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Just outside the office of The Batavian, a red Cadillac rear ended a U.S. Postal Service delivery truck. There are no apparent injuries. The vehicles have just been moved from the intersection. I didn't see the accident, only heard it.

Rep. Chris Lee issued a statement today expressing support for bi-partisan legislation that supporters say will fix problems with currency exchange with China and help protect WNY jobs.

Lee called Chinese trade practices illegal.

The legislation is aimed at stopping Chinese manipulation of currency exchange, which may be leading to the yuan being undervalued by as much as 40 percent.

Full press release after the jump:

ROCHESTER – Congressman Chris Lee (NY-26) appeared today at Precision Grinding and Manufacturing in Rochester to announce his support for major bipartisan legislation combating illegal Chinese trade practices that have contributed to the loss of good-paying jobs in Western New York.

The Currency Reform for Fair Trade Act (CRFTA) of 2009 specifically takes aim at currency manipulation. A broad range of economists believe, for instance, that the Chinese yuan may be undervalued by as much as 40%. The practical impact of China intentionally lowering its currency's value is to make its goods cheaper. This means that when Chinese manufacturers export a product, they effectively receive a 40% subsidy on their exports, a nearly insurmountable advantage over U.S. producers.

“American workers can compete with anyone in the world, but free trade has to be fair in both directions,” Congressman Lee said. “The Currency Reform for Fair Trade Act is an effective bipartisan solution that levels the playing field for American manufacturers and protects American jobs. It closes loopholes that allow currency manipulation to run afoul of international trade policies and gives our negotiators the tools they need to take a tougher stance on this issue without provoking a trade dispute. With our economy in crisis and our region hemorrhaging manufacturing jobs, we can no longer afford to delay action.” 

The lawmaker noted during the press conference that over the course of this decade, Western New York has lost more than 1 in 4 manufacturing jobs, while our nation’s trade deficit with China has more than tripled. 

Kevin Kelley, executive director of the Rochester Tooling and Machining Association (RTMA), added: “China’s manipulation of its currency continues to represent a significant threat to our region’s manufacturing jobs. We’ve seen plenty of talk on this issue, but not enough action. The legislation Congressman Lee is supporting would ensure a level playing field on which our businesses can compete in the global marketplace.”
The Currency Reform for Fair Trade Act is set to be introduced in Congress this week, according to Congressman Lee, who added, “This is a smart proposal that ensures the United States remains faithful to its own international trade obligations.”

The Batavia Players will present The Lion in Winter this Friday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m.

Through a special arrangement with the Batavia Players, The Batavian is making available to its readers tickets to either show for half price. The normal $10 ticket is $5 when purchased online through The Batavian.

Use the PayPal button below to make your purchase.  To redeem your purchase, take your PayPal receipt to the box office.

Your receipt is redeemable for tickets on either night.

Here's more information about the show:

The Lion In Winter
written by James Goldman
 
A semi-historical and often amusing account on Christmas at the court of Henry II of England and his imprisoned wife Eleanor of Acquitaine.  Joining them are thier three living sons, Henry's mistree Princess Alais and Phillip, the young King of France.  The Lion In Winter is a tremendously popular play that was turned into a movie starring Peter O'Toole and Katherine Hepburn.  Ms. Hepburn won the Oscar for her role as Eleanor of Acqutaine.
 
Friday, May 15 & Saturday, May 16
Batavia Middle School
7:30PM
 
Directed by E. Jane Burk
and Produced, Designed and Adapted for the Batavia Players Stage by Patrick D. Burk
 
Normal Ticket Cost is $10for General Admisssion
 
HERE IS THE CAST LIST:
 
Henry II of England              Kevin Partridge
Eleanor of Aquitaine             Lynda Hodgins
Prince Richard                    Jesse Conklin
Prince Geoffrey                   Anthony Giambrone
Prince John                        James Earl
Princess Alais of France      Rachel Oshlag
KIng Philip of France           Jared Morgan

Today's deal is a $25 gift certificate from Essence of Candles for $12.40 - Half Off!.

Essence of Candles is located at 201 Liberty St. and features a variety of handmade candles -- made right here in Batavia. Store hours are Tuesday through Friday, 2 to 6 p.m. and Saturday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Rules: The gift certificate must be used by within 30 days of purchase. It is not valid with other offers and has no cash value.  People who have won a certificate in the past 30 days are not eligible to win a certificate from the same business as before.  Gift certificates cannot be used, by state law, to purchase alcohol.

How to Win: Purchase using the PayPal "Buy Now" button below. After the first person to hit the "buy now" button completes the purchase, PayPal will let you know that the item has been sold. Ideally, the winner will arrange to stop by my office on Main Street before 5:00 p.m. to pick up gift certificate. Mail is an option, but it would be better to hand you the gift certificate. 

If you want to be notified via e-mail of future Deals of the Day, sign up for the Deals of the Day e-mail list by clicking here.

Merchants: If you would like your business featured in Deal of the Day, call Howard Owens at 260-6970.

SOLD

Leon C. Bloom, Jr., 27, who has no permanent address, was arrested last night at 11:40 p.m. for allegedly violating an order of protection. Bloom reportedly went to the residence of the protected person. Bloom is being held on $1,000 bail.

Chad D. Vanburen, Jr., 18, of Lockport, is charged with unlawful possession of marijuana. Vanburen was stopped for allegedly speeding in Pembroke when deputies reportedly found he had marijuana with him. He was issued an appearance ticket.

Illette Park in Stafford could soon benefit from a little sprucing up thanks to the quiet persistance of Jean Ianni, member of the Stafford Garden Club.

Ianni came to the Town Council meeting Monday night representing the club with no specific request for help from the town, but walked away with a promise of $250 to help plant either trees or bushes along the property line of the park.

When a council member asked Ianni what the garden club expected, what the plans were, how much money or help was needed, Ianni simply said, "We don't do anything until we get some help."

After some discussion about whether to plant trees or bushes, or maybe using some available paving stones to create a walkway, Highway Supervisor Steve Boldt looked over the budget for his department and said that between the maintenance for the part and weed removal, he might be able to free up $250 for the project.

That led more discussion on when to plant trees, if that was the plan.

"If you wait until Memorial Day, you will be water them all summer," said Councilman Ronald Panek. "The time to plant is now."

Soon, a motion was made, seconded and a unanimous vote cast to set aside $250 for the garden club to buy some plants for the park.

The Stafford Town Council approved the purchase of a John Deere Model 644 Loader Monday night for $98,000.

The piece of heavy machinery can serve a number of uses in the town, from earth movement to snow removal.

The full price is $166,000, but the town will get $68,000 trade in value for its current loader.

The winning bid was submitted by Five Star Equipment of Rochester. It was the only bid of four that met all of the criteria of the bid request, according to Highway Superintended Steve Boldt.

As a transplant to Western New York, my impression that WNY is a hotbed of anti-free-trade sentiment.

NAFTA is a dirty word in these parts.

Certainly, trade was a hot button issue in the 26th Congressional race last fall.

Yet, every time I drive past Wal-Mart or Target, or any of the other Big Boxes in Batavia, the parking lots are full.

I wonder how many people realize that Wal-Mart and its ilk are a bigger cause of good paying manufacturing jobs in the USA being shipped overseas than NAFTA?

Black and Decker, for example, started a process of closing factories in the U.S. in 2002 that lead over the next 24 months of 4,000 jobs lost. The tool maker was pressured by Home Depot and Lowes to lower prices and that could only happen by shifting manufacturing overseas. In 1990, Levi owned several factories in the U.S., which produced about 90 percent of the product sold under the brand. In an effort to meet the demands of Wal-Mart and Target for ever lower prices, Levi eventually shuttered all of it's U.S. plants and now out sources all of its manufacturing overseas. Twenty-five thousand people lost their jobs.

If you're anti-immigration, the next time you step into Wal-Mart, consider than some 40,000 jobs have been lost in Latin America since the mid-1990s as clothes making was shifted from those countries to China.

We all love low prices, but those prices come at a price (and Wal-Mart doesn't always have the lowest prices in town -- sometimes, the locally owned retailers meet or beat those prices).

I'm not sure we can reconcile being anti-free trade, and even anti-immigration, and do the majority of our shopping at big box stores.

Buying local keeps more local jobs in the local community and helps grow the local economy.  In current conditions, the big boxes can be unavoidable at times, but they should be a last resort.

Just overheard on the scanner (source unknown): "Gee, I guess you can't take a truck that's 14' 3" and put it under an awning that's 11' 6". "

Response: "Why's that?"

"Gee, I don't know."

Now, I have no idea what that was all about, but it sounds like something got crunched.

For residents looking for volunteer opportunities in the city, Batavia has five openings on four different boards/committees.

The Neighborhood Improvement Committee has an opening in Ward 1. The Planning & Development Committee has an opening in Ward 6. The Plumbing Board has an opening in Ward 6 for a master plumber. The Zoning Board of Appeals has an openings in Ward 2 and Ward 5.

From the City Clerk's press release:

Residents interested in applying can obtain an application from the City Clerk’s Office or can visit our website at www.batavianewyork.com and download a Committee/Board Application under Downloadable Forms.  The City is hoping to fill these vacancies as soon as possible.  Applications will be taken for any board to be kept on file for future use.

If you have any questions or need additional information, please contact:

Office of the City Clerk
One Batavia City Centre
Batavia, New York 14020
Phone:   (585) 345-6305
Fax:        (585) 343-9221
E-mail:   hparker@batavianewyork.com
 

WBTA was off the air for nearly 90 minutes this morning after the lines that carry the radio signal from the studio at Main and Center to the transmission tower was knocked out.

The cause was apparently related to work being done by Verizon, according to Debbie Fischer.

WBTA started transmitting again at 10:55 a.m.

UPDATE 11:15 a.m.: Dan Fischer just came on air to explain the situation. The Verizon lines remain out of service and the station is using a temporary patch to get the signal to transmission tower. "This is about the third time this has happened with Verizon, but we'll keep those thoughts to ourselves," Fischer said. The in-studio sound is degraded with the temporary fix and Fischer asks listeners to be patient while repairs are underway.

We're putting up TWO items today: Herbly Wonderful and Batavia Downs Grandstands Bar and Grille.

Both are $25 gift certificates for $12.50. Half Off!

Rules: The gift certificate must be used by within 30 days of purchase. It is not valid with other offers and has no cash value.  People who have won a certificate in the past 30 days are not eligible to win a certificate from the same business as before.  Gift certificates cannot be used, by state law, to purchase alcohol.

How to Win: Purchase using the PayPal "Buy Now" button below. After the first person to hit the "buy now" button completes the purchase, PayPal will let you know that the item has been sold. Ideally, the winner will arrange to stop by my office on Main Street before 5:00 p.m. on MONDAY to pick up gift certificate. Mail is an option, but it would be better to hand you the gift certificate. 

If you want to be notified via e-mail of future Deals of the Day, sign up for the Deals of the Day e-mail list by clicking here.

Merchants: If you would like your business featured in Deal of the Day, call Howard Owens at 260-6970.

Herbly Wonderful

SOLD

Batavia Downs

SOLD

Joanne Beck wants to license cats.  I sympathize with her concern for the animals and the overburdened shelters that often take in far more unwanted kitties than they can handle.

The extra revenue, if directed toward shelters, could be put to good use, and the program might, overtime help in keeping better track of cat ownership.

We license dogs, so why not cats?

Well, let's look at the differences between dogs and cats.

Dogs, unlike cats, if improperly raised and handled can pose a significant public safety threat, especially when it comes to larger breeds.  It's important to be able to know who owns a particular dog.  Dogs who get rabies can also be a significantly greater public health threat than a cat with rabies.

Dogs, being pack animals, however, are far more likely to stick close to home, especially with good owners who exert alpha-like control over the animals.

Cats on the other hand are more independent.  They are not likely to wander far from a good home, but if allowed outside, they can take off for days at a time and possibly find a new place to live. Ownership, then, becomes much harder to track. 

A good dog owner can be expected to control a canine, but cats are beyond the same level of control.

So I question whether licensing is practical.

Then there is the lifestyle question: Cats are often more affordable pets than dogs. They are animals that people on more limited incomes can afford.  I would be concerned that any licensing scheme would hit the working poor harder than those who can afford to shrug off another $10 or $15 fee.

Sorry, Joanne, I'm just not buying into the licensing idea, no matter how well intentioned.L

Batavia's interim Fire Chief Thomas Dillon will serve his last day with the department on Friday.

Dillon is resigning after the New York Civil Service Commission denied a waiver that would have allowed him to continue drawing retirement benefits while receiving a full-time salary from the city.

Dillon retired after 29 years with the Rochester fire department and under civil service rules could not collect more than $30,000 per year as Batavia's chief without a waiver. The job pays $80,000 per year.

Details on the reason for the denial are not immediately available, but Dillon said he believed it had something to do with the availability of local candidates to fill the role.  Civil service rules only allow a full-time position to be filled by a retired public employee if there are not other qualified candidates for the job.

Dillon, who was appointed to the job in September, said he's disappointed to be leaving Batavia.

"This has been a great fit for me," Dillon said. "I can't say enough about how great the people here have been. I have nothing but good things to say about the people on both the fire and the medic side. It's been a great experience for me."

He also praised the city administration and repeated how disappointed he is that he's unable to stay in Batavia.

Dillon and his wife will return to Geneseo, where they ow na home, he said.

UPDATE: An alert reader notes that city officials must have known for a few days at least that Chief Dillon would be leaving. There is a help wanted ad in the Democrat and Chronicle. The job opening was not advertised with the Daily News nor The Batavian (which is free). Nor is the job placed with Craig's List, which is also free.

UPDATE II: Before tonight's council meeting, I spoke with Jason Molino.  "We've been advertising the position for the last week and we have received resumes," Molino said. He also said, "We are considering internal candidates, as well."

Genesee County is apparently on the short list of potential locations for a new data center for Internet giant Yahoo!, according to the Buffalo News.

If Yahoo! located the center in Genesee County -- or Orleans -- the new facility would generate only 50 to 100 jobs, but it might spur new high-tech growth in the region, according to the article.

Yahoo likes the region for three reasons, Schumer said.

It has a well-educated labor force. And because the data center would house computer systems and other equipment, the company likes the cooler climate, Schumer said.

"In this case, our cool Western New York temperature benefits us," Schumer said.

The company also needs a good supply of electricity, and it prefers clean energy, the senator said.

Of course, when Google was looking at WNY for a data center, it couldn't come to an agreement with NYPA on electricity for the facility.

Brian P. Griffin, 24, of Batavia, is charged with grand theft and endangering the welfare of a child after he allegedly forced his way into the car of an ex-girlfriend, climbed over her children and grabbed a cell phone from her hand. The alleged incident took place Saturday around 7:20 p.m.  Griffin is being held without bail.

John C. Townley, 33, of Alexander, is charged with criminal mischief. Townley allegedly got involved in a verbal argument with another patron at MY Saloon early Saturday morning. Because of the disturbance, an employee reportedly asked Townley to leave the bar. Once outside, Townley reportedly punched a window of the building and broke it.

Cory J. Rigdon, 22, of Holley, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .18 or higher and unlicensed operation of a vehicle. Rigdon was arrested after reportedly driving off the end of Hessenthaler Road in Byron on Sunday evening. Upon further investigation, deputies found he had a prior DWI conviction.

John Tullar, 30, of Batavia, is charged with unlawful possession of marijuana following a traffic stop on Pratt Road.

Jeffery S. Leonard, 22, of Tonawanda, is charged with DWI, a BAC of .08 or greater and ticked for failure to stop at a stop sign. He was cited early Sunday morning on Pearl Street in Batavia.

We're putting up TWO items today: Adam Miller Toy and Bicycle and T.F. Brown's.

Both are $25 gift certificates for $12.50. Half Off!

Rules: The gift certificate must be used by within 30 days of purchase. It is not valid with other offers and has no cash value.  People who have won a certificate in the past 30 days are not eligible to win a certificate from the same business as before.  Gift certificates cannot be used, by state law, to purchase alcohol.

How to Win: Purchase using the PayPal "Buy Now" button below. After the first person to hit the "buy now" button completes the purchase, PayPal will let you know that the item has been sold. Ideally, the winner will arrange to stop by my office on Main Street before 5:00 p.m. on MONDAY to pick up gift certificate. Mail is an option, but it would be better to hand you the gift certificate. 

If you want to be notified via e-mail of future Deals of the Day, sign up for the Deals of the Day e-mail list by clicking here.

Merchants: If you would like your business featured in Deal of the Day, call Howard Owens at 260-6970.

Adam Miller Toy and Bicycles

SOLD

T.F. Brown's

SOLD