December 30, 2011

Schodack Planning Board

Planning
11 Jan 12:
Notice is hereby given that a public hearing will be held by Rensselaer County Industrial Development Agency at 10:00 a.m. at the Schodack Town Hall in connection with an application by Dollar Tree Distribution, Inc. that the Agency consider undertaking a project (the "Project") for the benefit of the Company. You can read details of Dollar Tree's application, here

New Year's Eve Ice Skating

The Empire State Plaza ice rink is reopening on New Year’s Eve at 11 a.m. Figure skating demonstrations will take place on opening day and skaters can rent skates for free. 
Free hot chocolate will also be provided.

A note from the Superintendent ~

I am looking forward to catching up with everyone at the January 11th CBAT meeting as we begin to develop our 2012 -2013 budget. 

A letter to the Schodack Board

Date: Thursday, December 29, 2011, 5:55 PM
 Dear Schodack Board Members,
    
    I hope you all had a quiet,  peaceful, safe and enjoyable holiday  season.   I wish that I could say that I did,  however with the proposed plan of Dollar Tree building a  storage facility in my backyard (albeit the size of Yankee  Stadium), I've been a bit stressed.

December 28, 2011

Dollar Tree competition is one some residents don't want to win

SCHODACK--The land near the intersection of Columbia Turnpike and Route 50 (WNYT meant Route 150) doesn't look like much now but it could soon be home to Dollar Tree's 80 acre Northeast distribution center.

December 26, 2011

Stop the Dollar Tree?

Petition to stop the Dollar Tree in Schodack
https://www.facebook.com/events/181008978664083/

Conclusion: As our elected officials it is our hope that you will act in our best interest to protect our community where we live and pay taxes, and that your decisions will be independent of other influences or pressure from Rensselaer County and/or the State of NY. 

Are you for or against this project?  Why?
Leave a comment here! 

December 20, 2011

Dollar Tree - we want you, but....



By Catherine Sager
SCHODACK
December 20, 2011


More than 100 people packed the meeting room at the Town Hall for the Schodack Planning Board meeting about the 718,000 square foot Dollar Tree Distribution Center that is proposed for Schodack off of Exit 11. The plan includes an additional 294,000 square feet to be constructed at a later date with a completed warehouse of approximately 1,000,000 square feet.

Plans include breaking ground as early as March 2012. At a previous meeting it was considered that the role of lead agency may be taken over by the County. At the meeting on Monday, the Town Planning Board declared Schodack the lead agency for the proposed project. In attendance were: Denise Mayrer, Chairman , Wayne Johnson, G. Jeffrey Haber, Paul Puccio, John LaVoie, Andrew Timmis, Jim Church, Attorney: Robert Linville, Esq.


Read more... 


Read the comments and leave one of your own!

December 18, 2011

Boys & Girls troubles...sounds familiar

December 19, 2001
Times Union

RENSSELAER — The Rensselaer Boys and Girls Club must raise $100,000 in the next several weeks or close by the end of January, club officials said Friday.

"We're in dire straits. We'd be putting 120 kids out on the street every day," said Rick Van Vorst, the club's executive director.


Not so very  long ago....

February 18, 2009
The Independent

CASTLETON- In order to reopen its doors, the Castleton Unit of the Southern Rensselaer County Boys and Girls Club needs to raise $56,000 by January 8


My question is this, since the building had been donated by Fleet Bank in 2002, who purchased it and for how much...where did that money go?

December 17, 2011

Dollar Tree Inc., a chain of discount merchandise stores, is weighing whether to build a distribution center in Rensselaer County that would create 200 jobs.

On Monday, officials in Schodack confirmed that the town is one of two finalists for the facility, competing against Connecticut.

If you think it may be important to be informed about the proposed 675,000 square foot Dollar Tree / Liberty Distribution Center that is proposed for Schodack off of Exit 11, than you may wish to attend the Schodack Planning Board Hearing for it on Monday December 19th at 7:00 pm in the Schodack Town Hall. Since it is a Hearing, this provides you and your neighbors the opportunity to ask questions and to pose any concerns that you may have. The Distribution Center is planned for additional growth to reach 1,000,000 square feet with 150 or so trucks arriving and departing each day. Dollar Tree is seeking permission from NYS to use tandem trucks on the NYS Thruway.


The meeting starts at 7pm and the Hearing begins at 7:15pm.


If you would like to catch up on media coverage from over the past couple weeks and read minutes of 2 Nov. Planning Board meetings on the Distribution Center proposal, please see the attachment.


You may be able to find some additional information thru the Town website at http://www.schodack.org/  

Please pass on this email and attachment to others whom you think it may interest.

December 14, 2011

News in a Nutshell

Headlines that caught my eye

UNCAGED Recieves $50,000 Grant

TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE GRANT (TAG) AWARDED


A Technical Assistance Grant (TAG) has been awarded to “United Neighbors Concerned About GE Dewey Loeffel Landfill (UNCAGED)” for the Dewey Loeffel Landfill Superfund Site. TAG funding allows qualified community groups to contract with independent technical advisors who can interpret and help the community understand technical information about their local Superfund site. More information about TAG’s is available at
http://www.epa.gov/superfund/community/tag/.

The Friends of the Library have some awesome raffles!


 
Buy your tickets at the Castleton Public Library.  Tickets are $1 and each ticket gets you one chance to win the basket of your choice!  The winner of each basket will be picked on Monday, Dec. 19th. 
 
Check them out:
-Victoria’s Essentials Aromatherapy raffle–$25 Barnes and Noble Gift certificate–(2) Gift certificates to Albany Massage Therapy Associates–Ice Bucket-donated by A New Beginning Consignment Shop–Spectrum Movie tickets (2 tickets)–Quilt (Donated by Pat Wood) –Petskleen Basket–Throw Pillows (2) (Donated by East Greenbush Window Coverings)–Jiff-e-mart Gift Certificate–Hoffman Car Wash Tickets–The Country Trunk Gift Certificate–Scarnato’s Gift Card (for 1 Large Cheese Pizza)–Wellness North Gift Certificate–Six Flag’s White Water Bay Waterpark (2) day passes


December 12, 2011

On Sunday, Santa and Mrs. Clause were invited by the Castleton Kiwanis to visit the Castleton Elementary School for their Annual Holiday Party.

The Kiwanis invite families from Schodack and Castleton to a party where Mrs. Clause busily made balloon hats, and animals for the children. Over 250 people registered this year.
 

Parents were asked to pre-register for the party for which the Kiwanis provide pizza, cake, iced cream and a personal gift for each of the children who attended.

December 10, 2011

The Anchor

The Castleton Ambulance is working with The Anchor, a not-for-profit organization, to collect donations of new and gently-used toys. 

May of our neighbors are also in need of clothing for children and adults - boys and girls sizes from five months through 16 years old; shoe sizes from children size 8 to adult 6. Adult clothing that is needed include sweatshirts, gloves, socks, etc. In addition, personal care items - soaps, shampoo, razors, shaving cream, etc. - and laundry detergent, dish soaps and other cleaning supplies are also needed.

Pantry items are always needed. Non-perishable food items are always in demand.

Donations may be dropped off at the ambulance garage at 1700 Brookview Road from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday through December 16


Contact Todd at 365-5397 for more information. Help out and show people the true meaning of Christmas.

First posted on the Schodack Democrats website

December 9, 2011

What To Do

December Calendar
  • CASTLETON KIWANIS CHRISTMAS PARTY
The Castleton Kiwanis Christmas Party will be held at the Castleton Elementary School on Sunday, December 11, from 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. Children from Birth to 10 years are invited to attend. Registration is required, call 732-2644 by December 4.
Santa, Mrs. Claws, and Elves will be at the party. Pizza, soda, cake, and ice cream will be served.

DO YOU HAVE AN EVENT YOU'D LIKE TO SEE ON THE SCHODACK SCENE? Email it to catherine.sager@yahoo.com

Castleton Public Library

Friday @ 6 PM: Family Movie Night

Join us to watch Smurfs and enjoy some popcorn!

 

December 7, 2011

Headlines that Caught My Eye

    Outrageous scams - workers compensation payments that are supposed to go to people who have been injured on the job and can't work.
Amazon's scanning app scaring retailers 

"Welcome to the new gray area of retail," said Clint Hegeman, owner of the Silver Parrot, a boutique at Stuyvesant Plaza in Guilderland. "It was inevitable."
 

Bricks-and-mortar stores, of course, have been fighting against Internet commerce for years, warning that online shopping eliminates local jobs and undercuts regional economies. They fear Price Check, and similar technologies to follow, will give online stores another advantage. 
SCHODACK — Officials in Rensselaer County expect the Dollar Tree chain of discount stores to decide within weeks whether to build a massive distribution center in Schodack.

A public hearing on the proposal is scheduled for 7 p.m. Dec. 19 in Schodack Town Hall. Representatives from Dollar Tree are expected to attend.

The state may also sweeten the pot. Empire State Development, the state's economic development arm, declined to comment Tuesday.

"A lot of work is going into this," Dowds said. "We want them to understand that we're business friendly and we want them here."

SOUTH FULTON, Tenn. -- A Tennessee couple has lost everything after their home burned to the ground as firefighters watched and did nothing.

South Fulton Mayor David Crocker said that if the city's firefighters responded to people who didn't pay there would be no incentive for anyone to subscribe.
PEARL HARBOR, Hawaii (AP) — About 120 survivors of the Dec. 7, 1941, bombing of Pearl Harbor have observed a moment of silence to commemorate the Japanese attack and the thousands who lost their lives that day 70 years ago.
Capital Region residents can prepare for a slushy commute on Thursday as mild temperatures move out and snow moves into the region on Wednesday night.

"If you start seeing snow at 7, 8 o'clock tonight you could double the total," he said. "Of course if it's later, if it's midnight and it's still raining, we're in good shape."

News in a Nutshell

Castleton House Decorating Contest

The House Decorating Contest will be judged on Sunday, December 18, after 7:00 PM.
 
Schodack hopes to grow a Dollar Tree 

The state may also sweeten the pot. Empire State Development, the state's economic development arm, declined to comment Tuesday.

"A lot of work is going into this," Dowds said. "We want them to understand that we're business friendly and we want them here."


A public hearing on the proposal is scheduled for 7 p.m. Dec. 19 in Schodack Town Hall.
Tennessee Firefighters Let Mobile Home Burn Because Couple Didn't Pay Protection Fee

South Fulton Mayor David Crocker said that if the city's firefighters responded to people who didn't pay there would be no incentive for anyone to subscribe.

Pearl Harbor attack remembered at 70th anniversary

PEARL HARBOR, Hawaii (AP) — About 120 survivors of the Dec. 7, 1941, bombing of Pearl Harbor have observed a moment of silence to commemorate the Japanese attack and the thousands who lost their lives that day 70 years ago.

From warm temperatures to snow
 

Capital Region residents can prepare for a slushy commute on Thursday as mild temperatures move out and snow moves into the region on Wednesday night.

December 6, 2011

Nearby







Notice of Public Hearing

Public Hearing

Town of East Greenbush - Hearing is scheduled for December 14, 2011 at 6:30 p.m. at the East Greenbush Town Hall.




Recreational Amenities Public Workshop 


The Town of East Greenbush will be hosting a public workshop to discuss a draft plan of desired recreational amenities local residents would like to see added to the town.  At 6:30 p.m. on December 7th at the Town Hall.

Author Talk


Join us at the Castleton Public Library on Wednesday @ 7 PM to hear local author, James Breig, speak about his new book: 

 
"Searching for Sgt. Bailey: Saluting an Ordinary Soldier of World War II."

 



This talk may be of interest to veterans, history buffs, WWII enthusiasts and genealogists alike.
Light refreshments will be served.

December 4, 2011

CES Events

Local Author Visit to CES – Friday, December 9 at 6:45 p.m. 

Read more....


Pet Giving Tree Donations Sought for Animal Shelter

 Read more....

 

December 3, 2011

Winter Walk

Saturday, December 3, WINTER WALK, Warren St., Hudson, 5-8 pm, free.
Carolers, horse-drawn carriages, musicians, performers, festive lights, fireworks, Santa Claus and more. 15th annual, presented by Hudson Opera House. 

518 822-1438.
hudsonoperahouse.org.

CHRISTMAS BAZAAR

  • CHRISTMAS BAZAAR 
The Reformed Dutch Church of Schodack at Muitzeskill will be holding its annual Christmas Bazaar on Saturday, December 3, from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. The church is located at the intersection of Schodack Landing Road & Muitzeskill Road in Schodack. The Christmas Bazaar will include new and gently used Christmas decorations, cards, gifts, and books, a Luncheon Cafe, and a Bake Sale. 
For information, call the Church office at 732-2471.

Friends of Schodack

 
Schodack Island State Park in Partnership with the Friends of Schodack Island,invites you to participate in an informational meeting for the upcoming 10th Anniversary celebration planned to take place on June 16th, 2012. 
The meeting will be held on Saturday, December 3rd 2011 at the Schodack Landing Fire House, 350 Fire House Lane, Schodack Landing, New York 12156 from 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm.
We already have many ideas to share with you, but we would like to hear yours. Let’s put Schodack Island State Park on the map. After all, this is a Community Event! Hope to see you then. 
For more information, contact the park office at (518)-732-0187.

What to Do


  • CHRISTMAS BAZAAR
  • ALL-YOU-CAN-EAT BREAKFAST
  • The Zucchini Brothers
  • 2011-2012 FEDERAL DUCK STAMPS ARE NOW AVAILABLE IN SCHODACK
  • SNOWMOBILE SAFETY COURSE 
  • Driver Training
  • Capital Community Voices