Holiday ’13
Wish Book
Inside This Week’s Edition
HOMETOWN ONEONTA
& The Otsego-Delaware Dispatch
!
E RE
F Volume 6, No. 9
By LIBBY CUDMORE
Ian Austin/HOMETOWN ONEONTA
Foothills Plans Day of Giving Sunday, 12/8
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More specifically, “Local First!” is a pre-Christmas THINK collaboration with LOCAL FIRST the Coopestown Chamber of Commerce, designed to remind shoppers what they can buy on local Main Streets. wn rsto Coope
‘L
ocal First!” is what it seems, says Barbara Ann Heegan, Otsego County Chamber president/CEO: “It creates an awareness of what’s in our own backyard.”
Marcos and Mia Hernandez, Oneonta, make monoprints on Plexiglass at OWL’s annual Paintfest on Saturday, Nov. 9.
Complimentary
Uniting On ‘Local First’ &
of Co mm erce
City of The Hills
Oneonta, N.Y., Friday, November 15, 2013
rs Ot be seg o County Cham
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“Instead of clicking on amazon. com or going to Binghamton or Albany, we can keep more of that money local,” said Heegan. “It’s surprising what people don’t know they can get,” said Pat Szarpa, Cooperstown Chamber executive director. “I get complimented on my shoes all the time – they’re
LONG BUDGET SHUTS GAP, HOLDS TAX HIKE TO 1.57%
ORGET T
he $2 million budget gap is closed. No layoffs are required. And the tax increase to City of Oneonta taxpayers next year will be 1.57 percent. Those were key components of the 2014 city budget City Manager Mike Long released Tuesday evening, Nov. 13. “We’re not breaking even,” Long observed. The gap is partly being filled by drawing down the “unassigned fund balance,” or surplus. REVIEW BUDGET AT WWW.ALLOTSEGO.COM
‘A
Foothills Day of Giving” is being planned 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 8, according to Foothills president Carol Blazina. Blazina said “a cadre of volunteers” will be available throughout the day to ferry non-perishable food donations into the building, so donors won’t even have to leave their cars. The “Day of Giving” will be a lead-in to that evening’s 8 p.m. Christmas concert, featuring Manhattan Transfer.
SPOTLIGHT ON ANDREW STAMMEL American Legion Commander Len Carson leads the salute during the 11/11 flag-disposal ceremony.
Opportunities for Otsego’s Head Start pre-school program has immediate openings for income-eligible children in Unadilla, Richfield Springs, Schenevus, Worcester and Oneonta centers. Youngsters must be 3 by Dec. 1. Call Ann Norby, (607) 433-8055. SUMMIT DUE: For the results of the second “Seward Summit” on economic development Thursday, Nov. 14, at Foothills, check later that day at: WWW.ALLOTSEGO.COM
Government Is About Listening To Each Other By LIBBY CUDMORE
FRACKING FORUM: The OCCA has agreed to sponsor a repeat of the Oct. 30 forum at Cornell, where Cooperstown’s Lou Allstadt and Chip Northrup detailed their conclusion that there is simply too little gas to frack in Otsego County. No time or place had been set as of press time. HEAD START SLOTS:
from Village Cobbler. Bruce Hall has a Radio Shack inside. And you wouldn’t think that you’d find a really nice set of wine glasses at the Cooperstown General Store.” The kick-off event will target Springbrook. “They’re a huge local employer,” said Heegan. Please See LOCAL, A6
K Ian Austin/HOMETOWN ONEONTA
Medal of Honor winner George Mukai, 92. who served in the 442nd Regimental Combat Team during World War II, was at Neahwa Park observances at 11 a.m. on 11/11, accompanied by vets Don Kelly and Tony Cecce.
Army veterans John Forman and Joe Borawa, both of Oneonta, honor the flag.
Chris Althiser, Worcester, honors her husband and son, who both served in Afghanistan.
City Engineer Jim Hawver, who did two tours in Afghanistan, and Mayor Dick Miller, a Vietnam War veteran, salute as the flag is raised.
nocking on doors was part of Andrew Stammel’s campaign, and nothing was going to keep him from meeting as many voters as he could. “I got two dog bites,” he said. “One time, I was out walking along Route 23 on an 80-degree day, cars whizzing by – it was not pleasant, but my campaign was about going out and meeting people.” It was a strategy that paid off when Democrat HOMETOWN ONEONTA Stammel led the ballotAndrew Staming in the four-way race mel takes ofTuesday, Nov. 5, for two fice Jan. 1. seats n the Oneonta Town Board. Stammel grew up in Stamford and got his law degree from Syracuse. After two years with Jacobs & Jacobs in his hometown, he opened his practice in 2011. Please See STAMMEL, A7 SPOTLIGHT ON PATTY JACOBS, A3
HOMETOWN ONEONTA, OTSEGO COUNTY’S LARGEST CIRCULATION NEWSPAPER 2010 WINNER OF The Otsego County Chamber/KEY BANK SMALL BUSINESS AWARD
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