Mailbag

To The Editor:
Apparently Dave Channon is not a frequent skier at Belleayre Ski Center.  If he were, he would appreciate how absurd it is to describe it in his recent letter as an “elite private playground.”  
Established by the New York State Conservation Department over 65 years ago, Belleayre Ski Center’s mission is to provide the people of New York with an outlet for healthy recreation and establish an economic engine for the Central Catskills.  

To The Editor:
As a fifth-generation resident of the Big Indian/Oliverea Valley, I am writing in support of the expansion of Belleayre Ski Center and for the creation of The Belleayre Resort.

In recent years, I have become acutely aware of the economic decline of our region.  Dozens of shops and restaurants have permanently closed their doors.  Over 75 percent of the land in our town is owned by New York City or New York State who pay the lowest tax rates, leaving the burden of financing schools and local government on individual land owners and businesses.

To The Editor:      

To The Editor:
Budget cuts affect everyone, but the worst thing is to deprive our children of getting an education simply because they are unable to meet the rising costs of college.

Margaretville Central School Dollars for Scholars hopes to raise enough money to help all of our graduates who plan to further their education with their financial needs.
Dollars for Scholars has applied for and received a matching grant from the O’Connor Foundation for graduates of the MCS Class of 2013.

To The Editor:
I read Kathy Nolan’s letter in last week’s News with more than a little bit of dismay and anger. They call themselves the Catskill Heritage Alliance, but in reality they act like one of those silly reality shows that are continually popping up on TV. Their only agenda is to keep everything status quo along the Route 28 corridor from Big Indian to Andes at any means.

To The Editor:
This period between the true end of winter and the beginning of spring, this “springterlude” when the snow recedes to reveal all the trash by the side of the road, is my least favorite time of the year in the Catskills.

To The Editor:
The Catskill Heritage Alliance has put out the call to their members to come to the Public Hearing on May 29, to be bigger, better and, most of all, louder.  Just what we need, another circus.  Before they turn up the volume, I urge you to take a look at their rhetoric.

Despite the fact that the Belleayre Resort has been reduced in size by 62 percent, they insist on calling it a mega-development.  Despite the fact that buildings have been clustered and moved off the ridge top, they insist on decrying ridge-top development.  

To the Editor:
It is difficult to follow the logic of the Catskill Heritage Alliance. They purport to protect the “heritage,” that is, historical traditions of the Catskills.

But they don’t seem to want to look back very far into that same history. They seem to have forgotten the era when Pine Hill, Big Indian, and Fleischmanns swelled to over 15,000 summer residents. The proposed Belleayre Resort could house at its maximum 1,800 guests. That’s our heritage!

To The Editor:
In the March 27th edition of the Catskill Mountain News, the New York State Union of Teachers (NYSUT) ran a full-page “open letter” about the state tests that students in grades 3-8 will be taking in April and May. For those who may have missed it, here is a recap:

To The Editor:
I am compelled to write this letter because of the movement afoot to try to force the un-incorporation of the Village of Fleischmanns.

I believe that throwing in the towel now and giving up local control of our village would indeed be a colossal mistake. I know this is true because of my experience over the past four years as deputy mayor and mayor of the village.