Surprise! They Can’t Build There – YMCA May Move
Surprise!
They Can’t Build There
YMCA May Move
By Daniel Van Riper
Finally convinced that Save the Pine Bush means business, Capital District YMCA President John Flynn has announced that he is giving up his two year old demand that State owned Pine Bush Preserve land be sacrificed without due process to build a driveway for the proposed YMCA facility on Winding Brook Drive in Guilderland. This stunning concession to reality came a day after Save the Pine Bush won a 60 day injunction on January 23 in the matter of a water line laid illegally in State owned Pine Bush Preserve, also in Guilderland (see article in this issue).
Now there is talk of abandoning the original site altogether and relocating on Western Avenue next to the Bumblebee Diner. This site is also Pine Bush, and is owned by developer Angelo Serafini. According to the March 12, 1998 Altamont Enterprise, however, Flynn says the new site is too small for the YMCA, which needs at least 8 acres. The YMCA would also have to purchase a site next door owned by Innovative Teen Services. Meanwhile, Flynn and his organization have already squandered $150,000 on the Winding Brook Road site, even though they do not have the necessary approvals to build.
Printed 3/98
