Assemblyman Lopez may attend Hunter meeting Nov. 10

New York State Assemblyman Pete Lopez (R, C, I – Schoharie) may attend a Town Hall community meeting he is hosting at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, November 10 at Hunter Town Hall, 5748 Route 23A in Haines Falls. Due to an "Extraordinary Session" being called in the legislature for November 10, "the Assemblyman may be detained in Albany and prevented from attending this meeting. While he still plans to attend, staff will be in attendance to meet with constituents should he be prevented from attending," according to a statement from the assemblyman's staff.

2010 Distribution Grant for NYS Artists. Guidelines & Application Distribution Grant

Deadline, Dec. 31, 2009

free103point9 is pleased to announce the 2010 Distribution Grant for New York State Artists providing support for the distribution of new works in film, video, sound, new-media, and media-installation. Funding is available from free103point9 through a regrant from New York State Council on the Arts' Electronic Media and Film Program. Grant awards will assist artists in making works available to public audiences and may include, but are not limited to: moving image and sound works; duplication of preview, screening and exhibition copies; promotional materials including documentation and schematics of media-installation and new-media works.

WGXC coffee at Strongtree Organic Coffee Roasters

Strongtree Organic Coffee Roasters in Hudson is now selling WGXC coffee. Proceeds from every sale benefit your new community radio station. Stop by Strongtree, across from the Hudson Amtrack train station, and buy some beans to help WGXC get on the air. 1 lb bag of special WGXC blend coffee costs $11.

Strongtree Organic Coffee Roasters
60 South Front St. at Train Depot, Hudson, NY 12534
(518) 828-8778


About Strongtree:

"Strongtree is a family owned, quality driven organic coffee roaster located in historic Hudson, New York.

We source 100 percent Certified Organic, premium lots of heirloom Arabica cultivars from master growers who practice responsible land stewardship. All of our coffees come from small farms and cooperative unions where the workers are valued, empowered and rewarded. We guarantee clear traceability, sustainability and responsibility in our supply chain. Strongtree is Fair Trade Certified by TransFair USA and Rainforest Alliance Certified.

Strongtree follows the time honored, traditional methods of our craft to capture and enhance the true flavor of the coffee bean. Our focus is on your great coffee experience through careful selection of premium beans, traditional small batch Probat roasting, hand packaging, advanced brewing technology and personalized service. By putting care into the entire process from seed to cup, we know you’ll taste a difference."

Tune in to candidate forums

Click on links to listen to archived recordings of local candidate forums sponsored by the League of Women Voters in Columbia and Greene counties.

MP3 audio plays in Quicktime Player in any browser except Internet Explorer. They will not play in Internet Explorer, use another browser. You can download the mp3s with Quicktime Player Pro. You can click on links or cut and paste urls into your media player.

ATHENS Thu. Oct. 22, 7-9 p.m. at Athens Community Center.
http://archive.free103point9.org/2009/10/Athens_candidate_forum_WGXC_102209.mp3

CLAVERACK Thu. Oct. 22, 7-9 p.m. at A.B. Shaw fire house.
http://archive.free103point9.org/2009/10/Claverack_candidate_forum_WGXC_102209.mp3

CATSKILL Sat. Oct. 24, 10 a.m.-noon at Catskill Community Center.
http://archive.free103point9.org/2009/10/Catskill_candidate_forum_WGXC_102409.mp3

COPAKE Sun. Oct. 25, 1-3 p.m. at Copake Grange Hall, downtown Copake. Sorry, WGXC did not get a recording.

GREENE COUNTY LEGISLATURE Sun. Oct. 25, 4-6 p.m. at Union Mills Lofts in Catskill.
http://archive.free103point9.org/2009/10/Greene_County_Legislature_UnionMills_WGXC_102409.mp3

CHATHAM Mon. Oct. 26, 7-9 p.m. at Chatham Town Hall.
http://archive.free103point9.org/2009/10/Chatham_candidate_forum_WGXC_102609.mp3

KINDERHOOK Tue. Oct. 27, 7-9 p.m. at Ichabod Crane Middle School.
http://archive.free103point9.org/2009/10/Kinderhook_candidate_forum_WGXC_102709.mp3

Kinderhook candidate forum

Click here to hear The Town of Kinderhook candidate forum sponsored by the League of Women Voters 7-9 p.m. Tue. Oct. 27 at Ichabod Crane Middle School.

WGXC hosted a live webcast of this candidate forum for the Town of Kinderhook in Valatie, and has the archived recording above for listening or downloading. Town supervisor candidates Douglas K. McGivney and Patrick M. Grathan; town board candidates Patrice A. Leader, Helen G. Schneider, and Todd D. Grigoli; and justice candidate Lisa M. Mills attended. File will not play in Internet Explorer, use another internet browser. Your computer must have Quicktime Player to listen and Quicktime Player Pro to download

Chatham candidate forum

Click here to listen to or download mp3 audio recording of Chatham, NY candidate forum held Mon. Oct. 26 from 7-9 p.m. at Chatham Town Hall live in WGXC.

In Chatham on Monday, candidates for town board (Donald W. Hegeman, Maria C. Lull, Henry Swartz Jr., and Bob Balcom); assessor (Daniel Horst and James F. Forster); and town clerk (Landra B. Haber and Beth Anne Rippel) all spoke at the Chatham candidate forum sponsored by the League of Women Voters and WGXC. The Chatham Courier had a story about the forum here.

Greene County Legislature candidate forum

Click here to listen to or download mp3 recording of the Greene County Legislature community forum Sun. Oct. 25 at Union Mills in Catskill.

Candidates for the Greene County Legislature gathered at Union Mills in Catskill from 4-6 p.m. Sun., Oct. 25. In attendance were William Lawrence (Cairo), Sean Fry (Durham), Kevin Lewis (Greenville), Jim Mulligan (Greenville), Chris Phfister (Athens), Robin DuPuy (Catskill), Joseph Izzo (Catskill), and Forest Cotten (Catskill). Click on the above link to an mp3 file you can play in Quicktime Player, or download in Quicktime Player Pro. Listening or downloading does not work with Internet Explorer. The Daily Mail wrote a story about the forum that is linked here.

Catskill candidate forum

Click here to listen to or download Greene County Legislature candidates forum from Oct. 25, 2009 at Union Mills in Catskill.

Candidates for local and county offices in Catskill gathered at the Catskill Community Center from 10 a.m. to noon Sat., Oct. 24. In attendance were Forest Cotten, Robin DePuy, Joseph Izzo, and Keith Valentine (Greene County Legislature); and Robert Antonelli, Joseph Leggio, and Kevin Lennon (town council). Click on the above link to an mp3 file you can play in Quicktime Player, or download in Quicktime Player Pro. Listening or downloading does not work with Internet Explorer. There is an article in The Daily Mail about the forum here.

Claverack candidate forum

Click here to listen or download the recording of the Claverack candidate forum from the AB Shaw fire house Oct. 22, 2009. Mp3 recording will not play in Internet Explorer. You need Quicktime Player Pro to download.

Town Supervisor candidate Robin Andrews, town board candidates Morgen Bowers and Matthew Bowe, and assessor candidate Ian Nitschke attended the forum. The Register-Star wrote a story about the forum that is linked here.

Athens candidate forum

Click here to listen to mp3 recording of tonight's candidate forum in the Town of Athens, live from the Town of Athens Community Center.

Town council candidates Phyllisann Dinkelacker and Paul Hasbrouck, town supervisor candidate LeeAllen Palmateer and county legislator candidate Christian Pfister attended the forum. Recording will play in Quicktime Player in your internet browser. Will not work in Internet Explerer. If you have Quicktime Player Pro, you can download the file. The Daily Mail wrote a story about the forum that is linked here.

Greene and Columbia County candidate forums

Tune in live candidate forums this week

THURSDAY: Claverack and Athens
SATURDAY: Catskill
SUNDAY: Copake and Greene County
MONDAY: Chatham
TUESDAY: Kinderhook

WGXC will have live web streams of each candidate forum for everyone to listen to. In addition, WGXC will post archived recordings of these candidate forums as soon as possible at www.wgxc.org

More details below.


((((( CANDIDATE FORUMS )))))

Columbia and Greene County candidate forums

The League of Women Voters of Greene County and Columbia County are sponsoring seven "Meet the Candidates" forums for politicians running for various offices this fall. Invitations to the events have been mailed to all candidates.

In cooperation with the League, and as a service to all local media and voters, WGXC will air all forums live on an internet web stream at www.wgxc.org if internet access is available, and is coordinating members of the local media to cover the event. Recordings of all events will be posted as quickly as possible at www.wgxc.org and archived for future reference.

To listen live:
Either go to www.wgxc.org and click on the links for each candidate forum, which will open a web stream in your computer's media player (iTunes, etc.) or will also play on your cell phone (iPhone, etc.)
or
Paste this link into "open url" on your computer's media player:
For Columbia County forums:
http://comm.free103point9.org/8000/election.mp3.m3u
For Greene County forums:
http://comm.free103point9.org/8000/greeneelection.mp3.m3u

Where and when are the candidate forums?

Thursday, October 22, both at 7-9 p.m.
CLAVERACK
Town of Claverack candidates' forum at A.B. Shaw firehouse on Route 9H in Claverack. Listen at:
http://comm.free103point9.org/8000/election.mp3.m3u

ATHENS
Athens forum, for candidates for Town Council, Town Justice, and Athens Legislature representation will be at the Athens Community Center, 2 First Street, Athens.
http://comm.free103point9.org/8000/greeneelection.mp3.m3u


Saturday, October 24, 10 a.m.-noon
CATSKILL
The Catskill session for candidates for Town Council, Town Justice, Catskill Legislature representation will be at the Catskill Community Center, 344 Main Street, Catskill.
http://comm.free103point9.org/8000/greeneelection.mp3.m3u


Sunday, October 25 1-3 p.m.
COPAKE
Town of Copake candidates' forum at Copake Grange Hall, downtown Copake.
http://comm.free103point9.org/8000/election.mp3.m3u


Sunday, October 25, 4-6 p.m.
GREENE COUNTY LEGISLATURE
The forum for all Greene County Legislative candidates will be at Union Mills Lofts, 361 Main Street, Catskill.
http://comm.free103point9.org/8000/greeneelection.mp3.m3u


Monday, October 26, 7-9 p.m.
CHATHAM
Town of Chatham candidates' forum at Chatham Town Hall.
http://comm.free103point9.org/8000/election.mp3.m3u


Tuesday, October 27 7-9 p.m.
KINDERHOOK
Town of Kinderhook candidates' forum at Ichabod Crane Middle School.
http://comm.free103point9.org/8000/election.mp3.m3u


Journalists confirmed attending:
Melanie Lekocevic, Greene County Local Courier (Athens and Catskill forums)
Colin Devries, The Daily Mail (Athens forum)
WGXC reporters: Tom Morini, Debra Kamecke, Kaya Weidman, Tom Roe


WGXC will post recordings of each candidate forum as soon as possible at www.wgxc.org.


For more information:

Fawn Potash/League of Women Voters
518- 929-5764
fawnpotash@yahoo.com

Or

Paul Smart/WGXC.org
518-943-4224
paulsmart@aol.com



Basic Political Debate/Meet the Candidates Event Format

Event should be no more than 90 minutes long.
Candidates need to arrive 15 minutes before start of event.
Substitute speakers are not permitted.
No campaign literature or materials will be allowed inside the room.
Lots will be drawn in advance to determine the order of speakers for opening remarks.
Moderator will be introduced by the sponsoring organization’s spokesperson
Moderator will introduce panel members and go over the rules.
Each candidate will have a 3-minute opening statement.
Audience members will be asked to silence all electronic devices.
The audience will be provided with index cards/writing implements with which to write questions.
1. No statements
2. No personal remarks
3. All questions must be legible
4. The moderator will choose questions and paraphrase for clarity/appropriateness.
The candidates will have one minute to answer. The moderator will call on candidates in succeeding order to answer. The moderator has the right to rule on all questions. No one else will be permitted to see the questions before, during or after the event. [Candidates should be reminded that they may take notes and cover issues/comments they missed during the Q&A as part of their closing statement.]

Depending on time available, questions may be permitted from the floor. Questions will be limited to one minute and will be answered as above. The same rules apply as with written questions.

Each candidate may have a 2 or 3-minute closing statement.

The moderator will close the event and invite members of the audience to remain in order to have personal conversations with the candidates (must be agreed upon in advance by candidates).

SPEAKING TIME WILL BE STRICTLY ENFORCED OUT OF RESPECT FOR THE OTHER CANDIDATES AND THE AUDIENCE’S RIGHT TO HEAR ALL CANDIDATES SPEAK.

Candidates are encouraged to bring campaign literature. A table should be set up outside the room for the purpose of distributing the literature. Each candidate will be permitted to display a packet of flyers, position papers, and letters of endorsement or other campaign material. However, each candidate will be allowed only ONE stack of information on the table unless the organizer permits more.

Lopez meets public in Catskill

New York State Assemblyman Pete Lopez (R, C, I - Schoharie) holds a community meeting at 6:30 p.m. Thu. Nov. 5 at the Catskill Senior Center, 15 Academy Street in Catskill. All residents are invited and encouraged to attend.

Columbia County candidate forums

WGXC will be covering the Columbia County candidate forums being sponsored by the Columbia County chapter of the League of Women Votors.

Please attend the following events:

Thursday, October 22nd 7-9 p.m. Town of Claverack candidates' forum at A.B. Shaw firehouse on Route 9H in Claverack.

Sunday, October 25th 1-3 p.m. Town of Copake candidates' forum at Copake Grange Hall

Monday, October 26th 7-9 p.m. Town of Chatham candidates' forum at Chatham Town Hall

Tuesday, October 27th 7-9 p.m. Town of Kinderhook candidates' forum at Ichabod Crane Middle School.

WGXC will be recording and live streaming these events if possible.

Hudson Talbott and Frank Cuthbert at Spotty Dog

Hudson Talbott readsfrom and Frank Cuthbert performs his compositions from the "River of Dreams" book and play live from Spotty Dog Books & Ale in Hudson Thu., Oct. 15 for ArtsWalk.

Click here to listen to or download mp3 of Hudson Talbott reading and Frank Cuthbert performance Oct. 15, 2009.

Seward holds Tannersville town meeting

New York State Senator James L. Seward (R/C/I-Oneonta) holds a ‘town hall’ style meeting at 7 p.m. Tue. Oct. 20 at Hunter-Tannersville Middle/High School, 6094 Main Street, Tannersville. At the meeting, Seward will visit with constituents, discuss current state issues and take questions. For the first hour, Seward and area residents will discuss state issues with others who are present. Later, Seward will be available to talk privately with those who have a particular state-related problem or would like to meet with him personally.

Seward answers questions from public in Catskill

Click here to listen to the Oct. 6, 2009 town meeting with NY State Senator James Seward. Mp3 file will not play in Internet Explorer browser. You need Quicktime Player Pro to download file.)

New York State Senator James Seward (R/C/I-Oneonta) held a public meeting at 7 p.m. Tue. Oct. 6 at the Catskill Middle School Auditorium, 345 W. Main St. WGXC's Debra Kamecke was there with a recorder to post the mp3 audio file above

Yukari Roja, Jackson Emmer, Trevor Wilson at Spotty Dog

Watch video above of Yukari Roja, Jackson Emmer, and Trevor Wilson performing live from Spotty Dog Fri. Oct. 9, 2009 on WGXC.

Click here to listen or download audio mp3 of Yukair Roja's performance.

Click here to listen or download audio mp3 of Jackson Emmer's performance.

Millay Colony artists at Spotty Dog

Watch video above of Millay Colony writers Melissa Sandor and Azareen Van der Vliet Oloomi; visual artists Sabeen Raja, Darren Floyd; and composer Thomas Smith talking at The Spotty Dog Books & Ale in Hudson, NY Oct. 9, 2009 as part of the Columbia County Arts Council's ArtsWalk. Audio recording is below.

Click here to listen to or download an mp3 audio recording of the Millay Colony night at Spotty Dog. Does not play in Internet Explorer. You need Quicktime Player Pro to download.

Rep. Murphy in Clermont Sunday

Congressman Scott Murphy (NY-20) will hold a Congress-On-Your-Corner meeting with town officials and local citizens in the Clermont Town Hall Sunday, Oct. 11 at 10 a.m. Murphy take questions from local residents. Clermont Town Hall is located at 1795 Route 9, Clermont, in Columbia County.

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand on DADT

New York Senator -- and former U.S. Representative for Greene and Columbia counties -- Kirsten Gillibrand has called for Congressional hearings this fall to allow homosexuals to join the military without the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy. Last night she talked about the issue on "The Rachel Maddow Show" on MSNBC. Watch clip above.

Columbia County ArtsWalk 2009

The 15th annual Columbia County Council on the Arts event runs Oct. 9-18 in various Hudson locations. WGXC is official radio station of the ArtsWalk, and will provide several live web streams of ArtsWalk events, and make other recordings including interviews with artists, and others involved. Tune in at www.wgxc.org

WGXC WEB STREAMS

Fri. Oct. 9 at Spotty Dog
6 p.m. Millay Colony writers Melissa Sandor and Azareen Van der Vliet Oloomi; visual artists Sabeen Raja, Darren Floyd; and composer Thomas Smith /8:30 p.m. Yukari Roja, Jackson Emmer & Trevor Wilson.

Sat. Oct. 10 at Cannonball Factory
1:30-4:30 writers Philip Gefter, Dave King, Karen Schoemer

Sat. Oct. 10 at Jason's Upstairs
4 p.m.-midnight Slinky Armadillo Art and Music Kids Show; Tommy Sharp; Experiencing Echo with Chelle Mayer and Andrew Joffe; UpStage Productions presents an exerpt from "Gypsy"; Robin O'Herin; Cathy Johanson; Chavisa Woods; HVAPA Belly Dancers & Steve Collins; NoBody Parts (Damara & Ngonda); Hudson City Ramblers; DJ Dizzy

Sun. Oct. 11 at Cannonball Factory
2-4 p.m. with Bindlestiff Circus

Thu. Oct. 15 at Spotty Dog
7 p.m. Hudson Talbott reading/Frank Cuthbert performing from "River of Dreams"

Fri. Oct. 16 at Cannonball Factory
5:30-6:30 p.m. Abby Lappen, Barbara Cobb, Peter Tenerowicz

Fri. Oct. 16 at Marianne Courville Gallery
6 p.m. literary reading incl. Sam Truitt, Irene Mitchell, Mary-Beth Hughes (if internet connection)

Sat. Oct. 17 at Musica
noon-4 p.m. Ngonda Badilla, Damara Rose

Sat. Oct. 17 at Cannonball Factory
1-7 p.m. Carole Maso, Kate McLeod, HVAPA Ballet, Ampersand

Sat. Oct. 17 at Savoia
5-9 p.m. bands by Musica Evan Randall, Mama Lama, Yukari Roja, Bella’s Bartok

Sun. Oct. 17 at Cannonball Factory
1-3:30 p.m. music

Sun. Oct. 18 at Spotty Dog
7 p.m. reading with Rebecca Wolf, Wayne Koestenbaum

For more information:
http://www.artscolumbia.org/artswalk2009.html

Local notes

Dick May (pictured) knows his Town of Catskill. His Seeing Greene blog has two exemplary commentaries lately, looking deeper into the Catskill audit, and taking apart a Daily Mail report about a court decision affecting the election of Catskill's Greene County legislators. In "The Awful Audit" May explores how lax supervision, tardiness, raiding, poor control, inertia, and insecurity, all led to the blistering audit of the Village of Catskill. "'Poor planning,' 'unrealistic budgeting' and other 'inadequate management practices' have depleted the Village’s operating funds” and its 'ability to operate effectively' for its 4400 residents according to the report (2009M-53,“Fiscal Oversight and Internal Controls Over Selected Financial Activities”) from the Albany office of State Comptroller’s Division of Local Government and School Accounting." May writes. That report, "come(s) on the heels of an equally stinging report (2004M-11,Village of Catskill) that was issued in 2005," May writes. "The Village of Catskll [may be] too small financially to sustain professional business management," and the consolidation with the larger Town of Catskill might be in order. His earlier "Doing the News" examines Melanie Lekocevic's Sept. 23 story in The Daily Mail, "Court hands ballot spot to Voice party." May explicity lays out partiality, gross omission, an "insidious half-truth" and inaccuracies in the story about the New York State Supreme Court dismissing a case to block the Have a Voice political party from the ballot this year.....The Register-Star reports that the Stockport Town Board unanimously approved a new town law Wednesday creating a planned development district and paving the way for Holmes Estates at Columbia County, a 112-unit subdivision that's been discussed for five years....Cairo Planning Board member Tony Puorro said at the Planning Board meeting Wednesday that the town's new Zoning plan will go before the Town Board in January.

Alden Terrace II?

(The Deschaine wood-chipping project in front of the Cairo Planning Board 100709.)

Click here to listen to the Oct. 7, 2009 Cairo Planning Board meeting. Does not work in Internet Explorer. You need Quicktime Player Pro to download file.)

Cairo Planning Board chairman interrupted the monthly meeting tonight to quell the rumor that apparently packed the Town Hall meeting room that there was going to be a new presentation from the folks who previously withdrew their Alden Terrace project from the board. "Alden Terrace II," he called it, phoned him in mid-August, saying they would like to appear before the September meeting, and then called back and said they would come in October. He has not heard anything from them since, they were not in attendance tonight, and much of the crowd left after he announced this. Also during the meeting, the board approved the Cuti and Culoso subdivision projects, even though both have border disputes with lawyers involved. They also approved Planning Board member Allen Veverka's subdivision, and one for Erdmann, and site plans for American Dojo and Raffa. The ongoing Deschaine wood-chipping project took up much of the meeting, and set new policy, as the board voted 6-1 to use a project's operating hours as a standard to measure the site plan law's 70db noise level. The board then voted 5-2 to give the Deschaine project a negative SEQR declaration (saying it had minimal environmental impact). The Kids Zone project, a Chuck E. Cheese-like indoor playground and arcade on Main St. also got a negative SEQR declaration. And the Round Top Men's Association, with former Planning Board chairman Peter Maasmann, got a waiver to replace a sign knocked over years ago by a snow plow even though they did not fill out an application. At last month's meeting, the board had told a woman arrested for operating a business on Main St. in violation of the town's site plan law that they could not give her any opinion about whether her business needed to go before the board without first filling out an application.

US House subcommittee to vote on LPFM bill Thursday

From Prometheus Radio Project:

Washington, DC – A bipartisan bill to expand community radio has been scheduled for a vote by Chairman Rick Boucher (D-VA) on Thursday, Oct. 8 at 10 a.m., in the House Subcommittee on Communications, Technology, and the Internet.

The Local Community Radio Act would allow the FCC to license hundreds of new low power non-commercial radio stations nationwide. Most communities, especially large cities, have had severely limited opportunities to apply for these new radio licenses.

Rep. Mike Doyle (D-PA) reaffirmed his support for the Local Community Radio Act to an enthusiastic crowd at the Future of Music Coalition Policy Summit on Tuesday, calling it “our Christmas present this year.” Rep. Doyle has been leading the push for Low Power FM in Congress, along with lead co-sponsor Rep. Lee Terry (R-NE). Independent musicians have been longtime supporters of Low Power FM as a venue to share their music.

“We’d like to thank Congressmen Doyle, Boucher, Waxman and all Congressional supporters of low power radio. The hard work of these leaders and their staff to bring this legislation to a vote will yield great results for America’s local media landscape,” said Pete Tridish, founding member of Prometheus Radio Project.

The Local Community Radio Act reverses legislation from 2000 that limited the FCC's authority to license low power radio. Broadcasters claimed that low power radio would cause interference, but a Congressionally mandated study later showed that low power stations (which operate at 100 watts or less) do not interfere with full power stations.

"Thousands of communities could finally have a chance to have their own radio station,” said Cory Fischer-Hoffman, Campaign Director for the Prometheus Radio Project. "We hear from schools, churches, community groups, emergency responders, and local governments who want a local forum for news and information. They're eager for this opportunity."

Second Annual Catskill Artist Studio and Gallery Tour

Paul Smart from WGXC will be wandering around Catskill with a digital recorder interviewing folks Saturday, Oct. 10 at the Second Annual Catskill Artist Studio and Gallery Tour. This year’s program includes artists’ studios open from noon to 5 p.m. in the surrounding area of Catskill as well as the Village itself and include the following: Terence Barrell, Dina Bursztyn, Julie Chase, Sasha Chermayeff, Tasha Depp, Jared Handelsman, Jim Holl, Philip Howie, Edith Marcik, Patrick Milbourn, Lee Anne Morgan, Portia Munson, Fawn Potash, Susan Wides. Participants must sign up to receive a button and a map of tour sites at:
Cedar Grove, The Thomas Cole National Historic Site, 218 Spring Street or
The Greene County Council on the Arts, 398 Main Street in Catskill.

All studios and galleries will be marked on the map and signed with small flags or numbered signs. Some sites may not be handicapped accessible. It is not necessary to sign up for the gallery openings or evening events.

Participating galleries are open from noon to 8 p.m. Visitors are invited to join CGA galleries and special Main Street locations for a street-long post-tour reception. Enjoy refreshments and conversation with area artists as you visit exhibitions and special installations. Participating galleries include: M Gallery, Union Mills, Brik, The Greene County Council on the Arts, Terenchin Fine Art, Day and Holt, The Catskill Community Center, Gallery 42, and the Galleria Catskill. The tour is free.
Information: www.catskillgalleryassociation.com

Hunter Planning Board changes application policy

(Town of Hunter Planning Board Chairman Mark Hyer.)

Click here to listen to or download the Town of Hunter Planning Board meeting from Oct. 6, 2009.

The Town of Hunter Planning Board changed its application policy at its regular meeting tonight. New projects will need to apply ten days before the board meets (first Tuesday of the month), and comments to current projects before the board also need to be submitted ten days before monthly meetings. Replies to those comments need to be submitted five days before each meeting. The board only looked at two projects tonight, and spent almost two hours pushing the 92-unit Cortina Mountain Estates project toward a SEQR declaration. Planning Board Chairman Mark Hyer moved to have the project redo a line of sight assesment, but his motion failed. The board left project lawyer Jason Shaw with a few minor environmental points to clear up next meeting (on election night, Nov. 3), but failed to vote on the SEQR. "One more meeting," Ernie Reale said. "You can't say that Ernie, that might be a little premature," Hyer retorted. The board did give a conditional approval to the Petrolo subdivision, contigent on the project's two new units getting water and sewer service. Hyer also reported that the Town of Tannersville is not giving any new water hook-ups to anyone in the Town of Hunter.

Greene County candidate forums

WGXC is working with the League of Women Voters of Columbia County to "Meet the Candidates" forums for politicians running for Greene County Legislature seats, as well as local posts in Athens and Catskill.

WGXC will air all forums live on an internet web stream at www.wgxc.org, and is inviting all members of the local media to cover the event. Recordings of the events will be posted as quickly as possible here and at www.wgxc.org.

The Athens forum, for candidates for Town Council, Town Justice, and Athens Legislature representation will be Thursday, October 22, 2009 from 7-9 p.m. at the Athens Community Center, 2 First Street, Athens.

The Catskill session for candidates for Town Council, Town Justice, Catskill Legislature representation will be Saturday, October 24, 2009 from 10 a.m.-noon at the Catskill Community Center, 344 Main Street, Catskill.

The forum for all Greene County Legislative candidates will be Sunday, October 25,2009 from 4-6 p.m. at Union Mills Lofts, 361 Main Street, Catskill.

Journalists confirmed attending:
Melanie Lekocevic, Greene County Local Courier (Athens and Catskill forums)
WGXC

For more information:

Fawn Potash/League of Women Voters

518-929-5764

fawnpotash@yahoo.com

Or

Paul Smart/WGXC.org

518-943-4224

paulsmart@aol.com



Basic Political Debate/Meet the Candidates Event Format

Event should be no more than 90 minutes long.

Candidates need to arrive 15 minutes before start of event.

Panel may consist of up to 8 members (more if cleared with the moderator).

Substitute speakers are not permitted.

No campaign literature or materials will be allowed inside the room.

Lots will be drawn in advance to determine the order of speakers for opening remarks.

Moderator will be introduced by the sponsoring organization’s spokesperson

Moderator will introduce panel members and go over the rules.

Each candidate will have a 3-minute opening statement.

Audience members will be asked to silence all electronic devices.

The audience will be provided with index cards/writing implements with which to write questions.

1. No statements
2. No personal remarks
3. All questions must be legible
4. The moderator will choose questions and paraphrase for clarity/appropriateness.

The candidates will have one minute (or two, depending on number of candidates and time available) to answer. The moderator will call on candidates in succeeding order to answer. The moderator has the right to rule on all questions. No one else will be permitted to see the questions before, during or after the event. [Candidates should be reminded that they may take notes and cover issues/comments they missed during the Q&A as part of their closing statement.]

Depending on time available, questions may be permitted from the floor. Questions will be limited to one minute and will be answered as above. The same rules apply as with written questions.

Each candidate may have a 2 or 3-minute closing statement.

The moderator will close the event and invite members of the audience to remain in order to have personal conversations with the candidates (must be agreed upon in advance by candidates).

SPEAKING TIME WILL BE STRICTLY ENFORCED OUT OF RESPECT FOR THE OTHER CANDIDATES AND THE AUDIENCE’S RIGHT TO HEAR ALL CANDIDATES SPEAK.

Candidates are encouraged to bring campaign literature. A table should be set up outside the room for the purpose of distributing the literature. Each candidate will be permitted to display a packet of flyers, position papers, and letters of endorsement or other campaign material. However, each candidate will be allowed only ONE stack of information on the table unless the organizer permits more.

SPONSORING ORGANIZATION NOTES:

Candidates should be sent invitation letters. Those who accept must be sent an outline for the evening’s program and the rules (above information or organizer’s preference). The moderator should be supplied the name/contact information of a person to call with questions (from sponsoring organization). Candidates who choose not to attend will be noted at the event (possibly by a name sign at an empty chair). Events that feature missing candidates may not be recorded or televised (per LWV rules). Write-in candidates may not participate in these events (per LWV rules).

Inform moderator of any contentious issues or anticipated difficulties.

Correct pronunciation of candidate’s names and titles are requested by the moderator (phonetic if necessary).

Those who participate, as well as the facility staff and anyone else who were particularly helpful should be sent thank you notes as soon as possible after the event (within 2 weeks).

Name signs should be made (tented full sheet of index card stock works well- we have a template) for each candidate and placed where they are legible and visible to the audience. Names should be printed on both sides of the sign so that the moderator can see them as well.

Questions may be ‘planted’ with audience members to get things started for the Q & A.

The moderator should be provided with a podium and informed of the use of other equipment, such as microphones or television cameras. Microphones are always a good idea.

All speakers should be provided with drinking water.

Local film project captures WWII memories of Greene County veterans

A free public screening of the film WWII oral history project “They Answered the Call” will be held 5-9 p.m. November 7, 2009, at the Washington Irving Senior Center in Catskill

The NYS Division of Veterans’ Affairs estimates that there were 315 Greene County WWII veterans older than 85 years at the time of the 2000 census. Project Coordinator Cindy Putorti of Catskill initiated this effort in 2007 after a conversation with WWII veteran Dr. DuBois Jenkins (retired longtime Catskill veterinarian). “He casually mentioned that he had worked on a secret chemical research project during WWII,” said Putorti. "I was astounded when he described a joint effort between the American and Canadian militaries in which anthrax was one of the chemical agents being developed at his installation.” Putorti thought that there must be other such stories to uncover in Greene County.

Putorti contacted local independent filmmakers Lisa Thomas and Margo Pelletier of Thin Edge Films in Catskill who agreed to provide the technical equipment, expertise, and mentoring to capture the wartime stories of Greene County veterans. Student filmmakers volunteered from the Catskill, Coxsackie-Athens, and Cairo-Durham school districts. “We also have a SUNY Binghamton film student participating,” said Putorti

Putorti applied for a Decentralization Program grant from the Greene County Council on the Arts and was awarded a small grant to support the effort. The project was also supported by the Catskill Community Center, the Catskill Senior Center, The Fortnightly Club and private individual contributions.

Six Greene County World War II veterans volunteered to share their wartime stories with the student interviewers. “In addition to Dr. Jenkins, we also interviewed Robert Darling who served in an anti-tank unit in Europe. Jack Rivituso was a courier in the Signal Corps in Europe and the Philippines. Stanley Maltzman served as a signal man on the USS Centaurus in the Pacific theater. Irving Hendricks served in an engineer battalion in Europe. Coleman Duncan, a B-24 bombardier, was a Prisoner of War in the Stalag III prison camp, the one depicted in the film ‘The Great Escape.’ Sadly, Mr. Duncan passed away in June one month after our filming. But shortly before his death, he was able to fulfill his dream to travel to England to view his lost prison camp diary that was recovered by a British serviceman and safely installed in a military museum in England,” said Putorti.

Veterans were allowed to discuss whatever they deemed appropriate to share. “We were sensitive to their reluctance to describe their combat experiences,” said Putorti. “We encouraged them to discuss whatever was important to them to share.” In addition to describing combat experiences, veterans discussed their training, buddies, work, good times enjoyed and hardships endured.

All uncut footage will be submitted to the “Veterans History Project” (VHP) authorized by the U.S. Congress in 2004 and administered by the Library of Congress. The mission of the VHP is to collect, preserve, and make accessible the personal accounts of American war veterans so that future generations may hear directly from veterans and better understand the realities of war.

Students used Apple Computer equipment and Final Cut Pro editing software at the Catskill Community Center (purchased specifically for this project) and the Catskill High School to complete their documentaries. Catskill Middle School teacher and director of the Catskill Independent Film program Bill Maouris volunteered to mentor student filmmakers.

Portions of the six short films of 30-60 minutes each (one for each veteran’s interview) will be presented to the public free of charge at the Washington Irving Senior Center at 5 p.m. on November 7, 2009. Student filmmakers Joey DiStefano, Nicole Lacy, and Emily Sprague of Catskill and John Robert Hammerer of Coxsackie will be available to answer questions. (Robert Handel of Cairo and Sarah Sullivan of Catskill also participated but are now at college and will be unable to attend). Local photographer V. James DiPerna offered his services to create portraits of each veteran. These will also be displayed at the screening as parts of collages of photos and memorabilia of each veteran’s wartime experiences created by Palenville artist Ellen Mahnken. Light refreshments will served.

Lopez schedules Greene County meetings

New York Assemblyman Pete Lopez (R, C, I – Schoharie) continues his
extensive Community Meeting series this month with meetings in Athens, Fleischmanns, and Ashland in Greene County. Lopez is holding close to twenty meetings in the 12th Assembly District, which includes portions of seven counties. Contact: Assemblyman Lopez’s Catskill Office: 518-943-1371 for more information. Details below:

Athens Community Meeting
Tuesday, October 6 at 6:30 p.m.
Athens American Legion Hall
92 Second Street in Athens

Halcott & Lexington Community Meeting
Tuesday, October 13 at 6:30 p.m.
Halcott Grange
264 County Route 3 in Fleischmanns

Prattsville, Ashland & Windham Community Meeting
Thursday, October 22 at 6 p.m.
Ashland Town Hall/Fire Hall
12094 Route 23 in Ashland

Battlefield Earth in the M49

Click here to listen to or download Dan Seward's Sept. 7, 2009 "Battlefield Earth" show live from Max Goldfarb's M49 radio truck.

Dan Seward of John Doe Books & Records and Bunnybrains did his "Battlefield Earth" show live from Max Goldfarb's M49 radio truck in Hudson Sept. 7, 2009. The M49 truck used to belong to the Stockport fire department, and was built by the department in the 1970s.

Suzanne Snider's 'Oral Histories' workshop

Click here to listen or download Suzanne Snider's workshop on "Oral Histories" from the Fall Skill Share 092609 at Germantown Community Farm and on WGXC Online Radio.

Suzanne Snider is a writer and oral historian based in Hudson. She teaches courses in Nonfiction and Documentary Studies at the New School University, and has worked as an interviewer for HBO Productions, The Guardian, Columbia University's Oral History Research Office, and the New York Academy of Medicine. She serves on the Judd Foundation's Oral History Advisory Board and co-curates KGB's Nonfiction Night in New York City. She designed and implemented visual and performing arts curricula for visually-impaired students at the New York Institute for Special Education, and consults on numerous community-based oral history projects.

Fall workshops at Agroforesty Resource Center

Cornell Cooperative Extension of Greene County offers the following workshops at the Agroforestry Resource Center (located at 6055 Route 23 in Acra, New York), unless noted otherwise. Pre-registration is required for all programs by calling Cornell Cooperative Extension at 518-622-9820 or e-mailing greene@cornell.edu.

Landscape Painting in Plein Air
Weekend Workshop with James Coe, October 2, 3 & 4. $200 per person. This intensive weekend program explores the challenges of working in plein-air directly from the landscape and provides an introduction to the traditional methods and materials of alla prima (direct) painting in oil paints.

Siuslaw Sunset Stroll
A Lark in the Park Event at the ARC Friday, October 9. Cost: Free. The “Lark in the Park” is a wonderful way for people to discover the wealth of history, culture, natural resources, and recreational opportunities offered by the Catskill Park and the entire Catskill Mountain Region.

Art at the ARC
Reception: Susan Story, Friday, Oct. 9. Susan M. Story’s passion as an artist is to use the pastel medium to express the many moods and emotions of nature’s landscapes. Susan, a Parsons School of Design graduate, is recognized regionally and nationally for her pastel landscapes.

The Great Northern Catskills Heritage Festival— Food – Farms – Family
Sunday, Oct. 11. Cost: $5 per person/$10 per family. 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Historical Catskill Point. Proceeds to benefit Cornell Cooperative Extension. The Festival will feature live music, food, vendors, children’s activities and a series of “Living the Good Life Locally” presentations.

Home Heating with Firewood — Know Your Options
This program will be offered at 11:00 a.m. on Oct. 14 and again on Thursday, Oct. 22 at 6:30 p.m. $5 per person. With the continued rising costs of home heating fuels, more homeowners are looking at utilizing regional firewood sources as a viable alternative. This workshop will discuss the pros and cons of heating your home with firewood.

NYS DEC Trees for Tribs Planting Project
Wednesday, Oct. 14. Free. 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., Snake Road, Catskill, NY. Riparian buffers, or streamside plantings, are a major component to maintaining healthy streams. The NYS DEC Hudson River Estuary Program operates the Trees for Tribs program, which provides native trees and shrubs for streamside landowners who apply to the program. You can enjoy a fun afternoon outdoors and do something positive for water quality by volunteering to help Trees for Tribs plant trees.

Youth Holiday Mail Call for the Troops
Wednesday, Oct. 21, 4:30-6 p.m. Jump into the holiday spirit early by showing your appreciation for our men and women who serve in the armed forces. Drop by and join us in making hand made holiday cards to send away to our soldiers. After the program, our season’s greetings will go to the American Red Cross to start their journey to their recipients. Participants are invited to bring their own scrap booking tools or use the materials provided.

Take Care of Your Land & It Will Take Care of You
A Workshop for Forest Owners. Saturday, Oct. 24, 12:30 to 4:30 p.m. Cost: $10.00 per person. Columbia-Greene Community College, Route 23, Hudson, NY. This program will include presentations on how one person has balanced his love for his forest with appropriate forest stewardship practices. You will also learn how you can improve the value of your forest and the local resources that can help you.

50-Mile Harvest Dinner
Saturday, Oct. 24, 6 p.m. $80 per person/$150 per couple. Chef Ric Orlando, of New World Home Cooking, returns again for this annual CCE fundraiser to prepare another delicious meal comprised of products gathered from local farmers and producers within a 50-mile radius of the Center. There will be live music as well as an auction. This is our Association's primary fund raiser so if you support local agriculture, enjoy the programs we offer and appreciate the work that's done here at the Center, please come out and join your fellow supporters, staff and volunteers for a fun evening.

Agroforestry Opportunities— Part One-Growing Mushrooms from A-Z/Part Two-Ginseng: A Primer for Beginners
Tuesday, Oct. 27. Mushrooms 1 - 2:30 p.m./Ginseng 2:30 - 4:30. Cost: $10 per person per session or $15 per person for both. This program combines two of the most popular agroforestry products - ginseng and mushrooms. This first session will describe the basics of growing mushrooms from spores to spawn or tissue culture all the way to fruiting on substrates ranging from logs to paper towels! A Ginseng Primer is designed to teach individuals how to get started growing American ginseng on forested land. It will cover basic ginseng botany, economics of ginseng production, site selection criteria, harvesting and marketing.

Youth Beginner Sewing Class
Oct. 29, Nov. 7 and 21. Cost: Cost of materials. Call for times. Participants eight and up may choose one of four patterns selected by the instructor. Youth younger than eight may attend with a parent. Each child will choose to make one of the following: a purse, a shirt, a robe or a pair of pajama pants.

Forest Roads and Trails
Saturday, Nov. 7. 10:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. Cost: $5 per person. Come and learn about the best ways to access your forest while minimizing the maintenance and impact. There is an outdoor component to this program which includes viewing appropriate trail and road designs on the Siuslaw Model Forest so come dressed to go outside.

Wreath Making
Thursday, Nov. 12, 6:30-8:30 p.m. Cost: $10 per person. Have fun making a grapevine swag that can be suitable for any season! We will have plenty of decorative materials available to embellish the swags to make them suitable for the upcoming holidays or any time of year.

Agritourism Program (How Can We Make It Work For Us?)
Saturday, Nov. 14, 9 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Cost: $10 per person/$15 per family. This program will appeal to folks that are interested in beginning an agritourism enterprise from scratch or those that are in the process of transitioning their operations to incorporate agritourism, agrirecreation, or agrientertainment onto existing farms.

Women & Forest Stewardship
Saturday, Nov. 14, 2-4 p.m. Cost: $5 per person. Forest stewardship has been defined as a personal responsibility for taking care of ones forest. We would like to establish and nurture a network of active forest landowners through women friendly, low-key, learning activities that increase their comfort level enough to particpate in in being good stewards of their forests. Anyone is welcomed to attend, just know it will be very women-friendly.

WGXC “Hands-On Radio’ for Columbia & Greene Counties
Wednesday, Nov. 18, 7-9 p.m., Cost: Free, but tax deductible donations to WGXC will be accepted. We’re pleased to host an informational session featuring the founders of an exciting grassroots radio and media project that is taking root in Greene and Columbia Counties. WGXC "Hands-On Radio" is a community-run media project, re-envisioning radio as an innovative platform to encourage citizen participation in the community. If you cannot make it in person, listen to workshop stream via WGXC Online Radio at www.wgxc.org.

Creating a Community-Based Food System in Greene County
Tuesday, Nov. 24, 6-8 p.m., Cost: $ 5.00 per person. “Buy fresh, buy local,” “I©my farmer,” “Locavore.” During this session, we’ll examine the basic terms and concepts related to agriculture and food systems, collectively identify the aspects of a food system that we most value, and explore opportunities for catalyzing, framing, and sustaining activities in and around Greene County that create the kind of food system that reflects those values.

Special Art Exhibit
Reception Friday, December 4, 5– 7 p.m. Featuring all of the talented artists who have participated in our premier year of “Art at the ARC”.

Harvest and Holiday Forest Farmers Market
Saturday, December 5 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. This free event highlights wonderful products such as honey, ginseng and maple products as well as other favorites from local farms to help you make this a delicious and memorable holiday season. There will also be gifts from regional craftsmen to round out your holiday list and lovely items to decorate your home using native materials.

Cornell Cooperative Extension provides equal program and employment opportunities. If you have special needs related to program participation, please contact the office.

Home Video, Asa Ransom, No Body Parts and DJ P.Josh at Jason's

Click here to listen to or download mp3 recording of Home Video, Asa Ransom, No Body Parts and DJ P.Josh performances Fri. Oct. 2 at Jason's Upstairs Bar in Hudson, NY.

At right, NoBody Parts perform at Jason's Upstairs Bar, 100209. Photo by Walter Hill.