Follow Up on the News
Also in attendance was Tom Alworth, Executive Director
of the Catskill Center for Conservation and Development and representative
for the newly-formed Catskill Preservation Coalition, whose eleven members
include most of the state and region's top environmental organizations,
including the Natural Resources Defense Council, the Sierra Club,
Trout Unlimited, Theodore Gordon Flyfishers Inc., Hudson Riverkeeper,
Friends of Catskill Park, Zen Environmental Studies Institute, Inc.,
the New York Public Interest Group (NYPIRG), Catskill Heritage Alliance,
the Pine Hill Water District Coalition, and the Catskill Center.
The
Coalition is seeking to participate in an upcoming adjudication hearing
on the project set for May 25 in Margaretville, where it wants to challenge
statements made in a 6,720 page draft environmental impact statement
submitted by the developers and challenged in the New York City comments
released on April 22.
Gitter
was present with his Crossroad Ventures project manager, Gary Gailes,
and attorney Dan Ruzow, who had served as one of two lawyers for the
Coalition of Watershed Towns during the lengthy battle and subsequent
negotiations that led to the formation of the CWC in 1997.
The
CWC was set up, under the 1997 Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) brokered
by Pataki between Upstate communities and New York City, " to protect
the water resources of the New York City Watershed west of the Hudson
River, while preserving and strengthening communities located in the
region" according to its own website description. It was funded
with an initial influx of $65 million, since amended, to initiate and
run a variety of programs aimed at maintaining local water quality and
helping to induce responsible development.
The
65-page report submitted by the New York City DEP to the state last
week states, bluntly, that the city, "believes that the proposed
Belleayre Resort at Catskill Park does not embody environmentally responsible
growth consistent with the spirit of the MOA." More succinctly,
it states that Gitter's DEIS, however lengthy, is filled with "errors,
inconsistencies, data gaps and flawed logic" and that the DEIS,
and Crossroad Ventures, has failed to provide any alternatives to its
plans as required under State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA)
laws.
"Unless
the analyses in the DEIS are substantially improved and demonstrate
that the impacts of the project as proposed or a reasonable alternative
project have been accurately quantified using complete, consistent,
and accurate underlying data and fully documenting the measures through
which the impacts are mitigated, the Applicant has not discharged its
duties under SEQRA that all potential significant environmental impacts
have been adequately identified, analyzed and mitigated," the comments
state. "As such NYCDEP is not, and until such steps are completed
would not, be able to issue findings in support of the project or approve
permits pursuant to its independent regulatory authority over stormwater
discharges and wastewater treatment at the site. NYCDEP is concerned
that it would not be able to issue permits for any of the alternatives
that had been considered by the project's sponsor because our current
rules and regulations do not permit post-development loadings to exceed
pre-development levels."
Gitter's
presence at the social hour preceding the annual meeting was seen by
many as an attempt to win over support for what is now shaping up to
be his project's last gasps. He kibitzed with Alworth, Ward, and Gelber,
with various members of the CWC board he briefly served as an alternate
to in the late 1990s. Moreover, he huddled with Shandaken supervisor
Bob Cross, Jr. and Ulster County CWC representative Ward Todd, the former
Chairman of the Ulster County Legislature and Shandaken Republican boss
who owns land with wife Jane, a Shandaken councilwoman, adjacent to
Belleayre Resort projects.
Cross
later showed off a copy of the city's comments that, like similar copies
held by Ruzow and Gailes, had a specific reference to the MOA highlighted
with yellow magic marker.
"Among
other things, all parties to the MOA agreed to the principle that responsible
growth and development should be promoted in the NYCDEP watershed if
pursued in an environmentally responsible manner consistent with the
protection of water quality," the highlighted sections read. "Development
was to be encouraged in town centers with supporting infrastructure.
Growth was not envisioned as appropriate on steep slopes or at locations
outside of population centers on large tracts of undeveloped land with
mature forests."
Reporter
Jay Braman, Jr. of the Daily Freeman and Catskill Mountain News, which
covers the town of Middletown into which the proposed resort will spill,
said that he had gotten a call from Gitter on the morning before the
meeting bringing up the highlighted problems. There was talk that Ruzow
had called his fellow Coalition for Watershed Towns attorney Jeff Baker
about the clause, and to see whether the Coalition, still around for
pressuring the city on issues where a clear consensus of disfavor could
be found.
"I
just told the commissioner that we're going to have to have a meeting
to sit down and talk about some issues I've uncovered in the city's
comments," Cross said after first speaking with Ward, and then
in a closed door session with Middletown supervisor Len Utter. "I
have some serious questions about what they've written and what it says
about development in the Catskills. I'm also planning to talk to Pat
Meehan about all of this, as well as other town supervisors in the watershed
who might like to hear about what I've found."
Meehan
is the executive director of the Coalition of Watershed Towns, and was
not present at the meeting. Similarly, he did not answer repeated calls
from the press about the Gitter project all week.
CWC
President and Coalition founder Perry Shelton said Tuesday that although
Gitter had come to him and the CWC board on several occasions about
his project, there was nothing he could do.
"And
I don't think the Coalition is planning to do anything either since
this doesn't really involve any towns directly," Shelton added.
Several
other CWC boardmembers who still attended Coalition meetings likewise
noted that they didn't think the Coalition would take up Gitter's cause
because there was no concensus of support for the project, and actual
opposition to it from several towns.
"It's
too controversial," Shelton said.
"We're
all working with the city on projects," CWC Vice President Mike
Flaherty said. "Meehan's up to his ankles in a new sewer system-"
The
CWC's other vice president for economic development, Todd, did not speak
publicly at all during the annual meeting, or a subsequent monthly meeting
held Tuesday.
Other
talk on Tuesday focused on the release, earlier in the week, of a letter
from the influential Coalition to Save Belleayre to DEC Commissioner
Crotty asking that she not link the ski center in any way with Gitter's
project.
"The
pioneering ski center has been in existence as a state entity since
1949," Coalition to Save Belleayre founder and president Joe Kelly
wrote. "Its future is not and should not be linked to the issue
of the resort project any more than any other private project in the
Catskills or State of New York for that matter."
For
his part, Gitter refused comment to the press.
An
April 23 press release from his PR spokesperson, Fred Winters, was headlined
"City Agency Declares End To Further Development In Catskills In
Defiance Of Watershed Agreement; City DEP's Views On First Major Project
Under Agreement Threatens Era Of Upstate-Downstate Cooperation"
and spoke of city efforts to "derail" what Gitter had proposed
as an example of "environmentally-responsible development."
"The
DEP has effectively torn up the MOA and declared war on the people of
the Catskills," Gitter was quoted as saying. "By its actions
today, DEP threatens the future livelihoods and standard of living of
every working family in the region. We pledge to use every resource
available to us to convince the City to live up to its promise and reverse
the position they are now taking."
Ward,
affable and friendly, spoke with the CWC board members about ongoing
projects and patiently explained to Cross that its comments were directed
to the Gitter project and not all development in the Catskills. He later
said that it was unfortunate that he would have to play the role of
the "bad commissioner" who says no to Gitter's project, but
it just wasn't right for where it was being proposed at the center of
the Catskills.
Ward
added that the state, via the Department of Environmental Conservation
and the Governor's office, knew that his department's comments would
be strongly negative beforehand.
"It
means they won't have to play the heavy in this," he said, later
affirming that attempts by Gitter to speak directly with Mayor Michael
Bloomberg about his project may have backfired.
During
the meeting itself, both Ward and Gelber, as well as the entire CWC
board, were the recipient of numerous accolades and commendations. "We
are a partnership," Sullivan County representative Georgianne Lepke
said, pointing out the great help given the Catskills by the NYCDEP.
Later,
Gitter stood and addressed the board. After starting with his own accolades
about this "commendable program" he lamented how some projects
still managed to "fall between the cracks." But instead of
speaking about his resort plans, he brought up how Mary Beth and Devon
Mills, the new owners of the old Rudi's Restaurant, last known as Jake
Moon, were running into trouble getting septic permits from New York
City.
"Could
the CWC or Commissioner Ward ,oderate the severity of what these young
people are going through," Gitter asked, with characteristic rhetorical
flourish.
"We'll
look into that," mumbled CWC Executive Director Alan Rosa after
Gitter sat down, looking somewhat deflated after his attempt to rile
up emotions against the city.
Someone
mentioned, in the audience, how he'd forgotten to acknowledge having
sold the restaurant to the Mills for $185,000, the price lowered because
of septic problems.
Asked
what he'd thought of the DEP comments and statement about never permitting
his client's proposed resort project, Ruzow simply said "harsh,"
and turned around. After a moment he turned back around and spoke a
second time: "Unnecessarily harsh," he said.
A
similar question to Utter, the Middletown supervisor whose town will
also be effected by the life or death of Gitter's dream, was met with
a simpler response. He ran a finger across his throat.
"The
range of reasonable alternatives for this site cannot include a golf
course," the New York Times quoted city officials as saying in
a stern April 24 story on the city's comments. They then quoted Ruzow
stating, "The city is sending a very clear signal that there should
be no large project in the watershed."
"The
intent of the city's salvo here is to pursue a policy that there will
be no economic development in the Catskills," Gitter later told
the Daily Freeman. "This is an effort to depopulate the Catskills,"
he said.
"The
Belleayre Resort as currently proposed is unprecedented in scale not
just here in the Catskills, but throughout the entire northeastern United
States," said Alworth, countering Gitter's attempted attack on
New York City. "This project will inevitably have significant impacts
on environmental quality, community character and the overall quality
of life in the central Catskills."
"Instead
of 'smart growth' that can offer economic vitality while still safeguarding
the irreplaceable resources of the Catskill Mountains, the proposed
project is an example of ill-advised development that runs counter to
the region's long-term environmental and economic interests," added
Eric Goldstein of the NRDC. "The premise that the city does not
want to see economic development in the Catskills is ridiculous!"
Funders
for Gitter's project, as well as Crossroad Ventures' previous developments
at the Emerson Inn and Catskill Corners, now renamed Emerson Place,
have included Kenneth Pasternak, Emily Fisher and Richard Fisher. Pasternak
has since come under investigation from Securities and Exchange authorities
for irregularities involving his former Wall Street company, Knight
Trading. Richard Fisher, who recently funded the Frank Gehry-designed
building in his name, has long maintained a strong board presence in
the environmental world, as has his ex-wife, Emily.
The
next stage of the current review of Gitter's $250 million resort proposal,
which he claims has cost millions to get to this current stage, will
take place in the form of an "issues conference" to discuss
the parameters for further review and adjudication by the state DEC
set to take place in Maragaretville on May 25.
"Mr.
Gitter has no desire to speak right at this time," a last call
to Crossroad Ventures resulted in.
"It
is the determination of the Town of Shandaken Ethics Board Committee
that counsel person Jane S. Todd has not violated either article 18
of the general municipal law, or the Town of Shandaken code of ethics"
"That
says nothing", said Friends of Catskill Park chair Judy Wyman.
"It
says what their findings were," replied Cross.
Later
on, Cross said that he had been informed by the town's counsel that
the Ethics Committee proceedings appeared to be illegal under state
Open Meetings law, and would probably need to be reconvened. But he
stopped short of saying their report was invalid as a result.
"It's
an advisory opinion" Wyman said. "It doesn't hold up in any
court of law."
The
next issue to come up was a new possible resort-related conflict-of--interest
matter, this one concerning Cross.
"Since
you also told me your wife works down at Catskill Corners" (now
Emerson Place) said Mary Hermann, "I would also ask that you recuse
yourself, since your family personally benefits from the income."
Cross
acknowledged Hermann's request but made no public comment. However after
the meeting, he said that he had spoken to town counsel Paul Kellar
who told him, according to Cross, that his recusal wasn't necessary.
Called
for confirmation of that opinion Tuesday, Kellar stressed that ethics
determinations of this type are generally "a grey area." "People
have to earn a living" said Kellar, "and often bump up against
these issues, especially in small towns. I would really want to gather
all the facts."
By
way of explanation, Cross told reporters that "Crossroads and Emerson
Place are not one and the same thing." "It's not the
same people who run them," he said.
The
managing partner of both entities is Dean Gitter.
As
to the circumstances of his wife's employment, Cross explained
"They're the largest single employer in town, and she doesn't want
to drive back and forth to Kingston. She's new, she's not paid as much
as a lot of people, she has no more benefits than anyone else, and she's
still on probation. She got the job by answering an ad in the paper,
and she was hired through Naomi Umhey."
After
passing resolutions on several housekeeping issues, Supervisor Cross
introduced a resolution to overturn the current 4-votes required to
introduce late resolutions before the board. The measure failed to pass
on a 2-2 vote,
absent council member Todd, called out of town on family matters.
Councilman
Paul Van Blarcum next questioned Cross on the status of the town's draft
cell tower law, completed under the previous administration and still
awaiting the setting of a public hearing date.
"It's
something we should sit down and look at," said Cross. "I
think we want to look into establishing a committee."
Asia is a born musician, a continuous improviser
who's made his art his life since the late 1960s, when he first came
East from Chicago drawn by the wildly eclectic sounds of Miles David
and his famous guitar henchman, John Mclaughlin. Of course, that means
he's also enmeshed in all the pains and tribulations, the slings and
arrows such a creative life entails - from charges of egomania to
endless criticism about what he's playing, from leaping through the
countless hoops one must jump through to book enough gigs to pay the
musicians one wants to jam with to sometimes having to rack oneself
to find the last shreds of enthusiasm to keep playing until that audience
you've always known is out there finds you.
We catch up with Johnny Asia in his small Phoenicia apartment on a
recent evening as he runs scales and builds new ideas out of his patented
delay playing. The music fits the term he's come up with to define
his sound: baroque. And devoid of his usual collaborator, the local
saxophonist and keyboard improviser Gus Mancini, -- not to forget
a much larger world of bassists and drummers, violinists and woodwind
players who he's played with over the years - there's something starkly
beautiful and mesmerizing about the Asia sound.
He gets to talking about being a teen in New York in the early 1970s
and catching everyone from Davis and Weather Report, Ravi Shankar
and Yehudi Menuhin, Larry Coryell and Jimi Hendrix to the cutting
edge of the avante garde, Philip Glass and Steve Reich included, just
when he was young and fresh enough to absorb it all. Learning his
chops and sitting in with the greats. Getting his own jazz-rock sound
together and seeing the edges of fame and success come into view just
out of reach.
And then a tragedy hit his family via a beloved sister's suicide.
He headed back towards home, now shifted to Kentucky and an extended
family without any appreciation for music, let alone creative improvisation.
Johnny Asia speaks of years spent housepainting, sitting in with local
blues players and soul bands, and endless solo practicing. Honing
that sound.
Eventually, the toxicity of his day job stymied his health and a 15
year period of recovery was called for. Asia kept making trips back
East to New York and its vicinity, still sitting in with the greats,
exploring his sound. By the 1980s the move was permanent. He felt
called north to the Woodstock area, eventually settling across the
river in Rhinebeck. Started playing around, getting both accolades
and jealousy from what he jokingly refers to as "the conspiracy
of mediocrity" that he describes as being endemic to his work.
A love drew him away for half a decade to Connecticut where, true
to at least one strain of his luck, he caught a bad bout of Lyme disease
that he's still recovering from, five years later. But according to
the other strains, he just kept up his playing, his self-improvement
through music.
"I realized early on that this wasn't any road to happiness I
was on," Asia says, still playing in his apartment, the night
peepers joining him from outside his windows. "I knew this was
about other things."
Eventually, he felt called back to the Woodstock area, settling in
Phoenicia this time a few months after 9/11. He e-mailed some people
he knew in the area before making the actual move and had gigs waiting
for him when he arrived, guest appearances on local radio stations,
the usual rave reviews just waiting to be written once again.
Asia and Mancini created a group they call the Woodstock Quantum Ensemble,
subtitled "Music for the Highly Evolved," and started playing
at the Knitting Factory in New York, and such newer alternative spaces
as The Evergreen in Fleischmanns. Word got out, yet again, that something
new was getting plucked from the air via Asia's fingers-
And yet, caught on our recent visit, the music practically flowing
from him like a river out of the mountains, Asia expressed frustration.
He needed more gigs to up the quality of his playing and match the
needs of the collaborators who wanted to make his gigs. He needed
enough to cover the cost of strings and picks and chords and what-have-you
involved in his long twelve-hour days of endless practicing and experimentation,
seven days a week. Moreover, he wanted a sense of justification that
what he was doing had merit. That he was in fact hearing something,
as he'd heard it since the age of four, that was worthwhile spending
a lifetime following.
In other words, he asked that same question Hendrix asked himself
when living in Olive up a deep holler one summer, that John McLaughlin
asked himself while holed up for a few years outside of Mount Tremper,
or going even further back, that Thomas Cole and Asher Durand and
Washington Irving's Rip van Winkle and Cooper's Leatherstocking asked
themselves. What has brought me here? How can I keep on doing what
I do?
We talk about widening the vistas to find gigs farther afield, the
easier to afford the life here, where Johnny Asia finds such nourishment.
About somehow attracting some of the filmmaking talent in the area
to hook into his sound, or sidestepping the growing need for middlemen
agents that even the smallest local venues are now asking for, complete
with press packets and other expensive doo-dads instead of the simple
drive and talent and living ideal of a musical life Asia, like so
many still making it in the area, fairly breathes with each of his
oh-so-mortal breaths.
Through it all, Johnny Asia's guitar never stops. And gradually, the
music starts to speak for him.
For further information on Johnny Asia's music, or to book him for
a gig (or movie soundtrack), visit www. Or e-mail him at johnnyasia@mybizz.net.
Polling will take place from 2 PM to 9 PM. At approximately 9:30 p.m., the Onteora Board of Education will hold a Special Meeting to canvass the votes cast. The meeting will be held in the Cafeteria of the Onteora Middle-Senior High School, 4166 Route 28, Boiceville, at which point winners and results will be announced.
Registration is by May 11.
Polling places are as follows:
District # 1 Town of Shandaken and that part of Lexington (Greene County) already in the Onteora District. Polling Center: Phoenicia Elementary School, Phoenicia. District # 2 Town of Olive and that part of Marbletown already in the Onteora District. Polling Center: Bennett Elementary School, Boiceville. District # 3 Town of Woodstock. Polling Center: Woodstock Elementary School. District # 4 T own of Hurley. Polling Center: West Hurley Elementary School
Onteora administrators presented a revised plan for elementary consolidation at the school board's April 28 meeting, stating that all the students from the West Hurley attendance area would be able to fit in the Woodstock school along with current Woodstock students, while Phoenicia and Bennett students would remain at their respective schools. Several parents who addressed the school board were relieved to hear that their children would not have to move across the district but were concerned about issues of inadequate auditorium, gym, playground, and parking space at Woodstock, which would house 400 students, as opposed to this year's 281.
The Bennett and Phoenicia schools will have class sizes ranging from 17 to 24, with Phoenicia's classes tending to be smaller. Parents will be permitted to apply for variances to allow their children to attend a school other than their designated school. Variances will be considered based on class sizes, with decisions to be finalized in July. Students currently on forced variances from Bennett to Woodstock or West Hurley due to overcrowding 3 years ago, will be considered Woodstock students and will have to apply for variances to return to Bennett.
Tom Rosato
Tom Rosato, age 53, lives in Shandaken and works as supervisor of buildings and grounds for Ulster County BOCES, where he heads the maintenance and custodial departments and oversees construction projects. Two of his three children currently attend Onteora schools, and his wife teaches math at the high school. Rosato has been on the school board for almost four years and feels his familiarity with budget and contract cycles has provided invaluable insight for effective decision-making.
In fifteen years at BOCES, he says, "I've been in and around the educational environment, and I know what's needed to make education happen. My experience in facilities helped the district get through the Bennett renovation project and roofing projects, as well as issues with the heating plant at the high school. I was instrumental in creating the Facilities Committee, which I chair. We deal with issues that arise regularly in terms of facilities. We have created a document that explains everything about the facilities and their needs, to help the board make decisions on infrastructure."
When asked whether the budget risks defeat due to the anger of segments of the community over recent board decisions, Rosato replied, "Yes, of course. I hope it doesn't, but folks have interests that are very important to them. If they're not being accommodated, they may vote no. But the board has dealt with these difficult issues compassionately and, I believe, properly, with the entire district in mind. I understand why West Hurley parents are not happy, but when you look at what losses would mean at upper levels, you can see it would hamper students' ability to compete. I'm aware that we have a high per-student expenditure, but I've looked at it closely, and the areas to bring down are very small. We don't want to cut electives, academic intervention, sports programs. In a rural district, these are very important for kids."
Among the important tasks of the next few years will be ushering in the new superintendent. "We have to have a stable budget and a stable board so she can concentrate on educational programs. I hope we can keep the culture we've created on the board and with the administration, now that we have eliminated the narrow-minded self-interest of past school board members. We have a diverse group that works well together, and litigation has dropped off to zero. I get a good feeling from this board when we accomplish something. That's what makes it worthwhile."
His other goals include finding an educational use for the West Hurley building and using the Facilities Committee to help the newly formed Technology Committee upgrade computers and other technology throughout the district.
David Patterson
David Patterson, age 42, lives in West Hurley and is a sales representative for a Port Ewen-based communications products company. He has a college degree in criminal justice and calls himself "a very concerned parent of a large family" of seven children, five of whom are currently in district schools. At school board meetings over the last year and a half, he has criticized the administration, opposing the West Hurley closing and pointing out post-reorganization problems such as the inadequacy of remedial reading staff at Woodstock, a disparity that was corrected as a result of his complaints.
"In the ten years that I've lived here," Patterson says, "educational equity has not been occurring in the district in terms of resource allocation and functionality of buildings." While the recent decision to consolidate elementary schools is aimed at equalizing class sizes and redistributing resources, he says, "That will help on paper, as the Princeton Plan was supposed to work, but I'm skeptical. As a parent, I was able to show the board that the plans they had made did not meet the promises." One of his goals as a board member is to ensure that the transition does create equity among the elementary schools.
He finds that the board's recent decisions have divided the community. "It's Œus versus them' at every level, and that needs to be repaired immediately." He points out that board members tend to vote unanimously on every issue. "Two or three opinionated board members were against the West Hurley closing at first, but their strong beliefs changed so quickly." Dissatisfied teachers have told him that they are afraid to express opinions or criticisms and that they do not receive enough support from administrators. He doesn't feel the board's communication with the public is adequate, although it is slowly moving in the right direction.
Patterson believes the public's frustration will affect the budget vote. "People don't feel they have any strength, and this is the only way they can express themselves. A lot of people say defeating the budget will hurt kids, but the board hasn't worked on the budget except in a generic way. I went through the budget line items and found $1 million in cuts, not in programs or AP [Advanced Placement] courses or afterschool, just things like administration and transportation. There's no long-range planning. Every year, they put band-aids on the budget when what they need is major surgery.
"The bottom line is, the children are most important. But parents need to be more involved. The apathy in this district is just a shame. I promise to do what I think is right as a parent."
Meg Carey
Meg Carey, age 59, is a former teacher with a B.A. from Grinnell College and an M.A. from the Bank Street College of Education. She lives in the Town of Olive, and her two grown children attended Onteora schools, where she was active in the PTA and in site team shared decision-making, receiving the Jenkins Award in recognition of community service to children. She served on the board of the Woodstock Youth Theater and is now in her sixth year on the board of education.
She says that supporting the new superintendent will be a top priority, requiring a strong board that can continue to work well with administration. "The district is now in transition. We're making the best plan for consolidation of four elementary schools into three, on top of last year's reorganization, and this will continue for quite a while as we deal with declining enrollments and the need to do more on less money. Government keeps increasing its mandates, but we anticipate no additional state aid for years to come. The money issue is getting to be bigger and bigger, with no end in sight. This is all under the umbrella of how to support improvement of student achievement, which is always our focus."
Carey finds it is also important to "continue to work on perceiving ourselves as a 'K-through-twelve' district and not as five separate schools. The different schools tend to be competitive with each other. Shared decision-making brought parents of different schools together, and that was a big change. Consolidation takes us a step in the right direction so there will be consistency throughout the district that parents and students can expect."
Regarding the budget vote, she expresses hope that "when people step back and take a breath, they might be able to understand the questions of equity the board is dealing with, and that we have to look at the whole picture, not just with the elementary schools, but with the large-parcel issue too. I'm hoping people can direct their anger at the state and federal level, where we're not getting proper support. The board has been listening and taking time and trying to be fair. We don't do anything in secret. I hope reasonable people will be willing to support the budget. There are a lot of concerns about change, but many teachers and staff were energized by the reorganization last year and have risen to the challenge."
She is confident her experience will benefit the board. "It takes so long to figure out how to be an effective board member. I want to continue to offer my services. It's a very satisfying job."