Search Results for: action alert off

The Emperor’s New Plan

The Emperor’s New Plan The Emperor’s New Plan by John Wolcott The Albany Pine Bush Preserve Commission has as much of an acquisition plan as a certain famous emperor once had a new suit of clothes. Land owner and grassroots environmentalists alike are impatient with the Commission’s having published a map showing "Full Protection" parcels without a clear, systematic plan to acquire them. This has turned out to be merely a wish list and an unrealistic one under the circumstances….

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Show Down Over Roundup

Show Down Over Roundup Show Down Over Roundup by John Wolcott Invading black locust trees are crowding out and over shadowing native Pine Bush plants including the blue lupine which is essential to the survival of the Karner Blue. Black locust trees, along with bulldozer happy developers, are one of the many threats to the survival of the Pine Bush. Black locusts, like developers, are extremely difficult to eradicate from the Pine Bush. Jerry Mueller has been cutting down one…

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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…

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Best of Metroland

Best of Metroland   Best of Metroland The following category appeared in the Metroland “Best Of” issue in July: BEST PERSON TO LEAD THE WORLD OUT OF DARKNESS ONE VEGETARIAN LASAGNA DINNER AT A TIME Rezsin Adams You’ll find her selling world crafts at Peace Offerings (the gift shop of the Social Justice Center), organizing and reorganizing the free literature table at the Albany Public Library, attending various potluck dinners, discussing political and social issues over the WRPI airwaves or…

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New Light on an Old Road – Part II

New Light on an Old Road – Part II New Light on an Old Road – Part II (Continued from March/April 1998 Newsletter) by John Wolcott The new information revealed by this almost destroyed map, about old trails and roads in the Pine Bush is utterly amazing and startling. I had already known that part of the "Old Road to Schenectady" left Albany by a route up near Madison Avenue, and that it went over the UytKyck off Curry Road….

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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…

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New Light on an Old Road

New Light on an Old Road New Light on an Old Road by John Wolcott Save the Pine Bush board member John Wolcott has discovered evidence of a forgotten foot path through the Pine Bush that in the 1600’s and 1700’s ran parallel to the main Albany-Schenectady Road, the Maquas Padt. Here is Part 1 of a two-part article on what John found. "A Map of the Lines Run Pursant to the Direction of the arbitrators, as Claimed by the…

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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,…

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Save the Pine Bush Loses First Round on Landfill

Save the Pine Bush Loses First Round on Landfill Save the Pine Bush Loses First Round on Landfill Clean Water takes a Dive to Garbage Albany, NY – Save the Pine Bush lost its challenge to the expansion of the Albany City Landfill in the Pine Bush in Supreme Court in October. The Judge ruled that the Commissioner of the Department of Environmental Conservation has the discretion to allow a landfill to be constructed over the principal aquifer in the…

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Jennings Makes A Dump – Plans To Defile Pine Bush

Jennings Makes A Dump – Plans To Defile Pine Bush   Jennings Makes A Dump Plans To Defile Pine Bush By Daniel Van Riper Current Albany Mayor Jerry Jennings, recklessly violating mitigation agreements from eight years ago, is pushing for an expansion of the Albany Dump that will sacrifice 25 acres of Pine Bush land. The new mountain of garbage, already christened “Jenning’s Pile,” will eventually be over 440 feet high and have incalculable negative impact on bordering Pine Bush…

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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…

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John Wolcott Versus The Dump – Skewering An Inane Document

John Wolcott Versus The Dump – Skewering An Inane Document John Wolcott Versus The Dump Skewering An Inane Document By John Wolcott Editor’s Note: Save the Pine Bush board member and dedicated enemy of deception John Wolcott has provided a blow by blow commentary on the "Summary of the 2nd Supplemental Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) for the Extension of the Albany Interim Landfill". This is the legal paperwork required before the City of Albany can start throwing trash and…

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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…

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A Proposal   A Proposal By Daniel W. Van Riper Here’s an idea. All elected officials in Guilderland should sign the following pledge before the voters and taxpayers of the town: “(1) I promise not to accept campaign contributions or any other monetary compensation from the Pyramid Corporation or it’s subsidieries, and I will return in full any money I have so far received. (2) I promise to refuse any opportunity offered to me by Pyramid or it’s subsidieries to…

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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…

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Residents Organize!

Residents Organize! Residents Organize! Citizens and taxpayers of Guilderland are forming a resistance which as of this writing has no name yet. Their first organizational meeting is taking place on Aug. 18th at Guilderland Elementary School. For information on how YOU can lend your skills to beating Pyramid at their own game, contact the following folks: Carl Letson, 869-6817 livingint@juno.com Judy and Roy Bliven, 456-2734 rbb625@worldnet.att.net Ed Dilgen, edilgen1@nycap.rr.com It’s going to take a lot a work, but if we…

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Murdered By Pyramid: It Could Happen Here

Murdered By Pyramid: It Could Happen Here Murdered By Pyramid It Could Happen Here By Daniel Van Riper Public officials and neighborhood activists are holding the notorious Pyramid Corporation responsible for the traffic death of a young mother outside Buffalo, NY. Pyramid operates the Walden Galleria Mall in the Buffalo suburb of Cheektowaga, and is responsible for Crossgates Mall in Guilderland, which destroyed a vast area of prime Pine Bush. According to the February 19 issue of Time Magazine, the…

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SPB and Town Agree – Colonie Signs Settlement

SPB and Town Agree – Colonie Signs Settlement SPB and Town Agree Colonie Signs Settlement By Daniel Van Riper Attorney Lew Oliver, representing Save the Pine Bush, successfully negotiated an agreement with the Town of Colonie over the future of the town’s Generic Environmental Impact Statement (GEIS), thus avoiding a costly court case. The agreement, signed April 3rd by State Supreme Court Judge Harold Hughes, allows Colonie to have a GEIS as long as it doesn’t include those parts of…

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Victory In Colonie SPB Stops GEIS

Victory In Colonie SPB Stops GEIS Victory In Colonie SPB Stops GEIS By Daniel Van Riper Late breaking news as we go to press: Save the Pine Bush attorney Lew Oliver said we had a really good case. As usual, he was right. In a major victory for Save the Pine Bush, State Supreme Court Justice Harold J. Hughes has declared the Town of Colonie Generic Environmental Impact Statement (GEIS) null and void. Among the issues raised was that the…

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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…

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Victory in Colonie! Vinyl Golf Driving Range Proposal Withdrawn

Victory in Colonie! Vinyl Golf Driving Range Proposal Withdrawn Victory in Colonie! Vinyl Golf Driving Range Proposal Withdrawn by Lynne Jackson Since last spring, Save the Pine Bush volunteers have been attending hearings, reading long EIS’s (Environmental Impact Statements), and speaking out against the proposed Golden Bear Family Golf Indoor and Outdoor Driving Range. This ugly thing which was to be located between Siver and Curry Road in Colonie, was proposed to be built on 18 acres of Pine Bush…

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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….

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Willow Street Again

Willow Street Again   Willow Street Again SPB Sues over Sewers Built in the Preserve DEC Caves in to Developer by Lynne Jackson Ten months after filing a ground-breaking suit that forced a developer to remove water lines from the Preserve along Willow Street in Guilderland, Save the Pine Bush has filed a second suit against the same defendants, this time seeking removal of the sewer lines. Lewis B. Oliver, Jr., attorney extraordinaire for SPB said, “We were successful in…

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Save the Pine Bush Forces Developer to Remove Water Lines from Pine Bush Preserve   Save the Pine Bush Forces Developer to Remove Water Lines from Pine Bush Preserve by Lynne Jackson In a victory for the Pine Bush, the developer of a luxury housing sub-division along the border of Guilderland and Albany has been compelled to remove illegally placed water lines from state-owned Pine Bush Preserve. Lewis B. Oliver, Jr., attorney for Save the Pine Bush, had received notice…

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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…

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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…

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Save the Pine Bush Sues City – Back in Court with Charlie Touhey

Save the Pine Bush Sues City – Back in Court with Charlie Touhey   Save the Pine Bush Sues City Back in Court with Charlie Touhey by Tim Kostoroski Save the Pine Bush filed suit on September 3rd in New York State Supreme Court over the City of Albany Common Council’s approval of the Pine East Office Complex, located at 300 Washington Avenue Extension in the Albany Pine Bush.. This all too familiar development, (135,000 sq. foot complex with 400 car…

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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…

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Gotta Watch’em Like Hawks – Can’t Trust Nobody

Gotta Watch’em Like Hawks – Can’t Trust Nobody   Gotta Watch’em Like Hawks Can’t Trust Nobody By Daniel W. Van Riper Y Is This Happening One of the selling points for the ongoing YMCA project that is destroying eight acres of Pine Bush off Western Avenue in Guilderland was that it would cost the taxpayers nothing. Suprise! What a crock! Back in May the town board voted three to two to subsidize the developers with $33,000 for “road improvements.” Now,…

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

Upscale Tammybrook, a newish Cresskill, NJ., neighborhood, offers a pleasing glimpse of modern suburban living: imposing million-dollar homes, designer landscaping, sweeping vistas across northern New Jersey. What it fails to offer resident John McCann is a sidewalk to anywhere. So instead of hoofing it, the Cresskill councilman drives the 1.1 miles to the post office. ThatÕs after he has dropped his laundry at a drive-through dry cleaner and motored across town to deliver his daughter to a play dateÑafter picking…

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The Thruway Authority Comes Across Royally

The Thruway Authority Comes Across Royally The Thruway Authority Comes Across Royally by John Wolcott The Thruway Authority has just completed a hikers’ underpass under the new bridge that carries Route 155 over the Thruway. This was done in response to a proposal presented to the Thruway Authority by Save the Pine Bush and the Sierra Club-Hudson Mohawk Group in May 1999. This hikers’ underpass reconnects two unpaved surviving portions of the colonial Kings Road, the road opened for wagons…

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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…

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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…

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Save the Pine Bush Victorious! – Developer Removes Water Lines! John Wolcott It was John Wolcott’s tireless enthusiasm and research that ensured Save the Pine Bush’s victory. Wolcott had spent years writing to government officials explaining the problem with Willow Street, but no one listened until Save the Pine Bush sued. Wolcott is Save the Pine Bush’s expert witness, having researched deeds back to the 1600’s, and determinining the owner of Willow Street. John Wolcott, on August 10, 1998. Photo…

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Save the Pine Bush

After the Guilderland Zoning Board of Appeals meeting last August, I spoke with Mike Shanley, the attorney for Crossgates. He said to me that if we just worked together we could really protect the butterfly and the Pine Bush. He blanched when I said the only way to protect the Pine Bush was to stop all development in the Pine Bush. But, to be nice, I gave him my phone number anyway. A few weeks later, a woman in Mike…

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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…

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Fire? What Fire? – Pine Bush Better Than Ever

Fire? What Fire? – Pine Bush Better Than Ever   For Immediate Release: July 12, 1999 Save the Pine Bush Sues Albany Common Council Over Illegal Office Complex ALBANY, NY: Save the Pine Bush filed suit today in New York State Supreme Court over the City of Albany Common Council’s approval of the Drumlin Fields office complex in the Pine Bush. “The Albany Common Council completely ignored the state-authorized Albany Pine Bush Preserve Commission’s recommendation for full protection of this…

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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…

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A Brief Historical Note on the Six Mile Waterworks (Rensselaer Lake)

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, if not the very first, in the state, specifically set aside for forest and water conservation. For this reason there is some additional historical significance…

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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…

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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…

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Save the Pine Bush Loses a Round Judge Teresi Rules in Favor of Charlie Touhey   Save the Pine Bush Loses a Round Judge Teresi Rules in Favor of Charlie Touhey After 12 years of sucess at holding off Charlie Touhey’s proposed office complex on 300 Washington Ave. Ext. in the Pine Bush, Save the Pine Bush lost a round. Judge Teresi handed down his ruling just a few weeks before he presided over the trial of the police officers…

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Woodsfields Estates – Houses that Should Not Be Built

by Lynne Jackson Seventy- five houses are proposed for this 100 acre site in the western most part of the remaining Pine Bush in Guilderland, the last parcel of the largest roadless area in the Pine bush. This proposal, named “Woodsfields Estates” after what it will destroy, is part of the largest roadless area remaining in the Pine Bush in Guilderland. The Planning Board of the Town of Guilderland is the Lead Agency for the Woodsfields Estates proposal and will…

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Save the Pine Bush

By Daniel Van Riper Karner Blue Conspiracy Recently some crank (who deserves to remain nameless) wrote a letter to the independent weekly newspaper The Altamont Enterprise claiming that the Karner Blue Butterfly is not native to the Pine Bush, and was planted there by environmentalists, government agents and other liberal conspirators conspiring to “take” land away from the rightful owners. In response, the Enterprise was flooded with letters from all sorts of folks who wanted to set this dingaling straight…

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Creek’s Bend Cohousing – Another Perspective

Creek’s Bend Cohousing – Another Perspective Creek’s Bend Cohousing – Another Perspective by Russell Ziemba At November’s dinner, members of the Creek’s Bend Cohousing group spoke about cohousing in general and about their specific development proposal. Rezsin Adams outlined what transpired that night in the last dinner announcement. I would like to look at Creek’s Bend Cohousing’s development proposal from a different point of view. At that same dinner, Christian Gunther of the Albany Area Coalition for Light Rail said…

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Guilderland Comprehensive Plan Public Hearing

Guilderland Comprehensive Plan Public Hearing Action Alert! Guilderland Comprehensive Plan Public Hearing Tuesday, May 23 at 7:00 at the Guilderland Town Hall, Western Avenue, just beyond Route 146 Mark your calendars and plan to attend! This could be one of the most important public hearings held about the Pine Bush in Guilderland and we must show the Town officials that we want the Pine Bush in Guilderland to be protected. Some suggested topics for the hearing: Ask that the Town…

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Regional Growth Patterns of the Capital District

Regional Growth Patterns of the Capital District Save the Pine Bush Co-Sponsors Regional Growth Patterns of the Capital District A Presentation by Todd Fabozzi of the Geographical Information System for the Capital District Regional Planning Commission On Monday, March 27, from 7:30-9:30, in the Helderberg Room of the Guilderland Library, Todd Fabozzi, the program manager for the Geographical Information System for the Capital District Regional Planning Commission, will speak. Using PowerPoint visuals he will demonstrate what is actually happening as…

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The 1914 Pine Bush Preserve – What became of it?

The 1914 Pine Bush Preserve – What became of it?  The 1914 Pine Bush Preserve What became of it? by John Wolcott In 1914, Albany almost benefitted immensely from the City Beautiful movement. This was part of the Progressive movement, then afoot around the country with its strong public spirit, open, honest better government and conservation bent. This, temporarily, influenced even traditionally conservative Albany. Albany in 1912, commissioned an architect, Arnold W. Brunner, and a landscape architect, Charles Downing Lay,…

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Ken Runion Visits Save the Pine Bush Ken Runion Visits Save the Pine Bush Albany, NY – Town of Guilderland Supervisor Ken Runion spoke to a large and enthusisatic crowd at the April Save the Pine Bush vegetarian lasagna dinner at First Presbyterian Church in Albany. Saying that “I agree we should do whatever we can to preserve the Pine Bush,” Mr. Runion offered some techniques that should be discussed to preserve the Pine Bush. Mr. Runion pointed out that…

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Monarch Butterfly Conservation Crisis

Monarch Butterfly Conservation Crisis Monarch Butterfly Conservation Crisis On September 12, 2000, The New York Times published an urgent warning by noted Monarch butterfly expert Dr. Lincoln P. Brower, and other scientists and conservationists, describing a crisis situation at the Monarch butterfly’s overwintering grounds in central Mexico (The New York Times, Science Times, p. 1). Ten days later, the New York City Parks Department hosted a “who’s who” of Monarch experts and conservationists in New York’s Central Park, to inform…

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