COUNTY OF ONEIDA

Office of the County Executive

ONEIDA COUNTY OFFICE BUILDING

800 PARK AVENUE, UTICA, NEW YORK  13501

MEDIA RELEASE

Contact: David Pendergast

(315)798-5545

    EANNACE ANNOUNCES  SECOND LAND CLAIM COMMUNITY MEETING

UTICA: Oneida County Executive Ralph J. Eannace, Jr., announced today that on January 12, 1999, the second public meeting will be held at the Vernon-Verona-Sherrill School, beginning at 7:00 PM, in the school auditorium.  The public meeting will, once again, focus on issues related to the Oneida Indian Land Claim.

"I am inviting all concerned persons to this second meeting so we can discuss questions about the status of the Oneida Indian Land Claim, and the continued steps being taken to resolve the issues," Eannace said. "Once again, Robert Whitmer, the attorney representing Oneida and Madison Counties in this litigation, and Jan Farr, the lead negotiator for the State of New York, have both agreed to attend this meeting to discuss the current status and answer questions," Eannace said.

This meeting targets the Town of Vernon, while the previous meeting focused on the Towns of Vienna and Verona.  The VVS auditorium is expected to be filled to capacity, once again.  Eannace has previously established a telephone hot line, e-mail address and a Website for information regarding the Land Claim issue.