News Briefs 2/12/2009

Snowball

Just before the January 31 Snowball Gala honoring U.S. Congressman (and former Assemblyman) Maurice Hinchey for his support for the state Department of Environmental Conservation and its Belleayre Mountain property, supporters of the ski center, as well as the massive Belleayre Resort development proposed for adjoining properties, went on a media blitz attacking other ski areas in the region. In a late January press release, Coalition to Save Belleayre Chairman Joe Kelly called for an investigation of existing and proposed building projects on and near Windham and Hunter Mountain ski centers, charging that the two facilities are continuing attacks on the state-owned Belleayre Mountain Ski Center. His Coalition, along with members of Partners For Progress, a citizens group that supports the Belleayre Resort, says there’s a building boom going on around Hunter and Windham.
Kelly’s group has been at odds with Hunter and Windham ever since the two private-sector ski areas began calling for not only an audit of Belleayre’s operations but a ban on the use of taxpayer money to fund it, because of worries that the private-public partnership with the planned resort would hurt neighboring ski areas, especially with eventual climate change expected.
Hunter Mountain’s Russ Coloton, however, replied that he was not sure what building projects Kelly was referring to, noting that the resort and local towns had not built a hotel in over three years, and only added some condominiums made possible via the town’s acceptance of a city sewer plant. Windham spokespeople added that the development Kelly was referring to had occured over a 40-year period, and stopped entirely with the economy of late.
Kelly, along with Partners for Progress, then issued a joint statement lambasting a decision by Colonial Liquor Distributors to move from Kingston to Greene County. Their worry is that the company is trying to take its Empire Zone benefits with it, which would make it harder for the proposed resort to get the same should it want them at a later date.
Meanwhile, county officials and representatives of the Hunter, Windham and Belleayre ski resorts met recently to find common ground and Ulster County Executive Michael Hein said he supports a collaboration between local counties and their ski areas because he would like to see a vibrant regional ski industry. But worries were expressed about a proposed recreation tax that would effect lift tickets at private ski areas, but not Belleayre.
Regarding state funding for both ski area expansion plans and the DEC’s promised purchase of Belleayre Resort lands, which may be the real reason for the current Belleayre angst, NYS Deputy Secretary for the Environment Judith Enck said last week that, “The project continues to go through the SEQRA process. Regarding acquisition of Big Indian, the DEC is working on the it but nothing is firmed up to date.”
We wonder if the groundhog saw any of this coming...

Ashokan Access?
A working group including staff members at The Catskill Center are currently working towards development of a Pilot Program to allow for recreational boating on the NYC-owned Cannonsville Reservoir in western Delaware County. The goal of the Pilot Program is to improve regional recreational opportunities for watershed residents and visitors and promote environmentally sound economic development by allowing a new type of recreation on this waterbody… and eventually others throughout the region, including the Ashokan (it is hoped).
Beginning May 22nd, residents and visitors of the Catskill Mountain Region will be able to partake in non-motorized boating on this water supply reservoir using vessels such as canoes, kayaks, johnboats, rowboats, skulls, and small sailboats (those with removable center-boards).
Currently, only fishing rowboats that are permanently stored on-site are permitted on NYC-owned water supply reservoirs. While portions of this 4,800-acre (20 mile-long) reservoir are still off-limits for this program, recreational boaters would be permitted to launch from six (possibly seven) sites that provide access to nearly 60% of the waterbody.
Under this three-year Pilot Program, boaters will be allowed on the reservoir from the Memorial Day through Columbus Day weekends. To prevent degradation of the water supply and the introduction of non-native and invasive plant/animal species, boaters will also be required to get a temporary (up to seven days) or seasonal boat tag that ensures that the vessel was steam-cleaned prior to launching (a free service provided by local outfitters) in addition to the regular DEP Public Access Permit.
Keep an eye on this one…

Tax Settlement?
Tthe details of a settlement between the town and the City of New York over the tax value of the DEP’s multi-million dollar Pine Hill Waste Water Treatment Plant started to emerge this week via a settlement that could shift local tax burdens significantly and finally force Shandaken to undergo a long-awaited tax revaluation.
The settlement, okayed by the Onteora School District on February 3 but as yet unofficial pending the town’s signing it, covers the years 2006, 2007 and 2008. It appears to reduce the City’s tax responsibility for the Pine Hill plant by roughly one third for the future but also ban attempts at reimbursal for past taxes beyond the current year.
Previously, the treatment plant property was valued at $15.4 million for tax purposes. Under the settlement the parties would agree to lower that amount to $10.3 million and freezesthe value at that level through 2011.
Most importantly, it also includes a template that would be used in the future to determine the property’s value, likely setting precedent for other city-owned wastewater treatment plants throughout the region, including Phoenicia’s.
According to information supplied by Shandaken Town Clerk Laurilyn Frasier and Onteora School District Assistant Superintendent for Business Victoria McLaren, the amount the City paid for those years is as follows:
McLaren said this week that the settlement does not include any school tax refunds to the city.
“This will thankfully free up about $500,000 of our reserve to offset the levy this year,” she noted.
At press time Shandaken Supervisor Peter DiSclafani said he awaits word from the town’s attorney on the specifics of the settlement.
“We didn’t get what we hoped for, but it’s not as bad as it could have been,” he said.
According to Tim Cox, attorney for the Catskill Watershed Corporation, the template for gauging the value of City owned treatment plants in the watershed region was developed last fall using the plant at Hunter/Tannersville as a model.
Cox believes that template is now being used in disputes the City has in other communities, including Margaretville.


Gitter Update
The long-delayed sexual harassment suit filed in 2004 by former employees Carol Martineau-Lopez and Bonnie Benjamin against owners of the former Catskill Corners, (now Emerson Resort) in Mt. Tremper and affiliated companies and individuals has had its trial date delayed by at least nine more months.
At a January 21 pretrial conference between State Northern District Judge Thomas McAvoy and counsel for the plaintiffs and defendants, the court determined that, “Due to defendant’s health issues, this matter cannot be tried before October 2009" according to a court document filed that same date. While the document does not specify which defendant the health issue pertains to, multiple sources confirm it is the resort’s Managing Partner Dean Gitter.
Meanwhile other sources including former employees indicate the hotel complex, which has made significant staff cutbacks in recent months, is seeking new ownership. In a transaction which may or may not be related, Gitter’s partner and principal investor in the Emerson and other ventures, Emily Fisher, has acquired title from his Crossroads Ventures to the Turner Mansion property in Pine Hill. The mansion on 33 acres had been previously attached to the company’s large landholdings on Belleayre Mountain.
The September 2008 transfer, according to documents filed in December at the County Clerk’s office, indicated Ms. Fisher paid $21,000 in recording fees to the County, based on a market value of $1.5 million. The recorded sale price to Ms. Fisher however was $10.

FEMA Says Unify
The Federal Emergency Management Agency has given preliminary approval to Ulster County’s multi-jurisdictional hazard mitigation plan. The plan is an effort of the county and 12 municipalities and is a prerequisite to obtaining hazard mitigation funds from the federal government, said County Executive Michael Hein.
“One of the major things that happens with floods and all the major issues that hit Ulster County is to be able to do a mitigation plan would be too costly for one jurisdiction,” he said. “It’s a perfect example of communities coming together for the betterment of our collective taxpayers,” he said.
Working with Ulster County government to develop the plan are the towns of Gardiner, Hurley, Kingston, Lloyd, Marbletown, Marlboro, Rosendale, Saugerties, Shandaken, Shawangunk, Ulster and the City of Kingston.
As always happens, sometimes it takes the threat or reality of disaster to force us all to our unified best.
And speaking of joint flood-related projects, Pennsylvania Governor Edward Rendell has again called for additional measures to protect residents and communities throughout the basin by more closely monitoring water releases from New York City reservoirs, with more regular water releases to avoid potential disaster.
Three Catskill reservoirs supply drinking water for New York City, ensure drinking supplies to Philadelphia and Bucks County during droughts, and protect the Philadelphia Water Supply from salt water intrusion from the Delaware Bay. When the reservoirs reach 100 percent capacity, any additional rainwater flows out the reservoir spillway designed for that purpose. Records show that the NYC Delaware Basin Reservoirs spill an average of 111 days per year, primarily in the winter and spring.
The new Delaware basin-related monitoring and mitigation plan is the first for these reservoirs that includes flood protection rules such as counting snow pack as water already in the reservoir, before it melts. In response to the unprecedented devastating flooding in 2004-06, an interim plan was adopted by Governor Rendell and other parties governed by a 1954 U.S. Supreme Court consent decree.
The county is also part of a new Pattern For Progress shared operations study funded by a new quarter million dollar grant.
Talk about the benefits of shared decision-making…

Casino Watch?
In their own attempts to stimulate the regional economy, State Senator John Bonacic of and Sullivan County Assemblyman Gary Pretlow of Yonkers have introduced legislation calling for a state constitutional amendment to legalize casino gaming. Right now, only electronic video lottery terminals are allowed in New York except on Native American tribal lands.
“Tourism will increase as a result of casino gaming and there will be a spillover effect to everything throughout the county, positive things,” Bonacic has said. “I think there’s more positive things in it than negative things.”
The bill would allow three gaming casinos in Sullivan County and nowhere else in the state. Two consecutive state legislatures would have to approve it followed by a vote by state residents.
Similar votes in the past have failed by large margins.
In 2001, the State Legislature authorized up to three Native American casinos in the Catskills. The federal government later rejected the efforts to site one in Sullivan County although recent reports have the Stockbridge Munsee Indians working to have the federal stimulus package include them, via Congresisonal approval and no actual money.
Congressman Maurice Hinchey has replied that the stimulus package is an appropriations bill and cannot authorize a project like a casino. That would need Interior Department approval.
Former Secretary Dirk Kemp-thorne was opposed to placing off-reservation lands in trust so that tribes could build gaming casinos, but supporters of such projects hope that new Secretary Ken Salazar sees things differently and will approve them.
Along those lines, officials of the Seneca Nation of Indians and its Seneca Catskills Gaming Corporation met this month in Albany with officials in the governor’s office to initiate discussions about building a Seneca-owned resort in the Catskill Mountains.
Anyone ready to place bets on that?

DeWan Hired
The Ashokan Foundation, led by musicians Jay Ungar and Molly Mason, has hired environmental advocate and community preservationist Deborah Meyer DeWan to oversee the transformation of its 374-acre former Ashokan Field Campus into The Ashokan Center, a state-of-the-art learning center for environmental education and sustainable living.
When SUNY New Paltz announced the decision to sell the Ashokan campus, Ungar and Mason – who had been running fiddle and dance camps at the location for decades — decided to do whatever they could to keep the facility open. With help from the Open Space Institute and the New York City Department of Environmental Protection, the Ashokan Foundation took over operation of the facility last May.
The Foundation’s initial goals were to preserve this bucolic property near the Ashokan Reservoir in the town of Olive and assure that it will continue to offer outdoor education programs for thousands of school children annually, and remain as a “living history” conference center. In addition to maintaining current programs, the Ashokan Foundation’s leaders have now begun to broaden their vision to include expanding programs and facilities to embrace innovative concepts in green, sustainable living.
“For more than 20 years Deborah has been a tireless advocate for the Catskill Mountains and the Hudson River Valley and the people who live here,” said Ungar, referencing DeWan’s years with the Catskill Center, Scenic Hudson,Catskill Watershed Corporation, and other regional environmental and planning entities. “Her knowledge, experience and passion will help shape and implement a new vision for the Ashokan Center over the challenging years ahead,” said Mr. Ungar.
“Our goal is to establish the Ashokan Center as a national leader in environmental education, and a learning center for sustainable living, artistic expression and community building,” DeWan said, noting immediate plans to replace five buildings on the site with green buildings to be funded per the NYC DEP agreement. “It really is to incorporate in our facilities the very things that we teach, what we learn from the land and what we learned from the history of this place. This is very much a living history center. A lot of things that we teach here, and that people experience here, relate to things that have been traditional activities in the Catskills.”
Upcoming events planned for the Center include a Feb. 13-16 Winter Songs music workshop being led by Ungar and Mason, a Feb. 27 EnergySmart teachers’ workshop, and the 15th annual Winterfest on Saturday, February 28.
To learn more about the Ashokan Foundation and the Ashokan Center visit www.ashokanfoundation.org and www.AshokanCenter.org or call (845)-657-8333.

Church Closings
More regional church closings on a par with the shrinkage of Catholic opportunities in the Route 28 corridor were announed by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany recently, with six churches in Columbia County, four in Greene, and another church in Delaware County set to close or merge over the coming year.
The diocese, in a prepared statement, said the decisions about these and numerous other churches were the result of 600 meetings over 2 1/2 years that included input from more than 10,000 Catholics in a 14-county area.
Among those effected in the immediate area are Immaculate Conception in Haines Falls, which will merge with Palenville’s Sacred Heart by July 1, and the immediate closing of Our Lady of Good Counsel Mission Church in Roxbury.
The diocese cited four primary reasons for the planned mergers and closings, which affect dozens of churches: Most cities in the diocese have lost between 25 and 39 percent of their populations since 1960; Suburban areas in the diocese have grown by 50 percent or more during the same period; There are likely to be fewer than 100 diocesan priests serving the diocese’s 132 parishes within five years (In the 1960s, there were about 400 priests in the diocese); and many of the multiple urban and ethnic parishes built just a few blocks from each other in the early 20th century are now underused.

Ag-Minded?
In accordance with the New York State Agriculture & Markets Law Section 303-b, Ulster County will accept requests from March 1 to March 30, 2009 from landowners desiring to have their agricultural lands included within a NYS certified agricultural district.
Landowners seeking inclusion into a certified agricultural district must submit a completed Ag. District Inclusion Worksheet with tax map identification number(s), a copy of the relevant portion of the tax map, and a description of the land within this thirty-day period to Virginia Craft, Ulster County Planning Board, 244 Fair St., P.O. Box 1800, Kingston, NY 12402-1800. The Ag. District Inclusion Worksheet and a brochure explaining agricultural districts are available through Cornell Cooperative Extension of Ulster County.
To receive a worksheet, a brochure, or more information about the inclusion process, please contact Teresa Rusinek, Agriculture Resource Educator at 845-340-3990 or via email tr28@cornell.edu Information is also available on Cornell Cooperative Extension of Ulster County’s website: http://counties.cce.cornell.edu/ulster then go to the Agriculture section and click on Farmland Preservation Tools.
Ulster County has four certified agricultural districts containing nearly 67,000 acres of farmland at present.
Over 100 farmers, agri-business and agency staff attended the Fifth Annual Catskill Regional Dairy, Livestock and Grazing Conference held at SUNY-Delhi last Thursday. Fourteen presenters offered experience, insight and technical advice through 14 seminars. Topics covered the gamut of farm issues, from raising pork, poultry and beef on pasture to improving calf health.
The Watershed Agricultural Council works with private landowners to improve their farm and forest lands in order to protect clean drinking water for nine million New York City residents. With funding from the NYC DEP, the WAC sponsors the regional Buy Local campaign, Pure Catskills. Pure Catskills provides marketing and branding support to over 200 farmers, growers and livestock producers in and around the watershed region. Additionally, the WAC works with watershed farm owners to improve their farm businesses through farm management and land conservation plans that ultimately benefit water quality. The WAC works with almost 1,000 landowners to engage private contractors to develop conservation plans and construct conservation practices in accordance with these plans.
For more information, visit www.nycwatershed.org.

Arctic Oil…
NATO officials meeting in Reykjavik - including Secretary-General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer and John Craddock, the supreme allied commander in Europe - say the race for oil in the Arctic poses serious new security threats, as well as environmental hazards.
The United States, Russia, Canada, Norway, Denmark, and other interested parties are all attempting to claim jurisdiction over the opening Arctic territory and its oil rights, newly opening shipping corridors, and developmental possibilities. The Reykjavik meeting aimed to discuss the possibility that disputes over shipping routes may turn into military conflicts.
Energy experts estimate there may be as much as 25 percent of the world’s oil and gas reserves lying beneath the Arctic seabed.
The United States, Norway, and others have argued that any attempt by Russia to draw up its own Arctic borders would have no basis in international law while Canada has been working to strengthen its own regulatory holds on shipping through the Northwest Passage.
Meanwhile, Russian strategic bombers have made a series of test flights across the Arctic toward Canada and the United States; and submarine expeditions have been conducted at Moscow’s behest to lay claim to gas and oil fields below the ocean floor.
The UN has asked the Arctic states to submit their territorial claims for review by May 2009.

Census Jobs
The Pine Hill Community Center is pleased to announce more opportunities for part-time, temporary work with the US Census Bureau with paid training. Jobs begin soon and start at $12.50/hr. A representative from the Bureau will be at the Center on Wednesday February 18 to offer free testing for Census Bureau Jobs. The test begins promptly at 12:30 PM. Available jobs include information gathering in the local community, updating address lists and interviewing household members. The test will help the Bureau determine certain skill sets in prospective employees such as clerical skills, reading, number and organizational skills as well as interpreting information. The Community Center has sample tests and informational brochures, so please call us for more information or call the Bureau toll free at 866-861-2010. You must be at least 18 years old, a US citizen or authorized to work in the US to apply, and must bring proof of US citizenship (passport, expired or unexpired) or proof of authorization to be employed in the US, plus a photo ID and Social Security Card, Original or Certified Birth Certificate, Native American tribal document or other proof of identity.

Constitutional
SUNY Ulster has announced the launch of a new Institute for Constitutional Studies with an inaugural lecture on February 19 by the Honorable Albert Rosenblatt, former Associate Judge of the New York State Court of Appeals.
Judge Rosenblatt will address the topic, “Due Process Under Stress: The Constitution in Times of National Ordeal,” at 7 p.m., in the Student Lounge in Vanderlyn Hall on the Stone Ridge campus. In his lecture, Judge Rosenblatt will explain how the United States has responded legally and politically to national crises from the foundation of the Republic to the present. Appointed by Governor Pataki, Judge Rosenblatt served on the bench of New York’s highest court from 1999 until his retirement in 2007.
SUNY Ulster founded the Institute for Constitutional Studies to help college faculty, students, teachers, business people, the legal community and the general public in the Mid-Hudson Valley deepen their understanding of the fundamental principles of the United States and the New York state constitutions, their history and their continuing relevance to current public policy debates.
A graduate of the University of Pennsylvania and Harvard Law School, Judge Rosenblatt served as Dutchess County judge from 1976 to 1981; a justice of the state Supreme Court (1982-1987); Chief Administrative Judge of the New York State Courts (1987-1989); and an associate justice of the Supreme Court, Appellate Division, Second Department (1989-1998). Since retiring from the Court of Appeals, Judge Rosenblatt practices law in New York City, teaches law at New York University Law School and is a prolific author
The event is free and open to the public. For information, contact (845) 687-5262.

Corn Syrup!
Many common foods made using commercial high fructose corn syrup contain mercury as well, researchers have found.
Food processors and the corn syrup industry group attacked the findings as flawed and outdated, but the researchers said it was important for people to know about any potential sources of the toxic metal in their food.
In one study, former Food and Drug Administration scientist Renee Dufault and colleagues tested 20 samples of high fructose corn syrup and found detectable mercury in nine of the 20 samples. Dufault said in a statement that she told the FDA about her findings but the agency did not follow up.
Dr. David Wallinga, a food safety researcher at the nonprofit Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy, said he followed up on the report by looking at supermarket samples where high fructose corn syrup was the first or second ingredient on the label. Of 55 different foods such as barbecue sauce, jam, yogurt and chocolate syrup looked into, one out of three had mercury above the detection limit.
Meanwhile, speaking of Mercury levels, a Maine-based environmental organization has found an alarming accumulation of mercury in the blood and feathers of both juvenile and adult bald eagles in the Catskills. BioDiversity Research Institute, a nonprofit environmental organization based in Gorham, Maine, has released a report that claims eagle chicks in the Catskill Park exhibited the highest blood mercury levels among eagles statewide.
The new study seems to support the belief that the Catskills are a methylmercury hotspot.

The FAD Stands
The US Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit ruled on Dec. 29 that the Coalition of Watershed Towns and the towns of Hunter, Roxbury and Hamden “lack standing” to seek a review of the USEPA’s waiver of filtration requirements under the Safe Drinking Water Act because they had not proved that a favorable court decision would redress their proposed injuries.
The 10-year waiver, granted in July 2007 by USEPA Region 2, was the longest yet in a series of waivers that USEPA first began granting the city in 1993 for its Catskill - Delaware watershed. As part of the latest Filtration Aviodance Determination (FAD), NYC promised to spend an additional $300 million to continue its land acquisition program over the next 10 years.
Among the towns’ complaints were that the latest FAD damaged their right to “determine the future economic and planning goals for their communities.”
“This sensible and important ruling means that EPA’s filtration waiver has passed legal muster and as such New York City’s watershed protection and partnership programs, including the new ten year, willing buyer-willing seller land acquisition effort, can move forward unimpeded,” said Eric A. Goldstein, an attorney for the Natural Resources Defense Council, an environmental group that had filed an amicus brief in support of the EPA and the State of New York in this case.

Dating Violence
February’s ubiquitous candy hearts are sporting a new message in New York State this year as part of a new public awareness campaign – “This isn’t love” – launched recently as part of “Teen Dating Violence Awareness and Prevention Week.”
According to 2006 and 2007 studies on teen dating abuse, 1 of 5 teens in a serious relationship say they have actually been hit, slapped, or pushed by a boyfriend or girlfriend; Nearly 1 in 3 girls say they have been pressured to engage in unwanted sexual acts; 1 in 3 teens who have been in a relationship say they’ve been text messaged 10, 20, or 30 times an hour by a partner finding out where they are, what they’re doing, or who they’re with; and nearly 1 in 5 say their partner used a networking site to harass or put them down.
Amy Barasch, executive director of the NYS Office for the Prevention of Domestic Violence (OPDV) said: “Teenagers receive confusing messages about signs of love in a relationship at the same time that they are testing out their own intimate relationships. We hope that when they see these unexpected messages on the candy hearts, it causes them to stop and think about their own relationships.”
The state’s Office for the Prevention of Domestic Violence worked with WOCARA, a New York City-based advertising agency (www.WOCARA.com) that donated its creative talents to develop the campaign, which features an animated web banner with controlling heart messages and the tag line, “Control is not love, it’s abuse,” that can be downloaded and posted on websites.
The campaign is designed to speak to teens in their language, and in their world. It’s also designed to be distributed easily throughout the community.
The web banner, poster and other materials, including a fact sheet on teen dating violence and a comprehensive list of suggested activities for schools and community organizations are available on the OPDV website: www.opdv.state.ny.us

Home Sales…
Many counties in the region experienced greater losses in existing home sales in 2008 than statewide. According to the New York State Association of Realtors, while the statewide drop as compared to 2007 was 16 percent, home sales fell by 29 percent in Orange County, by 26 percent in Westchester, by 23 percent in Ulster and Columbia counties, and by 21 percent in Rockland County.
Sales fell by 20 percent in Putnam County, by 15 percent in Dutchess County, and by 14 percent in Sullivan County. In Delaware County, only one less home was sold in 2008 over 2007.
And that’s including a rebound in the housing market in November and December.
Median prices of existing homes in the region dropped with the exception of Greene County, where sales rose by five percent.
They dropped by 14 percent in Sullivan County, by 10 percent in Orange County, by nine percent in Rockland County, by eight percent in Dutchess County, by seven percent in Putnam County, by six percent in Ulster County, by five percent in Westchester County and by three percent in Columbia county.
“Although New York’s housing values fared somewhat better than the national average, the 2008 NYSAR annual housing report shows that we were not immune to the affects of a poor economy,” said Duncan MacKenzie, the chief executive officer of the realtors’ group.

Health Help?
Governor David Paterson is preparing a plan that would allow more adults ages 19 to 29 to be claimed as dependents on their parents’ health insurance plans. A Commonwealth Fund study found that 13.7 million people between ages 19 and 29 in the U.S. lacked health insurance in 2006, which constitutes almost one-third of the nation’s nonelderly uninsured population. In New York, about 800,000 residents in that age group are uninsured, or about 31% of the state’s uninsured population, according to the governor’s office.
Under Paterson’s plan, state residents would be able to claim dependents up to age 29 as part of their employer-sponsored health coverage. The current limit is age 19 or 22 for full-time students. Paterson’s plan would allow adults who have children to remain on their parents’ insurance, and those who are enrolled in college part time or who live in a different state also could be claimed as a dependent as long as their insurance policies are subject to New York law. According to Paterson, families who opted for the expanded coverage would absorb the additional costs, not businesses or the state.
Paterson’s plan is based on the New Jersey law, which allows parents to claim adult children up to age 31. Although New York’s law would be similar to New Jersey’s, it would be less restrictive, according to Paterson’s office.

Essay Contest
The New York State Historical Association and the Royal Netherlands Embassy have introduced a New York State Quadricentennial Essay Contest for the 2008-2009 school year. Grades 4-12 are invited to participate in New York State’s 400th birthday by studying its early colonial history and developing an interesting essay. Students will have the opportunity to research and write about the early Dutch influence on our state, specifically focusing on three contributions from the Dutch: religious tolerance, freedom of speech and the creation of New York as a center of world trade. Local libraries will support research by collaborating with social studies teachers and displaying reference materials related to the topic.
The deadline for competition submissions is March 1, 2009. For more information, including contest and submission guidelines, visit www.nysha.org/nysha/for teachers or call Assemblyman Kevin Cahill’s district office at (845) 338-9610.

Talking Israel
On Sunday, February 15 at 1 p.m. the Reverend Stephen Goldstein will speak at the Reservoir United Methodist Church on State Route 28 in Shokan. Goldstein is the author of the Denomination’s Mission Study for 2008-2009, Palestine/Israel. He will speak on the current crisis, and hopes for peace and security for Palestinians and Israelis.
Contact Information: The Rev. Lucy E. Jones, 845-657-5107 (657-2326; day of event); revlucy@earthlink.net


Award Winners
Tony and Tessa Morelli, 16 year old Onteora High School juniors in the school’s Indie Program have won Golden Key Awards in the 2009 state Scholastic Art and Writing competition, and will get a chance to compete in the state competition at Carnegie Hall in June.
The two won the awards for their short films, “Samaritan” and “Cycles,” respectively.
“You couldn’t find twins more unlike one another,” said Russell Richardson, executive director of the Indie program. He described both films as “warm and funny.”
“Samaritan,” a silent comedy in the tradition of Charlie Chaplin, is more on the “impish” side, he said, while “Cycles,” which features a woman riding a vintage adult bicycle and replacing random objects on the streets with others she finds, is “meditative.”
“Cycles” ends when the main character, whom Tessa said is “more or less a gypsy,” is surprised to find that the objects she placed have been rearranged by another nomadic character. “In the end, the second replaces the first, for irony, I suppose,” she said.
The two’s parents are Jack Morelli, who letters comic books, and Christie Scheele, a professional landscape painter. They live in Chichester.

Streamside?
Cornell Cooperative Extension of Ulster County is offering the Streamside Native Plant Workshop on Sunday, February 15 from 1:00pm to 3:30pm. The speakers at the workshop will be Chris Krupec, John Archer, and Francis Goreters. Kupec, a landscape architect living along the Esopus Creek, will describe how to look at what resources your site has and sketch a site plan. Archer, President of John Jay Landscape Development and a member of the Ecological Landscaping Association will further discuss principles of creating native landscapes. Groeters, owner of Catskill Native Nursery in Kerhonkson, will provide details about specific streamside or “riparian” native plants.
The event is free, but you must register by calling Jenny Burkins at Cooperative Extension at 845-340-3990. The workshop will be at the new field office at 6375 Route 28 in Shandaken (Location of former Black Bear Hollow Café across from Margo’s Hungarian Restaurant).

Way To Ski!
Onteora’s ski team under coach Herb Cytryn continued its regional dominance, sweeping both its Section 9, Division 1 titles at Holiday Mountain February 5, and the sectionals at Hunter Mountain February 9. For the 12th straight year, Onteora’s boys won the team title lead by Brad Clarke, Jacob Combe, Joe Vanacore, and Austin Reiss . The girls team won their 8th straight crown, led by Marlise Combe, Claire Wilsey, Shannon Hagarty, and Isabelle LaMotte.

Thinking Spring
Cornell Cooperative Extension of Ulster County Master Gardener Program is offering a series of workshops during February and March to help the avid home gardener get prepared for spring. Classes will be held on Thursdays February 12, February 26, March 12 and March 26. All classes will be from 7:00pm to 9:00pm at Ulster County BOCES located at 175 Rt. 32 in New Paltz. Pre-registration is required. For more information call Dona Crawford at 845-340-3990 or visit www.counties.cce.cornell.edu/ulster. Orders are also being taken, until March 6, for seeds and seedlings; and plans are being laid for an upcoming Fruitgrowers fair and Sale. Think spring!

Head Start!
Ulster County Community Action’s Early Head Start Program is accepting applications for program years 2009-10. The free preschool program provides education, health, nutrition and family services. Children participating this fall must be 3 years old by Dec. 1, 2009.
In Ulster County, Head Start centers are located in Kingston, Ellenville, Saugerties, Phoenicia, Plattekill and Wallkill. A combination option is available in Kingston for three days a week for 3-1/2 hours and one home visit a month.
For an application, call (845) 338-8750 ext. 118, for an application. Kingston residents should call (845) 339-3836, ext. 401.

Late Obituary
Marcel Charles Maier, 90, who served as the town of Olive’s highway superintendent for 20 years until his retirement, died Saturday, Feb.7 2009 at the Golden Hill Health Care Center in Kingston.
Mr. Maier, a 70-year Olive resident, was a member of the Ulster County Superintendents Association and a life member of the Olive Fire Department, having served on the board of directors for many years. He was also a member of the Ulster County Fireman’s Association.
Born August 31, 1918 in New York City, he was the son of Eugene and Elizabeth Maier and moved with his family to Glenford at age 3. Surviving are three daughters, Barbara Garcia of Hendersonville, N.C., Eleanor Jean Nelson of Walden and Patricia Conway of West Shokan; one stepdaughter, Arlene Morningstar of Phoenix, AZ; nine grandchildren; 10 great-grandchildren; and nieces and nephews.
Mr. Maier’s wife of 70 years, Hazel M., died Sept.22, 2008. Three brothers, Fred, Walter, and William and a grand-daughter also died previously, as well as two brothers who died during their infancies.
Funeral arrangements are by Lasher Funeral Home, Woodstock with burial in the Bushkill Cemetery, West Shokan.