Valley Vines : Is town that became village suffering from identity crisis? | Give blood, eat steak, save a life in the process! | Tech Valley coalition visits Hudson Valley July 31

Valley Vines

Is town that became village suffering from identity crisis?

A new sign that welcomes visitors to Woodbury may cause confusion for visitors and residents alike. Last year, 2,000 of the town's nearly 10,000 residents voted to become a village, essentially dissolving the town of Woodbury.

New sign welcomes visitors to the town of Woodbury. The only problem: the town is virtually nonexistent.

The new village has a new mayor, a board of trustees and mounting bills being passed along to taxpayers. The old town has a supervisor and a town council. They share the town clerk, who is the village's clerk as well, at a combined salary nearing $70,000.

What was originally sold to voters as a cost-effective way to maintain control over the town's zoning, the new village is going to cost taxpayers upward of $500 a year on top of their town taxes, according to recent projections. The new village, say county planners and land-use attorneys, defies the county's rationale which encourages the streamlining of government. Instead, a new layer has been created, and with it a potential for lawyers to have a field day when lawsuits start flying.

In addition to the identity crisis and complications over what the town will control and what the village will control, the dual municipalities may be entering a dueling match over which will be official spokesperson for the village-town of Woodbury.

The new village may have already broken state rules just by virtue of its size. According to Eamon Moynihan, attorneys for the state Department of State say a village can “easily be created as long as it is not more than 5 square miles in diameter.” The new village of Woodbury exceeds those parameters by more than five times that number. This may be another hurdle the state Legislature is asked to tackle when it returns from its summer session.

Give blood, eat steak, save a life in the process!

If you’re an Outback Steakhouse fan and wouldn’t mind donating your blood to a worthy cause, you can have your steak and eat it too. Even vegans can donate to this worthy cause, in dire need of immediate Hudson Valley attention.

Community Blood Services will give a gift card to Outback to anyone successfully donating blood or platelets on Tuesday, July 31, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. or Wednesday, Aug. 1, noon to 8 p.m. at its Goshen donor center, located at 7 Coates Drive, Suite 4.

Blood supplies typically run low during summer months and local shelves are down to less than a one-day supply. All types are needed, particularly O-negative, O-positive and B-negative.

Platelets are needed to treat patients diagnosed with cancer or other blood disorders. If you want to donate platelets, an appointment is needed.

Donors must be 16 to 75 years old and weigh at least 110 pounds. In addition to receiving a gift card for Outback, you’ll get a complementary cholesterol screening.

Walk-ins are more than welcome. For more information, call (201) 251-3703. C’mon folks! Give a pint!

Tech Valley coalition visits Hudson Valley July 31

The Tech Valley Chamber Coalition will be visiting our area on Tuesday, July 31, at 11 a.m. to discuss two successful education initiatives that will impact the Tech Valley corridor.

State Senate Education Committee Chairman Stephen Saland, R,C-Poughkeepsie, will join representatives of chambers of commerce from New Paltz, Poughkeepsie, Ulster and Greater Southern Dutchess at the Brinkerhoff Elementary School in Fishkill to talk about the new programs and answer questions. Put your tech thinking cap on for this event! For more information, contact Sheila Fields at 296-0001.

New businesses join our neighborhood:

Affordable Home Repair Something every all-thumbs homeowner desperately needs!

Dance Against Drugs Beats a DWI any day!

Teddy’s Bed & Breakfast Will you end up in mother, father or baby bear’s bed?

Higher Power Creations Can they guarantee a more heavenly way to get the job done?

Daily Organized Multi-Activity Events We’re exhausted just thinking about it.

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