That might translate into about $40,000 in income in their first year of operation, but the editors admit they are just too busy to count.
Who’s responsible for raking in the revenue? “My neighbor John,” says project leader Christine Yeres, suggesting that a homegrown venture in a small town can rely on the kindness of neighbors.
“We’re publishing every Friday, still up all night Thursday, mainly because we choose to live family lives on weekends,” says Yeres, taking a breath from an all-nighter to send us a quick e-mail update.
Girl Scout exhibit on display at the Horace Greeley House.
The advertising revenue could liberate Yeres and her founding partners, Ann Marie Fallon and Susie Pender, from the intensity of the deadlines. “It would be really great to be able to pay a few people to mind certain features we’d like to offer, like always providing town government meeting agendas each week, or the sports round up, relief from which would free us to do the stuff only we can do: talk to people, dream up and sniff out stories and see how they connect to other stories.”
The editors are proud of their coverage of school board elections. They’ve urged residents to wake up and pay attention. The site has covered more mundane issues like tree removal, leash laws, real estate transfers. But the heart of NewCastleNOW is its section called “People,” which celebrates the winner of the citizen of the year award, the soldier just back from Iraq, the retiring teachers, the residents performing at Carnegie Hall or raising money to combat diseases, the Girl Scouts receiving honors, the athletes competing in triathlons, the people who make Chappaquans feel proud of where they live.
