An Orangetown big-chain hotel has changed hands and is now independently-owned. The Rockland County Business Journal says the former Holiday Inn on Route 303 in Orangeburg was purchased by a Monsey developer for a reported $5.8 million and was renamed “Armoni Hotel.” The 171-room hotel has two banquet rooms, a bar and restaurant and an outdoor pool.
Rockland Loses Another to COVID, Numbers on the Rise
COVID numbers are creeping up again as the county has begun offering booster shots for those who have taken the Pfizer vaccine and qualify for it under CDC guidelines. Here in Rockland, we lost another to COVID, the first in a week. Our total coronavirus death toll is now at 979. The number of hospitalized with COVID is up to 27 and the number of current cases, also up, stands at 1,002. Pearl River-based Pfizer meanwhile submitted data to the FDA Tuesday on their COVID-19 vaccine trials for kids ages 5-11. The FDA is expected to take several weeks to review data. The Pfizer vaccine is currently available for those 12 and up.
Parole Hearing for Brinks Killer Scheduled for Mid October
The parole hearing for a 1981 Brinks killer has reportedly been pushed out to late October, scheduled now to occur the same week that the 40th anniversary Brinks memorial service is set to take place in Nyack. That’s according to the Journal News. The now 76 year-old David Gilbert had his 75-years-to-life sentence commuted by former governor Andrew Cuomo in August. Rockland sheriff Lou Falco says Gilbert never should have been given the chance to see the light of day again…
Gilbert was part of the “Weather Underground” group that robbed a Brinks truck at the former Nanuet Mall of $1.6 million. Nyack Police Sergeant Edward O’Grady, officer Waverly “Chipper” Brown, and Brinks guard Peter Paige were all killed in the 1981 incident. The 40th anniversary commemorating the tragedy is scheduled for October 20th.
Congesting Pricing Hearings Underway as MTA Looks to Raise Money for Repairs and Upgrades
One of two congestion pricing hearings for suburban commuters gets underway today. The MTA plan would charge a yet-to-be-determined toll on commuters entering Manhattan at or below 60th Street. Rockland Assemblyman Ken Zebrowski is against the plan, since Rockland and other suburban commuters don’t have many reliable public transit options…
The proposal seeks to take in $1 billion a year in tolls so the MTA could fund upgrades and repairs. The next hearing is October 5th. If you cannot attend the virtual meeting but would like to provide comment, send an email to CBDTP@mtabt.org, call 646-252–7440, or send a letter to CBD Tolling Program, 2 Broadway, 23rd Floor, New York, NY 10004.
NYS Budgets $27 million to Provide Relief to Undocumented Residents Hit by Hurricane Ida
New York is making $27 million available to provide relief to undocumented residents affected by Hurricane Ida. Governor Kathy Hochul said the funding would be distributed through various community organization grants for New Yorkers who can’t get storm recovery assistance through FEMA…
But Stony Point and Orange County assemblyman Colin Schmitt slammed the move, calling it a “game of political theatre” noting Hudson Valley counties including Orange, Putnam and Dutchess still have not been included in the FEMA disaster declaration. Rockland assemblyman Mike Lawler says he understands the desire to want to help people, but he adds, we do have rules…
Rockland state senator Elijah Reichlin-Melnick says we have a human obligation to try to help those who are suffering…
If you are an undocumented resident and need assistance, call the New York State Office for New Americans hotline at 1-800-566-7636, it’s available 9:00am to 8:00pm, Monday through Friday. Click here for the ONA office.