Community

Margaretville — The New York City Marine Toys for Tots program suffered loss and damage to their inventory during Hurricane Sandy. The Brooklyn facility is working to replenish their supply.
The newly formed Binnekill Business Council, in collaboration with the Long Woods Business Association of Roxbury/Grand Gorge, Fleischmanns First, and Andes Works, will be hosting in conjunction with the NYC Chapter of US Marine Corps Reserve, a regional Toys for Tots Drive from now through December 16.

New, unused, and unwrapped toys will be collected at the following facilities: Margaretville,

By Brian Sweeney
A New Kingston farm has earned a Century Farm Award from the NYS Agricultural Society.
Junior and Andrea Elliott and their children, Brian and Brittney, operate Crystal Brook Farm at 1892 New Kingston Road.

The agricultural society’s Century Farm Program honors the traditions of progressive agriculture and community service by farm families in New York State. The program began in 1937 and honors New York Farms in continuous operation on the same land, by the same family, for 100 years or more.

By Jay Braman Jr.
After 25 years in the making, the Catskill Interpretive Center is once again reappearing in local news this month.

In limbo since the mid-1990s, the Interpretive Center was to be a facility in Mount Tremper that would give visitors an abundance of information about the entire Catskills Region and the incentive to venture out and explore the wonders of the territory.

By Brian Sweeney
A number of community organizations are among the recipients of disaster-related funding from the United Way of Delaware and Otsego County.

The United Way Board of Directors met November 17 to allocate the remaining funds collected following the two storms that wreaked havoc throughout the region.

Delhi — Move your name from the “Naughty” to “Nice” list this year. Come support the homeless dogs and cats of the Catskills Region by attending the Holiday for the Heart Tree Celebration on Saturday, Dec. 1.

Now celebrating its eighth year at the Delaware County Historical Association (DCHA), Holiday for the Heart raises money and awareness for the 275 plus cats and dogs currently waiting for their forever homes while under the care of the Heart of the Catskills Humane Society (HCHS).

By Trish Adams
Angst was the feeling most widely expressed by Delaware County supervisors who serve on the committees dedicated to finance and have the decided headache of drawing up next year’s budget.

By Jay Braman Jr.
On Monday it looked like there would be skiing at Belleayre Mountain this weekend. In a press release issued last Friday, Belleayre management said that cold weather had kick started their snowmaking operation and that they expected to open for the season on Saturday, Nov. 24.
But alas, it’s not going to happen.

At press time Tuesday, Belleayre’s General Manager Tom Tar told the Catskill Mountain News that they had just made the decision to throw in the towel on opening this weekend. “It doesn’t look good. We’re definitely not going to open,” he said.

By Geoff Samuels

By Jay Braman Jr.
Belleayre Ski Center is officially under new management this week, and the man in charge of the facility spoke before the Ulster County Chamber of Commerce membership week in Kingston to assure those listening that Belleayre will cooperate with the privately owned ski centers in the Catskills.

Until last Thursday Belleayre had been under the control of the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. But in the spring, Governor Cuomo called for the Olympic Regional Development Authority (ORDA) to take over operation of the ski center.

By Geoff Samuels
Town of Middletown taxpayers will face a two-and-a-half percent property tax increase when they receive their 2013 town and county tax bills in January.

At the November 13 meeting of the Middletown Town Board, the 2013 preliminary budget, as put forth at the November 7 public hearing, was unanimously adopted. Through a $53,450 savings in health insurance, a $10,000 decrease in interest payments on the Arkville Water District bond, and a $10,000 cut in the highway department’s machinery and equipment expenditures, a property tax increase of 2.5 percent was set.