SULLIVAN COUNTY – This year has been 365 days of trials, triumphs, and turnovers for Sullivan County, with only more of all of it to persist in playing out into the new year. After 104 editions throughout the 52 weeks of 2023, the Sullivan County Democrat has kept a close eye on the happenings of the local politics, government, community events and so much more.

Below is a curated list of our top stories from this year ranging in topics from natural disasters, to early transitions of political power, to remembering the losses of community pillars and breaking news. 

Certainly the news of yesteryear will come to play a part in the news that’s yet to come. Stay tuned for all of that, but for now, here are some of our big stories of 2023:

Election Recap

Sullivan County Legislature will see a change in the coming months as a number of seats were won by five challengers, flipping the board to a 5-4 Democratic majority.

 In District 1, Matt McPhillips claimed over incumbent Republican Chair Robert Doherty with 1,504 votes to 942 votes.

Incumbent District 2 Legislator Nadia Rajsz, a Democrat, was returned to office with a 676-385 victory over Joanne Jasper. 

Brian McPhillips, who is on the Board of the Town of Liberty, beat out incumbent Michael Brooks for the District 3 seat, 1,036-851. 

In District 4, incumbent Nicholas Salomone Jr. successfully held onto his seat against challenger Maryallison Farley, 639-549.

Districts 6 and 7 saw the unopposed return of Legislators Luis Alvarez, 608, and Joseph Perrello Sr., 939, respectively.

Then in District 5, political newcomer Cat Scott convincingly won over incumbent George Conklin, 1,337-1,057. 

The elections also saw the induction of the new Town of Highland Supervisor, John Pizzolato, who claimed victory over opponent Donald “Jeff” Haas 471 to 382.

The Town of Fallsburg will also see a change in Supervisor as Michael Bensimon defeated incumbent Katherine J. Rappaport 1,357 to 559.

Tornado rips through Sullivan

Sullivan County was impacted in many ways this year and on a weather standpoint, it faced a tremendous battle as a tornado ripped through. 

On Saturday April 22, a tornado that ranged in power from an EF-1 to an EF-2 touched down in Callicoon Center and Roscoe. The storm prompted two successive tornado warnings to residents. 

The tornado ripped apart Apple Pond Farm’s main barn while tearing the frames off a number of sheds and smaller structures built to house animals and pulling the roots off 100-year-old pine trees from the ground. Devastation was all around as the tornado took down everything in its path and made driveways and roads impassable while tearing sections of roof off homes. The tornado also tore down two of Norris and Catherine Chumley’s buildings on Hahn Rd. in Callicoon Center. 

The storm’s path of destruction left residents and local officials picking up the pieces as state and local government officials joined forces to aid residents and businesses. A joint press conference was held in Roscoe on Thursday, April 27 between Callicoon and Rockland townships to discuss the next steps and provide resources to anyone in need of assistance. 

Coordinated efforts led to various avenues for property owners to explore for assistance. Town of Callicoon Highway Superintendent Mike Haff had reported at the Callicoon Town Board meeting on May 8 that mostly everything had been cleaned up from the tornado and the town’s Code Enforcement Officer, Kris Scullion, was available for assistance to anyone affected by the storm. 

Fentanyl raises issues; HIDTA designation

The death of a 16-month-old girl, Akasha Luvert, at the Knights Inn Motel in Liberty on May 2 created a lot of tension within the county among the District Attorney (DA), County Attorney, legislators and other local officials as well as county residents. 

The fallout to that tragedy continues to be seen. It led to the arrest of the young girl’s parents, Jimmie Luvert and Lisa Keitt, who were ultimately indicted by Acting Sullivan County DA Brian Conaty for 2nd degree manslaughter on May 18. Conaty also announced that day, that the child’s grandmother, Lisa Ferdico-Vizard was also arrested for allegedly smoking crack-cocaine in front of the child, as well as the alleged dealer of the deadly fentanyl dose, Jacob McCoy, who also had three prior felony convictions. Conaty also announced the implementation of a new policy within his office called the Fentanyl Five, stating that anyone caught involved with the selling of Fentanyl within Sullivan County will face a minimum sentence of five years in prison. 

The tragic death ignited questioning from the DA’s office on the effectiveness of the involvement of the County’s Child Protective Services Department (CPS). Conaty revealed that upon further investigation, his office discovered that Keitt’s and Luvert’s children have been under CPS care since the time of their birth and even requested their removal on three separate occasions. 

Conaty called out County Attorney Michael McGuire, saying that he denied requests to remove Akasha. McGuire responded to Conaty in a press conference on May 24, saying that he was unable to remove the child from the parents due to evidence that was available at the time. 

The death of the infant ignited key conversations and a bigger push for the county to receive a critical federal High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) designation, in order to help prevent tragic deaths such as that happening in the future. U.S. Senate Majority Leader Charles E. “Chuck” Schumer held a press conference at the Lawrence H. Cooke Sullivan County Court House on Thursday, July 6 to announce the drug designation after Sullivan County Sheriff Mike Schiff had renewed his call for Sullivan to receive the HIDTA designation. Several federal drug officials, local law enforcement and county-wide leaders joined Schumer in celebrating the designation at the court house, including Conaty, legislators, NY-NJ HIDTA Director Chauncey Parker and members of the Sullivan County Drug Task Force. 

Village of Ateres

A petition seeking to create a new village within the Town of Thompson, the Village of Ateres, led to residents voicing a number of concerns in the weeks and months following the petition being submitted on June 14. A joint public hearing between the Town of Thompson and Town of Fallsburg was held at the Khal Toras Chaim Viznitz Shul Gibbers on 169 Barnes Blvd near Kiamesha Lake for residents to voice their concerns and objections towards the petition. 

The hearing was led by Thompson Town Supervisor William Rieber Jr. and Fallsburg Supervisor Katherine Rappaport. Several residents who objected to the petition, such as Kiamesha Lake residents Sandra Johnstone Fields and Johnnie Reeves, noted several discrepancies such as missing signatures and incomplete addresses which they believed invalidated the petition. Other residents also criticized the vagueness of the proposed villages’ boundary map, and found it unclear. 

A second joint hearing was held on August 22 at the Khal Toras Chaim Viznitz Synagogue, with Rieber emphasizing to the attendees that any public comment needed to focus on the legal sufficiency of the petition at that point in the process. Similar concerns and discrepancies were raised at this hearing, before Town Supervisors Rieber and Rappaport reconvened after 10 days to officially concur with the petition for the formation of the Village of Ateres. The supervisors acknowledged that many objections had been submitted during the review, but none of them were actual reasons for challenge based on the Village Law. 

Within the 30-day window, an Article 78 petition was filed on October 6 at the Sullivan County Supreme Court in Monticello. The petition alleges that the decisions are illegal as they fail to comply with the statutory requirements of Village Law §2-206. Two residents of the Town of Thompson, Steven Rivela and John Reeves initiated the petition, which was submitted to the Sullivan County Supreme Court before November 15. 

Holiday Mtn. under new ownership

A lifelong passion for skiing turned into a passion project to restore Holiday Mountain this year, with Michael Taylor of Monticello purchasing the ski hill in June. Taylor unveiled his plans for the ski hill during a public forum on Saturday, June 10, in which more than 150 community members turned out to listen to the plans. 

The CEO of Combined Energy Services bought the mountain from Craig Passante who supports Taylor 100 percent in his endeavor. One of the biggest parts of the restoration of the mountain was creating a whole new snowmaking infrastructure. They are using the nearby Neversink River as the mountain’s main source of water for snowmaking. Other additions and fixes have been entirely new rental equipment and fixing erosion caused by flooding. 

Over the last several months, Taylor and his staff have worked hard at building up the mountain and getting it ready for the skiing season. The hope was for them to open during Christmas weekend, but the unfortunate circumstances of weather in the 40s and 50s along with rain the last week has pushed that goal opening date back as they can’t set a base for the snowmaking. Taylor said back in October that they will operate six hills for this season.

94th SCVFA Annual Parade

The 94th Annual Sullivan County Volunteer Firefighter’s Association Parade was held at the Roscoe-Rockland Fire Department, bringing to the hamlet not only fire fighters but also emergency medical personnel and law enforcement to honor the county’s devoted volunteers.

A bucket brigade, a Mardi Gras procession, and bed races marked the start of the weekend on Friday night. The next day, the official parade down Stewart Avenue commenced towards the home of the Fightin’ 29.

The county’s emergency service workers polished their trucks and performed their best to join the march considering judges from the Inter-County Volunteer Judge’s Association were in town.

The judges presented numerous medals, the most coveted of which was the blue ribbon award to the Loch Sheldrake Fire Department. The Grahamsville and Jeffersonville fire departments were named first and second place winners in the Sullivan 180, respectively.

Explosion Rocks  Kiamesha Lake

The community of Patio Homes was rattled by an intense explosion on September 30. The cause of this explosion was found to be a propane leak. The explosion left three people in critical condition, all residents of the home, with many injuries.

The blast was so powerful that it could be felt as far as Bethel, with residents claiming to have heard and felt the magnitude.

The collaborative efforts between the Town of Kiamesha, the Monticello Fire Department, and the New York State Police were welcomed as they dutifully assisted in the aftermath. John Hauschild, the Sullivan County Fire Coordinator, described the scene as “very devastating”.

The explosion also led to the homes that have been damaged to be demolished. The explosion impacted three townhomes, while occurring in the middlemost one. Town Supervisor Bill Reiber Jr. indicated that some neighbors of the homes were able to return, but he expressed concerns regarding the safety of those homes, suggesting that as many as five or six more homes might need to be razed owing to the unsafe conditions from the explosion.