While doing some research through my personal news files I came across an interesting article from the gazette by Matt Volke dated June 1, 2005 titled Rotterdam Junction Water Tank Targeted for Replacement.
According to the article, a study was conducted in 2003 that recommended tank replacement within a few years. Mr. Tommasone, then a council member said in 2005 "It's not something you can wait on." He wanted quick turnaround by the summer (2006). Then- Supervisor Paolino advocated more study.
So to repeat Shadow's question, How long is too long?
It's drinking water......JUST DO IT.......obviously there will be more developing in the future so do it and do it right..........bigger and more.....we are Americans and we demand it........
...you are a product of your environment, your environment is a product of your priorities, your priorities are a product of you......
The replacement of morality and conscience with law produces a deadly paradox.
STOP BEING GOOD DEMOCRATS---STOP BEING GOOD REPUBLICANS--START BEING GOOD AMERICANS
ROTTERDAM Workshop to gather land-use ideas Study to focus on Exit 26 area; Bike crossing safety one issue to be discussed BY JUSTIN MASON Gazette Reporter
Howard Halstead would like to see some changes at the Mohawk-Hudson Bike-Hike Trail’s intersection with Route 5S. Often, he said, vehicles are blind to the bike and foot traffic crossing the busy road to access the northwest arm of the trail. Add in the slight bend to the road near a marked crosswalk and the result can be fatal. “If I stand in the crosswalk going east to west, cars going east to west won’t see me until it’s way too late,” he explained. “And they’re not going to stop.” For Halstead, a member of the Friends of the Mohawk-Hudson Bike-Hike Trail, this problem became a reality last year when friend and fellow cyclist Alan Fairbanks of Burnt Hills was struck and killed while riding into the crosswalk. Halstead and several other members of the group plan to attend a workshop at the Rotterdam Junction firehouse on Wednesday to offer ideas for a land-use and traffi c study the town is conducting near Thruway Exit 26. The meeting starts at 7 p.m. Town and state officials are hoping to use the workshop to build development guidelines and generate improvement ideas for an area running between the Interstate 890 interchange and the SI Group plant off Route 5S. Town Planner Peter Comenzo said the trail crossing will be among topics up for discussion. “It’s to address land use and also the transportation issues,” he said. The study is funded by a $25,000 grant through the Capital District Transportation Committee and is similar to one conducted earlier this year near Thruway Exit 25. Comenzo said it’s important the town develop a strategy for traffic and land use in these locations because they represent areas of the town feeling the most significant development pressures. “The big thing, obviously, with the interchange areas in Rotterdam is that those areas are being eyed by developers, and we want to make sure we’ve got the appropriate tools in place,” he said. There are about three miles of road between Lower Rotterdam Junction and the Exit 26 interchange. This stretch borders the former Bonded Concrete property, where the town is planning a passive park, and includes Kiwanis Park and a public boat launch, which is slated for more than $40,000 worth of improvements. Comenzo said the land included in the study is now zoned for residential, industrial and commercial uses. He said a waterline was extended to these areas in 2004 and the undeveloped land could soon face significant building pressures. Comenzo said the workshop will enable project planners to get a sense of the issues facing this area. He expects a second forum this winter to discuss the study’s results before incorporating them into an update of the town’s comprehensive plan by the spring. “We’re just gathering data at this point,” he said.
Though I am pleased with the gathering and development of information, I'm disheartened we still have not adopted an updated Plan, This is the third CDTC study (25A and 25 completed already) since 2004. But unless all of this info is incorporated into the Comp Plan, it has less significance. My latest blog entry this morning suggests an approach to address our predicament.
This was in the legal notices of the Times Union yesterday. I'm posting it here as it does actually have an effect on the Rotterdam Junction / Exit 26 area, and I will bold that section.
Quoted Text
New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Notice of Complete Application
Date: 11/27/2007
Applicant: NYS DEPT OF TRANSPORTATION 50 WOLF RD ALBANYM NY 12232 Facility: STATE RTE 7 & 2 BRIDGE OVER I-87 STATE RTE 7 AND I-87 (EXITS 5&6) LATHAM, NY
Application ID: 4-0126-00657/00001
Permits(s) Applied for:
1- Article 24 Freshwater Wetlands 2- 1 – Section 401 – Clean Water Act Water Quality Certification
Project is located: in COLONIE in ALBANY COUNTY
Project Description: The Department of Transportation proposes to replace the bridge which carries State Routes 7 and 2 over interstate I-87. Additional work will involve modifying and extending acceleration/deceleration lanes between Exits 5 and 6, and reconstruction of Route 7 between Erin Drive and Wade Road. The project will involve permanent impacts to 3.4 acres of wetlands and temporary impacts to 1.1 acres of wetlands. As compensatory mitigation for the wetland impacts associated with this project the DOT proposes to create 3.5 acres of mixed forested and shrub wetland in a field on the south side of the Mohawk River, just west of the ramp connecting NYS Thruway Exit 26 and State Route 5-S in the Town of Rotterdam. The mitigation work will be authorized under a separate permit application (DEC number 4-4228-00263/000001).
Availability of Application Documents: Filed application documents, and Department draft permits, where applicable, are available for inspection during normal business hours at the address of the contact person. To ensure timely service at the time of inspection, it is recommended that an appointment be made with the contact person.
State Environmental Quality Review (SEQR) Determination: Project is an Unlisted Action and will not have a significant impact on the environment. A Negative Declaration is on file. A coordinated review was not performed.
SEQR Lead Agency: None Designated State Historic Preservation Act (SHPA) Determination: A cultural resources survey has been completed. The report of the survey is on file. No archaeological sites or historic structures were identified at the project location. No further review in accordance with SHPA is required.
Availability For Public Comment Person
Comments on this project must be submitted in writing to the NYSDEC Contact Person no later than 12/21/2007 or 16 days after the publication date of this notice, whichever is later.
NYSDEC Contact person:
ANGELO A. MARCUCCIO 1130 N. WESTCOTT RD SCHENECTADY, NY 12306. (51 357-2069
TU – 1 t (59893)
Since this was published on 12/4/07, the 16 days would be the 20th, so comments will be able to be made through 12/21/07, the later of 12/20 or 12/21, but that is the Friday before everybody runs out of town for the Christmas long weekend, so I suggest that you make comments before then.
I just wonder what type of effect this entire thing is going to have on the town's studying for changes around the exit 26 area. Maybe the board doesn't even know this question is on the test?
This was in the legal notices of the Times Union yesterday. I'm posting it here as it does actually have an effect on the Rotterdam Junction / Exit 26 area, and I will bold that section.
Quoted Text
New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Notice of Complete Application
Date: 11/27/2007
Applicant: NYS DEPT OF TRANSPORTATION 50 WOLF RD ALBANYM NY 12232 Facility: STATE RTE 7 & 2 BRIDGE OVER I-87 STATE RTE 7 AND I-87 (EXITS 5&6) LATHAM, NY
Application ID: 4-0126-00657/00001
Permits(s) Applied for:
1- Article 24 Freshwater Wetlands 2- 1 – Section 401 – Clean Water Act Water Quality Certification
Project is located: in COLONIE in ALBANY COUNTY
Project Description: The Department of Transportation proposes to replace the bridge which carries State Routes 7 and 2 over interstate I-87. Additional work will involve modifying and extending acceleration/deceleration lanes between Exits 5 and 6, and reconstruction of Route 7 between Erin Drive and Wade Road. The project will involve permanent impacts to 3.4 acres of wetlands and temporary impacts to 1.1 acres of wetlands. As compensatory mitigation for the wetland impacts associated with this project the DOT proposes to create 3.5 acres of mixed forested and shrub wetland in a field on the south side of the Mohawk River, just west of the ramp connecting NYS Thruway Exit 26 and State Route 5-S in the Town of Rotterdam. The mitigation work will be authorized under a separate permit application (DEC number 4-4228-00263/000001).
Availability of Application Documents: Filed application documents, and Department draft permits, where applicable, are available for inspection during normal business hours at the address of the contact person. To ensure timely service at the time of inspection, it is recommended that an appointment be made with the contact person.
State Environmental Quality Review (SEQR) Determination: Project is an Unlisted Action and will not have a significant impact on the environment. A Negative Declaration is on file. A coordinated review was not performed.
SEQR Lead Agency: None Designated State Historic Preservation Act (SHPA) Determination: A cultural resources survey has been completed. The report of the survey is on file. No archaeological sites or historic structures were identified at the project location. No further review in accordance with SHPA is required.
Availability For Public Comment Person
Comments on this project must be submitted in writing to the NYSDEC Contact Person no later than 12/21/2007 or 16 days after the publication date of this notice, whichever is later.
NYSDEC Contact person:
ANGELO A. MARCUCCIO 1130 N. WESTCOTT RD SCHENECTADY, NY 12306. ( 518 ) 357-2069
TU – 1 t (59893)
Since this was published on 12/4/07, the 16 days would be the 20th, so comments will be able to be made through 12/21/07, the later of 12/20 or 12/21, but that is the Friday before everybody runs out of town for the Christmas long weekend, so I suggest that you make comments before then.
I just wonder what type of effect this entire thing is going to have on the town's studying for changes around the exit 26 area. Maybe the board doesn't even know this question is on the test?
I e-mailed the town board regarding my last post and a few other things going on that end of town...
Quoted Text
Mr. Tommasone,
I understand that you have a meeting regarding the Exit 26 area study as well as the bike safety study with the path which crosses Route 5S in the Rotterdam Junction area tonight.
Since I am not going to be able to attend tonight, I was wondering if you would be able to give feedback on this. Also, I was wondering if there was any further information also on the water tank issue for that part of town.
Also, I don't know that you were aware, but I was wondering what impact the recent application with the NYSDEC may have on any outcome of the study.
Hey BIGK75, nice catch on that DOT wetland aspect.
I just returned from the meeting and their maps had it incorporated so I guess they were aware. That's a plus.
Very interesting comments made by those in attendance. I'll let the inevitable Gazette article tell the tale, however. I'm pretty sure I gained a political advantage tonight that I'd not like to relinquish immediately. That occurred unexpectedly - you've actually got to hear the residents first-hand to understand their concerns...or you could just rely on a second-hand newspaper article, I don't know.
I'll shed more light on any discussion the article might prompt but for now...
Gallon of gas to drive to Rotterdam Junction...$3.21 One CDTC Study...$25,000 Only one Town Board member and two Planning Commission members in attendance...priceless.
Wouldn't this just be money obtained from the State....as it does affect transportation,,,there is money to be made and squandered/laundered/gambled in transportation....
...you are a product of your environment, your environment is a product of your priorities, your priorities are a product of you......
The replacement of morality and conscience with law produces a deadly paradox.
STOP BEING GOOD DEMOCRATS---STOP BEING GOOD REPUBLICANS--START BEING GOOD AMERICANS
ROTTERDAM Residents share concerns at Thruway Exit 26 workshop BY JUSTIN MASON Gazette Reporter
Traffic speeds on Route 5S, the future water needs of Rotterdam Junction and a dangerous crossing on the Mohawk-Hudson Bike-Hike Trail topped the list of concerns during the town’s first workshop for the Thruway Exit 26 land-use and transportation study, Town and state officials are hoping to use comments from the workshop to form development guidelines and generate improvement ideas for an area from the Interstate 890 interchange to the SI Group plant off Route 5S. Town Planner Peter Comenzo said comments from the meeting will be incorporated into the study, which will then be used to update the town’s comprehensive plan. Comenzo said a water main extended to the study area in 2004 created the potential for development. But because the comprehensive plan hasn’t been updated since 2001, some of the potential projects may not be consistent with the zoning laws. “What we do here is really going to shape the future,” he told a crowd of about three dozen people gathered at the Rotterdam Junction firehouse Wednesday evening. Project engineers estimate that roughly 355 acres in the study area could be developed. This land could accommodate up to 165 homes or 1.75 million square feet of industrial space, said Jim Donovan, a senior landscape architect working on the project. “As you can see, there is some potential for growth in this area.” The study also determined Route 5S has the capacity to handle nearly twice the traffic now traveling it daily. However, Donovan said a “full build-out” of the developable land would result in difficult conditions on the road. “At some point, you’re going to need to think about how to handle all the extra traffic,” he said. Recent traffic studies determined more than half the vehicles passing through the area are traveling faster than 40 mph. More than a quarter of the traffic was traveling faster than 55 mph. Some residents said the fast rate of traffic around a curve on Route 5S, coupled with poor sign visibility near its intersection with the bikehike trail, endangers pedestrians and cyclists. Fred Thompson, a member of the Friends of the Mohawk-Hudson Bike-Hike Trail, suggested moving signs farther away from the crossing and incorporating motion sensor lighting. “There is not enough awareness of what is going on at that crossing,” said Thompson, whose longtime friend, Alan Fairbanks, was struck in the intersection last year and later died. “I know it’s an expensive fix, but a life is a life.” Others suggested the planners should tie in the area’s potential for development with the capacity of the new water tank proposed for Rotterdam Junction. Town offi cials are working with the 577 water users in the area to replace the badly deteriorating tank off Leggerio Lane. “Why should we pay for an alternative we don’t need,” asked resident Gene Szymanski. “We need to figure out what the area needs.” The study is funded by a $25,000 grant through the Capital District Transportation Committee and is similar to one conducted earlier this year near Thruway Exit 25. Comenzo said a second forum will be conducted this winter to discuss the study’s results.
I didn't see any taping. This was officially a work session, not a meeting so probably not required. Mr. Comenzo did state an intention to get the powerpoint presentation uploaded to the town website, however.
Logged
357-2069
