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Brown's lengthy career included owning and managing WBTA, writing for various area publications, authoring books as well as being the first chairman of the Board of Trustees of Notre Dame High School and serving as president of the Board of Directors for  St. Jerome's Hospital.

“The community has lost a talented broadcaster and WBTA has lost a dear friend," said Dan Fischer, current owner of WBTA. "Bill’s wit was razor sharp and his knowledge of Genesee County history was encyclopedic. During his stewardship of WBTA, Bill set a standard for public service and broadcast news. We honor his legacy by trying to continue that standard as best we can.”

Brown was born Oct. 25, 1923 in Batavia, the son of the late William F. Brown Sr. and Monica Sellinger Brown.  

He was a 1941 graduate of Batavia High School and a graduate of Canisius College. He also studied at Yale and Fordham universities and was an Army veteran of World War II where he worked for the Armed Forces Radio Service in Kokura, Japan.

After his military service, he was public relations director for Batavia Downs and Buffalo Raceway for several years before becoming co-owner and manager of WBTA Radio in 1968.  

At WBTA, he distinguished himself with daily outspoken editorials dealing with local issues and humorous vignettes about family life. He won 16 statewide “Best Editorial Awards” in his career from the New York State Broadcasters Association.  

He remained a member of the United States Harness Writers Association for more than 55 years. He served as secretary for several years and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1991.

Besides his community work with Notre Dame and St. Jerome's, he was a trustee emeritus of the Jerome Foundation, a member of the Board of Catholic Education of the Diocese of Buffalo and lay chairman of the Bishop’s Lay Advisory Council. He was a lector and eucharistic minister at Resurrection Parish and a Knight of St. Gregory and a Knight Commander of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem.

He was active in many local civic organizations throughout his life, including the Rotary Club, Knights of Columbus and the Elks. He was a lifelong member of Stafford Country Club.

His books on local history include a popular publication on the Linden Murders. He also wrote columns for the Batavia Daily News and was Genesee County correspondent for the Buffalo News at the time of his death.

Calling hours are 3 to 7 p.m., Wednesday, at H.E. Turner, 403 E. Main St., Batavia. A Mass of Christian Burial will be Thursday, 9:30 a.m. at Resurrection Parish, St. Joseph Church, 303 E. Main St.. Batavia. Burial will be in St. Joseph Cemetery. The Knights of Columbus will hold a prayer service on Wednesday at 6:30 pm.

For the full obituary, click here.

Photo: From a Rotary lunch in 2012

Jonathan Cornelius Hoges, 32, of Ross Street, Batavia, is charged wit criminal possession of a controlled substance, 3rd, criminal possession of a controlled substance, 7th,, and endangering the welfare of a child. Hoges allegedly used what appeared to be a handgun and threatened to kill himself in front of his two young children in an incident reported at 2:47 p.m. Thursday at his residence on Ross Street. He was later taken into custody on Miller Avenue. At the time of his arrest, he was allegedly found in possession of crack cocaine and packaging. He was jailed on $20,000 bail, or $40,000 bond. (Previous report)

Joseph A. Cafarelli, 48, of Hunters Gate Drive, Rochester, is charged with falsely reporting an incident to law enforcement. Cafarelli allegedly reported that his debit card had been stolen while at Batavia Downs Casino. An investigation revealed the incident allegedly did not occur. Cafarelli was jailed on $500 bail.

Melanie Rose Cantabrana, 22, of Maple Ridge Road, Medina, is charged with petit larceny. Cantabrana is accused of stealing $680.51 in merchandise from Walmart.

Nancy June Brandon, 36, of Holland Avenue, Batavia, was arrested on a warrant for alleged failure to pay fine. She was also charged with facilitating aggravated unlicensed operation, 2nd. Brandon was a passenger in a vehicle stopped at 10:40 p.m. Sunday by Deputy Joseph Corona. The driver allegedly was unlicensed. Brandon was jailed on $400 bail, or $800 bond.

Latoya Yalanda Stanley, 26, of Holland Avenue, Batavia, is charged with aggravated unlicensed operation, 2nd, and unlicensed driver. Stanley was stopped for alleged traffic violations at 10:40 p.m. Sunday on Lewiston Road, Batavia, by Deputy Joseph Corona. Stanley also reportedly was wanted in the Town of Gates on a warrant on an unrelated matter.

Michael Andrew Balla, 39, of Hazlemere Avenue, Machias, is charged with criminal mischief, 3rd. Balla allegedly damaged a garage door, valued at more than $250, at a location on Main Road, Stafford. Balla was jailed without bail.

Christopher Ryan Waite, 25, of Skye Road, Basom, is charged with DWI, driving while ability impaired by drugs and reckless driving. Following numerous calls of an erratic driver, Waite was stopped at 11:46 p.m. Friday on Route 262, Byron, by Deputy Matthew Butler. Additional charges are pending.

Julie L. Dutton, 19, of Manhattan Avenue, Batavia, is charged with criminal contempt, 2nd. Dutton was arrested after police were asked to check on the welfare of a person on Thomas Avenue. Dutton was allegedly found hiding in a shower by police officers inside the residence of a person allegedly protected from contact by Dutton through a court order. Dutton was jailed on $500 bail.

Samantha J. Armstrong, 21, of Hart Street, Batavia, turned herself in on a warrant for alleged failure to appear on a parking citation for improper street parking between 2 a.m. and 6 a.m. Armstrong was released on $100 cash bail.

Deborah R. Blatt, 53, of East Main Street, Batavia, is charged with harassment, 2nd. Blatt is accused of verbally harassing and annoying a neighbor. 

Terrence D. Johnson, 19, of Holland Avenue, Batavia, was arrested on a warrant for alleged failure to appear on a traffic citation. Johnson posted bail and was released.

Nicholas J. Mungillo, 20, of Union Square, Batavia, is charged with unlawful possession alcohol under age 21. Mungillo was allegedly found intoxicated following the report of a fight in the area of Jackson Street and Watson Street at 3:46 a.m. on Sunday. Also charged was Michael A. Canzoneri, 19, of Edgewood Drive, Batavia.

Anya R. Rambuski, 44, of Birchwood Drive, Batavia, was arrested on a warrant for alleged failure to appear on a DWAI charge.

Ronald M. Markek, 34, of Corfu, is charged with felony DWI. Markek was stopped at 10:13 p.m. Friday on Route 63 Batavia, by State Police. Markek was jailed on bail.

Lori J. Marchese, 55, of Corfu, is charged felony DWAI. Marchese was stopped at 5:22 p.m. Saturday on Main Road, Pembroke, by State Police.

A wreck involving at least two vehicles is reported at 3238 W. Main Street Road in the Town of Batavia. The location is just west of Wortendyke Road. Law enforcement on scene requested two ambulances. East Pembroke fire and Mercy medics are responding.

UPDATE 6:07 p.m.: One person was taken to UMMC. East Pembroke is back in service.

Ted and Patricia Hawley hosted several dozen beer lovers at their malt house on the Hawley Farm on Bank Street Road today.

The open house was a chance to invite people to come in and try some of the craft beers that have started using malt from NY Craft Malt.

Breweries serving samples today included Fairport Brewing, Community Beer Works, Resurgence and Big Ditch. The brewers are all from WNY.

Ted Hawley said business is good. The company is selling all the malt it makes.

Previously:

• With no malt houses in New York, Hawleys' new venture to fill unique niche at the right time
• Hawleys give Rotary members a sneak peek at new malt house
• With break in rain, barley for Hawleys' malt house harvested

There is a water main break on Oak Street near Park Road, according to Matt Worth, superintendent of Water and Wastewater. Residents on Oak Street and Union Street north to the city line are effected. Crews are on site beginning repairs.

The Blue Devils will be a team in search of points when the squad hits the hardwood Dec. 10.

We know senior Jeff Redband can hit buckets full of baskets, but we'll have to see who is going to help him out.

It could be Jerrett Laskett, who showed a deft touch at times coming off the bench last season as a sixth man. Or Malachi Chenault, a big man in the front court who has been working on his offense. There's also Alex Canty, who was MVP of the JV team last year. Jake Schrider is developing well as a young big man. Ryan Hogan returns from a sojourn in Brockport and has shown potential. Trevor Sherwood is athletic and will compete for time at point guard. Greg Mruczek is a returning starter. Freshman TeeSean Ayala seems unstoppable from three-point range in practices and scrimmage, but he's yet unproven in a varsity game that counts.

"We've got a lot of returners," said Head Coach Buddy Brasky. "We've got experience and good leadership.  We'll be a pretty good defensive team, but time will tell how good we are offensively."

The team is getting a bit of a late start following the football team's team run in the post season. Among the starters, only Redband didn't play a fall sport and is in "good basketball shape," Brasky said.  There's some rust to scrape off with some of the other players, but "they're working hard at it," the coach said.

The team will look foremost to Laskett to replace the points of graduate Justice Fagan, but he showed flashes last year of scoring ability.

"When he gets it going, he can really get it going," Brasky said.

Chenault is a junior who is looking more athletic coming into the season and Brasky said he worked reallly hard at developing his offensive post presence over the summer.

Then there is Ayala (top photo with Brasky in the background), who can hit 10 or 12 three pointers in a row in practice and scored six times from beyond the arch in a scrimmage the other day.  He's just a freshman. He seems to have the touch, but there's still a lot he needs to learn about basketball, especially in Brasky's defensive scheme.

"We're trying to bring him along slowly, but he's got a skill that's hard to teach and hard to find," Brasky said. "He can really shoot the three."

Even with this looming question mark -- who will the consistent scorers be -- Brasky is feeling good enough about his squad to think a league title or even sectional title isn't out of the question.

"I'm pretty optimistic, but it's going to take some hard work and we're going to have to find some kids who can score a little bit to help Jeff out with the scoring load," Brasky said. "You know, last year everybody boxed-and-oned him and triangle-and-twoed with him and Justice. We need other guys to put the ball in the basket so it doesn't have to do it all himself."

Jeff Redband shooting.

Malachi Chenault with a slam.

Jerrett Laskett.

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Dustin Ray Cleveland, 29, of Townline Road, Byron, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .18 or greater, speed not reasonable and prudent, failure to keep right and operating an unregistered vehicle. Cleveland arrested following a one-vehicle accident at 1:25 a.m., on West Bergen Road, Le Roy, by deputy Joseph Corona.

Lisa Ann Galloway, 33, of Redman Road, Nunda, is charged with attempted criminal mischief, 4th, and resisting arrest. Galloway allegedly threw the mobile phone of another person to the ground, breaking it into several pieces, in an incident reported at 6:25 p.m. Wednesday on Veterans Memorial Drive, Batavia. When officers attempted to arrest Galloway, she allegedly pushed the officer backwards and refused to be taken into custody.

Kenneth Walker Cook Jr., 53, of Oak Street, Batavia, was arrested on a warrant for failure to pay fine levied for code violations (rotting garage roof and siding). 

Kevin O. Simmons, 54, of Central Avenue, Batavia, was arrested on a warrant for alleged failure to comply with a drug court order, which was the result of a DWI. Simmons was jailed on $100,000 bail.

Latoya Y. Stanley, 26, of Holland Avenue, Batavia, is charged with aggravated unlicensed operation, unlicensed operation and failure to use headlights.

Justin L. Pyatt, 26, no permanent address, is charged with criminal contempt, 2nd, petit larceny and violation of probation. Pyatt is accused of leaving the state in violation of probation over the summer. He was jailed on $2,500 bail. At the time of his arrest he was allegedly at a residence that he is barred from by court order.

A 17-year-old resident of Liberty Street, Batavia, is charged with criminal contempt, 2nd. The youth allegedly violated an order of protection by being at a specific residence during a domestic incident. Batavia PD did not release the the suspect's name.

Klarissa Carol Price, 36, no permanent address, is charged with unauthorized use of a motor vehicle, 3rd. Price allegedly failed to return a rented vehicle by the agreed upon date and time.

Ray A. Watson, 25, of Hart Street, Batavia, was arrested on a warrant for alleged aggravated unlicensed operation. Watson turned himself in. He was released on $250 bail.

Bryan S. Harris, 32, of Montclair Avenue, Batavia, is charged with endangering the welfare of a child. Harris is accused of a disciplinary action that caused bruising.

A vehicle has struck a pole in the area of 112 Vine St., Batavia.

A minor head injury is reported.

No wires down.

City fire and Mercy EMS responding.

Members of City Church came together today to prepare and serve the church's annual Thanksgiving Day meal for those in our community who are in need or just in need of company and good cheer.

To purchase prints, click here.

Press release:

Due to severe weather leaf operations were postponed in Batavia last week. The Bureau of Maintenance will be going through the city one more time beginning Dec. 1. Crews will be working on the Northside from east to west and the Southside from west to east.

Please have leaves properly placed by Monday, Dec. 1.

Also, the yard waste station will remain open one week longer. It will close Dec. 13, weather permitting.

Harrington's Produce on Clinton Street Road has their Christmas trees out, but these trees aren't flocked, at least not in spray-on substance sense. Today's snow is sticking to everything it falls on, putting these pines right in the holiday spirit.

A one-car accident is reported on the eastbound Thruway at mile marker 386.3. The car is off the roadway and the female driver is injured and unresponsive, according to the caller to dispatch. Town of Batavia and Mercy medics are responding.

UPDATE 3:40 p.m.: The male patient is being transported to the hospital via ambulance and CPR is in progress.

On WBTA's Talk of the Town, starring Hiram Kasten and Lucine Kauffman, this morning they had as guests Carmen DelPlato, a teacher at Jackson School in Batavia, and Laura Dubin. They introduced a new recording by the Laura Dubin Trio, with Sage Melcher on vocals, of "Real Old Fashioned Christmas."

The song was written by Mary DelPlato and Anthony DelPlato.

Carmen asked Laura Dubin if she would record the song, and she said she would if she liked it. Obviously, she did. She reworked the arrangement into a more traditional Swing vibe and brought in Melcher to sing it. Both Dubin and Melcher are from Rochester.

There is a structure fire at 22 Manhattan Ave. and city firefighters are on scene. Town of Batavia fire is asked to stand by in its hall.

UPDATE 9:05 a.m.: This was a kitchen fire that was called in about 25 minutes ago. Firefighters were able to contain it to the kitchen and now the fire is out.

UPDATE 9:07 a.m.: A pet cat was found in the house, brought safely out and taken to a neighbor for safekeeping. A code enforcement officer is on scene. There remains a faint smell of smoke inside but the blaze did not produce much smoke.

UPDATE 9:26 a.m.: Engine 12 is back in service. Town of Batavia is released from its standby.

An administrator at Notre Dame High School was disciplined more than a month ago for reportedly shaving the head of a student who showed up to school one day sporting a Mowhawk-style haircut.

Vice Principal and Athletic Director Mike Rapone reportedly shaved the head of Lucus Hull in front of other students during homeroom period while in the cafeteria, according to his mother, Denise Hull.

She describes her son as "humiliated" by Rapone's actions and claims that Rapone violated the school's code of conduct by touching her son without permission.

The reprimand Rapone received, confirmed by letters to Hull by the school and the superintendent of the diocese's schools, doesn't go far enough, according to Hull. She wants Rapone terminated.

"Quite frankly, if what is on the code of conduct is correct, then Mr. Rapone has violated it and should be removed from his position with the school," Hull said in an e-mail to The Batavian.

The incident occurred in Sept. 23. Charles Hull wrote a lengthy letter to Principal Joseph Scanlan on Oct. 2 that made several points, including (but not limited to):

• That while at the Camp Hough Freshman Retreat, Sept. 3-4, Lucas asked Rapone for permission to have a "buzzcut Mohawk style," and Rapone, Hull said, told Lucas he could try it for a day.
• Lucas, Hull said, reviewed the school uniform policy and assured his parents the haircut was permitted. "Nothing was or is noted in the policy which strictly prohibits any type of Mohawk hairstyle," Hull wrote.
• Lucus was given the option Sept. 23 to go home for a haircut (which is 12 miles away) or Rapone would cut his hair.
• About 20 minutes later, Rapone returned to the homeroom, which was held in the cafeteria, and shaved the youth's hair in front of classmates.
• Among the Hulls' complaints -- that the parents were not contacted about the issue before the Mohawk was shaved off.
• The Hulls do not feel the public apology by Rapone was sufficient to assuage Lucas or his sister. They called it "damage control" and "less than sincere."

Denise Hull contacted The Batavian, she said, because she felt Notre Dame had failed to address the situation adequately. 

She said she believes the board of directors, which she characterizes as made up primarily of sports boosters and former athletes, are unduly protecting a popular athletic director and successful basketball coach.

Her communications included copies of letters from the school and diocese and a copy of the student handbook.

The handbook, dated July 2014, clearly states "Outlandish hairstyles (e.g. Mohawks, wild colors, etc.)" are prohibited.

The letters clearly state that Rapone was reprimanded, that he and Scanlan must attend sensitivity training, and that the policy for dealing with such situations would be revised.

The letter from Charles Hull to Scanlan indicates that Rapone may have misunderstood the question from Lucas about a "buzzcut Mohawk."

"Mr. Rapone misunderstanding a question does not give him the right to humiliate Lucas," Charles Hull wrote.

Of course, a "buzzcut" and a "Mohawk" are two different styles of haircuts. One involves completely shaving the head, the other leaves a streak of hair down the middle of the scalp.

Denise Hull also said she believes the school is applying a double standard because there are students who have come to school with what might be considered "outlandish" hairstyles.  

We shared one specific complaint with Scanlan (we're avoiding being specific so as not to publicly drag another student into the issue) and Scanlan said, "that's a completely separate issue," but said he couldn't elaborate.

The Hulls also contacted Child Protective Services, which told them, Denise Hull said, this wasn't a CPS issue, and Batavia PD, which investigated and found insufficient evidence to sustain a charge of harassment.

Scanlan said he couldn't comment on a personnel matter. He e-mailed The Batavian the following statement authorized by the school's board of directors:

The incident in question occurred in September, and was promptly and appropriately addressed by the Notre Dame High School Board of Trustees and the school administration.

A student came to school with a mohawk haircut that violated the School’s dress code policy. After the student declined the opportunity to leave school to get his hair cut, the assistant principal cut the student’s hair in the student’s homeroom. The assistant principal has since apologized to the student, his parents, and the school community for his error in judgment in cutting the student's hair in the student’s homeroom before discussing the violation with the student’s parents.

Additionally, the School’s Board of Trustees recently amended to the School's student dress code policy to provide that parents will be consulted prior to any action if a similar situation arises in the future.

This action by the Board, coupled with the previous actions by the School's administration, has fully and thoroughly addressed this situation, and the School will have no further comment on this private matter.

Batavia Middle School was put on lockdown just before the dismissal time this afternoon because of a report of a man with a gun inside his residence just a block or so from the school.

The lockdown was requested by police, Sgt. Dan Coffey said, because of the proximity and the potential for students to be walking through a potential danger zone once they were released.

It turned out the man may have only had a BB or pellet gun, Coffey said, but a State Police K-9 was brought in just in case to sniff for actual firearm in and around the residence, which was near the corner of Ross and Miller.

The initial call came from the man's girlfriend who said her boyfriend was in an upstairs bedroom pointing a gun to his head and threatening suicide.

Coffey said police surrounded the area and the man eventually came out of the house on his own and was taken into custody without incident.

He was taken to police headquarters for questioning.

Coffey said officers are considering what if any charges might be brought.

The incident lasted about 10 minutes and after the man was in custody, students were released from school.

A Batavia man accused of selling drugs earlier this year was sentenced today by Judge Robert C. Noonan to five years in state prison.

Dajuandrick C. "Omega" (and "X") Gardner, 37, of East Avenue, entered a guilty plea to a count of attempted criminal possession of a controlled substance 3rd on Oct. 24.

He was indicted on six counts related to the sale of cocaine and possession of enough cocaine to constitute suspected drug dealing. The plea satisfied all the counts of the indictment.

The sales to agents of the Local Drug Task Force occurred in January.

Gardner's arrest in March was announced with two other suspects.

"For my part in this case that I committed, I probably wouldn't if I wasn't on drugs," Gardner told Noonan. "I wouldn't have committed the crime and I want to take responsibility for my part that I did regardless of the fact that I was on drugs. I want to apologize to the court and the community."

Noonan told Gardner that his turnabout was a little late.

"You've had many opportunities over the course of your life to clean yourself up from drugs and you never seized them," Noonan said. "You just dove into criminal activity over and over again."

The judge also ordered Gardner to pay $150 in restitution upon his release from prison.

Prior to sentencing, among the requests from Gardner's attorney was one for instructions from Noonan to the Department of Corrections that Gardner's head not be shaved. He said Gardner is a Rastafarian and it would violate his religion to cut his hair.

Noonan said he has no authority to tell the DOC what to do.

The Tonawanda Creek has reached a minor flood stage of nine feet high and is expected to crest this afternoon at 9.3 feet, according to the National Weather Service.

Photo from about an hour ago at the spillway behind the County Courthouse.

The Town of Batavia needs to treat more wastewater these days, and possibly into the future, so it must purchase additional capacity in the treatment plant on Treadeasy Avenue.

If plans are approved, the town will pay the city nearly $2 million for an additional 500,000 gallons of capacity. 

The $2 million can be used by the city to repair and upgrade existing sewer lines or sewer-related infrastructure. Legally, it can't be used for anything else.

The treatment facility opened in 1990 with the intention that it serve both the town and the city. The total cost was $48 million, with $39 million being paid by state and federal grants. The city covered more than $8 million of the local share of the cost and the town more than $500,000.

For the price, the city obtained 3.5 million gallons per-day capacity and the town 350,000 gallons per day.

The town now occasionally exceeds its capacity, City Manager Jason Molino said, especially after two yogurt plants opened in the Genesee Valley Agri-Business Park.

Molino said the town also anticipates additional manufacturing growth, which means an even greater need for sewer capacity.

Residential growth, such as the new housing development on East Main Road, doesn't greatly increase the need for more capacity, Molino said.

The process of increasing capacity for the town will take up to 12 months, since the town is broken into sewer districts and there will need to be a series of public hearings before the town board can approve bonds to cover the $2 million expense.

The fee is based on a series of complex, and legally mandated, calculations that Public Works Director Sally Kuzon explained briefly for council members.

Previously: Batavia Wastewater Treatment Plant, one of city's hidden treasures