Vol. 37, No. 33 3 WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 14, 2019
Health
care
scholar
Page 31
3
ONE DOLLAR
Butterfly
weekend
Page 10
w w w .W V T I M ESON L I N E . c om
Solar
farm
Elderly face isolation
Senior citizens struggle to find transportation
Shawangunk Planning Board
reviews Route 52 project
By TED REMSNYDER
In April 2018, the Shawangunk Town
Board passed a local law to regulate large-
scale solar farms in the town, and the first
proposed solar project that would make
use of the bill is now under consideration
by the Shawangunk Planning Board. The
proposed solar farm would be situated
on 117 acres of property owned by E
& L Farms LLC at 3014 State Route 52,
although the solar farm would take up
only 9.5 acres of that parcel.
Local Law No. 1 of 2018 - Solar Energy
Systems, which the town board passed
unanimously last spring, limited solar
farms in the municipality to a maximum
of 20 acres, with a cap of 50 percent of a
given plot of land that would be permitted
to be covered in solar panels.
The proposed project on Route 52 has
been submitted by NY Solar 1000 LLC, and
the applicants erected a simulation of the
proposed solar farm in the field recently
so the board could examine the impact
the project would have on the community.
During the planning board’s meeting on
Aug. 6, Board Member Todd Widmark
noted that from Route 52 the mock panels
were barely visible from the road.
The project would feature fixed panels
on the solar farm, as opposed to rotating
Continued on page 30
Seniors gather at the Pine Bush Library.
By LAURA FITZGERALD
[email protected]
Leaning gingerly on her cane, Celeste
VanFleet slowly made her way to a little
folding table in the Pine Bush Area
Public Library. Soon, three other senior
citizens joined her, each taking a side of
the table on gray folding chairs. One of
the seniors pulled out a deck of cards
and started dealing.
It was the Bridge Club’s time at the
library, a sacred ritual for all involved.
“Bridge is a vital part of my life,”
VanFleet said. The 95-year-old travels to
Pine Bush every week from Middletown
to play bridge.
Karen Fox, Pine Bush Area Library
Adult Program Coordinator, said social
activities such as the ones provided by
area libraries are important for seniors
because it staves off isolation and
provides mental and social stimulation.
“They have something to look
forward to every day,” Fox said.
Libraries are not only community
hubs, but valuable resources to seniors.
Area libraries host adult programs
Continued on page 30
SERVING CRAWFORD, GARDINER, MAYBROOK, MONTGOMERY, PINE BUSH, SHAWANGUNK, WALDEN AND WALLKILL