Superintendent of Schools Maria Rice announced that Ameresco, Inc., an energy efficiency and renewable energy company, and the New Paltz Central School District have entered into an energy-savings performance contract. Ameresco will provide energy-efficiency upgrades to the district’s four school buildings with an expected savings to the district of $258,461 annually.
“Environmental stewardship has always been top in the mind of New Paltz Central School District, so we are thrilled to bring these energy-efficient upgrades to our district,” said Rice. “This long-term partnership will save our district a tremendous amount of money that can be used to fund important programs for our students. Additionally, this work will serve as a valuable teaching tool to show our students, parents and staff about the importance of energy efficiency.”
Once approved by the New York State Education Department (SED), the $4-million project will require no up-front capital investment from the school district or the taxpayers. Funded partly by the SED, the district is expected to save $6-million over the course of the 18-year project, which will pay for the improvements.
New Paltz Presidential search process concludes on campus
The New Paltz Presidential Search Committee has completed its work and the New Paltz College Council has fulfilled its charge in the process to find a college president for New Paltz, according to Kenneth Abt, chair, New Paltz Presidential Search Committee, and chair, New Paltz College Council.
On Thursday, Feb. 24, the Search Committee and the College Council met together to deliberate the merits of each of the three presidential finalists who visited the campus Feb. 10-18 and to review feedback from the campus community about the candidates.
The College Council has reviewed the candidates forwarded by the Search Committee and has made its finalist recommendations for the presidency of the New Paltz campus to Chancellor Nancy Zimpher for her consideration.
The Chancellor will interview the candidates and shall recommend a finalist to the Board of Trustees for its consideration. It is anticipated that the Board will vote on the Chancellor’s recommendation at the March 22 meeting of the Board of Trustees. The expected start date for the new president is July 1.
Earth Day is fast approaching
Many activities are planned for Earth Day in New Paltz in April. Be part of this by sending a poem about any aspect of the environment to Arts for Peace, an all volunteer non-profit organization based in New Paltz. The winning poem will be published in this paper and on Facebook! There are no restrictions on age or residence. Send your poem (200 words or less) or questions to publicleaningpost@earthlink.net. Arts for Peace will also publish poems about any aspect of peace and social justice.
Comic book creators to appear at October Country
Twelve comic book creators will appear at October Country in New Paltz this Saturday, March 12 from 1 to 4 p.m. for a free autograph signing. For additional information, call 255-1115.
Ulster BOCES hosts open house
Ulster County tenth-grade students and their parents are invited to attend an open house at the Ulster BOCES Career & Technical Center on March 15 from 6 to 8 p.m. Hosted at the Port Ewen campus on Route 9W, the open house will offer a glimpse of the many training programs that can lead to employment in high-demand fields, such as CISCO, Computer Design/Manufacturing Technology, Aviation, Engineering, Practical Nursing and many more. Students currently enrolled in Career & Technical Center programs will serve as guides, and will be on-hand to answer questions about their experience at Ulster BOCES. For more information, contact 331-6680, ext. 2234.
Gardiner Greenmarket call for vendors
The Gardiner Greenmarket, held every Friday from 3 p.m. to dusk at the Gardiner Library, is expanding. The greenmarket team is looking for additional vendors for the summer market that opens in June. To expand the offerings, they would like to add farmers growing berries, fruits and vegetables. They are also looking for a bread and baked goods producer. If you sell flowers, plants or seedlings, make cheese or grow some unique offering, contact dancingmeadow@gmail.com or call Anne or Dave Rogers at 255-0087.
The Greenmarket has guest chefs once a month throughout the growing season. It also sells seeds from the Hudson Valley Seed Library.
A winter Greenmarket will be held on March 19 from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. in the Gardiner Library Community Room.
Change of date for Historic Preservation Commission
The Historic Preservation Commission of the Village of New Paltz has changed the date of its next regular meeting to Monday, March 14 at 7 p.m. There will be no meeting on March 21, the originally scheduled date. As usual, the March 14 meeting will take place at Village Hall, 25 Plattekill Avenue, New Paltz. For more information, please contact the Commission at hpc@villageofnewpaltz.org, or call the Village of New Paltz Building Department at 255-3055.
Winter Sun Farms indoor farm market this Saturday
This Saturday, March 12, there will be an indoor farm market at Deyo Hall, just off Historic Huguenot Street in New Paltz, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. All are welcome to come and shop for local food items such as meat, eggs, root crops, microgreens, goat cheese, bakery items, quiches, soups, maple syrup, heirloom seeds and more. Market vendors include: Meadow View Farm, Four Winds Farm, Acorn Hill Farm, Hudson Valley Seed Library, Wild Hive Farm, Oliverea Schoolhouse Maple, Conuco Farm and Full Moon Farm. The market is sponsored by Winter Sun Farms, a local company dedicated to freezing local produce for winter consumption. Winter Sun Farms members who have signed up for a winter share of frozen veggies and fruit can pick up their shares at the winter market during market hours. If you are interested in buying a share of local frozen produce for next winter, please inquire at the market about pricing, etc. The markets are held the second Saturday of the month, December through April.
Corned beef and cabbage dinner at the Grange
The Highland Grange will be holding a corned beef and cabbage dinner this Saturday, March 12 from 4 to 7 p.m. The menu includes corned beef, cabbage, potatoes, carrots and green jello. The cost is $9 for adults, $4.50 for children 6 to 12 and free for children five and under. The Highland Grange is located at 620 Old New Paltz Road. Call 691-7072 for information.
St. Patrick’s Day dinner in Rosendale
On Thursday, March 17, the Rosendale Democratic Committee will host its annual St. Patrick’s Day corned beef and cabbage dinner at the Rosendale Recreation Center from 5 to 8 p.m. The cost of the dinner is $12 and $10 for seniors. Take out will be available.
Art at Gadaleto’s
“Sunshine Luxury” by Anya Ritz is currently on display at Gadaleto’s Restaurant in New Paltz. The show will be on display until March 27.
“New Paltz is Beautiful” photo contest
The Town/Gown Connect Community Team is now accepting submissions for the “New Paltz is Beautiful” photo contest. Send your best images of the village, town or campus to: towngownconnect@gmail.com by 11:59 p.m. on March 13. If your photo features minors, you will need to sign a minor model release form before the image is published.
There will be 25 winners and one grand-prize winner, who will receive a $25 gift certificate to a New Paltz business. All winning photographs will be featured on the Town/Gown Connect website.
To enter, e-mail a digital image as an attachment. Up to ten images can be submitted. The photographs will be judged based on creativity, image quality and artistic composition by a panel of curators, photographers, graphic artists, website designers and public relations specialists.
Minimum image size is 1680 by 1050 pixels (or at least 1050 pixels tall) at 72 dpi. Images should be submitted in JPG format. File sizes must be less than 5MB per image. All winning images will be displayed with the photographer’s first and last name, unless otherwise requested.
Winners will be notified via e-mail by March 20.
Artist Salon at Woodland Pond
Woodland Pond residents Annette Finestone and Natalie Minewski, and two other community artists, Martin Davis and Jane Lehman (SUNY), will speak about their works on display in the Performing Arts Room at Woodland Pond this Friday, March 11 at 7:30 p.m. While the subject matter and art media are vastly different, the theme and spirit of the show highlights self/community connections.
The public is invited to both free events -- the exhibit, which can be viewed daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and the Artist Salon and reception March 11 at 7:30 p.m.
“I am very happy to have the opportunity to show my work right here, where I live now in New Paltz, and to share, through conversation, my life and work in the arts,” said Minewski. “While I show my work often at Unframed Artist Gallery on Huguenot Street, this is the first time we are hosting an art exhibit at Woodland Pond and I hope this exhibit and artist talk leads to more connections between our residents, the campus and the community.”
Woodland Pond is located at 100 Woodland Pond Circle, off of North Putt Corner Road. For additional information, call 256-8444 or e-mail towngownconnect@gmail.com.
Poetry event at the New Paltz Community Center
The New Paltz Community Center will host the Arts Community Poetry Live this Saturday, March 12 at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are available at the Community Center weekdays between 9 a.m. and noon. For information call 255-3631.
‘Amazing Grace’ to be shown at the Methodist Church
The New Paltz United Methodist Women will sponsor a showing of the film “Amazing Grace,” the life of the anti-slavery crusader William Wilberforce, at the Church this Sunday, March 13 at 7 p.m. Everyone is invited to view the movie and join in on the discussion afterwards.
Meeting on Middle East uprisings and wars
A public meeting will be held in SUNY New Paltz Lecture Center 102 on Tuesday, March 15 at 6:30 p.m. The topic of the meeting will be, “What Next for the Middle East -- More U.S. Wars in the Region or Peace at Last?”
The democratic uprisings in the Middle East and North Africa against dictatorships and repressive monarchies -- in Egypt, Tunisia, Libya, Bahrain, Yemen, Oman and other Arab countries -- are of historic consequence and will ultimately transform the region politically and socially.
But what comes next? What will be the impact on Washington and also what about Israel and Iran?
Meanwhile, the eighth anniversary of the U.S. invasion of Iraq falls on March 19 -- a day of worldwide protests -- and the tenth anniversary of the Afghan war is in a few months.
Speakers at the March 15 meeting include Brian Becker, the leader of the ANSWER peace and justice coalition; Jack Smith, editor of the Hudson Valley Activist Newsletter; Donna Goodman, New Paltz activist and union representative; Michael Sussman, a well-known civil liberties attorney from Orange county; Barbara Upton of New Paltz Women in Black; Claire Papell, SUNY Student and activist; and Tarak Kauff, a Woodstock activist and member of Veterans for Peace.
For additional information, e-mail jacdon@earthlink.net.
Mahoney’s West hosts grand opening
Mahoney’s West will hold its grand opening celebration this Saturday, March 12 -- just in time for St. Patty’s Day. The celebration at the new pub restaurant, located at 127 Main Street in New Paltz, will feature two hours of bagpipers from 6 to 8 p.m., followed by DJs, dancing, drink specials and lots of traditional Irish food.
“It’ll be the perfect warm up for St. Patty’s Day!” said Geraldine Rifenburgh, who co-owns Mahoney’s West with Joseph Varrone. “We know people are going love Mahoney’s West. We have a big room and a bigger heart!”
For more information, call 416-2311 or visit www.mahoneysatnewpaltz.com.
Attention teen photographers
The Elting Library Teen Advisory Committee is holding a teen photo contest open to all photographers in grades 8 through 12. The photos can be black and white or color. The photos MUST be taken in New Paltz. All photos submitted will be displayed in the library. Entries will be reviewed by a panel of judges and prizes will be awarded. The top prize is $50 cash. To participate, bring your photography to the library at 93 Main Street in New Paltz by March 15.
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