The Eastwick Press Newspaper

Eastern Rensselaer County's Community Newspaper

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Demo Day at HVCC

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On Tuesday, June 14, Hudson Valley Community College’s (HVCC) Gene F. Haas Center for Advanced Manufacturing Skills (CAMS) hosted a Haas Demo Day event to educate incoming high school students and members of the community about the future of American manufacturing. The event included remarks from industry and local leaders, tours of the center led by nationally-recognized technical instructors and machine demonstrations. Prospective students can learn about the college’s Advanced Manufacturing Technology (AOS) program and facilities, connect with local manufacturing employers and meet with faculty, advisors and admissions counselors.

Several local school districts and the Board of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES) were the recipients of Gene Haas Foundation scholarship funding, which provides financial assistance for students interested in manufacturing-based careers. [Read more…] about Demo Day at HVCC

Grafton Town Council Highlights

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by Chris Tergliafera
Grafton is looking for someone who can maintain its cemeteries and keep them in presentable condition. The matter will be discussed further at the upcoming workshop meeting, as there are many details that still need to be worked out.

Highway Garage Overhead Doors
The $26,000 bid by Diamond Overhead Doors to replace the highway garage overhead doors was approved. The current doors are roughly 50 years old and don’t close properly, which makes heating the garage difficult and costly. It will take roughly three months to get the materials, and the funds for the project will come from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). [Read more…] about Grafton Town Council Highlights

Pushback After Stefanik Meet and Greet

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by Doug La Rocque
Representative Elise Stefanik, whose 21st Congressional District will include a vast portion of Rensselaer County starting in 2023, held a meet and greet at the Brunswick Community Center on Tuesday, May 31 that was quite civil inside, but replete with about 30 protesters outside the building. Ms. Stefanik is a strong supporter of former President Donald Trump and has repeatedly criticized the January 6 Insurrection Public Hearings currently taking place in Washington, D.C. as a “witch hunt.” 

These protesters were eventually locked out of the event, because as Brunswick Town Supervisor Phil Herrington told the June 9 Town Council meeting, they became “disruptive” with one individual “attempting to intimidate” those wishing to attend the meet and greet. He described the affair as a “private event” with the standard $150 rental fee paid in advance. Mr. Herrington added if those who did not agree with the Congresswoman just simply wanted to attend without protest, they would have been welcome. [Read more…] about Pushback After Stefanik Meet and Greet

Naturae Court Case Nears End

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by Doug La Rocque
For over a year the Town of Hoosick has been involved with complaints by neighbors about both an odor and appearance problems at the Naturae LLC facility on NYS Route 67 in North Hoosick. The Town began legal proceedings to shut the operation down, citing a lack of compliance on the part of the owners. The court action was delayed, however, because of the pandemic.

After the Monday, June 13 meeting, Town Attorney Jonathan Schopf tells The Eastwick Press, a tentative disposition of the case has been reached, but the details cannot be released until that disposition has been approved by Town Court. Mr. Schopf says he and Codes Enforcement Officer Lloyd Moses met onsite with the ownership and their legal representation and were able to hammer out the proposed agreement. [Read more…] about Naturae Court Case Nears End

Process to Replace Former Police Chief Ashe Beginning

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by Doug La Rocque
Former Hoosick Falls Village Police Chief Bob Ashe was suspended in December of last year after it was revealed he was under investigation by the NYS Police as part of a ballot-fraud allegation. Chief Ashe resigned his post on Friday, May 13 and three days later pled guilty to a misconduct charge in Village Court. Since that time, Officer Paul Aleksonis has been Officer in Charge running the day to day operations. Following the Tuesday, June 14 meeting of the Board of Trustees, The Eastwick Press spoke with Mayor Rob Allen about the status of the replacement efforts. He told us the Board has been having discussions about it, and is ready to move forward with the search and/or any other options that might be brought to the table. At the meeting, Trustee Kevin O’Malley disclosed that revisions to Civil Service Law dictate any new Police Chief must be a full-time appointment (Chief Ashe was considered part-time). The Trustees also discussed looking into obtaining sample contracts that might be used for any replacement candidate.

Resignations
At the meeting, the Trustees accepted the resignations of four part-time officers from the Police Department, those being [Read more…] about Process to Replace Former Police Chief Ashe Beginning

Esme’s Stories: A Magical Journey

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Make-A-Wish Art Exhibition

by Amy Modesti
Since 1987, Make-A-Wish Northeast New York has granted more than 2,000 wishes to children fighting illnesses throughout the local area. These wishes aim to bring hope and joy to the child, their family and those involved in its fulfillment. 

Saturday, May 7, the first of its kind Make-A-Wish art exhibition was fulfilled at The Arts Center of the Capital Region for 11-year-old Troy resident Esme Savoie. Savoie, a storyteller, fights intractable epilepsy and other health challenges that inhibit her ability to speak, walk and eat. Using only an eye gaze as a means of communication, it took several years for Savoie to communicate what she wanted for her wish.  [Read more…] about Esme’s Stories: A Magical Journey

More Clarity on Proposed Town Code Changes in Brunswick

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by Doug La Rocque
It was more of what was not on the agenda that made news at the Thursday, June 2 Brunswick Planning Board meeting than what was on it. In particular, Planning Board Attorney Andy Gilchrist outlined some of the proposed changes to Town code in relation to multi-family dwellings and where they could be located.

Currently a number of locally zoned parcels have what is called an overlay attached to them. That means the restrictions or permitted uses for that zoned area can be altered if there is, say, an agricultural overlay as well. Anything allowed in the overlaid district would also permitted. These overlays, while well intended, have on occasion created some controversy, most recently involving the [Read more…] about More Clarity on Proposed Town Code Changes in Brunswick

Reimagine Plan Will Modernize and Improve County Government

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Submitted by the Office of County Executive Steve McLaughlin
Rensselaer County will be undertaking an ambitious plan to improve County facilities, expand important County services and broaden access for the public to County government, County Executive Steve McLaughlin announced.

The Reimagine Rensselaer County project will modernize and strengthen County services at all levels. Funds for the project come from the surplus generated by the County the past four years.

“This is a major step forward for Rensselaer County, and will ensure a solid platform of facilities and services for future generations. This is an investment in our operations and the future viability of County services and government and how we serve the public,” said McLaughlin.

The resolution for the Reimagine Rensselaer County project has been introduced to the County Legislature, which may take up the resolution at the June 14 meeting. The Reimagine Rensselaer County expansion and improvement effort would utilize $26.8 million. [Read more…] about Reimagine Plan Will Modernize and Improve County Government

Ban Lifted on Poultry Shows

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New York State Agriculture Commissioner Richard A. Ball has announced the end of the bans on live poultry shows, exhibitions, auctions, sales, meets and swaps in New York State. The Department had previously issued the bans on March 25 and April 14 as highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) spread across the United States. The decision to lift the ban comes as cases decrease nationwide, including in New York State, which has not had a detection of HPAI in nearly two months. Additionally, [Read more…] about Ban Lifted on Poultry Shows