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Calling it his “dream job,” Batavia native Cody Mulcahy began his career Monday night as a Batavia City Police officer.

The 2010 Batavia High School graduate was sworn in as the department’s newest recruit at last night’s City Council meeting.

Mulcahy, 25, will be attending the Niagara County Law Enforcement Academy at Niagara University over the next several months before embarking upon four months of field training. After that, he will join the Batavia force on road patrols.

“This really is my dream job,” Mulcahy said. “I live in the City of Batavia and it gives me an opportunity to be a positive role model.”

The son of Tim and Pam Mulcahy, he studied at Genesee Community College and Brockport State College, obtaining a degree in Criminal Justice.

Mulcahy is the third resident of Batavia to be enlisted for duty in his hometown in recent months, joining Matthew Dispenza and Ryan Shea.

In other action last night:

-- Council passed a pair of resolutions to accept grants for the police department.

The first is an $11,374 grant from the New York State Governor’s Traffic Safety Committee to fund overtime patrols over the next 12 months designed to increase seat belt usage and reduce dangerous driving behaviors.

“The grant period is Oct. 1, 2017 through Sept. 30, 2018, during which we will set up checkpoints, singular patrols and dedicated patrols – such as Main Street pedestrian safety,” Batavia Police Chief Shawn Heubusch said.

The second grant is for $10,000 from the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services to offset the purchase of body cameras.

“This was a surprise,” Heubusch said, noting that around $27,000 was spent per last year’s budget on body cameras for officers.

-- Councilman Paul Viele commented on renovations being made at Falleti Ice Arena on Evans Street.

“I would like to thank (DPW Director) Matt (Worth) and (City Manager) Jason (Molino) for the improvements at the rink,” said Viele, who brought several issues to light earlier this year.

Viele ran the meeting in place of President Eugene Jankowski, who, along with Councilman Al McGinnis, was absent.

-- Molino reported that he continues to wait for word about the city’s attempt to receive a $10 million state downtown revitalization grant for the Finger Lakes Region.

Communities in seven of the state’s 10 regions have yet to hear of the results, Molino said. Batavia submitted its proposal about three months ago.

-- Council approved a liquor license for Batavia Brewing Company LLC, which will be opening on Main Street in the near future, and plans for the Alzheimer’s Association WNY Chapter Walk on Sept. 23 and the John Kennedy Intermediate School Color Run on Oct. 21.

At top, Cody Mulcahy is sworn in as a Batavia City Police officer by Deputy Clerk Aimslee Cassidy. Photo by Mike Pettinella.

The Batavia Town Planning Board on Tuesday night approved the placement of three face lit, red, white and blue acrylic wall signs for the proposed Five Star Urgent Care project on Veterans Memorial Drive, adjacent to The Home Depot.

Tracey Diehl, expeditor for the national chain of walk-in clinics that treat people with illnesses and injuries and perform physicals, immunizations and X-rays, said that the 16-foot-high signs each measure 133.12 square feet and will allow patrons to identify Five Star Urgent Care when coming from all directions.

“We wanted to make the signs (depicting the firm’s red, white and blue logo) equal in size so that they don’t look awkward,” Diehl told the board. “They will be face lit and made of acrylic with a vinyl overlay.”

Diehl said the site, which has yet to be developed, is close to The Home Depot and the NYS Thruway, with visibility from Veterans Memorial Drive, the Thruway and Park Road.

Previously, Five Star Urgent Care’s variance requests were approved by the Town Zoning Board of Appeals and recommended for approval by the Genesee County Planning Board.

According to the company’s website, there are 12 locations in New York, including Jamestown, Geneva, Ithaca and Plattsburgh. Diehl said that “six more sites are in the process” of being finalized.

She also noted that there are some in other states.

The New York locations were founded in 2012 by Dr. John Radford, a physician based in Ellicottville who spent time as an emergency department employee in Batavia early in his more than 20-year career.

Diehl said that a major benefit provided by Five Star Urgent Care is that it takes walk-ins. Plans are to open by the end of the year.

In other action, the board approved a site plan and the construction of one building for Gateway GC LLC’s commercial office building/parking lot project in the Gateway II Corporate Park on Call Parkway off West Saile Drive.

Further expansion, however, would be subject to the completion of conditions from the original list of Gateway II park improvements that focus on traffic flow and a water main.

According to David Ciurzynski, project manager for general contract Manning Squires Hennig Co. Inc., the $2.6 million plan calls for the construction of five 27,00-square-foot buildings with ample landscaping featuring several varieties of trees, including maples, oaks, chestnuts and birch.

Board Chairperson Kathy Jasinski noted the importance of proper landscaping.

“This is something that I was interested in, since you will be setting the bar," she said. "For anything that follows, we would like to keep the same look."

Town Engineer Steve Mountain pointed out that there could be traffic flow issues as buildings are added to the site, adding that the expense of highway improvements would likely be split among developers, the Genesee County Economic Development Center and state and/or federal grants.

Ciurzynski said that his company is working with GCEDC to complete Call Parkway (a path to Route 98) and the water lines needed to service the buildings.

He said that the project “doesn’t work if we have (approval for) only one building,” adding that his company already has attracted a possible tenant for the first building.

Informational meetings for secretaries of leagues in the Genesee Region United States Bowling Congress association are scheduled for 6:30 tonight at T.F. Brown's in Batavia and 6:30 p.m. Thursday at Mount Morris Lanes.

Supply kits will be distributed at the meetings, which also will feature complementary pizza, wings and refreshments courtesy of the GRUSBC. All Genesee Region USBC league secretaries or their representatives are required to attend one of the two meetings.

"These meetings are extremely important as they set the stage for a successful 2017-18 season," said GRUSBC President Tom Fluker. "Not only will we be handing out the league supplies, but we also will be sharing pertinent information about dues structure, the certification process, our extensive awards program and our association tournaments."

Fluker noted that two meetings are scheduled in different parts of the association in an effort to accommodate secretaries of leagues throughout the GLOW region. Supply kits for all leagues will be available at both sessions.

The Genesee Region USBC has jurisdiction over all USBC-certified leagues at 11 centers -- Mancuso Bowling Center in Batavia, Scopano's Lanes in Oakfield, Legion Lanes in Le Roy, Rose Garden Bowl in Bergen, Oak Orchard Bowl in Albion, Medina Lanes, Bennington Lanes, Perry Bowling Center, Letchworth Pines, Mount Morris Lanes and Livingston Lanes in Geneseo.

Last week’s order by a U.S. District Judge in Kansas City, Kan., to appoint a plaintiffs’ settlement negotiating committee is an encouraging sign for New York State corn farmers who are suing Syngenta AG, a Swiss agrochemical company accused of misleading marketing tactics.

Justice John W. Lungstrum, in an Aug. 8 ruling, appointed a team of attorneys to work with Special Master of Settlement for Ellen K. Reisman “toward a fair and expeditious resolution” of several lawsuits filed against Syngenta in connection with its rollout of the Agisure Viptera corn seed in 2010.

Reisman is a partner in Reisman Karron Green LLP based in Washington, D.C.

Litigants contend that Syngenta failed to get approval from China to distribute the seed, which was found to have contained a seed trait (MIR 162 GMO) that the Chinese deemed unacceptable.

In 2013, China embargoed all U.S. corn and, as a result, corn prices declined sharply and American corn producers suffered extensive monetary losses.

Attorney M. Scott Barrett of Bloomington, Ind., who is representing farmers in the Genesee, Livingston, Orleans and Wyoming region, said the judge’s order to form a settlement negotiating committee could mean that good news is forthcoming for his clients.

“We’re hoping that this would be settled by Sept. 11 (the date that a Minnesota class trial is scheduled to begin),” said Barrett, an Albion native. “With that being said, it’s still not too late for (New York) farmers to get in. If they wait to the last minute, they possibly will be unable to participate.”

Barrett said the lawsuit is open to all corn producers who grew and sold corn for market at any time after 2012, and not just those who purchased and/or used the Syngenta seed.

He and attorneys Conrad Cropsey, of Albion, Ken Walsh, of Mount Kisco, and John Jernigan, of Brewton, Ala., are representing New York farmers. Jernigan and Barrett were in the area last week, meeting with some of their clients.

One of those is Joe Tuchrello, of Tuchrello Farms in Livingston County, a longtime farmer of various crops, including potatoes, soybeans and corn.

“I’m not crazy about losing $100,000 a year,” said Tuchrello, who at 83 years of age continues to work every day. “Whatever we can get will be a godsend.”

“I have never seen the likes of what we have gone through,” he said, noting that the price of corn dropped from around $8 per bushel to $3.50.

Syngenta was acquired by China National Chemical Corp. in June for $43 billion.

Lawyers for Syngenta contend that the company did not do anything wrong because the seed wasn’t sold until U.S. approval was obtained, and that it didn’t need China’s approval. However, a test-case trial in Kansas ended with a jury verdict of $217 million in favor of the certified class of Kansas corn farmers and a test case trial in Minneapolis was settled out of court before it began.

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In photo at top, attorneys M. Scott Barrett, left, and John Jernigan, in front of cornfield in Caledonia. For more information about the litigation, contact Conrad Cropsey at 585-589-9400.

Farmers in New York State are being advised to take legal action against a Swiss agrochemical company that is being accused of mishandling the marketing of its genetically modified corn seed.

“New York farmers have been ripped off,” said attorney M. Scott Barrett, an Albion native who is a partner in Barrett Wylie LLC of Bloomington, Ind.

Barrett and Albion lawyer Conrad Cropsey are part of a four-attorney team available to represent New York corn growers who may have been affected by circumstances surrounding the 2010 rollout of the Agisure Viptera corn seed developed by Syngenta AG.

Ken Walsh of Mount Kisco and John Jernigan of Brewton, Ala., are the other lawyers handling New York cases.

Litigation against Syngenta, which was acquired by China National Chemical Corp. in June for $43 billion, began in 2014 – four years after Syngenta began marketing the corn seed.

The problem, Barrett said, was that Syngenta failed to get Chinese approval of the seed, which contained the MIR 162 GMO seed trait.

“China ultimately detected MIR 162 in U.S. corn shipments in November 2013 and, as a result, China, then the third-largest U.S. corn export market, embargoed all U.S. corn -- thereby driving down corn prices and damaging American corn producers,” Barrett said.

“The U.S. corn market has yet to fully recover, nor is it likely to do so anytime soon because after the U.S. corn ban in 2013, China entered into long-term contracts with a number of South American producers.”

Syngenta’s inability to obtain approval by China and alleged misleading statements about when the seed would be approved prompted farmers to file a class action suit in Kansas City, Kan.

Since then, a federal judge dismissed the suit, leaving farmers in all but nine states -- Arkansas, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Ohio, and South Dakota – without a national class action protecting their legal rights. The nine states mentioned can proceed via state law class actions.

Cropsey said farmers in other states, such as New York, have the right to file individual cases.

“We are working principally in the GLOW region and have a couple of signed clients in Suffolk County and Niagara County,” Cropsey said. “Farmers only need to sign a contract. We will handle all the paperwork and file their cases in Williamson County, Illinois court.”

Cropsey said the opportunity to file individual cases is open to all New York corn producers who grew and sold corn for market at any time after 2012.

“It makes no difference whether they purchased Syngenta seed or a competing brand such as Pioneer or DeKalb,” he said. “All of them have been damaged no matter what brand(s) of seed they purchased.  Nor does it matter whether the corn was sweet corn or field corn.”

Barrett recounted the litigation against Syngenta in three phases:

-- The one-count national class action, based on the federal statute known as the Lanham Act (which since has been denied);
-- A Minnesota state class action filed in state court in Minnesota;
-- Thousands of individual, non-class cases filed in both the Kansas and Minnesota courts as well as a state court in Williamson County.

“The three judges from Kansas, Minnesota, and Illinois have appointed a Special Master to work with the parties towards settlement on a parallel track with 48 test-case trials selected by the federal court in Kansas. This is being done to establish liability and damages parameters that will inform the settlement discussions,” Barrett said.

In an encouraging sign for farmers, the first Kansas test case trial last month ended with a jury verdict of $217 million in favor of the certified class of Kansas corn farmers.

“The Kansas class asked for $217 million in actual damages and that is exactly what they received -- no punitive damages were awarded,” said Barrett, adding that it took the jury less than a day to render its verdict.

A second test case trial, this one involving a single Nebraska plaintiff, was set to start on July 10 in Minneapolis, but a confidential settlement was reached four days earlier.

The third test case trial, this one involving the certified class of Minnesota corn farmers, is scheduled for mid-August in Minneapolis. The certified class of Minnesota corn farmers is seeking actual damages in the range of $600 million.

According to published reports, Syngenta lawyers are disputing the farmers’ claims of damages and are denying the company did anything wrong – noting that the seed wasn’t sold until U.S. approval was obtained and that it didn’t need China’s approval.

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For more information about the litigation, contact Cropsey (photo above) at 585-589-9400.

Press release:

The City of Batavia received notification this week from the International City/County Management Association (ICMA) that it will be recognized for its performance management efforts with a Certificate of Achievement from the ICMA Center for Performance Analytics™.

The Center encourages the use and public reporting of comparative performance in order to foster organizational cultures that deliver results that matter.

Council President Eugene Jankowski Jr. said, “It is wonderful to be recognized for solid transparent decision making. Making sure the public has access to information we use to make decisions allows everyone to monitor how the City does its business.”

The City regularly updates its Strategic Plan outcomes and performance management system on the City’s website at: http://www.batavianewyork.com/sites/bataviany/files/u151/2016-17_final.pdf.

In addition to being recognized, the City of Batavia’s Employee Engagement Survey is highlighted as a leading practice among certificate recipients.

According to Assistant City Manager Gretchen DiFante, who led the employee survey efforts, “The survey for which we got an 86-percent return rate served as the foundation of our formal leadership initiative, which kicked off in 2015. Trust is at the foundation of leadership, and we are proud that our employees from every department participated in sharing their perceptions of Leadership across the organization.

“We’ll be re-surveying every three years to gauge improvement and stay on track.”

The survey can be found on the ICMA website https://icma.org/node/93855.

“Performance management is a bedrock principle of professional local government management,” ICMA Executive Director Marc A. Ott said. “By recognizing these leaders, ICMA hopes to encourage others to make a commitment to collect and analyze data, report it transparently, and use it to continuously engage their communities and improve their organizations.”

Performance management aids in cost reduction, program prioritization, and quality improvement. It also encourages accountability and transparency. Certificates are based on established criteria and are awarded at three levels: Achievement, Distinction, and the highest level of recognition, Excellence.

Recipients at all levels collect and verify data to ensure reliability, train staff in performance measurement, and report data to the public through budgets, newsletters, and/or information provided to elected officials. Batavia is among 19 jurisdictions receiving the Certificate of Achievement, and one of 57 recognized overall, and only the second in the State of New York to receive this type of recognition. 

The Genesee County Planning Board on Thursday night recommended disapproval of the expansion of a dog-boarding operation on Route 20 in the Town of Darien, taking into consideration the increased canine population's impact upon neighboring families.

By a 6-2 tally, the panel voted against Randy Blair's request to expand the two-building kennel from eight to 25 dogs. The kennel is located at 265 Broadway Road (Route 20), not far from County Line Road heading toward Alden.

Planning Board member Ed DeJaneiro Jr. said he voted for disapproval "because people's homes take precedence over a business."

The proposal isn't dead, however, as it will have to go before the Darien Town Board and will be subject to a public hearing. Because of the County Planning Board's action, Blair would need a majority plus one favorable vote in Darien for the measure to pass.

Blair told the board that he cleared the expansion with Town of Darien officials, adding that "everything was done above board." Initially, the Planning Board was supportive -- recommending approval as long as the Town of Darien assessed the noise level due to dogs barking.

But that was before the board heard from two neighbors -- Clayton Hoskyns and Timothy Hack -- who said they represented seven families that signed a petition to stop the expansion.

"The main reasons we are against this are the noise ... and the smell," Hoskyns said. "I live between two kennels -- on the east side there is no noise but from his (Blair's) on the west, there is constant barking. Plus the smell because the waste is not disposed of properly."

Hoskyns, a dairy farmer, asked the board, "Who's going to monitor them? Who is going to enforce it when they have more dogs than they are supposed to?"

Hack said his home is about 100 feet from the back portion of the kennel and "the dogs bark for 18 hours and we never see them (the owners) trying to stop them from barking."

Both said that Blair currently is housing more than the eight-dog limit.

The conversation among the neighbors became a bit heated, prompting Planning Board Chair Laraine Caton to implore the speakers to direct their comments to the board.

County Planning Director Felipe Oltramari said he wasn't aware of a maximum number of dogs allowed and that the disposal of animal waste is subject to a management plan. He said the matter will have to go back to the Town of Darien zoning officer.

It was a busy night for the board with more than a dozen referrals on the agenda.

Major rulings were as follows:

-- Planners recommended approval with modifications a special use permit and area variances for Home Leasing LLC, working in cooperation with Eagle Star Housing, to merge three parcels and construct a four-story, 55-unit workforce development residential building at 552-556 E. Main St. in Batavia (on a parcel of land where two homes and Mosman Paint Store currently sit).

Modifications deal with archaeological impacts, driveway permits and meeting Enhanced 9-1-1 standards.

Adam Driscoll, Home Leasing director of development, appeared before the board, expressing his confidence that one dual-purpose elevator (one less than the minimum required) and 48 parking spaces (35 less than the minimum required) would suffice.

Responding to board members' questions about the elevator and parking spaces, Driscoll said that at other Home Leasing projects -- some with up to 100 units -- there is one elevator and "we have never had any major complaints or issues."

As far as parking is concerned, he said his company expects about 35 to 40 percent of tenants to utilize parking spots so 48 would be enough.

"We like to take advantgage of green space -- raised garden beds and a small playground on the site," he said.

Driscoll said 17 of the apartments will be dedicated to homeless veterans (through Eagle Star), with a transportation van being provided to them. 

He said that the timetable -- "in a perfect world" -- has Home Leasing submitting a NYS Homes and Community Renewal application in November, receiving notification of that award in May, closing on the financing in October and breaking ground in November 2018. Construction of the nearly $13 million project would take about a year to 15 months, he said.

-- Planners recommended approval of a site plan review for Thompson Builds of Churchville to construct a 10,331-square-foot salvaged hangar at the Genesee County Airport on West Saile Drive, noting that the plan already has been looked at by the Genesee County highway superintendent for conformance with the County Airport Master Plan.

Contractor Paul Thompson said salvaged structural steel taken from the old hangar will be used in the structure, which will match adjacent buildings on the airfield. His company is building it on behalf of Peter Zeliff, for private and public use.

Thompson expects construction to start in August and be finished by the end of the year.

-- A site plan review for the Ellicott Station project was postponed due to a lack of information from the developer, Savarino Companies.

Photo at top -- Conceptual rendering of the proposed Home Leasing apartment complex on East Main Street in Batavia.

Deer running loose in the City of Batavia -- creating havoc with residents' flower gardens and posing a threat on roadways -- has been a problem of varying degrees in the City of Batavia for the better part of two decades.

So, in the eyes of City Council, any deer management plan that does not include an option to cull the deer population is simply passing the buck (or doe).

On Monday night, council members responded to a report submitted by the Council-appointed Deer Management Task Force that recommends a non-lethal approach to managing the deer population.

During a discussion steered by Council President Eugene Jankowski, the board agreed that more needs to be done to minimize the impact of deer in several parts of the city, notably the Naramore Drive, Clinton Street, South Main Street and Burke Drive areas.

"Did you reach out to the Hawleys and Michalaks (property owners on Bank Street Road in the Town of Batavia), the county or the town to network with them and possibly assist us?," Jankowski asked Mike Freeman, task force chairman, following Freeman's presentation. "I think we need a balanced approach, and I know that the Hawleys and Michalaks are open to assisting us."

Deer herds on those Town of Batavia properties make their way into the city, primarily causing problems in the northeast section of the community. 

Councilman John Canale agreed with Jankowski, while noting that he has seen eight or nine deer running through Lambert Park near Burke Drive. Councilman Robert Bialkowski said he is aware of herds on South Main Street, Union Street and at the VA Medical Center and Councilwoman Patti Pacino has received calls about deer on Ross Street.

"There are people who have done everything (to deter the deer from coming on to their property)," Pacino said. "Can't we do better? Isn't there something we can do? In a year and a half, there won't be a tulip on Ross Street."

The task force's report (details were outlined in a story on The Batavian on Monday) focuses on ways to alleviate or prevent "deer-related impacts" -- through an informational link on the city's website and basing its recommendation on survey responses that suggest the issue "did not rise to the attention that a lethal and proactive initiative needed to be undertaken ..." 

Freeman, who said the task force did not speak to the Bank Street Road property owners, said residents need to be educated about ways "to keep their property safe and to keep the deer away." He also noted that it is against the law to feed the deer.

As far as hunting deer within the city limits, the task force did not rule that out as long as residents adhere to NYS Environmental Conservation Law, which restricts the discharge of a gun, bow or crossbow within certain distances of residences and buildings.

Task force member Joe Rowbottom of Naramore Drive said he has been dealing with deer in his yard since 2001. He said the best way to cull the herd is during the summer, at night, baiting them and using sharpshooters to take them out.

"But, there is a problem with legality," he said. "You have to get property owners to agree. And who is going to be liable if mistakes are made?"

Jim Rosenbeck, of Lewis Avenue, speaking during the public comments portion of the meeting, said he didn't think it is "realistic" to hunt deer in the city.

"I don't want to see the city get deeply involved in a hunt in the city," he said. "Issuing a permit in the Town, that's the way to do it. Homeowners can come together and go to (speak) to Mr. Hawley."

In the end, Jankowski and Council called for the task force to continue its work by exploring a "combination plan" -- culling, education and enforcement of the law -- that would ultimately involve the Department of Environmental Conservation in the process of issuing permits and butchering the deer (with meat given to local food banks).

"We need a little more research, a couple more options," he said.

In other action, Council passed two resolutions dealing with the community's Comprehensive Plan update -- (1) establishing the City as the lead agency for the State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQR) for the draft Comprehensive Plan and (2) setting a public hearing on the proposed plan for 7 p.m. Aug. 14.

City Manager Jason Molino reported that the City Plannining & Development Committee already has scheduled a public hearing on the matter for July 18. 

Once adopted, Molino wrote, the Comprehensive Plan will require zoning code updates consistent with the new plan, adding that the City has money in a committed fund balance to support zoning code updates.

Photo: Mike Freeman, chair of the Deer Management Task Force, addresses City Council on Monday night. Seated at the table in the back are other task force members, from left, Ken Alfes, Joe Rowbottom and Rae Ann Engler. Photo by Mike Pettinella.

Announcement: 

From Governor Andrew M. Cuomo:

Fellow New Yorker,

New York is one of the largest dairy producers in the country, being home to nearly 5,000 dairy farms and more than 600,000 dairy cows.

And the majority of the farms in the state are family-run operations -- that's why it's crucial the state invest in hard working New York families and ensure they have the support they need to succeed.

Tomorrow, I am announcing the details of a new partnership that will create hundreds of new jobs at an idle dairy facility in New York.

Join me tomorrow, July 11th at 12:30 p.m. as I unveil the details of this new investment.

WHAT: Announcing new investment in New York dairy industry
WHEN: Tuesday, July 11th at 12:30 p.m.
WHERE: Genesee Valley Agri-Business Park
5140 Ag Park Drive, Batavia 14020

Thank you for your support, ever upward.

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo

City Council may or may not be contractually obligated to give City Manager Jason Molino a 2.75-percent salary increase for the 2017-18 fiscal year, but, as far as Councilwoman Rose Mary Christian is concerned, the time for across-the-board raises must come to an end.

The subject of Molino's pay hike, which would lift his annual salary to $96,361, was presented to Council at Monday night's Conference meeting. After a few minutes of discussion, it was moved to the board's September business meeting when a vote is expected to take place.

Christian, who has spoken favorably of Molino's job performance on several occasions, said if a raise is warranted she would rather see a specific dollar amount not a percentage.

"I'm not in favor of a raise," she said afterward. "I started (as a council member) with (an) $8 million (budget) in 1992, we're up to $24 million now. It just boggles my mind."

Christian said Molino receives his salary and many perks as well.

"We give a three thousand dollar raise besides all your perks. It's just crazy, OK. We pay him for gas, we pay him for different events that he goes to, any college that he wants to attend as far as somethng to do with our city, any kind of NYCOM meanings, all of his family has health insurance.

"Goodness. There's so many families that can't even put food on the table, let alone everything else."

When asked for her thoughts going forward, she was quick to respond.

"I know what the solution is going to be coming up in 2018 -- nobody's going to get a raise. We're going to be at a standstill. It's going to stay right there, as far as I'm concerned. We've got to have some adjustments. Think about it, there were never any houses that defaulted on their taxes at one time. Now, we have three, four, five a year. And how many (more) are coming this year?"

While Councilman Paul Viele said he agreed with Christian's assessment, Councilman Robert Bialkowski said that Council needs to act consistently with terms of a contract that, he said, enables the City Manager to receive a raise in line with what other city management employees were given. 

Noting that Molino scored at least 4.5 out of 5 in various areas of his performance evaluation, Bialkowski said "it is up to us to be responsible and meet our obligations," adding that he doesn't go for "double-crossing on deals."

Council President Eugene Jankowski pointed out that the board is "taking steps to adjust some things in next year's contract ... looking at other ways of compensation."

"We are doing something; it's not falling on deaf ears," he said.

Councilwoman Kathleen Briggs said that positive evaluations don't necessarily result in pay raises, while Councilman John Canale noted that Molino's raise was included in the budget that was passed in the spring.

It was decided to postpone the vote on Molino's raise until September since Jankowski will not be in attendance at the August business meeting.

City Council has called a special business meeting tonight (7 o'clock, City Hall, Council Board Room) to consider a pair of resolutions dealing with the community's Comprehensive Plan update.

The governing body is expected to act on a resolution establishing the City as the lead agency for the State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQR) for the draft Comprehensive Plan and a measure to set a public hearing on the proposed plan for 7 p.m. Aug. 14.

The Comprehensive Plan update is one of six items on the agenda of Council's Conference Meeting. A five-resolution Business Meeting -- which also includes a report from the Deer Management Task Force -- also is scheduled for tonight.

In a memo to Council dated July 5, City Manager Jason Molino stated that the Council-appointed Comprehensive Plan steering committee has worked with Elan Planning, Design & Landscape Architecture PLLC over the past 18 months and has engaged community participation in an effort to update the document that outlines the City's vision for the next 10 years.

"The relationship between the comprehensive plan, zoning law and the local boards that implement the land use system are all interrelated," Molino wrote. "Most importantly, the future land use map sets the foundation for the City's zoning, based on feedback and input from businesses and residents on what they would like the Batavia of tomorrow to look like."

Molino pointed out that the City Plannining & Development Committee already has scheduled a public hearing on the matter for July 18. He recommends that City Council pass the resolution scheduling its public hearing for Aug. 14, which then could be considered for adoption at the Sept. 11 Council meeting.

Once adopted, Molino wrote, the Comprehensive Plan will require zoning code updates consistent with the new plan, adding that the City has money in a committed fund balance to support zoning code updates.

As far as the City's deer management strategy is concerned, a special task force met a dozen times since April 2016, with its activities including identifying problem areas, collecting pertinent data, conducting a survey of residents and looking at deer managements plans of two Michigan communities -- East Lansing (which takes a "deer-related impact" approach) and Meridian (which uses a bow hunting club to control the deer population).

In a memo dated June 29, the task force reports that the City "should not take a lethal approach to managing the deer population, but rather manage deer-related impacts."

The committee outlined several reasons for its recommendation:

-- The density of the City, little public land and an "inadequate environment to hunt in most (of its) areas."

-- Deer damage has been limited to select areas of the City.

-- There have not been a significant amount of deer-vehicle accidents in the City.

-- Response to the survey was low and suggested that the issue "did not rise to the attention that a lethal and proactive initiative needed to be undertaken ..."

-- Of those who did respond to the survey, half suggested lethal action and half opposed lethal action.

The committee's report does call for the implementation of a deer management website (link on the City of Batavia's website), conducting a public survey every two to three years to monitor activity, and to allow property owners to hunt within City limits, as long as they follow the parameters of the NYS Environmental Conservation Law which restricts the discharge of a gun, bow or crossbow within certain distances of residences and buildings.

Roswell Park Cancer Institute in Buffalo and the Toronto Princess Margaret Cancer Foundation will be the beneficiaries of the sixth annual "Arnie Abramowitz" Memorial CALEO Alumni Charity Golf Tournament on Tuesday at Chestnut Ridge County Club in Darien.

CALEO (Canadian American Law Enforcement Organization) alumni from both countries will be participating in the event, which gets under way with a shotgun tee off at 10 a.m. All players will receive lunch at the turn, a steak dinner afterward and the chances to win numerous prizes.

Procees will be donated to the aforementioned charities in the name of Abramowitz, a former member police officer.

CALEO was established in 1978 to provide intelligence support for a series of marine enforcement operations planned for Lake Erie and Lake Ontario. The original group included senior intelligence officers, investigators and enforcement officers from the U.S. Coast Guard, R.C.M.P., U.S. Customs, U.S. Border Patrol, Canada Customs, Ontario Provincial Police, Niagara Regional Police and U.S. Immigration.

For more information, contact Doug Knorr at knorr.douglas@gmail.com.

Per a judge's order, two horses that were illegally stabled at a home in the Village of Elba were moved to another undisclosed location Saturday afternoon.

At court proceedings last Wednesday, Elba Town Justice E. Douglas King ruled that the young colts would have to be moved from the South Main Street residence of Mark and Bunny Stoneham by Saturday or else he would impose monetary fines for each day after that.

It is unlawful, according to Elba's zoning laws, to stable farm animals or store manure, fertilizer, etc., in a Residential district.

Reportedly, the horses were at the Stonehams for nearly three months.

When contacted by phone on Saturday, Bunny Stoneham -- who had indicated they took the horses in because they needed special care -- said she did not want to comment.

Last June, downtown Batavia was in the spotlight as an on-location site for the new movie, "Marshall," which stars Chadwick Boseman as a young Thurgood Marshall, an attorney for the NAACP who later became the first African-American justice on the U.S. Supreme Court.

At that time, I wrote a story for The Buffalo News, and it started out as follows:

BATAVIA – If you happen to be in a movie theater late this year (or possibly in the fall of 2017, depending upon the release date), watching intently as Chadwick Boseman in his portrayal of Thurgood Marshall climbs the 17 steps to a 1940’s Oklahoma courthouse door, here’s some insight into that scene: It took place in Batavia, New York around 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday, June 1.

The crew of Marshall Movie Inc., about 70 strong, shot a trial scene and an entrance scene for the feature film, “Marshall,” at the old Genesee County Courthouse at the intersection of Route 5 and 63 in downtown Batavia.

Fast forward to today, and we've learned that the film will open in theaters on Oct. 13. A trailer, which includes a quick shot of the old courthouse, has been released and can be viewed by CLICKING HERE.

The movie focuses on a pivotal case in the career of Marshall, who served on the nation's highest court from 1967-1991. He died in 1993.

In the first shooting at the Old County Courthouse, Boseman – who starred as Jackie Robinson in “42”, James Brown in “Get on Up” and T'Challa in the Marvel Studios film “Captain America: Civil War” – walked up to the courthouse door with a bounce in his step, showing that he was ready to defend his client in the Oklahoma County of Choctaw courtroom.

In the second, he had to walk past five “locals” who formed a wall in front of the steps.

Director Reginald Hudlin said he wasn’t sure which scene would be used, saying he shot the second one after something told him to try a different angle.

“I’m leaning on the first one,” said Hudlin, who said the crew’s two days in Batavia, as well as their time filming in Buffalo, has been a tremendous experience.

The scenes from the Oklahoma trial are a very small piece of this story -- about three to five minutes of a case Marshall defended while traveling across the country for the NAACP.

An Elba husband and wife who have been keeping two young horses at their residence on South Main Street in the village for the past three months have until this Saturday to find new homes for the animals.

That was the ruling of Elba Town Justice E. Douglas King on Wednesday night in connection with the unauthorized stabling of the horses by Mark and Bunny Stoneham.

At proceedings at the Oakfield Community and Government Center on Drake Street, King asked Mark Stoneham if the horses were still on his property. Stoneham said yes, adding that the couple has been looking at two different places.

When Stoneham said he would have the horses moved by a week from Saturday (July 1), King countered by stating the animals needed to be removed by this Saturday.

“If not, I am going to impose a $50 fine per day for each day until they are removed,” King said. “And when they are (being moved), you must contact Mr. (Mark) Mikolajczyk for inspection.”

A phone call this morning to Mikolajczyk, the town’s code/zoning enforcement officer, had yet to be returned at the time of this posting.

King told Stoneham that he was “sorry” that he had to impose the deadline, but added “we have these codes for a reason and we have given you ample time to get these two colts to a proper place.”

Elba’s zoning laws state that there shall be no stabling of farm animals or storage of manure, fertilizer, etc., within the R (Residential) District, within 500 feet of an R District and within 100 feet of a lot line.

The Stoneham’s house is located a short distance north of Elba Central School, and the school’s athletic fields are situated behind the Stoneham’s property line to the east.

Following the proceedings, Bunny Stoneham said she and her husband rescue horses and these two horses “came to us in an emergency situation” and needed 24-hour care.

“We took them in – a little boy and a little girl -- because they need each other to rely on or else they would have died,” she said. “We were getting ready to move them but the purchase of a farm fell through.”

The Stonehams are affiliated with Clydesdale Breeders of the U.S.A. and said they own eight other horses at different locations. The two horses in question in Elba currently are being kept in the couple’s garage/converted office when not in a fenced-in yard behind the house.

Their next door neighbors, Crosby and Mari-Ellen Lamont, filed a complaint with village officials on March 28 “but the zoning officer didn’t believe it,” Mrs. Lamont said.

Eventually, law enforcement was notified and the matter went before Town Court on May 21. At that time the Stonehams were given a 30-day adjournment to remove the animals from their property.

Mrs. Lamont (who provided the photos above) said the situation has resulted in a bad smell coming from the yard and the presence of mice, rats and horseflies in the neighborhood.

Mrs. Stoneham disputed those claims, stating that her husband gets up early every morning to clean the area and transport manure from the property.

Needless to say, the situation has resulted in hard feelings and a heightened tension between the neighbors.

The Batavia Town Board on Wednesday night passed six resolutions that set the wheels in motion to improve sewer districts along West Main Street Road, Oak Orchard Road and West Saile Drive.

Following public hearings (which failed to draw public comment), the board approved measures to authorize capital improvement projects and funding through the issuance of serial bonds for Sewer District No. 2 and West Main Street Road Sewer District as well as the North Commerce Sewer Improvement Area.

The board’s action now makes it possible for the municipality to apply for grants to offset the nearly $750,000 price tag of the projects.

The improvement plans for District No. 2 and West Main Street Road Sewer District, which includes Lewiston Road and Colonial Boulevard, generally will consist of upgrades to the Kings Plaza Pump Station in the Town at an estimated maximum cost of $390,706.

“By approving the bond resolution to borrow money for the improvements, every sewer district and improvement area will share in the costs, but it also enables us to go after grant funding,” said Town Engineer Steve Mountain.

Mountain said that improvements at the Kings Plaza Pump Station include the installation of new pumps and controls, updated electronics and replacement of an old “force main” (pipe that moves wastewater under pressure by using pumps or compressors).

For the North Commerce Sewer Improvement Area that covers sections of Oak Orchard Road and West Saile Drive, the Town proposes to install 1,700 linear feet of 12-inch force main and make other renovations. The cost is estimated at $347,294.

Mountain noted that it could be two to three years before the projects are completed.

In other action, the board:

-- Appointed Brian A. Thompson to the position of court security officer on an “as needed basis” at the rate of $18.54 per hour.

-- Retained Hurricane Technologies Inc., for website hosting and GFI monitoring services, approving a three-year contract at a monthly cost of $113.95.

-- Contracted with Champion Asphalt Maintenance of Williamson to seal and restripe the Town Hall parking lot at a cost of $4,084.

-- Approved the installation of a street light at the corner of South Ag Park Drive and Route 63, near O-At-Ka Milk Products, at an annual cost of $156.51.

-- Granted a permit to Genesee Speedway on East Main Street Road to hold a fireworks display on July 6.

-- Supported a community service application submitted by Dominic Brown of Boy Scout Troop 6069, who proposes to improve the picnic shelter and swim platform at Galloway Road Park for his Eagle Scout project. All supplies and materials will be provided by the scout troop except for stone and its delivery by the Town (at an estimated cost of $200 to the Town).

Press release:

BATAVIA, NY – Start-Up Genesee announced that the group will hold the next “Think & Drink” event on Thursday, June 22 from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. Participants should plan to meet at the Bergen Village Hall on 11 North Lake Ave. and be prepared for an entrepreneurial walking tour.

The theme of the event is “Doing Business on Main Street- An Entrepreneurial Walking Tour” that will provide attendees the opportunity to tour the successful Bergen business district, tours of existing space for sale and lease, a recreational trail tour and a stop at the Bergen farmer’s market in the park.

The event will begin with remarks from Bergen Mayor Anna Marie Barclay, who has made downtown business development and recreation a top priority for the village. Following remarks from the Mayor, attendees will go on a tour of vacant buildings for sale and lease that could be ideally suited for startup business and entrepreneurs.

During the downtown business district tour, attendees will stop at various businesses including Pivot Acupuncture and Physical Therapy, Morgan’s, Gregory’s, L Salon, Reynolds Auto Parts, Craft Supplies Unlimited, Ralph & Rosie’s, the Bergen School of the Arts, and Harris Wilcox offices. The event will conclude at Hickory Park to experience the interactive exercise trails and disk golf course and a then visit to the new downtown farmer’s market.

Sponsors for the event include Canandaigua National Bank & Trust, FreedMaxick, Merrill Lynch, Del Plato Casey Law Firm LLP, the University at Buffalo New York State Center of Excellence in Material Informatics and Bioinformatics & Life Sciences, Tompkins Bank of Castile and Tompkins Insurance and West Main Wine and Spirits Liquor Store. For more information or to RSVP please contact Rachel Tabelski at 585-343-4866 or rtabelski@gcedc.com.

Town of Batavia planners on Tuesday night approved a special use permit and site plan review for Fleet Maintenance Inc., a 16-bay truck repair facility that will be situated on State Street Road, adjacent to the New York State Thruway.

"We did a lot of work on it (this project) and investigated the neighbors' concerns over water drainage and traffic," said Kathy Jasinski, planning board chairperson. "I believed we addressed them all and while some may not be happy with everything, we think this is a good fit (for that area)."

The special use permit was needed to address the hours of operation for the business, which, according to Jasinski, have been set at 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday, "expanded hours" on Saturday and closed on Sunday.

Planners voted 6-1 in favor of granting the special use permit, with Paul McCullough voting no, and unanimously approved the site plan.

Jasinski said that owner Debbie Gawron, of West Seneca, indicated that there would be around 10 to 12 trucks at the facility per day.

Previously, the owners went before the Genesee County Planning Board.

Reportedly, the business will employ around 35 people. No timetable for construction was given, Jasinski said.

In another development, the board set a public hearing for July 18 for the Muckdog Solar II Project, a 2 megawatt solar farm proposed for Pearl Street Road, across from Hopkins Road.

Jasinski said a special use permit is required since the project is entering a second phase. 

Update:

A planned public hearing at Tuesday night's City Planning & Development Committee meeting was postponed until next month to give Ellicott Station offiicals more time to deal with State Environmental Quality Review and other issues, said Duane Preston, chair of the planning board.

"We did a sketch plan review and overall it seems to be a great project," Preston said.

He said questions from the board focused on the height of the five-story apartment building -- "it will result in a bit of an up-and-down skyline," Preston said -- as well as the amount of parking and the size of a glass front facade.

---------------

No one from the public spoke at a public hearing on Tuesday afternoon at City Hall where $1.5 million in mortgage, sales and property tax abatements for the Ellicott Station project were presented.

The hearing was officiated by Chris Suozzi, Genesee County Economic Development Center vice president of business development. The completion of the public hearing now sets the stage for the GCEDC Board of Directors to approve the tax incentives as outlined in a press release below.

Samuel Savarino, president of Savarino Companies and developer of Ellicott Station, attended the public hearing, along with Julie Pacatte, Pier Cipollone and Mary Valle of the Batavia Development Corporation.

Savarino noted that he would be at the meeting of the Batavia Planning & Development Committee tonight, along with the project's architect and site engineer.

The Buffalo businessman said he has encountered numerous "challenges" with the project, but the biggest one -- getting proper financial aid -- already has been overcome.

"We have surmounted the major hurdle, closing the $5 million gap with help from Empire State Development and new market tax credits to make this happen," he said. "Overarching development costs make it difficult to make the economics work (without state assistance)."

Savarino also pointed out that the site of the former Santy's Tire Sales and Soccio & Della Penna Construction companies also presents flood hazards, is part of the Brownfield Opportunity Area (which warrants remedial work) and sits on top of what is being called a "grand canal" or tunnel that runs from the corner of Ellicott and Jackson streets right through the Ellicott Station property.

A portion of the canal, which is being utilized by the city, is located directly under where one of Savarino's apartment/retail buildings would be constructed.

On a positive note, he said he has encoutered similar problems in his many years as a developer and is optimistic that engineers will be able to work around this water-filled obstacle.

Savarino added that he has lined up investors and lenders, and hopes to start demolition and construction by this fall, with an eye on being "open for business" in the fall of 2018.

The mixed-use development will consist of a retail brewery/restaurant operated by Resurgence Brewing along with 16,800 square feet of office space and a five-story apartment building.

Savarino said rent for a one-bedroom, top floor corner unit will be around $1,200 per month while a two-bedroom unit with two full bathrooms will go for around $1,600 per month. Each apartment will feature a washer and dryer and a balcony, and the 51-unit building will include a fitness center and ground floor parking.

Pacatte said the BDC is looking at Ellicott Station as its "beacon of hope" for the city's bid to receive a $10 million Downtown Revitalization Initiative award (see story below).

"We're using Ellicott Station as the anchor for our DRI proposal, focusing on the quality of life piece -- especially on the south side of the city," she said.

Valle, owner of Valle Jewelers on Jackson Street, said that major improvements on Ellicott Street "will raise the bar for all of us" in regards to building upkeep and maintenance.

Press release:

The Genesee County Economic Development Center will hold a public hearing at 4 this afternoon to consider financial incentives for the Savarino Companies for the redevelopment of Ellicott Station in downtown Batavia. The public hearing will take place at City Hall.

The approximate 64,000-square-foot development will be a mix use of residential, office and retail spaces; a brewery; small beverage warehouse and hops processing facility; entertainment and event area; outside seating; and integration of the new Ellicott Trail pedestrian pathway.

The $17.6 million project is estimated to create up to 60 good paying full-time jobs.

The proposed incentives include $897,293 in sales tax savings, $128,232 mortgage tax savings and $537,398 in property tax savings. 

The project is being done through the “Batavia Pathway to Prosperity” (BP2) program which was created through an inter-municipal agreement between the City of Batavia, Genesee County, the Batavia City School District, the Batavia Development Corporation and the GCEDC.

BP2 was conceived to pool resources in order to invest in distressed areas in the City of Batavia. The BP2 program will be implemented though PILOT increment financing (PIF), referred to as the “BP2 fund,” which is the first of its kind in New York State where all local taxing jurisdictions are participating. 

Supported by the redirection of 50% of new project PILOT payments, the BP2 fund will play a critical role in generating development within the Batavia Brownfield Opportunity Area (BOA), a 366-acre area within the City of Batavia containing five strategic redevelopment sites.