NIAGARA FALLS — Whether you live in Niagara County or Montauk Point, Long Island, our governor has some advice on how to spend your summer vacation.
Stay closer to home.
In fact, don’t travel out of state.
That’s the message Gov. David A. Paterson’s office released Thursday — a little late if you were already on the road for the long holiday weekend — as a way to combat rising prices at the pump and across-the-board increases in the cost of living.
Paterson has urged Empire State residents to take advantage of the many special travel packages available through the “I Love New York” campaign.
“This state is a world-class destination spot,” the governor said, noting that with all its beauty and diversity, there’s virtually nothing vacationers will find elsewhere that they can’t find here.
(You might get an argument on that, Governor.)
He cites some of the potential savings for people visiting the state Web site: www.iloveny.com/
summer.
n I Love NY Hotel discounts: offering a third night free at more than 215 participating hotels.
n Rail + car: 20 percent off Amtrak tickets to any New York state destination; 5 percent off rental cars at select passenger stations.
n Camping: Links to reserving campsites at state parks. If you’re interested, it helps to book early.
State Parks Commissioner Carol Ash says that about 90 percent of the state park agency’s campsites were booked for the Independence Day holiday.
“It’s obvious that now more than ever New Yorkers will want to explore destinations that are closer to home, from Niagara Falls to the Adirondack Mountains and to the tip of Long Island,” says Kenneth A. Schoetz, acting upstate chairman for Empire State Development.
It’s ironic that the governor’s office spends so much time and effort touting tourism.
If it’s such a fantastic visitor destination, why don’t the government leaders in Albany strive to make this state more attractive for business and industry to invest?
•••
OFF & WALKING: Allen James of Sanborn was in Eugene, Ore., Saturday, competing in a 20-kilometer race walk in the Olympic Trials.
James, one of the top race walkers in the U.S. for years, qualified for the Olympics in 1992, when he finished 30th in Barcelona, and in 1996 when he was 24th in a 50K event in Atlanta.
A former marketing and events coordinator for the regional park commission at the Niagara Falls State Park, James works for Toths Sports, a Victor, N.Y.-based company specializing in team uniforms and equipment.
He says his first exposure to running track and field was at age 11, when he started selling shoes at his family’s specialty running store in Seattle.
Before moving to Niagara County, he had lived near Atlanta and in the Albany, N.Y., area.
•••
ACROSS THE BORDER: A Lewiston couple who recently spent a couple of weeks in the “Cottage Country” of northern Ontario said they were surprised to see few boats out on the lake, even in ideal weather conditions. A major factor for the lack of activity: the high cost of fuel.
On a related note, a survey by Royal LePage, the real estate firm, shows that a number of cottage owners across Canada are seriously weighing the possibility of selling their summer properties to cope with growing financial concerns.
The survey also showed that the price for a recreational property in Canada now ranges between $326,567 and $1,066,389, especially in the posh Muskoka Lakes region.
•••
ON THE AIR: Mayor Paul Dyster will be a guest on “Viewpoint,” with Tom Darro as host, from 9 to 10 a.m. Monday on radio station WJJL (1440).
Contact reporter Don Glynn at 282-2311, ext. 2246.
Columns
Related Photos
-
Don Glynn
GLYNN: Gov. Paterson reminds residents to love N.Y.
- Columns
-
-
HAMILTON: The SPCA and the pineapple upside-down pie
It is said that, as free Americans, we often get the things for which we ask; we also often get exactly what we deserve. Sometimes it works out to our good, and sometimes it doesn’t.
-
GLYNN: Slim chance now for a real thick ice bridge
If you’re not convinced about the unpredictability of Western New York weather, consider that this area was experiencing temperatures in the mid-40s on the 100th anniversary of the ice bridge tragedy in the gorge.
-
BRADBERRY: Is Black History Month Still Relevant?
I am uncomfortably recovering and slowly recuperating from a relatively minor, but medically necessary procedure which has kept me out of circulation, out of touch and essentially on my back for a lot longer than I have personally believed was justifiable; however, in this case my opinion matters not; the doctor’s diagnosis and promising prognosis trumped mine, so here I lay almost completely befuddled, nearly unable to pen a clear sentence.
-
CONFER: Time to end the NFL’s blackout rule
Long ago, in a much simpler time, ticket sales accounted for the majority of revenues for professional football teams.
-
CITY BEAT: Stuck on traffic
Sometimes I feel like the traffic signal reporter in Niagara Falls.
Traffic signals have been making a lot of news around here lately. There’s the whole flap about what to do to improve public safety near the Como Restaurant in the 2200 block of Pine Avenue. -
HIGGS: Discussing crime and punishment in the Falls
Have to take a detour off Pine Avenue in 1956 this week to report on an event held by the Niagara Falls Block Club Council for its member clubs and other interested citizens.
-
GLYNN: Hotel Niagara plan exciting for the Falls
It all sounds like a re-run of a TV program you’ve seen a dozen times. This time, however, there is every reason to believe that the landmark Hotel Niagara on Rainbow Boulevard will be restored to the splendid atmosphere that guests enjoyed for decades.
-
HAMILTON: BOE and kids, or the SPCA dogs?
There is example after example of otherwise qualified Niagara Falls’ board of education members and staffers lending their time and efforts to organizations outside of the school district’s core business.
-
GLYNN: Trust in SPCA shelter must be restored
Stories about the operations at the Niagara SPCA shelter shape the image of sickening and disgusting treatment of animals.
-
BRADBERRY: Old medicine and new challenges
Having suffered and recovered from my fair share of illnesses and injuries over the years, I have come to believe that sometimes the treatment and the cure of my condition can seem to be far worse than whatever I may think is ailing me at the moment.
- More Columns Headlines
-
Denver's Largest-Ever Drug Bust Nets Dozens
Marines: No Punishment for Nazi-like Flag
Vets Look to Translate Military Skills Into Jobs
Expert: Removing LA School's Staff 'Appropriate'
Raw Video: School Bus Burst Into Flames
LA School Reopens Amid Sex Abuse Scandal
$25B Settlement Reached Over Foreclosure Abuses
Pentagon: Allow Women Closer to Front Lines
Obama Gives Education Waivers to 10 States
Giffords Aide to Run for Her Seat
LA School in Sex Abuse Scandal Reopens
Winter Slamming North Asia, Parts of Europe
Syrian Forces Renew Bombardment of Homs
States, Banks Reach Foreclosure-abuse Settlement
Raw Video: Italy's Mount Etna Bursts Into Life
Greeks March; Angry Despite Debt Deal
Raw Video: U.S. Pullout Celebration
Raw Video: Annual Empire State Building Run-Up
Man Killed in Courthouse Shootout
Air Force Airlines: Leaders Get Polished Service
