Dolin wins, replaces retired Clark,
town turned 175, tower OK’d, senior-housing law delayed



NEW SCOTLAND — The town turned 175 this year. Its supervisor marked the occasion by cutting a cake during the annual Heritage Day in Clarksville.

History was celebrated that August day with a display of gleaming antique cars, a walk that recognized the unique geological features of the area, and a festive firehouse dance.

New Scotland is a place that values its history. This spring, Gail Sacco, the director of the Voorheesville Public Library, spoke of her dream of creating a regional documentary research center. (This year, too, the library has surveyed residents on how the well-used and cramped library should use the adjacent six acres it purchased through public vote.)
Archivists approached nearby towns to gauge their interest in the research center, and to view and inventory those towns’ records. The library has a small grant to start the work. "There’s something about the original that’s quite magical," said Sacco of historic documents.

Earlier, in April, a solemn look at world history, seen through the eyes of hometown heroes, commenced. The New Scotland Historical Association opened a museum exhibit honoring New Scotland veterans of the two world wars. Re-enactors displayed World War II Jeeps and World War I tents. Some of those honored were long gone. Others were still alive to share their stories.

Marion Parmenter spent countless hours in the library going through letters that ran in The Enterprise, written during World War I from soldiers to their families at home.
Joe Lambert of New Salem wrote from St. Cornelius, France on Dec. 22, 1918: "Well, the war is over, and when I think of the things I have seen and done and gone through, I have the horrors. I have eaten and slept among the dead...I have seen all the misery and suffering I care to, but I am willing to do it again if need be."
Steve Walley, at 83, was able to share his memories as a veteran of World War II. A radioman, he recalled when the plane he was on was hit by ground fire. "We went down into the water... We had no chance to use a parachute," he said.
His plane hit the water with its right wing and nose, and spun around, he said. Walley was able to climb out onto the wing; he was the only survivor. "That was one harrowing experience," he said.

Later, he survived the sinking of the USS St. Lo. It was the first ship to be sunk by a kamikaze.

Not all contributions are so dramatic.

A piece of New Scotland history died this year with the passing in March of Howard Coughtry — a gentle man of iron. He died at his home on Hilton Road. He was 86 and knew his land and his home more intimately than most. His life was intertwined with the town. He met his wife, Jannette Kling Coughtry, at Voorheesville Elementary School and married her after he returned from serving in the Air Corps during World War II.
A master carpenter, Coughtry did most of the woodworking in the 200-year-old house he turned into a workshop in the front of his Hilton Road property. Robin Coughtry, said his father would often work late into the night when he and his brother and sister were young. But, he said, "He always came down to tuck us in."
Many local families looked forward to an annual trek to the Coughtrys’ land to select the perfect Christmas tree. Robin Coughtry said that the business had never been about money. "It was fun doing it with my father," he said.

Throughout his manhood, Coughtry was a dedicated Boy Scout. When he was young, he didn’t have the money to buy a uniform, his son said. Coughtry introduced generations of boys to the adventure of scouting. Troop 73 often met and camped on his land. In regular columns submitted to The Enterprise, Coughtry detailed Scout adventures and waxed philosophical on life.

New direction"

The town this year chose a new leader and perhaps a new direction. Supervisor Ed Clark did not seek re-election. At 71, he is retiring after 23 years of public service — six as supervisor and 17 before that as mayor of Voorheesville.
Clark, who ran on the Republican line, presided over a politically split board without ever having the majority, which he found frustrating. The town supervisor has relatively little power compared to the mayor of the village, he said this fall. "The town board decides everything; the supervisor is just the administrator," said Clark.
"One of the reasons I’m leaving is that I’m tired of watching what I consider poor management practices, " said Clark, adding that, if the supervisor were to be among the board’s majority, "It would be possible to accomplish a great deal more."

At his penultimate meeting, in November, Clark cast the only opposing vote on the town’s $5.5 million budget for 2008. He strongly disagreed with the higher tax rate as well as decisions on the salaries of town employees.
Democratic Councilman Richard Reilly told Clark that his "no" vote "speaks volumes about your legacy."
"Everything that happens in town happens by their approval or their design," Clark said later of the Democrats. "It’s not my legacy."

The race to replace Clark was a close one — ultimately decided by just 35 votes.
Democrat Thomas Dolin, a retired lawyer stepped down as town justice to run for supervisor. When he announced his run in mid-May, he stressed the importance of the town’s enacting "a policy of smart, controlled, responsible growth."
He said, "We obviously have to try and attract some commercial enterprises" in an attempt to combat the school-tax burden, which many residents feel is "becoming unbearable."

Dolin was challenged by Republican Councilman Douglas LaGrange, an eighth-generation dairy farmer.
"New Scotland is at a crossroads with planning," LaGrange said when he announced his run in June.

A tech park is being built in the northeast corner of New Scotland by Vista Technologies. A quarter of its 440-acre campus falls in New Scotland; the rest is in the neighboring town of Bethlehem. Plans call for 15 to 20 buildings containing 1.4 million square feet of commercial space, primarily for offices, research facilities and labs.

That same quadrant of New Scotland is facing intense development pressure as developments have been proposed on Krumkill Road, Hilton road, Route 85, and Route 85A.
LaGrange said he saw planning to preserve rural character as a defining issue in the election. He cited his "cumulative experience" with town issues — four years on the planning board and work with the Residents Planning Advisory Committee as well as two years on the town board.

Democrats carried the day on Nov. 6. Come Jan. 1, Dolin will have the majority Clark had pined for. The two Democratic town board members — Reilly and Deborah Baron — easily bested their Republican challengers, meaning the town board will retain its Democratic majority.

Of the 6,080 registered voters in New Scotland, 35 percent are enrolled as Democrats, 28 percent as Republicans, 29 percent are not enrolled in a party, and less than 1 percent are enrolled in small parties. About 45 percent of registered New Scotland voters turned out for this year’s election.

Reilly, a lawyer, garnered 29 percent of the vote, while Baron, a school tax collector, got 28 percent.

Challengers Gary Schultz, a businessman enrolled as a Conservative, got 22 percent of the vote, and Charles Voss, a professional planner, got 21 percent. Both were making their first run for town board.

In a four-way race for two judgeships, results were split. Incumbent Margaret Adkins got the most votes, followed by Democratic candidate David Wukitsch who was appointed in May after Dolin stepped down to run for supervisor.

The Democratic clerk, Diane Deschenes, won in a landslide against newcomer Republican Penny Barone, and the Democratic highway superintendent, Darrell Duncan, was unopposed.

Varied views

Two of the most controversial planning issues in New Scotland this year involved senior housing and a cell tower in a historic cemetery.

A law was proposed this summer that would allow senior housing developments in all zones in town, including the commercial district along Route 85, where developer Charles Carrow has proposed 15 duplexes behind a medical center that he built.

Robert Baron, husband of Councilwoman Baron, is a business associate of Carrow. Baron would act as the project contractor for the development if the plans were approved, he told The Enterprise.

The 6.9 acre site on Route 85 has the potential for both town sewer and water, unlike much of New Scotland.

Some residents and town officials criticized the proposal for lacking standards to accommodate the needs of the elderly. Another complaint was that the bill was drafted specifically for one developer – Carrow.
Reilly, who was largely responsible for drafting the bill, said that Carrow’s proposal "brought to the forefront" the need for this type of law. "Particular applications will highlight for us things we need to work on," he said at the time.
He gave as an example Henry Digeser’s proposal to put a windmill on his Copeland Hill Road property. "Town law simply didn’t provide for what he was trying to do," said Reilly, adding that adjustments would be made to allow for alternative energy sources.

After sharp criticism, Reilly agreed with the rest of the town board to send the proposal for the senior overlay district to the planning board for further review and recommendations. The planning board is chaired by Robert Stapf who also helped write the bill and has spoken in support of it.

A proposal for a cell-phone tower caused some packed and heated sessions at Town Hall before a split planning board approved the project.

The 150-foot monopole will be built on land owned by the New Scotland Cemetery Association, located near the town’s oldest church.

Without any financial assistance, the cemetery association can sustain itself for just two more years before it would, by law, have to turn the historic cemetery over to the town, said Arlene Herzog, a member of the cemetery association in October.
"As a community, we should find another way to support the cemetery," said resident Mardell Steinkamp, a member of the church, at an October public hearing on the cell tower proposal.

Proponents of the tower said it was needed to improve reception while opponents cited the historic value of the church.

In December, the planning board granted the controversial special-use permit to T-Mobile by a vote of 5 to 2.
Planning board member Charles Voss, who cast a dissenting vote, said that he is known to others as a resident of the "tower town." He suggested that flag or phone poles be used as stealth towers and he said the applicant hadn’t proved the need for coverage.
Planning board member Robert Smith, however, saw the tower as part of inevitable progress. He voted for the permit and said that 39 television towers have been erected in his "backyard" near Thacher Park.
"No one complained then," he said. "Cell phones are here to stay. If there’s an accident, I hope someone can call."

— This year in review is based largely on reporting by Rachel Dutil.