Getting ready for Woodstock 50

Highland discusses Woodstock and wastewater

DAVID HULSE
Posted 4/17/19

ELDRED, NY — Highland officials are hoping the town’s Woodstock anniversary display will draw more than a glance across the intersection from passerby waiting for the traffic light on …

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Getting ready for Woodstock 50

Highland discusses Woodstock and wastewater

Posted

ELDRED, NY — Highland officials are hoping the town’s Woodstock anniversary display will draw more than a glance across the intersection from passerby waiting for the traffic light on their way to Bethel.

PA route 434 to the Shohola-Barryville Bridge and NY State Route 55 are the most direct routes to the Bethel site from eastern PA. Sullivan County is estimating up to eight million visitors. Town officials are hoping to catch some of those visitor dollars.

To that end, the town is redesigning the small park on the northeast intersection corner in Eldred, which has been dominated by a large carved and recently restored wooden bald eagle, which, since its installation in 2002, has been surrounded by evergreen shrubs and a carved bench, also in the bald eagle motif. 

Arnold Gruel of the town’s beautification committee said on April 9 that 10 to 15 volunteers have removed the shrubs and are readying the ground for the installation of the concrete base that will support a 160-pound, 5-foot by 7-foot fiberglass, celebratory dove. Each of Sullivan’s 15 towns and villages will have at least one of the doves on display, each with designs selected by town.

Highland’s two-sided dove has been painted and approved by the Sullivan Renaissance committee, which provided a $1,500 grant to help offset the cost. Highland’s dove will feature local forest and river scenes and an American Flag design along its center ridge.

The yet unidentified artist doing the painting was said to have tripled the grant funding. The town is planning for adjoining commercial bus parking and has filed for additional county grant funding.

The dove is to be completed and erected by May 15. “We’re right on schedule for getting it done,” supervisor Jeff Haas said.

The other item prompting public discussion was the status of a permit to allow the Eldred Preserve to release up to 17,000 gallons of wastewater daily into the Halfway Brook.

Resident Paula Campbell said she hoped the town board would take a position to support residents opposed to the permit.

Haas read a letter from the project engineering consultant Keystone Associates, which found “nothing untypical in the application” and said that the effects of the wastewater “would not be unreasonable.” The consultant advised against pre- or post-quality testing saying it was “not recommended for liability reasons.”

Haas directed other concerns to the Department of Environmental Conservation, which will decide on the need for a public hearing by April 22.

The board also approved payment of some $14,000 in current bills related to electrical installation construction of the new highway barn, and advertising for candidates for the summer youth program.

news, Woodstock 50th anniversary, town of highland, wastewater, dep

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