TRR photo by David Hulse These students at the MacKenzie Elementary School were a rapt audience as animal handler Travis Gale entertained them at the Earth Day program, sponsored annually by the school and the Lumberland Environmental Management Council.

For the love of the earth

By DAVID HULSE

GLEN SPEY, NY—Mother Nature didn’t cooperate with the weather end of the program on April 30, but more than 100 people still turned out for annual Earth Day festivities at MacKenzie Elementary School.

Karen Warden, of the sponsoring Lumberland Environmental Council, had hoped for a better day, but “we had a lot of hands-on activities, so those kids who were there really enjoyed themselves.” There were free hot dogs and the PTA chipped in with ice cream.

The day is an opportunity for fundraisers, and the sponsors of Lumberland’s Circle Park Project were selling tee shirts and soliciting support.

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Assessments soar in Highland and Lumberland

By DAVID HULSE

GLEN SPEY, NY —After receiving notices of newly increased property assessed valuations ranging from 17 to 300 percent, Highland and Lumberland residents packed the Lumberland Town Hall on Monday evening to find out how it happened.

The session was a joint meeting of both town boards, who appeared with state property tax officials and both towns’ assessors. Several Eldred Central School (ECS) board members and Superintendent Dr. Ivan Katz were also on hand.

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Dollars and sense with recycling

By DAVID HULSE

MONTGOMERY, NY—If odor has been reduced, there is still legal action in the wind at the Sullivan County Landfill.

In its current configuration, the county’s solid waste program may be running on borrowed time. The county is seeking state approval for a phase two expansion that would keep the East Broadway facility operating for an additional decade or more. But the municipal neighbors, the Village of Monticello and the Town of Thompson, don’t want it.

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Other stories in this issue:

• Rocks, rapids, gas tanks and corpses?
• Sawmill turned subdivision celebrates opening
• Excitement reigns on Earth Day
• Leaders of community honored for Sullivan pride
• Bad news and more bad news
• Town gives tax exemption to Bethel Woods
• Sullivan West battle of the books winners announced
• ECS grants tenure for eight
• Local dance center students leap ahead

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S