TIMES
WALLKILL VALLEY
Vol. 34, No 25 3 WEDNESDAY, JUNE 22, 2016
3
ONE DOLLAR
Living
wax museum
Page 23
www.WallkillValleyTimes.net
Highway VC addresses lead in school water
decision due
By TED REMSNYDER
Shawangunk to
vote on July 19
By RACHEL COLEMAN
It’s been a rocky road the last few
years for the Town of Shawangunk and its
highway department, culminating with
a move by the town board to change the
elected highway superintendent position
into an appointed position.
The local law passed by the board
last month is subject to a mandatory
referendum and residents will be able to
vote on July 19 from noon to 9 p.m. There
are three polling places, located at the
Wallkill, Shawagunk Valley and Walker
Valley firehouses.
Members of the town board have
explained that that they currently have
no control over the position, so handling
complaints from residents and prioritizing
work becomes extremely difficult.
At their meeting last week, the town
board voted unanimously to expend the
$6,800 necessary to hold the vote. Town
Supervisor John Valk said that it will be
“money well spent” if the public votes in
favor of the change.
Supervisor Valk also suggested that
they should ask the comptroller to take
a look at the purchasing and expenses
of the highway department as they had
already uncovered something he called
“inappropriate” which is being addressed
in criminal court.
“We need someone who will look
through all the receipts,” said Valk,
adding that there may be nothing more to
find, but they should look into it.
Continued on page 5
The ongoing water crisis in Flint,
Michigan has brought the issue of
elevated lead levels in water supplies to
national attention, and the problem is
beginning to hit closer to home. In the
wake of recent reports of lead problems
in Newburgh, the Valley Central School
District announced last week that a water
fountain at East Coldenham Elementary
and a pair of sinks at Montgomery
Elementary turned up slightly elevated
lead levels when representatives from
Orange-Ulster BOCES recently tested the
municipal water feeding into the schools.
Valley Central was proactive about
requesting the survey from BOCES, and
then acted quickly to rectify the problem.
“When we heard there were lead problems
in Newburgh and different things, we
scheduled the testing,” Superintendent
John Xanthis said. “Our wells get checked
periodically, but the municipal water is
checked once a year, so we wanted to do
our due diligence and make sure they got
tested, and we asked BOCES to come in
and they did.”
When the administration learned of
the problem, all classroom water fountains
at East Coldenham were shuttered and
the Montgomery sinks were declared off
limits. Bottled water was provided for
all students and staff members at East
Coldenham while the equipment was
being fixed. “I think the first question
people want to know is ‘When did you find
out?’” Xanthis said. “As soon as we found
out that day, we moved that afternoon to
shut those down. I believe that you have
Continued on page 2
Adirondack Weekend
J.P. Aponte
The Coldenham Fire Company marched through lake George this past weekend during the Hudson Valley Fireman’s Association (HVVFA)
Annual convention. A number of local fire companies were represented at the event. More photos on page 24.
SERVING CRAWFORD, GARDINER, MAYBROOK, MONTGOMERY, PINE BUSH, SHAWANGUNK, WALDEN AND WALLKILL