3/27/2008
Next Meeting...
After getting an earful earlier this month from the public
about proposed changes to the town’s cell tower
law, the town board will now hold a public hearing to
get even more input on the specifics of the proposed amendments.
That’s one of the issues set to take center stage
on Monday April 7th when the board convenes, first at
6pm for a pair of public hearings, one on the cell tower
law and the other on the new building code the town is
about to make into law.
At7:00 PM the board will then hear a presentation from
the town’s ambulance squad about overtime costs
and a proposal to change the department’s structure
in a way that may help administrators get a grip on those
charges.
At this past month’s March 3 town board session
there was informal discussion about a plan to drop a key
element of the town’s cell tower law. Current law
requires a potential tower builder to have at least two
wireless service carriers under contract in order to get
town approval to build the tower.
According to Supervisor Peter DiSclafani, this requirement
is standing in the way of the plan to build a tower at
Glenbrook Park, where Mariner Towers wants to erect a
180 foot structure on town owned land.
DiSclafani said the current trend is for carriers to wait
and make sure a tower is actually built before committing.
Kathy Nolan warned that making changes to the law could
become complicated. For example, Nolan suggested that
if the town were to drop the 2 carrier requirement then
there should also be a clause added that required the
tower to be taken down in the event that carriers are
not secured within a reasonable timeframe.
Chuck Perez joined the freewheeling discussion, asking
the board to proceed with caution. He noted that a large
reason for wanting the tower in the first place was to
enhance the emergency service communication in town. Perez
felt that service alone would justify the presence of
a tower, so demanding that a tower be dismantled would
not be a good idea.
Former town supervisor Pete DiModica suggested that cell
phone users contact their service providers because the
best way to get carriers in town is to convince them there
is a need.
Ambulance Department Captain Richard W. Muellerleile,
meanwhile, has supplied the town board with an 11 page
proposal to restructure the squad in a way that he hopes
will eliminate the need for overtime and also create an
incentive to get, and keep, qualified personnel.
“The Paramedic full time position as of March 2,
2008 became vacant as well as a part time/per diem Paramedic
position which covered approximately 24-36 hours per week,
for an average of approximately 96 hours per week becoming
immediately uncovered, creating a manpower crisis in the
Town of Shandaken regarding Paramedic coverage,”
Muellereile states in his proposal. “With a limited
amount of Shandaken residents holding Paramedic credentials
available to work at the current rate, the availability
of surrounding employers with higher salary, and the outstanding
amount of overtime created….. a competitive economy-cost
based, per shift, nonvariable rate has been developed
and proposed to the Town of Shandaken Board.”
DiSclafani, who has reviewed the proposal, said that it
looks as if the plan will cost the town “a little
more” than what has been budgeted for 2008.
The ambulance squad is already operating under an increased
budget and reduced revenues. Anticipated ambulance revenues
dropped from $145,000 last year to $115,000 expected in
2008. At the same time this year’s budget shows
a substantial increase in ambulance squad costs, up from
last yea’rs $218,496 to $250,400.
On Again Suit…
New York’s Court of Appeals has overturned two lower
court decisions and agreed to hear the original 2005 Article
78 lawsuit filed by 27 Shandaken property owning families
challenging the town’s assessment practices. The
suit, Windy Ridge Farm et al v. Shandaken, was initially
dismissed on technical grounds connected with its filing
date. In agreeing to review the case, it now joins two
other active lawsuits filed by members of the Shandaken
Landowners Association claiming unlawfully “selective
reassessment” practices by former town officials.
One of those actions seeks $3 million in damages for alleged
violations of the plaintiff’s civil rights under
the “Equal Protection” clause of the US Constitution.
According to SLA President Peter Vinci, the group has
been actively seeking a negotiated resolution with the
town for some time. At February’s town board meeting,
he and other members presented parts of their case publicly,
in hopes of stimulating an out of court settlement with
the new town board. So far, says Vinci, whether the board
is open to such discussion or will seek to proceed to
trial is as yet undecided. A conference between Judge
O’Connor, newly assigned to the matter, and the
respective attorneys has been scheduled for April 14 to
discuss the status of that.
Meanwhile the Court of Appeals’ recent decision
appears to have effectively ratcheted up the legal costs
involved for both parties. Thus far the town has spent
about $50,000 defending its actions, and the landowners
about $27,000. Lacking a negotiated resolution and with
the reinstatement of the Article 78 action and trial costs
for the related suits, additional legal costs in the near
term are expected to significantly escalate.
In a March 20 press release responding the Court of Appeals
decision, Counsel for the plaintiffs, Brian Matula of
the Albany law firm Cooper, Erving and Savage, said: “I
think it is unfortunate that these taxpayers have been
fighting so hard and with so much of their own money for
something as simple as fair taxation – something
that is guaranteed by the Constitution. I also think it
is unfortunate that the town has spent so many tax dollars
on presenting procedural roadblocks and on appeals rather
than on a town wide reassessment.”
Flood Worries
It's not something
residents of the Catskills and Hudson Valley want to hear,
but FEMA urged residents of the region this week to take
steps to protect themselves before seasonal floods strike.
In New York State, floods have caused 11 presidential
disasters to be declared in the last 10 years. Yet despite
the state's vulnerability, currently only two percent
of New York residents are insured against flood damage,
FEMA said. "Floods pose a threat to every state in
our nation and they happen year round - often with little
notice," said David Maurstad, Assistant Administrator
of Mitigation and Federal Insurance Administrator for
FEMA. "We strongly encourage residents in New York
- and across the country - to include flood insurance
in their flood preparedness strategy." Most homeowners'
policies do not cover flood damage. Flood coverage must
be purchased separately, and there is typically a 30-day
waiting period before a new flood insurance policy becomes
effective, so the time to purchase a policy is now. Federally
backed flood insurance is available to residents, business
owners and renters in high and low- to moderate-risk areas.
Along these lines, officials from the Catskills, Hudson
Valley and Southern Tier met in Binghamton recently for
a flood safety summit. The conference, called by then-Governor
Spitzer, brought together state, county and local officials
to discuss what can be done to mitigate future flooding,
such as that which ravaged those areas of the state in
the recent past years. Senators John Bonacic and Thomas
Libous and Assembly Members Kevin Cahill, Aileen Gunther,
Clifford Crouch and Donna Lupardo took part in the conference.
Cornell Cooperative Extension of Ulster County's Esopus
Creek Management Program, meanwhile, is offering a free
workshop for anyone who manages streams, banks, bridges,
and other stream related structures as part of flood response,
recovery or mitigation on Friday March 28, at the Holiday
Inn on Washington Avenue in Kingston from 8:30am to 4:00pm.
The workshop will be attended by over 100 representatives
from State, County and Local Highway and Transportation
Departments, Town Supervisors and Highway Superintendents,
DEC, Public Works staff, Environmental Groups, Federal
Agency Responders: FEMA, Army Corps, National Guard, and
more. Attendees will learn cost effective strategies to
reduce flood damage and protect stream habitat, see expert
presentations on stream dynamics, the opportunity to meet
and network with important contacts, discuss project permitting
processes with NYS DEC, work with flood response case
study exercises, and receive contact guide on who to contact
and when for flood events. For more information contact
Michael Courtney at 845-340-3990.
Legal Hairs...
In a March
3 decision, state Department of Environmental Conservation
Administrative Law Judge Richard Wissler, who ruled over
a lengthy Issues Conference regarding an earlier version
of the resort proposals put forth by developer Dean Gitter
by calling for a dozen key planning issues to go to adjudication
two years ago, denied a pair of motions by continuing
project opponents charging that his earlier adjudication
decisions should still hold for the Gitter project. "The
Administrative Law Judge and the Office of Hearings and
Mediation Services exclusively have the authority to make
SEQRA determinations on behalf of the lead agency in the
captioned proceeding, subject to appeal to the Office
of the Commissioner," lawyers for the Friends of
Catskill Park, Catskill Heritage Alliance, and Pine Hill
Water Coalition charged in a December 7, 2007 filing.
A second, December 21, 2007 filing, the same entities
moved for "a determination that the project described
in the September 5, 2007, Agreement in Principle (AIP)
must be reviewed as a new project and not a mere modification
of the project that was noticed for review in the captioned
proceeding." In his response, Wissler noted that
he no longer has jurisdiction over the review in question.
"My ruling of October 19, 2007, holds in abeyance,
without date, any further proceedings in the above-captioned
matter," he wrote. "It is not, at this time,
a matter under review before OHMS. At this point, the
final status of the above-captioned proceeding is, effectively,
unknown. Indeed, it could be withdrawn by the applicant
in favor of a modified proposal such as that contemplated
by the AIP. The AIP and the preparation of any SDEIS relative
thereto are not before me." On March 5, the various
project opponents wrote an appeal to Wissler's ruling,
requesting permission to file an expedited appeal of Wissler's
ruling. Lawyers for the State DEC replied last Friday,
March 14, that, "the request for an expedited appeal
in this case merely attempts to make an additional procedural
mechanism to again challenge the resolution of the underlying
issues already addressed by the ALJ." A final ruling
on whether the modified Belleayre Resort be considered
a new project and begin the SEQRA process anew, to be
made by the head of the state DEC's law division was still
pending as of press time. "The net result: Another
time and resource-wasting tactic by those who oppose the
resort has been justifiably thrown out," wrote developers
Crossroads Ventures VP of Public Affairs Paul Rakov, announcing
the state's decisions, and arguments. "Notch a win
for common sense." Meanwhile, a second Article 78
lawsuit by the same parties, plus a pair of contiguous
neighbors to the proposed resort and ski center expansion,
is still pending before the State Supreme Court in Albany.
It's basic charge? That the process by which Spitzer et
al reached their Agreement was unlawful and has actually
caused injury to the private landowners involved, Benjamin
and Idith Korman of Highmount. In other words, the battles
continue...
Not The City!
Alan Rosa wants
you to know something. As the Executive Director of the
Margaretville based Catskill Watershed Corporation, Rosa
presides over a host of programs designed to protect the
water in the Catskills in a way that benefits the people
who live here. To pay for those programs the CWC was given
millions of dollars by the City of New York as part of
an historic settlement back in the 1990s. But here's what
he wants you to know. "We are not the city,"
he said last week while attending a meeting of the Coalition
of Watershed Towns. Rosa was on hand to give an informal
refresher course to all. It seems 1991, the year the Coalition
was formed to beat back the City's efforts to trample
over watershed dwellers in the pursuit of protecting it's
water supply, was so long ago that folks have forgotten
the basics about the ensuing battle and ultimate upstate
victory which gave rise to the CWC. Now, Rosa said, many
erroneously view the CWC and the city's enforcement arm,
the Department of Environmental Protection, as one in
the same. Programs that the Coalition demanded and fought
for, programs designed for the benefit of upstaters, are
now seen as programs that benefit the city. As a result
some programs are not being fully utilized even though
they actually put money in local taxpayers pockets. The
City, especially its DEP, are not liked in the region.
One can drive along any main street and see bold bumper
stickers that read "DEP: GET OFF OUR BACKS!".
Old timers still remember the mid point of last century
when the City showed up to condemn thousands of acres
of land to build the Pepacton Reservoir, displacing families
that had lived and worked those lands for generations.
In 1990 they tried it again but were stopped by the Coalition.
Back then the City had a basic two part plan to protect
the water. 1.Take more land to stop its development forever.
2. Install new regulations that would make the development
of anything else nearly impossible. After the Coalition
filed a lawsuit the talking began and a settlement was
negotiated. Many of the programs that were born out of
those talks, the septic program, wastewater infrastructure,
stormwater, even a $60 million economic development fund,
were the ideas that upstaters brought to the table. Even
the CWC was the Coalition's idea. They didn't trust the
City in any way and wanted to set up a local organization
so all the programs could be implemented by, well, locals.
"These are programs that the Coalition of Watershed
Towns wanted," Rosa said. Now upstaters have them,
and they are under control of CWC and Rosa, who was one
of the Coalition's Ambassadors during the talks. To think
that these programs were designed for the city is just
plain wrong, he said. "We do the programs. We pay
the bills." Recent projects okayed by the CWC include
planning for two new water quality protection programs
to be funded by the New York City Department of Environmental
Protection (DEP). One will expand the current septic repair
and rehabilitation program to include provisions for clustered
septic systems to serve groups of a few households in
close proximity, and for septic repairs for small businesses.
The other new program will create an institutional sand
and salt storage facility program to assist colleges,
schools and hospitals which may be required to cover their
winter salt piles. More information on these programs
will be forthcoming in the coming months. They are expected
to be up and running in late 2008. Three new low-interest
loans were also approved ... CSA Properties of Fishkill
will refinance and renovate 818 Main Street, Margaretville,
a building they purchased in June of 2007. The building
includes two storefronts occupied by gem and mineral retailer
Rocko, and two apartments. Culwell Development, Inc. of
Ellenville will use their loan to purchase and renovate
a former grocery store at 140 S. Main St., Ellenville
where they will move their Ace Hardware store currently
located at 16 N. Main St. A third loan will assist Cheryl
Lins in the development of Delaware Phoenix Distillery,
which will produce absinthe, an herbal liquor, at a Walton
location. The product will be called Catskill Spirits
Absinthe. In other business, the CWC Board authorized
a one-year, in-kind lease with SUNY Ulster to provide
a Small Business Development Center outreach site at CWC
offices, 905 Main St., Margaretville. Business counselor
Sam Kandel will be available to work with watershed business
owners or prospective entrepreneurs to develop business
plans, marketing strategies and operational plans that
could make them eligible for low-interest CWC loans and
other assistance. Call him at 339-0025, ext. 15 to make
an appointment. For more information, go to www.cwconline.org,
or call toll-free 877-928-7433.
Creek Change
Communities
along the Esopus Creek corridor will benefit from a law
enacted this month naming the Esopus to the official list
of "Inland Waterways." This designation makes
municipalities located along the Esopus Creek eligible
for new funding for a range of local projects, planning
and technical assistance under the waterfront revitalization
programs administered by the Coastal Program of the NYS
Department of State. "The Catskill Center applauds
the efforts of Catskill representatives, Assemblyman Cahill
and Senator Bonacic, who introduced this legislation and
strongly advocated for its passage," said Deborah
Meyer DeWan, acting Executive Director for The Catskill
Center for Conservation and Development. "We join
with the towns along the Esopus supporting this new law
providing their communities access to additional resources
and tools in their toolbox as they work on local revitalization
efforts." The new designation represents a broad
category of funding for community revitalization programs
specifically geared to communities that lie along rivers,
lakes and streams in New York State. Major rivers and
some lakes and streams are already included in the definition.
Other waterways can only be added by passage of legislation
amending existing law. Within the Catskills, the East
Branch of the Delaware River was previously placed on
this list. The State Senate passed their bill, S.6150
last June and the Assembly Bill A.8925 was passed unanimously
last month. The assistance (both funding and technical)
is voluntary and there are no additional regulatory or
coastal consistency requirements associated with this
program. It provides access to community revitalization
funding and technical assistance if communities seek it
that is currently unavailable to the municipalities along
such waterways. Funding is through the Environmental Protection
Fund (EPF). Eligible municipalities apply for grants under
a competitive funding program. Meanwhile, the State Department
of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation and the
Eastern New York chapter of the Nature Conservancy will
receive grants specifically earmarked to eradicate invasive
infestations in the area. State Parks will receive $100,000
to eradicate common reed, Japanese barberry, Japanese
knotweed, Japanese stiltgrass, leafy spurge, multiflora
rose and spotted knapweed from Minnewaska State Park.
The Nature Conservancy will receive over $50,000 to eradicate
black swallow-wort, bush honeysuckle, giant hogweed, and
mile a minute weed from areas in the Catskills.
Honorary Cops?
The New York
State Sheriffs' Association Institute has begun its annual
Honorary Membership drive in Ulster County. The New York
State Sheriff's Association Institute is a not-for-profit
corporation, and contributions to the Institute are tax
deductible. The Sheriff's Institute provides training
programs and services for Sheriff's Offices. In addition,
the Sheriff's Institute supports sending disadvantaged
children from Ulster County to summer camp. The camp,
which is celebrating its 32nd anniversary, has served
nearly 16,000 boys and girls in New York state- this summer
there are places for 24 children from Ulster County. The
camp offers recreation plus programs that foster good
relationships with law enforcement. The Sheriff's Institute
also provides an annual scholarship for one student in
each county to study criminal justice at a local community
college. Financial support for Sheriff's Institute programs
comes from Honorary Membership dues. Invitations for membership
are extended on a random, non-partisan basis. Dues are
$20 for individuals, $50 for businesses, or more if the
joiner wishes to give it. Anyone interested in becoming
an Honorary Member should contact Ulster County Sheriff
Paul VanBlarcum if they do not receive an invitation..
Ledge Rescue!
A 50-yearold
Chinese woman was rescued from Giant Ledge, near Slide
Mountain, after falling and suffering an apparent heart
attack. The unidentified victim was hiking with friends
when the accident occurred on Sunday afternoon, March
9th. According to police accounts, the woman or someone
in her party used a cell phone to call 911 at 4:54 p.m.
that day. The call was picked up by a cell tower in Greene
County because there is no local cell service in the vicinity
of Giant Ledge. The 911 call was then transferred to the
City of Kingston dispatch instead of the county 911 system.
Rescuers then found her in 39 minutes. She was transported
from the mountain on a six-wheeled vehicle called a "Gator"
brought to the scene by the Pine Hill Fire Company. Responding
to the call were fire companies from Claryville, Pine
Hill, Shandaken and Phoenicia, along with members of the
U1ster County Sheriffs Department, State Police and Forest
Rangers. She was transported to the hospital by Shandaken
Ambulance.
Held & Charged A Phoenicia man, 47 year old Ernest
Fudge, formerly of 17 Station Road, remains in the Ulster
a County Jail without bail on the charge of first degree
sexual abuse, a Class D felony., after he was arrested
following a complaint from a woman who claimed Fudge held
her against her will for several hours, raped her and
physically assaulted her. The unidentified woman, was
transported to Benedictine Hospital in Kingston by Shandaken
Ambulance where she was treated for her injuries and released.
Fudge was being held pending a grand jury hearing expected
for early April. Fudge had allegedly moved in with the
victim after being thrown out of his trailer on Station
Road. He had previously been arrested on charges of providing
alcohol to minors, endangering the welfare of a child,
and two DWIs on a single day. He also served time in state
prison for having held up a pair of gas stations.
Stay tuned...
Pled Guilty...
Zephyr Dresser-Peck,
the 19-year old Woodstock native charged in the prom night
accident that killed his friend Andrew Dean-Lipson last
May 19, pleaded guilty to two counts in Ulster County
Court last Thursday, March 13, admitting that he has been
drinking and smoking pot before the 5:40 AM crash on Glasco
Turnpike occurred May 19, 2007. Dresser-Peck, 18 when
the accident occurred, had been originally indicted on
charges of vehicular manslaughter, criminally negligent
homicide and driving under the influence of both alcohol
and drugs. Former County District Attorney Donald A. Williams,
who retired from his post in January, served as special
prosecutor in the case. Dresser-Peck was represented by
Stephen Coffey. Williams was selected to prosecute the
case by current County D.A. Holley Carnright after Carnwright
recused himself from involvement in the case because he
had briefly represented Dresser-Peck last year. Dresser-Peck
spoke, as part of his allocution during the March 13 hearing,
of having attended a West Hurley post-prom party before
the accident, which occurred when he and Dean-Lipson were
driving another acquaintance, Mick Sarandon, home. Dresser
Peck admitted to overcorrecting after swerving into the
oncoming lane and going off the road, causing his vehicle
to become airborne and hit several trees. Dean-Lipson,
19 and known to everyone as Drew, was thrown from the
car and later pronounced dead at the scene. Dresser-Peck
and Sarandon were not seriously injured. Before leaving
office, Williams prosecuted a Grand Jury investigation
into the post-prom party that resulted in a closed report
that he later utilized to help push through a new county
law, passed last month, that now makes it illegal for
adults to provide alcohol to minors on private property
not of their immediate family with maximum penalties of
up to 15 days in jail and/or a $250 fine. Dresser-Peck
faces a maximum sentence of 2-1/2 to seven years in state
prison on the vehicular manslaughter and DWI charges he
pled guilty to. Sentencing will take place before Ulster
County Judge J. Michael Bruhn in Kingston on May 27.
Younger Drinking
More than two
decades after the United States established a uniform
drinking age of 21, a movement is afoot to allow 18- to
20-year-olds to legally buy alcohol under some circumstances.
Proponents say the higher age hasn't kept young people
from consuming alcohol and has instead driven underage
consumption underground, particularly on college campuses.
"Our laws aren't working. They're not preventing
underage drinking. What they're doing is putting it outside
the public eye," Vermont state Senator Hinda Miller
said. "So you have a lot of kids binge drinking.
They get sick, they get scared and they get into trouble
and they can't call because they know it's illegal."
A committee of the Vermont Senate has approved Miller's
bill to have a task force weigh the pros and cons of rolling
back the drinking age and make a recommendation to the
Legislature early next year. Organizations and lawmakers
in other states are toying with similar ideas. In South
Dakota, Flandreau lawyer N. Bob Pesall has drafted an
initiative petition to allow 19- and 20-year-olds to legally
buy beer no stronger than 3.2 percent alcohol. In Missouri,
a group is using the Internet social networking sites
Facebook and Meetup to try to collect more than 100,000
signatures to get a measure on the ballot to lower the
drinking age to 18. In South Carolina and Wisconsin, lawmakers
have proposed allowing active duty military personnel
younger than 21 to buy alcohol. A similar proposal was
rejected last year in New Hampshire. Last year, former
Middlebury College president John McCardell started Choose
Responsibility, a nonprofit that favors allowing 18-to
20-year-old Vermonters to legally buy booze once they've
completed an alcohol education program. McCardell said
an effort is under way to persuade Congress to grant waivers
exempting states from financial penalty if they lower
the age. Mothers Against Drunk Driving and others call
this folly to even consider, saying the higher age limit
has saved thousands of lives since the 1984 enactment
of the National Minimum Drinking Age Act. The act required
states to raise the age to 21 or lose federal transportation
money. South Dakota was the last state to comply, in 1988.
In 2006, 28.3 percent of youngsters aged 12 to 20 said
they'd had a drink in the past month and 19 percent were
defined as binge drinkers, according to the U.S. Department
of Health and Human Services' National Survey on Drug
Use and Health. The survey defined a binge drinker as
someone who, in the past month, had drunk five or more
alcoholic beverages within several hours.
Scholarships The Phoenicia Rotary is willing to sponsor
two students entering 11th grade in September 2008 with
full scholarships for the Rotary Youth Leadership Award
conference. Qualified candidates are those high school
students finishing their sophomore year who demonstrate
the potential to benefit from a program designed to nurture
and instill confidence in their leadership skills and
abilities. The conference dates are Sunday June 29th -
Thursday July 3rd, 2008 at the Mount St. Mary's College
in Newburgh. The conference is designed to introduce participants
to thoughts and ideas which, if utilized, will strengthen
and develop their leadership skills. To qualify for this
scholarship, you must complete an application with requested
attachments, and complete an interview with the Rotary
RYLA Selection Committee. Applications are available at
the Onteora High Guidance Office, the Ulster Savings Bank
on Main St. Phoenicia, and from Chairman Mark Wilsey at
688-2183. Completed applications should be submitted by
April 15th.
Rebate Ready
In order to get one of the economic stimulus checks promised
by the federal government, you'll have to file a Federal
Income Tax return first. You won't have to actually pay
any tax. But by filing a return, you'll give the IRS the
information it needs to issue you a rebate - such as your
name, address, Social Security number and the amount of
your income for 2007. Remember that you generally need
at least $3,000.00 of "qualifying income" for
2007 to be eligible for a rebate - and "qualifying
income" includes Social Security benefits as well
as certain types of veterans' benefits. You will be able
to obtain free tax preparation and tax filing service
by contacting any of the various AARP Tax Aide sites throughout
the county for an appointment. Further information can
be requested by calling the Ulster County Office for the
Aging at 845-340-3456 or toll free 1-877-914-3456.
And remember, this basically means that any stimulus you're
expecting shouldn't be expected, now, before the summer
at earliest...
Valley Transport
Rodney Slater, the secretary of transportation under President
Bill Clinton, summed up a daylong regional economic summit
Tuesday at Rockland Community College by saying that intermodal
transportation is the best way to develop the means by
which to move people and goods around the Hudson Valley.
Top officials from the state Transportation Department,
Thruway Authority, Metro-North Railroad and Stewart International
Airport talked of their efforts to modernize and advance
their respective travel modes. All of those agencies are
working on developing intermodal forms of transportation.
Pattern for Progress President Jonathan Drapkin released
his think tank's updated set of transportation priorities
for the Hudson Valley. At the top of the list is creation
of a regional transportation consortium, moving toward
a solution to the Tappan Zee Bridge, maximizing connections
to Stewart by bus and train, uniting the Hudson Valley
to "move up the ladder" for priority attention
in Albany, ensuring the Valley's "fare" share,
and increasing voting power for the region's representatives
on the Metropolitan Transportation Authority Board.
All agreed that increasing development pressures would
be likely over the coming years, but largely unavoidable.
Meanwhile, a rise in sea levels and other changes fueled
by global warming is now being predicted to threaten roads,
rail lines, ports, airports and other important infrastructure,
and policy makers and planners should be acting now to
avoid or mitigate their effects, according to new government
reports. While increased heat and "intense precipitation
events" threaten these structures, the greatest and
most immediate potential impact is coastal flooding, according
to one of the reports, by an expert panel convened by
the National Research Council, the research arm of the
National Academy of Sciences. Another study, a multiagency
effort led by the Environmental Protection Agency, sounds
a similar warning on infrastructure but adds that natural
features like beaches, wetlands and fresh-water. "We
need to think about it now," said Dr. Schwartz, a
member of the National Academy of Engineering. The multiagency
report, a draft assessment, is intended to help policy
makers do just that. The 800-page draft was posted online
last month for public review at climatescience.gov/Library/sap/sap4-1/public-review-draft.
It focuses on the area from Montauk Point on Long Island
to Cape Lookout, N.C. and includes possible impacts up
and down the Hudson River, as well as involving airports
throughout the New York area that could end up making
Stewart that much more valuable in the long run. As a
first step, the academy report said, transportation officials
must realize that climate patterns that prevailed in the
past "may no longer be a reliable guide for future
plans." Instead, it said, they should incorporate
climate change into their plans for capital improvements,
maintenance schedules, emergency preparedness and so on.
The panel also recommended changes in the National Flood
Insurance Program, a federally subsidized program for
coastal properties. The report said the maps the program
used in setting rates did not reflect the influence of
climate change. In a recent Easter edict, the Vatican
spoke of pollution and "ecological offenses"
as modern evils. In recent months, Pope Benedict has also
made several strong appeals for the protection of the
environment, saying issues such as climate change had
become gravely important for the entire human race. Similarly,
the Southern Baptist Convention signaled a significant
departure from its former official stance on global warming,
with 44 of its members backing a declaration calling for
more action on climate change, saying its previous position
on the issue was "too timid." President Bush,
meanwhile, has recently rebuffed appeals from the nation's
governors to increase spending on roads, bridges and other
public works as a way to revive the economy. Governors
said Mr. Bush had told them at a White House meeting that
he wanted to see the effects of his economic stimulus
package before supporting new measures.
Oh well...
Deer Changes?
After three
successful years, the Ulster County Legislature's Environmental
Committee is requesting that a deer hunting management
program be permanently extended by the state Department
of Environmental Conservation. The deer harvest strategy
states that hunters are restricted to taking bucks with
three or more antler points on at least one side of its
head. Proponents of the program say the program is helpful
because it makes for safer hunting and a healthier deer
population by bringing the overall deer sex ratio closer
to a healthy balance. In addition to helping the deer
population grow strong, deer herd management makes for
better sporting among hunters. Not only is a larger buck
with more antlers a prized catch, but mature deer are
smarter and more difficult to hunt, it has been added.
A state Department of Environmental Conservation study
conducted in the county from 1989 to 1993 showed the female-to-male
ratio at approximately 13-to-1, a staggering figure considering
"they are born basically 50-50." Proponents
say the program makes the sport safer because hunters
must take more time to identify a buck with three points.
County Housing?
Ulster County
has released a "priority strategies" report
that looks at affordable housing in the county. The study
is now being reviewed during a series of public workshops,
with many starting to say that a focus on environmental
issues and site plan regulations has come at the expense
of affordable housing concerns. The report, which only
contains statistics through October 2004, notes that increases
in housing costs have far exceeded income increases among
potential home buyers. Officials wrote that in 2004 the
$49,213 average annual household income represented 25.9
percent of the $190,000 median sales price of a home,
and showed that buyers' ability to pay had diminished
from 2000 when the $43,110 average income was 37.4 percent
of the $115,250 median home sales price. “Renters,
likewise, are also finding it difficult to find decent
housing that does not claim a disproportionately large
share ... of their household income," officials wrote.
"In 2004, renter households needed an income of roughly
$30,000 to afford the estimated median market rent of
$740 in the county without being overly burdened with
housing costs." Recommendations in the report include:
1) Initiating a public information campaign to discuss
findings in the report at local town and village meetings,
with outreach conducted to assist with a "best practices"
approach to housing development. 2) Completing an examination
of all comprehensive plans in each of the county's municipalities
to identify obstacles to housing development. 3) Establishing
agencies to handle affordable housing trusts "to
control the appreciation of land and housing prices."
5) Creating a list of public and private sector financial
incentives to develop better infrastructure services to
support high density commercial and housing development.
And 6) Setting "housing targets" that can be
used in comprehensive plans for the county and municipalities.
Upcoming meetings are scheduled for 6:30 p.m. on April
1 at the Marlboro Free Library at 1251 U.S. Route 9W;
6:30 p.m. April 8 at Elting Memorial Library, 93 Main
St., New Paltz; and 6:30 p.m. April 14 in the Ellenville
Public Library, 40 Center St. In the Shandaken and Olive
areas, meanwhile, it seems that our own local agency once
tied to affordable housing, the SHARP Committee, has spent
recent years getting rid of properties so as not to compete
with the private sector. More on this pattern in the coming
months...
Teen STDs!
At least one
in four teenage girls nationwide has a sexually transmitted
disease, or more than 3 million teens, according to the
first study of its kind in this age group. A virus that
causes cervical cancer is by far the most common sexually
transmitted infection in teen girls aged 14 to 19, while
the highest overall prevalence is among black girls -
nearly half the blacks studied had at least one STD. That
rate compared with 20 percent among both whites and Mexican-American
teens, the study from the federal Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention found. About half of the girls
acknowledged ever having sex; among them, the rate was
40 percent. While some teens define sex as only intercourse,
other types of intimate behavior including oral sex can
spread some infections. For many, the numbers likely seem
"overwhelming because you're talking about nearly
half of the sexually experienced teens at any one time
having evidence of an STD," said Dr. Margaret Blythe,
an adolescent medicine specialist at Indiana University
School of Medicine and head of the American Academy of
Pediatrics' committee on adolescence. The CDC's Dr. Kevin
Fenton said given that STDs can cause infertility and
cervical cancer in women, "screening, vaccination
and other prevention strategies for sexually active women
are among our highest public health priorities."
The study by CDC researcher Dr. Sara Forhan is an analysis
of nationally representative data on 838 girls who participated
in a 2003-04 government health survey. Teens were tested
for four infections: human papillomavirus, or HPV, which
can cause cervical cancer and affected 18 percent of girls
studied; chlamydia, which affected 4 percent; trichomoniasis,
2.5 percent; and herpes simplex virus, 2 percent. Screening
tests are underused in part because many teens don't think
they're at risk, but also, some doctors mistakenly think,
'"Sexually transmitted diseases don't happen to the
kinds of patients I see.'" Some doctors also are
reluctant to discuss STDs with teen patients or offer
screening because of confidentiality concerns, knowing
parents would have to be told of the results.The American
Academy of Pediatrics supports confidential teen screening.
Home Genetics?
Bipolar genetic tests bought over the Internet have been
the recent rage in some circles, joining hundreds of other
at-home gene tests ... but the medical community is urging
people to beware of the new home aides. The proliferation
of these tests troubles many public health officials,
medical ethicists and doctors. The tests receive almost
no government oversight, even though many of them are
being sold as tools for making serious medical decisions.
Health experts worry that many of these products are built
on thin data and are preying on individuals' deepest anxieties.
Tests have become available claiming to help predict and
diagnose everything from serious illnesses like cancer
and Alzheimer's to athletic ability and a person's ideal
diet. Bipolar sufferers experience intense mood swings
as they cycle between manic, sometimes delusional highs
and depressive lows that can lead to suicide if untreated.
The disease is often misdiagnosed as other forms of depression,
which delays treatment and can result in the prescribing
of antidepressants that make some patients' symptoms worse.
To take the new test, patients receive by mail a plastic
cup that they spit into, seal and send back to Psynomics,
a private company. The company then analyzes DNA in the
saliva but sends patients' test results only to their
doctors to avoid the risk of self-diagnosis. The report
that accompanies those results instructs doctors that
a positive test means patients are two to three times
more likely to have bipolar disorder. But the studies
from which those figures come also show the gene variations
themselves are rare even among those with bipolar. The
test is valid only for whites of Northern European ancestry
who show some.
In coming months, at least two other startups led by genetic
researchers are set to release their own psychiatric genetic
tests. One test claims to predict the risk of developing
schizophrenia. The other is designed to forecast the likelihood
that some medications for major depression could heighten
suicidal thoughts in patients.
The American Psychiatric Association has yet to create
an official policy on genetic testing. A fact sheet issued
by the Federal Trade Commission advises consumers to be
wary of assertions made by at-home genetic testing companies.
Sustainable?
"Greening
Your Business: The Case For Sustainability," an all-day
conference at Dutchess Community College (DCC) on March
14, was held to educate the local business community on
the benefits of environmentally-sound, sustainable business
practices and to share resources, information and best
practices on how being "green" is good for business.
More than 225 regional business owners and representatives
attended to learn more about products and technologies
than can increase sustainability while still helping the
bottom line. "Greening the business is really a goal
of our company," explained Bill Kennedy of Kenco.
"It wasn't actually a financial decision, but being
an outdoor outfitter, we wanted to be as environmentally
correct as we could be. NYSERDA [the New York State Energy
Research and Development Authority] worked with a local
bank to get us a loan with a lower rate to make it affordable."
Musicfest Skeds
The Belleayre Musicfest has recently released its 2008
Calendar of concerts. Events start Saturday, July 5 with
the Belleayre Festival Orchestra with Irish Tenor Ronan
Tynan doing its annual performance followed by Fireworks.
On Saturday, July 12 Brian Wilson, Beach Boys auteur,
takes to the stage with a full band. On Friday, July 18
it's John Covelli Unplugged playing "Beethoven to
the Blues," followed by the Bacon Brothers Band on
Saturday, July 19. On Friday. July 25, "The Post-Neo
Trio" features local talents Justin Kolb, Abby Newton
and Mikhail Horowitz. Stage and TV Star Bebe Neuwirth
plays on Saturday, July 26. On Saturday, August 2, the
Belleayre Festival Opera and Community Chorale of the
Catskills presents Leoncavallo's "Pagliacci"
plus a program of Famous Opera Choruses. On Sunday, August.
3 Children's Opera Theater then presents a free concert
performance of "The Three Bears." Friday, August
8 will be given over to Urban Jazz Songstress KJ Denhart
, with Jazz Piano Great Ramsey Lewis (The In Crowd) following
on Saturday, Aug. 9. On Friday, August 15 Clarinetist
Ken Peplowski takes to the stage, followed by "Two
Jazz Diamonds," a 75th Birthday Celebration with
David "Fathead" Newman, Curtis Fuller, Cedar
Walton, Rufus Reid, Jimmy Cobb and Special Guests on Saturday,
August 16. Country Superstar Vince Gill takes to the stage
on Saturday, August 23, and Chris Isaak on Saturday August
30. All concerts take place at the Belleayre Music Festival
big top at the state-owned ski center off Route 28 in
Highmount. For further information call (800) 942-6904,
ext. 344 or visit www.belleayremusic.org.
No Silly Goose
Three local
DEP staffers, this newspaper's publisher, and a dog report
the following from Chichester. On Friday, March 14 a large
Canada Goose in rapid descent nearly collided with the
witnesses while being hotly pursued for an apparent lunch
commitment by a mature bald eagle. After missing the humans
and crashing through some low branches with the dog close
behind, it flopped to the ground in an open field about
50 yards away, apparently dead. This was confirmed by
the dog, who pushed the lifeless body around a bit with
his nose. After collaring the dog and dragging it off
to a nearby car, and with the humans discussing what to
do with the dead goose, the goose got up and started walking
north towards Greene County. One of the humans flapped
their wings and it took off, straight over the center
line of Route 214 at about four feet of altitude, till
it rounded the corner and disappeared. The eagle, watching
everything from atop a tree across the creek, chose not
to follow. "Senior Prom" An annual "Senior
Prom" will be hosted once again by the Life Skills
Students of Onteora, open to all seniors in Shandaken
and Olive. The date is April 9th at Al's Restaurant 5
to 8 PM. It is absolutely free to seniors subsidized by
grants from Federal, State and County Educational agencies
as well as the Phoenicia Rotary and other local service
organizations. DJ music will be provided by Keith and
transportation is available if needed. Reservations are
REQUIRED; please call Nicole at 688 5856 or Chris at 688
7319.
Share Words!
High-School
student poets are encouraged to compete in the 12th Anniversary
Word Thursdays Share the Words High- School Poetry Competition
on Friday, May 9, at the Foothills Performing Arts Center
in Oneonta. Individual students as well as school teams
are invited to compete for prizes that celebrate excellence
in writing and presentation. Those prizes include US Savings
Bonds, sets of Bright Hill Press books, and readings at
Word Thursdays in Treadwell; the winning team will take
home a traveling trophy and a permanent banner in school
colors, inscribed with the names of team members and their
coach. Teams must include no fewer than five students
and no more than 10 students and must be sponsored by
a school; there is a nominal fee for each student, which
includes catered lunch served at Foothills. The awards
include first and second places in the following categories:
The Graham Duncan Award for a Formal Poem (any topic),
the Robert Winner Award for a Nature Poem, the Nicholas
Alicino Award for a Performance Poem (any topic), and
the Bright Hill Award for a Free Verse Poem Addressing
Current Events.
Any school may participate in the Word Thursdays Share
the Words High-School Poetry Competition by contacting
Bright Hill Center in Treadwell, 607-829-5055; or by e-mail
at wordthur@stny.rr.com.
Correlations
Talk about shared information... The New York State Department
of Environmental Conservation (DEC) recently released
a draft supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS)
for its updated Gore Mountain Unit Management Plan which
takes into consideration the connecting ski trails and
lifts between Gore Mountain Ski Center and the Historic
North Creek Ski Bowl. The draft SEIS will be available
for public comment until April 14, 2008 and a public hearing
has been scheduled for March 4.
The purpose of the SEIS is to address the cumulative environmental
impacts associated with the Gore and Ski Bowl proposed
projects that had not been included in the original Unit
Management Plan (UMP) submission. Among other aspects,
the proposed UMP will result in a stronger interconnect
to the Historic North Creek Ski Bowl, as well as potential
future private developments. DEC determined that the cumulative
impacts of both the Gore Mountain Ski Center UMP and the
Historic North Creek Ski Bowl be assessed before finalization
of the UMP.
The draft SEIS finds that the cumulative environmental
impacts would not be significant due to the fact that
the proposed development will occur in the Hamlet of North
Creek, an area that “can absorb the anticipated
growth in businesses and residences.” Mitigation
measures will “be built into the projects to ensure
that there are no impacts to the Adirondack Forest Preserve.”
Check out the state DEC website, where information on
our own SEIS and UMP materials involving similarly state-owned
Belleayre Mountain and its private resort plans will also
be on view.
Talk about timing.. and correlations ripe for ample discussion...
New Governor...
Okay... so
things have changed a bit, eh? "Straight talk,"
the former crusading Attorney General Eliot Spitzer told
a reporter last fall while celebrating the one year anniversary
of his huge win over former Catskills area Assemblyman
John Faso, "is perhaps something that comes too naturally
to me." Now we're all talking about newly sworn-in
Governor David Paterson, with the only news of Spitzer
coming in the form of his most recent sideline work, barring
that which got him into trouble, working to uncover mortgage
bank and other financial industry indiscretions. Could
there have been a tie-in with his downfall, some asked?
Yes and no, we reply. In the meanwhile, the Spitzer administration's
new focus on the Catskills as its key testing ground for
Smart Growth theories matching new development with Climate
Change and environmental-savvy policies seems set to continue
unchanged... at least for the moment. "I am staying
on with the new governor," noted Spitzer's Deputy
Secretary for the Environment Judith Enck in a recent
e-mail. "He is very engaged on a range of energy
and environmental issues. He chaired a special committee
on renewable energy, supports the State's efforts to close
indian point... The governor had a very strong environmental
voting record when he was in the state senate." As
for the big local project that Spitzer complicated his
local reputation with when he announced an Agreement in
Principle last September that would allow developer Dean
Gitter a major resort tie-in to an expanded state-owned
Belleayre Ski Center, Enck said the "compromise"
she helped envision and broker would stay as is, despite
rumors to the contrary. "The Bellaeyre AIP remains
fully in effect," she wrote. Separately, Enck said
before the departure of Spitzer, with whom she'd worked
in the state attorney general's office for years, that
state government was seeing the Catskills similarly to
the way the Pataki administration worked with the Adirondacks...
as a key area for influence and the trying out of new
projects.
