presence
10-02-2014, 12:19 PM
http://www.pennlive.com/midstate/index.ssf/2014/10/eric_frein_manhunt_cast_a_pall.html#incart_story_p ackage
Eric Frein manhunt: 'Can't make my mortgage on $30 a day'
Looking at the effect the manhunt for Eric Frein is having on this area of the Poconos. A group of ATF officers patrol the woods along Rt. 447 in Monroe Twp. Sean Simmers, PennLive.com. October 1, 2014
MOUNTAINHOME (http://www.pennlive.com/midstate/index.ssf/2014/10/eric_frein_manhunt_hunting_ban.html#incart_river)-- You've heard of Black Friday, the mythical make-good for retailers as the day after Thanksgiving ushers in the frenzied Christmas shopping season? Well, this is orange, red and yellow Shop-tober for the gift stores and restaurants in the tourist-dependent Poconos.
The colors denote the brilliant fall foliage here, which is already bursting with vibrant hues that will only grow more intense over the next two to three peak weeks. Local says the early colors portend one of the best leaf-peeping seasons of recent memory. But will anyone notice?
Will fall foliage season here go the way of a tree falling in an empty forest – as if it never happened at all?
These are the fears in quaint Barrett Township where little villages with cozy names like Mountainhome normally play host to leaf-peepers and foliage gazers from all over the country.
Looking at the effect the manhunt for Eric Frein is having on this area of the Poconos. Justine Knipe, owner of Mountainhome Candles, says that business has been slower this year than it has ever been. Sean Simmers, PennLive.com. October 1, 2014SEAN SIMMERS
They flock here for the crisp autumn air, the clear blue skies that contrast so well with fall's fiery colors and the golden sunlight that splashes everything in full, photo-quality relief.
Only, the streets of Barrett are quiet these days, save for the regular convoy of Pennsylvania State Police cruisers (http://www.pennlive.com/midstate/index.ssf/2014/10/eric_frein_manhunt_hunting_ban.html#incart_river) sweeping in and out of town.
Stores are empty. Some restaurants are closing early on the weekends. There are reports of hotel cancelations in some areas. Revenues are plunging. And worry is mounting.
"I can't make my mortgage payment on $30 a day," said Justine Knipe, co-owner of the Moutainhome Candle store, which was filled with the aroma of the fragrant candles she sells but was barren of customers to buy them.
"Last Saturday was my worst Saturday we've had in years," she continued. "This is our season, but the season is not shaping up at all. I talk to a lot of people. They all say business is down."
The Morning Call of Allentown reports (http://www.mcall.com/news/nationworld/pennsylvania/mc-frein-fall-foliage-tourism-20140927-story.html) that tourism officials representing the four-county Poconos area have been fielding calls from concerned visitors:
"This region is about the size of the state of Delaware, but people don't necessarily realize that," spokeswoman Elizabeth Richardson told the Call.
"Some resorts are taking precautions. Some have added extra security, but very few people seem to mind that," she said.
For example, Richardson cited the Skytop Lodge, an upscale resort 3 miles north of Canadensis on Route 390, has "closed a few holes of its golf course and taken some other measures out of an abundance of caution," the newspaper reported.
A visit there yesterday found the golf course deserted and guests sticking close to the iconic main lodge, with its majestic views of mountains' full of transforming treetops.
Skytop employees declined comment on the impact of the Eric Frein manhunt is having on business. They also disallowed pictures on the property.
As the search for fugitive Eric Frein grinds into its fourth week here, Knipe's mood has changed along with the colors of the leaves on the trees that so beautifully decorate this part of Pennsylvania.
First, sorrow over the fatal shooting of a state trooper morphed into unquestioned support for the hundreds of state police who poured in to track down Eric Frein, 31, charged with killing one trooper and seriously wounding another outside their barracks in Blooming Grove on Sept. 12.
The streets, trees and bridges of Barrett Twp. are lined with blue ribbons, denoting the lost trooper and signaling the town's backing of the officers who drive in and out of town en route to the ever-shifting search area southeast of here.
But as the hunt grinds on, a siege mentality has started to settle in among the areas most directly affected by the search.
Residents are hunkering down. And tourists are staying away, warded off, many here believe, by media reports with images of armed and armored state police officers seemingly swarming the entire area.
"I think many people believe all of Barrett Twp. is closed down," Knipe said. "This is a big area, and the search area is relatively small."
This week, however, that search area shifted into Knipe's own backyard. She had never felt unsafe up until a Tuesday state police press conference that confirmed Frein's presence in that area and announced the discovery of pipe bombs.
"Eric Frein was in my yard," Knipe stated, as if still attempting to comprehend this fact. She's now contemplating buying a gun.
These new headlines of pipe bombs founds and hunting season called off in local areas affected by the search will make in that much harder to attract tourists.
After all, who wants to feel like a target when they are blissfully gazing at leaves in a picture-perfect setting?
No tourist slogan could surmount this kind of a bad publicity.
"Every year we have return customers," Knipe said. "I haven't seen many this year. One customer called to see if it was safe for her to come. People are afraid."
She compares the situation to a ski resort with no snow. But this is not quite right.
The natural resource that brings people to Barrett Twp. is blooming in abundance this fall. Namely, all those ripening autumn leaves bursting with fiery colors.
What's missing are the people and the small town ideal of peace, tranquility and security that had always attracted tourists here before.
It is yet another thing Eric Frein has taken away.
"I think we are running out of patience," Knipe said of the entire situation.
Yet there is no end in sight.
As fall settles in, the foliage-driven shops and businesses of Mountainhome are running out of time to cash in on their colorful leaves.
A long, cold winter looms.
Eric Frein manhunt: 'Can't make my mortgage on $30 a day'
Looking at the effect the manhunt for Eric Frein is having on this area of the Poconos. A group of ATF officers patrol the woods along Rt. 447 in Monroe Twp. Sean Simmers, PennLive.com. October 1, 2014
MOUNTAINHOME (http://www.pennlive.com/midstate/index.ssf/2014/10/eric_frein_manhunt_hunting_ban.html#incart_river)-- You've heard of Black Friday, the mythical make-good for retailers as the day after Thanksgiving ushers in the frenzied Christmas shopping season? Well, this is orange, red and yellow Shop-tober for the gift stores and restaurants in the tourist-dependent Poconos.
The colors denote the brilliant fall foliage here, which is already bursting with vibrant hues that will only grow more intense over the next two to three peak weeks. Local says the early colors portend one of the best leaf-peeping seasons of recent memory. But will anyone notice?
Will fall foliage season here go the way of a tree falling in an empty forest – as if it never happened at all?
These are the fears in quaint Barrett Township where little villages with cozy names like Mountainhome normally play host to leaf-peepers and foliage gazers from all over the country.
Looking at the effect the manhunt for Eric Frein is having on this area of the Poconos. Justine Knipe, owner of Mountainhome Candles, says that business has been slower this year than it has ever been. Sean Simmers, PennLive.com. October 1, 2014SEAN SIMMERS
They flock here for the crisp autumn air, the clear blue skies that contrast so well with fall's fiery colors and the golden sunlight that splashes everything in full, photo-quality relief.
Only, the streets of Barrett are quiet these days, save for the regular convoy of Pennsylvania State Police cruisers (http://www.pennlive.com/midstate/index.ssf/2014/10/eric_frein_manhunt_hunting_ban.html#incart_river) sweeping in and out of town.
Stores are empty. Some restaurants are closing early on the weekends. There are reports of hotel cancelations in some areas. Revenues are plunging. And worry is mounting.
"I can't make my mortgage payment on $30 a day," said Justine Knipe, co-owner of the Moutainhome Candle store, which was filled with the aroma of the fragrant candles she sells but was barren of customers to buy them.
"Last Saturday was my worst Saturday we've had in years," she continued. "This is our season, but the season is not shaping up at all. I talk to a lot of people. They all say business is down."
The Morning Call of Allentown reports (http://www.mcall.com/news/nationworld/pennsylvania/mc-frein-fall-foliage-tourism-20140927-story.html) that tourism officials representing the four-county Poconos area have been fielding calls from concerned visitors:
"This region is about the size of the state of Delaware, but people don't necessarily realize that," spokeswoman Elizabeth Richardson told the Call.
"Some resorts are taking precautions. Some have added extra security, but very few people seem to mind that," she said.
For example, Richardson cited the Skytop Lodge, an upscale resort 3 miles north of Canadensis on Route 390, has "closed a few holes of its golf course and taken some other measures out of an abundance of caution," the newspaper reported.
A visit there yesterday found the golf course deserted and guests sticking close to the iconic main lodge, with its majestic views of mountains' full of transforming treetops.
Skytop employees declined comment on the impact of the Eric Frein manhunt is having on business. They also disallowed pictures on the property.
As the search for fugitive Eric Frein grinds into its fourth week here, Knipe's mood has changed along with the colors of the leaves on the trees that so beautifully decorate this part of Pennsylvania.
First, sorrow over the fatal shooting of a state trooper morphed into unquestioned support for the hundreds of state police who poured in to track down Eric Frein, 31, charged with killing one trooper and seriously wounding another outside their barracks in Blooming Grove on Sept. 12.
The streets, trees and bridges of Barrett Twp. are lined with blue ribbons, denoting the lost trooper and signaling the town's backing of the officers who drive in and out of town en route to the ever-shifting search area southeast of here.
But as the hunt grinds on, a siege mentality has started to settle in among the areas most directly affected by the search.
Residents are hunkering down. And tourists are staying away, warded off, many here believe, by media reports with images of armed and armored state police officers seemingly swarming the entire area.
"I think many people believe all of Barrett Twp. is closed down," Knipe said. "This is a big area, and the search area is relatively small."
This week, however, that search area shifted into Knipe's own backyard. She had never felt unsafe up until a Tuesday state police press conference that confirmed Frein's presence in that area and announced the discovery of pipe bombs.
"Eric Frein was in my yard," Knipe stated, as if still attempting to comprehend this fact. She's now contemplating buying a gun.
These new headlines of pipe bombs founds and hunting season called off in local areas affected by the search will make in that much harder to attract tourists.
After all, who wants to feel like a target when they are blissfully gazing at leaves in a picture-perfect setting?
No tourist slogan could surmount this kind of a bad publicity.
"Every year we have return customers," Knipe said. "I haven't seen many this year. One customer called to see if it was safe for her to come. People are afraid."
She compares the situation to a ski resort with no snow. But this is not quite right.
The natural resource that brings people to Barrett Twp. is blooming in abundance this fall. Namely, all those ripening autumn leaves bursting with fiery colors.
What's missing are the people and the small town ideal of peace, tranquility and security that had always attracted tourists here before.
It is yet another thing Eric Frein has taken away.
"I think we are running out of patience," Knipe said of the entire situation.
Yet there is no end in sight.
As fall settles in, the foliage-driven shops and businesses of Mountainhome are running out of time to cash in on their colorful leaves.
A long, cold winter looms.