MUSIC ON MAIN – 2 – 4 p.m. Get out of the house and enjoy rock music with the Council Rock Band at Pioneer Park, Cooperstown. 607-547-9983 or visit www.facebook.com/cooperstownchamber/
By LIBBY CUDMORE • Special to www.ALLOTSEGO.com
COOPERSTOWN
Hanna Bergene, 2020 Cooperstown Winter Carnival co-chair, warns that things could get cheesy.
“New this year is a mac and cheese contest at the Carnival closer,” she said. “We heard from the restaurants that the chicken wing contest was kind of stale – and who doesn’t love mac and cheese in the middle of winter?”
The contest will be free, allowing all the carnival goers to taste samples from almost a dozen restaurants at Upstate Bar & Grill.
And if that doesn’t fill you up, you can head over to the annual Grilled Cheese For a Good Cause at The Farmer’s Market, to benefit Otsego 2000. “It’s going to be a very cheesy Sunday,” she joked.
This year’s carnival has a “Roaring 20s” theme. “It’s glitzy, it’s glam, it’s a little mysterious,” said Bergene. “We wanted to give 2020 a fresh start.”
And what’s a Roaring 20s party without a speakeasy and some dancing? “We’ve got eight local restaurants making 1920s cocktails for the cocktail contest,” she said. “And everyone is really excited to dress up.”
The Speakeasy will be held Saturday, Feb. 8, at the Vet’s Club, and there are prizes for best flapper and most dapper, while Hanzolo will be on hand to help guests dance the night away.
They expanded the carnival to beyond downtown Cooperstown, with the lip-synch contest – dubbed “The Roaring 20s Showdown” hosted 6-9 Friday, Feb. 7, at Brewery Ommegang.
“Ommegang had a great interest in being involved this year and we were open to the idea of it,” she said. “They’re an excellent venue and the lip-synch is always a good time.”
Also new this year is the expanded lineup of trunk shows and pop-up shops, with extra shopping opportunities at Kate’s Upstate, Tin Bin Alley and All About The Girls.
“Kate Lanza at Kate’s Upstate has done pop-ups before with Natalie Wrubleski’s Champagne Hippy and Karen Katz jewelry,” said Bergene. “We worked with the downtown businesses to make a weekend of shopping.”
But it’s not just the adults who can have fun. “We wanted to bring back the event for all types of people,” she said.
For kids, there’s a “Meet the Heroes” event, where they can meet fire fighters and see the fire trucks, as well as a “Storytime with Frosty” at the Village Library.
The Carnival is also partnering with the Cooperstown Chamber of Commerce and The Farmers Museum to host activities for families in Pioneer Park.
“It’s my first Winter Carnival!” said Tara Burke, executive director. “We brainstormed with the carnival committee and they were looking for some more family-friendly activities. We were happy to help out.”
Kids can make their own bejeweled snowflakes. “Paint could freeze, so we got markers and jewel stickers,” said Burke.
JV and Varsity Baseball teams will host a wiffle ball home-run derby – yes, in the snow! – to raise money for their spring training camp, and the Susquehanna SPCA will host a Brooks chicken barbecue at the Christ Episcopal Church Parish Hall.
With farmers, butchers, employees and friends alongside, Carrie and Doug Thompson cut the ribbon on their new business venture, Tthe Green Cow, as Steve Grubb and Brian Fassett, who work on the farm, hold the ribbon. The butcher shop, at 21 Railroad Ave., Cooperstown, features grass-finished beef raised on 450 acres near Richfield Springs. “This project has been 10 years in the making,” said Doug. “It’s been a fantastic journey for myself, Carrie and our two girls. It’s so special to bring it all together.” Following the ribbon cutting, the couple invited their neighbors to stay for some hamburger sliders, cooked by Grill Master Steve Gotwald and served up by store manager Karen Slowik, at right inset. (Libby Cudmore/AllOTSEGO.com)
By LIBBY CUDMORE • The Freeman’s Journal & Hometown Oneonta
COOPERSTOWN – Even before she was named executive director for the Cooperstown Chamber of Commerce, Tara Burke was a big fan of the business community.
“My family loves the Fly Creek Cider Mill, and we always go to brunch at The Otesaga,” she said. “My brother is a big fan of ‘Game of Thrones,’ so we always have to go by Brewery Ommegang and get beer for him.”
COOPERSTOWN – Tara Burke, director of communications and program development for the Chemung County Chamber of Commerce in Elmira, has been selected at Cooperstown Chamber of Commerce executive director, effective April 8, it was announced today.
She plans to attend the annual meeting on March 28 at Brewery Ommegang, so members will get a first chance to meet her then.
COOPERSTOWN – In all, six business, including the Baseball Hall of Fame, the Cooperstown Farmers Market and Stagecoach Coffee were selected from 25 finalists to be the 2019 inductees into the Cooperstown Chamber of Commerce’s 2019 Chamber Business Hall of Fame.
Also named to the Hall of Fame were Pathfinder Village, The Cooperstown Bat Company and the Cooperstown Fire Department.
COOPERSTOWN — Voting is now open to decide which of the 25 finalists will be named to the Cooperstown Chamber of Commerce’s 2019 Chamber Business Hall of Fame.
Last year, the Chamber honored Brewery Ommegang, the Cooperstown Graduate Program, The Farmers’ Museum, the Susquehanna Animal Shelter (now the SPCA), and Spurbeck’s Grocery. Voting is open to the public, and the winners will be announced in the spring.
COOPERSTOWN – Matt Hazzard, Cooperstown Chamber of Commerce executive director for almost five years, today announced he is resigning to concentrate on his family business, Leatherstocking Trolley Co., effective in April.
The three-month notice “will allow the board to do a full search for a new executive director,” he wrote in an email to members. “In the meantime, the chamber will continue to operate in the best interests of our membership and the business community.”
HALLOWEEN
PARADE – 5 p.m. Showcase your Halloween best with Cooperstown Central School band leading the way. Followed by cider and treats at Cooperstown Chamber of Commerce, then trick-or-treating at around Cooperstown. Start at Cooper Park, Cooperstown. 607-547-9983 or visit cooperstownchamber.org/halloween-2/
PARADE – 7 p.m. Celebrate Halloween. Costumes encouraged, includes Oneonta High School Bands. Line-up at 6:15. Main St., Oneonta.
TREES OF COOPERSTOWN – 5:30 p.m. Tour Cooperstown with Otsego County Conservation Association, learn benefits of street trees, threats to urban forests, basics of tree anatomy, identification. Free, open to public. Pre-registration preferred. Meet at Pioneer Park, Main St., Cooperstown. 607-547-4488 or visit occainfo.org/calendar/the-trees-of-cooperstown/
GARDEN CLUB – 6:30 p.m. Public meeting hosts Don Urtz presenting photographs of work done by the club over the years. Free, refreshments provided. Richfield Springs Village Library, 102 W. Main St., Richfield Springs. 315-858-0230 or visit www.facebook.com/Richfield-Springs-Public-Library-1068210423236404/
COOPERSTOWN – The Farmers’ Museum, Brewery Ommegang, The Cooperstown Graduate Program, the Susquehanna Animal Shelter and Spurbeck’s Grocery were honored as the 2018 class of the Cooperstown Chamber of Commerce’s Hall of Fame during a ceremony at The Farmers’ Museum earlier this evening.
“In the four years that I’ve been with the Chamber, this is my favorite day of the year,” said Matt Hazard, executive director. “We live in a very special place, and it’s fun to recognize these organizations that contribute so much for our community.”
Also honored were five winners in the Business of the Year category.
COOPERSTOWN – Brewery Ommegang and the Cooperstown Graduate Program were among the five local businesses named to the Cooperstown Chamber of Commerce’s second annual Hall of Fame, class of 2018.
The Susquehanna Animal Shelter, The Farmers’ Museum and Sperbeck’s Grocery were also named as honorees. The five were picked from 25 nominees, with 1,000 people voting.
Jane Forbes Clark told Cooperstown Chamber of Commerce members this morning that the village’s downtown, which lost the CVS and Cooperstown General Store in recent months, is at a crossroads, and she adopted the chamber’s 2018 of “togetherness” as a way toward a solution. The Hall of Fame chairman said store rents – as high as $7,000 a month – are “too high” to achieve mixed retail offerings, and that there are too many baseball stores. While suggesting no specific solutions, she detailed the hundreds of thousands of visitors Clark entities – The Hall, The Fenimore and The Otesaga among them – attract to Cooperstown annually, potential customers for downtown establishments that can figure out how to bring them in the doors. (Parker Fish/AllOTSEGO.com)
