HILLTOWNS — Joseph Salzer Jr., who built the home his family lived in and made his mark on the Capital District and beyond as a carpenter, died on Monday, Aug. 24, 2020 at the Springside Nursing and Rehab Center in Pittsfield, Massachusetts. He was 82.

Berne Supervisor Sean Lyons announced in a letter posted on the town’s website that, following receipt of the second-quarter sales tax revenues, the town will be able to cover coronavirus losses without sacrificing personnel or town services. Lyons told The Enterprise this week that “the budget cuts I am proposing will give the town another good starting point in 2021.” 

The Westerlo Town Board has extended the town’s solar and wind energy moratorium for one year, dashing the hopes of a solar developer that was planning to build on a Westerlo property.

A letter to the Enterprise editor this week urges local governments to adopt resolutions that call for New York State to be split into three autonomous regions, effectively separating the upstate region from New York City. Bills introduced by New York State Assemblyman David DiPietro and New York State Senator Robert Ortt last year attempt to formalize the idea, which is derived from a decades-old push to make the New York City region its own state. 

Sept. 11 is the day classes begin for students in kindergarten through 12th grade, while Sept. 14 is the first day of pre-kindergarten classes. 

Legislation has been introduced in the State Assembly and State Senate that would require all open meetings in New York State to be livestreamed, recorded, and posted on municipal websites.

The Foxenkill Experience, a Renaissance-themed steak-and-seafood restaurant, opened its doors for the first time in the middle of a pandemic that ravaged the restaurant industry and closed many local businesses. Owner Kelly King told The Enterprise that, three weeks in, her eatery is “thriving every day.” 

Following an inquiry from The Enterprise, New York State’s Committee on Open Government has issued an opinion that the Berne Town Board has been calling for executive sessions under inappropriate pretenses.

A Black Lives Matter rally planned by Berne resident Laurie Searl has drawn strong criticism on Facebook, leaving some would-be attendants worried about a counter-protest that could turn violent, as has happened both locally and across the country.

The New York State Department of Health has set maximum levels for three emerging drinking-water contaminants: perfluorooctanoic acid, perfluorooctane sulfonate, and 1,4-dioxane.