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Frank Capuano took this picture of an eagle he spotted this morning feasting on a carcass in the Genesee Valley Agri-Business Park.

The Genesee Symphony Orchestra will present its "Made in America!" Pops Concert at 4 p.m. Sunday, March 31 in the Elba Central School Auditorium. It is located at 57 S. Main St. in Elba.

S. Shade Zajac is the symphony's music director and conductor. The concert will feature composer, percussionist and guest soloist Dave Mancini.

WBTA is the sponsor of the "Made in America!" Pops Concert.

The program is:

• "The American Frontier" by Calvin Custer
• "The Journey" by Dave Mancini
• "Fiesta Latina" by Dave Mancini
• "Psycho Prelude" by Bernard Herrmann
• "Forrest Gump Suite" by Alan Silvestri, arrangements by Calvin Custer
• Concert Suite from "Dances With Wolves" by John Barry
• "Over the Rainbow" from "The Wizard of Oz" by Harold Arlen, arrangements by Chuck Sayre
• "Star Wars Suite for Orchestra" by John Williams -- "Leia's Theme" and main title

Tickets are: adults -- $15; students -- $7; seniors -- $10; family -- $35 (parents and children 12 and under).

Tickets are available at Roxy's Music Store, GO ART!, The YNGodess Shop, Vinyl Record Revival, Smokin' Eagle BBQ & Brew, and on the symphony's website here.

This concert is made possible, in part, by the NYS Council on the Arts with the support of Gov. Andrew Cuomo and the NYS Legislature.

Press release:

The City of Batavia is “All In” to revitalize our city through economic development and housing programs that will raise our standard of living and make our community one of the most attractive places, to live, work, and play.

The City is considering applying for Federal grant assistance to help income eligible owner-occupied single-family homeowners with essential home improvements.

Sometimes the smallest things we can do for our neighborhoods can have the biggest impact. Home improvements are a catalyst for changing the look and feel of a neighborhood and improving residents’ quality of life.

Here in Batavia, Summit Street is a perfect example of a street coming back to life with vibrancy and is now a model for other transformations across our City. When one resident makes improvements to their home, others follow.

Grant funds would enable homeowners to make home repairs with grant and deferred-loan funding. Any single-family homeowner is encouraged to apply.

If you own a single-family home in need of repairs please download the survey from the City’s “Useful Links” tab on the City’s homepage at www.batavianewyork.com. Click on Residential Rehabilitation Survey or pick up a survey in the City Manager’s office at City Hall.

Surveys will also be available at the Richmond Memorial Library (19 Ross St.) the week of March 18th.

The City’s goals include the following:

1.        Create a viable urban community with decent housing.

2.        Ensure a suitable living environment for all (safe, sanitary and habitable dwellings).

3.        Expanding economic opportunities for all including persons of low to moderate income.

4.        Rehabilitate the City knowing that it starts with one building at a time.

The City of Batavia is requesting your full cooperation to help us obtain housing rehabilitation grant funding. Please complete and mail in or drop off the surveys to the City Manager’s Office, One Batavia City Centre, Batavia, New York, 14020.

A caller reports that a woman showed up at a residence on Williams Street in Batavia and knocked the windows out with a shovel.

She then left in a dark-colored Ford pickup truck.

Police are searching the area.

Law enforcement is responding to the Clinton Crossing Apartments on Clinton Street Road in Batavia after a woman called dispatch to report "a male subject is laying on her couch -- unknown who it is."

UPDATE 8:52 a.m.: The male, described as white with blond hair and a blond beard and wearing a "black hood" left the apartment and was walking toward Route 33 (Clinton Street Road). Law enforcement is now out with him.

A motor-vehicle rollover accident is reported in the area of 11025 S. Lake Road in Pavilion, just north of Route 63. The vehicle went into water; unknown injuries or how deep the water is.

The roads in the vicinity are "nothing but complete ice," says a first responder, adding that the Mercy unit approaching should use caution because it's so slippery.

Another one says "(Route) 20 is no better than 63."

Pavilion Fire Department is responding, along with Mercy medics.

UPDATE 8:41 a.m.: Everyone is out of the vehicle and walking; injuries, if any, appear to be minor. The occupants are heading to a nearby residence.

UPDATE 8:42 a.m.: "No injuries." A deputy is going to stop at the residence to check on them.

UPDATE 8:43 a.m.: Mercy Flight had been contacted; then canceled.

UPDATE 8:44 a.m.: Mercy medics are to continue in non-emergency mode.

UPDATE 8:56 a.m.: A deputy calls for a tow of the vehicle, which he says is an SUV, 10 feet down an embankment, partially submerged in water.

UPDATE 8:59 a.m.: Two trucks from Stella's towing service will be responding with a 15-minute ETA.

UPDATE 9:13 a.m.: Stella's two trucks are on scene.

Children dance to the music of the Hill Brothers during annual Family Reading Night at Jackson School in Batavia.

The entertainment followed sessions of various people from the community reading to the children in their classrooms at the school.

      Adam Brokaw

A 43-year-old Batavia resident admitted in Genesee Count Court this week to one count of sexual abuse, 1st, for a sexual act involving a woman deemed to be incapable of giving consent.

Adam Brokaw, of Northern Boulevard, faces up to 10 years on probation and six months in jail following the guilty plea.

Sentencing is scheduled for 2:30 p.m., April 26.

Brokaw, at the time of his arrest in July, was a corrections officer at the Albion Correctional Facility.

Investigators said at the time that the incident took place at 2 a.m., Nov. 11, 2017 after a party at his residence.

With each budget revision of the Batavia City School District budget for 2019-2020, Business Administrator Scott Rozanski gets a little closer to trimming $750,000 in spending.

He said school officials are also hoping state aid will increase for the year so the district can keep the property tax levy from growing more than 4.69 percent.

In the latest revision, Rozanski has penciled in $51,118,155 in spending.

He expects about $25 million in state aid, though hoping for more, and local revenue of more than $27.4 million. That would include spending $3.1 million in fund balance with a tax levy of $20,608,000.

But that tax levy amount would mean an increase of 8.78 percent, well above the legal limit of the state's property tax law.

Over three revisions, Rozanski has already trimmed off more than $500,000 but he still needs to find enough savings to get the levy down to $19,834,000, or lower.

A levy under that amount would allow the budget to pass on a simple majority and ensure district property owners would be eligible for a tax rebate from the state in the fall.

A Tuesday's school board meeting, Rozanski said administrators and department chairs found $166,000 in purchases that could be canceled or delayed.

The district will also be able to save $120,000 by letting positions stand vacant after staff retirements.

When asked by a board member why the positions weren't being filled, Rozanski said, "We need to look at things a little bit differently in how we're operating so we're looking for savings."

Those are the kind of cuts Rozanski continues to look for in the budget. He said he doesn't anticipate any significant program cuts.

Overall, the school district expects to cut spending by more than $2.8 million but $2.1 million of that spending came from a statewide bond initiative five years ago that allowed school districts through the state to improve technology-related infrastructure. The cut in revenue and expenditure offset each other as the program comes to a close.

The other $750,000 that must be cut is the result of an NYS Comptroller audit a few years ago that found the school district was estimating revenue correctly but underestimating expenditures in its annual budgets. This was leading to a growing fund reserve. The reserve had become 7 or 8 percent of overall expenditures when it shouldn't be more than 4 percent. That money, the report noted, should be returned to taxpayers in the form of tax cuts.

The district had a reserve fund for debt service but the Comptroller said debt service should be paid out of the general fund so, over the past two years, the district has been transferring money from the debt service fund to the general fund. The debt service fund is now tapped out, hence the need to cut $750,000 in expenses.

Kendra Kenyon, 22, (pictured left) and Dominic Beck, 23, (pictured below right) both of Batavia, no addresses noted, were among 12 people arrested recently by the Wyoming County Drug Task Force and accused of selling and/or manufacturing drugs throughout Wyoming County over the past year or so. Kenyon and Beck were the only defendants from Genesee County arrested in the sweep.

On March 13, Kenyon was charged with criminal sale of a controlled substance in the fourth degree and conspiracy in the fourth degree. 

It is alleged that Kenyon and Beck agreed to sell suboxone to an individual in the Village of Attica on Feb. 8. Both allegedly travelled to Attica with the intentions of selling the drug to another subject at which time they were arrested by Task Force Members and Wyoming County Probation officers who were waiting for them when they arrived to sell the drugs.

Kenyon is currently in the Wyoming County Jail in lieu of $15,000 cash bail, while Beck, who was arrested on the same charges March 8, has since posted bail. 

The Wyoming County Drug Task Force is a multi-agency unit with members from the Sheriff’s Office, Warsaw, Perry, Attica, and Arcade Police Departments, which all participate.

Tonya Lee Buzzell, 36, of Liberty Street, Batavia, is charged with: third-degree bail jumping; false personation; violation of the Family Court Act; criminal possession of a controlled substance in the seventh degree. Buzzell was located in Erie County and arrested on March 13 on four warrants then turned over to the Genesee County Sheriff's Office. Following her arraignment in Genesee County Family Court, she was released on her own recognizance. Next she was arraigned in Batavia City Court regarding the false personation charge and released on her own recognizance. Afterward, she was jailed in lieu of $1,500 bail on the criminal possession of a controlled substance charge and $10,000 bail on the third-degree bail jumping charge. Additional charges may be pending. She is due in city court April 24. The case was handled by Genesee County Sheriff's Deputy Ryan Young, assisted by Sgt. Thomas Sanfratello.

Sharnice Shantell Gibson, 27, of Frank Street, Medina, is charged with: aggravated driving while intoxicated -- with a passenger less than 16 years of age; DWI; two counts of endangering the welfare of a child; and loud exhaust. Gibson was arrested March 14 on Alleghany Road in Alabama following a complaint of an erratic driver. She was arraigned in Town of Alabama Court and jailed in lieu of $2,500 cash or $5,000 bond. She is due in Town of Alabama Court on April 4. The case was handled by Genesee County Sheriff's Deputy Joshua Brabon, assisted by Deputy Erik Andre.

Jamie Leigh Ayala, 39, of Walnut Street, Batavia, is charged with fourth-degree grand larceny and petit larceny. Ayala was arrested at 6:29 p.m. on Feb. 28 at Palm Island Indoor Water Park on Park Road in Batavia after allegedly stealing and preventing the return of a wallet containing three credit cards and other personal documents while at the water park. Ayala is due in Batavia Town Court on April 4 to answer the charges. The case was handled by Genesee County Sheriff's Deputy James Stack.

Submitted photo and press release:

Please join Genesee Cancer Assistance on Thursday, April 11th, from 4 to 7 p.m., at Ascension Parish Hall (17 Sumner St., Batavia) for Joe Gerace's Annual Spaghetti Dinner. 

Dine in or take out. Dinners are $10 for adults, and $7 for children ages 5 through 12 years. Dinners for children under 5 years old are free. As in years past, complementary dinners will be available to any veteran or active duty military. There will be ample parking, and the facility is handicap accessible.

The dinner will include various raffles: a 50/50 raffle, $100 money tree, wine & chocolate baskets, and more! Winners do not need to be present.

All proceeds will benefit Genesee Cancer Assistance. 

Genesee Cancer Assistance, cofounded in 1995 by Dorothy Schlaggel and Russ Romano, is a community-based, volunteer organization through which cancer patients and their families living in Genesee County have access to financial aid and a variety of support services. Since its founding, Genesee Cancer Assistance has been fortunate to assist thousands of individuals; hundreds each year.

A lifelong Batavia resident, and one of the original members to sit on GCA's board of directors, Joe Gerace was passionately committed to helping people afflicted with cancer. He is the originator of the Simply Beautiful program and the Spaghetti Dinner that is held in his honor each year. Joe gave selflessly to the mission of Genesee Cancer Assistance until he lost his own courageous battle with cancer on Nov. 17, 2016.

Call the GCA office for more information, or to purchase your tickets in advance: (585) 345-0417.

       Leona Polk

A 39-year-old resident of West Main Street Road, Batavia, has been arrested and accused of selling a quantity of methadone to an agent of the Local Drug Task Force on two occasions.

Leona J. Polk is charged with two counts of criminal sale of a controlled substance 4th, a Class C felony.

Polk was arraigned in Genesee County Court on Thursday and given her status as a lifelong Batavia resident and her lack of any prior criminal record, she was released on her own recognizance. 

She was arrested March 8 and held without bail until her appearance before Judge Charles Zambito on Thursday.

She is accused of making the sales on June 17 and 18.

Press release:

As a result of Gov. Cuomo and the State Senate failing to include the New York State American Legion Boys State program in their individual budget proposals, Assemblyman Steve Hawley (R,C,I-Batavia) has taken action.

Hawley, along with more than 40 other lawmakers, have signed onto a letter calling for the program’s full restoration that will be sent to legislative leaders and the governor ahead of the April 1 budget deadline.

The Boys State program melds aspiring high school seniors with American Legion counselors and active duty Marines during a weeklong training seminar at SUNY Morrisville.

The students engage in physical fitness, teamwork building and leadership training exercises while also learning the intricacies of state government.

“This is a unique program that brings together active service members, veterans and high school students eager to become future leaders and active in civic affairs,” Hawley said, “including $150,000 in a budget that is expected to total over $175 billion is a small investment we can make to help the future leaders of New York grow and excel.

"Students from every region of the state attend this program and I urge the governor and legislative leaders to restore this funding and keep the Boys State program vibrant and active.”

The sentencing of Samual Blackshear, the Batavia teenager who shot murderer Nathaniel Wilson in the leg after Wilson had stabbed Terry J. Toote outside a residence on Central Avenue, was delayed again today because his attorney received information that could effect Blackshear's eligibility for youthful offender status.

Blackshear entered a guilty plea in November to a single count of criminal possession of a weapon.

The plea agreement, which satisfied an indictment that included counts of attempted assault in the first degree, assault in the second degree, and two counts of criminal possession in the second degree, came with the promise that Judge Charles Zambito would consider granting the then 17-year-old youthful offender status. That would seal his court and criminal record in this case; the defendant is then never required to disclose the conviction to colleges or on job applications.

In preparing for sentencing, James Hinman did not receive a victim's statement from Wilson and did not believe such a statement existed.

Today, he learned that while Wilson did not make a victim's impact statement, he did make statements during his interview for his own pre-sentence investigation, that could have a bearing on the Blackshear case. Hinman asked for time to review those statements.

The content of Wilson's statements was not revealed in court.

In defending Blackshear, Hinman has maintained that Blackshear acted to protect the lives of people at the scene of May 17 murder. While the justification defense might have swayed a jury on the assault charges, Hinman did not dispute that Blackshear came into possession of a handgun he wasn't licensed to carry.

The gun allegedly came from Jennifer Urvizu-Hanlon, 48, then a local businesswoman, who did have a license for the gun. Her case is still pending.

Blackshear's case was continued to 3:30 p.m., March 2.

Even if granted youthful offender status, Blackshear could still be sent to prison for up to four years, or Zambito could put him on probation immediately.

Wilson, who admitted to second-degree murder, was sent to prison for a minimum of 20 years.

Crime Victims' Rights Week in Genesee County will be commemorated April 7-13 with a special presentation at Genesee Community College from 8:15 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Monday, April 8, examining a fatal car accident that has become a key part of Genesee County history.

"Honoring Our Past. Creating Hope for the Future" will look back on a 1987 head-on collision that took the lives of three students in Pembroke and their driver's education instructor.

The panel for the discussion includes: 

• Sheriff's Office Crash Scene Investigator -- Judge James Orr
• Prosecuting District Attorney -- Judge Robert C. Noonan
• Pembroke School teacher -- Gregory Kinal
• Family members: Deputy Patrick Reeves

Reeves is the brother of Rhonda Reeves, who was 17 the day a car driven by Lyndon Goodell, then 23, hit the car she and her classmates were in. Also killed were students Eric Hamm-Johnson, Mindy Beals, and 55-year-old instructor Patrick Collins.

Goodell, a Batavia resident who had already served a stint in prison for burglary, was eventually convicted of manslaughter and vehicular manslaughter. He was sentenced to seven to 15 years in prison.

A wrongful-death lawsuit filed by the victims' families found Goodell and his passenger, Carol Rokicki Elder, equally at fault. Rokicki Elder gave Goodell the keys to her car and the bottle of whiskey that they shared.

A Pembroke-area resident, whose name has not yet been released by local law enforcement, was killed this afternoon in a head-on collision with a tractor-trailer on Main Road near the county line.

The accident was reported at 3:06 p.m. in the area of 352 Main Road.

First responders reported a large debris field. Mercy Flight helicopters were put on ground standby but soon canceled after medics arrived on scene.

The driver of the tractor-trailer suffered minor injuries and was taken by Mercy EMS to UMMC for evaluation.

The driver of the SUV was westbound when it crossed the center line and struck the truck driver's-side-to-driver's-side. The SUV was heavily damaged in the accident.

Assistant Chief Ed Mileham, Indian Falls fire, said it was one of the worst accident scenes he's responded to in the 37 years he's been a volunteer firefighter.

UPDATE 9:30 a.m., Friday, March 15: The name of the driver killed in the crash is Wayne A. Striewing, 54, of Pembroke. Striewing was driving a 2017 Lexus NX2 westbound on Route 5 when the vehicle crossed the centerline, entering the eastbound lane. Investigators have yet to determine why Striewing's vehicle cross the centerline. The Lexus struck a 2016 Peterbilt tractor-trailer operated by Raymond L. Bennett, 56, of Winona, Mo. 

The crash is being investigated by Deputy James Stack, Deputy Kyle Krzemien, Sgt. Andrew Hale, Sgt. Jason Saile, Investigator Chris Parker, Investigator Chad Minuto, and Chief Deputy Joseph Graff. Assisting at the scene were the State Police Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Unit, Department of Environmental Conservation, Pembroke Volunteer Fire Department, Indian Falls Volunteer Fire Department, East Pembroke Volunteer Fire Department, Mercy EMS, and Coroner Jeff McIntyre.

Pictured: Student volunteers hand out snacks to donors. Photo credit: Susan Kuszlyk.