Search Results for: Acre Dr

Proclamation Calling on Congress to Fund Urgently Needed Services in Albany County and Throughout the United States by Reducing Military Spending

ALBANY — Tucked in among suburban sprawl at the border of Albany, Colonie and Guilderland, 3,000 acres of pine barrens are becoming a kind of avian rest stop for an increasing number of birds that need a very special kind of landscape — one that’s disappearing elsewhere in New York. The Albany Pine Bush Preserve is an emerging example of a so-called “shrubland” that certain bird species need to breed and thrive, said Neil Gifford, the preserve’s conservation director. Dominated by stunted…

Read More Read More

Letters to Save the Pine Bush

Letters to Save the Pine Bush   Letters to Save the Pine Bush Here is a sampling of letters written to Save the Pine Bush and some responses written by Lynne Jackson: From: rngeorge@gw.dec.state.ny.us (Richard Georgeson) To: pinebush@aol.com To Lynne Jackson:   Lynne – In your history of Save the Pine Bush section of your web page, you incorrectly state, “In September of 1978, there were no environmental laws in effect in New York State.”   However, in 1978 there…

Read More Read More

New York to Buy Pineland Tract From L.I. Scouts

New York to Buy Pineland Tract From L.I. Scouts The following is part of an articlle printed in the New York Times. We are pleased that more land is being added to the Long Island pine barrens preserve. New York to Buy Pineland Tract From L.I. Scouts by The New York Times RlVERHEAD, L.I., Dec. 17 When the Nassau County Council of Boy Scouts announced plans last summer to sell 147 acres in the Pine Barrens preserve to a golf…

Read More Read More

SPB Files Appeal – – An Appeal Against the Avila Approval

by Sandy Sheridan In a continuing effort to preserve Karner Blue Butterfly habitat, Save the Pine Bush petitioned the Appellate Court to overrule the Albany Planning Board’s approval of another senior housing project’s construction within the Pine Bush. The plan to build Avila Independent Senior Housing Campus was given the go-ahead by the Albany Planning Board, despite distinct preservation criterion instituted by Federal, State and City regulations. The proposed Avila Campus would be built on land owned by the Roman…

Read More Read More

Devil Eats Developer – Massive Coverup Alleged

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 Ave. Extension. The Albany Pine Bush Devil is a rare subspecies of the equally rare Jersey Devil found in the Pine Barrens of New Jersey….

Read More Read More

Creek’s Bend Cohousing

Creek’s Bend Cohousing Creek’s Bend Cohousing Peter McGowan & David Pettie by Rezsin Adams There are about 30 cohousing pro-jects in progress in the United States now. What is cohousing? Cohousing is unlike developer-built housing–the customer is not handed a finished product. A group of people, forming a small community, plan, design (with the help of architects, construction firms and others), market, build (with concern for the earth) and are, in every way, fully participating in the development of their…

Read More Read More

Dan McCoy Speaks at Save the Pine Bush

by Tom Ellis   ALBANY, NY: At the March 16 SPB dinner, Albany County Executive Dan McCoy spoke about Environmental Accomplishments and the Agenda for the Future.   Mr. McCoy began with, “There is so much we’ve done” and “You’re organization — Save the Pine Bush — has been the rock of our community.”  Mr. McCoy grew up in Albany and still lives in the city.   He said his love of nature and being out in it resulted in…

Read More Read More

NYS Climate Action Council

by John Wolcott ALBANY, NY: Here is a brief review of the Summary of the State Climate Action Council’s first public meeting on January 25, 2010 at the N.Y. State Museum was held pursuant to Gov. Paterson’s Executive Order 24. This was the first State Climate Action Council Public Outreach Meeting pursuant to Gov. Paterson's Executive Order 24 concerning measures to be taken to combat global warming. It's not too bad and compares well with California's unilateral actions and goes…

Read More Read More

Zero Cut – End the Logging on our National Forests

Zero Cut – End the Logging on our National Forests Zero Cut – End the Logging on our National Forests By Jesse Strock The National Forests encompass over 200 million acres of public lands across the country. These lands, which were set aside for the public, are not simply used for recreation and tourism, but for heavy logging and clear cutting by the timber industry. The United States Forest Service (USFS) and the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) lease lands…

Read More Read More

Walk, Hike, and Bike the Pine Bush

Walk, Hike, and Bike the Pine Bush Walk, Hike, and Bike the Pine Bush The Pine Bush is a beautiful place to walk. The soft, rolling sand dunes are a walker’s dream. You can take a bus to the Pine Bush from downtown Albany. The Pine Bush is the perfect spot for outdoor activities. Save the Pine Bush sponsors walks almost every month of the year. Join us! – Ed. Announcing Albany’s Newest Bicycle Path by Jerry Mueller, Mar./Apr. 91…

Read More Read More

Carnivores in the Pine

ALBANY: Dr. Roland Kays, Mammalogist with the New York State Museum, explained to a large, appreciative Save the Pine Bush audience, why carnivores are important to ecosystems. Carnivores have a Òtop downÓ effect on ecosystems. For example, wolves eat moose, who eat plants. A change in the number of wolves will affect a change in the number of moose, which changes the vegetation in the ecosystem. Or, coyotes are known to eat cats. The population of coyotes has an effect…

Read More Read More

Furry Pine Bush Residents

Furry Pine Bush Residents Furry Pine Bush Residents The butterfly is not the only resident of the Pine Bush. Little furry animals also reside in the Pine Bush. I had no idea how many different types of moles, voles, mice and other tiny creatures there are-or how important they are to the ecosystem of a forest. Rezsin and I saw an article about voles in the Pine Bush in the paper, and just had to find out about these small…

Read More Read More

Michael Breslin Speaks

Michael Breslin Speaks   Michael Breslin Speaks by Ehren Evans Albany County Executive Breslin spoke at August’s lasagna dinner. It was an exciting opportunity for members of Save the Pine Bush to learn more about county government and the county executive. Mr. Breslin said his stint as county executive is the best job he ever had. He set up a program where parking places could be turned in for free bus passes and if you didn’t have a parking space,…

Read More Read More

Guilderland CandidatesNight At SPB

Guilderland CandidatesNight At SPB Guilderland Candidates Night At SPB by Lynne Jackson Candidates for Town Supervisor and Town Board members spoke at the October Save the Pine Bush dinner. Attending were Bill Aylward, Democratic candidate for Town Supervisor; David Bosworth and Cheryl Reul, Democratic candidates for Town Board; and Paul Caputo, Independence Party candidate for Town Board. Lauren Ayers had hoped to attend, but could not due to a family emergency. The other Independence Party candidates, Anne Rose and Tim…

Read More Read More

Neil Breslin Calls For Preservation

Neil Breslin Calls For Preservation Breslin Calls For Preservation Hoblock "Powerless" To Stop Walmart By Daniel Van Riper In the hottest local race of the election season, Neal Breslin, Democratic candidate for State Senate, which includes the Pine Bush and much of the Capital District, squared off with Republican incumbent Michael Hoblock at the Sept. 25 lasagna dinner at 1st Presbyterian Church in Albany. Mr. Breslin congratulated the crowd on the recent Apollo Drive victory (see elsewhere in this issue),…

Read More Read More

Save the Pine Bush

Karner Blue Butterfly eggs are being cut open and eaten, and still no culprit has been found. The ants, however, have not been ruled out as suspects. Dr. Peter Spoor gave an update on his investigations into the lifestyle and habits of the friendly butterfly at the Sept. 26 dinner at the Unitarian Church. Stunning slides of their eggs under an electron microscope failed to reveal what sort of creature is leaving it’s marks along the broken edges. Other excellent…

Read More Read More

Albany Pine Bush Preserve Commission Proposes a New Plan – Mark October 18 to Attend Hearing

Maps available: A new graphic Pine Bush trail map is now available. The new map was produced using a Global Positioning System to record trail locations. The brochure includes a mural depicting many of the typical plants and animals, interpretive information and a summary of the Preserve’s public use rules and regulations. The Preserve guide and trail map can be obtained from the Albany Pine Bush office or at trailhead kiosks. (785-1800). Preserve Regulations: BICYCLES may only travel on the…

Read More Read More

SPB Files Most Unpopular Suit Yet – Sues the Albany Pine Bush Preserve Commission

SPB Files Most Unpopular Suit Yet – Sues the Albany Pine Bush Preserve Commission  SPB Files Most Unpopular Suit Yet Sues the Albany Pine Bush Preserve Commission by Lynne Jackson In October, Save the Pine Bush filed its most controversial and unpopular suit yet against the Albany Pine Bush Preserve Commission to over-turn its fire management plan for the Pine Bush. Attorney Lewis B Oliver filed suit on behalf of Save the Pine Bush in New York State Supreme Court….

Read More Read More

Save the Pine Bush Action Alert!

Save the Pine Bush Action Alert! Coyotes in the Moonlight Response to the Commission’s Final Implementation Guidelines by Lynne Jackson "It was a cold night in January, snow on the ground, full moon, not a creature moving a muscle," began Jerry Mueller, at the January Lasagna Dinner. He had to get out of the house and decided to take a walk in the Pine Bush, off Sand Creek Road near the Northway. He heard a noise, "Sounds like coyotes," thought…

Read More Read More

The Albany Pine Bush Management Commission

The Albany Pine Bush Management Commission The Albany Pine Bush Management Commission The Pine Bush Management Commission was created by the New York State Legislature to study and manage the Pine Bush in response to Save the Pine Bush’s lawsuits with the City of Albany over the landfill. Members of the Commission include the executives of the municipalities which include Pine Bush. The City of Albany, the Town of Colonie, the Town of Guilderland, the County of Albany, New York…

Read More Read More

John Wolcott, Honored by the New York State Assembly, Wants to see More Preservation

Jack McEneny, NYS Assemblyman, was Save the Pine BushÕs special guest at the July dinner. One of his jobs is to sponsor privileged resolutions of the Assembly. He had never read a special resolution before, but tonight, he was going to read one that the Assembly passed on June 20, 2001 to honor John Wolcott. Jack said that he was amazed that this resolution was passed 31 days ago, and that John did not know about it yet! Jack said…

Read More Read More

Pushing and Pulling West: Pending Extensions of the Boundaries of the Pine Bush Preserve

Pushing and Pulling West: Pending Extensions of the Boundaries of the Pine Bush Preserve   Pushing and Pulling West: Pending Extensions of the Boundaries of the Pine Bush Preserve By John Wolcott A Little Background When I first started mulling over the notion of a Pine Bush Preserve in 1971, it was with the thought of the opportunity to set aside a large, more or less, continuous bi-city forest for the benefit of car-free city dwellers, stretching between Schenectady and…

Read More Read More

Notes from the Albany Pine Bush Preserve Commission Newsletter

Visitor Use Education Efforts Increasing in the Preserve — Several new educational tools are being used to increase protection of the Preserve’s natural features while allowing for appropriate recreational and educational use of the Preserve. About one dozen Preserve Naturalists are out on the trails, a new mountain bike education patrol is being created, new brighter trailmarkers are on most of the trails and additional signage relating to appropriate and responsible trail use has been installed. The Commission has recently…

Read More Read More

Save the Pine Bush

Proposed Hotel in the Pine Bush     Hotel Update: Oral Arguements in the NY Court of Appeals Tuesday, September 15 at 2:00 The Court of Appeals is next door to Albany City Hall. This is an extremely significant case, and could, if we win change who has standing in SEQRA cases. Click here to read Amicus briefs Read attorney Steve Downs’ commentary about the hotel case here. Action Alert! Hear the Oral Arguments in the NYS Appellate Division Friday,…

Read More Read More

Garbage in the Pine Bush – City Proposes Landfill Expansion

Garbage in the Pine Bush – City Proposes Landfill Expansion  Garbage in the Pine Bush City Proposes Landfill Expansion by Tim Kostoroski The City of Albany continues to treat its most valuable environmental asset, the Albany Pine Bush, like garbage. Literally. After decades of building a mountain of trash in the middle of the Pine Bush, the City is seeking permission, yet again, to expand the landfill in order to add another 10 to 15 years of space. The last…

Read More Read More

Write to the Town of Guilderland Planning Board

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 Mall Road and Western Avenue. This proposed development includes a Costco with 700 car parking lot and a gas station. The Town of Guilderland Planning…

Read More Read More

Buffer is Essential to Protect Pine Bush

I am writing in opposition to the draft environmental impact statement filed by Rapp Road Development Corporation, a pseudonym for Pyramid LLC, the owner of Crossgates Mall, which was filed to develop 47 acres of pine bush into a variety of projects such as a gas station built in sand over an aquifer. The level of development proposed is dense, inappropriate to the area, and also bent on increasing traffic in a congested area; designed to create noise pollution in…

Read More Read More

Willow Street Again

Willow Street Again   Our Friends Visit FORCE Is Here To Stay By Daniel Van Riper Carl Letson and Donald Csaposs of Guilderland, two of the principle organizers of Friends Organized to Resist Crossgates Expansion (FORCE) spoke to the January Save the Pine Bush vegetarian lasagna dinner at 1st Presbyterian Church in Albany, and neither had anything good to say about the Pyramid Corporation or about the Crossgates expansion. “Pyramid wants to destroy the quality of life in Guilderland and…

Read More Read More

9

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 Organized to Reject Crossgates Expansion (FORCE) has chosen officers and appointed committees, and is ready for a long war. “We have the force of will…

Read More Read More

Save the Pine Bush Enjoys Another Victory – Adventure Park Parcel Added to the Preserve

Save the Pine Bush Enjoys Another Victory – Adventure Park Parcel Added to the Preserve Save the Pine Bush Enjoys Another Victory Adventure Park Parcel Added to the Preserve by Lynne Jackson The Albany Pine Bush Management Commission purchased 34 acres of land on September 24, 1996. Included in this purchase a key parcel that had been slated to become an adventure park consisting of go carts and miniature golf until Save the Pine Bush stepped in and filed suit…

Read More Read More

Town of Colonie Will It or Won’t It Destroy Its Pine Bush?

Town of Colonie Will It or Won’t It Destroy Its Pine Bush? Town of Colonie Will It or Won’t It Destroy Its Pine Bush? by Lynne Jackson The Town of Colonie approved its Final Generic Environmental Impact Statement (FGEIS) for the Lisha Kill – Kings Road Area on June 8 and June 16. This FGEIS and the Findings Statement weighs in at several pounds, costing $35 for both, is filled with fluent bureaucratize, and, well, doesn’t really seem to say…

Read More Read More

Is There a ‘Y’ in Guilderland?

Is There a ‘Y’ in Guilderland? Is There a ‘Y’ in Guilderland? Guest Article By Jamie and Mary Malcolm While Save the Pine Bush (SPB) is hard at work preserving any remaining Pine Bush in the Town of Guilderland, a series of projects including a new YMCA facility, are threatening to take protected land from the Preserve for the mere purposes of aligning driveways and easing traffic congestion. To propose further development in this area as a means to solve…

Read More Read More

Let Your Voice Be Heard! – Don’t Let Them Take Land from Preserve!

Let Your Voice Be Heard! – Don’t Let Them Take Land from Preserve! Let Your Voice Be Heard! Don’t Let Them Take Land from Preserve! by Lynne Jackson At long last, Draft Generic Environmental Impact Statement (DGEIS) for the proposed YMCA and St. Peter’s Assisted Living facility in Guilderland has been issued. Harder to find than a developer at a Save the Pine Bush dinner, I was fortunate to be able to obtain a copy of part of the DGEIS….

Read More Read More

Developer Takes Preserve to Build Water Lines

Developer Takes Preserve to Build Water Lines   Developer Takes Preserve to Build Water Lines Save the Pine Bush Sues the Albany Pine Bush Management Commission & Others Save the Pine Bush filed suit on December 15 against the Albany Pine Bush Management Commission, the Town of Guilderland, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation and the City of Albany for allowing a developer to build water lines in the Pine Bush Preserve, land which has been dedicated to the…

Read More Read More

9

Albany Common Council Votes Against Pine Bush Approves Charlie Touhey’s Office Complex  Second Time within 6 Weeks – Albany Common Council Votes Against Pine Bush Approves Charlie Touhey’s Office Complex by Lynne Jackson The Common Council, against the wishes of its constituents, residents, and Save the Pine Bush, approved the re-zoning of 12 acres of Pine Bush from residential to commercial on Monday, May 3. The vote was 3 for the Pine Bush and 12 for asphalt. Charlie Touhey first…

Read More Read More

9

Albany Common Council Denies Dunes Residents Chance to be Heard Albany Common Council Denies Dunes Residents Chance to be Heard by Lynne Jackson July 1, 1996, Albany City Hall, was the place where the Common Council refused to listen to 25 or so angry Dunes residents who wanted the opportunity to speak. Charlie Touhey wants to build an office complex in their backyard, and no one wanted their opinion. A public hearing on this proposed office complex had been held…

Read More Read More

UAlbany Plan Adds to Spraw

The word that springs to mind for the University at Albany’s greasy plan to level 25 acres of classic pine bush on campus in order to build its own version of suburban sprawl isn’t printable. So I’ll settle for a distant second choice: pandering. “We’re told garden apartments are what today’s students want,” said a spokesman for the university. And parking for their cars, too. A marketing survey says do education this way. Give them what they want or they’ll…

Read More Read More

They Have Their Niche Memo From The PB Commission

They Have Their Niche Memo From The PB Commission They Have Their Niche Memo From The PB Commission By Daniel Van Riper What is the Albany Pine Bush Commission, where did it come from, and what does it do for the Pine Bush? Back in 1989 Save the Pine Bush filed suit to stop the 25 acre expansion of the Albany Pine Bush Dump, which is euphemistically referred to by officials as "the landfill." Because the State of New York…

Read More Read More

Garage Sale Sucess!

A snow-covered field near Crossgates Mall may become a battleground over the effect of building in the Pine Bush and on that ecologically fragile area’s bellwether symbol, the Karner blue butterfly. Environmentalists are trying to fend off the nation’s largest independent hotel developer, which wants about four acres west of the mall’s movie theaters for a 124-room project. A fight is brewing because that site along Washington Avenue Extension is next to a protected preserve — surrounded by the mall…

Read More Read More

Proposals for Paving the Pine Bush Come Fast and Furiously

Proposals for Paving the Pine Bush Come Fast and Furiously Proposals for Paving the Pine Bush Come Fast and Furiously Guilderland, Albany consider destroying Full Protection Areas Guilderland, Feeney and Ford: Town of Guilderland Planning Board officials heard a preliminary proposal to destroy 103 acres of Pine Bush by allowing 30 plush, expensive houses to be built on land owned by Feeney and Ford. This land is adjacent to and just west of the State Preserve. The Albany Pine Bush…

Read More Read More

Pine Bush Update from the Albany Pine Bush Preserve Commission

The Butterfly Station located at the Farnsworth Middle School has completed its fifth year of operation reaching over 2,600 people over a seven week period during July and August, 2003…60 students in grades 6-11 volunteered three to five weeks of their summer as guides at the Butterfly Station a well as rearing butterflies and maintaining native plant and butterfly gardens and seven faculty also dedicated their summer to the operation of the Butterfly Station. In mid-August, eight students from the…

Read More Read More

Crossgates Expansion

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 Pace Environmental Litigation Clinic, Inc. Download all the documents in a zipped file. Save the Pine Bush Comment Appendix A Dr. Stager Appendix B Zamurs…

Read More Read More

Charette a Charade

By ANNE MILLER, Staff writer Tom Dooley smiled as flames tickled the Pine Bush scrub, a canopy of smoke enveloping the treetops. " We just like to burn things," he joked. But behind the levity — and the goggles and fire helmets — Albany Pine Bush Preserve officials are thrilled to see fire dancing among the trees again. About 10 acres of the 2,750-acre Pine Bush — which includes parts of Albany, Colonie and Guilderland — have been burned since…

Read More Read More

Taking Lyme Fight to the Field

by William Engleman CLIFTON PARK: Representatives of three area environmental organizations and Town residents called on the Clifton Park Town Board to save the Karner Blue butterfly populations in the Town’s northeast corner, during the Town Board’s first regular meeting of the year, held on Monday evening January 3, 2005. Eight speakers, including representatives from Save the Pine Bush, Audubon Society of the Capital Region and the Hudson-Mohawk Group of the Sierra Club called on the Board to reverse the…

Read More Read More

The Karner Blue vs Crossgates Mall – Secret Meetings and SEQRA Violations

The Karner Blue vs Crossgates Mall – Secret Meetings and SEQRA Violations The Karner Blue vs Crossgates Mall Secret Meetings and SEQRA Violations by Lynne Jackson Save the Pine Bush is pleased to announce that we joined with our famous Pine Bush resident, the Karner Blue Butterfly, and sued Pyramid Crossgates and the Zoning Board of Appeals of the Town of Guilderland over the theater expansion at the Crossgates Maul. This is the first time we have ever filed a…

Read More Read More

Touhey Builds While Save the Pine Bush Goes to Court

Touhey Builds While Save the Pine Bush Goes to Court Touhey Builds While Save the Pine Bush Goes to Court Albany, NY – After twelve years of stopping Charlie Touhey from building the “Pine East” office complex on Washington Avenue Extension in front of the Dunes housing development, Touhey has won the current round and is rapidly bulldozing the Pine Bush and putting up his buildings. Charlie Touhey sought a zoning change from residential to commercial Pine Bush in order…

Read More Read More

Land Crunch in the Pine Bush

Land Crunch in the Pine Bush Land Crunch in the Pine Bush by John Wolcott We’d Rather Have Been Wrong Save the Pine Bush knew that unresolved difference between development desires and acquisition wish lists were heading toward a major clash in the Pine Bush. Even so the present situation of 85 "hot spots" has taken us by surprise in its extent and immediacy. It proves us more right than we thought we were, whereas we’d rather have been wrong…

Read More Read More

9

No Credit Given – A Letter From the Commission No Credit Given A Letter From the Commission By Daniel Van Riper In their latest newsletter the Albany Pine Bush Management Commission gives credit for the rehabilitation of the parcel of land off Apollo Drive that used to be a truck parking lot to 3 corporations, 4 municipalities, 2 state offices, the Girl Scouts and the Nature Conservancy. Somehow Commission Director Willie Janeway forgot to mention that this land would now…

Read More Read More

SHARE Opposes the Microgrid Fossil Fuel Plant in Sheridan Hollow

by Tom Ellis ALBANY, NY: A panel that included Albany County legislator Merton Simpson spoke in opposition to the proposed Sheridan Hollow Microgrid Fossil Fuel Plant at the October 18 Save the Pine Bush dinner. About 45 attended. Also speaking were engineer Keith Schue and environmental health advocate, Rita Ogburn-McCall. Sandy Steubing moderated the discussion. Sandy said the New York Power Authority (NYPA), the state-owned electric utility, had, moments earlier, notified her that it would not participate in a previously…

Read More Read More

Are the Winds of Change Finally Here?

By Hugh Johnson ON THE INTERNET: Lynne Jackson invited me to give a ZOOM talk about the status of our climate change at the February 17, 2021, “Save the Pine Bush Meeting.” In this winter of COVID, it was easy to forget we are still in a climate crisis. Look what happened in Texas during mid February. Due to a collapse of the Polar Vortex and very warm temperatures right at the North Pole region, an exceptionally bitter Arctic air…

Read More Read More