Democratic committee chairs appointed by Donaldson include Lynn Archer of Ways and Means; Bartels of Laws and Rules; Jim Delaune of Legislative Programs, Education and Community Services; Manna Jo Greene of Energy and Environment; new legislator Eve Walter of Law Enforcement and Public Safety; and returning legislator Brian Cahill of Economic Development, Tourism, Housing, Planning and Transit.
District Attorney Dave Clegg was formally sworn into office last week in a packed ceremony at the Ulster County Courthouse. The 66 year-old former trial attorney is the first Democrat to hold the DA’s office since 1850. The swearing in comes after a weeks-long process to verify the results of November’s election where Clegg prevailed over Republican former Chief Assistant District Attorney Mike Kavanagh by just 78 votes.
Woodstock’s Town Bord will soon ask voters to approve borrowing $2 million to bring all Comeau Drive offices to the first floor for accessibility as well as renovating the building and the supervisor’s cottage, too. All-in, with furniture, incidentals and professional fees, the project is expected to cost $2.3 million.
Just two weeks after it went into effect, state lawmakers are weighing changes to New York’s historic bail reform law, which effectively ended bail in most cases. The main change cited was the need to give judges discretion to require bail when the defendant was deemed to be dangerous.
Ulster County Executive Pat Ryan has weighed in on the 2020 Democratic primary throwing his support behind fellow veteran and thirtysomething Pete Buttigieg.
New, accessible town offices are on the immediate horizon as Supervisor Bill McKenna looks ahead at 2020.
“Law enforcement is on the front line of the opioid epidemic,” said Clegg. “So we are going to be part of the solution.”
Tracey Bartels said last week that she intends to run a second term as chair of the Ulster County Legislature. The Gardiner resident was the second woman and the first unaffiliated legislator to chair the body when she won the position last January.
His time in office has run concurrent with a transformation in his hometown — alterations in demographics, climate, and economics. These factors come into play as he assesses ongoing issues concerning the Phoenicia water system, short-term-rentals, and infrastructure, all increasingly affected by escalating Upstate New York tourism, which he sees as a positive. “We’re attracting new people to the Catskills,” he says proudly.
A local law that would impose mandatory composting and food diversion requirements on businesses that produce large amounts of food waste was approved unanimously by the Ulster County legislature at their Dec. 18 meeting.
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