Judge: No furloughs for state workers
U.S. District Judge Lawrence Kahn just ruled that 100,000 state workers can't be furloughed and will get their raises, budget issues be damned. From the AP.
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Stamford house makes the New York Times
Featured in the NYT's real estate section this week: A converted church in Stamford, Delaware County, on the market for $168,000.
The sellers, an interior designer and a firefighter, spent 12 years of weekends transforming this once dilapidated 1850s Methodist Episcopal structure into a 1,400-square-foot living space. They removed several layers of carpet samples and newspapers to reveal wide-plank wood floors. Most of the stained-glass windows are intact.
That's a lot of weekends.
The local realtors listing the property, Frank Lumia Real Estate Plus, are Watershed Post business members. Check out their news and listings in the Trading Post, our channel for news from local businesses.
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Parks bill passed at 3am
You know it's a political hot potato when legislators stay up all night. The New York State Assembly passed Gov. Paterson's keep-the-state-parks-open bill around 3am last night, according to WPTZ. The Senate is reportedly considering the bill right now. Here's a copy, via Scribd user rkarlin:
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Best of Memorial Day
In the Catskills this weekend and have no idea how to celebrate Memorial Day? Here's our picks of the best of the weekend's parading, feasting, and memorializing.
Tannersville Rubber Duck Race & Crazy Boat Race
First, hundreds of rubber duckies go head to head. Then, vessels decked out in their wackiest decorations compete for the title of "Craziest Boat." There are cash prizes for both events. Spectators are invited to trick out any canoe or kayak and join in.
The Walton Historical Society's Civil War Reenactment
These Civil War re-enactors actually camp out at the Delaware County fairgrounds the night before they spend all day firing cannons at each other. Food and crafts abut the North battling the South, and there's a parade to the fairgrounds through the town of Walton beforehand. Admission and parking are both free.
Otsego County fracking moratorium bill shot down in committee
A proposed resolution by Oneonta Democrat Richard Murphy, which would have called on the state to pass a moratorium on hydrofracking, has died in committee, the Daily Star reports. It's possible the bill could go back to the drawing board:
Murphy said he was open to rewording the resolution to gain wider support. He could bring a resolution before the full board, but would need a two-thirds majority to have it considered.
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Former owner of Catskill Mortgage indicted
John A. Sanzone Sr. allegedly used false mortgage documents to give himself a loan while he ran Catskill Mortgage in Stamford, NY. Via WBGH in Binghamton.
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State park budget whiplash
All week, there's been talk of a hail-Mary agreement that would manage to re-open the parks for Memorial Day. Now the AP reports that Gov. David Paterson says that there really is a deal:
Paterson said negotiations that ended early Thursday morning would provide $11 million for full operations this year, effectively offset by money from the Environmental Protection Fund, which would be cut by about $74 million. The measure is also expected to keep the historic sites open this year, as well as Department of Environmental Conservation campgrounds targeted for closing. "We've come to a deal to approximately cut about what I proposed in the original budget," Paterson said on WOR radio 710's "The John Gambling Show." ''The bad news is it has taken about four days to find $11 million dollars to keep the parks open."
But the legislators who are getting their arms twisted by the promise of a glorious Memorial Day weekend without state parks aren't falling into line just yet:
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DEP apologizes to soggy Wawarsing
The Times Herald-Record documents that rarest of events: an apology from the New York City DEP to an upstate town.
"We forgot about Wawarsing," Paul Rush said at a meeting with homeowners and local lawmakers. "We should have been more connected. We should have done a better job."
...Rush's mea culpa came after scientists from the U.S. Geological Survey showed more preliminary data that suggests the leaking Rondout-West Branch tunnel is responsible, at least in part, for destructive water fluctuations in Wawarsing.
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The fab try to farm in Schoharie
And a reality TV show is following their every move. Former drag queen Josh Kilmer-Purcell and his partner, Martha Stewart alum Brent Ridge, are starring in the Fabulous Beekman Boys, slated to air on Planet Green on June 16. The couple runs Beekman 1802, a farm in Sharon Springs, in Schoharie County. According to WKTV TV in Utica, their neighbors aren't sure whether they like the hoopla:
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It's official: Rosendale is "Brooklyn North"
The New York Times declared on Monday that Rosendale has reached a Brooklyn hipster saturation point. How can you tell? Maggie Gyllenhaal has been spotted there, as have "vintage clothes and skinny jeans." And there's one cafe, Market Market, that seems to cinch the town's new designation with its "distinctly Brooklyn feel:"
[I]t has become a magnet for the Brooklyn exiles. Situated directly across the street from the Trailways station (you can get your bus tickets there), the cafe has a sleek bar surrounded by reproduction vintage Fornasetti wallpaper. The menu features tacos filled with house-made chorizo, Vietnamese banh mi sandwiches, and specials like pork schnitzel with brussels sprout and bacon hash.
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