Fire levels garden shed/workshop at Camphill
An early-morning fire destroyed a three-bay garden shed on Camphill Village Road at Camphill Village Sunday, February 13, Diane Valden reports in The Columbia Paper. Camphill Village is a 600-acre residential community in Copake for people with developmental disabilities.

Fifth litter of Cat'n Around felines set for creation
The Catskill Chamber of Commerce held a gathering on February 13 where artists and sponsors got together to make plans for the fifth annual Cat’n Around Catskill public art project. 52 sponsors picked from 73 designs. The cats go up again for Memorial Day.

Millionaires tax’ to be topic of debate Feb. 14
Should the super-rich continue to pay a bit more in state taxes or not? That's the talk today in Albany legislative chambers... whether to cut half the state budget gap in one fell swoop or not.

School transportation requests due by April 1
A reminder: parents who plan to send their children to private or parochial schools in 2011-12 need to file transportation requests is April 1.

Valentine's Day kind to local businesses
The Register-Star notes that the past weekend was big for chocolate, flower and amorous gift purchases. Wonder why?

The National Weather Service predicts, a chance for the kiss of showers, mainly after noon. Mostly cloudy, with an amorous high near 45. Southwest wind between 10 and 17 mph. Chance of precipitation is 30 percent. New rainfall amounts of less than a tenth of an inch possible. Tonight, windy with the embrace of snow flurries and snow showers possible. Partly cloudy later. Low 14F. Winds WNW will be between 20 and 30 mph and could occasionally gust over 40 mph.

Town meetings tonight
TOWN OF HILLSDALE The Planning Board of the Town of Hillsdale holds a public hearing at 7:30 p.m. at the Town Hall, Hillsdale, NY, to consider Ilya Bykov's proposed two-lot subdivision at 211 Mitchell St.
HUDSON SCHOOL BOARD Hudson City School District Board of Education Special Meeting at 7 p.m. in M.C. Smith Elementary School cafeteria.
VILLAGE OF PHILMONT A public hearing presentation on the construction of a proposed new DPW garage at Philmont Village Hall, 124 Main St. 518-672-7032.
GREENE COUNTY LEGISLATURE holds Buildings & Grounds, Conservation, Public Safety, Highway, Government Operations, and Finmance committee meetings at 6:00 PM, along with GOP and Democratic Caucus gatherings tonight.

Astronomical bodies

TIDES Hudson: High, 11:04 a.m./Low, 6:25 p.m.
SUNRISE/SUNSET 6:53 a.m./5:26 p.m.
MOONRISE/MOONSET 1:19 p.m./4:45 a.m. Tuesday

Tune in today
WGXC MORNING SHOW Norman Keyser hosts, with reports from Philmont, Rensselearville, Hudson, Ireland, Big Indian, and other towns. 6-8 a.m.

Birthdays
FEBRUARY 14
Frederick Douglass, Murray the K, Michael Bloomberg, and Tim Buckley.

Food costs continue to inch upwards
Wondering why those grocery bills have been so hard to keep in line with your budget? Mid-Hudson News Network reports that dairy and beverage cost hikes are offsetting slight drops elsewhere, according to the Ulster County Consumer Fraud Bureau survey for the week ending January 28.

Freehold Civil Service Air Patrol flying high
The Daily Mail has a piece about the Civil Air Patrol Vanguard Composite Squadron located in Freehold, who held a benefit dinner at the Quarry Steakhouse on Feb. 12, and how they maintain old-style air force-like training in old WW2 cockpits. Cool.

Heavy snowfall creates slippery sidewalk debate
Who should shovel sidewalks, the municipalities we pay taxes to or we the people? The idea of efficiency stretched to the reality of sharing resources to buy a good village snowblower in Kinderhook, where the inconsistencies of local walking became a real issue last week.

Selkirk man arrested on weapons charge
The Times Union has a blotter item, with photo, about a man of color pulled over for undisclosed reasons in Albany and then busted for pot, as well as a loaded 9mm handgun with hollow point rounds in the chamber of the gun and the magazine.

Gas prices stay steady in Albany area
The Albany Business Journal reports that a gallon of gas was selling for an average price of $3.345 in the Capitol Region on Feb. 11, up slightly from $3.343 a gallon, a week ago, and $3.282 a month ago, a lot more than $2.829 a gallon a year ago, but at a slower rate of rising than we've gotten used to this winter.

Claverack town board changes meeting days
They now get together the second Thursday of every month, rather than the first Wednesday. Why? The Register-Star doesn't say, but it may have to do with the loss of weekly newspapers throughout the region.

The National Weather Service says today will have possible on and off snow flurries with variably cloudy skies. High 42F. Winds SSW at 15 to 25 mph. Tonight will be cloudy. Low 34F. Winds SSW at 10 to 20 mph. Expect scattered showers tomorrow. Rain, that is.

Astronomical bodies

TIDES Hudson: High, 9:53 a.m./Low, 5:32 p.m.
SUNRISE/SUNSET 6:54 a.m./5:24 p.m.
MOONRISE/MOONSET 12:16 a.m./3:58 a.m. Monday

Birthdays
FEBRUARY 13 Thomas Robert Malthus, Grant Wood, Stockard Channing, and Peter Gabriel.

Today on WGXC
The Score Film score show from Margo Pelletier and Lisa Thomas. 11 a.m.
The Jackie Thomas Show Music and more. Noon-2 p.m.
Mark Read Show Alex Malmude also hosts this music and more show. 5-7 p.m.
The Irish Show Cairo's Tony Fallon plays music and reports scores from Ireland. 7-9 p.m.

[caption id="" align="alignright" width="200" caption="The abandoned Stewart's building, from the Philmont Beautification website."][/caption]WGXC volunteer Town Recorder Tanya Blue reports last Tuesday Feb. 8, an organizing committee in Philmont met at the town hall to keep the enthusiasm for the proposed Philmont Co-Op going. Judging from the edited excerpt of a recording of the meeting made by Blue, there is plenty of enthusiasm. Leader Elizabeth Angello proposed that herself, Ed Fertik, Skip Speed, Jeffrey French, and Jim Cashen, Sr., should make up the interim board of the co-op, which was approved. The co-op is moving into the space in Main St. that Stewart's recently abandoned. The group holds a full public meeting today, Sunday, Feb. 13, at 2:30 p.m. at the Philmont Town Hall, and they plan another there March 22. Blue will post a full recording of today's meeting soon on the WGXC website. Click here to hear an edited three-minute recording of last Tuesday's committee meeting, or copy and pate the following url:
http://www.wgxc.org/media/uploaded_files/2011/02/Edited_PhilmontCoOpmtg_20110208_20110213_0234.mp3

WGXC Town Recorder Sam Sebren reports from the WGXC aired a live broadcast of the SnowFlow festival at the Full Moon Resort Sat. Feb. 12 in Big Indian, in Ulster County, in the middle of the Catskill park. The event celebrated water, with artist Matt Bua creating a snow house warm enough for him to sleep in for two nights, and others skiing down Belleayre Mountain with no-fracking signs, and all sorts of talks about the Catskills' water supply. Saturday night's broadcast was run by WGXC Town Recorder Sam Sebren, and included performances from Kingston's legendary Pauline Oliveros; Tianna Kennedy and Hannah Marcus; and Bard professor Miguel Frasconi and and former Mercury Rev member Suzanne Thorpe. Frascone and Thorpe literally played with water, with Frascone's poured into glasses of different amounts, and Thorpe playing a mixture of snow and Pop Rocks in some type of instrument. Click here to listen to a recording of Kennedy and Marcus opening up the show. Click here to listen to Thorpe and Frascone perform. WGXC Town Recorder Sam Sebren also made lots of other recordings of snow, ice, water, and people talking about all those things. Those recordings will be posted in the coming days.

[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="200" caption="Matthew Shipp"][/caption]Matthew Shipp, who may be the jazz world's best pianist, is releasing a new double CD, "Art of the Improviser," recorded in Troy April 1, 2010 at The Arts Center of the Capital Region in conjunction with WGXC collaborators The Sanctuary for Independent Media. The first CD of two was recorded there, with drummer Whit Dickey and bassist Michael Bisio, and includes Billy Strayhorn's "Take the A Train" and four Shipp originals. The second CD was recorded at (Le) Poisson Rouge in Manhattan. Tune in WGXC to hear tracks from this CD in heavy rotation.

Ann Forbes Cooper will host "Between the Lines" on WGXC-FM soon, and recorded an interview with Rita Carver of Dragonfly Performing Arts in Cairo about their production of "A Midsummer's Night Dream" this weekend and next. Click here to listen to an mp3 recording of Cooper's interview with Carver, or copy and paste the following url into your computer's media player:
http://www.wgxc.org/media/uploaded_files/2011/02/BetweentheLines_interview_RitaCarverDragonfly.mp3

Tune in to this audio Town Recording airing at 7:30 a.m. Mon. Feb. 14 on WGXC Online Radio.

One Big Table, the latest book by legendary food writer Molly O'Neill of Rensselaerville, once known for her weekly New York Times Magazine column and New York Cookbook, is taking off since being rolled out in November as "the nation’s community cookbook." The work is the result of O'Neill's journey of more than 500,000 miles across the U.S.—during which she conducted over 5,000 oral history–style interviews and consumed untold calories—to discover why we eat what we eat. As part of the ongoing effort to gather and preserve American recipes and food stories, O'Neill and a team of friends and colleagues are now building One Big Table Across America, a series of large and small events that celebrate American home cooking, support local agriculture, and prove that community begins when people gather around a table to eat, drink, talk, laugh, think, and dream. Check out the writer talking about what she does here, and visit her website here. Local events will be announced soon.

[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="200" caption="A recent Catskill Central School District graduation ceremony, as seen on the district website."][/caption]Talk about the new approach to education... The Daily Mail reports that the Catskill Central School District has started development of its 2011-12 budget, and is beginning from the bottom up, with a draft presented by CSD Superintendent of Schools Dr. Kathleen Farrell this week that reflects only programs and services mandated by the state. Board members were told that the factors for determining potential cuts included five criteria: Is the program mandated? How many students are impacted? Were the students and parents promised the program? What level of savings is realized if the item is eliminated? Does the program assist students to improve academically? It was noted that this year’s budget is $36,699,599, and that a mandated services only budget for next year would be $28,018,116, a reduction of $8,681,483. Other savings include $305,347 for no interscholastic sports, $83,600 for no extra-curricular activities, and $76,643 for no after-school buses. As presented, the figures, which Farrel said were "where the BOE felt it best to begin," eliminate most of the arts and music and business electives, reduced advanced science and math course offerings, gets rid of all AP classes, cuts extra-curricular activities and sports, drops healthcare to one nurse for the district, cuts out kindergarten and pre-K classes, and increases the length of distance students must walk to school. Farrell added that the Board of Education wants input from the community, and will accordingly host two community forums, from 6-8 p.m., on Tuesday, March 1 and Monday, March 14 at Catskill Middle School auditorium.

[caption id="" align="alignright" width="200" caption="Senator Kisten Gillibrand"][/caption]U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand and her husband Jonathan have purchased a home in Brunswick Hills in Rensselaer County, her spokeswoman confirmed Friday in a story run by the Times Union on February 12. The home will be they and their two sons' primary residence when they are in the Capital Region and had been on the market since June 24, 2010, when it was originally listed at $384,000. According to Capital Region Multiple Listing Service, Gillibrand closed on the "mid-century modern in established neighborhood," featuring floor-to-ceiling windows with scenic views near the Troy Country Club on 2.6-acres including a greenhouse and gardens, for $335,000 on Feb. 9. In December, the Gillibrands sold their home in Greenport, overlooking the Hudson River, for $1.3 million to Richard Stengel, managing editor of Time Magazine. In between, the Emma Willard graduate and her family lived at her family's home in Albany.

When the story first arose, it looked like an anomaly, a typical situation where human error gets the better of a situation. But given the way we look at government these days, and crime-stopping as a key component of our society, it seems the pulled indictment if a Columbia County man in what had appeared to be a cut and dry shooting case has expanded, with the Register-Star reporting on February 12 that Assistant District Attorney John Hillman has resigned his position with the Columbia County District Attorney’s Office as a result of what happened when Terrance Robinson’s indictment had to be pulled earlier this week as he was about to go to trial in connection to a shooting in Hudson last March. Robinson had been indicted on second-degree assault, a class D felony, and second-degree criminal possession of a weapon, a class C felony, in relation to the shooting of 26-year-old Jayson Williams, who was shot in the leg during an argument on Columbia Street in Hudson March 9 of last year. On February 9, Robinson was set to go to trial in Columbia County Court in Hudson when two witnesses' testimony went wary, with revelations that Hillman had known before the original grand jury proceedings in the case last summer that the witnesses had allegedly lied to police about not being able to identify Robinson, and that he had discussions with them concerning whether they should identify the defendant in the grand jury proceedings. This, the judge in the case said, uncovered potential problems with the integrity of the grand jury proceedings and possible violations concerning the prosecution failing to notify the defense of these issues. This, in turn, led to the District Attorney’s Office pulling the indictment, which now cannot be brought to trial again. Thursday Hillman left his position with the agency, according to the District Attorney’s Office. "It is not known whether ethics complaints will be brought against the former ADA," the story concludes, noting that Robinson is still facing prison time for selling crack to an undercover sheriff’s deputy in 2009, for which he is scheduled to be sentenced on March 29. Got all that?

Greene County resident Stephen Kirwan of the Cairo hamlet of Purling, whose house burned down last winter, was introduced as the $122 million winner of the Jan. 22 Powerball drawing sold at Clothespin Laundry in Catskill at a midday ceremony in Albany on February 11. The Daily Freeman reports that Kirwan and his wife Elizabeth chose the lump-sum payment option for his winnings, rather than 30 payments spread out over 29 years, according to the Lottery Division. That means his prize actually totals $61.2 million and will be reduced to $40.4 million after taxes are withheld. Kirwan was a New York City firefighter for 24 years before moving to Greene County and is working as a skin care product maker at Stiefel Laboratories in Oak Hill. Kirwan said he has no specific plans for his winnings but knows he will use the money to help his family, and probably take his daughter Christine, 25, and son Stephen, 26, on a cruise. He added that he has no plans to move out of Greene County, though he added he and his wife may spend winters elsewhere.

Supervisors continue studying admin post The Register-Star reports on speeches to the Columbia County Board of Supervisors at their February 9 meeting by former Greene County Administrator Dan Frank and former Ulster County Legislative Chairman Gerald Benjamin, who helped put together their new county charter from his position as dean at SUNY New Paltz, about the benefits of setting up a county administrator's post. Still a ways to go, though...

Prattsville man admits to sexual misconduct A 43 year old man admits to having sexual relations with an "under 11 year old" girl on several occasions at a Shandaken Motel. Now an Ulster County court is looking at sentencing him up to 12 years in prison and five years of post-release supervision as a level 3 sex offender.

Drivers face a tougher call The Times Union has a piece about the new laws going into effect next week that add two points to one's license every time you get convicted of driving while jabbering on that cell phone... pushing your insurance rates up, too. Yikes.

“Excellent year” for Central Hudson Central Hudson Gas and Electric Corporation earnings rose by 84 cents per share, prompting hosanahs from their chairman, according to a Mid Hudson News Network story that listed accomplishments as including the restoration of electrical service after big storms and greater service reliability. The only wrinkle... the renewable energy side of things isn't all that profitable.

Local aid for heat may take hit The Berkshire Eagle has a piece that extrapolates what will happen in our chilly region should cuts in heating aid being talked about in Washington take effect. Seems that those cuts combined with sharp rises in demand could represent a 60 percent loss in heating aid that many rely on.

Goddess Worshipers and Tax Authorities Clash in an Upstate Town Peter Applebome of the New York Times has a piece on the Palenville-based case of the Town of Catskill refusing to accept federal tax exemption status for a pagan group it says shouldn't get religious status. It's a good summary of a case we've been following ourselves for some time now.

Pulver's Glass will be rebuilt The Register-Star continues the saga of the Hudson business whose roof collapsed with a story about how volunteer help and local business aid has already seen work start at the century-old garage.

The National Weather Service says today will see scattered flurries and snow showers. High 37F. Winds WSW at 15 to 25 mph. Chance of snow 30%. Tonight, some clouds. Low 18F. Winds W at 10 to 20 mph.

Astronomical bodies

TIDES Hudson: High, 8:50 a.m./Low, 4:36 p.m.
SUNRISE/SUNSET 6:55 a.m./5:23 p.m.
MOONRISE/MOONSET 11:22 a.m./3:23 a.m. Sunday

Birthdays
FEBRUARY 12
Charles Darwin, Abraham Lincoln, Ray Manzarak, and Bill Laswell.

A second skier this season not wearing a helmet died Friday Feb. 11 on Windham Mountain. Joan Sabatini, 69, of Yardly, Pa., was pronounced dead from extensive head injuries at Columbia Memorial Hospital in Hudson, according to WXXA. She reportedly veered off the more advanced "Wedgie" ski trail and struck a tree, said State Police. "We don't currently know the reason for her fall, or whether it was the result of an underlying medical condition," Windham Mountain president Tim Woods said in a statement. "Either way, we're devastated by this tragedy, and our entire staff grieves with her family and friends." A 17-year-old Long Island woman died on the mountain Jan. 16.

[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="200" caption="The Brick Tavern at the corner of routes 66 and 9H in Claverack, as seen in the 19th century."][/caption]A combination of neglect and the recent accumulation of ice and snow weight forced the roof of the two-centuries-old building that gives the Claverack hamlet of Brick Tavern its name to cave in last weekend. The Register-Star has a story up on the double-chimney, two-story structure that was an important 19th-century stopping place at the intersection of Routes 66 and 9H but had fallen into disuse in recent decades. They note that the chimneys have fallen as well this season. The building is owned by Stuart Kinne, owner of Columbia Tractor, which is located on the same site. Estimates put the structure's date of building at 1800, when it replaced an earlier inn. Although David Lee and John Mason's story adds that there are questions about the history, with some placing its origins to a later decade. “Oh, that hurts,” Ruth Piwonka, Kinderhook town and village historian and co-author of “A Visible Heritage: Columbia County in Art and Architecture," is quote as saying, pointing out rumors that Thomas Jefferson and James Madison may have stayed in the tavern. Kinne has declined to comment to the press about the building, which local historians are now saying may be destined for complete demolition.

The Daily Mail has a story about the effects of cuts to the New York State Council on the Arts locally with a number of key political figures weighing in on their thoughts about how far you cut budgets before the pain becomes too intense to maintain the current quality of life in our rural communities. The story was penned in reaction to this past week's Arts Days activities in Albany, where representatives from arts organizations around the state pleaded their case before legislators. “We’re talking about parity,” said Kay Stamer, executive director of the Greene County Council on the Arts. “A 10 percent cut to the state arts council for grants — which is aid to localities — is not in line with other agencies.” Instead of the full $3.5 million reduction, Stamer and her group of arts advocates asked to restore $2.8 million of grant funding. The proposed budget, she adds, represents a $10 million reduction from a decade ago and brings funding back to 1995 levels, when NYSCA received $31.8 million for local arts grants.


Continued...

The effect of continuous declines in funding, said Norma Munn, chairman of the New York City Arts Coalition, will result in “brain drain” across the state. Assemblyman Pete Lopez, R-Schoharie, said he appreciated the concern and desire to preserve the arts but noted that the state is going through a critical transition. Lopez said the Decentralization grants program, which awards funds to local artists around the state, was important for local organizations, and asked Stamer to frame her request and pass it along to her state lawmakers and the governor. Stamer, who directs a full-time staff of two and three part-time staffers (including this reporter's wife), said a 10 percent cut could be devastating.

[caption id="" align="alignright" width="200" caption="European starlings were introduced into the United States in the 1800s and are considered an exotic, invasive species because they compete with indigenous bird species for food and shelter. The USDA kills about 100,000 of them a year when asked to by farmers."][/caption]The Daily Freeman has a story about birds falling out of the sky in the Columbia County Town of Kinderhook... and the startling discovery that the birds, all European starlings, were killed as part of a U.S. Department of Agriculture program to eradicate bird flocks that threaten dairy farms. According to Carol Bannerman, a spokeswoman for the federal agency, birds in such cases are fed a pesticide-laced bird seed and die within the confines of the farm or in other open-space areas. “In this case, it does appear this dairy was in relative close proximity to a small town,” Bannerman said. “It appears some of the birds did go into that town, settled into the trees there and died.” Bannerman added that European starlings are a serious threat to dairy farmers because they can devour large amounts of seed put out for the cattle, and noted that her department had determined about 2,500 starlings had descended on a dairy farm in the Kinderhook area this winter when they were called in. She declined to identify the farm. In addition to eating seed meant for the cattle, she said, the birds leave behind large amounts of excrement that can carry diseases, including salmonella, that can be passed on to the cattle. The pesticide approved for eradication is approved by the FDA and paid for by farmers who seek its application. Once the birds have eaten the pesticide-laced seed, she said, it takes about three hours to three days for them to die. “We regret any sort of concern that some people may have experienced,” the federal official said, adding that the resultant bird carcasses pose no threat to animals that might feed or come in contact with the bodies.

[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="200" caption="The Rev. Gary Mercure was found guilty of raping two boys in a Pittsfield trial on Feb. 10. Photo from Berkshire Eagle."][/caption]The Berkshire Eagle and Times Union have front page stories on the final act of the much-watched trial of Gary Mercure, the former New York Catholic priest who could now spend the rest of his life in prison after being found guilty for raping two altar boys in the Berkshires. It took less than two hours for a Berkshire Superior Court jury to convict the 62-year-old priest on three counts of forcible child rape and one count of indecent assault and battery on a child younger than 14 in separate crimes committed by Mercure in 1986 and 1989, when he raped altar boys from his former Catholic church in Queensbury, N.Y., during day trips to the Berkshires. And while the Times Union focused on audience reactions of tears, the Pittsfield-based paper from the city where the trial took place focused on the unflinching attitude of the fallen priest as he was led away in handcuffs. In previous accounts, reports focused as much on the dismissal of a juror, with journalism background, caught tweeting about the trial.