TIMES
MID
HUDSON
Vol. 28, No 33
3
AUGUST 17 - 23, 2016
3
ONE DOLLAR
American Idol
Star returns
Page 23
SERVING NEWBURGH AND NEW WINDSOR
LOOP
Balmville Tree springs back to life
Hudson
Balmville Citizens Association nursing new branches
Valley
property
H
up for sale
By SHANTAL RILEY
[email protected]
“Nothing is holier, nothing is more
exemplary than a beautiful, strong tree.”
By SHANTAL RILEY
[email protected]
A 128-acre parcel slated as the future
site of The LOOP - Hudson Valley
shopping mall is up for sale. The longtroubled project stalled earlier this year
when developers ran short of cash and
investment funds.
“They need another investor,”
said Newburgh Town Supervisor Gil
Piaquadio.
Though the land is up for sale, the
town supervisor insists the project is still
viable. “The land was placed up for sale
in anticipation of not finding a partner,”
he said.
The site, located at the intersection of
the New York State Thruway and Rt. 84
is described as “the premier shovel-ready
commercial property in the Northeast”
by the Orange County Partnership, which
has promoted the sale of the property in
recent weeks.
The approximately 700,000-squarefoot shopping center was expected to
house dozens of stores, including BJ’s
Wholesale Club, Dick’s Sporting Goods,
Field & Stream and ShopRite, restaurants
Continued on page 3
ermann Hesse penned the words
found in the poetic work “Trees:
Reflections and Poems,” when the
Balmville Tree was already centuries
old. Sprouting anew after being
chopped down last year, the tree is the
embodiment of Hesse’s view of trees as
strong and stoic wisdom keepers of the
Earth.
“It’s the oldest Eastern Cottonwood
in the United States, as far as we know,”
said Balmville resident Emoke Severo.
She and a group of fellow Balmville
Citizens Association members gathered
around the Balmville Tree during a tree
pruning this week. “It’s still alive and
going strong,” she said, standing next to
the humongous tree trunk on Monday.
The Balmville Tree Restoration Park
sits at the intersection of River Road,
Commonwealth Avenue and Balmville
Road – former trails used by the
Native Americans, according to Severo
surrounded by a small park filled with
phlox and coneflowers.
A group of perky branches shot up
from the top of the trunk, their green
leaves rustling a mild wind. The new
growth had been freshly pruned last
week.
“This type of tree usually dies after
it reaches 75 to 100-years-old,” said
Richard Severo, who co-founded the
Balmville Citizens Association with
Robert Ushman in the mid-70s. “It
should have been peaking around the
Continued on page 2
The 317-year-old Balmville Tree sits at the center of the Balmville Tree Restoration Park.
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