ORGANIZERS CALL FIRST NIGHT 2008 A SUCCESS

Organizers of Saranac Lake’s second annual First Night celebration are calling the event a success, with total attendance figures approaching last year’s numbers.

Co-organizer Sue Patterson says more than 1400 First Night buttons were sold – slightly less than the 1500 people who purchased buttons last year.  “That tells us we don’t need to worry about increasing what we’re doing for next year dramatically,” she said.

Patterson says the feedback she’s heard so far has been positive. “I understand the people really enjoyed the variety we had this year and really liked all the different selections they had,” she said.  “They thought it was even better than the first year.”

First Night 2008 included a wide variety of musicians, entertainers and performers at nine different venues around Saranac Lake on New Year’s Eve. 

Organizers added another venue this year and put a seating capacity on each location for safety purposes.  In some cases, Patterson said, some of Monday night’s venues were filled to capacity and people had to be turned away until the next show.

The event also featured a snowflake-drop in Riverside Park to countdown the last 15 seconds until the New Year.  Food was also offered at more venues and more young people were featured in the performances.

“It was a huge success and it will definitely be back next year,” said Patterson. “We were really happy with the ball drop.  We had a lot more community groups involved including Kiwanis and St. Bernard’s School.  The community part is continuing to grow.  And I think it’s good to keep our attendance levels right where they are.”

Co-organizer Connie Landon said the performers were pleased with the crowds.   “I think it was a very positive experience for them,” she said.

Landon said they’ll be starting work on First Night 2009 over the next few weeks. “We’re going to go around and try to get feedback from the venues to see how we can make things better next year and go through the surveys that people filled out,” she said.  “I think we’re going to do a lot of reflecting and try to figure out how to improve things and make things successful again for next year.”

Landon also thanked all the volunteers who made the event a success. “We couldn’t have done it without them,” she said.

First Night is a celebration that began in Boston more than thirty years ago as an alcohol free celebration of the arts to welcome in the New Year.  It has since spread to over 100 cities, towns and villages all over the world.

-Chris Knight

AIRPORTS TO GO WITHOUT SUBSIDIZED AIR SERVICE

Airports across the North Country are expected to go without federally subsidized air service starting next week.

The current air carrier – Big Sky Airlines – is set to stop serving the Watertown, Ogdensburg, Massena, Saranac Lake and Plattsburgh airports on January 7.

Executives from two commuter airlines are visiting the region this week to inspect airports and determine the viability of air service in the region.

But a high number of delays, last-minute cancellations and ticketing problems on Big Sky have driven many air travelers away from North Country airports.

Local officials from Ogdensburg and Massena this week will be discussing the possibility of permanently shutting down at least one of the airports, according to Massena Supervisor Gary Edwards. “I don’t want to say we don’t need the Massena or Ogdensburg airports,” he said.  “What I can say is we are having a meeting of just the town supervisors and the airports and I think that question will be brought up and hopefully answered.”

Ticket sales could be a factor. Despite spending millions renovating Massena’s city-owned airport, passenger numbers dropped 33 percent. It’s an overall loss of more than 2,000 travelers – in one year.

But the loss of passengers will only be part of Friday’s debate over North Country air service.  The other looming question is when will the currently scheduled flights stop.

The federal Department of Transportation has ordered Big Sky to keep flying despite the airline’s announcement that it would cease operations nationwide Monday, January 7. But Big Sky’s parent company – MAIR Holdings – says it will sell off all the airline’s assets by next week.

Money is another issue. The air carrier got more than 2-million dollars from the federal government in the form of E-A-S or Essential Air Service grants. Congressman John McHugh is wondering how – and how much – the government will be repaid. (news2)  “The federal government, the EAS division, has assigned virtually all of its personnel to this issue,” he said.  “We are working on it and we’ve been in constant contact but it’s a pretty complicated mess.”

In a conference call last week, local and state officials said there will likely be a disruption in service for a period of time – at least 60-90 days.  The airport owners are talking about using some of the federal subsidy to pay for bus service to airports in Syracuse, Albany and Burlington until there is a new local carrier.

Meanwhile, the North Country airports will host executives from two commuter airlines – each interested in serving the region.

The Adirondack Daily Enterprise and Watertown Daily Times have reported that Cape Air, a Cape Cod-based airline, is looking to provide flights between Saranac Lake, Plattsburgh and Boston.

Massena Supervisor Gary Edwards also says a regional carrier flying under the Pan-Am name is trying to determine the profitability of flights to Albany.

He insists an on-time airline can overcome the problems that plagued Big Sky by rebuilding passenger confidence. “We have to get the people’s trust back, get them a reliable airline to get them where they want to go at a reasonable rate and at a decent time to fly. If we do that the numbers will go back up.”

The U.S. DOT has issued an emergency request for a replacement carrier for the five North Country airports that are served under the Essential Air Service program.   Proposals are due on January 11.

CHAIRLIFT BACK IN SERVICE AT WHITEFACE

The Olympic Regional Development Authority says a chairlift that derailed and forced the evacuation of more than 40 skiers and snowboarders this past weekend has been repaired and is back in service.

The Summit Quad returned to service and began carrying skiers and riders at 2:15 p.m. Tuesday.

The lift had been shut down since Saturday when a strong gust of wind caused the chair to become entangled with a communications line, resulting in a derailment.  The mishap occurred ten minutes before the chairlift was to be closed for the day.

47 skiers and snowboarders were lowered to safety by rope, many not returning to the base of the mountain until after dark.  No injuries were reported.

Whiteface is reporting 16 inches of new snow in the last three days.

-Chris Knight

TREADWELL HIRES COMMUNICATIONS MANAGER

Congressional candidate Sandy Treadwell has reportedly hired a former press aide for Governor George Pataki to be the spokesman for his campaign.

Peter Constantakes will serve as the communications director for Treadwell, according to a report in the Plattsburgh Press-Republican.

“This is all part of our campaign plan to round out the team,” campaign manager Bill McGahay told the newspaper.  “I think it shows we're picking up momentum.”

McGahay also said Treadwell plans to open a campaign office in Essex County soon, possibly in Lake Placid or Ticonderoga.  Campaign offices will also be set up in the other nine counties that make up the district, he said.

Treadwell, who lives in Lake Placid and Westport, is one of four Republicans seeking the 20th Congressional District seat, currently held by Democrat Kirsten Gillibrand.

So far, Treadwell has received endorsements from the Delaware, Otsego and Rensselaer County Conservative Parties

Richard Wager of Hyde Park has received the Warren and Columbia County Conservative Party endorsements.  He’s also being supported by the Duchess County Independence Party.

Michael Rocque, a Whitehall native, has been endorsed by the Saratoga and Washington County Conservative Parties.

John Wallace of Chatham, a retired state trooper, is also in the running.

The Republican Party committees in each of the district’s ten counties have yet to endorse a candidate.

-Chris Knight

NINE SNOWMOBILING FATALITIES IN NY IN DECEMBER

The snowmobile season started early this year with lots of snow, making for great sledding in upstate New York. But the fast machines can also be deadly.

Nine snowmobilers were killed in the state in December.

The first crash happened December 3 in Clinton County.  39 year-old Raymond LaBelle was killed after he lost control of his sled and slammed into a tree in the Town of Champlain.  Police said alcohol and excessive speed were factors in the crash.

A Saranac Lake man, 30 year-old Scott McDuff, was killed December 15, when a snowmobile he was riding failed to negotiate a curve and struck a tree.  Police said driver inattention may have played a role in the crash.

Other fatal snowmobile crashes took place in Saratoga, Wayne, Oneida, Delaware and Genesee counties, and at Lake Luzerne in Warren County.

The most recent death was on Monday, when 36 year-old Joseph Stroh of Canastota was killed in a crash along the Old Erie Canal trail in Madison County.

Some of the accidents were attributed to excessive speed or recklessness.

There are some 11,000 miles of trails in New York State and about 130,000 registered snowmobiles.  

-AP wire reports

ECO’S, FOREST RANGERS TO TRAIN WITH LEAD-FREE BULLETS

The officers who patrol New York's forests and parks are going green — on the firing range.

The state Department of Environmental Conservation says lead-free bullets with nontoxic primers are being phased into the training of its 464 conservation officers and forest rangers to reduce their exposure to lead, cut down lead in storm water runoff from shooting ranges and help avoid expensive clean-up jobs.

“DEC is committed to leading the way in finding new ways – large and small – to reduce the amount of contamination that is released into our environment,” said Commissioner Pete Grannis, in a news release.

The state expends over 150,000 rounds of ammunition annually, primarily during training.

While it will cost slightly more to purchase the green ammunition, DEC says that’s outweighed by the long-term benefits including the elimination of hazardous material exposure to humans and the environment, as well as eliminating the possibility of costly lead removal at DEC police training ranges.

Officers will continue using conventional lead ammunition when they're on duty.

-AP wire reports

POLICE REPORT

Police in Saranac Lake arrested two people on New Year’s Eve after investigating an underage drinking party.  A 17 year-old male from Vermontville was allegedly found in possession of a small amount of marijuana and was charged with unlawful possession of marijuana.  An 18 year-old male was arrested on a charge of second-degree criminal nuisance for allegedly allowing underage persons to consume alcoholic beverages in his residence.  Both were processed and released to appear in village court at a later date.

A Piercefield man was arrested New Year’s Day on felony and misdemeanor drug charges.  State Police in Tupper Lake charged 42 year-old Kenneth E. Villafane with four felony counts of second-degree criminal sale of marijuana, four counts of first-degree unlawfully dealing with a child and three counts of fourth-degree criminal sale of marijuana, a misdemeanor.  Police say the charges stem from an ongoing investigation that began November 1.  Villafane was allegedly selling marijuana to underage persons in the area.  He was arraigned in Town of Piercefield Court and remanded to the St. Lawrence County Jail on $2500 bail.