“He (SUNY Ulster president Donald Katt) was very focused on the economic benefits….If you’re going to be sustainable, you need to be culturally sustainable. You need to be economically sustainable and you need to be environmentally sustainable.”
“How can you say that we are going to create internships and assure jobs for students when we aren’t being taken into account”
By Rebecca Martin
The Regional Economic Development Council (REDC) recent denial of significant incentive funding for the proposed Niagara Bottling facility is now well known. Although we do not know at this time how their decision will impact the outcome of Niagara in the Town of Ulster, we continue on in our effort for a proper, thorough SEQRA process.
IMPORTANT CITIZEN SEQR INFORMATION
SEQR Positive Declaration Review Timeline. Sign-on to be kept up-to-date
Start-Up NY and Niagara Water Bottling Facility
The REDC effort foreshadows further actions to come. Our united citizen effort to influence the REDC will no doubt seek the same outcome of tax incentives offered by the Start-Up NY program. There is much more to say about why Niagara Bottling is not a good match for Start-Up NY which we will get to in much greater detail shortly.
KingstonCitizens.org as well as the SUNY Ulster Environmental Club (a group populated by SUNY Ulster students) will be presenting to the SUNY Ulster Board of Trustees on Tuesday, December 16th. Their petition requesting SUNY Ulster Community College to “rescind their proposed partnership with Niagara Water Bottling Company” regarding Start-Up NY will be part of their presentation.
Let us lift the students by boosting the numbers of this important petition. I’d like to see it over 1000 by the time Tuesday rolls around:
SUNY ULSTER STUDENTS PETITION DONALD KATT, PRES OF SUNY ULSTER
“We request SUNY Ulster Community College Rescind Their Proposed Partnership with Niagara Water Bottling Company“
Stand United to Problem Solve
What is certain at this point is that the political leadership around the County has listened to the concerns of the larger community. It is proof that citizens carry a great deal of influence as we should.
The Niagara proposal had an initial appeal to some of our elected and appointed officials; it would help the Kingston Water Board finance much needed infrastructure repairs and upgrades, and begin to address a troubled underutilized property in the Town of Ulster that also carries a regional impact. These are not small problems. But the Niagara proposal, with its request to consume over 25% of a finite resource ended up not to be the best solution to them as perhaps reflected by the REDC’s change of heart.
It has been made crystal clear how the public felt about it.
So while we maintain our vigilance, we must also recognize the serious problems that we face that include Kingston’s aging infrastructure. The current water rate structure and it being updated to reflect sustainable (and perhaps more lucrative) measures (currently, the more you use, the less you pay. The less you use the more you pay). The Kingston Charter being updated. The health and protection of an important water body and the land that surrounds it. Providing support in ways to utilize the Tech City property for sustainable enterprises.
It is our aim to stand united to problem solve and to support our elected and appointed officials to do the same. We have been heard, and for as long as that continues we offer a positive attitude and collaborative approach toward the political leadership that seeks real solutions for the problems affecting the region.
READ
Village of Red Hook Receives $3.8 Million Loan for Water Repairs from Assemblymember Kevin A. Cahill.
Thursday, December 11th, 2014
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Kingston, NY. – A coalition of organizations and communities from Ulster County and New York State submitted a petition on December 5th to the Mid-Hudson Regional Economic Development Council. The group requested that the council not award grant funds to the controversial Niagara Bottling Company proposal in this year’s round of grant announcement.
“We are pleased with the Governor’s announcement today and the decision not to fund the Niagara Bottling Company’s proposal at this time. With the project being in the midst of a full environmental review, it is a good decision to wait until all of the related impacts can be evaluated.” says the rapidly growing coalition in the region.
The proposed Niagara Bottling 414,800 square-foot bottling facility will process up to 1.75 million gallons per day (GPD) of water from the City of Kingston’s water supply at Cooper Lake located in Woodstock, using over 25% of its capacity, with plans to truck in much more than that from springs in surrounding communities. The Group’s effort is to build a transparent, participatory process based on the facts about this project, having learned that the proposal is being promoted without adequate analysis of its potential economic and environmental impacts. A “Positive Declaration” has been determined and a full public scoping process in the State Quality Review (SEQR) process from the Town of Ulster as Lead Agency is now currently underway.
For more information, contact Rebecca Martin at rebecca@kingstoncitizens.org
By Rebecca Martin
We wish to thank everyone for their swift support in signing the petition generated by a coalition of organizations that requests the Mid-Hudson Regional Economic Development Committee and Governor Cuomo not to fund the Niagara Water Bottling Facility at this time. 1553 signatures and still growing at this time!
We are currently printing out your comments and signatures to send off to Aimee Vargas and the MHREDC this evening as well as a hard copy that citizens will take with them TOMORROW when they are on-site in Albany during the announcement.
We will be certain to let you know the outcome as soon as that information is available to us.
Sunday, December 7th 2014
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
A coalition of organizations and communities from Ulster County and New York State petition the Mid-Hudson Regional Economic Development Council. The group asks the council not to award grant funds for the controversial Niagara Bottling Company proposal in this year’s round of grant announcements on December 10th.
Kingston, NY – In response to the proposed Niagara Bottling plant in the Town of Ulster, a growing number of individuals, communities, and organizations in Ulster County and New York State have swiftly come together to form a coalition. Together, the group is dedicated in promoting drinking water as a common good and protecting that right for generations to come.
Launched on the evening of Friday, December 5, the petition already had close to 1000 signatures at the time of this release, within just 48 hours of its circulation. The petition will continue to solicit signatures and may be found at HERE. The letter is signed by fifteen (15) organizations that include KingstonCitizens.org, Riverkeeper, Woodstock Land Conservancy, Esopus Creek Conservancy, SaveCooperLake.org, Catskill Mountainkeeper, NYPIRG, Food & Water Watch, Slow Food Hudson Valley, Red Hook Conservation Advisory Council, Town of Red Hook, NY, Woodstock NY Transition, Kingston Transition, Sustainable Saugerties and the Mid-Hudson Sierra Club.
According to Paul Gallay, President and Hudson Riverkeeper, “New York State law specifically prohibits state agencies from funding an action until it has complied with the provisions of SEQRA. Before considering the Niagara Bottling proposal for funding, Riverkeeper urges the Mid-Hudson Regional Economic Development Council to allow the full environmental review process to occur so that all its related impacts can be evaluated, including the construction and operation of the plant, the sale of the water, the implications for Kingston’s overall water supply, the infrastructure required for withdrawals, and the potential impacts to the water bodies from which Kingston draws its water supplies.”
“This is the start of a growing coalition of those concerned and involved in protecting our water supply,” said Rebecca Martin, founder of KingstonCitizens.org. “If we had the luxury of time, we could have secured another dozen or more significant organizations in support of this petition. The work we are undertaking now is just the beginning of what we aim to do. There will be many opportunities for us all to work together.”
The proposed Niagara Bottling 414,800 square-foot bottling facility will process up to 1.75 million gallons per day (GPD) of water from the City of Kingston’s water supply at Cooper Lake located in Woodstock, using over 25% of its capacity, with plans to truck in much more than that from springs in surrounding communities.
On December 10th, Governor Cuomo will announce the winners of the 2015 grants from the Consolidated Funding Application process. In August 2014, Niagara Bottling’s proposal to build a facility in the Town of Ulster was selected as one of the Mid-Hudson Regional Economic Development Council’s (REDC) “Priority Projects.”
In the group’s efforts to build a transparent, participatory process based on the facts about this project, they have learned that the proposal is being promoted without adequate analysis of its potential economic and environmental impacts. In the three months since the public was made aware of the proposed bottling plan, KingstonCitizens.org has worked with several local organizations, including Save Cooper Lake, Woodstock Land Conservancy and Esopus Creek Conservancy as well as national organizations, such as Riverkeeper and Food & Water Watch. This work is being credited with achieving a more thorough, inclusive environmental review process by securing a “Positive Declaration” and full public scoping process in the State Environmental Quality Review (SEQR) process from the Town of Ulster, which is the Lead Agency for SEQR.
A letter to Aimee Vargas, Director of Empire State Development (ESD) Mid-Hudson Region outlines the coalition’s specific concerns related to the REDC’s selection process, including:
For more information, contact Jennifer Schwartz Berky at jennifer@kingstoncitizens.org
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About KingstonCitizens.org: Founded in 2007, KingstonCitizens.org is a community-based organization committed to improving the quality of life of Kingston residents through accountability and transparency between the people and their local government. By providing citizens with current and important information through better communication, its work is meant to nurture citizen participation and empowerment through projects, education and fun.
About Riverkeeper: Riverkeeper’s mission is to protect the environmental, recreational and commercial integrity of the Hudson River and its tributaries, and safeguard the drinking water of nine million New York City and Hudson Valley residents. Riverkeeper is a member-supported watchdog organization dedicated to defending the Hudson River and its tributaries and protecting the drinking water supply of nine million New York City and Hudson Valley residents. For nearly 50 years Riverkeeper has been New York’s clean water advocate. We have helped to establish globally recognized standards for waterway and watershed protection and serve as the model and mentor for the growing Waterkeeper movement that includes nearly 200 Keeper programs across the country and around the globe.
By Rebecca Martin
READ the letter
SIGN the Petition
In a letter to Aimee Vargas, Director of Empire State Economic Development Council, a coalition of groups and a municipality that include KingstonCitizens.org, Riverkeeper, Woodstock Land Conservancy, Esopus Creek Conservancy, SaveCooperLake.org, Catskill Mountainkeper, NYPIRG, Food & Water Watch, Slow Food Hudson Valley, Red Hook Conservation Advisory Council, Town of Red Hook, Woodstock NY Transition, Kingston Transition, Sustainable Saugerties and Mid-Hudson Sierra Club alerted Ms. Vargas of their concerns regarding the upcoming December 10th announcement by Governor Cuomo and Niagara Bottling Company.
On August 12th, prior to the public being aware of the proposed project, the Mid-Hudson Regional Economic Development Council selected the Niagara Bottling Company endorsed the project as one of their 25 regional priorities for the 2015 funding cycle. Niagara submitted a CFA (Consolidated Funding Application) – public money – to help offset the cost of their facility build.
“In response to the proposed Niagara Bottling plant in the Town of Ulster, a growing number of individuals, communities, and organizations in Ulster County and New York State have swiftly come together to form a coalition. Together, the group is dedicated in promoting drinking water as a common good and protecting that right for generations to come.
Niagara wants to build a bottling facility that will process at least 1 million gallons per day (GPD) of water from Kingston’s water supply at Cooper Lake, using over 25% of its capacity, and plans to truck in much more than that from springs in surrounding communities.
On December 10th, Governor Cuomo will announce the winners of the 2015 grants from the Consolidated Funding Application process. In August 2014, Niagara Bottling’s proposal to build a facility in the Town of Ulster was selected as one of the Mid-Hudson Regional Economic Development Council’s (REDC) “Priority Projects.”
In our efforts to build a transparent, participatory process based on the facts about this project, we have learned that the proposal is being promoted without adequate analysis of its potential economic and environmental impacts.
The letter outlines the specific concerns related to the REDC’s selection process, including:
3:21 – 10:50 “We are not an Involved Agency”. Against the $25,000 allocation.
Andrew Champ-Doren, Kingston, NY
11:03 – 16:03 DPW Budget
Michael Schupp, DPW Kingston, NY
16:14 – 19:33 Police Department Budget
Chief Tinti, Kingston, NY
19:40 – 23:39 Parks & Recreation
Kevin Gilfeather, Kingston NY
23:50 – 25:51 “The Mayor is my hero.”
Ellen DiFalco COK’s Mayor Office Administrative Assistant
25:58 – 27:40 Against the $25,000 allocation
Rev. Arthur Cost, Kingston NY
27:49 – 30:43
Doris Edwards, Kingston NY
30:55 – 33:03 “Where there is a balance of power the cost of government goes down.”
Jennifer Schwartz Berky, Kingston NY
33:20 – 39:17 Miscellaneous
James Richter
39:35 – 44:18 Pilgram Pipeline concern
Elizabeth Broad, Kingston NY
44:30 – 45:52 Against $25,000 allocation
Donald Julliard, Kingston NY
46:01 – 46:55
Phillip Guerrieri
#227 Resolution
Allocation of additional funds to hire a lawyer.
27:20 – 54:41
Common Council members debate. The resolution is defeated 5 – 4.
Flyers are now available for our upcoming events in December. Help us to spread the word by making copies and sharing with your neighbors and friends. A very special thanks to Ann Marie Woolsey for her volunteer design work.
Thank you!
COLOR: DOWNLOAD PDF by clicking on this link.
B/W: DOWNLOAD PDF by clicking on this link.
By Rebecca Martin
There are new engineering documents now available on the City of Kingston Water Department site.
The first is one many have been waiting to view. It is the CDM Smith ‘Niagara Water Bottling Plant Demand Analysis Results’ that the Kingston Water Board had had created to explore Niagara’s 1 million and 1.75 million GPD water request.
VIEW CDM SMITH’s Engineering Analysis
The second is a recent report created by Schnabel Engineering of the Cooper Lake Dam & West Dike preliminary Engineering Phase 1.
VIEW Kingston “Tapped” Facebook Event
VIEW Woodstock “Tapped” Facebook Event
VIEW Saugerties “Tapped” Facebook Event
KingstonCitizens.org hosts free movie screenings of “Tapped” in Kingston, Woodstock & Saugerties. “Tapped” examines the bottled water industry and its long-term social, economic and ecological effects
Kingston, NY – KingstonCitizens.org with the support of the Woodstock Land Conservancy, Riverkeeper and Esopus Creek Conservancy is proud to sponsor free screenings of the film “Tapped” throughout the Mid-Hudson Valley region. The first of three showings in this ongoing film series will be held in December in Kingston, Woodstock and Saugerties.
Niagara Bottling Company, a national water bottling plant based in California, wants to establish a plant in the Town of Ulster. It seeks to purchase 1.75 million gallons of water per day from Cooper Lake, Kingston’s municipal water source, and plans to utilize support from the Start-Up NY Program that gives 10 years of tax abatements to qualifying companies.
Tapped focuses on industry giants PepsiCo and Nestle. The film documents the filmmakers’ visits to a town containing a Nestle factory as well as tests run on the bottles the company uses for its products. These test results showed “several potentially harmful chemicals, some known as carcinogens.” The documentary also focuses on the fraction of bottles that is recycled, noting that “forty percent of bottled water is really just filtered tap water, and every day we throw away 30 million single-served bottles of water.”
All events are free and open to all. NO TICKETS ARE NECESSARY. The public will be met by representatives of KingstonCitizens.org to answer any questions regarding the proposed Niagara Bottling Company project in Ulster County.
KingstonCitizens.org extends a very special thank you to all venue sponsors: BSP (Kingston), The Bearsville Theater (Woodstock) and The Inquiring Mind Bookstore and Cafe (Saugerties).
If your school or organization would like to host a screening, please contact Rachel Marco-Havens for more information at rachel@kingstoncitizens.org
“Tapped” Film Series Screening Dates and Locations:
WOODSTOCK
Sunday, December 7th
12:00pm – 3:00pm
Bearsville Theater
291 Tinker Street, Woodstock NY 12498
(Private Event) Friday, December 12th
10:00am – 11:30am
Woodstock Day School Assembly
1430 Glasco Turnpike, Saugerties NY 12477
SAUGERTIES
Friday, December 12th
6:30pm – 8:30pm
The Inquiring Mind Bookstore
65 Partition Street, Saugerties NY 12477
KINGSTON
Sunday, December 14th
3:00pm – 6:00pm
BSP
323 Wall Street, Kingston NY 12401
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About KingstonCitizens.org KingstonCitizens.org is a community-based organization committed to improving the quality of life of Kingston residents through accountability and transparency between the people and their local government. By providing citizens with current and important information through better communication, our work is meant to nurture citizen participation and empowerment through projects, education and fun.
About Woodstock Land Conservancy The Woodstock Land Conservancy is a non-profit organization committed to the protection and preservation of the open lands, forests, wetlands, scenic areas and historic sites in Woodstock and the surrounding area.
About Riverkeeper Riverkeeper’s mission is to protect the environmental, recreational and commercial integrity of the Hudson River and its tributaries, and to safeguard the drinking water of nine million New York City and Hudson Valley residents.
About Esopus Creek Conservancy
KingstonCitizens.org to host a public educational forum and discussion called “Bottled Water: Bad for the People and the Environment” on Thursday, December 4th at the Kingston Public Library 55 Franklin Street, in Kingston NY from 6:00pm – 8:00pm. Guest panelist will be Alex Beauchamp, Northeast Regional Director of Food and Water Watch (Washington, DC).
Kingston, NY – In September, the citizens of Kingston became aware of a proposed diversion of up to 1.75 million gallons per day of their municipal water supply to the Town of Ulster. The proposal to sell this water would support the profit-making interests of Niagara Water Bottling Company, a California company that projects in return 100 or so jobs that pay below industry standards. They are also expected to seek the maximum tax exemptions, potentially shifting the burden to residents and local business as part of Start-Up NY and other public funding sources. Since that time, KingstonCitizens.org has led a concerted effort to understand the details of this proposal that has involved the Kingston community as well as residents in surrounding communities who would also be impacted.
KingstonCitizens.org is pleased to present a public educational forum titled “Bottled Water: Bad for the People and the Environment” on, Thursday, December 4th 2014 from 6:00pm – 8:00pm at the Kingston Public Library located at 55 Franklin Street in Kingston, NY. All are invited to attend.
Guest panelist will be Alex Beauchamp, Northeast Regional Director of Food and Water Watch (Washington, DC).
The evening will be moderated by KingstonCitizens.org’s Policy and Planning Director Jennifer Schwartz Berky.
This event will be filmed by Clark Richters of Kingston News.
For more information, contact Rebecca Martin at: rebecca@kingstoncitizens.org
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About KingstonCitizens.org: KingstonCitizens.org is a community-based organization committed to improving the quality of life of Kingston residents through accountability and transparency between the people and their local government. By providing citizens with current and important information through better communication, our work is meant to nurture citizen participation and empowerment through projects, education and fun.
About Alex Beauchamp, Food and Water Watch
Alex Beauchamp is the Northeast Region Director at Food & Water Watch. Based in the Brooklyn office, Alex oversees all organizing efforts in New York and the Northeast. Alex has worked on issues related to fracking, factory farms, genetic engineering, and water privatization at Food & Water Watch since 2009. His background is in legislative campaigning, and community and electoral organizing. Before joining Food & Water Watch, Alex worked for Grassroots Campaigns, Inc., where he worked on several campaigns including organizing support for renewable energy in Colorado, fundraising, and running get-out-the-vote operations. Alex graduated from Carleton College with a degree in political science. He can be reached at abeauchamp(at)fwwatch(org).
About Jennifer Schwartz Berky, Planning and Policy Director – KingstonCitizens.org: Jennifer Schwartz Berky, the evening’s moderator, has over 25 twenty years of experience in the fields of architecture, conservation, economic development, and urban planning in the non-profit, government, academic and private sectors. Prior to launching Hone Strategic, she served as Deputy Director of Ulster County Planning for over seven years, where she was the lead researcher and liaison to the Ulster County Charter Commission. Before moving to Ulster County, she worked in Washington, DC at the World Bank and Urban Institute, at the University of Rome (Italy) and as a project manager of design and construction for New York City’s major cultural institutions. Berky has lived for extended periods in Argentina, Chile, France, Israel, Italy, and Spain. She earned a B.A. in Art History from SUNY Stony Brook and Masters’ degrees in Urban Planning (M.Phil.) and Real Estate Development (M.S.) at Columbia University, where she is also currently completing a Ph.D. in Urban Planning on the subject of environmental economics.
By Rebecca Martin
Last night was in essence the conclusion of many months of discussion regarding Lead Agency and the proposed Niagara Bottling project. It has been a deeply intense time period for many hard working people who are dedicated in making this a sound process. Today starts a brand new phase with our collective group of many talented and tenacious citizens, organizations and elected officials.
It’s important that we take a moment to acknowledge and to thank all of those who we have had the good fortune to work and be guided by. In a few short weeks, collectively Riverkeeper, The Woodstock Land Conservancy, the Esopus Creek Conservancy, Save Cooper Lake, the Kingston Common Council, Town of Woodstock, Food and Water Watch and hundreds of residents of the affected communities have succeeded in placing this proposal under a great deal of public scrutiny. Thank you.
Much gratitude must also be given to the team that has assembled under the KingstonCitizens.org umbrella. In essence, it is a dream to see this platform work as it was intended to do and on a most critical issue. Thank you Kitty McCullough, Debra Bresnan, Karin Wolf, Rachel Marco-Havens and Elizabeth Littleton and Beth Bengston.
To Jennifer Schwartz Berky who is one of Kingston’s treasures. A very generous soul, a dear friend, a true professional and spectacular partner to have. To my co-chair, Heather Schwegler who is savvy, smart and keeps us all in good humor.
###
Your involvement has made many positive outcomes possible. Some of them include:
~ The City of Kingston Common Council has been incredibly supportive of the public’s request by voting unanimously in favor of three resolutions requesting that the DEC be Lead Agency of the Niagara Proposal and that the CoK be added as Involved Agency in the SEQR process.
~ The early commissioning of the Carpenter Report thanks to the Woodstock Land Conservancy and Riverkeeper has begun to identify and document a sampling of the numerous potential impacts that must be considered as part of the scoping process. (More on this shortly)
~ The Town of Ulster issued a Positive Declaration on the Niagara Proposal. This was not at all a foregone conclusion in September and October.
~ The Town of Ulster determining to require a full public scoping process of the proposed action ensuring that the public and all interested and affected parties, communities and agencies have the opportunity to contribute to the scope of the EIS. This is not required to do under SEQRA regs, this is a big win for the public and a direct result of the full-court press by the public, grass-roots community groups, elected officials and affiliated organizations.
~ The applicant amending the proposed action once to include a much wider geographic scope and add additional Interested and Involved Agencies including NYC DEP and the Mink Hollow brook and Beaverkill, as well as the Cooper Lake Reservoir and KWD supply and distribution system.
~ NYS DEC pledging to play a proactive role in the SEQRA process.
~ NYS DEC informing the TOU that it must require the applicant to expand the scope of action to include the Whole Action, and avoid Segmentation per SEQRA, with multiple additional items that must be analyzed.
~ NYC DEP adding specific items that the Town of Ulster must require the applicant to address.
Onward!
By Rebecca Martin
* Because we want to get this information out to the public ASAP, we are still extracting important details from the video and of documents pertaining to SEQR in the proposed Niagara Bottling Project over the next few days. Please check back daily on this post as we do so and thank you.
Tonight at the Town of Ulster Town Board Meeting, the Town Board under the leadership of Supervisor James Quigley passed several resolutions that included a Resolution for the City of Kingston and Town of Woodstock to become Involved Agencies (Denied Unanimously, though with some hesitation), 2) A resolution clearing Lead Agency to construct a water bottle facility. (Resolution passed unanimously.) 3) A resolution declaring a positive SEQR declaration (passed unanimously).
The public comment was incredibly rich. Take a moment and review it below.
I ask that the citizens not be discouraged and to continue to be diligent.. There is a great deal underway to protect our interests. As the Town of Woodstock Supervisor Jeremy Wilber states in his public comment “There are citizens that transcend the borders…that are going to involve themselves. We would rather be inside the tent with you spitting out than outside the tent spitting in. But we will be an involved party….I just hope that we won’t have to dwell on legalisms as neighboring towns and as people and that share a very neutral concern for the future of our water sources of the area.”
We are united and committed in seeing our region prosper and in working together to find alternative solutions in addressing Kingston’s aging infrastructure.
Special thanks to Clark Richter of Kingston News for filming this evening.
Initial Public Comments
1:26 – 4:41
Kevin Smith, Chairman of the Woodstock Land Conservancy
4:45 – 6:11
Dennis Doyle, Ulster County Planning Board
6:20 – 8:05
Kate Hudson, Riverkeeper
8:14 – 11:57
Rebecca Martin, Kingston, NY
READ REBECCA’S SPEECH
12:00 – 15:44
Jennifer Schwartz Berky, Kingston, NY
15:55 – 18:37
Rev. Betsy Stang, The Wittenberg Center for Alternative Resources
18:47 – 22:13
Kitty McCullough, Kingston, NY
22:19 – 25:21
Rachel Marco-Havens, KingstonCitizens.org
READ RACHEL’S SPEECH
25:30 – 28:45
Robert Barton, Town of Ulster
28:58 – 31:58
Donald Gregorius, UC Legislator
31:57 – 35:39
Jeremy Wilber, Town of Woodstock Supervisor
35:55 – 39:39
Henrietta Wise, Olivebridge, NY
On Niagara Bottling Company Resolutions
0:10 – 1:08
Resolution including City of Kingston and Town of Woodstock as Involved Agency
Resolution defeated unanimously (though with hesitation)
1:12 – 1:41
Resolution clearing Lead Agency to construct a water bottle facility.
Resolution passed unanimously
1:42 – 2:29
Resolution declaring a positive SEQR declaration
“I would the people in the audience to know the that the town board is dedicating itself to an open and public process…as requested.” – Supervisor James Quigley
Resolution passed unanimously
Closing Public Comments
2:46 – 5:21
Robert Barton, Town of Ulster
5:28 – 7:31
Jeremy Wilber, Town of Woodstock Supervisor
7:37 – 10:14
Rachel Marco-Havens, KingstonCitizens.org
10:23 – 11:27
Donald Gregorius, UC Legislator
11:35 – 13:40
Jennifer Schwartz Berky, KingstonCitizens.org
13:47 – 16:34
Kevin Smith, Chairman of the Woodstock Land Conservancy
16:43 – 20:09
Rebecca Martin, KingstonCitizens.org
READ REBECCA’S SPEECH
20:24 – 21:24
Mike Berardi, Town of Ulster
“We are writing concerning the proposed Niagra Bottling Plant SEQR review process. We are asking for a positive declaration on the following grounds. We strongly believe that both Cooper Lake and the location of the proposed Niagara plant are potential Level One archeological sites.
We are writing concerning the proposed Niagra Bottling Plant SEQR review process. We are asking for a positive declaration on the following grounds. We strongly believe that both Cooper Lake and the location of the proposed Niagara plant are potential Level One archeological sites.”
– Rev. Betsy Stang and Rev. Jim Davis, the Wittenberg Center for Alternative Resources
By Rebecca Martin
This morning, Mayor Shayne Gallo was live on Kingston Community Radio where he discussed his point-of-view regarding the proposed Niagara Bottling Company project. It begins at 1:36:09.
“I don’t have enough, and the majority of Kingston residents and business/water users don’t have enough information to say ‘yay’ or ‘nay’.”
Since September, KingstonCitizens.org has provided the community with documentation, expert evaluation and videos of almost every significant meeting to expose a great deal of information. It is one of the key reasons, in fact, that the city currently has what it does in order to have crafted several resolutions in support of the DEC being Lead Agency and the CoK being named an Involved Agency. In addition, the work that has been forged through a steady citizen effort is perhaps would be one of the main reasons a Positive Declaration (pos dec) will be determined. Without a pos dec, the public wouldn’t have any of the information the Mayor claims it needs.
“There’s transparency now.“
There is transparency now, thanks to the citizen volunteers working diligently to provide factual information (or to show in some cases the lack thereof).
“Quite frankly, I don’t care about the non-residents.”
He most certainly should given that the sale of Kingston’s water impacts the entire region. The amount of water Niagara is asking for, too, is an exorbitant amount even for them. Everyone should be watching this closely, as how this process is handled will set a precedent on how national/international water bottling companies proceed in NY State.
“I’ve only gotten five phone calls, including the individual who is spearheading the opposition against the project.“
Is that so? Kingston citizens. Let the Mayor know what you think either way. Let it also be known that KingstonCitizens.org is not spearheading ‘opposition’. All along, it has been our goal to work to bring information out to the public so that the public has an understanding and a voice in the matter. If there is opposition, it’s because the public isn’t comfortable with the way this process has been organized thus far. Elected officials involved need to take responsibility here.
In the meantime, give him a buzz. 845/334-3902.
“There is no reason why the SEQR process can’t work.“
He’s right. But in order for that to occur, a positive declaration must be determined, a coordinated review must take place and the Action must not be segmented.
Mayor Gallo – “It’s the construction, it’s a 53 million dollar installation of basically a water work that will provide water, ok, for their product. So with all due respect Walter (the radio host) a project that size, OK….“
Walter (Radio Host) – “The City, the water department is going to spend $53 million dollars.“
MG – “No, here’s the thing – you see you’re also not informed properly first of all.“
W – “I’m just asking the question.”
MG – “The water department stepped back, the Town of Ulster with Niagara they are going to have to spend the money for the SEQR process. The COK is not spending a dime. We’re not an involved agency….here’s how it works. If we were involved in the design, the construction and the funding. If we had discretion over any one of those things with this project then we’d be the Involved Agency. But we don’t!“
This all begins at 1:38:59. The Mayor speaks about there being a “53 million dollar installation of basically a water work that will provide water, OK, for their project.” In other words, the estimated cost of the facility is $53 million dollars based on the Environmental Assessment Form crafted by Niagara and their consultant the Chazen Companies and a consolidated grant application that Niagara Bottling Company submitted through the Mid-Hudson Regional Economic Council (in fact, here they are seeking more public funding for the build of the plant – on top of the tax abatements they would hope to receive through Start-Up NY. The grant funding will be determined by December 10th). He also insinuates that the City of Kingston won’t ‘pay a dime’ for the SEQR process which is again is true. The applicant always pays for all of the associated environmental study costs. But this isn’t news.
According to the WILL SERVE letter issued by the Kingston Water Department, it is determined that in order to provide the Niagara Bottling Company with their water request, “the preliminary estimate for the cost of the work, without a geotechnical investigation and assuming minimal rock removal, is approximately $2 million dollars”.
What does that mean? The Kingston Water Department has clearly stated here that additional improvements to the Kingston Water Department water distribution system would be necessary. If the Niagara Bottling project is approved, the City will need the assent of the City of Kingston Common Council in order to make those improvements. See Kingston Charter C11-4 making the City of Kingston an INVOLVED AGENCY.
All of this begs the question. Who is the one that is misinformed? Citizens, it most certainly is not you.
