Beacon Dispatch

Editorial: Don’t Get Schooled Again

Late last month the group that bought and now manages the former Beacon High School—The Beacon Cultural Foundation—announced that they were filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. While rising utilities costs were cited as one reason for the BCF’s financial woes, in an article in the Poughkeepsie Journal the cultural foundation’s Sam Yanes revealed what is likely to be the BCF’s strategy in future negotiations with the Beacon City School District. “We paid too much for this place,” Yanes was quoted as saying with regard to the $4.25 million that was paid for the building back in 2003. It’s expected that the BCF will attempt to set the “real” value of the building to somewhere between $1.2 and $2 million dollars and then try to renegotiate the original purchase price of the former high school with the district, which is currently holding the mortgage. This would make the former high school the only property in Beacon that has lost more than half its value over the last three years.

Beacon Muralist Rick Price Gives the Library a New Face

First Person

by Rick Price

This project began when I first moved to Beacon from San Francisco, in the early fall of 2004. I’d heard about all the artists and creative types who’d moved to Beacon and I’d read the articles about Beacon being part of an art renaissance in the Hudson Valley. Despite this, I didn’t see any public art in town with the exception of a lone, incomplete mural on Main St.

Sandlot Memories

The History of Beacon Baseball

by Jack Sine

The beginnings   

In 1951 World War II was a grim and close memory, Korea was a bloody fact, and the Cold War was ramping up at a feverish pace. It was a time that was starving for some positive karma. In Beacon three men found that karma in the great American pastime—baseball.

“There were three of us at the start,” said Bob Cahill. “Me, Henry Hager, and Al Robillard. We all had baseball backgrounds and one day we got talking about Little League. That was some time in 1951 and Little League had started in 1947 so we had all read something about it. We thought it was a good idea for Beacon so we decided to hold a meeting at the Memorial Building and invited some others who had baseball backgrounds. I can’t remember all the names, but Babe Adams, Rocky Fezza, my brother Jack, and Ralph Flynn were all there. We formed a committee and applied to Williamsport and were approved by Little League. Ralph Flynn was president, Henry Hager was treasurer because he was a banker, and I was secretary. We decided on a four team league to start with—the Yankees, the Dodgers, the Red Sox, and the Indians.”

Highlights of Recent City Council Meetings

by Garrett Deutermann

August 7th Meeting

City Police Officer to be stationed at BHS and Rombout Middle School

On August 7th, 2006 the Beacon City Council commended a piece of legislation passed by New York State (NYS) that prohibited discrimination, harassment, and bullying in public schools. The board requested that the Beacon City School District provide information to the Council that identifies the actions taken to comply with the NYS Bill. The law requires school districts to develop procedures that create a school environment free of discrimination and harassment by establishing guidelines for the training of school personnel, and establish guidelines for development of nondiscriminatory instructional and counseling methods and require that at least one member of each school staff trained to hand human relations.

Plans are underway for the annual Spirit of Beacon Day

Plans are under way for the annual Spirit of Beacon Day to be held on Sunday, September 24th (rain date, October 1st) from 12:00pm – 4:00pm, and the theme for this year is “Beacon’s Youth – Tomorrow’s Future.”

The committee is taking reservations for booth space and from any groups who are interested in marching in the parade, and especially for any group interested in having a float.  The parade route will be from Main and Beekman Streets to Tioronda Avenue and booths will be set up from Main and Teller to North/South Brett Streets.  The booths open around noon and the parade will begin at 1:00 pm.  Booth space is available to non-profit groups only, while the parade is open to the public.  Some of the 42 organizations that have already signed up for spaces are:  St. Rocco Society, Beacon Community Center, Forrestal School, Beacon Light Tabernacle Church, ARF, Beacon Rotary Club, along with the Fire Department and Beacon Volunteer Ambulance Corp.

For booth information and/or reservations, call Rose Story, 831-5401 after 5:30 pm and for the parade call Roy Ciancanelli at 831-3027.

As in the past, for safety reasons, the Committee would appreciate everyone’s cooperation with not bringing dogs, bicycles or skateboards.

Beacon Voices: Kamal Alassal

by Kate Fraher

Kamal Alassal, proprietor of Dr. K Imported Car Service & Repair, is a local mechanic who came to Beacon from Lebanon, by way of Manhattan and Briarcliff. He stepped away from his work on a 1971 Maserati to talk about his business, the growth of Beacon, and war in Lebanon.

Recipe: Preserving Summer Produce

Simple instructions to can your favorite vegetables and fruits in no-time

by Bruce Beaty

Since I was a kid, I've always greeted September with mixed emotions. Weather-wise it's my favorite month. It’s still more summer than it is fall, with warm, less humid days and gradually cooling evenings that make for perfect sleeping conditions. It confirms the return to school, a more "normal" lifestyle and a busier daily schedule. It also marks the pinnacle of late summers' harvest. It's the last of the beautiful tomatoes, corn, plums and nectarines whose juicy ripeness can turn into rot in no time. 

September's recipes are about the abundance of produce and the scarcity of free time for cooking it. Included here are a few quick, healthy recipes that are geared more toward weekday meals than entertaining for large groups.

Ramble Down the River

Hudson River Valley Ramble Kicks off its Seventh Year

by Jennifer Sipple

This year’s Hudson Valley Ramble is about to take place with over 160 guided walking, hiking, kayaking, canoeing and biking experiences which highlight the Hudson’s river valley and estuary.  With a wide variety of events, the Hudson Valley Ramble offers something to just about anyone interested in taking a stroll and learning a little local history along the way.

Beacon School Board Reports

A regular column from the president of the Beacon School Board

by Bill Zopf
President, Board of Education, Beacon School District

Quality of education, student safety, property taxes, home values, educated work force.  What do these things have in come?  Either directly or indirectly your school board makes decisions affecting these and other aspects of life in your community .

To help people better understand the policies and operations of a school district, the Beacon Dispatch and Beacon Free Press have agreed to present this forum to discuss the work of the Board of Education for the Beacon City School District (BCSD). This first column will introduce you to the school district, school board members, and exciting new construction work on the Rombout Middle School.