For Immediate Release: March 5, 2010
Contact:
Keith P. McKeever | Public Relations | Adirondack Park Agency
contact@apa.ny.gov | (518) 891-4050
RAY BROOK, NY - The Adirondack Park Agency (APA) will hold its regularly scheduled monthly meeting on Thursday March 11 and Friday March 12, 2010 at APA Headquarters in Ray Brook, NY.
The March 2010 meeting will be webcast live. Please access the Agency's website to view the webcast. (http://www.apa.state.ny.us)
The Full Agency will convene on Thursday morning at 9:00 for the Executive Director's report.
At 9:15 a.m., the Regulatory Programs Committee will consider amendments proposed by the NYS Department of Transportation for the previously agency approved Batchellerville Bridge replacement project. The requested amendments involve the installation of temporary access roads and crane pads, an alternate bid option in the pier construction details and a proposal for removal of bridge piers. The Batchellerville Bridge spans the Great Sacandaga Lake in the Town of Edinburg, Saratoga County. The committee meeting will conclude with a staff briefing on the status of Adirondack bridge projects.
At 10:30, the Legal Affairs Committee will meet to discuss the proposed regulatory revision hearing record for "boathouses" and "dock" definitions. The committee will review the record, public comment and consider how to proceed based on the State Administrative Procedure Act process. This is an informational meeting and no actions will be taken during this month's deliberations.
At 1:00, Barbara Delaney and Russell Dunn will brief the State Land Committee on their new trail guide "Trails with Tales: History Hikes through the Adirondack Park and the Lake George, Lake Champlain & Mohawk Valley Regions." The new guidebook provides descriptions for hikers, paddlers, mountain bikers and cross-country skiers on trails made famous by Adirondack guides, writers, artists, colonial settlers and historic sites from the French and Indian and Revolutionary. It includes trips to abandoned iron mines, ruins of tanneries, Adirondack Great Camps, lost villages and other important historic sites.
The committee will also consider adopting an APA-DEC Memorandum of Understanding regarding Inter-agency Guidelines for Implementing Best Management Practices for the Control of Terrestrial and Aquatic Invasive Species on Forest Preserve Lands in the Adirondack Park. At 3:00, the Local Government Committee will act on proposed amendments to the Town of Queensbury's Approved Local Land Use Program. The town prepared amendments to replace their existing subdivision law.
Agency staff will also demonstrate a new electronic file system which provides staff from all divisions searchable electronic documents to answer many questions related to project review and compliance with local land use laws. At 4:00, the Full Agency will convene to take action as necessary and conclude the Thursday session with committee reports, public and member comment.
On Friday, March 12 at 9:00 a.m., the Park Ecology Committee will hear a discussion of Sustainable forest certification programs, such as the Sustainable Forest Initiative (SFI), the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), and American Tree Farm System (ATFS), which require systematic compliance with environmental laws and regulations. The program is called "Promoting Systematic Forest Management Compliance."
The March meeting will conclude at 10:00 with a Community Spotlight presentation by Town of Inlet Supervisor John Frey. Supervisor Frey will overview his community and highlight important community issues facing this Hamilton County town. Meeting materials are available for download from the Agency's website at: http://www.apa.state.ny.us/Mailing/2010/03/index.htm
The next agency meeting is April 15-16, 2010 at the Adirondack Park Agency Headquarters.
May Agency Meeting: May 13-14, 2010 at the Adirondack Park Agency Headquarters.
The mission of the Adirondack Park Agency is to protect the public and private resources of the Adirondack Park through the exercise of the powers and duties of the Agency as provided by law. With its headquarters located in Ray Brook, the Agency also operates two Visitor Interpretive Centers, in Newcomb and Paul Smiths. For more information, call the APA at (518) 891-4050 or visit www.apa.state.ny.us.
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