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A cleaner, brighter Aldi's reopened this morning, right on schedule, after being closed for nearly a month for remodeling. A couple of dozen people lined up to be the first in the upgraded store. The biggest visible upgrade, an expanded produce section.

Pictured above are Store Manager Eric Murphy and District Manager Jenna Bruning.

Christopher Cameron‎ shared this on Facebook and gave us permission to republish it on The Batavian.

Here's what he wrote:

My son was home sick today. He was on our porch with his mother when the funeral procession for Barry Miller passed. Like any 4-year-old he was amazed by it and asked a hundred questions. Later when his mom took him to Dunkin' Donuts he saw "a sad firefighter drinking coffee." When I got home from work he was playing with his Legos on the floor. He told me he made a memorial for the ambulance guy and all of the rescue guys were sad. So I promised him I would take this picture so that the Lego men could say goodbye. His memorial is in the center.

We're ending this little experiment we called The Batavian Club. It's a lot of work that we're always behind on for too little return. That's the bad news.

The good news is, we're still going to offer the same fantastic deals with local businesses in special gift certificate packages.

Essentially, it's The Batavian Club without calling it a club. The big difference on our end is we save the work on tracking members and printing membership cards, which always seemed to bog us down and create a lot of unnecessary expense. We will be able to send out money-saving gift certificates much sooner after an order is placed when we don't have to make batches of individual membership cards. 

For local businesses, it's the same great promotion as before. There's no additional expense beyond honoring the gift cards when customers come in. If your business is not already participating, call me at (585) 250-4118.

For those who had recurring payments set up in PayPal, I just canceled all of those so there will be no future payments from your account. There are three people who have joined since we last sent out membership packages. They will get a refund. For all other members, they should be up-to-date with membership cards and gift certificates and the stated expiration dates still apply.

Long and lean, this silver streak of a machine practically still has that new car smell with only 28,000 miles on it.

And it could be yours, if you're the highest bidder in an online auction that will open Oct. 6.

The 1999 Corvette was surrendered by its former owner, Anthony A. Leone, a 47-year-old former Jackson Street resident who is currently in prison. Leone signed over the car to the county under forfeiture laws pertaining to drug possession. Leone was stopped by a Le Roy police officer while driving the car and a subsequent investigation, which included the Local Drug Task Force, found a quantity of crack cocaine and pills in the vehicle. 

Since the Sheriff's Office has no legitimate law enforcement use for the Corvette, the county is putting it up for sale. The proceeds will be shared by the agencies that comprise the local Drug Task Force -- Sheriff's Office, Batavia PD, and Le Roy PD. The money can only be used for law enforcement purposes and only for expeditures beyond normal annual budget spending. For example, if the county wanted to buy new surveillance cameras for the task force, but those cameras aren't an otherwise anticipated purchase, the money could be used for that purpose.

Pictured with the car are Undersheriff William Sheron and Sheriff Gary Maha.

The auction site is www.teitsworth.com Bidding opens Oct. 6 and closes Oct. 13. The minimum bid is $15,500.

The car can be viewed by potential bidders at the Sheriff's Office, 165 Park Road, Batavia. For an appointment, contact Chief Deputy Jerome Brewster at (585) 345-3000, ext. 3503.

Chrisjon M. Canty, 20, of Rochester, is charged with felony forgery, felony criminal possession of stolen property, identity theft and petit larceny. Canty is accused of making unauthorized purchases totalling $350 with another person's bank debit card. Canty was identified through the use of video surveillance. He was jailed on $10,000 bail.

McKenzie D. Stevens, 21, residence not disclosed, is charged with petit larceny. Stevens is accused of placing three DVDs, burritos and laundry soap, worth approximately $21, in her baby stroller and exiting Walmart without paying for the items.

Joshua Jake Macklem, 23, of Jackson Street, Attica, is charged with driving while impaired by drugs, unlawful possession of marijuana, driving with a broken windshield, side windows non-transparent. Macklem was stopped at 8:16 p.m. Monday on East Main Street Road, Batavia, by Deputy Joseph Corona.

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For those who missed the final call for Barry Miller, broadcast by Genesee County Emergency Dispatch, at 1:30 p.m., yesterday.

 

Though she admitted to selling $60 worth of suboxone to an undercover agent of the Local Drug Task Force, Suzanne Corona won't be going to prison, at least so long as she can abide by the terms and conditions of her probationary sentence.

Corona, often in trouble with the law from 2010 to 2014, had never faced a felony charge until her arrest for criminal sale of a controlled substance earlier this year.

She entered a guilty plea to that charge Aug. 3 and though Judge Robert C. Noonan predicted a prison term for Corona, on the recommendation of the county's Probation Department and without objection from the District Attorney's Office, Noonan granted Corona probation.

If she abides by the terms, she avoids time by prison.

Corona made headlines worldwide when she was arrested on an adultery charge in 2010 after being observed in an apparent sexual act with a man not her husband on a picnic table in Farrell Park. Then came accusations of shoplifting from a local restaurant, which led to a disturbance there and Corona being wheeled away on a gurney into a waiting ambulance, and various other shoplifting charges, including an arrest at Target on a day when a Sheriff's deputy was there doing a K-9 demonstration.

For a long stretch after that, Corona seemed to avoid getting into trouble and then came the drug sales arrest.

(Our news partner WBTA assisted with this report.)

City fire is responding to Edwards Street following a report of an explosion in the area.

There is a power outage reported on Edwards Street as well as Ellicott Street.

UPDATE 12:15 a.m.: National Grid reports power is out for 11 customers. A crew has been assigned. No ETA on when repairs will be completed.

From The Batavian's news partner, WBTA:

A young Pembroke woman, charged with manslaughter stemming from a fatal February accident in Bethany, will only be allowed to leave the home of her parents to attend outpatient rehab treatment.

Hannah Dibble, 22, appeared in Genesee County Court today asking permission to attend outpatient treatment and to attend church on Sunday morning.

Judge Robert Noonan allowed the outpatient treatment but denied permission for Dibble to attend church.

An evidence suppression hearing has been scheduled for Oct. 20th for lawyers to argue the admissibility of statements made by Dibble and others following the accident.

Dibble was driving the car in which 18-year-old Alyson Krzanak was killed and three others were seriously injured.

Dibble is accused of driving the car while intoxicated.

Backup cameras on cars, they're practically standard features on new cars and soon they'll be required. You might say, they were invented right here in Batavia, but long before cars even had air bags.

Oh, those were first dreamed up, in a fashion, by a Batavia inventor, too.

Charles D. Thomas, born in Batavia in 1910, grew up to be a car designer and his dream car was Thomas Rocket Car. Designed to be sleek and powerful, Thomas also dreamed of a car that was affordable and safe at a time when safety wasn't a high priority in Detroit. 

So he invented the "Ventriscope": a periscope-type of device that gave drivers of the world to their rear. He also came up with the idea of extra padding in the passenger compartment to protect occupants in a crash. Your car has four-wheel independent suspension. That didn't exist in 1938 when Thomas built his Rocket Car, which did have four-wheel independent suspension. 

When Thomas showed off his car in Detroit, experts agreed it was at least a decade ahead of its time.

You might say Charles Thomas was the Preston Tucker of Batavia, but it was also Tucker's failure to bring his own car to market as a mass-produced automobile that also doomed the Rocket Car. When Tucker failed, investors were scared off of such a unique and inventive conception of motoring. 

There was only one Thomas Rocket Car ever made. It was built in an auto shop about where Dunn Tire is now. A group of antique car buffs think it's time for this unique piece of Batavia history be returned to its rightful home, but it will take the cooperation of the City Council to make it happen.

Local businessman Dave Howe, owner of Charles Men's Shop and the Masonic Temple building, and an antique car collector, represented the group of would-be Rocket car restorers at Monday's council meeting and said the group has a simple request: That the city agree to accept the car, once it's fully restored, as a gift and agree to keep it and display it for the public.

Howe said he and the group believe the car will be a tourist attraction since its well known to auto history enthusiasts and car collectors and will give Batavia a unique perspective on the city's history.

The council will consider the request at its next business meeting.

Accepting the car as a gift will cost the city nothing, Howe said, and outside of keeping it clean and acquiring antique car insurance, which Howe described as inexpensive, the ongoing expense for the city will be minimal.

The group interested in restoring the car is really only interested in purchasing it (the car and all its parts have been located, but not yet acquired) if the city is willing to accept the gift.

Here is a complete set of pictures from today's funeral services for Barry Miller, the Bergen resident, small business owner, county coroner and volunteer EMT, who died last Wednesday when the ambulance he was riding in while responding to an emergency call ran into a piece of highway equipment.

Among the speakers was his friend, Town of Bergen Supervisor Don Cunningham, who noted the support and recognition the community showed by decorating the village with purple and black ribbons in Miller's honor. Cunningham said:

Barry wouldn't recognize those ribbons as for him. Barry would want those ribbons and that outpouring of kindness and the formal plans of today to be recognition for every man and woman in his department, for every uniformed individual here today, and for everyone who responds to help another. We can quickly forget that it could be any one of these first responders lynig before us here today. Barry wouldn't want us to forget that.

Press release:

The Batavia Police Department has received multiple complaints of fraudulent posts on social media (Craigslist, Facebook, and other similar Web sites) claiming to be John Gerace, a realtor of RealityUSA with property “for rent.” The postings are requesting a $700 deposit in exchange for keys to the residence. The only contact information on the postings is for sgtmonica000@gmail.com.

The Batavia Police Department with the assistance of John Gerace, would like to remind the community not to give money up front for a rental apartment without first walking through the apartment and signing a lease agreement. If you feel have been part of this scam, please contact the Batavia Police Department at (585) 345-6350 to report the incident.

There was very little disagreement among council members Monday night when it came to a decision on what to do in regards to a future new police headquarters, but it took a lot of chatter to reach that conclusion.

After about 15 minutes of council members saying much the same thing many times over, the Batavia City Council, without a vote, but by consensus, agreed that the city should move forward with a task force recommendation to select Swan Street as the location for the proposed station.

The big question is how to pay for it, and council agreed to ask city staff to prepare a report on funding options and anticipated costs.

"We have a recommendation," said Councilwoman Kathy Briggs to open to the discussion. "The volunteers on the task force did all this work and so, what are we going to do about it? Are we going to act on this? I think it's time to step up to the plate. The task force gave us all the information, all the facts and figures, so I say, let's move forward with the recommendation and direct the administration to see what kind of grants are out there."

Councilwoman Rosemary Christian said she's received a few calls on the topic from residents worried about how the city is going to pay for it, so she wants to know how the city is going to pay for it. Are taxes going to be raised?

Councilman Kris Doeringer followed: "I move we come to a consensus to follow the recommendation with Swan Street and then direct the administration to come up with a report on how we're going to pay for it ... I think we all pretty much agree to follow the task force's recommendation, so, OK, yes, let's get that on the record and then move ahead and see how we're going to pay for it."

Briggs agreed with Doeringer.

Councilman Pierluigi Cipollone pointed out that options for paying for the station were pretty much spelled out in the task force's report.

"A lot of work has been done already on how we're going to pay for it," Cipollone said. "I think if you follow the report, the plan is we're going to pay down a lot of current debt and cycle that into paying for debt for the new facility. If we can get grants, so much the better, but quite a bit of work has gone into looking at this, and agree or disagree, here's how we're going to pay for it."

Christian: "I agree on the site. I do realize and appreciate that a lot of work went into this, but I'm still up in the air on how we're going to afford this."

Councilman Eugene Jankowski wondered if, given the amount of money involved, "if nine people should decide this." He wondered if the expenditure, especially if loans are involved, shouldn't go to a vote.

There was no answer to that question.

Councilman John Canale said he's heard from constituents who say other municipalities have built new police stations for a lot less than the estimates to build one in Batavia. He suggested those cities be researched and perhaps council members should visit those police stations and see if something similar would be suitable for Batavia.

"There may be some leg work that needs to be done here," Canale said.

A series of daylight residential burglaries has swept through the Town of Darien, reports the Sheriff's Office, and officials are asking for citizen help in thwarting the criminals.

In a statement from Chief Deputy Jerome Brewster, the office is asking that residents who see vehicles driving slowly through neighborhoods, stopped along the side of the road, or unfamiliar people walking down driveways or emerging from fields or wooded areas, be reported immediately.

Suspicious activity can be reported by calling 9-1-1 or (585) 343-5000.

Vehicle descriptions and license plate numbers are helpful if they can be obtained without risk.

There were three burglaries on Route 77, Darien, on Thursday and another was reported on Route 20 yesterday.  

Brewster said these crimes mirror similar reports in Erie and Wyoming counties, where jewelry and weapons have been stolen.

The Batavia Centennial Committee and its Legacy Sponsors are ready to present a gift to the city that LeAnna DiRisio, director of Vibrant Batavia, says will stand the test of time -- a sundial.

The sculpture, designed by local architect Ed Smart, would sit in the plaza in front of City Hall. The $15,000 to $20,000 expense is being paid for by the contributions several local businesses made to the Centennial Celebration as "Legacy Sponsors."

There's no expense to the city, but the City Council must approve placement of the sculpture on city property. The council will vote on the proposal at its next business meeting.

Made of steel and teak, with stainless steel lettering, DiRisio said the sculpture will be virtually maintenance free.

"The materials are solid," DiRisio told the council Monday night. "It will last a long time."

The committee hopes to start installation by the end of October and finish the project in early November so it's in place as the city wraps up its year-long celebration of the 100th anniversary of the city's incorporation.

The Bergen Fire patch with Barry Miller's Line of Duty Death black band that has been common on Facebook the past few days.

Miller's funeral service is at 11 a.m. at Pearce Memorial Church, 4322 North Buffalo Road, North Chili.

Click here for his full obituary.

The death of Barry Miller has affected many people in Genesee County, not just his fellow volunteers in the fire services or in the close-knit community of Bergen.

In stores, during public events, at coffee shops and restaurants, on social media, it's what people have been talking about.

Shock, grief and an understanding that our community has lost somebody who made a daily, positive contribution are the thoughts and emotions people are dealing with.

Barry Miller touched a lot of people throughout the county.

"Over the past 10 years, knowing Barry has been one of my more cherished relationships I've been able to develop," said Batavia City Manager Jason Molino.  

Molino first got to know Miller through Leadership Genesee and their paths cross professionally many times over the years, including during meetings and discussions about the city's ambulance service in 2009.

Molino remembers Miller was just a very caring and dedicated person with real sense of esprit de corps.

"He was very gung-ho and very supportive of the community as a whole," Molino said. "Some people have a gift for giving and I think Barry was one of those people. It was something he really valued and something he took a lot of pride in and I think it showed in the outpouring for him and for the Bergen Fire Department."

If gusto for life is measured by how much you do with it, Miller's cup was never half empty. He owned a successful cabinet-making business and a vacation lodge in the Adirondacks, served on town council, was deeply involved in the Bergen ambulance service, was a county coroner and organized or participated in numerous county events. Through all this, hundreds of people in Genesee County came to know Miller as a kind, fun and caring man.

"He lived life the way you should try to live it," said Rusty Breton, a local contractor and another fellow graduate of Leadership Genesee. "He was like a little headlight on a good way to get through life."

Miller was a mentor to many -- all of the people he helped get through EMT training in Bergen and to more than one new county coroner, including Karen Lang.

"If you came into this and didn't already love the coroner thing, he would make you love it the way he loved it," Lang said.

Lang said Miller was fascinated by the details of the job. Lang and others we've spoken to about Miller's coroner's work said he was fastidious about the details, never wanting to overlook anything that might be relevant to a case, and he was fascinated by the nuances and variances of each case he handled.

"We talked to each other all the time about our cases," Lang said. "I'd text him or he would text me, 'I've never seen anything like this before.' We knew each other would appreciate it."

Lang and Miller went to coroner conferences together, eager to learn and share knowledge.

"He always told me if I got stuck on something, I could call or text him anytime," Lang said. "It could be 10 a.m. or it could be 3 a.m. and he would always answer right away."

Social media has been packed with tributes to Miller, with hundreds, perhaps thousands, of people changing their avatar to a copy of Bergen fire's arm patch with a black band and white letters reading "L.O.D.D. 9/23/2015" (Line of Duty Death). 

Retired deputy Dan VanValkenburg posted such a tribute in part because he's one of the people Miller inspired to become a volunteer EMT. For VanValkenburg, Miller is the second closest associate he's lost in a LODD. He wrote on Facebook: 

On one of the worst days of my professional career, I was sent to the home of Deputy (Frank) Bordonaro to meet his wife after his tragic death on July 8, 2014. Although that didn't transpire, I only received comfort from the county coroner who arrived on scene for the pronouncement of his death. Barry walked me through it after I sobbed at the loss of my friend. I now mourn him after his tragic death. He helped me obtain my EMT certification earlier this year and I hope to make him proud. I will miss you and god speed to your heavenly journey.

Deputy Chris Parker worked with Miller both on cases involving real loss for friends and family and the imaginary loss of DWI drills at area high schools. Miller, Parker said, was always a ready volunteer to play the part of coroner at a fatal DWI crash at any high school in the county, and whether on a drill or in the event of an actual death, Miller was professional, compassionate and cared about the details.

"He was meticulous," Parker said. "He was good at being able to sit down with the family and get to know that person to make sure he did his job correctly and that he honored the person and was true to that person. It seemed that way for every call he went on."

Miller was a man of many talents. Anybody who has seen the podiums and desks and media centers that came out of Miller Millworks knows how he had finely honed his craft. Those who served with him politically and in community service say he was adept at dealing with any situation he might confront. He also ran a heck of an inn, according to those who have stayed at the Beaver River Lodge.

"I don't think there wasn't anything he couldn't do," Lang said. "All of these people who think he was so amazing don't even realize a quarter of the stuff he could actually do."

Breton stayed at the lodge several times, usually in winter during snowmobiling trips. The lodge is an old resort well off the beaten path, the way Breton described it. In the winter, it was a seven-mile snowmobile trip to get to it, but on weekends that Miller was going to have guests staying there, he would leave work on Thursday, haul propane and beer and food those seven miles and de-winterize the place and get it ready for guests.

The lodge could accommodate 30 guests, though there were seldom that many for winter stays, Breton said, but it was usually booked full on summer weekends.

Annually, Miller donated a stay at the lodge to the auction of Bidding on a Brighter Future Gala sponsored by the Kiwanis Club of Batavia, which helped raise money for the Child Advocacy Center. It was always a popular auction item.

"It was an awesome place and it was awesome because of Barry," Breton said.  "He made it awesome. I don't know that anybody could do it the way Barry did it. Most people aren't wired like that. He made you feel like you were staying in your own place."

Though as contractor and cabinetmaker, Breton and Miller frequently did business together, Breton said he's most going to miss Miller as a friend.

"As I've gotten older, I understand better how important it is to surround yourself with quality people," Breton said. "You could bounce ideas off of Barry. Whatever your struggle was, business, family, life, whatever your struggle, you could bounce it off him and he would just have some wisdom for you."

Lang felt much the same way. There was hardly a day since she became a coroner that she and Miller didn't at least text each other, always about what cases they were working on or new things they were learning.

And Barry always answered immediately.

Until last Wednesday morning.

At 7:40 that morning, Lang learned a Bergen ambulance had been involved in an accident. She knew Miller might be on that accident, so she sent him a message.

No response.

"Please text me and tell me and tell me you're OK."

No response.

"I knew it was him," she said. "I knew he was gone."

Press release:

The Board of Directors of the Genesee County Economic Development Center (GCEDC) will consider applications for two projects at its board meeting on Thursday, Oct. 1.

The Genesee County Chamber of Commerce plans to purchase and renovate an existing building at 8276 Park Road in Batavia for use of its offices, as well as the County’s tourism office. The total capital investment is $930,000. The project will retain six jobs and create one part-time position. 

Reinhart Enterprises, Inc., plans to add 16,000 square feet of additional warehousing space to its current location at 36 Swan St. for its growing distribution center. The capital investment is approximately $600,000 and the project is expected to create six new jobs. 

The GCEDC Board meeting will take place at 4 p.m. and is open to the public. Meetings are held at the Innovation Zone Conference Room at MedTech Centre -- 99 MedTech Drive, Batavia, on the first floor, across from Genesee Community College.

It's amazing what a bit of new carpet can do to freshen up a room, especially when what you're replacing is 20 years old and been trod upon by hundreds of thousands of feet, but the interior of the Richmond Memorial Library has a whole new feel to it after being close for two weeks for some renovations, including new carpet. 

Workers covered 26,000 square feet of floor space in that span of time.

“This is part of the massive capital improvement campaign that was approved by Batavia City School District voters in 2013,” said Library Director Bob Conrad (pictured). “When I started here in July 2014, the roof was already being replaced. Two ADA-compliant parking spaces and a new driveway were added this summer. We appreciate the public’s patience as those improvements were made.

There’s a lot more to come, like energy-efficient windows and a drive-up book return, but the library will be open through the remainder of the renovation. Just for the carpet, we had to close, because we had to move pretty much everything in sight.”

Moving everything in the library was not a simple undertaking.

“School district crews had to move all of the shelves and desks and furniture to one side of the library so the old carpet could be stripped," he said. "Then as soon as the new carpet was down, they had to put everything back. And then, back and forth again, to do the other side. This was going on upstairs and downstairs simultaneously.

"But before school crews could move anything, library staff and volunteers had to move all of the music and movies and most of the books. We had them in piles and in rows in all of the uncarpeted rooms. It was hectic at times but I’m pretty sure we got everything back in order."

Next on the agenda for the library is expanding media and youth services.

“We’ve budgeted to get some additional shelving to expand the Media collection," Conrad said. "It’s a full 30 percent of our materials circulation, but it does not command a 30-percent share of our floor space. You have to take a merchandising approach to what the community is using and let popular collections grow.

"And we’re looking at ways to bring console video games into the library, in a limited way at first. The people who ask us for video games are not who you probably imagine, kids and teens and such. They are adults in their 40s and 50s. We seem to be overdue for their inclusion.”

Conrad reminded parents that the library is still a great place for after-school study help. Children under 10 must be accompied by a parent or supervising adult.

“We have a certified teacher in the library every day after school – she’s there for crowd control as much as for homework help, that’s just how busy we are," Conrad said. "And we have an expanded Youth Services team in place, led by our new Youth Services Librarian, Andrea Fetterly. Andrea was our Teen Librarian until very recently.

"When we had two Children’s librarians resign in rapid succession, I asked Andrea, who has a degree in Child and Adolescent Development and years of supervisory experience, to schedule herself in the Children’s Room and supervise the team of Library Associates I assembled to get us through the Summer Reading Program. That left the Teen Corner unstaffed for some of the summer, but Children's Services are the higher priority.

"Now, it’s counter-intuitive, but putting Andrea in charge of both areas actually allowed us to bring on more hands to cover both service points, at no extra cost. We were able to double the number of Library Associates on staff by provisionally appointing Katie Elia to a full-time position at our board meeting last week. She’s been with us for nine years on a part-time basis, and has her background in Psychology and Social Services to families and children.

"She joins Kelly March, who’s been with us nearly as long and is formerly the director of the Corfu Free Llibrary. Finally, we retain two part-time recruits, one of whom is a library graduate school student at the University of Buffalo – a future Children’s Librarian in the making. The goal is to expand on Teen and Children's programming, and to keep that Teen Corner more consistently staffed after school and in the summer.”

After-school programs will include craft projects, supervised computer gaming, Lego Club, Coder Club, Chess Club, and pick-up matches of collectible trading card games like Yugioh and Magic: The Gathering.

“But nothing’s on the calendar yet!” Conrad said. “We went right from Summer Read to being closed for renovations, and the staff appointments weren’t finalized until last week. Believe me though, there will be plenty of opportunities for kids to spill glitter on the new carpet -- we're here every day.”

From our news partner, WBTA:

Feral cats, a new police station, a gift of a sundial, and the restoration of a "rocket car" are all on the agenda for tonight’s meeting of City Council. A local automobile collectors' group is seeking to restore what is being called a “Rocket Car” developed and built in Batavia almost 80 years ago.

In 1938, Charles Thomas, of Batavia, built an egg-shaped vehicle that many car enthusiasts consider to be very advanced for its time.

David Howe is among the group looking to restore the car.

He says, "The car ended up touring around the country to dealerships as 'the car of the future' and attracted big crowds wherever it went around the country."

During the national tours, Ford liked the car, but since it was so radically different, the company did not think they could retool and make the vehicle.

The group restoring the car knows what needs to be done and plans to put it back together exactly as it was built. Upon completion, the group seeks to present the car to the City of Batavia as a gift.

Tonight, Howe plans to ask City Council for permission to present the car as a gift to the City for public display, highlighting not only its local historic value, but the national history within it as well.

"They're interested in bringing the history back and giving it back to the City of Batavia. I think it could be a real source of civic pride and a good sense of history for our city," says Howe.

City Council meets tonight at 7 at the Batavia City Centre.