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The John Gardner Society will host its annual reading of Batavia's most renowned novelist at the Pok-A-Dot the evening of Oct. 27.

The reading will start at 8 p.m.

Anybody with an interest in Gardner, literature, Batavia's history, or just looking for an evening of camaraderie and entertainment, is invited to attend or read their own favorite passages from Gardner's work.

For more information or to be added to the list of readers, contact Bill Kauffman at bkbatavia@yahoo.com.

The event is sponsored by the John Gardner Society and Genesee Community College.

Photo: File photo from last year's reading.

Press release:

The City of Batavia Fire Department is sponsoring the sixth Annual Fire Prevention Week Coloring Contest. This coloring contest is open to students from kindergarten through grade 5.

“Our hope is to get the children to discuss fire safety with their teachers, other students and parents/guardians,” an organizer said.

Information has been distributed to City schools, but we wanted to include any City area homeschooled children as well.

Copies of the official coloring page and contest rules can be picked up at City Fire Headquarters, 18 Evans St. We encourage all eligible students to participate.

The 2018 Fire Prevention Week (Oct. 7-13) theme is “LOOK. LISTEN. LEARN. Be aware. Fire can happen anywhere.” Additional information can be found at the Fire Prevention Week website www.FPW.org

Any posters wishing to be entered need to be at the Fire Station located at 18 Evans St. in Batavia no later than 4 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 11.

Judging of the posters will take place Oct. 12th – 15th.

The winner of each group will receive a ride to school on a City Fire Engine, and be invited to a special awards luncheon with their family held at the fire station. Second- and third-place finishers in each group will also be invited to the fire station awards luncheon.

The best of luck to the students! Full rules are available at the City of Batavia Fire Department at 18 Evans St. in Batavia or email the Fire Prevention Officer, Lt. Greg Ireland, at:   gireland@batavianewyork.com

Standing in front of about 100 members of the Democratic Party -- volunteers who signed up walk precincts on his behalf -- Nate McMurray, candidate for Congress, said something you might find surprising: Donald Trump is right about a few things.

"Let's be honest, a lot of people voted for Donald Trump because they knew they needed help," McMurray said. "It was a Hail Mary. They felt like there wasn't a party representing them and maybe they needed somebody on the outside to say, 'hey, I can shake the system up.'

"I'm going to tell you something to a lot of people in the Democratic Party will not say," McMurray added. "Mr. Trump may be a master salesman. He may be a lot of things but his message was right in many respects. The message of the fact that a lot of Americans get left behind or forgotten about."

Many of Trump's voters are now disappointed in Trump, McMurray suggested, because he hasn't delivered on his promises.

"The problem is, Mr. Trump's message has been nothing but bluster," McMurray said. "He's is not doing anything to help people in this country. We hear about a booming economy but do you think the people here in this part of the region or the people in Attica, do you think they feel things are booming and moving and things are going great?"

McMurray promised not only to fight for jobs if elected, including opposing bad trade deals, but to support health care for all, protect Social Security, and follow through on a campaign promise Trump seems to have forgotten: infrastructure.

"Within 60 days in office, we will present a joint infrastructure bill in the house," McMurray said.

Right now, it's unclear who McMurray is running against. The man he planned to beat, Rep. Chris Collins, is under federal indictment on insider trading charges. The Erie County businessman continues as the singular target in McMurray's crosshairs, at least until, and if, the GOP NY-27 chairs are able to remove Collins from the ballot and replace him with another nominee.

Next week, Democratic Party Chair Tom Perez is going to visit the NY-27 but there was a time in McMurray's congressional quest, he said, when the party bosses told him he couldn't possibly beat Chris Collins and he should save his political capital for another fight, he said he told them Collins needed to be taken out.

"I said no someone has to stand up to Chris," McMurray said. "We know he has an ethics violation. We know he has this history of saying 'I only represent my constituents who are my donors.' He had this horrible record and all knew his record even before he was a congressman. We knew about his record when he was county executive when he would fire people and defund libraries and defund all kinds of projects important to the community just because he felt like it."

There was only one person in Washington, D.C., back then willing to encourage McMurray's run, said: Louise Slaughter.

It was Slaughter, he said, who wanted to know if McMurray would "fight like hell," which has become the campaign motto. 

"She said something else," McMurray said. "She said, 'this man has used the house of the people not to do people's business but to make money for himself and his family. Are you ready to stand up against that?' and I said yes and she said, 'Will you stand on his neck?' She said that.

"Now that's mean and it sounds tough but there comes time for accountability. It is time for accountability, not just for Collins but for the entire party that supported him."

Brandon Rebert had the best time today in the Arc of Genesee Orleans 5K in Elba.

Liz Bender (second picture) had the best time among the women.

Changes in technology and criminal law in New York have increased the workload in the District Attorney's Office, according to DA Lawrence Friedman, to a point that is unsustainable and either some cases won't get prosecuted by his office or good attorneys will quit their jobs.

Friedman described the burdens on his office in a letter to the County Legislature to support his request for additional staffing.

"Without such additional resources, our attorneys will not be able to continue to shoulder all of the added responsibilities and time commitments that have been placed on us over the years," Friedman said. "Instead, we will need to figure out how we will implement a reduction in services. We don’t know exactly what that will look like, but we do know that it will not be good for public safety in this community."

Reduced services could include:

• Discontinue the prosecution of violations of probation, leaving probation officers to handle the violations themselves;
• Discontinue the prosecution of non-criminal offenses, such as disorderly conduct, harassment, and unlawful possession of marijuana, leaving it up to the arresting officers to prosecute those cases;
• Reduce the time spent educating new officers about criminal and court procedures.

Friedman is asking for at least one new full-time assistant DA. There are four now. 

When Friedman was himself an assistant, there were seven part-time (30 hours a week) prosecutors in the DA's office for a total of 210 attorney hours a week. In 1996, Friedman, newly appointed to DA, learned the county could obtain state money to fund a full-time DA so the county eliminated three part-time positions in favor of two full-time positions. When the county switched to five full-time prosecutors, it reduced the number of total attorney hours to 187.5, which helped save the county money, according to Friedman.

In recent years, the workload for prosecutors has increased substantially, Friedman said, because of: 

• Body-worn cameras, video-recorded suspect interviews, more surveillance footage of crime scenes. Before the age of ubiquitous video, most cases involved written documents that could be reviewed in minutes. Now, sometimes, a prosecutor must spend hours watching video, and sometimes the video must be viewed more than once, including times to prep witnesses, review with police officers, besides the initial review to see what if any evidence the videos might contain.
• The DA's office has been hit with numerous serious crimes over the past couple of years that assistant DAs help with during the investigation and then if an arrest has been made, handle the prosecution. These crimes include a gang-assault case, a homicide at the Sunset Motel, a deputy-involved shooting, a homicide on Liberty Street, a shooting on Jackson Street, a shooting on Thorpe Street, a series of residential burglaries, a stabbing and murder on Central Avenue, child sex offenses, a fatal hit-and-run in Darien, an attempted murder and arson on Maple Street, vehicular assaults in Corfu and Pavilion, a stabbing in the Town of Batavia, a stabbing on Ross Street, two first-degree rape cases, and follow up on a cold case murder.
• There has been an increase in search warrant applications.
• New state laws, such as Jenna's Law, Megan's Law, and Leandra's Law has added time and tasks to the prosecution of some criminal cases.
• Big Box stores have increased the number of reported larcenies and forgeries.
• DNA is helping to open cold cases.
• Since Friedman became DA, new courts have opened, including Drug Treatment Court, DWI Treatment Court, Mental Health Treatment Court, Veterans Court, Domestic Violence Court, and now the new Youth Court opening next month.

Assistant DAs work a lot of hours beyond their standard "9-5" shift, Friedman said. In additional evening hours for town courts, they are on call 24/7.

A  recent example, Friedman said, was the fatal hit-and-run in Darien. ADA Shirley Gorman was called into the case on an early Sunday morning and worked 12 hours. Friedman and First Assistant District Attorney Melissa Cianfrini also assisted that Sunday with the case. 

"Altogether, the attorneys in our office spent about 40 hours on this case in the first three days and many more hours since then," Friedman said. "Unfortunately, this type of scenario is becoming more and more common. I am concerned that this could result in our attorneys becoming 'burned out' and/or leaving for 'greener pastures.' "

He concluded the letter calling the current situation a "crisis."

"This is the most serious staffing concern that I've ever faced," said Friedman, who has worked in the DA's office for 37 years, and who plans to retire in 2021. 

"I sincerely hope that an inability to get the help we need will not become the next impediment to the effective prosecution of crimes committed in Genesee County," Friedman said. "The current District Attorney truly hopes that his legacy will not be that of leaving an office that is understaffed and thus unable to properly serve the citizens of this County and he assumes that our County Legislature does not want that to be their legacy either."

A car has reportedly hit a tree and rolled over in the area of 6845 Thwing Road, Le Roy.

The initial call reported entrapment but the driver is now reportedly out of the car.

Le Roy fire and Mercy EMS responding.

One way or another, the Town of Le Roy is not expecting to spend $40,000 in 2019 to support Le Roy Ambulance, according to Supervisor Steve Barbeau.

Barbeau presented his tentative 2019 budget to the town council at Thursday's meeting and then discussed the future of the Le Roy Ambulance after the meeting.

Barbeau said based on his discussion with representatives of the ambulance service, Le Roy Ambulance has reached a point financially where it either needs the tax support of a special district or the nonprofit corporation must be dissolved.

If the proposed budget doesn't change before approved, Le Roy residents would find their town property tax rate reduced by a nickel, from 90 cents to 85. The total levy would be $206,248.

In all, Le Roy, excluding special districts, will need $1,427,441 to operate in 2019.

The proposed budget includes raises for non-union staff of varying amounts depending on which department the staff serves. 

Town board members will be able to start going through more detail at its Sept. 27 meeting.

Some adjustments may be necessary because since Barbeau prepared the tentative budget, he's received new information, including a reduction in workers' compensation insurance costs, a reduction in  STOP-DWI money transferred from the state to the town's justice department, and a $5,000 expense for the town to work with the county on a records archive project.

Ambulance Service
As for the ambulance service, a public meeting planned for next week has been canceled because the attorney for the ambulance service has had some health issues. It hasn't been rescheduled yet but the attorneys are working on finding a new date.

At the meeting, the public will learn about the options for the ambulance service and about the prospect of setting up a special district.

After that meeting takes place, Barbeau would like to conduct a straw poll of residents. It would be a non-binding vote held at the Town Hall. Like a school budget election, all residents at least 18 years old would be eligible to cast votes.

The results, Barbeau said, could help the Town and the Village decide whether to support a special district for the ambulance service. If the vote was lopsided one way or another, officials could gauge whether voters would likely support a special district. A close vote would make the difficult decision even more difficult, Barbeau acknowledged.

Either the Town or the Village could approve the formation of a special district without a voter referendum. Residents could challenge any decision by either jurisdiction through a  petition (100 signatures required) for a public referendum to overturn the decision. 

In other words, if the Town board voted against the formation of a special district, through a petition drive, the decision could be challenged by voters. Or if the board agreed to form a district, that decision could be challenged as well.

The same goes for the Village.

Barbeau speculated that if only the Town supported a special district and the Village didn't, it wouldn't be financially feasible for the ambulance service to continue; however, the district could successfully form if approved by the Village but not the town.

Even with the $40,000 from the Town, Le Roy Ambulance has been losing money, Barbeau said. It's his understanding that a big issue for the service is patients' failure to pay their bills. He said last year, Le Roy Ambulance had $75,000 in uncollected fees.

A lot of people, Barbeau said, get their insurance check after an ambulance ride and instead of paying their ambulance bill say, "oh, Christmas in July" and pocket the money.

"I think by November of this year a decision needs to be made (about the future of the ambulance service)," Barbeau said, "because the $40,000 is not going to be in the budget for the ambulance. Imagine what their deficits are going to be without it. So they're either going to have to start taxing in 2019 or start exhausting the assets that they do have."

There is a complex process to wind down a nonprofit, Barbeau said, so without a special district, Le Roy Ambulance would begin that process in 2019 until it discontinued service.

Barbeau is seeking clarification from Mercy EMS on what level of service it will provide Le Roy if Le Roy Ambulance closes. Right now, there is an agreement that ensures Mercy EMS is the backup service for the Town and Village. 

If Le Roy Ambulance closes, Mercy EMS would by default become the primary ambulance service at no cost to the Town of Village.

Previously, Mercy officials have indicated they would consider making Le Roy their base of operations for the eastern part of the county if Le Roy Ambulance shut down. Barbeau would like to confirm that suggestion.

"The issue has always been, for the town board -- response time," Barbeau said. "Le Roy Ambulance has a response time that averages less than five minutes. If they're out on a call, Mercy comes from Batavia. They have a response time that's just shy of 20 minutes, and that comes from years' worth of data. So the rationale behind our subsidy has been to keep that response time for folks knowing we still have Mercy as a backup."

Barbeau praised both services. He's had experience with both. Ambulances were called twice to his late father's house. In the first instance, Le Roy took three minutes to respond. In the second, Le Roy wasn't available and Mercy EMS responded from Batavia, which took 18 minutes.

In that case, he said, it wasn't life or death but for a person suffering a heart attack or stroke, those 15 minutes could be critical.

County Sales Tax
During the meeting Thursday, Barbeau also discussed his understanding of a new proposal from the County on how to divvy up the local share of sale tax revenue.

Before getting into what Barbeau said, some background:

Currently, local consumers pay 8 percent sales tax on qualifying purchases. The state takes 4 percent and 4 percent is supposed to stay in Genesee County. 

The county could keep that 4 percent to itself but has traditionally shared the revenue with the other municipalities in the county. If the County didn't share with the City, the City of Batavia could institute its own sales tax. The villages and towns don't have that option.

Under the current formula, the County keeps half of the local 4-percent share, or 2 percent of the sales tax. The City gets 16 percent. The remaining 34 percent is divided among the towns and villages, using a formula derived from the assessed value of properties in each jurisdiction.

It's Barbeau's understanding based on his conversations with other officials, including County Manager Jay Gsell, that the County and City are set to enter into a new agreement that would keep the City's share in the 16 percent range, but that amount could fluctuate depending on the amount of sales tax revenue flowing into the county. It would never be less than 14 percent and the City couldn't receive more than a 2-percent share of anything over the prior year's amount of sales tax.

The villages and towns are not included in the agreement. Instead, they would each be asked to sign identical revenue distribution agreements.

All of the agreements would last for 40 years.

For the villages and towns, their share of sales tax revenue would be capped at the absolute dollar amount of 2018, but their share could go down if sales tax revenue goes down.

There would be no adjustments for inflation.

Barbeau said it's his understanding of the county's perspective on the agreement is based on three factors:

• The county is facing a state mandate to build a new, expensive jail. The bond on that jail will take 40 years to pay off.
• The new "Raise the Age" law, which mandates new rules for criminal cases involving 16- and 17-year-olds, will also increase County expenses. The State will reimburse the County for those additional expenses but only if the County keeps its property tax levy below the tax cap level of 2 percent per year.
• The County is also facing substantial infrastructure expenses, particularly for bridges and culverts.

The Town of Le Roy's anticipated share of sales tax revenue for 2019 is $722,000, or nearly 51 percent of the town's total revenue.

Elected representatives, including county officials, are expected to discuss the sales tax issue at the monthly Genesee Association of Municipalities (GAM) meeting Sept. 20 at 7 p.m. at County Building #2 on West Main Street Road in Batavia.

A report of a manure spill on Creek Road, Town of Batavia, in The Batavian on Wednesday incorrectly stated that the spill occurred in the area of Baskin Livestock, which is located at 9778 Creek Road.

The actual location of the spill was more than a mile away.

Bill Baskin, owner of Baskin Livestock, said none of his vehicles have been involved in a manure spill recently.

"And when they are," Baskin said, "we clean it up right away."

The Genesee County Planning Board on Thursday recommended rezoning six of the seven parcels that were requested to be reclassified for commercial use by City Church, owner of the former St. Anthony’s Church campus.

The county committee’s action comes on the heels of the Batavia City Council’s vote to send the issue to the City Planning & Development Committee for final review.

City Church had filed a petition to change the parcels – 42 Central Ave. and 110-124 Liberty St. – from Residential (R-3) to Central Commercial (C-3) to allow for uses such as a dance school, art school and community education classes.

County planners approved the request with a modification stating that the house at 124 Liberty St. should remain in the residential district.

In its opinion, the board pointed out that rezoning to C-3 will “ease the adaptive reuse of these buildings, however the Future Lane Use Map in the City’s Comprehensive Plan adopted in 2017 designates this area as “Restoration Residential.” Therefore, the home at 124 Liberty St. would serve as a buffer from any commercial uses in the other parcels."

County Planning Director Felipe Oltramari said that it was his understanding that City Church leaders had no plans for the commercial use of 124 Liberty St.

The item is on the agenda of the Sept. 18 meeting of the City Planning & Development Committee. Should it be approved, a public hearing will be scheduled.

In other action, County planners recommended:

-- Approval with modifications of a special use permit and area variance by DiLaura Enterprises to build a self-service storage building at 8994 Alexander Road (Route 98). The proposed 65,000-square-foot building is to be used to store impounded and collision vehicles.

Modifications include: a vegetative buffer between the NYS drainage right-of-way and the parking area; driveway permits from NYS DOT; no storage of vehicles for more than 120 days; proper on-site lighting; and regulated disposal of oils and other possibly hazardous materials.

The building reportedly would measure 50-by-100-by-16 feet with two overhead doors, and would have two entrances and exits to make it easy for trucks to pull in and out. It also would have all utilities, a few outside lights, be fully fenced and gated.

The owner, Dan DiLaura, has said the building will be used for “personal storage" of race cars, towing equipment, tools, tires, etc., but it would not be used for any commercial repairs.

A public hearing is scheduled for Sept. 18 before the Batavia Town Planning Board meeting.

-- Approval with modifications of a special use permit and site plan review to add a truck maintenance facility on the grounds of the Pilot Flying J Truck Care Center at 8484 Alleghany Road (Route 77), near the 48A Thruway interchange in the Town of Pembroke.

According to the application submitted by the owner, Landon Lane, the project calls for the construction of a 7,960-square-foot, two-bay service garage to be located behind the existing truck stop and entirely within the existing parking area.

The hours of the Truck Care Center are said to be 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily, and services performed at the shop include routine maintenance items such as oil changes, tire replacement/repair, mud flap, light bulb, and battery replacement, and other small maintenance items.

-- Approval of a site plan review to change the use of what was a “storefront church” at 10 Lake Ave. (Route 19) in Bergen to a professional office space and art studio owned by David and Anna Marie Barclay.

-- Approval with modifications of a special use permit for Matthew Baldwin to operate a bulk food/deli retail store at 3387 Broadway Road (Route 20) in Alexander.

Modifications focus on the proximity of the Route 20 right-of-way near the building, prompting planners to require the applicant to obtain a driveway permit from NYS DOT and to produce a site plan that clearly delineates all the parking spaces to be utilized by the business.

If Genesee County cuts out or reduces the amount of sales tax revenue it distributes to its towns and villages, it likely will result in increased property taxes to those living in those communities.

That’s the view of Darien Town Supervisor David Hagelberger as he keeps a watchful eye on the situation while representing the Genesee Association of Municipalities on a committee working with Genesee County and City of Batavia leaders.

“Towns and villages are saying that if the county keeps all of the sales tax money, they would have no alternative but to raise local taxes to compensate,” Hagelberger said today. “If the county keeps all of it, you will see an increase in property taxes, slashing of services, depletion of fund balances or a combination thereof.”

Hagelberger said he is concerned over a couple of key issues:

-- That a new sales tax agreement between Genesee County and the City of Batavia does not include towns and villages – unlike the previous agreement that expires at the end of 2018;

-- That the County Legislature has indicated that it will forge separate agreements with the towns and villages based on a fixed dollar amount – and not a percentage that previously applied.

On Monday night, the Batavia City Council moved to vote on its agreement with the county at its next meeting on Sept. 24.

The new 40-year agreement calls for the city to receive its current 16 percent of the county’s share (Genesee County gets to keep half of the 8 percent sales tax, with the rest going to the state) through this year with provisions for that amount to grow in future years by a maximum of 2 percent per year.

If future sales tax growth exceeds 2 percent annually, the county will retain the amount above 2 percent, resulting in the city’s overall percentage share changing even though the city received additional funds. In any event, the City’s share will be no less than 14 percent for the remainder of the 40-year contract.

Meanwhile, towns and villages, which currently split 34 percent of the county’s share based on full taxable value of real property, are left out in the cold going forward, said Hagelberger, who reported that legislators on Wednesday night tabled voting on the agreement with the City of Batavia based on new information from the State Comptroller’s office.

“We have learned that the county has decided not to include us in the sales tax agreement, but will be replacing that with ‘Payment Distribution Agreements’ with the individual towns and villages,” he said. “Their proposal caps the sales tax distribution at the 2018 number – a fixed dollar amount and not a fixed percentage as in the past.”

What this means, according to Hagelberger, is that towns and villages would get the same dollar amount as they received in 2018 for the next 40 years. In the Town of Darien's case, for example, he projects sales tax revenue to exceed $1 million for this year.

“And we all know what happens with inflation and fixed incomes,” he said. “This is not good for towns and villages.”

County Manager Jay Gsell confirmed that the county is offering a fixed amount to towns and villages -- instead of a percentage – via what he termed a “Revenue Distribution Agreement.”

“The county is looking at building a new jail and spending $120 million on bridges and roads,” Gsell said. “Genesee is one of three counties in the state, by virtue of a 1938 statute, totally responsible for the maintenance, upkeep and replacements of bridges and culverts – anything going over a body of water that a vehicle can drive over.”

Gsell acknowledged that towns and villages may have to look at other revenue streams.

“Darien and Pembroke, for example, have zero town tax rates,” he said. “They have been budgeting a lion’s share through sales tax revenue.”

He also said the legislature is prepared to act on its agreement with the City of Batavia at its Sept. 26 meeting, noting that a procedural point brought up by the State Comptroller’s office forced the board to table it last night.

Hagelberger said that town supervisors are under a time crunch to submit their preliminary budgets later this month – fiscal plans that include property tax projections.

“We may not know in enough time to properly work up a budget. We have no guarantee if revenue from sales tax will go into the budget. It creates a lot of uncertainty,” he said, adding that any sales tax contract has to be approved by the State Comptroller’s office and that could impact the accuracy of final budgets which need to be completed by Nov. 28.

Hagelberger said he hopes the county will “clarify its position” soon and expects the issue to be a major part of the next GAM meeting on Sept. 20 at Genesee County Building 2 on West Main Street Road.

A Navajo twin-engine airplane successfully set down at the Gensee County Airport this afternoon after its landing gear would not deploy, according to County Highway Superintendent Tim Hens.

There were no injuries.

Hens said the plane landed on its belly.

The plane has been removed from the runway.

Andrew Michael Pridmore, 34, of Mechanic Street, Elba, is charged with grand larceny with a credit card, petit larceny and criminal possession of stolen property -- a credit card. Pridmore was arrested at 11:48 a.m. on July 26 on Cedar Street in Batavia. He allegedly stole a credit card belonging to his employer and withdrew money from numerous ATMs throughout Genesee County on two different days. He was arraigned in Batavia City Court on Sept. 12 and released under supervision of Genesee Justice. He is due in City Court again on Sept. 26. Additional charges are pending in the towns of Le Roy and Pavilion. The case was investigated by Genesee County Sheriff's Investigator Joseph Loftus.

Patrick O. Spikes, 37, of South Swan Street, Batavia, is charged with third-degree assault -- with intent to cause physical harm, and criminal obstruction of breathing. He was arrested, arraigned and jailed on Sept. 9 following a domestic incident which occurred at 3 p.m. on Sept. 2 at an apartment on Hutchins Street in Batavia. He is due in City Court at a later date. The case was handled by Batavia Police Officer Marc Lawrence, assisted by Officer Stephen Quider.

Erica Bomberry, 38, of 18 Crittenden Way in the City of Rochester, is charged with one count of petit larceny, a Class A misdemeanor. She was arrested Sept. 10 by Le Roy Police Department following a four-month investigation. She is allegedly a member of a Rochester-based larceny ring. The investigation started on May 14 when a business on West Main Street in the Village reported a larceny in progress. The suspect vehicle was located by patrols; the alleged thieves fled, creating a short-lived police chase which was called off because of the dangers it posed. A follow-up investigation tracked the alleged thieves showing numerous similar cases both in the City of Rochester and in different towns in Monroe County. Eventually there was allegedly enough evidence to charge one member of the ring and an arrest warrant was issued. The investigation is ongoing. Bomberry was transported to the Le Roy Court from the Monroe County Correctional Facility for arraignment and put in Genesee County Jail. Bail was set at $1,000.

Christopher J. Parker, 29, of Morse Place, Batavia, is charged with criminal mischief. On Sept. 10, Parker was arrested for allegedly damaging property at another person's residence. The incident took place shortly after midnight on Sept. 8 on Thorpe Street in Batavia. He was jailed in lieu of $1,000 bail and is due in City Court on Sept. 18. The case was handled by Batavia Police Officer Catherine Mucha, assisted by Sgt. Dan Coffey.

Paulette M. Conley, 42, of Mill Street, Le Roy, is charged with DWI -- common law, no headlights, and DWI with a BAC of .08 percent or greater. She was arrested at 2:27 a.m. on Sept. 9 on Main Street in Batavia following a traffic stop. She was arrested, processed and is due in Batavia City Court on Sept. 26. The case was handled by Batavia Police Officer Mitchell Cowen, assisted by Officer Matthew Lutey.

Sasha M. McDuffie, 26, of 14th Street, Buffalo, was arrested at 7:14 p.m. on Sept. 11 on East Main Street in Batavia for speeding and driving with a suspended driver's license. Following a traffic stop, an investigation found McDuffie's license was suspended. She was arrested, processed, then posted bail and was released. She is due in City Court on Sept. 26. The case was handled by Batavia Police Officer Nicole McGinnis.

Tyrone L. Richardson, 43, of Brooklyn Avenue, Batavia, was arrested on Sept. 10 on a bench warrant out of Batavia City Court. He posted bail and was due in City Court on Sept. 11. The case was handled by Batavia Police Officer Arick Perkins, assisted by Officer Nicole McGinnis.

James E. Murray Jr., 29, of North Spruce Street, Batavia, was arrested on Sept. 8 on an arrest warrant out of Batavia City Court. He allegedly failed to appear in court after being issued an appearance ticket to be there on Aug. 28. He was due back in City Court on Sept. 10. The case was handled by Batavia Police Officer Mitchell Cowen.

Justin T. Gladney, 29, or North Spruce Street, Batavia, was located and arrested on East Main Street in Batavia after police were called to the area for an unrelated matter. He was found to have an active bench warrant out of Batavia City Court and was arrested on Aug. 10. He was due back in City Court on Sept. 11. The case was handled by Batavia Police Officer Nicole McGinnis, assisted by Officer Matthew Lutey.

Batavia Downs announced today that starting on Wednesday, Oct. 3, and continuing through the end of the meet, all purses will be raised by 10 percent across the board.

The increase is due to a combination of two factors: there has been a significant rise in handle realized by the track so far this season plus there were 43 less races run than last year.

“Our on-track betting is up 4.9 percent and our export handle is up 15.3 percent after the first 26 cards of racing,” said Todd Haight, director/general manager of Live Racing at Batavia Downs. “By raising purses starting next month it will put approximately $204,000 back into local horsemen’s pockets and that in turn can help bring new and better racing stock to Western New York. We’re pleased the numbers are heading in the right direction.”

The increase would take the current low to high purse structure from $2,750 - $10,500 to $3,025 - $11,550.

The racing has been very aggressive this year, providing a better product to wager on and one of the reasons for that was the removal of the passing lane that had been in place since 1988.

“There is no question that removing the passing lane has led to more competitive racing and both on and off track patrons have responded in a positive manner to that change. We’ve gotten feedback from our customers since the start of the meet and now they’ve also made a statement through the betting windows,” Haight concluded.

The Batavia Downs live meet continues through Saturday, Dec. 15, with a Wednesday, Friday, Saturday schedule. Post time remains 5 p.m. midweek and 6 p.m. on the weekends. There is a special Columbus Day matinee on Monday, Oct. 8, that starts at 1:15 p.m.

Yesterday and today, firefighters with City of Batavia Fire Department have been learning -- both through classroom instruction and hands-on practice -- how to rescue people in a collapsed-structure situation. The class includes working with tools to cut and break concrete, cut metal and cut wood.

The training has been at the fire hall and in the lot behind Falleti Ice Arena on Evans Street.

The trainers were from the State Department of Fire Prevention and Control, led by Jerry Mazurkiewicz.

Press release:

New York State Senator Michael H. Ranzenhofer has announced today the approval of Smart School Investment Plans for three school districts in Genesee County, including $2,543,552 for high-tech security and school connectivity. The funding is part of the Smart Schools Bond Act.

“Our children have unlimited potential to succeed, but only if our school districts get their fair share of state dollars,” Ranzenhofer said. “This investment will turn that potential into reality by ensuring Batavia City, Le Roy and Pavilion schools get the best resources to foster student success in a global economy.”

High-tech security funding has been authorized in the amounts of $1,940,585 for Batavia City School District and $348,300 for Pavilion School District. Le Roy School District has been approved for $254,667 in school connectivity funding.

Schools can invest these funds in classroom technology, school connectivity, and high-tech security upgrades to better prepare students for success in the 21st century. 

“The Batavia City School District is going to use SSBA funds to install and upgrade high tech security to assure the safety and well-being of our students and staff in all buildings to assist in maintaining a safest possible learning environment. We are planning on installing new card readers, new door contacts, electronic door strikes, wireless locksets, fixed high-definition cameras, door closers, and motion detectors," said Batavia City School District Superintendent Christopher J. Dailey.

"These improvements will allow our focus to remain on student learning while creating a safe environment for our students and staff to work, learn and grow,” 

Pavilion Central School Superintendent Kenneth J. Ellison said “Pavilion Central Schools will use the recently approved Smart School Investment Plan funds to upgrade our video security system to provide a safe and secure learning environment. The existing system was installed many years ago has limited coverage and minimal storage capacity.

"Our goal is to upgrade our system and expand coverage in all areas. These funds will make it possible to cover all targeted areas on campus with a state of the art camera security system."

The Smart Schools Review Board is responsible for approval of the plan. In 2014, voters approved the $2 billion statewide school investment to finance educational technology and infrastructure.

Pistol has been missing from the Indian Falls Road area of Corfu since Tuesday.

He's a friendly pooch and greatly missed at home.

If you find him or know where he is, call Tom (585) 233-0095 or Danielle (585) 356-5592.

Dorothy Dilcher’s 100th birthday was not only a milestone for her, but was a special day for The Greens of Le Roy.

Aug. 21 was not only Dilcher’s special birthday, but it was the first time since The Greens opened in October 2000 one of its residents had reached 100.

Dilcher was honored at a party at The Greens, which also celebrated all the residents at The Greens who were 90 or older.

Dilcher was born Aug. 21, 1918 in Chili, one of nine children.

“We lived in a little house with the Genesee River on one side of us and the railroad tracks on the other side,” Dilcher said.

Although Dilcher was the fourth born, and the first girl, she was not spoiled, she said.

“I had to work,” she said. “I was my mother’s helper. I was the dishwasher and helped take care of my brothers.”

She recalls one day she was going to take her little brother out in his wicker carriage.

“I tried to get him down the steps, and it went bumpety, bumpety, but it didn’t tip over,” she said.

With such a large family, Dilcher said they didn’t have a lot of fancy foods.

“We had a lot of ‘plain Jane’ foods, that had to be stretched to feed all of us,” she said.

Dilcher graduated from Byron-Bergen High School.

At a local square dance, one of her brothers introduced her to his friend Frederick Dilcher, whom she would later marry.

The couple had three children, Roger, Charles and Judith.

Her major goal in life was to be a good wife and mother.

“Helping my mother when I was growing up helped me to be a good housewife and mother,” Dilcher said.

It was most likely the sewing skills she learned from her mother which helped her get a job sewing blood pressure arm bands at Taylor Instrument in Rochester.

She taught herself to quilt, and later on, put her sewing skills to good use as a member of the Senior Quilters at the Office for the Aging in Batavia.

“That was a fun time,” Dilcher said.

Frederick died in 2005. Dilcher moved to The Greens in 2015, where she continues to be active. She likes to listen to music and watches a little TV. One of her granddaughters works at The Greens, which Dilcher said is “nice.”

“I love to walk,” she said. “I walk and walk around the circle outside when the weather is good,” she said. “Sometimes I go out several times a day.”

The Greens Director Kim Pasquale called Dilcher “remarkable.”

“She’s an amazing woman,” Pasquale said. “She loves to walk and rolls up her sleeves to get more sun. When we ask her how she is, she always says, ‘I’m fit as a fiddle.’ ”

“I was always a healthy old duck,” Dilcher said.

Photos by Virginia Kropf.

Press release:

The Genesee County Cornell Cooperative Extension Board of Directors has selected Christopher Crawford as their Executive Director to lead the 100-year-old organization.

Chris Crawford, Ph.D., MUP, is currently a Lead Science Advisor in New York City’s Department of Health and Mental Hygiene’s Bureau of Environmental Science and Engineering. As such Crawford works in the Bureau’s Building Water System Oversight program, which provides regulatory oversight of more than 5,000 cooling tower systems in New York City.

Prior to working in New York City, Crawford worked in a rural Upstate New York local health department providing technical assistance and regulatory oversight to more than 200 public water systems, while working to address technology and policy issues across the department. Crawford also spent time working in the U.S. Virgin Islands with the Department of Planning and Natural Resources and as a Peace Corps Volunteer in the Kingdom of Tonga.

He received a Bachelor of Science degree in Environmental Science from SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry, attended law school at SUNY at Buffalo, received a Master of Urban Planning from SUNY at Buffalo and a Ph.D. from the University of Massachusetts in Boston in Environmental, Coastal and Ocean Science.

Board President Colleen Flynn said “CCE of Genesee County enjoyed several years of exceptional leadership under Bev Mancuso and we greatly appreciate the assistance of Robin Travis as interim director following Bev’s retirement. We are looking forward to welcoming Dr. Christopher Crawford and his family to Genesee County. His education, experience and leadership style will complement the many talents of Extension's knowledgeable staff and dedicated volunteers.”

"I am looking forward to working with the people, organizations, and community of Genesee County as Executive Director of Cornell Cooperative Extension's Genesee County office,” writes Crawford. “Looking back on my career and varied organizations I have worked with, I have seen the real-world differences that can be made when communities and universities come together.

"I'll strive to work closely with both the community and Cornell to identify vital issues, generate solutions and build the relationships necessary to ensure successful and sustainable implementation." 

Crawford will begin his role on Nov. 5th. For more information on Genesee County Cornell Cooperative Extension, please visit genesee.cce.cornell.edu.

The new City Schools property tax rate is not quite a zero-percent increase for 2018-19, but it's close.

Business Administrator Scott Rozanski told the board of trustees last night that property owners this year will be asked to pay $21.495880 per $1,000 of assessed value.

That's an increase of .00849 percent over, or not even percent, over the 2017-18 rate.

Last May, voters approved a tax levy of $18,945,404 but the district can't set the tax rate to achieve that levy until properties have their final assessed value for the year.

The rate increase isn't even two-tenths of a cent compared to last year and will amount to a 14-cent increase on homes assessed at $100,000.

For the fifth-straight year, homeowners in the district will be eligible for a STAR rebate.

The tax rate has decreased an average of 3.5 percent over the past two years.

Tax bills will be mailed out to residents by the end of September.