260 Ross Street Batavia-City. Super solid and well taken care of 3 bedroom ranch home ready for your immediate occupancy!! This home is clean, freshly painted thru out and has been well maintained and upgraded thru out the years!! This adorable home has a lot to offer and will surprise you with all that you can’t see by driving by! The home is well laid out starting with large living room with pretty hardwood floors, oversized eat in kitchen and awesome huge pantry! There are three large bedrooms with hardwoods as well as plenty of closet space. One currently has laundry hookups should ups should you need/want first floor laundry capabilities! Downstairs is HUGE and provides a lot of additional living space! Partially finished with full bath it makes a fabulous recreation area. There is also tons of storage space and a place to have small workshop area as well. Not only is this home located in great quiet neighborhood but is located on half acre plus lot-the backyard will surprise you as it is fully fenced and private with large deck that overlooks a beautiful wooded lot not visible from the road! Check this one out for yourself! Call Reliant Real Estate today 585-344-HOME (4663)
Harry and Cahlia flank their dad, Matt Hlushak, all of Batavia, at his new CleanHit Services business at 56 Harvester Ave., Batavia. It is set to open 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesday. Photo by Joanne Beck
Matt Hlushak is not afraid of career diversity, and has always tried to use what he learned in both his personal and professional experience, he says.
A native of Pennsylvania, he worked for many years as a cook, some in retail, and eventually made his way to Batavia, where he has lived for about six and a half years, working for most of that as a document specialist. Then came the time to leave.
“I quit my job to do this because of my family’s needs. My daughter is involved in dance; she has four dance classes a week, and my son has special needs. So this was a business I thought I could set up to probably sustain a family, using the skills that I have already and based on the needs that I do have. It absolutely gives me more flexibility,” he said of his new business at The Harvester Center. “This business was more about my experience as a customer, by buying the smoking accessories and buying toys and playing with the toys after I've used the accessories. And I was just thinking, since the cannabis industry is a relatively new thing here in New York, how can I get involved in it without having money for licensures, and I’m not predisposed to a criminal record to get ahead of the list or anything? So this is how I figured I could be part of it.”
CleanHit Services will open from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesday at 56 Harvester Ave., Batavia. It’s Unit 103 on the first floor and can be accessed from the outside. Hlushak plans to give away samples of Stacey’s Pies for opening day.
As it may sound, CleanHit cleans cannabis accessories of tar residues left behind from using glass and metal paraphernalia and also cleans jewelry. Hlushak was surprised to learn that many people would just toss out their stuff and buy new ones instead of cleaning or having them cleaned, he said. He brings his personal experience to the table, as well as his prior work in a hospital using ultrasonic equipment for a central sterilization unit, he said.
He took that resume bullet item and put it to good use with his own equipment and mission statement to help others save some money, reuse their goods instead of throwing them out and buying new, and preserve what might be sentimental from having been a gift. He doesn’t sell any actual cannabis, CBD or THC products.
“It’s just a cleaning service with a relaxing place to wait while we clean your stuff, a place to shop if you’d like to look around,” he said. “A lot of smoking accessories are made out of glass. They're not all glass, they actually make them out of silicone and stuff. And I can clean those as well. But there's a lot of other small parts that are glass or metal. And with the ultrasonic cleaning and then doing it by hand as well, I can really get into some spaces and clean it up so that you can get a clean hit the next time around.”
He opted for the east side’s Harvester complex for various reasons.
“As far as setting up for somebody who’s brand new to setting up a business, I think it’s fantastic. The business incubator thing, I think, is a great idea for repurposing this old factory instead of tearing it down or doing some other unthinkable thing with it. I think it’s a fantastic use of the property, and I think it’s great that it allowed an opportunity for me personally that I appreciate,” he said. “And it was really simple to get in; it’s low rent and a smooth, easygoing process. All of these furnishings I got locally. I’m trying to find local craftspeople and artisans … I’m still looking for people. If they have crafts, I’d give them a shelf, they can consign, or I can buy at a discount and sell them.”
He has a table and two chairs set up for a game of checkers or chess, and a ring and hook game available to customers, along with a small couch and upholstered chairs, what he calls “a little light display,” which was showing a space backdrop and will switch scenes so as not to get stale, he said.
Toys include “fidgety, sensory type of things,” such as bendable spacemen, aliens, astronauts, a wooden puzzle or a block to unravel into a snake, and then one can turn it into different shapes. There are also squishy items and slimes and more traditional paraphernalia, though he’s not in this to compete with anyone, he said.
“I’m not trying to compete with any of the head shops in town or Adam Miller with their toys. The toys I’m selling are things they don’t generally have for sale,” he said. “I’m not trying to undercut anybody or say, shop with me instead. But I have a couple of things that were harder for me to find that I really liked and I think other people would like to use. So once I got my tax ID and I was able to buy in bulk, then I had access to the things that I can’t always find myself.”
Explain your process for cleaning these items.
“There’s some hand cleaning involved and there’s ultrasonic cleaning machines that I have. So you would put it in water, and you can treat it with an ultrasonic cleanser, and it could get sort of like the tiny bits of dirt and debris that you get in your rings and takes away the luster from your gems and your bracelets,” he said. “That ultrasonic machine with a bit of cleanser can loosen that up, free it up, and make it look practically like new. And I also have polishing cloths, so I can dry and polish them just like you would if you went back to your jewelry store where you got your original pieces.
“The paraphernalia is more of a hand cleaning, but sometimes they get neglected, and the tar just gets built up, and the ultrasonic portion of that will help free it up and really renew your glass pieces and your metal pieces,” he said. “I would always clean mine because I didn’t always want to spend anywhere from $5 to $40 every time I needed a new one, so I would clean it out myself, and I realized that I really did a pretty decent job. And then I thought that this is a really dirty job that a lot of people probably don’t want to do, so I can offer, I will gladly do it.”
He offers walk-in service, and wait time is about 15 to 20 minutes, he said, depending on how much a customer brings in to clean.Hours are 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Mondays and Tuesdays; 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesdays and Thursdays; and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays.
For more information, call 585-813-6202.
Matt Hlushak has tried to incorporate his work and life skills into whatever he does, and he plans to use both at his jewelry and cannabis paraphernalia cleaning business, which involves hand and ultrasonic cleaning methods. Photo by Joanne Beck
Matt shows off some of his products at CleanHit Services, in Unit 103 at 56 Harvester Ave., Batavia. Photo by Joanne Beck
Cahlia and her dad Matt Hlushak hold a toy at CleanHit on Harvester Avenue in Batavia. Photo by Joanne Beck
The Elmira Impact are set to kick off the new year with a special two-game series against the Hershey Cubs at Dave McCarthy Memorial Arena on January 4 and 5.
The matchups are as follows:
Elite Division
Jan. 4 at 8:25 p.m.
Jan. 5 at 5:55 p.m.
Premier Division
Jan. 4 at 5:40 p.m.
Jan. 5 at 1:35 p.m.
Children 12 and under receive free admission. Tickets can be purchased at elmiraimpact.com/tickets.
Get ready for an action-packed weekend of hockey as the Impact take on their rivals to start the new year.
A full slate of both girls and boys basketball is scheduled for February 8 and we hope to see you there. Batavia High School will take on the Notre Dame Irish for a full day of both JV and Varsity girls and boys basketball. All proceeds from this event will benefit the Michael Napoleone Memorial Foundation.
Game times are to be determined and will be played at both Batavia High School and Genesee Community College.
Admission will be Adults $5 & Students $2, Children 5 & under -free!
There will be a 50/50 raffle at each game.
The Foundation will be running concessions and are looking for donations of soda, water, pizza, candy and chips! Monetary donations are also gratefully accepted. All donations assist our fundraising efforts!
The Foundation will also be looking for volunteers during the games to assist with raffles and concessions. Students will be awarded community service hours if volunteering.
Please call Laurie for any donations, volunteering, or questions at 585-409-3275.
The Michael Napoleone Memorial Foundation was established in 2007 in memory of Michael Napoleone who died at the age of 8 of Burkitts Lymphoma, a form of pediatric cancer. Since its start, the Foundation has given over $750,000 to families facing the challenges of a pediatric cancer diagnosis. They have donated over $75,000 to Youth programs from their grant funding, and supported research in the amount of $95,000. They also donated $50,000 to Golisano Children's Hospital and recently just completed their $25,000 gift to United Memorial Medical Center in Batavia.
The Foundation depends solely on volunteers and less than 3% of monies raised are applied to administrative costs.
Come out and watch your hometown teams and support a great cause!
The Genesee-Orleans Regional Arts Council (GOART!) is thrilled to announce the launch of its highly anticipated 2025 Winter Art Series. Offering a diverse array of classes and workshops designed for multi-aged individuals.
The upcoming series is designed to engage art enthusiasts across the region. Participants can expect a diverse lineup that caters to a wide range of interests. From young children to adults, everyone is invited to explore their creative potential or enhance their artistic skills through our engaging programs.
Be on the lookout for the GOART! Winter Event Calendar highlighting the schedule of classes and other events, which will be widely distributed or can also be picked up at GOART!
Individuals and families who are eager to learn what classes will be offered are encouraged to visit our website for information on registration and other details. The 2025 winter art series offerings allow participants to choose from a plethora of classes that align with their interests and schedules. Included in this series are Dotting Mandela and wearable-art classes.
In addition to adult classes, we are pleased to offer specialized sessions within our Explore Art program for youth up through twelfth grade. Our diverse curriculum ensures that there is something for everyone, including cooking classes for kids.
The upcoming series will also feature a six-week Hand Building Pottery class for youth in seventh through ninth grade, providing a comprehensive journey through various pottery techniques.
Additionally, our wearable fiber-art series will teach youths of all sexes how to crochet items such as hats, leg warmers, and fingerless gloves, emphasizing both creativity and practical skills. For those interested in jewelry making, we will offer classes tailored for young adults and adults, further expanding the scope of our wearable art series.
Furthermore, our annual youth art camp, scheduled for February 17-21, promises an enriching and immersive experience for young artists. Families are encouraged to secure their spots promptly, as space is limited. Scholarships are also available for those in need of financial assistance.
GOART! is also delighted to offer ongoing opportunities for artistic exploration, such as our drumming sessions with the Drum Circle, held monthly on the fourth Wednesday.
The public is invited to explore our website for detailed information on all our classes and events, with more exciting offerings to come throughout the year.
As spaces are limited, we recommend early registration to ensure participation in your preferred classes. GOART! extends deep gratitude to our teachers who will be sharing their expertise and passion with our community and we eagerly anticipate welcoming you to our creative space, where you can nurture your artistic talents and engage with other individuals who share similar interests.
For further details and to register for classes, please visit our website - www.https://goart.org. We look forward to welcoming you to one of our workshops and for you to experience with others the creativity that unfolds in our classes.
LeRoy wins large school Lions Tournament at GCC. Photo by Steve Ognibene
Le Roy scored 53 points and held Batavia to 46 points to win the large school division championship of the Peter Arras Memorial Basketball Tournament at GCC on Monday night.
The Oatkan Knights surged with five minutes left in the game, when they were trailing 44-37, going on a 16-2 scoring run.
The tournament is sponsored by the Batavia Lions Club.
Jean Agosto and Jake Higgins each scored 17 points for the Oatkan Knights. For each, 10 of those points came in the last five minutes. Adam Woodworth scored 11 points.
For Batavia, Carter Mullins scored 16 points and Casey Mazur scored eight.
Jake Higgins was selected tournament MVP, and Jean Agosto and Adam Woodworth made the all-tourney team.
The Blue Devils dominated on Friday in the big school division of the Peter Arras Memorial Basketball Tournament at GCC, beating Attica 89-55.
Gavin White led the way with 16 points. Casey Mazur and Adrian Martinez each scored 14. Carter Mullin, Aiden Kopper, Aaden Calletto each scored eight, and Grady Hemer and Justin Smith each scored seven.
For Attica, Blake Kines scored 15, and Justin Stockweather scored 14.
Notre Dame beat Eugenio Maria de Hostas 66-61 in the small school division of the Peter Arras Memorial Basketball Tournament at Genesee Community College on Friday.
Makyell Walker scored 29 points for the Fighting Irish. Aiden Bellevia scored 12, and TJ Cephus and Evan Fitzpatrick scored eight each.
Alexander beat Elba 68-32 in the first round of the Peter Arras Memorial Basketball Tournament in the small school division at Genesee Community College on Friday.
The final score: 68-32.
Kingston Woods scored 16 points for the Trojans, and Dylan Pohl scored 14.
Nicholas Scott and Ryan Marsceill each scored 10 for the Lancers.
Join the Richmond Memorial Library for a Blizzard of Reading winter reading program from January 6 through March 1! The basics? Read books, stay cozy, and have a chance to win prizes!
Teens 13-17 and adults 18 and up are invited to take part in A Blizzard of Reading. Participants can earn up to 6 grand prize entries!
Read four books (or three books and one magazine) (4 entries)
Attend a library program (one entry)
Play the “Who Said It?” game around the library by matching the quote to the book/ author. (one entry)
Grand prizes: One teen and one adult will each win a $50 gift card to Author’s Note bookstore in Medina. All participants will receive a small prize beginning February 21. Participants must have a valid library card from a NIOGA library to be eligible to win grand prizes.
Registration begins online or at the library on Monday, January 6, at 9 a.m. Visit batavialibrary.org for more info.
A Blizzard of Reading is sponsored by the Friends of Richmond Memorial Library.
The Holland Land Office Museum will be closed from Wednesday, January 1 through Saturday, January 18. The staff and volunteers of the museum will be working getting the museum ready for a brand new year in 2025 full of new exhibits, displays, programs and special events.
The museum will be resuming its regular operating hours of Tuesday through Saturday 10 am to 4 pm on Tuesday, January 21. For further information or questions please contact the museum at 585-343-4727 or hollandlandoffice@gmail.com.
When Pete Zeliff’s team presented a plan to host the World Aerobatic Championships in rural Batavia, he was clinging to hope that something might sway the Commission Internationale de Voltage Aerienne (more commonly known as CIVA) delegates.
After all, the competition has been in places such as Las Vegas, and the last time it was in the United States, it was in 2013 in Sherman-Denison, Texas, a metropolitan area with a population of more than 137,000.
“I was really surprised, I thought it was a long shot,” Zeliff said to The Batavian Thursday. “When it’s been here in the U.S., it’s been in places like Las Vegas. So, to go from Las Vegas to Batavia, New York, is a long stretch.”
And surprised he was, along with planning team members Shad Coulson, John Smutny, Doreen Hillard-Zeliff, Jennifer Vukovic, Monique Hartmann, and Rob Holland, a past world participant. Now, there will be one right here from Aug. 22 through 31 in 2026. The last event was in 2024 in Poland, and they are held every two years.
The team flew to Greece to make its pitch for the international event to be held at Genesee County Airport. One major reason why this site was chosen, Zeliff believes, “had to do with how well the Air Show went the last two years,” and an important logistical detail that there’s no tower or commercial air traffic.
Add to those assets the number of hotels and restaurants in the surrounding area, and Batavia made the cut, Zeliff said.
“There’s normally anywhere from 3,000 to 5,000 people over the 10 days that they compete that will attend the competition. And there will be 40 to 60 competitors from around the world,” he said. “There’s three to five Americans that will compete, and the rest of them will be from Europe and Australia and New Zealand. The competition goes for 10 days, and the competitors will get here four days early and practice before the competition starts.”
Part of the set-up includes nearby practice sites at Bethany Airpark (8NK4), Geneseo (D52), LeRoy (5G0) and Perry-Warsaw (01G). Part of practice means having an aerobatic box set up to line up the arena for competition. That block of airspace is approximately 3,300 feet long by 3,300 feet wide by 3,300 feet high, according to an “In The Loop” article on the CIVA website.
For safety, a minimum height above the ground is established, and severe penalty points are assigned if the pilot flies below the minimum height. The minimum height above the ground is 1,500 feet for the Primary and Sportsman categories, 1,200 feet for Intermediate, 800 feet for Advanced, and 328 feet for the Unlimited category, it states.
At the start of each category flight, the first pilot will fly past the judges at the minimum height to give them a visual reference for that height. When the pilot flies into the box, he looks down at a marked playing field. The aerobatic box markings are an L-shape in each of the 4 corners, a T-shape in the middle of each side, and an X-shape in the center of the playing field.
“When competitors compete, they have to stay within those guys; it protects the air space and the people on the ground,” he said. “They’ll fly three different routines in each category or class.
Given that this will be a first for Zeliff to actually watch a World Championship event himself, what prompted his interest in it for Batavia? He first mentioned Rob Holland, quite the skilled pilot from New Hampshire who has won the national competition 13 times in a row, he said.
“But he’s never won the overall world. And he’s one of the ones that came to us and asked what we thought about putting in an application to hold it in Batavia,” Zeliff said. “I thought it would be great to have a really world-class competition in Batavia.”
He described this competition as “the Olympics of aerobatics,” and medals are awarded to the winners in the end.
CIVA will be sending its own panel of judges for the event, and Zeliff said there are already various committees set up locally to handle the organization of the event. The proposed schedule begins with an unofficial practice day on Aug. 18, the Opening Ceremony on Aug. 22 and official contest flights to run through Aug. 31. It will end just five days before Wings Over Batavia 2026 is to begin on Sept. 5, which is the beginning of Labor Day weekend that year, he said. There has been talk about possible packages for attending both events, but no details have been finalized, and ticket sales will be announced closer to the end of 2025, he said.
In addition to the county airport being a non-towered airfield surrounded by mostly farmland, there are four hangars available for use with a total of 20,800 square feet to hangar aircraft, providing office space and a hospitality area.
The team’s presentation listed Batavia as being “blessed with an abundance of hotels within 1.5 miles of the contest site,” and being able to provide meals, transportation, shelter and dedicated team villages, Wi-Fi, judges’ stations at major points of the compass, portable restrooms, hydration and snacks for the event.
During late August, the weather has historically been “quite favorable for a successful contest,” with average temperatures at 70.3F, a wind speed of 7 mph and average precipitation of .13 inches.
The planning team has also proposed to Live Stream the contest, modeled after the U.S. Nationals experience for the last three years. The addition of the Live Stream has many benefits, the team said in a news release, including commercialization of the sport, benefits to the local economy, viewing access for friends and family of the competitors, additional sponsorship opportunities, and the video remains accessible online after the end of the event.
There was no application fee, however, the budget for this event is estimated at $400,000, Zeliff said. Competitors pay a fee to participate, and other revenue will be raised through sponsorships and ticket sales. Unlike the air show, there won’t be tents and concession stands on the airport grounds, so participants and visitors are likely to visit nearby restaurants and stores to buy food and other necessities.
“The big thing is, if you’ve got 3,000 people, you have to put them up in hotel rooms,” he said. “They’re gonna eat breakfast, lunch and dinner every day, and have rental cars and all that.”
Douglas Grant Goodwin, 33, of Maple Road, Alabama, is charged with criminal contempt 1st. Goodwin, currently in custody at the Genesee County Jail, made a phone call to a specific person at 11:44 a.m. on Dec. 15 in violation of an order of protection. Goodwin is also charged with promoting prison contraband 2nd. Goodwin is accused of possessing two mobile phones while being incarcerated.
Philip Roy Chin, 37, of Conrad Drive, Greece, is charged with criminal mischief 3rd. Chin is accused of intentionally damaging a door by kicking it multiple times at 4:45 p.m. on Dec. 15 at a location on West Main Street, Batavia.
Roy Joseph Knauss, 34, of East Main Road, Le Roy, is charged with harassment 2nd. Knauss is accused of spitting on and kicking another person during a fight at 2:55 p.m. on Dec. 15 at a location on East Main Road, Le Roy. He was issued an appearance ticket.
Linda Maria Doucette, 59, of Lake Road South, Brockport, is charged with DWI. Doucette was stopped at 7:33 p.m. on Dec. 17 following a traffic complaint on Peachey Road, Beren. Doucette was released on a ticket.
Daniel Lawrence Kensy, 41, of Schlemmer Road, Lancaster, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater, and failure to keep right. Kensy was stopped at 12:05 a.m. on Dec. 18 on Pearl Street Road, Batavia, by Sgt. Mathew Clor. Kensy issued tickets and released.
