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‘Flapper!’: BKW troupe to don their cloches in ‘mad-cap tribute to the Roaring Twenties’

by Noah Zweifel

(This event has been cancelled due to public health concerns.)

The Enterprise sat in on a rehearsal for the Berne-Knox-Westerlo Theatre Troupe’s “Flapper!,” which director Penny Shaw-Bartley described as a mad-cap tribute to the Roaring Twenties. Three performances will be held in the high school auditorium over the weekend of March 27.

Three more offers made for Picard’s Grove property

by Melisa Hale-Spencer

NEW SCOTLAND — As Jeanne Picard Fish remains in a Valatie nursing home, several offers have been made for her property, once a popular community gathering place, Picard’s Grove, at the foot of the Helderberg escarpment.

Altamont zoning board set to approve Stewart’s variance requests

by Sean Mulkerrin

Stewart’s Shops proposed Altamont Boulevard project got a big boost this week after the village zoning board approved variances the company needed because building a project compliant with Altamont’s code was not possible.

Police: ‘Suspicious individual’ scare at BKW was misunderstanding

by Noah Zweifel

In what police say turned out to be a man with a cellphone, a student at Berne-Knox-Westerlo reported Friday that she saw a man with a knife or a large gun as kids were leaving for the day, prompting a lockout at the school and a mass-alert sent to emergency notification subscribers. 

First leg of utility upgrade will get abundance of cheap upstate electricity downstate faster 

by Sean Mulkerrin

The 60-year-old electric-grid infrastructure that traverses both Guilderland and New Scotland will soon be the recipient of millions of dollars in upgrades.

After hearing, Berne farmer confident she’ll regain planning-board post

by Noah Zweifel

Acting Supreme Court Justice Denise A. Hartman heard oral arguments today concerning Berne resident Emily Vincent, who was removed from her post as full member of the town planning board before the end of her term and made an alternate. She has filed an Article 78 against the town, requesting that the decision be nullified. 

Guilderland using ‘abundance of caution’ in noting a Lynnwood family is quarantined

by Melissa Hale-Spencer

Albany County Executive Daniel McCoy announced on Friday afternoon that there have been no positive test results in the county for COVID-19. Two tests were pending and 14 households were under quarantine, the executive’s office reported on Friday evening.

BKW phasing out biz manager to raise superintendent salary

by Noah Zweifel

By splitting the role of school business manager between its superintendent and an accountant, Berne-Knox-Westerlo is hoping to attract superintendent candidates of a higher caliber when Timothy Mundell retires from the position within the next five years. 

New state solar regs aim to speed up approval process; local municipalities solar laws on the ball — for the most part

by Sean Mulkerrin 

With the state looking to take control away from municipalities for the permitting and siting of medium- to large-scale renewable energy projects, how have local towns done enacting their own solar legislation?

Guilderland looks set to keep ‘important views’ in its proposed solar law and to consider a solar overlay district 

by Elizabeth Floyd Mair 

A solar developer who wants to build an array on a Guilderland farm asked, at Tuesday’s hearing on the town’s proposed new solar law, if Guilderland could designate a solar overlay district.

County health commish says: Be prepared for coronavirus

by Melissa Hale-Spencer

While the risk of being infected with the novel coronavirus remains very low for Albany County residents, Albany County Health Commissioner Elizabeth Whalen said, “We are not too early to start planning … to be prepared if we need to be prepared.”

Teacher Michelle Van Patten

BKW teachers, students delighted with improvements as third phase of $15.8M capital project begins

by Noah Zweifel

The second phase of Berne-Knox-Westerlo’s $15.8 million project has been completed, and Superintendent Timothy Mundell reports that, now halfway through, the project is on schedule and slightly under budget. 

Altamont proposes $2.5M budget for next year; municipal water and sewer customers could see increase in bills

by Sean Mulkerrin

Altamont’s proposed budget for next year is up about 3 percent over this year. 

With a chronic absentee rate of 10.8 percent, BKW is working to get more students to class 

by Noah Zweifel

Although its absentee rate is roughly half that of the state average, Berne-Knox-Westerlo’s school board is considering ways to further cut the rate of chronic absenteeism, which is when a student misses 10-percent of classes in a school year. Chronic absenteeism is one of three critical metrics for Harvard’s National Center for Rural Education Research Networks, of which BKW is a part. 

Guilderland district finalizing tech investments with security, redundancy, infrastructure

by Melissa Hale-Spencer

“We’ve been able to ensure every student has technology. It really levels the playing field,” said Demian Singleton, the district’s assistant superintendent for instruction.

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