Vol. 167, No. 38 • CLINTON, NEW YORK • April 2, 2014
Clinton Figure Skating Club Closes Season with Enthusiasm
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Back to Forever by John and Emily Howard
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Above: Renee Potasiewicz, Katelyn Potasiewicz, Lauren Chesebro and Daniella Goodfriend wait behind the glass for their “Purple Rain” skate. by John Howard
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he Clinton Figure Skating Club has seen a slight decrease in revenue and participation with the economic downturn, but the mood was far from bleak during their 2013–14 Fantasy On Ice season finale, “Totally ‘80s.” Hope for the organization shined on and off the ice this weekend through enthusiastic skaters and parents alike. The club sold a total of 1,493 tickets this weekend, a slight
drop from last year’s 1,624. The number of kids enrolled only fell by three skaters, but that number is almost 100 spots less than what the club saw five years ago. Figure skating is notoriously an expensive sport with membership alone costing several hundreds of dollars a season per skater. According to Patrick Sarandrea, president of the club, new indoor sports facilities offering cheaper alternatives have also taken
a toll. It is getting harder for parents to justify the cost of putting their children in the sport. Membership fees do not cover the cost of putting on an annual show at the end of the year. The club instead relies heavily on program advertising, sales and volunteering. Parents down to varsity hockey players pitch in to fill a daunting list of roles SKATING, page 16
Construction Begins on Romanelli Building
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project aimed at restoring and preserving the Romanelli cornerstone building at West Park Row and College Street has begun. Construction will take place in an effort to improve safety, as well as the efficiency and beauty of the landmark. The structure, which aside from being the Romanelli
Communications headquarters is currently home to Cafe J and Two Ewes yarn and fabric shop, is scheduled to receive repairs to brickwork and new windows. Initial construction fencing and scaffolding has been assembled outside. The building owners and the project’s contractor, HR Beebe Construction, are working with
the Village to find a way for work to carry out in “the least obtrusive manner.” “This is a massive undertaking on the busiest corner in the village,” Romanelli Communications VP Beth Romanelli-Hapanowicz said CONSTRUCTION, page 5
CCS Receives Additional State Aid
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n Friday, March 28, the Clinton School District received an additional $190,000 in state aid, helping shrink a gap in the projected budget and revenue for 201415. The District has been working to account for a proposed $262,000 cut in
funding from Albany. A presentation was made at the Board of Education meeting on Tuesday, March 25, with recommendations to decrease costs if the District had not received any additional aid. Items to be cut included an additional reading teacher and a cleaner for the school. The added cost of these positions accounted for some of the budget’s 3.36 percent increase from last year.
The new aid, along with an interest payment that was able to be postponed, has allowed the Board to save these new positions, according to Business Administrator Joseph Barretta. An updated budget proposal will be presented at the next Board of Education meeting on Tuesday, April 8. A budget adoption is expected at the end of the month.
hree months ago, we left Los Angeles. Tucked in the back of our Ford Escape, our cats were complaining from a dog crate we bought them for the trip. By nightfall, we hit Gallup, N.M. alongside a snow storm. We ate burgers at a greasy Denny’s next to our hotel and tried not to worry about the massive challenge that lay ahead. Four months before that, we were also eating—breakfast this time—at “The Good Neighbor,” our favorite Sunday morning spot on the same block as our Studio City apartment. It was during this meal that, while presenting our selected gripes about the jobs we were working far too hard at, enjoying far too little, and dreading going in again the next day far too much, the question came up: What if we moved home and ran The Courier? As that romantic daydream has somehow come to fruition, it’s hard to know what to think. We’re excited to deliver a product that represents our skills and resolve. We’re shocked at to the support and encouragement we’ve encountered since it was announced that the paper was changing hands. And we’re grateful to Cynthia for what has proven to be a very open and instructive transition period. Mostly, we’re incredibly humbled by the significance of the institution we just took on, both on a historic and community level. Chris Hardwick, the former alcoholic MTV host turned niche media kingpin, talks a lot about the idea of brands getting away from their creators on his popular podcast, “The Nerdist.” For instance, when George Lucas made the decision to sell the “Star Wars” franchise to Disney, FOREVER, page 2