Morning News Brief
Written by Dan Fischer on April 24, 2023
The Greater Niagara Frontier Council, Boy Scouts of America based in Buffalo, and the Iroquois Trail Council, Boy Scouts of America based in Oakfield have announced they will be merging to form the Western New York Scout Council Inc., Boy Scouts of America. The merger will take place as of May 1 and the new council will serve youth from all of Erie, Niagara, Genesee, Orleans, and Wyoming Counties, and most of Livingston County. The councils say the benefits of the merger include: Improved program opportunities, Better support for volunteer leaders, A larger membership base to support a wider variety of events and activities, Greater financial sustainability and Two fully operational camp properties.
Six people could face prison time for allegedly stealing used cooking oil from Henrietta restaurants and trying to sell it. While it may look gross, the hardened yellowish-brown cooking oil is considered liquid gold to some — with refineries reportedly paying top dollar for the used oil to create biodiesel fuel. The Distillery, Osaka Sushi and the Asian Food Mart in Henrietta are all listed in a federal complaint, as the six suspects are charged with conspiracy to steal and resell the oil. According to court paperwork, investigators found an unregistered 9mm handgun with a full magazine next to it in an office at a warehouse on Commerce Drive along with 15000 gallons of used cooking oil. They also said they found more than $107,000 in cash inside a backpack locked in a room. The group behind the thefts is known across the U.S. and had been accused of doing the same thing in other states.
The government of New York has too many vehicles and need to sell them off. The Office of General Services of New York State has announced a series of spring and summer surplus vehicle auctions. They will be held across the state, with the first one in Syracuse today. There will be 15 in all, including three in the Capital Region. Those three will be May 4 in Albany, July 18 in Saratoga and July 19 in Albany again. In some cases, surplus equipment will also be sold.
Genesee County, in collaboration with Genesee Valley Conservancy, Western New York Land Conservancy, and Genesee Land Trust, has announced that the Agricultural & Farmland Protection Board will be accepting pre-applications from landowners interested in being considered for New York State Department of Agriculture & Markets Farmland Protection program or other state and federal farmland protection initiatives that may become available in the future. The Farmland Protection program buys conservation easements on the State’s most productive farmland. The program is completely voluntary, and the seller retains ownership of the land and can continue farming the property. However, the land will have permanent restrictions on commercial, residential, and industrial uses.
The Buffalo Bills announced Monday they will return to the Rochester area for training camp this summer. The team will hold training camp at St. John Fisher University in Pittsford for the 22nd time in 24 seasons. The university hosted Bills camp annually from 2000-2019 before taking a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic. The Bills returned last year after holding training camp at their facility in Orchard Park in 2020 and 2021. Date, times and further details for this summer’s practices will be announced at a later date.
His music isn’t pop, it isn’t rock or R&B. You probably haven’t heard him on a hits station but he is a legend and he is coming to Batavia. Jimmy Sturr, who has released 152 records and is the winner of 18 Grammy Awards. Starting in 1964 he released his first album on a 45 and he has been touring with his Polka band ever since. He’ll be performing Thursday at 7pm. Tickets start at 22.39 and come with 20 dollars in free play.
