 30, of Willow Pond Way, Penfield, is charged ith DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater and speeding. Stone was stopped at 1:09 a.m. April 13 on Route 33, Byron, by Sgt. Greg Walker, for allegedly driving 84 mph in a 55 mph zone.

Rodeny Ira Dean, 45, of Bloomingdale Road, Tonawanda Indian Reservation, is charged with felony DWI, moved from lane unsafely, refusal to submit to pre-screen device, drinking alcohol in a motor vehicle. Dean was reportedly involved in a single-car accident at 8:18 p.m., Monday, on Akron Road, Pembroke. Dean's vehicle struck the guy wire of a utility pole, shearing the pole and knocking electrical wires to the ground. Dean suffered minor injuries and was transported to ECMC for evaluation. Additional charges may be pending. The accident was investigated by Deputy Chad Minuto.

Michael Lewis, 42, most recently a Batavia resident, was found guilty Tuesday of sexually assaulting two girls under age 14 in East Bloomfield over an 18-month period in 2010 and 2011.

Lewis was originally indicted on 335 counts by an Ontario County Grand Jury. It took a jury more than four hours to reach a guilty verdict on 38 counts.

According to an Ontario County District Attorney's press release, "Under the law, in indictments of this magnitude, a judge is authorized to submit representative counts of the indictment to the jury. In this case, Hon. Frederick G. Reed submitted 8 counts of Predatory Sexual Assault Against a Child, 4 counts of Endangering the Welfare of a Child, and 26 counts of Rape in the first, second and third degrees. The jury convicted Lewis of every single submitted count."

Lewis faces up to life in prison. Sentencing is set for June 26.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney James Ritts.

The press release praises the work of Ritts and the four girls who testified:

ADA Ritts did a masterful job of preparing the case and presenting it to the jury, making the huge number of crimes manageable and understandable. And real credit goes to the four young girls who testified in this case — two victims and two other witnesses. Each of them was able to summon the courage to describe to the jury, while sitting mere feet from the defendant, the sordid acts they endured or witnessed.

The main concerns of residents who live near a proposed housing development off Route 5 and Seven Springs Road are traffic and the proximity of duplexes to their own homes.

The project was the subject of a public hearing before the Town of Batavia Planning Board on Tuesday night.

Peter Zeliff, the lone investor in the development, said the plans he's presenting at this point are preliminary.

The location of streets in and out of the 120-unit development are subject to change and the configuration of where homes are placed isn't written in stone, he said.

A Batavia native, Zeliff made his money building power plants and eventually sold his company.  While he's built houses before, this is his first housing development.

Asked why was doing it, he said, "I like seeing Genesee County, Batavia grow. I saw a need for this and it seemed like a good project."

Zeliff doesn't own the 100-acres of farmland he would like to development. He has a purchase agreement in place contingent on the project being approved.

The homes Zeliff is planning are more patio homes than townhomes, he said. The price range for the houses will range from $150,000 to $300,000.

Some of the houses and duplexes will be be pre-built and sold as completed homes, while other lots will be filled with custom homes.

Everything will be built according to a design standard and there will be a homeowners' association that approves new development.

The current site map shows multi-family units on the east side of the property, closest to the current homes on Seven Springs Road.

A couple of area residents asked if the site plan could be flipped so the single family homes were closer to Seven Springs Road and Zeliff suggested he was open to such changes, but geology and topography may prevent a different configuration, said Keith Ewald, project planner from Barton & Loguidice.

Ewald said people who buy single-family homes are likely to want basements and to ensure proper soil compaction, the single-family homes would need to be on the west half of the property.

The current plan has three streets going into the development -- one on Route 5 and two on Seven Springs Road. These are subject to change based on upcoming traffic studies.

The main entrance will be on Route 5.

Zeliff has already purchased the former location of Zigrossi Buick. The property will serve partially as an entrance into the housing project and Zeliff plans some sort of commercial development on the rest of the property.

Development of the parcel will begin at that entrance because that's where the development will connect with water, sewer and electrical.

If the approval process goes as planned, Zeliff hopes to break ground in August with the first houses being built during the winter or next spring.

Zeliff figures and hopes it will take three to five years to complete the development, but that will depend on how quickly the homes sell.

With anticipated growth at the Genesee Valley Ag Park and the proposed STAMP project, Zeliff (who joined the GCLDC board less than a year ago) thinks there is going to be more demand for housing locally).

"This area is going to boom," Zeliff aid. "It's about time Western New York booms."

A motor-vehicle accident is reported Putnam and Creek roads. The vehicle is in some water in a ditch; wires are down and arcing. The male driver reportedly fled on foot. No one else is in the car. Power is said to be out on Ellicott Street Road. National Grid is notified. Bethany Fire Department is responding.

UPDATE 10:03 p.m.: The driver is said to be tall and white. The wires are no longer arcing, but power is out. The car is a red Ford.

UPDATE 10:05 p.m.: The suspect is wearing blue jeans, sneakers and a light-colored ball cap.

UPDATE 10:40 p.m.: A flatbed tow truck requested to the scene. The vehicle is in four feet of water about 50 feet off the road. 

UPDATE 11:06 p.m.: Bethany back in service.

This item was submitted by Byron Hoot, from Wexford, Pa., who has made a couple of trips to Batavia in the past year in connection with his appreciation of John Gardner, including this past Saturday's John Gardner Conference at GCC.

“The letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.” So began the first presenter for the 15th Annual John Gardner Conference hosted by Genesee Community College organized by Tracey Ford and Charley Boyd of GCC, coordinated by Sandy Hortdahl of Northeast State, Tennessee. 

It was “the spirit (that) giveth life” throughout the conference. The spirit of Gardner was alive and well among the conference attendees, who came from across New York state, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island. 

Presenters spoke on a wide range of topics, from Paul Johnston’s “Taggart Hodge, Antinomian” to John and Helen Maier’s reading of “The Miller’s Tale” in Chaucer’s Middle English, to Denise Divins’ probing look at the archetypical world of Grendel. In addition, there was Bette Smith’s excellent performance of Gardner’s one-act play, Days of Vengeance, and Jennifer Duncan’s talk of Gardner’s influence on her own writing. 

Attendees had a chance to examine some of the original Gardner materials housed at GCC and overseen by librarian Phyllis Andrews. Finally, as a visual coda, there was a screening of "The Sunlight Man," a documentary made by Gardner’s son, Joel. As important as the ideas and insights, the presence of Gardner’s brother Jim and his wife, Wanda, added the personal touch of stories from family members who loved and love Gardner still.

A pilgrimage to the Pok-a-Dot for lunch gave conference attendees added time to socialize. A hidden gem, Genesee Community College deserves much credit for keeping alive the spirit of an important American writer. This is a pilgrimage well worth making.

Press release:

The Genesee County Economic Development Center (GCEDC) announced today that the public hearing on the COR Development project application, originally scheduled for Tuesday, April 23rd at 4 p.m., has been rescheduled to April 30th at 7 p.m. to accommodate requests for the meeting to be conducted outside of normal business/working hours.

“The GCEDC strives to be a transparent and accommodating agency so when we get these types of requests we do everything we can to honor them,” said Charlie Cook, GCEDC board chairman. “It’s evident that this project has generated quite a bit of interest so we want to make sure that the community has the opportunity to learn more about the project and have their voices heard.” 

At the meeting, the GCEDC will provide a comprehensive overview of the project – including the benefits COR Development is applying for to develop the vacant Lowe's building – as well as a full disclosure of the fiscal and economic impacts the Batavia Towne Center has had on the surrounding community since it came to fruition. Following the presentation, the hearing will be open for public comment; the GCEDC also will read any written comments received by the agency prior to the public hearing.

Written comments can be sent to the GCEDC’s Marketing and Communications Director, Rachael Tabelski at Genesee County Economic Development Center, 99 MedTech Drive, Suite 106, Batavia, NY 14020.  Written comments must contain the individual’s contact information, including address and phone number, and should indicate if he or she would like the comment read at the hearing. All comments and public hearing testimony will be reviewed by the GCEDC board prior to a vote on the COR Development application for support.