East Lake George, New York facts for kids

Quick facts for kids East Lake George
hamlet
View of Warner Bay of Lake George as seen across Pilot Knob Road
East Lake George Location in New York
Country	United States
State	New York
County	Warren/Washington
Incorporation proposed	2005, 2007, 2009
Incorporation rejected	2010
Area
• Total	4.5 sq mi (12 km2)
• Land	4.5 sq mi (12 km2)
• Water	0.0 sq mi (0 km2)
Population
• Estimate  (2009)	801
Time zone	UTC-5 (Eastern (EST))
• Summer (DST)	UTC-4 (EDT)
ZIP codes	12804, 12820, 12844, 12845
Area code(s)	518
Website	villageofeastlakegeorge.org

East Lake George is a small community called a hamlet. It is located in New York, spread across two different towns: Queensbury and Fort Ann. These towns are in Warren County and Washington County.

For a while, the people of East Lake George tried to become an official village. This would have given them their own local government. However, voters decided against this idea in 2010.

History of East Lake George

Why Residents Wanted a Village

In September 2005, some residents of East Lake George wanted their community to become its own village. They sent a special request, called a petition, to the towns of Queensbury and Fort Ann. They felt that their taxes were too high. They also thought that property values were not being judged fairly. They believed that officials in both towns did not care about their concerns.

Attempts to Form a Village

The process of becoming a village was not easy.

• The first attempt in 2005 failed because the map of the proposed village was not correct.
• In 2007, a second petition was sent. But it was rejected because some signatures on the paper were not dated.
• A third petition was submitted in March 2009. This one was also turned down. The reason was that not enough people from the Fort Ann part of the hamlet had signed it. Town leaders also said that some signatures were repeated or not properly witnessed.

Taking the Case to Court

Even though the petition met most rules for the Queensbury area, the town leaders still rejected it. A spokesperson for the group wanting the village said they filed a lawsuit against the towns. They argued that the town leaders were wrong to reject the petition based on their own ideas of who counted as a 'resident'.

In a court hearing, the leader of Fort Ann, Supervisor Gayle Hall, said she rejected the petition. She believed it needed signatures from 20% of the qualified voters in Fort Ann who lived in the proposed village area. However, the court disagreed with her. The court said the petition only needed 20% of signatures from all registered voters in the entire proposed village area. The court even noted that the petition actually met the requirements, even by Hall's incorrect understanding of the law.

Supervisor Hall also rejected the signatures of nine residents. She claimed they did not live in the town. But the people who filed the petition argued that these individuals were residents when they signed. The court agreed with the petitioners on this point too.

The Election to Decide

The state Supreme Court justice decided that the town leaders' rejection of the petition was "arbitrary and capricious." This means their decision was unfair and unreasonable. The judge ruled that the decision should be overturned. An election had to be held to let the residents vote on whether to become a village. For the village to be created, residents from both the Queensbury and Fort Ann parts of East Lake George had to approve the idea.

The election took place on August 26, 2010. The town leaders acted as the election officials. In the end, voters rejected the idea of becoming a village. There were 370 votes against it and 189 votes for it.

Geography of East Lake George

East Lake George is located entirely within the Adirondack Park. This is a large protected area of mountains and forests in New York. The hamlet sits along the southeastern edge of Lake George.

The area that would have been the village of East Lake George covered about 4.5 square miles. It included all the land north of New York State Route 9L from Plum Point to Warner Bay. Some land south of Route 9L was also included, like areas near Joshua Rock and Dunhams Bay. The area along Pilot Knob Road up to Point Comfort was also part of the proposed village.

Population Information

It's hard to get exact population numbers just for East Lake George. This is because it's not an official census-designated place. Also, the idea to make it a village came after the 2000 census.

However, court documents from 2009 showed that there were about 801 residents. In 2005, it was estimated that about 700 people lived there year-round, not just during vacation seasons.