Favoritest Phlox in Beacon, 2018

This is my most favoritest phlox in all of Beacon, requiring a walk down Cross Street to experience it. Cross Street is by Hudson Beach Glass. So stop in there for a little blown-glass marble or miniature animal collectible, and then walk by this ocean wave of phlox before it’s gone...

Beacon Organizes Mountain-to-River Earth Day Clean Up on Saturday, April 21, 2018

The 2018 Beacon Earth Day is taking place on Saturday, April 21, and is organized by the Green Beacon Coalition and the Beacon Recreation Department. Several city leaders - from business owners to nonprofit organizers to citizens - will be stationed at some of your favorite spots around the city, like Long Dock Park, Rocky Glen, South Avenue Park, Madam Brett, and so many other places. You can find all of the locations and start times here, or scroll down in this article to get a quick glance.

Can people pick up trash any day of the year? Not just on Earth Day? Of course, says Brian DiFeo, co-founder of Green Beacon Coalition and a member of the Conservation Advisory Committee for the City of Beacon, but people should take some precautions so as to stay safe. "It's wise to plan ahead - if you notice trash on the road or in the woods, next time you go by, bring a trash bag and some gardening gloves. Better yet - invite your neighbor to join you! Part of the spirit of a community trash cleanup is doing something good together with neighbors because it builds the ties that make a place like Beacon a wonderful place to live."

After-Party of the City Wide Clean Up at Recreation Center

The cleanup generally runs from 9 to 11 am (except for the Mount Beacon and Fire Tower with Hudson Valley Hikers portion, which starts at 8:30 am), there will be a BBQ with music, the return of the Repair Cafe, and a performance by Arm of the Sea Theater at noon.

Beacon Earth Day Clean Up Locations

Beacon Reservoir with Mountain Tops
When: 9 to 11 am *might start earlier*
Meeting Location: Pocket Road Trailhead
Crew Leader: Katy Bell Behney

Long Dock Park with Zero to Go
When: 9 to 11 am
Meeting Location: Long Dock Park
Crew Leader: Sarah Womer

Rocky Glen with Beacon Greenway Committee
When: 9 to 11 am
Meeting Location: Beacon Lofts on Front Street
Crew Leader: Andy Bell

South Ave Park with Beacon Recreation Department
When:  9 to 11 am
Meeting Location: Recreation Center
Crew Leader: Mark Price

Teller Woods / Madam Brett Homestead with Beacon Historical Society
When: 9 to 11 am
Meeting Location: Madam Brett House
Crew Leader: Theresa Kraft

Mount Beacon and Fire Tower with Hudson Valley Hikers
When: 8:30 to 11 am
Meeting Location: Pocket Road Trailhead
Crew Leader: Chris Pelaia + Aaron Sterling

East end of Main Street with the Conservation Advisory Committee
When: 9 to 11 am
Meeting Location: Trax Coffee Shop
Crew Leader: Brian DiFeo

Pocket Road Trail + Fire Road with Friends of Fishkill Ridge (Local Hikers)
When: 9 to 11 am
Meeting Location: Pocket Road Trailhead
Crew Leader: Kristen Pratt + Meghan Spiro

Fishkill Ave with Friends of Beacon Dog Park
When: 9 to 11 am
Meeting Location: Beacon Dog Park
Crew Leader: TBD

Visit www.greenbeaconcoalition.org/earth-day and click the "Volunteer" location for your preferred location.

Parking Lot Expansion Plans from Scenic Hudson at Mt. Beacon Trailhead Are Voted to Move Forward

Photo Credit: Katie Hellmuth Martin

The City of Beacon's Planning Board voted this week to approve plans put forth by Scenic Hudson to add parking spaces at Mt. Beacon's trailhead, to address the growing problem of hikers' cars overflowing into residential areas. During the November 14, 2017, monthly Planning Board Meeting, Meg Rasmussen, Senior Park Planner for Scenic Hudson, presented the plans, which would increase the number of spots from 44 to 77. The plans incorporated requested changes to stay away from existing wetlands. Scenic Hudson maintains the public trails and parking lot at no cost to the City of Beacon.

Some main points to the enlargement project include:

• Increasing opportunities for alternate transportation, which would include new bike racks and drop-off and pick-up points for public transit. According to David Martin, a local resident who hikes the trail often, bikes are frequently seen locked to trees.
• Landscape design to guide people where to park using timber guardrails, "whiskers" and signs, as well as borders of native plants along the roadway. Said Meg on the effectiveness of such design at the meeting: "We are delineating the spaces with 'whiskers,' which come out of the gravel. They use them at the Mohonk Preserve very effectively. People really use them to see where they are supposed to park."
• The decision to keep the parking lot visible from the road: The plan included a recommendation to keep the parking lot in view of the street (vs hidden from view) for safety reasons. "If we were to locate it back off the roadway... you get a lot of nuisance and partying. We have experienced that at our other preserves," explained Meg during the meeting. Planning Board member Gary Barrack expressed disfavor with the more-visible placement, and was a minority vote against the plan, saying it was is the main entry point of the mountain and should be placed behind the wetlands. "To put this parking lot in this historic spot is not the way to go."

Members of the public who were at the meeting generally supported the increase in parking, and voiced concern that it will not solve the problem of parking as the number of hikers using the area continues to soar, especially as Breakneck Ridge prepares to close for restoration. Chairman of the Board James C. Sheers said: "I applaud the applicant for trying to address this situation.  I am very concerned about the future. This will absorb a lot of what we have been seeing, but eventually it won't. Hopefully we will take steps to address it when this becomes an issue again."

Clearwater gets Rockefeller Brothers Fund Grant for Estuary Education

Hudson River Sloop Clearwater was awarded a $15,000 grant from Rockefeller Brothers Fund to support Clearwater’s Estuary Education Initiative (EEI). This grant makes possible the new curriculum’s aim to teach thousands of children about the links between scientific research and environmental policy.

"Clearwater is pleased to accept Rockefeller Brothers Fund’s grant on behalf of the many students we serve," said Wren Longno, Clearwater's director of development. "As grassroots educators and storytellers, we are in a unique position to tell the story of how partners, including Rockefeller Brothers Fund, have worked together to create a sustainable Hudson Valley." 

Clearwater Board Chair Betsy Garthwaite said, “In 1968, Steven Rockefeller hosted one of the original gatherings to raise funds to build the Sloop Clearwater at the Rockefeller Farm Barn in Pocantico Hills. That history gives this award special meaning as we embark upon new ways of teaching the history of the Hudson River environmental movement, bringing the river to schools, and schools to the river.”  
 
Clearwater anticipates that by August 2019, this science curriculum will reach 50 educators, 5,000 students and 500 members of the public, and will be widely shared through professional development conferences and showcased prominently on the Clearwater website and social media.

About Hudson River Sloop Clearwater

Launched in 1969 by legendary folk singer and activist Pete Seeger, Hudson River Sloop Clearwater has been at the forefront of the environmental movement as champions of the Hudson River. To date, more than half a million people have experienced their first real look at an estuary’s ecosystem aboard the sloop Clearwater. Clearwater has become the grassroots model for producing positive changes to protect our planet. For more information, visit www.clearwater.org.

Rockefeller Brothers Fund

Founded in 1940, the Rockefeller Brothers Fund advances social change that contributes to a more just, sustainable, and peaceful world. The Fund's grantmaking is organized in three thematic programs that support work in the United States and at the global level: Democratic Practice, Sustainable Development, and Peacebuilding; and in two pivotal place programs that address these themes in specific contexts: Southern China, and the Western Balkans. The Charles E. Culpeper Arts & Culture program, focused on New York, nurtures a vibrant and inclusive arts community in the Fund’s home city.

Enviromental Citizen Soapbox Happening - Looking For Speakers in Bursts

If you have a thought to share about the environment, you can do it from a soapbox on Monday, October 23, from 7 to 9 pm at the First Presbyterian Church of Beacon, 50 Liberty St. Hosted by the Green Beacon Coalition, anyone is invited to attend and/or speak about their views, concerns, and visions in order to "work toward creating a more environmentally conscious city," according to Green Beacon Coalition's event page.

This isn't the first such "soapbox"-inspired event at the First Presbyterian Church of Beacon. Past events have included the Springtime Citizen Soapbox, which was an open forum to hear people's hopes for the future of the Beacon community.

Anyone can sign up to speak at the soapbox, and speaking opportunities run for a maximum of "a couple of minutes." Interested speakers and attendees can sign up here at the Green Beacon Coalition website.