The open house for the Whitehall Water Treatment Facility will take place this Saturday, Aug. 2 from 10 a.m.-noon. This will be a great opportunity to see the new plant with all of its bells and whistles.

Posted by Keith Lobdell at 03:56 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I'm a little bit confused.

I went out and did a story on the Powwow in Hampton on Friday and wrote it up for this week's Times. Yesterday, it was brought to my attention that there is a second Powwow going on the same days and times in Whitehall as well as Hampton. Deb Joaquim had been the person I had always contacted about the Powwow, so I didn't realize that there was another group besides her.

I plan on doing a story on the Whitehall Powwow this week and will report back and hopefully get the question answered as to why there are two of them.

Posted by Keith Lobdell at 01:44 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

So the village board was going to meet, and now it is not going to meet.

Plans were on Monday evening that the board was going to meet this Friday to talk about the police chief position. From what a few people told me, the plan was to hire a new police chief. Ken Bartholomew went after the other members of the board saying that the meeting would be illegal. On Tuesday, the meeting was cancelled.

The board will meet Monday at 6 p.m. and there should be discussion about the police chief situation at that time.

Posted by Keith Lobdell at 12:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Coming to work in Granville this morning and was stopped by a truck. They were keeping the road clear on Route 12 until the fire department got there because there was a high-tension wire that fell down. This happened about 7:45 a.m. and the fire department was arriving as I was heading for my alternate route to work.

 

Have fun avoiding the rain drops today. This is one of the few types of days I’m glad I work inside.

Posted by Keith Lobdell at 01:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I love the fact that we are getting so much stuff on the summer sports. From Brittany St. Clair in the junior Olympics to all of the summer baseball going on, it’s nice to see these summer sports programs supported.

When I was coaching modified baseball up north, the key for me always was to get as many games in as possible. The more you play, the better you get, but also the more you play, the less time you’re inside watching TV or playing video games and not being active. This is what kids should be doing in the summer – playing outside!!

Posted by Keith Lobdell at 08:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Went out with the folks from Dresden that are doing the water chestnut harvest again this year. Except for bad weather, that’s pretty good work if you can find it. I love being out on the lake when I can be, so I am jealous. They are getting in about 24-25 loads a day. Bob Banks said that this would be the year you would notice change, and there was a clear difference on the southwest side of the bay this year. It’s a good thing to do. More places to fish, wider channel to boat and your getting rid of an invasive species.

Also got to sneak a peak at The Line Townhouses this week. That will be a good influx of money into Whitehall if successful. I think it can be because the summer tourist business is booming all along the two lakes, and there will be people from the south (and maybe even ‘le norde’) who will buy the eight spots up.

Went with my daughter to get the pins out of her left arm today, and she was a trooper. Hardly cried for the first two then started bragging that she never felt a thing. Also, Happy Sixth Birthday, Blakey Boy!

Just saw one of the worst t-boomers I think I have ever witnessed. I was looking all over for the green clouds and funnel.

No post on the State Comptroller’s site of the Whitehall audit yet. Let you know when I see it.

Have a good weekend.

Posted by Keith Lobdell at 07:59 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

It certainly was a good night for the opening of Canal Fest. This was the second year in a row where the weather looked terrible all day and than around 6 p.m. the skies cleared and the temperature was perfect.

 

There were also a lot more people out this year a lot earlier. There were plenty of kids on the rides and plenty at the Boreal Tordu concert. The unfortunate thing was that there were only two boats for the boat parade. Let’s step it up and get some more in, please.

 

By the way, I did get my request and rode with Jim Aiken on his boat through the lock, took Blake (my son) along for the ride, too. He enjoyed it, but got a little restless at the end. He also didn’t realize that the ropes get slimy when they are underwater for so long.

 

Have a good weekend. Be in the office at 9 a.m. Monday.

Posted by Keith Lobdell at 03:25 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Here's what happened at the town board meeting.

 

Remember that thing I said about having the answer as to who the new board member would be? Well, the answer is no one. At least, not until November. The board was deadlocked over whether or not to interview the candidates or wait until November, so a 2-2 vote tables the issue, therefore no action will be taken and it will be decided at the polls. Jiem Rozell was at the meeting and said that he plans to run for the seat. I have to find out if Fra Putorti and Richard Bruce plan to do the same.

 

It sounds like the lunch program is going well at the recreation center, serving 61 students and a number of families in the first three days.

 

The board also announced that they will be meeting with the state auditor soon for the preliminary report into the town clerk investigation. The official report will follow shortly after.

 

Now, before the meeting, I gained a partial revenge on St. Catherine with five pars, but doubles two of the last three holes in shooting 90. It could have been an 85 if it weren't for a few worm-burners and tree huggers.

 

Also, I talked with village mayor Pat Norton shortly after the paper went to press and she told me that the open house at the water filtration plant will be re-scheduled for Saturday, Aug. 9 because the reps from the engineering firm could not make it next week. We'll have more in next Thursday’s paper.

Posted by Keith Lobdell at 02:24 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

I hope that everybody enjoyed their Fourth of July. I went to two parades and they had the biggest crowds that I had ever seen. I think that speaks to the point that everyone is staying close to home this summer.

The work on Pauline Street continues, and I talked with one of the workers while I was out getting pictures. It's nice to know that they have a good working relationship with the village and vice-versa. They are finding more porblems than they thought, but hopefully they will get the information they need to satisfy the DEC.

Speaking of, the village received a copy of a letter from Kirsten Gillibrand that she sent to the DEC asking them to, in short, back off.

Town board meeting Wednesday, and there should be a new board member by the end of the night. I'll follow up with that in the morning.

I'll be at the Canal Fest Friday night grabbing pictures and getting some quotes, but my main goal is to get a ride through the lock before the boat parade. Yes, I know I probably sound like an eight year-old begging, but its something that I have never done before and would like to experience, riding through a lock. So if any of you out there want to hook me up with a ride, the numbers 499-1500 and the e-mail is at the top of the page.

 

Posted by Keith Lobdell at 12:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Sorry, had some issues last week getting my stuff where it needed to go. I’ll try to summarize plus add some new thoughts.

Congratulations to the graduates! It was a very good ceremony and it was good to see these students take the next step. I felt it was a good group of kids and they were very nice when I talked to them in the school or on the athletic fields.

Also, a thank you to the three graduates who helped with the Whitehall Times school page this year: Kayla Millett, Alyssa Locke and Zackery Plude. They all did a great job and wrote some great stories, from stuff happening in the school and about the students to a bunch of different topics, from sports to technology to book reviews. It was nice.

Well, as some of you know, it was a pretty hectic end of last week. Had my oldest daughter fall off the swing set, requiring surgery and three pins just above the left elbow. That was a fun Saturday at the Hospital.

Here comes the Fourth! It looks like good weather, too, so fire up the BBQ and enjoy. If you have any good pictures from your celebration, send them to me at the e-mail address above and I’ll put them in.

Posted by Keith Lobdell at 12:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)