Whitehall School Enrollment Edges Up

For the second consecutive year, student enrollment went up in the Whitehall School District.

For the 2013-2014 school year, total enrollment for all grades K-12 was 757 students.

This was 2 students higher than the 2012-2013 year, when enrollment was 755 students.

The exact demographic and grade breakdown for the 2013-2014 school year for the district can be seen here.

I have been tracking and reporting on the enrollment for a number of years. Even with the small increase from this past year, enrollment has been down over 14% since the 2004-2005 school year.

# 04-05 05-06 06-07 07-08 08-09 09-10 10-11 11-12 12-13 13-14 Percent Change
 885 860 858 845 815 779 753 742 755 757       -14.46%

Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY-21) Officially Sworn In


Rep. Stefanik being sworn in by Speaker John Boehner. (Click image to see full-scale.)

Washington, D.C. – Today, January 6, 2015, Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY-21) was officially sworn in to represent New York’s 21st district in the U.S. House of Representatives.

“I am thrilled and humbled by this opportunity to serve the wonderful people of New York’s 21st district,” said Congresswoman Stefanik. “I pledge to be a strong voice for our community in Congress and to work my hardest to advance bipartisan solutions. Washington is broken and now is the time for leaders to work together on behalf of the American people. I am grateful for this incredible opportunity.”

Independent Film Producer Provides Update on Movie Filmed Locally in April 2014


The producers and film crew making an independent short movie in and around Huletts Landing in April 2014 (seen here), recently provided an update on the movie.

Back in April, a film crew and actors descended on Huletts Landing and Whitehall, where they shot an independent short movie.

I recently heard from one of the producers, Jeremy Leach of Lost City Creative, who gave me an update on where things presently stand.

We wrapped up filming in mid/late April after thirteen days of filming. If memory serves, we spent 3 days in Brooklyn, one travel/shoot day going upstate from Brooklyn and the next nine days splitting time between Whitehall and Huletts Landing. One of our biggest concerns before heading up to Huletts was the state of the lake. I was told it had been one of the coldest winters on record and as of April 12th, our first day of production, large portions of the lake had not thawed. Because we had several scenes on the lake, this was a cause of great consternation. However, upon arriving at Huletts on April 15th (in a torrential downpour), we were relieved to find the lake had completely thawed. Apparently, it had gone out two days before we arrived!

Upon beginning the edit, we were delighted to find that many of the scenes from the film, including those filmed in and around Huletts Landing, really capture the beauty of the landscape. The scenes we filmed there are important because they are essentially the first time our main character is immersed in a completely natural environment, a significant stage in the film. We were honored to be able to work with such wonderful people both in Huletts Landing and in Whitehall before, during, and after production.

The first thing we had to do once we finished filming was to cull through and organize the many hours of footage. That took some time because we filmed several complicated scenes, many of which included a variety of long takes. Initially we were unsure of the potential length of the film but after going through all the footage and putting together some rough assembly edits, we’re thinking it could potentially be anywhere from 75 – 90 minutes long. Right now, we are working on and are close to completing a rough cut of the entire film, creating a story arc by assembling the visual building blocks of the film. From there, we will review and move on to a fine cut, where we will start incorporating more complex sound design and begin the arduous process of color correction.

Finding free time to edit while juggling work/personal responsibilities can be challenging, often resulting in a process that takes longer than expected. That said, we’re hoping we can have a finished film by early spring of 2015. After it’s finished, we’ll begin the process of submitting the film to festivals and arranging screenings. I’ll keep you updated with our progress for some follow-up posts for your blog.

Washington County Proposes 2015 Budget

Washington County Supervisors are proposing a 2015 budget of $108,155,631 which is approximately $300,000 less in spending than 2014. However it would include an increase of 2.85 percent to the tax levy which is within the tax cap allowed by state law.

The budget is finalized near the end of the year. I will have more on this in the days ahead.

DEC seeks help for Moose sightings

The DEC staff from Region 5 are seeking the public’s assistance to locate moose for a moose population study. A moose was seen in Washington County last year (picture here).

If anyone sees a moose, please report it immediately to the DEC at 518-897-1291.

The DEC appreciates the public’s assistance to learn more about NY’s largest mammal.

Tuesday October 28th, Last Day to Submit an Absentee Ballot Application

Please know that the November 4th General Election is fast approaching. Here is how to obtain an absentee ballot if you are registered to vote in NY state.

How to Vote by Absentee Ballot

Applications for Absentee Ballots are available at the county board of elections.

You may also download a PDF version of the New York State Absentee Ballot Application Form.

Upon completion, applications must be mailed and postmarked to your county board no later than the seventh day before the election (October 28th) or delivered in person no later than the day before the election.

You may also request an Absentee Ballot by sending a letter to your county board of elections. The letter must be received by your county board no earlier than 30 days and no later than seven days before the election. The letter must contain the following information:

the address where you are registered
an address where the ballot is to be sent
the reason for the request, and
the signature of the voter

An application form will be mailed with your ballot. The application form must be completed and returned with your ballot.

Washington County Board of Elections
383 Broadway
Fort Edward, NY 12828

Phone: 518-746-2180
Fax: 518-746-2179

Lake Champlain- Lake George Regional Planning Board 2013 Annual Report

I recently received in the mail, the 2013 Annual Report for the Lake Champlain – Lake George Regional Planning Board. This organization operates a number of revolving loan fund programs provided by the US Department of Commerce and Department of Agriculture. The brochure details the companies that the Board loaned money to locally and a number of their initiatives which includes a winter road education program. (Readers of the Huletts Current will know the dangers road salt plays in the pollution of fresh water lakes.)

It’s 5 pages but an interesting read. (Click the image above to read the report.)