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Volume 214, No. 08
VISIT www.
AllOTSEGO.com, OTSEGO COUNTY’S DAILY NEWSPAPER/ONLINE
Cooperstown, New York, Thursday, February 24, 2022
New owners plan ‘local flavor’ for Elm Inn
Milford landmark poised for comeback The Elm Inn stands out at Milford’s everything as four corners, but it has stood vacant local as we can since closing in 2017. — local beers “We kept driving by and we loved and wines, local the building and the area,” said Kat and farmers, local Dan Wifnosky. “We couldn’t figure meats, local out why it sat empty for so long. We music.” had such vision for it.” The Elm began So they bought it in January of this its life in 1883 year. They also packed their belongas The Central ings to move from Illinois to Otsego Hotel, then County, where they bought a house in changed hands the Cherry Valley / Roseboom area, and to become The are working feverishly on the Inn as Milford Tavern. they target a late March or early April The current strucopening for the reimagined landmark. ture holds six “We were looking for something we Dan and Kat Wifnosky are hard at work getting The Elm Inn open bedrooms almost could afford and this is perfect,” Ms. for business later this spring. ready to accept Wifnosky said. “It’s gorgeous here. guests, a café that The pandemic changed everything we calls their “passion.” will offer coffees, were used to. Our lives changed and baked goods, breakfast and lunch, a As for The Elm Inn, the two have we had to change.” restaurant, and the tavern. big plans. The couple has an interesting and “We’ll have a nice wine and beer list “We see this as more of a community varied background, with both in the space,” said Dan Wifnosky. “Everyone and a full bar when we get our liquor information technology consulting seems excited that we’re reopening. It license,” Ms. Wifnosky said. “As far business. They lived in New York’s was a staple of the community in the as the restaurant, people will see the Capital District, moved to Las Vegas, past and we want to make it that again. traditional American comfort food plus then to Illinois, and now to Milford. We plan to recreate the space as a gath- some unexpected items on the menu. “We have history in the hospi- ering place, complete with a coffee We won’t be classified as an Italian tality arena as well, and The Elm Inn shop, tavern, and restaurant.” restaurant or steak house. A lot of our will let us complete our dream,” Ms. “We understand the need for tourist menu will be determined on what the Wifnosky said. With a home that sits business, but we plan to cater to the local farmers have to offer.” on 55 acres, she said the couple will locals,” he said. “They are our neigh“Look for prime rib night to make a cultivate the land for wine, a job she bors, our staple. We plan on keeping comeback!” she promised. INSIDE ►AREA DENTISTS PLEASED: Those one-of-a-kind Church and Scott jelly beans are back after a two-year COVID absence, page 2. ►MAJOR LEAGUE HEADACHE: Local author Jeff Katz wrote a book about baseball’s 1981 strike and it looks a lot like the owners’ lockout, page 3. ►YOUR ‘NORA JANE FIX’: Cooperstown Concert Series welcomes area favorite Nora Jane Struthers back for another show at the Otesaga, page 10. ►A FEW THOUGHTS ON IMPORTANT THINGS: Our columnists this week opine on gas prices and cynical press release promises, discuss COVID hitting home and attendant Pepcid research, consider the value of extracurricular BOCES activities, ponder life’s ponderables, and look at tobacco’s impact on communities of color . Pages 4, 5, and 8. Follow Breaking News On
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Delgado, Stefanik tour Otsego County manufacturers
ABOVE: Congresswoman Elise Stefanik (R-21) gets a pulverizer demonstration from Andela Products Production Manager Dave Spencer in Richfield Springs, while, BELOW: Congressman Antonio Delgado (D-19) tours Oneonta’s IOXUS facility.
‘I don’t think anyone knows what’s going on’
Irish Society: probably not Perhaps it was fun to think about for a week or so, but it sounds like the American Irish Historical Society has moved the target for its new headquarters from Cooperstown to elsewhere amid reports of Attorney General subpoenas and a possible investigation by Ireland’s parliament, Oireachtas. Word surfaced some two weeks ago that four members of the Manhattan-based Society’s board resigned in protest over a successful vote to move the group from its Fifth Avenue brownstone to the Village of Cooperstown. County, town, and village elected leaders knew nothing of the plan beyond what appeared in published reports; rumors swirled as AIHS supporters and area residents wondered exactly which property Society leaders had targeted in the surprise vote. Sources in New York City and Cooperstown pointed to Edgewater — the historic mansion at the corner of Lake and River streets in Cooperstown that at this time is listed as available for sale at a little more than two million dollars – as the Society’s intended landing place, though some with direct knowledge of the property dismissed those reports at week’s end.
Those same New York City sources said AIHS officials instead were considering the Hudson Valley Town of Saugerties for its new headquarters — a location the New York State Thruway serves more directly than Cooperstown. They said trustees remaining on the AIHS board dismissed outright the Cooperstown rumor and were “amused by the attention” the kerfuffle generated. The swirling rumors and deflections thereof came amid reports the Society dropped its asking price on the Manhattan headquarters from $52 million to $44 million. The building houses manuscripts, books, and historical artifacts tracing the Irish experience in America. IrishCentral.com, though, the online journal first reporting the Cooperstown move, reported this week that New York Attorney General Letitia James issued subpoenas to at least two current board members and a staff member in an investigation about management of the AIHS. Such a move would follow-through on a statement the AG issued in March 2021 when Society leadership first mooted the Continued on page 9
Rep. Elise Stefanik (R) stopped in Richfield Springs Tuesday, February 22, for her first official visit to Otsego County since lawmakers grafted its northernmost regions into her already-sprawling 21st Congressional District. “I used to have 12 counties in my district, now I’ll have 18 if I get the support of the voters in November,” she said as she toured Andela Products and Ruby Lake Glass on Route 28. She heard from Andela Production Manager Dave Spencer and Ruby Lake Managing Member Jonathan Gross as the pair talked about challenges facing small manufacturers in upstate New York. The two companies, which together recycle, pulverize, and repurpose glass products to ship around the world, struggle with the now-common pressures of supply chain, labor, and regulatory burdens. “It’s costing us three-and-a-half times more for a container ship now than it did six months ago,” Mr. Spencer said. The Congresswoman noted her concern that the companies’ labor woes mirror those of small businesses throughout her district. “We have to get people back to work,” she said. “I think the pandemic unemployment benefits went on too long and Continued on page 9
THE FREEMAN’S JOURNAL & HOMETOWN ONEONTA, OTSEGO COUNTY’S LARGEST PRINT CIRCULATION 2010 WINNERS OF The Otsego County Chamber/KEY BANK SMALL BUSINESS AWARD
Like a good Neighbor, StAte FArM iS there. ® with…
Melissa Manikas, Agent Cooperstown, NY 13326 607-547-2886