David Smith of VHB Engineering (L) and Joshua Goldstein make their pitch for the proposed construction of 111 luxury residential rental apartments in Suffern.

Nothing quite draws people to the village or town hall like a proposed development project. Well, maybe there is one thing — development that would increase village center traffic snarls.

Sloatsburgers Alison Harvey and Harrison Bush, two good friends of Harmony Hall, took advantage of the great weekend weather and organized a fall edition of the popular signature Great Lawn Flea Market. Vendors, browsers and buyers gathered Saturday at Harmony Hall for the flea market, where tables of goods were spread with everything from hand sewn denim clothes and Sloatsburg related historical odds and ends to the homemade dessert delicacies of Auntie El’s. Continue Reading

Get loose and spacey at Suffern’s Lafayette Theater as the historical movie house is now showing, Gravity, the George Clooney and Sandra Bullock space debris disaster.

Directed by  Alfonso Cuaron, who displays a deft and moody visual palette, the film will play through October 24.

The Lafayette also has a nifty new website that gives ample information on movie times and theater location. Continue Reading

Rockland County Executive candidate Ed Day announces building and zoning 10-point plan outside the Estates at Sky View development in New City.

The long road to the Rockland County Executive seat is winding down to the November 5 election, when Rockland voters will chose a new face to lead the county. Candidates Ed Day (R) and David Fried (D) have been trading endorsements and engaging in debates on the future of Rockland.

The Sloatsburg Public Library is getting a fresh coat of paint, one of the many projects, large and small, that help improve the look of the village. Sign maker Mike Iannaccone recently lent his hand to the effort, with a nice bright blue revitalizing and reposting of the Senior Center sign just across from the library.

A good sign catches a person’s eye without shouting too loudly. And after it draws attention to itself, blends back into its surroundings. Continue Reading

Oscar Winfrey and family invite you to Arden Hill’s weekend-long Fall Festival.

Oscar Winfrey and his wife Lindsay operate the expansive Arden Hill Nursery along Rt. 17 just north of Sloatsburg. When the couple first saw the property their thoughts turned to all of the interesting activities they could use it for — festivals, concerts, holiday parties.

This long Columbus Day weekend, part of the Winfrey’s vision has been put into action. Continue Reading

The whole dispute began at a house party, or so the story goes.

According to Bill Demarest  at Nyack Free Press, Rockland County Sheriff Lou Falco attended a Halloween party last year at Nyack Mayor Jen White’s house. When White “touted her spaghetti sauce,” Falco said not so fast. A challenge was made and a competition born.

And now Sheriff Falco can officially declare he has the best spaghetti sauce in Rockland, sort of. Falco’s sauce won the day in the recent first annual Get Saucy cook-off that included Nyack Mayor White, Director of Public Affairs for Orange and Rockland Tom Brizzalara, Rockland County Clerk Paul Piperator, and Dorothy Filorama, vice president of Institutional Advancement at Dominican College. Continue Reading

Gather ye animals, blessed are they.

Churches across the land will celebrate World Animal Day Sunday, October 6, with a Blessing of the Animals, an event that coincides with the feast day of Francis of Assisi. St. Mary’s-In-Tuxedo Episcopal Church will hold its annual Blessing of the Animals at 10 a.m.

Owners are asked to bring their animals on a leash, in a cage or if unable to travel, bring a photo. Animals and their owners are invited to the blessing and a reception with refreshments that follows.

St. Mary’s is located at 10 Fox Hill Road at Tuxedo Park, just off Rt. 17 and inside the entrance to Tuxedo Park.

World Animal Day began in Florence, Italy “in 1931 at a convention of ecologists in Florence as a way of highlighting the plight of endangered species.”

A bright yellow Ford Mustang came flying out of Harriman State Park Monday evening just after 8 p.m., with NYS Park Police in hot pursuit down Seven Lakes Drive toward the village. As the Mustang reportedly reached speeds of up to 100 miles per hour, the driver zoomed under the Thruway overpass and lost control of his vehicle near Waldron Terrace. Continue Reading

Surprised parents ran into a morning mess of construction at Sloatsburg Elementary School Thursday. Crews from Carbro construction were in the road and in the way, with heavy equipment loudly competing with local traffic as parents tried to make their regular morning run to drop off students.