MARIAVILLE Police to investigate death at concert site BY JUSTIN MASON Gazette Reporter
State Police investigators are looking into the death of a Connecticut man this weekend during the last day of a three-day concert at the Indian Lookout Country Club. Alexander Walker, 27, of Woodstock, was found unresponsive at his campsite late Sunday morning. He was taken to Ellis Hospital in Schenectady where an autopsy was performed Monday. State Police spokeswoman Maureen Tuffey said investigators are still uncertain of what caused Walker’s death and would await the results of a toxicology exam. She said there was no sign of force at the campsite and other campers reported seeing him apparently impaired around 2 a.m. on the morning of his death. “He appears to have had some level of impairment,” she said. “What it was is unknown at this time.” Walker was attending the Camp Creek 2007 festival at the country club. The three-day concert featuring the jam band Max Creek and other musical acts has been hosted at the campgrounds off Batter Street for the past 14 years.
The death is the second in four years to mar the Mariaville festival. Keith D’Angelo Jr., 20, of New Hartford, Conn., died three days after attending Camp Creek in July 2003. Some time during the second day of the festival, D’Angelo was suddenly in need of medical attention for what was initially suspected as a drug overdose. He died three days later in Ellis Hospital. Friends indicated D’Angelo ingested antifreeze-laced liquor or another toxic substance that was passed to him by a stranger. Blood tests posthumously performed on him revealed traces of ethylene glycol, a substance most commonly found in antifreeze. Club owner Frank Potter said Walker’s death was a tragic event during an event that drew more than 1,800 people and was otherwise safe. He said the deceased man was an avid follower of the band and known by at least one of the band members. “My heart certainly goes out to the next of kin,” he said.
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BIGK75
August 1, 2007, 12:22pm
Guest User
Too bad the Times Union doesn't think Mariaville's in Schenectady County, huh?
Is this the same place that they hold the 3 day Harley fest every year? Cause I know that Frank Potter hosts it on his property.
When the INSANE are running the ASYLUM In individuals, insanity is rare; but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule. -- Friedrich Nietzsche
“How fortunate for those in power that people never think.” Adolph Hitler
DUANESBURG DEC rejects plan for boat launch Mariaville Lake applicant vows to continue fight BY JUSTIN MASON Gazette Reporter
State Department of Environmental Conservation officials have denied Joseph Serth’s request to build a concrete boat ramp and pier off Batter Street on Mariaville Lake. The DEC found that Serth’s project would damage the freshwater wetlands habitat. He proposed to build a launch 36 feet long and about 12 feet wide. The DEC also indicated Serth’s project wasn’t “reasonable and necessary” because he could use alternative boat launches. “Department staff have determined that there are alternative existing boat launch sites available to you on the lake, for the expressed need to launch, and that there are also alternatives to the proposed reconstruction of the concrete,” stated Nancy Adams, a DEC deputy regional permit administrator, in a notice of permit denial dated July 25. Contacted Tuesday about the DEC’s rejection of the project, Serth said he would continue to seek approval for the ramp and pier. “We just have to keep working on it,” he said. “This is just the first step.” In June, Serth applied to the DEC to build the launch, which he projected to extend about 14 feet into the lake. The launch was proposed for a 16-foot section of the shoreline across the street from a small ranch house he owns. In her letter to Serth, Adams says there are “practical alternatives” to building the ramp and enlarging the pier. She suggested Serth instead use a boat launch maintained by the Mariaville Civic Association, an organization that acts as the lake’s steward. The Civic Association charges an $85 fee for unlimited use of the launch, according to the DEC. “You also have deeded access to a boat launch on property that was previously in your ownership, for which the Department issued you a permit,” Adams stated in the letter. There has been a history of tension between Serth and the association, which says the launch is improper for the character of the 200-acre lake. Serth said the permit denial appears to be political. He said other landowners along the lake have put in launches in violation of the DEC regulations. “Each time they said no big deal,” he said. DEC spokesman Rick Georgeson said anyone looking to install a boat launch would be required to fi le for a building permit with the DEC. He said Serth raised these concerns with DEC officials and agreed to provide a list of property owners in violation of this regulation. “As of this date, we have not received that list from him,” he said. “We’ll look into it when he gets that list to us.” Sue Weakley, the vice president of the association, said her organization has no vendetta against Serth and only opposed his proposal because it was too big. “This is just an oversized pond; it’s a very beautiful small lake,” she said Wednesday. “I’m glad DEC saw what he wanted to do and agreed with us.”
A boat launch for a lake that is about the size of my bath tub when compared to other lakes. And the DEC is concerned about wetlands. It's a lake for God's sake and isn't there a road around the lake. It just sounds too fishy (no pun intended) to me.
When the INSANE are running the ASYLUM In individuals, insanity is rare; but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule. -- Friedrich Nietzsche
“How fortunate for those in power that people never think.” Adolph Hitler
MARIAVILLE — The Mariaville Civic Association will conduct its 23rd annual Adopt-a-Highway Program fall cleanup of Route 159 and the lake causeway on Saturday. Volunteers should bring gloves and meet at 9:30 a.m. at the Mariaville Civic Association boat launch. Other equipment will be supplied.
MARIAVILLE — A furnace is being blamed for a fire that struck a seasonal camp on Shore Road on Saturday. At about 8:25 p.m., firefighters received a report of a fire at 337 Shore Road. Fire Chief Ken LaBelle said he believes the owners of the camp are from Connecticut and were not home at the time. “They were there earlier to turn up the heat and went to dinner, and when they came back, we were already there,” he said. Mariaville, Plotterkill, Duanesburg and Schenectady firefighters were on the scene. “We knocked the fire down in five minutes,” LaBelle said. LaBelle said the fire was contained to the kitchen and the singlestory camp is salvageable. The fi re is still under investigation, but is believed to be accidental.
Nice job Fire Chief LaBelle to you and your department and the others who assisted in containing the extent of damage. Our volunteer fire fighters deserve our respect and gratitude for the difficult and dangerous job that they do on behalf of all residents.
DUANESBURG DEC reverses, issues Mariaville Lake permit BY JUSTIN MASON Gazette Reporter Reach Gazette reporter Justin Mason at 395-3113 or jmason@dailygazette.net.
State Department of Environmental Conservation officials issued a building permit to a Mariaville Lake homeowner, reversing a decision last summer that prevented him from constructing a concrete boat ramp and pier off Batter Street. The DEC initially determined Joe Serth’s project to build a launch 36 feet long and about 12 feet wide would damage the freshwater wetlands habitat and wasn’t “reasonable and necessary” because he could use alternative boat launches. But agency officials reversed themselves after Serth showed similar structures on the lake, DEC spokesman Rick Georgeson said Wednesday. “Based upon further review, we determined the residential boat launch was consistent with other development around the lake,” he said. Georgeson said the permit approval was Serth’s final step with the DEC. He said residents from around the lake would need to file a lawsuit to challenge the ruling. In June, Serth applied to the DEC to build the launch, which he projected to extend about 14 feet into the lake off a 16-foot section of the shoreline across the street from a small ranch house he owns. The project was bitterly contested by other lake residents, including some members of the Mariaville Civic Association, an organization that acts as the lake’s steward. These concerns largely stem from stated beliefs that Serth planned to leave the launch open for public use. Opponents of Serth’s project maintain the lake, less than 200 acres, is too fragile to sustain the activity a public boat launch would draw, Serth has vehemently denied the ramp would be open for public use and claims other landowners have put in launches in violation of the DEC regulations. He said the civic association’s launch — a site that is available only to permit holders — is one of the structures illegally built. Serth credited DEC officials for working through the permit process with him. He said the reversal of the DEC decision was based on him proving ownership of the land beneath the lake through his deed. “I have the only property on Mariaville Lake that goes out into the bed of the lake,” he said. Serth was unsure when his project would begin because he still faces approval from Schenectady County, which owns the stretch of road abutting his project. He also predicted some residents might fi le a lawsuit to prevent the project. OPPOSITE VIEW Longtime lake resident Bob Cuttita was perplexed by the DEC’s reversal. He said there are no other launches around the lake consistent with the size Serth has discussed building. “The DEC kind of perplexes me with this ruling, especially when they were pretty strong in the way they denied it originally,” he said. Cuttita, who is also a member of the civic association, said he has requested documents from the DEC showing their decision process in granting Serth a permit. But he said any court battle against the state’s decision is bound to be a costly endeavor. “The state has endless pockets and the residents up here don’t,” he said.
COUNTRY FAIR SET MARIAVILLE — Christ Church of the Hills, 4809 Mariaville Road, will hold its 31st annual country fair and auction on Aug. 23 at 10 a.m. at the church. There will be special music, games and rides. The auction will be at noon; chicken barbecue from 1:30-4 p.m.(eat in-or take out). There will be a farmer’s market, snack bar, second-hand tag sale and Operation Safe Child. For more information call 346-1900 or visit:www. christschurchofthehills.org.
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