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Fishing, boardwalk, gazebo all likely for proposed hero-themed Batavia park, with funding needed

By Joanne Beck
Molly Vendura, Charlotte Brett
Molly Vendura, left, and Charlotte Brett give a presentation of a proposed town park in Batavia Wednesday evening at Batavia Town Hall.
Photo by Joanne Beck

A hero-themed park as an ode to first responders, with each a veterans and first responders memorial, boardwalk, lookout point, picnic shelter, gazebo, interpretive art panels, asphalt parking lot, and much more is on the books for construction within the next year or two as officials seek funding, says Molly Vendura of Landscape Architecture and Charlotte Brett of New York Green.

The women presented the plan as representatives of a multi-agency committee consisting of the town and city of Batavia, Genesee County Chamber of Commerce, Planning and Parks departments, Sheriff’s Office, Homeland Security, Veteran’s Affairs, and U.S. Department of Immigration.

“So the construction plan will be ready by the end of May, and then we really just need to, we'll have cost estimates at that point. We'll be applying for grants. And it would be great if we could get a grant in the next year and then construct it in the next year,” Brett said during an information meeting Wednesday at Batavia Town Hall. “But it really depends on how quickly the town can secure funding. It’s likely to be a year or two.”

New York Green received funding from the Ralph C. Wilson Jr. Legacy Funds administered by the Community Foundation for Greater Buffalo for the design of a proposed new public park on a property owned by the town of Batavia and located on Park Road in the city of Batavia. 

The initial phases have taken place since last summer, from a geographic survey and preliminary concepts, comments from town officials for revisions, and finally, a “buffet” of various options for the Army Corps of Engineers to work with for a final plan, Vendura said.

The park would be in a large area encompassing a pond and wetlands in the northwest corner of the property along Park Road and Veterans Memorial Drive, backing up to the VA. 

There would also be two EV charging stations for vehicles, and chargers for electric bikes and scooters, a landscape plant bed to shield visitors from the farthest northwest corner traffic and wind, a monument sign, gated access at the adjacent VA Hospital and Monsignor Apartments, a kayak launch, benches and vegetation to serve as a buffer for the flocks of geese that are regular visitors to the area.

The Batavian asked Vendura how the construction and creation of this park might disrupt those geese and other wildlife, such as rabbits and deer, in the area. The establishment of wetlands serves as some protection, she said.

“Because we are in a wetland area, we have to be very careful to minimize disturbance to the existing vegetation and soils,” she said. “So just by nature of that, the disruption from the construction of this park will be as minimal as possible because we're required to by the DEC when we do work in a wetland."

So, even laying down a 19-spot asphalt parking lot won’t disturb nature?

“Regarding that parking lot area, that actually used to be where the road cut through the property, so the town took out the road and just put some soil and grass seed on top of it right now, but under that is already existing sub base from the old road, so we're not actually disturbing pristine ground to put in the parking lot,” she said, answering if any trees would be removed with the underbrush. “It’ll be if there’s dead trees, not living trees, it might be more of like shrubby material, and typically it’s invasive shrubs like buckthorn and honeysuckle. So we would be actually improving the environment for native pollinators and birds by removing the invasive species, the shrubs, but also be opening the view for security reasons and safety.”

Rick Iannello, one of the half-dozen residents who attended the meeting, was interested in fishing. He has seen programs offered to kids in other areas and has enjoyed watching the youth here get a chance to throw a line in when possible.

“One of the things I think is really heartening is when you go over to DeWitt Park, you see a lot of young kids fishing. I think it's terrific, you see these kids are out there casting a line or doing whatever. But it's awful nice to see that,” he said. “And along with that would be the thought that if you perhaps had an area that was set aside for kids to fish and to learn how to fish. You could go back to the Ralph C. Wilson Foundation on their youth initiative and see if there would be the ability of them to kick in some additional funds for something like that."

Wilson Legacy Funds were established to provide support to four areas that were important to Mr. Wilson: caregivers, community assets, design and access, and youth sports. Vendura and Brett were take notes about the fishing idea.

Barbie Starowitz of Elba wanted to know why a dog park couldn’t be part of the plan, especially given that the VA has therapy dogs, she said. While the wetlands protect nature in some ways, they fall under state and federal regulation and would not be suitable for a dog park, Vendura said. And that section of the town space would have to be fenced off, which is not part of the overall project, she said.

Batavia Town Supervisor Greg Post said that the town owns property that is “developable and is willing to work with whatever collaborative agencies want to assist us in supporting that.”

“What we're looking for is a viable partner to assist with the collaboration for the funding of the initial design and the cost of maintenance for that specific sector, that community that would be benefited by that,” he said. “My board members can confirm that we've had a number of discussions and have the means to assist any agency that wants to come in, or an organization or club that wants to start that.”

As for the town park that is on the table, organizers are inviting people to submit a name for it and will be seeking funding sources before it can begin. Post is not concerned about raising the $2 million to $3.5 million he estimated it would take, he said.

“We're very persistent, and we're looking for enough partnership that I do not think that this will be an issue,” he said. “I think any recreational opportunity that services our veterans and all of those community visitors, as well as our children and grandchildren, is a good thing. We're very pleased that we've had the support of all of our regional partners, and we're very grateful for the Wilson Foundation for supporting our design. And much appreciate all the Partnership for it, and we're committed to seeing this thing done sooner than later.”

Any questions or name suggestions may be emailed to supervisor@townofbatavia.com. Post  advises to send them “sooner than later.”

Barbie Starowitz, Rick Iannello
Barbie Starowitz and Rick Iannello
Photo by Joanne Beck
Dave Hawes,, Greg post far right
Dave Hawes, front center, said he liked the idea of a proposed town park during Wednesday's presentation at Batavia Town Hall. Town Supervisor Greg Post contributed from the far right seat.
Photo by Joanne Beck

VA partners with WNY Independent Living to provide assistance to veterans

By Press Release
image002.jpg
Submitted photo.

Press Release:

A partner of the Veterans Administration Medical Centers (VAMCs) in Buffalo and Batavia, Western New York Independent Living, Inc. (WNYIL) received the sole contract for Veteran Directed Care (VDC) with the VA.  

While the Veteran Directed Care model is new to WNY, it has demonstrated success in self-directed care by Veterans across the nation. VA Medical Centers partner with non-profit Independent Living Centers to empower Veterans to employ their own aides (often already being provided by family members).

WNY Independent Living CEO, Douglas Usiak shares, “As an aging service-connected disabled Veteran myself, I am excited to know that my brother and sister Veterans will have the comfort to direct their own homecare needs and remain in their home of choice as long as possible. A secondary satisfaction to being involved in the launch of this program is the opportunity to work with the VAMC in the capacity of a partner, and not just one of their consumers of services. This partnership gives me the opportunity to advance my lifelong passion of promoting the Independent Living philosophy that believes that we all have a right to live in our homes, work in our communities, and engage in society as a person with a disability.”

A focus of this program is to reach the underserved rural parts of WNY where Veterans face provider shortages, geographic and distance barriers, limited broadband coverage which impairs their ability to participate in telehealth, and social determinants of health relative to rural living experiences (i.e., access to transportation, employment).  

To ensure a trust-built rapport with Veterans, WNY Independent Living has employed another Army Veteran, Thomas Patterson, to serve in the Person-Centered Counsellor role and interface directly with the Veterans in assessing their needs in their homes and communities. Veterans and Tom work together to build a Spending Plan to identify costs for their Personal Assistants and obtain any additional goods and services the Veteran requires to improve quality of life in their home and community.

The power of this Veteran Directed Care program can be recognized in the experiences of the individual Veterans who are participating in VDC. For example, a 94-year-old Veteran who functions independently in his own home and wants to remain there with some additional oversight for specific household tasks and community access – like going to the library for a new mystery novel, has employed his daughter-in-law for these functions.   Another Veteran depends on his granddaughter for activities of daily living and then she needs to go to her job in the community to support herself. Being able to be paid to continue the care she already provides to her “Poppy” will improve the quality of life for both. One thing is certain: their stories are being heard.

Crucial to WNY Independent Living’s successful launch as a VDC program, VDC Director Julie Andrews Krieger expresses gratitude for the mentorship of the other providers in the VDC community, including the Independent Living Center of Hudson Valley and VA Medical Center in Albany.

WNY Independent Living will support Veterans across the wider WNY region in Niagara, Erie, Genesee, Livingston, Wyoming, Chautauqua, Cattaraugus, and Allegany Counties. We are proud to serve the Veterans in our community. To qualify for this program, a Veteran must request Veteran Directed Care from their VA physician and Patient Aligned Care Team (PACT) at the local VA Medical Center or VA Clinic and an assessment is completed and referral made to the VDC program.

The Western New York Independent Living, Inc. family of agencies offers an expanding array of services to aid individuals with disabilities to take control of their own lives.

VA leaves veterans lingering as unprocessed claims tops one million

By Howard B. Owens

The backlog of unprocessed disability claims at the Veterans Administration now exceeds one million and the pile grows daily.  Veterans are waiting months to have benefits administered.

Congressman Chris Lee is taking up the cause of veterans waiting for claims to be processed.

“The VA’s backlog of unfinished disability claims is clearly unacceptable and unsustainable. With the VA drowning in red tape, our veterans are forced to go to extreme lengths in order to make ends meet while waiting on benefits they have earned,” Lee said in a statement released this week. “Whether it’s hiring and training more processors or updating technological capabilities, the VA needs to have a detailed plan in place to tackle this problem and expedite its implementation.”

Full press release following the jump:

WASHINGTON – Congressman Chris Lee (NY-26) is urging the Department of Veterans Affairs to step up its efforts to address an “unacceptable and unsustainable” backlog of unfinished disability claims that compromises the VA’s ability to improve services and often leaves veterans waiting in limbo for months before receiving benefits they have earned.

In a letter to General Eric Shinseki, the Secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs, Congressman Lee pointed out that with roughly 900,000 pending claims, including 7,168 in Western New York alone, the VA’s caseload is on pace to reach the 1 million mark this year. While the average wait time for a claim to be processed is approximately 120 days, a number of veterans have reported to Congressman Lee’s office that their cases have gone unresolved for more than a year. In these tough economic times, veterans have no choice but to take extreme steps to make ends meet, including paying bills with credit cards.

“The VA’s backlog of unfinished disability claims is clearly unacceptable and unsustainable. With the VA drowning in red tape, our veterans are forced to go to extreme lengths in order to make ends meet while waiting on benefits they have earned,” Congressman Lee said. “Whether it’s hiring and training more processors or updating technological capabilities, the VA needs to have a detailed plan in place to tackle this problem and expedite its implementation.”

This issue was front and center during a meeting Congressman Lee convened last month in Batavia with an advisory board  comprised of area veterans committed to improving the lives of fellow vets and their families. That discussion keyed on the fact that this growing claims backlog can have a ripple effect through the entire system.

Congressman Lee added: “The severity of this situation demands more than just an acknowledgment of the problem. I will continue to be a vocal advocate for forceful action that puts the VA on a path to ensuring that each of our veterans – and their families – have access to the services they deserve and the benefits they have earned.”

Visit http://chrislee.house.gov/veterans to learn more about Congressman Lee’s efforts to honor and support our nation’s military veterans and their families.
 
The text of the letter is below.


June 23, 2009
 
The Honorable Eric K. Shinseki
Department of Veterans Affairs, Central Office
810 Vermont Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20420
 
Dear Secretary Shinseki:
 
I write to you today to express my deep concern with regards to the growing number of outstanding claims to be processed by the Department of Veterans Affairs.
 
This large backlog is the result of more than 722,000 current claims along with more than 172,000 appeals, totaling 900,000 claims to be processed, including 13,000 pending in New York State. In a recent appearance before the House Subcommittee on Disability Assistance, VA Deputy Undersecretary Michael Walcoff testified that the Department receives approximately 80,000 new claims each month. With the current backlog and this large influx of new claims, the nearly 900,000 claims could reach the one million mark by the end of summer. 
 
This is unacceptable and needs to be addressed before the problem is just too large to solve. Our veterans deserve not only the best health care, but health care that is accessible and responsive. The average wait for a claim is more than 120 days, and veterans in my district have informed me they have waited more than a year for their claims to be processed.  In these tough economic times, veterans waiting on their claims to be processed are forced to take extreme steps, including paying bills with credit cards.
 
While efforts to revamp the Department’s electronic claims system are to be commended, our veterans cannot wait any longer. Our servicemembers returning from tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, along with the nearly eight million veterans already enrolled in the VA health care system, deserve immediate care and timely claims processing. We have made a promise to care for our veterans, and we must meet this obligation.
 
I appreciate the burdens your agency must bear in this matter, and look forward to hearing from you on your plan to reduce this backlog and ensure accessible health care for our veterans.
 
Sincerely,
 
CHRISTOPHER J. LEE
Member of Congress

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