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November 2010 Update:

Community Information Salons

Hudson River Valley Resorts (HRVR) continues to reach out to the community to provide updates on the project, answer questions and listen to community concerns.

HRVR, through Community Outreach Coordinator Brian Cafferty, is actively scheduling and holding "Community Information Salons". These salons are informal presentations of the project to interested community members held at local businesses, fire stations, etc.

During the salons, Tim Allred and Brian Cafferty provide an overview of the project and its benefits to Rosendale and answer questions from the community. The salons are informal and provide the community an opportunity to view the Conceptual Plan and engage in a dialogue about the project.

Community Information Salons have recently been held at the Bloomington Fire Department, Victoria's Garden, the Rosendale Fire Department and the American Legion in Tillson.

If you are interested in attending or hosting an informational salon, please click here.

November 2010 Update:

HRVR Newsletter: The Binnewater Bulletin

Hudson River Valley Resorts (HRVR) published its inaugural newsletter, which was distributed to the community of Rosendale by postal mail and through an insert in the November 5th edition of the Blue Stone Press.

Please click here to download a copy of this newsletter.

HRVR will continue to produce newsletters to update the community on progress with the project. To conserve resources (energy, paper, ink, etc), future newsletters will be sent electronically and will be posted on this web-site.

Please click here to sign-up to receive future newsletters via e-mail.

 

June 2010 Update:

Hudson River Valley Resorts has hired Brian Cafferty (bcafferty@hrvresorts.info) as Community Outreach Coordinator. Brian will manage community outreach efforts and is available to organizations and individuals who seek more information on the project. Brian will be scheduling public community information sessions during 2010 in each of Rosendale's hamlets to provide updates and answer questions about the project.

 

April 2010 Update:

Community Input: Philosophically, HRVR believes that community input during the design process results in a better outcome. Since its initial interest in the Project in 2006, HRVR has hosted over twenty (20) information sessions and public presentations to share the Project vision and receive comments from concerned citizens, neighbors and other stakeholders.

HRVR received valuable feedback from these public information sessions and public presentations, as well as from public comments submitted to the NYSDEC during the Scoping process under SEQRA. This feedback has been invaluable in understanding community concerns as well as identifying opportunities to modify the Project to better meet the objectives of the community as well as the Applicant. These comments have informed modifications to the conceptual development plan that undoubtedly improve the Project. The Table below summarizes modifications to the Conceptual Development Plan since 2007 in response to public comments.

Modifications to HRVR Conceptual Development Plan since 2007
Public Comment Modification
Water demand too high Reduced water consumption from 160,000 to 76,000 gpd (52% reduction)
Maintain or increase public access Committed to ongoing public community access for recreational and educational events. Expanded and improved recreational trail design.
Improve community access to Resort Committed to public access to Resort (fee basis).
Proposed rail trail connector not straight and flat (too much topography) Moved location of rail trail connector to closely follow historic rail bed
Preserve wildlife habitat
Decrease tree clearing and land grading		 Reduced number of internal roads, particularly in environmentally sensitive areas
Protect sensitive wildlife habitat; Preserve open space Moved 20 proposed home locations away from sensitive environmental areas. Increased clustering of homes between Fourth and Fifth Binnewater Lakes.
Accommodate Right-of-Way held by Mr. Edward Williams Reduced excavation of upland northeast of Fifth Binnewater Lake
Increase visibility (sight lines) and safety at entrances Modified entrances to Resort
Too much density on Point Comfort Reduced number and density of Townhomes on Point Comfort
Increase open space Increased open space and lands projected for Conservation protection. Reduced size of homes by ~10%. Total of 249 acres of proposed open space in Development Area
Specify commitments to energy efficiency Committed to reduce energy demand by ~40% from code specifications
Specify commitments to on-site renewable energy Committed to geo-thermal heat exchange and solar thermal collectors for hotel lodge and spa and photo-voltaic (PV) for wellness center
Specify sustainability targets Defined restrictive land covenants and sustainability guidelines
Concern over potential blasting impacts to wildlife Reduced areas of rock removal – commitment to use other rock removal techniques and blasting only if necessary – no blasting while bats in hibernation

 

April 2010 Update

Public Access: The Project proposes continued access to the public for educational, recreational and transportation purposes. Historically, researchers and university students have accessed the Site for both bat biology and geology research and field classes. HRVR has and will continue that legacy into the future.

As one example, in March of 2009, HRVR coordinated a symposium at the Rosendale Community Center to share findings from research on the White Nose Syndrome affecting bats with the public as the Site had been made available to many researchers interested in the potential ecological collapse of several bat species. The Table below summarizes community events hosted by the Project in 2009.

Hudson River Valley Resorts
2009 Schedule of Public Access Education, Recreation and Community Events

[All events (except geology field classes) open to public. All proceeds to benefit local community development efforts].
DATE EVENT ORGANIZATION DESCRIPTION Estimated # of Participants
Jan- April Bat census/ research NY DEC, universities and private researchers Annual bat census and ongoing research related to White Nose Syndrome ~10 researchers on regular weekly basis
Feb. Ice-rescue Training NY State Police Ice-rescue emergency training for NY State Police 20
March 22 Bat Symposium Hudson River Valley Resorts Public information session (Rosendale Community Center) to share latest research regarding White Nose Syndrome ~ 60 attendees
April 3 Geology Field Class Vassar College Field geology class for Vassar students 10 to 20
May Geology Field Class Boston College; University of the Pacific; University of Illinois Extended field geology class and research 10 to 20
May 24 Mountain Bike Triathlon Catskill Mountain Multi Sport Swim, Mountain Bike, Run Tri-athlon; Open to Public ~ 40 including spectators
June 13 Triathlon Catskill Mountain Multi Sport Swim, Bike, Run Tri-athlon; Open to Public ~ 50 including spectators
June 14 Williams Lake Mountain Bike Classic Table Rock Bike Shop Mountain Bike Competition – Open to Public Over 200 including spectators
July 4 Triathlon Catskill Mountain Multi Sport Swim, Bike, Run Tri-athlon; Open to Public ~ 50 including spectators
July 19 AIDS Auction Angel Food East; Empire State AIDS Ride Art auction to raise funds for hot meals for Ulster residents living with HIV/
AIDS and AIDS research		 ~ 200
July 22 Cross Country Running Race Kingston Summer Series Cross country running race ~ 50 including spectators
July 29 Cross Country Running Race Kingston Summer Series Cross country running race ~ 50 including spectators
Aug 1 Triathlon Catskill Mountain Multi Sport Swim, Bike, Run Tri-athlon; Open to Public ~ 50 including spectators
Sept 5 Triathlon Catskill Mountain Multi Sport Swim, Bike, Run Tri-athlon; Open to Public ~ 50 including spectators
Oct 2-4 Sustainability Conference Hudson River Valley Resorts Alumni event of Yale Forestry and Environmental Studies/ Yale School of Management 20
Oct 10 Industrial Archaeology Site Tour Society for Industrial Archaeology/ Century House Historical Society On-site tour of Industrial Archaeology related to Cement Mining ~100
Oct-Nov Geology Field Class SUNY New Paltz Geology Field Mapping ~15
October 28 Community Halloween Party Rosendale Chamber of Commerce/ Hudson River Valley Resorts Community Halloween party (free) ~125
Nov Geology Field Class Wesleyan University Geology Field Mapping ~15

 

In 2010 HRVR proudly sponsors or supports:

  • The Rosendale Theater Collective
  • Ongoing, on-site research of the White Nose Syndrome affecting bats
  • The Rosendale Theater Collective
  • Multiple triathlons (Catskill Mountain Multisport Club)
  • The New York Conservatory for the Arts' production of Annie at UPAC
  • The Williams Lake Mountain Bike Classic (Table Rock Bicycles)
  • Cross-country running races (part of the Kingston Summer Series)
  • The Wildcat Epic 100 mountain bike race (Adventure Junction)
  • Geology field classes (SUNY New Paltz, Vassar, SUNY Ulster, Wesleyan)
  • The Rosendale Waterworks Project (fundraiser for the Gunks Climbers Coalition
  • The Family Stage at the Rosendale Street Festival
  • A Community Halloween party at Williams Lake (Rosendale Chamber of Commerce)
  • Other events to be announced!