Betting on a rebirth

MONTICELLO - Across the smooth, winter sheen of the Catskills' Kiamesha Lake, the 1,200-room Concord Resort Hotel stands white, ultra-modern - making the claim it is still a destination.

But drive closer and the quadrangle of streets around the Concord is barren of activity, and nearby buildings are littered with graffiti. A string of barbed wire atop a chainlink fence protects the hotel itself from spray paint vandalism.

Clinton/Gore 1996 bumper stickers slapped on two nearby road signs leave the sense that one of the premiere destinations of the Catskills' hotel heyday has been shuttered up and left to rot.