Gov’s new mask rule confuses businesses Governor Kathy Hochul’s statewide mask mandate took effect December 13 but left Otsego County businesses and residents a little short on detail. That same afternoon at Stewart’s on Chestnut Street in Cooperstown, where the store enforced the order from the State Health Department, Steve Schroeder of Unadilla was headed inside, masked. “If it protects other people, it’s great,” he said of the mandate, noting the importance to everyone’s safety. He said he was unsure…
Online home of The Freeman's Journal and Hometown Oneonta
Advertisement
The Freeman's Journal - Page 62
Oneonta ‘Festival’ and county ‘trail’ light up the holiday season By Kevin Limiti The Christmas season is officially here, which means holiday music, gathering with family, opening gifts, and waiting for Santa Claus. But there is nothing that screams holiday spirit more than what the Leatherstocking Education on Alcoholism/Addictions Foundation (LEAF) is doing to draw attention to the great light displays local residents proudly show off in Otsego County. And it’s all for a good cause: LEAF created the ‘Great…
Community Foundation taps former mayor as new exec director Former Cooperstown Mayor Jeff Katz returns to a life of serving his community when he takes the helm as the first executive director of the Community Foundation of Otsego County at the start of the new year. “This is thrilling and an honor to have been chosen,” Mr. Katz told The Freeman’s Journal/Hometown Oneonta. “I’m looking forward to the engagement and the change to get out and see people throughout Otsego…
Farm Laborers Wage Hearing to take place January 4 The New York State Department of Labor announced that a virtual hearing to discuss the overtime threshold for farm workers will take place on Tuesday, January 4, at 3:30 p.m. The main topic of discussion will be whether the required hours of overtime for farm workers should be lowered from 60 to 40. Members of the Farm Laborers Wage Board which include New York State Labor Commissioner Roberta Reardon, New York…
COVID update December 13 There are 37 new COVID cases in Otsego County, according to the Otsego County Department of Health, including a total of 340 active cases with 10 hospitalizations. No new deaths have been reported. There is a 9.1% positivity rate in the county. Governor Kathy Hochul announced over the weekend that masks will be required in all public places starting today until January 15, 2022.…
Photo: ‘Tis the season in Oneonta with Christmas tree light ceremony…
COVID update December 9 There are 51 new cases reported today, according to the Otsego County Department of Health. A total of 384 active cases are in the county with 10 hospitalizations. No new deaths have been reported. Otsego County is in an area of high community transmission. According to the Center for Disease Control and the DOH recommendations, indoor mask wearing is recommended regardless of vaccination status.…
Escaped prisoner injures officer in New Lisbon An escaped inmate is in custody after injuring an officer in New Lisbon on Thursday, according to the Otsego County Sheriff Department. John B. Clark, 27, was being transported to a scheduled court appearance when he fled custody of corrections officers.…
Take precaution, but don’t rush to judgment “Virologists will tell you that predicting how a new virus might evolve is a fool’s errand. Predicting that it will evolve is money in the bank.” – The Economist. Since the genome for Covid-19 was first sequenced in January 2020, there have been 5.6 million sequence variations added to the database. Obviously most variations do not make much difference, but a very few do so spectacularly. The Omicron variant is different than others…
State DOH temporarily halts Fox electives A.O. Fox Memorial Hospital is among the more than 30 hospitals around New York State required to halt certain elective procedures temporarily under an Executive Order issued in November by Governor Kathy Hochul. Citing concerns over capacity strain and emergency Covid-19 bed availability, the Governor’s order encompasses facilities with a staffed bed capacity of less than 10 percent. The state’s Department of Health delivered official word to affected hospitals late in the evening on…
