Wednesday News Brief

Assemblyman Hawley Opposes Child-Sensitive Arrest Bill

Assemblyman Steve Hawley of Batavia is speaking out against a new bill that would require police to follow child-sensitive arrest procedures when a parent or guardian is taken into custody. The bill aims to reduce trauma for children, but Hawley says it places an unfair burden on law enforcement and doesn’t provide funding for the additional training and procedures required.
He called the proposal a “one-size-fits-all” solution that doesn’t account for the complexity of real-world situations. Hawley emphasized that officers are already trained to handle arrests involving families and said adding more requirements will only make the job harder and more expensive for already underfunded departments.
Despite acknowledging the good intentions behind the bill, Hawley ultimately voted against it, citing concerns about practicality, cost, and the impact on police performance.

Batavia Tax Payment Issues

Attention Batavia residents — a printing error on the 2025-2026 City/County tax bills means payments cannot be processed at the Binghamton address listed on your bill.
If you’re mailing in your payment, please send it to the City Clerk’s Office, One Batavia City Centre, Batavia, NY 14020. Payments can also be dropped off in the Drop Box outside City Hall or made in-person at the Clerk’s Office.
If you’ve already mailed your payment to Binghamton — don’t worry. Those payments will be forwarded to the city for proper processing.
The City of Batavia apologizes for the inconvenience and thanks you for your understanding.

Shooting at Greece Store

13WHAM News Reports, in Greece, New York, a robbery suspect was shot by a store owner Tuesday morning after allegedly attempting to rob the same convenience store he held up last month.
Greece Police say the masked suspect entered Henry’s Convenience Market on Denise Road around 7:30 a.m., pointed a gun at the owner, and was shot in self-defense.
Roughly 15 minutes later, officers found the suspect wounded on Lake Avenue in Rochester. He was taken to Strong Memorial Hospital and is in stable condition.
Police confirmed the man is also wanted in connection to an armed robbery at the same store on April 26. The store owner, who was not present during the first incident but knew about it, legally possessed the firearm used and was not injured.
Authorities recovered the suspect’s gun at the scene.
Anyone with information is urged to contact Greece Police.

Bergen Considers Moving Town Offices

In Bergen, the Town Board is proposing a plan to consolidate multiple town offices into one location to improve efficiency and save costs.
The proposal includes building a nearly 2,000 square foot addition to the town hall on Hunter Street to house the assessor and code enforcement offices, currently located at a separate site. The expansion would also provide secure record storage and a second meeting room.
The town also plans to move the historian’s office to a more accessible location and sell the building currently used for that office. Proceeds from the sale would help fund renovations to the Hartford Livery Museum.
A bond resolution for up to $990,000 will be considered at the Town Board’s June 10th meeting. The estimated cost to taxpayers? About $8 per year for a $150,000 home.
Construction is expected to begin in late winter or early spring.
Questions can be directed to the Town Supervisor’s office at (585) 494-1121 ext. 122.

New Flood Map Meeting

Got questions about flood risk or insurance? A FEMA representative will be available Thursday, May 15 at Genesee County Building Two in Batavia. Stop by anytime between 3 and 6:30 p.m. to get one-on-one answers—no formal presentation, just drop in when it’s convenient. Bring your flood insurance declaration page if you have it.

Sports Scores
Here are Tuesday’s Genesee County high school baseball scores:
Oakfield-Alabama fell to Akron, 6–3.
Elba was defeated by Kendall, 11–2.

Here are Tuesday’s Genesee County high school softball scores:
Alexander edged out Notre Dame Batavia, 6–5.
Oakfield-Alabama dominated Holley, 21–1.
Kendall held off Attica, 11–9.
Lyndonville beat Byron-Bergen, 17–5.
Elba topped Charles G. Finney, 11–3.
Pavilion outslugged Perry, 20–14.
And Batavia fell to Eastridge, 6–2.

Tully’s good times restaurant is expanding it’s fundraising effort to support the special Olympics.

Tomorrow night, The popular establishment will team up with local law enforcement to host “law and orders night” in which local law enforcement will team up with special Olympics athletes to become celebrity waiters from 5-8pm at most NY Tully’s locations, including Batavia’s own. Special Olympics New York serves 48 thousand athletes across the state with year round training, competitions and health screenings. If you can’t make it out tomorrow, You can get involved or make a donation at specialolympicsny.org

The Batavia City Council will have  Special Conference and Business meetings this upcoming Monday may 12^th at 7 PM.

The meeting will occur in the council board room on the second floor of the Batavia city center and will be open to the public. The video News Service will also be broadcasting the meeting from their youtube page.

Mercy flight is Continuing to recover from the loss of several aircraft in previous years.

Joanne beck of the Batavian reports, That for the 9^th year in a row, Genesee county has recommended funding toward the operation of Mercy Flight in Batavia. Director of Medical Operations Michael Gugliuzza stated that they just got their last of 4 Helicopters back online and were able to cover almost all the calls.They had received in the previous year. Mercy had responded to 64 Requests for Air Service in this Time Frame along side their regularly operating ambulances, in which they have 18 of. The vote for the Mercy funding will go to the Legislature on May 14^th.

Godfrey’s Pond is looking for vendors for their memorial day open house on Sunday may 25^th.

For those who have never been to Godfrey’s pond, they host a family friendly open house every year in which everyone is invited to explore their property and soak in all they have to offer at no cost. T If you’re interested in becoming a Vendor, spots are available and free so send an application to godfreyspond.org or contact Brenda boss. The event will go from 10 am to 5pm and again will be open to the public for free.