LEGISLATIVE RESOLUTION congratulating THE VILLAGER on earning 11 New
York Press Association 2008 Better Newspaper Contest awards

WHEREAS, The communities of which every city, town, village and hamlet
are comprised are the lifeblood of our great State of New York; though
the City of New York is one of the largest cities in the world, it too
is made up of communities which are vital to the life of the City; and
WHEREAS, It is the sense of this Legislative Body that businesses
which inform and contribute to the vibrancy of those communities merit
the highest commendation; and
WHEREAS, Attendant to such concern and fully in accord with its long-
standing traditions, it is the intent of this Legislative Body to recog-
nize and commend THE VILLAGER (NYC) upon the occasion of earning 11
awards in the New York Press Association's 2008 Better Newspaper
Contest; and
WHEREAS, The contest judges, from the New England Press Association
and the Pennsylvania Newspapers Association, judged entries from 182
papers across New York State; THE VILLAGER, published by Community
Media, L.L.C., which itself earned 4th Place in the Group or Chain News-
papers category, is in contest Division 4, the largest circulation cate-
gory; and
WHEREAS, Based on total points won in the Editorial category, THE
VILLAGER came in fifth overall in the State and its news and arts cover-
age, obituaries, photography and display advertising helped it garner 11
awards, including five First Place awards; and
WHEREAS, Lincoln Anderson, THE VILLAGER'S Associate Editor, won First
Place in the News Story category for his article "Former squats are
worth lots, but residents can't cash in" which detailed the efforts of
former squatters in 11 East Village buildings to throw off resale price
caps on their units and rid their buildings of crushing debt incurred
while they were bringing them up to code through a city-approved
program; and
WHEREAS, In describing the article, a judge for this category wrote:
"Impressive combination of in-depth research, deft interviewing, clear
and compelling writing -- all illuminating an important and fascinating
issue. Can erstwhile squatters, by claiming ownership rights under the
legal doctrine of adverse possession, make large profits selling their
apartments at market rates?"; and
WHEREAS, In what has become an annual occurrence, THE VILLAGER earned
First Place for Best Obituaries on the strength of VILLAGER reporter
Albert Amateau's writing; the judge in this category particularly
admired Mr. Amateau's obituary "Anne Eco, married the boy downstairs,
dies at 100" which described how Mrs. Eco, in first grade, wandered away
from school one day and took a cow that was tied up at the Washington
Mews for a walk up Fifth Avenue, and how later, at age 16, she eloped
with her boyfriend because she had stayed out past 10 p.m. and feared
her father would "kill" her; and
WHEREAS, "Great headlines. Reads like a condensed biography with
details that bring realism to the life of the deceased, especially their
childhood.", the judge for this category wrote; and
WHEREAS, J.B. Nicholas, contributing to THE VILLAGER under the name
Nick Brooks, received two First Place photography awards; one in the
Picture Story category for his photos of the female performance artists
and aerialists from the House of Yes posing amid the charred ruins of
their Ridgewood, Queens, building the day after a devastating fire and
the other in the Spot News Photos category for his shots of radical

protesters rampaging, and police battling and arresting them, at the
Republican National Convention in St. Paul; and
WHEREAS, The judge for the Picture Story category commented: "Incredi-
ble photographs... top quality shots that really tell the story. Very
powerful.", while the judge for the Spot News Photos category wrote:
"Photos filled with energy and motion...as it happened. Great newspaper
photos take the reader there. Well done!" ; and
WHEREAS, Jefferson Siegel earned Second Place honors for Spot News
Coverage for his comprehensive report on New School students' occupation
of 65 Fifth Avenue for a day and a half as they demanded Bob Kerrey's
resignation as university president; the article "New School in
Turmoil," according to the judge "captures the mood of the scene from
both sides of the issue."; also an award winning photographer, Jefferson
Siegel took all the action-packed photos for the article as well; and
WHEREAS, THE VILLAGER, in addition, secured Second Place for Coverage
of Elections/Politics; the newspaper's entry included Lincoln Anderson
and Albert Amateau's joint coverage of City Council hearings on extend-
ing term limits, Mary Reinholz's article on Peace and Freedom Party
candidate Ralph Nader's campaign speech on Wall Street, and team cover-
age of Election Day and Barack Obama's victory by Lincoln Anderson,
Jefferson Siegel, Albert Amateau and Isabel Wilkinson, and were
described by the judge as "A very thorough collection of stories cover-
ing both local and national politics. A very nice mix of stories."; and
WHEREAS, THE VILLAGER also earned Second Place in the Headline Writing
category for which entries were evaluated based on headlines throughout
two issues of the newspaper, Third Place for Coverage of the Arts, and
Kate Walter, of Westbeth in the West Village, earned Third Place in the
Best Column category for her first-person pieces described by the judge
as "Personal and profound."; and
WHEREAS, THE VILLAGER also excelled in advertising entries, garnering
First Place in the Best Color Ad Created by the Newspaper category for a
full-page, color ad for Rebecca Paintings for Westbeth Gallery and Third
Place in the Best Small Space Ad category for a quarter-page ad for St.
John's Lutheran Church; both winning ads were created by Colin Gregory,
THE VILLAGER'S Retail Ad Manager, and Greg Miller, the paper's former
Graphic Designer; and
WHEREAS, This Legislative Body is pleased to have this opportunity to
commend THE VILLAGER and its talented and dedicated staff for producing
such a high caliber community newspaper in the heart of New York City, a
city known internationally for its exceptional newspapers; and
WHEREAS, THE VILLAGER is to be commended as well for the great variety
of articles it presents, from those of local interest to those of State
and national concern, articles which are always well written and inter-
esting, balanced and fair, always presenting both sides of an issue, and
for doing such a fine job of localizing issues for readers, showing why
an issue in a large city like New York City is important and relevant to
them; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to
honor and congratulate THE VILLAGER (NYC) on its recently announced New
York Press Association awards, noting with pride the significance of its
professionalism, commitment to community, and many contributions to the
spirit of excellence which so distinguishes the City and State of New
York; and be it further
RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be tran-
smitted to THE VILLAGER.