SPY 9-15 - The Stockade Association

September 2015
Published by The Stockade Association
5 5 th S tockade Walkabout
of Old S chenectady
Saturday,
September 26th
historicstockade.com
11 - 5 p.m. Rain or Shine
Volume 57 No. 1
64th Annual
Stockade Art Show
Sat. Sept. 12 th 10 - 5 p.m.
Please welcome guests, move cars
and enjoy showing off our
neighborhood
Each year the Stockade welcomes
artists from all over the Northeast to
show and sell their fine art. Artists
arrive early to set up for the show
which is open to the public from 10:00
a.m. until 5:00 p.m. on Saturday (rain
date: Sunday: 12 to 5 p. m.).
$1000 in cash prizes and ribbons will
be awarded including a $300 first
place, $200 second place, $150 third
place prizes. Artists who would like to
participate, may contact 952-0946.
Want a free
ticket to the Stockade Walkabout?
Volunteer for two hours as a house
guide or ticket seller.
(continued page 5)
As Stockaders we are proud of our
neighborhood, a unique and special
place. Many people will gather on the
streets and sidewalks of the Stockade
for the day. It is a time to meet old
friends and perhaps buy some of the
fine art work or just enjoy the day.
Stockaders are encouraged to make
their property visitor friendly – pull the
weeds and sweep the walks. Share
your sidewalk with the artists and the
visitors that attend the show.
Portions of Front, Green and North
Ferry Streets will be closed to all
motorized transportation on Saturday,
(continued on page 5)
take the opportunity to tell us your
ideas. For survey link, visit
historicstockade.com. Those completing the survey will be entered in a
drawing for a gift certificate at Mad
Jack Brewery, VanDyck Restaurant.
The Drawing will occur at the
Since being elected President of the
September 17 th meeting. Don’t have
Stockade Association in May, 2015,
wifi? Your voice matters too. Call 393I’ve used the purpose found in this
4725 and leave your name and phone#
organization’s By-laws as a guide. We so we can personally record your comare a diverse urban community with
ments.
residents who helped form the Historic
Stockade over 50 years ago and new Last Minute- After multiple requests
residents who already appreciate this from the Association, the Mayor has fiunique place. Reflecting on our
nally indicated a willingness to seek
uniqueness and diversity, each resident funding for a flood mitigation study.
has an idea about how best to preserve,
Carol DeLaMarter
protect and improve this place we all
share. This President and Board are
Stockade Association
challenged to create an organization
General Membership
that fulfills that purpose, and invites all
Meeting
to participate in opportunities which
and Special thank you to Sylvie
preserve and improve our unique
Briber
neighborhood.
Who: All neighbors welcome-Wear a hat!
From The President
The specific purpose of The Stockade
Association shall be the preservation,
protection and improvement of the
neighborhood within the area designated as
the Stockade Historic District.
At the June Board meeting, old and
new faces on the Board began to
identify ways the Board is fulfilling the
“purpose” and improvements needed.
Individuals are meeting on flood
mitigation efforts, improvements in the
parks, review and amending of Bylaws, planning the 55 th Stockade
Walkabout and review of organization
finances.
After 19 years and 171 issues, Sylvie
Briber has retired as editor ofThe
Stockade Spy. We’ll have a celebration
at the Sept. meeting... so come early to
sign a card and donate for a special gift
(shh it’s a secret!). Consquently, the
Spy has a new editor, Greg Sauer. The
September issue reflects the hard work
of a team but will continue to evolve to
meet the need to get our message out.
give constructive criticism or make
announcements about “stuff” that
impacts the Stockade neighborhood.
We would like to ask new neighbors to
introduce themselves so that we can
give them a proper welcome. The
General Membership Meeting is a good
opportunity to hear all that is going on
in the Historic Stockade.
Carol DeLaMarter
September is membership drive
month. You must be a paid up
member to vote on the By-law
changes at the November meeting.
Use the form on page 8 or join @
historicstockade.com
Free Silent Movie with Live
Music
"Sunrise: A Song ofTwo Humans"
(1927) starring Janet Gaynor and
George O'Brien
@1 st Reformed Church (Poling
Chapel), Fri., Sept. 4th @ 7 p.m.
Where: First Reformed Church
When: Thursday, Sept. 17th, 2015
6:45 p.m. –come early to sign card and
donate for Silvie's gift
Neighborhood
7:00 p.m. : Celebration / Presentation
Calendar
8:00 p.m.: Business Meeting
Sat. 9/12 : Villagers Art Show
Topics in the business meeting will include; Sat. 9/12: Open Door-Rudy Ndyegger
a financial report, discussion of flood mitsigns "Suicide & Mental
igation, preliminary survey results, and
Health"
specific committee goals for 2015-16 year. Thur. 9/17: SA General Meeting
Sat 9/19 : OpenDoor-Patrice Kindle
signs "A School for Brides"
We will also discuss proposed Bylaw
changes that will be voted on at the
Sun 9/20: Stockade Soiree @
November General Membership meeting.
Stockade Inn
A copy of the proposed changes has been Sat. 9/26 : Stockade Walkabout Tour
mailed to members. If you would like a
Sun 9/27: Open Door - Adirondack
authors, James Schlett,
copy of proposed changes please contact
Keith St. John, chair of Bylaw Committee,
Anita Rowlands, and Ed
at stjohnkeith@gmail.com, or call 393Kanze.
4725 and leave your name and mailing
address. Current Bylaws are posted at
Visit us at
histiricstockade.com under Association In- historicstockade.com
formation.
or on Facebook at
Open Forum is an opportunity for any Stockade Association
A Stockade Neighborhood Survey has
been created. If you haven’t already, neighbor to say something positive,
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Summary of July 7 and August 11 Stock­
ade Association Board Meetings
The Stockade Association met on July 7, 2015. Spy editor
Greg Sauer gave an overview of plans for the newsletter.
Stephen Boese reported on a recent meeting of Stockade
residents and an official of the Canal Corporation concerning on flooding in the Stockade. Carol DeLaMarter reported
on the progress of an online neighborhood survey which
will be available later in the summer. The purpose of the
survey is to gain a better understanding of who lives in the
neighborhood and what concerns residents have.
The Board voted to continue publishing nine issues of the
SPY for the coming year. The board also voted to increase
the cost of ads to $35 per issue or $250 for all nine issues
and to increase the price for out-of-town subscriptions to
$15 a year. Committee chairs were reminded to submit a
budget for the 2015-2016 year by September 1, 2015.
The board held a special meeting on August 11 to review
proposed changes to the Association Bylaws. These will be
presented at the next general meeting on September 17,
2015.. ---(complete minutes at historicstockade. com, )
Summary of July 23 Minutes of the Schenectady Heritage
Foundation (SHF)
The SHF board discussed a range of endangered properties including several in the
Stockade. Plans to honor Beth Petta for her coordination of Schenectady's Historic
Street sign project were also discussed.
Trash Pick­up Days:
Wed. 9/2
Thur. 9/10, 9/17, 9/24, 10/1, 10/8
Fri: 10/16, 10/23, 10/30
The SHF is coordinating efforts to turn over archaeological artifacts held by Metroplex to The New York State Museum. The Foundation is set to disburse a loan and
Important
grant to Ingersoll Properties, LLC. to assist in the preservation of three flood damNumbers
aged properties on Ingersoll Avenue.
Emergency: 911
The SHF plans to bring in experts on the issue of raising historic houses in the floodplain. SHF'S goal is to expand the information available to the Historic District
Commission (HDC). The HDC must decide whether to approve the application to
raise and move 4 Washington Ave. SHF will submit comments on the SEQR (Envionmental impact review).
Suzanne Unger
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Non-emergency: 382-5253 /5264
Police Emergency: 382-5200
Code Enforcement: 382-5050
Waste Collection : 382-5144
Animal Control .... 382-5200 x5655
Your Opinion Matters!
The Spy is reinstituting the letters to
the editor feature because your opinions and ideas are important to the
Association as it tries to shape its
action agenda for the next few years.
For this first issue, some Stockaders
were asked by the Spy staff to contribute some thought provoking ideas,
gripes and observations. In the future
we hope to hear from you!
To the Editor:
As someone who spends a significant
amount of time walking around the
neighborhood, I enjoy the opportunity
that these walks give me to see what is
going on in and around the Stockade,
and the extraordinary charm and
beauty of the historic district’s
residences. Whether it’s renovation
work on an entryway to a house,
gardening around the “Lawrence the
Indian” monument, or the trimming of
hedges surrounding a parking lot, it is
clear to me that people in the
neighborhood take great pride in
maintaining an attractive
streetscape—curb appeal—for
residents and visitors alike.
so many of our historic residences, the
low-hanging tree limbs—often in
combination with heaved sidewalk
panels or dog excrement—make for a
very uneasy and frustrating walk and
navigation around these obstacles.
How nice it would be to see residents
take greater care to prune trees
alongside their property, so as to allow
for safer pedestrian travel through the
neighborhood for all of us.
Keith St. John
To the Editor:
Let’s get something out of the way. We
need to forget about the pylon. The
casino design and height, the vast array
of signs, the height and size of the
pylon were all foregone conclusions
when the Planning Commission
recommended amendments to the C-3
Waterfront Zoning District. If they had
been compelled to think they might
have concerns later, when final designs
were submitted, those thoughts were
dashed. The city got the design and
signs of the casino exactly as the
developer and the City Council wanted
(one City Commissioner even testified
To my dismay, however, is the
to the Planning Commission to that
difficulty I often face when walking fact). So much for government of, by
the sidewalks, caused by the challenge and for the people. We need to attack
of avoiding tree branches that hang too the underbelly of the real issue, which
low over and across the walkways. In is a Schenectady planning process that
addition to robbing motorists of the
is not transparent and does not value
chance to view spectacular facades of public participation.
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The real issue is that our city
government operates an archaic
community planning process that was
common in the 1960s. The planning
process in most cities throughout the
country, including New York, has
evolved to much less capricious (as in
arbitrary and capricious) and more
publically transparent planning
processes. If we want a chance at better
decision making in the future, we
should be calling for our city
government leaders to change the way
planning is conducted in Schenectady.
We should demand a planning process
that is more open to the public,
transparent in all activity, and more
professionally based, using the
professional planning staff already on
board.
Community involvement in our
planning and development process is
essential and should be overtly
encouraged, not subtly discouraged.
We should demand publicly available
profession evaluation of all
applications. Schenectady has a very
capable, professional planning staff;
we should be using them to the fullest
extent possible. If we do not demand a
professional community planning
process, we will never have
government planning that is “for the
people.”
Richard Unger
ART SHOW - Sept.12 th --7:00 a.m.
to 5:00 p.m.--, or Sunday, Sept. 13 th from noon to 5:00 p.m. if rained out the prior
day. Cars must be off the streets by 7:00 a.m. (Look for our flyers on your cars to avoid being towed). Your help
as a volunteer would be appreciated. Contact Zoe Oxley at 518 657-6560 or oxleyz@union.edu to volunteer. The email
for the show is StockadeArtShow@gmail.com. Like us @ facebook. com/stockadeartshow.
Karen Johnson
Walkabout - Guides,
call Sylvie Briber at 377-0469 . Ticket sellers, email Diane Crozier at crozierd@union.edu.
Proceeds will benefit the Stockade Association and the Schenectady County Historical Society and will go towards
preservation and education projects. We thank our sponsors and advertisers for supporting this event. A big thank you to
all our homeowners for generously opening their homes to visitors.
Sylvie Briber
Enjoy a “BIG Band” Evening at the 2015 Stockade Soiree.
For one night only, Saturday, September 20th , the Stockade Inn will be transformed into a classic Hotel Ballroom.
Dance, romance your partner, and enjoy the music of The Joey Thomas Big Band. Evening attire please, black tie and
30's and 40' attire optional. For more information call 518.334.3687. Proceeds will benefit the Schenectady Civic Players
elevator project and Riverside Park .
Mary D'Alessandro - Gilmore
Notable Notes
The Spy has a number of new advertisers this year. They include Niskayuna Liquor, Head To Tail, Garofalo Meat Market, Heritage Home for Women, Yoga
Bliss, River Road Animal Hospital and Paul's Barber Shop. Please patronize
them and all our advertisers who make the Spy possible. When you visit them,
mention the Spy so that they know their advertising dollars are well spent. A special thanks to those businesses which have supported us year after year. Association financial constraints will limit the Spy to eight pages, black and white for
the immediate future.
NO SPY!
Pick up at Indian, Slicks, Van Dyck or Stockade Inn or visit historicstockade.com
for current and past issues.
The Editor
Guests
are coming
PLEASE
PICK YOUR
WEEDS
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The Stockade Spy
Editor:
Greg Sauer...... 393-8081
Copy Editor: Barbara Sauer
Treasurer: Bob Lemmerman
email: stockadespy@gmail.com
Stockade Association
Board of Directors
President: Carol DeLaMarter
Vice President: Steve Boese
Treasurer: Bob Lemmerman
Recording Secy: Suzy Unger
Corresponding Secy: Bob Stern
Directors:
Diane DeMeo Colleen Macaulay
Keith St. John Beverly Elander
Evan Eurpidou Sean Philpott-Jones
(Visit historicstockade. com for directors'
contact information)
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tions have been made by Larry K. Moss, Architect, Hazard Mitigation Specialist and Historic
Preservation Specialist at the New York State
Historic Preservation Office and by William
Nechamen, Chief, Floodplain Management,
New York State DEC, of the NY Rising Program, the National Flood Insurance Program and
Floodplain Management of historic structures.
Greg Sauer
Historic District Commission Activities
Since the last SPY was published Schenectady's Historic Commission has met 3 times on June 8, July 13, and
August 12. Stockade related items that were reviewed
and their disposition follow:
1. Request to replace a stoop at 137 Front Street –
approved
2. Request to change roofing shingles at 24 Front
Street – approved
3. Request to change foundation paint color at 25
Front Street – approved
4. Request to elevate and relocate the house at 4
Washington Ave – pending
This item was discussed at all three meetings, with
presentations by Frank Gilmore, architect. In
addition, in order to educate the Commissioners
and assist them in their deliberations, presenta-
Neighborhood Tidings
We would like to restart a column that is dedicated to
sharing news about Stockaders. births, graduations, anniversaries, visitors, and residents caught in the act of doing good.
We would like to have four (4) Tidings reporters identify
themselves and even better individual residents can
submit their Tidings item to stockade. spy@gmail.com.
(The Spy reserves the right to decide what is published. )
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Managing the Canal to Protect the Stockade
This summer brought the myriad
concerns about flooding in the
Stockade back to the forefront of attention. After the experiences of the
devastating flooding from Hurricane
Irene four years ago, some neighbors
developed their own plans for
reducing the risk of future flood
damage. They are proposing to
elevate their houses, by as much as
six feet in an effort to avoid future
flood waters. The City Historic
District Commission is considering
one such proposal and deliberating
whether to approve these dramatic
and unprecedented renovations.
It is assumed, in these discussions
that flooding in the Stockade is an
inescapable act of nature and that the
Stockade will flood again. But what
if devastating flooding was not
inevitable? What if we have the
means to provide a level of control
over rising waters? I believe that we
do, and that proper management of
the waterway can mitigate the impact
of future flooding.
The first change is to recognize that
the Mohawk functions as a canal. It
is a controlled waterway with locks
and dams whose sole purpose is to
keep the water level unnaturally high.
What if this same infrastructure which
is now used to keep the water level
high, was used to significantly lower
the level at times of impending major
storms and during spring ice jam
season? If during Hurricane Irene, the
water level had been reduced by three
to four feet, we would have avoided
the devastation and most serious
flooding, and would instead have
experienced a “nuisance flood” with
water only in basements, back yards
and streets.
This management of the canal water
level is now, in fact, actually
happening. We have seen first-hand
that the Canal Corporation
substantially lowered the water
during several major storms over the
past few years and no flooding.has
occurred
Since 2011, the Canal Corp has
committed to investing $40 million in
the lock infrastructure to better
facilitate such management, and most
of this work is already complete.
Dramatic improvements are also
being made to the Gilboa Dam which
contributes much to Mohawk flooding. NYC committed to a $400
million investment to strengthen the
dam, and for the first time NYC has
committed to lowering the level of
the reservoir during the seasons of
high water so as to mitigate the risk
of flooding.
The Canal Corporation deserves our
thanks for the steps taken, but now
we need assurance that canal
management to reduce the risk of
flooding will be a major priority
moving forward. We may not be able
to totally reduce the risk, but recall
that during Irene, the worst flood in a
hundred years or more, we would
have avoided the worst of the impact
if the water were just three to four
feet lower. We as a neighborhood
need to advocate for deliberate and
concrete assurances that the Canal
Corp will continue to prioritize our
homes over pleasure boat traffic, and
proactively and aggressively manage
the canal to prevent future floods.
Steve Boese
The original Heritage Home for
Women (The Home for the Friendless) is open on the Walkabout. On
Sept. 30, the new (built - 1905)
Home will have a re-opening celebration after major renovations. Visit
them!
Stockade Association Membership Form
(2015 ­ 2016)
( Membership available to residents & owners)
Dues: $15 per person, $25 per Household
Names: ____________________________________
Address: ____________________________________
Phone(s) : ____________________________________
Email: ____________________________________
(Residents, SPY hand delivered. . Non-Residents Spy mailed )
SPY Suscribers (Friend of the Stockade)
(receive a mailed copy ofthe Spy - price $15. )
Names: ______________________________
Address: ______________________________
Phone : ______________ Email:_____________________
DONATION? _______________,
Total $ enclosed:________
Please make all checks payable to:
The Stockade Association
Suite 100, 32 Washington Ave. Join or subscribe on Line
Schenectady NY 12305
@ historicstockade.com
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