A fire alarm is sounding at 28 Cedar St., Batavia. A caller reports no smoke or flames are visible.

UPDATE: The alarm is apparently in an unoccupied apartment. No signs of smoke.

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On the way home for lunch, I noticed two DOT employees standing by the train tracks at Ellicott Street and Jackson Street, so I stopped and asked if they were planning on improving the intersection.

Anybody who has driven over or walked past the train tracks knows the road is in bad shape there.

Troy Sampson, a civil engineer with the DOT, said the state will rip out the asphalt along the rail line and replace it with concrete panels, just like the railroad crossing on Route 98 now.

The work was supposed to start next week, but there has been a delay. The state hopes now to start work in August. The project will take 6 weeks to complete.

"It's 100 percent going to happen," Sampson said. "It's just a matter of how it's going to happen. There's lots of logistics here."

UPDATE: Well, not so fast.  The project that looked so certain this morning is now on hold. I just received this e-mail from Troy Sampson:

We spoke, in brief, earlier today at the rr crossing on Ellicott St.  The  proposed work will be done by the Railroad's contractor, not DOT forces.  Myself and a RR representitve were onsite to investigate some issues that have come up that need to be resolved in order for that project to progress.   Because of those changes, the project is currently on hold until all the  necessary parties can meet to evalute the new scope of work.  The orginal  plan that was all set to go is now on hold.  We intend to do a project, but  are not "100%" as noted.

I shot the video this morning and just happened to catch a single lightning bolt and a little thunder.

The National Weather Service has issued a severe thunderstorm warning for this afternoon at 12:10 p.m. and then canceled the warning at 12:35 p.m.  A thunderstorm watch remains in place. The watch extends until 7 p.m. (meaning, the bad weather, we hope, will pass in time for Muckdogs baseball at Dwyer and the Ghost Riders at Jackson St. Square.)

Several readers have noticed that The Batavian and WBTA often cooperate on news stories.

Dan Fischer, owner of WBTA, and I have found we work very well together, and cooperating is advantageous because neither of us employ massive news gathering staffs.

To help us gather more news, and do a better job of informing our readers and listeners, we plan to continue this level cooperation.

A week or so ago, Dan and I agreed we should make the news partner arrangement a little more formal and public, so today you'll notice a new button on the upper right part of the site that makes explicit our content sharing agreement.

Together, we will continue to bring you the most comprehensive and independent Genesee County news coverage available.

On a personal note, I must say, I'm really proud of this arrangement. Dan really knows his business. He's got to be one of the best independent radio station owner/operators in the country. Genesee County is fortunate to have a strong, locally owned radio station in an era where such independence in media is rare.

Victorian Manor in Batavia, which has been facing financial difficulty (just last fall, there were $1.54 million in liens against the property), has a new owner and a new name.

It's now The Manor House, owned and operated by Manor House, LLC.  The financially troubled Sunwest Management transferred the facility to a group of 10 individual investors.

Full press release after the jump:

It’s official—Victorian Manor is now The Manor House.  On Friday, June 
26, 2009, ownership was transferred from Sunwest Management to Manor House, 
LLC.

The new owners are the 10 individual investors who were originally brought in 
by Sunwest when it purchased the facility in 2006.  When Sunwest began to 
struggle financially in 2008, the investors undertook an effort to take 
control of the facility and have now been able to conclude the transfer of 
control and ownership.

“We loved this facility when we first invested in 2006 and love it even 
more today as we have been able to really get to know the staff and 
residents,” said Gordon Davis, the Managing Partner for the new ownership.  
“This is more than a physical facility.  It is home for our residents, but 
also, a community itself and an integral part of Batavia and all of Genesee 
County.”

The Manor House is an independent living facility for seniors with 40 
apartments and a full dining room in the original 15 year old building on 
East Main Street.  The new owners will now complete the construction of two 
new wings which will bring the total number of studio, one and two bedroom 
apartments to 90.

Despite its financial and management troubles, Sunwest, as the fourth largest 
operator of senior living facilities in the nation, understood how to design 
a senior living facility that was more than just an apartment.  The new wings 
were designed to complement the existing building with additional common 
community spaces, an exercise room; a games and recreation room, a hair salon 
and a large “ice cream parlor.”  “I think the ice cream parlor will be 
where everyone meets during the day” said Davis.  “Living at The Manor 
House is about being with friends and people you enjoy.  Staff is there to 
support our residents with high quality meals, organized activities and 
service that meets the different needs that our residents have.”

“We have finalized our agreements with the contractors and they will be 
back to work to finish the new wings beginning next week” said Davis.  
“We expect to have our first apartments ready for occupancy within about 
four weeks.”

Local contractors who had stopped work last summer and filed liens on the 
property are pleased to be back to finish their work.  “We are proud of the 
work that we do and it was hard to see this so close to completion yet no way 
to finish” said Brian Wormley of Wormley Construction, a contractor doing a 
walk through today. “This is a great facility and it will be nice to see 
people moving in soon.”

The Manor House was originally built by St. Jerome Hospital in conjunction 
with the Sisters of Mercy in 1994.  It has been a prominent feature on East 
Main ever since, and during the summer months, always with residents enjoying 
the daily movement of Batavia from its expansive porch.

If you've driven past Zigrossi Motors on Route 5 in Batavia last night or this morning and took note of a seemingly empty parking lot, don't jump to the conclusion that Zigrossi is out of business.

While you will be seeing less inventory on the lot over the next few months, that isn't why the lot was emptied last night -- that had more to do with hail than the fact that the business is being sold.

Harry Zigrossi has been in the car business for 30 years, he said, and he's ready to retire.

A buyer has been found, but because of the General Motors bankruptcy, the deal cannot close until early 2010, unless GM emerges from bankruptcy sooner.

"Because we were fortunate enough to be on good asset side of the General Motors list and not the bad asset side, we can be sold," Zigrossi said. "If we were on the bad asset list, there would be no new dealer and we would be shutting down."

Meanwhile, Zigrossi is still open for business. The new cars on the lot are all for sale and the service department remains open.  Zigrossi said all operations will continue until the new dealer assumes control.

After attending a recent national conference and speaking with several local engineering consultants and heavy highway construction contractors, I am of the opinion that the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (a.k.a Stimulus) is something short of stimulating--at least for transportation officials.

The $787 billion Stimulus Plan was sold to taxpayers as an infrastructure program that would rival the New Deal's Works Progress Administration (WPA) and Eisenhower's Interstate Highway System.  In reality, less than 4 percent, or $29 billion of the total plan is being directed at highway and bridge spending.  While this is still a tremendous amount of money, it does little to repair the gaps in the nation's infrastructure.  If you factor in other modes of transportation such as airports and railroads, the total stimulus investment is $48.1 billion, or approximately 6% of the total plan.  Much of the remaining amount is planned for social service initiatives, state tax and Medicaid relief and energy efficiency. 

While I applaud the drive towards green energy, I am a bit concerned that after this money is spent we will have little to show for it.  Under the WPA and Interstate Highway System our nation created lasting infrastructure.  We had assets that were worth the debt we created.  Under ARRA, we will have injected little into our growing infrastructure problem and thrown the rest at a one-time attempt at saving state governments from making difficult choices regarding overgrown and outdated programs.

Aside from the obvious lack of highway and bridge funding under stimulus, the program itself created constraints that made funding large infrastructure projects impossible.  ARRA required funds to be obligated within 120 days.  This limitation essentially ruled out most bridge projects, as the design requirements under federal regulations dictate a 9 to 18 month process to evaluate bridges, the adjacent environment and any right-of-way acquisition.  Unless a jurisdiction locally funded and designed a bridge following federal guidelines and had it sitting on a shelf waiting for aid, it was not going to receive ARRA funds for bridge replacements. 

A bulk of the stimulus money will be going towards "painting the roads black", that is simple pavement maintenance projects that overlay existing roads with new asphalt.  This is a maintenance treatment in most cases and will last anywhere from 7 to 15 years.  This type of work will not be creating any new jobs.  Quarries will not be adding staff or equipment.  They may work some additional overtime, but new hires and equipment are not required. 

Contractors are not hiring either.  This goes against logic, but in reality, the much touted stimulus plan in many states only provides a one-time reprieve from state or local funding of the same projects.  In many places, government has instituted the "lift, clean and replace" rule.  This means that projects that were going to be funded with state aid and local funding are now being funded with federal stimulus and the money that was obligated is being held in reserve or being used somewhere else in the budget.  To make matters worse, due to delays in approvals on ARRA projects, many of these projects will now be completed in 2010 as opposed to the current year.  So not only are contractors only working the same work load as a normal year, many of the projects are now scheduled to be awarded too late in the current construction year to be implemented before winter arrives. 

Long term, I am afraid that ARRA will have given taxpayers a false sense of security when it comes to overall transportation funding.  The need for infrastructure improvements is constantly growing and current estimates place the financial need at $2.2 trillion over 5 years to bring the nation's infrastructure up to speed, with $937 billion needed just for highways and bridges.  Taxpayers will not stomach another large spending program targeted at transportation because they are under the impression that this was fixed by stimulus.  The existing Dedicated Highway and Bridge Trust Funds at both the Federal and State level are nearing bankruptcy and will require additional funding from the General Fund to stay afloat.  These funds derive their income primarily from motor fuels taxes.  As cars acheive higher mileage ratings and people drive less, the collection of gas taxes drops.  This has been the case for some time and it is estimated that the gas tax would need to be increased $0.40 per gallon to makeup the shortfall.  This would obviously not be a popular plan.  Other plans include a vehicle miles traveled tax that conjurs up images of big brother rather quickly.

The bottom line is that the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 has done little to stimulate the investment in our transportation networks and without a permanent solution to the current funding shortfall our infrastructure will get worse and worse, hurting our already weak economy.

Alex's Place, 8322 Park Road, Batavia, N.Y.: People come from all over the region for a fine dinning experience at Alex's. Alex's is best known for its ribs, of course, but Alex's seafood is also a favorite of the restaurant's diners. We have a $50 gift certificate for $25.

Larry's Steakhouse, 60 Main St.  The name says it all -- Larry's is a great place for steak. Larry's is a fine dining atmosphere with a great menu and outstanding service.  We have a $50 gift certificate for $25.

A $1 PayPal service fee applies (50 cents on items below $10)

Rules: The gift certificate must be used by within 30 days of purchase. It is not valid with other offers and has no cash value.  People who have won a certificate in the past 30 days are not eligible to win a certificate from the same business as before.  By state law, gift certificates cannot be used for alcohol purchase.

How to Win: Purchase using the PayPal "Buy Now" button below. After the first person to hit the "buy now" button completes the purchase, PayPal will let you know that the item has been sold. Ideally, the winner will arrange to stop by my office on Main Street to pick up gift certificate. Mail is an option, but it would be better to hand you the gift certificate. 

If you want to be notified via e-mail of future Deals of the Day, sign up for the Deals of the Day e-mail list by clicking here.

Merchants: If you would like your business featured in Deal of the Day, call Howard Owens at 260-6970.

Alex's Place

SOLD

Larry's Steakhouse

SOLD

This afternoon, I popped over to the first day of the Downtown Public Market on Ellicott and Center. First stop: Alston's Bone-Suckin Bar-B-Que sauce stand. The sample alone was worth the trip.  Then I had a couple of red hots from the Jackson St. Grill said.

The market closed early today after the National Weather Service sent out a severe thunderstorm warning.

It will open again next Thursday in the same location at 8:30 a.m.

Since I complained about it, I should note the clean up: When I was driving to the office this morning, I noticed this man out in front of the Salvation Army Thrift Store on Jackson cutting the grass strips in front of the parking lot.  When I drove home, the whole area looked much nicer.

Officials of United Memorial Medical Center met with local media this afternoon to confirm a report earlier in the day by The Batavian that a member of the hospital staff tested positive for the H1N1 strain of flu and to discuss precautions instituted by the hospital.

During the conference, both spokeswoman Colleen Flynn and Lorri Goergen, infection prevention manager, confirmed that other employees have reported flu-like symptoms, but the cases seem largely unrelated.

The fact is, as the County's interim health director Randy Garney, discussed with The Batavian this morning, H1N1 is now widespread in Genesee County.

"The first one who called in (sick) with symptoms had no contact with the first case we identified," Goergen said. "What seemed to happen almost simultaneously is that our ER had a sudden increase in patients coming in with the same symptoms, and the doctor's offices this Monday were calling quite rapidly."

The first infected employee is recovering at home, Flynn said.

Flynn said the hospital reacted quickly and transparently with employees about the first confirmed case, sending out a memo Tuesday telling employees to stay home if they had even subtle flu-like symptoms. 

All of the employees and the doctors of patients who might have come into contact with the infected worker were given instructions and opportunities for preventative steps.  Exposed employees were screened and offered anti-viral medications.

As Garney discussed this morning, because this is not currently flu season, any flu-like feelings should be considered H1N1. People who feel ill should stay home and have minimal contact with other people. If you feel sick, call your doctor. Health officials stress it is best to avoid going to the emergency room or doctor's office unless severely ill.  H1N1, like any other flu, can be treated safely at home if directions are followed. Any public exposure by an infected person to others increases the risk of spreading the virus, and just because a case is mild in one person doesn't mean that person couldn't pass along the virus to another person who will have a much more severe reaction.

UMMC officials stressed the importance of washing your hands and avoiding hand to mouth contact.

And while your annual flu shot will not offer much protection against this new strain, they did stress the importance of annual flu shots.

As Goergen noted, some 36,000 people die from the flu every year. Any case of flu should be treated with care, not just H1N1.

Because H1N1 is now pervasive in the community, the hospital also instituted some visitation rule changes.

• No children under 14 are allowed to visit
• Visitors are limited to 2 per patient
• Visiting hours should be strictly enforced
• 4th floor (maternity ward) are restricted to fathers only
• Time spent in the hospital should be limited -- employees are encouraged to ask visitors to avoid public areas, including the snack shop, cafeteria and lobby

Picasso's Pizza, 419 W. Main St., Batavia, N.Y.: A great variety of pizza, subs and salads -- and try the wings, too. We have three $5 booklets of $1 gift certificates ($15 value) for $7.50.  The gift certificates can be used collectively or individually).

Valle Jewelers, 21 Jackson St., Batavia, N.Y.: Need a gift? Need some sparkle? Valle's has a large selection of jewelry and gifts STARTING at UNDER $25. We have a $25 gift certificate for $12.50.

Herbly Wonderful, 3701 Pearl St., Batavia, N.Y.: Plants, teas, herbs, mixes, a great place to shop to make your home more cozy and natural. We have a $25 gift certificate for $12.50.

Alex's Place, 8322 Park Road, Batavia, N.Y.: One of the region's premier restaurants and a favorite place for business lunches. We have a $25 gift certificate for $12.50.

A $1 PayPal service fee applies (50 cents on items below $10)

Rules: The gift certificate must be used by within 30 days of purchase. It is not valid with other offers and has no cash value.  People who have won a certificate in the past 30 days are not eligible to win a certificate from the same business as before.  By state law, gift certificates cannot be used for alcohol purchase.

How to Win: Purchase using the PayPal "Buy Now" button below. After the first person to hit the "buy now" button completes the purchase, PayPal will let you know that the item has been sold. Ideally, the winner will arrange to stop by my office on Main Street to pick up gift certificate. Mail is an option, but it would be better to hand you the gift certificate. 

If you want to be notified via e-mail of future Deals of the Day, sign up for the Deals of the Day e-mail list by clicking here.

Merchants: If you would like your business featured in Deal of the Day, call Howard Owens at 260-6970.

Alex's Place

SOLD

Picasso's Pizza

SOLD

Herbly Wonderful

Valle Jewelers

SOLD

I am the Mom of three boys, the oldest is 15 and we have discovered that there really isn't much to do for teens in this area.  We thought we didn't have anything to do when we were teenagers. Our kids really don't have anything to do.  They can't even ride their 4-wheelers (being mindful of property lines and wearing safety gear) without getting trouble, they are stopped by the police and chased. 

So what do you remember about being a teenager, what did you do?  I remember going to the movies, but that is expensive now.  We're open to ideas for our kids.

Le Roy Fire Department is responding to a report of a home being struck by lightning at 7989 Oatka Trail Road.  The possible lightening strike apparently set off the fire alarms at the house.

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Elba firefighters are responding to a report of live electrical wires down at 5969 Oak Orchard Road.  The report says there are flames visible.

UPDATE: The severe thunderstorm warning for Western New York was cancelled by the National Weather Service:

THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR SOUTHERN ERIE...SOUTH CENTRAL GENESEE AND WYOMING COUNTIES IS CANCELLED...
AT 233 PM EDT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR SHOWED THAT THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM THAT PROMPTED THE WARNING HAD WEAKENED AND WAS NO LONGER SEVERE...THUS THE WARNING HAS BEEN CANCELLED.
RADAR INDICATED THAT HEAVY RAIN...SMALL HAIL...AND GUSTY WINDS WERE STILL POSSIBLE FROM THE THUNDERSTORM.
A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 800 PM EDT THURSDAY EVENING FOR WESTERN NEW YORK.

See the gathering dark clouds?  The National Weather Service says that's the front of a severe thunderstorm about to hit Genesee County, and they make the warning fairly ominous:

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
THESE ARE DANGEROUS STORMS. IF YOU ARE IN THE PATH...PREPARE IMMEDIATELY FOR DAMAGING WINDS...DESTRUCTIVE HAIL...AND DEADLY CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING. PEOPLE OUTSIDE SHOULD MOVE TO A SHELTER... PREFERABLY INSIDE A STRONG BUILDING BUT AWAY FROM WINDOWS.

As I write, I see lightening to the northwest.

Here's the rest of the alert:

SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BUFFALO NY 215 PM EDT THU JUN 25 2009
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN BUFFALO HAS ISSUED A
* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR... NORTHERN ERIE COUNTY IN WESTERN NEW YORK SOUTHWESTERN GENESEE COUNTY IN WESTERN NEW YORK
* UNTIL 230 PM EDT
* AT 213 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR INDICATED A LINE OF SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS CAPABLE OF PRODUCING PENNY SIZE HAIL...AND DAMAGING WINDS IN EXCESS OF 60 MPH. THESE STORMS WERE LOCATED ALONG A LINE EXTENDING FROM 8 MILES EAST OF AKRON TO ORCHARD PARK TO 7 MILES NORTHWEST OF DERBY...AND MOVING SOUTHEAST AT 30 MPH.
* SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS WILL BE NEAR... MARILLA...ORCHARD PARK AND ALDEN BY 220 PM EDT... DERBY...DARIEN AND HAMBURG BY 225 PM EDT...
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
THESE ARE DANGEROUS STORMS. IF YOU ARE IN THE PATH...PREPARE IMMEDIATELY FOR DAMAGING WINDS...DESTRUCTIVE HAIL...AND DEADLY CLOUD TO GROUND LIGHTNING. PEOPLE OUTSIDE SHOULD MOVE TO A SHELTER... PREFERABLY INSIDE A STRONG BUILDING BUT AWAY FROM WINDOWS.
A SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 800 PM EDT THURSDAY EVENING FOR WESTERN NEW YORK.

As long as just about anybody can remember the Stafford Trading Post has been located in the Odd Fellows building at the corner of Main and Transit, but that may change before long.

The Stafford Planning Board approved a site plan last night for the adjoining lot, 6167 Main Road.

Owner Tom Englarth has been seeking approval for construction of a building suitable to a convience store and deli for nearly a year. Englarth expects Shelley Macan-Mouery, the current owner of the Stafford Trading Post, to move her store to the new location.

Laughing after the meeting, Englarth said, "I've never worked so hard to spend so much money in my life.

The new building will be fronted by 17 parking spaces and have a dining area for up to 25 people.

The site plan application says the proposed business will employ three people fulltime. The board stipulated that the occupant cannot be open for business between midnight and 5 a.m.

Macan-Mouery said this morning she isn't ready to discuss the possible relocation.

The lot is part of the four corners area, which has been designated a historical district.

Linda Call, president of the Stafford Historical Society, expressed concern during the meeting that the new building won't fit within the historical nature of the district.

"This is the most historic section of the Town of Stafford," Call said. "Doesn't this represent a modern intrusion into the district?"

Code Enforcement Officer Lester Mullen noted the current lot is vacant.

"It would be nice to fill that lot with something that would be good for the town," Mullen said.

"We're certainly mindful of the historic nature of the district," said board member Sharon Valyear-Gray, "but the current owner of the Odd Fellows building hasn't done anything with it."

The site plan passed on a unanimous vote.

A case of H1N1, often misidentified as "swine flu," has been reportedly contracted by a member of the United Memorial Medical Center staff, according to Randy Garney, interim director of the health department for Genesee County.

Citing privacy concerns, UMMC spokeswoman Colleen Flynn said she could not share any information about the reported case. Flynn did confirm that a memo was sent to employees on Tuesday.

Garney indicated people should not dwell too much on where a case might be found, but realize H1N1 is prevalent throughout the state.

"The general public should realize it's here," Garney said.

People, he said, are largely unaware of how  widespread H1N1 is at this point because most cases are never severe enough to lead to the person seeking medical attention.

But if you have flu-like symptoms, you have H1N1.

"It's considered H1N1 right now because we're beyond the flu season," Garney said. "If anybody has those symptoms, they should consider it H1N1."

Flu symptoms include fever, headache, muscle aches, chills and extreme tiredness.

While H1N1 is pervasive throughout New York, the fatality rate is very low, less than .1 percent.

"The more troubling part of H1N1 is that it's being more aggressive with five- to 21-year-olds," Garney said. "Flu is usually more aggressive with people over 65, but H1N1 is not bearing this out."

Because H1N1 is such a new strain, Garney said, there is still much scientists are trying to learn about the strain. It's possible that older people at one time contracted a variant of the strain in their younger years and now have some level of immunity.

Garney reiterated that people with flu-like symptoms should stay home and avoid as much as possible and avoid unnecessary contact with other people.  Also, wash your hands and maintain other sanitary practices.

The lilies below are from the side of our porch and the marigolds surround our vegetable garden