Le Roy

Press release:

Executives from Frontier Communications and IBM recently joined local officials and members of the business community at the D&R Depot Restaurant in Le Roy to celebrate being named a quarter finalist in America’s Best Communities (ABC) prize competition.

The team of Le Roy and Bergen is one of 50 communities in the competition, which is a $10 million initiative to stimulate economic revitalization in small towns and cities across the United States. The Le Roy and Bergen team has been awarded $50,000 to date to develop a comprehensive strategy to start the process of developing a plan to accelerate the revival of the local economies and improve the quality of life in their communities.

Sponsored by Frontier Communications, the ABC prize competition could net a Grand Prize of $3 million for the communities to advance their strategic economic development revitalization plan.

“The collaborative efforts of the community and business leaders of Le Roy and Bergen give reason to celebrate the recognition as one of America’s Best Communities,” said Robert Smith, Frontier Area general manager -- Rochester West. “The team has a great vision on economic development and nurturing the cultural identity of their towns, two key outcomes desired of this contest.”

Le Roy and Bergen have been awarded $35,000 from the ABC prize competition to date and $15,000 from American Express and IBM, which are serving as financial sponsor and active mentor, respectively, as the team pursues the next round of funding.

The Town of Le Roy, under the leadership of Supervisor Stephen R. Barbeau, has committed up to $15,000 to ensure the communities can compete in the semifinal round. Other sponsors and potential funding partners include local governments and businesses. A consultant also will be hired in July to finalize the community revitalization plan.

"This is a perfect example of communities working together for collective betterment. Our Upstate communities serve as a positive example for the rest of the state: coordination, cooperation, ingenuity and efficiencies of scale,” said New York State Assemblyman Stephen Hawley.

Only 15 communities will be selected to advance to the semifinal round. Each community will present to a panel of judges about why they deserve $100,000 to advance their plan. Three Grand Prize winners will receive up to $3 million.

 “Our communities demonstrate resiliency and survival,” said Rochelle Stein, Genesee County legislator. “Constant change and adaptation are hallmarks of our ability to survive and thrive. We have the benefit of youth investing in our family generational businesses, entrepreneurs advancing, and a passion to work towards a brighter future for our entire community. This contest will bring about positive energy for Le Roy and Bergen.  I am pleased to work with such high-caliber partners.”

The Genesee Gateway Local Development Corporation (GGLDC), an affiliate of the Genesee County Economic Development Center (GCEDC), is the entity administering the grant dollars and overseeing the selection of the consultant.

Benjamin Lindke, 41, and his wife, Molly Lindke, 41, pled guilty to offering a false instrument for filing. 

Each faces up to five years probation and six months in the Genesee County Jail.

In March 2013, the couple knowingly provided Social Services with a written statement containing false information. Benjamin failed to report his income on several forms. They are accused of receiving approximately $6,000 in food stamps they weren't ineligible to receive.

They will be sentenced Sept. 10.

A person is stuck inside the elevator at Le Roy Urgent Care Clinic, 8745 Lake Street Road. Le Roy Fire Department is responding in non-emergency mode.

Tyler J. Goodenough, 21, of West Filbert Street, East Rochester, is charged with aggravated DWI following a two-car accident in the parking lot of Darien Lake Theme Park.

Robert C. Hayes, 25, of Warsaw Road, Le Roy, is charged with criminal possession of a weapon, 4th, and unlawful possession of marijuana, plus he is cited for having an obstructed driver's view. Hayes was pulled over on Clay Street in Le Roy for allegedly having his driver view obstructed when police found him to be in possession of marijuana and an edged weapon.

Gena M. Naugle, 41, of South Lake Avenue, Bergen, is charged with endangering the welfare of a child and harassment, 2nd. Naugle allegedly threw a dinner plate at a juvenile causing glass shards to strike the juvenile. 

A 17-year-old male from Medina is charged with harassment, 2nd. The youth allegedly punched a male acquaintance several times at a residence in Bethany.

A two-car accident with minor injuries is reported on the westbound Thruway at mile marker 379.5. Le Roy fire and ambulance are responding.

Jamie Englerth, senior at Le Roy High School, learned how to state her case in court and participate in government elections at Empire Girls State last week.

The Empire Girls State is an educational workshop where girls from all over the state are selected to partake in political processes at the county and state levels. The girls are divided into groups to represent 11 counties and each county is assigned to the Nationalist or Federalist Party. They participate in a variety of activities including court cases, political campaigns and debates.

Englerth's favorite activity was assuming the role of district attorney in her county's court cases. She got the opportunity to learn how to build a solid case and prosecute crime. She won all four of her cases.  

During the program, she also learned how to write bills and participate in a caucus. Four girls from each county were nominated to run for governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general and comptroller. All the nominees gave speeches on why they would be the best candidate for the position. Then all the caucuses met and voted. 

"It was an awesome experience and I wish every girl could have because you learn so much and make so many friendships that will last you a lifetime," Englerth said.

More than 300 girls attended the weeklong workshop at the College at Brockport. The program is sponsored by the New York American Legion Auxiliary.

Englerth was chosen by the American Legion Auxiliary Le Roy Botts Fiorito Unit 576. Teachers at Le Roy High School first picked the top three candidates to be interviewed by the auxiliary. Then the auxiliary picked Englerth as its top choice. Only a handful of girls are chosen to participate from Genesee County.

At school, she is a member of the National Honor Society and plays basketball and soccer. Outside of school she volunteers at local triathlons, American Legion dinners and the Open Door Mission.

In the future, Englerth plans to study pre-law and Social Sciences at a four-year college and continue onto law school to fulfill her dream of becoming a district attorney for special victims.

"Women and children voices in court are often lost, especially children, and they need people to advocate for them," Englerth said. "People are always worried about what is going to happen to the person who did the crime, but I want to know what happens to the kids.

"I would be thinking about sentencing the person that hurts them and making sure they get what they deserve but I also would be thinking about what is going to happen to the kids or women after."

Robert P. Nowak, 58 of Pembroke, is charged with criminal mischief, 4th, and harassment, 2nd. Nowak's wife reportedly called 9-1-1 during a domestic dispute Saturday. State Police responded and Nowak allegedly locked the doors and refused to come out. Troopers set up a perimeter with the assistance  of the Sheriff's deputies and Corfu PD. Nowak was taken into custody without any injuries. State Police said alcohol was a factor in the incident.

Kenneth M. Gray, 23, no permanent address, is charged with criminal possession of stolen property. Gray was allegedly in possession of a vehicle reported stolen in the City of Batavia on June 29. Le Roy PD observed the vehicle being operated in the village and initiated a traffic stop. 

Bradley W. Achman, 19, of Elma, is charged with trespassing. Achman allegedly entered private property to gain access to a concert at Darien Lake Performing Arts Center.

Lonnie Ford III, 44, of South Main Street, Batavia, is charged with loitering. Officers Kevin DeFelice and Marc Lawrence were on Hutchins Street investigating an incident when Ford was observed walking down the middle of the street toward the officers. According to Police, Ford's actions (the actions are not specified in the press release) prevented the officers from exercising their duties. Ford was issued an appearance ticket.

Steven F. Marra, 22, of Gabbey Road, Corfu, is charged with unlawful possession of marijuana and inadequate headlamps. Marra was stopped at 2:52 a.m. on State Street, Batavia, by Officer Matthew Wojtaszczyk.

A car has reportedly hit a tree in front of 8715 W. Bergen Road, Le Roy. 

No word on injuries. 

Le Roy fire and Le Roy ambulance dispatched. 

UPDATE 12:34 a.m.: Traffic being shut down at Randall Road.

A 17-year-old female from Batavia is charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance, 7th, and criminal use of drug paraphernalia, 2nd. She allegedly possessed a quantity of crack cocaine and numerous items associated with the use of the drug. The incident happened on Lake Street in Le Roy. During the investigation by Deputy Joseph Corona, it was found that she had two active warrants out of the City of Batavia and was turned over to Batavia Police.

David W. King Jr., 34, of State Street, Batavia, is charged with criminal obstruction of breathing or blood circulation and endangering the welfare of a child. King allegedly choked a female acquaintance in the presence of her three children inside an apartment on State Street. He was put in Genesee County Jail on $2,000 bail.

Dustin J. Wilmet, 25, of Batavia, was arrested on three separate warrants issued by the Batavia City Court. The first warrant is for a DWI charge from 2014 that Wilmet allegedly failed to appear for. The second warrant is for petit larceny and criminal possession of stolen property charges after he was accused of possessing property that had been reported stolen from an apartment on Franklin Street, Batavia. The third warrant is for criminal possession of a forged instrument, 2nd, and petit larceny charges after he allegedly stole and cashed forged checks. He was put in Genesee County Jail without bail.

Stephen M. Esposito, 25, of Folsomdale Road, Cowlesville, was arrested on a bench warrant issued by the Batavia City Court. Esposito allegedly failed to appear for a ticket for aggravated unlicensed operation, 3rd. He was put in Genesee County Jail on $1,000 bail.

Taylor L. Finnin, 22, of Myrtle Street, Le Roy, is charged with petit larceny. Finnin allegedly stole a $100 cash from a coworker. The alleged incident happened on Commerce Drive in Batavia.

Rachel S. Brockenshire, 29, of Lear Road, Batavia, is charged with petit larceny. Brockenshire is accused of stealing property from Dollar General in Batavia. 

Karen L. Cooper, 49, of North Street, Le Roy, is charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance, 7th, criminal use of drug paraphernalia, 2nd, and failure to dim high beams following an incident on Lake Street in Le Roy. Cooper is accused of possessing a quantity of crack cocaine and numerous items associated with the use of the drug.

Kevin J. Palmer, 34, of Canandaigua Road, Walworth, is charged with unlawful possession of marijuana. The incident happened on Alleghany Road in Pembroke.

Jonathan M. Wulfert, 42, of Lake Road, Ontario, Canada, is charged with unlawful possession of marijuana and driver's view obstructed after Deputy Kevin McCarthy pulled him over on Route 77 in Pembroke for an equipment violation.

2015 Oatka Festival Regatta
TIme/Day/Date: 2 p.m., Saturday, July 18th
Place: Oatka Creek Bank, Wolcott Street, Le Roy
Cost: $10 per person
Please make checks payable to: Oatka Festival
Deadline to Register: July 8th

Mail to: Oatka Festival, Attn: Sam Vagg, PO Box 222, Le Roy, NY 14482
Please mail payment, the completed Team Registration Form, the 2015 Oatka Festival Regatta Application, Statement of Physical Condition, and Waiver & Release of Liability form for EACH MEMBER OF YOUR TEAM. All documents & rules are available for download at: www.oatkafestival.org/regatta. Please register your team together.
 
Prizes & Judging
Judging will be based on a points system based on several categories including:

• Overall Boat Design
• Costumes
• Team Spirit
• Originality

In order to be eligible for the overall winner, the boat must also complete the outlined course in the water. The overall winning team will be the recipient of the 2015 Oatka Regatta Cup.

There will also be several runner up prizes based on miscellaneous categories. All participants will receive a T-shirt & participant bag. 

Please contact Sam Vagg at svagg@bhcg.com with any questions.

A two-car accident with possible minor injuries is reported at 7824 Lake Road. Le Roy fire and ambulance responding.

Trees and power lines are down due to a line of thunderstorms that swept through Genesee County early this morning.

As of 9 a.m., National Grid has reported hundreds of customers affected from the power outages in Le Roy, Pavilion and Attica. There are also scattered outages in other areas affecting less than 10 customers each.

Law enforcement advises motorists to use caution because debris could still be blocking some roads.

(Storm damage on North Street in Le Roy. Photo taken by Lucie Griffis.)

Gilbert Street at the corner of West Main Street in Le Roy is closed due to power lines down across the street. According to Tom Wood, 2nd assistant chief for Le Roy Fire Department, three power lines are down. Residents are waiting for National Grid crews to restore their power.

Pictured below a tree down on South Jackson Street, Batavia.

Timothy C. Williamee, 45, of Clay Street, Le Roy, is charged with criminal obstruction of breathing or blood circulation, and endangering the welfare of a child, both class A misdemeanors, following a domestic dispute at the residence. Williamee allegedly threw an item at the victim while a small child was being held and put his arm around the victim's neck when the person attempted to leave. He was put in the Genesee County jail on $1,000 bail.

Linda L. Snyder, 32, of Central Avenue, Batavia, is charged with endangering the welfare of a child and harassment, 2nd, after an incident on June 12 on Liberty Street in Batavia. Snyder allegedly grabbed a juvenile by the shoulder during an altercation. Snyder is also charged with obstructing government administration following an incident on June 19 in Wendy's parking lot, Batavia. She is accused of attempting to prevent Batavia police from detaining a juvenile suspect who was allegedly involved in a criminal mischief complaint.

Richard H. Armstrong, 57, of Norwood Avenue, Rochester, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 percent or greater, driving over hazardous markings and moving from a lane unsafely. Armstrong was pulled over by Deputy Chad Minuto after he was seen driving into a grass median and crossing the center line on Route 19 in the Town of Le Roy.

Shawn R. Klineline, 32, of State Street Road, Batavia, is charged with DWI, aggravated DWI and speeding. Klineline was arrested by Deputy Joseph Corona following a traffic stop for alleged speeding on Route 237 in Stafford. 

Ronald M. Gerspach, 31, of Indian Church Road, West Seneca, is charged with DWI, driving a motor vehicle with greater then .08 BAC and moving from a lane unsafely following a single motor vehicle accident. Gerspach reportedly failed to negotiate the curve onto Snipery Road, Darien. He was accused of being intoxicated and arrested by Deputy Richard Schildwaster.

John D. Maloy is charged with aggravated DWI, speeding and moving from a lane unsafely following a traffic stop on Route 237 in Stafford.

Mark D. Tooley, 32, of Main Road, Stafford, is charged with endangering the welfare of a child and harassment, 2nd. Tooley was arrested following an incident on Main Road where he allegedly slapped another person who was holding a child. He left the scene and was later arrested by police. He jailed on $500 bail.

Henry W. Horton, 22, of West Sweden Road, Brockport, is charged with petit larceny and a class A misdemeanor. Horton allegedly took $97.51 worth of merchandise from Walgreens in the Village of Le Roy on June 14. He was jailed on $250 bail.

Jeremy D. Holmwood, 23, of Angling Road, Corfu, was arrested on a warrant issued by the City of Batavia. Holmwood was stopped by Deputy Richard Schildwaster for an alleged traffic violation on Alleghany Road in the Town of Pembroke. He was charged with aggravated unlicensed operation, 3rd. He was jailed on $2,000 bail.

Shannon L. Guiste, 44, of Washington Avenue, Batavia, is charged with petit larceny following a shoplifting complaint on Veterans Memorial Drive, Town of Batavia. Guiste is accused of attempting to steal $661 worth of merchandise from a department store. 

A teenager, of Walnut Street, Batavia, was arrested on a bench warrant issued by Batavia City Court. After being released under supervision, the youth allegedly violated the conditions by failing a drug test. He was put in Genesee County Jail.

David B. Thompson Jr., 45, of Naramore Drive, Batavia, was arrested following a neighbor's complaint of his dogs habitually barking at the residence.

Morgan S. Fallon, 18, of Washington Avenue, Batavia, is charged with criminal tampering, 3rd, following a domestic dispute. 

A teenager from Batavia is charged with no bell or signal device on a bicycle, failure to keep right and obstructing governmental administration, 2nd. He was seen by Officer Kevin DeFelice riding his bicycle and impeding traffic on Jefferson Avenue and warned to ride properly on the street. After he continued to ride improperly, he was arrested.

From our news partner, WBTA:

State Police suspect a driver may have suffered some type of medical problem causing him to crash into a concrete barrier of the Thruway at the Le Roy exit.

Troopers said the unidentified driver was taken to Strong Memorial Hospital with head injuries and chest pain.

The accident happened at 2:30 Thursday afternoon. Entrance and exit lanes were closed for more than an hour.

According to State Police, a Ford 350 pickup truck crashed into the concrete barrier that protects the toll booth. The impact bent one of the steel supports that supports the roof of the booth.

The pickup truck proceeded through the exit lane and flipped over on its roof.

(Photos submitted by Greg Luetticke-Archbell.)

Terrence D. "Spaz" Butler, 33, of Swan Street, Batavia, has been arrested on a sealed indictment warrant for allegedly selling crack cocaine on two occasions.

Butler was taken into custody when located as a passenger in a vehicle stopped by Le Roy PD at midnight Saturday in the Village of Le Roy.

Butler is charged with two counts of criminal sale of a controlled substance, 3rd, and two counts of criminal possession of a controlled substance, 3rd.

Butler was jailed on $25,000 bail or $50,000 bond.

Mark W. McWethy, 47, of Pearl Street Road, Batavia, was arrested on warrants stemming from the alleged sale of oxycodone to an agent of the Local Drug Task Force and for allegedly possessing drugs with the intent to sell during a traffic stop on Law Street, Batavia, in August 2014.

At the time of the stop, McWethy allegedly possessed heroin, with the intent to sell, and cocaine.

He was charged with criminal sale of a controlled substance, 3rd, criminal possession of a controlled substance, 3rd, and two counts of criminal possession of a controlled substance, 7th.

McWethy was jailed on $25,000 bail.

Michael A. Hahn, 36, of Lincoln Avenue, Attica, was arrested on a warrant out of Town of Darien Court for allegedly selling methamphetamine to an agent of the Local Drug Task Force.

He is charged with criminal sale of a controlled substance, 5th, criminal possession of a controlled substance, 5th, and criminal sale of a controlled substanc, 7th.

Hahn was jailed on $1,000 bail.

More than $2,000 in softball equipment and other items were stolen from a locked closet in the home dugout of a ball field at Le Roy High School sometime between Thursday and Monday, according to Investigator Roger Stone, Sheriff's Office.

Stone released a report indicating thieves made forced entry into the closet.

Stolen were:

• DeMarini CF6 softball bat 33/23
• Demarini CF6 softball bat 32/33
• DeMarini CF8 softball bat 33/23
• DeMarini CF7 softball bat
• DiMarini Vendetta softball bat
• Easton CXN softball bat
• Three Rawlings Coolflo softball batting helmets
• One Wilson softball helmet
• Two dozen Easton Incrediball softballs
• 3/35 packs of Wegmans bottled water
• 2/12 packs of Gatorade
• Box of assorted Nestle candy
• Three Frito-Lay assorted snack boxes

If caught, the thieves face possible charges of burglary, 3rd, criminal mischief, 3rd, and grand larceny, 4th.

Assisting in the investigation are Deputy Chad Minuto and Le Roy PD's school resource officer, Officer Eric Miller.

Tips can be phoned in to (585) 343-5000.