Gino Fanelli

Detainments by ICE have reached a record high. Criminals are not fueling the surge At the immigration detention center in Batavia, the average daily count of detainees reached a peak this fiscal year. But that figure came as non-criminal detainees increase by 60%, and now make up 83...

Detentions by ICE have reached a new high this fiscal year. But criminals are not fueling the surge. In the detention facility in Batavia, for example, more than 80% of the average daily population have no criminal record. Criminals are at their lowest point on record.

Peace Village was supposed to be better. Three years later, it's in snow-covered storage Completing the project is the top recommendation of an extensive report on homelessness released Monday by City Council President Miguel Meléndez.

The city's only sanctioned homeless encampment was razed to make way for better shelters. But for three winters they've sat in storage, and the cost to operate the site could exceed $1 million per year.

Rochester's struggle to find a veterinarian prompts $30,000 recruitment effort After three years, the city has still not received a single viable applicant to be its shelter veterinarian.

It's been nearly three years since Rochester's last shelter veterinarian quit. They have not had a single viable applicant.

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Rochester police cash in on surge of special event overtime Special event overtime rose by 31% from the previous year. While often reimbursed, that variety of overtime is given first dibs by senior officers, and a chance to boost pensions.

In the 2025 fiscal year, Rochester police overtime shot up by about $2 million. But a staffing shortage wasn't the driver. Rather, the cost of manning festivals, parades, and parking lots surged. www.wxxinews.org/local-news/2...

Rochester to ask federal judge to throw out Trump administration’s sanctuary city lawsuit The city intends to use the same arguments of Tenth Amendment protections in its defense. The Department of Justice has argued the city's policy obstructs federal immigration enforcement.

The city intends to seek a dismissal of a federal complaint brought by the Trump administration over its Sanctuary City policy. That complaint was already dismissed once, in November, and was refiled last month.

www.wxxinews.org/2026-01-28/r...

Every category of crime down in Rochester in 2025 All categories of crime dropped in Rochester between 2024 and 2025, with some hitting 10 year lows. But a gun violence state of emergency continues on.

Virtually every category of crime fell in Rochester in 2025, with some types hitting 10-year lows. People still don't feel safe.

www.wxxinews.org/2026-01-21/e...

Trump appears to flout courts with new threat to halt aid to sanctuary cities For the third time, and after twice being blocked by federal courts, President Donald Trump has threatened to withhold funds from sanctuary cities and locales. He set a start date of Feb. 1.

President Donald Trump has threatened again to pull funds from sanctuary cities and jurisdictions, in defiance of court orders and without a clear path to legally do so.
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In last minute switch, Rochester City Council gives itself a big raise The pay increase was originally slated to be 3%. But a last minute amendment increased the amount to nearly 25%, with no justification given for the change in amount.

In a last minute amendment, which did not see public review, City Council voted to increase its own pay from the proposed 3% to by nearly 25%.
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Fate of the last cobblestone house in Rochester still up in the air The city officially acquired the Lockwood-Alhart house on Culver Road in January. But its future has still yet to be determined, and a costly restoration need.

It's been two-and-a-half years since the city of Rochester's last cobblestone house was saved from demolition, and nearly a year since it's been placed under city ownership.

So what's changed for the long-neglected building? Turns out, not very much yet.
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Monroe County votes to not track AirBnbs and other short-term rentals By a vote of 21-8, Monroe County became the only major county in upstate New York to vote to not create a registry for short-term rentals.

Proponents of building the registry see political machines and corporate interest guiding the vote to opt out of building the system, mainly from the son of Congressman Joe Morelle, a close ally to County Executive Adam Bello.

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ICE detains local businessman and La Casa founder in alleged sting Omar Ramos Jimenez, 50, is originally from Mexico and has lived in Rochester since 2004. He and his wife founded and ran La Casa on Alexander Street and, before that, operated La Placita at the Public...

Omar Ramos Jimenez is currently appealing a determination for asylum status. On Wednesday, he went to the ICE Buffalo field office, under the guise of getting a new app for reporting to ICE installed on his phone. He was immediately detained without any hearing.

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Federal lawsuit challenges Trump cuts to housing funds, targeting of transgender people The proposed funding changes aim to radically reduce support for permanent housing, and target programs which acknowledge transgender people, show a racial preference, or are in areas that do not have...

The proposed HUD funding changes radically reduce support for permanent housing placements, and specifically target programs which support transgender people, or in areas that aren't harsh enough in punishing street homelessness.
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Sister Grace Miller, a relentless champion for the homeless, dies at 90 Miller founded the House of Mercy in 1985. At the time, it was a fledgling operation in a one-bedroom house on Central Park funded by $20,000 from the Sisters of Mercy, the progressive Catholic congre...

Sister Grace Miller, a Rochester legend, among the fiercest advocates for the homeless who has ever lived, has died. She was 90.

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Black Button Distilling New Owner Fires All Staff And Founder, Moves To Liquidate Its Spirits A few weeks after promising a new life for Rochester's first distillery since Prohibition, Blackstar fired all staff and founder Jason Barrett. It is now moving to sell off its remaining product.

In September, Black Button Distilling was promised new life by a nascent liquor firm, Blackstar. A few weeks later, all staff, including founder Jason Barrett, were called into a conference room and fired. The firm is now moving to liquidate the remaining spirits.

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New York now has 500 cannabis dispensaries. Its top weed official sees that number quadrupling. Felicia Reid, the state's acting director of the Office of Cannabis Management, sat down with WXXI News for a wide-ranging interview on the successes, and hurdles, to legal weed in New York.

On the heels of New York's 500th dispensary opening on South Clinton Avenue, I sat down with the acting director of the state Office of Cannabis Management to talk about the early hurdles of legal weed, its social equity goals, and how the agency has moved forward.

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Soaring health insurance costs spark outrage, tweaks, and a petition at Rochester Regional The updated health plan for 2026 sees some health system employees receiving a 500% increase in their payments.

The planned health insurance coverage for lower-income workers at RRH could go up by over 500%, prompting outrage among staffers, and a shift from the hospital system that many workers say still isn't enough.
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City Council aims to put $125k into immigrant rights training, hotline The partnership with Enlace would offer up to 500 people access to immigrant rights training, and fund a hotline for questions and connections to resources for immigrants.

Council will vote next week on funding a series of immigrant rights training sessions and a hotline for community and legal resources.

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Democrats flip Monroe County suburbs as voters upend status quo Democrats flipped the town supervisor seats in Perinton, Penfield, Mendon, Rush and Greece. And they held onto top posts in Irondequoit and Henrietta, while reliably sweeping all city races.

Democrats dominated Tuesday night in Monroe County, taking all but one of the supervisor seats they ran for, including flipping Greece, which has been Republican run for over a century.

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A barricaded ‘entertainment district’ in the East and Alexander neighborhood is driving popular businesses to close - CITY Magazine. Arts. Music. Culture. It’s a clear early autumn night as crowds of revelers make their way down East Avenue to the slew of watering holes and eateries that dot the strip. Before the weekend party begins, each must make a p...

The city made the so-called "entertainment district" as a salve to violent crime in the area. But its taken a toll on local businesses. This story explores the balance between public safety and nightlife, and how its tipped far enough to drive some to close.

www.roccitymag.com/arts-enterta...

In Greece, a chance for Democrats to flip a supervisor seat brings in big bucks Jeff McCann's bid for town supervisor in the long-held Republican stronghold has raised him more funds than any other supervisor candidate—by a wide margin.

Jeff McCann nearly tripled the fundraising of his opponent, and totals more than half of the amount raised by the 17 other candidates running in contested supervisor races combined. www.wxxinews.org/local-news/2...

A corruption charge and finger-pointing underpin Irondequoit supervisor race Longtime Democratic Town Board member John Perticone will face off against former assessor Anthony Costanza, who is accused of misusing his office for personal gain, in the November election.

In Irondequoit, the race for supervisor pits an embattled former assessor facing corruption charges and a longtime town boardmember against each other. With a hefty dash of finger-pointing.

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Swan Dive eyes closure, as police barricades and a changing industry take a toll The staple of the East End has faced challenges, from post-COVID changes in the industry to a Saturday "entertainment district" barricading the street.

The popular East End bar and eatery is eyeing a closure at year's end, citing a barricaded district on Saturday nights and a changing industry in East End.

This story is a preview of a longer exploration of the downtown "entertainment district," in CITY next month.

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Monroe County’s new DA will have to recuse himself from hundreds of cases Brian Green's previous job as a Irondequoit Town Judge means he will be unable to prosecute any cases that previously appeared before his bench.

The acting District Attorney will have to recuse himself from hundreds of cases due to his prior role as Irondequoit judge. How much that will cost taxpayers is anyone's guess: the DA's office deferred to the county, the county deferred to the DA's office. www.wxxinews.org/local-news/2...

From her hospice bed, Sister Grace Miller watches her new homeless shelter come to life La Madonna Della Strada will serve as a new, low-barrier shelter on West Main Street. A dream of the House of Mercy founder, the project is being made possible through a partnership with the Open Door...

From her hospice bed, House of Mercy founder Sister Grace Miller watched via video chat as the ribbon was cut on her new homeless shelter, La Madonna Della Strada. The low-barrier shelter will house up to 25 men.

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Developer set to secure final funds for Hotel Cadillac affordable housing project The building is planned to be turned into 42 apartments, fit with a community room, laundry, and an artist residency space.

City Council will vote this month on $1.1 million in loans to Cain Properties LLC, the final piece in getting the Hotel Cadillac renovated into an affordable housing project.
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Violent crime is falling in Rochester. Its underlying causes persist. The summer of 2025 saw the second lowest number of homicides in the past decade. But the issues of blight, addiction, and divestment that lead to violent crime are still ever-present.

Over the summer, 11 people were killed in the city of Rochester, the lowest since before the pandemic, and second lowest in the past decade. Shootings have also fallen dramatically. But the deep issues which contribute to violent crime are ever present.

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Rochester Housing Authority braces as government shutdown begins RHA, which oversees about $60 million in payments for over 26,000 tenants, is advising staff to conserve office supplies as the shutdown threatens federal housing funds.

As the government shutdown begins, the Rochester Housing Authority has begun planning on just what to do if its flow of federal housing dollars to over 26,000 recipients runs dry. www.wxxinews.org/local-news/2...

Other journos out there: has PACER also been irreparably broken for you too? It's been almost impossible to actually go from searching for a case, getting into it, and downloading a document for the past couple weeks.

Black Button Distilling has been saved from the brink. What comes next? Rochester's first distillery since Prohibition was on the edge of folding. A new partnership with a nascent liquor firm has given it a second chance.

Two months ago, Black Button Distilling was selling off its furniture to make rent. Now, a nascent liquor group has helped save it from the grave. What comes next for Rochester's first distillery since Prohibition? www.wxxinews.org/local-news/2...

For the first time in over 30 years, the city of Rochester plans to name a new historic preservation district. Cobbs Hill and Washington Grove will also be the first to be made up entirely of parkland. www.wxxinews.org/local-news/2...