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On a 5-3 vote, the City Council agreed Monday to give City Manager Jason Molino a 2.5 percent raise, retroactive to April 1.

It was a merit raise, said Councilman John Canale.

Councilman Eugene Jankowski expressed concern that the public hasn't been given adequate opportunity to hear from council members on why Molino deserves a raise and to voice their own opinions.

"At this point, we're limiting ourselves to only one discussion," Jankowski said. "It sends a message of some kind of exception being made and I don't think that's the case. It's just an oversight."

Councilwoman Rose Mary Christian also objected to the seeming lack of public discussion prior to the vote.

"This was all handled in executive session and never brought to the floor for any kind of discussion," Christian said. "You can't vote for spending public monies without a discussion, so we should have the discussion and take it from there."

City Attorney George Van Ness explained to council members that Molino's raise this time around is being handled no different than it's been handled in the past and no different from any other employees or any labor agreement.

The particulars are discussed in open session, a consensus is reached among council members, and then a vote is held at a business meeting, where more discussion can take place -- as was taking place Monday night -- before the vote.

"Matters related to the employment issues of a particular individual are appropriately discussed in an executive session," Van Ness said. "If it comes to a situation where there's a decision about the award of or wage adjustment, that's a matter that's presented for public discussion and a public vote. That's what's teed up here this evening."

Councilman John Deleo missed Monday's meeting because of another obligation, but provided Jankowski with a written statement on his behalf objecting to the raise and stating that the hiring of an assistant city manager was supposedly intended to lesson Molino's workload.

Councilman Kris Doeringer said he believed that was a misstatement of why an assistant city manager was hired.

"She was hired to do more work, not lesson Jason's workload," Doeringer said. "We were concerned about Jason's workload and everything he needs to get done and everything the city needs to get done to move forward."

Councilwoman Patti Pacino said the merit of the raise was discussed extensively over two executive sessions.

"We did talk at length," Pacino said. "We discussed whether we should give him a raise or not give him a raise, what did he do to deserve a raise. We really discussed it all. I understand we should bring it out in the open and people can say negative things as well, but we really did discuss this a lot."

Members Kathy Briggs, Jankowski and Christian all voted no on giving Molino a raise.

With the pending acquisition of Time Warner Cable by Comcast, the City of Batavia will have an opportunity to comment on the merger as well as renegotiate its franchise agreement for cable television service in the city.

Typically, municipalities enter into franchise agreements with cable providers that determine infrastructure specifications as well as some services the provider might offer along with fees the cable operator pays to the city.

Currently, the city gets $200,000 a year from Time Warner, but the franchise agreement expired a decade ago and has just been automatically renewed without revision by the state's Public Service Commission.

"Time Warner is noncompliant with some franchise benefits," the City Manager told the council Monday night. "We haven't had negotiations since 1993. There are a number of improvements that need to be made."

Comcast contacted the city and expressed an interest in working with the city on a new agreement and gave notice that the city has 120 days to comment to the FCC on the proposed merger.

Both providing comment to the FCC and negotiating a new franchise agreement are specialized, complicated legal issues and the city will likely need to retain the services of an attorney who is expert in the field, Molino said.

The city must also appoint members to the Cable Television Advisory Board, which has been dominant so long, the terms for all the previous members have expired. The city will be inviting residents to apply for seats on the board.

The cable franchise agreement covers terms such as access to cable service throughout the city, franchise fees, construction standards, indemnification and insurance requirements, underground facilities, installation of services, operation and maintenance.

Among the services a municipality can require a cable operator to provide what is known as PEG channels (public, education, government), something that Time Warner hasn't fully provided to Batavia.

A public access channel, for example, would allow local residents to make their own TV shows in the cable operator's local studio. Schools could broadcast plays.  Politicians and the politically minded could host talk shows. Local bands could air concerts. Churches could broadcast their services. Pastors could conduct Bible studies. Historians could provide lectures. The whacky and insane could find an audience, too, as long as it wasn't profane.

Councilman Eugene Jankowski raised the issue during Monday's discussion in response to a question from a constituent. Molino said the topic is certainly one the city -- and the cable advisory board -- could address with Comcast. It would be one more point of negotiation.

Three of the city's recent retirees were honored by the City Council on Monday night with signed proclamations recognizing their years of service to the city.

Above, retired police Det. Pat Corona.

Retired Det. Chuck Dudek with Councilwoman Kathy Briggs.

Bill Ficarella, former Bureau of Maintenance supervisor, with Councilman John Canale.

A vehicle has reportedly flipped over on the Thruway near mile marker 389.9 in the eastbound lane.

No word on injuries.

Town of Batavia fire and Mercy EMS dispatched.

The location is just west of the State Street Road overpass.

UPDATE 10:21 p.m.: A first responder reports the vehicle is on the guard rail, inverted. One female trapped in the vehicle, though conscious and alert. The vehicle will need to be stablized before firefighters can get her out.

UPDATE: Photos submitted by Town of Batavia FD.

A driver apparently hit the gas when she meant to hit the brake while parking outside the Southside Deli at 300 Ellicott St., Batavia, late this afternoon. Her car jumped the curb and hit the Olive Branch health food store. The driver was transported to UMMC for a precautionary exam.

Photos submitted by Frank Capuano.

James Joseph Argento, 36, of Keeney Road, Le Roy, is charged with grand larceny, 3rd. Argento allegedly stole property with an approximate value of $5,000 from a location on Keeney Road, Le Roy. Argento was jailed on $10,000 bail.

Arlin Joselin Reyes, 31, of Townsend Avenue, Bronx, is charged with harassment, 2nd. Reyes was arrested on a warrant out of Darien Town Court. The incident was reported at 5:30 a.m., Nov. 24. Reyes was arraigned on the charged, entered a guilty plea, paid his fines and was released.

Abraham Lyn Rendon-Matadamas, 31, of Lewiston Road, Alabama, is charged with assault, 3rd. Rendon-Matadamas allegedly struck another person in the face. The alleged victim was treated at Medina Hospital. Rendon-Matadamas was arraigned in Town of Alabama Court and released on his own recognizance. He was also handed an order of protection. 

Devon Michael Husted, 16, of Broadway Road, Alexander, is charged with criminal sale of marijuana, 5th, and unlawful possession of marijuana. Husted allegedly sold marijuana while at Darien Lake Theme Park.

Michael Anthony King Jr., 16, of Oakfield, is charged with first-degree sexual abuse and endangering the welfare of a child. King is accused of sexual contact with a child less than 11 years old. He was arraigned and released under supervision of Genesee Justice.

Derek G. Thomas, 37, of Bank Street, Batavia, is charged with endangering the welfare of a child and menacing, 3rd. Thomas was allegedly involved in an incident at 9:30 p.m. July 6 on Lewis Place. He is accused of shoving one person and threatening another. 

Alicia May Lyons, 34, of State Street, Batavia, is charged with petit larceny. Lyons is accused of wrapping several items in her coat while at Tops Market and then proceeding out of the store without paying for the items.

Thomas C. McJury, 48, of Brooklyn Avenue, Batavia, is charged with deteriorated roof covering. McJury was arrested on a City Court warrant stemming from an alleged property maintenance code violation. McJury posted bail and was released.

Emily N. Indovina, 19, of Erie Street, Mt. Morris, is charged with trespass. Indovina is accused of going to a residence she was advised not to visit by a Batavia PD officer the day before.

Konstantin Logvinsky, 28, of Middlesex Road, Rochester, is charged with aggravated unlicensed operation, 3rd. Logvinsky was arrested on a warrant, posted bail and was released.

Alexandria C. Pisarek, 21, of Oakfield, is charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance, 7th. Pisarek was arrested by State Police at 2:42 p.m. Saturday in the Town of Batavia on Route 33. No further details released.

Dominique D. Davis, 21, of Rochester, is charged with issuing a bad check. Davis was arrested by state police. No further details released.

Batavia PD is investigating the unattended death of a local woman who was found unresponsive of the porch steps of 131 Jackson St., Batavia.

The body of Summer Ogden, 38, was taken to the Monroe County Examiners Office for an autopsy.

Batavia PD released no information regarding any potential cause of death.

Ogden's name has come up frequently in arrest reports over the past four years, most often on charges of criminal contempt for violating stay away orders involving her boyfriend, Eric Duda.

Duda has faced the same charges for contacting Ogden.

Twice in 2011, both Ogden and Duda were arrested in Stafford when they were found together.

The Batavian's first encounter with Ogden and Duda was right before Christmas in 2010. Duda was manager of the Batavia Motel, 3768 W. Main St. Road, when he and the other residents were kicked out on 24-hours notice after the motel was condemned. The couple had a 10-month-old infant at the time.

Jane Johnson shared this picture of the Batavia Clippers 8-and-under baseball team, sponsored by Graham Manufacturing, who she said are off to a good start in the team's first year.

A portion of her e-mail:

The Batavia Clippers 8U Travel Baseball team took 2nd place in their division and 3rd place overall last weekend in the Honeoye Falls Mendon Youth Baseball Midsummer tournament. The team played teams from Canandaigua, Fairport, Mendon, Pittsford and Rochester.

This weekend the team plays in the Clarence Youth Baseball Travel Team Tournament at the Clarence Meadowlakes Park. The team matches up against teams from Clarence, Amherst, Williamsville, Orchard Park, Lancaster, Akron, Buffalo, Evans, North Tonawanda, and Grand Island.

The Clippers team is led by Coach Ben Buchholz, Coach Sam Antinore, and Coach Jeff Grazioplene. The Clippers players are all members of the Batavia Minor League.

Team members are: Jay Antinore, Bronx Buchholz, Joe DiRisio, Dane Dombrowski, Cole Grazioplene, Jake Hutchins, Alex Johnson, Cal Koukides, Jameson Motyka, Carter Mullen, Sheldon Siverling, Malcom Wormley.

A bicyclist is down in the roadway bleeding after being struck by a car on Route 5 near Colonial Boulevard. Town of Batavia Fire Department is responding, and Mercy medics and law enforcement are on scene. A lane of traffic is blocked.

UPDATE 1:42 p.m.: The driver of the vehicle said he was on Colonial Boulevard about to turn onto Route 5. He said he looked left and right then as he pulled onto Route 5 "all of a sudden the bike was in front (him)." The male bicyclist suffered facial abrasions but is alert and conscious.

Dozens of teams across the spectrum of age groups competed today in the 3rd annual 3-on-3 tournament at Williams Park.

Here are pictures from two of the afternoon games.

The tournament was sponored this year, for the first time, by The Batavian.

To purchase prints of photos click here.

The Genesee Veterans Support Group hosted the "Ride to Remember" today. The event included a chicken BBQ at Stan's Harley-Davidson followed by a ride to the Geneseo Air Show.

Caramel-colored "Carla" is missing and the Siverlings are asking readers to help locate her.

Their Best Friend Forever went missing Tuesday evening from the South Main Street Road area.

"She is a good hunter and most likely caught a scent and went chasing after an animal. She is full of energy and is very affectionate," says owner Jackie Siverling.

"We are offering a reward to anyone who returns her to us, no questions asked," she continued. "We miss her very much."

If you know Carla's whereabouts please call (585) 813-4181.

Motorcycle Riders are invited tomorrow to join in the "Ride to Remember," sponsored by the Genesee Veterans Support Group.

Registration starts at 10 a.m. at Stan's Harley-Davidson, West Saile Drive, Batavia. The ride starts at 1 p.m. and will conclude in Geneseo at the Geneseo Air Show. Free admission to the air show is included and the ride includes the opportunity to participate in a "Pass and Review" down the runway in front of the grandstand.

A chicken BBQ is available at Stan's for $10.

Participation in the ride is $45 for a single rider and $55 for a rider and passenger.

Crossroads House received a $1,445 donation today, the result of the 4th Annual Jerry "Rat" Cone Memorial Run, held July 5 in Genesee County.

Fifty-two riders participated in the charity trek over local roads.

The donation was delivered this evening.

Pictured are, from left, Scott Bliss, Jim Andrews, Kelli Bliss, Vanessa Andrews, Paul Ohlson, Anthony "Smokey" LoCastro, Stephen Worthington, Pastor Timothy Young, and on the porch are Charlotte Puccio, Mary Ann Shuler and Kathleen Pentepento.

We now know that all the police activity on Jackson Street the evening of June 26 was more than just a response to an individual seen running behind backyards between Maple Street and Morton Avenue. It was part of law enforcement detail in the area aimed at identifying issues in the neighborhood. 

Earlier this week, the City of Batavia announced the results of the detail.

Police made contact with numerous individuals, some were on parole or probation.

The person seen running through yards was on parole, but not wanted, according to local law enforcement. He was released after none of the property owners who initially called about him wanted to file a trespass charge. Police are unsure why he decided to run and try to hide from law enforcement, if that is indeed what he was doing.

There have been complaints from citizens on The Batavian and on Facebook that they had their vehicles stopped for no or flimsy reasons, but Chief Shawn Heubusch said all traffic stops were made in accordance with guidelines related to probable cause. 

"Each traffic stop was conducted legally and with probable cause," Heubusch said in an e-mail response to our questions. "As for the probable cause for each I do not have that information. We do not generally keep track of that information unless an arrest is made (DWI for example)."

We asked about the probable cause for the 59 "data runs" reported in the press release.

Heubusch said, "As for the "data runs," these are done routinely when checking license plates or driver's license info, for any wanted-person info, or stolen vehicle, for example. New York State does not require probable cause to run a license plate attached to vehicle."

We asked for the arrest reports/press releases on each of the three arrests reported during the sweep and Heubusch said he would think those arrests would have been reported previously by each of the agencies making the arrests, but he would have to research that further.  

The detail is part of a plan announced earlier this year in keeping with the city's strategic plan, which calls for revitalizing neighborhoods. The effort is designed to identify problems and deal with them before they grow into something bigger.

Concerns about adequate parking and emergency vehicle access led the Genesee County Planning Board on Thursday night to recommend against approval for a senior housing apartment complex off Route 5 in the Town of Batavia.

The board's vote is not binding, but it does require the Town of Batavia Planning Board to vote with a +1 margin to approve the project.

The site for the project is 3833 W. Main Street Road, Batavia. It is 33.4 acres and would contain 110 apartment units that would be marketed to middle-income residents age 55 and older.

There's currently no senior housing in the area designed for middle-income residents, said Ben Gustafson, a civil engineer with Hunt Engineers/Architects/Surveyors, and representing the developer, Calamar.

The project calls for 1.5 parking spaces per unit, which is a variance from the town's 2-per unit ordinance. 

Gustafson explained that two per unit is excessive by modern planning standards, the county's own planning goals and what Calamar's studies of its own 15 similar complexes shows is necessary.

In some Calamar locations, the local ordinance requires only one parking space, but even there, because of Calamar's own experience, they put in 1.5.

"What we're proposing is in keeping with sustainable development throughout this country by not providing more parking than is required," Gustafson said. "Our studies show we need far less than two spaces per unit."

Multiple board members expressed concern about 1.5 parking spaces, even so.

"The 1.5 parking per unit is unrealistic," said Mel Wentland, board chairman. "For 55 and older, both members of the family usually have cars. You're under-populating parking spaces. There should be two per unit. There are also people coming to visit, nurses aides, various kinds of help. I don't think the parking (the plan) provides is adequate to meet all the needs of such a community."

Gustafson said it's common for residents in these communities to not even have cars, but if the parking proved inadequate, there's plenty of space on the property that could later be converted to parking if needed.

Another issue is the single driveway for the complex off Route 5.

The main concern of the board is access for emergency vehicles -- what if traffic is tying up the driveway, or there's an accident in front of it?

According to Gustafson, there are fewer than 30 cars an hour that will pass through the driveway, far less than similar-sized units serving younger families. The traffic impact will be minimal and the wide driveway will provide ample room for emergency vehicles.

Board Member Lucine Kauffman said no one on the board is arguing against the need for the project, but that these issues should be addressed before it's approved for development.

Davon St. John drives for a layup during a bit of a practice session today at Williams Park in advance of Saturday's third annual 3-on-3 Tournament organized by Jerry Smith.

The tournament this year is sponsored for the first time by The Batavian.

Registration opens at 10 a.m. First game is at 11 a.m.

The cost is $50 per four-player team. Each team is guaranteed at least four games.

There are boys and girls divisions grades 5 through 12, an 18-19 year-old division, and a 30 and over division.

The winners will receive champion T-shirts.

Event supporters include Venue Entertainment, Big Pauly's Pizza, Southside Deli, Extreme Streetwear, Direct TV, Showtime Player Development, Buffalo 716ers, Erie Hurricanes, Ficarella's Pizzeria, and Genesee Clean-Out.

Thanks to Davon and his father, David, for the fun game of 21. It's the first time I've played basketball in at least 25 years.

Davon is entering his junior year at Bennett High School in Buffalo. He was part of the Pembroke program. His father hopes there might be a way he can return to Genesee County -- Batavia or Pembroke -- before the start of the high school basketball season.

It took a jury all of 30 minutes to return a guilty verdict against former Bergen resident Michele Ann Case of grand larceny in the third degree.

This is the second time a jury in Genesee County has found Case guilty of stealing more than $14,000 from her former employer, HomeCare & Hospice.

The first conviction, in March 2012, was overturned on appeal because state justices found that summations of her thefts were improperly prepared and presented to the jury.

Case, 47, was represented in this trial by attorney Larry Koss, who argued before the jury in closing statements this afternoon that the extra compensation received was all just a big misunderstanding.

"The fact that there are discrepancies doesn't mean anything was done intentionally," Koss told the jury. "People make mistakes. I submit to you, if you're in the profession she's in, your primary concern has to be your patients. If you want to be a good nurse, you want to care for your patients. They have to be your primary concern. They have to be what you pay attention to."

District Attorney Lawrence Friedman told the jury that the evidence was clear: Case submitted claims for "call outs" (patient visits supposedly outside of regularly scheduled hours) during her normal work shift; that she submitted claims for call outs that she didn't make; and that she claimed mileage that was greatly exaggerated.

Koss said it was a lack of proper training and clear policies that caused Case to submit inaccurate claims for compensation.

There's nothing in the polices that define what allowable mileage is (to which Friedman responded during his close, "I think the answer is you're expected to record mileage truthfully."

During her employment with HCH, Case submitted 61 mileage claims. Of those, Friedman said, 60 of them contained wildly inflated mileage, up to 100, 200 and 300 more miles than Case possibly could have driven.

For a trip to Crossroads House on Liberty Street from the HCH office on East Main Street, Batavia, Case claimed 30 miles.

When confronted by Det. Charles Dudek (now retired) about the discrepancy, Case claimed at one point her trip that day originated in Warsaw, but even those miles -- combined with the side trips she claimed -- didn't add up, Friedman said.

When she went to Delavan for training, Case claimed mileage that was nearly double the actual trip, even using the longest possible route offered by MapQuest for the drive, Friedman said.

That didn't happen just once, but twice.

Case told Dudek that she forgot to reset her trip counter on her odometer and didn't realize her mistake when submitting her mileage reports.

Friedman said the pattern of Case's inflated claims made it quite clear she was trying to increase her compensation illegally.

On 69 occasions, Friedman said, Case claimed compensation for call-outs during what should have been her normal, salaried working hours. Those claims alone totaled $5,300 in extra compensation.

"There is one common scheme to illegitimately and illegally increase what she saw as her insufficient income," Friedman said.

To Koss's argument that HomeCare & Hospice neglected to spot and correct Case's false claims for two and a half years, Friedman said such fraudulent claims went undetected because they were unexpected.

"The defendant was a registered nurse," Friedman said. "She's a professional and they expected her to be professional and honest when she documented her claims, and it turned out, they couldn't count on that."

At the start of his summation, Koss quoted Oscar Wilde.“The truth is rarely plain and never simple.”*

The case against his client, he said, was complicated and obscured by poorly written policies and inadequate training.

Friedman said at the close of his summation, that actually, the facts of the case were pretty straightforward.

"The plain and simple truth is this defendant stole more than $14K by falsifying time vouchers and mileage records," Friedman said.

With uncommon speed, the jury reached the same conclusion.

NOTE: Wilde's correct quote is, “The truth is rarely pure and never simple.”

Batavia PD is responding to State Street and Lewis Place for a report of a disturbance.

The initial call was for a group of people making a lot of noise. Minutes later, a follow-up call said people were fighting.

When the first patrol arrived on scene, the officer said members of the group fled. Some headed toward Bank Street, some are said to be heading north on State Street.

Multiple police units responding.

UPDATE 10:29 p.m.: An officer reports he's out with several individuals at State and Lewis.

Workers with National Grid installed a new utility pole on Center Street. The road was closed for a portion of the morning during the installation. The pole will help accommodate power upgrades for the new call center for the Tompkins Insurance Company going in at that location.