AU SABLE FORKS, NY — The Town of Jay invites residents and visitors of Au Sable Forks, Jay, and Upper Jay to complete an online survey about town parks available through October 31 at www.bit.ly/jay-parks-survey.
Information gathered through the survey will be used by town officials to make decisions regarding parks maintenance and management. This outreach follows community engagement sessions that took place in person in Au Sable Forks, Jay, and Upper Jay on October 1.
Two prominent arts organizations located in the Adirondack region are seeking new leadership roles to round out their creative teams. View, the arts center in Old Forge, is currently seeking a new Executive Director following the recent announcement that Mark Salsbury, View President, intends to step down from his position by this summer. The Upper Jay Art Center is also accepting applications for the role of Artistic Director.
Mark Salsbury, President of View arts center in Old Forge has announced his departure from his role. Photo provided by Travis Kiefer.
View Center for Arts and Culture in Old Forge:
Mark Salsbury, the President of View, has announced that he will step down from his role by the Summer of 2022, following the strategic planning process that is currently underway. Salsbury and Kathy Ruscitto, View’s Board Chair, have jointly announced plans to begin the process of searching for his replacement. Following several years of retirement, Salsbury joined View in 2019 to help build a foundation for the future.
“It has always been my intention to build a strong foundation to prepare View for the next stage of our development, and the View team has stepped up to the challenge to make that happen,” noted Salsbury. “Our needs going forward are different than they were three years ago, and I look forward to helping transition a new leader in steering View forward to reach its full potential. According to Ruscitto, View’s Board of Directors will commence with a formal search for his replacement through a board-led search committee. A position description and requirements document has been prepared and will be posted on View’s website, and a recruitment firm will be engaged to conduct the search.
“The Board is grateful for Mark’s contributions and the solid foundation he has created for the next leader. We anticipate a wide search for someone with a balance of art management, business development, and community engagement skills. We appreciate the time Mark has given us to conduct a thoughtful search,” noted Ruscitto.
Ruscitto also indicated that progress regarding the search process will be communicated through various updates to its members and the community. “This position is a great opportunity for a passionate and community-minded leader to make a significant difference for View and the Old Forge community. View is an economic engine within our region, and we’re truly blessed to have such a beautiful, large, multi-purpose arts center in our own backyard.”
View is located at 3273 State Route 28 in Old Forge. To learn more about View visit ViewArts.org.
With the fresh snow on the ground, perhaps making sure you get your servings of local vegetables, meat, and dairy isn’t at the top of your list. But there are ways to enjoy that farm fresh flavor at various locations around the Adirondacks, while still enjoying the new snow – winter farmers markets.
Adirondack shops like Lake Placid’s Green Goddess Natural Market, Saranac Lake’s Nori’s Village Market, or Keeseville Farmacy provide wonderful year-round local produce. You can also stop by the farms and buy directly from our local farmers. The region’s indoor farmers markets offer a variety of vendors, one-stop shopping, and a fun way to meet the folks who are growing your food. » Continue Reading.
An effort is underway to spur economic growth in the town of Jay by growing its tourism sector and increasing the housing inventory. Members of a newly formed Jay Task Force have been meeting since March to investigate and identify initiatives. » Continue Reading.
This weekend two of my favorite things are headlining part of the Adirondack Fall Festival tour, wine and cheese. The Adirondack Coast Wine Trail is showcasing local beer, wine, and cider while Adirondack Harvest is once again offering a unique Adirondack cheese tour.
We all know that wine and cheese go together like, well, wine and cheese. I was thinking it’s “mother’s little helper,” but didn’t want to come off like I have a problem with… cheese. » Continue Reading.
Cheese-makers at three Adirondack dairies will be highlighting their wares during the second Essex County Cheese Tour on Sunday, October 11, from 10 am until 4 pm.
This self-guided driving tour follows the scenic Ausable River Valley during the Fall Foliage season. » Continue Reading.
My husband and I planted two apple trees the year we moved into our farmhouse. That was the first and only year that we’ve gotten any apples. We haven’t even seen a blossom since. We drive past our neighbor’s trees loaded with fruit and wonder what we can do.
Our first step has been to install fences. We’ve worked hard to keep the grazing deer from completely obliterating the small trees. The next step was to attend a tree-pruning workshop. » Continue Reading.
When the doldrums set in, winter farmers’ markets can brighten your day with fresh local food and other products. Many stores have “local” sections. As I visited a larger one in our neighboring Vermont recently, with a bustling melee of shoppers, vendors, veggies, maple, hard cider, and other foods and crafts, it occurred to me that I’m long overdue in encouraging readers to visit the winter markets throughout Northern New York. For example, I’ll bet you didn’t know that we not only have one, but now two indoor winter farmers’ markets in Plattsburgh and Upper Jay. » Continue Reading.
I’ve made my own yogurt for years and recently started experimenting with fermented food. I’m now struggling to produce Kefir without a grainy taste.
I just can’t seem to get the balance right. With a cupboard full of sourdough starter and ginger beer plant grains, my pantry looks like a science experiment.
With everything else bubbling and brewing, the one product I have no desire to make is cheese. » Continue Reading.
Cows run. Not only that they hop about, kick up their heels, and act like school kids released for their summer holiday. The occasion? Being released from living in a barn all winter and finally being able to get out into a field of fresh grass, which took place on a Sunday morning at the end of May at the Sugarhouse Creamery, a farmstead in Upper Jay that decided to create a picnic, party, and farmer’s market featuring the products of several new farms recently launched across Essex County.
“The plan is at 11:30 or so we are going to let our Brown Swiss Cows out for the first time this spring,” said Alex Eaton of their first public running of the cows. “They are all in the barn at the moment eating a little bit of hay. We are going to release them and then they will go crazy. It is the best sight in the entire year. They kick up their heels, their udders are swinging around, and these massive creatures are so playful. It’s an incredible sight.” » Continue Reading.
Sugar House Creamery in Upper Jay will be hosting a Green Grass Getdown, a celebration of Spring, local farm food, and cows heading to pasture at the start of the grazing season, on Sunday, May 25.
The event will feature a local food fair and a farmers’ market. The day kicks off with the procession of cows to pasture at 11 am. The parade is based on the Swiss tradition of sending cows to high alpine meadows, a part of Transhumance, the ages-old worldwide migration of livestock and their keepers between seasonal grounds.
Guests will be able to sample and buy fare from Asgaard Farm, The Clay Hearth, Fledging Crow Vegetables, Juniper Hill Farm, Mace Chasm Farm, North Country Creamery, Sugar House Creamery, and other local food providers.
The Adirondack Museum will be opening for its 57th season this Friday, May 23, at its home in Blue Mountain Lake. After a calm winter of Cabin Fever Lectures and special programs, the museum is bringing back favorite exhibits and hosting specials exhibitions for the 2014 season.
Though all the new exhibits sound exciting, one in particular that I’m looking forward to celebrates Arto Monaco’s whimsical art and the Land of Makebelieve. A few years ago my family and I had been able to visit and help the Arto Monaco Historical Society on a few of its work weekends in Upper Jay. The organization was doing its best to resurrect parts of the Land of Makebelieve as well as to catalog the massive art collection for future generations. » Continue Reading.
Executive Director Corrie Miller, who led the Ausable River Association (AsRA) through the aftermath of Tropical Storm Irene and has overseen the organization’s operations over the past two years, has announced her departure. Miller has accepted the position of Executive Director of Friends of the Mad River in central Vermont.
Replacing Miller as executive director is Kelley Tucker, long-time member of the AsRA board and co-author of the draft Ausable River Watershed Management Plan that is being prepared for public comment this year. “We took stock as a board and carefully reviewed our organizational needs, those of the community, and the watershed, and we decided we have the right person within our own ranks,” AsRA Board Chair Larry Master state in a statement to the press. » Continue Reading.
Despite all his accomplishments, Charles Shaw’s career is largely defined by a decade-long battle he fought on behalf of the cable interests for rail control of New York City’s streets. Cable’s two main rivals: horse-powered rail and underground lines. Both had many powerful backers.
Initially, Charles was hired to perform one task: lobby the state legislature for specific modifications of a bill under consideration in Albany. After earning the modern equivalent of more than a quarter million dollars for his efforts, Shaw was retained by the cable men, who wanted San Francisco-type cars operating on 70 miles of New York City roads.
Charles became the leading voice for cable, and was often vilified for his intense lobbying efforts. He refused to give up, at one point leading a four-man legal team against a cadre of 38 lawyers. The New York Times and other newspapers saw Shaw’s plan as nothing more than a city land-grab. But still he fought on, winning some victories and eventually spending over a million dollars in the effort. How high were the stakes? It was estimated that lobbyists representing cable had coughed up close to $5 million … and had still come up empty so far. » Continue Reading.
Among those to rise from humble Adirondack roots and pursue life in the big city was Charles P. Shaw, a native of Jay, New York, where he was born in 1836. “Humble,” meaning relative poverty, aptly described most North Country citizens in those early days. But Shaw may have had an advantage since there were two doctors in the family: his father, Daniel, and his grandfather, Joshua Bartlett. As educated men, they were more likely to stress among their family the importance of education.
For whatever reason, Charles was an excellent and precocious student. There survives in old newspapers an anecdote suggesting he was indeed an unusually bright pupil. » Continue Reading.
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