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The Shoppes at Johnny Appleseed marks eight years The Shoppes at Johnny Appleseed, Erieville’s co-op style artisan marketplace and café, will celebrate its eighth anniversary this month. Woman-owned and launched in 2017, The Shoppes started out with only four vendors and a vision. Within a year, the vendor list had grown to 24, and by the end of 2019, all 20,000 square feet of the building were full. The Shoppes now host over 65 vendors and artists. The Apple Kitchen, located within The Shoppes, is open every weekend, yearround, from 12 to 4 p.m. “Finding like-minded individuals in the community has always been
priority number one,” said owner and operator Erica Gilmore. “Imagine a vibrant hub where creativity thrives; that’s what we are working for every day here at our Shoppes. We offer a gallery, gift shop, and community space all rolled into one. We have so many of your local friends and neighbors right here in the store.” The Shoppes offers handcrafted one-of-a-kind items, antiques, furniture, collectables, jewelry, home and garden items, vinyl records, tapes and CDs, toys, clothing, soaps and candles, paint and refinishing supplies, and locally sourced food items such as maple
syrup, honey, eggs, chocolate, candy, mustard, and jellies. In 2018, Johnny Appleseed received a New York State farm wine license, enabling it to sell NYS wine and beer. “Our loyal customers and dedicated vendors have been instrumental in our journey, and we invite everyone to celebrate this milestone with us on Saturday, June 7, and Sunday, June 8. The weekend will feature storewide sales, new inventory, and food and drink specials in the café. The Shoppes at Johnny Appleseed is located at 3402 Old State Rd., Erieville. For more information, visit johnnyshoppes.com.
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Meet the village mayor, trustee candidates Village updated on 9 By kate Hill Staff Writer
In Cazenovia, two seats on the village board of trustees and the office of the mayor are up for election this year. Those positions are currently held by Trustee Cindy Bell, Trustee/ Deputy Mayor Thomas Tait, and Mayor Kurt Wheeler. Tait is stepping down from his position, while Bell and Wheeler are seeking re-election. Also on the ballot for village trustee are Tom Guiler and Richard Macheda. In the mayoral election, Wheeler is running against Trustee Jen Marotto Lutter. The election will be held at the Cazenovia American Legion Post 88, 26 Chenango St., Tuesday, June 17, noon-9 p.m. Below are the candidates’ respondes to tquestions from the Cazenovia Republican. The League of Women Voters of Cazenovia will hold a village candidate forum on Monday, June 9, at 7 p.m. at the American Legion Post 88. The public is invited to attend and ask questions.
Mayoral candidates Jen Marotto Lutter
Occupation: City Planning and Community Development Professional Why are you running? I am running because I believe my professional experience, perspective, and ideas are a good fit for this moment in Cazenovia. We are at a point of change, and I believe we need leadership focused
on consensus building and collaboration towards shared goals. My professional career
has focused on doing just that. How will your experience serve you in local government? Planners are hired by local governments to solve current problems and anticipate future challenges. With over 15 years in my profession, I have worked on small business development, land use, housing, and a range of other planning issues. I also currently serve as a Trustee for the Village of Cazenovia. The diversity of my experience and ability to work with a range of partners will aid me in being a collaborative and impactful leader. What are the biggest community challenges? The biggest challenge right now is the redevelopment of the Cazenovia College campus. Supporting our downtown business district, improving our infrastructure to increase our climate resilience, increasing community engagement, and improving parks and public spaces are all important. What are your ideas for addressing those challenges?It has been over two years since Cazenovia College announced its closing, and we have not yet done what is necessary to best situate ourselves for its redevelopment. The current strategy of leaving the campus without a zoning change is too open-ended and leaves ultimate development decisions to the discretion of the village board without meaningful community input. As mayor, I would propose that we immediately undertake a communi-
Forum planned for mayor’s seat, trustees
The League of Women Voters of Cazenovia will hold a village candidate forum on Monday, June 9, at 7 p.m. at the American Legion Post 88. The candidates for mayor of Cazenovia are Kurt Wheeler and Jennifer Lutter. Candidates for the village trustees are Cindy Bell, Tom Guiller and Rich Macheda. The public is invited to come to the Forum and ask questions to the candidates. The League of Women Voters of Cazenovia is a chapter of the NYS LWV and the LWVUS. It is a non-partisan organization which does not support any party or candidate. It encourages citizens participation actively in government by voting, understanding public policy, and advocating on issues. For more information contact LWV.org. ty-based planning process to hear residents’ ideas with the goal of rezoning the college property in the best interests of the community. This will give residents a voice in the process and will provide greater certainty to both residents and prospective developers who need a clear understanding of allowed uses before they invest in the property. Given the time, money and resources involved in redeveloping the college, interested parties need some level of certainty before they begin serious exploration, and village residents deserve to know ahead of time what to expect. This process must be undertaken with transparency and engagement, and the community can trust me to be a fair, collaborative, and responsive advocate. With community consensus in place, I will put my professional experience and knowledge to work gathering as many local, regional, state, and federal resources as possible, as I have
done throughout my career, to help successfully redevelop the campus in a creative and enriching way.
Kurt Wheeler
O c c u p a tion: Mayor, professional leadership coach Why are you running? I love our community and have been honored to serve it. I am running to complete two essential tasks. The first is the redevelopment of the college campus, a mission I have devoted hundreds of hours to over the past 2.5 years. The second is to conduct an effective turnover with our newly-hired Village Administrator. The Village Board created this updated position to help manage the increasing complexity of local government. How will your experience serve you in local government? 1) Village Mayor is not a symbolic position. The Mayor is the Chief Executive OfElection l Page 2
Fresh’s continued efforts to acquire campus By kate Hill Staff Writer
During the June 2 Village of Cazenovia Board of Trustees meeting, Kate Brodock, general partner of 9 Fresh, provided an update on the ongoing local effort to acquire and redevelop the former Cazenovia College campus. 9 Fresh is a team of local investors with a vision “to turn a once-vibrant academic institution into an equally as vibrant, reimagined district for innovation, business growth, and impact that not only strongly serves our community, but provides powerful global connections and influence alongside.” In November 2024, 9 Fresh announced that it was under contract to purchase all the Cazenovia College-owned properties. In April 2025, Brodock informed the village board that during the final stages of due diligence, 9 Fresh asked for an extension to ensure the thorough completion of the process; that request was denied. As a result, it had to pull its original bid and prepare a bid resubmission. At this month’s village board meeting, Brodock reported that the dialogue with the handful of bondholders who are selling the campus properties has “gotten to a really great place.” “Based on the nature of the transaction, we can’t share all the details, but we should be able to imminently,” she said. “It’s all moving in a very good direction. Hopefully, we will have some more updates soon.” She also said that Mayor Kurt Wheeler, Town of Cazenovia Supervisor Kyle Reger, and the village board have been very supportive from the start. “I know, just talking to people on the street, that there are rumors that, ‘Oh, it’s completely dead, nothing is happening, we are dead in the water,’” commented Wheeler. “I try to reassure people that you guys are still very much engaged with the sellers and coming to terms.” Brodock noted that her team has spent the bulk of the past one to two months going back and forth with the sellers regarding the final agreement. “We’ve finally sort of reached a point of agreement, and we are feeling good about moving forward,” she said. Wheeler pointed out that there are about half a dozen banks involved. “It’s unfortunate that at the very beginning of the process, they didn’t just appoint one person with fiduciary responsibility whom they would trust to make decisions on their behalf,” he said. “They kept this complex structure, so every step forward Village l Page 10
Oxbow Hill Solar project advances through state permitting process BY KATE HILL STAFF WRITER
Administrative Law Judges (ALJs) assigned by the New York State Office of Renewable Energy Siting (ORES) recently issued a ruling on the matter of the application of Oxbow Hill Solar, LLC, for a siting permit to construct and operate a utility-scale project in the Town of Fenner. The judges determined that the is-
sues raised by the Town of Fenner and Madison County are not “substantive and significant” and therefore do not warrant adjudication. The formal decision, titled “Ruling of the Administrative Law Judges on Issues and Party Status, and Order of Disposition,” was issued on May 21, 2025. Because no adjudicatory hearing will be held, ORES will continue processing Oxbow Hill Solar, LLC’s application for a major renewable en-
ergy facility siting permit. All large-scale renewable energy projects 25 megawatts (MW) or larger are required to obtain a siting permit from ORES for new construction or expansion. Oxbow Hill Solar, LLC — a subsidiary of Cypress Creek Renewables, LLC — seeks to construct a 140-MW solar energy facility to be co-located within the existing footprint of the Fenner Wind Farm. The project would involve install-
ing and operating photovoltaic panel arrays, as well as associated electrical collection lines, inverters, a new interconnection substation, fencing, access roads, and an operations and maintenance building. According to the ALJs’ May 21 ruling, the facility would interconnect to the NY electrical grid via a new point of interconnection to the existing Fenner Windfarm Substation, which is connected to National Grid’s Fenner Wind to Whitman
Volume 215, Number 23 The Cazenovia Republican is published weekly by Eagle News. Office of Publication: 35 Albany St., Second Floor, Cazenovia, NY 13035. Pe r i o d i ca l Po sta ge Pa i d at Cazenovia, NY 13035, USPS 095-260. POSTMASTER: Send change of address to Cazenovia Republican, 2501 James St., Suite 108, Syracuse, NY 13206.
events: Summit Church to host worship service, picnic and air show.
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sports: Caz golfers battle for sectional honors.
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Road 115-kV transmission line. The facility site consists of approximately 1,600 acres. Oxbow Hill Solar submitted its application on April 23, 2024. It was supplemented multiple times before ORES declared it complete on Nov. 18, 2024. On Jan. 14, 2025, ORES issued a draft siting permit for the facility, which was posted for public comment on the office’s website. Solar l Page 10
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history ������������������������ 4
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