Jeanette Wolfberg is reporting in The Columbia Paper with the start of the new school year the Hudson City School District has seen an increase in the number of young students from Central and South America enrolled in the city schools. The newest students are in addition to those who registered for kindergarten later than expected. “At least 15” students for whom English is a new language registered in the district during a two-and-a-half week period this month, according to April Prestipino, coordinator of school improvement, during a recent board of education meeting. Most of the new students have been enrolled in kindergarten through 4th grade. The new arrivals will not affect staffing decisions for either regular instruction or English language learning. Superintendent Maria Suttmeier said the district employs nine teachers of English as a new language and has the flexibility to add a tenth. There are currently 130 students attending kindergarten in the Hudson district, a 13 percent decrease in enrollment over the past two years. Read the full story in The Columbia Paper.

Larry Rulison is reporting in the Times Union a new area code has now been chosen to accommodate what is said to be an unprecedented demand for 518 numbers. About a year from now, phone companies will begin issuing telephone numbers in the 838 area code to new customers in the 17-county Capital Region. The state Public Service Commission approved the use of a second area code just last week after several months of debate over the plan. "We needed to create a new area code because of strong and robust demand for telecommunication services," PSC chair Audrey Zibelman said. Existing 518 numbers will not change. Once two area codes are in use within the region, everyone will have to dial 10 digits for local calls. Read the full story in the Times Union.

Emilia Teasdale reports in The Columbia Paper that construction work on Woodbridge Avenue should be done by the end of October, with a new sidewalk still to come. Department of Public Works Superintendent Phil Genovese said there will be a double yellow “no passing” line painted on the street, as well as parking spots. The Woodbridge Avenue work between Kinderhook Street and the CSX railroad crossing passes the Chatham Middle School and local library. “You did a great job on that road,” Mayor Tom Curran told Genovese at a town meeting last week. Read the full story in The Columbia Paper.

Daily Kos reports that the only polls of the 19th Congressional District race so far have come from the candidates themselves. Republican John Faso released a poll a few weeks ago from McLaughlin & Associates that gave him a 46-41 lead over Democrat Zephyr Teachout to replace Republican Chris Gibson (R-Kinderhook). Teachout and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee released a poll Sept. 20 showing the Democrat leading Faso 47-42. The DCCC poll also has Hillary Clinton leading Donald Trump by three points in the district. Barack Obama carried this area 52-46 in 2012. Read the full story at Daily Kos.

William J. Kemble reports in The Daily Freeman that the Saugerties Board of Education met behind closed doors Sept. 15 in an illegal meeting the public was not allowed to attend. “We met in [a conference] room ... for about four hours on a Thursday night and had some cold pizza and warm soda and we discussed procedures, how we’re going to operate as a board, what we can do, what we can’t do, and looked at goal setting,” Board President Robert Thomann said. Superintendent Seth Turner said the retreat included district staff. He said the board will hold a second illegal meeting next month. “We’re going to get a facilitator in, and we’ll plan out a special meeting of the Board of Education with district administration and combine ... goals for district, which hasn’t been done in quite a while,” he said. Kristin O’Neill, assistant director of the state Committee on Open Government, said the board should not meet together out of the public’s view. “Using the term ‘retreat’ and allowing the school board or any public body to have a get-together outside the public meeting ... [for] team-building exercises, that type of thing — that doesn’t not have to be done in a public meeting,” O’Neill said. “But planning their goals for the year for the school district — clearly those are conversations that should be had in public.” Read the full story in The Daily Freeman.

William J. Kemble reports in The Daily Freeman that the Dutchess County Transportation Council meets Sept. 21 about a plan to improve traffic safety on State Route 9G from County Route 78 to State Route 199 in Tivoli. “Six fatal crashes have occurred in the study area since 2009 and improving safety along the study corridors is of utmost importance,” the council's study says. “The stated goal of the CMP is to provide a safer environment for people driving, walking, bicycling, and using transit.” From 2009 to 2013 there were 212 vehicular accidents on Route 9G, 16 on county Route 103, and 21 on county Route 78/Broadway in Tivoli. The meeting will be held at 6 p.m. in the Tivoli Town Hall at 7340 South Broadway/State Route 9. Read the full story in The Daily Freeman.

Sept. 17 pre-screening event at the Crandall Theatre in Chatham for the movie “Thank You For Your Service” with a panel discussion including: Congressman Chris Gibson; U.S. Army Colonel Eric J. Hesse, NYS Office of Veterans Affairs; U.S. Army Lt. Colonel William W. Lecates, NYS Division of Military and Naval Affairs; Tom Donahue, movie director; IIan Aboleda, movie producer. Recorded and uploaded by Dan Udell.

About the film: "Thank You for Your Service interweaves the stories of four Iraq War Veterans with interviews of top military and civilian leaders, including Defense Secretary Robert Gates, Admiral Mike Mullen, Generals David Petraeus and Loree Sutton, Nicholas Kristof, Dexter Filkins, Senator Patty Murray, Mayor Rudy Giuliani and Colonel Lawrence Wilkerson. The documentary examines why the military was not better prepared for the impact of combat in Afghanistan and Iraq on U.S. service members, the lessons forgotten from past wars and the need for wide-scale reform to prevent the loss of a generation of brave men and women."

Local weather forecast:

Today: Sunny. High near 81. Wednesday night, patchy fog after 5 a.m. Otherwise, mostly clear. Low around 54.

FORECAST FOR THE NEXT TWO DAYS
THURSDAY: Sunny. High near 80. Wednesday night, patchy fog until 5 a.m. Otherwise, mostly clear. Low around 52.
FRIDAY: A slight chance of showers, then a chance of showers and thunderstorms after noon. Partly sunny. High near 79. Friday night, a chance of showers. Mostly cloudy. Low around 52.

Sunrise today: 6:43 a.m.
Sunset today: 6:52 p.m.

LENGTH OF THE DAY: 12:09 hrs.

PUBLIC MEETINGS

Today is the third Wednesday of the month.
WGXC suggests calling ahead to confirm time and location.
All numbers are in the 518 area code unless otherwise noted.
CATSKILL Board of Education meeting, 6 p.m. at high school, 341 Main St., Catskill (943-4696).
CATSKILL Town Board Committee meeting, 6:30 p.m. at Town Hall, 439 Main St., Catskill (943-2141).
COLUMBIA COUNTY Local Emergency Planning Committee, 9 a.m.; Board of Supervisors Human Services Committee meeting, 5 p.m.; both at County Office Building, 401 State Street, First Floor, Hudson (828-1527).
GREENE COUNTY Legislature public hearing on Local Law #1 of 2016, Mortgage Recording Tax extension, 6:25 pm.; regular meeting, 6:30 p.m., at County Building, 411 Main St., Catskill (719-3270).
GREENE COUNTY Planning Board meeting, 6:30 p.m. in Room 427, County Building, 411 Main St., Catskill (719-3270).
HUDSON Zoning Board of Appeals meeting (tentative), 6 p.m. at City Hall, 520 Warren St., Hudson (828-1030).
NEW LEBANON Board of Education meeting, 7 p.m. at junior-senior high school, 14665 NY-22, New Lebanon (794-7600).
STUYVESANT Zoning Revision Committee meeting, 7 p.m. at Town Hall, 5 Sunset Dr., Stuyvesant (758-6248).
TACONIC HILLS Board of Education meeting, 6:30 p.m. at high school, 73 County Route 11A, Craryville (325-0390).

Bill Mahoney in Politico New York reports that a Siena College Research Institute poll of likely voters released Sept. 20 finds Democrat Hillary Clinton leading Republican Donald Trump 51-30, with eight percent for Libertarian Gary Johnson and three percent for the Green Party's Jill Stein. Trump gained support from an August poll among voters in the New York City suburbs, and among young people. Clinton gained among low-income voters and African-Americans. Trump is now fourth among African-Americans with one percent support. U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer, a Democrat, leads Republican challenger Wendy Long 69 percent to 23 percent, according to Sienna. Read the full story in Politico New York.

DOWNLOAD or play the audio version of the local news headlines for Tue., Sept. 20 (8:46). (Produced by Philip Grant.)