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County seeks restitution for removing debris, barn along right-of-way in Town of Pavilion

By Mike Pettinella

Genesee County will be seeking at least $7,800 from a Batavia man in connection with a code enforcement dispute involving property that he was leasing in the Town of Pavilion.

County Highway Superintendent Tim Hens today informed The Batavian that he made several attempts – unsuccessfully -- to contact Justin Hofert and have him remove items and debris from the county right-of-way on property off Transit and East Bethany Le Roy roads.

“After no response from Mr. Hofert, the county removed the items at our costs and we will be seeking restitution from Mr. Hofert for these costs,” Hens said. “We’re still assembling final costs from dumpster expenses; we have $7,800 in labor and equipment thus far.”

The dispute, which had been going on for more than three months, centers upon a lease agreement between Hofert and an elderly East Bethany woman who owned the property just outside the Town of Stafford border.

Hens said problems arose when it was discovered that a county-owned abandoned right-of-way (formerly County Road 2) was part of the property being leased.

“County Road 2 was relocated many years ago, but the county has maintained the drainage from the older section as well as the new drainage along County Road 2,” he said.

The woman entered into a lease agreement with Hofert, who owns neighboring land, Hens said, inadvertently including the county-owned parcel in the deal. Previously, the county also had informed the woman that her barn on the property was encroaching on the abandoned right-of-way.

Hens said that Hofert proceeded to place many items and debris on the property and in the barn, prompting complaints to Town of Pavilion officials, who, in turn, notified the county of the code violations.

“Most of the junk is on county-owned property so technically speaking, the county would be the one in violation of the property maintenance code,” Hens said.

Working with the county attorney, Hens eventually was able to get the woman’s approval to remove the junk from the property.

“As much of Mr. Hofert’s debris was in and around the barn -- which was also built partly on the right-of-way without authorization -- the county obtained an affidavit from (the woman) to demolish and remove the barn as well, and that has been done,” Hens said. “Aside from seeking restitution from Mr. Hofert, the matter is settled.”

Aerial photo above shows the right-of-way property in dispute (shaded in red) and the barn that was on that parcel along East Bethany Le Roy Road in the Town of Pavilion.

Pavilion town supervisor: Residents are energized to do something about Route 63 traffic in school district

By Mike Pettinella

Armed with a petition of 1,100 signatures, Pavilion Town Supervisor Robert LaPoint (in photo) told the Genesee County Legislature this afternoon that the community he serves is galvanized to do something about what he says is a dangerous traffic situation in the vicinity of Pavilion Central School on Route 63.

“With the help of the school district, we put forth a petition just to see if there was interest in the community to try to address this issue and, in under a week, we had 1,100 signatures on that petition in support of it – which is just under half of the population of the Town of Pavilion,” he said. “There is definitely energy in the town to try to do something about this.”

LaPoint informed lawmakers of the situation during a Committee of the Whole meeting attended by Congressman Chris Jacobs at the Old County Courthouse Legislative Chambers. The meeting was set up to appraise the congressman with the county’s infrastructure needs, specifically bridges, water and high-speed internet access.

In Pavilion, LaPoint said the excessive amount of tractor-trailer traffic coming through the hamlet has created a hazardous condition, putting students, staff and parents at risk.

He said the amount of traffic on Route 63 coming from the north or the south past the school dictates how quickly school buses and cars exiting the school parking lots can pull onto the state highway.

“The elementary school is just off 63 on York Road and the high school and middle school are on Route 63,” LaPoint said. “The bus loops and the student parking lots exit directly onto Route 63. This is in a 35-mile-per-hour zone, but that seems like it’s an optional speed limit to many of the trucks that come through town.”

As a result, he said, the traffic flow “coming in and out of the school at various times of the day is a real challenge.”

LaPoint said he has spoken with state Department of Transportation officials, although “not in formal terms,” and understands that the DOT will have final say in any changes, such as traffic control devices or additional signage.

Noting that he would rely on road engineers for advice, he underscored that “everyone agrees it is a problem and a dangerous situation waiting to happen with our students, our faculty and our parents.”

When asked by The Batavian reporter what the petition stated, LaPoint said it “says we need to address the dangerous traffic conditions around the schools, and it goes into specifics about some of the challenges.”

“The elementary school doesn’t exit directly on to Route 63, but they’re 100 feet away. Over 50 percent of the cars exit the elementary school and attempt to turn, and it’s only a stop sign. The stop sign that terminates York Road, the cross street of Route 63 and then (there is) the bus loop; it’s like a continuation of York Road.”

LaPoint said he observes buses and cars backed up so far that they block all the parking lots.

“Everyone is stuck there waiting because without a timed traffic light, it’s just up to the traffic (on Route 63) to decide when you can go out,” he said. “And (it’s) because we have so many heavy tractor-trailers going down that road. To me, school buses and tractor-trailers don’t mix.”

Legislator Gary Maha asked LaPoint if the stretch near the school was zoned as a school district.

“It is not,” LaPoint answered. “It’s just a 35 (mph) right on through the hamlet. What they (DOT) told me was that without walkers and without a crossing guard … there was no way to get a school speed zone. We don’t have walkers or traffic safety crossing guard because it would be absurd to attempt to have students walking on that road. It would just be far too dangerous for us.”

Maha mentioned serving on the Route 63 Corridor committee led by Bruce Tehan about 30 years ago, and a study that looked at creating a bypass for trucks coming off or going to Interstate 390 and not using the Thruway.

“We found it would cost $1 million a mile (for a bypass),” Maha said.

LaPoint said the best option would be to have a flashing light put in at the intersection of Route 63 and York Road, one that could be activated during drop off times in the morning and at dismissal.

“We have an SRO (school resource officer) there, but I don’t know technically speaking how these things could be operated -- if an SRO could operate it,” he said. “I know he’s jumped out to direct traffic at various times because the flow situation can get so bad. It messes up the school, too. If their buses take an extra 10 minutes … then they’re not back in time.”

He brought up that transportation could become a bigger headache with the school entering into an in-school and remote learning schedule.

LaPoint also said he would like to see reduced speed all the way up to Route 246 about a quarter-mile to the southeast of the school, pointing out the difficulty at times of making turns from Route 246 (Perry Road) onto Route 63.

“What we have on 246 is a north-south road crossing at an angle, essentially double the size of road you’re trying to get across, when you try to clear that intersection,” he explained. “Not to mention that you need to square up to the road to see because there’s a blind hill there.

“When traffic is coming down above the speed limit, you can’t get across … and I’ve driven tractors and wagons across that intersection, and you do a sign of the cross and open it wide open and go. By the time you get across the road, you might be relying on somebody hitting the brakes that you couldn’t see before you left.”

On another front, LaPoint reported that the Town of Pavilion is “on the cusp” of building a new water tank to provide water service to the eastern and most of the northern part of the town, and that the town is hoping to add more water districts in the coming years.

While acknowledging that the Town of Pavilion would welcome any financial support for infrastructure, he was quick to thank the legislature for planning to make another revenue distribution to the county’s towns and villages.

Previous: Legislature set to distribute another round of payments to towns and villages.

“It really puts the proof in the pudding that when we started this whole thing (COVID-19), everybody was getting nervous,” he said. “The legislature is not trying to seize money. It is trying to be prudent at both the legislative county level and with all of our area municipalities. So, from the bottom of my heart, thank you very much.”

Photo by Mike Pettinella.

Tuesday's Primary: Town of Pavilion GOP endorses James Cleveland for Highway Superintendent

By Billie Owens

Press release:

The Town of Pavilion Republican Committee would like to remind the residents of Pavilion that the Republican Primary is Tuesday, June 23rd and that the polls will be open at the Town Building located at 1 Woodrow Drive, Pavilion.

The Pavilion Republican Committee has endorsed James Cleveland for Pavilion Highway Superintendent.

He has nearly 20 years of highway experience, has built a great working relationship with community organizations such as the library and school, and with neighboring town highway departments.

Look for James Cleveland on the June 23rd Primary Ballot.

Pavilion issues new policies due to coronavirus, transfer station for trash is now 'self-serve'

By Billie Owens

Press release:

Here's a list of the new policies at the Pavilion Town Hall for the coronavirus pandemic.

Public meetings will be posted on the town website with any special instructions or rules.

The big change is that Pavilion will be switching over its transfer station to be "self-serve" and rely on the honor system for people to dispose of their trash.

Town of Pavilion Outbreak Control Measures

In the continued effort to protect our entire community from the current viral epidemic the Town of Pavilion Government Offices will institute the follows measures, effective immediately.

Phone 585-584-3850

Town Clerk, ext. 201 clerk@townofpavilion.com

All face to face interaction will require an appointment. Please call or email to schedule. Dog license penalties will be waived for 30 days. Taxes should be mailed or left in the dropbox at town hall. Receipts will be mailed back to you. Handicap stickers, Marriage Certificates, Death Certificates, Hunting and Fishing Licenses will be issued by appointment.

Town Assessor, ext. 204 kennethrpike@gmail.com

Assessor hours are closed until further notice. 2020 assessment rates will be carried over from 2019 except in cases of new buildings, additions. Ken Pike can be reached on his cell phone at 585-355-0987.

Building and Zoning, ext. 205

Permits will still be issued but please call prior to submitting one. Some inspections are being handled via photograph or on site with limited personal interaction.

Library 585-584-8843

Library building is closed but curbside pickup is available. Please call or see the website for details http://hollwedellibrary.org/

Town Court, ext. 210

Town Court will be canceled for 45 days. Please call with questions.

Town Supervisor cell 585-245-1291, or ext. 202

Please call with questions, concerns, or for an appointment

Dump / Transfer Station

Residents may use the town transfer station on Saturday, March 21 with the following rules:

  • There will be no employees working to assist in trash drop off.
  • Each user is limited to TWO bags of trash.
  • Recycling will be closed and both dumpsters used for trash.
  • The building will be open from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m.
  • Please punch your own ticket, one punch per bag.
  • If you do not have a ticket, please deposit $5 per bag into the Town Hall Dropbox.
  • No special items are accepted at this time, just bagged trash.
  • If you are unable to lift your bag into the dumpster please leave it next to the dumpster.

Rob LaPoint, Town of Pavilion, Town Supervisor

(585) 584-3850, ext. 202

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