Of the 39 people arrested in what New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman described today as a “major drug bust” in upstate New York (10 kilograms of cocaine worth about $1 million were confiscated), 14 are residents of Cortland, NY (population 19,204).
The City of Cortland had been known for its annual holiday house lighting contest, for former resident Ronnie James Dio (Black Sabbath frontman, a street is named for him – Dio Way) and, in 2009 it became the new home for the New York Jets training camp. The camp draws 34,000 visitors to Cortland each year and brings nearly $4.26 million dollars to the local economy. U.S. Senator Charles Schumer, who endorsed Schneiderman in 2010, recently negotiated a three-year deal for the Jets to stay in Cortland. It’s rumored that the Jets received approximately $200,000 from New York state economic development agencies to help defray operational costs of the camp. Once they leave town though, at the start of the season, certain people apparently look for other business opportunities.
