News-in-brief (4/2/20)
News and community notes from around the area.
General News
Clearwater lays off half of staff; could face closure
Among the many entities hard-hit financially by the COVID-19 pandemic are small regional not-for-profit organizations, which tend to operate on lean budgets even in the best of times. For some, the blow from the economy’s screeching to a halt may prove to be one from which the group simply cannot recover. Teetering on the brink of such disaster right now is the Hudson River Sloop Clearwater, the organization founded by Pete Seeger in the late 1960s to raise public awareness about the ecosystems of the Hudson estuary and the pollution threatening them, by means of building a replica of a historic sailing vessel.
Ulster won’t issue permits for campgrounds, resorts or children’s camps during pandemic
In addition to the announcement on permits, County Executive Pat Ryan, together with HealthAlliance director Kevin Doyle, discussed local testing, hospitalizations and hospital prep.
SUNY New Paltz 3D printing lab is making face shields for COVID-19 frontline workers
In less than a week of frantic activity, 340 face masks have already been manufactured and delivered, mainly to Ulster County’s drive-through COVID-19 testing center at Tech City site in the town of Ulster.
Woodland Pond employee tests positive for COVID-19
An employee at Woodland Pond who worked in the retirement community’s Assisted Living unit has tested positive for COVID-19, according to an announcement last night from CEO and president Michelle T. Gramoglia.
Ulster County confirms first COVID-19 death
Ulster County Executive Pat Ryan yesterday confirmed the first death of an Ulster County resident related to COVID-19. The individual was a 76-year-old male from the town of Plattekill who passed away at Vassar Brothers hospital in Poughkeepsie.
Ulster County to triple hospital bed capacity in preparation for COVID-19 surge
Ulster County will increase its hospital beds from about 100 to 335 by adding 235 beds at the Mary’s Avenue campus of HealthAlliance in Kingston.
Town of New Paltz to conduct community survey on open space and historic preservation
The Town of New Paltz is conducting a community survey to determine what New Paltz residents consider as open space and historic preservation priorities for the community in the future. The survey is designed to explore protection of the community’s open spaces, recreational assets, habitats, farmland and historic features. It is the first step in updating the Town’s Open Space Plan, written in 2006, and integrating it with its inventory of historic landmarks and features.
Woodstock trustees agree to smaller library building
Woodstock Library trustees approved the schematic design and the first payment for the next phase of planning for a new building and approved staff pay while the library remains closed, at their March 19 meeting, the first one held via videoconference, which may become commonplace in the new normal foisted upon us by COVID-19.
Financial advice in the time of COVID-19
How are financial advisors, those paid to help us laypeople plan for and ride out the ups and downs of economic life to match our goals for comfortable lives, speaking about the roiling stock market, business and personal income challenges of recent weeks?
