A snowy back porch in Rodman, NY. Photo: MelMooMaa
Feb 04, 2021
One effect of the coronavirus pandemic has been more people moving from cities to more affordable, greener areas where they can work remotely.
That description fits the North Country to a T , and presents an opportunity for the region as it continues to fight population declines.
However, high-speed internet access is still not a given in parts of the region, which can be a deal-breaker for newcomers like Marlena Newcomb.
She takes online university classes and her fiance is a computer programmer, who can work remotely. So, when they were looking for a house this past year, to relocate from the more expensive Pacific Northwest, Newcomb says, Whenever we saw a property that we liked on a website like Zillow or Redfin, we would just reach out to the listing agent, to ask, Can you tell us for sure that it has high speed internet?
Times Telegram
A survey of Town of Webb business owners and their employees is the next step in a housing feasibility study the Herkimer County Industrial Development Agency is conducting in the town.
The Herkimer County IDA is providing funding for an Environmental Site Assessment of a town-owned parcel of land on Joy Tract Road and funding a feasibility study for housing proposed to be built upon that site. The feasibility study will be applicable to any available site within the township, according to a statement released by the IDA.
Webb Town Supervisor David Berkstresser has said that local officials are hoping an apartment building or buildings can be on the Joy Tract Road site, providing 30 to 35 one-, two- and possibly some three-bedroom apartments. The town, located in the Adirondack Park, has a year-round population of about 1,800, he said, but that number swells to 30,000 to 40,000 during the summer months and lack of affordable housing for workers has been a problem fo
Times Telegram
Affordable housing is hard to come by in the town of Webb, according to Town Supervisor David Berkstresser, but a housing study underway could lead to at least a partial solution to the problem.
The Herkimer County Industrial Development Agency is assisting the town with a study of a parcel of land on Joy Tract Road, off Route 28 in Old Forge.
“It’s town-owned property,” said IDA Executive Director John Piseck. He added that many young professionals, restaurant managers and school teachers who work in the Old Forge area must commute because they can’t find housing there that they can afford.