batavia

Press release:

Koolatron Corporation is increasing its footprint in Batavia with a major expansion this fall. The consumer goods manufacturer is nearly doubling its warehouse and shipping capacity in Genesee County with a planned expansion of its facilities from 25,000 square feet to 45,000 square feet.

Koolatron is a leading manufacturer and distributor of 12 volt coolers and accessories, wine cellars, Pants Saver brand car mats, Michelin auto care products, Coca-Cola personal fridges, Biteshield mosquito and pest repellant lines, along with rain barrels and garden décor products.

The decision to expand in Batavia, NY, is fueled by major growth in the company’s e-commerce business. In addition to its growing list of traditional retail customers, major e-retailers such as Amazon, Overstock, Costco, Home Depot, Walmart, and Sam's Club all carry Koolatron products, along with dozens of other online sites.

“Our business keeps growing and we can barely keep up with the warehouse space we have right now,” says Koolatron President Arun Kulkarni. He adds that keeping pace with the boom in online shopping is priority for the company.

“We have seen a 30 percent compounded growth in our e-commerce business in the past five years and for us Batavia, New York is the perfect gateway in which to build up our U.S. shipping hub,” Kulkarni said.

The expansion of Koolatron’s property on 4330 Commerce Drive is under way with construction set to be completed by December 2014. Koolatron will also be looking to boost staffing as it fully rolls out its warehouse expansion plan by the end of this year. Hundreds of parcels of Koolatron products are shipped daily from the warehouse to homes across the United States. The expansion will help ensure rapid delivery and prompt service for Koolatron’s growing U.S. customer base.

Previously: GCEDC board approves Koolatron and Premiere Credit projects

UPDATED 9:25 a.m., Thursday.

It took more than an hour, but police did nab a warrant suspect late this afternoon after a police officer spotted him on Walnut Street, Batavia.

The suspect was listed as a missing person and also had a county arrest warrant. The charges are not listed in in the Batavia PD press release. The Batavian is not publishing the suspect's name at this time.

The youth is a resident of Walnut Street.

Officer Chad Richards spotted the youth walking on Walnut and when he turned around, the suspect fled. Backup units were called from Batavia PD and the Sheriff's Office, including Deputy Chris Erion with K-9 Destro.

Officers cordoned off the area and conducted a search. After the search area was expanded, the suspect was spotted on Franklin Avenue and taken into custody.

Assisting in the search were Sgt. Dan Coffey, Det. Thad Mart, Det. Eric Hill, Officer James Defreze, Officer Jason Ivison, Officer Wojtaszczyk along with Det. Paul Caffo and Investigator Greg Walker. 

The youth was taken into custody on Franklin by Mart and Defreze.

A bicyclist was hit by a car at Liberty and Ellicott streets. The driver said he came around the corner and did not see the bicycle in time. The victim was taken by ambulance to UMMC and was conscious and alert.

D Andre J. Cramer, 15, is a runaway from Batavia and police believe he is in the local area.

He is 5'6" tall, 145 pounds, with black hair and brown eyes, and the missing child flier says he is of mixed race (black/white).

D Andre was last seen on Monday, Aug. 4, wearing a dark gray Nike shirt, tan shorts, gray and white sneakers and a baseball cap.

He may go by the names "Dre" or "D."

If you have information of his whereabouts, contact Det. Richard Schauf with the Batavia PD at 585-345-6312 or e-mail  Schauf@batavianewyork.com

Also, the NYS Missing Persons Clearinghouse can be reached at at 1-800-346-3543 or go to www.criminaljustice.ny.gov

His missing person case number is:   14-17356-TW

Press release:

On Thursday Aug. 7, the City of Batavia Infrastructure Improvement Project will finish paving on Summit Street, weather permitting. This phase of the project includes paving the roadway; the work zone will be from East Main Street (RTS 5 / 33) to North Street.

Given the scope of this work Summit Street will be closed to all thru traffic on Thursday from 7 a.m. until 5 p.m. Local traffic will be allowed to access their residences throughout the duration of this phase, however thru traffic will be detoured by use of Ross Street and Bank Street. No parking will be permitted on Summit Street during this time.

Weather permitting, it is anticipated that this phase of the project will be completed in one day. The City of Batavia and Keeler Construction Co., Inc., appreciates your patience and cooperation during the construction and asks motorists and pedestrians to abide by this closure and use the posted detour whenever possible.

The point of contact is the Department of Public Works at 345-6325.

A two-car accident, unknown injuries, is reported at the intersection of Bank Street and Washington Avenue. It is not blocking traffic. City fire and Mercy medics responding.

UPDATE 7:12 p.m.: No one was injured in the collision, caused by one vehicle's brake failure.

Daphne's Restaurant & Lounge, at 341 S. Swan St., Batavia, has closed.

The restaurant opened in September 2010 at the former location of St. Nick's Social Club.

Charles H. Wroten, 53, of Buell Street, Batavia, is charged with criminal obstruction of breathing/blood circulation, second-degree robbery, and second-degree assault. Wroten was arrested on the charges following a domestic incident Aug. 4 on Hutchins Street. He is accused of slamming a person to the ground, causing injury, and taking the phone from the victim. He was jailed without bail. The case was investigated by Batavia PD officers Jason Ivison and James DeFreze.

Mark Walter Grabowski, 56, of Chestnut Street, Batavia, is charged with second-degree harassment following his arrest this afternoon for a monetary dispute that initially arose on July 10 on Margaret Place. He was issued an appearance ticket. The case was investigated by Batavia PD officers Peter Flanagan and Devon Pahuta.

Kelly J. Stone, 40, of Le Roy, no other address provided, was ticketed for failure to keep right following a one-vehicle accident in Warsaw on Aug. 3. State Police reported that the accident occurred at the CSX railroad crossing on Saltvale Road, just entering the Town of Middlebury. Stone was northbound on Saltvale when she allegedly failed to reduce her speed at the crossing in time to avoid entering the southbound lane. Then her vehicle struck a sign on the west shoulder before it came to a stop. Neither Stone nor her two passengers were injured in the collision. She is to return at a later date to the Middlebury Town Court.

Are you a maker? Perhaps you are, and don't even know it.

There's makers all over the country these days -- people who are inventive and like creating new and innovative things.

It's a whole culture.

And it's coming to Batavia, where business innovation has strong roots -- the Harvester Center.

Tom Mancuso and some of his friends have been talking for a year about creating a maker community locally. Last week, they put their plan into action, hosting a 3-D printing demonstration with local design and manufacturing expert James Dillon.

3-D printing is one of the widely used tools for creating in the maker community. The printer works much like any printer, except it doesn't use ink or paper. It uses plastics and other material to layer material into a computer generated form. It might be a cup, a model airplane or a part for a car, or just about anything the maker can imagine.

Makers also work with electronics, robotics, metalworking, woodworking, and traditional arts and crafts.

Mancuso said the plan is to create a space in the Harvester Center -- if there's enough interest in the community -- where makers can come and create and innovate together.

The space will be open (possibly with a fee like a health club) to artists, hobbyists, trainees and budding entrepreneurs. 

Makers will have available a variety of tools, from welding equipment, vacuum forms, laser cutters and, of course, a 3-D printer. There will be big spaces, which the hobbyist doesn't necessarily have at home.

"Maybe you work at home, but you want to do a bigger project," Mancuso said. "Where do you go to do that? You're limited by your equipment, by your workspace. We're trying to help those start-up hobby guys maybe go to the next level."

A gear created by the 3-D printer.

James Dillon with one of his first 3-D printing projects, a model jet.

3-D printer on the right.

The Baby Cafe is a place of encouragement and support for breastfeeding mothers. UMMC opened the room at Cary Hall recently and held an open house yesterday.

Expectant mothers, breastfeeding mothers and mothers experienced with breast feeding are invited to the room every Tuesday from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

The Baby Cafe is supported by a national, nonprofit organization dedicated to helping mothers who are breastfeeding.

Cary Hall is located at 211 E. Main St., Batavia.

Amanda Earl submitted these photos of the band "It's My Party" performing Friday night at Jackson Square.

Sara E. Schimley, 24, a Le Roy native now living in Buffalo without a permanent address, was arrested July 28 by Le Roy police on a bench warrant out of Le Roy Town Court for failure to appear on two charges: first-degree felony burglary; and criminal possession of a weapon, 3rd. In addition, Le Roy police charged her with bail jumping, 2nd, a Class E felony, for allegedly failing to appear in court within 30 days of her last scheduled appearance on the original burglary and weapons charges. Buffalo PD located her and turned her over to Le Roy PD. She was jailed in lieu of $5,000 bail. Le Roy PD officer John Condidorio handled the case.

Nicole Lyn Kulzer, 33, of Swamp Road, Byron, is charged with endangering the welfare of a child and second-degree harassment. On July, 30, Kulzer was arrested following an investigation into an incident wherein she allegedly disciplined a child by striking the child with a plastic golf club, causing swelling and redness in the area where hit. The case was investigated by Sheriff's deputy Joseph Graff.

Jennifer Ann Stiles, 31, of Sheppard Road, Pavilion, is charged with reckless endangerment, 1st, menacing, 2nd, and conspiracy, 5th, following an incident July 25 in Byron. It is alleged that she was involved in a dispute and discharged a firearm during the conflict. The case was investigated by Sheriff's deputy Joseph Corona.

Brandon Marshall Weig, 26, of West Main Street, Batavia, is charged with first-degree criminal contempt, with a prior conviction within the previous five years. He allegedly violated a court order barring him from having any contact whatsoever with the protected party. Weig is currently in county jail on a similar offense and was issued an appearance ticket on the new charge. He is scheduled to appear in City Court on Aug. 5. The case was investigated by officer Chad Richards.

Nicholas Alexander Verhoef, 18, of Spencer Road, Rochester, is charged with unlawful possession of marijuana and unlawful possession of alcohol by a person under age 21. Sheriff's deputies made the arrest after he was stopped for alleged violations of vehicle and traffic law. Verhauf was also alleged to have been drinking alcohol inside his vehicle when he was stopped. The case was investigated by Sheriff's deputy Joseph Corona.

Joseph William McNamara, 19, of Sand Pebble Drive, Rochester, is charged with criminal impersonation, 2nd, and unlawful possession of alcohol by a person under age 21. It is alleged that on Aug. 2 in Pavilion he used the NY ID of another person to unlawfully buy alcohol and to possess it while being under age. Also, McNamara was cited for no front license place and open alcoholic beverage inside a motor vehicle. The case was investigated by Sheriff's deputy Joseph Corona.

Amanda Marie Webb, 25, of Colby Road, Darien, is charged with unlawful possession of marijuana, aggravated unlicensed operation, 3rd, and failure to stop at stop sign. It is alleged that on July 29 she failed to stop at a stop sign and a traffic stop was made, whereupon a Sheriff's deputy allegedly found her in possession of marijuana and a suspended driver's license. The case was investigated by deputy Joseph Corona.

Thomas J. Mitchell, 25, of West Center Street, Medina, is charged with petit larceny and criminal mischief, 4th. He was arrested in Erie County by Batavia PD on warrants issued by City Court. He was jailed in lieu of $250 bail. He is set to appear back in court Aug. 7. The case was investigated by officer Jason Davis.

Scott Alexander Lawrence, 23, of Griswold Road, Darien, is charged with unlawful possession of marijuana. Lawrence was a passenger in a vehicle on July 29 when the vehicle was stopped by Sheriff's deputies for vehicle and traffic violations and at that time he allegedly possessed marijuana. The case was investigated by Joseph Corona.

The attorney for DaShawn Butler -- the Batavia resident accused of firing gunshots at a person on State Street last September -- has filed a motion to have the charges against Butler dismissed because, he said, his client's rights have been violated.

Attorney Thomas Burns argued in court this morning that information about two witnesses wasn't available to him before a grand jury hearing on the case, and that the lack of information under those circumstances is so egregious that the case should be dimissed "in the interest of justice."

District Attorney Lawrence Friedman countered that the information was available in the City Court case file and that even if the witness had been made available to testify, their testimony would not have helped Butler's defense.

Burns also requested a hearing on the timeliness of Butler's arrest in December. Burns contends that the police had ample opportunity to locate and arrest Butler after he was named as a suspect in the shooting because Butler never left town.

The lack of due diligence, Burns told Judge Robert C. Noonan, means there was a violation of his client's right to a speedy trial.

Noonan scheduled the hearing for 3 p.m., Aug. 27. He is reserving his decision on dismissal motions by Burns.

According to Burns, there are three witnesses he didn't know about before the grand jury presentation. Two, he said, initially said the shooter the night of Sept. 27 was white and a third said the alleged victim was the shooter.

Burns said there was only an incomplete report in the City Court file prior to the hearing, which is why didn't know about these witnesses.

He questioned why the police waited weeks to interview the witnesses.

Friedman called the initial statements attributed to the witnesses "double hearsay." He said the investigators were simply doing what good cops do, an investigation when they went out to find the witnesses and try to find out what they actually saw.

Once they were actually interviewed -- rather than the police just getting information from intermediaries -- they described the shooter as black and the other did not name the victim as the shooter.

He said the information was in the City Court file prior to the grand jury hearing.

In June, Butler entered a not guilty plea to counts of criminal use of a firearm, 2nd, a Class C violent felony, criminal possession of a weapon, 2nd, a Class C violent felony, and attempted assault, 1st, also a Class C violent felony.

He is out of jail on $25,000 bail.

Local artist Brandi Bruggman has been comissioned by Vibrant Batavia to paint two of the fire hydrants downtown. Here she paints the one at Main and Bank, in front of Seymour Place (GO ART!). She said this hydrant will have a colorful paisley design on it. Her other hydrant will be painted like a lighthouse.  

Below, a hydrant on Center Street completed by another artist.

UPDATE: Amanda Earl submitted these photos of Brandi's hydrants from later in the day.

Children participating in the summer program at John Kennedy School were at the City of Batavia Fire Hall this morning to learn about fire safety. Among the activities, putting on a firefighter's jacket and spraying water from a fire hose.

Town of Batavia fire is on scene at 9 Valley Drive, Batavia, for a car that has reportedly hit a tree.

Possible injuries and the car is said to be smoking.

The driver apparently called in the accident and said he hit a water slick and went off the road and hit the tree.

Batavia Police were called to 610 Ellicott St. about 2 p.m. this afternoon for a male screaming for help covered in blood.

When emergency crews and police showed up on scene they found a male in his thirties down in the front lawn covered in blood.

Police say the victim was in the rear apartment when he was stabbed. He then ran outside looking for help.

The victim was not a resident of the apartment. He was visiting the female resident there.

The victim and the suspects are believed to be acquaintances.

The suspects fled the scene in a maroon minivan or SUV.  According to police, the vehicle was occupied by a male and a female.

The victim was transported to Strong Hospital by ground ambulance with a stab wound to the lower part of his body.

According to Sgt. Dan Coffey, the victim's wounds are not life-threatening.

City of Batavia Police continue to investigate the incident.

Anyone with information can call the tipline at 585-345-6370

Genesee County Emergency Management Services was conducting water pump operations training for new recruits this afternoon at DeWitt Recreation Area, with assistance from Le Roy fire and Byron fire departments.

The goal while I was there was to get the flow up to 1,500 gallons per minute. Town of Batavia's Ladder 25 is capable of flowing 2,000 gallons a minute.

If you want to do fun stuff like this, become a volunteer firefighter in your community. Visit Ready Genesee for more information.

A Security Roofing pickup truck was traveling north on Bank Street at about 8 a.m. when it swerved to miss a dog in the road, hit the curb and then a guy wire of a utility pole, causing it to roll onto its side. 

The location was just north of Washington Avenue.

The driver of the pickup, a male in his 30s, was transported to UMMC to be checked out. 

The truck's load of scaffolding spilled onto Bank Street.

National Grid called to the scene to fix the guy wire.

City fire also on location for leaking fluids from the truck.

Photos and reporting by Alecia Kaus / Video News Service.