Category Archives: News

Read the latest local news from Columbia County and surrounding areas.

Lofty goals but a tough season

by DAVID LEE

The Taconic Hills Titans varsity football team played the Cobleskill-Richmondville Bulldogs on October 21. Pictured (r) is TH Quarterback Tyler Peck unloading a long pass. The Titans lost to the Bulldogs by a score of 35-26 in their last regular season game. The Titans’ overall record is 0-6, but as coach Joshua Piper said the team did not give up. They stayed positive and played to the end of the game, scoring twice in the 4th quarter. The Titans will play two crossover games, against Voorheesville on Saturday October 29 and against a team to be announced on Friday, November 4, both away. The game scheduled against the Hudson Bluehawks was officially logged as a win by forfeit. Hudson canceled its program in early October for what the district said were active injuries as well as “disciplinary and academic ineligibility.” Regarding the Titans’ football program Coach Piper said that with the exception of a few injuries the team has the same number of players they started with. Photo by David Lee

Board of Elections releases information about early voting

by PRESS RELEASE

HUDSON – For the 2022 November General Election, registered voters can vote in person before Election Day. In New York State, voters can vote in-person before Election Day at one or more voting sites in their county.

Early Voting in New York State will begin prior to the November 8 General Election and will be from Saturday, October 29 through Sunday November 6.

Columbia County early voting hours are:

Saturday, October 29 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sunday, October 30, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Monday, October 31, noon to 8 p.m.; Tuesday, November 1 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Wednesday, November 2 from noon to 8 p.m.; Thursday, November 3 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Friday, November 4 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Saturday, November 5 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; and Sunday, November 6 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Read more…

Bag tag fee hike could make trash more costly

by JEANETTE WOLFBERG

HUDSON—The Columbia County Board of Supervisors has authorized the County Solid Waste Department to raise the minimum charge for disposing of bags of garbage at its transfer stations from $1 a bag to $3 a bag. The votes of a majority of supervisors approved the increase at the full board meeting October 12, but the change will not take effect until county officials work on accommodating those people who regularly use bags with the $1 charge.

The “pay-as-you-throw” charge does not include the cost of the bags, which are available from local stores. The tags are available from the county and must be purchased from the county and placed on each bag before the bag or bags are disposed of.

Currently the tags cost $1, $3, and $5: $1 for bags holding10 gallons or less; $3 for bags 13 to 30 gallons; and $5 for bags 33 to 55 gallons.  The county’s October 12 decision will eliminate the $1 tag. Bags now accepted with a $1 tag will have to have a $3 tag. Bags now accepted with $3 and $5 tags will remain acceptable with those tags. Read more…

Longtime sweethearts mark 63 years

by DIANE VALDEN

Clara and Ron Van Tassel on their recent wedding anniversary. Photo by Robin Massa

ANCRAM—These octogenarian high school sweethearts are spending their lives together.

They must be good at it—they recently they celebrated their 63rd wedding anniversary.

Born and raised in Hillsdale, Ronald Van Tassel, and Clara Boice, born and raised in Ancram, were married at St. John’s Lutheran Church in Ancram October 17, 1959. They still go to the same church.

They both graduated from Roeliff Jansen High School in the Class of 1956, Mrs. Van Tassel recounted in a phone interview this week.

Mr. Van Tassel served in the U.S. Marines from 1956 to 1958, followed by six years in the reserves. When he settled down, he got a job at the Kimberly-Clark Ancram Paper Mill, where he was a shift foreman. He retired from the mill after 38 years. Read more…

What’s it cost to run for office?

by DEBORAH E. LANS

ELECTION 2022

HUDSON—Political fundraising for congressional positions (Senate and House combined) nationwide so far this year is nearly 30% higher than spending was at this point in time in the 2018 mid-term election cycle and projected to hit a staggering nationwide total of nearly $12 billion, according to OpenSecrets and the Federal Election Commission (FEC) website. So what is the story in the local federal and state elections?

In 2018, by the end of November, 2018, successful Democratic Congressional candidate Antonio Delgado had collected just shy of $8.57 million, while his opponent, John Faso, had raised nearly $4 million. Since that time, our district, the 19th Congressional District (CD 19th), has been reconfigured, but this year too Democratic candidate Josh Riley has so far outraised his opponent, Marc Molinaro. According to Federal Election Commission data, as of October 3, 2022 (the most recently-filed reports) Mr. Riley has raised $2.91 million to Mr. Molinaro’s $2.03 million.

But that is only part of the story.

First, donations, and hence spending, are expected to increase substantially in the last weeks before the election. For example, in 2018 Candidate Delgado raised more than 25% of his overall two-year election cycle total in October and November alone. So, too, the contributions received by candidates Riley and Molinaro will undoubtedly jump in the final run-up to the election. Read more…