William J. Kemble reported in the Daily Freeman the Red Hook and Germantown school districts are contemplating a study to determine if services can be shared. Consolidation is under consideration primarily for economic reasons, Red Hook Superintendent Paul Finch said at a recent Board of Education meeting. Finch said Red Hook was approached by Germantown Superintendent Patrick Gabriel and asked to join in a state Department of State consolidation grant application. Red Hook is also looking at exploring options with other districts, including Pine Plains and Rhinebeck. In 2009-10, Germantown reported a K-12 enrollment of 611 students, Red Hook’s enrollment during the same period was 2,231. Read the full story in the Daily Freeman.
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Tags: school consolidations
On Friday, Feb. 3, U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand announced $333,000 in federal funding for five Hudson Valley farms. Edgwick Farm in Cornwall will receive $120,000; Catskill Dudukju in Wurtsboro will receive $49,000; Food Gems, LTD in Middletown is to receive $35,004; Maple Shade Farm in Delhi is going to receive $49,750; and Dagele Brothers Produce gets $79,425. The money was allocated through the US Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Value-Added Producer Grant (VAPG) program. The program is designed to boost farms’ income and productivity by providing access to capital and technical assistance, and developing marketing strategies for independent producers.
Tags: farms, Sen. Kirsten Gillbrand, USDA
Ivan Lajara at The Daily Freeman thinks it is no joke that LAFTOR is the acronym for the New York State Legislative Task Force on Demographic Research and Reapportionment. Their “proposals are laughable” according to Lajara’s headline in the paper, over a story about the redistricting proposals released Thu., Jan. 26. Common Cause/NY Executive Director Susan Lerner said, “These maps appear to continue the long tradition of partisan gerrymandering we’ve come to expect. There are major demographic changes that are simply not reflected on these maps.” Governor Andrew Cuomo has vowed to veto any redistricting that is not created by an independent body. This plan was created by the the legislators themselves, so, as almost everyone is pointing out, they have drawn the lines to ensure their own re-election. Republican-leaning districts, now lean more. Democrat-heavy districts are heavier. They have created a new 63rd Senate seat, pairing Greene County with Albany and other points north in Senate District 46. Lajara quotes an AP news account and says, “The story continues, ‘The added Senate district would include part of Ulster County (including the city of Kingston), all of Greene County and parts of Albany, Schenectady and Montgomery counties.’ So imagine my surprise when a total of zero public meetings were scheduled in the area.”
Local effects
• Ulster County may be in the worst situation in the entire state. The proposal cuts the county into four Senate Districts, up from two. The people of Ulster County will have almost no representation in the Senate, as those four politicians will care little about its collective well-being, and not even cater much to the few voters they will have there, focusing on their majorities elsewhere.
• Greene County would see much change. Republican James Seward would, under the plan, not be Greene County’s senator anymore, but would retain a very safe seat to the west. The new seat includes all of Greene and Montgomery counties, and most of Albany and Schenectady counties, and several towns in Ulster County to the south. In the Assembly Greene is being split into two separate districts. Assemblyman Pete Lopez would continue to represent Ashland, Windham, Durham, Greenville, New Baltimore, Coxsackie, and Cairo in the proposed 102 District which now also includes Coeymans, Westerlo, and Rensselaerville in Albany County, all of Schoharie County, and towns in Otsego, Herkimer, and Oneida counties in what will continue to be a very safe district for him. The southern half of Greene County — Athens, Catskill, Hunter, Jewett, Lexington, Halcott, and Prattsville — would be in the proposed 101st Assembly District, which also includes much of eastern Delaware County, four Ulster County towns, and two Orange County towns, and Germantown and Clermont in Columbia County. 
• In Columbia County, the Senate District used to be dominated by Dutchess County, as Poughkeepsie Steve Saland currently represents the area in Albany. In this proposal, Columbia County moves to Senate District 43, paired with all of Rensselaer County and parts of Washington and Saratoga counties to the north. In the Assembly, most of Columbia County is represented by the 106th District including Stuyvesant, Stockport, Hudson, Greenport, Ghent, Claverack, Livingston, Taghkanic, Copake, Ancram, and Gallatin. Millbrook in Dutchess County, interestingly, is no longer in the district, and the candidates (Republican Richard Wager and Democrat Didi Barrett) trying to replace Marc Molinaro for the 103rd Assembly, which is similar to the proposed 106th, live in Millbrook. So while they may fight for the seat in March, they may be in 105th District election in the fall. As mentioned before, Germantown and Clermont join the proposed 101st District, stretching across southern Greene County to parts of Delaware, and Ulster and Orange counties. The rest of Columbia County — Kinderhook, Chatham, Hillsdale, Austerlitz, Canaan, and New Lebanon — join most of Rensselaer County and two Washington County towns in the proposed 107th district, which is similar to the area Republican Steve McLaughlin represents, though without any of the Greene County towns it used to include. 
Public hearings
No public hearings between Albany and New York City. The closest public hearing to our area is this Mon., Jan. 30 at 10:30 a.m. in the Legislative Office Building, Second Floor in the Hearing Room. (See the complete list of all public hearings after the link below.)
Tags: Didi Barrett, elections, James Seward, LAFTOR, Marc Molinaro, New York State legislators, Pete Lopez, redistricting, Richard Wager, Steve Saland
The National Weather Service issued a Freezing Rain Advisory for all counties in the WGXC listening area from midnight until noon Mon., Jan. 23. Temperatures in the upper 20s overnight will turn to the mid-30s in the morning, and roads could be icy or very slick. Watch for possible opening delays Monday morning.
Tags: Freezing Rain Advisory, weather
The National Weather Service has issued a Winter Weather Advisory for all areas south of Greene and Columbia counties. Delaware, Ulster, Dutchess, and points south may get hit with up to eight inches of snow tonight, while the forecast for Greene and Columbia counties is just an inch or two.
Tags: snow, Winter Weather Advisory
Jimmy Vielkind in Capitol Confidential reports that Gov. Andrew Cuomo called five special elections for March 20, coinciding with village elections, including one that will choose who represents most of Columbia County in Albany. Last November, Assemblymen Marc Molinaro ran and won the Dutchess County Executive seat, leaving the 103rd District without representation. So far, Pat Manning, a Republican who held the seat before losing to Molinaro in the 2006 primary, has announced he is running. Read the full story in Capitol Confidential.
Tags: Andrew Cuomo, elections, Marc Molinaro, Pat Manning
Tom Casey in the Register-Star reports that Pat Manning is seeking the 103rd district New York State Assembly seat recently vacated by now-Dutchess County Executive Marcus Molinaro. Manning was Assemblyman from 1995 to 2002 in the 99th district and from 2003 to 2006 held the seat in the 103rd. Then he ran for the Republican nomination for the gubernatorial election in 2006 but dropped out when rumors of an extramarital affair surfaced. Then he tried to keep the 103rd seat, and lost a primary to Molinaro, who held it until last November. Manning used to be a Republican, but the story does not mention his current party registration. Manning is also from Dutchess County, as the main part of the population is there, with fewer constituents in Columbia County. There might be a special election to fill the seat, the seat could sit empty until November, or could be eliminated, or certainly drastically altered, in redistricting. Read the full story in the Register-Star.
Tags: Marc Molinaro, Pat Manning
Brian Nearing of the Times-Union writes about local farmers worried that warm December weather poses a risk to their crops. Growers say trees, tricked by a warm December after an unusual winter blast in late November, are showing growth at the buds. Ed Miller, the president of 75-acre Gold Orchards, tells the paper there is no going back if an apple tree starts budding off too early. “A tree can decide that it is spring again already and start budding. When it gets cold again, it kills the bud, and you can lose an entire crop,” he said. But Ian Merwin, a professor of horticulture at Cornell University, says it’s too early to tell whether this mild, snowless start to winter will damage the state fruit harvest. He said an oscillation between unusually warm and normally cold temperatures poses the greatest risk, and that such a pattern is predicted in climatic models used to forecast the direction of man-made climate change. “It is not just how cold it gets; it is whether it was unusually warm before that,” Merwin said. Another crop that could be at risk from this winter’s lack of snow is alfalfa, which is prime feed for dairy cattle. Snow acts as an insulating blanket to protect field crops like alfalfa. Temperatures could bottom out to 4 degrees Thursday night before rebounding to overnight lows in the mid-20s for the weekend. Highs are expected to be just below freezing through Saturday, when clouds gather and the mercury hits 46. Sunday could see a combination of rain and snow, with the high near 37, and the low near 21. Read the full story in the Albany Times-Union.
Tags: agriculture, climate change, farming, farms
Our Town, the quarterly co-published and edited in Claverack by Enid Futterman and John Isaacs, is finally online. The magazine covers Columbia County, and sometimes mentions Greene and Dutchess counties, and the Berkshires.
Patricia Doxsey in The Daily Freeman reports that it may be June before Columbia County voters have any representation in the State Assembly, after current 103rd Assembly District rep Marc Molinaro becomes Dutchess County executive on Jan. 1. Gov. Andrew Cuomo would have to call a special election to fill the seat — and his office is not returning Doxsey’s queries. If he follows the same path he took last year, Cuomo would pair the election with a primary election that will probably be held in June to save local municipalities election costs. That would mean that no one represents Columbia and Dutchess county in the State Assembly during the next legislative session. And they might have two elections on the same day — filling in a temporary replacement, and choosing primary candidates for the office’s regular election in November. Meanwhile, “I’ve gotten permission to keep my office open so, while I won’t be there, staff will still be available to provide constituent services,” Molinaro told Doxsey. Read the full story in The Daily Freeman.
Tags: elections, Marc Molinaro
Governor Andrew Cuomo declared a state of emergency for Greene, Columbia, Albany, Dutchess, Delaware, Rensselaer, and Ulster counties, along with others farther south, because of Saturday’s large snowstorm. Saturday around 10 p.m. there were no major road closures in our area, according to the Governor’s press release.
Tags: Andrew Cuomo, snow, state of emergency
The Daily Freeman reports that the unemployment rates for counties in the WGXC listening area all ticked up slightly from August to September. Greene County unemployment went from 7.8 to 8.3 percent, and Columbia County went from 6.8 to 7 percent unemployed. Ulster County rose from 7.7 percent in August to 7.8 percent in September, Dutchess County increased from 7.1 to 7.2 percent, and in Delaware County the jobless rate went to 8.1, up from 7.5 percent. Hurricane Irene hit the area in the last week of August. Read the full story in The Daily Freeman.
Tags: Hurricane Irene, jobs, unemployment
Mid-Hudson News reports that the Federal Railway Administration has set aside $7.9 million for the New York State Department of Transportation to upgrade the Hudson Rail Line between Hyde Park and Red Hook in Dutchess County. The money will pay to bury cables to improve signal reliability and train operation. Twenty-six Amtrak passenger trains pass over those tracks and through Hudson each day. Read the full story in Mid-Hudson News.
Calling Columbia County “A Culinary Retreat,” CNN Travel last week recommended a stay at the Kinderhook Farm in Ghent. The getaway-from-New York City story also favored breakfast at the Old Chatham Country Store & Café, and dinner at the new Agriturismo Restaurant in Pine Plains owned by Fred’s at Barneys New York executive chef Mark Strausman. The story also recommended shopping at Harvest Spirits Distillery in Valatie and 3FortySeven in Hudson. Read the full story in CNN Travel.
Tags: Bed and Breakfasts, food, restaurants, tourism
WGXC volunteer Elaine Fernandez’s blog “Wi the People” chronicles the stories of folks throughout New York state affected by the current economic downturn. In this interview, she talks with Dutchess County farmer Mike Athanas.
“It was pelting rain the day I visited Mike Athanas at his farm in Hyde Park. Heavy rain was the last thing Mike needed, after Tropical Storm Lee and Hurricane Irene recently wiped out his crops. The loss cost him thousands of dollars that he can’t recover.
Farming is hard enough in New York, with the cost of gas, freight, taxes, seed, fertilizer, insurance, and everything else a farmer needs to do business – and stay in business. Since the recession, small farmers have lost a lot of business. “People aren’t buying like they used to,” Mike told me. Just last year, Athanas Farm had two tents at local farm markets and an assistant to help with sales. This year, Mike had one tent and no assistant. Like other small farmers, Mike Athanas is hanging on by a precarious thread.
Almost immediately after the devastating storms, New York State and Federal Emergency and Management Assistance (FEMA) offered aid to farmers and others devastated by the storms. Mike breathed a sigh of relief until he learned that farmers could get help for damaged homes and structures, but not for crop loss. Since Mike had no major structural damage but lost all his crops, he does not qualify for any state or federal aid.
Congressman Chris Gibson (NY-20) recently introduced a bill that would help farmers pay for crop loss (H.R. 2905). One caveat, though: in order to receive assistance, farmers would be required to purchase insurance from the US Department of Agriculture Farm Service Agency (FSA) for the next three years. The FSA is a federal agency that provides emergency farm loans to help producers recover from production and physical losses due to natural disasters or quarantine (www.fsa.usda.gov). The problem is, the cost of the insurance for three years will most likely be higher than the amount of assistance Mike would get back for his crop loss, as he learned from other farmers familiar with the program. Mike is back to square one.
This is his story.”
Elaine Fernandez helps host the WGXC Afternoon Show Wednesdays live from the Catskill Community Center.
Tags: agriculture, farmers, farms, Hurricane Irene, Mike Athanas, Tropical Storm Lee
Governor Andrew M. Cuomo announced Tue., Oct. 4, that $1.2 million more in aid from the state’s Agricultural and Community Recovery Fund (ACRF) will be distributed among 127 farms to help them recover from Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee. Locally those farms in the latest round of aid include:
Greene County Soil & Water District – $69,350
Projects: Debris removal, fence repair, grassed waterway repair.
• Crystal Valley Farm, $9,000
• John Falke Farm, $34,500
• Stoneledge Farm, LLC, $12,500
• John J Farber Farm, $13,350
Columbia County Soil & Water District – $64,000
Projects: Access road, stream crossing, fencing repair, debris removal from crop fields and stream bank stabilization.
• Doyle Mtn. Farm, $26,000
• Klein’s Kill Fruit Farm Corp., $14,500
• Robert Meyer Farm, $10,500
• Buster Creek Farm, $13,000
Albany County Soil & Water District – $34,425
Projects: Reconstruction of access roads, stream crossings, fence repair, and gravel deposition removal.
• Kevin Sisson, $13,200
• Robert Rapp, $8,500
• Windy Hill Farm, $9,725
• Kenneth Crawford, $3,000
Delaware County Soil & Water District – $21,280
Projects: Debris removal; fencing; access road replacement and repair, stream bank stabilization.
• James Hull Farms, $6,000
• Dairy Smith Holsteins, $1,180
• Felice Sulla & Jerry Raeder, $14,100
Dutchess County Soil & Water District – $19,139
Projects: Debris removal from pastures, access road repair, fence repair, downed tree removal and vegetative buffer planting.
• FW Battenfeld and Son, $9,639
• Briggs Hollow Farm, $9,500
Rensselaer County Soil & Water District – $800
Projects: Fence replacement and repair; stream bank stabilization, debris removal, and access road repair.
• Terry Wasielewski Farm, $800
Schoharie County Soil & Water District – $207,950
Projects: Debris removal including gravel piles, whole trees, buildings, fuel and propane tanks in crop fields; milk house waste treatment system replacement; fencing; access road replacement and repair’ stream bank stabilization; cover cropping; field repair, water control structure repair.
• Schoharie Nurseries, $29,200
• Barber Family Farm LLC, $58,000
• John Vanderwerken Farm, $36,250
• James Buzon Farm, $7,000
• Chris Lawton Farm, $8,000
• Fox Valley Vail Farm, $22,500
• Eleanor Reinhart Farm, $2,500
• Rock & Pinkster Farm, $21,500
• River Run Tree Farm, $6,000
• Maurice Downs Farm, $3,000
• Theresa Murphy Farm, $4,000
• Mountain Valley Angus, $10,000
Ulster County Soil & Water District – $102,589
Projects: Stream crossing for equipment repair, critical area seeding, irrigation system repair, fencing, orchard repair, debris removal, access road repair and cover cropping.
• Greiner Bros Farm Inc, $30,860
• Pinegrove Ranch Inc., $1,692
• Woodcrest Farms, $4,734
• Watswyck Farm, $1,170
• J & B Trapani Co Inc, $27,095
• J. A. M. of New Paltz, Inc, $10,736
• Jaway Farm, $25,702
• The Farm, $600
Tags: agriculture, farms, floods, Hurricane Irene
Nearly 1,000 state layoffs land in Albany County
Jimmy Vielkind reports in Capitol Confidential that Gov. Andrew Cuomo has targeted 3,496 government jobs for elimination, though only eight are in Greene or Columbia counties. Cuomo began the layoffs last week when the Public Employees Federation voted down a tentative contract agreement. The total layoffs per area counties:
• Greene County, 5 jobs
• Columbia County, 3
• Albany County, 998
• Rensselaer County, 49
• Delaware County, 7
• Dutchess County, 115
• Ulster County, 5
Read the full story in Capitol Confidential.
High-impact hydraulic fracturing hearing Thursday
While the Department of Environmental Conservation’s public hearings about high-impact hydraulic fracturing will be held farther south away from our area, the New York State Assembly holds a hearing Thursday closer, in Albany. The Assembly’s Committee on Environmental Conservation holds a hearing Thur. Oct. 6 at 9:30 a.m. at Hamilton Hearing Room B, 2nd Floor of the Legislative Office Building in the State Capitol. To testify, one needs to fill out a form.
Greene Dems elect new leader
Greene County Democrats changed leaders Monday, Oct. 3, electing Doreen Davis chair, and Terry McSorley vice-chair, and Marie Metzler at Gallagher’s in Cairo. Davis has been the town of Catskill’s Democratic Committee chairwoman and treasurer for the county party. Previously, Tom Poelker was chairman, Brud Miller was vice chair, and Metzler was secretary.
Occupy Albany meets
WGXC’s Jack Ross-Pilkington attended the Occupy Albany meeting Sunday, where organizers of the offshoot protest movement from Occupy Wall Street, planned similar actions. Ross-Pilkington writes: “When I first got there, there were about 20 people, but the number rose to about 150 by the time I left. There was no apparent leader, and took much pride in that. There were lots of proposals (15) such as providing transportation to NYC, creating a video expressing solidarity with Wall St protesters, and researching possible places for an Albany occupation. They have more videos and information at their website, occupyalbany.org.” Wednesday, union organizers are joining the Occupy Wall Street protest, and there a planned student walkout and protest at SUNY Albany at 1 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 5.
Tags: Andrew Cuomo, Doreen Davis, elections, government jobs, high-impact hydraulic fracturing, layoffs, Marie Metzler, Occupy Albany, Occupy Wall Street, Terry McSorley, Tom Poelker
Senate reaches deal to avert government shutdown
Jennifer Steinhauer reports in The New York Times that the U.S. Senate voted Monday, Sept. 26, 79 to 12, to approve funding for the government for seven weeks, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency reported that its $114 million on hand will last the week. It was a possibility that FEMA — with emergency centers currently in Greene and Columbia counties because of the storms associated with Hurricane Irene — would run out of money this week. Both New York Senate Democrats, Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand, voted for the measure. Read the full story in The New York Times.
Easements protect farmlands in Dutchess, Columbia
Kyle Wind in The Daily Freeman reports that the, “environmental group Scenic Hudson and government officials on Monday announced the shared $3.6 million purchase of development rights to about 700 acres of farmland in Red Hook, Clermont, and Germantown.” The conservation easements are being financed with $1.8 million from the federal Farm and Ranch Lands Protection Program, $1.2 million from Scenic Hudson, and $615,000 from the town of Red Hook through an initiative voters approved ten years ago. The Dutchess Land Conservancy is also “contributing toward stewardship and project expenses,” officials said. Eight farms, with 440 acres of easements, are in Red Hook, in Dutchess County. They include Northwind Farm, the Three Pond Farm, Migliorelli Farm, Missing D Farm, Trezza Farm, Panorama Farm, and the Sturges and Karpinski agricultural lands adjacent to two large farms. In Columbia County, the O’Neal Farm in Clermont and the Diehl Farm also are selling development rights. Read the full story in The Daily Freeman.
Report from Hudson Common Council special meeting about LWRP
Dan Udell recorded Monday’s Hudson Common Council special meeting to consider a part of the Local Waterfront plan, or LWRP, that is currently being considered. Click here to listen.
Christopher Reed of Friends of Hudson sent this report to the InFoH listserv, and allows us to reprint it here:
“Earlier this evening, the Hudson Common Council voted overwhelmingly to accept the Final Generic Environmental Impact Statement (FGEIS), a key component of the Hudson LWRP. There was one “No” (Chris Wagoner) and one Abstention (Ellen Thurston).
Discussion before the vote was limited to Common Council members, City Attorney Cheryl Roberts and Department of State (DOS) attorney and land use expert William Sharp. Despite this restriction, the discussion provided useful insights into waterfront zoning, one of the key components of the LWRP remaining to be reviewed and voted on. Specifically, Sharp helped clarify the distinction between non-conforming and conditional uses, key zoning concepts for effective public control of the causeway as a transportation corridor.
… I’d like to mention that Cheryl Roberts cleared up a mystery as to why the May 2011 LWRP/GEIS needed to undergo an additional four months of revisions. Roberts cited three developments:
1. The South Bay Task Force’s “Newly Discovered Information” letter to the Common Council on notable species observed in the South Bay (May 17).**
2. The proposed designation by the DOS of major portions of the South Bay as a Significant Coastal Fish and Wildlife habitat (June 15).
3. The paving of the causeway by O&G (June 23) and subsequent use to haul aggregate to the Holcim dock.
Roberts also reported that the error discovered by the South Bay Task Force in one of the key maps (InFoH 9/19/11) has been corrected.”
More dog barking tonight in Stuyvesant
The Stuyvesant Zoning Board meets tonight, perhaps with some resolution to the noise issue surrounding the Glencadia Dog Camp. Dog camp owner Will Pflaum predicts on his “Sunshine on the Hudson” blog that he will lose at tonight’s hearing. But his lawyers recently uncovered at least one document that supports his claim that the epic battle that has taken over the town over his dog camp is somehow about personalities or politics, rather than dog barking. “Here is what our upstanding Family man does on the side. Enclosed are pictures and facts about Will Pflaum aka Emcee Will Ep. He writes and performs all lyrics, and sells albums. For example: My Big Gun speaks of shooting the Pope. Most other songs are x-rated and the lyrics are too obscene to write down,” says the letter in Pflaum’s file. The Stuyvesant Zoning Board meets at 7:30 p.m. at Stuyvesant Town Hall, 5 Sunset Drive, Stuyvesant.
Epic fail?
Last night the Tampa Bay Rays won and the Boston Red Sox lost, USA Today reports, to almost complete one of the most shocking failures in sports history. A few weeks ago, the Red Sox were nine games ahead of the Rays for the wild card position in the American League playoffs, and now they are tied. The Rays have two games against the New York Yankees, who have long-clinched the division title and their spot in the playoffs. The Red Sox, with their 6-19 September record, have two games left with the Baltimore Orioles, who have a long history of little love for the Boston baseball team.
TUESDAY AUDIO
Click on title or PLAY CLIP to listen to audio mp3 recording.
• Occupy Wall Street News Report: 20110927 3:10
Kelly Benjamin reports for WGXC that the Occupy Wall Street protests continued in Manhattan’s financial district for the 11th straight day on Mon., Sept. 26. Things have been relatively peaceful in the occupied public square after the mass arrests and pepper sprayings that took place over the weekend. But today, the Hacktivist group “Anonymous” fanned some flames by releasing documents publicly on the internet related to the NYPD officer the group claims is responsible for the pepper-spraying of a group of protesting women on Saturday. Anonymous claims the officer seen in the widely circulated internet video is Anthony Bologna. WGXC’s Kelly Benjamin is in New York and spoke with Occupy Wall Street’s Patrick Bruner about the incident. PLAY CLIP
Tags: agriculture, Chuck Schumer, conservation easements, farms, Friends of Hudson, Glencadia Dog Camp, Hudson LWRP, Kirsten Gillibrand, LWRP, Occupy Wall Street, Will Pflaum
Governors ask for federal disaster aid
Over the weekend the governors of New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and North Carolina issued a joint, bi-partisan statement pleading for representatives in Congress to put aside their political games and pass money to fund the emergency operations for recovery from Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee. Andrew Cuomo, of New York, Chris Christie of New Jersey, Tom Corbett of Pennsylvania, and Bev Perdue of North Carolina released this statement:
“Our states have been hit hard by Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee. While the flood waters have receded and the storms are passed, the damage to communities, businesses and infrastructure remains significant. Billions of dollars in loss and destruction pose a serious threat not only to local and regional economies, but to the nation’s economic recovery. Our states’ governments and our citizens are doing their part to restore and rebuild. The federal government must also do its part. Federal assistance for the victims of storms and floods should be beyond politics. Within 10 days of Hurricane Katrina, Congress passed and the President signed over $60 billion in aid for the Gulf Coast. It’s been 28 days since Irene and Lee started battering our states. We urge this Congress to move swiftly to ensure that disaster aid through FEMA and other federal programs is sufficient to start rebuilding now.”
Storm aid deadline nears for communities
William J. Kemble in The Daily Freeman reports that local governments face a deadline of this Friday, Sept. 30, to apply for federal funds for repairs to roads, bridges, and other public facilities damaged by Tropical Storm Irene. Tropical Storm Lee, which roared through our area a week after Irene, delayed the assessment process for many towns, and some are just overwhelmed with too much to assess, Kemble reports. Read the full story in The Daily Freeman.
Hurricane grant program for nonprofits in Greene and Ulster counties
Julia Reischel in The Watershed Post reports that the Dutchess County-based Dyson Foundation has established two hurricane relief grant programs for nonprofit organizations in several affected counties, including Greene and Ulster. From their press release:
“Nonprofit organizations can apply for emergency funds to assist the organization to recover from Hurricane Irene incurred damages or losses with a one-page narrative describing the uninsured damages or losses and a budget and/or invoice of estimated recovery costs. Applicants are advised to submit these two documents to submissions@dyson.org. The Dyson Foundation will also make grants to nonprofit organizations providing direct services to residents of the Mid-Hudson Valley. These funds are to provide emergency financial assistance to support people impacted by Hurricane Irene. The Foundation will accept applications from organizations with well-established emergency financial assistance programs. These funds are available for qualified nonprofits to distribute to Mid-Hudson Valley residents to cover a broad range of needs resulting from Hurricane Irene. Nonprofit organizations wishing to apply for these funds can submit a one page narrative description of the expected use of the funds and a supporting budget to submissions@dyson.org. Please note that this funding is not being offered directly to individual residents.”
Read the full story in The Watershed Post.
Road reopened
The New York Department of Transportation reports that Route 145 in Greene County between Travis Hill Road and CR 352 in Preston Hollow, is once again fully open. The road had been closed since damage from the storms associated with Hurricane Irene.
Two announcements Monday
Two announcements are expected at local press conferences Monday, Sept. 26:
• An official from the U.S. Department of Agriculture will join Scenic Hudson, Dutchess Land Conservancy, state officials, Town of Red Hook officials, other public officials, and local farmers to announce a major initiative to preserve Hudson Valley farms—on highly scenic and prime agricultural acres in Dutchess County and Columbia County. “This initiative provides the farmers with funds they can invest in the viability of their agricultural business operations. The farms supply fresh, healthy produce and meats to consumers via local and New York City greenmarkets and direct sales to homes and restaurants,” according to Scenic Hudson. At 10:30 a.m. at Northwind Farms, 239 West Kerley Corners Rd., Red Hook.
• Columbia County Board of Supervisors, Columbia Economic Development Corporation, and USDA Rural Development host a groundbreaking ceremony of Greenport Crossings, a mixed use development on the site formerly occupied by V & O Press. “This groundbreaking is for Phase One of the larger project. The total project, which is redeveloping a brownfield site, will result in three new separate buildings totaling almost 80,000 square feet and result in the creation of 100 new jobs,” according to the Columbia Economic Development Corporation. With Rep. Chris Gibson, and others. At 12:30 p.m. at Greenport Commons, Fairview Ave., Greenport.
MONDAY AUDIO CLIPS
Click on title or “PLAY CLIP” to listen to mp3 audio recordings.
Photo from Boing Boing.
Produced by Kelly Benjamin for WGXC. 3:10. News report with interviews, live sound of the protests surrounding the lack of regulation on Wall Street, filed late Sunday, Sept. 25. PLAY CLIP
• A Very Incomplete Calendar: 20110926
Produced by Terry Doyle. 4:28 From Terry Doyle’s “Imprint” radio show Sunday nights at 11 p.m. on WGXC, here is Doyle’s roundup of regional music events this week. Doyle previews the “Concert for the Catskills” benefit concert this Sat. Oct. 1 and Sun. Oct. 2 at the Michael J. Quill Center in East Durham. All proceeds go to Community Action of Greene County for those impacted by the recent storms in our area. PLAY CLIP
Tags: Andrew Cuomo, Bev Perdue, Chris Christie, development, FEMA, Greenport Commons, Hurricane Irene, local audio, music, Occupy Wall Street, Scenic Hudson, Tom Corbett, Tropical Storm Lee, Wall Street
Cuomo announces $175,000 for Greene farmers; $44,000 for Columbia County
Governor Andrew M. Cuomo announced $2.4 million from the state’s Agricultural and Community Recovery Fund (ACRF) to 125 New York farms to help recover from Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee. Specifically, money will go locally to:
Greene County Soil & Water District – $174,650
Projects: Debris removal, fence repair, and grassed waterway repair.
Columbia County Soil & Water District – $44,000
Projects: Access road, stream crossing, fencing repair, debris removal from crop fields, and stream bank stabilization.
Albany County Soil & Water District – $30,250
Projects: Replacement of alternative water supply and reconstruction of an access road, fencing, and gravel deposition removal.
Delaware County Soil & Water District – $101,214
Projects: Debris removal, milk house waste treatment system replacement, fencing, access road replacement and repair, stream bank stabilization.
Dutchess County Soil & Water District – $17,403
Projects: Debris removal from pastures, access road repair, fence repair, downed tree removal, and vegetative buffer planting.
Rensselaer County Soil & Water District – $184,060
Projects: Fence replacement and repair, stream bank stabilization, debris removal, and access road repair.
Ulster County Soil & Water District – $190,252
Projects: Stream crossing for equipment repair, critical area seeding, irrigation system repair, fencing, orchard repair, debris removal, access road repair, and cover cropping.
The Conservation Program is administered by the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets in consultation with the New York State Soil and Water Conservation Committee. Applications for funding will be accepted from County Soil and Water Conservation Districts within the eligible counties.
From DEC.
Hurricane Irene is taking another victim this fall: pheasant hunters. Greene and Schoharie counties may not get any pheasants released on hunting lands, “due to flooding in some areas and other logistical problems, there are currently no stocking sites in Greene County; however, if conditions improve birds may be released during the regular season,” according to the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC). The DEC just announced it is releasing 30,000 adult pheasants on lands open to public hunting for the upcoming Fall pheasant hunting season.
In Columbia County there are four release sites:
• Kinderhook – County Rte. 21 southeast of Dahlgren Rd. (RS)
• New Lebanon – South side of Cemetery Rd., west of Royce Hill Rd. (RS)
• New Lebanon – County Rte. 5A and Old Post Rd.- Ask permission (RS)
• New Lebanon – South side of Rte. 20 east of Old Shaker Rd. Access with limited parking on farm road just east of Stewart’s Shop (RS)
Albany County
• Berne – Partridge Run WMA – See maps at all informational kiosks. (YH, RS)
• Knox – Margaret Burke WMA – west side of Cty Rte 254. (YH, RS)
• New Scotland – West side of Diamond Hill Rd. north of Clipp Rd. (RS)
Delaware County
• Colchester – Bear Spring Mtn. WMA – Trout Brook Rd. (YH, RS)
• Franklin- Off Rt. 357 across from Merrickville Rd. on Town property. Must obtain permission to hunt surrounding private land. (RS)
• Harpersfield – Peters Rd. northwest of Bruce Hill Rd. Park at designated parking sign. Two vehicles maximum. (RS)
• Walton – Bear Spring Mtn. WMA – West Trout Brook Rd. (RS)
Dutchess County
• Amenia – Wassaic Multiple Use Area (RS)
• Milan – Lafayetteville Multiple Use Area (YH, RS)
• Red Hook – Tivoli Bays Wildlife Management Area (YH, RS)
Rensselaer County
• Nassau – North and south of Jefferson Hill Rd. at the intersection with Middle Rd. – Must ask permission by calling 518-766-4346 after 5 PM. (YH, RS)
Ulster County
• Hurley – Gill’s Farm – Must obtain permission from landowner. (RS)
• Rochester – Davis Farm – Must obtain written permission from landowner. (RS)
• Rochester – Kelder Farm – Must obtain written permission from landowner. (RS)
• Wawarsing – Ver Nooy Kill State Forest (Lundy Estate), access from Lundy Road off 209 (RS)
The pheasant hunting season begins on October 1 in our area.
Gibson: I’m disappointed in [Wednesday] night’s vote
Jimmy Vielkind in Capitol Confidential reports that Rep. Chris Gibson (R, Kinderhook) voted unsuccessfully Wed., Sept. 21 to pass a larger House spending bill directing storm aid to the Federal Emergency Management Agency, an agency with open offices in Greene and Columbia counties, and an agency that may run out of money this week. “I was disappointed to see my colleagues on both sides of the aisle vote against this CR, which provided critical aid money for FEMA and our district,” Gibson said in a statement. “Helping our communities rebuild is far more important than playing political games. I will continue to advocate for immediate passage of FEMA disaster relief and urge leaders from both parties to come together and get this done. I will vote for any legislation we consider in the House that provides disaster relief funding.” Read the full story in Capitol Confidential.
Cuomo announces food stamp benefits for local storm victims
Governor Andrew Cuomo announced The Disaster Food Stamp Benefits Program for residents in counties affected by Hurricane Irene became available as of Thu., Sept. 22. Greene and Columbia county residents affected by the recent storms are covered by the program, as are those living in Albany, Delaware, Dutchess, Schoharie, and Ulster counties. The federal government oversees the Food Stamp Program, which is operated in New York State by the Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance (OTDA). To qualify for disaster food stamp benefits, applicants:
· Must have lived in one of the designated counties at the time of the disaster. Applicants may be eligible if they are temporarily living outside of the disaster area but within the State at the time of the disaster.
· Must plan on purchasing food during the month of September.
· Must have experienced at least one of the following:
o Loss of food or food stamp benefits.
o Damage to, or the destruction of, the household’s home or self-employment business.
o Disaster-related expenses not expected to be reimbursed during the month of September (e.g. home or business repairs, temporary shelter expenses, etc.).
o Loss or inaccessibility of income including reduction or termination of income, or a delay in receipt of income for half a month.
o Inaccessible liquid resources (e.g. banks are closed due to the disaster).
Call 1-800-342-3009, or contact your local department of social services for more information.
FEMA Disaster Recovery Centers to close on Sundays
Lissa Harris in the Watershed Post reports that the Federal Emergency Management Agency and New York Office of Emergency Management Disaster Recovery Centers operating in New York State will now be open only six days a week. Hours are now Mon-Sat, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. at these locations:
Greene County: Main Street, Prattsville.
Delaware County: Sidney Civic Center, 21 Liberty Street, Sidney.
Schoharie County: Cobleskill Fire Department, 610 East Main Street, Cobleskill.
Ulster County: Belleayre Ski Center, Route 28, Highmount.
Read the full story in The Watershed Post.
Tags: agriculture, budget cuts, Chris Gibson, DEC, farm flooding, FEMA, hunting, Hurricane Irene, pheasant hunting, pheasants, Tropical Storm Lee
WGXC coverage map.
WGXC’s Technical Director Al Davis prepared this map of WGXC’s effective coverage area. We will be beaming signals to the areas above all weekend long, live during Hurricane Irene’s arrival in our area.
Gibson votes for budget bill
Congressman Chris Gibson (R, Kinderhook) voted Monday, Aug. 1 for the Budget Control Act of 2011, that raises the nation’s debt limit with a $2.1 trillion cut in spending. The vote was 269-161, and Gibson, who represents Greene and Columbia counties in NY’s 20th Congressional District, released this statement. “This evening, after careful review, I voted yes on the final compromise agreement to avert our current debt crisis while cutting spending. The legislation cuts $2.1 trillion in spending, while protecting Medicare and Social Security. To be clear, my preferred approach was the Cut, Cap, and Balance Act. However, I believe the final agreement embodies those principles, and makes significant changes that will put us on a path of restoring fiscal responsibility. This is accomplished through cuts, enforceable caps on future spending, and a requirement to vote on a Balanced Budget Amendment to the Constitution.”
Relatively unknown GOP presidential candidate coming to Hudson and Catskill
Doron Tyler Antrim reports in The Daily Mail that Republican presidential candidate John Davis stops by Catskill and Hudson this Thursday. Davis, is a self-employed home builder from Colorado who has never held elected office, on a nationwide bus tour attempting to visit all 3,143 counties in the United States. “So far, he’s been to more than 900 counties in 29 states, logging more than 39,000 miles,” Antrim writes. This Thursday, Aug. 4, Davis will be at Village Pizza II on Main Street in Catskill, and then at American Glory in Hudson at 3 p.m. Antrim looks up his finanacial records and finds he has received $14,884 in individual contributions, and has $7,800 cash-on-hand. Read the full story in The Daily Mail.
From DEC website.
The New York Department of Environmental Conservation holds its 15th Summer Wild Turkey Sighting Survey to estimate the number of wild turkey poults (young of the year) per hen statewide. “Weather, predation, and habitat conditions during the breeding and brood-rearing seasons can all significantly impact nest success, hen survival, and poult survival,” the DEC says, and survey predicts fall harvest potential. During the month of August, survey participants record the sex and age composition of all flocks of wild turkeys observed during normal travel. Those interested in participating can download a Summer Wild Turkey Sighting Survey form along with instructions and the data sheet directly at http://www.dec.ny.gov/animals/48732.html. Survey cards can also be obtained by contacting a regional DEC office, calling (518) 402-8886, or by e-mailing fwwildlf@gw.dec.state.ny.us (type “Turkey Survey” in the subject line).
Even as Financial Fears Mount, Real Love Outweighs Gold
Zarchary Woolfe in The New York Times reviews Sunday’s performance of “Die Liebe der Danae,” Richard Strauss’ 1940 opera that is part of the Bard SummerScape festival, with conductor Leon Botstein and his American Symphony Orchestra. “With gorgeous music and a plot seemingly tailor-made for our troubled times, it is one of those operas that make you resent the stubborn smallness of the standard repertory,” he writes, mentioning that the show will be performed again on Wednesday, Friday, and Sunday (Aug. 3-7) at the Bard SummerScape festival at Bard College, Annandale-on-Hudson. Read the full review in The New York Times.
Tags: American Symphony Orchestra, Bard College, Chris Gibson, DEC, Leon Botstein, turkeys
Governor Andrew Cuomo launched his Capital Region Regional Economic Development Councils Thu., July 28, setting up regional development groups. Greene and Columbia counties are included in the Capital Region Regional Council, led by Shirley Ann Jackson, President of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, and Michael Castellana, President and CEO of SEFCU, who will serve as Regional Co-Chairs over Albany, Columbia, Greene, Rensselaer, Saratoga, Schenectady, Warren and Washington counties. Donald E. Gibson, President, CEO & Director, The Bank of Greene County is included on the council, as are spots for the Chairman of Greene County Legislature, which is currently Wayne Speenburgh (R-Coxsackie), and Chairman Columbia Board of Supervisors, which is currently Roy Brown (R-Germantown). “New York can no longer afford one-size-fits-all economic development plans that ignore the unique assets and challenges of the state’s many diverse regions,” Governor Cuomo said in a press release. “Today, we are taking a groundbreaking approach that will send a clear message that New York is open for business. With the Regional Councils, we will empower individual areas like Capital Region to chart their own course for economic growth, bringing jobs and investment to New York.” Dutchess and Ulster counties are included in the Mid-Hudson version of the council, while Delaware County is in the Southern Tier.
Capital Region Regional Council Members
Regional Co-Chairs
Michael J. Castellana, President and CEO, SEFCU
Dr. Shirley Ann Jackson, President, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
General Members
Joseph F. Raccuia, President & CEO, Finch Paper LLC
Gary Dake, President, Stewart’s Shops
Bill Hart, Controller, Irving Tissue Inc.
Victor R. Abate, Vice President, Renewable Energy, General Electric
Peg A. Murphy, Corporate Secretary/Director of Human Resources, Espey Manufacturing &
Electronics Corporation
Omar Usmani, Executive Partner, Aeon Nexus Corporation
Ann C. Moynihan, President, Documentation Strategies Inc.
Linda Davis Pedlar, Owner, LDP Consulting Group, Inc.
Christine Edgerly, President, Adirondack Mechanical Services LLC
Jeff Stark, President, Greater Capital Region Building Trades Council
George M. Phillip, President, University at Albany
Karen Bilowith, President & CEO, The Community Foundation for the Greater Capital Region
James J. Barba, President & CEO, Albany Medical Center
Todd Erling, Executive Director, Hudson Valley Agribusiness Development Corporation
F. Michael Tucker, President & CEO, Center for Economic Growth
Dennis Brobston, President, Saratoga Economic Development Corporation
Linda Hillman, President, Rensselaer County Regional Chamber of Commerce
Donald E. Gibson, President, CEO & Director, The Bank of Greene County
Elected Officials
Albany County Executive
Chairman of Schenectady County Legislature
Rensselaer County Executive
Chairman Saratoga Board of Supervisors
Chairman Warren Board of Supervisors
Chairman Columbia Board of Supervisors
Chairman of Greene County Legislature
Chairman Washington Board of Supervisors
Mayor of the City of Albany
Mayor of the City of Schenectady
Mayor of the City of Troy
Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: Andrew Cuomo, Capital Region Regional Council, Donald Gibson, Roy Brown, Wayne Speenburgh
WGXC’s Mariel Fiori and Antonio Flores-Lobos interview Danielle Riou, who is heading up efforts to bring WLHV 88.1-FM, a radio station for Bard College. The station will launch next summer, and cover much of Ulster and Dutchess counties. Riou is a professor at the school and Director of the Human Rights Project at Bard. Click here to listen to an interview with Riou about the station.
Tags: Bard College, Danielle Riou, local audio, radio, WLHV
Cuomo expands ‘hydrofracking’ review
NY1, The Associated Press, and many other outlets are reporting Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s administration has ordered an expanded environmental review of proposed natural gas “hydro-fracking” in New York after an accident in Pennsylvania in April caused a well to leak chemically tainted water for two days, driving a handful of families from their homes. A leaked internal memo dated Friday said the Pennsylvania accident raised issues about the technology and extraction method, which has been assailed by some environmentalists as unsafe. Read the whole story at NY1.
Local water quality
It will be hot today, and you may consider getting in some body of water to cool off. Riverkeeper, the local water advocate group, has posted water quality tests for our area, and the first results went up May 19. All of the local tests show “unacceptable” water quality due to high enterococcus count. Heavy rains this spring have muddied local waters. (Clinical infections caused by Enterococcus include urinary tract infections, bacteremia, bacterial endocarditis, diverticulitis, and meningitis, according to Wikipedia.)
•Athens:
o Athens Sewage Treatment Plant Outfall (119 enterococcus count)
•Coxsackie:
o Coxsackie Waterfront Park (378)
o Gay’s Point midchannel (260)
•Catskill:
o Catskill Creek – East End (816)
o Catskill Creek – First Bridge (727)
o Catskill Creek Launch Ramp (147)
o Hudson Launch Ramp (238)
o Inbocht Bay (411)
Summer looks busy–and fun–for Ancram kids
Diane Valden in The Columbia Paper reports that Ancram’s summer camp program for youngsters was approved at its May 19 meeting. “Ruth Thomas, who will direct the program, said with an enrollment of 50 kids, she expects the program to make a $3,500 profit,” the reporter wrote. “Mrs. Thomas, the wife of Councilman Chris Thomas, asked the town for $2,500 up-front to buy a used tent, fix the basketball court and install a railing to help people negotiate a steep hill near the pool.” The program includes swimming lessons at the town pool, and run from July 5 through August 12, Mondays through Fridays, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Cost is $65 for Town of Ancram residents and $75 for non-residents. Adrienne Citrin of the Ancramdale Neighbors Helping Neighbors organization said the group will provide two five-week scholarships for youngsters whose families can’t afford to pay. Ancram residents must register for the program at the Town Hall, 10 a.m. to noon, Saturday, June 4 or 11; non-residents register June 18. Potential campers must bring proof of residency and immunization records. Anyone with questions should contact Mrs. Thomas at (518) 329-7309. Read the full story in The Columbia Paper.
Radio, Radio
Word of two new local radio stations coming on the air soon with local content. Well, one is new, and one returns to the airwaves. Jim Planck in The Daily Mail reports that WCKL returns to 560 AM at 6 a.m. June 15. “Our proposed programming will be family-oriented — everything from music to talk shows,” General Manager Brian Dodge of Ghent told the newspaper. “We’ll bring back some of the old things that WCKL used to do — like the Swap Shop, and the Talk of the Town, with people invited in.” The new station at Bard College, WLHV (88.1-FM), won’t be on the air for another year, but is kicking off its “fundraising and promotional campaign” June 3 at the Black Swan Pub in Tivoli with:
•TULiP members Raissa St. Pierre and Tim Davis spinning 78s
•Members of the dynamic ensemble Contemporaneous performing works for violin and clarinet
•Three readings by faculty in Bard’s Language and Thinking Program
•Punk band El Front performing a radio-themed set
•A radio theater performance by Douglas Stone
•Different Guns (Ben Fundis, John Rosenthal, and Sasha Pearl) performing an acoustic set
Tags: environment, Hudson River, radio, Riverkeeper, water quality, WCKL, WLHV
The New York State Department of Labor released unemployment figures for April on Tue. May 24 that show joblessness fell in both Greene and Columbia counties, as well as Ulster, Dutchess, and the Capitol Region. In Greene County, the unemployment rated was 8.6 percent, down from 8.8 percent last month and a year ago. In Columbia County, the rate was 7.3 percent, down from 7.9 percent in March and down from 7.5 percent a year ago. In Ulster the rate was 7.7 percent, and Dutchess it was 7.3 percent, down from 8.1 and 7.7 a month ago, respectively. The Capitol Region (Albany, Schenectady, Rensselaer, Saratoga, Schoharie counties) fell to 6.8 percent, the lowest in two years, and down from 7.2 percent last month, and 7.1 percent last year. Looking closely at the numbers, there were fewer employed as well as fewer unemployed in Greene County in April. Now, only 20,900 roughly are employed, where in March there were 21,600 jobs, and a year ago 21,400. In Columbia County the number of employed rose slightly to 27,500 from 27,300 in March, but down from 28,500 jobs a year ago.
Tags: jobs, unemployment
Bard College professor Marina Rosenfeld performed with George Lewis Fri., May 20 at Issue Project Room in Brooklyn, and the folks from Innova Records were there to record it.
Tags: local video, Marina Rosenfeld
Copake planners wrestle with tower details
Diane Valden in The Columbia Paper reports that the Copake Planning Board is considering whether there is currently adequate cell phone coverage in the Columbia County town. If not, then Mariner Tower, II, may be allowed to build a 150-foot lattice tower on the West Copake farm of Ezra J. Link, Jr., at 3124 County Route 7 with the tower east of Route 7 between Pumpkin Hollow Roads North and South. Radio experts may fly a literal trial balloon to determine where the tower would be seen from if allowed. The farmer and tower company are asking for variances for the proposed tower as 125 feet is the town’s maximum height, and a 1,500-foot setback from residences is required, but this tower has about 1,200 feet of setback from two residences. The applicants have to appear before both the Planning Board for site plan review and the Zoning Board of Appeals for the variances, and the Planning Board will next discuss the issue June 2. Read the full story in The Columbia Paper.
Graduations
Both local colleges hold graduations Saturday: Columbia-Greene Community College at 10 a.m. in the gym, and Bard College at 1 p.m. with a live webstream here.
Board resigns
There’s this from the Public Notices in the Register-Star about the Catskill gym where Mike Tyson learned to fight: “The Board of Directors of the Cus D’amatos Boxing Gym have resigned from their positions as members of the board. The board is no longer responsible for any activity in the gym or any indebtedness.”
At Home on the Farm and in E-Books
Julie Bosman in The New York Times profiles Columbia County writer Susan Orlean in the Thu. May 19 edition, around the publication of her new e-book “Animalish,” about the animals on her 55-acre spread. They include one dog, three cats, eight chickens, four turkeys, six guinea fowl, one fish, two snow-white ducks, and 12 Black Angus cattle. Orlean, who writes for The New Yorker, published “Animalish,” as an e-book Thursday exclusively by Amazon as a “Kindle Single,” one of their excerpts of original, long-form writing. Read the entire story in The New York Times.
Windham’s Zipline construction begins
Windham Mountain’s Facebook page says that construction has begun on a Zipline there. From a post: “2 race at a time. I leg goes from the top of the Adventure Park lodge down to a tower by the berm on the snowtubing park; 2nd leg goes to a tower by the skating rink; then a rope bridge back to the Lodge.” Hunter Mountain has the longest and highest zipline in North America, with four miles of the hanging rides.
Rebecca Anderson, a member of the new student garden club at Columbia-Greene Community College, readies the soil for planting. From CGCC.
Twelve students are taking turns tending to a garden on campus at Columbia-Greene Community College through the new student garden club. Students are growing corn, sweet peas, kale, tomatoes, lettuce, potatoes, wild strawberries, and basil, according to one of the club’s founders, Lizzy Winig. The students may get the food they grow served in the college’s cafeteria. “The student garden is dedicated to growing green this summer, working with the land to produce a healthy variety of vegetables,” says club member Rebecca Anderson. “We students are also hoping to donate a good portion of our harvest to the local food pantry and college cafeteria, keeping the impact on the environment light, and the impact on the community powerful.” Assistant Professor of History Ted Hilscher is the club’s advisor.
Tags: agriculture, Bard College, Columbia-Greene Community College, Cus D'Amato, garden, Hunter Mountain, local video, Susan Orlean, Windham Mountain, zipline
Police plan ‘Move Over Act’ enforcement detail
Andrew Amelinckx reports in the Register-Star that New York State Police will be out in force, beginning Saturday, April 16, looking for drivers who are not obeying the new Ambrose-Searles “Move Over Act” that requires drivers to use “due care” when approaching an emergency vehicle that has its emergency lights on and is parked, stopped or standing on the shoulder of a road or highway. Drivers must reduce their speed and if they are on parkways, interstates or other roadways that have multiple lanes, they must move from the lane adjacent to where the emergency vehicle is located, if they can do so safely.
Greene officials test the water
Doron Tyler Antrim writes in the Daily Mail about the fact-finding mission Greene County officials made on April 15 to the Poconos to learn about its indoor water park and hotel — a resort that a developer wants to replicate along the New York State Thruway in New Baltimore. Under a plan announced last June, the Greene County Industrial Development Agency has agreed to sell its option on an expansive property south of Exit 21B in New Baltimore to developer MAR Holdings (of Medusa, in Albany County) for the purpose of building a resort of the same size and scope as the one visited. Specifically, the plan calls for an 80,000-square-foot indoor water park, 400 hotel rooms, 25,000-square-feet of meeting space, two restaurants, an arcade and other amenities. Details of the transactions, which were reported as a “deal” awaiting Greene County approval now in an April 15 Albany Business Review story, will be outlined in the coming weeks. Reportedly, over $110 million in investments, a future outlet store mall, and about 1500 jobs are entailed.
Attack victim: Spare the bear
Bryan Fitzgerald follows up on his own story in the Times Union with an update about how the victim in the Greene County bear attack is asking that any bears caught in a trap by her Round Top home NOT be euthanized immediately. “Joy Bayer-Mozynski’s northern Catskills home is smeared with sweet-scented syrup and lined with yellow snack cakes. A plastic jug half-filled with honey is tied to a rod in the back that, when pulled hard, will trigger a front door to fall, sealing the cylindrical trap,” reads the story. “Bayer-Mozynski thought she would die when a bear pinned her down in her driveway Wednesday, but she said she doesn’t want the animal killed by state environmental officials, who said there is no way to know if any bear caught is the one that injured the 53-year-old mother of five.” “I don’t want it killed. I don’t know why they can’t take it out into the wilderness. It’s just another one of God’s creatures,” she said Friday, shortly before leaving Albany Medical Center Hospital. “It was just hungry, looking for food.” Bayer-Mozynski was picking up spilled trash — possibly upended by the hungry bear — when the creature approached her, pushed her to the ground and pinned her with a paw. She said the animal held her down while it snatched a white bag of trash. “There wasn’t one second where I thought I was going to live. I begged to God and my guardian angel that my daughters would still have their mother,” she said to Fitzgerald.
Three more months to buy a dirty outdoor wood boiler
Julia Reischel reports in the Watershed Post that the New York Department of Environmental Conservation just gave a small reprieve to anyone who sells outdoor wood boilers, the controversial home heating furnaces known as OWBs. As of April 15, sellers have three more months to sell any old OWBs that don’t meet the state’s new emission standards. The department made the announcement in a press release.
Gtown School budget passes with 2.48 percent increase
The Register-Star reports that the Germantown Central School District Board of Education adopted a 2011-2012 proposed budget with a 5-1-0 vote tally. Shortly after the April 13 budget vote, the board voted to approve an agreement between the district and the Germantown Administrators Association which provided for approximately $49,000 in gift backs to the district over the next two years. It was stressed that as a result of staff reductions over the last two years he and the Board of Education did not want to reduce faculty and staff again this year. In the end they chose to deplete reserves a little more rather than cut into programs and services that would equate to fewer opportunities for students.
HTC adopts $13.2 million budget
Jim Planck reports in the Daily Mail that the Hunter-Tannersville School District has approved a $13,224,338 budget for fiscal year 2011-12, a decrease in total funds of $24,374, or .18 percent, from the current year’s budget of $13,248,712. The tax levy will see an increase of 1.49 percent from 2010-11, for a total of $9,647,540 to be raised by taxes. The administration set a goal for its tax levy amounts and dropped administrative and program expenses while upping capital funds somewhat.
M
Tags: bear attack, Germantown School District, Hunter-Tannersville School District, MAR Holdings, Move Over Act, New York State POlice, NYS Department of Environmental Conservation, outdoor wood boilers, school budgets, water park
Closing bridge means faster, cheaper repairs
Diane Valden writes in the Columbia Paper that Center Hill Road (County Route 7A) will be detoured because of the impending closing of the Roeliff Jansen Kill at Brown’s Dam for replacement. “The long-awaited, much-discussed highway project to replace of the crumbling, 76-year-old bridge and resurface Center Hill Road for six miles from Church Street to County Route 7 and on to State Route 23 in Craryville has started with the posting of road work signs throughout the corridor,the setting up of a storage yard for equipment and vehicles, an engineer’s field office behind the Copake Pharmacy and the removal of several trees along the project route, most of them in the vicinity of the dam,” Valden writes. Road closures will start in the coming week. The replacement of the span will not begin until the first or second week of May. The original project goal was to keep one travel lane over the bridge open with an alternating traffic flow during the bridge construction, but the condition of the bridge has deteriorated over the last few months to the extent that the structural integrity of the downstream lane was brought into question.
Insurance last hurdle for market
Doron Tyler Antrim reports in the Daily Mail about organizers of the peripatetic Catskill Regional Farmers and Artisans Market now shopping for quotes on insurance, following the village board’s April 11 decision to relocate the market to the county parking lot along Church Street. The market must be added to the county’s insurance policy to operate on its property, although Village President Vincent Seeley has said the market, which is run independently of the village and does not receive any village money, has enough surplus funds to pay for any policy updates.
Under new (and much better) management
Sam Pratt writes on his blog that the former Diamond Street Diner, located on Warren Street in Hudson, was acquired at auction on April 15 by a pair of Columbia County organic farmers. “The new Ghent owners—who supplied the only meat served at Chelsea Clinton’s wedding—plan to add a local ‘farm-to-chef’ angle to the usual diner fare,” Pratt writes. “No timetable for reopening has been set yet; but the diner has always been an important part of the community’s life, making this excellent news for Hudson business and stomachs.”
Spectrawatt on last amp
While Capital Region publications are touting the surge of federal and private dollars coming into the Albany area for solar power development and manufacturing projects of late, Kathy Kahn of HVBiz writes about the demise of the company “that was going to take the Hudson Valley by solar storm in May 2010.” SpectraWatt, a photovoltaic panel manufacturer that set up shop in IBM’s former East Fishkill facility after making a $90 million private investment in the plant and receiving another $8 million in federal funding. is now in the process of laying off its 150 employees before it officially closes its doors in a few weeks. “SpectraWatt and other local solar companies had shipped much of their production to countries that were encouraging solar power using government subsidies, notably in the European Union,” Kahn writes. “But harsh winter weather and an uncertain economic climate have reportedly led some countries to curtail or end their subsidized solar energy programs.”
All of city’s Front Street to be repaved next week
Jamie Larson reports in the Register-Star that the entire length of Front Street will be completely re-paved starting April 20, and hopefully finishing by April 22. The work will run from Dock Street on the north to the far end of the Amtrak parking lot where the city has a waste water pump station. During the process, Larson writes, Front Street will be reduced to one lane, with periodic brief traffic stops in both directions as equipment is moved.
Tags: bridge repairs, Catskill Regional Farmers and Artisans Market, Center Hill Road, County Route 7A, Diamond Street Diner, solar power, SpectraWatt, traffic detours, Vincent Seeley
ICC passes budget — and football
John Mason reports in the Register-Star on the passage of a budget by the Ichabod Crane Board of Education in Kinderhook, and how the possibility of losing the local football team became the major point of contention at a crowded meeting on Tuesday night, April 12. ICC has ended up with a 3.9 percent tax levy increase to go before voters on May 17. As in Hudson and other local school districts, the board split – 5-3 in ICC’s case – in their final budget vote on a spending plan that includes the closing of two schools, the elimination of 32.5 positions, and the discontinuation of the district’s pre-K program. The matter that divided them, however, was the last minute addition of $31,000 for the varsity and junior varsity football program, Mason points out, which was also the issue that drew 9- minutes of impassioned speeches from district residents.
Unspent county grants total $375K
Colin DeVries of the Daily Mail writes that Greene County lawmakers have approved the transfer of about $375,000 in unused public safety grants, with legislators encouraging the funds be put to use before its too late. Four grants, awarded to the county Department of Emergency Services and the sheriff’s office, remain in county coffers while the projects they were intended to fund are still in progress. Two grants were awarded to emergency services in May 2009 and May 2010, totaling $299,972, for “support, planning, equipment, training and exercise needs associated with preparedness and prevention activities for terrorist events using weapons of mass destruction involving chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear and explosive materials.” As of Dec. 31, 2010, $239,449.43 of those Homeland Security grants remained. Two other U.S. Department of Homeland Security grants awarded in March 2010 and August 2010 to the Greene County Sheriff’s Office totaled $89,750 for a “prevention initiative consistent with the local Counter Terrorism Zone strategy, and “to create, train and outfit a countywide dive team to ensure a quick response for water-related incidents.” As of Dec. 31, 2010, $71,464.13 remained between the two grants. Finally, a U.S. Department of Justice grant of $80,000 was awarded for an emergency services radio study, accepted by the county legislature in October 2009. As of Dec. 31, 2010, $61,064.80 of the grant remained unused.
Valatie plans 10% tax cut in new budget
Emilia Teasdale of the Columbia Paper reports that the Valatie Village Board reviewed a proposed $706,905 annual budget proposed some major spending cuts at their most recent budget meeting, working to lower property taxes by 10%. Their areas of saving include closing Village Court, making lower interest payments on loans, and removing the position of deputy village clerk. “Discussion became heated over the Fire Department budget,” Teasdale writes, noting how the Fire Company wanted to set aside money for future equipment purchases.
Lack of county historian stirs debate in Dutchess
The Daily Freeman has a story about how debate arose at a legislative meeting in neighboring Dutchess County Legislature over the lack of a county historian. The position, appointed by the county executive, has been vacant for three years and the issue came up during a routine resolution vote declaring Oct. 23 through Nov. 1 to be officially known as “Dutchess County Heritage Days.” Legislature Minority Leader Sandra Goldberg said designating Heritage Days without a historian is doing it backward. Republican majority members responded that there were enough historians in the county already.
Library on way to magic number
Doron Tyler Antrim reports in the Daily Mail that the Cairo library board of trustees has noted that it is already quarter of the way toward reaching the $100,000 local match required as part its acceptance of a federal loan and grant package to build a new public library. The money has been collected from donations and fundraisers that library officials and volunteers have organized since last year, and does not include the donation of in-kind services, which have been estimated at about $15,000.
BOE merges 3rd ward districts
Jamie Larson writes in the Register-Star about the Columbia County Board of Elections’ decision to combine two Third Ward voting districts in the city of Hudson. The change reduces the number of poll workers and procedural steps needed during elections and was announced at the informal meeting of the Hudson Common Council on April 11 in terms of its savings of $4,000 per year. According to state law, a voting district has to have fewer then 1,150 active voters in it. The new combined Third Ward district has 681, leaving Hudson’s Fifth Ward the last one split into two voting districts, with a total 1,280 active voters.
Tags: Cairo Library, Columbia County Board of Elections, county historian, deputy village clerk, Fifth Ward, fire departments, First Ward, football, Ichabod Crane Board of Education, U.S. Department of Homeland Security, unspent funds, village court
The Watershed Post reports on the Ashokan Watershed Stream Management Program‘s annual Ashokan Watershed Conference held Saturday, April 9 and its region-wide subject: “Flood Resilience for Towns, Businesses and Landowners.” Julia Reischel focuses on talk of the effects of climate change on weather, “extreme precipitation events,” and flooding. “Storms are getting more severe, rainfall is getting heavier, droughts are getting dryer, and flooding is getting worse,” she summarizes a speech by Dan Zarrow, a meteorologist at Cornell University’s Northeast Regional Climate Center seen in the above video. “The northeast US is the most sensitive region of the country to climate-change induced-extreme precipitation increases,” according to Zarrow. He added that the Climate Center’s new interactive website, www.precip.net, says that “100-year-storms” now happen about once every 50 years.
Meanwhile, the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies and Cornell Cooperative Extension of Dutchess County will be hosting a Science and Management Forum on Regional Freshwater Issues, on Saturday, April 16 from 9am to noon. Attendees will be provided with insight into the state of our groundwater supplies, ways of protecting sensitive wetlands, and pressures that threaten freshwater ecosystems, including pollution, development practices, and invasive species. Special attention will be given to green infrastructure and stormwater management, as well as some of the same climate change issues that came up at the Ashokan Conference. The forum is free and open to the public, but RSVP is required. Participants can register online at www.caryinstitute.org/freshwater.html or call (845) 677-7600 x171. The last two Science and Management Forums filled to capacity; early registration is recommended.
Tags: Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies, climate change, Cornell Cooperative Extenision, Dan Zarrow, extreme weather
Panel: Act now on health care reform planning
Barbara Pinckney of the Albany Business Review reports on a Friday, April 8 Power Breakfast on health care reform put on by the publication that featured Maggie Moree, director of federal affairs for the Business Council of New York State, James Connolly, CEO of Ellis Medicine in Schenectady, and Dr. John Bennett, CEO of Capital District Physicians Health Plan in Albany. All agreed that it was time to take the new law seriously, despite political and legal challenges. Moree said employers need to plan now for new W2 rules, Medicaid tax changes and other provisions scheduled to take effect over the next few years. “As business owners you are part of the solution,” Bennett said. “All care is local. You will solve this problem with us.” He later added that rate increases will mirror the rise in medical costs—just as they did before the reform act. The reform act itself, he said, did nothing to control medical costs. Connolly said businesses need to stop thinking of health care as a “purchasing decision” and start investing in employee wellness and become engaged in looking at the data for their workers, to know what their employees are consuming and how much it costs. About 250 businesspeople were in attendance.
Division mirrors House
Leigh Hornbeck writes in the Times Union about the ways in which two local congressmen have been offering starkly different narratives on the possibility of federal shutdown. U.S. Rep. Chris Gibson, R-Kinderhook, voted Thursday in favor of a GOP-backed continuing resolution that would fund the Department of Defense for the rest of the fiscal year while cutting current spending by $12 billion. Rep. Paul Tonko, D-Amsterdam, voted against the measure, which passed 247-181. “Rather than pointing fingers, I want to see us come to an agreement. I don’t want to see either side dig in so we shut down the government,” Gibson said. But then he pointed fingers, noting how, “the last Congress didn’t make a single cut.” Tonko countered by pointing out that the previous Congress made $41 billion in cuts during the lame-duck session at the end of 2010 and have proposed $33 billion in additional reductions that are now on the table. “We have moved three-quarters of the way toward their original request” for $100 billion in cuts, said Tonko. “You don’t get everything you want at the negotiating table.” Tonko said Republicans were guilty of “moving the goal line” due to “the reckless, insensitive and extreme response from the tea party…. It’s not about the numbers, it’s about politics — petty, partisan politics.”
Catskill man charged with sexual abuse of 4-year-old
Colin DeVries reports in the Daily Mail on a 28-year-old Catskill village man charged with sexually abusing a 4-year-old Catskill girl. Peter J. Lentz was arrested after the Catskill Police Department received information that Lentz had been abusing the girl over a period of time. In the midst of a longer investigation, Lentz was found in possession of a substantial amount of child pornography on personal computers, police said. He faces a charge of first-degree sexual abuse, a class D felony, and possessing an obscene sexual performance by a child, a class E felony. Lentz was arraigned before Athens Town Justice James Robinson and remanded to the Greene County Jail in lieu of $25,000 cash and $50,000 bond.
ITW to bring 25 new jobs to Millerton
Whitney Joseph, editor of The Millerton News, writes that a new business moving into the Route 22 corridor will bring two dozen new jobs to the WGXC listening area. ITW, or Illinois Tool Works, Inc., will be expanding its local presence from a current Lakeville, CT plant by opening a second operation in a 25,000-square-foot space at Arnoff Moving and Storage on Route 22, just south of the Columbia County line. The ITW division that is moving to Millerton will be producing “seating components for the automotive industry,” according to a press release. They are expecting to hire 25 local workers.
Tags: arrest, Business Council of New York State, Chris Gibson, government shutdown, healthcare, ITW, new jobs, Paul Tonko, sexual abuse
Tim DeChristopher, from his website.
Tags: local audio, Tim DeChristopher
Awareness key to progress against sexual violence
The Daily Freeman has a story about a presentation given by Dutchess County Family Services where it was acknowledged that many abuse victims still never report the crime and that creating greater awareness of what’s involved in sexual abuse may get more victims to step forward. District Attorney William Grady said a big step forward is more humane treatment of the victim, who should no longer traumatized by having to wait in a public emergency room with a police officer. Local hospitals, he added, are finally starting to set up private ways of treating such patients. The event was attended by law enforcement and social services officials. Also announced was an upcoming “Walk a Mile in Her Shoes” event, in which men literally walk a mile in women’s shoes to raise awareness about sexual assault and support survivors. The event is scheduled for 1 p.m. April 30 at Marist College in Poughkeepsie.
Ulster starts ball rolling to form inter-county emergency communications system
Mid Hudson News Network reports that the Law Enforcement and Public Safety Committee of the Ulster County Legislature has approved the first step toward joining other Hudson Valley counties in the formation of an emergency communications consortium. The six-county group is working towards fulfilling a state directive to address communications with a regional approach. The goal is to enable emergency services agencies to communicate on the same radio channels in the counties of Ulster, Dutchess, Orange, Putnam, Rockland and Westchester. Maybe Columbia and Greene should start a similar effort?
Redistricting reforms constitutional, group says
Stephanie Lee of the Times Union writes that Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s call for a nonpartisan redistricting system has been deemed constitutional… by leaders of a redistricting reform campaign. “Organizers of ReShapeNY presented a legal memo from Weil, Gotshal and Manges LLP that defends the constitutionality of the governor’s proposed bipartisan legislative committee, which would draw redistricting lines without consideration to political advantage,” Lee writes. “ReShapeNY is organized by good-government groups that include Citizens Union, the New York Public Interest Group and the League of Women Voters.” Cuomo’s plan is backed by 89 members of the Assembly, where Democrats hold the majority of the seats. The challenge to his plan’s constitutionality comes from Senate Republicans, who have proposed to create a redistricting panel that wouldn’t draw lines until 2022. New lines will be drawn in 2012, in wake of the just-released census data.
Albany NanoTech awarded $57.5M for solar research
Robin K. Cooper of the Albany Business Journal reports that the University at Albany’s College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering will receive $57.5 million in federal money for solar-cell research and development. The U.S. Department of Energy announced the award on April 5. SUNY Albany will use the same technology it uses for computer-chip innovation to help make New York a hub for photovoltaic research, the university says. Sen. Charles Schumer had pushed for $100 million in federal funds to help form a Photovoltaic Manufacturing Consortium with more than 80 corporate and university partners, which mirrors similar efforts in the Mid-Hudson Valley being pushed by Congressman Maurice Hinchey.
Tags: Andrew Cuomo, College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering, domestic violence, Family Services, Photovoltaic Manufacturing Consortium, redisticting, ReShapeNY, Senate Republicans, sexual abuse, shared services, SUNY Albany, victims
Nothing to sniff at: Canine adds new tool at Greene County Sheriff’s Office
Ariel Zangla-Girard of the Daily Freeman has a feature story on the training of Blaze, a 2-year-old German Shepherd that the Greene County Sheriff’s Office purchased on March 5, 2010. The dog and his handler, Deputy Gregory Stewart, completed training in April 2010 and were certified for road patrol work by the end of last June. In the past year dog and handler have found a lost Alzheimers patient in the Village of Catskill and a suicide who had burned his mother’s home in Athens. In a few months, Zangla-Girard adds, Blaze will get his state certification for narcotics work, something Stewart said he is excited about.
Escaped state prisoner recaptured
Mid Hudson News Network has a bit more about the Hudson prison break on Saturday night, April 2. Prison officials at the Hudson Correctional Facility called State Police at Livingston at 10:11 p.m. reporting the escape of inmate Daniel Tariol, 25, who fled into a wooded area adjacent to the work release facility where he was incarcerated. A head count of the inmates revealed his disappearance. He was then located at about 10:40 p.m. and charged with escape in the first degree. Tariol was serving one to three years at Hudson Correctional on a conspiracy charge.
Coxsackie man charged with church arson
Colin DeVries has a story in the Daily Mail about 25-year-old Evan David Donnelly, a one-time resident of Coxsackie, who has been charged in the arson and burglary of a church in Pennsylvania. He has been charged with arson, burglary and institutional vandalism and was apprehended after being observed driving in circles in a field, while bleeding from cuts and scars. Turns out he tried setting fire to a Lutheran Church and ran his Subaru into a non-denominational Bible Church nearby. His passport was found in fire debris in the Lutheran Church and Donnelly said he did what he did, “because someone told him to do it.”
Conference brings area trailblazers together
John Mason of the Register-Star reports on the Columbia Land Conservancy’s daylong conference on Columbia County Trails that drew 70 to the Columbia-Greene Community College on Saturday, April 2. Promises made for progress on a long-planned extension of the Harlem Valley Rail Trail system north of Millerton, as well as creation of a shorter trail in the Kinderhook area.
Bureaucracy still hasn’t corrected 2000 census error in Ulster County
Adam Bosch of the Times Herald Record reports that a paperwork error committed during production of the 2000 census that put state correctional facility populations from one town into another has new ramifications as the effected towns showed huge drops and gains in population in the 2010 count. “The original mistake was caught by Ulster County officials when block-by-block data showed roughly 1,000 people living in a batch of trees in Saugerties,” Bosch writes. “Those people were actually behind bars in Wawarsing.” “I don’t have a good reason for why we don’t correct things,” census spokesman Robert Bernstein told Bosch when Saugerties showed a significant loss in population for the 2010 census, after a decade of growth, while Warwarsing showed gains, despite losing over 700 people.
Board of Education meeting
Carole Osterink of Gossips of Rivertown reminds us that the Hudson City School District’s Board of Education meets Monday, April 4, at 7 p.m., in the Hudson High School Cafeteria. “This apparently is the last meeting before a special meeting scheduled for April 11 at which the BOE votes on the 2011-2012 school budget,” she writes. “Remarkably, in this devastated economy, it appears that the budget for 2011-2012 may be increasing by 1.7 percent over 2010-2011, from $40,932,878 to $41,629,018, while the revenue from local property taxes may be increasing by 14.3 percent, from $17,538,876 to $20,051,754.”
Tags: census error, church arson, Columbia Land Conservancy, escaped convict, Hudson City School District, Hudson Correctional Facility, K9, police dog, prison break, school budget cuts
Cody Mellott, Wes Gillingham, and Mark Ruffalo at Bard College. Photo by Sam Sebren.
A standing-room only crowd of students, faculty, local residents, and activists filled the 350 seat Olin Auditorium at Bard College Thur., March 31 for a screening of the Academy Award-nominated documentary film, “Gasland.” After the movie there was a Q&A session with Wes Gillingham, Program Director of Catskill Mountainkeeper; Mark Ruffalo, actor and activist, and Sullivan County resident; and Cody Mellott, Bard student in their Environmental Studies program whose family in Pennsylvania has leased land to gas drilling companies.
Anti-hydraulic fracturing natural gas drilling activists are ramping up their efforts in advance of a large rally in Albany April 11. There is another screening of “Gasland” locally this week, Thursday night at Catskill High School. Click here to listen to the full recording of the question and answer session.
Tags: hydraulic fracturing, local audio, Mark Ruffalo, Natural Gas, Wes Gillingham
On The Air
WGXC is on 90.7-FM now, at full-power, 3300 watts. We cover all parts of Greene County except parts of the mountaintop, and all of Columbia County except for a bit of Western Columbia County south of Germantown. WGXC also covers a large part of southern Albany County. We have heard reports that the signal is getting from Delaware County to Great Barrington, from Selkirk to Saugerties, from Pine Plains to the I-90 extension.
Local weather/webcams
National Weather Service, Albany
Hawthorne Valley Farm Weather Page
When the computer is turned on, the Hawthorne Valley Farm Weather Page reports weather information in Harlemville. Check dates and times to see whether reports are live or from when the computer was turned off.
Greene County webcams:
Catskill webcam: Thomas Cole House Claude Mirror
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