Friday, April 10, 2009
Good Morning Buffalo: Alan Pergament
Tom and Loraine talk with the Buffalo News columnist about the spring TV season.
Cross-Border News: 4/10/09
Arlene White's guests include: Joel Noden from Niagara Parks Commission, and Amy Biber from the Buffalo Museum of Science.
Hometown News: Cheers and Jeers for Gov
Governor Paterson was met by cheers and jeers yesterday during appearances in Western New York. The cheers came when Paterson announced in Niagara Falls that Western New York will be getting 72-million dollars in federal stimulus funds for bridge, highway and road projects, which should create around 17-hundred jobs. He also discussed his plan to layoff about 89-hundred state workers. At the home opener for the Buffalo Bisons at Coca-Cola Field, some fans booed when they heard he would throw out the ceremonial first pitch.
HTN: No Plea Deal in Niagara Falls Murder
Prosecutors in Niagara County say a plea deal is out of the question for a Niagara Falls man accused of killing his wife. 26-year-old Robert Johnson will only be allowed to plea to the most serious charge of second-degree murder. Johnson is accused of stabbing his wife, 32-year-old Ahkenya Johnson, 41 times, and allegedly nearly decapitating her in January. The trial is slated to begin June 8th. Johnson's defense lawyer says he will explore the possibility that armed home intruders committed the murder.
HTN: Hotel Manager Buys Airport Property
The manager of the Ramada Inn Buffalo Airport, Rashmikant Patel, has purchased the Freeman Road hotel for three-and-a-half million dollars from Buffalo Realty Corp. Patel plans one million dollars worth of renovations including new carpets and mattresses. The 120-bed hotel will now become a Roadway Inn. It is located two miles from the airport.
HTN: Company Moving Operations to Medical Campus
The Buffalo-Niagara Medical Campus is set to become the home of a medical device manufacturing operation. SmartPill Corp. will be shifting its operations from Los Angeles to Buffalo starting May 8th. There will be an initial workforce of five assemblers, with the hope of doubling that next year. The SmartPill System uses an ingestible capsule, which is outfitted with sensors to monitor gastrointestinal health.
HTN: Delaware North, Pepsi Sign Deal
A new contract means that Buffalo-based Delaware North will exclusively sell and provide Pepsi products at over 200 venues around the country. Pepsi will now be available at airports, convention centers, vacation resorts, and at several sports arenas, not including HSBC Arena, because the Sabres just signed a long-term contract with Coca-Cola Bottling Co. of Buffalo.
HTN: Bighamton One Week Later
A memorial service is being planned for today in Binghamton to mark the one-week anniversary of the shooting massacre inside an immigration center. Last night, two of the victims from the shooting spree were laid to rest. Family and friends gathered for a funeral for Lan Ho. Her husband, Huynh Ho, was also injured in the shooting, but briefly left his hospital bedside for his wife's funeral. Through a translator, Ho says the events from last week were painful, with his wife dying in his arms.
HTN: Governor Gives Back Part of Salary
Governor Paterson is fulfilling a pledge to take a pay cut. The governor is cutting a check for 18-thousand dollars, equal to a ten-percent pay cut from his 179-thousand-dollar annual salary. But the move is not encouraging state union leaders to follow suit. The governor is threatening to lay off 89-hundred government workers, unless the state's public workers union accepts concessions. The Public Employees Federation is refusing to give up raises due this year. The governor is looking for 481-million dollars in savings over the next two years from unionized workers.
Thursday, April 9, 2009
Hometown Sports: Lynch will be Suspended
Bills running back Marshawn Lynch will be suspended for the first three games of the upcoming NFL season. Commissioner Roger Goodell will hand down the suspension to Lynch for his arrest in California in February on gun-possession charges. The official announcement could come Thursday.
HTN: Governor's Layoffs Detailed
More details have been released on Governor Paterson's plan to cut the state workforce by nearly nine-thousand. Just over two-thousand positions would be eliminated from the Correctional Services Agency, over 14-hundred at the Office of Mental Retardation, and one-thousand-54 from Mental Health. Union leaders are condemning the layoffs.
Hometown News: Buffalo Pediatrician Upgraded
The Buffalo doctor involved in a serious crash Tuesday has had his condition upgraded. Dr. Steven Ambrusko was seriously injured in the crash that killed his two young children. A trust fund has been set up to build a playground in the memory of six-year-old Katherine and four-year-old Peter Ambrusko at their school, the Environmental Charter School near Pittsburgh, where their mother lived. Calling hours for the Ambrusko children are set for Sunday at the Amigone Funeral home in the Town of Tonawanda, with a funeral mass Monday morning at St. Joseph Church in Buffalo. Authorities still don't know what caused the crash and say Ambrusko may have fallen asleep at the wheel. Investigators are examining what role delayed response by State Troopers had in the deaths of the children.
HTN: Unique Fundraiser at Lockport School
A Lockport middle school raised more than $3000 for a schoolmate yesterday, by duct-taping principal Jim Snyder to the wall. The money will be donated to the family of North Park Middle 7th grader Selena Torres, who was injured in a December car crash that killed her mother.
HTN: Meningitis Case in Batavia?
State health officials are investigating the sudden death of a Genesee County girl. Authorities say meningitis is being looked at as the possible cause to Monday's death in Batavia. Health officials say the girl had symptoms consistent with the infection in the brain or spinal cord. Family members are being treated as a precaution. About 300 people a year die from bacterial meningitis.
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
Hometown Weather: Spring Snows
A lake-effect snow warning remains in effect through 8 a.m. for southern Erie, Wyoming Chautauqua, and Cattaraugus counties. Those southern areas could wind up with another three-to-five inches by the time it expires. Yesterday, some areas of Chautauqua County reported nearly six inches of snow. The National Weather Service says snow in April is not all that unusual. Average snowfall for the month is three-point-six inches.
Hometown News: Why Delay in Responding to Fatal Accident?
State Police officials plan to investigate why it took three hours to respond to an accident that killed two children and seriously injured their father. A passing driver reported seeing the vehicle go off the Thruway in Chautaqua County at 5:18 p-m Monday, but a trooper found no skid marks or sign-post damage, so he cleared the call. At about 8:15, the father apparently regained consciousness and called to report the accident.
HTN: 3407 Memorial Update
Yesterday, 85 volunteers faced the weather to help collect money for a Flight 3407 memorial in Clarence Center. The Clarence Center Chamber of Commerce and the Clarence Rotary Foundation have established a fund at the Bank of Akron in the village. Location and design of a permanent have yet to be decided. Anyone who wishes to donate may contact the Clarence Elementary School.
HTN: Urban Farm Debated in Buffalo
The president of the local chapter of Habitat for Humanity, Ronald Talboys, says he's willing to consider moving new housing to other sites so that two acres of vacant land on Wilson Street can be turned into an urban family farm. Mark and Janice Stevens of Buffalo have offered to buy the land from the city and plant on it.
HTN: NYers Dislike New Budget
A new Quinnipiac poll shows 60-percent of New Yorkers disapprove of the 132-billion-dollar spending plan that includes a tax hike on the wealthy and increases numerous fees. Nearly two-thirds blame Governor Paterson and state lawmakers for failing to show political courage and make difficult decisions in the economic downturn.
HTN: Water Bottle Bill Set for June 1
New Yorkers can soon collect a nickel for recycling a water bottle. Governor David Paterson is expanding the state's bottle bill to include bottled water in addition to soda and beer containers. Supporters say the new law will encourage recyclin; critics say that businesses will raise prices to cover the costs of processing more containers. New York State is expected to get more than one-hundred-million-dollars in unclaimed deposits. The new law goes into effect on June 1st.
State Senate Approves Red Light Cameras
The New York State Senate has now joined the Assembly in approving legislation that would bring red light cameras to Buffalo and other parts of the state. The initiative is part of a five-year pilot program that will be evaluated to see if the cameras should be made permanent. Motorists will face fines of up to 50-dollars if caught on camera blowing a red light. Critics say the program is not about increasing safety but generating revenue from fines.
HTN: Wi-Fi on the Waterfront
The Buffalo Urban Development Corp. and the Erie Canal Harbor Development Corp. have joined together to make Buffalo waterfront more computer-friendly. Amherst-based IPLogic has awarded a 21-thousand contract to help make the site Wi-Fi accessible. The company was the only firm to respond to an open call for bids. The total cost of the project is 50-thousand-dollar project, and the system should be up and running by late May.
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
The Sports Insiders
From Monday 4/6/09: Joe Major with Allen Wilson and Rodney McKissic. Guests include Buffalo News writer Bob DiCesare from the Masters.
Hometown News: Winter Weather Alert
The calendar says Spring but it looks like anything but here in Western New York. We're expected to get another couple inches of snow in the Metro today. The southern portions of Erie County as well as Wyoming, Chautauqua, and Cattaraugus Counties should see two-to-four inches while the rest of the region will see an additional one to three inches. This comes on top of what we got hit with last night. By the time it's all said and done, some areas could see ten inches of the white stuff. In the month of March we only saw a half-inch of snow and it looks like Old Man Winter is giving us some payback.
HTN: Red Light Cameras OKd by Albany
The New York State Assembly has given the green light for red light cameras to be installed in Buffalo and Rochester, as well as Yonkers and Long Island. Under the Assembly package, municipalities would be authorized to institute a five-year trial program. Opponents say it is simply a way for the city to generate revenue from the fines. Some say the photos are an invasion of civil liberties and say there is no proof the devices cut down on accidents.
HTN: Dashboard Cameras for Cops on Rise
The use of dashboard cameras in police cruisers is on the rise in our area. At least four local police departments, including the Town of Tonawanda and the State Police, are using dashboard cameras in their patrol cars. Officers say the cameras protect them from unfounded complaints of abuse. The Buffalo Police Department has yet to install the cameras.
HTN: Tragic Crash on Thruway in Chaut Cty
Two young children are dead after their car rolled off the Thruway in Chautauqua County and overturned. State police say 35-year-old Steven Ambrusko of Buffalo was driving east on the 90 in the town of Portland late Monday afternoon when he drifted off the shoulder, and hit an embankment. Troopers say 6-year-old Katherine Ambrusko, and her 4-year-old brother, Peter, were pronounced dead at the scene.
HTN: Erie County Hotline for Underaged Drinking
The Erie County Sheriff's Department has set up a toll-free hotline for residents to anonymously report underage drinking. The number is 1-800-851-1932. A similar hotline is already in place in several nearby counties. Sheriff Timothy Howard says a tragedy can be avoided if authorities can get tips in time.
HTN: Cross-Dressing Bank Robber
Buffalo police are looking for a cross-dressing bank robber. Authorities say a man dressed as a woman hit the M-and-T Bank on the 18-hundred block of Main Street just after 12 noon Monday. Investigators say the man handed the teller a note stating he had a bomb. The suspect made off with an undisclosed amount of cash.
HTN: Alien Nabbed at Bridge with Underaged Girl
A kidnapping suspect from Delaware has been nabbed at the Peace Bridge. Customs agents arrested 24-year-old Jose Reyes-Quezada Sunday with a 13-year-old runaway. Police say a check found that Reyes-Quezada was wanted on kidnapping charges in Delaware. He also faces deportation, because agents say he is an illegal alien from Nicaragua.
HTN: Statler Faces Gas Shutoff, Bankruptcy
Authorities are working to keep the gas on at the Statler. National Fuel was about to shut off service at the downtown landmark because of unpaid bills. Last month, a judge assigned management of the property to local businessman Steve Leous. Owner Bashaar Issa could be forced into an involuntary bankruptcy after failing to sell the building.
HTN: Wegmans is Number One
An article in "Consumer Reports" magazine gives Wegmans top billing on a national list of supermarkets. The report rates stores on service, prices, perishable products, and reports of problems. Discount chain Aldi came in at 14th out of 59 stores, while BJ's Wholesale Club came in at 42nd, and Tops finished at number 51.
Hometown Sports: Sabres Falling Short
The Sabres couldn't raise their game to beat a superior team, and thus their playoff chances took another critical hit last night. Marian Hossa scored twice in a three-goal third period as the Red Wings skated past the Sabres 4-1 at HSBC Arena. Paul Gaustad had the only goal of the night for Buffalo, which is four points behind the Rangers and Panthers for the final playoff spot in the East, with only three games left.
Monday, April 6, 2009
BuffaloStyle 4/4/09
Host Christina Abt interviews local writer Greg Ames, author of Buffalo Lockjaw.
Good Morning Buffalo: Broadway Market
Tom and Loraine talk to Ron Glatzhofer from the Broadway Market
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