ECRWSS PRESORTED STANDARD U.S. POSTAGE PAID DENTON PUBLICATIONS/ NEW MARKET PRESS PO Box 338 Elizabethtown NY 12932 Postal Patron
Saturday,ÊNo vemberÊ5,Ê2016
>>
www.SunCommunityNews.com
In SPORTS | pg. 18-19
Regionals await local teams
Lake George, Bolton girls seek trips to Cortland
>>
In opinion | pg. 6
Transparency needed
Govt. must let people know what is being done
>>
In Minerva | pg. 3
Halloween treats School hosts costumed bash
Ahead of land use debate, groups turn to public opinion Green groups, local municipalities utilizing PR firms to shape and disseminate arguments as public hearings near for Boreas Pond Tracts By Pete DeMola
pete@suncommunitynews.com
ELIZABETHTOWN — As the public comment period gears up for how the state will classify the newly acquired Boreas Pond Tracts, groups on either side of the debate are flexing their muscles when it comes to lobbying the public and delivering their message. The war over the 20,494-acre tract, purchased by the state for $14.5 million in May,
will not only be fought at Adirondack Park Agency-sponsored public hearings across the state — the first is scheduled for Nov. 9, and comments will be accepted until Dec. 30 — but also on the digital frontier: Expect an influx of social media posts, blog entries and news articles. They will join mass emails, letter writing campaigns, television advertisements and targeted online advertising, making the battle, perhaps for some, as ubiquitous as a political campaign. But it’s not all even, with green groups outspending pro-access groups at least 10 to one. THE PLAYERS The parcels, purchased by the state earlier from the Nature Conservancy, is largely anticipated to be the final in a series of largescale state acquisitions.
Formerly owned by the Finch Pruyn timber company, the land has been closed to the public for over a century. Now the APA will collect comments to help determine the classification of the land, then the state Department of Conservation will draft a Unit Management Plan, with a formal decision expected to be made sometime next year. Four proposed alternate classification plans have been approved by the APA. Both sides — in as much that sides are clearly delineated — have painted the final decision as an existential question with precedent-setting ramifications. Access the Adirondacks, a loose coalition of local governments and sportsmen groups, are calling for more Wild Forest classification, which they believe would allow for the
increased recreational uses that will bolster the economy and ensure access to all user groups, including the disabled. Environmental groups are calling for an expansion of the High Peaks Wilderness, citing the need to protect the diverse ecological character of the tracts. While both sides say environmental protection must be balanced with economic development, the two have a different idea of how to get there. Green groups say the creation of a new southern gateway to the High Peaks will create a zone not dissimilar to Keene, while access groups have tied recreation directly to kickstarting economic growth. The parcel, located primarily in North >> See BOREAS | pg. 17
LongÊ LakeÊ nativeÊ servesÊ asÊ aÊ U.S.Ê sailorÊ inÊ Guam James Gallagher serves aboard Naval Base Guam
Students from eight local schools gathered in Long Lake on Saturday, Oct. 29 to participate in the 2016 fall Central Adirondack School Music Association All-County Concert. Pictured here is the junior chorus directed by Katy Cole. For additional photos visit www.suncommunitynews.com. Photo by John Gereau
SANTA RITA, Guam — A 1989 Long Lake Central High School graduate and Long Lake native is serving in the U.S. Navy as part of the staff of Submarine Squadron 15. Lt. Cmdr. James Gallagher is serving aboard Naval Base Guam, supporting sailors who serve aboard forward-deployed submarines. He is responsible for all forward electronics and for material maintenance and readiness on four homeported submarines. “I like working with the young sailors on the boats helping them to become better sailors,” said Gallagher. Attack submarines are designed to hunt down and destroy enemy submarines and surface ships, strike targets ashore with cruise missiles, carry and deliver Navy SEALs; carry out intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance missions, and >> See GUAM | pg. 17