CAC looking to increase watershed areas

PINE PLAINS — At the Town Board meeting, June 17, the Conversation Advisory Council (CAC) made a presentation on the need to amend the town’s Critical Environmental Area (CEA) maps to include more land around the town’s major bodies of water: Stissing Lake, Thompson Pond and Twin Island Lake.

CAC Chair Joan Redmond explained that the CEA report, adopted in 2004 , is currently “very tight around the town’s lakes.� More accurate information has since become available, she said.

The CAC proposed including another 850 acres as part of the town’s Critical Environmental Area. Redmond said that the CEA is designed to “preserve the water quality and health� of the town’s resources, and would act as a safeguard to increase awareness of any contamination.

“As the hamlet develops so does the risk of contamination,� she reasoned, saying the increased CEA will create more protection.

The change would have little effect on any homeowners with property in the proposed areas, Redmond added. Soil types remain the same, and the CAC provided a list of property owners in the proposed area to be notified of the change.

There was some question whether the homeowners would legally need to be notified of the change; Attorney to the Town Warren Replansky said he would look into the matter.

Redmond said the document was ready for adoption barring a few typographical errors. A public hearing would be required, Replansky added. Supervisor Gregg Pulver asked if larger and more detailed maps of the changes could be produced.

“I think it’s great, but we need to see it on a much bigger scale,� he said.

Latest News

Water main cleaning in North Canaan

NORTH CANAAN – Aquarion Water Company today announced a water main cleaning project in the company’s North Canaan system. The project is scheduled to take place from Monday, April 1 through Tuesday, April 16, and is being undertaken to ensure customers in North Canaan continue to receive the highest quality water.

The cleaning for April 1 and April 4 (subject to change) will take place on the following streets:

Keep ReadingShow less
Tuning up two passions under one roof

The Webb Family in the workshop. From left: Phyllis, Dale, Ben and Josh Webb, and project manager Hannah Schiffer.

Natalia Zukerman

Magic Fluke Ukulele Shop and True Wheels Bicycle Shop are not only under the same roof in a beautiful solar powered building on Route 7 in Sheffield, but they are also both run by the Webb family, telling a tale of familial passion, innovation and a steadfast commitment to sustainability.

In the late ‘90s, Dale Webb was working in engineering and product design at a corporate job. “I took up instrument manufacturing as a fun challenge,” said Dale. After an exhibit at The National Association of Music Merchants in Anaheim, California, in 1999, The Magic Fluke company was born. “We were casting finger boards and gluing these things together in our basement in New Hartford and it just took off,” Dale explained. “It was really a wild ride, it kind of had a life of its own.”

Keep ReadingShow less
Robert Cray’s soulful blues coming to Infinity Hall

Robert Cray

Photo provided

Blues legend Robert Cray will be bringing his stinging, funky guitar and soulful singing to Infinity Hall Norfolk on Friday, March 29.

A five-time Grammy winner, Cray has been inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame and earned The Americana Music Awards Lifetime Achievement for Performance. He has played with blues and rock icons including Albert Collins, Muddy Waters, John Lee Hooker, The Rolling Stones, Tina Turner, Eric Clapton and many more.

Keep ReadingShow less