DATE: 3 April 2024
TO: Poestenkill supervisor Russell, councilperson Hass, councilperson Wohlleber, councilperson Burzesi and councilperson Butler
RE: PUBLIC COMMENTS AND QUESTIONS RE: PROPOSED WATER DISTRICT No. 2
Pursuant to a townwide Directive from Poestenkill councilperson and CCCDW head Eric Wohlleber dated Friday, Mar 29, 2024 and titled Proposed Water District #2 Informational Meeting 4/3, where we were notified by councilperson Wohlleber that the Town Board is hosting an informational meeting to provide an update on the grants secured for a possible Water District #2, to discuss options and answer questions, on Wednesday, April 3, at 7pm at the Fire Station, which public hearing then will be a topic at the April Town Board Meeting on Thursday, April 11 at 7pm, with a public hearing then to held on Thursday, April 25 at the Fire Station, please find herein as follows first my comment that the public hearing is premature, and then my questions which councilperson Wohlleber in his March 29, 2024 Directive stated would be addressed by the town board, to wit:
I. PENDING RESOLUTION OF THE TOWN'S LAWSUIT AGAINST THE AVERILL PARK SCHOOL DISTRICT FOR ALLEGEDLY CONTAMINATING POESTENKILL'S GROUND WATER WITH PFAS, THIS INFORMATIONAL HEARING IS PREMATURE!
Until such time as the town's lawsuit against the Averill Park School District for allegedly contaminating Poestenkill's groundwater with PFAS is resolved one way or the other, this is an exercise in wheel spinning, which is to say, until the school district is either held liable for damages, or is absolved, any numbers presented tonight are meaningless.
By way of review with respect to that lawsuit, on Monday, July 17, 2023, @ 8:48 AM, Poestenkill Town councilmember Eric Wohlleber sent out a notice to Poestenkill town residents titled Subject: Poestenkill PFOA Update, wherein was stated as follows:
Neighbors,
I have received several calls/emails recently on the Town Board's action on Thursday night, so I thought I would provide an update to this group.
On Thursday, July 13th the Poestenkill Town Board approved a resolution to authorize a notice of claim in relation to the PFOA/PFOS contamination to be served to the Averill Park Central School District.
I voted for this resolution because it is an important step in protecting the property rights, property values and the health of Poestenkill residents.
By serving the school district this notice of claim, the Town is taking a necessary step in protecting the rights of the town on behalf of its residents who have been negatively impacted by the PFOA/PFOS contamination.
This notice of claim provides the Town of Poestenkill one-year to file any potential action in relation to the contamination.
As per the resolution - "The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation issued a Final Assessment Area Report on April 20, 2023 - concluding the Algonquin Middle School is the significant source area for PFOA and PFOS contamination found in groundwater in such location..." and "the Town of Poestenkill confirms it authorization to cause the preparation of a notice of claim on behalf of the Town of Poestenkill to the Averill Park Central School District.... with respect to all legal and/or equitable rights and remedies that the Town of Poestenkill may have against the Averill Park Central School District with respect to groundwater contamination and costs incurred by the Town of Poestenkill..."
The Town had, by law, 90 days after the filing of the final report (by NYSDEC) to file the notice of claim to reserve the town's rights for any potential future action, if the Town Board chooses that route.
end quotes
If as councilperson Wohlleber stated on Monday, July 17, 2023, @ 8:48 AM this is an important step in protecting the property rights, property values and the health of Poestenkill residents, and IF by filing the Notice of Claim, the Town has taken a necessary step in protecting the rights of the town on behalf of its residents who have been negatively impacted by the PFOA/PFOS contamination, then clearly this lawsuit must be filed with no further delay.
II. TOWN BOARD VOTE TO PROCEED WITH LAWSUIT AGAINST AVERILL PARK SCHOOL DISTRICT MUST TAKE PLACE BEFORE, NOT AFTER ANY PUBLIC HEARINGS ON WATER DISTRICT NO. 2.
If as councilperson Wohlleber stated on Monday, July 17, 2023, @ 8:48 AM this lawsuit against the Averill Park School District is an important step in protecting the property rights, property values and the health of Poestenkill residents who have been negatively impacted by the PFOA/PFOS contamination, it is imperative that the lawsuit must be filed and vigorously prosecuted before any public hearings in the matter are held.
III. TOWN'S UNDUE HASTE TO HOLD A PUBLIC HEARING BEFORE FILING A LAWSUIT AGAINST AVERILL PARK SCHOOL DISTRICT FOR ALLEGEDLY CONTAMINATING POESTENKILL'S GROUND WATER WITH PFAS IS INDICATIVE OF THE FACT THAT IN REALITY, THE TOWN POESTENKILL HAS NO CASE AGAINST THE SCHOOL DISTRICT, SO THAT THE SO-CALLED RESOLUTION TO FILE A NOTICE OF CLAIM HAS BEEN NOTHING MORE THAN A RUSE ALL ALONG.
As to undue haste on the part of the Poestenkill town board to hold the public hearing before any vote on the Averill Park School District liability lawsuit is held, the proof is in the March 29, 2024 Directive of councilmember Wohlleber titled Proposed Water District #2 Informational Meeting 4/3, wherein he makes it clear that in a mere matter of weeks, after the April Town Board Meeting on Thursday, April 11 at 7pm, a public hearing will be held on Thursday, April 25 at the Fire Station.
Accordingly, if the town board does not intend to vote to proceed with the lawsuit, because they have no grounds on which to base a suit, and no evidence and no expert witnesses to support such a suit, then the town residents deserve to know that fact before any public hearings on proposed water district no. 2 are held.
IV. WHY IS CHLORINE BEING ADDED THE WATER DISTRICT NO. 1 BY POESTENKILL, AND WHEN WATER DISTRICT NO. 2 IS ADDED TO WATER DISTRICT NO. 1, WHAT IMPACT WILL THAT HAVE ON THE CHLORINE NEEDS OF THE SYSTEM AND WHO SHALL PAY THOSE COSTS?
V. WHAT IMPACT WILL ADDING WATER DISTRICT NO 2 TO WATER PRESSURE IN WATER DISTRICT NO. 1?
As to existing water pressure issues in Poestenkill Water District No. 1, when one goes to the town website under Water Department, one finds this following entry, to wit:
Water District #1
Poestenkill has approximately 400 homes hooked up to the municipal water system.
Although we have lived through some difficulties that come with establishing a new water system, they are substantially behind us now.
We now have full pressure through most of the water district.
end quotes
If according to the town's own website on the Water District page there is full pressure through most of the water district, it would seem to logically follow that there is not full pressure in some of the water district.
Accordingly, before any hard numbers can be given regarding the costs of water district no. 2, it is imperative that town residents know exactly what adverse impacts to water district no 1 are to accrue, so that town residents are not then hit with a bunch of add-on costs to rectify problems glossed over by the Poestenkill town board in its undue haste to get this water district approved.
VI. WHAT IMPACT WILL WATER DISTRICT NO. 2 HAVE ON THE TOWN BUDGET WITH RESPECT TO STAFFING THE TOWN WATER DEPARTMENT?
Up until fairly recently the town water department was essentially a one-man operation.
Then Keith Hammond fired Bob Brunet for no cause and replaced him with three of Keith's cronies.
When water district no. 2 is added, how many more political cronies can we expect to be added to the town payroll, and who is expected to bear the costs of having them as town employees?
VII. OPTIONS
The logical and rational option all along has been the POET activated charcoal filter.
As was clearly stated in a New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) Report titled “Community Update - April 2023 – Poestenkill Area PFAS Contamination, POET filters are indeed the logical and rational option, and this proposed water district no. 2 is an irresponsible waste of taxpayer dollars, to wit:
To date, RCDOH has sampled 97 private wells near the school.
PFOA and/or perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS) were detected above the State’s public drinking water standards of 10 ppt in 14 private wells.
As a result, DEC provided the 14 homes served by private wells that exceed 10 ppt with point-of-entry treatment systems (POETs) to filter out PFAS and provide clean drinking water.
The remaining 83 private wells did not show PFOA or PFOS detections above the standards.
end quotes
As to the cost of these activated carbon point of entry treatment systems, it is between $300 – $1,800, and as the NYSDEC Report from April of 2023 makes incandescently clear, the 14 homes affected have already had these systems installed, which the NYSDEC states will provide them with clean drinking water, which is more than this proposed Water District No. 2 can claim, given it is based on a surface water supply which itself is susceptible to PFAS contamination.
As to the remaining 83 private wells, the cost of installing activated carbon filter point of entry systems, which is the most cost-effective solution, assuming a cost of $2000 per home, would be $166,000, which money Poestenkill already has in hand.
So why then do we need or want the added expense of water district no. 2, especially given that the Algonquin School, a key part of the Wohlleber Water District No. 2 proposal already has a granular activated carbon (GAC) system that the experts, the NYSDEC and NYSDOH and RCHD, all guarantee will provide effective long-term treatment of the contaminants to ensure clean water for the school community, which is a guarantee the town of Poestenkill cannot make?
Respectfully,
Paul R. Plante, NYSPE
THE PAUL PLANTE STORY
Re: THE PAUL PLANTE STORY
POESTENKILL CLARION, CHRONICLE & GAZETTE
Dedicated to the protection and preservation of intellectual liberty in Poestenkill
April 4th 2024 Edition
"THE POESTENKILL WATER DISTRICT NO 2 FLIM-FLAM IS ON AGAIN!"
Deceit, deception, dissembling and dishonesty, which are baked so deeply into Poestenkill's political DNA that they have become a way of life for Poestenkill politicians, were again the main theme in lawless Poestenkill last evening, April 3, 2024, at what was billed as a "Water District No. 2 Informational Hearing" starring a vice president of Laberge Engineering at the Poestenkill Fire House.
When I arrived at the venue early, it was to witness the Laberge vice president making it incandescently clear to supervisor Russell and councilman Burzesi that this is nothing more than a shell game, a case of bait-and-switch, or illegal segmentation, a Poestenkill specialty made an art form in Poestenkill by years of devoted practice, that we are being confronted with here.
For those unfamiliar with the term, "segmentation" occurs when an action, in this case the creation of a large water district, is broken down into small parts in order to avoid the appearance of significance of the total action, narrowly defining the "project," in this case, water district no. 2, in order to minimize potential impacts in an effort to avoid a higher level of SEQRA documentation.
Specifically, when I arrived, the Laberge vice president was instructing the supervisor and councilman how to pull an ideal FLIM-FLAM on us by getting us to create water district no. 2 based on false pretenses, which district will then be consolidated with district 1, with certain costs now born by district 1 being transferred to the residents of district 2, and at the same time, the town will then create water district no. 3, which it will then again consolidate, making one large water district in Poestenkill that we will have absolutely no control over, while it will have a great degree of control over us.
So the costs we are being presented with are not true costs, they are contrived costs to sucker us into approving water district no. 2 as a stand-alone water district, when it will be anything but.
Who does this benefit?
Land developers and real estate agents, and the City of Troy.
And as to mandatory hook-ups, according to Opinion 88-30 of the Office of the State Comptroller, according to Town Law §§130(15), 194(1)(b), 198, 201, 202, 202-a, 209-e(1)(b), a town, by ordinance, may require district property owners to connect to a district water system in the proper exercise of its police powers.
So when you are told by deceitful Poestenkill town officials that you are not required to hook up to the system, take that with a huge grain of salt, because this system will be an additional money-maker for the City of Troy which takes us to an Albany Times Union story “More rain, less water use makes for drier Troy revenues” “More rain, less water use makes for drier Troy revenues” by Kenneth C. Crowe II on Nov. 6, 2021, where we had as follows, to wit:
“Water revenues have fallen across the board,” said Mayor Patrick Madden citing a decline in sales to city residents and the other municipalities served by the city which include Menands, Brunswick, Rensselaer, East Greenbush, North Greenbush, Waterford, Poestenkill and Schaghticoke.
Would you like to be a cash cow for the City of Troy to feed off of?
If so, your choice is clear- vote YES for water district no. 2 and your dream will come true.
Dedicated to the protection and preservation of intellectual liberty in Poestenkill
April 4th 2024 Edition
"THE POESTENKILL WATER DISTRICT NO 2 FLIM-FLAM IS ON AGAIN!"
Deceit, deception, dissembling and dishonesty, which are baked so deeply into Poestenkill's political DNA that they have become a way of life for Poestenkill politicians, were again the main theme in lawless Poestenkill last evening, April 3, 2024, at what was billed as a "Water District No. 2 Informational Hearing" starring a vice president of Laberge Engineering at the Poestenkill Fire House.
When I arrived at the venue early, it was to witness the Laberge vice president making it incandescently clear to supervisor Russell and councilman Burzesi that this is nothing more than a shell game, a case of bait-and-switch, or illegal segmentation, a Poestenkill specialty made an art form in Poestenkill by years of devoted practice, that we are being confronted with here.
For those unfamiliar with the term, "segmentation" occurs when an action, in this case the creation of a large water district, is broken down into small parts in order to avoid the appearance of significance of the total action, narrowly defining the "project," in this case, water district no. 2, in order to minimize potential impacts in an effort to avoid a higher level of SEQRA documentation.
Specifically, when I arrived, the Laberge vice president was instructing the supervisor and councilman how to pull an ideal FLIM-FLAM on us by getting us to create water district no. 2 based on false pretenses, which district will then be consolidated with district 1, with certain costs now born by district 1 being transferred to the residents of district 2, and at the same time, the town will then create water district no. 3, which it will then again consolidate, making one large water district in Poestenkill that we will have absolutely no control over, while it will have a great degree of control over us.
So the costs we are being presented with are not true costs, they are contrived costs to sucker us into approving water district no. 2 as a stand-alone water district, when it will be anything but.
Who does this benefit?
Land developers and real estate agents, and the City of Troy.
And as to mandatory hook-ups, according to Opinion 88-30 of the Office of the State Comptroller, according to Town Law §§130(15), 194(1)(b), 198, 201, 202, 202-a, 209-e(1)(b), a town, by ordinance, may require district property owners to connect to a district water system in the proper exercise of its police powers.
So when you are told by deceitful Poestenkill town officials that you are not required to hook up to the system, take that with a huge grain of salt, because this system will be an additional money-maker for the City of Troy which takes us to an Albany Times Union story “More rain, less water use makes for drier Troy revenues” “More rain, less water use makes for drier Troy revenues” by Kenneth C. Crowe II on Nov. 6, 2021, where we had as follows, to wit:
“Water revenues have fallen across the board,” said Mayor Patrick Madden citing a decline in sales to city residents and the other municipalities served by the city which include Menands, Brunswick, Rensselaer, East Greenbush, North Greenbush, Waterford, Poestenkill and Schaghticoke.
Would you like to be a cash cow for the City of Troy to feed off of?
If so, your choice is clear- vote YES for water district no. 2 and your dream will come true.
Re: THE PAUL PLANTE STORY
POESTENKILL CLARION, CHRONICLE & GAZETTE
Dedicated to the protection and preservation of intellectual liberty in Poestenkill
April 5th 2024 Edition
"THE WATER DISTRICT NO 2 FLIM-FLAM - SCAMMING THE SUCKERS THE POESTENKILL!"
For those of us with long years of experience here in Poestenkill with what passes for town "government," getting lied to and fed half-truths and misrepresentations by Poestenkill town officials is what we have come to expect, and seldom if ever have we been disappointed, for they never fail to perform on cue, and such has been the case with this PFAS fiasco right since the very beginning, and such was the case at the Poestenkill fire department on Wednesday, April 3, 2024 with the supposed "informational" meeting on water district no. 2, because there are two things Poestenkill town officials have come to take for granted, given that the Poestenkill citizen body itself never fails to perform on cue, and those two things are that there are suckers waiting to be fleeced being born every minute, and seemingly flocking to Poestenkill to have that done to them, and it is not a crime in Poestenkill, or Rensselaer County, or New York state, to feed off the taxpayers, which is why they are there in the first place, to serve as human feed-lot cattle.
So hot are Poestenkill town officials to build their empire here in Poestenkill with this water district no 2. and water district no. 3 being expected to fuel a spate of development and bring huge coin into the coffers of Poestenkill to enrich the town officials and their cronies, as water district no. 1 is doing, to make Poestenkill another North Greenbush or Brunswick, that they are pulling out all the stops to get this water district no. 2 approved, by hook or crook, and for that reason, on April 3, 2024, they had the Laberge vice president, himself not an engineer and knowing absolutely nothing about engineering, which of course didn't stop him from talking about engineering, to lead the charge for them and pull wool over the eyes of the town residents who don't know better, and are easily impressed and cowed by "credentials," so that when confronted with the vice president of a large engineering company, they were suitably submissive, subservient and accepting of everything they were told, as if every word an engineering company vice president says is the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, when in fact, it might be nothing more than a slick web of lies, aided and abetted by the Poestenkill town officials at that meeting on April 3, 2024 who would not allow the falsehoods or misrepresentations to be challenged to keep the scam intact.
Case in point - a town resident wanted to know how much it would cost to have the pipe laid from the curb stop of the water system into their house, to which question the vice president replied, "$21 per foot," a value he said he got that very same day, figuring that somebody in the audience would ask that very question, from looking at a proposal for the Den Besten subdivision in Schodack, where there is deep soil, no rock, and easy digging.
When I attempted to challenge the validity of that figure with respect to Poestenkill, where there is rock, not easily-dug deep soil, as has been the case since the Wohlleber-Enck Flying Circus on September 27, 2021, I was shouted down and silenced, because truth and facts do not serve the purposes of those town officials, along with land speculators, real-estate touts and land developers, who want and need this water district to serve their purposes, not ours.
Dedicated to the protection and preservation of intellectual liberty in Poestenkill
April 5th 2024 Edition
"THE WATER DISTRICT NO 2 FLIM-FLAM - SCAMMING THE SUCKERS THE POESTENKILL!"
For those of us with long years of experience here in Poestenkill with what passes for town "government," getting lied to and fed half-truths and misrepresentations by Poestenkill town officials is what we have come to expect, and seldom if ever have we been disappointed, for they never fail to perform on cue, and such has been the case with this PFAS fiasco right since the very beginning, and such was the case at the Poestenkill fire department on Wednesday, April 3, 2024 with the supposed "informational" meeting on water district no. 2, because there are two things Poestenkill town officials have come to take for granted, given that the Poestenkill citizen body itself never fails to perform on cue, and those two things are that there are suckers waiting to be fleeced being born every minute, and seemingly flocking to Poestenkill to have that done to them, and it is not a crime in Poestenkill, or Rensselaer County, or New York state, to feed off the taxpayers, which is why they are there in the first place, to serve as human feed-lot cattle.
So hot are Poestenkill town officials to build their empire here in Poestenkill with this water district no 2. and water district no. 3 being expected to fuel a spate of development and bring huge coin into the coffers of Poestenkill to enrich the town officials and their cronies, as water district no. 1 is doing, to make Poestenkill another North Greenbush or Brunswick, that they are pulling out all the stops to get this water district no. 2 approved, by hook or crook, and for that reason, on April 3, 2024, they had the Laberge vice president, himself not an engineer and knowing absolutely nothing about engineering, which of course didn't stop him from talking about engineering, to lead the charge for them and pull wool over the eyes of the town residents who don't know better, and are easily impressed and cowed by "credentials," so that when confronted with the vice president of a large engineering company, they were suitably submissive, subservient and accepting of everything they were told, as if every word an engineering company vice president says is the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, when in fact, it might be nothing more than a slick web of lies, aided and abetted by the Poestenkill town officials at that meeting on April 3, 2024 who would not allow the falsehoods or misrepresentations to be challenged to keep the scam intact.
Case in point - a town resident wanted to know how much it would cost to have the pipe laid from the curb stop of the water system into their house, to which question the vice president replied, "$21 per foot," a value he said he got that very same day, figuring that somebody in the audience would ask that very question, from looking at a proposal for the Den Besten subdivision in Schodack, where there is deep soil, no rock, and easy digging.
When I attempted to challenge the validity of that figure with respect to Poestenkill, where there is rock, not easily-dug deep soil, as has been the case since the Wohlleber-Enck Flying Circus on September 27, 2021, I was shouted down and silenced, because truth and facts do not serve the purposes of those town officials, along with land speculators, real-estate touts and land developers, who want and need this water district to serve their purposes, not ours.
Re: THE PAUL PLANTE STORY
POESTENKILL CLARION, CHRONICLE & GAZETTE
Dedicated to the protection and preservation of intellectual liberty in Poestenkill
April 6th 2024 Edition
"THE WATER DISTRICT NO 2 FLIM-FLAM - FURTHER REFLECTIONS ON A SLICK SCAM IN POESTENKILL!"
And let us be incandescently clear about some things here with respect to this water district no. 2 FLIM-FLAM that is being pulled on us here by the town of Poestenkill in conjunction with their crony Laberge Engineering:
* Laberge Engineering in NOT our friend; and
* Laberge Engineering is NOT here to do us any favors!
Laberge Engineering is here in Poestenkill because Poestenkill is where the money for them is.
According to the Laberge vice president on April 3, 2024, Laberge is involved on a no-bid basis because of a phone call from Keith Hammond asking Laberge to come to Poestenkill to pull Keith's fat out of the fire after news of the PFAS fiasco broke and became public.
If one checks the numbers, Laberge is going to take home from the pockets of the Poestenkill residents who reside in water district no. 2, since it is we who pay their freight, a minimum of $395,000 for "engineering," plus $140,000 for what they call "construction observation," with another $100,000 for what they are calling "legal/administrative" costs, plus $60,000 for what they call "geotechnical," $65,000 for "survey and mapping," and $7,500 for "environmental," whatever in fact that might be, so all in all a nice paycheck for Laberge.
And let's be crystal clear as well as to what was going on when I walked into the fire house early on the evening of April 3, 2024.
This Laberge vice president was giving our newly-elected Democrat supervisor a Master Class in the old "duck-and-dodge" and "shuck-and-jive," or how to slick the Poestenkill taxpayers and gull them and scam them in one easy lesson, which the vice president commenced to do once the meeting started, and to his discredit, our newly elected supervisor, instead of standing up for the town residents and taxpayers, chose instead to be the defender of the Laberge vice president, who was then free to spew his misinformation with impunity!
"But first you have to get this done!"
At least three times during the scamming master class I witnessed on April 3, 2024 at the Poestenkill fire house, I heard the vice president of Laberge say those words to our supervisor as a command for him to "make the sale" and "close the deal" to get us to approve water district no. 2, at which time, we lose all control over what happens next and our lives, as well, because the water district is another layer of government in Poestenkill accountable to no one but themselves that will be able to levy further taxes on our property beyond our property taxes and school taxes, with no representation of our interests, whatsoever.
Dedicated to the protection and preservation of intellectual liberty in Poestenkill
April 6th 2024 Edition
"THE WATER DISTRICT NO 2 FLIM-FLAM - FURTHER REFLECTIONS ON A SLICK SCAM IN POESTENKILL!"
And let us be incandescently clear about some things here with respect to this water district no. 2 FLIM-FLAM that is being pulled on us here by the town of Poestenkill in conjunction with their crony Laberge Engineering:
* Laberge Engineering in NOT our friend; and
* Laberge Engineering is NOT here to do us any favors!
Laberge Engineering is here in Poestenkill because Poestenkill is where the money for them is.
According to the Laberge vice president on April 3, 2024, Laberge is involved on a no-bid basis because of a phone call from Keith Hammond asking Laberge to come to Poestenkill to pull Keith's fat out of the fire after news of the PFAS fiasco broke and became public.
If one checks the numbers, Laberge is going to take home from the pockets of the Poestenkill residents who reside in water district no. 2, since it is we who pay their freight, a minimum of $395,000 for "engineering," plus $140,000 for what they call "construction observation," with another $100,000 for what they are calling "legal/administrative" costs, plus $60,000 for what they call "geotechnical," $65,000 for "survey and mapping," and $7,500 for "environmental," whatever in fact that might be, so all in all a nice paycheck for Laberge.
And let's be crystal clear as well as to what was going on when I walked into the fire house early on the evening of April 3, 2024.
This Laberge vice president was giving our newly-elected Democrat supervisor a Master Class in the old "duck-and-dodge" and "shuck-and-jive," or how to slick the Poestenkill taxpayers and gull them and scam them in one easy lesson, which the vice president commenced to do once the meeting started, and to his discredit, our newly elected supervisor, instead of standing up for the town residents and taxpayers, chose instead to be the defender of the Laberge vice president, who was then free to spew his misinformation with impunity!
"But first you have to get this done!"
At least three times during the scamming master class I witnessed on April 3, 2024 at the Poestenkill fire house, I heard the vice president of Laberge say those words to our supervisor as a command for him to "make the sale" and "close the deal" to get us to approve water district no. 2, at which time, we lose all control over what happens next and our lives, as well, because the water district is another layer of government in Poestenkill accountable to no one but themselves that will be able to levy further taxes on our property beyond our property taxes and school taxes, with no representation of our interests, whatsoever.
Re: THE PAUL PLANTE STORY
POESTENKILL CLARION, CHRONICLE & GAZETTE
Dedicated to the protection and preservation of intellectual liberty in Poestenkill
April 8th 2024 Edition
"THE WATER DISTRICT NO 2 FLIM-FLAM - TELL THE GULLIBLE SUCKERS IN POESTENKILL ANYTHING AND THEY WILL BELIEVE EVERY WORD OF IT BECAUSE IT COMES FROM THE VOICE OF AUTHORITY!"
How many people in Poestenkill now believe that in Poestenkill, the cost of running a water line from the curbstop into one's dwelling is going to cost just $21 per foot because an engineering company vice president from out of town, the "voice of authority," with an interest in "getting this done" so his firm can latch on to that several million dollars in the kitty waiting to be spent on water district no. 2, told an influential town resident, a high-ranking member of Eric Wohlleber's CCCDW, at the Democrat supervisor's informational meeting at the Poestenkill fire house on April 3, 2024 that it would cost just $21 per foot based on an estimate from Schodack for digging a trench in deep soil?
And is that all there is with respect to getting public water service into one's dwelling in the event water district no. 2 were to be approved, the hope and dream of this Laberge vice president who is itching to get his hands on those millions - just dig a trench and you are good to go?
Not hardly!
Getting the trench dug is merely step one, and that trench is supposed to be four feet deep, which means if you have a foot-and-a-half or two feet of soil on your property, that you are going to be trenching in rock.
The next cost then is the water line into the house per foot.
And then there is the sand in the bottom of the trench the water line should be bedded in before it is backfilled.
And the cost of the hole that has to be drilled through the foundation wall to get the water line into the dwelling.
And then there is the cost of the water meter, said by some to be as much as $700, a figure that needs to be verified, and the cost of the plumbing if the homeowner is unable to do it themselves.
And then the trench must be backfilled.
So that $21 per foot number is just plain whacked-out looney tunes, which of course, won't make a difference in Poestenkill, because the looney tunes came from the voice of a real authority, the vice president of an engineering company, and everybody knows they never tell a lie or a fib, only the truth and nothing but the truth all the time, or they couldn't be an engineering company vice president, and so that number will be believed and disseminated as the truth.
Except if you bother to google the costs of running water line, the figures you get are an average of $50 to $150 per linear foot, although prices may reach as high as $250 per linear foot in areas with a high cost of living and for lines that are difficult to access, and that doesn't include the plumbing hook-up, which according to the Home Advisor website costs $1,710 on average, with most paying between $646 and $2,821, with the trenching and water line costing anywhere from $50 to $250 per linear foot, depending on length, material, depth, and accessibility.
And you still have to buy the meter.
Dedicated to the protection and preservation of intellectual liberty in Poestenkill
April 8th 2024 Edition
"THE WATER DISTRICT NO 2 FLIM-FLAM - TELL THE GULLIBLE SUCKERS IN POESTENKILL ANYTHING AND THEY WILL BELIEVE EVERY WORD OF IT BECAUSE IT COMES FROM THE VOICE OF AUTHORITY!"
How many people in Poestenkill now believe that in Poestenkill, the cost of running a water line from the curbstop into one's dwelling is going to cost just $21 per foot because an engineering company vice president from out of town, the "voice of authority," with an interest in "getting this done" so his firm can latch on to that several million dollars in the kitty waiting to be spent on water district no. 2, told an influential town resident, a high-ranking member of Eric Wohlleber's CCCDW, at the Democrat supervisor's informational meeting at the Poestenkill fire house on April 3, 2024 that it would cost just $21 per foot based on an estimate from Schodack for digging a trench in deep soil?
And is that all there is with respect to getting public water service into one's dwelling in the event water district no. 2 were to be approved, the hope and dream of this Laberge vice president who is itching to get his hands on those millions - just dig a trench and you are good to go?
Not hardly!
Getting the trench dug is merely step one, and that trench is supposed to be four feet deep, which means if you have a foot-and-a-half or two feet of soil on your property, that you are going to be trenching in rock.
The next cost then is the water line into the house per foot.
And then there is the sand in the bottom of the trench the water line should be bedded in before it is backfilled.
And the cost of the hole that has to be drilled through the foundation wall to get the water line into the dwelling.
And then there is the cost of the water meter, said by some to be as much as $700, a figure that needs to be verified, and the cost of the plumbing if the homeowner is unable to do it themselves.
And then the trench must be backfilled.
So that $21 per foot number is just plain whacked-out looney tunes, which of course, won't make a difference in Poestenkill, because the looney tunes came from the voice of a real authority, the vice president of an engineering company, and everybody knows they never tell a lie or a fib, only the truth and nothing but the truth all the time, or they couldn't be an engineering company vice president, and so that number will be believed and disseminated as the truth.
Except if you bother to google the costs of running water line, the figures you get are an average of $50 to $150 per linear foot, although prices may reach as high as $250 per linear foot in areas with a high cost of living and for lines that are difficult to access, and that doesn't include the plumbing hook-up, which according to the Home Advisor website costs $1,710 on average, with most paying between $646 and $2,821, with the trenching and water line costing anywhere from $50 to $250 per linear foot, depending on length, material, depth, and accessibility.
And you still have to buy the meter.
Re: THE PAUL PLANTE STORY
POESTENKILL CLARION, CHRONICLE & GAZETTE
Dedicated to the protection and preservation of intellectual liberty in Poestenkill
April 9th 2024 Edition
"THE WATER DISTRICT NO 2 FLIM-FLAM - DUPLICITY AND THE DISTRICT BOUNDARIES"
Because there were no records made of the so-called "informational" meeting on water district no. 2 on April 3, 2024 at the fire house, anybody who wasn't there has no way of knowing all that transpired, all the garbage that was pumped into the heads of the unwitting and unwary residents of Poestenkill who wouldn't know better, like that $21 per foot cost to run a water line from the curbstop into one's home, so I am forced to rely on memory in recounting the story of that meeting, which was nothing more than another attempt to load the heads of the Poestenkill town residents with absolute garbage so Democrat supervisor Russell can "get this done," and bring home all that bacon to Laberge.
Besides a debate about the number of times supervisor Russell told professional engineer Paul Plante to shut up each time Plante would try to expose another lie, one of the other main issues not dealt with related to the district boundaries, with some town residents questioning, as they should, why they were included in the water district when they didn't ask to be, while others wanted to know why they were excluded.
And since this is a very important topic, I am going to try to break it down into bite-sized pieces.
A question was asked as to why the water main was going to be run along Rt. 66, instead of Weatherwax Road, which question was met with some incomprehensible mealy-mouth mumbling known as dissembling, which word described not only that meeting, but this entire process going back to September 27, 2021 and the Wohlleber/Enck "community meeting" at the VFW, where we had then Poestenkill water manager Bob Brunet telling us as follows as recorded in a Midday Magazine article titled "Residents Of Poestenkill Discuss PFOA-Contaminated Drinking Water" by Dave Lucas on September 28, 2021, to wit:
Poestenkill Water Manager Bob Brunet says GAC's, granular activated carbon filters, which have been installed in two homes, offer a short-term option to remove the chemicals from water.
"These problems are caused by wells."
"Troy gets our water, I have no problems with our water, municipal water."
"Why?"
"Of course it’s purchase from Troy, pumped through Brunswick, and that water is from the surface water of the reservoir."
"So my recommendation is go ahead with the GAC's now, on everyone."
"Get the testing as quickly as we can if we have a problem, but the GAC’s on, but secondly, connect to our water from Troy."
"I've done all sorts of elevation calculation of mileage calculators, fully feasible, can be done."
"There's money out there."
"So those decisions have to be made."
end quotes
So there before our eyes, plain as day to those of us with minds that think and eyes that see is the sole rationale for this water district - to give Troy more revenue, which is to say that while his title was Poestenkill water manager, Brunet was in actuality a water salesman for Troy, reminiscent of William Mulholland in Los Angeles back in the "water war" days in the early-1900's, where water rights were acquired through political fighting and, as described by one author, "chicanery, subterfuge ... and a strategy of lies," which is exactly what we are be treated to here in Poestenkill with this water district no. 2, which will morph into water district no. 3, all of which will be consolidated with water district no. 1 to create one large district, and Rt. 66 from the intersection of 66 and Snyder's Corners Road down to Algonquin Beach Road will become another Latham or Brunswick.
The issue isn't who is now in the district and who is not.
The issue has to do with how much vacant land along both sides of 66 have been included in the district.
Once that district is established, as is the case along the middle Weatherwax Road, every square inch of that vacant land, hundreds of acres already zoned residential, will be entitled to tap into that water line, which conveniently will be waiting for that to happen, which first of all will make that land more valuable, think William Mullholland and the movie "Chinatown" where Jack Nickolson got his nose slit for sticking it where it don't belong, something many in Poestenkill who are going to benefit from that water line say is going to happen to engineer Plante if he don't wise up and learn to shut up as supervisor Russell told him to do so many times on April 3, 2024.
Which takes us to the minutes of the January 11, 2024 Poestenkill town board meeting, as follows:
DISCUSSION ITEMS
Revising Current Density Law with Planning Board Recommendations - Supervisor Russell explained that this is the initial discussion and A. Gilchrist supplied the town with a draft of what the Town of Brunswick had proposed. The Planning Board had reviewed the proposal and made written recommendations.
end quotes
Ask yourself this pertinent question: Why are Democrat Russell and Andy Gilchrist working together to make Poestenkill into another Brunswick?
And then we come to these items from those same minutes, to wit:
Revision of Water Code to allow sending “Estimate Readings” Under emergency Situations as needed - L.Basle had questions regarding what the town code currently stated. Supervisor Russell explained the Water Department is experiencing difficulties with the current software package and antennas. The replacements for antennas and the software package is expected to arrive mid February. A. Gilchrist instructed the town board on the steps to make this change to the Town code.
Comprehensive Plan - La Berge Group created a proposal for the comprehensive plan workshops, and resident information exchanges, and memorandum of understanding. A.Gilchrist instructed the board on the actions needed on order to review and authorize the memorandum of understanding. Motioned by Wohlleber, seconded by Russell, and an oral vote of 5 ayes.
end quotes
That is the same La Berge Group that was feeding us all the "bullcrap," as it was characterized by one town resident, on April 3, 2024.
So what is the game here, people, and besides the La Berge Group, land speculators and the City of Troy, who benefits?
Dedicated to the protection and preservation of intellectual liberty in Poestenkill
April 9th 2024 Edition
"THE WATER DISTRICT NO 2 FLIM-FLAM - DUPLICITY AND THE DISTRICT BOUNDARIES"
Because there were no records made of the so-called "informational" meeting on water district no. 2 on April 3, 2024 at the fire house, anybody who wasn't there has no way of knowing all that transpired, all the garbage that was pumped into the heads of the unwitting and unwary residents of Poestenkill who wouldn't know better, like that $21 per foot cost to run a water line from the curbstop into one's home, so I am forced to rely on memory in recounting the story of that meeting, which was nothing more than another attempt to load the heads of the Poestenkill town residents with absolute garbage so Democrat supervisor Russell can "get this done," and bring home all that bacon to Laberge.
Besides a debate about the number of times supervisor Russell told professional engineer Paul Plante to shut up each time Plante would try to expose another lie, one of the other main issues not dealt with related to the district boundaries, with some town residents questioning, as they should, why they were included in the water district when they didn't ask to be, while others wanted to know why they were excluded.
And since this is a very important topic, I am going to try to break it down into bite-sized pieces.
A question was asked as to why the water main was going to be run along Rt. 66, instead of Weatherwax Road, which question was met with some incomprehensible mealy-mouth mumbling known as dissembling, which word described not only that meeting, but this entire process going back to September 27, 2021 and the Wohlleber/Enck "community meeting" at the VFW, where we had then Poestenkill water manager Bob Brunet telling us as follows as recorded in a Midday Magazine article titled "Residents Of Poestenkill Discuss PFOA-Contaminated Drinking Water" by Dave Lucas on September 28, 2021, to wit:
Poestenkill Water Manager Bob Brunet says GAC's, granular activated carbon filters, which have been installed in two homes, offer a short-term option to remove the chemicals from water.
"These problems are caused by wells."
"Troy gets our water, I have no problems with our water, municipal water."
"Why?"
"Of course it’s purchase from Troy, pumped through Brunswick, and that water is from the surface water of the reservoir."
"So my recommendation is go ahead with the GAC's now, on everyone."
"Get the testing as quickly as we can if we have a problem, but the GAC’s on, but secondly, connect to our water from Troy."
"I've done all sorts of elevation calculation of mileage calculators, fully feasible, can be done."
"There's money out there."
"So those decisions have to be made."
end quotes
So there before our eyes, plain as day to those of us with minds that think and eyes that see is the sole rationale for this water district - to give Troy more revenue, which is to say that while his title was Poestenkill water manager, Brunet was in actuality a water salesman for Troy, reminiscent of William Mulholland in Los Angeles back in the "water war" days in the early-1900's, where water rights were acquired through political fighting and, as described by one author, "chicanery, subterfuge ... and a strategy of lies," which is exactly what we are be treated to here in Poestenkill with this water district no. 2, which will morph into water district no. 3, all of which will be consolidated with water district no. 1 to create one large district, and Rt. 66 from the intersection of 66 and Snyder's Corners Road down to Algonquin Beach Road will become another Latham or Brunswick.
The issue isn't who is now in the district and who is not.
The issue has to do with how much vacant land along both sides of 66 have been included in the district.
Once that district is established, as is the case along the middle Weatherwax Road, every square inch of that vacant land, hundreds of acres already zoned residential, will be entitled to tap into that water line, which conveniently will be waiting for that to happen, which first of all will make that land more valuable, think William Mullholland and the movie "Chinatown" where Jack Nickolson got his nose slit for sticking it where it don't belong, something many in Poestenkill who are going to benefit from that water line say is going to happen to engineer Plante if he don't wise up and learn to shut up as supervisor Russell told him to do so many times on April 3, 2024.
Which takes us to the minutes of the January 11, 2024 Poestenkill town board meeting, as follows:
DISCUSSION ITEMS
Revising Current Density Law with Planning Board Recommendations - Supervisor Russell explained that this is the initial discussion and A. Gilchrist supplied the town with a draft of what the Town of Brunswick had proposed. The Planning Board had reviewed the proposal and made written recommendations.
end quotes
Ask yourself this pertinent question: Why are Democrat Russell and Andy Gilchrist working together to make Poestenkill into another Brunswick?
And then we come to these items from those same minutes, to wit:
Revision of Water Code to allow sending “Estimate Readings” Under emergency Situations as needed - L.Basle had questions regarding what the town code currently stated. Supervisor Russell explained the Water Department is experiencing difficulties with the current software package and antennas. The replacements for antennas and the software package is expected to arrive mid February. A. Gilchrist instructed the town board on the steps to make this change to the Town code.
Comprehensive Plan - La Berge Group created a proposal for the comprehensive plan workshops, and resident information exchanges, and memorandum of understanding. A.Gilchrist instructed the board on the actions needed on order to review and authorize the memorandum of understanding. Motioned by Wohlleber, seconded by Russell, and an oral vote of 5 ayes.
end quotes
That is the same La Berge Group that was feeding us all the "bullcrap," as it was characterized by one town resident, on April 3, 2024.
So what is the game here, people, and besides the La Berge Group, land speculators and the City of Troy, who benefits?
Re: THE PAUL PLANTE STORY
POESTENKILL CLARION, CHRONICLE & GAZETTE
Dedicated to the protection and preservation of intellectual liberty in Poestenkill
April 10th 2024 Edition
"THE WATER DISTRICT NO 2 FLIM-FLAM - SELLING WATER BIG BUSINESS FOR TROY"
As we saw in the April 9th edition of the Clarion, so-called Poestenkill water manager Bob Brunet is in reality a water salesman for the City of Troy, and if we check some hard data, we can see why Brunet and Troy want to expand the Troy water system further into Poestenkill with water districts no. 2 and no. 3 added on to water district no. 1, to wit:
From Office of State Comptroller:
November 4, 2021
Honorable Wm. Patrick Madden, Mayor
Members of the City Council
City of Troy
City Hall
Troy, NY 12180
Report Number: B21-5-10
Dear Mayor Madden and Members of the City Council:
Water Fund Revenues
Metered Water Rents – The proposed water fund budget includes estimated revenues of $4,350,000 for metered water rents.
While the estimated revenues appear reasonable, the realization of these revenues is contingent upon the Council’s approval of a proposed water rate increase of $.20 per 1,000 gallons of usage or approximately six percent.
If the rate increase is not approved, or is approved at a different amount than the proposed rate, the water fund budget should be modified accordingly.
Town of Halfmoon and Water Commissioners of the Town of Waterford (Commissioners) Water Rents – The proposed water fund budget includes estimated revenues of $1.7 million for water rents assessed to the Town of Halfmoon and Commissioners, which appear reasonable based on the recorded revenues of approximately the same amount in 2020.
However, based on the recorded revenues for the first nine months of 2021, we project that the City will only realize approximately $1.2 million of the estimated $1.9 million in water rent revenues in 2021, resulting in a potential revenue shortfall of approximately $700,000.
City officials told us these revenues were impacted by unseasonably rainy weather in 2021, resulting in reduced water usage (e.g., watering of lawns) and sales.
However, in recent years, these revenues have also been impacted because the Town of Halfmoon and Commissioners entered water sales agreements with other entities, purchasing a portion of their water supply from them instead of only the City.
The Town of Halfmoon entered a water sales agreement with the Saratoga County Water Authority, requiring the Town to purchase a minimum of one million gallons per day, and the Commissioners entered a water sales agreement with the City of Cohoes, which does not contain a required minimum purchase amount.
Furthermore, the City’s water sales agreements with the Town of Halfmoon and commissioners do not contain required minimum purchase amounts.
As a result, City officials’ ability to estimate the amount of water that the Town of Halfmoon and Commissioners will purchase from the City and the corresponding revenues to be realized is hindered.
We caution the Council to be mindful of this when adopting the budget.
In addition, City officials should closely monitor these revenue estimates throughout 2022 and develop a plan to balance the budget in the event the revenue projections are not fully realized.
end quotes
From Office of State Comptroller:
November 4, 2022
Honorable Wm. Patrick Madden, Mayor
Members of the City Council
City of Troy
City Hall
Troy, NY 12180
Report Number: B22-5-7
Dear Mayor Madden and Members of the City Council:
Water Fund Revenues
Metered Water Rents – The proposed water fund budget includes estimated revenues of $5.1 million for metered water rents, which is a $745,000 (17 percent) increase from the 2022 adopted budget.
City officials told us the estimate for 2023 is based on historical water usage, projected water usage in 2022 and a proposed water rate increase of $.40 per 1,000 gallons of usage, or approximately 11 percent.
end quotes
And I believe the water rate was jacked up again this year by Troy, and year after year will continue to be jacked up, because the rate payers outside of Troy have no voice whatsoever in the process, which makes us the equivalent of feed-lot cattle for Troy in a county and state where feeding off the taxpayers is not a crime.
And what happens when you can't pay your water bill, and all these additional taxes being heaped on us by the creation of water district no. 2?
You get thrown off your land, it goes up for tax sale, a developer buys it for a song and life goes on and at least some are quite happy about it.
So which way are you going to go?
Dedicated to the protection and preservation of intellectual liberty in Poestenkill
April 10th 2024 Edition
"THE WATER DISTRICT NO 2 FLIM-FLAM - SELLING WATER BIG BUSINESS FOR TROY"
As we saw in the April 9th edition of the Clarion, so-called Poestenkill water manager Bob Brunet is in reality a water salesman for the City of Troy, and if we check some hard data, we can see why Brunet and Troy want to expand the Troy water system further into Poestenkill with water districts no. 2 and no. 3 added on to water district no. 1, to wit:
From Office of State Comptroller:
November 4, 2021
Honorable Wm. Patrick Madden, Mayor
Members of the City Council
City of Troy
City Hall
Troy, NY 12180
Report Number: B21-5-10
Dear Mayor Madden and Members of the City Council:
Water Fund Revenues
Metered Water Rents – The proposed water fund budget includes estimated revenues of $4,350,000 for metered water rents.
While the estimated revenues appear reasonable, the realization of these revenues is contingent upon the Council’s approval of a proposed water rate increase of $.20 per 1,000 gallons of usage or approximately six percent.
If the rate increase is not approved, or is approved at a different amount than the proposed rate, the water fund budget should be modified accordingly.
Town of Halfmoon and Water Commissioners of the Town of Waterford (Commissioners) Water Rents – The proposed water fund budget includes estimated revenues of $1.7 million for water rents assessed to the Town of Halfmoon and Commissioners, which appear reasonable based on the recorded revenues of approximately the same amount in 2020.
However, based on the recorded revenues for the first nine months of 2021, we project that the City will only realize approximately $1.2 million of the estimated $1.9 million in water rent revenues in 2021, resulting in a potential revenue shortfall of approximately $700,000.
City officials told us these revenues were impacted by unseasonably rainy weather in 2021, resulting in reduced water usage (e.g., watering of lawns) and sales.
However, in recent years, these revenues have also been impacted because the Town of Halfmoon and Commissioners entered water sales agreements with other entities, purchasing a portion of their water supply from them instead of only the City.
The Town of Halfmoon entered a water sales agreement with the Saratoga County Water Authority, requiring the Town to purchase a minimum of one million gallons per day, and the Commissioners entered a water sales agreement with the City of Cohoes, which does not contain a required minimum purchase amount.
Furthermore, the City’s water sales agreements with the Town of Halfmoon and commissioners do not contain required minimum purchase amounts.
As a result, City officials’ ability to estimate the amount of water that the Town of Halfmoon and Commissioners will purchase from the City and the corresponding revenues to be realized is hindered.
We caution the Council to be mindful of this when adopting the budget.
In addition, City officials should closely monitor these revenue estimates throughout 2022 and develop a plan to balance the budget in the event the revenue projections are not fully realized.
end quotes
From Office of State Comptroller:
November 4, 2022
Honorable Wm. Patrick Madden, Mayor
Members of the City Council
City of Troy
City Hall
Troy, NY 12180
Report Number: B22-5-7
Dear Mayor Madden and Members of the City Council:
Water Fund Revenues
Metered Water Rents – The proposed water fund budget includes estimated revenues of $5.1 million for metered water rents, which is a $745,000 (17 percent) increase from the 2022 adopted budget.
City officials told us the estimate for 2023 is based on historical water usage, projected water usage in 2022 and a proposed water rate increase of $.40 per 1,000 gallons of usage, or approximately 11 percent.
end quotes
And I believe the water rate was jacked up again this year by Troy, and year after year will continue to be jacked up, because the rate payers outside of Troy have no voice whatsoever in the process, which makes us the equivalent of feed-lot cattle for Troy in a county and state where feeding off the taxpayers is not a crime.
And what happens when you can't pay your water bill, and all these additional taxes being heaped on us by the creation of water district no. 2?
You get thrown off your land, it goes up for tax sale, a developer buys it for a song and life goes on and at least some are quite happy about it.
So which way are you going to go?
Re: THE PAUL PLANTE STORY
POESTENKILL CLARION, CHRONICLE & GAZETTE
Dedicated to the protection and preservation of intellectual liberty in Poestenkill
April 10th 2024 Supplemental Edition
"THE WATER DISTRICT NO 2 FLIM-FLAM - IF THE SCHOOL DISTRICT CAUSED THE HARM, THEN WHY IS POESTENKILL ACTING LIKE THE GUILTY PARTY?"
As concerned town residents continue their attempts to penetrate the murkiness surrounding this water district no. 2 proposal in Poestenkill, which process, by intent and by design, has all the transparency of a sheet of thick lead in order to keep affected Poestenkill residents confused and therefore unable to ask relevant questions and obtain satisfactory answers, another important issue raised at the so-called April 3, 2024 "water district no. 2 informational meeting" was that no need for this water district and the accompanying public water supply has ever been demonstrated pursuant to the statutory requirements of New York State Town Law § 209-E, which law states in clear, unambiguous and unequivocal statutory language as follows with respect to exactly what evidence the town must be in possession before it can approve this water district, to wit:
Establishment or Extension of Districts
1. After the hearing held upon notice as hereinbefore provided and upon the evidence given thereat, the town board shall determine by resolution:
(b) whether all the property and property owners within the proposed district or extension are benefited thereby;
(c) whether all the property and property owners benefited are included within the limits of the proposed district or extension;
(d) whether the establishment or extension of such district is in the public interest.
This question is relevant because to date, there has been no demonstration whatsoever that this water district is even needed because in a New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) Report titled “Community Update - April 2023 – Poestenkill Area PFAS Contamination, it was stated as follows, to wit:
To date, RCDOH has sampled 97 private wells near the school.
PFOA and/or perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS) were detected above the State’s public drinking water standards of 10 ppt in 14 private wells.
As a result, DEC provided the 14 homes served by private wells that exceed 10 ppt with point-of-entry treatment systems (POETs) to filter out PFAS and provide clean drinking water.
The remaining 83 private wells did not show PFOA or PFOS detections above the standards.
end quotes
The cost of these activated carbon point of entry treatment systems is between $300 – $1,800, and as the NYSDEC Report from April of 2023 makes incandescently clear, the 14 homes affected have already had these systems installed, which the NYSDEC states will provide them with clean drinking water, which is more than this proposed Water District No. 2 can claim, given it is based on a surface water supply which itself is susceptible to PFAS contamination.
As to the remaining 83 private wells, the cost of installing activated carbon filter point of entry systems, which is the most cost-effective solution, assuming a cost of $2000 per home, would be $166,000, which money Poestenkill already has in hand.
So the question was asked, why then is the town of Poestenkill driving its residents into hock to pay for a water system not needed, to which question the Laberge vice president responded "the town can't buy those filters," and immediately after, Democrat Tom Russell pol-parroted the same words and then before the questioner could comment that it wasn't the town but the Averill Park School District that would have to pay for the filters, the discussion on that subject was abruptly halted as forbidden territory which takes us back to the evening of July 13, 2023 and the Poestenkill Town Board Meeting that evening ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YDM4oJxMWEI ) and in all truth, who of us in here in Poestenkill who are sane, rational and in full possession of our wits and who are attentive to town business affecting our health and well-being can forget the rousing and impassioned rhetoric of councilman Eric Wohlleber beginning at 46:25 of that video as to the crying need for litigation against the Averill Park School District, who councilman Wohlleber named as the guilty parties here with respect to contaminating Poestenkill's groundwater supply with a copious amount of PFAS in a reckless criminal manner, to proceed to finally get justice for the inhabitants of Poestenkill and the children of Algonquin Middle School who Wohlleber made clear are the victims of this clear dereliction of duty by the Averill Park School District, which dereliction of duty cannot go unpunished as councilman Wohlleber made crystal clear in his impassioned speech that evening as he called for heads to roll and people to be jailed, as they would be if this were Flint, Michigan with its low tolerance for corrupt and incompetent public officials who put the lives of children in jeopardy, with the rhetoric of councilman Wohlleber making clear to one and all the sheer magnitude of what is truly at stake here, which is the future of democracy itself in Poestenkill, as well as law and order in Poestenkill, where the guilty do not go unpunished for their foul deeds, as too often has been the case in the past in Poestenkill, and after his speech was over, each councilperson and then-supervisor Hammond all voted in the affirmative to proceed with the litigation to make the school district and its tax payers pay for the irreparable harm they have done to Poestenkill and its citizen body, and that, people, is the last we ever heard about that litigation.
Instead, and this was made patently clear on April 3, 2024, the town is expending its time and its financial resources to bring a water line down Rt. 66 so as to provide Troy city water to the Algonquin School, as if it is the town of Poestenkill that is really the guilty party here, guilty of contaminating the water supply of the Algonquin School, which doesn't need Troy City water.
So what is really going on here, people?
If the town of Poestenkill, as it says, has proof positive that the Averill Park School District is really the guilty party, then why isn't the town of Poestenkill suing for damages instead of the town acting like it is really the culprit?
Is it because the town really knows that it is the culprit and not the school district, which fact would be brought out in a court of law in the event the town was stupid enough to sue the school district?
Stay tuned, more is yet to come.
Dedicated to the protection and preservation of intellectual liberty in Poestenkill
April 10th 2024 Supplemental Edition
"THE WATER DISTRICT NO 2 FLIM-FLAM - IF THE SCHOOL DISTRICT CAUSED THE HARM, THEN WHY IS POESTENKILL ACTING LIKE THE GUILTY PARTY?"
As concerned town residents continue their attempts to penetrate the murkiness surrounding this water district no. 2 proposal in Poestenkill, which process, by intent and by design, has all the transparency of a sheet of thick lead in order to keep affected Poestenkill residents confused and therefore unable to ask relevant questions and obtain satisfactory answers, another important issue raised at the so-called April 3, 2024 "water district no. 2 informational meeting" was that no need for this water district and the accompanying public water supply has ever been demonstrated pursuant to the statutory requirements of New York State Town Law § 209-E, which law states in clear, unambiguous and unequivocal statutory language as follows with respect to exactly what evidence the town must be in possession before it can approve this water district, to wit:
Establishment or Extension of Districts
1. After the hearing held upon notice as hereinbefore provided and upon the evidence given thereat, the town board shall determine by resolution:
(b) whether all the property and property owners within the proposed district or extension are benefited thereby;
(c) whether all the property and property owners benefited are included within the limits of the proposed district or extension;
(d) whether the establishment or extension of such district is in the public interest.
This question is relevant because to date, there has been no demonstration whatsoever that this water district is even needed because in a New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) Report titled “Community Update - April 2023 – Poestenkill Area PFAS Contamination, it was stated as follows, to wit:
To date, RCDOH has sampled 97 private wells near the school.
PFOA and/or perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS) were detected above the State’s public drinking water standards of 10 ppt in 14 private wells.
As a result, DEC provided the 14 homes served by private wells that exceed 10 ppt with point-of-entry treatment systems (POETs) to filter out PFAS and provide clean drinking water.
The remaining 83 private wells did not show PFOA or PFOS detections above the standards.
end quotes
The cost of these activated carbon point of entry treatment systems is between $300 – $1,800, and as the NYSDEC Report from April of 2023 makes incandescently clear, the 14 homes affected have already had these systems installed, which the NYSDEC states will provide them with clean drinking water, which is more than this proposed Water District No. 2 can claim, given it is based on a surface water supply which itself is susceptible to PFAS contamination.
As to the remaining 83 private wells, the cost of installing activated carbon filter point of entry systems, which is the most cost-effective solution, assuming a cost of $2000 per home, would be $166,000, which money Poestenkill already has in hand.
So the question was asked, why then is the town of Poestenkill driving its residents into hock to pay for a water system not needed, to which question the Laberge vice president responded "the town can't buy those filters," and immediately after, Democrat Tom Russell pol-parroted the same words and then before the questioner could comment that it wasn't the town but the Averill Park School District that would have to pay for the filters, the discussion on that subject was abruptly halted as forbidden territory which takes us back to the evening of July 13, 2023 and the Poestenkill Town Board Meeting that evening ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YDM4oJxMWEI ) and in all truth, who of us in here in Poestenkill who are sane, rational and in full possession of our wits and who are attentive to town business affecting our health and well-being can forget the rousing and impassioned rhetoric of councilman Eric Wohlleber beginning at 46:25 of that video as to the crying need for litigation against the Averill Park School District, who councilman Wohlleber named as the guilty parties here with respect to contaminating Poestenkill's groundwater supply with a copious amount of PFAS in a reckless criminal manner, to proceed to finally get justice for the inhabitants of Poestenkill and the children of Algonquin Middle School who Wohlleber made clear are the victims of this clear dereliction of duty by the Averill Park School District, which dereliction of duty cannot go unpunished as councilman Wohlleber made crystal clear in his impassioned speech that evening as he called for heads to roll and people to be jailed, as they would be if this were Flint, Michigan with its low tolerance for corrupt and incompetent public officials who put the lives of children in jeopardy, with the rhetoric of councilman Wohlleber making clear to one and all the sheer magnitude of what is truly at stake here, which is the future of democracy itself in Poestenkill, as well as law and order in Poestenkill, where the guilty do not go unpunished for their foul deeds, as too often has been the case in the past in Poestenkill, and after his speech was over, each councilperson and then-supervisor Hammond all voted in the affirmative to proceed with the litigation to make the school district and its tax payers pay for the irreparable harm they have done to Poestenkill and its citizen body, and that, people, is the last we ever heard about that litigation.
Instead, and this was made patently clear on April 3, 2024, the town is expending its time and its financial resources to bring a water line down Rt. 66 so as to provide Troy city water to the Algonquin School, as if it is the town of Poestenkill that is really the guilty party here, guilty of contaminating the water supply of the Algonquin School, which doesn't need Troy City water.
So what is really going on here, people?
If the town of Poestenkill, as it says, has proof positive that the Averill Park School District is really the guilty party, then why isn't the town of Poestenkill suing for damages instead of the town acting like it is really the culprit?
Is it because the town really knows that it is the culprit and not the school district, which fact would be brought out in a court of law in the event the town was stupid enough to sue the school district?
Stay tuned, more is yet to come.
Re: THE PAUL PLANTE STORY
POESTENKILL CLARION, CHRONICLE & GAZETTE
Dedicated to the protection and preservation of intellectual liberty in Poestenkill
April 11th 2024 Edition
"THE WATER DISTRICT NO 2 FLIM-FLAM - A WHIFF OF PANIC IN POESTENKILL"
At the farce on April 3, 2024 at the Poestenkill fire house billed as a "water district no. 2 information meeting," when it was anything but, more a misinformation meeting than anything, questions were asked, as was previously stated, about why certain properties were in the district while others were not, and no clear answer was given, which is because Poestenkill has a long history of being deceitful and dishonest.
The answer as to why certain properties are in the district while others are not is because Keith Hammond, Eric Wohlleber, June Butler, David Hass and Harold Van Slyke chose it to be that way in August of 2022, when they accepted a Map, Plan and Report showing the district boundary prepared for them by this Laberge crowd, which crowd is now panicking and full of angst because all these supposed millions of dollars in the kitty which don't really exist are going to disappear in so many days, leaving Laberge with empty pockets, unless Democrat Russell can "get it done," for them, that being to get this water district approved in the next so many weeks, which is what all the rush and hurry are about now - to protect the interests of Laberge.
And Wohlleber, Butler and Hass all sit there with a straight face when asked why some are in the district and others are not as if they were totally clueless as to why that was, when it is because they were the ones who made it that way.
As to what really is going on here, what is intentionally not being told to us in these misinformation meetings, it is as follows from the Report and Plan accepted by Hammond, Wohlleber, Butler, Hass and Van Slyke in August of 2022:
Formation of Water District No. 2 is proposed to provide the community with a safe and reliable source of drinking water.
Due to community needs, the Town’s financial capacity, and customer interest, the project is proposed in two phases.
Phase 1 consists of installing water infrastructure from District No. 1 to the middle school, down Liberty Lane, and throughout Algonquin Estates.
These areas can be serviced with sufficient pressure from the existing water tank and the improvements will solve the immediate need for clean water supply to areas that have seen contamination.
There are two alternatives considered for the first phase of the water district, both of which include Liberty Lane and Algonquin Estates improvements.
Phase 2 improvements include continuing the water infrastructure down Route 66 to the Town of Sand Lake border and, due to increased elevations, will require a new water storage tank and booster pump station to provide all of the areas within this phase with the required water pressure.
The storage tank proposed location is at the end of Vosburgh Road at a much higher elevation than the remainder of the district, requiring the installation of pressure reducing valves within the areas in order to limit the maximum pressure entering the low elevation zones.
This phase adds a significant cost to the project without many additional users but provides a future connection point for the Town of Sand Lake to continue the water infrastructure into the town.
Sand Lake is currently developing a design report for the feasibility of creating a water district by extending the water from Poestenkill due to contaminated water levels found in town.
This allows an opportunity for an intermunicipal project to be developed using Phase 2 improvements in order to open up more grant funding opportunities.
It is noted that the new Poestenkill water district will increase the flow requirements from City of Troy supply and Town of Brunswick distribution system.
Specifically, including Phase 2 into the improvements along with the remainder of the areas will cause the required flow to exceed the available water supply from the Brunswick water infrastructure.
The Town of Brunswick has indicated that in order to transport additional water to the Town of Poestenkill multiple improvements are required.
Improvements and their associated costs to the Brunswick water system have been described in order to provide the water users in all impacted Towns with an improved and more reliable system.
Dedicated to the protection and preservation of intellectual liberty in Poestenkill
April 11th 2024 Edition
"THE WATER DISTRICT NO 2 FLIM-FLAM - A WHIFF OF PANIC IN POESTENKILL"
At the farce on April 3, 2024 at the Poestenkill fire house billed as a "water district no. 2 information meeting," when it was anything but, more a misinformation meeting than anything, questions were asked, as was previously stated, about why certain properties were in the district while others were not, and no clear answer was given, which is because Poestenkill has a long history of being deceitful and dishonest.
The answer as to why certain properties are in the district while others are not is because Keith Hammond, Eric Wohlleber, June Butler, David Hass and Harold Van Slyke chose it to be that way in August of 2022, when they accepted a Map, Plan and Report showing the district boundary prepared for them by this Laberge crowd, which crowd is now panicking and full of angst because all these supposed millions of dollars in the kitty which don't really exist are going to disappear in so many days, leaving Laberge with empty pockets, unless Democrat Russell can "get it done," for them, that being to get this water district approved in the next so many weeks, which is what all the rush and hurry are about now - to protect the interests of Laberge.
And Wohlleber, Butler and Hass all sit there with a straight face when asked why some are in the district and others are not as if they were totally clueless as to why that was, when it is because they were the ones who made it that way.
As to what really is going on here, what is intentionally not being told to us in these misinformation meetings, it is as follows from the Report and Plan accepted by Hammond, Wohlleber, Butler, Hass and Van Slyke in August of 2022:
Formation of Water District No. 2 is proposed to provide the community with a safe and reliable source of drinking water.
Due to community needs, the Town’s financial capacity, and customer interest, the project is proposed in two phases.
Phase 1 consists of installing water infrastructure from District No. 1 to the middle school, down Liberty Lane, and throughout Algonquin Estates.
These areas can be serviced with sufficient pressure from the existing water tank and the improvements will solve the immediate need for clean water supply to areas that have seen contamination.
There are two alternatives considered for the first phase of the water district, both of which include Liberty Lane and Algonquin Estates improvements.
Phase 2 improvements include continuing the water infrastructure down Route 66 to the Town of Sand Lake border and, due to increased elevations, will require a new water storage tank and booster pump station to provide all of the areas within this phase with the required water pressure.
The storage tank proposed location is at the end of Vosburgh Road at a much higher elevation than the remainder of the district, requiring the installation of pressure reducing valves within the areas in order to limit the maximum pressure entering the low elevation zones.
This phase adds a significant cost to the project without many additional users but provides a future connection point for the Town of Sand Lake to continue the water infrastructure into the town.
Sand Lake is currently developing a design report for the feasibility of creating a water district by extending the water from Poestenkill due to contaminated water levels found in town.
This allows an opportunity for an intermunicipal project to be developed using Phase 2 improvements in order to open up more grant funding opportunities.
It is noted that the new Poestenkill water district will increase the flow requirements from City of Troy supply and Town of Brunswick distribution system.
Specifically, including Phase 2 into the improvements along with the remainder of the areas will cause the required flow to exceed the available water supply from the Brunswick water infrastructure.
The Town of Brunswick has indicated that in order to transport additional water to the Town of Poestenkill multiple improvements are required.
Improvements and their associated costs to the Brunswick water system have been described in order to provide the water users in all impacted Towns with an improved and more reliable system.
Re: THE PAUL PLANTE STORY
POESTENKILL CLARION, CHRONICLE & GAZETTE
Dedicated to the protection and preservation of intellectual liberty in Poestenkill
April 12th 2024 Edition
"THE WATER DISTRICT NO 2 FLIM-FLAM - LIES EXPOSED, RETALIATION RAMPS UP"
Drivers on Weatherwax Road off Rt. 66 early this morning, it being the morning after Poestenkill engineer Paul Plante spoke out at the April 11, 2024 town board meeting against on-going corrupt practices in Poestenkill regarding water district no. 2, noticed that what are known as Poestenkill's Nazi Concentration Camp spotlights mounted on the brick house of Gettings on the west end of Liberty Lane were once again in full operation, lighting up Plante's land like it was indeed the yard of a prison, the way the Rensselaer County jail is lit up, and drivers on Liberty Lane reported getting hit in the eyes by what are known as "light traps" on the Gettings house and the yellow house just east of it, "light traps" being spotlights with sensors to detect a passing car aimed outwards so as to strike drivers on Liberty Lane in the eyes, another form of harassment and retaliation in Poestenkill, as they drive past those houses on what is known as the "Hate Alley" section of Liberty Lane in Poestenkill, where instead of burning crosses on the lawn of someone they want to intimidate and force out of Poestenkill, they use high-tech, high-intensity spotlights of several thousand candlepower instead, because it is so much more efficient than going to the trouble of building crosses to burn.
As to the town board meeting, we finally had an admission from the town that this supposed lawsuit against the Averill Park School District for causing the PFAS contamination is going nowhere because of "INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE" that the Algonquin School is the source of the contamination ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tc0BOo3NIa4 @ 16.10 ).
As to the exposition of the corrupt practices, Plante cited from the August 2022 report of this Laberge Group used by the town to secure the funding for the proposed water district, specifically citing from the section titled PROJECT BACKGROUND AND HISTORY, going to g) Other Environmental Factors, wherein was stated that the Town, as required to submit for certain grant funds, had completed the required SEQRA review, declaring water district no. 2 to be an "unlisted" SEQRA" action requiring no review, and had made a Determination of Significance under SEQRA (6 NYCRR Part 617), and that the Town Board (Hammond, Wohlleber, Hass, Butler, Van Slyke) had issued a Negative Declaration on September 8th, 2022, which declared as follows:
Upon review of the information recorded on this EAF, as noted, plus this additional support information within the attached Preliminary Engineering Report and considering both the magnitude and importance of each identified potential impact, it is the conclusion of the Town of Poestenkill as lead agency that:
A. This project will result in no significant adverse impacts on the environment, and, therefore, an environmental impact statement need not be prepared.
Accordingly, this negative declaration is issued.
end quotes
The reality is that this is no more an unlisted action with no impacts to the town's character than is the moon made of green cheese.
But more on that subject is yet to come in the next edition of the Clarion, so stay tuned, but watch what you think and what you say, or you might find the Poestenkill Ku Klux Klan burning crosses on your front lawn, as well!
Dedicated to the protection and preservation of intellectual liberty in Poestenkill
April 12th 2024 Edition
"THE WATER DISTRICT NO 2 FLIM-FLAM - LIES EXPOSED, RETALIATION RAMPS UP"
Drivers on Weatherwax Road off Rt. 66 early this morning, it being the morning after Poestenkill engineer Paul Plante spoke out at the April 11, 2024 town board meeting against on-going corrupt practices in Poestenkill regarding water district no. 2, noticed that what are known as Poestenkill's Nazi Concentration Camp spotlights mounted on the brick house of Gettings on the west end of Liberty Lane were once again in full operation, lighting up Plante's land like it was indeed the yard of a prison, the way the Rensselaer County jail is lit up, and drivers on Liberty Lane reported getting hit in the eyes by what are known as "light traps" on the Gettings house and the yellow house just east of it, "light traps" being spotlights with sensors to detect a passing car aimed outwards so as to strike drivers on Liberty Lane in the eyes, another form of harassment and retaliation in Poestenkill, as they drive past those houses on what is known as the "Hate Alley" section of Liberty Lane in Poestenkill, where instead of burning crosses on the lawn of someone they want to intimidate and force out of Poestenkill, they use high-tech, high-intensity spotlights of several thousand candlepower instead, because it is so much more efficient than going to the trouble of building crosses to burn.
As to the town board meeting, we finally had an admission from the town that this supposed lawsuit against the Averill Park School District for causing the PFAS contamination is going nowhere because of "INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE" that the Algonquin School is the source of the contamination ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tc0BOo3NIa4 @ 16.10 ).
As to the exposition of the corrupt practices, Plante cited from the August 2022 report of this Laberge Group used by the town to secure the funding for the proposed water district, specifically citing from the section titled PROJECT BACKGROUND AND HISTORY, going to g) Other Environmental Factors, wherein was stated that the Town, as required to submit for certain grant funds, had completed the required SEQRA review, declaring water district no. 2 to be an "unlisted" SEQRA" action requiring no review, and had made a Determination of Significance under SEQRA (6 NYCRR Part 617), and that the Town Board (Hammond, Wohlleber, Hass, Butler, Van Slyke) had issued a Negative Declaration on September 8th, 2022, which declared as follows:
Upon review of the information recorded on this EAF, as noted, plus this additional support information within the attached Preliminary Engineering Report and considering both the magnitude and importance of each identified potential impact, it is the conclusion of the Town of Poestenkill as lead agency that:
A. This project will result in no significant adverse impacts on the environment, and, therefore, an environmental impact statement need not be prepared.
Accordingly, this negative declaration is issued.
end quotes
The reality is that this is no more an unlisted action with no impacts to the town's character than is the moon made of green cheese.
But more on that subject is yet to come in the next edition of the Clarion, so stay tuned, but watch what you think and what you say, or you might find the Poestenkill Ku Klux Klan burning crosses on your front lawn, as well!