I received today, the minutes from the Federation of Huletts Association’s meeting held on Saturday, August 29th.
You can read them here.
Once again our many thanks go out to all those who work tirelessly in all the Associations.
Foster Brook Dredging Almost Complete
Click on the image to see it in full scale.
Just wanted to give everyone a further update on the dredging. Right now it’s almost completed. This picture was taken on Monday afternoon as they wrapped things up. They were just about done with the dredging then. Yesterday they were out of the water and are now working on the roads, cleaning up the access site and hauling away the material. Later this week they’ll take out the silt curtains. Pat Gorman says he thinks everyone “will be happy”. I’ll post an update and more pictures later this week.
Thank you, Lake George Association!
Bits of Everything
President Asks Governor Not to Run
MSNBC reports that President Obama has asked Governor Paterson not to run for re-election. Quite frankly I am not surprised. We’ve gotten more taxes, more regulations, no school tax relief, and stimulus money used to fill in the state budget deficit.
Post Star reports on Stream Rules Delay
The Post Star reports on the delay in moving ahead on the stream rules. My only problem with this article is that it neglects the fact that Washington County and the towns of Dresden and Putnam have also passed resolutions opposing the stream rules. Memo to the Post Star, Lake George has an east shore.
Foster Brook Dredging Update
Just wanted to give everyone an update on the dredging. The dredging is going very well to this point. The contractor is making great progress. The photos shows the road built out to the delta with the excavator creating piles that are then hauled out by a pay loader. A 2nd curtain has been installed to keep any silt from escaping to the lake. It is working very well. Lots of people are watching! (And now so are you!)
Update 9/18/09
I’ve gotten a lot of interest in these pictures so here are the full resolution images for a better view:
Interview with Town Board Candidate Joanne Farley
Today, I present my questions to town board candidate, Joanne Farley, and her responses. She is running for one of the two seats up for election on the town board this year.
Could you please tell us about yourself and why you are running for the town board?
I have been a Dresden resident all my life. I have been married to my husband Scott for 19 years and have two children, Kelsey 13 and Ethan 5. I am now a stay at home mom but have previously worked for NYS Department of Corrections at Great Meadow Correctional Facility, Washington County Department of Social Services and North Country Community College.
I am running again for town council to continue to serve my community in a positive and fair and impartial manner. There are things I have started to work on and haven’t had the opportunity to finish and I would like to continue to work on those projects.
You have served on the Town Board for 4 years already and have done many positive things including cutting town taxes 2 years in a row. What would you like to accomplish over the next 4 years if re-elected?
To continue to serve in a positive, fair and impartial manner. I would like to continue to work on making our community a place where people want to be and a place where we are safe. I also want to continue to better our community and keep an eye on wasteful spending and direct those funds to where they are needed.
You are spearheading an effort to establish a children’s playground for local residents which is moving ahead. Could you tell us if there are things that people could do to assist you accomplish this goal?
My biggest problem with this project is finding a location that is central to all. This lack of location and parcel is a big problem as I cannot attempt to gain any kind of funding or grants until there is property secured. I am trying my best to tackle this problem. If and when I find a place, much support with funding and volunteer work will be needed and appreciated from all.
I know as a mother, you are deeply concerned about opportunities for youth. You worked very hard to keep the Washington County Beach open this past summer. For this you should be commended. Could you give us your thoughts on how things are going with the Town running the beach and what we should expect in the future? (Administrator’s correction: My question was improperly stated. The Town subsidizes the operation of the beach. The County operates the beach.)
I think the support of the workers who do an excellent job of maintaining the beach and the help of the county’s Alternative Sentencing program really helped us out this year. Also the support of the residents with donations was a big factor. If this problem with funding arises again next Summer, I feel the support of the people will help us avoid any closings. It is an important area that needs to remain available for all residents of the town, for some of us, it is the only access we have to the beautiful lake, if it were taken away I think it would be a shame and create more problems.
I know you have worked hard to bring people throughout the town closer together. This can be difficult at times because the different areas that make up Dresden sometimes see things differently. What is your vision for the entire town moving forward?
I think we are all capable of getting along and supporting each other. I saw proof of this as stated above with the coming together to keep the beach opened. We are capable of this and feel we can come together on other issues as well. No matter where we live we should work together as a community and support one another. It can be done!!
Candidate Interviews: Coming this Month
This week, I will begin my interviews with candidates running for town wide office in November 2009. Four candidates are running for two seats on the Dresden Town Board up for election this year. I sent different questions to all of the Town Board candidates and I told them I would post them in the order I received them back. The questions were written entirely by me and cover a variety of topics. My short interviews should not be your only source of information but are designed to encourage a discussion on the issues affecting us this year. I would recommend that you seek out all of the candidates and make an informed decision. I offered to run a picture of each candidate with their answers to my questions, but a picture was not required.
We are fortunate to have 4 qualified and interesting candidates running for the two open seats on the Town Board this year. All of them should be commended for running and getting involved.
Bits of Everything
Post Star Editorial on Making the APA Pay
Sound familiar?
“The agency’s staffers can read. They knew they were twisting the law beyond any legitimate shape, but they pushed ahead anyway, in bad faith.”
It’s not just happening in Huletts. The APA is taking unjustified positions in other areas also. For this they’ll most likely pay. Literally. Read the Post Star editorial here.
How Do You Spend You Day?
The NY Times has this neat interactive graphic which shows how different groups of people spend their day. Cool.
Post Star Reports on Foster Brook
You can read the Post Star’s article on Foster Brook here.
Here’s the bottom line.
The APA’s involvement:
nearly prevented the project from happening.
added approximately $5,000 or more to the cost.
results in 100 to 150 dump truck trips of 20 miles each, instead of 1/2 mile each.
cost everyone time, energy and aggravation.
didn’t do anything to help the environment.
Enviros Can’t Take Truth: Try to Change What Happened
I just got off the phone with the Post Star reporter who will be doing a story over the weekend about the whole Foster Brook saga. The reporter told me that the APA spokesman who they interviewed made the assertion that the APA went out of their way to accommodate us.
As the landowner of where the dredged material was going to be put, I can say that is completely untrue.
They weren’t cooperative on their site visit when they alleged the material was waste and both the LGA representative and I argued with them on the spot.
They weren’t cooperative when the DEC told them their interpretation was wrong and in conflict with theirs.
They weren’t cooperative when I wrote to them on August 18th and told them that if they continued their interpretation; “we doubt we would be able to file this permit and/or allow our property to be used for accepting the dredged materials.”
They weren’t cooperative when we asked to see a draft permit leading up to Labor Day so we could update the community on what was happening. They waited until Tuesday, September 8th, after everyone had left for the weekend.
They certainly weren’t cooperative when they issued the draft permit, which attempted to declared our property a “waste disposal area” and place other ridiculous conditions upon us. (Don’t be surprised by this, but they weren’t cooperative with the Post Star reporter either, refusing to release the draft permit to him, but don’t worry I did.)
If you want to know the truth, they weren’t cooperative at all. They hoped that by springing a permit on us at the last moment which we told them we wouldn’t accept, and which the DEC told them was wrong, they would blow up the deal entirely for at least another year and maybe permanently. They didn’t expect that the LGA would find another location to accept the materials. That’s the truth.
No where in this whole saga did they care about the environment.
They certainly didn’t care about the tiny smelts who can’t run up the stream anymore because they’re being blocked by the delta.
They didn’t care about 100 dump trucks going over the mountain to a site 10 miles away as opposed to our site less than a mile away.
The only thing they cared about was their extreme anti-people agenda which we just told you about. This is a perfect example of why a high level state official told me these radical environmentalists, “have no credibility left with anyone”.
Enviro Smackdown: Foster Brook on Again
I am happy to report that I just spoke to the Lake George Association and the Foster Brook project is on again. The Town of Dresden will be accepting the dredged materials and while this will add additional cost to the project, the project will be starting within days. No one sees any need for the Adirondack Park Agency to be involved.
The DEC should be amending the dredging permit and any delayed work will get done.
While I will be working on a more complete report in the days ahead, there are some heroes and villains in this story.
Many thanks go out to all of you for contacting the Governor’s office. It did help. Secondly both the Lake George Association and the Town of Dresden deserve worthy praise for their efforts to see this project through. The Town of Dresden understood what was happening and quickly stepped up to the plate. Finally, the DEC understood the importance of this project and was cooperative throughout.
To those sad people at the Adirondack Park Agency, who claim they are “environmentalists” but are nothing more than people unfriendly-elitists, shame on you. You know where you can shove your definition of “waste”. I was told by one official that these so called “environmentalists” “have no credibility left with anyone”. You can expect some eye-opening stories about the hypocrisy of many in this crowd over the next few months.
I’ll have another update soon.
Foster Brook Halted Again – APA Stops Project
Do You See Waste or Gravel?
Sadly, I have to report that the Adirondack Park Agency has thwarted the removal of the clogged mouth of Foster Brook. The Adirondack Park Agency is sticking to an interpretation that is in conflict with the Department of Environmental Conservation and common sense. While the DEC has issued the permits to start dredging, there is no place to put the dredged material. As one of the owners of the parcel where the material was going to be put, I wanted to tell you first hand what is transpiring and why we have had to pull out of the project.
I was informed by the Lake George Association in the middle of the summer that the DEC had issued the permit to dredge Foster Brook. I posted that news here.
We have always wanted this project to proceed and, in this regard, we offered to allow the dredged material to be put in our gravel pit to save the LGA money. If they couldn’t use our pit, the LGA was looking at a substantial cost increase in moving the material over the mountain. They approached the APA and asked if a permit was necessary for the dredged material to be put in our gravel pit.
The APA conducted an on-site inspection during late July/early August. The APA sent two staff members to see the site where the material was going to be placed. During that meeting, one staff member asserted that a permit would be needed because the dredged material, being removed from Foster Brook, was “waste”. We later learned that he was instructed to make this interpretation by a supervisor.
Both the LGA representative and myself thought this interpretation was wrong. The DEC had previously tested the material and found it to be “clean fill”. We went ahead and applied for the permit in good faith, but I also wrote a letter to the APA which clearly indicated we did not accept their terminology and we did not consent to it being called “waste”. I said, in no uncertain terms, if the APA wanted to continue calling the material waste, we could not go ahead and let our property be used to place the dredged material.
I copied this letter to the DEC and the Governor’s office because both the APA and the DEC are executive agencies of the Governor’s office. On August 21st, the DEC called and told me our interpretation was correct and that the APA was in error to call the material “waste”. The DEC official was quite clear that, if gravel was defined as “waste”, almost every driveway throughout the Adirondacks would now have “waste” on it. The DEC official further told me that it was the DEC’s position that an APA permit wasn’t needed in order to put the dredged material in our gravel pit.
We repeatedly asked to see a draft permit from the APA during the week leading up to Labor Day. Only today did we receive a draft permit which attempts to assert jurisdiction under Section 810(d)(16) which applys to waste disposal areas. In addition, the draft permit tries to assert other conditions which we cannot agree to. In my opinion, this has been deliberately done, by some radical environmentalists at the APA, with the knowledge that we would not accept these conditions and that the project would not proceed. The most radical elements of the environmental movement see this delta as a wetland being created and do not care that private property is being impacted by flooding. Also remember that the DEC permit requires that the dredging be done by Ocrober 1st, so any delay is a full fledged effort to stop this project from going forward.
I am very disappointed that, after numerous years of work by many people, our good faith offer to allow the material to be put in our gravel pit has been met by one of the most outlandish interpretations ever made by the APA.
An interpretation such as this, which contradicts another state agency, has most likely been made in the Governor’s office. Either the Governor has specifically allowed this interpretation to be made or he is simply allowing the Adirondack Park Agency to run his administration. If you would like to call or email the Governor’s office directly you can contact him here. You can ask to speak to his secretary, Mr. Lawrence Schwartz.
Unless the Governor intervenes and corrects this interpretation or another site can be found to put the dredged material, the Foster Brook dredging will not take place this year.
An Endorsement Not to Endorse
There’s that old saying that voters don’t start paying attention to campaigns until after Labor Day. So in that regard, I was asked if I would be endorsing candidates in the upcoming town election.
My response is a resounding; “No”.
I have never been a big fan of endorsements and I know that the readers of the Huletts Current are an intelligent group of people capable of making up their own minds.
In an effort to keep you informed though, I will be submitting personalized questionaires with unique and varied questions to all of the candidates and I will present their answers (or lack thereof) here. However it’s going to be up to you to form your own opinions and decide how to cast your vote.
It was a great …
picnic
talent show
race
golf match
weekend!
summer!!!!
Thanks to everyone for making it happen. To those who are traveling, have a safe trip home.
Happy Labor Day 2009.
School Tax Bills Received
More local property will go on the market soon because people can’t afford their school tax bills. Out of control spending by the school board is causing property owners to sell their parcels.
If you are a property owner in Huletts, you just recently received your school tax bill for 2009-2010. I had two calls this week from people who have decided to put their homes up for sale because they can no longer afford the school taxes. One person told me; “I just can’t pay my school taxes. I have to sell.” I will continue to post pictures of businesses that have closed and cease to exist in Whitehall. The school board’s continued policy of overcharging, putting the funds in reserve accounts and spending on capital improvements, while enrollment is plummeting is a complete outrage. 
Whitehall’s steep decline is a testament to this flawed tax and spend policy.
What can be done?
1.) Have committed tax-cutters run for the school board and tell the school board members how you feel when you receive your tax bill. Ask questions. Why isn’t spending tied to enrollment? Why are businesses closing and for-sale signs appearing everywhere? You can be sure the board hears from the education establishment when setting the budget. They should hear from the taxpayers also. Here is the board of education that sets the budget. Only one person comes from Dresden.
2.) Understand the taxing policies of the school district. Know how the equalization rate effects our school taxes. What is this? By law, equalization rates are used to apportion taxes in taxing jurisdictions that cross municipal boundaries. These taxing jurisdictions are usually school districts.
The tax levy for the Whitehall school district is spread over the five towns it serves. Whitehall, Dresden and parts of Granville, Hampton and Fort Ann make up the district.
In a perfect world, all would pay the same tax rate based on their property being assessed at market value. However, because individual towns decide when their property will be reassessed, some towns are assessed at 100% of market value while others are not. NY state thus sets an “equalization rate” to apportion taxes equally among towns with different methods of calculating their assessment rolls.
The total tax levy for the district this year is $4,829,164.
This is where it gets a bit complicated and we need to put our thinking caps on.
Dresden has a low equalization rate of 45.53 % because we have not done a reassessment for a long time. So while the Dresden tax roll shows that Dresden has $129,001,445 in taxable property, NY State after applying the equalization rate calculates that the total assessed value of Dresden property is $283,332,846. Dresden thus pays $2,713,201 of the tax levy or 56.1% of the Whitehall school budget.
Whitehall’s equalization rate is 100% because they reassessed the town recently and went to 100% valuation. Their taxable property is carried at $196,081,028 and they pay $1,875,903 of the tax levy or 38.8% of the Whitehall school budget.
Hampton also has an equalization rate of 100% but their total assed value for the property within the district is only $23,410,183. Thus they only pay $223,724 or 4.6% of the Whitehall school budget.
Fort Ann has an equalization rate of 100% but little property served by the school distinct. Assessed property is $2,166,122 for a tax levy share of $20,724 or 0.4% of the Whitehall school budget.
Granville has an equalization rate of 77.51 % but has relatively little property within the district. The taxable assessed value of their property is $678,200 so Granville pays only $8,379 of the tax levy or 0.1% of the Whitehall school budget.
Should Dresden reassess and go to 100% of full value bringing our equalization rate in line with Whitehall, Fort Ann & Hampton? Only if you believe the town-wide assessment is too high and your assessed value is too high. How can you figure this out?
On your tax bill there is a column marked “Taxable Value or Units”, take that number and divide it by .4553 (Dresden’s equalization rate) and that is what NY state considers the full or fair market value of your property.
Taxable Value or Units on Tax Bill / .4553 = what NY says your property is worth.
If you think that this value is higher than what you would sell your property for, you would probably want your property to be reassessed.
If you think that this value is lower than what you would sell for, you probably don’t want your property to be reassessed.
I am not advocating for or against reassessment at this time but I want people to understand the issues involved. Because Whitehall is a town in significant decline and Dresden is not, this imbalance will most likely continue. We need to consider strategies that will work to lower taxes for all.
If the Town of Dresden was to reassess and the new town-wide total came in at an amount above the adjusted total of $283,332,846 that NY state says our property is worth (as adjusted by the equalization rate) we would pay an even higher share of the Whitehall school tax budget.
If the Town of Dresden was to reassess and the new town-wide total came in at an amount less than the adjusted total of $283,332,846 that NY state says our property is worth (as adjusted by the equalization rate) we would pay a lower percentage.
At its core, this issue is one of overspending by the Whitehall school board, the assessed value of property is only a way of spreading the taxes around.
I’d like everyone to try this calculation and give me your feedback. The bottom line is that in return for paying 58.1% of the school budget, Dresden gets very little in return. When you have one town paying this large a share with practically no representation, and a school board hell bent on destroying their own community through poor tax and spend policies, you have the situation we are all in today.
Sadly more people will end up selling because of the short-sighted policies of the Whitehall school district. That is the real tragedy.