Mid Hudson Times Apr. 05 2017

T IMES NATIONAL NEWSPAPER ASSOCIATION FIRST-PLACE AWARD FOR GENERAL EXCELLENCE, 2016 MID HUDSON Vol. 29, No 14 3 APRIL 5 - 11, 2017 Easter Egg Hunt The City of Newburgh has launched an effort to clamp down on illegal event spaces. The initiative follows two fatal shootings at parties held in spaces that were not up to city code. “The intention is to ensure safety at large events and parties in Newburgh,” city Planner Alexandra Church said. A joint effort by city planning, codes, fire and police, the project focuses on preventing events from being held in uninspected spaces. The city is urging property owners and event hosts to reach out to the city’s Department of Code Compliance to make sure spaces are in compliance before events or parties occur. Information and inspections are provided free of charge. Recent shooting incidents have Page 34 SERVING NEWBURGH AND NEW WINDSOR highlighted the dangers posed by parties held in illicit spaces. “They were both held at illegal spaces,” said Church, pointing to two parties that resulted in the deaths of three young adults in the last six months. The first was a Halloween party, held at 119 Broadway on Oct. 30. Seven people were injured when a shooter shot into a crowd of partygoers, many of them Continued on page 4 J udy & F riends Brian Wolfe The Hope for Judy benefit, which was held Sunday afternoon at the Newburgh Armory, gathered more than 100 supporters and raised the majority of funds needed for Newburgh Mayor Judy Kennedy’s cancer treatment and travel expenses. If you were unable to attend the event and still would like to contribute, you can send a check or money order payable to Love Holds Life, 2345 Route 52, Suite 2F Hopewell Junction, NY 12533. Write “Judy Kennedy’s cancer treatment” on the memo line. The mayor is pictured with volunteers at the event. WWW.MIDHUDSONTIMES.COM ONE DOLLAR NFA baseball preview Page 18 City clamps down on illegal party spaces By SHANTAL RILEY [email protected] 3 S pecial R eport : N ewburgh ’ s T ainted W ater How did it happen? By SHANTAL RILEY [email protected] W ashington Lake shimmered like diamonds in the sun on a breezy day in The City of April. The lake Newburgh is slowly water reflected recovering from PFOS the color of a contamination of its clear, blue sky, drinking-water supply giving no hint of at Washington Lake. the chemical that Manufactured in the lurked beneath its U.S. until 2000, the surface. chemical was used in “PFOS stands Scotchgard products for perfluoro- and non-stick cookware. octanesulfonic It was also a key acid,” said Brad ingredient in fire foam Hutton, deputy used at Stewart Air commissioner National Guard Base, of the Office of where the chemical Public Health seeped into water at the New York and soil. Pooling in a State Department stormwater retention of Health. pond near the air base, Hutton spoke at the chemical flowed a meeting hosted downhill to pollute the by the DOH at city’s drinking water. the Newburgh In this series, the Armory Unity Mid Hudson Times Center last investigates the water month. The event crisis, the ongoing centered on a cleanup and the source state-led, blood- of the pollution at testing program Stewart Air National set up to measure Guard Base. PFOS levels in people who drank City of Newburgh water. PFOS, also known as perfluorooctane Continued on page 2