Averill Road Case Has Day in Court

Judge Hears Arguments Thursday

By DARLA M. YOUNGS

Thursday, March 23, Madison County Sup-

Court Justice

Patrick J. O’Sullivan issued a temporary restraining order preventing Templeton Foundation or its agents from any further work at the foundation’s property on Averill Road in the Village of Cooperstown.

An order to show cause is a court order or the demand of a judge requiring a party to justify or explain why the court should or should not grant a motion or a relief, according to Cornell Law School’s Legal Information Institute. For example, if a party requests a restraining order from a judge, the judge may need more information.

The parties requesting the TRO in the Averill Road case—the plaintiffs/petitioners—are neighboring property owners Michael Swatling and Carolyn O’Brien, whose attorney, Douglas H. Zamelis, has filed complaints twice now against the Village of Cooperstown Board of Trustees, the Village of Cooperstown Zoning Enforcement Officer, and Templeton Foundation—the defendants/respondents.

The first suit, filed on January 18, contended that the Cooperstown Board of Trustees had applied an incorrect standard when analyzing the project’s environmental impact under the New York State Environmental Quality Review Act. The trustees had approved a special permit for the project on January 5 for development of a project to house Bassett Medical Center employees.

“Upon further review by the contractor of the project, the plan which the village approved exceeded the 2.5acre threshold,” said village attorney Martin Tillapaugh at the time.

There was no point continuing the litigation, Tillapaugh then explained. Counsel for the village, the plaintiffs and the Templeton Foundation stipulated that the litigation would be discontinued, but with the right of Templeton to reapply.

In the weeks that followed, heavy equipment arrived at the project site after which, according to attorney Zamelis, “our aerial photography confirmed Templeton had cleared the project’s entire footprint, including

Continued on page 9

By TERESA WINCHESTER OTEGO

Almost every person I’ve met has a story about this building,” said Bill Hovard, who, with his partner, Chris Kraig, is the most recent owner of one of the oldest surviving structures in the village of Otego—a commercial space at 354 Main Street.

Otego residents who formerly attended the school opposite the store have told Hovard about going there when the building housed a candy store. Others have reminisced about living in apartments there. Still others spent time at the location when it variously operated as a TV repair shop, a second-hand clothing store, or a café.

Hovard has a photo of the store when it functioned as Broadfoot Bros., a general store purchased by Berosus Broadfoot with his brother, Charles, in 1899.

UNADILLA—Delilah Ozark’s mom, Sage, says her smile lights up a room, and we agree! Delilah has lived in New York State for two years and loves the snow, Sage says of her canine companion. A gallery of our readers’ pets is now available for viewing on the AllOtsego.com website at htpps://www.allotsego.com/fureverfriends-and-purrfect-pals/. Every week, we’ll select at least one photograph to be highlighted in our newspapers, on Facebook and online. Send your photos to darlay@allotsego.com.

Hovard, who relocated from Andes, New York to the southern Otsego County village in 2016, acquired the wood-frame building in 2020 and opened for business in October, 2022.

“The building had been neglected for decades when we bought it. It required extensive renovation,” Hovard said.

Hovard’s partner Kraig, a designer, helped him with configuration of the interior. The beams across the ceiling, as well as the floor are original—“probably oldgrowth, first-cut timber,” Hovard speculated. The new owners sourced all lumber for the renovation from a local Amish sawmill.

“354 Main is more than just a store. It’s part store, part gallery, and part small event space,” Hovard explained.

The expansive panel of oversized windows on the ground floor makes for a welcoming exterior and allows abundant sunlight to brighten the interior, which is quite open, and thus conducive to multiple purposes. On shelves and in showcases at the back of the store, many items bear the trademark “Hudson Made,” indicating an array of soaps and other body care products developed by Hovard himself. One such product, “Workers,” is a heavyduty exfoliative bar made with pumice.

“It’s for gardeners or anyone working with their hands. It appeals to both men and women,” Hovard said.

By WRILEY NELSON

Oneonta

Otsego Now has issued a call for volunteers to clean up litter from the Oneonta Railyards at 1 p.m. on Wednesday, April 19. “Wetlands not Wastelands” is cosponsored by the Keep Mohawk Valley Beautiful Campaign. The project is expected to take until 5 p.m., and volunteers may come and go as they choose.

The Railyards, an historic area and the focus of a major economic revitalization project, contains 27 acres of protected wetlands. Unfortunately, much of this critical ecosystem remains littered with trash. Gina Gardner, marketing and innovation and acceleration coordinator at Otsego Now, highlighted the threat this litter poses to wildlife and the community.

“When trash is left to decompose in the wetland, it can release harmful chemicals and bacteria into the water, increase the amount of microplastics, which can have negative effects on aquatic life, and make the water unsafe for human use,” Gardner explained. “We hope this effort will inspire individuals to go out and develop a more respectful and deeper relationship with our natural environment.”

Otsego Now has worked for several years to develop the Railyards as a modern mixed-use space and business park. The site is conveniently located along I-88 and rail lines, and has significant water and wastewater capacity. Otsego Now is working with the Ramboll engineering firm to evaluate the feasibility of a communitywide geothermal heating and cooling system. Individual commercial lots are under appraisal to establish firm sale prices.

Local residents are encouraged to help beau-

Continued on page 9