The Peru Gazette

Source: Local reps call new child mask rules “misguided” | Sun Community News PLATTSBURGH | Local representatives are calling recent New York State guidelines for child-care programs and summer camps “misguided” and “absurd”, saying it only creates confusion for p

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Improvements to Showers and Comfort Stations Statewide and Equestrian Facilities at Frontier Town Campground

Campground Visitors Encouraged to Make Reservations

New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) Commissioner Basil Seggos today announced that DEC’s 56 campgrounds and Day Use areas will be open to the public on May 21. Reservations for the 2021 camping season are at an all-time high as more New Yorkers and visitors from out of state prepare to head outdoors to take advantage of recreational opportunities in the Adirondack and Catskill forest preserves. In addition and in preparation for the upcoming camping season, DEC announced improvements at campgrounds across the state to help improve the visitor experience. While two DEC campgrounds opened earlier this spring-Wilmington Notch in Essex County on May 7, and Fish Creek in Franklin County on April 2-most DEC campgrounds open on May 21, the weekend prior to the Memorial Day Holiday.

“DEC is thrilled to see the uptick in reservations for this coming camping season as New Yorkers and visitors start exploring our campgrounds, and we’re proud to announce improvements at Frontier Town and several other campgrounds, undertaken in response to visitor feedback,” Commissioner Seggos said. “I encourage all visitors planning a trip to DEC’s campgrounds this summer to make reservations soon to prevent being turned away if facilities meet capacity.”

To make reservations, visit the ReserveAmerica website and consider additional or alternative locations for recreation. For help choosing a location to visit, see DEC’s interactive guide.

DEC has completed improvements at several DEC camping facilities for the 2021 season, including new showers and comfort stations, power and water systems, and equestrian-specific improvements at the Frontier Town campground.

At the Frontier Town Campground, Equestrian and Day Use Area, town of North Hudson, Essex County, on the site of the former Frontier Town theme park in the town of North Hudson, DEC continues to advance modifications to the equestrian camping area in response to feedback received since the facility opened in 2019. The following improvements will provide an enhanced experience for equestrian campers:

• Sites have been widened to provide more room for horse trailers;
• 10×10 planting pits added between sites to provide for young shade trees and other vegetation, along with hitching posts and fencing;
• A horse care/wash area added near the comfort station in the equestrian area; and
• A manure pit added to the all-season parking area.

The total cost of these improvements was $260,000, which includes repairs to the day-use area following a storm event on Halloween in 2019.

At the Cranberry Lake Campground and Day-Use Area, Cranberry Lake, St. Lawrence County, DEC rebuilt the water distribution system at a cost of $600,000.

DEC rebuilt the main shower building at the Eagle Point Campground, Pottersville, Warren County, at a cost of $100,000.

At the Narrow Island Campground, Lake George, Warren County, DEC completed the redevelopment and construction of a new electrical power system, including solar and back-up generator capacity, at a cost of $50,000.

DEC improved several comfort stations at the Meadowbrook Campground, Ray Brook, Essex County, at a cost of approximately $20,000.

DEC rebuilt the ticket/registration booth at a cost of approximately $20,000 at the Little Sand Point Campground, Piseco, Hamilton County.

At the North South Lake Campground, Haines Falls, DEC rehabilitated a comfort station at a cost of approximately $20,000.

Under Governor Cuomo’s Adventure NY initiative, DEC is making strategic investments to expand access to healthy, active outdoor recreation, connect more New Yorkers and visitors to nature and the outdoors, protect natural resources, and boost local economies. Read more about the Adventure NY initiative.

For more information on planning an outdoor adventure in New York State, visit DEC’s website.

Jesse Mulbury and blossoming SnapDragon trees.

Planting Honeycrisp, SnapDragons, Gala and Evercrisp. 1260 trees per acre. Small trees double the yield and are much safer for pickers.  The trees should be productive in 3 to 5 years. 

By John T. Ryan

Peru, NY takes great pride in its agricultural heritage. Our hamlet is surrounded by dairy farms and orchards. Over the past several years Peru residents have witnessed huge changes in the dairy industry as small farms shut down and large farms add acreage. The apple industry is also undergoing significant changes.

Jesse Mulbury, co-owner of Northern Orchard, is very familiar with the changes. He’s chairman of the New York State Apple Association, an organization that promotes New York apples on behalf of about 600 growers. The association’s growers produce 30 to 34 million 40-pound boxes of fruit annually, making New York our nation’s second-largest apple-producing state after the State of Washington. Northern Orchards alone sells more than 200,000 boxes each year.

Consumers, of course, drive most change. Mulbury explained, “When our orchards started, we grew virtually 100% McIntosh apples. From the 1950s to the 1980’s Red Delicious, Macoun, Cortland, and Empires grew in popularity. In the 1990s, it was Galas and Fuji, but the most exciting thing over the past few years has been the Honeycrisp. People, especially kids, love the Honeycrisp’s sweet, slightly tart taste.” While Northern Orchard still harvests millions of McIntosh apples, its percentage has changed from 100% to 66%. Today, when the Mulburys plant new trees, Honeycrisp are almost always included.

Several of the new apple varieties are called “managed” varieties. For example, researchers at Cornell University developed the SnapDragon and RubyFrost.  Planting those varieties is restricted to New York growers.  Other universities and growers have developed varieties such as SweetTango, Jazz, and WildTwist.  They also have managed apple restrictions. 

Jesse Mulbury commented, “It’s a challenge deciding what to plant in the modern orchard. When we grow the apple, we have to convince grocery store chains to pick up the new varieties and make shelf space.” The New York Apple Association promotes both longtime favorites and new apples by advertising in trade publications, on social media and utilizes direct marketing.  Mulbury said, “We’re very proud of our product quality. We have an ideal apple-growing climate. Our apples have a great taste and natural crunchiness, plus New York apples have a much smaller carbon footprint than apples transported from distant Washington State. The Apple Association encourages consumers to look for the “Apples From New York” label when purchasing apples.”

Besides enjoying a quality, healthful food product, New Yorkers have another excellent reason to support its apple growers. Thousands of New Yorkers work for apple growers, wholesalers and related industries.  In Peru, hundreds of our friends and neighbors are employed either directly or indirectly by the apple industry. 

For more information on New York apples including recipes go to the New York Apple Association webpage at www.applesfromny.com.  Here’s another excellent article on New York’s apple industry. 

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“HIPAA only governs certain kinds of entities — your clinician, hospital, or others in the health care sphere,” Spector-Bagdady said on the university’s website in April. “It does not apply to the average person or to a business outside health care. It doesn’t give someone personal protection against ever having to disclose their health information.”

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State Senator Dan Stec said he is pleased the Public Service Commission (PSC) updated its guidance for small Internet Service Provider (ISPs) companies seeking an exemption from providing low-income broadband, which was enacted as part of this year’s state budget.

The 2021-22 state budget mandates companies offer $15 per month broadband to low-income-qualified New Yorkers.  The budget also included language to provide a means of requesting an exemption for small companies (less than 20,000 subscribers) whose financial viability would be threatened because they serve so few customers and their profit margins are so narrow.

“When the budget was adopted, this was a big concern of mine because the last thing I want to see is broadband service disappear as a result of a new state mandate,” said Stec.  “After reviewing the language and talking with companies, I raised the red flag because the financial information that was going to be required by the PSC was far more extensive than the budget language suggested would be necessary to qualify for an exemption.”

Stec had a meeting with PSC staff on Friday, April 30 to discuss the matter and sent a May 5 follow-up letter objecting to their initial guidance, writing: “My point is that requiring a copy of the company’s audited income statement, balance sheet and statement of cash flows for the company’s most recent fiscal year; and a pro forma income statement, balance sheet and statement of cash flows assuming no impact from the requirement to offer the Low-Income Broadband Service, is too intrusive.”

While debating the budget with Stec, Senator Liz Krueger, chair of the Senate Finance Committee, had offered her assistance to address concerns he had raised about the low-income broadband program.
 
“Senator Krueger and I had a meeting with the PSC on May 14,” said Stec.  “We made the point that the intent of the law is to protect, not hurt, the small companies who are filling a critical high-speed broadband need in rural communities,” said Stec.  “What was being asked wasn’t necessary, far too onerous and would be counterproductive. I was relieved and grateful that the exemption guidelines were updated that day.”

Stec said more than 30 companies have contacted the PSC seeking an exemption.  The PSC will make a determination prior to June 16, 2021, when the low-income broadband program takes effect.