County Takes Ownership of Huntington Farm

MIDDLEFIELD—On Tuesday, May 19, the Otsego County Board of Representatives announced the purchase of the Cooperstown Holstein property, also known as the Huntington Farm.

According to a press release, the May 18 acquisition of this property, located on County Route 33W in the Town of Middlefield, “will initially allow for improved protection and security for multiple county departments’ equipment and will also allow for a secondary entrance into our current campus on CR 33W.”

This auxiliary entrance would prevent the isolation of the county’s Public Safety and EMS staff and equipment if there were ever a failure of the current entrance road, officials said.

“This purchase will also allow for the potential expansion of county facilities that would benefit multiple county departments and thus the numerous clients and residents they serve,” the release reads.

Otsego County representatives said the first building to be considered for replacement could be the Emergency Services Training Center.

“This building was scheduled to be replaced in 2020, but the COVID shutdown forced the county to cancel those plans,” officials said. “Otsego County has been exploring options regarding the existing, nearly 50-year-old building on CR 58 since 2016.”

Officials contend that many of the current Otsego County buildings have reached their “end of useful life” and the cost of maintenance and repairs far exceeds the benefits as detailed in a facility study completed in 2023 by N.K. Bhandari Architecture and Engineering.

According to the press release, “This purchase will provide future boards options on replacing these aged facilities.”