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This is the second of a series about invasive aquatic hydrilla and its growing threat to waterbodies and communities in Northwest Connecticut.
CHESTER, Conn. — Bob Petzold has spent the past few summers mowing his marina’s boat slips.
Thick, verdant green mats of notoriously troublesome hydrilla have made it impossible for vessels to enter or exit the channel unless he and his crew mechanically chop, gather and haul away massive piles of the invasive weed, which has clogged the Chester Boat Basin, one of two marinas he owns and operates on the Connecticut River.
Petzold knows that in doing so, he raises the risk of spreading hydrilla fragments that will drift away and repopulate elsewhere. But he has little choice, he said, if his four-generation, family-owned and operated business is to remain afloat.
“It’s a necessary evil,” he said. And an expensive one at that.
“We spend thousands of dollars on outside contractors and we have our own staff remediating it just to keep the channel open,” Petzold explained during an early September visit to his marina.
“When the water is clear, you can almost watch the hydrilla grow. If we wait five years, we will be able to walk across the river if it’s left unchecked.”
The strain of hydrilla in the Connecticut River has been an ongoing concern since its discovery in 2016. It is considered genetically distinct from other known hydrilla populations in the world, and as such, there is limited information available to aid in the development of management strategies to limit its explosive spread.
Kayaks can’t pass through it. Boat motors get tangled by its long strands and stall. Coveted fishing holes have been abandoned by anglers, and swimmers won’t swim in it. Scientists are also addressing concerns about hydrilla’s threat to the ecosystem, including osprey and bald eagles. They fear that the Connecticut River strain harbors cyanobacteria, which produces a neurotoxin deadly to birds of prey.
Rhea Drozenko, river steward for the Connecticut River Conservancy, pointed to the Mattabesset River as an example of hydrilla’s explosive nature. “It created this huge mat, and some native plants couldn’t stand a chance. It created a sea of hydrilla.”
Fortunately for Petzold, and others who own businesses or real estate, enjoy recreational activities or cherish the 200-mile-long river’s aesthetics and ecology, hope is on the horizon.
Petzold’s two marinas, Chester Boat Basin and Portland Boat Works, are among five sites in the Connecticut River Watershed selected for testing of aquatic herbicides this summer as part of an ongoing hydrilla research project by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE).
Other test sites include Chapman Pond in East Haddam, Keeney Cove in Glastonbury and Selden Cove in Lyme.
Scientists hope to reduce and control hydrilla, while protecting plants, fish and the long-term health of the river, as well as its $1 billion-plus contribution to Connecticut’s economy.
The results of that research could also bring a sigh of relief inland, where 10 lakes, so far, have been identified as hosts to hydrilla, which is spread between bodies of water primarily by unsuspecting boat owners.
East Twin Lake in Salisbury was the first lake outside of the Connecticut River watershed to identify an infestation late last summer. That number is expected to rise once the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station (CAES) concludes its planned inspections of every state-owned boat launch throughout Connecticut.
$100 million in federal funding
In 2021, Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), announced that he is leading an effort to secure $100 million over four years in federal funding for a multistate effort to control hydrilla in the Connecticut River Watershed, and in June, he announced $5 million in federal funding for the USACE demonstration project.
“Senator Blumenthal was here. He pledged his support in getting government funding for this continual battle,” noted Petzold, who referred to hydrilla as “the biggest threat beyond our control” in the nearly 80-year history of his family business.
The funds will also support other goals including preventing hydrilla from spreading into coves, tributaries and inland waters, improving surveillance and detecting new infestations early and responding quickly to control and eradicate new infestations.
In addition, the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP), through the State Aquatic Invasive Species (AIS) Grant Program, made $500,000 available to municipalities, state agencies and nonprofit organizations to reduce impacts of aquatic species, including hydrilla, on inland waters.
Connecticut awarded approximately $952,700 to 46 projects statewide during the first three years of the AIS Grant Program.
Hope is on the horizon
As stakeholders await the results of the USACE’s demonstration project, already there are encouraging signs.
Petzold pointed to the gently rippling water surrounding the boat basin, which he said had not been that clear during peak boating season for several years. Around the slips, strands of sickly-looking hydrilla floated among dead leaves, victims of herbicidal dosing.
He credited the bipartisan support of lawmakers on the local, state and federal level for going “above and beyond” in supporting and communicating with stakeholders.
“In my mind, it’s made a world of difference. We’ll see what the test studies reveal, but it seems like it is doing the trick here, at least in the basin,” said the marina owner, who credited DEEP and USACE for working together effectively and keeping stakeholders in the loop and respond to their concerns.
“At this point I guess there’s no cure for it, but we have to figure out a way to stop it from spreading and growing as best we can.”
Beth Rye of Chester, who owns two vessels, a 20-foot Grady-White and 35-foot Viking, was ecstatic about being able to navigate in and out of the slips without her boats’ props getting snarled in hydrilla. “It’s gone!” she announced with glee.
Relief for some raises red flags for others, noted Drozenko, particularly when aquatic herbicides are involved.
“There has been a lot of concern about the use of herbicidal treatments, especially in very fragile, ecologically sensitive zones.”
Lakes and ponds, she said, are easier than flowing rivers to treat, as they are more contained and especially if the infestation is caught early, as in Salisbury’s East Twin Lake.
“Whereas if hydrilla moves into the Housatonic River,” the river steward cautioned, ‘it will have the same impact as in our river.”
Coming next: What’s at stake for Salisbury’s six lakes in 2025 and beyond.
SHARON — The Hotchkiss Library of Sharon will be one of 12 North American libraries to be honored in the September/October 2024 American Libraries issue “2024 Library Design Showcase.”
As the mouthpiece of the American Library Association, the magazine sought in this showcase to celebrate libraries that integrate local history and place along with community access and growth. According to its article on the showcase, the Hotchkiss Library’s “restoration and expansion honor its rich history while bringing it into the 21st century.”
Even with expansion, at 6,600 square feet the Hotchkiss Library is by far the smallest to be honored in the showcase. The next closest in size is 16,218 square feet, while several honorees included in the list exceed 70,000 square feet.
Executive Director Gretchen Hachmeister is proud of her library’s stature next to relative giants. She said its inclusion in the showcase demonstrates the importance of “updating older spaces to meet new needs, but to respect the history of the place.” She sees the diversity of honorees featured in the showcase as emblematic of the “rich variety” of roles libraries play in today’s society.
The renovation, which was overseen by QA+M Architecture and completed in August, 2023 after a two year construction period, created a “very delicate situation,” in Hachmeister’s words, because of the library’s historical significance and the existing building’s many fans. Gifted to the town in 1893 by Maria Bissell Hotchkiss, the library was designed by prominent architect Bruce Price, whose other projects include Québec City’s famed Chateau Frontenac and Tuxedo Park. Hachmeister said that the library contains one of his best preserved interiors because “it is virtually unchanged.” However, there are drawbacks to 19th century architecture: “We were one of the last libraries in the state that was not handicapped accessible,” Hachmeister intoned.
Since construction, new and improved facilities include updated technological resources, new private workspace for staff, two new rooms for patron study and work, a wheelchair lift and two new accessible bathrooms, a new circulation area, and a community room which remains open at night, which Hachmeister has said has been immensely successful as a resource for local nonprofits and other groups in town. “But we did not drastically change anything about the beloved interior,” she was careful to clarify.
The community response has been overwhelmingly positive, she said: “Everyone has really embraced the new, the new that’s joined to the old.” Since reopening on the green last August, the library has issued 125 new library cards. “To a town of 2,700 people, that’s a great deal,” Hachmeister assured.
When asked about future development for the library, Hachmeister said while plans of more expansions remain a staff in-joke given the grueling process of renovation — especially in such a historic building — they certainly plan to diversify and bolster their programming. “It’s just exciting to see what we’ll do next,” Hachmeister said brightly. “Who knows”?
Linda Kaplan
MILLERTON — Linda Kaplan, beloved wife, mother, grandmother, sister, aunt, sister-in-law, cousin and friend, passed away Sept. 3, 2024. Linda will be remembered as a deeply kind woman guided by faith, family and love.
Linda was born to Francis Crawford and Lydia Johnson (nee Snyder) in Sharon, on Sept. 14, 1942. She attended Webutuck High School in Millerton, and then started her career in banking, where she worked until her retirement as a Vice President. Linda was a loving mother who raised her two sons and instilled in them her love of faith and family.
Linda met her future husband, Sanford (Sam) Kaplan, at a dance in Millerton, and they were blessed with 30 years of marriage during which they enjoyed their time on Simmons Street. Here, Linda enjoyed tending to her garden where she could be found picking green beans and tomatoes. She also enjoyed solving the daily crossword puzzle, knitting, and listening to Sam play his guitar. Together, Linda and Sam enjoyed hosting their family for Thanksgiving, Christmas and Passover celebrations. They especially enjoyed annual summer visits by their granddaughters which always included visits to their farm where they rode ATVs. Linda and Sam’s interest in dairy farming led them to travel to Europe where they toured dairy farms; a trip they fondly recounted to their family for years.
Linda’s faith was evident, not only through her family, but also through her involvement with the Millerton Presbyterian Church. She enjoyed community outreach, singing in the choir, working with children, teaching ESL classes, and helping to develop and implement programs.
Linda is predeceased by her husband, Sam Kaplan, her mother, father, and brother Thomas Crawford. She is survived by her two sons; Lorin Stapleton and his wife Mary Stapleton of Brewster, New York, and Brian Stapleton of Sandisfield, Massachusettds; her two granddaughters, Bridget Stapleton of Jersey City, New Jersey and Colleen Stapleton of Boston, Massachusetts; her sister-in-law, Susan Crawford; nephew David Keys and his wife Barbara; niece Susan Jenkins and her husband Rick Herring.
Calling hours will be held on Saturday, Sept. 7, 2024, from 8:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. at the Scott D. Conklin Funeral Home, 37 Park Avenue, Millerton, NY 12546. A Mass of the Christian Burial will be celebrated on Saturday, Sept. 7, at 10 a.m. at St. Martin of Tours Church of St. Mary in Lakeville, CT. Rev. Dennis Arambasick will officiate. Burial will follow at Irondale Cemetery in Millerton, NY. To send an online condolence to the family, please visit www.conklinfuneralhome.com
The Cornwall Open Studio took place on Saturday, Aug. 31. It is a Cornwall tradition and has been taking place for eighteen years.
It is a day when Cornwall artists invite the public into their studios to see what they are working on and how they do it. The artists work in various media, including painting, sculpture, photography and artistic shoes.
To participate, prospective tourists go to cornwallct.org/event/cornwall-open-studio-2024/ where a map and a list of the artists is available to download and print. The event is free, there is no registration, and so armed with the map, those taking the tour are set to explore not only artists’ studios, but the beautiful drive through Cornwall.
David Colbert, sculptor, is the initiator of the event. He said of his work, “I was smitten by the geometry and eventually the geometry led me to art.” Behind his studio in Cornwall Bridge he has a quarter mile sculpture path which he has been building for the past thirty-five years. Those on the tour could meander down the path and enjoy the beauty of the geometrically derived works.
Asked if there were any special artists and studios that should not be missed, he said, “I can’t help but mention Tim Prentice, whose shop, barn and whole place is pretty amazing.” At Prentice’s studio in West Cornwall, an old barn, mobiles, and other kinetic works of art hang from walls and ceilings and populate the surrounding fields. Across the road, another barn holds larger sculptures.
At 93, Prentice still works most days in the studio beside his house. He said he works on “small things.” He struggles with fading eyesight due to macular degeneration. He will be in a film by The Vision and Art Project, which seeks to bring awareness of macular degeneration by featuring artists like Tim Prentice. The film will be shown at the Cornwall Library sometime in the coming months.
In spite of his failing eye sight, he enjoys getting out to the studio and working and was welcoming visitors on the tour.
Another interesting studio is that of Lauren Brinkers Shoes in Cornwall Bridge. The shoes are hand painted and “one of a kind.” “I studied in London and went to shoe making school there,” Brinkers said. “I studied traditional men’s shoe making and transitioned into women’s.” She wanted to bring “more color and expression into shoes.” She learned how to work with leather dyes and paints the shoes to accomplish this goal.
A display of Lauren Brinkers handmade, one of a kind , hand paintied shoes on display at her Cornwall studio.Robin Roraback
Next to Lauren Brinkers’ studio is that of Stephan Sagmiller, who shows with his photographs that “The world is worth looking at closely. You’ve got to look at them up close. That’s my ethos as an artist.” His photos are large and colorful and invite you to do just that — look up close.
In West Cornwall, the abstract landscapes of Suzan Scott were on display at the Souterrain Gallery. Scott says of her work, “I’ve always had a strong connection with nature. I see everything, every blade of grass.” It was overwhelming for her. She began to paint still lives thinking they’d be easier, but in doing so she realized that still lives are similar to landscapes in that she could break down the parts as she did for still lives. “Why not go out and do landscapes and simplify them — abstract them?”
Her process is to layer tinted glazes, sometimes as many as thirty. She will work on a painting, let it rest, go back to it, work some more, and continue this until the painting is finished, which can take a week or months.
Scott paints scenes from the northwest corner and has “favorite spots” that she revisits. “The more I see it, the more I can interpret it, and it becomes mine.”
These are just a few of the artists on the tour. There were also Curt Hanson’s beautiful landscapes and the looser, colorful paintings of Magaly Ohika, Katherine Freygang and Sally Van Doren. Photographers Nick Jacobs and Bela Selendy also opened their studios. They use their cameras to explore life and nature.
If you missed the tour this year, be sure to keep an eye out for it next Labor Day Weekend. It is a wonderful way to spend a Saturday. To contact these artists or find out more about their work, go to: cornwallct.org/history-culture/arts-artists/ or go to the tour website to find links to their websites.