Orange County, NY | featured news

CITY OF NEWBURGH — Jennifer Krom's third-graders at Horizons-on-the-Hudson Elementary School know the drill.After filing into the cafeteria's kitchen just after 9 a.m., they pick up a whole-grain egg roll, grab a piece of fruit, and say hello or give a high-five to Kris Schade, the cafeteria manager who greets each child with energy and a smile. Don't forget the milk!The students make it through the line in a matter of minutes and then bustle back upstairs for class. [...]

GARDINER - Join Jim O’Connell of Cornell Cooperative Extension Ulster County and Laura McDermott of Cornell Cooperative Extension of Eastern NY for a bramble pruning workshop from 1-3 p.m. March 19 at Wright’s Farm, 699 State Route 208, Gardiner. They will provide a hands-on demonstration of pruning blackberries, fall raspberries and summer raspberries. Attendees will also have the chance to prune on their own. Participants should bring their own pruners and dress for [...]

GOSHEN — St. James Episcopal Church, at 1 St. James Place in Goshen, will have a free screening of the 2015 feature film “Collar” March 22 in the chapel.“Collar” stars St. James’ own David Patrick Wilson, along with Tom Sizemore, Rebecca DeMornay, Richard Roundtree, Jaime Santana, Emily Tremaine, Greg Wattkis, Ty Granderson, Novella Nelson and others.This film was shot entirely in the Hudson Valley and has an Amazon 4-star rating. [...]

LIBERTY – Registration will begin in April for the popular Hanofee Park Summer Day Camp in the Town of Liberty.Town of Liberty residents can register their children beginning at 8 a.m. on April 1 in the Town of Liberty Parks & Recreation main office.Nonresident registration will begin at 8 a.m. on May 1. Registration continues during regular office hours, ending June 7 or when camp spots are full.Camp starts July 1 and ends Aug. 16. [...]

Robin T. Applewhite of Cumberland County, N.C., was sentenced on Tuesday morning in Cumberland County Superior Court to at least 230 years behind bars, but no more than 299 years, following his conviction on Monday for coercing women into prostituting for him.He also was ordered to pay the women nearly $608,000 because he did not pay them when they were his sex workers.A jury considered charges of human trafficking, promotion of prostitution and conspiracy involving six women, [...]

Catch a free multimedia presentation by Joseph Bertolozzi, an American composer who has forged a unique identity, at 11 a.m. Friday. He'll be talking about his sound-art performances and demonstrating with instruments and through video his music making on two metal structures: the Mid-Hudson Bridge and the Eiffel Tower, above. Richards Theatre, Orange Hall, SUNY Orange, Middletown. Corner of Wawayanda and Grandview avenues. GPS: 24 Grandview. 341-4891.Kick off your [...]

SLATE HILL — Minisink Valley school officials are considering asking voters to support an 11.8 percent increase in the tax levy in the 2019-20 school year.That would require overriding the district’s property tax levy cap, which can only be done if 60 percent or more of those who go to the polls May 21 vote yes.The district presented that figure to the state comptroller’s office by the March 1 deadline, according to a report by the Association of [...]

It happens all the time. New York City residents saunter into state forests, "ready" for steep, rocky hikes, with only grins, flip flops, short-shorts and no water or maps.New York-New Jersey Trail Conference volunteers promptly steer visitors to more appropriate activities in state parks like Harriman, Sterling Forest and Hudson Highlands, said Josh Howard, the conservation organization’s deputy executive director.That’s not the only difference locals can see the [...]

NEW WINDSOR — James Wright, the former chairman of the Stewart Airport Commission and a long-time Orange County legislator, died Tuesday. He was 87.“He was a passionate leader when it came to the airport,’’ said Louis Heimbach, who succeeded Wright as SAC chairman in 2016 and whose tenure as county executive overlapped Wright’s service in the Legislature. “He always maintained the airport had a future, even through all those times when [...]

ALBANY — A contingent of Hudson Valley economic development advocates and labor leaders converged on the state Capitol on Wednesday, pushing for the addition of lanes to Route 17 to meet the rapidly expanding growth of tourist attractions and other businesses along the east-west corridor.The coalition seeks $500 million to add a third lane in both directions between Harriman and the Monticello area. While there are no assurances from the state, advocates can argue that [...]