194 Washington Avenue Batavia-City Looking for a professional business setting? Look no further-this is a great space and offers so much exposure in an area that is revamping and expanding! This space offers a large reception/office, waiting area, 4 private offices and 2 baths. There is also an enclosed foyer and one office has its own entrance door for possibility of sublet. Great opportunity and landlord open to discussion
Genesee County officials are committed to ensuring a safe environment for the Wings Over Batavia Air Show at the Genesee County Airport, scheduled from 5 to 9 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 2, and Sunday, Sept. 3. Wings Over Batavia, the independently owned and operated agency responsible for this event, is working closely with the Genesee County Sheriff’s Office and Genesee County Emergency Management to ensure public safety remains at the forefront of preparations.
Comprehensive Safety Measures Genesee County is committed to overseeing comprehensive safety measures. The Genesee County Sheriff's Office, New York State Troopers, and City of Batavia Police are coordinating efforts to help ensure public safety. Various emergency services providers will be present at the event to uphold public safety standards.
Emergency Services and Special Effects Planned explosions, pyrotechnic displays, and fireworks will be handled exclusively by the event organizers. Attendees and residents are informed not to dial 911 for these planned activities, as emergency services will be on site.
Traffic Control Leading up to and during the event on Sept. 2 and Sept. 3, State Street Road will be closed from West Saile Drive north to Batavia Elba Townline Road, and West Saile Drive will be closed from the Milton Cat building to the storage barns on the east side of the airport. Motorists are asked to pay attention to signs and flaggers, exercise extreme caution and be alert to changing conditions. Pedestrians must follow marked paths and signage.
Information and Guidelines For further details about the show and other pertinent information, please visit:
Historic moment: Matthew Starowitz, an Elba farmer, makes the first legal marijuana purchase in Batavia at a new dispensary inside Empire Hemp. Photo by Howard Owens.
Matthew Starowitz arrived at Empire Hemp early this afternoon, well before the 1 p.m. opening time for legal cannabis sales, with the goal of being the first customer to make a legal weed purchase in Batavia.
Goal accomplished.
"That's the way I was raised," Starowitz said. "You support local people, and so you're there; you're the first one."
It's been a struggle to bring legal cannabis sales to Batavia as state regulators figure out the ins and outs of licensing and legal distribution. Empire Hemp has had products ready to sell for some time. With the "pop-up" store, called the Cannabis Growers Showcase, opening on Tuesday, they've been allowed to open to cannabis buyers on a limited basis.
The adult-use dispensary for licensed cultivators of high-quality cannabis products will run from 1 to 7 p.m. every Tuesday through Saturday through Dec. 30.
It provides local shoppers with the opportunity to purchase certified cannabis products, but the showcase opens the door for Empire Hemp to sell its THC products as well. Typically, the state doesn’t allow one company to be a grower, a processor and a retailer, VanDusen said, and this will allow his company to sell Empire Hemp products through Dank as the retailer set up within Empire Hemp shop.
Starowitz said he was happy the long process of marijuana legalization has gotten to the point that there is now a locally owned and operated retail location in Batavia.
"I've smoked it since I was like 12 years old," Starowitz said. "I'm 35 years old now. I have always loved it. It's just always been that way. So now that it's legal 100 percent, I'm going to support it locally."
He purchased several different products as a kind of sampler.
"I feel like I just want to sample everything that they have here, at least as far as sativa and sativa hybrids, because then I'll figure out what I like, you know," Starowitz said. "I think that this is better than the stuff I'll ever get from the Res because a lot of their stuff is unregulated. It's not lab-tested. At least this here is legit and lab-tested."
Why sativa? "Because with indica, I feel like I get too lazy, and I really don't want to do too much," Starowitz said. "Whereas with sativa, I'm always active and going around and doing things. "I'm a vegetable farmer, so sativa is for me as the way to go. This way, I don't get lazy."
A former parochial school principal in Batavia who admitted to a course of sexual conduct with a child less than 11 years old is facing the possibility of having his interim probation revoked.
A hearing will be held in October to help Judge Melissa Lightcap Cianfrini determine if he's violated the terms of his probation by telling probation officers that, contrary to his guilty plea, he has never been sexually attracted to children.
When Jason Clark, who was principal at St. Paul Lutheran School, entered his plea, District Attorney Kevin Finnell said Clark made a factual admission, by definition of his guilty plea, that he had sexual contact with a child to satisfy his sexual desires.
Clark's statement to a probation officer during his pre-sentence investigation interview, according to Finnell, is that Clark isn't and never was sexually attracted to children, and that statement, Finnell asserts, is inconsistent with his sworn admission in court.
That constitutes a violation of the warnings Clark was given by Cianfrini at the time of his guilty plea.
In June, Clark entered a guilty plea to sexual conduct against a child in the second degree, Class D felony. Under the terms of the plea, Clark agreed to surrender his teaching license and was placed on interim supervision by the Probation Department for one year.
If he successfully completes interim probation, Clark can change his plea to endangering the welfare of a child, which is a misdemeanor.
As part of his plea, Clark made a factual admission that he touched the chest of a female child two or more times over a period of time not less than three months in duration.
Cianfrini ordered a hearing, which will likely include testimony from the probation officer, for 10:30 a.m. on Oct. 17.
Clark was named principal at St. Paul in June 2019 and served in that position until sometime in 2022. He was arrested in January.
Chris VanDusen, CEO of Empire Hemp, behind the cannabis sales counter at his company's retail shop on East Main Street. On Tuesday at 1 p.m., the empty shelves in the cannabis room will be filled with legal weed products from various vendors selling marijuana legally in Batavia for the first time. Photo by Howard Owens.
A line down the sidewalk.
That’s all anybody could hope for, and Empire Hemp founder Chris VanDusen and his eight suppliers — cannabis cultivators and processors bringing in product for the 204 E. Main St., Batavia Empire Hemp store beginning at 1 p.m. Tuesday — will happily and hopefully be watching the street side form with customers.
“For us, it's a huge thing for us. People always ask -- they want our THC products, and we haven't been able to sell to them because we're not allowed to. So to be able to have this opportunity is really great,” VanDusen said during a busy Monday of preparing for opening day of the Cannabis Growers Showcase. “So we have a range of products, flower products, prerolls, you know, a lot of whole flower from … all the other vendors are cultivators. So it's all their stuff. We're hoping that we have a line down the sidewalk is what we're really hoping for. We're just just hoping for a really big turnout. We just found out last week we got approved to do it, so you know we've been scrambling to get everything out there.”
Greenside Cannabis, in partnership with Dank, Buffalo’s first licensed adult-use dispensary, and Empire Hemp Co., is hosting the WNY Cannabis Growers Showcase, a pop-up adult-use dispensary for licensed cultivators of high-quality cannabis products, which will run from 1 to 7 p.m. every Tuesday through Saturday through Dec. 30.
Not only will it provide local shoppers with opportunity to purchase certified cannabis products, but the showcase opens the door for Empire Hemp to sell its THC products as well. Typically, the industry doesn’t allow for one company to be grower, processor and retailer, VanDusen said, and this will allow his company to sell his products through Dank as the retailer set up within Empire Hemp.
He’s got three flavors of THC gummies and three flavors of vape cartridges, plus more being developed in the lab to be launched soon, he said. Other participating cultivators and processors include Greenside Cannabis, Tarot Tokes, Flwr City, and House of Sacci, vendors “all the way from Jamestown to Niagara Falls to Rochester and everywhere in between,” he said, with a range of flower, edibles and vape products.
All participants are licensed by the state Office of Cannabis Management and are therefore authorized to sell directly to consumers. Would he have liked a larger window of more hours and days? Yes, of course, VanDusen said, but the OCM worked this out and adjusted the schedule to make it six hours a day for five days a week, “and we said, ‘no problem, that works,’” he said.
“But to be able to sell, so what it's gonna be is, we're partnered with Dank as the dispensary (from Buffalo), and they have set up their cash registers within our store. So they’re like a dispensary within our CBD store,” he said. “I think what it's going to be is, right now, they're looking at is like after January 1, there won't be any more, but if they don't get enough dispensaries opened by that time, I think they will extend it because it's the only way small brands can survive.”
Dank has been operating at 501 Main St., Buffalo, for six weeks and has been doing “excellent, way better than we thought we’d do,” owner Aaron Vancamp said. Not that he didn’t see the big influx at the start, but then expected traffic to ease up a bit after that, Vancamp said, and that’s not what’s happened.
“But it's actually increased and been increasing a little after that. So it's been really good,” he said. “We've become more efficient, though. So like, we're getting the customers, we still have the line. But then it's just like the rest, learning the payment processing and things like that to just get the customers out quicker.”
So they’ll be bringing those lessons to Batavia for some brisk sales in what VanDusen said will be a two-part process of checking IDs at one station and then cashing people out at the second one. Overall, Vancamp believes this showcase might just be a lifesaver for those in the cannabis business.
“It could be something that possibly saves the industry. It’s in dire straits, with the amount of stores that are open and the fresh crop coming in, people really need outlets to take care of that fresh crop if we could get a lot of these open and places like Batavia, where there’s like a good solid population, and Batavia’s been very welcoming of us, it wasn’t really tough, they were very glad to have us, and double the amount of revenue that we’re going to generate for them,” he said. “So basically, we think this could be something that saves you on the street for the time being until they can get more stores open and get things organized on the retail side.”
What are the benefits of these pop-ups? Convenience, established hours and locations for point-of-sale, and a coded product that a consumer can check to get the breakdown of how many milligrams it contains of THC or CBD, he said.
“That’s especially helpful in dealing with the vapes or the edibles because you can actually break down your dosage and figure out what exactly you need,” Vancamp said. “In the other market, you don’t know what you’re getting. Sometimes it could be better. Sometimes it could be worse. Sometimes it could be something horrible. They’re dealing with old products or something like that. And you’re just better off with a more safe route here.”
How can customers trust the product? It’s all been lab tested, and each product has a certificate of analysis (COA) to prove that every one of them has been tested and is safe to consume, VanDusen said.
Investigators marked possible evidence locations on Oak Street, Batavia, following a report of gunshots in the area on Monday night. Photo by Howard Owens
Police are investigating what appears to be a case of gunshots fired on Oak Street at around 10:50 p.m. on Monday night.
Witnesses said they heard five or six shots but that whoever was involved fled the scene quickly.
At about 10:50 p.m., dispatchers asked a patrol officer to switch to LE Secure (the encrypted channel for police communications), and another officer responded that he had heard gunshots while he was still inside the police station.
The dispatcher said the 9-1-1 Center had received multiple calls.
A short time later, an officer reported that he had a person in custody, but a police source said that information was incorrect.
There is currently no official source of information available, and a police source said it is too early in the investigation to release much information.
A source said there are no reported injuries at this time.
There are City PD and Sheriff's patrols on scene on Oak Street, between La Cross Avenue/Charles Street and Allen Street. There are also patrols strategically placed elsewhere in the city, but we've been unable to confirm that a suspect or suspects are still at large.
There were no injuries, not to the residents, firefighters, nor to the family pets in a fire at 10 Prune St., Batavia, this evening, but there was significant damage to the residence, said City Fire Chief Josh Graham.
The garage, where the fire started, is a total loss.
"There is significant damage to the second story," Graham said. "It's pretty well a total loss, and there is a lot of water and smoke damage on the first floor."
Graham said City Fire received a call at about 6:22 p.m. of smoke coming from the garage.
"Crews saw smoke as soon as they pulled out of the fire station (on Evans Street)," Graham said. "When they got on scene, the garage was fully involved with an extension into the house. They declared a second alarm, and the Town of Batavia responded, Elba responded."
The residents were out of the house, and a dog and cat also escaped safely, Graham said.
The streets are narrow, and houses are close together in the Prune Street neighborhood. The Tully's parking lot was right behind the house. That made it tight quarters to maneuver trucks and fight the fire.
Unloading hoses quickly and getting them into place quickly was difficult.
"One thing I will say is there's a house down here with a 16-year-old that came out and saw us struggling to pull a hose down, and he grabbed ahold of that hose and helped pull the hose down," Graham said. "Moving all that hose, getting everything in place with everything else around in the house was the hardest part."
The cause of the fire remains under investigation.
A neighboring house sustained some heat damage.
Property tax records indicate the house is owned by James and Peggy Benedict. It was built in 1900 and remodeled in 1970.
Photo of (from left to right) Charley Boyd as Dean Richmond, Lucine Kauffman as Mary Richmond, and Ryan Duffy as Eli Fish standing with a portrait of Dean Richmond. Photo courtesy of Don Burkel.
Press Release:
"Tea and Spirits" at the Holland Land Office Museum(HLOM) was visited by Dean Richmond, Mary Richmond, and Eli Fish, famous residents of the Historic Batavia Cemetery. They entertained the crowd at a 200th-anniversary tea party on Sunday, August 20. Tales of their lives, accomplishments, and local, state, and national influence were told and enjoyed by all in attendance.
One more "Tea and Spirits" with sweet treats and savory bites is scheduled for September 17 at 2 p.m. Famous Civil War General John Martindale, Fouierist and social reformer Albert Brisbane, and poet Reverend John Yates will be in attendance. Reservations are required, tickets may be obtained by calling the museum at 343-4727. Tickets are $20 for HLOM members and $25 for non-members. Hurry, space is limited!
Photo of Lucine Kauffman as Mary Richmond(left) and Charley Boyd as Dean Richmond(right). Photo courtesy of Don Burkel.
Photo of the crowd enjoying the presentation at “Tea and Spirits”. Photo courtesy of Don Burkel.
Photo of (from left to right) Lucine Kauffman as Mary Richmond, Charley Boyd as Dean Richmond, and Ryan Duffy as Eli Fish. Photo courtesy of Don Burkel.
More than 300 people turned out Sunday afternoon at Batavia Country Club for a free concert by the Ghost Riders, celebrating the group's 30 years of providing Genesee County with a hardcore country soundtrack.
Charlie Hetrick sitting in on bass (in place of Bill Pitcher). Hetrick was one of several local musicians and former members who sat in for some songs during the concert. Keith Worthington, foreground, on lead guitar. Photo by Howard Owens.
The City of Batavia Fire Department will be flushing fire hydrants on Tuesday, August 29, and Wednesday, August 30 from approximately 9 a.m. - 3 p.m. in the general area of South of E. Main St. and West of Jackson St.
Homes and businesses nearby will be affected. These tests may result in a temporary discoloration of water in that area. As in the past, please do not attempt to wash any clothing if your water appears discolored. If you do experience a discoloration of your water, run cold water for about 5 minutes or until clear.
This annual testing is essential to maintain the communities' class III Insurance Services Office (ISO) public protection classification and to assure that fire hydrants are operating efficiently for fire protection purposes.
Along with maintaining the fire rating, the test monitors the health of the city's water system, identifies weak areas in the system, and removes material that settles in the water lines. Checking each hydrant improves fire department personnel's knowledge of the hydrant locations.
If you have any questions or should notice a hydrant in need of repair, please contact the fire department at 585-345-6375.
When you look like Elvis -- to the point that people have a tendency to stop you in the street unless you wear a bit of a disguise -- and can sing like the King, there's a natural path to take in life, especially if you're already living in the entertainment capital of the world.
That's the situation former singing bartender and Niagara Falls native Rick Alviti found himself in more than 20 years ago when his career as an Elvis impersonator started in Hollywood.
That life path brings him and his show, "That's the Way It Was," to Batavia Downs at 7 p.m. Sept. 9.
"I like the people I meet," said Alviti when asked what he enjoys about his career. "I meet the nicest people. They're always so kind to me. When I'm out in stores or restaurants, people come up to me because I have this Elvis resemblance, and sometimes I wear a hat when I'm out, but when they come up to me, I always give them a card and invite them to a show. That's what I do for a living.
"Meeting people, especially the people who love Elvis, is the best part. They're excited to meet because they love Elvis. I'm fortunate to have that connection, and to me, that's a good thing."
After attending North Tonawanda High School, Alviti moved to Hollywood to pursue an acting career. He landed a job at Dimples, a bar across from the NBC Studio that was a favorite entertainment industry hangout. His gimmick was signing while he poured drinks, and already a huge Elvis Presley fan, he sang a lot of Elvis songs. But Alviti had a beard, so nobody yet noticed his resemblance to Tupolo's most famous son.
He landed an acting job and had to cut his hair and shave his beard. That's when, he said, everyone started calling him "Elvis."
He decided to get an agent and began getting serious about studying Elvis Presley's moves, watching his movies, and learning his songs. He got some gigs in Las Vegas and then the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority sponsored him on a national tour.
After his parents moved to Myrtle Beach, he visited them knowing, too, that J.D. Sumner and the Stamps (Sumner was long associated with Presley), had a long-term residency at a theater in Myrtle Beach. That led to meeting the theater owner, and after Sumner's death, Alviti got an offer to set up an Elvis tribute show at the theater.
That was a residency with a 12-piece band that lasted for years.
Doing two shows a day really helped him refine his Elvis impersonation, he said.
His career has led to shows all over the U.S. and several in Las Vegas, including at the Winn, the Mirage, and the Gold Coast.
That's where he met the Jordinairs (once backup singers to Elvis), he said. They became friends, and he performed with them. He's also performed with the Stamps.
He also played a birthday party for a playmate at Hugh Hefner's Playboy Mansion, where he met Hefner, whom he said was a nice guy. He was provided one of the mansion's many bathrooms (he guessed 27) as a changing room but kept getting interrupted by people wanting to use it for "one of two things," as he put it.
As for acting, being Elvis has opened doors there, too. He played in a production of “Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat” and was cast as Elvis in episodes of “ER” and “One Tree Hill.” He also played Elvis is a Rusty Wallace commercial for Miller Lite.
Alviti now splits time between Buffalo and South Carolina. When he's in the northeast, he tours with a five-piece band of guys mostly based in and around New York City. In South Carolina, he has another band, though when he's in the Nashville area, his band is led by the son of DJ Fontana (Presley's former drummer).
Tribute bands are a big deal now, but until Elvis impersonators, as they were called then, came along in the 1980s, musicians either played in cover bands or bands that played their own songs.
Impersonating some other act to the point of trying to sound exactly like that act and putting on their costumes was an industry waiting to be born.
"When I started out, there were maybe nine guys who did an Elvis tribute," Alviti said. "You had to look the part and sing the part and entertain the audience. Now there's probably 9,000 guys doing it."
He said it's probably for Elvis impersonators to get a start now, and a lot of guys doing it for "$200 and just to have fun. They just want to be Elvis for a bit. What I do is a professional production."
When he first started out, the Elvis Presley Estate was also much more concerned about Elvis impersonators, and he was contacted by representatives of Graceland. He said he told them that he wasn't trying to convince people he was Elvis. He was performing as Rick Alviti.
"You're allowed to do a tribute to anybody. That's in law," Alviti said.
When he was contacted, he said he told them, "I'm not saying I'm Elvis. I'm Rick Alviti. I happen to resemble him, but I'm not pretending to be Elvis."
He makes a point of calling his show "That's the Way It Was" without claiming to be Elvis Presley so he doesn't violate the estate's intellectual property rights. People who go to the show know they're seeing an Elvis tribute and not a substitute Elvis.
"Now. I think they've embraced tributes because it's helping keep the image alive," Alviti said.
He said his show is different from most Elvis tributes because it's interactive. He gets the audience involved. He performs many of the songs it expects to hear, such as "Suspicious Minds" and "A Little Less Conversation," and his set can change on the fly.
"I try to gauge the audience," Alviti said. "If I'm doing too many ballads, I'll add in some faster things, stuff that gets everybody going. I think I have a good sense of what the audience wants to hear."
While this show will be the "jumpsuit Elvis," he does do the "leather Elvis" at some of his appearances when the show includes an intermission.
"Elvis is great because there's four eras," Alviti said. "There's the early Elvis, the movie-era Elvis, the leather-wearing comeback-era Elvis, and the Vegas years."
This will be Alviti's first appearance in Batavia.
"I invite everybody to come out and enjoy themselves," Alviti said. "We will have a wonderful time. That's what it's all about, making people happy and making sure everybody enjoys the music of Elvis."
Photo of Covered Bridge courtesy of Wendy J. Lowery.
A large trackside crowd was treated to a robust card of racing at Batavia Downs on Saturday night (August 26) that was headlined by the track’s signature event, the $75,000 Robert J. Kane Memorial Invitational Pace. A full field of eight top Open pacers went postward with Covered Bridge taking the winner’s share of the purse after a dominating finish.
Covered Bridge (Jordan Stratton) got away fifth as This Is The Plan (Joe Bongiorno) dashed off the gate and crossed over to the lead before the :27.2 quarter. Bongiorno then proceeded to back down the half to :56.3, forcing a first-over move by Idealsomemagic A (Tyler Buter) and Covered Bridge. With the field now in two rows, the top four positions remained unchanged to three-quarters and into the far turn where Idealsomemagic A took the lead from This Is The Plan and Covered Bridge tipped three-deep around Idealsomemagic A. At the top of the stretch, Covered Bridge drew even with Idealsomemagic A before bolting to the line on top by 1-¾ lengths under a line drive by Stratton in 1:52.
On the strength of his third straight win, Covered Bridge ($3.60) became the sports newest millionaire, with earnings now totalling $1,032,175 for owner Mark Ford. Jeff Gillis was the winning trainer.
The New York Sire Stakes were also on hand Saturday with three divisions featuring both genders of 3-year-old trotters.
The colts and geldings lined up first with one field of seven vying for $119,800 where Chapercraz (Crazy Wow-Chapress) was much the best.
Chapercraz (Joe Bongiorno) sat in third, tracking fast first half fractions of :27.4 and :55.4 set by Wild Bill Kelso (Jim Morrill Jr.). Wild Bill Kelso took a three length lead into the second circuit but Bongiorno moved quickly from third with Chapercraz and by three-quarters they were on top. Chaprcraz crossed over in the last turn while Bongiorno bounced relentlessly in the bike into deep stretch where Chapercraz hit the light on top by 3-¾ lengths in 1:54.
The winning time established a new lifetime mark for Chapercraz and was only one-fifth of a second shy of the Batavia Downs track record for 3-year-old trotting geldings.
With the win, Chapercraz ($10.00) boosted his 2023 earnings to $336,632 for owners Burke Racing, Weaver Bruscemi and Phillip Collura. Ron Burke trains the Chapercraz who was bred by Purple Haze Stable.
The fillies went in two short fields and the first, valued at $57,000, was won by Usosweet Blue Chip (Devious Man-Twin B Kisses) who led from gate to wire.
Usosweet Blue Chip (Marcus Miller) out-trotted Midwind Success (Jordan Stratton) for the lead and set up shop on the point just past the five-eighths. From there she rattled off three identical:29.2 quarters while Midwind Success and Five Fish Species (Mark Macdonald) attempted to keep up. Those efforts fell short and Usosweet Blue Chip turned for home and pulled away by 3-½ lengths to win as Miller sat chilly in 1:56.4.
Usosweet Blue Chip ($5.00) is owned by the Erv Miller Stable and Douglas Overheiser and is trained by Erv Miller. Blue Chip Bloodstock bred Usosweet Blue Chip.
The second set of trotting fillies were in pursuit of $58,100 and Royal Filly (Chapter Seven-Swinging Royalty) was absolutely peerless on this night.
Jean’s Action (Kevin Cummings) advanced to the front by the eighth pole and led for a handful of pylons before Royal Filly (Tyler Buter) made a power move to the point and this lead was for good. Royal Filly stepped off quarters of :29.2, :58.3 and 1:27.1 while extending her lead from two to six to seven lengths at each station. With no one even remotely near her in the last turn, Royal Filly turned for home and completed her tour of the facility on top by 10-½ lengths in 1:56.2.
Royal Filly ($2.20) is owned by Crawford Farms Racing, trained by Tony Alagna and was bred by Jonas Schlabach.
There were also four $20,000 NYSS Excelsior races on the card. The first was won by Kennebago (E L Titan-First Class Act) in 1:58.1 for driver Joe Bongiorno, trainer Ron Burke and owners Burke Racing and Weaver Bruscemi. The second went to Serendipity (Chapter Seven-Vida De Vie) in 1:58.1 for driver Marcus Miller, trainer George Ducharme and owners William Donovan, Jim Winske, Stephen Michaels and Joe Sbrocco. The third was won by Metro Matty (Met’s Hall-Order By Matilda) in 1:59.2 for driver Jason Bartlett, trainer John Butenschoen and owner Bay Pond Racing Stable. And the fourth was won by Seven Over (Chapter Seven-Overpowering Lindy) for driver Jason Bartlett, trainer Per Engblom and owners VIP Internet Stable, Rich Preziotti, Heritage Standardbreds and Timothy Drag.
When live racing resumes at Batavia Downs on Wednesday (August 30) at 6 p.m. there will be a $8,813 carryover in the Jackpot Hi-5 pentafecta in the 13th race.
Free full past performance programs for every live card of racing at Batavia can always be downloaded at the Downs’ website (bataviadownsgaming.com) under the “Live Racing” tab and all the racing action can be viewed as it happens for free at the Batavia Downs Live Facebook page.
Photo of Mugshots Bro courtesy of Wendy J. Lowery.
The trotters were on full display under the Friday night (August 25) lights at Batavia Downs but the spotlight fell directly on driver Jim Morrill Jr., who choreographed the journeys of the winners of the top two events.
In the $15,000 Open I Handicap trot, Morrill put Makadushin N Cheez on the point and then sat chilly for the next eight furlongs. Makadushin N Cheez put up easy fractions of :28.4, :58.2 and 1:26.4 before taking his 3-½ length lead into the last turn. Morrill stayed reclined behind Makadushin N Cheez as Lougazi (Ray Fisher Jr.) tried to employ his patented late rally in the stretch. But there would be no change in the order this week as Makadushin N Cheez just cruised across the line in 1:56.
It was the 23rd lifetime win in only the 67th lifetime start for the high percentage Makadushin N Cheez ($5.30) who is owned by Joe D’ Agostino, Molly D’Agostino, Phillip Kadushin and David Dewhurst, who also trains the winner.
In the undercard $13,000 Open II trot, Morrill took no prisoners with Mugshots Bro, who grabbed an early lead and maintained a 1-½ length lead to three-quarters. CR Blazin Beauty (Dave McNeight III) and Good Boy (Ray Fisher Jr.) tried their best to catch the leader around the last turn, but when Mugshots Bro hit the top of the stretch, he bolted home to a 3-¾ length victory in a seasonal best 1:57.1.
Mugshots Bro ($3.90) is owned by Herman Niedhammer and Herman Niedhammer Jr. and is trained by Rose Russo.
Morrill ended the night with a total of three wins on the strength of his natural hat trick in races eight, nine and ten, but Dave McNeight III led all reinsmen with a grand slam. Also, trainers Rose Russo and Lee Dahn both scored doubles.
The biggest win mutuel of the year so far occurred in race four when Coco Hall (Jim McNeight Jr.) out-trotted the heavily favored Crews Hilltopper (Jim Morrill Jr.) to the line by a head in 1:59.3 and paid $129.00 to win.
When live racing resumes at Batavia Downs on Saturday (August 26) at 6 p.m. there will be a $7,322 carryover in the Jackpot Hi-5 pentafecta in the 15th race.
Also on Saturday, Batavia Downs will host its richest card of racing this summer when a total of $467,400 in purses will be up for grabs. The card features both colt and filly divisions of New York Sire Stake and Excelsior 3-year-old trotters with total purses of $294,900 and the $75,000 Kane Memorial Invitational Pace, which is Batavia Downs signature race.
Free full past performance programs for every live card of racing at Batavia can always be downloaded at the Downs’ website (bataviadownsgaming.com) under the “Live Racing” tab and all the racing action can be viewed as it happens for free at the Batavia Downs Live Facebook page.
Photo of Makadushin N Cheez courtesy of Wendy J. Lowery.
A transformer has reportedly blown in the area of 5155 East Main Road, Batavia.
There is arcing and sparking, and now a report of a fire in the front yard of a residence.
Town of Batavia Fire dispatched.
UPDATE 9:29 p.m.: National Grid is reporting 2,462 customers are without power. The power outage area is from State Street in the city to nearly Seven Springs Road on the east, and from East Main Street Road going north into Byron. ETA for power restoration is 11:30 p.m.
Sleekly painted derby cars -- all 44 of them -- had personalities befitting their child drivers, from cheetahs and police cars to a super flash, and all in a bid to win during the second annual Batavia Business Improvement District (BID) Boxcar Derby on Ellicott Avenue Saturday.
The event has grown from last year into something that derby committee member Jim Krencik could hardly describe, he said.
“It was bigger, faster, better, any adjective you can think of. This was a huge success,” Krencik said. “We’re so excited for our 44 racers. I think the way the race was set up, the speed they went; these kids had the thrill of their lives.”
The soapbox derby-style cars came in two parts: one that resembles a surfboard, which has all the mechanicals on it, and the other part, the shell of the car itself, according to Krencik. Then, the kids assembled the vehicles “almost, kind of the same way you were fabricating something, installing the wheels and the wheel pins.”
The derby cars are “powered” by a slight slope and gravity, with the aid of “leaning forward” to give gravity a helping hand and “a bit of ducking their head down to pick up speed,” Krencik said. Each car came with a brake the children could push to slow them down, he said.
“You saw some of the kids kind of flying off the start, so you see the care that went into building them," he said. "Tightening up the vehicle really made a difference.”
Made with a type of fiberglass and hard plastic shell, the kids had about a month and a half to decorate and do what they wanted with their car, he said. Afterward, build days allowed the kids to learn how to put the cars together.
“It was great. We had so much fun,” said Shannon Maute, executive director of BID. “The kids were so cute. We had little ones, we had like three-year-olds with the power drills drilling in the wheels. It was so cute.”
Part of the idea behind using those power tools is to introduce kids to skilled trades, which can offer "hugely rewarding" careers, Krencik said.
“You see kids who are 19 years old getting into apprenticeships making 30-40-50-bucks-an-hour right out of a training program,” he said.
“Really, the kids, they don’t realize it.Soif this was the thing that sparked their inspiration, they are going to have such a good life because they are going to have a step ahead of every kid who was ‘too cool’ for the trades," he said.
It was especially rewarding to see those creations representing their drivers and rolling past the finish line, Krencik said.
“You just see the cars coming in, you see so many great designs,” he said “That’s the excitement. It’s not just ‘okay, I’m painting my car blue or red’, they are putting their personalities onto these boxcars."
Maute agreed. The kids put their "hearts and souls" into these boxcars, she said.
“They took pride in that and that’s what we love,” Maute said. “And we talk about it and talk about it, but until you see it, you do not understand how fabulous these kids are.
“They’ve been talking about it for weeks and then when they got here … I think that they could not have imagined how big it was going to be, so it was pretty fantastic," she said. "And the whole goal was to create memories, and I think that definitely, that we succeeded.”
BID sponsored the event with the Greater Rochester Soapbox Derby as partner and security, plus additional sponsors Alex’s Place, Graham Manufacturing, Western New York Concrete, and Sheet Metal Workers Local 46.
According to organizers, many of the cars will be going to Oakfield for its boxcar derby to be held next weekend for its Labor Daze festival. Afterwards, the derby cars will be kept in storage until next year's derby.
Photos by Photo by Julia Ferrini.
Joseph Barone, with his mom Jessica Barone, went undefeated in the second annual Batavia BID Boxcar Derby Saturday on Ellicott Avenue in Batavia. Photo by Julia Ferrini.
Isaiah Hojnacki with Shannon Maute, BID executive director. The seven-year-old Darien resident took First Place in the second annual Batavia BID Boxcar Derby Saturday on Ellicott Avenue in Batavia. Photo by Julia Ferrini.
Catherine Moon with Shannon Maute, BID executive director. The seven-year-old Batavian was presented the "Most Creative" trophy for her "cheetah" designed derby car in the second annual Batavia BID Boxcar Derby Saturday on Ellicott Avenue in Batavia. According to mom and dad, Stacy and Eric, the young girl loves animals. Her “whole room is a jungle.” Photo by Julia Ferrini.
After trailing the entire game, Batavia PD staged a comeback win in the bottom of the seventh inning to take the third meeting in a charity baseball game between the police department and the City of Batavia Fire Department.
The final score was 14-13 on Saturday evening at Dwyer Stadium.
Proceeds benefited the Michael Napoleone Memorial Foundation.
A photo of the apartments at Ellicott Station under construction from earlier this week. Photo by Howard Owens.
The state Office of Homes and Community Renewal has and will be involved with the Batavia-based Ellicott Station project, which has been thrown into some doubt recently after developer Sam Savarino announced he was shutting down his development firm, Savarino Companies.
An agency spokesperson responded to The Batavian’s request for comment, given that HCR initially awarded Savarino $1.2 million per year of low-income housing tax credits for 10 years based on his ability to secure investors, and more recently awarded Savarino $5.7 million in low-income housing tax credits for the downtown apartment project.
"HCR has been actively monitoring the progress of the construction of Ellicott Station and will continue to do so as we work to ensure completion of this critical project and deliver 55 affordable homes to Batavia,” the spokesperson said Friday.
The Batavian had asked HCR about its role in the Ellicott Station project, the requirements of receiving the tax credits and if they could be transferred to another developer if Savarino walked off the job.
The agency further added that:
No tax credit funds are disbursed until a project is 100 percent completed.
As with any HCR-financed affordable housing development, a new sponsor will be required to implement the terms of affordability in the existing regulatory agreement.
It is unclear as to whether the apartment complex will remain in the current very low to low-income level, as per application guidelines on the Ellicott Station website, as city officials have been discussing the possibility of getting those levels raised to include workforce income levels.
City Manager Rachael Tabelski said Thursday that city officials will be meeting with HCR to further discuss the current situation of Savarino’s company closing and the apartment complex’s income levels and future at a meeting in September.
Savarino has not responded to requests for further comment since issuing a statement regarding the closing on Tuesday. As is posted on the company website, Savarino Companies, LLC, a full-service construction firm located in Buffalo, New York, will be winding down and ceasing operations.
"The primary factors governing the firm’s decision are ongoing and increasing costs related to a project the company’s surety was forced to complete at Alfred State College, a recent termination of work and the company’s inability to obtain surety bonding or acceptance of alternative performance guarantees for $110 million of 2023 work which the company would otherwise have had underway at this time," the site states. "Without that work, it would not be possible for the company to operate profitably.
"Savarino Properties, LLC, which is an independent company and provides property management services throughout Western New York, will not be impacted."
As of late Thursday afternoon, no one from Savarino Companies had reached out to the city about the fate of Ellicott Station, though there has been some apparent work activity noted at the 50 Ellicott St. site.
