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Looking to cut out a bureaucratic level, streamline the zoning code process and save money, the Genesee County Planning Board has come up with a list of “local only” referral items that would be exempt from its review.

“What we have done is take a look at the smaller projects that would just get our standard approval with no comments from us,” County Planning Director Felipe Oltramari said today. “If you consider our meeting last night, two of the referrals would have been eliminated from the agenda – one that came in from a homeowner for a shed variance and one for a downtown (Batavia) design review.”

The planning department has drafted a template that includes 14 exemptions that would have to be adopted by town or village boards or the Batavia City Council.

Oltramari said the agreement is based on General Municipal Law, Article 12-B, Section 239-m.3. (c) which allows for the planning board to enter into an agreement with a city, town or village planning board, zoning board of appeals or municipal board to eliminate the referral requirement of certain land use actions deemed to be of local, rather than intercommunity or countywide concern.

“A referral for those actions would be optional, but no longer mandatory,” he said, adding that the county attorney has reviewed the proposal, which would be the same for all municipalities. “We have taken care to include all of the routine referrals types that usually do not result in any comments from the county planning board and where approval is almost always a recommendation.”

He said that he has already received a signed agreement from the Town of Pavilion.

Oltramari said code enforcement officers at the municipal level will determine whether an item needs to be referred to the planning board – using the list as their guide.

“This could save a significant amount of time in the process of getting a project through,” he said. “I think it's a benefit to both the communities and their constituents because they may not have to travel to the planning board meeting. It will save time and money.”

He also said all applications to the county planning board become permanent paper records that have to be stored, meaning more time and expense.

The 14 planning and zoning actions that have been determined to be typically of a local rather than intercommunity or countywide concern that are exempt from review by the Genesee County Planning Board are as follows:

• Area variances to rear or side-yard setback requirements for single and two-family residential uses.
• Area variances to yard setback requirements (rear, side or front) for accessory structures, as defined by the municipality, provided the variance does not propose the structure be closer to a State or County highway or municipal boundary than the existing principal structure.
• Area variances for accessory structures, as defined by the municipality, for being in front of the principal building, provided the accessory structure would meet the front-yard setback required of a principal building.
• Area variances and/or permits for freestanding signs or fences except when proposed along a State or County highway.
• Area variances for parking or driveways not accessing a State or County highway.
• Special use permits or site plan reviews for home occupations/businesses not accessing a State or County highway and that meet all applicable local municipal code requirements.
• Special use permits or site plan reviews for the co-location of telecommunications equipment on an existing telecommunications tower/facility.
• Special use permits or site plan reviews for new ponds or pond expansions that meet all applicable local municipal code requirements, provided that the construction will not disturb more than an acre of land and as per the SEQRA review, will not impact archaeological resources, threatened or endangered species, or State or Federal regulated wetlands.
• Site Plan Review or Design Review for the interior or exterior remodeling of a new use allowed in that zoning district including building-mounted signage that meets all applicable local municipal code requirements, and does not cause changes to other aspects of the site.
• Subdivisions or re-subdivisions for minor lot-line adjustments on existing lots where no additional lots are created and there is no change to access points and no new access points are proposed on State or County highways.
• Subdivision of land into two lots that meet all applicable local municipal code requirements provided such subdivision occur within a Genesee County Smart Growth Development Area.
• Land use moratoria not exceeding 12-months, except that a notice shall be sent to the Genesee County Planning Department for informational purposes.
• Administrative and fee amendments to the zoning code (i.e., general provisions, permit procedures, powers and duties of local boards and officers, penalties for offenses, public hearing requirements, organization, and amendment procedures).
• Interpretations of the municipal zoning code.

As a baseball player for the Batavia High Blue Devils, Batavia Muckdogs and Erie Community College Kats, Vincent Grazioplene anticipates that he’ll be spending a lot of time behind home plate over the next several months.

The 5-foot-8, 165-pound 12^th-grader has signed a letter of intent to attend Erie Community College in the fall and play baseball for the Division III Kats, a perennial National Junior College Athletic Association Region 3 powerhouse under longtime Coach Joe Bauth.

Erie CC plays in the competitive Western New York Athletic Conference that also includes Genesee Community College.

Grazioplene, who has played baseball – from T-ball to varsity -- for 12 of his 17 years, also has been recruited by the Batavia Muckdogs to play in the Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League this summer before the hometown fans at Dwyer Stadium.

After that, it’s on to Erie CC for a short fall league and then a 50-game collegiate schedule in the spring of 2023.

Making it to this point is quite an accomplishment as just 7 percent of high school athletes go on to play sports in college.

“We are very excited for Vincent. This is something that he’s wanted for a very long time and has worked very hard for,” said his mom, Erica, who took part in the photo session this afternoon at Batavia High.

Vincent’s father, Phil, was unable to attend due to work commitments.

Grazioplene, an honor student, says he plans to major in Business Administration at the two-year junior college.

Batavia High Coach James Patric said Grazioplene was the team’s defensive MVP last season.

“Vincent came off a tough football season – was banged up a bit and it took a little time to get back in the swing of things,” Patric said. “But once he was fully healthy, he was the rock behind the plate.”

Patric said Grazioplene had to catch an inexperienced pitching staff, with two pitchers moving up from Modified A ball to varsity and standout Alex Hale being unable to pitch.

“So, he had to create a chemistry with all the pitchers that were new – who spent a lot of time in the dirt. Graz saved us probably two to three runs a game; he really kept us in a lot of games that could have gotten away from us.”

As a hitter, Grazioplene batted .261 in 46 at-bats with seven runs scored and seven runs batted in. He drove in the team’s only run in a 2-1 sectional tournament loss to Hornell.

For his part, Grazioplene said his goal is to work hard and improve each and every time out.

“I hope to do great … get better and try my best,” he said, noting he has been taking part in “open gym” workouts. “I can’t wait to play.”

Batavia’s first official practice is on Monday and its first scheduled game is April 1 at Pittsford Mendon.

Photo: Batavia High Coach James Patric, Vincent Grazioplene and Erica Grazioplene at today's announcement that Vincent will attend Erie CC in the fall and play baseball for the Buffalo junior college. Photo by Mike Pettinella.

While acknowledging that the solar project proposed by BW Solar on behalf of a Batavia Stafford Townline Road couple was well-thought-out, the Genesee County Planning Board on Thursday night voted to recommend disapproval due to concerns over setback variance requests.

The board’s action, taken during its monthly meeting via Zoom videoconferencing, sends the referral back to the Stafford Town Board for final determination.

Robert and Michelle Wood of 8244 Batavia Stafford Townline Rd. are hoping to place two 5-megawatt, ground-mounted solar systems on their farmland. One will cover 31.08 acres and the other will cover 28.32 acres.

The couple, along with Dan Huntington, project developer for BW Solar, were on the Zoom call last night.

They came into the meeting knowing that the Genesee County Planning Department staff had issued a recommendation of disapproval due to the setback variances being requested “grossly exceed the requirements of the Town of Stafford’s Zoning Law.”

Stafford’s solar zoning regulations are much more restrictive in terms of the distance from neighboring properties than most others in the county, said Planning Director Felipe Oltramari, adding that a request for a variance from the Real Property Value Protection clause of the law may not be permissible.

A SOLID CASE FOR APPROVAL

Still, Huntington presented a solid case for approval of the site plan, special use permit and area variances for the project – earning praise on the layout from planners and convincing one member, John Deleo, to make a motion for approval (which died from a lack of a second).

BW Solar’s proposal calls for setbacks of 75 feet from residential property lines, where a minimum required per the Stafford law is 1,000 feet, and it also asks for reduction of setbacks along nonresidential property lines from 200 feet to 100 feet, 50 feet and zero feet depending upon the location on the map.

The area is zoned as an Industrial Park (IP) District, which is appropriate for such a project.

Huntington emphasized that the Town of Stafford has some “unique solar laws in place that far exceed what you’re typically seeing throughout the county.”

He said he has been involved in previous projects in the county – one in Elba and one in Pavilion – that were approved by county planners.

“And the two projects we have here are two separate 5-megawatt projects because that's what NYSERDA (New York State Energy Research & Development Authority) guidelines require us to do for community distributed generation projects,” he said. “We do kind of talk about them as one project, but they are two separate LLCs and two separate projects. They are co-located on two parcels of land that Bob and Michelle Wood own.”

SETBACK DISTANCES QUESTIONED

Stating that he understood the challenges posed by the Stafford solar ordinance and the Real Property Value Protection clause, Huntington pointed out that the 1,000-foot setback “is a stipulation that is not required for any other portion of industry throughout Stafford solar zoning laws and the 2,500-foot setback is also very unique to solar specific and would actually stretch over the highway into a large portion of Batavia as well.”

“So, those are two larger elements that we are looking at for a variance. We applied for those variances based on the guidance of our attorneys at Harris Beach, and also with communication with the town attorney. That was direction that he gave us as to first steps -- to apply for a variance for those two pieces.”

Huntington went on to say that he believed Stafford officials didn’t want solar farms encroaching upon neighboring homes, but that the Woods’ proposal is different in that it is shielded by farmland on one side and railroad tracks on another.

Sharing a visual of the layout as he spoke, Huntington said he, working with engineers at LaBella Associates, strived to make efficient use of the space – in one instance asking for a property setback to be at zero to utilize space for a shared fence for the two solar systems.

“If we were to follow the solar law and have a 200-foot setback on either side of this property line, it would create a 400-foot dead zone that not only we couldn't use, but it would be extremely inefficient for Bob and Michelle to continue their farming operation,” he said.

Huntington said the preference is to share a road entrance “so we're not building additional roads to each 5-megawatt array because they are legally required to be individually fenced.”

“By reducing the setback, we could put the gravel road right down the middle, share a fence and again reduce the amount of impact we have to the farmable land.”

SEEKING TO HONOR INTENT OF LAW

In summary, he said that while the variance difference “may be a little bit higher than what the board is comfortable with in the past, we are just trying to find a way to accommodate this project and still honor the intent of the law when it comes to some of the setbacks.”

“So, my request of the board would be to look at the project as a whole within the county and potentially vote to support the project and allow the zoning board and the town board to make the decision as to whether or not these variances are acceptable to them in their town,” he said. “Because a negative vote could potentially cause additional stresses for them in terms of whether or not they're going to approve or deny something.”

The Woods noted that the solar farms will sit back in their field – protected by a lot of trees.

“You won’t be able to really see it from (Route) 33,” Michelle said. “It’s set way up back. If we can get those variances in place, then we can continue to farm all around the front of it, which would be protected by corn because we grow a lot of corn.”

Planner Tom Schubmehl advised everyone that the planning board’s role “is to gauge intercommunity impacts and to make sure that towns are following their law.”

“That's our role -- not to decide what the towns want or should have or whether it's applicable to the rest of the county,” he said. “Our job is to make sure they're following their law, and that there's no intercommunity impacts. So, from that perspective … it's a nicely designed solar project compared to some of the other ones we have seen. But that's not our role to decided what Stafford wants.”

Planning Board Chair Laraine Caton said she agreed.

“Right. And ultimately, they have the final say, anyway,” she said.

A vote was taken on both projects separately. The outcome was 5-1 each time for disapproval with Deleo -- who thought the 2,500-foot setback was “a little extreme" -- in opposition of that action.

Drawing of BW Solar proposal showing College Road (notch in green section at left) coming into Batavia Stafford Townline Road. Solar panels are in gray; setbacks are in green. Courtesy of Genesee County Planning Department.

Previously: Genesee County Planning Department finds fault with Stafford solar project proposal

From Chad, 33, to Harriett, 92, the Klotzbach clan knows the meaning of running a family business. 

They each do their part to push Alleghany Farm Services into higher levels of success, from Chad’s role as managing partner with his dad Drew to his grandmother’s promotional skills.

“We send out mailers, and she sent out 6,000 of them. She puts labels and stamps on them, it keeps her busy,” her grandson said during an interview with The Batavian. “She calls to ask if we heard from anyone about the mailer. It’s a total family business.”

It’s that close-knit personal touch that has earned Alleghany Farm Services a nod of approval with the 2021 Genesee County Chamber of Commerce Agricultural Business of the Year Award. The company was founded in 1983 by Drew Klotzbach, Chad’s father, and a company partner, and is comprised of multiple companies led by Alleghany Farm Services and Alleghany Construction as the two largest ones.

Although Chad has been literally out in the field since he was about 8 years old, he later wondered — “like every kid” — whether the local business world was for him.

“You leave and go off to college, and I wondered ‘do I want to stay with the family business? I always thought it as more of a challenge to stay than to leave,” he said. 

A native of Basom, he graduated from Oakfield-Alabama High School and went to Clarkson University for civil engineering, followed by obtaining a Master’s in Business Administration at Canisius College. He joined the family business in 2010 and has worked his way up to managing partner with an eye toward serving the community. He also has a seat on Genesee County Legislature.

His age has belied his experience at times, Chad said, and prompted some prospective customers to question his expertise.

“You know, I'm 33 years old. So a lot of times, I'll have customers see me pull up on-site, and they're like, oh, boy, who is this kid?” he said. “It's like, you know, I've been out here since you know, 8 or 10 years old doing this. So I may be young, but that's kind of what I grew up doing.”

Listening to him explain the complexity of field drainage and soil type, how much the industry has become data-driven, and how it’s a multi-year investment rather than a quick payoff, it seems clear he knows what he’s talking about. Still, it has made for “a tough elevator pitch,” he said.

Alleghany Farm Services has 30 employees and millions of dollars in specialized and computerized equipment. The company has installed 20 million feet of pipe over the past 10 years — up to four million feet a year now — and has more than doubled its size in the past five years.

Chad said it is the largest business of its kind in the Northeast and was the first to incorporate Global Positioning Systems (GPS) technology in drainage design and installation in the same region. Primarily three machines are used for field drainage work — a tile plow, excavator, and a challenger tractor — and used together can install pipe in the ground using GPS to design it out ahead of time. It’s all about water management and configuring the pipe system to ensure maximum crop production, Chad said.

”You know, I think one of the things I said before is, it's way more complex than just putting pipe in the ground. You have to know the soil types, you have to know the correct pipe, the grades, the spacing, how the water flows through the soil,” he said. “I went to school for civil engineering. And even with that background, there's stuff that we see pretty much in every project that's unique. When you install subsurface drainage in a grid pattern, you’re controlling pretty much the water table, You’re dealing with surface saturation so you can get on the crops earlier in the spring and same thing in the fall.”

The process begins with the company’s sales team, he said, followed by data collection and extensive research “in order to create the proper design.” An average of 15,000 feet a day per machine can be installed, and “we stand by our work and remain in contact after projects are completed to make sure everything is performing correctly.”

Their business protocols have not only pushed the company into its sixth state but have garnered the attention of Jeanna Clark of M&T Bank and Farm Credit East. Clark’s nomination cited several reasons, including how the company has:

• Increased their fleet of tile plows from two to four, including a prohibitively expensive mini tile plow that fits the space constraints of vineyards and orchards 
• Expanded company size and employees by 25 percent over the last two years
• Thanked customers with a yearly Field Day 
• Focused on drainage education by working with local soil and water districts

Farm Credit East also cited the company’s impressive expansion statistics and lauded it for its remaining loyalty to Genesee County with headquarters in Basom.

With all of that pipe laid down, what lies ahead for Alleghany Farm Services? They have no plans to slow down now, Chad said.

“We’re right down the road from the STAMP project, and, you know, just seeing the community grow, we have new opportunities with that. We just want to continue with employing local people, keeping people interested in agriculture,” he said. "And we love supporting (initiatives such as) Cooperative Extension doing Ag in the Classroom stuff that’s coming up. It's all about that education. I do a lot of education, and I think that's the biggest thing that we want to try to bring to the community.”

Top photo: Chad Klotzbach, left, and father/partner Drew have no plans to slow down their ever-growing success with Alleghany Farm Services in Basom. The company earned a 2021 Agricultural Business of the Year Award, which is to be presented with other chamber awards this Saturday at Batavia Downs Gaming. Photo by Howard Owens.

This is the fourth of four articles highlighting the 50th Annual Chamber of Commerce Awards. The annual dinner is Saturday at Batavia Downs, with hor d’oeuvres at 5 p.m. and dinner at 7 p.m. For more information about the dinner, call the Genesee County Chamber at (585) 343-7440.

Daniel James Loster, 38, of Lake Street, Le Roy, is charged with obstructing governmental administration, resisting arrest, criminal possession of a weapon 3rd, and menacing 3rd. Le Roy patrol officers received a complaint at 6:55 a.m. on March 4 of a man waving a knife at traffic on Lake Street in the Village of Le Roy.  He was arrested and jailed without bail.

Daniel James Loster, 38, of Lake Street, Le Roy, is charged with attempted petit larceny. Loster was arrested after Le Roy patrol officers responded to a call on Lake Street at 11:09 p.m., Feb. 26, of an attempted petit larceny. Loster was allegedly attempting to enter a vehicle in the driveway of a residence after being told multiple times the vehicle was not his. He was issued an appearance ticket.

Samantha Marie Neal, 31, of West Main Street, Le Roy, is charged with harassment 2nd. Neal is accused of striking another person with a collapsible dog training device during an incident reported at 3:06 p.m., Feb. 28, on West Main Street, Le Roy. She was issued an appearance ticket.

Sean Griffith Johnson, 53, of Lake Street, Le Roy, is charged with assault 3rd degree. Johnson was arrested by Le Roy PD following a report of a disturbance at an apartment building on Lake Street, Le Roy, at 8:07 p.m., March 7. Johnson was issued an appearance ticket.

Alexander L. Baldwin, 33, of East Main Street, Batavia, is charged with petit larceny. Baldwin is accused of stealing merchandise from a department store on Veterans Memorial Drive at 12:47 p.m., Dec. 9.  He was issued an appearance ticket.  See previously: Man suspected of shoplifting seen fleeing Walmart

Jayson Lee Chamberlain, 37, no address provided, is charged with criminal contempt 2nd. Chamberlain is accused of violating an order of protection by placing a phone call to the protected party at 2:34 p.m., March 2. He was arraigned in Town of Oakfield Court and released on his own recognizance. 

Angelica Marie Stanley, 33, no permanent address, is charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance.  Stanley was allegedly found in possession of crack cocaine and adderal that wasn't prescribed to her at 11:10 p.m., March 8, on Liberty Street, Batavia, and arrested by Deputy Andrew Mullen with assistance from Deputy James Stack and K-9 "Rayzor."

Andrew Anh Sczepanski, 24, of South Lake Road, Bergen, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater, driving to left of pavement markings, and moving from lane unsafely. Sczepanski was stopped at 11:44 p.m., March 8, on Route 33 in Batavia, by Sgt. Mathew Clor.

Michael E. Main, 38, no address provided, Oakfield, is charged with offering a false instrument for filing.  Main is accused of signing a supporting deposition in an ongoing investigation knowing the information was false at 10:30 a.m., Dec. 23, on Maple Avenue in Oakfield.

An engineering director for the Benderson Development Co. tonight did not reveal what businesses will be coming into a two-track commercial venture on the parking lot of the former Kmart at the intersection of Lewiston and Park roads.

Speaking at the Genesee County Planning Board meeting via Zoom videoconferencing, Matthew Oates said he did not have any signed leases at this point for the proposed project that would create (1) a 4,000-square-foot restaurant with a drive-thru and bypass lane on the southwest corner and (2) a 6,752-square-foot retail/restaurant building with a 2,000-square-foot endcap coffee shop with drive-thru on the southeast corner (see drawing below).

These two businesses would be located along Lewiston Road, using existing entrances to the parking lot off Lewiston and Park. The Kmart building, itself, is not part of the venture.

“We are working with tenants,” said Oates, who was on the call along with Katherine Rowe, design engineer. “And our expectation would be that when the building construction is complete that there will be tenants occupying at least some of the space. We wouldn't be putting these up and then having them sit there vacant. I don’t have anyone I can tell you today. Unfortunately, I wish I could.”

County planners recommended approval of the site plan and special use permit for the project, taking their lead from Planning Director Felipe Oltramari, who stated that the development would pose no significant countywide or intercommunity impact.

It is required, however, that Benderson complies with Town of Batavia zoning regulations as they pertain to signage on the buildings.

Oates said the company plans to add green space “around the buildings (and) additional green islands within the parking lot as well.”

He mentioned that because more than an acre will be disturbed, his company submitted a Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan.

“We do have the elevations,” he said. “We think it is an attractive building with the mixture of EIFS cornice, fabric awnings and stone treatments, as well. So, overall, we're very excited for the project to get it start going and to really start redeveloping this section of the Batavia and really, hopefully, bring an enhancement to this area.”

Oates said an additional traffic light won't be necessary since there already is one at the intersection of Lewiston and Park roads.

Planner Tom Schubmehl commended Oates for “doing a nice job controlling traffic on Lewiston,” but asked if there would be an issue of cars cutting through the parking lot from Park Road to the opposite corner.

“Are you going to do anything in the parking lot that's going to prevent people from just blasting through the parking lot from north to south?” he asked.

Oates said nothing specific was in the works, noting that with similar developments, the new businesses “eliminate someone coming in on one side and then just flying through the parking lot to get across because now there's cars in there.”

“There's cars parked there, cars coming in the other direction. So, we find the actual businesses and bringing customers in, really starts to make people follow the traffic and the striping and everything else much more than they do when it's an empty parking lot like it is out there today.”

The project now will be considered by the Town Planning Board, likely at its next meeting on Tuesday night (March 15).

Previously: Developer proposes retail/restaurant businesses on former Kmart property along Lewiston Road

Top: Architect renderings of outside of proposed buildings at Kmart parking lot. Bottom: Overhead view of the two developments off Lewiston Road.

Whether you farm a few acres and sell produce from a roadside stand or lead a cooperative that supplies milk products to thousands of people in the United States and abroad, there’s a place for you in the agriculture community in Genesee County.

That’s an essential part of the message sent by the Genesee County Legislature on Wednesday when it designated March as “Agriculture Month in Genesee County.” The governing body issued the proclamation at its meeting at the Old County Courthouse.

“It’s important to take time to reconnect and remind ourselves where our food comes from, and that our open fields that we see abundantly in Genesee County are productive soils that are growing food for us in our local, regional, national and international markets,” said Legislature Chair Rochelle Stein, who also serves as the treasurer of Stein Farm in the Town of Le Roy.

“We employ thousands of people in the agricultural economy, which in turn employs four to five more people in the supportive industries to farm and to farm produce -- from mom and pop stores to international supply chain retailers that choose to locate here due to the robust economy and the location in the heart of New York State's bread basket.”

According to the proclamation, 56 percent of the land in Genesee County is in Agricultural Districts. New York State’s 33,400 farms – encompassing 6.9 million acres of operated farmland -- are the driving force behind an ag industry that contributes more than $5.7 billion in sales to the state’s economy each year.

Stein said the county’s commitment to local agriculture can be seen in the investments made by companies such as O-At-Ka Milk Products, Upstate Niagara Cooperative, HP Hood, Dairy Farmers of America, Bonduelle and Yancey’s Fancy.

“These businesses and others are highly dependent upon our local fresh produce,” she said. “It’s a very close relationship -- all evident in Genesee County. We're very proud of our strong ag economy, and we are pleased to pause and commend our farm workers, our farm owners and all the hands that help provide food to our community and our nation.”

Responding to a question about near-record inflation, Stein said, “Everybody gets hurt in this really stressful global time.”

“Farms still have to manage even though we don't set our own prices,” she explained. “The prices that we get paid for our produce when it leaves the farm are dictated not in a marketplace, but in a government controlled pricing mechanism. Not having control of our of our revenue, we have to be very clever with our input and expense costs.”

Stein mentioned that the Celebrate Ag Dinner is set for 6 p.m. April 2 at the Alexander Firemen’s Recreation Hall. The county’s “Farm of the Year” award will be presented at that event.

For more information about the dinner, contact the Genesee County Chamber of Commerce at 585-343-7440.

Press release:

In 1987, President Ronald Reagan proclaimed March “Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month.” The presidential decree called for the American people to provide the “encouragement and opportunities” necessary for people with developmental disabilities to reach their potential.

On Wednesday, the Genesee County Legislature presented a DD Awareness Month proclamation to Arc GLOW, an agency that serves individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities in Genesee, Livingston, Orleans and Wyoming Counties.  The agency was formed by the Oct. 1 merger of the former Genesee-Orleans and Livingston-Wyoming Arc Chapters, and is the largest Arc Chapter geographically in New York State.

Earlier this week, the Livingston and Wyoming County Boards of Supervisors presented proclamations to Arc GLOW, and the Orleans County Legislature proclamation was presented virtually at their late February meeting.

“DD Awareness Month coincides with the kickoff of the agency’s annual Membership Drive,” said Sandy Konfederath, Arc’s coordinator of community relations. “Membership is the heart and soul of our organization. Members who renew or sign up each year give us a louder voice to advocate for funding, programs and services at the state and national levels.”

Interested community members can find signup information of the Arc GLOW website at https://www.arcglow.org/index.php/membership.

Individual Memberships are $1.00.  Any level selected above and beyond that amount enhances advocacy efforts.

The proclamation reads as follows:

WHEREAS, people with a developmental disability are of all racial, ethnic, educational, social, and economic backgrounds, and all are valued members of society who find fulfillment living everyday lives, and

WHEREAS, we value what is important to people with disabilities and their families who are striving for daily lives no different than that of all other citizens, and

WHEREAS, early intervention, education, meaningful work, and home and community-based services continue to be vital to allowing citizens with a developmental disability to enjoy the rights of citizenship, achieve personal success and allows them contribute to their local communities alongside their neighbors without disabilities, and

WHEREAS, Genesee County Legislature recognizes the many accomplishments and contributions of people with developmental disabilities, we encourage all citizens to support Genesee County residents with developmental disabilities and their families in all aspects of life. Now therefore, be it

RESOLVED, that the Genesee County Legislature does hereby proclaim March 2022 to be Developmental Disabilities Awareness Month and urges all citizens to give full support to efforts towards enabling people with developmental disabilities to live full and productive lives of inclusion in our communities.

Photo: Genesee County Legislator Gary Maha, whose daughter is served by Arc GLOW, presents the proclamation to Arc GLOW CEO Martin Miskell, Board President Cheryl Englert and Board Member Susan Maha. Submitted photo.

For siblings Stephen Valle and Carrie Lawrence, they may have their differences, but both agree on one central point: The history of Valle Jewelers is every bit as important as its future.

“We owe the success of our family business to our grandparents and our parents, for paving the way for us,” Lawrence said during an interview with The Batavian. “We are a conservative partnership, and we made really strict, responsible decisions,” she said, as her brother tacked on “to keep the business in a successful position.”

They have not only maintained that goal, but also reaped some well-earned recognition as the 2021 Genesee County Chamber of Commerce Business of the Year Award recipient. Theresa DeMars nominated Valle Jewelers for its customer service, engagement with and support of the community, steadfast participation in downtown events, and being a “fixture in our community for three generations,” DeMars said.

“Valle Jewelers is a community staple, a true family-run business, and one of our best kept secrets,” she said in her nomination. 

Valle and Lawrence discussed some of that history, how the siblings manage to work well together, how the COVID-19 pandemic affected their jewelry business and how to take it into the future. 

Where it all began …
Grandpa Dominic Valle first opened the doors of Valle Jewelers on May 3, 1951, in what was once the Carey Mansion, which has since been torn down and sat on East Main Street across from the current City Church. Dom and Mary Valle continued the business and saw it through the Urban Renewal era when the jewelry store was housed in Genesee Country Mall for 24 years. When Mary retired from her nursing career, she became “a huge part of our move to Jackson Street,” Lawrence said. 

And it’s there, at 21 Jackson St., where Valle’s found its home, complete with the iconic street clock at the curb. Grandpa Valle died in 2005 and Dom died five years ago. Mary decided to step away from the business as Stephen and Carrie stepped up to carry the tradition forward. That wasn’t her first intention when filling in a gap on the sales floor 13 years ago, Lawrence said. 

“I never had any plans of coming in here,” she said. “They had a need and I thought it was going to be temporary. I never left.”

Stephen’s entry into the business was more purposeful. After attending a couple of years of college, he attended the New Approach School for Jewelers in Virginia Beach. With humble beginnings of helping out for a few summers, his focus grew toward the repair end of things, and now he’s been fully immersed in operations as a 20-year jewelry veteran. The Chamber award has given him pause to reflect on being part of the family’s legacy.

“I’m super proud to be a a part of it; it made me realize how special this award is,” he said.

Has working side by side with his sister been a smooth journey? He and Lawrence agreed that, sure, they may not agree on every little thing,  but they do agree on the big stuff.

“There are some brother and sister dynamics that are dealt with day in and day out. At the end of the day, we always agree on the things that matter. Our customers and our staff are most important,” Lawrence said. “And we have always given as much as we can to our community that has been so good to us. It is just as important to us to support our community as it was for our grandparents and our parents.”

Social media's healing power ...
They have a grateful spirit, not only for the solid foundation left to them but also for shakier times when a pandemic hit the business world hard. For a luxury business, Valle and Lawrence were initially concerned about how it would fare, he said.

“We were nervous about the direction we were going to go,” Valle said. “It created much more of a focus on how to reach our customers.”

Armed with six years of college studying business marketing, Lawrence is the chief marketer for the business. She is adept at taking and promoting photos on Instagram, Facebook, and other social media venues, and has realized, she said, that “all of that technology has allowed us to reach our customers.” In fact, digital technology has been "a game-changer,” she said, as a way to safely promote and deliver products for people to see.

“In a digital age, we haven’t lost focus with our connection with our customers. Our focus is to bring customers through the door. That’s what we love about the business, the face to face interaction," she said. "We were busier than ever through COVID. Really, social media certainly assisted that for us to keep moving; it gave us that ability. Certainly, we were busier through COVID because people weren't traveling and weren't going out as much. And it's such a beautiful, feel-good product that made people happy. So we flourished through COVID, because it gave people a little ray of sunshine, you know?"

Even though they were able to maintain — and even increase — business during the whole COVID shutdown, both partners realized the importance of relationships that stemmed from as far back as their grandfather Dominic, Valle said. It was that combination — a personal connection and digital platforms — that stabilized their success, he said.

The store was only closed for 12 weeks during the two-year pandemic, Lawrence said.

“Other than that, we battled through for a year and a half," she said. "Yes, it was more difficult, we had to work a lot harder, but it was still successful. We're super blessed.”

They maintain a website that features select products, however, the main goal is to get customers through the door “so we can develop relationships with our community, like my grandpa did 70 years ago,” Lawrence said. “We've still been able to maintain that, and that’s actually what we love about this business, that it's so face to face, and so many things these days are not.”

Moving onward ...
From the 1950s through Urban renewal and now getting beyond a pandemic, what does the future hold for Valle Jewelers? Joining the Retail Jewelers Organization and attending yearly shows have provided the pair with keen insights into what’s trending and hot in the industry, Lawrence said.

Sterling silver and 14-carat gold, despite — or maybe because of — its increasing cost are popular choices, she said. And updated technology has boosted custom-designed engagement and wedding rings, and made them “easier than ever” to craft tailor-made items for customers, she and Valle said. As for trends, some popular fashion styles are returning, Lawrence said, including “layering chains and stacking jewelry."

This is the third of four articles highlighting the 50th Annual Chamber of Commerce Awards. The annual dinner is Saturday at Batavia Downs, with hor d’oeuvres at 5 p.m. and dinner at 7 p.m. For more information about the dinner, call the Genesee County Chamber at (585) 343-7440.

Top photo: Siblings Stephen Valle, 40, and Carrie Lawrence, 38, are proud to be the recipients of the 2021 Genesee County Chamber of Commerce Business of the Year Award for their longtime family business, Valle Jewelers. Stephen Valle works on repairs at his niche inside the Jackson Street shop. Valle's is full of jewelry choices, and the signature street clock earmarks the store at 21 Jackson St., Batavia. Photos by Howard Owens.

When you’re mandated by New York State to build a new county jail – one with a projected price tag of $70 million, any cost-saving measures are deeply valued.

That has been Genesee County Manager Matt Landers’ message all along, and he emphasized that point again this afternoon at a meeting of the legislature at the Old County Courthouse.

Landers reported that the state Commission of Correction will permit the county’s jail transition team to be housed in County Building 2 on West Main Street Road while construction of the jail, which will be located just east of that building, is going on.

“We found out (that) to save a little bit of money our transition team for the jail will be allowed to be housed in County Building 2 instead of the county having to secure a construction trailer,” Landers said. “We’re glad that the CDC is fine with that, and the sheriff is supportive of that move. Every buck we can save is good – and that is an efficient place for them to go.”

According to a story on The Batavian last September, the four-member transition team will be comprised of current county corrections’ officers and will be charged with writing policies and procedures for the 184-bed facility.

The team needs to be in place at the time of groundbreaking, which is expected to happen this May, Landers said.

Sheriff William Sheron said he is close to finalizing the appointments, which then will force his office to hire four more corrections’ officers to backfill those positions.

In other developments, Landers advised:

• That he is preparing his thoughts on how the state should “roll out and spend the broadband money that’s flowing through their books.”

Landers said he has a plan that he feels will work best for Genesee County.

“We’re working with our partners on getting the wording correctly,” he said. “The emphasis on my commentary is going to be making sure that more of that money goes toward the unserved versus the underserved.

“I think that in Genesee County (that’s) the best bang for the buck in reaching that last mile -- members of the community that don’t have any internet access. So, that was the focus of my comments.”

Landers said he has reached out to Town Supervisor Gregory Post for his opinion, noting that town officials are eager to expand broadband in their municipality.

• That the east entrance to County Building 1 (that houses the clerk’s office and the Department of Motor Vehicles) is open now “so people don’t have to park over by Save-A-Lot and walk all the way around.”

“The sandwich boards are down and Building 1 is back open for business.”

Architect's rendering of the new Genesee County Jail to be built on West Main Street Road. Provided by Genesee County manager's office.

Should the Genesee County Planning Board on Thursday night follow the lead of the Genesee County Planning Department staff, proposals to install two 5-megawatt, ground-mounted solar systems in the Town of Stafford will be sent back to the drawing board.

The planning department staff is recommending disapproval of the referral submitted by the Stafford Town Board, Planning Board and Zoning Board of Appeals in connection with a site plan to construct the solar farms on property owned by Robert and Michelle Wood of 8244 Batavia Stafford Townline Road.

At their meeting tomorrow night (7 o’clock via Zoom videoconferencing), planners will consider a special use permit and area variances for a 31.08-acre and a 28.32-acre, side-by-side system.

The problem with the plan, according to information provided by Planning Director Felipe Oltramari, is that the setback variances requested “grossly exceed the requirements of the Town of Stafford’s Zoning Law.”

The law stipulates a 200-foot minimum for setbacks to nonresidential property lines; the proposal asks for 100 feet to the east, north and south, and zero feet to the west, bordering the adjacent solar project. The law also stipulates a 1,000-foot minimum to residential property lines; the proposal seeks a 75-foot setback.

A third variance for fence height from the maximum 6 feet to 7 feet also is being requested.

Oltramari said that granting of such large variances by the Stafford ZBA may undermine the local law adopted by the town board and set a precedent for future applications.

“In addition, the application requests a variance from the Real Property Value Protection clause of the law,” he said. “Since this is not a use or dimensional requirement, it is questionable as to whether the ZBA can grant such a waiver.”

He is suggesting the applicants (the Woods and BW Solar of Ontario, Canada) petition the town board to amend its solar law instead of seeking variances from the ZBA “especially given that Stafford's solar regulations differ significantly from other towns in Genesee County.”

Besides special use permit requests by Eric Biscaro for a senior housing development in the Town of Le Roy and Benderson Development LLC for two new restaurants/retail buildings that were previously reported on The Batavian, other referrals of note for tomorrow night’s meeting are as follows:

-- A downtown site plan review to make exterior changes to the Alberty Drugs mixed-use building at 78-81 Main St., Batavia. The proposal, submitted by project manager David Ciurzynski, calls for installing storefront windows on the south façade to allow for more natural light into the space, and the elimination of an exterior door and an existing wall sign.

-- Area variances to construct two 83.5-foot tanks and four 41-foot tanks for the Genesee Biogas LLC project at 4800 West Ag Park Drive in the Town of Batavia (illustration is above). The company needs the variances as the height requirement in the Industrial Park District is a maximum of 40 feet. Oltramari said planners will consider the height request at this time, with a site plan review to come.

-- A site plan review to construct a 50,000-square-foot (100 by 500) warehouse building at Apple Tree Acres LLC in the Town of Bergen.  Half of the building is earmarked for a new industrial manufacturing tenant and half will be used for additional storage by the existing tenant – Hank Parker Rental.

The transformation of the Save-A-Lot grocery store building at 45-47 Liberty St. took another significant step forward on Tuesday when the executive director of the Erie County Bar Association Volunteer Lawyers Project, Inc., signed a long-term lease for 7,630 square feet of commercial office space on the ground floor.

“We’ve outgrown our space at our current location (in the former Kozak plant on South Lyon Street), so it seemed like a good opportunity to start looking around,” said Gretchen Gonzalez, an attorney who directs the Buffalo-based program. “We were looking at some other spots, but it's very difficult to find the size that we needed in Batavia. So, finding this space with Victor (Gautieri) was great and to be able to break it up to what we need.”

Gonzalez and Gautieri, president of VJ Gautieri Constructors, building owner and developer, agreed to terms and signed the contract yesterday afternoon at the VJ Gautieri office on Liberty Street.

Gavin McKeirnan Townsend, licensed real estate salesperson with HUNT Real Estate ERA on Jackson Street, also attended.

“Obviously, piggybacking on the beautiful apartments upstairs and knowing that we had about 16,000 square feet available of commercial space downstairs, we definitely wanted to leverage that and keep the momentum going,” said Townsend, who brought the two parties together. “It’s great to have prime commercial space here in the city of Batavia with sort of the resurgence of everything that's happening in downtown.”

Last fall, VJ Gautieri completed a $3.1 million project supported by $1.15 million in New York State Downtown Revitalization Initiative funding that resulted in the City View Residences -- 10 upscale apartments on the second floor of the building -- along with first-floor storefronts and building-wide façade improvements.

With VLP’s signing, VJ Gautieri now has about 8,000 square feet of commercial space on the first floor available for leasing.

Gautieri said offices of the Erie County Bar Association Volunteer Lawyers Project, known as VLP, will be located in the southwest portion of the building.

“They’re not taking the storefront. They’ll be able to walk out there – we’re going to create a new entry for them – and look almost directly at Batavia Tailors,” he said. “We will be doing the lease build-out – creating the space and dividing it to set up their offices.”

He noted that DEAN Architects of Depew, the firm that designed City View Residences, has been hired to configure the space for VLP’s 23 offices.

“We did an in-house version of a few things just to get the ball rolling, but the architect is going to play off of that and say, ‘Okay, here's what you need,’” Gautieri said. “He's going to also meld all the code requirements in to make sure everything is good. We have to construct the restrooms, entry lobby, reception area and then all the individual offices for the folks who will be working there.”

Gonzalez talked about VLP’s mission and the importance of a presence in Batavia.

“Our initial office is in Buffalo, and we've had a secondary office in Batavia for a number of years,” she said. “We started off with renting space for one office for one attorney – a paralegal that was out here all of the time – and then in 2016, we leased more space there and we now we have around 15 attorneys and five paralegals and two social workers.”

She said VLP is a “hybrid legal services organization” that has attorneys on staff plus a bank of nearly 500 lawyers in private practice that volunteer their time and provide expertise at no cost to clients.

“VLP is the largest provider of indigent immigration services outside of New York City in the State of New York,” she said. “Our Batavia office houses part of our immigration program. It's funded by a grant from the New York State Office of New Americans to provide a public defender-style representative representation to anyone who's detained (and facing deportation) at the federal detention facility (in Batavia).”

While the immigration piece is key to work in Batavia, it’s just a part of what VLP does, Gonzalez noted.

“I always like to say that we do anything under the sun except for criminal law. Because in Buffalo, we have housing attorneys, we have family law attorneys, we do divorces, end of life planning, wills, power of attorney, healthcare proxy,” she said.

“We have a low income taxpayer program that helps people who have cases and controversy with the IRS. We have a program that's specifically designed to serve people who are HIV positive. And we have another portion of our immigration program in Buffalo that provides services to people who are not detained and mostly provide services to victims of human trafficking and domestic violence and other sorts of crimes.”

Gonzalez, who has been with VLP for 10 years, said about 20 full-time employees will be working out of the new Batavia office, and will be supported by attorneys at other locations who volunteer their time.

Gautieri said he is keeping another 1,000 square feet in reserve just in case VLP needs to expand in the future. He said the anticipated move-in date for VLP is Aug. 1.

CLICK HERE for more information about the Erie County Bar Association Volunteer Lawyers Project, Inc.

Photo at top: Gretchen Gonzalez, center, signs a contract to lease more than 7,500 square feet of office space at 45-47 Ellicott St., site of Save-A-Lot and the City View Residences, as Victor Gautieri, president of VJ Constructors, and Gavin McKeirnan Townsend of HUNT Real Estate ERA, look on. Photo by Mike Pettinella.

Previously: Ribbon cutting marks completion of City View Residences revitalization project in downtown Batavia

 Jay Lazarony may not know every child he’s encountered by name, but he sure knows their struggles and accomplishments over his last two-plus decades in Genesee County.

Lazarony has worked with thousands of kids to introduce them to vocational opportunities and lessons about required job skills, from time management to good work ethics. He’s had a passion for offering those opportunities since beginning his career journey at Arc of Genesee County and then embracing his roles at Genesee County Job Development Bureau, Adolescent Vocational Exploration Program, Genesee County Youth Bureau, and more recently, at GLOW Workforce Development Board.

”Really, who I'm proud of are the youth that I've worked with and assisted over the years, and helping them to reach a certain level of success. Because they're an open book. They come in and you give them an opportunity. You can fill that book up with enthusiasm, with knowledge about careers and how to go after careers rather than, you know, this is what I'm always going to be,” the GLOW Work Force Development Board executive director said to The Batavian. “And you can give them all the career possibilities and all the opportunities. It’s nice to know you had some effect on them. There have been some great success stories.”

There was the shy 15-year-old who ended up becoming a nurse practitioner and the student who didn’t even think he was going to make it through the program and went on to obtain an education at Rochester Institute of Technology. 

Those 25 years plus his own hands-on job development working in the family business has not only equipped Lazarony with notable skills but now also with recognition as a 2021 Genesee County Chamber of Commerce Geneseean of the Year Award. 

Karyn Winters, director of Genesee County's Business Education Alliance, nominated him for being an "exemplary professional and volunteer," and embodying what's great about Genesee County," she said. He founded GLOW With Your Hands in 2019 and has been a "selfless, kind, motivating and fearless leader," she said.

"While his career alone warrants recognition, what truly makes Jay an admirable Geneseean is his infectious enthusiasm to mentor local youth," Winters said in her nomination.

Do a quick rewind to 1975, when Lazarony graduated from Batavia High School. A few years later his family bought a failing but well-known restaurant franchise — KFC — in 1978, and he worked there until 1990. Lazarony watched his father Horace put in long hours and weekends to make it a success.

“When we took over, it was really rundown, one of the worst in the nation. I watched my dad open and close every day, I watched his enthusiasm for what he did,” Lazarony said, noting one big lesson he learned from that. 

“Now, I didn't love the restaurant business, and many people know that. But what I learned from him is that … find the thing that you love the most and make it your career. And that's what I got from him. And you know, it's funny, because in 2005 or 2004, he was a 73-year-old man at that time, and he was working probably 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Friday, only about five or six hours on Saturday or five or six hours on Sunday. And he did that for 28 years that way. And we watched that,” Lazarony said. “Whether you like that business or not, you know that in order to be successful, sometimes you put in the hard work. So I think I learned that from being in that family business.”

He also imparts other nuggets from those restaurant days: be kind to your employees and co-workers, understand that they’ve got busy schedules with other activities, so cut them some slack when needed, and believe that kids can learn good work ethics with a mix of patience and tough love. 

A huge music fan, Lazarony said only two things kept him from a singing career: he couldn’t carry a tune or play guitar. He has enjoyed going to concerts and music events, including one at which Neil Young played “beautiful music for hours and hours.” 

Jenn, one of Lazarony’s program participants who saw him as a father figure, asked him to walk her down the aisle for her wedding. He proudly accepted. The experience was “one of the thrills of my lifetime,” he said. She thanked him with a hand-drawn sketch of Young on an old magazine cover. It’s framed and hanging on Lazarony’s office wall.

“It will be here until I retire,” he said. 

As for retirement, he will face that “when I get tired,” he said, which certainly isn’t any time soon. He’s having “way too much fun” right now and focused on getting a skilled workforce in Genesee, Livingston, Orleans, and Wyoming counties. 

“And to inspire people to work. We have a gap, and that’s why we have GLOW Work With Your Hands, to provide a skilled worker, and a job for every job-seeker,” he said.  “COVID really hurt us. We’re recovering … we’re in pretty good shape.”

His professional bucket list is to continue that mission and to use grant funding judiciously to assist those people who want to work with related “wrap around” services, such as paying for night nurse or welding certification costs, durable boots for the newly hired manufacturing worker, a five-hour safety course fee for a truck driver or mileage money to get to and from a job. 

“There’s plenty of need,” he said. 

He remembers his lack of enthusiasm when his family moved from Liverpool to Batavia in his senior year of high school. He wanted nothing to do with it, he said. Funny how time changes things.

“I've fallen in love with Genesee County, especially the city of Batavia; I think it's a great place to raise a family,” the 63-year-old said. “I think it's a wonderful place to just live, shop, and work. And I don't ever want to leave now.”

He and wife Donna will celebrate their 39th wedding anniversary this summer and he is an unapologetic doting grandpa to his seven grandchildren. 
The best part of a weekend is when a grandchild wants to come over for the day, he said. That, supporting the Buffalo Bills, reading, gardening and Netflix rounds out his leisure activities.

As for the award, “I was shocked,” he said.

“And then extremely excited,” he said, mentioning his GLOW staff of 45. “I’m not here without any of them.”

Top photo: Jay Lazarony shows one of his favorite pieces of art, a handmade sketch by Jenn, a former program participant. Photo by Howard Owens.

This is the second of four articles highlighting the 50th Annual Chamber of Commerce Awards. The annual dinner is Saturday at Batavia Downs, with hor d’oeuvres at 5 p.m. and dinner at 7 p.m. For more information about the dinner, call the Genesee County Chamber at (585) 343-7440.

For years, we've all been getting it wrong.  We've been misspelling the name of Thorp Street.

Until today, The Batavian never published a story that didn't spell the name of the Southside street between Watson and Maple, parallel Evans, as "Thorpe," with an unnecessary "e" on the tail.

It's not just us -- Google, Apple, scores of real estate-related sites, and even the Batavia Daily News, have been spelling it "Thorpe" for who knows how long.

That spelling may be traced to a mistake by a now-long-retired and unknown city worker who made a street sign for the roadway and for some unknown reason added that pesky "e."

City Manager Rachael Tabelski said she checked with Ray Tourt, superintendent of the Bureau of Maintenance, who said some years ago a city crew made a routine sign replacement while other roadway maintenance was being performed on Thorp and this apparently is when the spelling was misspelled for, perhaps, the first time.

Tourt said he isn't sure how the crew came up with "Thorpe Street."  Perhaps spell-check offered the alternative spelling.

The mistake was recently discovered and the street signs were corrected.

That doesn't change the archives of The Batavian, nor the Batavia Daily News.  In the case of The Batavian, there's no indication we've ever spelled it "Thorp" and the Daily News has one instance of "Thorp" we could find in a search of its website, which returned 95 articles from the past decade.

Records indicate the street was dedicated in 1894 as "Thorp Street." 

Before that, it was known as "Thorp's Alley."

County Historian Michael Eula said that county records indicate that local landowner David Thorp opened the alley, which ran in a southern direction from the New York Central Railroad to the former Hill Street.

City Historian Larry Barnes said in the city's Official List of the Streets" from 1912, and another from 1920, list the street as "Thorp." 

County Clerk Michael Cianfrini said a search of land records from the 19th Century produced several landowners in the area who spelled their name "Thorp" but none who spelled their name "Thorpe."

County Planning Director  Felipe Oltramari said the county's 911 database spells it "Thorp" as well, which means it is also "Thorp" in the state database. 

The County's tax records site contains the correct spelling, "Thorp," but search Google and pretty much everybody spells it "Thorpe."

"Google has it wrong as Thorpe probably because their latest StreetView imagery (Sept. 2017) shows the old street signs that say Thorpe," Oltramari said. "I submitted a request to Google, Apple, and MapQuest to change it to Thorp but may be rejected until new StreetView imagery can confirm it."

The Batavian discovered the mistake when local real estate broker Lynn Bezon placed an ad for a property at 1 Thorp that is for sale.  We wanted to correct the spelling. She corrected us.

Photo: Screenshot from Google StreetView showing the old "Thorp" street sign misspelled "Thorpe."

Genesee County will be seeking at least $7,800 from a Batavia man in connection with a code enforcement dispute involving property that he was leasing in the Town of Pavilion.

County Highway Superintendent Tim Hens today informed The Batavian that he made several attempts – unsuccessfully -- to contact Justin Hofert and have him remove items and debris from the county right-of-way on property off Transit and East Bethany Le Roy roads.

“After no response from Mr. Hofert, the county removed the items at our costs and we will be seeking restitution from Mr. Hofert for these costs,” Hens said. “We’re still assembling final costs from dumpster expenses; we have $7,800 in labor and equipment thus far.”

The dispute, which had been going on for more than three months, centers upon a lease agreement between Hofert and an elderly East Bethany woman who owned the property just outside the Town of Stafford border.

Hens said problems arose when it was discovered that a county-owned abandoned right-of-way (formerly County Road 2) was part of the property being leased.

“County Road 2 was relocated many years ago, but the county has maintained the drainage from the older section as well as the new drainage along County Road 2,” he said.

The woman entered into a lease agreement with Hofert, who owns neighboring land, Hens said, inadvertently including the county-owned parcel in the deal. Previously, the county also had informed the woman that her barn on the property was encroaching on the abandoned right-of-way.

Hens said that Hofert proceeded to place many items and debris on the property and in the barn, prompting complaints to Town of Pavilion officials, who, in turn, notified the county of the code violations.

“Most of the junk is on county-owned property so technically speaking, the county would be the one in violation of the property maintenance code,” Hens said.

Working with the county attorney, Hens eventually was able to get the woman’s approval to remove the junk from the property.

“As much of Mr. Hofert’s debris was in and around the barn -- which was also built partly on the right-of-way without authorization -- the county obtained an affidavit from (the woman) to demolish and remove the barn as well, and that has been done,” Hens said. “Aside from seeking restitution from Mr. Hofert, the matter is settled.”

Aerial photo above shows the right-of-way property in dispute (shaded in red) and the barn that was on that parcel along East Bethany Le Roy Road in the Town of Pavilion.

Late last month, Gov. Kathy Hochul put her name on legislation that now permits hemp farmers in the state to apply for a conditional license to grow cannabis during the 2022 season for the approaching adult-use retail market.

Chris Van Dusen, who, along with Shelley Wolanske, owns Empire Hemp, called the recent development “fantastic news for us.”

Empire Hemp operates in two locations in the city: a processing facility on Swan Street and a retail store at 204 East Main St.

According to information from Hochul’s office, under the law, conditionally licensed cannabis farmers must meet certain requirements, including safe, sustainable and environmentally friendly cultivation practices; participation in a social equity mentorship program, and engagement in a labor peace agreement with a bona fide labor organization.

Van Dusen (pictured at right) said Empire Hemp is in a position to benefit from the legislation.

“We're eligible both on the growing side and the processing side because there's also a provisional processing license, and we're one of 17 in the state that's eligible for processing,” he told The Batavian on Monday. “And we're one of less than 200 that are eligible for the growing side because we did grow two seasons in a row. That’s just one of the prerequisites for that.”

The law carries several requirements, including one that allows hemp growers that have grown in the past two or more years to plant one acre of high THC cannabis for recreational uses.

Van Dusen said his company, after harvest, “will take that cannabis, that flower, and bring it to our facility, and turn it into a host of products, whether it's pre-rolled cigarettes, vape cartridges, pre-packaged smokable flower as well as edibles, namely gummies. That’s what we’re going to be focused on; those are going to be our top four products.”

He also said he will incorporate the cannabis into topicals and other products that Empire Hemp sells on the CBD side of things. Currently, state law prohibits Empire Hemp, as a grower or processor, from having any financial interest in a dispensary.

Batavia’s City Council previously voted to opt in to the MRTA to host cannabis dispensaries, seeking to capitalize on the tax revenue associated with retail sales.

Empire Hemp is a CBD dispensary, Van Dusen said.

“We sell all the products that we make in our facility as far as therapeutic CBD oils and topicals, as well as skincare and self-care products. And we do sell some smokable hemp,” he said, adding that sales have been robust and that he and Wolanske are prepared to add employees and ramp up production as a result of the new law.

When asked if he saw any downside or “unintended consequences” from the legalization of cannabis for recreational use, he said that he believes that some smoke shops are selling marijuana without a license, looking to avoid paying taxes to the state.

“It’s something that needs to be talked about even if people just think it's no big deal,” he said. “I think it is a big deal because we want to play by the rules and we want to be part of the program that they're putting together and be successful at that. These guys that are doing it (illegally) are just going to make quick short term gains.”

Van Dusen said he knows that the state’s Office of Cannabis Management has been sending out cease-and-desist letters to shops that they suspect are operating outside of the law.

Cameron J. Sokolowski, 29, of Batavia, is charged with theft of services. Sokolowski is accused of refusing to pay cab fare at 10:03 a.m., Feb. 20.  It's alleged that Sokolowski accepted a ride from a taxi driver and when he reached his destination, went inside and refused to come back out and pay the driver. He was issued an appearance ticket.

Benito A. Gay, 33, of Batavia, is charged with petit larceny. Gay is accused of stealing beer from the cooler at the Kwik Fill on Jackson Street, Batavia, at 8 p.m., Feb. 20. He allegedly took three beers and exited the store without paying for the beer. He was arrested and issued an appearance ticket.

(name redacted upon request), 29, of Batavia, is charged with burglary 2nd and criminal contempt 1st. xxxx allegedly violated a stay-away order of protection by being inside the residence of the protected party at 1:54 p.m., Feb. 25, on Montclair Avenue. He was arraigned in City Court and ordered held on $5,000 bail, $10,000 bond, or $20,000 partially secured bond.

Angie C. Maniace, 40, of Batavia, is charged with harassment 2nd and criminal contempt 1st. Maniace is accused of violating an order of protection and striking the protected party at 7:35 p.m., March 2 at a location on Chandler Avenue, Batavia. She was issued an appearance ticket.

Laura R. Mroz, 32, of Batavia, is charged with harassment 2nd and criminal contempt 1st. Morz is accused of violating an order of protection during a disturbance reported at 7:53 p.m., March 2. on Chandler Avenue, Batavia. She was issued an appearance ticket.

Julius L. Sanford, 29, of Buffalo, is charged with criminal possession of a forged instrument 2nd, failure to stop for a stop sign, unregistered motor vehicle, and uninsured motor vehicle. Sanford was stopped by a Batavia patrol officer on East Main Street, Batavia, at 1:14 a.m., Feb. 13. He was arraigned in City Court and released on his own recognizance. 

Derrick M. Williams, 32, of Batavia, is charged with criminal mischief 4th. Williams was arrested on a warrant stemming from an incident reported at 4:18 a.m., Sept. 25. He was arraigned in City Court and released.

Michelle D. Ulickey, 45, of Batavia, is charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance 7th. Ulickey was allegedly found in possession of cocaine during a traffic stop by a Batavia patrol officer for allegedly driving with no headlights at 3:15 a.m., March 2, on East Main Street, Batavia. She was released on an appearance ticket.

Tonya M. Weber, 38, of Batavia, was arrested on a bench warrant. Weber is charged with petit larceny in connection with an incident reported on Ellicott Street, Batavia, at 6:01 p.m., Dec. 7. Weber was arraigned in City Court and released under supervision.

Antwoine Kush, 19, of Rhulman Road, Lockport, is charged with criminal contempt 2nd. Kush allegedly violated a complete stay-away order of protection by contacting the protected party at 2 p.m., Jan. 8. Kush was issued an appearance ticket.

David Michael Milillo, 63, of Rochester, is charged with menacing 2nd. Miller is accused of displaying a pistol during a business transaction at 12:30 p.m., Sept. 2, at a location on Byron Holley Road, Byron, causing the victim to fear physical injury or death. Milillo was arrested following an investigation by Investigator Joseph Loftus and was issued an appearance ticket.

Nicholas Adam Pietrzykowski, 45, of East Road, Middlebury, is charged with DWAI/Drugs and criminal possession of a controlled substance 7th. Pietrzykowski was stopped at 7:25 p.m., July 25, on East Main Street, Batavia, by Deputy Nicholas Chamoun. He was arrested on March 3 following an investigation and issued an appearance ticket.

(name redacted upon request), 47, of Alexander, is charged with criminal contempt 2nd. xxxx allegedly violated a stay-away order on eight different locations. He was arraigned in Town of Batavia Court and released on his own recognizance. 

Deanna Rae Lynn Couchman, 27, of Chili Avenue, Rochester, is charged with felony DWI, felony driving with a BAC of .18 or greater, aggravated unlicensed operation, failure to keep right, and failure to signal. Couchman was stopped at 3:12 a.m., March 5, on Route 33 in Bergen by Sgt. Mathew Clor. She was issued appearance tickets.

Andrew Luis Coffey, 33, of South Goodman Avenue, Rochester, is charged with criminal possession of stolen property.  Coffey was allegedly found in possession of property previously reported stolen from Kohl's Department Store at 2:32 p.m., March 1. Coffey was issued an appearance ticket.

Jonah Ty Luplow, 19, of Pearl Street Road, Batavia, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater, and failure to use designated lane. Luplow was stopped at 1:44 a.m., March 6, on Bank Street Road, Batavia, by Deputy Joshua Brabon. He was issued appearance tickets.

Amanda Beth Hopkins, 42, of Bethany, is charged with DWI, aggravated DWI, endangering the welfare of a child, and moving from lane unsafely. Hopkins was reportedly involved in accident at 5:15 p.m., Jan. 21, on Ellicott Street Road, Pavilion.  Her BAC was allegedly greater than .08. Their was allegedly a child in the vehicle. She was arrested on March 5 by Deputy Nicholas Chamoun.  Hopkins was issued an appearance ticket.

Sandra L. Berrios, 62, of Batavia, is charged with DWI and driving with a BAC of .08 or greater. Berrios was stopped by State Police at 10:58 p.m., March 5, in the Town of Batavia. She was issued an appearance ticket. No other information released.

(Name redacted upon request), 20, of Byron, is charged with petit larceny. xxxx was arrested by State Police in the Town of Batavia for an incident reported at 1:30 p.m., March 2. He was released on an appearance ticket. No other information released.

Gerald L. Arnett, 49, of Rochester, is charged with felony DWI, felony aggravated DWI, and driving without an interlock device. Arnett was stopped by State Police at 3:54 p.m., Feb. 28, in the Town of Byron. There was allegedly a child in the vehicle. He was released on an appearance ticket. No other information released.

A 61-year-old man walking in the woods off Sackett Road in Bergen during yesterday's windstorm was killed when a tree fell and struck him in the head.

Dispatchers received a report of an unresponsive male pinned under a tree at 5:58 p.m.

The victim is identified as Steven K. Reber.

Lifesaving measures were attempted at the scene by family and emergency personnel but Reber was pronounced dead at the scene.

Foul play is not suspected.

Photo by Alecia Kaus/Video News Service.

Are they ever going to do something with the former Kmart at the corner of Lewiston and Park roads?

That is yet to be determined but the Benderson Development Co., which owns the building, is ready to place a couple of commercial ventures on another section of the 10.3-acre property at the corner of Lewiston and Park roads in the Town of Batavia.

According to a letter sent to the Town Planning Board by James Boglioli, Right-to-Build Northeast US director for the Buffalo-based real estate firm, two retail/restaurant businesses are being proposed for the site along Lewiston Road – south of the Kmart building:

• A 4,000-square-foot restaurant with a drive-thru and bypass lane to be located in the southwest corner of the property;

• A 6,752-square-foot retail/restaurant building with a 2,000-square-foot endcap coffee shop with drive-thru in the southeast corner of the property.

Contacted by telephone this morning, Boglioli declined to provide further details until Thursday night’s Genesee County Planning Board meeting, which is set for 7 o’clock and will be conducted via Zoom videoconferencing.

Furthermore, per the letter, the project also will include drainage upgrades to bring the site into compliance with the current storm water regulations, an increase in overall greenspace and landscaping, utility upgrades and new curbing, pavement and site lighting around the proposed buildings.

As far as parking is concerned, Boglioli’s letter states that the two proposed outparcel buildings will require 84 parking spaces – much less than the 366 parking spaces on the property.

Boglioli’s letter also indicates that, at this point, there are no proposed uses for the 116,238-square-foot Kmart structure – “and any reuse of (that building) is anticipated to require significantly less parking than the former K Mart required per code, and it is expected that the use would be compatible with the proposed outparcel project.”

The referral to be considered by county planners calls for the issuance of a special use permit.

The letter contends that proposed drive-thru configurations will not adversely affect the surroundings and “provide sufficient stacking within two dedicated drive thru lanes and any additional stacking that extends out of the dedicated drive thru lanes would be captured internal to the site.”

Drawing at top shows two restaurant proposals for the former Kmart property along Lewiston Road in the Town of Batavia. The Kmart building is labeled "vacant" at the top of the site map. Provided by Genesee County Planning Department.

Dispatchers and first responders are dealing with multiple calls throughout the county related to wind damage, including this big branch down on Clinton Street in the City of Batavia.

There are multiple power outages reported in Genesee County, including 816 National Grid customers without power in Stafford/Byron/Bergen. The outage is centered in Byron.

There is an outage affecting 143 customers in the northern part of the Town of Elba and into Barre. There are 109 customers without power north of North Byron Road just west of Byron Holley Road.

There is an outage for 76 customers and another for 69 customers in Alexander north of Route 20.

West of Darien Center is an outage affecting 235 customers and just north of that location, one affecting 130 customers. 

Between Basom and Oakfield, 208 customers are without power. there are smaller outages northwest of Alabama.

National Grid has extra crews on duty to help handle the workload.

High winds are expected to continue until 7 p.m.

Photo submitted by Arielle McVay