Joey Belladonna, lead singer of the metal band Anthrax and native of Oswego, brought his cover band Chief Big Way to Center Street Smoke House on Friday night. The room was packed with fans as the trio, with Belladonna on drums, powered through big rock hit after hit. Tom Mazurkiewicz, who became friends with Belladonna after meeting him at Darien Lake, helped arrange the appearance.
For local Dunkin' Donut franchisee Mike Mikolajczyk, he thinks he's found the perfect location to open up a second shop, but the problem is, for the second time, land-use planners disagree.
In September of last year, the City Planning Board listened to objections raised by nearby residents and rejected a plan for a donut shop on West Main Street on a small lot between Five Star Bank and Barrett's Batavia Marine.
Mikolajczyk and his architect presented a new plan that they hope addresses traffic flow concerns to the Genesee County Planning Board, but the board voted to recommend disapproval of the site plan.
That doesn't kill the project. The City Planning Board can still approve the plan with a majority-plus-one vote.
The revised plan, said architect Kip Finley (photo), would allow for eight cars in queue before backing up into the parking lot, and the parking lot could accommodate an additional five cars before they would start backing up onto West Main.
Mikolajczyk's existing Dunkin franchise location, on West Main and Ellicott Avenue, captures mostly westbound commuter traffic in the morning. The proposed new location, said Finley, would help the small business owner capture more business from eastbound commuters.
With the recommended disapproval, it's back to the drawing board, Mikolajczyk said, to try and come up with a project that planners will favor. It's important enough to him, he said, to keep trying.
"It's a good location for the type of business we are," Mikolajczyk said. "That's the best location. I don't want to do a location just for the sake of putting another one in, another Dunkin' in. I want to make sure I have the right location."
Other County Planning Board recommendations:
Jason L. Perry, 20, of Batavia, was arrested for criminal mischief, 4th, after he allegedly caused damage to the apartment door and frame after a verbal argument with his roommate, according to State Police. Perry was issued an appearance ticket for Town of Byron Court on Aug. 17.
Kristen M. Stedman, 43, of Blue Aspen Way, Greece, is charged with petit larceny and failure to notify the DMV of a change of address. She was arrested Aug. 12 after Batavia Downs employees allegedly witnessed Stedman stealing alcoholic beverages from the kitchen of one of the restaurants. She was jailed in lieu of $1,000 bail. The case was handled by Batavia PD officers Peter Flanigan and Felicia DeGroot.
Meghan M. Ward, 20, of Auburn, was arrested for unlawful possession of marijuana. Ward was a passenger in a vehicle that was stopped for an improper left turn at the main entrance to Darien Lake Amusement Park. Troopers detected a strong odor of marijuana coming from the vehicle. Further investigation allegedly revealed Ward had in her possession a plastic container containing a marijuana cigarette with less than one gram of marijuana, a multicolored smoking device containing marijuana residue and a metal grinder containing loose marijuana. Ward was issued an appearance ticket for Town of Darien Court on Aug. 18. The operator of the vehicle was issued a traffic ticket.
Peter T. Bannon, 55, of East Berne, was arrested for criminal possession of marijuana and commercial vehicle violations when he was stopped on State routes 77 and 5 in Pembroke on Aug. 11. An investigation allegedly revealed about two and a half ounces of marijuana is his possession, according to State Police. He was jailed on $1,000 bail is set to be in court Sept. 8.
Dekota S. Leiser, 23, of Linwood Avenue, Warsaw, is charged with third-degree aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle after being arrested Aug. 13 on a warrant from Batavia City Court. Leiser allegedly failed to appear on the July 11 AUO, 3rd, charge, so the warrant was issued. Leiser was jailed in lieu of $500 bail and is due back in City Court Aug. 20. The case was handled by Batavia Police Officer Christopher Lindsay.
Christine M. Cordes, 30, of East Main Street, Batavia, was arrested Aug. 13 on a bench warrant for allegedly failing to appear on a traffic ticket issued Jan. 25 for third-degree aggravated unlicensed operation. She was jailed in lieu of $500 bail. The case was handled by Batavia Police Officer Jamie Givens.
Friends of the Batavia Peace Garden will hold a pasta dinner fundraiser on Thursday, Sept. 17th, at the Morganville United Church of Christ, located at 8466 Morganville Road, Stafford. Eat in or take out. Time is 4 to 7 p.m.
Tickets are: $8 --presale; $9 at door; $5 -- age 10 and under.
To get tickets in advance, contact:
Dona Palmer
585-297-2230
E-mail: donamariepalmer@yahoo.com
The Batavia Area Jaycees 29th Annual Labor Day Run & Walk will be held on Monday, Sept. 7, starting at MacArthur Park in Batavia.
The route is USA Track & Field certified (#NY-06038-JG).
Participants should check in between 8 and 9:30 a.m.
Registration fee for runners is $12 if pre-registered and $15 afterward, including day of event. Walkers can register for $10.
The first 100 participants will receive a free T-shirt and awards will be presented to the top finishers.
Registration forms are available online at www.bajny.com and this year you can register online at Score-This. A direct link is:
https://reg.score-this.com/regx/step1.jsp?eventID=1508
The race committee is actively seeking sponsors as well as promotional items for the participants' bags for this event. If you are interested in learning more about sponsorshio, please leave a message at 585-343-5775 or e-mail to bajny@yahoo.com
Friday, Aug. 21, Esdee Entertainment presents "Get Down in B-Town" with music from the '80s, '90s and 2000 at Billy Goat's Bar & Grill, 345 W. Main St., in the City of Batavia.
Cover charge is $5. Time is 10 p.m. to 2 a.m.
Music by DJ ASID.
A bicyclist was reportedly struck by a vehicle at West Main Street and Redfield Parkway. No word on injuries. Mercy medics are responding.
UPDATE 12:26 p.m.: A responder reports no injuries. Nothing blocking traffic.
A car is stuck in a creek and the driver is injured at 8900 Creek Road. Town of Batavia Fire Department and Mercy medics are responding.
The car reportedly struck a pole and went off the road into the creek. The pole and wires are down across the roadway. The location is between Lehigh Avenue and Dorman Road.
UPDATE 12:55 p.m.: Howard at the scene reports the driver is out and her only apparent injury is a rash from the shoulder harness of the safety belt. She was swatting at a bee and apparently lost control of the car. She was driving a black Chevy Malibu, which struck a pole, and there's a wire across the roadway, put no pole is down. This occurred at the curve on Creek Road between Lehigh Avenue and Lehigh Road. The vehicle landed, not in a creek, but in a ravine which is sometimes filled with water.
With 344 employees, O-AT-KA Milk Products is already Genesee County's largest private employer, and CFO Michael Patterson promised the Genesee County Economic Development Center Board a taxpayer-assisted expansion will result in a workforce expanded by 21 positions.
The expansion, at a cost to O-AT-KA of $20 million, will result in greater efficiency, a product and market expansion and greater employee safety, Patterson said.
"This is a real game changer for O-AT-KA," Patterson said. "It will allow us to grow while we focus on efficiency and employee safety."
Patterson described the region as "heavy with milk," and the expansion will help O-AT-KA improve its capacity to create new products and expand into additional markets.
O-AT-KA is seeking $2.26 million in sales tax and property tax exemptions.
In making a motion to set a public hearing on O-AT-KA's application, Board Member Craig Yunker said, "This is really important to our region and our dairy industry, which is the back bone of our local economy. I don't know of a more important project."
The date of the hearing, which the board approved unanimously, has not yet been determined, but will be within the next two or three weeks so the board can vote on whether to grant the tax exemptions at its next meeting.
“This is a tremendous investment being made by one of the largest private-sector employers in Genesee County,” said GCEDC Board Chairman Paul Battaglia. “It also demonstrates a long-term commitment to our community by the company in building a state-of-the-art facility to enhance its manufacturing operations now and in the future.”
CALLING ARTISTS OF ALL AGES: Enter for a chance to win one of several great prizes, including our top prize of $250 for 1st Place! Right now we have very few adult artists signed up to chalk so your chances of winning big are, well... BIG! We also have a People's Choice category for the public to vote on their favorite with the winner receiving a gift basket from Alex's Place Restaurant!
Teens can walk away with a $75 cash prize and our youth prize is a $75 gift basket from Adam Miller Toy and Bicycle! The contest takes place during Summer in the City this Saturday, Aug. 15th. Artists can start at 9 a.m. and work until 5 p.m. Judging and awards will be presented immediately after and announced on stage! Artists can enjoy food, drinks and entertainment from the Summer in the City festival.
With every artist's registration, you will receive a goody bag consisting of a box of 24 chalks to get started, an event T-shirt from T-Shirts Etc., and a Snapple beverage from CH Wright!
If you are an area artist and are a member of GO ART! or Batavia Society of Artists, your registration is discounted by 50 percent!
This contest is raising money for future art events through GO ART!, and will help fund the youth art program at GO ART!, which helps bring art programs to children all around our county.
A huge shout out to our platinum city sponsors that have made this event possible: Main Street Pizza Co., Alex's Place, Batavia Business Improvement District, Adam Miller Toy and Bicycle, CH Wright and T-Shirts Etc.! And many many more! Register today by click here.
It's a year today since local musician Frank Penepento started playing the National Anthem on his trumpet every morning at 7 a.m. at the VA Center in Batavia.
This morning, he was joined by several other players, including Mitch Cayea, now in the Navy and home on leave, who was in high school when he first filled in for Penepento on a morning Penepento couldn't play.
Penepento missed a period of playing while recovering from neck surgery, so other trumpeters filled in for him, and all but one of those stand-ins joined him this morning.
Besides Cayea, playing this morning were Harold McJury, Donny Allen, Ross Chua, Don Shirk and Tom Cecerce. Unable to play this morning was Richard Samsel.
Together, the group has performed the National Anthem at 7 a.m. at the VA Center through rain, sleet, snow, zero-degree mornings and golden ones like today.
Previously: Trumpeter plays National Anthem every morning at VA to honor veterans, and his father
A car versus motorcycle accident with injuries is reported at 142 S. Main St. near Roosevelt Avenue.
City firefighters and Mercy medics are responding.
UPDATE 12:03 a.m. (by Howard): The accident involved a scooter and a deer. The rider suffered only minor injuries and was transported to UMMC for evaluation. The deer ran off. There was blood from the deer on the front fender of the scooter.
Jonathan H. Wojtusiak, 31, of East Avenue, Batavia, is charged with endangering the welfare of a child and petit larceny. Wojtusiak is accused of stealing money from a tip jar at a local business in the presence of his son.
Morgan L. Cox Jr., 23, of South Spruce Street, Batavia, is charged with violation of probation, harassment, 2nd, obstructing governmental administration, 2nd, resisting arrest and criminal contempt, 1st. Officer Jamie Givens and Sgt. Christopher Camp attempted to arrest Cox on a warrant at 511 E. Main St, Batavia, at 5:06 p.m., Tuesday. Cox allegedly hid in a closet of the residence and then fought and struck police officers when they attempted to place him in custody. Cox was jailed without bail.
Cheryl M. Lyons, 49, of East Main Street, Batavia, is charged with harassment, 2nd, resisting arrest and obstruction of governmental administration. Lyons allegedly interfered with an attempt by police officers to arrest another person at 511 E. Main St., Batavia, at 5:06 p.m., Tuesday.
Tyler J. Glaser, 18, of Alden, is charged with trespass. Glaser allegedly walked on another person's property on Sumner Road, Darien, and was told repeatedly to leave and didn't, so State Police were called and Glaser was arrested.
Kayla M. Geissler, 23, of Batavia, is charged with unlawful possession of marijuana, following too closely and speed not reasonable and prudent. Geissler allegedly fell asleep while driving northbound on Route 98, Alexander, causing her to strike the rear of another vehicle. Upon further investigation, a trooper allegedly found a multicolored smoking device, a purple grinder, a glass jar, with all containing less than 25 grams of marijuana. (Initial Report)
The body of a man found Friday in the Tonawanda Creek has been identified as Troy M. Hickman, 49, of 200 Lehigh Avenue.
Hickman was identified after family members reported him missing during the course of the investigation into the discovery of the body in the creek behind Kibbe Park.
Due to the condition of the body, the Monroe County Medical Examiner's Office relied on dental records to confirm a positive identification.
The cause of death or timing of his death remains undetermined.
Batavia PD detectives are trying to piece together a timeline of Hickman's activities prior to his death.
Additional medical tests by the ME's office that may assist in the investigation could take several more weeks.
Batavia PD said no further information would be released based on the ongoing nature of the investigation.
Batavia Society of Artists and Batavia Players teamed up Tuesday night for a unique arts event in Jackson Square. The artists made art, the players were the models, in character for an upcoming performance of "Alice in Wonderland." Artists were encouraged to paint or draw in whatever medium they preferred. Some sketched, some used acrylics and others put chalk to cement. The players also rehearsed their parts for the show. There was also a wine tasting featuring Midgard Winery, of Corfu.
Rochester has had the nickname of “Image Capital of the World” due to its famous industries. It is also well known as a center for visual arts, particularly photography. The premier photography-only gallery in Rochester is Image City on 722 University Ave. Every month they rotate their exhibits featuring the best photographic art the city has to offer.
This month Batavia is more than well represented. Works from seven local photographers belonging to the Batavia Photography Club are hung on the walls. They are in a special exhibit in the East Gallery that will remain open until Sept. 6th. The first Friday art walk exhibit opening party is this week, Aug. 14th, from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. All of the local photographers are expected to be in attendance; come on out and show them your support. Admission to the gallery is always free.
For more information, a preview of the show and normal gallery hours please click here.
We've received a couple of messages asking "what was going on at Movies in Motion?"
There was nothing going on at Movies in Motion.
Police responded to a report of a domestic incident at an apartment behind the business on East Main Street.
Batavia PD, Sheriff's Office and State Police all reportedly responded.
We'll provide additional information as it becomes available.
NOTE: The inquiries about this came 45 minutes to an hour after the incident. If you see something going on and want us to check it out, don't assume we know about it. The new radio system provides spotty coverage. It's easier for law enforcement to encrypt messages and, in some cases, law enforcement has always tried to keep radio traffic to a minimum. If you see something, say something. I can be reached at howard@thebatavian.com or you can text me at (585) 260-6970.
A picnic table like this one costs up to $500 each. Of course, writing a few letters on it, or drawing a Batman symbol on it, isn't going to mean it needs to be replaced, but taxpayers did purchase it.
Saturday, John F. Brown, 56, of Woodcrest Drive, Batavia, was allegedly caught marking on a picnic table like this one at Williams Park. He is charged with criminal tampering, 3rd.
Not the crime of the century, a fact repeatedly noted by readers on The Batavian and on The Batavian's Facebook page.
However, City Manager Jason Molino has raised the issue to City Council several times over the past two years -- the city is facing a costly problem, vandalism in the city's parks. The vandalism is costing taxpayers thousands of dollars a year, Molino said.
"When you say vandalism, it could be broke things, it could be from people defecating on the walls in the bathroom, which they do, or writing on the walls," Molino said. "We pay to clean that up."
Vandals destroyed a $10,000 slide in Austin Park last year. Another took a baseball bat to a water fountain. It's still out of service. Tennis nets and poles have been destroyed, basketball nets ripped down and bathroom fixtures broken.
The vandalism along with other potential criminal activity in the parks has police officers being a little extra vigilant, said Molino.
"Vandalism is one thing, but there are things that happen in parks after dusk, and no one is immune to it in any community," Molino said. "You've got sometimes drug use, vandalism, other things, and the patrols being out, checking on the parks is part of their regular patrols and it is important. Making sure people aren't doing bad things there, whether it's vandalism or something else."
Chief Shawn Heubusch said he's well aware of the heightened concern about vandalism in the parks, but that isn't the only reason officers take some time as part of their regular patrols to check on the parks.
"This is a concern of the city," Heubusch said. "We're dealing with people destroying property. Are there bigger crimes out there we could be pursuing, absolutely there are, but we have to acknowledge and we have to work on all crimes that take place in the city, not just the ones that get headlines, so to speak."
Brown's arrest was the result of an officer, Jason Davis, doing his job and checking on a park, Heubusch said. It just happened to be an allegation of vandalism this time.
"When they're patrolling, that's an officer's job," Heubusch said.. "They're looking for people that are committing crimes. They're looking for people who are breaking the law. They're looking to make a difference, so the officer who observed him doing this was doing his job."
Photo for illustration purposes only. We don't know who the suspect is for this vandalism.
During public comments at City Council on Monday night, John Roach used words like "mangled" and "butchered" when talking about some of the tree trimming along power line routes in the city.
We asked Steve Brady, spokesman for National Grid, about the tree trimming, and here's his statement:
"We appreciate the concerns homeowners have when it is necessary for us to prune trees, and we work hard to maintain a balance between safety and reliability, and aesthetics. The work we are doing in Batavia, and specifically Oak Street, is no different than forestry work we do all across our service area. The primary purpose is safety, for the public and our crews. It is also a reliability issue, as trees pose the biggest threat to service, especially in bad weather.
"We prune trees to certain specifications depending on the configuration and voltage of the lines. In this case, our standards generally call for clearances of 6 to 10 feet horizontally in either direction, and 10 to 15 feet above and below, again depending on locale, voltage and so on. We work in communities on 5 to 7 year cycles, as we have found that – on average -- pruning on that cycle keeps up with tree growth fairly well.
"National Grid’s pruning practices were developed with the U.S. Forest Service and endorsed by the International Society of Arborculture, the National Arbor Day Foundation and other tree care professionals. Since 2000, the National Arbor Day Foundation has annually recognized National Grid as a “Tree Line USA” utility, one of a select group of utilities to earn this honor.
"National Grid offers a program called '10,000 Trees' that provides grants to municipalities encouraging them to plant low-growing varieties of trees that pose a lesser safety concern to our lines. The City of Batavia has participated in the program since 2007. We also make information available to customers regarding tree trimming, customer responsibilities and advice on what and where to plant. A link to it is here: https://www1.nationalgridus.com/ElectricSafety
Sometimes the tree trimming produces quasi works of art, as with this nearly heart-shaped pair of trees on Pearl Street Road.
One possible solution for "mangled" trees, as well as a way to reduce storm-related power outages is the undergrounding of utilities.
Press release:
The Board of Directors of the Genesee County Economic Development Center (GCEDC) will consider a project from O-AT-KA Milk Products at its Aug. 13 board meeting.
O-AT-KA Milk Products plans to add 205,000 square feet of warehousing space to its manufacturing facility on the corner of Ellicott Street and Cedar Street in Batavia. The project is expected to create 21 new jobs and the capital investment is approximately $20.9 million.
The GCEDC Board meeting is public and will take place at 1 p.m. on Thursday at the Innovation Zone Conference Room at MedTech Centre -- 99 MedTech Drive, Batavia, on the first floor, across from Genesee Community College.
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