The
meeting was held at the home of
Mary Hall and David Barnes.
Lester
Mattis, board president, called
the meeting to order at 4:30,
and welcomed everyone to the sixth
annual FOBC meeting.
All
members introduced themselves.
Mary
Hall read the minutes from the
previous meeting of August 7,
2004 and they were accepted.
Debra
Lynker read the treasurer’s report
and it was accepted.
-Balance
as of July 7, 2004 was $7,105.29
-Deposits
from dues, Church Fund, books
were $3,805.00
-Expenses
for Church Fund and miscellaneous
were $2, 828. 91
-Balance
as of July 7, 2005 is $8,081.38
SIMPLIFIED
BOOKKEEPING
In
response to the Treasurer Debra
Lynker’s complaint that the bookkeeping
was becoming too complicated,
Patricia Adams suggested a simplified
form. It will include three columns
only:
-Dues,
a minimum of $25 for which a member
receives two directories and an
optional $5 for a CD of the website.
-Stories
of the Beaverkill , the first
and second volumes on Beaverkill
history.
-FOBC
Church Fund (It was reiterated
that this fund is for exterior
maintenance only as mentioned
in previous minutes.)
The
simplified bookkeeping form was
accepted.
GRATITUDE
At
the suggestion of Stuart Root
and others a vote of acclamation
was taken for the exceptional
work that Ginny Lawrence has
done on the website and her
promise of work on Vol. II of
Stories of the Beaverkill.
The
membership also expressed gratitude
to Ilene Ferber for her excellent
work on the Directory.
BOARD
The
Board of Directors is Patricia
Adams, David Barnes, John Kelly,
Lester Mattis, Jane Sokolow.
The
Executive Committee is the Board
of Directors plus Mary Hall, Secretary
and Debra Lynker, Treasurer.
This
was approved.
LIST
Only
those who are dues paying members
are entitled to the membership
list in the directory. The list
should not be used for anything
but FOBC business.
NOMINATING
COMMITTEE
Jane
Sokolow presented the situation.
FOBC needs new blood, younger
members and, perhaps, new ideas.
Jane is putting together a nominating
committee with the idea of broadening
the Board and membership to new
members. So far Lisa Lyons, Judith
Katz and Steve Levine have agreed
to serve on the new nominating
committee.
EDITORIAL
BOARD
Patricia
Adams told us that Vol. I of Stories
of the Beaverkill is available
in its re-edited version in a
second printing thanks to Debra
Lynker and the Publishing Class
of the Livingston Manor school.
It is available for $25.
Vol.
II is well on its way. Twenty-five
articles are completed and submitted
and only three remain to be submitted.
The deadline for submission is
Labor Day. The books will include
poetry, pictures and stories.
It should be printed and ready
by Christmas.
Patricia
described the huge contribution
made by Ginny Lawrence both on
Vol. II as well as on the website.
Ginny has volunteered to design
the book and has purchased software
and hardware to make it possible.
Patricia made a motion to pay
Ginny $1500 for her work and expenses.
The motion was approved.
A
discussion ensued about the difficulties
of distribution as well as the
role
of Hamish and Henry and the price
that should be charged. That issue
is as yet unresolved.
The
Livingston Manor School through
its Publishing Class prints the
book and sends it to a bindery.
John Adams suggested that FOBC
take out an ad in the yearbook
to support the school. The subject
will be discussed with the school.
CHURCH
COMMITTEE
Stuart
Root and Steve Lott gave the report
and reiterated that the FOBC General
Fund based on dues cannot be mixed
with the FOBC Church Fund which
is for the exterior maintenance
of the church. This year $7,000
- $8,000 was spent on scraping,
replacing boards and applying
three coats of paint to the exterior
of the church. That should mean
that another coat of paint will
not be needed for five years which
will probably cost $3,000 to $5,000.
Stuart and Steve thanked the membership
for contributions to the Church
Fund and noted that they needed
to continue unabated.
A
parenthetical discussion ensued
about the purpose of the money
in the FOBC treasury since, really,
there were scarcely any expenses.
It was left that the money was
there on a “just in case” basis
but that a suitable purpose might
be found for it, including, possibly,
the LM school.
A
discussion ensued about the possibility
of an overhang on the new church
steeple that might make it more
historically appropriate. Some
members said that it was a matter
for the Church Board, not for
FOBC. All FOBC could do was recommend
and offer financial aid.
The
matter of historical registration
arose. Mermer Blakeslee will chair
an Historical Registry Committee
with a membership of Rose Brown,
Patricia Adams and Judy Rosen.
CAMPSITE
AND COVERED BRIDGE
John
Adams recapitulated the story
of the covered bridge and campsite.
For five years it has been waiting
for the State to take it over
from the County. Last month, the
DOT said that they would acquire
the bridge and turn it over to
the DEC, which will make it part
of the campsite. The DOT will
maintain the bridge for both vehicle
and pedestrian use. Because the
campsite is the oldest in the
State, the Dept. of Parks & Recreation
will begin the process of listing
the campsite and bridge in the
state historic registry.
John
Adams suggested that perhaps Gov.
Pataki would appear for the dedication
in his new persona as presidential
candidate.
The
membership voted an acclamation
of gratitude to John Adams for
his work.
IRON
BRIDGE
Eric
Hamerstrom said that the design
that most people in the area had
chosen was wending its way toward
approval, that bidding was expected
to go out this fall and construction
was expected to start in Spring,
2006. The bridge will be closed
for the construction period.
KNOTWEED
COMMITTEE
Steve
Levine gave a brief overview of
the problem and directed the membership
to the FOBC website for information.
He acknowledged the help of Lisa
Lyons for her information and
for the work done at Renaissance
Park in LM. Lisa distributed pamphlets
that are also available at Morgan
Outdoor in LM. There is a short
movie about Japanese Knotweed
playing at the Calicoon Theater.
NEW
BUSINESS
Calendar
Bruce
Janklow has begun work on a
calendar of the area that should
be available by Thanksgiving
for Christmas season gifts.
Photos are due by October 1
for inclusion. The price will
be $15-$20. Bruce will put out
e-mail about deadlines and distribution.
There was further discussion
about Hamish and Henry as distributors
and what the pricing should
be. Members wondered where the
revenues from the calendars
should go and they discussed
the possibility of donations
to the school or other needs.
It was left for further determination.
Wooly
Adelgid
David
Barnes gave a report on this tiny
insect that is rapidly depleting
the hemlock forests of the east.
Up and down the eastern seaboard,
80% of hemlocks have been affected.
Our immediate area has not been
infected so far because it is
thought to be too cold, but hemlocks
as close as Frost Valley are infected.
There is a beetle that combats
the wooly adelgid, but so far
it is in very short supply and
cannot be considered a resource.
Kate
Schmidt said that individual trees
can be treated by injection, but
not acreage. Individual concerned
about their trees should consult
an arborist or forester.
Jane
Sokolow said that if buying a
hemlock, we should make sure that
they are locally grown so that
we are not importing the blight.
Reports
are posted on the website.
Town
Planning
David
Barnes, Kate Schmidt (County Planning
Staff) and Pat Pomeroy (Town Supervisor)
reported on the recent round of
town planning meetings and matters
of future consideration for the
town.
This
summer, meetings in the three
hamlets of the Town of Rockland,
Roscoe, Livingston Manor and Lew
Beach, were convened and presided
over by Pat Pomeroy, in order
to discuss priorities for the
hamlets. The report on the meetings
is posted on the website.
Kate
Schmidt reported on what the County
is doing vis a vis its comprehensive
plan.
The
towns, she said, are the guiding
force in the state. The county
plan doesn’t have teeth unless
the towns subscribe to it. Pat
Pomeroy has asked for a comprehensive
plan for the Town of Rockland
and she is putting together a
Steering Committee at the Town
level. The priorities of the hamlets
are reflective of those of the
County are in the report on the
FOBC
website. The County will help
the Town with information and
guidance. A vision statement based
on the community meetings was
distributed.
Pat
Pomeroy is planning a Town meeting
for a fall and it will be announced.
For the Steering Committee, she
is looking for 13-15 people of
diverse age, experience, occupation
and viewpoint. The first member
to be announced is David Barnes
and the first meeting will be
called for September. The report
of the steering committee will
focus on the direction for the
future with influence on land
use, zoning, and subdivision.
In
addition, Pat talked about how
the Town was looking at alternative
energy sources including wind
turbines at Lake Mattawa, a lake
owned by the Town. She also mentioned
solar energy in conjunction with
waste management for the Town.
Alternative energy sources such
as these might supply energy for
the Town as well as additional
revenue.
The
meeting concluded with dinner
and appropriate conviviality.
Respectully
submitted,
Mary
Hall
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