Photo: Mulching downtown
City crews were on Main Street, Batavia, this morning, mulching the flower beds.
City crews were on Main Street, Batavia, this morning, mulching the flower beds.
Dozens and dozens of children -- from toddlers on up -- swarmed Centennial Park this morning to gather dozens and dozens of brightly colored Easter eggs.
Sponsored by Batavia Kiwanis, Batavia Police were also on hand -- including Officer Dan Coffey, whose patrol car was almost more popular than the Easter Bunny after the hunt.
More pictures after the jump:
An electrical fire that is now out reported at 31 Ganson Ave., Batavia.
There is smoke in the basement.
Residents advised to evacuate the house.
City Fire Department responding.
Angelo Merica III, the second driver in Wednesday's fatal crash that took the life of 37-year-old Jonathan Colby remains in guarded condition at Strong Memorial Hospital.
Family members are concerned that he may never walk again.
WBTA's Geoff Redick spoke with Merica's uncle, Jamie Merica, who said Angelo -- the father of two young children who recently moved to Batavia from Pavilion -- was planning to get married in July.
Now family members worry that he won't be able to walk down the isle.
"He's going to have a long, tough road ahead of him, for sure," Jamie said.
Though conscious and alert when he was extricated from his car, the 27-year-old Angelo Merica is now in an induced coma.
The following local residents were named to the Dean's List at Ithaca College for the fall 2010 semester.
James Earl, son of Carolyn Stegman, of Batavia, attends the college's Roy H. Park School of Communications.
Allyce Barron, daughter of Bruce and Marie Barron, of Le Roy, attends the college's School of Music.
Coeducational and nonsectarian, Ithaca College is a nationally recognized independent college of some 6,400 undergraduates and 400 graduate students. Located in Ithaca, it offers more than 100 degree programs.
Jamie Bucciferro, daughter of Vincent and Cheryl Bucciferro, of Batavia, has graduated with a Master of Science degree from Ithaca College's School of Health Sciences and Human Performance.
Coeducational and nonsectarian, Ithaca College is a nationally recognized independent college of some 6,400 undergraduates and 400 graduate students. Located in Ithaca.
A suspected drug dealer allegedly struggled with members of the Local Drug Enforcement Task Force, causing minor injuries to two officers, when they attempted to arrest him Thursday evening on Liberty Street, Batavia.
Taken into custody, following an investigation into the sale, transportation and possession of cocaine in and around Le Roy and Batavia, was 21-year-old Craig A. Tiberio-Shepherd, of Lathrop Avenue, Le Roy.
Once Tiberio-Shepherd was taken into custody, members of the task force along with uniformed deputies and officers from Batavia PD and Le Roy PD, executed search warrants on Tiberio-Shepherd himself and his residence.
Investigators allegedly found a quantity of cocaine, a quantity of Suboxone (a controlled substance), numerous pieces of drug paraphernalia, drug packaging, digital scales and $310.
Following arraignment in Batavia City Court, Tiberio-Shepherd was jailed without bail.
Tiberio-Shepherd was charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance, 3rd, criminal possession of a controlled substance, 4th, assault, 2nd, and obstructing governmental administration, 2nd. In Le Roy Court, Tiberio-Shepherd was charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance, 7th, and criminal using drug paraphernalia, 2nd.
The injured members of the task force suffered twisted fingers and minor cuts and bruises.
Timothy J. Wood, 28, of 4 N. Spruce St., Batavia, is charged with endangering the welfare of a child. Wood was arrested following an investigation at 7:30 p.m., Thursday, of a 1-year-old baby being left unattended on the front porch of a residence. Wood was jailed on $2,500 bail.
Joshua L. Baltz, 35, of 29 Tracy Ave., Batavia, is charged with criminal obstruction of breathing or blood circulation, criminal mischief, 4th, and harassment, 2nd. Baltz is accused of being involved in a domestic incident on Wednesday. Baltz was jailed on $2,000 bail.
A 16-year-old resident of West Avenue, Medina, is charged with petit larceny. The youth is accused of shoplifting from Kmart.
Habibah Tywell Caldwell, 19, of Batavia-Stafford Townline Road, Batavia, is charged with trespass. Caldwell is accused of trespassing at College Village after being banned from the property.
Robert Paul Leiser, 42, of Lockport Road, Oakfield, is charged with criminal contempt, 1st, unlawful imprisonment and harassment, 2nd. Leiser allegedly became involved in a fight with a protected person while in the Town of Batavia. Leiser was jailed on $15,000 bail.
Benjamin Gove Evans, 22, of West Main Street Road, Batavia, is charged with petit larceny. Evans allegedly stole property from Home Depot. Evans was located riding a bicycle on Washington Avenue and taken into custody. He was jailed on $10,000 bail.
Daniel J. Saeva, 31, of 6283 Sweetland Road, Stafford, is charged with harassment, 2nd. Saeva allegedly knocked another person down during an argument on April 10. Saeva turned himself in to Batavia Police after a warrant was issued.
Ricardo Brown, 21, of Cedar Avenue, Mount Vernon, is charged with assault, 2nd. Brown, originally from Jamaica, is a detainee at the Buffalo Federal Detention Facility on Federal Drive, Batavia, where he allegedly got into a fight with another detainee. Brown allegedly kicked the other inmate in the head several times. Brown was arraigned in Batavia Town Court and returned to the detention facility.
Care-A-Van Ministries will be sponsoring their 11th Annual Community Easter Dinner. The free delicious dinner will be served Easter Sunday from 2:00 PM until 4:00 PM at the Assembly of God church located on North Spruce Street. The Assembly of God Church will be providing van service for those who are in need of a ride. Please call 343-0328 by Saturday evening if a ride is needed to the dinner.
If you are looking to be blessing to others and would like to volunteer to help with the dinner, please call 343-0328.
Last year over 90 folks attended.
Funeral arrangements have been made for Jonathan Colby, 37, who died Wednesday morning in an auto accident on West Main Street Road.
A celebration of life service will be held at the Gilmartin Funeral Home, 329-333 W. Main St., Batavia. Calling hours will be Saturday from 2 to 4 p.m. and 7 to 9 p.m. There will be no calling hours Easter Sunday.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorials be made to the family for a college fund for his 7-year-old daughter, Aurelia.
A pole is reportedly on fire on Alexander Road, south of the overpass past the first railroad track on the west side.
It's apparently the same pole that caught on fire at 4 a.m., Wednesday.
Town of Batavia Fire Department responding.
Volunteers for Animals will be having a hotdog stand at the Batavia Walmart starting at 11 a.m. this Saturday, April 23.
They will be offering grilled hotdogs, chips and pop with all proceeds going to the animals at the Genesee County Animal Shelter.
They plan to be there until 6 p.m. or until the dogs run out.
They say "We hope you will come out for a dog and drink to help out the animals at the shelter!"
Dozens of homeowners along Route 5 could get a public sewer system if the Town of Batavia receives Community Development Block Grant funds.
The second of two public hearings regarding a proposal for the use of the CDBG money was held Wednesday evening. No one from the public attended.
Now the town will apply for $600,000 in CDBG grants to cover about half the cost of a putting in a public sewer line along a portion of Route 5.
Supervisor Greg Post explained that, “We have a concept plan to provide sanitary sewer facilities along Route 5 -- from the end of the existing district (near Duro-Shed, Inc.) -- that would go west to the mobile home park, which is just past Wortendyke (Road).”
He said residents along that stretch of roadway have septic tanks and most of those need repair or replacement. But that would be a serious financial burden for them.
“There are limits to what New York State will allow people to construct on facilities they have owned for generations,” Post said. “These extraordinary restrictions weren’t in effect when those houses were constructed and it leaves homeowners somewhat out of options as far as improving the value of their homes.”
About 75 residents would benefit from CDBG funds being used to install the proposed public sewer system.
“This differs from some other grant funding to improve the economic vitality or commercialization in a development," Post said. "This is essentially scoped around a residential aspect here. Using the funds this way will greatly improve the quality of their lives.”
When and if a public sewer system is installed, residents will have to connect a line to it within a certain period of time, although Post he didn't know offhand what the time frame was.
For the homeowners, there are several factors to consider, including how much they have invested in their current septic system.
As for how much it might cost residents to be part of a sewer district, Post says it's too soon to tell. The town hasn't yet applied for the grant.
"This is the first of many steps," the supervisor said.
This afternoon a jury returned a verdict of guilty in the trial of Donald F. Stillwagon, 25, of South Main Street, Batavia, who was accused of biting a Batavia Police officer.
Stillwagon was convicted of assault, 2nd, and faces a possible seven-year prison term.
On Sept. 29, Batavia Police responded a reported disturbance at Stillwagon's residence. A man there was reportedly choking another person. When police arrived, they tried to take Stillwagon into custody and a struggle ensued. During the struggle, Stillwagon bit Sgt. John Peck on his forearm.
Peck was cut deeply enough to bleed significantly. He was treated and released at UMMC and missed two days of work.
In order to convict Stillwagon, the jury needed to decide whether the defendant had the intent of harming Peck.
Much of the closing arguments of both Public Defender Gary Horton and District Attorney Lawrence Friedman centered on whether Stillwagon was too intoxicated to form a coherent intention.
"Either Donald Stillwagon is a huge jerk or he had to be intoxicated," Horton said. "You saw Donald Stillwagon as he sat in this courtroom, you saw his demeanor, you saw him testify, can you believe he would have done these things without being intoxicated?"
Friedman argued that Stillwagon, who had apparently been at a local bar drinking prior to the incident, clearly had the presence of mind to form intent because he was able to unlock a deadbolt after his mother had locked it in order to go outside, and when he tried to escape from police, he told a State Trooper, "That's a bad idea."
"He was aware enough to know his plan of escape wasn't working out for him," Friedman said.
Sentencing has been scheduled for June 20.
In March, Stillwagon turned down a plea offer that would have capped his sentence at six-months "shock probation" and opted to take his case to a jury.
The second driver involved in yesterday's fatal head-on collision on West Main Street Road, Batavia, remains in guarded condition at Strong Memorial Hospital.
Angelo A. Merica III, 27, of Pavilion, was westbound on Route 5 when his car was struck by an eastbound car driven by Jonathan M. Colby, 37, of Tracy Avenue, Batavia. Colby was pronounced dead at the scene.
At Strong, a patient in the intensive care unit (ICU) is listed as as "guarded."
While investigators have determined that Colby's car made a slow, steady drift into the oncoming lane, what hasn't been determined is why Colby's car drifted.
Colby had recently been working overnight shifts at Lowe's and may have been fatigued at the time of the crash.
Colby, a Muckdogs fan and involved in community theater, was married and the father of a 7-year-old girl.
Francisco Martinez Jr., 37, no permanent address, is charged with criminal contempt, 2nd. Martinez was taken into custody by Batavia Police on an arrest warrant issued in City Court after Martinez allegedly violated a "stay away" order of protection. Martinez was jailed on $1,000 bail.
Eric M. Duda, 49, of 6303 Main Road, Stafford, is charged with criminal contempt, 2nd. Duda allegedly violated an order of protection by going to an apartment where the protected person was staying. Duda was jailed on $1,000 bail.
A big, fun Easter Egg Hunt begins at 9 a.m. on Saturday, April 23 at Centennial Park in the City of Batavia.
This annual event -- for children age 10 and under -- is put on by the Batavia Kiwanis.
Centennial Park is located at Ellicott Avenue and Richmond Avenue.
Travis Michael Herold, 20, of Prospect Street, Attica, is charged with felony DWI, felony driving with a BAC of .08 or greater, moving from lane unsafely and consumption of alcohol in a motor vehicle. Herold was taken into custody following the investigation by Deputy Jason Saile into a motor vehicle accident at 2:18 a.m. in the area of 9406 Alexander Road, Batavia.
Jason Jonathan Reed, 34, of South Pearl Street Road, Oakfield, is charged with criminal contempt, 2nd. Reed is accused of violating an order of protection issued in Family Court by making a phone call to the protected party.
Connie Lynn King, 40, of South Main Street, Oakfield, is charged with harassment, 2nd. King is accused of punching, kicking, biting and pulling the hair of her boyfriend during an alleged domestic dispute at 12:45 a.m., Monday.
Dennis F. Walter, 53, of Clipnock Road, Stafford, is charged with two counts of criminal possession of a weapon, 3rd, and one count of criminal possession of a criminal weapon, 4th. Walter was arrested on a warrant out of Bethany Town Court and jailed on $20,000 bail.
Raymond Edmond Allard, 27, of South Main Street, Oakfield, is charged with trespass and harassment, 2nd. Allard allegedly had physical contact with another person and then refused to leave the property when told to do so by the property owner.
A tractor-trailer has reportedly dragged down a live wire from a power pole at a residence at 3766 Batavia-Elba Townline Road. It is in the roadway.
Town of Batavia Fire Department is called to the scene. The location is west of Pekin Road.
UPDATE 3:45 p.m.: National Grid has been notified. No ETA given. The residence is completely without power for now.
UPDATE 3:54 p.m.: National Grid is now on scene to fix the problem.
UPDATE 3:57 p.m.: The Town of Batavia fire units are back in service.
Jessica Ficarella took 2nd Place in the All-Around at the USAG Spring Graffiti Gymnastics Meet April 2nd in West Seneca.
Jessica, who is 10 years old, took 1st Place on vault, 3rd Place on the Uneven Bars and 2nd Place on the Floor Exercise -- earning her the overall 2nd Place finish. Jessica is a fifth-grader at Churchville-Chili Middle School and is a member of the Bright Raven Gymnastics Team which finished in 1st Place at the Graffiti meet.
She is the daughter of Nick and Nancy Ficarella of Churchville who own Ficarella's Pizzeria in Batavia.
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