batavia

Fisher Sports officially reopens its doors tomorrow, but Andrew Fisher's phone was ringing and there were people showing up at his new location next to Coffee Culture anyway. They were looking for sporting equipment even though the store was not set up yet.

The last 24 hours have been crazy -- moving everything from 412 E. Main St. to 6 Court St.

"We like this location because it's the center of the city. People are driving through here all the time, we were looking for more foot traffic," Fisher says.

Fisher Sports opened on East Main Street last July. Along with sporting equipment, they also offered Zumba classes at the East Main Street store. They will no longer be offering the class, so they decided to move to a smaller space. They went from 3,500 square feet down to 850 square feet.

Fisher says, "We have slimmed down our square footage, but we have the same amount of equipment and apparel in the new store."

Fisher Sports will continue to carry hockey equipment and Sabres, Syracuse, Mets, Yankees, and Red Sox apparel. They will also sell cleates and spikes for soccer, baseball, and football. Team sales are also a big thing at Fisher Sports. They supplied the Oakfield swim team with swimwear this year and are adding new teams to the list.

Contact Fisher Sports for hours and orders at 585-344-2500 or online at www.fishersportsny.com

Lt. Eugene Jankowski is coming to grips with the fact that his 34-year career with Batavia PD is probably drawing to a close.

He hasn't officially announced his retirement yet, but that's probably what he will do before his job as a lieutenant is eliminated April 1 as part of department restructuring.

"I'm glad I was given the opportunity to serve for 34 years," Jankowski said. "It's been good for me. I love what I do and I hate to leave it. It's not about the money. It's never been about the money, but now's the time to find another worthy cause. I'm still young enough to go out and find another worthy cause."

Jankowski disputed a report coming out of Monday's city council meeting that he, along with Lt. Jim Henning and Lt. Greg Steel were offered a chance to stay with the department if they would each accept a demotion to sergeant and that all three turned it down.

None of them, according to Jankowski, has reached a final decision yet.

Henning and Steele are off duty at the time of this story posting so we can't reach them for comment.

For Jankowski, becoming a sergeant isn't even an option. If he accepted a demotion, it would be to patrol officer.

Under civil service law, when a job/rank is eliminated, the employee is offered the job he or she held prior to promotion. For Jankowski, that was patrol officer, not sergeant.

"If it were a sergeant's position, I might consider it," Jankowski said.

City Manager Jason Molino said he wouldn't discuss with a reporter personnel issues and what may or may not have been communicated between city supervisors and the lieutenants.

According to Jankowski, the lieutenants were told they would not be considered for the new deputy chief position.

"We don't know why," Jankowski said. "He didn't give us a reason. He said we won't put anybody in the deputy chief position until you're long out of here."

Molino said that once the position is created, probably after the budget is approved in February, any qualified personnel -- including the lieutenants -- in the department could apply for the job.

If they retire before the job is created, then they won't be eligible for the position.

The three lieutenant positions will be reallocated, creating two new patrol positions and one sergeant's positions.

"The plan is, you're going to have more guys on the street than you have now," Molino said. "With more officers in the field, there's more contact with the community."

The deputy chief position, which will be non-union, will be an increase by one the number of sworn members of the department. 

The restructuring is expected to save the city $10,000 a year.

Jankowski said he doesn't understand why the city wants to eliminate all three lieutenant positions at once. Why not, Jankowski wondered, stagger the retirements over three years so those experienced supervisors would help mentor the new deputy police chief?

"Why would you eliminate 100 years of experience like that?" Jankowski said.

Police Chief Shawn Heubusch is proving a great asset to the department, Jankowski said.

"I like the chief," Jankowski said. "He's going to be great. I like him. He brings out the best in guys. I wish I could work with him longer."

Jankowski, a competitive shooter, isn't sure if he will stay in New York after he retires. He's concerned that gun ownership rules being changed by Albany politicians will make competitive shooting in the state all but impossible. Some ranges, he said, will likely shut down. Limits on magazine size and changes to rifle scopes are big concerns, he said, for competitive shooters.

The changes to the police department don't make him mad, Jankowski said, but the changes being considered in Albany certainly do.

Ramon Roberto Domanski, 51, of South Avenue, Lake Bluff, Ill., is charged with grand larceny, 4th. Domanski is accused of stealing two tractor-trailer tires from a located at 8420 Route 77, Pembroke. He was jailed on $1,000 bail.

Daniel DiLaura, 38, of Brooklyn Avenue, Batavia, is charged with petit larceny and criminal mischief. DiLaura is accused of stealing a TV from Walmart and damaging a security device.

Press release:

The staff of Batavia Downs Casino and Thurman Thomas are now accepting entries to name the Hall of Famer’s new restaurant on site at Batavia Downs Casino.

The facility’s $28 Million dollar expansion begins within a month and includes construction of a new Thurman Thomas sports bar. Customers may tweet a suggestion for the Sports Bar’s name on Twitter by tweeting from their account and including the name of the Sports Bar with the tag @BataviaDowns. The contest will end at Noon on Friday, Jan. 18.

Staff from Batavia Downs Casino and Thurman Thomas will review the entries and declare a winner before the end of January.

The person that submits the winning name will win dinner for two inside the new sports bar with Thurman Thomas and Batavia Downs Staff when the new facility opens sometime in the fall. The winner shall also receive a Batavia Downs Casino Prize Pack valued at more than $250.

If more than one person suggests the winning name, then one person shall be randomly chosen from those who suggested that name. Winner will be notified via twitter that they have won. Full rules can be found on Batavia Downs Casino’s Web site at www.bataviadownscasino.com.

“Thurman’s new sports bar will offer great food, a stage for live entertainment on weekends, and many large flat screen TVs where our patrons can enjoy all their favorite sporting events,” said Ryan Hasenauer, director of marketing for Batavia Downs Casino. “It will also feature various pieces of football and Thurman Thomas memorabilia.”

Information courtesy WBTA:

A big change in garbage pick up, a shake up of the police department and a pay raise for council members are the main features of the proposed city budget.

City Manager Jason Molino told council members about the proposed changes in garbage collection, dubbed PAYT for "pay as you throw," which will remove garbage collection from property owners' tax bills and have users of the service foot the bill.

The user fee will extend to nonprofit agencies and churches.

"You pay for what you throw away," Monlino said. "So, if you want a smaller tote or larger tote, you are going to pay respectively. If you throw away more, you are going to pay more. You throw away less, you are going to pay less. Another aspect of the program is unlimited recycling, and that also has the ability to help control your costs of what you throw away."

The automated system -- one-driver trucks will use a mechanical arm to pick up the totes -- will also help reduce costs, Molino said.

The apparent lower bidder for the program is Allied/Republic, a national waste management company headquartered in Phoenix. The company operates in 39 states and has 30,000 employees according to its Web site.

Allied/Republic submitted the lowest of four bids at $4.34-million dollars over the next five years.

Genesee ARC, which had been providing the service to the city for nearly 30 years, bid 4.99-million dollars. It appears ARC's bid was the highest.

ARC Executive Director Donna Saskowski said the loss of the city contract hurts the human services agency:

"I will have to lay off between 8 and 10 people," Saskowski said. "The agency will loose $800,000 in revenue, and we will have to find different jobs for the people with disabilities."

Saskowski said half of the people expected to lose jobs have some form of developmental disability.

The 2013-2014 proposed budget technically calls for a reduction in the city tax rate from $10.71 to $9.15. However, when the average cost of the garbage fee is factored in, Molino said the impact on the average homeowner will be a “wash.”

A big change in police department operations will save about $10,000, according to Molino.

Currently, the supervisory structure of the department includes three lieutenants. The lieutenant position will be eliminated, replaced by two police officers, a sergeant and a deputy chief.

The deputy chief position will be non-union.

The current lieutenants, Eugene Jankowski, Jim Henning and Greg Steele, have elected to retire rather than accept a demotion to sergeant, Molino told council members.

As for council members, a raise for the elected officials approved 6-3 in February, will be instituted, increasing compensation from $2,000 per year to $3,500 per year, beginning April 1.

The only way pay raises could be prevented, Molino said, was for the council to vote down the entire budget proposal or opt to pull the pay raise allocation from the budget plan and vote on it separately.

Council members Patti Pacino and Pier Cipollone said on Monday night they would not support a pay raise. Both had supported the pay raise measure in the February vote.

UPDATE: The city has posted all available documents about the changes to garbage collection.

Water line repairs in the area of 10 Bogue Ave., Batavia, on Tuesday will disrupt traffic access and water service.

The work will begin at 8:30 a.m. and result in possible lower water pressure and possibly discolored water.

Batavia police are responding to a residence on State Street to help a homeowner with a cat that is preventing the resident from getting in the house.

The cat is located on the porch and won't leave. Dispatch says it might be 110 or 115 State St.

Christina M. Sanchez-Anderson, 24, of 2 Lewis Place, Batavia, is charged with endangering the welfare of a child. Sanchez-Anderson is accused of leaving her two children at home alone and unsupervised. Her 3-year-old was allegedly found at 9:58 a.m., Saturday, outside and not wearing any shoes. Sanchez-Anderson was jailed on $2,500 bail. Department of Social Services assisted in the case.

Ashley M. Kreutz, 25, of 10 Lewis Place, Batavia, is charged endangering the welfare of a child. Kreutz allegedly left her two children unsupervised for more than four hours Saturday morning. One child was transported to UMMC for a medical evaluation. Kreutz was jailed on $5,000 bail. Department of Social Services assisted in the case.

Eric J. Bratcher, 24, of 7 1/2 South St., Le Roy, is charged with criminal impersonation, 2nd. Attica PD responded to a report of a complaint of noise and underage drinking at an address on Washington Avenue, Attica, and Bratcher allegedly gave police officers a false name. He was jailed on $1,000 bail.

Wendi L. Provost, 37, of 19 Riverside Parkway, Massena, is charged with DWI, aggravated DWI, driving without headlights and failure to keep right. Provost was stopped 1:10 a.m. on West Main Street by Officer Eric Bolles.

Bryan Pettinella, 27, of131 Bank St,, Apt. A, Batavia, is charged with criminal mischief, 4th. During a verbal argument, Pettinella allegedly punched the car of another person causing damage.

Curtis J. Doward, 18, of 25 Ganson Ave., Batavia, is charged with two counts of failure to appear as directed, criminal contempt, 2nd, and endangering the welfare of a child (second two counts are warrants). Doward turned himself in to Batavia PD on a failure-to-appear warrant. He was jailed on $2,500 bail on each count.

Christopher W. Cummings, 33, of 19 Cherry St., Batavia, is charged with coercion, 2nd, aggravated harassment, 2nd, and harassment, 2nd. Related to a domestic incident, Cummings allegedly sent numerous unwanted text messages in an attempt to compel or induce the victim to engage in conduct she had the legal right to abstain from, thereby threatening her. Cummings is also accused of spitting on the victim.

Christopher W. Colantonio, 23, of 110 South Swan St., Batavia, is charged with a violation of probation. Colantonio was taken into custody by the Probation Department for an alleged violation of probation.

Pavel V. Yefremenko, 24, of 8 Walnut St., Batavia, is charged with DWI, aggravated DWI, speeding and consumption of alcohol in a vehicle. Yefremenko was stopped at 1:27 a.m., Sunday, on West Main Street, Batavia, by Sgt. Dan Coffey.

Kayla Marie Baker, 22, of Union Street, Batavia, is charged with petit larceny. Baker is accused of stealing more than $900 in merchandise from Target over a several month period.

Howard Clarance Schultz, 54, of Keeney Road, Le Roy, was arrested on a warrant out of Greece, for aggravated harassment, 2nd. Schultz was located during an incident at 8798 Keeney Road, Le Roy, reported at 9:51 p.m., Friday.  Friday's incident remains under investigation.

Joshua James Burns, 26, of North Main Street, Oakfield, is charged with stalking, 4th. Burns is accused of sending a text message to another person after being warned by law enforcement to cease all contact with the person.

Philip Chase Smith, 28, of South Old Wire Road, North Carolina, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater and obstructed license plate. Smith was stopped at 11:05 p.m. Friday, on Route 5, Batavia, by Deputy Kevin McCarthy.

Jason Lee Perry, 18, of Telephone Road, Pavilion, is charged with criminal contempt, 2nd. Perry is accused of violating an order of protection barring him from offensive conduct toward a family member.

David Bernard Marsceill, 35, of Old Ford Road, Elba, is charged with criminal possession of a weapon, 3rd, strangulation, 2nd, and criminal mischief, 3rd. Marsceill is accused of choking another person during a domestic incident, causing that person to lose consciousness, of damaging a vehicle during the incident and possessing brass knuckles on two separate occasions.

Randy Lee Smith, 55, of Swamp Road, Byron, is charged with petit larceny and trespass. Smith is accused of stealing railroad tie plates located in the CSX Railroad right of way in the area of Route 19, Village of Bergen.

Russell P. Cessna, 24, of Batavia, is charged with burglary, 2nd. Cessna was arrested by State Police in connection with a burglary reported in the Town of Stafford on July 28. No further details released.

Jimmy R. Wenzel, 26, of Wyoming, is charged with criminal mischief, 4th. Wenzel was arrested by State Police in connection with an alleged incident reported at 2:45 a.m., Saturday, in Pavilion. No further details released.

Friends and family of Kelsey Milks met at the Richmond library parking lot this evening to walk in remembrance of her. Milks, 19, died in a three car motor-vehicle accident Dec. 16, 2012 on Route 63 in the Orleans County, Town of Shelby.

Daniel King says he decided to organize a walk for Kelsey because some people were unable to make the prayer walk they had for her in Pembroke on December 19th.

King says, "People do care care and need more love and community. It's important to show how much people matter. She made a difference in a lot of lives."

About 20 people walked from St. Joseph's Church down Main Street to the Falletti Ice Arena on Evans Street. She loved to ice skate King says. Kelsey's dog Ace made the trip, too.

Jesse Winnicki, from Corfu, says Milks helped him through college.

"She made such an impact on me," Winnicki said. "I don't know how things are going to be without her."

Parking was at a premuim near the corner of Libery Street and Central Avenue this morning as hundreds of Catholics filled St. Anthony's Church for the closing Mass of Thanksgiving. Bishop Richard Malone of the Buffalo Diocese presided over the last mass at the proud Italian parish.

Since 1908, St. Anthony's has served many on the Southside of the city. Today, some parishoners said they felt like they were attending a funeral. Many with tears in their eyes, and some even dressed in black. Ann Valerych has been going to St. Anthony's for 84 years. "This is more of a funeral Mass. It's the end of St. Anthony's and it didn't have to be."

In 2008, St. Anthony's was merged with Sacred Heart to become Ascension Parish. This was part of the Buffalo Diocese's Journey in Faith and Grace program. In September, the Ascension Parish Council recommended that St. Anthony's close its doors Jan. 1, 2013, because of the financial difficulties operating both churches.

The only bright spot of the Mass was one last baptismal. Daniel Fix and Gretchen Gautieri and Godparents Aaron and Kristen Fix brought Sadie Lynn Fix to the alter before the Bishop and the congregation to instill a feeling of a new beginning and celebrate a new life in the church. Gretchen and her family are long-time members at the parish.

"We still have a church to go to, even though it's not this one," Gretchen said. "It's still a sense of community and we will be able to pray together no matter where we are." 

In his homily, Bishop Malone expressed his understanding of people's feelings of anger and sadness over the closing. Malone says there are many Catholics across the Northeast experiencing the same things as you are here. He told parishoners, "We do this as a people who are strong in faith, who have profound hope that Christ leads us forward and to be able to have a kind love in our hearts to overcome the wounds. It's time for a real act of trust."

Paula Fischer says she has tried to fit in with folks at Sacred Heart but has had enough politics. She says it's bittersweet and she won't be staying with Ascension Parish/Sacred Heart.

"I don't feel that sense of community. The meshing of the two parishes never happened and I don't feel welcome." Fischer says. "The Catholic Church in America today, I don't like the path it is going. I have a strong faith, I will always be Roman Catholic. I will find another place to worship."  

The Buffalo Diocese has not said what its plans are for the church or any of the buildings on the property.

A Sheriff's deputy is asking dispatch for assistance with a very large, deep pothole in front of 2725 Galloway Road. It is in the westbound lane east of Macomber Road.

"It's very deep and will need some attention tonight," the deputy says.

The deputy tried to fill it in with some stone from the road but it was not enough.

The city fire department is responding to Lewis Place to hose off "a large amount of blood in the street" at the request of emergency responders. Regrettably, we don't know how the blood got in the street in the first place.

UPDATE 11:55 a.m. (by Howard): Called dispatch. There was a fight on Lewis Place last night. Somebody got a bloody nose.

A 17-year-old Batavia resident has been accused of forcing another person into a sexual act and was charged today with a felony count of criminal sexual act in the first degree.

Kyle H. Morse, of Bank Street, was arraigned in Town of Batavia Court and released under supervision of Genesee Justice.

The charge stems from an incident alleged Sept. 21 in the Town of Elba.

Youth Officer John K. Dehm investigated the report.

In conjunction with two partners, Genesee ARC submitted a bid to continue providing the City of Batavia garbage and recycling service.

Donna Saskowski, executive director of the ARC, sat through the bid opening at city hall today and characterized her agency's bid as "somewhere in the middle."

But, she said, the city's decision doesn't just come down to price. It's also a matter of being responsive to the bid specifications and she thinks ARC delivers value to the city beyond just price.

"I would hope they could give us a real fair hearing in terms of our value-added items that we will do for the city, keeping people employed here," Saskowski said.

She added that the agency's partners on the project, Boon and Son and Cascade Recovery, also add value to the package; Cascade, in particular, which can sell recyclables anywhere in the world.

"They want a share of that revenue and the city can get more than they ask for if they work with us," Saskowski said.

In the public meeting to open the bids, Director of Public Works Sally Kuzon read each bid for garbage collection and the purchase of totes (two separate bids). A city staff member recorded the bids. When asked for a copy of the record of bids, Kuzon declined to provide a copy to the media.

Saskowski shared ARC's bid, which for refuse collection is $102.97 per parcel per year and $60.13 for recycling. Refuse disposal is $42.50 per ton.

In response to a FOIL request for the rest of the bids, City Clerk Heider Parker said, "This information will be available within 20 business days but I will notify you if it is available sooner."

Deciding to proceed with a bid was a big decision for Genesee ARC, which has provided the city with garbage collection services for 30 years. City officials are seeking to create a new program that is more automated and encourages recycling. ARC is partnering with Boon to provide the trucks necessary for tote pick-ups and with Cascade to help market recyclable material.

"We decided to go ahead because we still have people with disabilities and people in Genesee County who still need jobs here," Saskowski said. "That was my major motivation."

Sean Mason, an environmental sales specialist representing one of the tote manufacturers bidding on the job, Rehrig Pacific, said his company is motivated to help communities improve what they send into the waste stream. Rehrig Pacific has been making totes for 13 years and been in the plastics business for 100 years.

"We're always looking to increase our footprint and to help communities increase their recycling rate and increase the participation per household," Mason said (pictured below with coworker Jason Gimlin).

Highlights from the Batavia City School District (BCSD) Board of Education meeting on Jan. 8 include news and updates about the following: 

• Security and Safety Procedures Review
• Focus Update
• Kindergarten Registration Begins Feb. 4
• Curriculum Coordinator Hired
• Budget Ambassadors Appointed
• Richmond Memorial Library Updates Goals
• Financial Summary Report

Security and Safety Procedures Reviewed

Superintendent of Schools Chris Dailey announced that an “Emergency Go Home Early Drill” will be held on Feb. 5 as part of the required State Safety Plan. All students will be released at 1:15 p.m. and off of school grounds by 1:30 p.m.

The BOE Safety Committee Chair Amy Barone reported that the committee met in December with Batavia City Police Chief Shawn Heubusch to review and discuss school safety. In addition to providing the district’s internal safety plan to the police department, the group discussed more police presence on school property (including both an increase in patrolling the grounds as well as having officers come inside buildings during extracurricular activities), police access to school buildings in a lock-down situation, the possibility of funding safety officer positions at schools, an increase in number and type of safety drills, and modifications to existing safety equipment and building design to increase safety functionality.

Election Day, which has been highlighted as a safety concern due to the schools being open to all voters on a day when children are present, was also discussed with proposals ranging from moving the election site off school grounds to scheduling a Superintendent’s Conference Day on voting days so that students would not be in the buildings.

Focus District Update

With two of his training sessions in Albany completed and another coming up in March, Superintendent Dailey reported that the district continues to move forward with meeting state requirements and criteria for the school improvement plan that identifies areas of need as well as programs and activities to help increase student achievement.

As one of the state’s requirements for the evaluation process is to work with non-district educational experts, Dailey noted that the district is fortunate to be working with Steve Uebbing, Ed.D., and Sandra Quinones, Ed.D., from the University of Rochester. They will meet with district administration and staff to help increase understanding of the six tenets of the state’s diagnostic process as well as to facilitate preparation for the state’s visits to the district and the middle school. The visit will take place in June.

In addition, bids are going out to approved vendors for the creation of surveys to solicit feedback from students, staff and parents. Overall, Dailey said, the process in very extensive and the district continues to make progress.

As noted at previous board meetings, the district did not meet New York State’s proficiency benchmarks in the 2010-2011 school year for one subgroup of students. As a result, it has been identified by the NYS Education Department as a Focus District, which is required to choose at least one school on which to focus efforts toward improvement for this subgroup.

Because the middle school has the greatest number of students in the specified subgroup, it was chosen as the Focus School. The district has assembled a school improvement committee to develop and implement a plan that identifies areas of need as well as programs and activities to help increase student achievement.

It’s important to note that the data used for the determination dates back to the 2010-2011 school year and if data from 2011-2012 had been used, the district would have made the target cut points. So while the district is responsible for following an approved Comprehensive Improvement Plan, many of the strategies and plans are already under way and yielding positive results.

Kindergarten Registration Begins Feb. 4

Superintendent Dailey announced that kindergarten registration for the 2013-2014 school year will take place Feb. 4-8 at Jackson Primary School in the multipurpose room.

Children who will be 5 years old on or before Dec. 1, 2013 are eligible to attend kindergarten in the fall. To register, parents are asked to go to Jackson primary on one of the designated school days between 9 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. and bring with them proof of residency such as a current utility bill or formal lease agreement, as well as the child’s birth certificate, Social Security card, and complete record of immunizations. Please note that no child can be registered without the required documentation.

Parents of new first-grade pupils are also asked to register their child in the same time frame and with the same documentation.


Jackson Primary School is located at 411 S. Jackson St. The office phone number is 343-2480, ext. 4000.

Curriculum Coordinator Hired

Superintendent Dailey announced that Curriculum Coordinator Jolene Dettman will begin work on Jan. 18. The position is shared with Pavilion Central School District. She comes from Monroe 2 where she developed expertise in the Common Core and in curriculum development.

Budget Ambassadors Appointed

Sherri Bartz, Rodney Brinkman, Frank DeMare, Jacquie Fowler, Michael Grammatico, Jay Gsell, Jill Halpin, Lynn Heintz, Patti Johnson, Cheryl Kowalik, Jason Molino, Marcia Riley, Durin Rogers, Richard Seymour, and Danielle Torcello applied and were appointed to be Budget Ambassadors for the 2013-2014 district budget proposal.

Ambassadors are residents of the district who volunteer and commit to serve on a committee which meets for two (2) two and a half (2.5) hour evening sessions. Ambassadors review the preliminary budget as developed by the administration (within parameters established by the Board of Education) and recommend to the board any modification(s) they would like to see. Their recommendations, while highly valued, are advisory rather than binding as the board develops the Proposed Budget to be brought to the voters. In addition, ambassadors agree to explain their work to any interested individual in the community.

Richmond Memorial Library Updates Goals

In addition to continuing to build on its previous goals related to space utilization, technology usage, working with the business community, and fiscal responsibility, the Richmond Memorial Library Board has approved goals for 2013-2017. Library Director Diana Wyrwa presented the revised mission statement and outlined the four goals.

The updated mission statement is “Richmond Memorial Library continually provides access to physical and virtual resources and services that meet the educational, informational, and recreational needs of its diverse community in a safe and comfortable environment.”

The four goals are:

1.      Engage diverse populations with specific library programs and services.

2.      Provide multifaceted resources and assistance for all ages to continue learning throughout their lives.

3.      Act as a central source for information about and support of the wide variety of programs, services, and activities available to Batavia residents.

4.      Provide ongoing economic stability for the library.

In addition, Wyrwa announced that, in 2014, the library will celebrate being open for 125 years. Plans are being made now to commemorate that event.

Financial Summary Report

Business Administrator Scott Rozanski reported on the November 2012 revenue and expenses for the district, reviewing them in comparison to the November 2011 figures.  

Overall, the recorded revenues in the year-to-year comparison were fairly consistent, with an increase of $467,000 or slightly less than 2 percent. The most significant increases were recorded in Real Property Tax Levy and in state and federal aid. Real Property Tax Levy, which is counted as revenue when levied rather than when actually received, showed an increase of $355,000. State and federal aid showed an increase of $311,000, largely due to the state making its customary TRS (Teacher Retirement System) payments which the district is obliged to record as income.

Decreases in the “miscellaneous” category of $153,000 were largely due to BOCES refunds for both unused billed expenses as well as an increase in their state aid. In addition, the Non-property Tax Items category (utility tax) was down slightly more than $86,000. The utility tax, as has often been reported, experiences regular fluctuations and has been trending lower than last year.

Expenses were up by approximately $93,000 or slightly less than 1 percent, which was less than expected and primarily due to timing of payments in transportation.

City firefighters were called at about 9:08 p.m. to 405 Garden Drive after a caller reported a loud noise followed by smoke in the familty room. It was thought to be a possible electircal fire. Upon arrival, firefighters found a small fire, extinguished it and ventilated the house. A city code enforcement officer was contacted and it is estimated that he will arrive on scene in the next 20 to 30 minutes.

It seemed to be a beautiful day for snow clean up, though I'm sure city crews would even do it on a bitterly cold, overcast day.

Driving down Evans Street this morning I spotted crews making mountains of snow behind the ice arena and decided to stop for pictures. A worker told me they were clearing snow today from city parking lots, so I followed one of the trucks over to the parking lot off Jefferson Avenue.