The Eastwick Press Newspaper

Eastern Rensselaer County's Community Newspaper

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Rensselaer County Sees GDP Growth in 2020

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Submitted by the Office of County Executive Steve McLaughlin

Rensselaer County was one of only three counties in New York State to see an increase in gross domestic product (GDP) during 2020 and the pandemic, according to a report by the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, County Executive Steve McLaughlin announced.

McLaughlin said the report is further evidence of Rensselaer County’s economic strength, even during the pandemic, and the positive impact of property tax reductions and service improvements in the County.

During the past four years, the County has reduced property taxes by nearly 19 percent, and the 2022 budget includes a 10 percent property tax reduction. By 2020, the period the report is based on, the County had adopted two consecutive property tax reductions.

“The report shows Rensselaer County made it through the worst of the pandemic and still grew. That is very good news for our County and shows the decisions we are making have been paying off,” said McLaughlin.

John T. Bossoni – Obituary

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Petersburgh – John Thomas Bossoni, 87, a resident of Rabbit College Road, passed away December 30, 2021 at his home. John was born in Brooklyn, on February 10, 1934. He was the son of the late Frank and Lillian (Webb) Bossoni and attended local schools. John worked as a Sergeant for the NYPD for 20 years, retiring in 1977. Upon retirement he moved to Petersburgh, where he owned and operated a real estate business for over 40 years. He served his country as a member of the United States Navy during the Korean Conflict. He was a member of the American Legion and the Knights of Columbus and enjoyed playing chess, playing his guitar and loved salt water fishing. He enjoyed watching cowboy movies, especially John Wayne, listening to country and classical music and spending time with his family. John is survived by his wife Anne Philibosian Bossoni of Petersburgh, NY, his children, Jonathan Bossoni of Petersburgh, NY, Susan Barry (Paul) of Saratoga, NY and Holly Rosenberg (Paul) of Florida, as well as six grandchildren. He was predeceased by his sister Ruth “Penny” Quiles in November 2016. A Mass of Christian Death and Burial will be celebrated Friday, January 7, 2022 at 11 am at Sacred Heart St. Francis deSales Catholic Church in Bennington. Interment will follow in St. Mary’s Cemetery in Hoosick Falls. If friends desire, memorial gifts in John’s memory may be made to Missions of the Month, Oblate Missions, c/o Hanson Walbridge & Shea Funeral Home, P.O. Box 957 Bennington, VT 05201. To send the family personal condolences please visit www.sheafuneralhomes.com. [Read more…] about John T. Bossoni – Obituary

Area Schools Prepare for Home COVID-19 Testing

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Governor Kathy Hochul announced over the weekend she would like to see a process where if a child in a school district tests positive for COVID-19, not all the classmates need to be quarantined. Her proposal is for schools to send “at home test kits” to the families of school children, and if they test negative, they could continue in classroom learning. Area school superintendents we spoke with indicated they have not officially received such a notice from the NYS Department of Health, but all now have the test kits in hand, and will be sending them home with students or holding for parental pick up this week. Most plan for distribution on Tuesday, January 4. The Brunswick, Berlin, Hoosick Falls and New Lebanon school districts have already posted the information on their websites or Facebook pages, or will be doing so shortly. If you cannot access the sites, you are asked to simply call your particular district for more information.

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Drainage Work at Petersburgh Landfill Completed

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by Alex Brooks

Tom Berry said the drainage improvement work designed by the Town’s engineer to keep water runoff out of the landfill as much as possible has been completed by the Berlin and Petersburgh highway departments. “All water drainage issues have been resolved,” said Berry. He said Mark Millspaugh, the engineer from Sterling Environmental, visited the site and inspected the work when it was completed, and he will communicate with DEC about the completion of this phase of the work.

Berry said now that this work is completed, the engineers can start monitoring the volume of seepage coming out of the landfill, which will determine

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Schodack Planning Board Highlights 

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by Denise Wright

Even though the Christmas holiday is quickly approaching, the Schodack Planning Board was busy at their December 20 meeting. After the minutes were approved, a Schodack resident voiced questions about the Muslim Community of Troy cemetery project proposed on Phillips Road. The resident asked for clarification about the burial process, the phasing of the project and the impact on groundwater. Members of the Board explained that the burial ceremonies involve simple pine boxes with no embalming process. 

The project presenter from Environmental Designs updated the Board that a geotechnical consultant had completed an environmental study. According to the report, there will be

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Local Olympian Speaks at Tamarac High School

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by Amy Modesti 

Do you know what it takes to be an Olympian? Emma White does.

Tuesday, December 21, White spoke to students inside the Tamarac High School District Auditorium about her Olympic career. The 24-year-old, originally from Duanesburg, now residing in Jersey City, NJ, took up cycling at nine years old. Inspired by her older brother and family at their cycling outings, White made it her mission to become a cyclist. 

Upon becoming a cyclist, she majored in Computer Science at Union College. It was during her college years that she trained under famed coach Kristen Armstrong, and raised her cycling skills to new heights, even taking part in the 2014 and 2015 Junior World Championships. 

Eventually, White made the switch to track cycling and joined the USA Olympic Team

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January 2022 Regents Exams Cancelled

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Submitted by NYSEG Communications

The January 2022 administration of the High School Regents Examination Program is canceled due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. This cancellation applies to all Regents Examinations that had been scheduled for the January 2022 period. No decisions have been made regarding the June and August 2022 administrations of Regents Examinations or any other State assessment programs.

To ensure students are not adversely impacted by the cancellation of the exams, the Department will ask the Board of Regents to adopt emergency regulations regarding the assessment requirements students must ordinarily meet to earn a diploma. Under the proposed emergency regulations, students who are planning to take one or more Regents Examination during the January 2022 examination period at the conclusion of a course of study or make-up program shall be exempt from the requirements pertaining to passing a corresponding Regents Examination to be issued a diploma. To qualify for the exemption, the student must meet one of these requirements by the end of the first semester of the 2021-22 school year:

  • Be enrolled in a course that would ordinarily culminate with a January 2022 Regents Examination and earn credit for such course of study.
  • Complete a make-up program to earn course credit.
  • Be prepared to take a required Regents Examination to graduate at the end of the first semester.

 NYSED is developing additional guidance in the form of an FAQ and will issue that guidance in early January 2022 to address topics such as safety net options, mastery, honors and technical endorsements, so that schools may determine which diplomas to grant to their graduates. Please visit the Department’s COVID-19 Information site for additional information and guidance as it becomes available.

Hoosick Falls Village Police Chief Ashe Suspended

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Hoosick Falls Mayor Rob Allen has issued a statement announcing the immediate suspension with pay of Village Police Chief Robert (Bob) Ashe. The Mayor’s statement says only that the suspension is due to an on going criminal investigation by the New York State Police. Officer Bernard Davock has been appointed as officer in charge.

The Mayor’s statement further says “the Board of Trustees remains committed to our police department and the necessary and essential work they do, as well as the safety and security of our community.  We will ensure that our police department serves our Village with the highest standards.  Because this is a personnel matter, there is nothing more we can say at this time.”

The Eastwick Press reached out to Chief Ashe to see if he wished to make a comment. So far, he has not, but that is not unusual when a criminal investigation is involved. If there are more developments, we will post them on our website and Facebook page.

An investigation is does not necessarily mean there has been any wrong doing.

Southwestern Vermont Medical Center Restricts Visitors

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In response to a sustained surge in cases of COVID-19 throughout Vermont and to mitigate the spread of the virus, Southwestern Vermont Medical Center (SVMC), part of Southwestern Vermont Health Care (SVHC), will suspend in-person visits for hospital patients starting Monday, December 13. Visitor restrictions also include the health system’s practices and off-campus offices. Visitation at SVMC and other hospital systems has been restricted during times of increased transmission throughout the pandemic. Regional hospitals, including Dartmouth-Hitchcock Health and University of Vermont Medical Center, have also initiated visitor restrictions this week.    [Read more…] about Southwestern Vermont Medical Center Restricts Visitors

New Mask Mandate Will Not be Enforced

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by Doug La Rocque

On Friday, December 10, Governor Kathy Hochul announced that mask will be required in all indoor public spaces in New York State, unless a business or venue has a proof of vaccine requirement before entering. The mandate begins on Monday, December 13 and runs through January 15, when it will be reviewed. When issuing the new mandate, Governor Hochul said “ we are entering a time of uncertainty and we could either plateau here or our cases could get out of control. The Governors office issued a statement that says the mandate is aimed at addressing a winter surge in COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations, claiming  the number of positive cases since Thanksgiving is up 43% and hospitalizations up 29% over the same time period. Violators could face fines and civil penalties up to a maximum  of $1,000. Under the mandate, local health departments will be in charge of enforcing the requirements.

In Rensselaer County, don’t look for the county health Department to take on the added chore. County Executive Steve McLaughlin’s office has issued the following statement; “This is the wrong direction for the state to be taking, especially given the innumerable orders, policy changes and directives already made during the past two years. This is an overreach and it comes at a time when residents and businesses are already struggling.”

“Residents are already taking common-sense precautions and businesses, organizations and other establishments have been going above and beyond to keep the public and customers safe. Over 80 percent of state residents have already been fully vaccinated.”

“The county Health Department has been providing a seven-day-a-week, round-the-clock response to the pandemic for nearly two years. They are working on contact tracing, immunization clinics and many other duties and do not have the time or resources to deal with yet another state mandate.”

“Rensselaer County will not utilize resources to enforce this new state mandate. If the state wants to enforce the mandate, the state will need to utilize state resources for those actions.”

The County’s Public Health Director Mary Fran Wachusas issued a response to the new regulations as well;

“We are impressed that many residents have already gotten fully vaccinated and are taking reasonable and common-sense steps to deal with the pandemic. Businesses and organizations are also working to keep the public safe and we appreciate the patience and cooperation of the public as we are dealing with the expected and seasonal increase in cases.”

“Our Health Department is already dealing with an increase in contact tracing of cases, conducting three vaccination clinics each week and also handling the many other duties and responsibilities for our department. We simply do not have the staff to deal with the latest mandate by the state or enforcement of the mandate. We will remain focused on our current duties.”