Patricia Doxsey is reporting in the Daily Freeman U.S. Rep. Chris Gibson said Thu., Jan. 29, the recent arrest of New York Assembly Speaker Sheldon Speaker is another example of the “systemic, endemic corruption in our state.” Gibson made the comments during an appearance at the Ulster County Regional Chamber of Commerce's monthly breakfast meeting at the Best Western Plus in Kingston. The three-term Republican congressman said voters need to “demand significant changes” in state government, including the enactment of term limits. The Kinderhook Republican announced earlier this month he will leave the House at the end of 2016 and possibly run for statewide office two years later. The announcement led many to surmise he will run for governor, speculation Gibson did not dismiss Thursday. “It’s possible,” he said. “I am leaving my options open.” Read the full story in the Daily Freeman.

Scott Waldman at Capital New York reports that Andrew Cuomo has proposed increasing the $25 million state oil spill fund to $40 million. The oil train explosion that killed 47 people in Canada in 2013 cost more than $1 billion, but State Department of Environmental Conservation commissioner Joe Martens told a hearing in Albany Wed., Jan. 28 that the federal government pays for large accidents of that sort. This increase is slated for the more typical small oil train accidents that New York covers, he said. The $15 million would derive from higher fees on trains that transport oil through New York but do not sell it here. Riverkeeper staff attorney Michael Dulong told the hearing that when the fund was created more than 30 years ago it was worth about $100 million in today's dollars. See the full story in Capital New York.

Tobiah Black in The Columbia Paper reports that the current owner of a Route 23 tollhouse would like to donate the property to the town. Hillsdale historian Peter Cipkowski reports he was, “stunned to see so much original detail” preserved at the building, which was originally part of a turnpike from Hartford, CT, to Sheffield, MA, and Hudson. It is similar to the Columbia Turnpike-West Tollhouse in Greenport, according to the story. Highway Superintendent Richard Briggs and others, at a recent town meeting, remembered people living in the tollhouse around 20 years ago. Cipkowski asked the board, “to decide whether this is something [they] want to take on,” and told them that determining if the building is worth historic preservation could take from six months to three years. Cipkowski said that he had conferred with representatives of Historic Hillsdale, the Roeliff-Janssen Historical Society, the Austerlitz Historical Society, and the Greenport Historical Society about the tollhouse. Read the full story in The Columbia Paper.

Weather right now


[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="128"] Cairo: High 30F; low 0F.[/caption]

[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="125"] Catskill: High 32F; low 2F.[/caption]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

READ TEMPERATURE IN HUDSON: On thermometer in Studio A.

FAR LEFT: The temperature on the far left is from the Hawthorne Valley Farm Weather Page.
MIDDLE TEMP: Cairo from Weather Underground page.
FAR RIGHT: Catskill from Weather Underground page.

Local weather forecast
Today’s forecast is specific to Catskill, in Greene County:

The National Weather Service in Albany has issued Wind Chill Advisory from 6 p.m., Fri., Jan. 30, through 11 a.m., Sat., Jan. 31 for the Greater Capital Region, Mid-Hudson Valley and the Catskills. Dangerous wind chills, as low as 24 below, are expected. Temperatures are forecast to drop to zero or lower overnight Friday. Periods of snow have produced an inch or two of snow in areas overnight. While treated roads might be mostly wet, there could be patches of black ice. Secondary roads are likely to be snow covered and slippery. An additional inch or two of snow is expected to fall before the snow tapers to scattered snow showers by afternoon.

Today: Periods of snow showers before 3 p.m., then a slight chance of snow showers after 5 p.m. High near 32. Chance of precipitation is 80 percent. Total daytime snow accumulation of less than a half inch possible. Friday night, partly cloudy. Low around 4. Wind chill values as low as -13.

Forecast for the next three days:
Saturday: Sunny. High near 17. Wind chill values as low as -16. Saturday night, partly cloudy. Low around 10.
Sunday: Mostly cloudy. High near 27. Sunday night, a chance of snow. Cloudy. Low around 6.
Monday: A chance of snow. Mostly cloudy. High near 15. Monday night, partly cloudy. Low around -5.

Sunrise today: 7:09 a.m.
Sunset today: 5:07 p.m.
Length of the day: 9:57 hrs.

Public meetings
Today is the fifth Friday of the month.
WGXC is unaware of any recurring public meetings scheduled for today.

The day ahead on WGXC 90.7-FM
12:05 a.m.: Radio Stew: Bard Conservatory of Music Tune in recent Reality Radio and an interview with students from the Bard College Conservatory of Music in WGXC's Acra Studio at the Wave Farm Study Center. To celebrate the launch of Reality Radio, a four-month durational project spanning February to May 2015 featuring a continuous audio surveillance feed from the Bard College Percussion Studio headed by Sō Percussion, we have this special. Reality Radio positions those who move throughout the studio – students, professors, administrators, visitors, even maintenance crews – in the role of performer, with listening audiences as ever present observers, and is a co-presentation of Wave Farm, the Bard College Conservatory of Music, and the John Cage Trust. David Degge, Jon Collazo, and Petra Elek all perform and discuss their percussion work and their part in Reality Radio.
1 a.m.: Taran's Free Jazz Hour Okkyung Lee Episode 02 of 2015 of two-hour free jazz show that airs on eight European radio stations and Wave Farm Radio and WGXC 90.7-FM in the Hudson Valley, in New York, in the United States. Click on title to access the playlist.

6 a.m.: Background Briefing with Ian Masters Inside breaking international and national news. A radio program featuring international and national news, expert guests, policy makers and critics with analysis and insight on national security, foreign and domestic policy, political, cultural and social issues. This program goes far beyond the headlines and deep under the radar to bring forward truths unheard in the American media.
7 a.m.: WGXC Morning Show: Jen Metzger, Jessica Barry, David Degge, Jon Collazo, Petra Elek WGXC volunteer Sam Sebren was at “Taking Control of Our Energy Supply Through Community Choice Aggregation” Wed., Jan 28 at the Kingston City Hall, and recorded several speeches, that will air before "Democracy Now!" at 8 a.m. They include talks by Jen Metzger, Co-director, Citizens for Local Power, and Jessica Barry, Co-director, Citizens for Local Power. Plus, David Degge, Jon Collazo, and Petra Elek of the Bard College Conservatory of Music discuss their percussion work and their part in Reality Radio. Reality Radio is a four-month durational project spanning February to May 2015 featuring a continuous audio surveillance feed from the Bard College Percussion Studio headed by Sō Percussion, we have this special. Reality Radio positions those who move throughout the studio – students, professors, administrators, visitors, even maintenance crews – in the role of performer, with listening audiences as ever present observers, and is a co-presentation of Wave Farm, the Bard College Conservatory of Music, and the John Cage Trust. Also tune in local news, weather updates, public meeting listings, regional events, and more with Tom Roe live from WGXC Acra Studio at Wave Farm in Greene County.
8 a.m.: Democracy Now! hosted by Amy Goodman and Juan Gonzalez. National, daily, independent, award-winning news program providing audiences with access to people and perspectives rarely heard in the U.S. corporate-sponsored media.
9 a.m.: WGXC Morning Show continues.
4 p.m.: WGXC Afternoon Show
6 p.m.: WGXC Evening News
7 p.m.: Guest DJ: Quiana Lee An evening of R&B, soul and jazz with Hudson native Quiana Lee.  

More than 100 people attended the public forum, "Taking Control of Our Energy Supply Through Community Choice Aggregation" Wed., Jan 28 at the Kingston City Hall. The forum was presented by Citizens for Local Power and it was co-sponsored by Catskill Mountainkeeper and Frack Action. The featured speaker was Paul Fenn, Founder and President of California-based, Local Power, Inc. Fenn was the creator of Community Choice Aggregation, or CCA. CCA is a system which allows cities and counties to aggregate the buying power of individual customers within a defined jurisdiction in order to secure alternative energy supply contracts on a community-wide basis. Consumers not wishing to participate are permitted to opt-out. CCAs served nearly five percent of Americans in more than 1,300 municipalities in seven states in 2014. At the forum Wednesday, Fenn discussed how this community-based approach to energy procurement can help ramp up local production of renewable energy, reduce vulnerability to boom and bust fossil fuel prices, avoid expensive new grid investments and create local jobs and local ownership. In December, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo named CCA as one of five key energy initiatives under consideration for New York state. The Public Service Commission is currently accepting comments on the state's Reforming the Energy Vision, or REV, initiative. Citizens for Local Power co-director Jen Metzger spoke about REV, the need for CCA statewide, and provided brief background on her organization. Jessica Barry, also a co-director of Citizens for Local Power, offered an overview of how CCA works and introduced Paul Fenn. Ulster County Legislator Manna Jo Greene moderated the Q&A.Ulster County Legislator Manna Jo Greene moderated a question and answer session.  Information on CCA, local power and REV is available online at Citizens for Local Power [dot] com and Local Power [dot] com.

Audio (Recorded and produced by Sam Sebren.)
PLAY (5:33) Jen Metzger, Co-director, Citizens for Local Power. Introduction: REV, the need for CCA in New York state, brief background of Citizens for Local Power.
PLAY (3:55) Jessica Barry, Co-director, Citizens for Local Power. Overview of how CCA works and introduction of Paul Fenn.
PLAY (4:58) Paul Fenn, Founder and President, Local Power, Inc. The history of energy monopolies and the ties to municipalities, failed regulations, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo and CCA.
PLAY (3:44) Paul Fenn. The value of renewables versus coal and gas; preserving monopolies; U.S. energy policy versus other countries.
PLAY (6:06) Paul Fenn. Taking control of rates, how CCA collects data and then designs specific energy plans.
PLAY (37:06) full Paul Fenn presentation.
PLAY (2:14) Manna Jo Greene, Ulster Co. Legislature; Environmental Director, Clearwater. Question and answer period introduction; getting a plan that works.
PLAY (2;28) Q&A Excerpt #1. Question: What are the advantages of CCA over municipally owned power? Answer by Paul Fenn, Jen Metzger.
PLAY (7:44) Q&A Excerpt #2. Question: Where does the money to do this come from? Answer by Paul Fenn.
PLAY (1:11:20) Full Q&A.

Information on upcoming PSC public hearings on REV: allianceforagreeneconomy.org/content/reclaiming-energy-vision

Jim Planck is reporting in The Daily Mail Hunter officials are hoping to receive funding from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Community Development Block Grant program to help rehabilitate owner-occupied homes in the town. Following a recent public hearing, Town Board members gave the go-ahead to filing the grant application, which must occur by Feb. 27. The awards to homeowners would be income based for households at or below 80 percent of the median income for Greene County. The types of work covered by the grant must fall into one of three categories: Safety and health, weatherization or general utility and appearance. Read the full story in The Daily Mail.

Rick Karlin is reporting at Capitol Confidential WalletHub, which puts out a variety of economic measurements and surveys, is offering a look at the efficiency of U.S. schools. The website calculated a school's efficiency by measuring fourth and eighth grade test scores and pitting that data against the cost per-student. They made adjustments for poverty, median income, single parent families and families where English is not the primary language. Five of the 10 least-efficient school systems nationwide were located in New York, with Syracuse, New York, Buffalo, Yonkers and Rochester taking those low spots. The most efficient schools identified by the study were located in Florida, Michigan and Virginia. Read the full story at Capitol Confidential, a Times Union blog.

The Greenville Pioneer reports that town officials will meet with Mid-Hudson Cable officials this week about when town residents can expect promised extensions of cable lines. Last year, the company completed coverage of Red Mill Road, and has promised phase two on Cedar Lane. "Verizon will not replace the lines out there because they think everyone should go wireless," said Greenville Supervisor Paul Macko, explaining the need for cable service. "But the ironic thing is that there isn't cell service out there either." In all, Mid-Hudson Cable is supposed to add 11 miles of service in Greenville. Mid-Hudson Cable is also an underwriter on WGXC.

Scott Waldman reports in Capital New York that New York Governor Andrew Cuomo faces enormous economic pressure to approve several proposed natural gas pipelines. The two pipelines currently in question would move natural gas from Pennslvania to New England. Natural gas prices earlier this month were just over $1 in Pennsylvania and close to $8 in Boston, according to Jay Apt, executive director of the Electricity Industry Center at Carnegie Mellon University. New York's Department of Environmental Conservation must now consider whether to allow the 124-mile Constitution Pipeline along the I-88 corridor through Broome, Chenango, Delaware and Schoharie County and the Algonquin Pipeline -- 37.4 miles long New York, Connecticut and Massachusetts, most of which would be within or adjacent to existing pipelines. A third project, the Pilgrim Pipeline, is not nearly as far along in the approval process, and would cut through Albany, Greene, and Ulster counties. The pipelines are largely governed by federal law, but need the state's approval for water quality permits. "They also represent the next fight for the state's anti-fracking activists, who achieved a major victory last month with Cuomo's fracking ban, and now plan to focus much more intensely on the infrastructure of fracking that crosses New York," according to the article. Read the full story in Capital New York.

Weather right now


[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="128"] Cairo: High 32F; low 25F.[/caption]

[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="125"] Catskill: High 30F; low 25F.[/caption]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

READ TEMPERATURE IN HUDSON: On thermometer in Studio A.

FAR LEFT: The temperature on the far left is from the Hawthorne Valley Farm Weather Page.
MIDDLE TEMP: Cairo from Weather Underground page.
FAR RIGHT: Catskill from Weather Underground page.

Local weather forecast
Today’s forecast is specific to Catskill, in Greene County:

Today: Increasing clouds. High near 31. Wind chill values as low as -3. Thursday night, periods of snow. Low around 24. Chance of precipitation is 90 percent. New snow accumulation of 1 to 3 inches possible.

Forecast for the next three days:
Friday: A chance of snow showers. Mostly cloudy. High near 32. Friday night, partly cloudy. Low around 5. Wind chill values as low as -10.
Saturday: Sunny. High near 19. Saturday night, mostly clear. Low around 7.
Sunday: Partly sunny. High near 22. Sunday night, a chance of snow. Mostly cloudy. Low around 4.

Sunrise today: 7:10 a.m.
Sunset today: 5:06 p.m.
Length of the day: 9:55 hrs.

Public meetings
Today is the fifth Thursday of the month.
WGXC recommends 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 meeting, 1 p.m.; Finance Committee meeting, 1:30 p.m. at 401 State Street, Hudson (828-1527).

The day ahead on WGXC 90.7-FM
6 a.m.: Background Briefing with Ian Masters Inside breaking international and national news. A radio program featuring international and national news, expert guests, policy makers and critics with analysis and insight on national security, foreign and domestic policy, political, cultural and social issues. This program goes far beyond the headlines and deep under the radar to bring forward truths unheard in the American media.
7 a.m.: WGXC Morning Show Local news, weather, events, music and more. Live from the WGXC Hudson Studio. Hosted by Michelle Lewis.
8 a.m.: Democracy Now! hosted by Amy Goodman and Juan Gonzalez. National, daily, independent, award-winning news program providing audiences with access to people and perspectives rarely heard in the U.S. corporate-sponsored media.
9 a.m.: WGXC Morning Show continues.
10 a.m.: Michael Slate Show: 20150129 The re-establishment of U.S./Cuba relations, plus the Progies. The Progressive Film Awards.
3 p.m.: Radio Theatre: Reluctant Dragon Radio Theater Project's anthology series of dramas and comedies for radio. Produced at KSVR Studios at the radio station KSVR-FM in Mount Vernon, Washington. The actors are from the Skagit Radio Repertory Company. The producer is Joseph C McGuire. This week: "Reluctant Dragon," written by Kenneth Graham; adapted for radio by Sandra Hambleton. Kenneth Graham takes the story of Saint George and the Dragon adding a comic twist of making the dragon reluctant and lazy. A story for all ages. From Pacifica Radio.
4 p.m.: WGXC Afternoon Show
6 p.m.: WGXC Evening News

Audrey Matott is reporting in The Daily Mail the Cairo-Durham school district's Long-Range Planning Committee presented its goals and strategies for the district at a recent Board of Education meeting. Acting Superintendent Anthony Taibi (TIE-ee-bee), third grade teacher Tim Fisher and Cairo town councilman Doug Ostrander (OH-strander) presented the Strategic Plan for Excellence on behalf of the 23 members of the committee. The group met in five sessions over the past two months and identified goals for the district, and the strategies to be implemented to meet those goals. Priorities identified for the schools included: the importance of student well-being, strong administrative leadership, a rigorous and vertically aligned curriculum, community involvement and transparent and ongoing communication. The committee also recognized the geographical, educational, financial and socioeconomic challenges faced by the district. As part of the strategic planning process, the committee also redeveloped the district’s mission and vision statements. A step-by-step guide to achieving the goals identified in the Strategic Plan will now be developed. Community members interested in taking part in developing the operating plan are encouraged to contact the district clerk. The full text of the Strategic Plan for Excellence is available online at Cairo-Durham [dot] org. Read the full story in The Daily Mail.

The Daily Freeman is reporting unemployment rates in Mid-Hudson counties were much lower in Dec. 2014 than in the same month a year earlier, the state Department of Labor reported Tue., Jan. 27. Columbia County had the region’s lowest jobless rate last month, at 4.5 percent, compared to 5.3 percent in December 2013. In Greene Co., the unemployment rate was 6 percent during the same period, compared to 7.2 percent in 2013. The statewide unemployment rate last month was 5.5 percent. In December 2013, it was 6.4 percent. The New York county with the lowest unemployment rate last month was Tompkins (in the Ithaca area), at 3.5 percent. The highest county jobless rate was in the Bronx, at 9.3 percent. Read the full story in the Daily Freeman.

Closings and delays for Wed., Jan. 28:

Berkshire Union Free School District | Delayed one hour. Jr/Sr high schools on time. "The Bridge" (Columbia-Greene Partnership Academy) delayed one hour. Exams will still be given.
Catskill Central School District | Delayed two hours. No morning pre-K. The Regents exam scheduled for 8 a.m. will begin at 9:30 a.m.
Germantown Central School District | Delayed two hours.
Hudson City School District | Delayed one hour. No morning pre-K. No breakfast. Exams given. Regents given.
Questar III Catskill Academy | Delayed two hours.
Questar III Columbia-Green Education Center | Open; buses running. Regents will be given beginning at 9:30 a.m.


Source: Times Union and Fox 23 Albany

Matthew Hamilton is reporting at Capitol Confidential Assembly Democrats emerged from more than 10 hours of deliberations Tuesday night to announce that the speaker’s post will be vacant Mon., Feb. 2. The members did not say if Sheldon Silver intends to resign. As he left the Capitol just before 8 p.m., Silver would not say if he plans offer a resignation as speaker or if members will vote him out. He said only that he will not hinder the succession process. Asked directly if he was resigning, the speaker said: “I will be a member of this house. I was elected by my constituents. I do not intend to resign my seat in this house.” Even if Silver, who was arrested on federal charges last week, remains in the chamber, he will not be speaker after the session Monday. Following the meeting, Majority Leader Joe Morelle announced there will be a vacancy in the office of the speaker on Feb. 2. He said the election date for the new speaker is Feb. 10. Morelle will serve as acting speaker until the vote. Silver was elected to the chamber in 1976, and picked by his colleagues in 1994 to assume the speaker’s chair after then-Speaker Saul Weprin suffered a serious stroke. Silver was arrested last week and charged with taking $4 million in bribes and kickbacks in exchange for pushing policy favorable to real estate developers and securing state grants for a New York City doctor’s research. Read the full story at Capitol Confidential, a Times Union blog.

PLAY Morelle's announcement (2:43)



PLAY Silver as he left the Capitol, Tuesday (1:27). (Audio is faint.)

The Greenville Pioneer reports that the first of three public hearings considering a $5.4 million new station for the Greenville Volunteer Fire Company will be held at 7 p.m. Jan. 28 at the current Greenville Firehouse. Additional meetings about the proposed 15,907-square-foot building that would be put on 14 acres on State Route 81 near County Route 41 will be held Feb. 8 and March 15. Fire commissioners say the current building, from the 1930s, used to be an outdoor equipment dealership, and is not large enough in many ways, and not compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act. There will be a March 24 town referendum on the project, which would take out a 30-year bond with 3.75 percent interest. That means an average resident with an assessment of $125,000 would have a $102.50 tax bill increase. Greenville commissioners went against the advice of their attorney and voted to allow absentee ballots in the referendum, as commissioner Eric Bear said some taxpayers are "snowbirds" who won't return from the south before March 24. See the full story in the Greenville Pioneer.

Michael Ryan in The Daily Mail reports that Economic Development, Tourism and Planning Department Director Warren Hart spoke in Lexington recently about the plan for constructing as many as 16 cell towers throughout Greene County. “This isn't something that's going to happen this week or next week or anytime in the near future,” Lexington town supervisor Dixie Baldrey said. “And even when it does happen, a lot of communities will benefit, including ours, but the topography of the area could still be a problem in many places." The county used a $900,000 Homeland Security grant to install a new cell tower for emergency services on Windham Mountain last year, in Jewett. Lexington's broadband committee, the story reports, hopes Lexington can find a way to connect with an existing tower on Hunter Mountain, to provide coverage into the Spruceton Valley. Read the full story in The Daily Mail.

Weather right now


[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="128"] Cairo: High 25F; low 6F.[/caption]

[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="125"] Catskill: High 26F; low 4F.[/caption]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

READ TEMPERATURE IN HUDSON: On thermometer in Studio A.

FAR LEFT: The temperature on the far left is from the Hawthorne Valley Farm Weather Page.
MIDDLE TEMP: Cairo from Weather Underground page.
FAR RIGHT: Catskill from Weather Underground page.

Local weather forecast
Today’s forecast is specific to Catskill, in Greene County:

Today: Mostly sunny. High near 24. Wind chill values as low as -1. Wednesday night, mostly clear. Low around -2.

Forecast for the next three days:
Thursday: Increasing clouds. High near 31. Wind chill values as low as -1. Thursday night, periods of snow. Low around 24.
Friday: A chance of snow showers, mainly before 2 p.m. Mostly cloudy. High near 32. Friday night, partly cloudy. Low around 4.
Saturday: Sunny. High near 18. Saturday night, partly cloudy. Low around 2.

Sunrise today: 7:11 a.m.
Sunset today: 5:05 p.m.
Length of the day: 9:53 hrs.

Public meetings
Today is the fourth Wednesday of the month.
WGXC recommends calling ahead to confirm time and location.
(All numbers are in the 518 area code unless otherwise noted.)

ATHENS Village Board meeting, 7 p.m. at Community Center, 2 First St., Athens (945-1551).
CAIRO Town Board meeting, 7 p.m. at Town Hall, 512 Main St., Cairo (622-3120).
CLAVERACK Zoning Board of Appeals public hearing on the Ginsberg project, 7:30 p.m. at Town Hall, 91 Church St., Mellenville (672-7911).
COPAKE Hamlet Revitalization Task Force meeting, 7 p.m. at Town Hall, 230 Mountain View Rd., Copake (329-1234).
HUDSON Common Council Public Works Committee meeting, 5:30 p.m.; Legal Committee meeting, 6 p.m. at City Hall, 520 Warren Street, Hudson (828-1030).
HUDSON Development Corporation meeting, 12 p.m. (noon) at 1 North Front St., Hudson (751-1044).
KINDERHOOK Historical Committee meeting, 7 p.m., Town Hall, 4 Church St, Niverville (784-2233).
PHILMONT Village Board Workshop meeting, 7 p.m., Village Hall, 124 Main St., Philmont (672-7032).

The day ahead on WGXC 90.7-FM
1 a.m.: Vital Weekly: Nickolas Mohanna Episode 966 of weekly experimental new music show, by folks formerly behind Staalplaat. Click on title for playlist 966.
5 a.m.: The RAIN Report: Joe Eisenberg Joe Eisenberg/N0NEB (CQ) passes along some basics for new kit-builders.

6 a.m.: Background Briefing with Ian Masters Inside breaking international and national news. A radio program featuring international and national news, expert guests, policy makers and critics with analysis and insight on national security, foreign and domestic policy, political, cultural and social issues. This program goes far beyond the headlines and deep under the radar to bring forward truths unheard in the American media.
7 a.m.: WGXC Morning Show
8 a.m.: Democracy Now! hosted by Amy Goodman and Juan Gonzalez. National, daily, independent, award-winning news program providing audiences with access to people and perspectives rarely heard in the U.S. corporate-sponsored media.
9 a.m.: WGXC Morning Show continues.
4 p.m.: WGXC Afternoon Show
6 p.m.: WGXC Evening News

The Daily Freeman is reporting Assembly member Didi Barrett is the first Mid-Hudson Democrat to publicly call for Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver to step down. Silver was arrested Thu., Jan. 22, and faces charges that he took nearly $4 million in payoffs and kickbacks. In a statement released late Mon., Jan. 26, Barrett represents the southern half of Columbia County, and a portion of Dutchess County. She said the news of Silver's arrest saddened her. Barrett was careful to note he was entitled to the presumption of innocence and due process of law, but went on to state it was time for Silver to relinquish his leadership position.

"I stand with many of my colleagues in the belief that the time has come for Speaker Silver to step down as speaker, so that this house may move forward with the work we were elected to do free from the ethical cloud currently hanging over our deliberations. Furthermore, it is not acceptable to have an anointed successor. We should have an open and inclusive discussion about who is best suited to lead this body moving forward."

The Democratic conference has been debating Silver's fate behind closed doors in Albany and is expected to resume those discussions Tue., Jan. 27. A 17-member bloc of Democrats from the Hudson Valley and Long Island is said to agree that Silver should step down. Silver said Monday he expected to be exonerated. He offered to temporarily cede power to top lawmakers to give him time to fight the charges. Read the full story in the Daily Freeman.

William J. Kemble is reporting in the Daily Freeman the town supervisor in Wawarsing, Ulster Co., wants part of an unused annex at the Eastern Correctional Facility turned into a distribution center for medical marijuana. Leonard Distel said such a facility would create jobs in the community. He also said the location, off U.S. Route 209 in the hamlet of Napanoch, has advantages over distribution centers that would be in more populated areas. Under the law, patients with one of 10 diseases will be able to obtain non-smokeable versions of the drug. Formal proposals for distribution sites, along with the $10,000 application fee, are being accepted by the state Department of Health. Applicants must provide detailed plans for infrastructure and operations. The licenses would last for two years.

School closings and/or delays for Tue., Jan. 27:


Berkshire Union Free School District | Jr./Sr. High School delayed. Columbia-Greene Partnership Academy closed.
Cairo-Durham Central School District | Closed. Regents postponed: Global 8 a.m., Fri., Jan. 30; Integrated Algebra 12 p.m. (noon), Fri., Jan. 30. District offices closed.
Catskill Central School District | Closed. Regents exams postponed: Global 8 a.m., Thu., Jan. 29; Integrated Algebra 12 p.m. (noon), Thu., Jan. 29; high school mid-terms in class.
Chatham Central School District | Closed. Regents postponed: Global 8 a.m., Fri., Jan. 30; Integrated Algebra 12 p.m. (noon), Fri., Jan. 30. Mid-terms will be rescheduled.
Chatham Kids Club | Closed.
Columbia County Solid Waste stations at Chatham and Livingston | Closed.
COARC Adult Transportation | Open. Staff report. No transportation.
Columbia Christian Academy | Closed.
Columbia Greene Partnership Academy ("The Bridge") | Closed. Follow the Hudson City testing schedule.
Coxsackie-Athens Central School District | Closed. Regents exams will be Thursday.
Early Childhood Learning Center | Closed.
Germantown Central School District | Closed. All offices are closed.
Grapeville Christian School | Closed.
Greene County Nutrition Program | Closed. No transportation. No meals served to either homebound or congregate.
Greene County YMCA | Delayed two hours. No morning classes. Branch opens at 7 a.m.
Greenville Central School District | Closed.
Hawthorne Valley School | Closed.
Hudson City School District | Closed. See website (hudsoncityschooldistrict [dot] com) for exam schedule.
Hudson Day Care Center | Closed.
Hunter-Tannersville Central School District | Closed.
Ichabod Crane Central School District | Closed. Revised Regents and mid-term schedule at ichabodcrane [dot] org.
KidZone preschool | Closed. No morning preschool; no afternoon classes.
Mountain Road School | Closed.
Mrs. Puddle Duck's Childcare | Delayed 2.5 hours. Open 9:30 a.m.
New Lebanon Central School District | Closed. Regents postponed.
O.K. Kids, Inc. | Closed.
Questar III Catskill Academy | Closed.
Questar III Columbia-Green Education Center | Closed. No New Visions classes. Regents will be administered Friday.
Taconic Hills Central School District | Closed.
Twin County Recovery Services, Inc. | Closed. Classes canceled.
Windham-Ashland-Jewett Central School District | Closed. Regents postponed.

Sources: Times Union and Fox 23 Albany.