A possible structure fire is reported at 318 E. Main St., Batavia.
Heavy smoke is reported in the kitchen of Apt. #4.
The building is being evacuated.
City fire is dispatched.
UPDATE 9:40 p.m.: Electrical issue. Residents can return to their apartments.
Le Roy's basketball team ran into a talented and disciplined Perry team Tuesday night, resulting in a 71-47 loss.
Perry's Autin Croll led all scorers with 25 points, missing only two field goal attempts all night and hitting a trio of threes in the first half.
For Le Roy, Tom Dunn scored 12, Canyon Roster, nine, Holden Bonnell, eight, and Jason Doomling, six.
Also in double digits for Perry were Zach Lowery, 14, and Tyler Cowie, 10.
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Cindy Ball wants justice for her dead brother-in-law and his family, and that's the goal of the prosecution, said District Attorney Lawrence Friedman outside of County Court this afternoon, where Kyle G. Johson entered not guilty pleas to the murder, burglary, arson and attempted murder charges he faces.
Ball, who is married to the brother of Norman D. "Don" Ball, the man Johnson allegedly shot in the head while he slept in his bed in his Selden Road home, cried after the not-guilty plea and cried outside the courtroom.
"He (Don Ball) had four beautiful grandchildren and this man came in his house in the middle of the night and shot him," Cindy Ball said. "It's just wrong. It's so wrong. My brother-in-law had an open door policy. He helped everybody. I've known him since I was 15. I'm just totally broken and he pleads not guilty. There's proof."
There's also due process and defense attorneys are charged with ensuring the prosecution has a solid case, either through a plea bargain process or by taking the case to trial. It's every defendant's right.
"Basically, everyone pleads not guilty at arraignment," Friedman said. "That's they way it goes. Whether there would be a guilty plea, in any case, it normally doesn't happen at the time of arraignment on an indictment."
Johnson was indicted last week by a Grand Jury of Genesee County on the eight counts that include murder in the second degree. The charges stem from events on Selden Road, Le Roy, on the morning of Dec. 1, when Johnson allegedly entered the home of Don Ball through an unlocked back door, entered his bedroom and shot him. He then allegedly went back to his own house on Selden Road and set it on fire. When a Le Roy fire chief and police officer arrived on scene, Johnson allegedly fired his shotgun at them.
Friedman said his goal for the family is to "seek justice."
At this point, Johnson will continue his stay in jail without bail while his defense attorney, Public Defender Jerry Ader, prepares pre-trial motions, which Friedman will then answer, and then both attorneys and Johnson will appear in court at 9:30 a.m. Feb. 23 to argue those motions.
There may be an appearance in court by Johnson Dec. 21 on a request by Friedman to get a DNA sample from Johnson, but Ader may not contest that request, in which case there will be no appearance Dec. 21.
Johnson shuffled into court in the jail's orange jumpsuit, shackled by chains, his head down and disheveled, and said little during the short arraignment, except to acknowledge his name, agree to continue with Ader as his attorney and enter his not guilty plea.
T.F. Brown's and the Lions Club of Batavia are teaming up again for an annual free Christmas Day dinner for members of the community who want a place to go, a traditional meal and presents for the kids.
There are two seatings Christmas Day, at noon and at 1 p.m.
Childern will be able to visit with Santa and receive a present.
For reservations, call Barb at (585) 345-1000. Barb will need to know how many people are attending and if children are attending, their names and ages.
Pictured are Tony Scalia, Rick Mancuso, Chuck Brenner and Joe Teresi.
UPDATE 8:05 p.m.: This story has been corrected to include the right address of the property to be leased from landowner Sam Scarborough, and to reflect the proper per-foot incentive price for the proposed met tower.
A Houston-based energy company would like to figure out if there's enough wind blowing through Alabama to justify building windmills around farmland, so the company is proposing erecting a temporary, 311-foot meteorological tower.
While the town has zoning code that covers wind towers and communications towers, there's no code covering meteorological, or "met," towers.
The ambiguity has delayed a decision by the town board on whether to grant a variance, through what is known as an Incentive Zoning Application, for the tower.
An incentive application involves the company paying an annual fee for the ability to vary from the zoning law.
In this case, EDP Renewables North America, operating as Alabama Ledge Wind Farm, LLC, already agreed to pay a $5-per-foot incentive to construct a tower that exceeds the allowable height.
Over five years, that payment comes to about $18,000.
Town officials think the tower, which will be on land leased from a local farmer, Sam Scarborough, on Gorton Road, should be at least 1,000 feet from Gorton Road.
The current proposed location is 668 feet from Gorton Road.
Using a calculation pulled from the communication tower provisions of the law for setback (the distance from the road), the town is proposing an additional incentive fee of $20 per foot.
That would drive up the five-year cost of incentives to nearly $50,000.
Jim Muscato, attorney for EDP, thinks that fee is unreasonable and excessive.
"The purpose of incentives on a project is to look at what incentives are necessary to allow the project to go forward and come up with a reasonable accommodation for the impacts associated with the project," Muscato said. "What we're talking about here is a met tower where the associated impacts are fairly modest."
While Muscato believes the 1,000-foot setback, as opposed to a setback that doubles the height of the tower, or 622 feet, is excessive, he said his company is willing to go along with that setback definition if the incentive fee is reasonable. He would like the board to propose a reasonable incentive fee.
Town Board Member Kevin Fisher suggested that $20 might be reasonable, but he doesn't have an enough information to know at this point. He doesn't know what the market price might be, and he doesn't know how much of an impact the tower might have on town residents. He hasn't heard from constituents enough to know.
"I don’t think it’s fair to us to say, 'You guys should accept it because you don't have met tower regulations or zoning laws,' " Fisher said. "We didn’t have any reason for any of this stuff until you walked in the door."
Ronald Gilbert, planning board chairman, was in the audience and he reminded the board that some years ago, EDP, operating then as Horizon Energy, proposed a wind farm in Alabama, which is how the current zoning code came to be written, and it was Horizon officials who said then no zoning code covering met towers was necessary because a met tower wouldn't be part of the wind farm.
Town Attorney Mark Boylan said the conversation made him a little uncomfortable because the town is looking at establishing a requirement for incentives based on two sections of zoning code that do not deal directly with met towers. That introduces an element of an arbitrary decision.
When he hears the other attorney, he said, using words such as arbitrary and reasonable and unreasonable and he's offering a compromise, then, Boylan, said he's concerned about the potential for litigation if the applicant finds the board's decision unacceptable.
Muscato said he doesn't mean to imply his client is contemplating litigation, but then added, "I think what a court is going to assess is that a $50,000 payment over five years of a permit is either not calculable or reasonable or whether it is considered arbitrary. Even if we can't get past the thousand feet or two times the height, we're willing to talk about a more reasonable calculation that would be reasonable for what an incentive payment for a setback would be."
The town board tabled the zoning incentive application so more research can be done and they can put more thought into the request. It will be taken up again at the January meeting.
Only two residents turned out for the public hearing portion of the meeting, David Bencic and Randy Chalmers.
Bencic delivered a page-and-a-half statement that raised questions and concerns about any future wind farm in the area. Many of his questions were answered in the course of his presentation.
Chalmers' statement was much shorter.
"I'm really kind of against them (wind turbines), if you want to know my opinion," Chalmers said. "That's all I've got to say."
The Corfu Police Department sponsored a toy drive Sunday, with dozens of donations pouring in. The toys will be presented to local boys and girls Dec. 19.
Photo submitted by Corfu PD Officer Mike Petritz.
Safyre Terry, an 8-year-old girl from Schenectady who was badly burned and lost her family in an intentionally set fire in 2013, has received thousands of Christmas cards this year and more are coming in, including a packet of cards from Lucky Ducky Daycare in Batavia. The 3- and 4-year-olds have been learning that Christmas isn't just about getting presents but giving as well, so they assembled a care package for Safyre for Christmas.
Photo submitted by Lucky Ducky Daycare.
Batavia - Rosemary Smith, 90, of Batavia, formerly of Corfu, passed away Friday (December 11, 2015) at United Memorial Medical Center, Batavia.
Rosemary was born on April 16, 1925, in Alexander, a daughter of the late Claude and Melvina Clute Spencer. She worked at the E.N. Rowell Box Factory in Batavia. Rosemary was the wife of the late Laverne A. Smith.
Surviving are three sons, Laverne (Pat) Smith, Gary (Helen) Smith and Gerald Smith; six grandchildren and eight great grandchildren.
There are no calling hours. A memorial service will be held at a later date. Memorials made be made to the family. Arrangements were made by C. B. Beach & Son Mortuary, Inc., 4 East Main Street, Corfu.
Batavia/Alexander scored the first goal and the game looked like it would be a goal-trading shoot-out at the end of the first period, but Notre Dame pulled away for an 8-2 win to move to 5-0 on the season.
Notre Dame's Henrik Tolvianinen notched a hat trick.
Notre Dame had 35 shots on goal to 24 for the Ice Devils, but saves went to Batavia 27-22.
Scoring:
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Jackson School continued a 25-year tradition this morning with its annual Breakfast with Santa.
It's a chance for the children to come with the school on a morning that is all about fun and family, said Principal Diane Bonarigo.
The event includes gifts, games, crafts, chance auctions, breakfast and, of course, a few minutes on Santa's lap and a whisper in his ear of what toys under the tree would most delight the children come Christmas morning.
Bonarigo said Michelle Miller, president of the parent-teachers group, deserves a great deal of credit for putting together this year's event.
More than 800 students and adults were expected to attend this year.
Donors once again filled the beds of two pickup trucks with toys for local children during the annual toy drive at Ken Barrett's Chevrolet in Batavia. The drive his hosted every year by WBTA and benefits the Salvation Army. Pictured are Dan Fischer, owner of WBTA, and radio personality Wayne Fuller.
Five projects in Genesee County are receiving more than $2.1 million in state aid, the Finger Lakes Regional Economic Development Council announced.
The aid is part of $500 million awarded to the council by the Governor's Office.
From the announcement:
Buildout of major sites in Genesee County, including: $1,500,000 to the Town of Alabama to help build water infrastructure to serve the STAMP site; $920,000 total for the Genesee Valley Agri-Business Park in Batavia and the Le Roy Food and Technology Park; $750,000 for the soon-to-be built Genesee Biogas facility at the Batavia Agri-Business Park; and $500,000 to revitalize the Newberry Building in Downtown Batavia.
From the announcement:
The Finger Lakes Regional Economic Development Council (FLREDC) was named an Upstate Revitalization Initiative (URI) Best Plan Awardee for its new strategic plan, entitled “United for Success: Finger Lakes Forward.” This means the region will receive $500 million over five years, in addition to economic development funds announced through Round V of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo’s Regional Economic Development Council competition. In total, more than $2 billion in economic development resources was awarded statewide through the Upstate Revitalization Initiative and REDC competition.
“We are proud that Governor Cuomo and New York State have singled out the Finger Lakes Regional Economic Development Council as a ‘best plan awardee’ and that we will receive half a billion dollars to move the region forward,” stated Joel Seligman and Danny Wegman, co-chairs of the Finger Lakes Regional Economic Development Council. “This is recognition that Governor Cuomo believes in the Finger Lakes and is giving our region the attention it deserves. With this infusion of funding in our pockets, we are united for success and ready to move our communities forward.”
The Finger Lakes Region’s URI plan consists of three industry clusters, or pillars, that will act as the core drivers of job and output growth: optics, photonics and imaging; agriculture and food production; and next generation manufacturing and technology.
A pair of separate investigations into the sale of prescription drugs in Le Roy has led to the arrest of two men who are accused of making sales of oxycodone and diazepam to agents of the Local Drug Task Force.
One of the suspects is 74 years old.
Arrested were James J. Wetall, 43, of Genesee Street, Le Roy, and Charles G. Scinta, 74, of Genesee Street, Le Roy.
Wetall is charged with two counts of criminal sale of a controlled substance, 3rd, and two counts of criminal possession of a controlled substance, 3rd.
He is accused of selling oxycodone on two separate occasions.
Scinta is charged with two counts of criminal sale of a controlled substance, 5th, and criminal possession of a controlled substance, 5th.
He is accused of selling diazepam on two separate occasions.
The men were arrested by members the Local Drug Task Force and Le Roy police officers on sealed indictments.
Following arraignment in County Court, they were both released to supervision by Genesee Justice.
With size on the inside and guards who can hit from the perimeter, the Elba Lancers demonstrated some of what they might be able to accomplish in boys basketball in 2015-16.
The Lancers dominated archrival Notre Dame on Thursday, winning 52-40.
"The last time we came in here and beat these guys, I was a senior in high school," said new Elba's new head coach, Ciaci Zambito. "That was 10 years ago, so it means a lot to these kids. I think they've all kind of bought into the basketball program."
That program is one that uses a pressure defense to help create points on transition.
Anchored at center by 6'4", 225-pound senior Jack Hocmuth, the Lancers can dominate against most Class D teams in the paint. Scoring comes from Hocmuth, who 13 last night, and Henry Pflaumer, a junior point guard who scored 14. Senior guard Dakota Dillon added six on a pair of threes and Shane O'Halloran had seven.
"They made everything in the first quarter," said Mike Rapone, Notre Dame's head coach. "They're a good shooting team when they get their looks."
The Lancers were up 20-5 at the end of the first quarter and Notre Dame was in the midst of an 11-minute scoring drought that started when John Sutherland knocked out of the game with an ankle injury. He did not return and he's questionable over at least the next few games.
The Fighting Irish came out in the second half playing with a little more intensity and at a faster pace. They were able to pick up points in transition by getting to the basket before Elba could set its defense. That attack was slowed with C.J. Suozzi fouling out with five minutes left in the third quarter. That put the burden of being the big man leader on the floor on Nico Zambito.
"Nico did a great job, but physically he is just not as tall or as strong as John," Rapone said.
Even with the lopsided loss, there are several positives for his team, Rapone said. The team's season will depend on making shots, Rapone said. He believes the scoring will come, but Thursday's game was an example of what can happen to the Irish when the baskets don't fall.
"We just couldn't make a shot," Rapone said. "Some of these guys are pretty good perimeter shooters, but they weren't hitting tonight. Maybe it was their defense, or maybe it wasn't our night. I'm just proud how they competed for the whole game. Down 20-5, you could just pack it in, but they never did."
Zambito and Tyler Prospero each had six points for Notre Dame, with Casey Midwick and Evan Bender adding five more apiece.
Rapone describes his team this year as athletic, but small. They've got to shoot to win, getting points in transition, which will be harder if Sutherland is out for any length of time. The Irish have a team bench, with eight seniors and eight juniors on the squad.
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It's a tough time of the year for people to lose jobs, said Steve Hyde, CEO of the Genesee Economic Development Center, but there is a silver lining on the dark clouds hanging over the Quaker Muller Dairy Plant.
A large dairy processing organization is close to closing a deal to purchase 320,000-square-foot plant, which cost PepsiCo and Muller Group an estimated $200 million to build.
"We expect it won't take long and they will employ lots of folks," Hyde said. "Probably more than Muller Quaker and it will be good for Western New York dairy farmers."
While details of the plant closing are not available, some sources indicate it won't close immediately, even so, right before Christmas is a hard time to hear you might be out of a job soon, Hyde acknowledged.
"It is a sad day, especially this time of year, and we're all very sad about it, but there is a silver lining," Hyde said.
The GCEDC is already working with the Job Bureau to find suitable replacement jobs for Muller Quaker employees, along with job search assistance and transition training, Hyde said. There may be a job fair to assist workers. Hyde noted there are a lot of local job openings right now.
While Pepsi and Muller made a substantial investment in the plant, they did so with the backing of the state and the local IDA. The state promised Pepsi/Muller some $14 million in tax credits, but those tax credits were contingent on meeting specific job creation goals.
Quaker Muller never went beyond its Phase I goals, which was a bit less than 200 jobs, Hyde said, so the company received "only a fraction" of the anticipated tax credits though Hyde did not have the exact amount of tax credits awarded immediately available.
The project was also eligible for $11 million in tax abatements related to the improvement of the former farm field, mostly in the form of a Payment in Lieu of Taxes on the increase in assessed value. Such tax abatements are not a direct subsidy but are only realized if the project is built and the property tax assessment goes up. The next owner, assuming there is one, will inherit the PILOT.
There were also federal grants that have gone into the creation of Genesee Valley Agri-Business Park that did not directly benefit Quaker Muller, but provided infrastructure, such as sewer and roads, to make the plant construction possible.
Hyde said it's impossible to say, at this point, when this dairy processing organization might complete its acquisition of the plant, but he is optimistic the deal will go through.
UPDATE 6:15 p.m.: Empire State Development has issued the following statement: “Empire State Development will be working with the new plant owner, DFA (Dairy Farmers of America), to restart operations soon.”
UPDATE 6:20 p.m.: Assemblyman Steve Hawley said he was briefed on the plant closing last night and only recently learned of DFA's purchase plans. He's hoping DFA will rehire the displaced Muller workers. "I'm not sure what the future holds, but we're moving forward and I hope this shutdown is short term."
UPDATE: Statement from DFA: "DFA has agreed to acquire the Muller-Quaker Dairy Plant in Batavia, NY. The acquisition is a strategic one for DFA as it is in an important milkshed for us. This facility creates multiple potential milk handling and dairy manufacturing opportunities. We are currently exploring these."
Previously: Developing: Muller Quaker plant reportedly closing
Muller Quaker Dairy apparently announced the closing of its Batavia yogurt plant today. We have not been able to confirm that announcement with the spokeswomen for Muller Quaker.
GCEDC issued this statement a few minutes ago.
“While we are extremely disappointed about today’s announcement by Mueller Quaker Dairy, we are optimistic that the state-of-the-art manufacturing facility will continue to play a key role in the agricultural sector in our region, including remaining a major employer.
“The Genesee Agri-Business Park where the facility is located is a community asset and it continues our strategy of building and marketing sites targeting industry clusters.
“Regardless of this announcement, we will continue to enhance the infrastructure at the Ag-Park in our efforts to bring new jobs and investment to Genesee County in the agricultural sector.
“Our immediate focus in the meantime is to do everything we can to assist the impacted employees.”
A teenage child sex abuser will spend three years in prison following his sentencing in County Court on Tuesday.
Storm U. Lang, 18, entered guilty pleas in July to two counts of sexual abuse, 1st, and a count of sexual abuse, 2nd.
Lang was sexually involved with three different victims on separate occasions when he was 17 years old. He was arrested for subjecting a 7-year-old to sexual contact in the Town of Alabama in October. In November, he also subjected a 12-year-old child to sexual contact in the Town of Alabama and a 5-year-old child to sexual contact in the Town of Bethany.
Lang will be on post-release supervision for 10 years once he's served his three years in state prison.
In addition to the murder, burglary and arson charges Kyle G. Johnson is facing following his arrest Dec. 1 in the shooting death on Selden Road, Le Roy, of Norman D. "Don" Ball, the defendant has been indicted by the Grand Jury on two counts of attempted murder.
Johnson is accused of attmepting to kill Le Roy Police Officer Ryan Young and Le Roy Fire Chief Tim Hogle when they arrived at his residence on Selden Road for the report of a house fire at 4:15 a.m.
Johnson, who is being held in the Genesee County Jail without bail, was originally arrested on a charge of reckless endangerment for allegedly firing his shotgun at the two men.
The eight-count indictment against Johnson begins with the murder in the second degree counts for the shooting death of Ball. Johnson allegedly entered Ball's home through an unlocked back door at 3:350 a.m., Dec. 1, went into his bedroom and shot Ball in the head while he slept.
Johnson then allegedly returned to his residence and set his house on fire.
The counts against Johnson are:
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Also indicted by this Grand Jury:
Marcus C. Kazmierczak, is indicted on counts of felony DWI and felony driving with a BAC of .08 or greater. Kazmierczak is accused of driving drunk July 11, in the Town of Darien, while having a prior DWI conviction within the previous 10 years.
One vehicle's alleged failure to yield to another led to a three-vehicle collision that included a school bus yesterday afternoon at the intersection of R. Stephen Hawley Drive and Med Tech Drive.
One person suffered a minor injury and was transported to an area hospital.
Cited was Tasha L. Wiltberger, 25, of Buell Street, Batavia. She was also the person injured in the crash.
Wiltberger reportedly stopped at a stop sign facing north from Med Tech Drive while a car driven by Joshua E. McKinsey, 23, of Prestige Crossing, Batavia, was on Hawley Drive.
Wittberger allegedly pulled out in front of McKinsey's vehicle. The two vehicles collided and McKinsey's vehicle then struck a school bus that was stopped at the stop sign on College Road.
There were a bus driver and eight students, ages 15 to 18, on the school bus.
The accident was reported at 1:06 p.m.
The accident was investigated by Deputy Rachel Diehl.
Jose Maria Agustin, 41, of Oak Orchard Road, Elba, is charged with criminal possession of a forged instrument, 2nd, and sex offender failure to notify change of address to another state within 10 days. Agustin was arrested following a raid at 6274 Oak Orchard Road, Elba, by members of the Sheriff's Office and Homeland Security. Agustin was found in possession of two allegedly forged instruments and he allegedly failed to notify the Department of Criminal Justice Services of his change of address from another state. He was jailed without bail.
James Cameron Lonergan, 38, of Pries Avenue, Buffalo, is charged with moving from lane unsafely, leaving the scene of a property damage accident, DWI, and driving with a BAC of .08 or greater. Lonergan was allegedly driving drunk when involved in a property damage accident at 12:38 a.m. Tuesday on West Main Street Road, Batavia. The accident was investigated by Deputy Andrew Hale.
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