batavia

Press release:

The Executive Committee of the Genesee County Democratic Committee met to endorse candidates last night. They accepted the recommendations of the towns and city committees and unanimously endorsed candidates in the City of Batavia, Town of Darien, Town of Byron and the Town of Alabama. It is expected that there will be active races in the towns which ballot by Democratic Caucus.

Recommended by the City of Batavia for County Legislature was incumbent Ed DeJaneiro Jr. who was unanimously endorsed by the Executive Committee.

Are you a Democrat who is civic minded? It is not too late to run for political office in any of the Legislative districts in Genesee County or for local town positions. The Democratic Party is still actively seeking candidates in all county offices.

Please send a letter of intent as soon as possible as petitioning deadlines are approaching. Send letters to Jennifer Keys, 43 E. Main St., Le Roy, NY 14482 or e-mail Jennifer.keys@rochester.rr.com

For as long as he can remember Batavia native Gary Call Hanley has been surrounded by music. As a child, his grandmother, Leona Pastore, took him to orchestras and encouraged his love for music. It wasn’t long before Call Hanley learned to play a variety of instruments and began to play in various bands.

After a few years of touring in Western New York with local bands, he started playing with national bands. He has played legendary venues like New York’s CBGB. Now, Call Hanley has planted roots in Nashville, Tenn., as a recording and audio engineer with the Nashville Symphony Orchestra.

On July 3, his composition “Plight of the Common Man” will premiere at the Schermerhorn Symphony Center as part of the “Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture: A Star Spangled Evening with the Nashville Symphony” event.  This will be the first time in the history of the Orchestra that it plays a symphony written by someone on its staff.

“The 1812 concert is annually one of the most popular performances on our concert calendar,” Dave Felipe, publicist for the Nashville Symphony Orchestra said. “It means Gary’s work will be heard by upwards of 1,500 or more people along with works by Gershwin, Copland, Barber and more.”

Felipe is right. Call Hanley is very excited.

“I don’t know of anyone else who has had their first symphony played by a world-renowned orchestra,” Call Hanley joked. “I just thought, if other composers can do it, so can I.”

So he did.

“Plight of the Common Man,” starts off minimalistic, builds up in the middle and comes back to a gentle ending. Call Hanley likened it to the life of man.

“We start off small, we live these big lives, and then we end small,” he said.

The title comes from the thought that man is facing a constant struggle.

“Life isn’t always a fanfare, sometimes it’s a plight,” he added. “The challenge is to overcome all of the hardships and heartaches that life brings. With the good comes the bad and with the bad comes the good.”

When he isn’t writing symphonies or recording for a GRAMMY Award winning orchestra, Gary Call Hanley finds solace in playing with his band Subway Lights. In addition to cowriting songs with his writing partner Alex Quinn, Call Hanley sings lead vocals.

“Music is in my DNA,” he said. “I hear melodies and music all the time in my head. If I didn’t have those outlets, I think I would be a very sad man.”

Call Hanley believes that Western New York holds a great deal of musical talent and he feels lucky to be a part of it.

“I feel very fortunate,” he said. “I feel very lucky to be where I am. I am very grateful to that. It’s been a lot of hard work, but I’ve been very grateful.”

(Photo: Courtesy the Nashville Symphony.)

It turned out to be a beautiful evening for some really fine art in Jackson Square. The Centennial Celebration art and artisan show runs until 8 p.m.

"Bring Your Feet to the Downtown Public Market" says the Batavia Business Improvement District. It kicks off this Thursday at the parking lot at Bank Street and Alva Place (across from the Jerome Center). It will be held every Thursday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. through Sept. 24.

"Support Downtown, Buy Local" says co-sponor Java Farm Supply. Fresh baked goods, fruit, vegetables, cherries & berries, honey, flowers, maple syrup, Alston's BBQ Sauce, dog treats, handmade quilts and clothing, handcrafted wood products, and lots more will be for sale.

Plus, enjoy Alton's pulled pork sandwiches, as well as hamburgers and hots.

Amanda Rose Hagedorn, 25, of West Hazeltine Avenue, Kenmore, is charged with acting in a manner injurious to a child less than 17 and disorderly conduct. Hagedorn allegedly voiced numerous obscenities while in a public place, BJ's Wholesale Club, at 6:22 p.m. Saturday. She was jailed on $1,000 bail. Additional charges are possible.

Kirk Arnold Thomas Jr., 30, of Woodstock Gardens, Batavia, is charged with three counts of grand larceny, 4th. Thomas is accused of stealing more than $1,000 in merchandise from Target on three separate occasions.

Duty Everett Caswell, 23, of North Main Street, Oakfield, is charged with DWI and driving with a BAC of .08 or greater. Caswell's vehicle was stopped in response to a complaint of an intoxicated driver on Angling Road, Pembroke, at 12:13 p.m. Monday. The traffic stop was made by Deputy Joseph Graff.

“We live in a world of gods and monsters,” Mitchell Lawerence, played by Alexander native, Tim Schiefer, said. “We’re simply here to tell the story.”

What story is Schiefer trying to tell? The story of “Godzilla: Heritage.” 

Schiefer and Director Greg Graves have been working on the film for six years. It’s all coming to fruition. However, to make the movie the way they have always pictured it, the crew needs help raising money.

Thirty-Six days remain for the project’s crowd-funded Kickstarter. They have so far reached $10,463 of the $40,000 goal. If the project does not get fully funded, the production will not receive any of the money raised.

This is the second kickstarter campaign following a successful lead. The first time, the crew asked for $10,000 and received almost $20,000. The money that was raised went toward nicer cameras, travel, filming the teaser and the creation of the monster suits.

The suits are being made by season six winner of the SyFy network show "Faceoff," Rashaad Santiago. Santiago moved to Batavia to help with the movie. Godzilla has been a fascination of his since he was a child.

“For me, he was an escape from reality growing up,” Santiago said. “My mom recorded seven or eight hours of a Godzilla marathon when I was younger. I would watch it on loop until the film popped.”

Schiefer and Graves brought several other professionals onto the project. They include Chris Barbis, Kyle Gilmore, Tyler Graves, Billy Rupp and Christopher Bloomer. Bloomer has done visual effects for “Zombieland” and “Dragonball: Evolution.”

The cast and crew need the money to finish making the monster costumes, pay actors, promote the film, for anticipated filming permits and other expenses.

“Eighty to 90 percent of the movie will be filmed in Batavia,” Schiefer said.

Ken Mistler, owner of several local businesses, including City Slickers, has donated the spaces that “Godzilla: Heritage” will be filmed in. Additionally, the movie may need to be filmed outside on a street and permits would be necessary.

The character of Godzilla is not in the public domain. In fact, he’s heavily trademarked. It is for this reason that Scheifer and his team are creating the film as a fan film. No money will be made off of this production. They are making the film strictly for the passion they have for Godzilla.

Investigators found nothing suspicious in the death of a resident of 400 Towers whose body was discovered Friday morning and had apparently been dead for a long period of time.

Batavia PD spokesman Det. Eric Hill said there is no exact time of death for the male resident, but that he had been dead for an extended period of time before his body was found.

WBTA, our news partner, attempted to contact leadership at the Batavia Housing Authority, which runs 400 Towers, for comment on the situation, but the calls were not returned.

In response to our question about whether this sort of circumstance is rare or common, Hill said, "It’s not unusual for a person to be deceased for a while before they are found. It’s also not something that we keep records on so I couldn’t say if it happens more often at one place than another."

Hill said the name of the deceased is being withheld out of respect for the family. He did say the deceased had a number of medical conditions. 

Press release:

William Fava, Chairman of the City of Batavia Democratic Committee announced the endorsements for the 2015 Election:

• Pierluigi Cipollone, City Council, Ward 4
• Kathy Briggs, City Council, Ward 5
• Rose Mary Sformo Christian, City Council, Ward 6
• Ed DeJaniero, Legislator, District 9

The City Democratic Committee will continue to accept applicants from interested Democrats seeking to be endorsed for the remaining City Council seats in Ward 1, Ward 2 and Ward 3; and Legislator seats in District 7 and 8. The Committee is looking for civic-minded Democrats who may be interested in running for one of these vacancies. If you would like to be considered or interested in working within the committee, please forward your credentials to William Fava, Chairperson at 41 Verona Ave. Batavia, NY 14020. 

A person is complaining of leg pain after being struck by a vehicle in front of Rancho Viejo Mexican Restaurant, 12 Ellicott St.

City of Batavia firefighters and Mercy medics are responding.

Harvey J. Lockhart, 32, of Batavia, and Kevin Q. Thomas, 26, of Batavia, are charged with criminal possession of a weapon, 2nd, criminal possession of a controlled substance, 3rd, and endangering the welfare of a child. Lockhart and Thomas were arrested following a traffic stop in the Village of Le Roy by Le Roy PD. As a result of an investigation, Lockhart was allegedly found in possession of loaded .22-caliber handgun in his shorts pocket as well as 10 bags of crack cocaine. Thomas was also accused of possessing a handgun and crack cocaine. A child was reportedly in the vehicle. Lockhart was held without bail and Thomas was held on $10,000 bail.

Bryan Henry Fetterly, 29, of Byron Holley Road, Byron, is charged with criminal tampering, 3rd. Fetterly allegedly threw property belonging to another person into a garbage dumpster that contained garbage. The alleged incident was reported at 10 a.m. Sunday.

Dekota Starr Leiser, 23, of West Main Street, Batavia, is charged with petit larceny and unlawful possession of marijuana. Leiser allegedly stole tools from a business on Bank Street Road, Batavia. During the investigation by Deputy Joseph Graff, Leiser was allegedly found in possession of marijuana.

Philip William Czaja, 31, of Elm Street, Batavia, was arrested on a warrant for alleged failure to pay fine. Czaja turned himself in. No further information released.

Kristen Anne Cianfrini, 30, of West Main Street Road, Batavia, is charged with endangering the welfare of a child. Cianfrini was arrested after a passerby found her 3-year-old child unattended, wandering near the roadside of Route 5, by a passing motorist. It's alleged that Cianfrini did not know her child had walked out of their residence and that the child had been wandering near the road for an undetermined period of time while Cianfrini was sleeping. The alleged incident was reported at 9:10 a.m. Saturday.

Adam Michael Jellison, 37, of Sierk Road, Attica, was arrested for an alleged probation violation. Jellison was issued on a warrant out of Wyoming County. He was arrested after he went to the Sheriff's Office on Park Road to retrieve found property and the warrant was discovered.

Melissa Courtney Cicatello, 23, of Webber Avenue, Oakfield, is charged with criminal mischief. Cicatello allegedly intentionally damaged the car door of another person's vehicle.

(From left: Heather Cummings, Kathy Panepento, Maryanne Arena, Theresa Asmus-Roth, Bill Fritts and Eve Hens.)

The YWCA held its first Women of Distinction Awards Gala to recognize honorees for their service in the community and empowerment of women last night.

The six honorees were Maryanne Arena, the Racial Justice Award, Theresa Asmus-Roth, the Advocacy and Civic Engagement Award, Heather Cummings, the Military and Veterans Award, Eve Hens, the Economic Empowerment Award, Lawley Genesee, the Corporate Social Responsibility Award, and Kathy Panepento, the Peace Award.

The Women of Distinction Committee reviewed the nominations sent in by the community and selected the award recipients for each of the six categories.

In the past, the local YWCA chapter has honored award recipients at its annual Fabulous Females event. This year they chose to hold a Women of Distinction event to fully align with the national YWCA goals and mission to empower women.

U.S. Attorney for Western District of New York William J. Hochul Jr. and Jeanne Walton, executive director of the YWCA, handed out the awards.

“All of the recipients do an incredible job supporting the mission of the YWCA in their own unique way,” Walton said.

The Batavia Daily News' Women in Business honorees were Sheila Hess, Nancy Ciavarri, Sarah Gahagan, Lisa Stratton and Judy Thompson.

Arena is the director of Fine and Performing Arts at Genesee Community College. Her goal is to teach her students life lessons and serve as a mentor for those who love performing arts.

“I’m trying to build my students to make (the world) a better place,” Arena said.

Asmus-Roth works for RESTORE Sexual Assault Services and is the area supervisor for the GLOW region. She has been an advocate for victims ever since she witnessed a boy being bullied in school. She believes we all can help each other develop and should always mentor those in need.

“It’s a very big honor to be recognized because previous women that won these awards have been an inspiration to me,” Asmus-Roth said.

Cummings has served in the Air Force and is a member of the Air National Guard. She provides crisis intervention counseling for veterans. She also is a sixth-grade teacher at Alexander Central School.

Hens is a coordinator for the Genesee County Business Education Alliance. Her goal is to expose girls to job opportunities they are not used to and help them find their own niche.

Bill Fritts, managing partner at Lawley Genesee, accepted the award on behalf of the Batavia office. Fritts encourages his team to give back to the community and together they help out with many local charity functions.

Panepento is the founder of Crossroads House which has been operating for 18 years. It had always been her dream to open a comfort care home where the terminally ill can bring their life to peaceful closure and receive the dignity they deserve. 

A bicyclist suffered a possible leg injury after being struck by a vehicle near the intersection of State Street Road and East Saile Drive.

"According to our caller a bicycle was crumpled in the roadway and a person sitting nearby holding their leg," says a dispatcher.

Town of Batavia Fire Department and Mercy medics are responding.

UPDATE 11:38 a.m.: The location has been corrected by the dispatcher -- Bank Street Road, south of intersection with East Saile Drive.

UPDATE 11:41 a.m.: It was a bicyclist with a leg cramp; the person was NOT struck by a vehicle. The assignment is back in service.

Heather Volpe and her granddaughter Myla, 18 months, visit with a calf during the open house for State Street Hospital this morning. The open house, which includes visits with animals, a tour of the facility and demonstrations of medical equipment, door prizes and ice cream, continues until 3 p.m.

Gary Zimmerman with Clacker.

Tony Mancuso gives final instructions to a group of riders participating this morning in the Batavia Lions Club 6th Annual Batavia Bike Tour.

Heavy rain didn't dampen the spirit of Friday's Genesee Symphony Orchestra concert, which was moved from Jackson Square to City Centre because of the storms. As promised, the GSO delivered a lively and energetic show.

The body of a male who had apparently been dead for an extended period of time was found this morning in an apartment in 400 Towers, located at 400 E. Main St. in the City of Batavia.

Det. Eric Hill, spokesman for Batavia PD, said there isn't much information available now because the officer handling the case is off duty and paperwork has not yet been completed.

There is a investigation, but Hill said he couldn't say one way or the other if foul play is suspected or if it's a death by natural causes.

The name of the deceased is not available.

More information will likely not be available until Monday.

Open House ~ 104 Summit Street, Batavia. 11am-1pm on Saturday June 13!
Now $102,000! These owners are willing to talk! Super-sized and ready to move in! This home is super spacious and well laid out. All rooms are large with closets and there is storage everywhere! Living room is large with cozy fireplace and leads to large dining room perfect for entertaining a lot of company! Attic is huge and fully finished with built-ins and large closets —would make awesome master bedroom or rec. room! Outside has nice size fenced back yard with patio area and large shed. There is A LOT of home here for the money and not much to do but move in and make it yours! Easy to see, call today!

The Landmark Society of Genesee County will present a live action documentary on the Federal and Adams styles of architecture for a second screening. 

The screening will be held at 7 p.m. June 16 at GO ART! The event is free and open to the public.

Lucine Kauffman, president of the Landmark Society, is showing the film for a second time because the last screening was 15 years ago when Bernard Schmieder, past landmark society president, finished filming the two-part architectural series.

"When we did the premiere screening, people had VHS players and we sold VHS tapes of the documentary," Kauffman said. "Now technology is DVDs, so we are bringing the documentary back to reach a new audience and give people the chance to purchase a DVD copy."

Kauffman hopes the community comes out for the screening because it's a great education tool for students or anyone who is interested in learning about Genesee County's architectural history.

During the early 1800s, the Federal and Adams style of architecture was popular in Genesee County. The architecture was the first formal residential style in the county. As a result of newly published design books, homeowners could choose from various home style designs for architectural elements like windows and doors.

After the screening, Schmieder will give a talk about producing the film and restoring his 1815 Federal Style home in Bethany. He will provide details about how he refinished his house using hand tools from the 1800s and milling his own lumber. 

In October, LSGC will be showing the second film in the series about Greek Revival architecture in Genesee County.

A proposed expansion of the O-AT-KA Milk Products plant at Cedar Street and Ellicott Street Road, Batavia, received a vote of approval from the County Planning Board on Thursday night.

O-AT-KA is contemplating adding a 194,543-square-foot building and a 35,279-square-foot building that will serve as warehouse space and a distribution center.

A spokesman for O-AT-KA repeated several times to reporters last night that the expansion remains a proposal at this time. There's no information available on how O-AT-KA's business might be expanding as a result of the new space.

The location of the new structures would be on the east side of the plant with vehicle access off of Ellicott Street Road.

The board recommended approval of a site plan review with recommended modifications for a stormwater pollution-prevention plan prior to final approval by the city.

Also on Thursday:

The board recommended approval of a site plan review for a 1,620-square-foot addition to the Pavilion Public Library. The expansion, which will include a new children's wing, is funded in part by a $200,000 donation from Edgar Mary Louis Hollwedel. Deborah Davis said the library is also seeking a state grant. The size of that grant could exceed $200,000.

The board recommended disapproval of a zoning map change on South Lake Road in Pavilion. Superior Plus Energy Services was seeking the change to develop a bulk storage and truck distribution center for bulk propane. The 32-acre site is currently zoned agriculture-residential and Superior Plus Energy is seeking a change to industrial. Staff's recommendation was for disapproval because the change would be inconsistent with the town's comprehensive plan and the Future Land Use Map, which plans for agriculture use or residential with minimum lot sizes of five acres.

A planned Dollar General store in Pavilion received recommended approval for its sign. The sign design presented previously by Moeller Sign Co. wasn't approved because it would have meant a sign larger than currently allowed in the zoning code. The new design complies with the code.

It's shred day at Brighton Securities. Anybody with documents to shred can bring them to their tent set up in the parking lot on East Main Street, Batavia, next to the Chamber of Commerce. They will be there until 3 p.m. and even serve you cookies and a beverage.

Pictured are Brittany Weeks, Christina Gregory, and George Arnold from Brighton Securities, and Mark Bonin, of Shred-Text.