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Volume 214, No. 48
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in 1808
RAISING FISH ON A HILLTOP/Page 5
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Cooperstown’s offiCial newspaper
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VISIT www.
AllOTSEGO.com, OTSEGO COUNTY’S DAILY NEWSPAPER/ONLINE
Cooperstown, New York, Thursday, December 1, 2022
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CGP, Golden Artist Planning Art Exhibit Exploring Voting Rights By SOPHIA HALL
COOPERTOWN
A
Photo provided
The City of Oneonta has secured a $500,000.00 grant from New York State toward improvements to the historic Oneonta Theatre. The theatre’s pre-urban renewal marquee is pictured above.
City Receives Grant For Theatre Restoration ONEONTA
the Downtown Oneonta Historic District, including the Oneonta Theatre, on its 2022/23 list of “Seven to Save” historic resources. Oneonta Mayor Mark Drnek said the community owes a huge debt of gratitude to the civic-minded citizens of Friends of the Oneonta Theatre and 47 Chestnut Street LLC for their tireless efforts in bringing back the Oneonta Theatre. The building was recently purchased by
T
he City of Oneonta has been awarded a $500,000.00 grant to assist in the stabilization of the historic Oneonta Theatre by Governor Kathy Hochul and the Housing Trust Fund Corporation. The Oneonta Theatre opened in 1897 as a vaudeville house, and later as a cinema. Recently, the New York State Preservation League listed INSIDE ► First night oneonta changes name, promises same great events, page A2 ► badger park rolling out the rink, come on down and volunteer Sat., Dec. 4, page A2 ► long covid treatments explored, page A4 ► buy local, keep the money circulating in our community, A4 ► arjunVerma, noted sitarist, returns to Oneonta, page A9 ► promise for parkie, SQSPCA’s matching challenge underway, A10 Follow Breaking News On
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47 Chestnut Street LLC. FOTOT and the theatre’s owners continue to seek additional funding and donations to assist with needed renovations. “With the success of the city’s Planning and Development Department in securing the generous support of the New York Main Street Program, Oneonta will once again enjoy musical and stage perforContinued on page 3
s this election cycle ends, it has become clearer that the fight for the right to vote did not end with the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Claims of fraud, polling place closures and gerrymandering are rampant. Access to voting continues to depend on who we are, how we look and where we live. In 2013, the Supreme Court ruled in Shelby County v Holder that it was no longer necessary for states and local governments with a history of voter suppression to submit changes in their election laws for review; other outstanding Supreme Court cases threaten to erode voting rights even further. While New York itself has recently passed laws to protect the right to vote, de facto barriers, growing political animosity, and a feeling that one’s vote will not count continue to threaten voting in the state, clearly evidenced by the drop in voter turnout in this recent election cycle.
Camera Policy on Hold for Now
County Admin Reflects on First Months
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By TED MEBUST
S
COOPERSTOWN teve Wilson, having assumed the appointed role of county administrator in August of this year, has had a rather quiet transition into Otsego County government. Having previously done the same job in Schoharie County, he’s applied learned lessons to the situation here. “Initially, my role is to define the role, because it didn’t previously exist in Otsego County,” he explained. “This involves, among Continued on page 3
When confronted by the truth that is the vulnerability of the vote, particularly for people who have not had the ability to vote in the past, Mark Golden and Dr. Gretchen Sorin came together with an idea—to curate an art exhibition exploring voting rights within the United States, with a particular focus on the experience of voting while Black. The exhibition, titled “Our Votes, Our Stories,” is a collaboration between SUNY Oneonta’s Cooperstown Graduate Program and Golden Artist Colors. CGP is one of the oldest museum studies graduate programs in the United States, and its students are responsible for the curation, fundraising, and marketing of the exhibition. “Our Votes, Our Stories” will feature work from at least eight Black artists working in a variety of mediums with one common theme—the importance of voter equality to the strength and health of democracy. Confirmed artists include Brianna Harlan, Lorie Continued on page 10
Photo by Ted Mebust
Otsego County Administrator Steve Wilson is embracing his new role.
COOPERSTOWN t the November meeting of the Cooperstown Village Board of Trustees, a public hearing was held on a proposed policy for the installation and operation of cameras to monitor activity occurring in public places within the village. The policy was discussed at length and, following public comments, the board took a vote which failed to pass. A committee comprised of Trustees Cindy Falk, Richard Sternberg and Joe Membrino has been tasked to rework the policy, which will then be presented again at public hearing in two months, on January 23.
THE FREEMAN’S JOURNAL & HOMETOWN ONEONTA, OTSEGO COUNTY’S LARGEST PRINT CIRCULATION 2010 WINNERS OF The Otsego County Chamber/KEY BANK SMALL BUSINESS AWARD