August 7, 2025

Our summer is flying by, with this week’s ending of the very popular Parks & Rec summer program, the successful performances of Oklahoma! by the Park Playhouse Stage Company, and this past Tuesday evening’s well-attended National Night Out. The upcoming events calendar includes next week’s return of the Altamont Fair and additional offerings by Parks & Rec. More details are shared below.

Town News & Announcements

While Parks & Rec’s summer recreation program ends tomorrow, there are several activities scheduled through the month. Next week’s offerings include tennis for beginners and intermediate players, archaeology, candy craze, cooking for fun with literature, and recess adventure camp. The registration deadline is at midnight tonight.

Tawasentha Park’s pool is scheduled to remain open until Sunday, August 31. It is open weekdays from Noon to 7 pm, and weekends from 11:30am to 7pm. Adult lap swimming takes place on Monday thru Thursday from 11am to Noon, and on weekends from 10am to 11:30am. Lap lanes are available on a first come, first serve basis.

This past weekend’s performances of Oklahoma! by the Park Playhouse Stage Company were very popular, with GPAC packed for each performance. The weather was perfect. I thank Park & Rec staff for making these events successful and enjoyable. We are hopeful that Park Playhouse Stage Company will return next year with another popular musical. GPAC’s 2025 concert series ends next Thursday, August 14 at 7:30pm, with a performance by Hey Jude, a Beatles tribute show.

National Night Out took place on Tuesday evening, with the opportunity for residents to meet firefighters from fire departments serving the Town, animal control officers, police officers, and EMS staff. The event also included more than a dozen booths for local agencies serving the Town.

A reminder that Water Department has started the process of replacing its water meters, about 9,500 total. VEPO Metering, the company installing the meters, will soon mail the first batch of letters to homes in McKownville, the Fort Hunter area west of Carmen road, and the lower part of Willow Street. The first installations in that area will start on Monday, September 8. The next batch includes homes east of Route 155, with installations starting in early October, and the last batch for the remainder of the Town, with installations starting in November. At the scheduled appointment time, the technician will also need cleared space to access the meter. While the appointment window will be scheduled for a four-hour window, the installation should take about 30 minutes. There will be a brief break in water service.

Please remember that, with recent dry weather, the watering of lawns is restricted to times when overall water usage is low. The Town’s summer water usage restrictions, which are in effect until September 15, help maintain adequate water capacity and pressure in homes, businesses, and fire hydrants. The use of automatic underground sprinklers is only allowed from 1am and 4:30am on odd days for properties with odd numbered street addresses and on even days for properties with even numbered addresses. For above-ground manually placed sprinklers and hand-held sprinklers, the water use is restricted to 6:30am and 8:30am and 6:30pm and 8:30pm on odd days for properties with odd numbered street addresses and on even days for properties with even numbered addresses. There are no water restrictions for hand-held sprinkling of non-commercial vegetable and flower gardens. Please contact the Water Department before filling a swimming pool.

Garden Club

On Monday, August 11 at from 10am to Noon, the Guilderland Garden Club will meet at Town Hall, with a presentation on vermicomposting by Cody Futia, the owner of Vermiluv, a local worm composting farm.

Please remember that, in all Town parks and open spaces, dogs must be on a leash at all times. Your dog may be very friendly, but hikers and park patrons do not know that and the presence of an unleashed dog can be disconcerting. The exceptions to this rule are the Town’s two dog parks at Nott Road Park and behind EMS Station 1 in Westmere.

On Saturday, September 13 from 10am to 2pm at Tawasentha Park, the Town is hosting a rabies clinic for dogs, cats, and ferrets. The event is free but donations are greatly appreciated. The clinic is sponsored by Albany County Department of Health and the Mohawk Hudson Humane Society.

The Senior Services Department’s newsletter has information about classes and seminars, book discussions, tax preparation assistance, trips, medical and shopping transportation, next month’s book discussion, legal aide, monthly meal calendar, games, and much more. On Wednesdays from 11am to 12:30pm, the Guilderland Public Library is the home for Senior Connects!, where seniors can have a friendly chat on a wide-range of interesting topics.

The Town is accepting letters of interest and resumes from candidates interested in applying for the fulltime position of Court Scheduling Liaison in the Town Court. Because this position is covered by the Hiring Emergency Limited Placement (HELP) Program, candidates will not have to take an exam for this title. More information about the HELP program may be found on the Albany County Civil Service website. The Town is also accepting letters of interest and resumes from candidates for Police Officer, Telecommunicator/911 Dispatcher, and Laborer positions in the Highway, Parks and Water Departments.

Upcoming Meetings at Town Hall

The following is a list of dates and times for currently scheduled meetings of boards and committees at Town Hall over the next 30 days. Please check the Town’s calendars for the latest news about public meetings and community events, possible changes in agendas and cancellations, and the latest contents of agenda packets. Unless stated otherwise, each of the listed meetings start at 7pm, and are livestreamed on the Town website, and broadcasted on Verizon channel 34, and Spectrum channel 1303. Within days of a broadcasted meeting, an indexed recording, with links to each listed agenda item, is also posted online.

Conservation Advisory Council

Monday, August 11

Town Board

Tuesday, August 19

American Revolution 250^th Anniversary Committee

Wednesday, August 20 at 3pm (not broadcasted)

Zoning Board of Appeals

Wednesday, August 20

Industrial Development Agency

Monday, August 26

Planning Board

Wednesday, August 27

Town Board

Tuesday, September 2

Zoning Board of Appeals

Wednesday, September 3

Community Events & Resources

On this upcoming Saturday, August 9 from 11am to 3pm, the Guilderland Public Library is hosting a Flower Festival, a family-friendly outdoor event that will include a guided book hike through the Library’s Literary Garden, an obstacle course and scavenger hunt for children and families, live music by local artists, bake sales, fun photo ops, and craft stations with hands-on projects for all ages provided by the YMCA, Bring on the Spectrum, Autism Society Greater Hudson Region, and more. The Flower Festival is free and open to the public, and will take place outdoors, with no registration required. In the event of rain, activities will be moved inside the Library.

The Guilderland Public Library’s calendar includes on Wednesday, August 13 from 5:30pm to 7:30pm, Genealogy Assistance with professional genealogist Lisa Dougherty who will offer one-on-one family history consultations. The same opportunity takes place on the 2nd Wednesday of the month. On Saturday, September 7 from 2pm to 3pm, the Library is hosting a performance by Mark Hecker on popular songs by Woodie Guthrie, Phil Ochs and others about social justice.

The Library has launched a Long-Range Planning process for the Library. To ensure that the Library continues to meet the changing needs of our community, it has created a survey for your feedback. This is your chance to share what you value most about the library, as well as ideas for improvements or new services, and to help shape the library’s future. The survey is also available at the Library for your convenience.

The Altamont Free Library is creating a new Long-Range Plan of Service that relies, in part, on a brief and anonymous survey on whether you use the Library, how you use it, and what it can do better for you in the future.

The 2025 Altamont Fair returns next week from Tuesday, August 12 to Sunday, August 17, with an entertainment schedule listing new shows, amusement rides, demolition derby, circus, dog shows, and the return of favorite attractions.

Lunchtime Chats

Community Caregivers’ weekly Lunchtime Chats includes French Riviera Field Trip tomorrow and Julia Child’s Legacy from Cookbook to Cultural Icon on Friday, August 15. You can easily join and listen in on these one-hour chats by calling (518) 992-6661. Community Caregivers is looking for volunteer drivers who can transport seniors for medical and other essential trips, and help keep our neighbors in their homes. If you are interested or have questions, please contact Community Caregivers at info@communitycaregivers.org or by calling (518) 456-2898.

The Albany Pine Bush Preserve’s summer calendar includes Common Nighthawk Watch on Tuesday, August 26, from 6pm to 7:30pm, when you can learn more about this species that is neither common nor a hawk and is experiencing declines in its breeding range. With a 2-foot wingspan and a habit of feeding in the air near the ground, Common Nighthawks are easy to spot as they fly over the Preserve on their 6,000-mile southward migration.

The Guilderland YMCA has launched Running Start, an effort to fill 115 backpacks for students attending Guilderland, Voorheesville, and Berne Knox Westerlo who have been identified by school counselors as needing extra support to start the school year ready and confident. Each child will receive a new backpack filled with essential school supplies, including a $100 gift card to help purchase clothing and shoes for the upcoming school year. You can help by making a financial donation online by selecting “Guilderland Community” from the dropdown, or dropping off binders, notebooks, lined papers, rulers, glues, and pencils, pens, crayons and markers at the YMCA.

Thank you for taking the time to read this newsletter.

Peter G. Barber

Town Supervisor