PARKSVILLE - Some 250 guests were evacuated safely early Monday morning when fire destroyed the landmark 186-room Paramount Hotel Best Western.

The blaze reportedly destroyed the central portions of the 96-year-old hotel, leveling the lobby, kitchen, dining and meeting rooms and a two-story office complex.

Scores of firefighters from sixteen area companies helped fight the fire, which reportedly started in the kitchen.

WASHINGTON - The New York delegation to the U.S. House of Representatives is seeking an expansion of the federal emergency declaration declared in New York, based on the West Nile virus outbreak.

The emergency declaration provides up to $5 million in federal funds to reimburse affected local governments on a cost-share basis for emergency measures that were taken to save lives and to ensure public health and safety beginning July 15, 2000, according to the Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA). FEMA will pay 75 percent of the approved costs, with the remaining 25 percent covered by the state and local governments.

The declaration did not include reimbursement for the New York State Department of Health.

WASHINGTON - The Defense Authorization Bill for Fiscal Year 2001 allows the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to make monetary grants directly to local fire departments: $100 million in FY2001 and $300 million in FY2002. In addition, the legislation contains new funding for the Volunteer Fire Assistance Program, new burn research programs, a study of Hepatitis C occurrences in firefighters, and a study of Department of Defense resources, potentially available for sharing with local fire and EMS agencies. It also includes language that improves the opportunities for fire departments to obtain excess federal property.

Rep. Benjamin Gilman (R-20 NY) supports the measure and said it's long overdue. "It has become difficult for local fire companies to find funding to keep up with the ever-improving state of equipment and facilities. Yet despite ever-increasing demands on local fire companies, these needs have mostly gone unmet."

ELDRED - The Town of Highland has scheduled a hearing on the town board's preliminary budget for the year 2001.

The hearing is scheduled to take place at the Eldred Town Hall at 7:00 p.m. on October 24.

ELDRED - Principal Ivan Katz reported last week that Eldred Central School eighth graders' mean scores placed them first in this year's English Language Arts (ELA) testing and second in eighth-grade math testing countywide.

Regional results compiled by the New York State Education Department, however, showed that almost universally the percentages of students passing the exams this year were down from last year, including those at Eldred.

State Education Commissioner Richard Mills called the eighth grade results "very troubling overall and especially for children in the highest need schools."

ALBANY - Governor Pataki last week signed a new law into effect that is designed to provide telephone customers with some relief from persistent telemarketers.

The initiative, known as the "Telemarketing Do Not Call Provision," allows telephone consumers who do not wish to be called by telemarketers to add their names to a statewide "do not call" registry.

The new registry will take effect on April 1 of next year and consumers can begin adding their names to the list by calling the State Consumer Protection Board at 800/697-1220. Once the registry is in effect, telemarketers will be allowed 30 days to remove names from their call lists or face civil fines up to $2,000 per call.

MONTICELLO - Sullivan County Legislator Steven Kurlander (RC-9) resigned his chairmanship of the Legislature's real property committee last week.

The action was said to be in protest of the legislature's recent move to defer Thompson Supervisor Tony Cellini from non-collusion provisions associated with the appointment of a casino gaming negotiating committee dealing with the Park Place Entertainment/Kutshers proposal.

Cellini had rejected a requirement that committee members sign an affidavit that they would not enter into business with Park Place within two years of the signing of negotiation-related contracts.

But Legislative Chairman Rusty Pomeroy (D-3), who replaced Kurlander on the real property committee by appointing Rodney Gaebel (RC-5), said Kurlander informed him of his decision to withdraw before any announcement on the deferral for Cellini was made.

Kurlander did not appear at scheduled legislative committee sessions last week and has made no comment about his decision. Real property committee vice-chair Leni Binder has assumed the committee chair and will retain it through the remainder of the year, Pomeroy said.