Sidewalks focus of block grant application

PINE PLAINS — The Town Board held a public hearing Oct. 4 to elicit ideas for the 2012 Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) application it plans to submit to the county — a prerequisite to gaining the funding. The hearing was poorly attended and no one from the community spoke. While the funds are part of a federal Housing and Urban Development (HUD) program, they are administered by the county and awarded according to a priority schedule, which can change annually. Infrastructure improvements and adaptation to Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) standards consistently rank high on the list of priorities.This year the town of Pine Plains is addressing both of those issues in its application for sidewalk remediation and decorative lighting on East Church Street. According to town Supervisor Brian Coons, who also happens to be the junior planner for the town of Poughkeepsie’s Planning Department, the project should score well as it will improve the town’s infrastructure, help with economic development (the sidewalks are within the business district) and meet ADA compliancy. The way block grants work is that participating municipalities join a county-wide consortium, and all of the CDBG funds from the federal government go into that consortium. The county then divides that money and awards it to the municipalities it finds most deserving, with the maximum annual grant award being $150,000 per municipality. Not every municipality gets awarded grant money, but Coons is hopeful Pine Plains will be among those that do.“In spring of next year the county is coming to do a sidewalk survey, so this would get the ball rolling,” he said. “Hopefully we’ll get some money for new projects, which are too expensive to do all in one year. It’s kind of part of a revitalization plan, with the scope of work to remediate the sidewalks from the bank on East Church Street to the dentist’s office, to in front of Peck’s to the churches. “That’s a big part of our business district, which is small, but it’s important, and that’s what we’re trying to build on and get people to do business here,” he said.The decorative lights the town wants to install would match those on South Main Street, although Coons said they would be adapted so they’re not as bright. He also said there would be fewer installed, to cut down on night-time light pollution.Though the Town Hall was practically empty the night of the public hearing, the supervisor took that as a nod of approval from the community that it supports the sidewalk project. Now he’s just hoping the county will feel the same way, especially in such a competitive market.“Unfortunately, because of the economic times, the county has to spread out the funds and give money to many different municipalities, so they don’t always give the full amount,” Coons said, “which is understandable. We just hope to get a piece of the pie.”

Latest News

Club baseball at Fuessenich Park

Travel league baseball came to Torrington Thursday, June 26, when the Berkshire Bears Select Team played the Connecticut Moose 18U squad. The Moose won 6-4 in a back-and-forth game. Two players on the Bears play varsity ball at Housatonic Valley Regional High School: shortstop Anthony Foley and first baseman Wes Allyn. Foley went 1-for-3 at bat with an RBI in the game at Fuessenich Park.

 

  Anthony Foley, rising senior at Housatonic Valley Regional High School, went 1-for-3 at bat for the Bears June 26.Photo by Riley Klein 

 
Siglio Press: Uncommon books at the intersection of art and literature

Uncommon books at the intersection of art and literature.

Richard Kraft

Siglio Press is a small, independent publishing house based in Egremont, Massachusetts, known for producing “uncommon books at the intersection of art and literature.” Founded and run by editor and publisher Lisa Pearson, Siglio has, since 2008, designed books that challenge conventions of both form and content.

A visit to Pearson’s airy studio suggests uncommon work, to be sure. Each of four very large tables were covered with what looked to be thousands of miniature squares of inkjet-printed, kaleidoscopically colored pieces of paper. Another table was covered with dozens of book/illustration-size, abstracted images of deer, made up of colored dots. For the enchanted and the mystified, Pearson kindly explained that these pieces were to be collaged together as artworks by the artist Richard Kraft (a frequent contributor to the Siglio Press and Pearson’s husband). The works would be accompanied by writings by two poets, Elizabeth Zuba and Monica Torre, in an as-yet-to-be-named book, inspired by a found copy of a worn French children’s book from the 1930s called “Robin de Bois” (Robin Hood).

Keep ReadingShow less
Cycling season: A roundup of our region’s rentals and where to ride them

Cyclists head south on the rail trail from Copake Falls.

Alec Linden

After a shaky start, summer has well and truly descended upon the Litchfield, Berkshire and Taconic hills, and there is no better way to get out and enjoy long-awaited good weather than on two wheels. Below, find a brief guide for those who feel the pull of the rail trail, but have yet to purchase their own ten-speed. Temporary rides are available in the tri-corner region, and their purveyors are eager to get residents of all ages, abilities and inclinations out into the open road (or bike path).

For those lucky enough to already possess their own bike, perhaps the routes described will inspire a new way to spend a Sunday afternoon. For more, visit lakevillejournal.com/tag/bike-route to check out two ride-guides from local cyclists that will appeal to enthusiasts of many levels looking for a varied trip through the region’s stunning summer scenery.

Keep ReadingShow less