Message from the Mayor: Purple Heart, Infrastructure, Hate Graffiti, Climate Mayors, Historical Society and more
Posted on: June 8, 2017 - 9:35am
Fellow residents,
Good, sad, and interesting news.
Purple Heart Village
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A group of veterans approached the Board in early May requesting that the Board designate the Village a "Purple Heart Community" to honor those who have been wounded or killed in combat and thus honored with that award. When some residents expressed concern regarding the wording and location of the proposed signage at the May 16th meeting, we tabled the resolution to work through those concerns and returned to it this last Tuesday night to approve the resolution unanimously in front of a packed Village Hall. The resolution that was approved can be found (here) and my speech that night that explained the background on the issue can be found (here). A link to the video of the meeting can be found here as well. The Board honors those who serve on our behalf and we were pleased to come to an accommodation that satisfied most people on this issue which generated much passion and discussion.
Infrastructure Plan moves forward
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The Village Manager presented a plan for the roads and curbs that will be renovated this year in a significant increase (by a factor of more than five) on our usual spending. We are seeking to aggressively address distressed roads and install curbing across the Village. Please find the map of the proposed repaving and list of new curbing (here). The list was compiled in large part from a study carried out by a consultant last year that laid out what roads (and in what order) needed attention. We decided to more aggressively tackle what has been a five-year plan and will spend $1.2million this year as well as $800k next year on a major upgrade. We haven't yet bid this list out (as we do every year in a consortium with all the other villages), so until we have a bid price (largely driven by the prevailing cost of asphalt, a fairly volatile commodity), the final road list may shrink or grow depending upon the results of the competition. No matter: the impact is likely to be relatively minor and we are certain that the impact of this spending will be apparent to (just about) everyone.
More hate graffiti found
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We are distressed and disappointed to report that there was another incident of swastikas graffiti in the Village this past weekend. This form of hate speech is abhorrent and does not represent the values of this village. The police are carrying out a thorough investigation and the Village Board has decided to offer a reward of $1,000 for information that leads to the arrest and conviction of the perpetrator. The Chief has issued a press release with more details, (here).
We join the Climate Mayors to “stay in” the Paris Climate Agreement
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In response to the Trump Administration’s announcement that it intends to withdraw the US from the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement, municipalities across the country have been making commitments to meet the Paris Agreement targets anyway. They are “staying in.” Hastings has joined hundreds of other Climate Mayors, representing over 54 million people, in this pledge. Our Conservation Commission is continuing to work on meeting the goals of our Village Comprehensive Plan and Sustainability Action Plan, which can move us a long way towards the Paris Agreement targets. We have also recently been named a New York Clean Energy Village, based on a number of actions we have already taken, and more actions are planned. Learn more about our Sustainability efforts on our Village website here.
Historical Society Fundraiser (and request)
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The Historical Society is running one of the more clever fundraisers in recent memory - an iteration on Antiques Roadshow. Come to their event on Sunday from 1PM to 4PM at the Cottage at Draper Park. Bring your Autographs & Letters, General Collectibles, Porcelain, Books, Glassware, Prints, Bronzes, Jewelry, Silver, Coins, Maps, Tools and find out…what’s it worth? Is it trash or is it treasure?
$10 fee per item, Limit 3 items per person and Historical Society members get $5 off first item The Historical Society is also looking to substantially upgrade its website offerings by further automating its technology overall, and they are specifically looking at betters ways to accept more forms of payment for membership, merchandise, etc. If you have the skills and can volunteer to help them implement a more streamline "shopping cart" on the website and point-of-sales system utilizing PayPal, they would much appreciate it. Ping them at hhscottage@gmail.com
$10 fee per item, Limit 3 items per person and Historical Society members get $5 off first item The Historical Society is also looking to substantially upgrade its website offerings by further automating its technology overall, and they are specifically looking at betters ways to accept more forms of payment for membership, merchandise, etc. If you have the skills and can volunteer to help them implement a more streamline "shopping cart" on the website and point-of-sales system utilizing PayPal, they would much appreciate it. Ping them at hhscottage@gmail.com
And some history
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Once in a while, I stumble on a bit of history unique to Hastings that I feel compelled to share. The upcoming Historical Society newsletter has a piece that is fitting as a follow-on to Memorial Day. The large obelisk you will see in Mt. Hope Cemetery as you leave Hastings (69 feet tall in total) is actually a marker for the largest burial ground north of the Mason-Dixon line of Confederate soldiers who died in the North after voluntarily migrating here after the Civil War. Some had chosen New York because they remembered that NYC’s wartime mayor had urged his city to secede from the union (!) and newspapers like the Daily News, World and Metropolitan Record had actually supported the South during the war (!). (The Union League Club was formed to battle this “Copperhead” sentiment and its first president was a Hastings resident, Robert Minturn. But I digress.) A fraternal order of these southerners, the New York Camp, bought the 400 square foot plot in 1890 and convinced a colorful, displaced Southerner who had made it big in NYC to construct the obelisk and 44 confederate veterans were to eventually be buried there. The opening ceremony was billed as a moment of reconciliation, and 115 years later, in 2005, the Sons of the Union Veterans of the Civil War restored the plot, which had gone to seed, “for former foes who became our countrymen once again and…helped to build our nation. Let us have peace.” Amen to that.
ESCO Marketing Ploys
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A warning about Electricity Supply Company (ESCO) marketing in the Village: A number of Village residents have reported receiving calls from ESCOs telling them that their current electricity supply through the Village’s Community Choice Aggregation (CCA) agreement is about to end. This is not the case. You will continue to get the excellent rate using 100% green energy you are receiving for another year, and we are in negotiation for further excellent rates beyond that.
Finally, we are grateful for the generous support of the many residents who helped ensure a Hastings family burned out of their home have the down payment and basic household supplies to restart their lives. In these times where it feels like we are buffeted daily by national news and an uncertain and unsettled future, it is good to remember the real good in this Village.
Sincerely,
Peter Swiderski
Mayor