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& The Otsego-Delaware Dispatch
Friends of Village Library Winter Book Collection/Page 10 -1782 607-432 q.com b brooksb
VISIT www. Volume 15, No. 05
AllOTSEGO.com, OTSEGO COUNTY’S DAILY NEWSPAPER/ONLINE COMPLIMENTARY
Oneonta, N.Y., Thursday, November 17, 2022
Former School Houses Luxury Apartments By DARLA M. YOUNGS
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ONEONTA e wanted to create something that we would be proud of owning and something that the community needs.” This was the impetus behind Chestnut Hill Estates, with 10 new luxury apartments now housed in the former Chestnut Street School. David Weaver, who owns the property along with partners John Imperato and Anthony Carimando, said the trio had discussed working on a project together before finding the right property, which they purchased in December of 2021. “We all grew up in the area and are lifelong residents. I was born and raised in Oneonta and John and Anthony grew up in Schenevus,” Weaver explained. “John and Anthony have owned rental properties together for 15 years and I have owned rental properties for close to 10 years with other partners. When we toured this location for the first time we all saw the great potential with the building but also the land to build more units.” INSIDE ► Local filmMakers win top prize, page A2 ► glimmerglass film days luminosity exhibit, page A3
Photos by Patrick Muller
The former Chestnut Street School is now Chestnut Hill Estates.
The former Chestnut Street School, located at 290 Chestnut Street, opened on September 8, 1914. There were 75 students and Miss Iva Smith was the school’s first principal. “We have had a lot of people reach out to us saying they went to school there,” Weaver added. According to City of Oneonta Historian Mark Simonson, Chestnut Street School closed in June of 1966, with its students— and those of the former Plains School, at the corner of Chestnut Street and Winney Hill Road— attending the new Greater Plains School that fall. The building housed Oneonta City School District offices until 1996, and is the former location of the Calvary Hill
Ommegang Brews for Veterans By TED MEBUST
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COOPERSTOWN n support of veterans ► richfield springs moving nationwide, Brewery forward with major progress, page A4 Ommegang’s recent Hops for Heroes event ► what really happens to our raised funds for Soldiers’ recyclables?, page A4 ► Vertically integrated busi- Angels, a nonprofit organinesses streamling their opera- zation that provides aid to tions, page A5 active military, veterans and their families. Participating ► veterans get help transitioning with Boots to Business breweries throughout Program, page A10 the country produced a special Veteran’s Day batch, Homefront IPA, the Follow Breaking News On proceeds of which exclusively benefit the nonprofOTSEGO.com it’s mission. “When we were putting this together, I immediately thought, ‘we have to get Ommegang involved,’”
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Retreat Center. Weaver said Imperato and Carimando, who own a construction company together, started work on the building as soon as the sale of the property was finalized. “The 10 apartment units are all unique in the main building because we had to fit into the basic configuration, which made it challenging for John and
Anthony but also made the finished product amazing,” Weaver continued. “Two of the units upstairs are similar but still have a few different features to give them their own charm.” There are eight large one-bedroom apartments, a studio and a three bedroom, two bath apartment, Seaver said. The plan going forward is to have two more buildings constructed. Those buildings will have 10 units each, which will all have the same basic layout, he said. Weaver and his partners retained historic features where possible. “We kept all of the original floors upstairs, just sanding and refinishing them. We also kept a few doors that were original to the school. Upstairs had an auditorium with a stage. John and Anthony converted that space to three apartments. They kept the stage in and that is where the studio apartment is. The building had a lot of old slate chalk boards and original lighting that we couldn’t keep. Luckily an antique dealer wanted them and they will find other homes,” Weaver said. All of the apartments Continued on page 6
Photo provided
Feeding Ministries Director Marcia Hoag greets Chobani’s Donald Brown upon delivery of donated coolers.
Chobani Donates Gifts To Help St. James Food Programs ONEONTA—St. James Episcopal Church is now able to store produce for prolonged periods of time, thanks to Chobani. The locally-based yogurt producer continued its tradition of community engagement by donating three coolers to St. James Feeding Ministries. St. James Feeding Ministries services the surrounding area by providing food to those in need. Their Lord’s Table, located at 18 Elm Street in Oneonta, provides hot meals five days a week from 4-5:30 p.m. Typically serving 500-plus meals a week, they were recently forced to cut back hours due to budget constraints. The Loaves and Fishes Food Pantry, another Feeding Ministries program, serves meat, canned goods, boxed items, bread, and produce to more than 300 families once a month. Even after a recent $200,000 building addition funded by community donations which allowed space for a walk-in freezer, their ability to serve fresh produce had decreased. Thanks to Chobani’s donation, the Feeding Ministries programs can maximize the shelf-life of their food and continue serving the surrounding communities. Feeding Ministries Director Marcia Hoag personally extended thanks to Don Brown, Chobani’s community impact manager, for the generous gift. For more information or to contribute to the Feeding Ministries program, call (607) 373-0857 or e-mail feedingministries@stjamesoneonta.org.
Benton to Run for Clerk By TED MEBUST
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COOPERSTOWN illage trustee and former Deputy Elections CommPhoto by Ted Mebust issioner MacGuire Benton Soldier’s Angels Board Chair PJ Baunach works to register raffle parannounced his candidacy for Otsego ticipants alongside SA volunteers Terry and Bill. said PJ Baunach, chair of voting seat on the Veterans County clerk on Monday, November Soldier’s Angels board of Affairs National Advisory 14. With his trustee tenure ending in directors and former resi- Council and its programs April, he plans to begin his campaign for the 2023 General Election Ballot dent of Richfield Springs. aid active duty military, Soldiers’ Angels holds a Continued on page 6 Continued on page 6
Photo provided
MACGUIRE BENTON
THE FREEMAN’S JOURNAL & HOMETOWN ONEONTA, OTSEGO COUNTY’S LARGEST PRINT CIRCULATION 2010 WINNERS OF The Otsego County Chamber/KEY BANK SMALL BUSINESS AWARD