Opening Remarks

I thank many residents for taking time to share appreciation for the Town’s new website which, as detailed below, is the early days of its launch.  Thank you for your patience.   The Town Board’s 2024 organizational meeting has been scheduled for Thursday, January 4 at 7pm, with swearing-in of newly elected officials.  The Comprehensive Plan Update Committee’s next meeting is set for Tuesday, January 9 at 7pm when the CPUC will refine draft recommendations and goals.  More details are shared below.

Town News & Announcements

The Town’s new website, with innovative applications and new features, is now active, and improving every day as we work out hiccups.  Last week’s newsletter was unfortunately delayed by one day due to transferring over 11,000 email subscribers from the prior website.  We were able to make this transition during a quiet time for posting and sharing board and committee agendas (only the Planning Board has a meeting this year).  We apologize if you might be getting too many or different Town notifications.  

To get the most out of the website, please register for your account where you can customize notifications from the Town and how the website’s features appear on your device.   You can sign-up by clicking the link on the upper right corner on any of the website’s pages.  With the Website Personalization application, you can select what features, like calendars, agendas, news items, emergency alerts, appear on your screen.  With Request Tracker, you can contact Town staff about code compliance, nuisance animals, and other concerns.   

Parks & Recreation’s popular annual Evergreen Holiday Centerpiece workshop takes place next Tuesday, December 19 between 1pm and 5pm at the Parks & Rec’s Office, opposite the entrance to Tawasentha Park.  You can create your own holiday centerpiece with mixed greens, pinecones, candles, and berries which will be provided.  You can add your own ornaments and decorations.  You can drop in between 1pm and 4-30pm, with the workshop ending at 5pm.   Please bring gloves and heavy-duty clippers.  Please register for this workshop online by tonight.     

Parks & Recreation has open spots available for its popular Winter Break Fun-N-Games program, which includes warm-up tag games followed by games such as Jailbreak, Pins Down, Survivor, Basketball, Seven-Base Kickball, Indoor Soccer and many more.  The program takes place in the gym at Guilderland Elementary School from 9am to 11am on Tuesday, December 26 through Friday, December 29.  

Parks & Rec’s "Get Out and Walk This Winter" is already proving very popular with walkers.   For this winter season, Tawasentha, DiCaprio, Keenholts, and Nott Road Parks will stay open during daytime hours.  Western Turnpike Golf Course’s cart paths are also open for walkers.  When measurable snow arrives, Vosburgh Trails Open Space, WTGC, and Town parks offer snowshoeing and cross- country skiing, with groomed trails at the golf course.   Sledding is available at the Winter Recreation Area just past Tawasentha Park.  Nordic ski and snowshoe rentals are available at the Parks & Rec Office.

The Highway Department has completed its leaf vacuuming of Town streets this week, a labor intensive process that began back two months ago on October 10.  With mostly dry weather, the cleanup went very smoothly and there is no need for any more vacuuming of leaves this season.  I thank the Highway crews for their hard work at keeping our streets clear for walkers and bicyclists.       

Highway crews circulate year-round picking up bagged leaves, tied brush piles, and in a few weeks, discarded Christmas trees.  Please remember that overnight parking on Town roads, except if permitted by posted signs on certain streets, is not allowed from November 1 to April 1.  Please also take the time to remove basketball hoops and other obstructions from the street to prevent damage to the hoops and plows.    

Covid-19 Update

The CDC reported this week that hospitalizations nationwide increased over the past week by 17.6% and the death rate surged by 25%.  The CDC’s current map now has Albany County with a “medium” hospitalization rate for COVID-19, along with nearby counties (Schenectady, Saratoga, Rensselaer) and much of the State.  At the “medium” rate, if you are at high risk for severe illness, you should talk to your healthcare provider about whether you need to wear a mask and take other precautions.  No county in the State has a “high” rate.    

State DOH’s most recent COVID-19 summary indicated that COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations are again increasing.  County DOH’s most recent wastewater COVID-19 surveillance report shows that the presence of the COVID-19 virus in the Town’s wastewater is “increasing” and is now “quantifiable,” with more than 50 COVID-19 cases per 100,000 residents, and is also at a “higher” rate when compared to the State’s numbers, and that in-patient hospitalizations over the next 10 days is expected to increase.   

A reminder that the Federal government has expanded its program under which you can receive by mail free at-home COVID-19 tests.  The program now allows for eight home tests per household which means that if you recently placed an order for four tests, you can now order four additional tests at no cost.  

Community Events & Resources

On this Sunday, December 17 from 2pm to 4:30pm, the Guilderland Public Library is hosting Suburban Sounds Community Chorus for an afternoon of seasonal music.   Please take the time to enjoy this well-recognized local choral group’s performance of holiday classics. 

The Library’s calendar includes seminars on interesting topics and conversations with well-known authors.  On Friday, December 22 and Friday, December 29, from 6:30pm to 8pm, the Library is presenting Manet and Degas: Making the World Modern/An Art Talk with Janet Cohen Mandel, a two-part virtual talk about Édouard Manet and Edgar Degas, two artists who defined modern painting in France with candid portrayals of contemporary life.   On Wednesday, January 10 at 8pm, the Library is hosting a virtual conversation with best-selling author Rebecca Serle about her novel, One Italian Summer, In Five Years, The Dinner List, and many more.  The Library offers a wide-variety of seminars by authors and prominent persons, and taped recordings of prior events.  

A reminder that the Library offers several free weekly gatherings for the community’s benefit including Let’s Talk: Coffee & Conservation for Seniors on every Wednesday from 11am to 12:30pm, with coffee, tea, snacks, and lunch available at the Café’ con Mel, the Library’s new café.   The Library’s events calendar also has LEGO Free Play, Teen Drop-In DIY, and other interesting group activities.   

The NYS State Library’s calendar has several upcoming seminars, including an online seminar on Tuesday, December 19 from Noon to 1pm, entitled Quilts, Plows, And Munitions : The Northern Homefront Supports Civil War Troops, about how northern women helped keep the country running and support the war effort during the Civil War.  

You can help the less fortunate this holiday season by donating food, money, or volunteering your time at the Guilderland Food Pantry, Community Caregivers, and other groups who work year-round to address food insecurity in our community.  Thank you for any assistance.    

Thank you for taking the time to read this newsletter.  

Peter G. Barber

Town Supervisor