news

Press release:

April 4-10, 2022 is National Public Health Week (NPHW) and this year’s theme is “Public Health is Where You Are”. “National Public Health Week is a great opportunity to raise awareness about what public health is,” stated Paul Pettit, Public Health Director for Genesee and Orleans County Health Departments (GO Health). “This week is used to help educate and highlight the issues that are important to improving the health of individuals, our community and our nation.”

This year, there are daily themes for National Public Health Week and although these are complex issues, there are still small things that you can do to help the health of individuals and our community.

• Monday, April 4th – Racism: A Public Health Crisis
  • Racial inequities in health care, income, housing, education and many other factors have become more apparent during the COVID-19 pandemic. These inequities impact the health and well-being of community residents. We encourage you to start conversations about health equity and have an open dialogue about how biases and inequities contribute to health disparities in our community.
• Tuesday, April 5th – Public Health Workforce: Essential to our Future
  • The public health workforce is essential to our future! Thank a Public Health Professional for all the work that they have done throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, but also what they will continue to do in the future to help the health of our community.
• Wednesday, April 6th – Community: Collaboration and Resilience
  • Come together as a community to improve housing, education, food, transportation and the environment. Share your voice and opinions about the health of your community by completing the Community Health Assessment survey.  You can access the survey by visiting the following links:
    • English: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/GOWCHA2022English
    • Spanish: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/GOWCHA2022Spanish
  • You can also make an impact by joining a community garden, donating food to a local food pantry, or volunteering at a local food distribution event.
• Thursday, April 7th – World Health Day: Health is a Human Right
  • Celebrate World Health Day by protecting our planet and our health. Even doing small things such as walking or cycling to work, buying your groceries from local producers, recycling and buying less plastic can make a difference.
• Friday, April 8th – Accessibility: Closing the Health Equity Gap
  • While there are public health resources available where we live, some barriers can make it hard for people to access and use these resources. These barriers could be physical, mental, financial, or cultural. Advocate for your neighbors and engage your local leaders to support health equity in our community.
• Saturday, April 9th – Climate Change: Taking Action for Equity
  • Understanding and addressing climate change is critical to protecting human health and the environment. By working together, we can lessen the impacts of climate change by making choices that help reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Small things such as using water efficiently, buying used items, reusing or repurposing items, and reducing your food waste can all make a difference.
• Sunday, April 10th – Mental Wellness: Redefining the Meaning of Health
  • Each year, one in five American will experience mental illness. To improve your mental health, eat a well-balanced diet, engage in physical activity such as walking or hiking, participate in activities you enjoy and connect with others. Seeking help from a mental health professional is a sign of strength, not a weakness.  If you are struggling with depression, contact a mental health provider or call Care + Crisis Helpline at 585-283-5200, or text 741741.

GO Health hopes that you will help celebrate National Public Health Week by participating in some of the ideas described above to help make our community healthier, stronger and safer. By working together, we can build a healthier community and help everyone in Genesee and Orleans Counties live a healthier life. 

Press release:

The Michael Napoleone Memorial Foundation is getting Back to the Races as they prepare for the 2022 Derby Day Gala. Due to the pandemic, this major fundraiser has been on hold for the past 2 years, but it is back and better than ever!!! 

The Kentucky- Derby-themed event includes an evening filled with big hats, colorful outfits, food, beverages, raffles and auctions all to support the mission of the foundation. In preparation for the event, the Foundation is reaching out for sponsorships, donations, and prizes.   

Tickets and table sponsorships can be obtained by calling 585-861-0550. More information can be found at www.michaelshope.org. Tickets include admission, food, wine, beer, a professional photo and a random ticket for the actual race. There will be a contest for the best hat, prizes for the most Dapper Derby male and Dapper Derby couple!  

The event will be held May 7 at Terry Hills Golf Course & Banquet Facility in Batavia from 4-9 p.m. 

The Michael Napoleone Foundation assists families facing the challenges of a childhood cancer diagnosis, provides grants for youth activities and programs and supports research efforts in the study of pediatric blood cancers. The Foundation was created in memory of Michael Napoleone, who passed away in 2006 after a battle with Burkitt’s Lymphoma. It was created to give back to those who assisted and pay it forward to those in need.  

Lend a Hand of Hope and come and support a great event for a greater cause! 

Photos: File photo by Howard Owens

Daniel W. Knauss is indicated on counts of assault on a police officer, a Class C violent felony, assault in the second degree, a Class D violent felony, criminal contempt in the second degree, a Class A misdemeanor, criminal contempt in the first degree, a Class E felony, resisting arrest, a Class A misdemeanor, and two counts of harassment in the second degree. Knauss is accused of assaulting and causing serious physical injury to Trooper Mark Catanzaro while the trooper was attempting to perform his lawful duties during an incident on Sept. 29, in the Town of Pavilion. Knauss is accused of violating an order of protection on Sept. 29 by striking a football out of the hands of a protected person. He is accused of intentionally attempting to prevent his arrest. 

Tarrence Y. Williams is indicted on counts of criminal possession of a controlled substance in the third degree, a Class B felony and criminal possession of a controlled substance in the fourth degree, a Class C felony. Williams is accused of possession of cocaine with the intent to sell on Dec. 16 in the City of Batavia. He is accused of possessing preparations, compounds, mixtures or substances containing a narcotic drug, cocaine, with a weight of an eighth of an ounce or more.

Tamaneek T. Perez-Smith is indicted on counts of aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle in the first degree, aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle in the third degree, felony DWI, felony driving while ability impaired by drugs, resisting arrest, harassment in the second degree, and circumvention of an interlock device. Perez-Smith is accused of driving a 2010 Dodge on Park Road in the Town of Batavia on Sept. 30, while knowing her license was revoked and of driving while under the influence of alcohol and drugs. She is accused of intentionally trying to prevent her arrest. He is accused of kicking Deputy Kenneth Quackenbush. She is accused of driving a vehicle without an interlock device as previously ordered by a court.

Update: 7 p.m. with legislators' insurance premium information

Time is money – and during 2022-23 budget talks, members of the Batavia City Council emphasized that it was about time for them to get more money for their public service.

The nine members of the lawmaking body voted healthy pay increases for themselves, effective April 1, noting that they hadn’t received a salary hike for about nine years.

The new salary for eight of the Council people is $5,000 – a jump of 43 percent from the $3,500 in the previous budget – while the new salary for City Council President Eugene Jankowski Jr. is $7,000 – also up 43 percent from his previous stipend of $4,900.

Section 3-4 of the City Charter stipulates that “Council Members shall receive compensation with the Council President receiving 40 percent above the rate for the other Council Members.”

The combined total of the increases is $14,100.

City Manager Rachael Tabelski, when asked about the impact on the budget, said, “Since the introduction of the budget, the proposed tax rate of $8.94 per $1,000 of taxable assessed value has not changed.”

Contacted by The Batavia, Jankowski and Council member Robert Bialkowski said the increases are justified when considering how long it has been since the last raise and the amount of time and effort put into running city government.

“There’s a lot of work involved in being on Council -- from keeping up with all of the business on the agenda and addressing the concerns of our residents, who have put their trust in us,” Jankowski said. “I know that in my case, I have many more obligations beyond the monthly meetings.”

Bialkowski said he takes the job “very seriously” and believes that the pay should be even more than it is when compared to the Town of Batavia and Genesee County Legislature.

“If you do the job correctly, there’s a lot of hours involved,” he said. “I am averaging 20 hours a week on City of Batavia business and put in 40 hours alone just on organizing the Memorial Day parade.”

Bialkowski also pointed out that Council members receive no additional reimbursement for their cell phones, mileage or office expenses, such as copying documents.

Jankowski said he understood that some people believe it should be voluntary, but stands firm to his belief that “if people do a good job, there should be some compensation.”

“Plus, the fact that it is getting harder and harder to find people to serve on boards and committees,” he said.

GENESEE COUNTY LEGISLATURE PAY

The nine members of the Genesee County Legislature received a 2 percent increase for 2022, said County Manager Matt Landers.

All of them will earn $14,225, except Legislature Chair Rochelle Stein, who is paid $19,890 in consideration of her additional responsibilities. Each one also receives full health insurance (their share of the premium is 15 percent) or can take a “buy-back” of $2,600 if not accepting the insurance.

Legislators are required to attend about a half-dozen regular and committee meetings per month, plus all of them are county liaisons to “special assignment” committees.

Those special assignments include the Office for the Aging, Ag & Farmland Protection Board, Audit, Board of Health, Community Services Board/Mental Health, Cooperative Extension, County Park. County Planning Board, E911, Fish & Wildlife Management, Genesee Community College, Holland Land Office, STOP-DWI, Youth Board and Water Resources Agency.

“The legislators spend a considerable amount of time outside of legislature meetings at these at these committee assignments, and then there's also volumes of information that they have to prepare and read and review before meetings,” Landers said. “Beyond that, they are very involved (in day-to-day matters). I poll legislators on a variety of different RFPs (request for proposals) that we send out and they are involved in the hiring process, in many cases.”

Landers mentioned several task forces that are meeting now, such as fire protection, the new county jail and broadband.

“They are putting in plenty of time. They’re definitely not getting rich with the hours they put in,” he added.

TOWN OF BATAVIA BOARD PAY

Pay for Town of Batavia government officials is at the following levels:

Supervisor -- $40,000, same as in 2021.

Deputy Supervisor -- $18,000, same as in 2021.

Three Council members -- $12,000, an increase of $2,000 from 2021.

Tyrone Nathan Thigpen, Sr., 44, of Summit Street, Batavia, is charged with aggravated family offense, endangering the welfare of a child, menacing 2nd, and criminal possession of a weapon 4th.  Thigpen was charged after allegedly displaying a rifle during a disturbance in the presence of a woman and her children while on Batavia Elba Townline Road, Batavia, at 3:15 p.m., April 3. Thigpen was arraigned in Town of Batavia Court and ordered held without bail.

Mohammad Imran Nasir, 48, of Grandview Drive, Amherst, is charged with possessing 30,000 or more untaxed cigarettes for the purpose of sales and failure to signal a lane change.  Nasir was stopped at 6:53 p.m., March 31, on Route 77 in Pembroke, by Sgt. Andrew Hale.

(name redacted upon request), 47, of Alexander Road, Alexander, is charged with disobeying a mandate. xxxxx is accused of violating an order of protection at 7:20 a.m., March 28, in the Town of Alexander. He was issued an appearance ticket. He is also charged with criminal contempt 2nd for allegedly violating a stay-away order on five different occasions.

Jordan Ellsworth Brodie, 35, of West Bergen Road, Le Roy, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .18 or greater, and driving an uninspected motor vehicle. Brodie was stopped at 2:54 a.m., April 3, on Griswold Road, Le Roy, by Deputy David Moore. He was issued an appearance ticket.

Logan Nathaniel Norcott, 25, of Lockpit Road, Clyde, is charged with criminal contempt 2nd. A person filed a complaint with the Genesee County Sheriff's Office that Norcott violated an order of protection at 7:45 p.m., March 24.  Norcott was taken into custody by the State Police in Wayne County and transferred to GCSO custody. He was arraigned in Town of Batavia Court and released on his own recognizance. 

Alicia K. Urban, 36, of Batavia, is charged with acting in a manner injurious to a child less than 17 years old, driving while impaired by drugs, and aggravated DWI with a child in the car. Urban was stopped by State Police at 7:49 p.m., March 29, in the Town of Batavia. She was issued an appearance ticket.

Sarah P. Lytle, 39, of Batavia, is charged with petit larceny. Lytle is accused of stealing in the Town of Batavia at 6 p.m., April 1. She was arrested by State Police. She was released on an appearance ticket. No further details released.

Trevor T. Cook, 31, of Holley, is charged with felony DWAI/Drugs. Cook was stopped by State Police at 3:02 a.m., April 2, in the Tonawanda Indian Territory. He was issued an appearance ticket. No further information released.

Devin J. Manning, 22, of Le Roy, is charged with endangering the welfare of a child. Manning was arrested by State Police in connection with an incident reported at 4:36 p.m., March 31, in the Town of Le Roy.  He was released on an appearance ticket. No further details were released.

Press release:

The New York State Police will participate in a national crackdown on distracted driving as part of April’s National Distracted Driving Awareness Month. The enforcement effort, called Operation Hang Up, will include increased patrols and checkpoints targeting drivers using electronic devices while behind the wheel. This year’s enforcement detail will run from Monday, April 4, through Monday, April 11, 2022.

Troopers will be using both marked State Police vehicles and Concealed Identity Traffic Enforcement (CITE) vehicles to more easily identify motorists who are using handheld devices while driving. CITE vehicles allow the Trooper to better observe distracted driving violations.  These vehicles blend in with everyday traffic but are unmistakable as emergency vehicles once the emergency lighting is activated.

New York State Police Superintendent Kevin P. Bruen said, “Distracted Driving continues to be a leading factor in motor vehicle crashes. Yet, the deaths and injuries caused by distracted driving are 100 percent preventable. Drivers must be aware of their surroundings and consciously reduce distractions and behaviors that take their attention from the road.  State Police will continue to work toward making New York’s roads safer and we will hold distracted drivers accountable.”

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), 3,142 people were killed in the United States in distraction-affected crashes in 2020. To help prevent more tragedies, NHTSA recommends the following for motorists:

• If you must send or receive a text, pull over to a safe location and park your car first.
• If you have passengers, appoint a “designated texter” to handle all your texting.
• If you can’t resist the temptation to look at your phone, keep it in the trunk.

Current New York State law includes the following penalties for distracted drivers:

• For a first offense, the minimum fine is $50 and the maximum is $200
• A second offense in 18 months increases the maximum fine to $250
• A third offense in 18 months results in a maximum fine of $450
• Probationary and junior drivers face a 120-day suspension of their license for a first offense, and one-year revocation of their permit or license if a second offense is committed within six months

A car and semi-truck collision is reported at Oak Street and Park Road in the City of Batavia.

Unknown injuries. 

City Fire and Mercy EMS dispatched.

UPDATE 2:41 p.m.: No injuries reported.

Press release from Automobile Club of America:

Today’s national average price for a gallon of gasoline is $4.19, down 6 cents change from last week. One year ago, the price was $2.87. The New York State average is 4.29, down 6 cents from last week. A year ago, the NYS average was $2.90. AAA Western and Central New York (AAA WCNY) reports the following averages:

• Batavia - $4.32 (down 4 cents from last week)
• Buffalo - $4.33 (down 3 cents from last week)
• Elmira - $4.21 (down 4 cents from last week)
• Ithaca - $4.25 (down 7 cents from last week)
• Rochester - $4.35 (down 3 cents from last week)
• Rome - $4.26 (down 2 cents from last week)
• Syracuse - $4.28 (down 3 cents from last week)
• Watertown - $4.32 (down 3 cents from last week)

In the past week, the national average for a gallon of regular gasoline has decreased by six cents. According to data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA), total domestic gasoline stocks increased while gasoline demand decreased from 8.63 million barrels per day to 8.5 million. The drop in gas demand, alongside growth in total stocks, contributes to price decreases. If demand continues to decline as gasoline stocks continue to build, the national average will likely continue to move lower.

This morning, oil prices are hovering right around the $100 per barrel mark. They dropped after news that the U.S. will release one million barrels of oil per day from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. While the pump price impact will be determined by the exact amount of oil purchased in the market and the duration of the daily releases, some reports have noted that releases could last for up to 180 days. If the releases occurred for that long, the market would likely see downward pressure on oil prices. However, the global oil market remains highly volatile, so additional news that threatens supply could put upward pressure on oil prices.

From Gas Buddy:

“Oil prices fell last week as Covid cases in China surged, prompting restrictions on movements and hurting oil demand. Meanwhile, President Biden's announcement that the U.S. would be releasing 180 million barrels from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve caused an even further decline in oil, leading gas prices in nearly all areas of the country to fall over the last week," said Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy. "So long as oil prices remain under $100 per barrel and there is no escalations in Russia's war on Ukraine, we may be poised to see gas prices decline again this week as the U.S. and other countries try to raise oil supply to tip prices lower."

John Bruggman credits his dad’s past hobby for how the 21-year-old got involved in collecting and drawing — and now joining the ranks of being published for — the comics genre.

Bruggman just celebrated the debut of his first published book cover, Slumber #1, for Image Comics. It depicts a dark- and hollow-eyed woman holding a shotgun in a large doorway. He didn’t actually design the character, he said, but studied the sample pages, examples, and a brief description provided by the company. He submitted his version of lead character Stetson, which was chosen for the March cover release. 

“I’ve always been interested in drawing, and in high school, I started taking it more seriously in my junior year. As a kid opening up my dad’s comics, this is like a dream come true to be published with this company. But also professionally, it's a confidence boost in a weird way," the Batavia native said during an interview with The Batavian. “ "When I first came to college I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to find work or if my style would be popular with an audience. And it was a really nice confidence boost to see the praise from not only the company, but the people who bought it, and the orders that came in, and the support from the local area as well.”

The book is available at 3D Comics in Lancaster, Pressing Matters LLC in Buffalo, and through Bruggman’s website. It’s a freshly written comic with new characters and storylines. The premise features Stetson, a nightmare hunter and a dream detective.

From Image Comics: 

"She runs a shoddy back-alley business where she helps clients sleep at night by entering their dreams and killing their nightmares. But Stetson’s past comes back to haunt her when she tracks down a literal living nightmare—a serial killer that murders people in their sleep. SLUMBER is an ongoing series from the twisted minds of writer Tyler Burton Smith (Kung Fury and Child’s Play), and rising-star artist Vanessa Cardinals.”

Bruggman remembers how his passion was ignited for classic comic books. The then-middle school student had been down in his family basement and discovered his dad’s filing cabinet full of old comics. The paper materials were kindling for his own desire to join in as a collector.

“It’s like our family thing that we do. My brother started doing it as well. So we got into comics that way,” John Bruggman said. “It’s mostly from the artists I’ve been influenced by who worked in comics, they kind of worked more in horror. I’ve also taken influence from several tattoo artists as well.”

Bruggman’s process for the cover submission was to select a few key details from the premise — in this case, a door, the woman and a shotgun — and began with a loosely based sketch of poses, he said. He then figured out which poses he liked and worked out a final compilation in black and white to get an idea of the light and shadow placement. He finished it by digitally painting the work in color.  

A 2019 Batavia High School graduate, Bruggman is attending Daemen College pursuing a bachelors in illustration. His future goal is to be a freelancer working for Marvel and/or DC Comics. He’s into 1990s style comics, and likes “the diversity” of characters devised by individual artists. For example, Batman has been around since the 1930s, he said, and yet “no one has really drawn him the same.” He leans toward figures of horror with a punk, edgy influence.

His practice has been to nail down human anatomy, so often integral to comic book characters. Take a look at one of his favorites, Silver Surfer, depicting a well-chiseled body displaying many muscular poses. His work displays those fine-tuned details of muscles and curves, and he also appreciates the complexity of one’s limbs.

“Figure drawing has been a super big help, with live models. Hands and feet were the hard ones, because they’re so expressive,” he said. “We’re always progressing as artists and trying to be better. 

“And I feel like my work, especially as I keep working, I've noticed a lot of improvement, even in this last year. My work has come a long way and I'm very excited to see where it goes moving forward.”

He has been influenced by such artists as Simon Bisley, Frank Frazetta, Bill Sienkiewicz and Glenn Fabry. He believes there has been “kind of a resurgence” in the comics market with exclusive and limited covers and special editions. Those items have drawn a wider pool of collectors, he said.

Drawing helps to relieve stress, he said, and is “a highlight of my day.” He hopes to work his way into a freelance status and sees this published book cover as just the beginning.

“I really want to promote that because I really do think this is going to go somewhere very special. And usually when it comes to artists’ first issues that they work on, are like drawings: they do become more valuable. And I could see this happening with this book,” he said. “And then just looking at the story, the book, it's very well-read and the writers worked on a lot of comics and movies that were more horror related and artwork on the interior. I didn't do it, but it's a very unique style, a little cartoony, a little loose, and it's a good read. And, I don't know, I love it.”

For more information, go to: johnbruggmanart.com

Top photo of John Bruggman's published book cover for Slumber #1, by Image Comics. Above, Bruggman works on a project at school. Photos courtesy of John Bruggman and Image Comics. 

A residential chimney fire is reported at 2274 Chick Road, Darien.

The house has been evacuated.

Darien Fire and Mercy EMS responding.

Alexander also requested to the scene.

Press release:

City Councilman-at-Large Bob Bialkowski attended the “Back the Blue Rally” Saturday afternoon at the Brockport Veterans Club along with Assemblyman Steve Hawley who was one of the guest speakers. The entire club was filled to capacity with attendees and local dignitaries.

This rally was hosted by State Sen. Robert Ortt and retired New York Police Department Captain Alison Esposito (photo at right), who is a candidate for the state’s lieutenant governor. The event was conducted as a protest to SUNY Brockport inviting Anthony Bottom, a convicted murderer, aka Jalil Abdul Muntaqim, as a speaker.

“This is a SUNY school who wants to give a platform to legitimize a domestic terrorist,” Esposito said. 

Bottom was convicted of murdering two New York City police officers in 1971. He's out of jail and living in the Rochester area.

Controversy erupted when SUNY Brockport invited Muntaqim to speak to students. "SUNY Brockport decided not to have the April 6 event paid, but made it virtual instead,” said SUNY Brockport President Heidi Macpherson.

Bialkowski said Esposito talked about the violent nature of Bottom when she described how Bottom lured Patrolman Joseph Piagentini and Patrolman Waverly Jones to a public housing project in Harlen and assassinated them.

Jones died instantly and after Mr. Bottom ran out of bullets, he took Piagentini's service weapon and shot him 13 times while he begged for his life.

One day after he was released from prison, Bottom registered to vote on Oct. 8, 2020, by falsifying his application, which is a felony.

“I do not comprehend how a convicted murderer can claim he was a political prisoner and also was treated with racism when one of the fine officers he murdered was an African-American,” Bialkowski said.

“He has no business using a taxpayer funded state university as a platform to attempt to influence students. SUNY Brockport needs to be held accountable for allowing this activity. And why our governor (Kathy Hochul) has been silent about this is extremely puzzling.”

Batavia also was represented by retired City Police Officers Lt. James Henning and Sgt. John Peck (left to right in photo at top).

Administrators with the Le Roy Central School District have been working on the 2022-2023 budget for weeks and are currently proposing $27,708,988 in expenditures, an increase of $839,701 from the 2021-2022 budget, or a 3.13% increase.

Superintendent Merritt Holly said officials still need to compare revenue numbers to help finalize the budget.

School districts do not yet know how much state aid they will receive, which is a significant portion of every district's revenue. Without that number, officials cannot say what the anticipated tax levy will be and what that will mean for the tax rate on property owners in the district.

Under the property tax cap, the district can increase the levy by 2.39 percent.   

The school board will meet at 6 p.m. on Tuesday in the auditorium of Wolcott School.

For 50 years, the Genesee Society of Model Engineers has hosted a twice-annual model train show in Batavia and after a hiatus for COVID, the train show returned to the Richard C. Call Arena at GCC for the organization's 100th event.

Photos by Howard Owens

Lauren, 3, and Nathan, 6, of Le Roy, were excited this afternoon to meet the Easter Bunny, as part of an Easter Egg Hunt event, at Batavia First United Methodist Church.

If you've got nice things around your house that you no longer want, Angelina Pellegrino is ready to sell it for you, with all proceeds benefiting a family moving into a Habitat for Humanity home.

Pellegrino, herself a beneficiary of Habitat's homeownership program, has had previous garage sales to benefit the organization or its clients.

She's now collecting donations for the yard sale at her home, 150 State St., Batavia, on May 21 and 22 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

There are two Habitat homes near completion and Pellegrino said proceeds from this year's yard sale will go directly to the families moving into those homes.

"It's start-up cash," Pellegrino said.  "It's for the little things you need around the house that you don't really think about." 

If you have items to donate -- and it can be pretty much anything that somebody else might want to buy -- you can contact Pellegrino at (585) 356-4867 or angelinapellegrino@ymail.com.

"I know people will be spring cleaning and instead of tossing out what they don't want or donating it elsewhere, we could really use any donations at this time," Pellegrino said. "There is nothing really is off-limits for donations, from clothes to furniture. I am willing to pick up donations or people may drop them off at my house."

A two-vehicle, head-on collision is reported in the area of 6436 Alleghany Road, Alabama.

Injuries are reported.

Mercy Flight #8 out of Buffalo is on ground standby.

Alabama Fire and Mercy EMS responding.

UPDATE 10:58 a.m.: Indian Falls Fire requested to Route 77 and Route 63 intersection to shut down northbound traffic.

UPDATE 11:03 a.m.: Two patients, a second ambulance requested to the scene.  Mercy Flight can stand down.

Press release:

The Kiwanis Club of Batavia is very excited to bring back our annual Easter Egg Hunt on Saturday, April 16th.  After a two-year hiatus, we are happy to bring the community together again. With COVID restrictions lifted, the Easter Egg Hunt can now be safely run.  There are three age categories for the event: birth-3, 4-7 and 8-10.  The event will begin at 9 AM sharp at Centennial Park in Batavia.

In addition, we will continue last year’s new tradition, the Golden Prize Egg. Starting on Saturday, April 9th, there will be a Golden Prize Egg hidden daily at Centennial Park. The egg will be hidden at different times each day to allow for families with different schedules to search and have an equal chance of finding the egg. The Golden Prize Eggs are restricted to kids age 12 and under, although older siblings and family members can help search!  The winning Golden Prize Eggs must be turned in at the Easter Egg Hunt on April 16th to receive an Oliver's Chocolate Bunny prize. With both events going on, there are now 16 Golden Prize Eggs up for grabs!

We are asking those who find Golden Eggs prior to the Easter Egg Hunt, please send pictures to the Kiwanis Club of Batavia Facebook page.

The Kiwanis Club is very happy to provide these fun and healthy activities for families to participate in.

Photo: File photo from 2018 by Howard Owens

Press release:

Congressman Chris Jacobs (NY-27), a member of the Education and Labor Committee, released the following statement after participating in a roundtable yesterday on parents’ rights in their children’s classrooms.

“Yesterday we heard from two different organizations who have made it their mission to ensure parents are the primary stakeholders in their children’s education. Over the past couple of years, we have seen radical policies creep into our schools. Whether its critical race theory or the Biden administration’s attempts to villainize concerned parents, it has never been more important to ensure we are working in Congress to protect the right a parent has to be involved in their child’s education and to have full transparency into what is being taught in the classroom. I am proud to be a co-sponsor of the Parents Bill of Rights Act to federally codify these rights, and I will keep working tirelessly in Congress to support educational integrity in our schools.”

The Parents Bill of Rights Act codifies five basic rights parents have including participation, transparency, access to school budgets, access to officials, and protecting the privacy of their children. More information on this legislation can be found here.

Press release:

Assemblyman Steve Hawley (R,C,I-Batavia) announced today that he is distributing COVID-19 tests allocated to his office to towns, villages and cities within the 139th Assembly District. Residents seeking test kits are encouraged to go to their local municipal center in order to secure test kits for themselves and their families.

“We thought distributing these test kits to local municipalities would be the best means of getting them into the hands of families who need them most,” said Hawley. “I hope that this distribution will give families a good chance to get ahead of any future COVID-19 spikes, and keep their families prepared for whatever the future may hold.”

Press release:

“The failure to pass a timely budget when so much is on the line for public safety and people’s personal financial well-being speaks to the inability of Gov. Hochul to effectively lead the majorities and deliver results for the working people of New York state. Further inaction on their part to fix bail reform or provide inflation relief will only bring more suffering for our state’s residents, so they had better get their act together quickly.”