Dr. Barbara Brummer, New Jersey State Director of the Nature Conservancy, Congressman Scott Garrett, Representative from NJ’s Fifth Congressional District, and John Donahue, Superintendent of Delaware Water Gap NRA at the DelGrosso Tract, a new addition to the national recreation area. Credit: NPS photo by Deb Nordeen.
$1 million property protected from development
SUSSEX COUNTY, N.J. – A 91.5-acre forested property known as the DelGrosso Tract is now part of the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area.
The area is under intense development pressure. Once buffered from New Jersey’s first and second home boom by the Highlands to the east, increased protection of the Highlands has made the Kittatinny Ridge and Valley highly attractive to developers.
In 2008, the Nature Conservancy acquired the property, which lies just east of the Delaware River, on behalf of the National Park Service until federal funding could be secured. The DelGrosso tract was one of the largest remaining private holdings within the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area—and a tract that has been a long-standing acquisition priority for the National Park Service.
According to John Donahue, Superintendent of the Delaware Water Gap National RecreationArea , “The National Park Service regards this property as a critical element in the overall protection of the wildlife, the lands, and the water in this spectacular unit of the National Park System. The loss of this tract, which runs from the mountain tops in New Jersey to the mountain tops in Pennsylvania, to residential development, would have been a detriment to our effort to protect the larger natural areas. The Nature Conservancy and our Congressional members have been key partners in ecosystem protection in both states. We are fortunate that The Nature Conservancy was able to step in and protect this property until we obtained the necessary funding to make it part of our national recreation area.”
The DelGrosso Family Company, LLC, comprising four cousins who inherited the property from family members, agreed to sell it to the Conservancy for its appraised value of $1 million.
Denise DelGrosso said her father and uncle originally purchased the land jointly in 1965 for the sole purpose of maintaining it as forested land for family outings, hiking, recreation and enjoyment. DelGrosso added “This crucial acquisition has ensured that many generations to come will continue to enjoy the expansive forests that comprise this property.”
October 29, 2009 | Posted in
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Leslie Morlock of the National Park Service views one of the scenic spots of the Cliff Park Trail system. (Photo by Susan Koomar)
By Susan Koomar
MILFORD – Trails so scenic that they served as the setting for some silent movies are now streamlined and clearly marked with a new trailhead and better parking for visitors.
The trails lead to three exceptional destinations: Milford Knob, Hackers Falls and The Cliffs south of Milford.
Ten miles of hiking trials at Cliff Park were set to be dedicated Saturday, but the event was postponed by a forecast of inclement weather. The trails, however, are open to the public and busy with hikers seeking fall foliage at its most vibrant.
The project that began five years ago features better access, fencing at overlooks and new signs to direct hikers.
“It was a confusing maze” of trails, paths and fire roads, said Leslie Morlock of the National Park Service. Morlock hiked all of the trails to determine their GPS coordinates as part of an official mapping process.
There’s a new parking area and rest rooms at the southern entrance to Cliff Park Inn off State Route 2001. From there, hikers can take a short stroll around a man-made pond or an extended hike to waterfalls or overlooks high above Route 209 and the Delaware River valley. Visitors to The Columns museum in Milford can see a photo of movie star Mary Pickford atop the cliffs as she appeared in a D.W. Griffith film.
The cliffs are in a drought-resistant zone that features vegetation such as red cedar and prickly pear cactus – more commonly associated with the Southwest.
The Cliff Park lot provides more parking than the Hacker’s Falls lot, which the park service closed earlier this year.
“It was always overcrowded,” said Morlock.
From the new lot, it’s about a two-mile hike to Milford Knob, the site 400 feet above town where a star is traditionally illuminated at Christmas.
“It’s one of those iconic locations,” said Morlock.
Hikers are now discouraged from accessing Milford Knob via Milford Cemetery. Those who want a challenging climb rather than a gradual hike can start out from a parking area at the Route 209 National Park fee station just south of Milford.
“We wanted to give people more parking and keep them out of the cemetery,” said Morlock.
Park Superintendent John Donahue lauded the work of staff on the trail system – a project that will be emulated in other parts of the national recreation area.
The Cliff Park Trails network includes eight interconnecting trails from less than a quarter mile to 2.73 miles long. Maps of the trails system are available at park visitor centers. They will also be available on the on the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area Web site, www.nps.gov/dewa.
October 29, 2009 | Posted in
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State Rep. John Siptroth
By Susan Koomar
MILFORD – The debate over Pike County’s proposed library tax has evolved to include an issue under the potential purview of state lawmakers – who appoints board members and holds them accountable.
State Rep. John Siptroth, D-189, believes the library board should represent taxpayers being asked to fund the organization. The PCPL board is currently exempt from a state law enacted in 1961.
“(The law) in regard to grandfathering was not intended to protect an organization’s structure in perpetuity, but rather it was intended to minimize any administrative disruption that might have occurred at that time because of it,” Siptroth said in a statement to the Pike County Press.
He continued, “It is now almost 50 years later and the changes in the county should be reflected in the structuring of the library board. Dingman, Lehman and Delaware townships all lie in my district. If this referendum passes, the property owners there will be required to contribute more than 40 percent of the funding from this referendum. It stands to reason that they should be allowed a voice on the PCPL Board. The same is true of Lackawaxen, Palmyra and Blooming Grove, who would be required to contribute another 36 percent.”
Siptroth said he is examining the state library code to see if a change is warranted, or whether the current law needs to be clarified by the courts.
“Personally, I would rather see the board voluntarily change its by-laws to allow for this type of representation,” he said.
State Sen. Lisa Baker, R-20, is more cautious on the questions.
“While it is certainly worth rethinking an old law, there is an element of difficulty in this case. Any potential changes would impact two-thirds of our state-aided libraries, including some very popular metropolitan libraries, most of whom seem perfectly satisfied with the current structure. Also, some of the more recently established libraries have apparently encountered problems keeping a full board,” she wrote in an e-mailed response to the Pike County Press.
Baker said the democratic process will play out in Tuesday’s election.
“In this case, every registered voter in Pike County will have the opportunity to participate in this decision. Nobody can impose this tax. The people will decide for themselves,” she said.
State Rep. Mike Peifer, R-139, did not respond to a query as of press time.
(If you would like to leave a comment on this article, please click here to go to the special forum we have set up to discuss the Library Tax Referendum)
October 29, 2009 | Posted in
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Plague, murder, wildcats, bandits and an Indian massacre all play into folklore surrounding Shades of Death Road near Hope, N.J. (Photo by Susan Koomar)
Shades of Death Road Rich In Folklore
By Susan Koomar
HOPE, N.J. – Don’t be deterred by the sinister name of a lane that’s not far away. Just grab your favorite ghost buster and go for a drive.
Shades of Death Road – imagine having that for your street address – is seven miles of winding, woodsy scenery just south of Interstate 80 in Warren County, N.J. Recently named “One of America’s Creepiest Roads,” the former cow path is far less desolate and dangerous than reports on the Internet indicate. You’ll see farms, livestock and ghosts made of white sheets dangling from trees outside houses that don’t look haunted.
It’s worth the trip to have your photo snapped by the ominous street sign, explore the mysterious shores of Ghost Lake and ponder the many theories of how Shades of Death Road got its shady moniker.
A researcher at Warren County Public Library tried in vain to find official documentation of the many stories put forth in a book called “Weird New Jersey.” The book’s entry on Shades of Death does an entertaining job of combining local legends. The research librarian cited one of the least fanciful, but truly a horror – the story that swamplands along the road bred swarms of mosquitoes that spread a malaria plague to settlers and Native Americans.
“(The road) has a big reputation,” she said. “Teenagers will go there at night.”
In 1808, smallpox epidemics killed many of the residents of nearby Hope, N.J.,according to the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection
Plague was the topic of the first ‘Shades’ story that Willa Reilly heard when she came to the area 39 years ago..Then she consulted a publication produced for Liberty Township’s 75th anniversary in 2001 and found the bloody tale of Iroquois Indians who came down from New York state and massacred Lenni Lenapes. The story says it was one of the last Indian battles in New Jersey. If the massacre victims haunt the site of their grim demise, who can blame them?
Reilly, who is clerk/administrator of Liberty Township, is used to getting queries from incredulous callers who ask, “Do you really have a road called Shades of Death?”
“Yeah, we do,” she said with finality. “Our road foreman lives on that road. It’s just an old area. There’s not much to it. I think more people travel it just to say they were on Shades of Death Road.”
Reilly did not confirm an online report that every section of the road with reflective guardrails is the site of a fatal vehicle crash. There are curves and reflectors on guardrails – and the potential to wreck if you’re speeding over wet leaves on a chilly autumn night. But the library and township had no accounts of deadly accidents or, as “Weird New Jersey” states, three murders along the road in the 1920s and 1930s.
That’s where a stop at Ghost Lake, at the foot of Jenny Jump State Forest, led to another theory. An old-timer was there feeding corn to some ducks as his beagle sniffed through the woods. He chuckled when asked if he thinks the lake is haunted.
“I come here every day and I’m not being haunted,” he said. The spot has a man-made lake with a hiking trail, cave and glacial rock formations. Legend holds that an Indian burial ground was flooded to create the lake. Floating mist enhances the folklore.
When asked about the road’s name, the old-timer said it stems from several “incidents” of decades gone by. When pressed for details, he said a woman shot her husband. The old-timer mentioned the name “Cummins” and hinted that there were other bad doings at some cabins down the road.
But his version isn’t quite as colorful as the one in “Weird New Jersey,” which tells of a woman who beheaded her husband, then buried his head and body on opposite sides of the road. Other stories feature vicious wildcats that killed residents and highwaymen who robbed and slayed travelers.
Shades of Death Road has a ghost story for everyone. So take a ride and take your pick.
October 29, 2009 | Posted in
Pike County |
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The Honesdale Borough Police this week have received several calls from residents reporting that they received an automated call claiming to be from the Honesdale National Bank security department. The calls claim that your Honesdale National Bank Account has been suspended because they believe it has been compromised. It then asks you to enter your account number.
Honesdale Police are advising residents not to give any account information in response to these calls. If you did give account information in response to this call, contact your financial institution for further instructions.
October 29, 2009 | Posted in
State |
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David Wineberg
Designer Of Winning Logo Gets $500
By Susan Koomar
MILFORD – There’s something special about Milford and David Wineberg wants everybody to know it.
Wineberg and his wife have traveled to quaint towns throughout the Catskills, Adirondacks and beyond. Then came a weekend at the Hotel Fauchere in 2008.
“With all the towns we’ve been to we’ve never seen one as charming as this,” said Wineberg. Their destination was obvious when it came time to move out of New York City.
Now, Wineberg has a vision to “brand” Milford – a long-term, strategic project aimed at creating an appealing and enduring image that’s easy to recognize.
“I’m trying to make people familiar and comfortable with the brand Milford,” said Wineburg, a management and marketing professional with 30 years experience. “The essence of advertising is repetition. Put the brand out there constantly.”
Wineburg has started a group called Milford Brand Marketing with its first project soon to get under way – a logo contest for high school students.
“We want to see their creativity,” said Wineberg, who hopes to draw several hundred entries.
Entries will be accepted from November 9 through December 15. There are no size or color restrictions. Participants are encouraged to submit their entries electronically.
The logo theme is “Milford’s Magic.”
“Anything else students want to try, we’re open to,” said Wineberg. “One of these designs is going to strike our fancy and we’re going to have that ‘Eureka” moment.”
Wineberg envisions the logo being used on garden flags and advertising by any Milford business willing to help build the brand. The logo can also be used on business card holders placed at an array of locations, not only retail shops.
“I’m not looking for huge results tomorrow, but I think long term it will make a very big difference,” said Wineberg. “We don’t know where this will take us. I’m sure that once it’s under way people will have ideas and want to jump on the bandwagon.”
Logo contest entries will be posted online. The winner will be announced in mid-January.
For details, visit www.milfordsmagic.com.
October 29, 2009 | Posted in
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(Photo by Pat Camuso)
By Pat Camuso
LACKAWAXEN TOWNSHIP – A local businessman has filed a civil suit in federal court claiming that his township has infringed on his constitutional rights when it shut down a construction project.
The complaint names seven township officials.
Dimitri Zaimes, owner of Two River Junction in Lackawaxen, is suing zoning officers/building inspectors Rich Tussle, Jeffery Cammerino and Todd Klikus as well as Supervisor Rich Krochta, Supervisor Fred Gelderman, Supervisor Brian Stuart, and Solicitor Tony Waldron.
Zaimes claims that in the aftermath of a 2006 fire which destroyed his building, he was granted a conditional use permit to construct living quarters on the structure’s second level for his father. The dispute arose after his father died leaving Zaimes to pursue the idea of creating a bed and breakfast on the second floor by incorporating residential “living space” additions that were made and previously approved to accommodate the needs of his father.
Item 22 in the complaint reads, “On June 19, 2007, anticipating a time when his father would no longer reside at the property, plaintiff (Zaimes) submitted a conditional use application to operate a bed & breakfast on the second floor which application was denied.”
On October 9 of that year, violations were issued regarding certain improvements that were being made. The township called for their removal. A stop work order was issued on November 15.
Zaimes appealed and, according to the complaint, he was “under the impression that an agreement had been reached concerning the issues raised by appeals of the unfounded notices of October 9 and November 15 and that same would be lifted.”
Zaimes now says the township negotiated “in bad faith” and caused him to “suffer unconscionable financial hardship that was impairing the plaintiff’s (Zaimes’) ability to complete construction and resume his business operations and driving him to the brink of bankruptcy and loss of Two River Junction.”
When approached for comment about the suit, Lackwaxen Township supervisor Rich Krochta was taken aback; having not yet been officially served, the township knew nothing of it. The following day Krochta said, “I probably shouldn’t say anything about the case but I am certainly disappointed in him (Zaimes). He always claimed to be a supporter of our community but he is going to hurt the community now.”
The last time the township faced a federal lawsuit, according to Krochta, was in the mid-1990s when they were charged with a civil rights violation. The township won the case but the legal expenses that were incurred to defend themselves were daunting, Krochta said.
Zaimes said, “I’m not happy that it had to come to this; I didn’t want to sue my own township.”
Zaimes charges Lackawaxen with “loss of property, monetary loss, physical pain and suffering and emotional trauma.”
October 29, 2009 | Posted in
Pike County |
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Blooming Grove emergency services volunteer Jon Castimore accepts Senate recognition from State Senator Lisa Baker. (Photo by Pat Camuso)
LORDS VALLEY – The Blooming Grove Township Volunteer Fire Department celebrated their 50th year Saturday, October 17. The occasion was recognized by the State House and Senate with presentations being made by Representative Mike Peifer and Senator Lisa Baker.
Blooming Grove has always been in the forefront of volunteer emergency services and continues to do so today on a county-wide basis. Chairman of the Board of Pike County Commissioners, and a former chief in Blooming Grove, Rich Caridi praised the volunteers while promising them a new county training facility that is up to the demands of today’s volunteers and their critical training needs.
The Pike County Press congratulates the volunteers on the occasion of their 50th year and thanks them for their dedication and continuing exemplary service to the community.
October 29, 2009 | Posted in
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(Photo by Sharon Siegel)
By Sharon E. Siegel
PORT JERVIS, N.Y. – Dental patients in the tri-states community have benefited from a partnership that began in dental school, and evolved into marriage as well as the shared practice known as Aesthetic Family Dentistry.
Dr. Seth Horn grew up in Matamoras, graduated from Delaware Valley High School in 1988, and followed his father, Dr. William Horn, into his Port Jervis dental practice. He took over the business upon his father’s retirement in 2005.
The younger Horn met his wife of 12 years, Dr. Dide Tosyali, at Tufts School of Dental Medicine in Boston. She is originally from Smithtown, N.Y., but is pleased to have made her family’s home in the tri-states region. The couple has two daughters, Mina (age six) and Leila (age four), and as a family they enjoy gardening, traveling, and attending the girls’ ballet and gymnastic events. When they are not together as a family, the two dentists are still together throughout each day – as fellow dentists in Port Jervis’ Aesthetic Family Dentistry.
Each dentist has a room in which he/she offer a variety of cosmetic services, including veneers, non-metal crowns and fillings, Invisalign, and implant services in addition to continuing to provide all phases of general and family dentistry. There is a third exam room for additional services.
Personal attention from the doctors and their staff of seven are among the services the practice is known for, and among the qualities the doctors are proud of.
“One of our strengths has been our personal relationship with our patients. Many of our patients have been with us since the 70s and 80s, and we also see their children and grandchildren,” said Horn. “Our patients know that we strive to achieve their individual goals for their oral health and appearance.”
Horn said he and his wife view dentistry as evolving in exciting ways, continuing to make procedures better and more comfortable for their patients.
As an example, Horn said his office most recently has started offering Invisalign, a clear alternative to traditional braces, and mini implants, which make dentures more comfortable and more stable to wear.
“We have continued to stay at a high level through the quality of our services and our personal attention to our patients,” said Horn, whose practice also prides itself in keeping up on the latest trends and technologies.
Horn said his father, who practiced in the area for many decades, is enjoying retirement by traveling and spending time with his six grandchildren. The elder Horn established the dental business in 1970 and operated his office first from a Front Street location, from 1970-76. The practice was moved to its current location in 1976 to accommodate the growing number of patients.
To contact Aesthetic Family Dentistry, call 845-856-5049 or stop by their modern office located at 155 East Main Street right across from Bon Secours Community Hospital.
Pictured in one of three exam rooms in their practice is Dr. Seth Horn and Dr. Dide Tosyali who offer a wide range of dental services daily from their East Main Street Aesthetic Family Dentistry. (Photo by Sharon Siegel)
The doctors and staff of Aesthetic Family Dentistry pride themselves in service, personal attention, and modern services offered to their patients. Pictured are: Back Row, Judy Amato RDH, Phyllis Milana, Dide Tosyali DMD, Seth Horn DMD, Middle Row (standing) Natisha Sands RDH, Sandy Wilson, Front Row (seated) Polly Roberts, Kathy Knibbs. (Photo by Sharon Siegel)
October 29, 2009 | Posted in
Port Jervis |
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Costumed marchers of all ages delighted in the music and spirit of Port Jervis’ 64th annual Halloween Parade which made its way from City Hall, down Sussex Street, up Pike Street, and along East Main Street to Ulster Place where prizes were awarded by the Port Jervis Elks Lodge and refreshments were served by the Port Jervis Recreation Department.
By Sharon E. Siegel
A sunny fall day provided the perfect setting for one of Port Jervis’ popular parade traditions this past weekend.
Port Jervis Recreation Department hosted the city’s 64th annual Halloween parade Sunday afternoon, October 25, to the delight of creative and colorful costumed marchers of all ages.
The parade kicked off from city hall on Hammond Street, made its way along Sussex Street, then up Pike Street, along East Main Street, and concluding at the historic Farnum House on Ulster Place. Donuts and cider were served by members of the recreation department, and prizes were distributed by members of the Port Jervis Elks Lodge. Smiles and lots of enthusiasm were present among all age groups and participants in this popular, long-time, just-plain-fun tradition.
October 29, 2009 | Posted in
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