WESTERLO — In 2007, Westerlo created a new planning board, moved forward with a plan for land use, and supported a low-income senior housing project in the town.

With three times as many Democrats as Republicans in Westerlo, the Democrats ran unopposed for every post in town.

The town’s long-time supervisor, Richard Rapp, ran again in November. Rapp had said two years ago that he would not seek another term.
"They talked me into it," said Rapp. "I’m not going to run after this term," he said. "There’s no talking me into it again."

Senior housing

In February, the town board supported a low-income housing complex proposed by Albany County Rural Housing Alliance by writing a letter of support.

The estimated $4.5 million project would be located on an approximately 10-acre parcel along Route 1. The project would have 24 low-cost rental units and would be available to people 55 or older who live anywhere in the state.

A one-person rental unit would cost between $420 and $550, and a two-person unit would cost $550 to $600 per month, said Susan Bacon Kimmel, president of Two Plus Four Construction Companies, based in East Syracuse, which would build the complex. Residents, Kimmel said, would be required to make no more than half of the area’s median income — $23,150 for a single room and $26,500 for a double room.

ACRHA has senior-housing facilities in Ravena and Feura Bush.

Judith Eisgruber, the executive director of ACRHA, and Two Plus Four Construction Companies first presented the project to the town board in early February. Eisgruber and Kimmel submitted their application to the state’s Division of Housing and Community Renewal for grant money to aid the project. A letter saying the town is in support of their project, they said, would help the project score higher in the grant application. Each year, Kimmel said, the state gets about 150 applications and awards grants to 30 to 40 projects.

The town’s building inspector, Edwin Lawson, and R. Mark Dempf, of Vollmer Associates, the firm that engineered the town’s water district, evaluated the project regarding the town’s zoning and water system.
"It looks as though we’ll be able to supply this," said Dempf.

This type of housing is not identified in the town’s zoning laws, said Lawson. If the conceptual plan is approved, he said, there are a lot of challenges to be met to make the building satisfy the state’s and town’s codes.

All four members attending voted to approve a pilot for the project, and Zeh agreed to write a letter for Eisgruber and Kimmel to submit with their application.

Perkins Center to close

The Anna W. Perkins Helderberg Health Center, named after a revered local doctor who served the Hilltowns for decades, will close in mid-February.

St. Peter’s Hospital has run the facility since shortly after Dr. Perkins died in 1993.

The Perkins Center — one of three charity clinics run by St. Peter’s — had fewer poor and elderly patients and was losing money, said a hospital spokesman.

After a questionnaire was sent from St. Peter’s to area residents to gauge their use of the facility, a group of 20 to 30 residents formed the Friends of the Perkins Clinic.

Six percent of those who responded to the questionnaire said they use the facility, and 80 percent of those surveyed in Berne, East Berne, and Westerlo did not feel the clinic was necessary, according to St. Peter’s.

The citizens’ group questioned the survey results, saying questionnaires were sent to residents outside the area who didn’t care about the future of the center.
According to Elmer Streeter, spokesman for St. Peter’s, less than 2 percent were returned due to incorrect addresses, and, of 2,000 surveys sent, 429 responded, which Streeter termed "a very good, high response."
Robert Dietz, president of the Helderberg Medical Building Association, a not-for-profit corporation which Perkins signed her clinic over to, said this month, "We have no intentions of selling it at this time."

Following the announcement that the Perkins Center will close, the Friends group sought an open discussion with St. Peter’s. They want St. Peter’s to stay at the facility longer — six months to one year — so that a physician can be found with the patient pool intact. The group has also discussed finding another building, such as one on Route 408, which had been used by Dr. Karle as his medical office.

Members of the Friends group met last week in Albany with St. Peter’s representatives.

Water bills increase

In August, residents in the town’s new municipal water system saw their bills increase threefold. The water system, which combined two outdated private systems, serves about 85 properties in and around the hamlet.

Residents had paid $125 twice each year, plus water usage. Those connected to the water system will now pay $375 twice each year plus usage — just over three cents for each thousand gallons of water.

In February, residents’ water usage will increase to 4.6 cents per thousand gallons. In August, residents speculated about ways in which they could lower their bills and discussed a volunteer attending classes to monitor the water and perform maintenance.
One resident in the water district said, "If this is going to keep increasing each year, it’s going to be absurd to live in Westerlo after awhile."

Supervisor Rapp has said the water-usage increase this February will be the last increase.

New planning board and land-use planning

After a 15-year hiatus, the town board created a planning board in April and appointed its new members. The town board had abolished the planning board in the early 1990s after developers had complained about the time needed for their applications.

Since, town board members had served as both the town and planning board.

Leonard Laub was appointed as the chairman of the board.

In June, a special meeting was held as the town and planning boards were at odds over who should create the town’s comprehensive land-use plan.

Laub said he and the new planning board members accepted their roles with the understanding that the planning board would write the master plan.
Weeks earlier, at the June town board meeting, Councilman R. Gregory Zeh recommended the new planning board members "get their feet wet" and see more applicants before taking on the task of creating a master plan.

The planning board was given the task.

Drowning

After heavy storms throughout the Capital Region during a weekend in April, Caitlin J. Henry, a 15-year-old girl who attended Grapeville Christian School in Greene County, drowned when her canoe capsized in the storm-swollen Basic Creek.
Henry was canoeing with her brother, Patrick T. Henry, 14, who was able to swim to shore. Their canoe capsized within seconds after they set foot in it, said Chief Deputy Craig Apple of the Albany County Sheriff’s Department. Apple called the drowning "a tragedy."
The Henrys’ home, about 100 yards from the creek, had not flooded, said Apple. "They were experimenting in the rapid waters," he said, adding that the creek "is normally 75-percent smaller than" it was the day she drowned.

Route 404 over Basic Creek in Westerlo was among a dozen roads closed in Albany County due to flooding caused by the storm.

Caitlin Henry was swept away by a strong current while her brother was able to swim to shore, according to the sheriff’s department; neither was wearing a life vest.

Following a call to the sheriff’s department, a multi-jurisdiction team — volunteers from Hilltown emergency squads, fire departments, and search-and-rescue teams as well as deputies from the Albany County Sheriff’s Department — responded to the area and searched the creek.

A relative and a volunteer firefighter from Westerlo found Caitlin Henry a quarter of a mile downstream within 20 minutes of the canoe capsizing, said Apple. It then took 20 minutes to bring her to shore; the time was needed to ensure the safety of the rescuers, said Apple. Cardiopulmonary resuscitation was unsuccessful, he said.

No competition in November

In November, Democrats ran unopposed for the town board, supervisor, town clerk, highway superintendent, and judge races.

Democrats outnumber Republicans nearly 3 to 1, and there is no Republican Party chairperson in Westerlo.

Two years ago, Republican Councilman Clifton Richardson died in office. Richardson was Westerlo’s first Republican town board member in 70 years.