Earlier this year, Glenville Fire District Number 2 Treasurer, Mike Cuoco, submitted a request for a Member Item grant from the New York State Legislature.

   In September Senator Hugh T. Farley secured such a grant for the Fire District in the amount of $15,000. This money is designated to be used toward the purchase of communications equipment, rescue equipment and new turnout gear for our first responders.

   Both Fire District 2 and the Alplaus Fire Company express our appreciation and gratitude to Senator Farley for this Grant.   Appreciation is also extended to Mike Cuoco for his awareness and efforts in submitting these grant requests.

   This equipment will support our First Responders as they perform their duties for each and every resident of our Fire District. They are well trained and available as near as a call to 911.

Ladies Auxiliary

by Vicki Watkins

The Auxiliary will finish up this very busy and exciting year with the 2^nd annual Holiday Cookie Sale on Saturday, December 9^th from 10 am to 2 pm at the Post Office.  This is your chance to stock your pantries with delicious holiday treats.  If you don’t have the time to bake during this hectic time of year, let us do it for you!

   Each year during the holiday season the Auxiliary makes a contribution to a local organization and/or adopts a family.  This year we choose the Schenectady Battered Women’s Shelter and the Double H Ranch.  For those of you not familiar with the Double H Ranch, it provides specialized camping and year round services for children and families dealing with life-threatening illnesses.  They are located in Lake Luzerne.

These wall calendars are available for $10 at the Post Office or can be ordered by phone at 518 399-8048.  Shipping can be arranged for out of town orders.  Our thanks to Tom Donlon for all his time and effort in designing the layout of this calendar.

   Mark your calendars and get out your recipe books for the 2^nd annual Chili Challenge scheduled for Friday, January 26^th.  Details will be in next month’s HTN.

At our November meeting the Auxiliary voted in a new slate of officers for 2007.  The officers are: Vicki Watkins, President; Tracie Williams, Vice-President; Pat Beaver, Treasurer; Pat Coppola, Secretary and Elizabeth Burke, Trustee.  Many thanks to Alice Culver, who has been our treasurer for many years, and to Betty Vedder, who served as a Trustee.

Goings On Around Town

by Barb Casey

‘Tis the Season.   The annual ARA tree-lighting will be held on Saturday, December 9^th from 5-6 pm.  Please plan to join us for this annual community event.  Our earlier time was well-received last year for those with busy holiday schedules, and we’ll be back at the firehouse this year due to the community’s enthusiastic response last year—we had too many people to fit comfortably at Samuel’s!  I hope you’ll join us for the arrival of Santa, delicious refreshments (cookies from the Ladies’ Auxiliary holiday cookie sale that same day—see elsewhere in the Hometown News for details), and a carol or two.  Many thanks to Gray Watkins for providing the tree, Andy and Karen Gilpin for providing musical entertainment, Chris Williams for filling in as the guy in the red suit, Deb Story for designing our flyer, and Deb and Kathleen Schnitzer for distributing those flyers.  I know everyone—young or young-at-heart—will have a great time!

Update on Sewers.  Thank you so much to the many community members who showed up at the November 15^th Glenville Town Board meeting to show our interest in a solution to the Alplaus sewer project delay.  It helps tremendously that board members and town employees know how many of us are frustrated by this process. 

   The Town has asked us if we want to hold an informational meeting in advance of circulating new petitions, which they will prepare for us, but there are questions I’d asked to have answered before we consider a meeting or new petitions:

• I’d like a realistic time frame for the completion of the process, should we decide to re-petition.  I met with Supervisor Frank Quinn and Commissioner of Public Works Rick LeClair on November 13^th, asked for a timeframe, and don’t have one yet.
• We’d like some good solid numbers on the possible cost of a low-pressure, also known as all-grinder pump system.  If the estimated costs are low enough so that we would not have to re-petition, we should consider seriously that option.  Right now Kestner Engineers has information from E-One and is developing a design for a low-pressure system, possibly for all of Alplaus.  I hope to have information to report in early December.
• We’d asked for some information about lower interest financing from the Environmental Funding Corporation or other sources.  The Town did have a meeting with EFC and Rick LeClair reports that we would need to have raw sewage or a lot of failed septic systems going into the creek.  Testing would be done on a voluntary basis by the Schenectady County Board of Health.  Given the precarious nature of this project, I can’t in good conscience ask neighbors to volunteer to come forward at this point.

   As many of you know, we will likely be taxed for expenses to-date whether or not the sewer extension moves forward, which will likely mean about $200,000 for all citizens of Alplaus to divvy up and pay.

   I wish I had better news to report—stay tuned.

Other Items of Interest.  Thanks to Traffic Safety Board liaison Alice Culver for the following news:  At the Traffic Safety Board meeting held on November 2, it was approved to put a weight limit sign on Mohawk Avenue, which will hopefully help with some of the concerns residents have had about traffic on the street.  Before this can happen, it must be approved by the Town Board and then the sign can be ordered to be made.  It can then be installed. 

   Residents need to realize that the weight limit sign will not keep trucks off Mohawk Avenue if they are going there on business.  It’s the hope of the Traffic Safety Board that the sign will stop the large pick-ups with boats going up and down Mohawk Avenue.

   Thanks to Charlie Thompson, who reports that the Town of Glenville is moving ahead with plans for a Cozy Dale Park on Glenridge Road, with possible parking on Bruce Drive.  This is something that’s been discussed for several years, and would likely not be completed until the railroad overpass is widened, which is currently projected for 2008.  

  Charlie also reported that he talked with Rick LeClair about a rumor that due to budget cuts, the town may be considering suspending leaf pickup next year.  This is not confirmed by anyone at the town, but if you have feelings about this, please make them known to the town.

   Finally, on the issue of sidewalks, January is when the funding guidelines for the federal Safe Schools sidewalk program will be released, and hopefully we’ll know more at that point about whether or not a sidewalk on Alplaus Avenue would be eligible.

   More to follow on all these items of interest.  As always, calls or e-mails with questions or concerns are welcome.  Happy Holidays, everyone!

Barb Casey, ARA President

bcasey@skidmore.edu

399-5714

From the Archives   by Cliff Hayes

Alplaus or Ale Place.  Another version of the interpretation of the name of our little village of Alplaus has come to the attention of the history society.

   Hanging on the wall of a 3^rd floor bedroom at the Schenectady Historical Society on Washington Avenue in Schenectady is a map of New York State published in 1779. The map was made by Claude Joseph Sauthier, a Swiss engineer & cartographer, that he compiled from actual surveys deposited in the patent office in New York.

   The Albany & Schenectady region was copied by the SHS & distributed as 11” X 12” prints of which a copy has been obtained for the AHS. Inspection of this map reveals our town is named “Ale Place” & the creek as “Aleplace Kill” in 1779. There appears to be 2 inhabitants on either side of the creek in the area of the village. It is Interesting to note that the Rexford area hadn’t been populated at that time.

   According to the indenture made December 8, 1783 that granted the land on the east (village) side of the creek from Abraham Van Eps to Robert Bett (Bath), the creek was named AelPlaatkill.  From a historical aspect, it seems noteworthy of the name Ale Place.

   The map also can be viewed on the information highway at:

Memories

 by Betty Vedder

      Now that December is here I'm thinking of the upcoming holiday.  I recall an article written by Hazel Bradt Dillman some years ago.  Hazel was a very devoted and talented writer for our Home Town News for many years and a dear friend of mine. The following was printed and it truly intrigues me.

Christmas in Alplaus

     My memories of this event go back many years to when we first lived on the farm off Glenridge Road the first house onto Bradt Rd. My father would cut our tree from his own land; he would usually choose a nice hemlock.  We had no electricity and used oil lamps for lighting. We would decorate the tree with slim candles about 3 inches long and attach them to the tree with small clamps. 

      My job, along with two of my older sisters, was to watch the candles on a certain part of the tree – now-a-days one would think you were out of your mind to take such chances, however many families did light their trees in this manner and lived through it.  My span of concentration was short, especially since I had a coloring book which I left lying on the floor and kept looking back at.  That is until I received a whack on the head from both sisters for not attending to my job.  Finally our watch, which lasted approximately ten minutes was over and I went back to my coloring book.  I sat beside the glowing pot-bellied stove and finished coloring my picture.

     Almost all of my life I have spent Christmases in Alplaus and they have all been memorable.  Now I would like to wish each and everyone a very happy holiday season. May you make precious and wonderful lifelong memories as I have!

Old Alplaus Photos Wanted

by Bob Winchester

I am looking for photographs of two items from Alplaus. I am looking for a picture of the gazebo that used to sit in the middle of the parking lot at 330 Alplaus Avenue.  Sometime in the 1970's there was some repair work being done to the property and a truck backed into the structure.  The workers tore down the building rather than repairing it.  For those who are interested, the 330 Alplaus Avenue building was a rooming house for the workers at "Luna Park or Dolly's Park" down on the Rexford Bluff.  It later became one of the two grocery stores in Alplaus and the gazebo was used as a "drive by" place to pick up the groceries people ordered by phone!

   I am also looking for a picture of the original Alplaus School that sits at the end of Alplaus Avenue.  Specifically, I am looking for a picture of the sign that first stood on the road and then was later mounted on the house.  This sign identified the building as the original Alplaus School House.

   If you have pictures of either of these items, please either call me at 399-0782 or email me at trustinbob@aol.com.