Morning News Brief
Written by Tom Tharp on November 16, 2021
The Batavia City Schools new superintendent has been announced. Jason Smith, currently the superintendent of Lyndonville Central School district, is a Batavia High school class of 1990 graduate. He held various principal positions in the Elba Central School district from 2004-2011. He began his career in 1994 in the Albion Central School District as a high school social studies teacher. Smith received his Certificate of Advanced Study in Educational Administration and his Masters of Science in Education from the State University of New York College at Brockport. He is also a graduate of The State University of New York at Geneseo, where he received his Bachelor of Arts in History with a Minor in Sociology. Smith is scheduled to start his new role on Jan. 3, 2022.
The City of Batavia will hold a gathering for the Honorable Rose Mary Christian on Monday November 22 in the Council Chamber beginning at 5:30 P.M. All citizens and well-wishers are invited to attend. The gathering will be followed by a City Council meeting where proclamations will be presented to Councilwoman Christian honoring her for her years of service. Councilwoman Christian announced her resignation from City Council on November 15, 2021. She is resigning the seat because she is moving out of the sixth ward.
New York State Police are warning residents to keep an eye out for people stealing packages out of mailboxes and off porches. So far, incidents have been reported in three towns. Some helpful tips: be home when your package is delivered, if you don’t plan to be home schedule the package to be dropped off at a trusted neighbor’s home or at a FedEx, UPS or Amazon locker service. On Monday, two people were arrested and charged with the misdemeanors of Petit Larceny, Criminal Possession of Stolen Property in the fifth degree and Conspiracy in the sixth degree.
New Yorkers will soon have new ways of carrying food out of restaurants. Effective January 1 no covered food service provider or store will be allowed to sell, offer for sale, or distribute disposable food service containers that contain expanded polystyrene foam in the state. The Act will stop the sale and distribution of expanded polystyrene foam containers and loose fill “packing peanuts.”
Is there a little relief coming for high gas prices? Today’s national average price for a gallon of gasoline is $3.42, no change from last week when the numbers are rounded. The New York State average is $3.56 –no change from last week. In Batavia, pump prices are $3.45 which is one cent lower than last week.
The Genesee County Health department is looking for 2 dogs involved in a dog bite incident on Tuesday November 9th around 5:30pm. A group of people were playing outside in the area of 16 Maple Street in Batavia when two dogs came running towards the group from the direction of Evans and Thorpe Street. One of the dogs charged the group and bit one individual. The dog that bit was a shorthaired, pitbull shepherd mix and approximately 50 to 60 pounds. It is described as being tan with a white chest. The other dog was described as a light tan, shorter-sized dog who was approximately 40 to 50 pounds. It is important to determine if either dog has rabies. If you have information about the location of the dogs and its owner, please contact the Genesee County Health Department at 585-344-2580 ext. 5555.
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul announced that the state is opening a mass COVID-19 vaccination site for 5 to 11-year-olds at UB South. UB South Campus is one of ten locations across the state offering COVID-19 vaccinations to kids between 5 and 11.
