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With the mercury rising, there are ways to stay cool, experts say

By Joanne Beck
Austin Park spray park July 2023
July 2023 File Photo of kids having some cool fun at the spray park in Batavia. Photo by Howard Owens.

And so it begins — announcements of daily air quality index reports, with New York City and the Lower Hudson Valley hitting upon orange zones of “unhealthy for sensitive groups” while remaining regions in New York State rest in the yellow moderate zones as temperatures soar into the

'Don't do that to us.' Town resident wary of odor from proposed Ag Park waste digester

By Mike Pettinella

A Town of Batavia resident and business owner reiterated his objections Tuesday night to a proposed Genesee Biogas plant earmarked for the Genesee Valley Agri-Business Park but, once again, project developers attempted to alleviate his concerns over the smell of its emissions.

Speaking at the Batavia Town Planning Board meeting at the Town Hall on West Main Street Road, Eric Biscaro questioned Lauren Toretta, president of CH4 Biogas, and Sara Gilbert of Pinewood Engineering, about the extent of the odor from the facility, which is set to be constructed on Ag Park Drive, not far away from Ellicott Street Road.

“If you go by O-AT-KA (Milk Products Cooperative) on lots of given days, the odor there is enough to … it’s bad,” Biscaro said. “So, it’s seems that it would be more intense at your place if you’re going to bring it over  from O-AT-KA and (HP) Hood

Varland and Stewart named Athletes of the Year for Batavia High School at annual awards presentation

By Howard B. Owens
batavia hs athletic awards 2024
Track and Field Coach Nick Burk and multi-sports star Anna Varland
Photo by Howard Owens.
batavia hs athletic awards 2024
Burk and state wrestling champion Casper Stewart.
Photo by Howard Owens.

Anna Varland and  Casper Stewart were honored on Wednesday evening at the Athletes of the Year by the Batavia Coaches Association at Batavia High School's annual Athletic Awards program.

Varland was a standout in soccer, flag football, basketball and softball.

Stewart won the school's first-ever state championship in

Discussion of proposed Verizon cell tower in Batavia covers color of paint and intensity of radio waves

By Howard B. Owens
robert w. burgdorf attorney verizon
Robert W. Burgdorf, an attorney based in Rochester, representing Verizon at Tuesday's Town of Batavia Planning Board meeting.
Photo by Howard Owens.

A major telecommunications company's application to erect a new mobile device cell tower is a fairly straightforward approval process for local planners, and on Tuesday evening, Robert W. Burgdorf of Rochester, an attorney representing Verizon, provided several useful nuggets of information.

It was an initial meeting in the regulatory process with the Town of Batavia Planning Board. The application must still undergo an environmental review and a public hearing, but Burgdorf was happy to discuss the process and some of the technical issues involved in installing a cell tower.

After the feast, get ready to 'shop small' and support Small Business Saturday

By Joanne Beck
Valle Jewlers on Jackson Street, Batavia.
Valle Jewelers on Jackson Street, Batavia.
Photo by Howard Owens 

It’s that time of year when most everyone knows the drill by now: it’s feast day on Thanksgiving, followed by Black Friday deals online and at bigger box and department stores, and then there’s the day that not only supports your local community but allows for shoppers to get

Genesee County's oldest manufacturing company celebrates 140 years in business

By Howard B. Owens
chapin 140th anniversary
Tim Onello, on TV screen, delivers opening remarks on Saturday during a 140th Anniversary Celebration for Chapin International at the company's headquarters at 400 Ellicott Street, Batavia.
Photo by Howard Owens.

One hundred and forty years ago, homes didn't have electricity, and there were no amateur photographers.

That's right. In 1884, neither General Electric nor Eastman Kodak's founders had launched their history-making companies, nor had Nabisco or Coca-Cola product their game-changing products to market yet.

But a pair of young businessmen in Oakfield, Ralph E. Chapin and brother-in-law Frank Harris, had devised an idea for a better container to store kerosene for lamps and Chapin Manufacturing was born.

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