John Mason is reporting in the Register-Star the Livingston Town Board will hold a public hearing September 8, on a proposed town wide mining ban. The proposed moratorium is a response to public concern over the application of Red Wing Sand & Gravel to mine approximately 14 acres of land on county Route 19, between county Route 8 and Hapeman Road. George Osborne, a local resident, told the town board last week 100 people met the previous Sunday and the consensus among the group was to oppose and prevent the company from gaining permission to mine. Osborne said, “People have fliers out, they’ve spoken to attorneys, major opposition is in the works.” Martin Hoffman, a member of the Twin Lakes Improvement Association, said he was glad the moratorium would be considered, but said he was afraid it would apply only to new applications, not to pending ones, like Red Wing’s. Hoffman said there are four or five gravel mines currently in operation in Livingston, but they are “mom and pop operations,” he said. Those companies mine maybe 100 yards a day, but Red Wing, would take out 1,000 yards a day, Hoffman said. And while the town says Red Wing's application applies to only 14.3 acres, according to the company's land use plan, the area to be mined is 114 acres. Red Wing President Frank Doherty will discuss the project at a meeting of the Columbia County Planning Board tonight (Tue., Aug. 16) at 401 State St. in Hudson. Read the full story in the Register-Star.

Jeanette Wolfberg is reporting in the Columbia Paper the city of Hudson has hired a cross guard for the John L. Edwards Primary School. The new crossing guard will assist student pedestrians crossing the three-way intersection at State, Fourth and Caroll streets in Hudson. The district has been without school crossing services for nearly five years. In 2011, then Hudson Chief of Police Ellis Richardson made the decision to terminate the service due to budgetary constraints. Crossing guards in Hudson, as in most locations, are civilian employees of the local police department. Hudson Board of Education member David Kisselburgh said the new crossing guard will be on duty in the morning and afternoon. School starts Wed., Sept. 7. Read the full story in The Columbia Paper.

The Daily Freeman is reporting the Greene County Public Health Department has announced its schedule of flu clinics in September. The clinics are offered in conjunction with the county Department of Human Services. The clinics will take place Sept. 26 at the Rivertown Senior Center in Athens; Sept. 27 at the Acra Senior Nutrition Site; Sept. 28 at the town of Coxsackie Senior Center; and Sept. 29 at the Jewett Senior Nutrition Site. A fifth clinic will be held on a date to be determined at the Washington Irving Senior Center in Catskill. All clinics will be open from 9:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. Information is available by calling the Health Department at (518) 719-3600.

Matthew Hamilton is reporting at Capitol Confidential 19th Congressional District candidate, Democrat Zephyr Teachout on Mon., Aug. 15, challenged hedge fund managers Paul Singer and Robert Mercer to a debate. Singer and Mercer help fund a super PAC that supports Teachout's Republican rival John Faso. Teachout said in a statement, “The voters deserve to hear directly from the billionaires backing John Faso about what they expect to get from him in Congress....These are people probably trying to buy power, and voters should know who they are and what they stand for.” In a video, Teachout called out Singer specifically, asking him to debate on offshore jobs, Common Core and hydraulic fracturing. In response, the Faso campaign called Teachout a carpetbagger and accused the Fordham law professor of grandstanding. Faso said in a statement, “She has no grasp of the everyday concerns of the people of this district....Rather than discussing jobs and the upstate economy, she attempts to distract attention from her radical views.” Mercer contributed $500,000 to the PAC; Singer donated $600,000 to the group created to keep the 19th Congressional District seat in the Republican column. Kinderhook Republican Chris Gibson currently holds the seat; he is not seeking re-election. Read the full story at Capitol Confidential, a Times Union blog.

Presidential politics are busy in New York these days: A new Sienna Poll released Aug. 15 shows 42 percent of voters favor Democrat Hillary Clinton; 34 percent, want Republican Donald Trump to lead the nation; nine percent, like Libertarian Gary Johnson; and six percent favor the Green Party's Jill Stein. Despite those results, the state's Conservative Party will endorse Trump on Sept. 7, The New York Daily News reported. "I'm sure there may be some committeemen who will abstain or vote against him, but I believe he's going to overwhelmingly get the Conservative Party support," said state party chairman Michael Long. But Trump's lack of popularity in New York may be breaking up the bond between New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo and New York State Senate Republicans. The New York Post reports that Gov. Andrew Cuomo may publicly back a Democratic Senate takeover. Over the past few years, Cuomo seems to prefer having a few conservative Democrats side with Republicans to give them a Senate voting majority, but a Clinton landslide may bring a Democrat-controlled New York State Senate this fall.

If you want to vote this fall, the time to register is running out. The voter registration for New York's September 13, state and local primary elections of Aug. 19, and Oct. 14 for the November election. Anyone eligible to vote can go to www.ny.gov/services/register-vote to register to vote. Follow this link on the WGXC Newsroom for more information: http://www.elections.ny.gov/VotingDeadlines.html

Roger Hannigan Gilson reports in the Register-Star that two of three bids for a section of the Harlem Valley Rail Trail came within the budget Aug. 10, which means the sections may be complete later this fall. The Harlem Valley Rail Trail will be a 42-mile path for cycling and walking from Wassaic Station in Dutchess County to Chatham in Columbia County. Currently, three sections remain unconnected: from Chatham to Hillsdale; between Millerton Station and under Mountain Road; and from Black County Road to Orphan Farm Road in Copake. The 1.5-mile latter section will be comepleted with the new bids from A. Colarusso & Son of Hudson and Casale Construction of Wyantsville. In May, U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-NY announced that he was supporting a U.S. Department of Transportation grant for the other two unfinished sections of the trail. "There is still some fine tuning to do, but we expect to award the bid this coming week," Dick Hermans, chairman of the Harlem Valley Rail Trail Association, said. Read the full story in the Register-Star.

Local weather forecast:

The National Weather Service in Albany has issued a Hazardous Weather Outlook for east central New York and western Massachusetts for Tue., Aug. 16. There is a slight risk for severe thunderstorms across the region Tuesday afternoon into early evening. The main threat will be the potential for damaging wind gusts in excess of 58 mph. Isolated tornadoes will also be possible. The storms will contain lightning and heavy rainfall. Flash flooding is possible.

Today: Scattered showers, with thunderstorms also possible after 9 a.m. some of the storms could produce gusty winds and heavy rain. Mostly cloudy. High near 84. Tuesday night, scattered showers and thunderstorms. Some of the storms could produce gusty winds and heavy rain. Mostly cloudy. Low around 69.

FORECAST FOR THE NEXT TWO DAYS
WEDNESDAY: Isolated showers before 2 p.m. Partly sunny. High near 82. Wednesday night, partly cloudy. Low around 61.
THURSDAY: Isolated showers, then scattered showers and thunderstorms after 11 a.m. Mostly sunny. High near 85. Thursday night, partly cloudy. Low around 64.

Sunrise today: 6:05 a.m.
Sunset today: 7:53 p.m.

LENGTH OF THE DAY: 13:48 hrs.


PUBLIC MEETINGS

Today is the third Tuesday of the month.
WGXC suggests calling ahead to confirm time and location.
All numbers are in the 518 area code unless otherwise noted.

COLUMBIA County Board of Supervisors .1 [point one] Committee, 3 p.m.; Health and Medical Committee meeting, 4 p.m. at 401 State St., Hudson (828-1527).
COLUMBIA County Planning Board, 6:30 p.m. at 401 State Street, First Floor Conference Room, Hudson (828-2825).
DURHAM Town Board meeting, 7:30 p.m. at Town Building, 7309 State Rt. 81, East Durham (239-8260).
GREENE County Legislature Tourism Advisory Committee cancelled (719-3290).
HUDSON Common Council Finance Committee meeting, 5:30 p.m.; Formal Common Council meeting, 7 p.m. at City Hall, 520 Warren Street, Hudson (828-1030).
HUNTER Town Board meeting, 7 p.m. at Town Hall, 5748 Route 23A, Tannersville (589-6150).
PHILMONT Planning Board meeting, 7 p.m., Philmont Village Hall, 124 Main St., Philmont (672-7032).
TAGHKANIC Planning Board workshop meeting, 7 p.m. at Town Hall, Route 82, West Taghkanic (851-7638).
VALATIE Village Board meeting (rescheduled from Apr. 12), Village Hall, 3211 Church St., Valatie (758-9806).

Legislators in the United States are on a long vacation, so there has not been much to report lately on the Amateur Radio Parity Act, H.R. 1301. Just before the break, on July 13, the bill, which would make it easier for amateur radio users to raise antennae around the country, received a unanimous favorable report from members of the U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee, the ARRL reports. The bill was amended before the vote, making it more palatable to the homeowners association that was opposing the measure. “The amendment guarantees that even in deed-restricted communities, Amateur Radio operators are able to use an effective outdoor antenna,” Rep Greg Walden, an amateur radio operator licensced W7EQI (R-OR), said. “Without an effective antenna Amateur Radio operators are severely limited, so this amendment ensures that amateurs are free to pursue their passion wherever they live.” The bill failed in the last Congressional session, but has proceeded farther this time. Lawmakers will be back in Washington D.C. in September.

DOWNLOAD or play the audio version of the local news update for Sat., Aug. 15 (3:03). (Produced by Alanna Medlock.)