by Emily Corcione ALBANY: “Being green isn’t good enough anymore.” That was the message of Mr. James Howard Kunstler, who spoke at the Save the Pine Bush dinner on February 18, 2004. His speech focused on how we can best honor the public realm in America. The public realm, which functions as “the physical manifestation … Being Green Isn’t Good Enough Anymore – James Hoard Kunstler Speaks
ALBANY, NY: Lynne Jackson was asked to speak at Jim’s memorial service. Here are her edited comments. Jim was a passionate advocate for the environment. With Save the Pine Bush, he worked tirelessly opposing the expansion of the Albany Landfill in the Pine Bush. But, he especially worked to stop the City of Albany from … Save the Pine Bush Lost Good Friends – Jim Travers, Save the Pine Bush Volunteer
2020s 🦋 2010s 🦋 2000s 🦋 1990s Search Newsletter Archives: 2009 🦋 2008 🦋 2007 🦋 2006 🦋 2005 🦋 2004 🦋 2003 🦋 2002 🦋 2001 🦋 2000 2009 October/November 2009 – Download printable PDF version Bringing Back Sustainable Karner Blue Populations, October/November, 2009 September Biogas Talk, October/November, 2009 Buckmoth Monitoring, October/November, 2009 Neither … SPB Newsletters Listed by Date – 2000s
Location Is Everything – Kunstler Offers Solutions Location Is Everything Kunstler Offers Solutions By Daniel Van Riper We are living in "the national automobile slum. That is the human ecology of the United States." Thus spoke novelist and reformer of architecture James Howard Kunstler, who returned to speak at the May 13, 1998 Save the … Location Is Everything – Kunstler Offers Solutions
GUILDERLAND, NY: On Christmas Eve, Pyramid Crossgates submitted the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for their project, “Rapp Road Residential /Western Avenue Mixed Use Redevelopment Projects.” When first brought before the Town of Guilderland Planning Board in late 2018, the project consisted of building 222-unit apartment complex on Rapp Road. The project has morphed into … Pyramid Submits the Draft Environmental Impact Statement
A Brief Historical Note on the Six Mile Waterworks (Rensselaer Lake) A Brief Historical Note on the Six Mile Waterworks (Rensselaer Lake) by John Wolcott The section of the Pine Bush where the proposed aquatic park would be located is a remaining portion of an early conservation area. This was one of the first tracts, … A Brief Historical Note on the Six Mile Waterworks (Rensselaer Lake)
CLIFTON PARK: A petition for a Declaratory Ruling under the State Administrative Procedure Act was submitted in January to the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation by the environmental preservation group, Save the Pine Bush together with 22 Capital Region residents asking the DEC to rule on a 1994 habitat protection agreement meant to save the … Petition Filed With State Dec Seeks Ruling On 1994 Protection Agreement For Karner Blue In Clifton Park
Albany Pine Bush Devil?!? Must Be April Fools Albany Pine Bush Devil?!? Must Be April Fools By Daniel Van Riper We have been amazed by reports of a bizarre animal thought to have been extinct suddenly surfacing in the Albany Pine Bush during the past month. The so-called Jersey Devil, which was native to the … Albany Pine Bush Devil?!? Must Be April Fools
Opinion by Lynne Jackson In 1978, when Save the Pine Bush began suing the City of Albany over proposed developments in the Pine Bush, the State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA), was not in effect. We could not use SEQRA in court, so, instead our initial lawsuits were over sewers. Fortunately SEQRA took effect soon … Initial Public Comments Delivered in Albany on March 31st at the Public Hearing on SEQRA
By Tom Ellis Sometime in January, the General Services Committee (GSC) of the Albany Common Council will hold a meeting at which the city’s solid waste consultants, Clough Harbour @ Associates (CHA) and Bill Bruce, will discuss their response to comments submitted by representatives and friends of Save the Pine Bush on the proposed long-range … Update on Albany’s Solid Waste Management Plan (SWMP)
GUILDERLAND – A man who wanted to send a message of peace by wearing a T-shirt with anti-war slogans was arrested Monday at Crossgates Mall after he refused to remove the shirt or leave the mall. Stephen F. Downs, 61, of Selkirk, was charged with one count of trespassing, a violation. Police said he was … Peace’ T-shirt prompts arrest Mall patron faces trespass charge
Action Alert! Touhey Gets A Boost Politicians Defy Voters Action Alert! Touhey Gets A Boost Politicians Defy Voters By Daniel Van Riper The Zoning Committee of the Albany Common Council handed stubborn developer Charlie Touhey a key approval of his proposed destruction of Pine Bush at 300 Washington Avenue Extension. By a vote of 3 … Action Alert! Touhey Gets A Boost Politicians Defy Voters
by Lynne Jackson Save the Pine Bush needs you to write letters to the Governor and the Dept. of Environmental Conservation Commissioner. SPB has the Plan of outlining specifically which parcels should be protected; the State of New York has the money to buy it. Now is the time to take action. Now is the … 10 Minutes & 29¢: The Most Important Thing You Can Do Today to Save the Pine Bush
By Grace Nichols Save the Pine Bush is overjoyed that the NYS Supreme Court heard our plea for land protection for over 46 acres of Pine Bush threatened by Pyramid Development Corporation. As we prepared to file our Article 78 lawsuit, a coalition of neighbors to the land along with a local business filed suit … Update on Land Conservation Struggles in Our Region
The crisp $100 bill that Megan Carpenter got for Christmas was still in her pocket when a man cornered the teenager outside a Crossgates Mall restroom and demanded that she fork over the cash. The man kept one hand jammed in his coat pocket, and Carpenter worried it might be holding a weapon. She was … AFRAID, OUT $100, NO ONE TO HELP
Crossgates Mall officials have dropped trespassing charges filed Monday against war protester Steve Downs, who wore a pro-peace T-shirt as he walked through the building that afternoon. The decision to negate the arrest came Wednesday evening, after more than 100 anti-war protesters descended upon the mall wearing shirts similar to Downs’. Tim Kelley, who works … Crossgates Mall drops charges in T-shirt incident
GUILDERLAND – The owners of Crossgates Mall late Wednesday asked town police to drop the charge against a man arrested at the mall after he refused to either remove a pro-peace T-shirt or leave the mall. The arrest of Stephen F. Downs, 61, of Selkirk, on a charge of trespassing led to a protest at … Mall: Drop charge in T-shirt case
by Tom Ellis Since the prior SPB News last year, much has occurred locally and regionally. Despite many enviro-activists working separately, climate activists are increasingly well organized and effective in their lobbying the state legislature. Nevertheless, a widely supported Renewable Capitol Act has not been enacted as of Earth Day. The RCA would invest $50 … Environmental News
Friday, March 22, 7:30 p.m. A Sense of Wonder one-woman play about the life and work of Rachel Carson “A Sense of Wonder,”is a one-woman play about the life and work of Rachel Carson, will be performed at RPI’s Chapel and Cultural Center (2125 Burdett Avenue, Troy). Rachel Carson was a marine biologist and zoologist … Save the Pine Bush
by John Wolcott Join us on a visit to a forgotten locale at the crossing of Old Karner Road with the AMTRAK tracks. This was bypassed when New Karner Road was built and then after a while the crossing was closed. This place was the location of the railroad stop half way between Albany and … Center, NY/Karner, NY Old Development Never Finished in the Pine Bush
GUILDERLAND, NY: Rapp Road Development, a corporate entity of Pyramid/Crossgates, is proposing to build on about 46 acres of land. Originally, the proposal was to build 222 apartments on 20 acres of land adjacent to the Pine Bush preserve. After the Town Planning Board appointed themselves the lead agency, the project was exapanded to include … Proposed Crossgates Development
Guilderland and Pyramid look for second suit, filed by Save the Pine Bush, to be dismissed Monday, August 2, 2021 – 19:13 Enterprise file photo — Michael Koff The not-for-profit group Save The Pine Bush, in November 2020, celebrated when Westmere residents won a lawsuit (which was recently overturned) that stopped construction of two Pyramid projects. … Guilderland and Pyramid look for second suit, filed by Save the Pine Bush, to be dismissed
Monday, February 15, 2021 – 19:52 – Altamont Enterprise GUILDERLAND — The judge overseeing the town of Guilderland and Pyramid Management Group’s appeal to reverse a lower court’s decision that stopped construction of the company’s Rapp Road and Western Avenue projects has agreed to a request for “an expedited briefing schedule on this appeal.” The … Appeals court in Guilderland-Pyramid lawsuit allows case to cut the line – Altamont Enterprise
Pine Bush Loses – Drumlin Fields Approved Albany Common Council Votes Against Pine Bush Approves Drumlin Fields Office Complex Ignores Commission and all Rational Thought by Lynne Jackson The Common Council, against the wishes of its constituents, major environmental organizations in Albany, Save the Pine Bush, and the Albany Pine Bush Preserve Commission, approved the … Pine Bush Loses – Drumlin Fields Approved
It is with great sadness that we observe the passing of our dear friend, Louise Burch. Louise was a stalwart volunteer for Save the Pine Bush for decades. She folded newsletters and drove Rezsin and the newsletters to the post office. But, most important of all, she selflessly washed the dishes at the dinners, so … Save the Pine Bush Loses A Very Dear Friend
Devil Eats Developer – Massive Coverup Alleged Devil Eats Developer Massive Coverup Alleged By Daniel Van Riper The endangered Albany Pine Bush Devil, making it’s first reported appearance since last April Fools, has attacked and eaten developer Charlie Touhey, thus dramatically ending his stubborn and irrational plans to destroy Pine Bush acreage at 300 Washington … Devil Eats Developer – Massive Coverup Alleged
ALBANY — Those squiggly compact fluorescent light bulbs are being touted as an easy solution to save energy and fight global warming. But there are drawbacks: The bulbs contain toxic mercury, and so far there is no easy way to recycle them. In the Capital Region, homeowners are being encouraged to keep burned-out CFL bulbs … Proposed Landfill Expansion a Collision of Factors
Save the Pine Bush Volunteers Spread the Word Save the Pine Bush Volunteers Spread the Word Sometimes, school teachers or students will invite members of Save the Pine Bush to speak. We have had many adventures talking to students. Here is a sample. Ed. SPB Visits Elementary School Elementary school students at the D. H. … Save the Pine Bush Volunteers Spread the Word
Name of the project: Rapp Road Residential/Western Avenue Mixed Use Redevelopment Projects Email comments to: Kenneth Kovalchik, Town Planner, Kovalchikk@togny.org The Town of Guilderland Planning Board should reject the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for the proposed development by Pyramid (Crossgates) to build massive apartment complexes, office space and expansive retail on Rapp Road, the … Write to the Town of Guilderland Planning Board
FORCE Fights Pyramid – Guilderland Citizens Organize FORCE Fights Pyramid Guilderland Citizens Organize By Daniel Van Riper Citizens and taxpayers of Guilderland, courageously opposed to the rape and ruination of their town by the vicious and sleazy Pyramid Corporation, have chosen a name for themselves and gotten down to the task of organizing. Friends … 9
Name of the project: Rapp Road Residential/Western Avenue Mixed Use Redevelopment Projects Here is the Draft Environmental Impact Statement website at the Town of Guilderland: https://www.townofguilderland.org/planning-board/pages/environmental-impact-statement-rapp-road-residentialwestern-avenue-mixed-use Save the Pine Bush’s comments on the DEIS Here are Save the Pine Bush’s comments written by Christopher M. Walker, , Legal Intern appearing pursuant to the Practice Order of … Crossgates Expansion
By Lynne Jackson ALBANY, NY: Todd Ommen from the Pace Environmental Ligation Clinic representing Save the Pine Bush, filed an amicus brief in March in the case known as Thomas Hart, Lisa hart, Kevin Mcdonald, Sarah Mcdonald, 1667 Western Avenue, LLC and Red-Kap Sales, Inc., v. Town of Guilderland, Planning Board and Zoning Board of … Save the Pine Bush Files an Amicus Brief in the Pyramid Lawsuit
by John Wolcott The next piece in the puzzle of “Where is Trader’s Hill?” is an amazing very old parchment map in the Albany City Engineer’s collection. It is the only map known to show Margriets Bergh, and was drawn in January 1773 by Jeremiah Van Rensselaer from a survey done by himself in 1772. … Save the Pine Bush
The June 19 Common Council meeting had some astounding moments. At one point during the Common Council caucus, the Honorable James R. Scalzo, Ward 10, said that the Albany Pine Bush Preserve “Commission is prostituting itself” because the home rule bill included provisions that the Commission would receive $2 a ton from the landfill tipping … The Albany Common Council Editorial Comment by Lynne Jackson
Action Alert! Call your Common Council Member- Ask to Vote No on Touhey Action Alert! Call your Common Council Member – Ask to Vote No on Touhey Charles Touhey is back with his proposal to construct an office complex in the Pine Bush. So far, Save the Pine Bush has sucessfully stopped Mr. Touhey … 9
by Grace Nichols ALBANY: Steven Leibo, Phd, a Sage Colleges Professor of International History and Politics, as well as an International Affairs Commentator on WAMC Northeast Public Radio, came to speak to us about the Climate Change crisis. Dr. Leibo has been a constant presence on the academic and environmental scene in the Capital … Run Away Climate:
Words Over Lasagna – Recent Dinner Speakers Words Over Lasagna Recent Dinner Speakers April/May 1995 By Daniel Van Riper We’ve had some excellent presentations at our monthly lasagna dinners at First Presbyterian Church in Albany over the past five months. All were well attended. Here’s a roundup: November 94 – Dr. George Robinson of the … Words Over Lasagna – Recent Dinner Speakers
Famous Lasagna Dinners Famous Lasagna Dinners Nearly every month for the past eighteen years, Save the Pine Bush has hosted a vegetarian lasagna dinner. That’s "All of the Vegetarian Lasagna You Can Eat with Garden Salad, Garlic Bread and Homemade Pies for Dessert Only $10 for Adults, $5 for Students, and $2 for Children." Save … Famous Lasagna Dinners
Conservancy, Albany are Partners in Pine Bush Land Deal Conservancy, Albany are Partners in Pine Bush Land Deal The following is part of an article from the Times Union, Nov. 14, 91 by James Denn. We’re not sure about some of the details, but here it is. The Nature Conservancy, a national not-for-profit environmental group, … 7
Save the Pine Bush Action Alert! Action Alerts! Call Your Albany City Common Council Member To oppose re-zoning of 365 Washington Avenue Extension (If you do not live in Albany, then choose someone to call). Call before March 20, 2000 Call Your Albany County Legislator To call for the County to request that part of … Save the Pine Bush Action Alert!
Go directly to Common Council Members Download a PDF of this announcement ALBANY: Tharaldson Development Company of North Dakota, wants to construct a Residence Inn Mariott hotel on Washington Avenue Extension, adjacent to a known Karner Blue butterfly site and a site that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife service recognizes as occupied by Karner Blues. … Oral Argument in Hotel Case Heard in Appellate Division
by: DENNIS YUSKO Staff writer CLIFTON PARK — A 142,000-square-foot facility proposed by DCG Development along Wood Road would further undermine the area’s endangered Karner blue butterfly habitats, town residents and area environmentalists told the Planning Board. DCG wants to build a warehouse or a light industrial space on 37 acres its owns between the … Building called threat to butterflies
ALBANY — The state Department of Environmental Conservation should enforce a 1994 agreement with a landowner to protect endangered Karner blue butterflies in Clifton Park, Capital Region environmentalists said Thursday. In a petition filed with the state agency Monday, the Albany-based Save The Pine Bush and 22 area residents asked DEC general counsel James … Petition: Shield Karner blue habitat
Tuesday, January 23, 2007 at 7 p.m. Stanford Home Hearing Information Hearing Notes January 23 Hearing Canadians are Coming! Archeological Information Photos – Outdoor Photos – Indoor Bonding Editorial Preservation Donate Contact Niskayuna Spotlight Newspaper, A weekly distributed free to over 4,000 homes in Town of Niskayuna NISKAYUNA: Residents seek moratorium Posted … Tuesday, January 23, 2007 at 7 p.m.
Yes, the King’s Royal Yorkers are Coming! Stanford Home Hearing Information Hearing Notes January 23 Hearing Canadians are Coming! Archeological Information Photos – Outdoor Photos – Indoor Bonding Editorial Preservation Donate Contact Yes, the King’s Royal Yorkers are Coming! Well, one man is representing the Captain Richard Duncan Company. Background: In the 1777 … Yes, the King’s Royal Yorkers are Coming!
Home From Nowhere – Book Review Home From Nowhere Book Review by Lynne Jackson As a child growing up in the suburbs in the sixties, I really wanted sidewalks. I could not understand why there were no sidewalks. I envied the children who walked to school, and were even allowed to walk home at lunch. … Home From Nowhere – Book Review
GUILDERLAND, NY: If you haven’t already heard or seen it, March 26 was an horrible day for the trees on the site for the proposed Costco; Respect and adherence to the New York State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQR) by the Town of Guilderland; and any expectation for a fair process from the Guilderland Planning … Tree Clear Cut
Published on Tuesday, December 1, 2020 – 17:34 in the Altamont Enterprise Lynne Jackson of Save the Pine Bush speaks at a press conference announcing a Nov. 20 court decision to halt Pyramid’s plans to build a Costco and 222 residential units near Crossgates Mall in Guilderland. GUILDERLAND — A week after a judge in Albany … Second lawsuit filed over Guilderland Planning Board’s approval of Pyramid project
Letter to the editor, Times Union, July 21, 2015 Photos by John Wolcott of Holy Innocents Fate of Albany’s historic Holy Innocents church unclear An opportunity to save the former Church of the Holy Innocents Seriously Endangered Church of The Holy Innocents Section of former Church of Holy Innocents collapses Read excerpts from a book … Save Holy Innocents Church, Albany, New York
by Lynne Jackson GUILDERLAND, NY: Rapp Road Development, a corporate entity of Pyramid/Crossgates, is proposing to build on about 46 acres of land. Originally, the proposal was to build 222 apartments on 20 acres of land adjacent to the Pine Bush preserve. After the Town Planning Board appointed themselves the lead agency, the project was … Proposed Crossgates Development