THE OFFICIAL NEWSPAPER OF THE TOWN AND VILLAGE OF ELLICOTTVILLE, NEW YORK THE OFFICIAL NEWSPAPER OF GREAT VALLEY, NEW YORK
VOLUME 1 ISSUE 43 FREE www.EllicottvilleTimes.com
! r a e Y w e N Happy
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 28, 2012
New Year’s Eve EVL Style Torchlight Parade, Live Music Bowling & Fireworks By Rebecca LaBorde
Once again, a New Year lies before us and many different personal and cultural traditions surround the eve of this holiday. Ellicottville offers a variety of celebratory activities on the eve of the New Year. In the United States, one of the most popular traditions is the dropping of the ball in New York City’s Times Square. This happens at the stroke of midnight and has taken place almost every year since 1907. Other cities and towns have adopted their own version of this ritual with Dillsburg, Pa.’s tradition of dropping pickles, one of the most unusual.
Slopeside Celebrations
© 2012 KEYSTONE DESIGNERS
Holiday Valley has some festive events planned that include music and dancing inside the new Holiday Valley Lodge with DJ John Barry. This is a fun family event that starts at 9 p.m. with cocktails and mocktail specials served at the Ullr Bar. The slopes are open until 10 p.m. and Cindy’s is open until 11 p.m. Then warm up around the cozy fire pit on the main level deck and watch the festivities unfold on the slopes. At 11:15 p.m., the uniqueto-Ellicottville tradition of the spectacular Snowcat Parade takes place on Cindy’s run followed by the Torchlight Parade at 11:30 p.m. Any intermediate or better skiers interested in participating in the Torchlight Parade should meet at the bottom of Cindy’s Lift at 11 p.m. (but don’t wear your best outfits as you will be carrying flares). Jane Eshbaugh, Marketing Director of Holiday Valley said, “This is a tradition that’s been going on for over forty years.” Ellicottville native John Northrup added, “The first torchlight parade was the winter season on 1959. We recruited anyone who had a ski jacket! And it was a very dirty job due to the ashes.” At 11:45 p.m., Holiday Valley has planned a colorful array of fireworks with the grand finale See New Year’s Eve page 4
ERA Jackson & McRae Offering Knowledge, Experience & Integrity to the Southern Tier by Eva Potter
There’s a new real estate partnership in town. Longtime resident and local Realtor Andree “Andy” McRae has recently embarked on an exciting real estate venture with her son Rick Jackson. They will be known as ERA Jackson & McRae. The new enterprise is anchored by Andree McRae who has been in the real estate business in and around Ellicottville for about 25 years and as an Associate Broker for
about 15 years. This energetic duo will offer more than the typical real estate services. Jackson can also make suggestions for a property’s security. In addition to a 25-year career in law enforcement, he is certified as a crime prevention practitioner and CPTED (Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design), which means he can thoroughly examine a property and make suggestions to make it more secure. McRae and Jackson know their strong
family bond and her years of experience and full-time dedication to servicing her customers sets them apart from other partnerships. ERA Jackson & McRae will service properties in the Ellicottville area, as well as surrounding communities in the Southern Tier. McRae said, “Having lived in Ellicottville for over 40 years, I have witnessed the changes over the years from winter resort to a fourSee Jackson & McRae page 2
WestMont Ridge at HoliMont to Auction Lots 31 Ski-In/Ski-Out Residential Lots Available
WestMont Ridge - see siteplan on page 4
HoliMont Ski Area, North America’s largest private ski area devoted to family skiing adventures, is please to announce that its WestMont Ridge development project is about to take its next step towards becoming a reality. On Feb. 23, 2013 at 3 p.m., HoliMont will be hosting an auction to sell the first 31 single-family residential lots. Lots range in size from .39 to .59 acres. This auction is open to both HoliMont members and the general public, however space
will be limited so you must register in advance. Interested buyers will be required to buy a bid package. The package will contain the information necessary to assist a buyer in preparing to bid at the auction. The Bidding Process: A. The Auction Process is called “Bidders Choice” where the high bidder will chose the lot they want to purchase from the remaining lots available from the 31 lots in Phase I. Once their bid is accepted they must choose their lot See WestMont Ridge page 4
Ellicottville Businesses Play Chess Many Have New Locations
by Jann Wiswall
If you haven’t visited Ellicottville since the end of last ski season, you might feel like you’re in a strange dream where things aren’t quite where or how you remember them. Well, it’s not a dream. It’s just that the village has been involved in a giant game of chess since you were here last. Here’s the rundown on who
moved and where they are now (or soon will be). Kim Reading and Miguel Azcarate gutted the old Market Square building at the corner of Washington and Monroe and moved Mud Sweat N’ Gears (MSG) into that newly renovated and space. The new location opened in August with more room for their new Speed Factory tuning equipment,
rental shop and expanded inventory of new lifestyle clothing lines, as well as all the usual great ski gear. MSG’s renovation of the building for their use precipitated the move by Nature’s Remedy and GadoGado to 26 Monroe St. into a gorgeous connected space that was the former home of See Giant Game of Chess page 6
Prosperous Growth and Major Fire Highlight 2012 A Year in Review By Jann Wiswall
The governments of Ellicottville, Mansfield and Great Valley all had busy agendas during 2012. While their boards of trustees took many important actions, we’ve asked each supervisor to tell us about the highlights of their most significant projects and expected plans for 2013.
Town of Ellicottville Town of Ellicottville Supervisor John Burrell points to the construction of the new highway department garage and barn as one of the biggest successes of 2012. “The old barn built in 1952 at Rtes. 219 and 242 had been inadequate for today’s needs for many years,” he explained, but the board felt it was important to sell that building before
embarking on construction of new facilities. Fortunately, the property was sold in 2012 and, with the approved use of some reserve funds, the Town was able to construct the new stateof-the-art buildings on Bryant Hill Road. “We were able to fund the new construction without borrowing or taxing our citizens,” he said, which is a See Prosperous Growth page 7