As 2024 comes to a close we look back at the year in local news. We have chosen these as the top 10 stories, in no particular order.
A new leader for Otsego’s board
The year opened with a change at the top of the Otsego County Board of Representatives.
The board elected Edwin Frazier Jr., R-District 1, as chairperson Wednesday, Jan. 3 in a 9-5 vote that ousted the previous chair, David Bliss, R-District 7, who had held the position for the previous six years.
The board unanimously elected Margaret Kennedy, R-District 5, as vice chairperson.
Local sheriff leads statewide association
Also in January, Delaware County Sheriff Craig DuMond was sworn in as president of the New York State Sheriffs Association. It was the first time in state history a sheriff from Delaware County had held the position.
“I always challenge our members of our sheriff’s office to do something every day to put Delaware County on the map, because the people of that county deserve it,” DuMond said during the swearing-in ceremony. “I’m very proud to be here today representing them and representing the fine people of Delaware County as their sheriff, as the president of the sheriffs’ association.”
Gov. Kathy Hochul helped swear in DuMond at the association’s convention Wednesday, Jan. 17. Hochul said she was impressed by DuMond’s resume, which included 32 years of service.
Market Street saw progress, controversy
Oneonta’s Market Street was in the news all year.
The street took on a vastly different look near the end of 2023, when both the city’s parking garage and a derelict building at 27 Market St. — once an automobile dealership — were demolished.
Wrangling over what should be done with the 27 Market St. lot continued throughout the year, with Mayor Mark Drnek promoting a a proposal by Rehabilitation Support Services to construct a mixed-use building that would contain offices for RSS mental health services on the ground level and apartments above. The plan was opposed by some and even resulted in extending a vacancy on the city’s Common Council, when an opponent of the project lobbied to be appointed, but Drnek refused.
Meanwhile, the street, itself, was the subject of a major overhaul. New pavement and curbs, as well as infrastructure below ground, was completed in late fall. Work had begun on a new transit hub building at the site of the former parking garage, and the Sidney Federal Credit Union had begun a complete overhaul of it’s branch on the street.
Week-long search has tragic end
A week-long search for a missing Otego man ended Friday, Feb. 2, when law enforcement officers found the body of Matthew V. Sisson in the Susquehanna River in Cooperstown. Sisson, 45, of Otego, reportedly walked out of Bassett Hospital, where he was being treated for a perforated appendix. He had last been seen walking down an embankment toward the river near the hospital.
A week of searching the area and following up on tips of reported sightings did not produce any credible until about 100 law enforcement officials from multiple agencies gathered for a large-scale search for Sisson.
At about 11:15 a.m. that day, Otsego County Sheriff’s Sgt. Richard Kimmerer, who was with a team of deputies and a state forest ranger, located a deceased man in the river. The man was later identified as Sisson.
Communities get big grants
The town of Richfield was awarded a $4.5 million NY Forward grant to revitalize its downtown neighborhood and generate new opportunities for long-term growth. Gov. Kathy Hochul’s office announced Monday, Feb. 12, that Richfield was a Mohawk Valley Region winner of the second round of the NY Forward program. Richfield Springs, a village in the town of Richfield, “is a small community with an outsized passion for the revitalization of its Main Street,” according to the governor’s news release.
A couple weeks later, it was announced that the hamlets of Roxbury and Grand Gorge, both withing the town of Roxbury in Delaware County, would receive a $10 million state Downtown Revitalization Grant.
Hochul made the announcement Friday, March 1 at Binghamton University. Roxbury Town Supervisor Allen Hinkley, MARK Project Executive Director Peg Ellsworth and others from Roxbury were there to receive a check made out to the town Roxbury. Residents from Roxbury and Grand Gorge gathered at Kirkside mansion that afternoon to celebrate.
“We’re here to announce the worst-kept secret,” Hinkley said at the gathering. “It’s a good day for Roxbury. We were awarded a $10 million grant. That equals five years of the town budget.”
Oneonta Theatre rehab continues, disaster averted
The Oneonta Common Council, at its April 16 meeting, hired a consultant for administrative services related to the $500,000 state grant funding the Oneonta Theatre’s roof replacement.
Thoma Development Consultants, of Cortland, was the only respondent to a request for proposals to administer the roof replacement grant.
The theater building at 41-49 Chestnut St., which was built around 1897, has been closed since Jan. 1, 2017.
Of the grant funding, $15,000 is budgeted for administration. The proposal from Thoma Development is for a not-to-exceed amount of $14,500.
Another $40,000 is slated for architecture, engineering and environmental testing and $445,000 for construction.
The local match to be provided by the property owner is $393,000, bringing the full budget for the project is $893,000.
There was a scary moment for the theater on Sept. 17 as fire broke out in an apartment in the building.
Oneonta firefighters made entry into the building and located the fire in a second floor, street-side bedroom and quickly brought it under control, according to a news release.
Fire crews then discovered that what was believed to be gasoline had been present in the room, contributing to the rapid spread of the fire.
In the bedroom was a dead 48-year-old man, identified as Jason M. Stevenson. The investigation indicated that Stevenson ignited what is believed to be gasoline inside the bedroom before taking his own life with a firearm, the release stated.
Deputy dragged by car, man arrested
A Pennsylvania man was arrested Friday, March 8 after allegedly dragging an Otsego County sheriff’s deputy with a vehicle during a traffic stop that occurred in February.
Jamesan P. Conville, 36, of Lititz, Pennsylvania, was charged with felonies and lesser charges after the incident, in which Deputy Sheriff Justin Proulx stoped a car for speeding on Feb. 14 on Interstate 88 in Milford.
While conducting a roadside investigation, Proulx discovered that Conville possessed a handgun. When Proulx tried to detain Conville, a news release said, Conville drove off, dragging Proulx about 300 feet. Proulx was able to disengage and was later transported to Bassett Hospital for medical treatment.
Conville was later convicted of a felony charge and sentenced to a term in state prison.
Solar eclipse had our eyes on the skies
The total solar eclipse on April 8 drew the eyes of thousands of people in Oneonta toward the sky as the moon overtook the sun for about four minutes.
Dozens of people chose Huntington Park to view the eclipse, including many families — several school districts had cancelled school, opting to use unused snow or emergency days to cover the time off.
People brought lawn chairs to the park or sat on blankets on the ground. Others sat in the plaza at the top of the hill.
The sun dipped in and out of sight as cloud cover obscured the sun at times. At 3:24 p.m., many people cheered as the moon covered 97-99% of the sun, the maximum coverage for the region.
The city’s two colleges, SUNY Oneonta and Hartwick College, hosted public viewing events on their respective campuses.
At Hartwick, people gathered along Founder’s Way for an unobstructed view of the celestial event from the campus’s hilltop location.
Meanwhile at SUNY Oneonta, thousands of students and visitors attended a viewing party on campus.
Former state senator dies
We learned on July 27 that former state senator James Seward had died of cancer at the age of 72.
Seward, an Oneonta native, a Hartwick College graduate and a longtime Milford resident, was a Republican member of the state Senate from 1987 to 2020, representing the 50th and 51st districts.
“In his entire Senate career, his veteran leadership and upstate rural viewpoint were indispensable to the Senate’s leadership and policy decisions,” his obituary stated.
Bassett Healthcare Network made plenty of news
Bassett Healthcare Network announced Wednesday, March 20 the selection of its new president and CEO — Staci Thompson, who had been working in the position on an interim basis since Jan. 1 after the former president stepped down.
According to a news release, the Bassett Board of Directors unanimous voted to make Thompson the new president and CEO, beginning immediately, succeeding Dr. Tommy Ibrahim.
“I am thrilled to join a legacy of exceptional leaders at Bassett Healthcare Network,” Thompson said in a statement. “Bassett Medical Center was founded in 1922 by Dr. Mary Imogene Bassett, a pioneering leader and true trailblazer who held a vision for rural medicine focused on access, social equity, research, and academics. It is an honor to continue this work and lead Bassett forward surrounded by a team of talented and capable leaders.”
The news was gloomier on Oct. 18, when Bassett laid off around 100 employees, eliminating their positions.
Thompson said the affected roles, representing about 2% of Bassett’s workforce, were primarily administrative.
Thompson said the layoffs were driven by significant financial losses — about $80 million in 2022, a similar amount in 2023, and losses were projected for 2024 as well.