News stories tagged with "catskills"

(01/18/12) Governor Cuomo's spending plan calls for the Olympic Regional Development Authority, based in Lake Placid, to take over a state-run Belleayre ski area in the Catskills by the end of this year.

ORDA now operates ski mountains in North Creek and Wilmington, along with Olympic venues in Lake Placid. That makes the organization one of the region's biggest employers and a mainstay of the winter tourism season.

As Brian Mann reports, the proposal for ORDA to expand its operations outside the Adirondacks has drawn mixed reviews.

(09/01/11) Nearly 100,000 homes and businesses that were blacked-out by Tropical Storm Irene got power back yesterday. About 243,000, roughly 70,000 of them in upstate areas are still dark. Utilities say most people should have power restored by tomorrow.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo says total damages to the state could hit $1 billion. He's been on the road for three days, visiting hard hit communities. He says new York has paid "a terrible, terrible price" but will rebuild. He spoke with Karen DeWitt last night.

(09/01/11) Governor Andrew Cuomo and Homeland Security Secretary, Janet Napolitano, toured the flood devastated Catskill Mountain community of Prattsville Wednesday, as both promised financial aid and a determined rebuilding effort. Some residents, though, were feeling tired and defeated. Karen DeWitt has this report: more

(09/01/11) National Guard troops from the North Country are part of the massive mobilization statewide aimed at cleaning up from tropical storm Irene. Chaplain Eric Olsen says people from the region have been assigned in some of the hardest hit areas.

(06/06/11) The state Olympic Regional Development Authority may add a third downhill ski center to its venues before the winter season.

ORDA officials are reportedly in talks to take over operation of Belleayre Mountain Ski Center in the Catskills.

Chris Knight reports. more

(08/31/09) The St. Regis Mohawk Tribe is back into the hunt for a casino in the Catskills. Martha Foley has more. more

(01/15/08) The St. Regis Mohawk Tribe is suing the federal government over its decision against a Mohawk casino in the Catskills. The Department of the Interior ruled earlier this month that the site is too far from the Akwesasne Mohawk reservation near Massena. David Sommerstein reports.

(01/07/08) The federal government has rejected the St. Regis Mohawk Tribe's plan to build a $600 million casino resort in the Catskills. In a letter sent late Friday, the Department of the Interior ruled the 350-mile distance between the planned casino and the Akwesasne Mohawk reservation near Massena was too far. The DOI said too many residents could leave the reservation in search of a job at the proposed casino and cause "serious and far-reaching implications for the remaining tribal community." The Mohawks having been working for more than a decade to build a casino in the Catskills. The proposed resort had the support of Governor Spitzer. It was expected to create 3,000 jobs for the region and generate millions of dollars in revenue for New York. St. Regis Mohawk tribal chiefs harshly criticized the decision. A press release called it "arbitrary, capricious, and laughable". Chief Lorraine White said it was "a brazen paternalistic assault against all of Indian Country." David Sommerstein spoke with Chief White this morning. She explained why she called the decision a "paternalistic assault."

(12/07/07) A state supreme court judge has ordered New York officials to stop paying real estate taxes to municipalities for state-owned land within their borders. If it stands, the ruling could devastate towns, counties, and school districts in the Adirondacks and the Catskills that rely on the state's tax payments. The ruling, issued last month, follows a suit filed against former Governor Governor Pataki by a town supervisor in western New York. The supervisor claimed that some municipalities unfairly received the tax money, or payment in lieu of taxes, while others did not. In his ruling, acting State Supreme Court Justice Timothy Walker agreed with the argument, describing the arrangement as "palpably arbitrary." Brian Mann discussed the landmark ruling with Martha Foley.

(08/08/07) The St. Regis Mohawks are closer than ever to building a massive casino resort in the Catskills. The $600 million gambling and entertainment complex would become the closest casino to New York City. The project has passed an environmental review. The tribe has negotiated a gaming compact with Governor Spitzer. Yet the casino application has languished on one very important desk in Washington. As David Sommerstein reports, the Mohawks may be caught in the middle of a broader debate on tribal gaming's future.