A New York State Designated "Quality Community"

Supervisor's Updates
Latest Update: 18 Apr 08

Schodack Seeks Funding for Family Resource Center
Hearing Set

Schodack - Schodack Supervisor Beth Secor announced today that the Town of Schodack is considering an application for a Small Cities Grant for the purpose of building a family resource center for the Commission on Economic Opportunity (CEO) of the Greater Capital Region, Inc. A hearing has been scheduled to seek public input on Thursday, April 17, at 7 p.m. at the Schodack Town Hall.

CEO currently operates six Family Resource Centers throughout Rensselaer County including in Hoosick Falls, where 68 children are served and 18 people are employed and in the City of Rensselaer with 65 children served and 17 people employed.

Based upon CEO's recently completed Community Assessment the Nassau/Schodack area shows a significant need for childcare services. The Town of Nassau, Village of Nassau, Village of East Nassau and Town of Schodack population is 17,354. According to Census 2000 data the Village of Nassau and Town of Schodack show 11.9% of families living below poverty level. According to the Capital District Child Care Coordinating Council the need for infant and toddler services is 26% in Rensselaer County and the need for childcare for three and four year olds are 47%.

For several years the County in conjunction with CEO and Whitney M. Young (WMY) looked for a location to provide services jointly to the residents of this portion of the county. A survey in the school district pointed to a need for service delivery that could not easily be met by directing people to the County's main offices in Troy. As well, WMY identified this portion of Rensselaer County and northern Columbia County as a medically underserved area.

Unfortunately, a location that met everyone's needs could not be found. Hence CEO began to look for a location where they could address the identified childcare needs in the area. By their bringing Head Start and Early Head Start to the area, not only can childcare needs be met but also nutrition, overall health and many other needs can be identified and addressed through the proposed family resource center.

It is the Town's understanding that CEO plans to establish a family resource center that will provide one Early Head Start and Head Start classroom that will be free for eligible families. They will also create sliding scale daycare opportunities for infants, toddlers, three and four year olds. In collaboration with the Schodack School District they will provide Pre-K services, meals, breakfast, lunch and snacks.

In total CEO estimates that daycare will be provided for 77 children at this facility and families will have access to the total array of CEO services. Providing this type of safe, reliable childcare and support services may allow for parents who are not employed to become so and those who are underemployed to get a better job. As well approximately 20-25 new living wage positions will be created at the center.

Supervisor Secor stated, "I believe that this type of proposal will be a win-win-win. For the children being cared for, they will be getting good care and early educational services. For the town, it will mean jobs created and new services for residents who, based on census data, need them."

From the County's perspective, those residents who have had to rely on social services from the county taxpayers or who are otherwise struggling to make ends meet will now have the ability to get daycare and other services in town and pursue employment opportunities that will result in their self-sufficiency.

I'm happy to let you know that you can now read anything you need to know about Schodack's Code (the Town's laws) 24 hours a day, 7 days a week from the convenience of your home or office. It's part of our effort to provide more transparency in town government for our residents. We've made E-Code available to achieve that. E-Code is a solution produced by General Code which provides a compilation of all the local laws of the Town of Schodack, including the Zoning Code.

As the Town Code is supplemented with new or amended local laws, the copies on E-Code are updated or replaced, so the online version will reflect the most up-to-date version of Schodack's Code. It is easy to search the Code by key word.

Winter months are always a busy time for all Town departments. The challenges of snow and ice have kept the Highway personnel attending to our roadways and driving safety. We are optimistic spring is here!!

As the Town's representative, I was privileged to attend fire company banquets and installation of officers. Our volunteer firefighters make Schodack a special place to live. Their sacrifice of time and caring assures us of a safe community and that these vital services are affordable. Please support our fire companies in all they do!

The Town Board adopted proclamations to recognize the accomplishments of Gary VanValkenburgh who served on the Schodack Cause and Origin team for 27 years. Gary's dedication and contributions as a Fire Investigator was celebrated at the East Schodack Fire Company banquet.

We also applauded the Castleton Public Library's recent designation as first runner up for "Best Small Library in America." This small library, supported by the Town, has fine programs for the young and young-at-heart and serves our community with pride. Congratulations to Mrs. Miller and her staff!

You are invited to attend an Open House at the new Highway Garage on Friday, April 11th from 2 to 6 p.m. or on Saturday, April 12th from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Please take a few minutes to stop by for your tour of the new facility at 3776 US Route 20. Ken Holmes, Highway Superintendent, has demonstrated how the new garage saves tax dollars and improves our environment. We are very proud of the facility and hope to see YOU at the Open House.

The Town Board was unanimous in their conviction to reassess all properties equitably, a process which had not been completed for almost 30 years. I encourage you to speak with representatives of GAR Associates, the real estate consulting firm, if you have questions about the information contained in your preliminary assessment and/or inventory. All property owners will receive their tentative assessment on or about May 1st and will have the option to formally grieve the assessed value on May 27th.

Just A Reminder - the resolutions adopted at meetings of the Town Board are posted here on the website. You are encouraged to visit use this site as a reference tool for your town government. You may now instantly access the Town Code, including Zoning, by clicking on the E-Code link in the left column.

If you have questions, suggestions or comments, I'd like to hear them -- as usual, face-to-face, by email, telephone or postal mail.

Calendar: Items from civic and public service groups for the Town Calendar can now be submitted direct to the webmaster by email.

Website Is your Schodack business listed? Check out the INFOlinks listing of Schodack-based business and then submit your "business card-style" information to Supervisor Secor. We support business in Schodack and provide residents with listings of local firms. If you own a business in Schodack and the immediate area, send me your name, your business name and address and contact numbers, and we will post it on our page of business listings. If you have your own site, let me know and we will provide a link so that everyone can find you.

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We also welcome your suggestions and want to hear about your questions or concerns. Please send postal mail to the Town Hall or call me.