In a move that would surely come as no surprise to many folks in Genesee County, the United States Department of Agriculture has declared the county as a drought disaster area, qualifying farm operations for emergency loans to recover from any drought-related losses.
The natural disaster designation allows the USDA’s Farm Service Agency to extend “much-needed emergency credit” to agricultural producers. Loans can be used to meet various needs, including the replacement of essential items such as equipment or livestock, reorganization of the farming operation or refinancing certain debts, a USDA press release stated late Thursday.
Farmers have until Sept. 9 to apply for a loan. Eligible counties also include Wyoming, Allegany, Cattaraugus, Erie, Livingston, Monroe, Niagara and Orleans.
Residents in pockets of Genesee County have been hit hardest by drought and resulting dry wells since summer 2023, including in Pembroke, Pavilion, and especially in the town of Bethany -- which has declared a State of Emergency -- with at least 100 households, and several businesses and a handful of farms with little to no water on their properties.
As Bethany Town Supervisor Carl Hyde Jr. has said, it’s hard enough to have no access to water, but then to have to spend the time and money to drive — for some farms on a daily basis — several miles roundtrip to fill containers with up to 60,000 gallons of water and haul it back, it takes a big toll financially.
“That’s not sustainable for a farm,” Hyde has said in a prior interview with The Batavian. “And if they were to sell off the dairy herd, they’ve got 100 employees. What are you gonna do, kick them to the curb? And it’s not just like one dairy farm.”
Bethany has about five of them, all battling the elements of no rain and dry wells, he said.
The town is in progress with paperwork for Water District 5 and a public hearing since the project had to be budgeted for increased costs, which will be covered with grants for $16.5 million and an infrastructure improvement grant for $5 million, which was just awarded at the end of 2023.
Hyde will be formally announcing that public hearing, which has been set for 7 p.m. Feb. 7 at Bethany Town Hall. Water District 5 runs north to Route 20 and includes 440 residential properties. Two-thirds of town residents will have public water by the time the district is completed, and then the town will pursue District 6 next, he said.
The Town of Le Roy also received a $5 million water infrastructure grant for its Water District 12, and Genesee County was given a $30 million bond for its Phase 3 water project to ensure a strong water system throughout the county.
As for Pembroke’s water shortage, Town Supervisor Tom Schneider said that there were a dozen residents having issues with dry wells that the town was aware of in mid-December. The town offered them an option to fill water totes at the town hall.
“We have been (getting) one or two people every other day coming to fill water totes,” Schneider said. “We always will seek funding for any new water districts. Grants and low-interest loans are the only way to make water districts work in low-density areas.”
Water District 4, which covers most of the roads north of the Thruway, has been approved by the state Comptroller, and the town is in progress with putting it out for bid. Water District 5, covering Pratt, Kilian and Slusser roads south of the Thruway, is awaiting the Comptroller’s approval “due to the proposed debt service being a few dollars higher than the Comptroller’s automatic approval threshold,” he said.
“We have very preliminarily looked at the cost of water districts to the parts of the town, but do not have any concrete plans for any new districts,” he said. “We’re hearing some residents have drilled their existing wells deeper with success.”
Associate Professor Stephen Shaw Photo from SUNY Environmental Science and Forestry website
With so much talk about global warming and climate change, that would seem to be the likely culprit for drought so extreme it has dried up dozens of wells in pockets of Genesee County.
However, Stephen Shaw, associate professor for environmental resources engineering at the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry, says it might be much more random than that.
Shaw has just completed a 20-year analysis and a report about dry wells across the entire northeast. He found that a drought in 2016 was “pretty intense,” especially across Western New York and Buffalo in particular. That didn’t match what these towns — the volume of households — in Genesee County have experienced, he said. He echoed what locals have described as "the most intense drought" ever seen.
“I haven't come across anything like that before. So it's definitely … it's not abnormal during dry periods to have some dry wells. But I've never seen anything where it's this many in one place,” Shaw said during an interview with The Batavian. “But I think it's just this really unusual, spatially isolated dry period. I've never seen anything like that in terms of looking at the maps and stuff. It's super dry in that area where it's happened. So it just seems like really unusual conditions, but probably nothing bigger going on. Just kind of bad luck, roll the dice for that area."
He’s been studying water, drought and well level patterns for the last two decades and noted the unusually low levels in certain areas of the county —- being experienced especially in the town of Bethany, with other areas of Pavilion and Pembroke also being affected.
He referred to the U.S. Drought Monitor, and one spot that pops up just south of Batavia — “not a little dot, but sort of a small mark what we call spatially isolated,” he said.
“So most of the rest of Western New York hasn't been nearly as dry as that one location. Which, in this issue, you know, when you look at that, it's like, well, it's just, it just seems like they really just had some bad luck in a way, because climate patterns, you know, are continental or maybe regional, you know, statewide,” he said. “But this is just like these really small pockets of really dry conditions. So it's really hard to pin that on climate change at a larger scale. And for anthropogenic climate change, the projections, especially for some of the East Coast and Northeast, are generally to be wetter conditions. The climate model projections would say that it's anticipated with climate change, that most likely the Northeast will be wetter, will have more rainfall.”
“The Northeast Regional Climate Center, which is based at Cornell, have these maps of precipitation deficits in the state. So you can look at this map and see the same way the drought monitor shows like this pretty spacious, spatially isolated, little spot where it's been dry, the rainfall map shows the same thing. So this is a drought that's really caused by, instead of high temperatures and higher evaporation, it's really been caused by lack of precipitation,” he said.
So, can you attribute the lack of precipitation and resulting drought to anything?
“Not really, because it's so spatially isolated, like if it was a bigger region or, you know, the larger northeast region, but it's really just over part of the county or the town. It's really just such a small area that's dry. It's hard to say it's larger climate patterns, it just seems like kind of bad luck in terms of where rain didn't fall,” he said.
To attribute a drought to climate change, there would have to be more of a pattern established, he said, such as this happening three times every 50 years versus once every 50 years. And a climate change factor would also cover a large area, not just 20 square miles, for example, he said.
As for a solution, it sounds like these residents will have to just wait for Mother Nature to come through, is that right?
“It should reset, it should start to refill. Sometimes through the fall, actually, that's really the driest time of the year, like through October, because you basically … have the tree leaves still in the trees. So there's still evaporation, there's not that much rainfall often. You don't really start to get a sort of replenishment of groundwater until, say, November, something like that. So maybe it's a little delayed this year,” he said. “But now, with the leaves definitely off the trees and then you don't have much evaporation. So pretty much any precipitation that falls is going to start to go to recharge. So they should start to see recharge here in the next few weeks to two months. But it can take a while as you've depleted the water, the water has been drawn down. And it takes a while to fill that backup. But there's no reason to think that it won't start to recharge, especially as we get some winter storms and wet weather.
“The drought in 2016, it actually reversed pretty quickly. Groundwater always is a little more delayed, but you know, you just get some change in storm weather patterns, and you go from not having much rain to having quite a bit in a short period of time,” he said. “I haven't looked at the forecast over there. But it sometimes doesn't take that long in terms of just to get two weeks of pretty rainy conditions and you're catching up pretty quick.”
That would be awesome news for Bethany Town Supervisor Carl Hyde Jr. and the dozens of town residents who have been scrambling for water due to dry wells the last few months and to others on the county’s west side, including Janet Seaver and at least 10 other households in Pembroke. All of those folks had been driving out of town to fill up containers on a regular basis so that their homes would have water for basic necessities.
Only more recently, in the last couple of weeks, was Bethany able to better assist homeowners by filling totes from a large tanker stationed at town hall. The town caught the attention of the state Office of Emergency Management in Albany, and it sent a 6,700-gallon water tanker to the town for water fills. Once word began to spread about that option, the tanker was emptied in six hours, Hyde said.
The town is now on its second tanker full of water, thanks to a refill from the county. Donations of bottled water from Casella Waste Systems, Tops Friendly Markets and Wegmans Food Markets have also allowed for drinking water distributions to those residents as well, he said.
“People have been coming for their rations. The hours are Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from 9 to 3,” he said Thursday. “The fill times are Tuesdays 5 to 7 p.m. and Thursdays 6 to 8 p.m. every week, that seems to be working for people. We still need people who need water to get on the list. Tuesday, we picked up four new people. Yesterday was the first day we had no calls.”
Town of Pembroke officials more recently began to offer filling containers with water for town residents, and the need has been there. Janet Seaver had initially counted 10 people in addition to her and her husband having dry wells, and two more wells had gone dry since then, she said.
She and her husband have been stockpiling water in barrels to “get us hopefully through February,” she said.
“We cannot afford to drill, as we are both retired and on a fixed income,” she said. “Those that have drilled have reported paying 12 to 15 thousand. We are praying for rain and/or snow to make the wells come back, and if not, we will be living like this until public water is put through.”
A request for comment from Town Supervisor Tom Schneider about the drought and future public water possibilities was not returned Friday afternoon.
A quick look at the extended weather forecast shows a mixed bag of rain and wet snow for at least seven more days in December in a pattern that Shaw pointed to as the beginning of winter’s recharge for dry wells.
For more information about drought levels, go HERE
For a live water data monitor, go HERE. Shaw said that the local water table, per a well monitor just south of Batavia, has risen by two feet as of Thursday.
Due to the moderate drought conditions present throughout Genesee County, starting Monday Dec. 4, the Town of Pembroke will fill approved water containers for town residents by appointment between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 3 p.m. Monday through Friday at the Town Highway Garage, located at 1145 Main Road.
If you’re a Town of Pembroke resident and in need of water, please call the Town Clerk at 585-599-4892, Ext. 102 or 103 and please leave your name and phone number to schedule an appointment.
CORRECTIONS: The board approved the moratorium on Nov. 9 and the state does not need to approve the zoning changes.
A potential 96-unit apartment complex in the Town of Pembroke raised issues that perhaps the town should address in its zoning code, according to Supervisor Thomas Schneider.
Schneider is suggesting a six-month moratorium on approvals for new proposed apartment complexes while the town forms a committee to study apartment zoning and propose new regulations that would eventually need state approval.
The Town Board discussed a possible moratorium at its Nov. 9 meeting, and will vote on it at a future meeting.
"The town felt it was necessary to pump the brakes a bit before new projects are proposed," Schneider said. "(We need) to bring the zoning law into line with our new normal here in Pembroke. The current zoning on multi-family projects has been relatively unchanged for 35 years. The town still supports development, but we do need to update the zoning law to make our expectations more transparent for developers and to give our Planning Board more tools to use in the planning stages of these projects."
Issues to address may include school bus traffic serving an apartment complex, green space requirements, the number of units per acre that should be allowed, and perhaps guidelines on design and materials. There may be other issues to raise, he said.
Schneider also told the board that given the possibility that any new complexes will receive tax abatement incentives from the Genesee County Economic Development Center, the town should consider imposing a community benefit fee.
Scheider said New York State allows for towns to implement zoning agreements with developers. His first idea is to require apartment developers to contribute funds for improvements to Pembroke Town Park.
The need for an update came to light, according to Schnieder, as the town worked through the approval process for Countryside Apartments.
Developer Mike Schmidt of Alden is planning to build four buildings over four phases at 8900 Alleghany Road. Each phase consists of a building with eight one-bedroom and 16 two-bedroom units, totaling 96 market-rate units, with 168 parking spaces along with garages.
Schmidt is planning on investing $15 million in the project.
GCEDC has approved financial assistance for the project, including an estimated $ 739,200 sales tax exemption, an estimated $ 2,020,688 property tax abatement, and an estimated $ 130,000 mortgage tax exemption.
The project has received all of the necessary approvals from the town for Schmidt to begin building.
With the expected job growth coming from two major development projects in WNY STAMP, a new distribution facility opening by the Thruway, as well as a new travel center, the demand for housing in Pembroke is on the rise and Schneider said he believes the town needs to prepare for it.
"My personal feeling on the whole thing is, as a former school board member, there are people who want to be in our district," Schneider said. "Our district does need kids in the district to help it survive."
While Schmidt was going through the approval process, and promising market-rate housing, some residents expressed concern that he would pull a bait-and-switch, the seeming fate of Ellicott Station in Batavia. Schmidt promised there would be no HUD-assisted units in his complex, the conversation suggested some residents oppose low-income and very low-income housing in Pembroke.
Schneider said on Thursday that even if the town wanted to try and block rent-subsidized apartments, it doesn't have the authority to do so.
"I don’t believe we legally could or should limit HUD-backed or (NYS Homes and Community Renewal)-backed projects, but under home rule, we do have a say in which zoning districts large-scale multi-family projects are allowed," Schnieder said.
Asked what he would say to residents who oppose such developments, Schneider said, "There’s a place and a need for all types of housing options in a community."
Asked about whether apartments are limited to certain parts of the town, or should be, Schneider said:
"Under the current zoning law, multi-family housing projects are allowed in nearly every zoning district. From the developer's perspective, it is cost-prohibitive to install a septic/sewage treatment system for large-scale housing projects. I believe the town will look to limit these multiple-building projects to areas covered by town sewer, (such as) portions of Route 5 and Route 77 and our interchange, commercial and limited commercial districts."
Once the Town Board approves a moratorium, the board will form a committee. The exact composition of the committee has yet to be determined. It could comprise two board members, two planning board members, and perhaps a couple of town residents.
The committee would then propose zoning changes to the Planning Board and the Town Board. The County Planning Department and Planning Board would also review the proposed changes. Once adopted, the State Legislature would need to approve the changes.
The Genesee County Economic Development Center (GCEDC) has announced that the Town of Pembroke will receive the Economic Development Partner of the Year award at the GCEDC’s annual business meeting on April 28, 2023 at Batavia Downs.
The town of Pembroke, located in the western part of Genesee County, continues to facilitate economic and community development with the GCEDC and other partners in the region. With the support of the town, the GCEDC has been able to build both a shovel-ready site, the Buffalo East Tech Park, and infrastructure improvements that enable Yancy’s Fancy to continue to produce good jobs and award-winning artisanal cheese enjoyed across the region. In 2022, construction of Brickhouse Commons is increasing capacity for market-rate apartments and future commercial spaces at the park.
"Through their vision and dedication, Genesee County’s municipalities create and expand our capacity for economic growth and financial investment. The town of Pembroke’s commitment to smart growth and a business-friendly approach has earned it a deserved reputation as an ideal place to invest and grow businesses, housing, and careers," said GCEDC President and CEO Steve Hyde. “This award is a testament to the leadership of the town.”
Since 2022, projects proposing over 1.6 million sq. ft. of facilities in Pembroke have been approved by the GCEDC’s Board of Directors, including the $142 million Horizon Acres Associates project, to service customers in Pembroke and across the Northeast US. The multi-phase project will be the largest economic development investment located outside of a GCEDC
business park in the agency’s history.
“The town of Pembroke continues to be a catalyst of economic development in collaboration with the GCEDC team as we have seen our housing stock grown and businesses invest which in turn has made Pembroke a desirable community to live, work and recreate,” said Town of Pembroke Supervisor Tom Schneider.
Approximately 250 business, government, community and economic developments leaders are expected to attend the annual meeting. To register, for the GCEDC Annual Meeting, contact the GCEDC at gcedc@gcedc.com, call 585-343-4866, or visit the event’s website.
