The Daily Gazette Family of Newspapers • 8th October 2024

Greene County postal worker killed in crash

ASHLAND — A U.S. Postal Service employee from East Durham was killed in a two-vehicle accident Saturday afternoon on Route 10.Gina H. Hernandez, 62, of East Durham, was traveling east on county Route 10 in a U.S. Postal Service vehicle at about 1:30 p.m. Saturday when her vehicle collided near the center of the road, near Sutton Hollow Road in Ashland, with a 2008 Lexus RX 350 driven by an unnamed 17-year-old male heading westbound on Route 10, according to the Greene County Sheriff's Office."Gi...

The Daily Gazette Family of Newspapers • 8th October 2024

Cross-NY attempted murder suspect, arrested in Greenport, appears in court

HUDSON — An Erie County man accused of traveling through Columbia County on his way to kill his estranged wife’s romantic partner in Westchester County appeared in court Monday for a brief hearing.Andrew J. Case, of West Seneca in Erie County, pleaded not guilty in Columbia County Court on Oct. 1 to second-degree attempted murder, a class B felony, first-degree attempted assault, and first-degree criminal use of a firearm, both class C felonies. Case also pleaded not guilty to driving while into...

The Daily Gazette Family of Newspapers • 6th October 2024

Trial date set for Brookwood psychologist accused of sex assault

HUDSON — The trial date for the state psychologist accused of sexually assaulting residents at the Brookwood Secure Center for Youth in Claverack was scheduled in Columbia County Court on Wednesday.Maya Hayes, 46, of Albany, was arrested April 12 and charged with 62 counts of third-degree criminal sexual act, and three counts of third-degree rape.Hayes was indicted April 9 and turned herself into the Livingston State Police barracks the same month after a warrant was issued for her arrest on Apr...

The Daily Gazette Family of Newspapers • 6th October 2024

Columbia Memorial Health opens new Women's Health Center

The Women's Health Center, located in the Medical Office Building in Hudson, expands the hospital's women's health services portfolio, Bill Van Slyke, a spokesperson for Columbia Memorial Health, said in a statement Tuesday.The Women's Health Center, which opened Sept. 26, is a vital addition to the community, Dorothy Urschel, president and CEO of Columbia-Memorial Health said in a written statement.“It will provide comprehensive, specialized care for women, ensuring they have the support and re...

The Daily Gazette Family of Newspapers • 6th October 2024

Chatham school bus driver saved from bee stings, how her colleagues came to her rescue

CHATHAM — A Chatham Central School District bus driver is crediting her colleagues with saving her life recently when she suffered a severe allergic reaction after she was stung twice in the mouth by bees.While preparing to start her afternoon run Sept. 16, Darci Hover, a bus driver in the school district, took a sip of a drink she had on the bus that bees had gotten into, according to a press release from the district.Hover was stung inside her mouth twice and began to suffer a serious allergic...

The Daily Gazette Family of Newspapers • 6th October 2024

Columbia County conservation district gets $2.8M for greenhouse gas reduction

GHENT — The county’s Soil and Water Conservation District received $2.8 million from the state to work with a local dairy farm to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions.The funding, announced Sept. 27 by Gov. Kathy Hochul, is part of $33 million in funding awarded to 70 county soil and water conservation districts across the state.This was the first time the county’s district was awarded funding through the state’s Climate Resilient Farming Grant Program, Dylan Cipkowski, executive director of the...

The Daily Gazette Family of Newspapers • 6th October 2024

Blaze destroys Greenport apartment

GREENPORT — A fire late Thursday night gutted a Ten Broeck Avenue apartment at Hudson Village Apartments in Greenport, the town’s fire chief said Friday.Firefighters responded to the apartment at 71 Ten Broeck Ave. just before 9 p.m. Thursday. When units arrived at the apartment, they found a cooking fire that started on the stove that had quadrupled in size and spread through the three-bedroom apartment, Greenport Fire Chief Mark Taylor said.The apartment was completely gutted by the fire, he a...

The Daily Gazette Family of Newspapers • 6th October 2024

Petition calls for resignation of HCSD superintendent

HUDSON — Over 100 people have signed a petition calling for the resignation of the Hudson City School District Superintendent of Schools Juliette Pennyman, Ph.D.“We are a community deeply hurt and frustrated by the actions of Dr. Juliette Pennyman, the current superintendent of the Hudson City School District,” according to the petition. “A culture of degradation and disrespect has been revealed, with teachers, staff, and students at its receiving end. Employees are shamed, dismissed when they a...

The Daily Gazette Family of Newspapers • 6th October 2024

Hudson Jazz Fest kicks off Friday

HUDSON — The Hudson Jazz Festival will return to the city Friday for its sixth year.The three-day event will take place at several venues throughout the city, starting with an opening party at Return Brewing, 725 State St., Friday night.“This year is unique in a few different ways,” Caroline Lee, director of marketing and external communications at Hudson Hall, said Tuesday. “Mainly, that it shifted from February to October. What that meant is we were able to expand the event beyond Hudson Hall...

The Daily Gazette Family of Newspapers • 1st October 2024

Protest on the Hudson against pipeline this Saturday

ATHENS — A group of activists will take to the Hudson River on Saturday to protest the proposed expansion of the Iroquois natural gas pipeline.The protest, held by the environmental action group Food and Water Watch, will include over 20 people kayaking across the river from the Athens Riverfront Park to the Hudson-Athens Lighthouse, Emily Skydel, senior organizer of the Hudson Valley branch of Food and Water Watch, said Thursday.“We wanted to draw attention to the location where the pipeline cr...

The Daily Gazette Family of Newspapers • 1st October 2024

Architect proposes restoration of historic Hudson home

HUDSON — Restoration of a historic home in the city could begin soon.The Robert Taylor House, located at 68 S. Second St., is owned by Ben Fain, the owner of Nice and Weird LLC.Fain purchased the property from the Galvan Foundation in the spring, Walter Chatham, an architect at the Hudson-based Walter Chatham Architect, said Friday.“The house has been in a state of decay for a while, and there was a lot of anxiety about what was going to happen,” he said. “His [Fain’s] desire is to bring that ho...

The Daily Gazette Family of Newspapers • 1st October 2024

New Lebanon downtown project to go to referendum

NEW LEBANON — The town will be holding a special election in January on its contribution toward a project to revitalize its downtown, the town supervisor said.At the New Lebanon Town Board’s Sept. 10 meeting, it approved a measure to hire a bond attorney to oversee the town’s $500,000 contribution to the project, Town Supervisor Tistrya Houghtling said.The town will also hold the special referendum to allow residents to decide if they still want to go through with the project, Houghtling said.“T...

The Daily Gazette Family of Newspapers • 1st October 2024

West Seneca man accused in attempted murder case arraigned

HUDSON — An Erie County man suspected of traveling through Columbia County to kill his estranged wife’s romantic partner was arraigned in county court on Monday, where he was also granted bail.Andrew J. Case, 41, of West Seneca in Erie County, was arrested and charged Sept. 17 with second-degree attempted murder, a class B felony, after he was found in Greenport with three shotguns in his vehicle, according to state police.Case was also charged with first-degree attempted assault and first-degre...

The Daily Gazette Family of Newspapers • 1st October 2024

Protesters kayak across river against Iroquois pipeline expansion

ATHENS — Climate activists and local elected officials kayaked across the Hudson River on Saturday to call for Gov. Kathy Hochul to deny the Iroquois natural gas pipeline expansion.The rally was attended by representatives from the environmental action group Food & Water Watch, Concerned Citizens of Dover, Concerned Health Professionals of New York, and local elected officials from Columbia and Greene counties.Attendees first gathered at Athens Riverfront Park for a rally on land, before getting...

The Daily Gazette Family of Newspapers • 27th September 2024

Hudson's Winter Walk canceled for 2024

HUDSON — After 27 consecutive years of Winter Walk, the city’s annual holiday event will not take place this year, Hudson Hall announced Friday.The event was attended by thousands in 2023, but despite the growth of the event, Hudson Hall could not continue supporting the event's growing deficit, the organization said in a press release.Hudson Hall, the city of Hudson, the Hudson Business Coalition, Hudson Development Corporation, and the Columbia County Chamber of Commerce partnered together to...

The Daily Gazette Family of Newspapers • 27th September 2024

Copake receives $25k donation for rail trail engineer

COPAKE — A $25,000 anonymous donation was made to the town to evaluate the potential for a connection between the Harlem Valley Rail Trail and the hamlet of Copake.The donation was accepted by the Town Board at its Aug. 10 meeting, Town Supervisor Richard Wolf said Friday.The proposed connection between the rail trail and the hamlet would be on state Route 22, and would be separate from the larger Harlem Valley Rail Trail system, Wolf said.“Copake has long sought to connect the rail trail to the...

The Daily Gazette Family of Newspapers • 27th September 2024

Man accused in plot to kill ex’s partner bragged about it, Columbia County prosecutor says

HUDSON — An Erie County man arrested last week for allegedly traveling through Columbia County to kill his estranged wife’s romantic partner had his bail application denied in Columbia County Court Monday morning.Andrew J. Case, 41, of West Seneca, Erie County, was arrested and charged by police with second-degree attempted murder, a class B felony, after he was found in Greenport with three shotguns in his vehicle, according to state police.Case was allegedly traveling to Westchester County to...

The Daily Gazette Family of Newspapers • 27th September 2024

Hudson hosts second comprehensive plan community meeting

HUDSON — The city held a community workshop Saturday to collect input on the city’s new comprehensive plan, and share results from a community survey.The city’s comprehensive plan was last updated over 20 years ago, in 2002.Over 25 people attended the workshop held Saturday, the second of three community visioning workshops being held to collect input from residents on the updated plan.The last community visioning workshop is scheduled to be held in December, according to the city of Hudson webs...

The Daily Gazette Family of Newspapers • 27th September 2024

Second New Lebanon town justice under state investigation resigns

NEW LEBANON — A second town justice resigned from office this year while under investigation by the state Commission on Judicial Conduct, according to a commission statement released Tuesday.Jessica Byrne, a Democrat who has served as town justice since Jan. 1, 2010, resigned from her position July 29, 2024.The Commission on Judicial Conduct notified Byrne in March it was investigating four complaints against her, according to the commission.The complaints alleged Byrne dismissed traffic tickets...

The Daily Gazette Family of Newspapers • 27th September 2024

Internet access on the rise in Columbia County

HUDSON — The number of addresses without access to the internet in Columbia County has dropped to roughly 700, the chairman of the Board of Supervisors said Monday.“For more than a decade, we’ve worked tirelessly to reduce the number of unserved and underserved addresses in the county,” Matt Murell, R-Stockport, chairman of the Columbia County Board of Supervisors said Monday during the county Broadband Subcommittee meeting. “I’m proud to say that by working together locally and with New York st...

The Daily Gazette Family of Newspapers • 27th September 2024

Teachers union president criticizes Hudson school district, administration

HUDSON — Morale among teachers at the Hudson City School District has hit rock bottom, the president of the Hudson Teachers Association said during the district’s Board of Education meeting Tuesday.“Some of you on the board in the past have questioned district administrators about what they were doing to boost staff morale,” Wayne Kinney, president of the Hudson Teachers Association during the board meeting Tuesday. “The answer to that question right now is nothing, morale is actually at an all...

The Daily Gazette Family of Newspapers • 27th September 2024

Protest on the Hudson against pipeline this Saturday

ATHENS — A group of activists will take to the Hudson River on Saturday to protest the proposed expansion of the Iroquois natural gas pipeline.The protest, held by the environmental action group Food and Water Watch, will include over 20 people kayaking across the river from the Athens Riverfront Park to the Hudson-Athens Lighthouse, Emily Skydel, senior organizer of the Hudson Valley branch of Food and Water Watch, said Thursday.“We wanted to draw attention to the location where the pipeline cr...

The Daily Gazette Family of Newspapers • 13th September 2024

Community, family say goodbye to former Columbia County DA Czajka

HUDSON — Hundreds of mourners joined family and friends in St. Mary’s/Holy Trinity Church on Monday morning in remembrance of former Columbia County District Attorney Paul Czajka.Czajka died Sept. 3 at New York-Presbyterian Hospital in Manhattan following a battle with cancer. Czajka, who was survived by his three sons and five grandchildren, was 70 years old.A public wake was held at the Bates and Anderson Funeral Home in Hudson on Sunday, and the pews of St. Mary’s/Holy Trinity Church were fil...

The Daily Gazette Family of Newspapers • 13th September 2024

Land sale for proposed Stockport Dollar General falls through

STOCKPORT — The developer for the proposed Dollar General in the town withdrew from purchasing the land the store would be located on, the town supervisor said Tuesday.Primax Properties, which was developing the Dollar General discount store, withdrew from purchasing the land Aug. 27, Town Supervisor Matt Murell said.The municipality gave Primax Properties three 120-day options to purchase the town-owned property, extending the company’s chance to purchase the property for close to a year, but t...