News Briefs 2/14/2008

Primary Results
Democratic voters countywide turned out in droves to hand Senator Hillary Clinton a narrow victory over Senator Barack Obama. Republicans, meanwhile, voted in smaller numbers to give Arizona senator John McCain a decisive victory over his closest competitor, former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney.
According to Ulster County Board of Elections’ unofficial results, Clinton garnered 7,401 votes to Obama’s 7,012 countywide. Former North Carolina senator John Edwards received 215 votes despite dropping his bid for the White House last week. Fellow campaign dropouts Bill Richardson and Joe Biden got 57 and 28 votes respectively. Dennis Kucinich received 109 votes. The total turnout of 14,822 dwarfed the vote count in 2004’s Democratic presidential primary, which totaled 6,769.
All five of Clinton’s chosen delegates and the alternate that appeared on the line with her won countywide majorities.
Shandaken and Olive, though, appeared to belong to Obama. He swamped Clinton,. 190 to 125 in the former and 306 to 212 in Olive. Obama also topped Clinton in the Ulster County towns of Hardenburgh (11-8); Marbletown (387-349); New Paltz (920-715); Rochester (314-282); Rosendale (397-320); and Woodstock (868-528). In the other 12 towns, Clinton came out on top.
On the Republican side, countywide McCain received 3,370 votes to Romney’s 1,806. Former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee came in with 710 votes, while maverick Texas congressman Ron Paul got 562 votes. Former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, who dropped out of the race following his defeat in Florida’s primary last week, received 223 votes.
In every town in Ulster County favored McCain over Romney and other challengers.

Casinos Again?
Empire Resorts, the company that owns Monticello Gaming and Raceway, and Concord, has announced plans to move the gaming and racing facility it was planning for the Monticello Racetrack to a 160-acre tract at the site of the old Concord Hotel in Sullivan County. Construction on the $700 million, 1.5 million-square foot facility is expected to begin later this year with a grand opening in 2010. Under the agreement, the parties said they will develop a “world-class gaming and entertainment facility,” which will include a 100,000 square foot gaming area, convention center, hotel, golf, retail stores, restaurants and family entertainment. The gaming floor will be built within the hotel and a 5/8th mile harness racetrack will be developed next to that.
Officials of this new venture emphasize that engaging in this deal does not mean Empire Resorts is withdrawing from its plans to build a Native American casino at the present racetrack site with their partner St. Regis Mohawk Tribe. In fact, Empire Resorts’ CEO David Hanlon said they have offered the Tribe the opportunity to invest one-third of Empire’s contribution to the new project… pending a federal decision to bar the casinos off-reservation ties gets overturned, which many feel unlikely at present.
Sounding quite familiar, Concord Associates’ Managing Member Louis Cappelli said the “ambitious project will create thousands of union jobs for the region and the Catskills.” He said the project will create “thousands of jobs throughout the entire upstate economy and bring the former Concord Hotel back to its glory as one of the region’s truly great convention, destination and resort hotels.”
A number of public officials, tourism trades people and construction officials reacted positively about the news.
“This is an exciting opportunity for the Catskills and it has the potential to serve as a foundation for economic growth in the region,” said U.S. Rep. Maurice Hinchey, currently gearing up for another re-election race for his seat. “I look forward to working with the community and developers to realize this exciting potential.”
“We have seen various plans for the redevelopment of the Concord over the years,” added State Senator John Bonacic. “The current plan sounds very positive. We look forward to seeing a shovel in the ground so that both construction and long-term jobs can be created and sustained.”

Revitalize!
Communities situated along the Upper and Lower Esopus Creek would be eligible to apply for Environmental Protection Fund grants through the Department of State’s Local Waterfront Revitalization program under legislation approved in the Senate and Assembly. Senator John Bonacic sponsored the measure in the Senate; Assemblyman Kevin Cahill sponsored it in the Assembly.
“This designation is especially crucial, given the annual flooding occurrences in many communities and given the fact that existing flood management systems are not working,” said Bonacic.
“Giving communities along the Esopus the opportunity to tap into these waterfront revitalization funds will be a boon to efforts to preserve the natural beauty of the region while at the same time enhancing opportunities for both visitors and residents to enjoy all that the area has to offer,” said Cahill.
Projects that will be grant eligible as a result of the creek’s inclusion as a state inland waterway include implementing water body/watershed management plans designed to mitigate flooding, urban waterfront development, and resource management and planning.
The bill has been sent to the governor for his consideration.

More Pressures…
Two Northern Dutchess communities, Milan and Pine Plains, are being roiled by a new proposal by the Manhattan mega-developers Durst Organization who are planning to build a massive golf community geared toward Manhattanites on property once owned by ice cream mogul Tom Carvel surrounding historic Stissing Mountain near the Taconic Parkway. A group calling itself Pine Plains United has formed in opposition to the project and brought forth 300 residents to the first of a series of public hearings on the project, which could result in nearly 1,000 new housing units in the two rural communities. The hearing was held by the Pine Plains Planning Board as part of its review of the project under the State Environmental Quality Review Act.
The DurstOrganization has partnered with Landmark Land Co. to create a “vacation and second home community” on roughly 2,200 acres straddling the Milan-Pine Plains border. About 1,772 acres are in Pine Plains and 428 are in Milan. The plan calls for the construction of 951 homes, some single-family and some attached, along with private recreational amenities, including a golf course to be designed by the award-winning Landmark Land Co.
“Our goal for the Carvel land is to create a second-home, premiere community that is a model of sustainable development,” the developers have said.
Critics say the project, which could double the population of the community, has the potential to crush Milan and Pine Plains under the weight of thousands of new residents.

Olive Accident
A two-car accident on Dancing Rock Road in Olive caused five people, including two young boys, to be taken to the hospital with non-lifethreatening injuries Saturday, Department of Environmental Protection Police at Olive said.
The accident occured at 4:50 p.m., when an eastbound vehicle driven by Nadejda Solntseva, 35, of Queens, slid on the snowy road and entered the westbound lane. The car collided at an angle with another vehicle, driven by Charles Youmans, 52, of Neversink, police said. The crash caused all airbags in both cars to deploy.
Solntseva’s had two children in the car with her, ages 6 and 7. The three of them were taken by ambulance to Benedictine Hospital. Police said that one boy had stomach pain, and the other had a cut lip.
Youmans and his passenger, Abby Klotz, 43, of Neversink, were taken to Kingston Hospital. Youmans complained of lower back pain and a cut on his left ankle. Klotz had nonspecific pain.
Police said that poor road conditions contributed to the accident. No tickets were issued.

Domestic Safety
About a quarter of U.S. women suffer domestic violence, U.S. health officials have reported, with ongoing health problems that one activist likened to the effects of living in a war zone. And even some men also experience domestic violence, a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention survey found. The CDC said 23.6 percent of women and 11.5 percent of men reported being a victim of what it called “intimate partner violence” at some time in their lives. They defined this as threatened, attempted or completed physical or sexual violence or emotional abuse by a spouse, former spouse, current or former boyfriend or girlfriend or a dating partner. The CDC estimates that 1,200 women are killed and 2 million injured in domestic violence annually.
Women of all income and education levels suffer such abuse, although it was more frequent among the poorest and those who attended but did not graduate from college. The CDC added that women who suffer domestic violence are three times as likely to engage in risky sex and 70 percent more likely to drink heavily than other women. They are also twice as likely to report that their activities are limited by physical, mental or emotional problems and 50 percent more likely to use a cane, wheelchair or other disability equipment, the CDC survey found. These women also were 80 percent more likely to have a stroke, 70 percent more likely to have heart disease or arthritis and 60 percent more likely to have asthma.
The CDC has called for doctors to ask women about possible domestic violence if they are showing signs of stress or other symptoms indicating possible violence.

Home Sales?
Sullivan County took the biggest hit in terms of lost sales of single-family homes in 2007, according to the New York State Association of Realtors. The county experienced a 46.7 percent drop as compared to 2006. Greene County sales fell by over 19 percent, while Orange fell by a little over 12 percent and Dutchess dropped by almost 12 percent.
Sales of existing single-family homes fell by 10 percent in Putnam County and by under six percent in Rockland. Sales dropped by over four percent in Ulster County, by under four percent in Columbia County, by under three percent in Delaware County and by one percent in Westchester.
Statewide, sales fell 8.5 percent from 2006 levels.
The highest median price for an existing single-family house in 2007 was in Westchester County at $685,000. In Rockland County, the median price was $495,000; in Putnam, the price was $400,000; in Dutchess, the price was $335,000; in Orange County, the median price was $322,000; in Ulster County, the price was $255,000; in Columbia County, the price was $237,5000; in Sullivan County, the price was $175,000; in Greene County, it was $171,000; and Delaware County, at $120,000.

Better Energy…
An informational meeting on green building and solar energy will be held at the Olive Free Library on Thursday February 21,from 7 to 9 PM. Pat Courtney Strong, Coordinator Of Mid Hudson Energy Smart Communities, will describe the information and financial incentives available from New York State to help home owners, businesses and institutions become energy efficient and move toward renewable energy. Larry Brown, Owner Of Sun Mountain Solar, will explain how to be more efficient in the use of electricity, how to generate a portion of your electricity from the Sun and what financial incentives are available in New York State to help pay for these systems.
For further info contact Brown at Sun Mountain, 657-8096 or Sunmountain@netstep.net.

Spilt Milk
A Saturday night mishap resulted in the Bushnellville Creek turning white for a short period time when a fully laden milk tanker tipped over on route 42 in Shandaken, dumping it’s 6000 gallons of contents into the water. At about 10pm Saturday night on 42 about 1 mile north of its intersection with Route.28, the tanker slid out of control on a patch of ice and took out a telephone pole and power along Rte 42 north to the town of Lexington. A Hazmat team responded from Dutchess county to handle the clean up, which included taking care of a little oil in the creek that leaked from the truck during it’s removal. The driver is reported to be okay.

Ah, Tomorrow…
Ulster County Legislative Chairman David B. Donaldson was set to give “Privilege of th Floor” time to representatives of “Ulster Tomorrow” at the Legislature’s February 13 meeting. The “Ulster Tomorrow” team to be introduced will include newly-elected UCDC Chairman Ron Marquette; Ulster County Development Corporation (UCDC) President Lance Matteson; “Ulster Tomorrow” Steering Committee Chair Tony Marmo and Industrial Development Agency Chair March Gallagher.
“While the Legislature is quite familiar with ‘Ulster Tomorrow’ initiatives for County-wide sustainable economic development, our objective here is to provide a supportive focus by presenting the new leadership team and to ensure that this legislative body will do all we can to help them succeed with a very ambitious but fully achievable plan,” commented Chairman Donaldson.
“This will be our opportunity to thank these legislators for their vote of confidence when they significantly added to last year’s allocation of funds for the UCDC,” said Matteson. “The increase followed our introduction of ‘Ulster Tomorrow,’ a strong signal that they share our views on how to improve living standards and the quality of life throughout Ulster County.”
Meanwhile, for the first time ever, the Ulster County Development Corp. will have to meet a series of benchmarks created by the county Legislature to continue to receive funding. The Legislature, which awarded the agency $200,000 last year, has seen little return on its investment in recent years… which have included large backing for Dean Gitter’s Emerson Resort, among other projects. To ensure that its money is being spent well, the Legislature is set to pass a resolution that requires the agency to meet certain levels of job creation and retention.
“This guarantees a return on our investment and that is a huge deal,” said County Administrator Michael Hein. “We understand the importance of economic development; now we’re trying to guarantee that we’ll see the development we expect.”
The guidelines set by the resolution include: A $750 award for every “quality” job retained in the county. Quality jobs are defined as those that meet the Ulster County Development Corp.’s long-term job standard: the median county wage, including benefits; A $1,000 award for every quality job created; A $25,000 award for each new business in Ulster County that commits publicly to creating 10 or more jobs and is recruited with significant involvement of the Ulster County Development Corp; A $50,000 award for each new business in Ulster County committing publicly to 100 or more jobs and recruited with significant involvement of the agency; and a 50 percent match for all non-governmental funds raised by the agency.

Cut Science?
Scientists are chafing at the U.S. government’s unfulfilled pledge to boost funding for basic scientific research, the source of innovations ranging from the World Wide Web to high-tech cancer treatments. The estimated $500 million sliced out of the fiscal 2008 federal budget for research projects seeking answers to fundamental questions such as the nature of the universe could trigger a brain drain, scientists and others warn. Roughly 700 planned science projects have gone unfunded as a result, jeopardizing facilities in the United States and elsewhere.
The field of high-energy physics was the hardest hit; among the innovations credited to high-energy physics are the Internet and machines whose beams target cancerous tumors, design new materials or peer into chemical reactions.
The funding problem has also reached into the medical field, disappointing researchers who must spend more time seeking grants or who may opt for clinical practice.

Septic Help!
The Catskill Watershed Corporation recently authorized reimbursement of eligible costs for residential septic repairs and replacement conducted anywhere in the West-of-Hudson Watershed between July 2, 1999 and December 31, 2007, regardless of whether those systems are located in the current priority areas for the CWC’s septic repair program. If you live within the New York City Watershed in Delaware, Greene, Schoharie, Sullivan or Ulster Counties, and can prove that your septic system was repaired or replaced between the above dates, you may be eligible for reimbursement. Call the CWC at 1-845-586-1400 (toll free (1-877-928-7433) to request a reimbursement form. You must also produce contractor receipts and proof of construction approval from the New York City Department of Environmental Protection (DEP). Systems installed in conjunction with construction of new homes are not eligible for reimbursement.
The CWC Board determined in January that adequate funds exist to extend reimbursement to homeowners who have corrected septic problems though they were not eligible for direct assistance from the program at the time their systems were repaired.
Currently, the program is focused on properties within 150 feet of a watercourse, or 500 feet of a reservoir or reservoir stem. Homeowners within the eligibility distance may sign up to have their system pumped out and inspected. A call to the CWC to arrange an initial visit with technical staffers is the first step.
The CWC Board also revised rules for the Septic Maintenance Program, extending eligibility for pump outs of systems replaced through the CWC’s Septic Program since November 1, 1995. Watershed homeowners who received construction approval from the NYC DEP from November 1, 1995 and whose systems are at least three years old may arrange for a pump-out and inspection of the system and apply for 50% reimbursement from the CWC.
For more information on these and other programs designed to assist homeowners and businesses in the New York City Watershed, please call the CWC, or go to www.cwconline.org

Warming Vs. War
Despite growing recognition in the Pentagon and the intelligence community that global warming poses serious national security threats to the United States, Washington is spending $88 on the military for every dollar it spends this year on climate-related programs, according to a new study released by the Institute for Policy Studies (IPS). The study, entitled “Military vs. Climate Security”, found that the government has budgeted $647.5 billion for the defense budget in 2008 - more than the defense budgets of the rest of the world’s nations combined - compared to $7.37 billion for climate-related programs.
Of the latter total, moreover, only $212 million is devoted to helping poor countries obtain clean, renewable energy sources that do not contribute to global warming - less than what U.S. military forces in Iraq spend each day on operations there.
“While we spare no expense to wage war, we seem to have no money to spare on averting climate disaster,” said Miriam Pemberton, the report’s author. “The increasingly dire warnings from climate scientists make clear that changing these federal spending priorities can’t wait.”
Indeed, the report comes amid unprecedented global concern that climate change could have devastating consequences for much of the earth. Hardest hit will be the world’s poor countries, which have fewer resources to cope with the threats posed by global warming, including more extreme weather events, prolonged droughts, and sea-level rise, which most scientists believe are inevitable if the world fails to quickly stabilize and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The martial analogy has been taken up by the Pentagon and the intelligence community, which have produced several reports about the national security consequences of changes in the world’s climate.
Last May, a group of retired generals and admirals issued their own report, “National Security and the Threat of Climate Change”, which found, among other things, that the consequences of warming were likely to promote inter-state conflict over vital resources, such as fresh water; political turmoil and extremism within nations; food shortages and mass migrations.
Despite the all-but-unanimous scientific consensus that climate change is well underway and proceeding at an accelerating rate, the second largest portion of the climate-change budget - nearly two billion dollars - is earmarked for a science program designed to help resolve “the fundamental scientific uncertainties associated with climate change.” Most of those funds, the study notes, will go to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), whose director, Michael Griffin, recently told public radio that, while he did not doubt that a warming trend exists, “I am not sure it is fair to say that it is a problem we must wrestle with.”
Meanwhile, global warming ranks far down the concerns of the world’s biggest companies, despite world leaders’ hopes that they will pioneer solutions to the impending climate crisis, a startling survey will reveal this week. Nearly nine in 10 of them do not rate it as a priority, says the study, which canvassed more than 500 big businesses in Britain, the US, Germany, Japan, India and China. Nearly twice as many see climate change as imposing costs on their business as those who believe it presents an opportunity to make money. And the report’s publishers believe that big business will concentrate even less on climate change as the world economy deteriorates.
Rhe survey, carried out by the consulting firm Accenture, found that only 5 per cent of the companies questioned - and not one in China - regarded global warming as their top priority. And only 11 per cent put it in second or third place. Overall it ranked eighth in business leaders’ concerns, below increasing sales, reducing costs, developing new products and services, competing for talented staff, securing growth in emerging markets, innovation and technology. Although most are taking limited action to reduce their own emissions, almost one in five had done nothing.
The report makes it clear that - in contradiction of the Bush administration’s position - business is waiting for governments to take the lead.

Time To Apply
The Platte Clove Residency program, the only one in the country situated in the historic landscapes which were the inspiration to the founders of the Hudson River School of painting, provides a rustic workplace and retreat for artists working in a variety of disciplines in the living landscape where American art began. The residency (June 15 - October 15, 2007) at the Catskill Center-owned Platte Clove cabin is near the towns of Tannersville, Hunter, and Windham. Artists will reside in a two-floor cabin in the middle of 208 wild, pristine acres full of hiking trails, multi-tiered waterfalls, and old growth forests. The residency is open to visual artists, writers, playwrights, composers, and performing artists who have an affinity for the natural world. The work produced should foster the appreciation of the environment through the aesthetics of art. Artists can choose to stay from a couple of days to a solid week to two weeks in the months mentioned, depending on availability. An exhibition will be held the following May at the Catskill Center’s Erpf Gallery. The works to be exhibited will be chosen by the curator from among all the pieces done during the residency or inspired by time in the cabin. The work may be traditional or experimental.
The deadline for application is March 1st. Artists who are interested in applying can download the application form from the website at catskillcenter.org. You will find it on the home page under Artists-in-Residence. Any questions can be e-mailed to inverna@catskill.net.

Trim Lawsuit…
The widow of the state trooper who died in theshootout last year near Margaretville plans to sue St. Lawrence County for $100 million, claiming officials there failed to properly handle a warrant that could have led to a fugitive gunman’s arrest months before her husband was killed. Trooper David Brinkerhoff, who lived in the Greene County town of Coxsackie, was killed by friendly fire during a gunfight in a Delaware County farmhouse on April 25, 2007. He was in a group of troopers who stormed the home where 23-year-old Travis Trim was hiding the day after shooting another trooper during a traffic stop, according to police. Trim also was killed in the Margaretville shootout, and Trooper Richard Mattson, a Northern Dutchess resident, was shot in the arm by Trim. The trooper who was shot the day before was wearing a bullet-proof vest and escaped injury. Trim’s body was found after most of the Margaretville house was destroyed by a fire that may have been started by a police tear gas canister.
A notice of claim filed on behalf of Barbara Brinkerhoff and her infant daughter, Isabella, says her 29-year-old husband was killed due to the negligence of the probation department in Trim’s home county.

Sperm Cells?
Spending hours on a cell phone each day may affect the quality of a man’s sperm, preliminary research suggests. In a study of 361 men seen at their infertility clinic, researchers at the Cleveland Clinic found an association between the patients’ cell phone use and their sperm quality. On average, the more hours the men spent on their cell phones each day, the lower their sperm count and the greater their percentage of abnormal sperm.
The findings, published in the journal Fertility and Sterility, add to questions about the potential health effects of cell phones and other wireless devices. Some studies, for example, have linked long-term cell phone use to a higher risk of brain tumors, though many other studies have found no such connection. The concern is that, over time, the electromagnetic energy emitted from mobile phones could theoretically harm body tissue — by damaging DNA, for example.
In general, the researchers found, sperm count and sperm quality tended to decline as daily cell phone hours increased. Men who said they used their phones for more than four hours each day had the lowest average sperm count and the fewest normal, viable sperm.

New Surveys!!!
A new project is starting up in the area designed to achieve five goals including the encouragement of transient tourists to become second homeowners; making new second homeowners feel more welcome; encouraging more active involvement from the second home community; the building up of more support for new full timers who have recently made the transition from some other place to this area.; and the supporting of full time professionals living and working in the area.
To determine how best to achieve their goals, the new group – organized by the Margaretville nonprofit M-ARK Project’s director Joan Lawrence Bauer, also known for her years of work on behalf of the Belleayre Resort, is passing around a new survey and putting together two different focus groups to address the issues. The survey is available by going to www.surveymonkey.com; the focus groups are meeting on the morning and afternoon of Saturday, February 16 “at or near Belleayre Mt. Ski Area.”
For further information contact Bauer at 586-3500 or visit www.markproject.org.

Four Star
Each year the Mobil Travel Guide, now celebrating its 50th year, announces what the publication views as the cream of the destination crop. For the forth year in a row the Emerson Resort & Spa has been awarded the accolade of a four-star rating from Mobil Travel Guide – one of only four spas in New York State to receive that honor. It is the first time the Resort’s new Spa, which opened in 2007, has been award the four-star designation. For the previous three years, the achievement was awarded to the original Spa adjacent to the former Emerson Inn. Emerson Resort Spa Director Susan Keene credits the Mobil recognition to the Emerson’s international décor along with the personal service provided by her staff. The other 2008 four-star spas in New York State are The Peninsula and The Four Seasons, both in Manhattan, and the Mirbeau Inn and Spa in Skaneateles.

Oil Donation
Barry Motzkin, vice president of Kingston Oil Supply Co., has agreed to donate an additional 1,000 gallons of heating oil to the United Way of Ulster County for distribution to Ulster County residents who qualify for fuel assistance. Su Marcy, vice president of the United Way, said KOSCO’s original donation of 1,000 gallons was distributed to 20 different families throughout Ulster County in less than 30 days.
Individuals who are in need should call one of the following agencies: Catholic Charities, (845) 340-9170; Family of Woodstock, (845) 331-7080; People’s Place, (845) 338-4030; Rural Ulster Preservation Co., (845) 331-2140; Salvation Army, (845) 331-1803; or Ulster County Community Action, (845) 338-8750. Applications are reviewed and screened for eligibility by the American Red Cross, which administers the program.
For more information contact Marcy at 331-4199.

Olive’s President
On January 1st Olive resident Edwin J. Maldonado, ABR, GRI, a Broker Associate with Win Morrison Realty in Kingston began a one year term as President of the Ulster County Board of REALTORS® (UCBR). Edwin was sworn in December 14th, 2007 at the annual Installation Luncheon held at Wiltwyck Country Club.
During Edwin’s term as 2007 President-Elect he traveled to many parts of the country to participate in Board related Leadership Meetings and Informational Seminars.
Edwin was the recipient of the 2006 “REALTOR Associate of the Year” honor for the professional and ethical manner in which he works with his colleagues, his high level of professional integrity in serving a diversity of clients and customers, and the time he donates to the UCBR. Aside from his volunteer commitments in the real estate community, Edwin gives of his time to voluntarily serve as an appointed member of the Town of Olive Planning Board. Edwin resides in Krumville with his wife, Peggy, and their daughter, Alexa.