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Image provided by: Guilderland Public Library
The Altampnt Enterprise - Thursday, April 13,2006 JOHN DEERE 102 SERIES Power • Exclusive 17-hp John Deere Anti-Vibration System (AVS) single- cyclinder engine (by Briggs & Stratton) has plenty of power and torque to handle tough mulching, mowing, and bagging conditions • Electronic ignition Performance • 5-speed, gear-drive transmission Unique clutch/brake design allows shifting and braking with one pedal; clutch engagement is modulated for extra smooth, predictable, confident operation • 42-inch (2-blade) mower deck featuring The Edge™ Cutting System provides superior grass lift for precise, level cut STARTING $1 2QQ00 SALES & SERVICE $ 1399 ( RNIGHTES FARM, LAWN & GARDEN RT. 158, GUILDERLAND ROAD ROTTERDAM'(518)355-4669 JOHN DEERE NEW& USED TOWN OF NEW SCOTLAND Computer/Electronics Recycling Day Saturday, April 22, 2006 • 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. New Scotland Residents must bring their items to Taft Furniture, The Big Store I960 Central Ave. (1 mile west of Route 155) Remember that the program will end precisely at 1:00 p.m. Acceptable items include: computers and all computer parts, TV's, VCR's, air conditioners and telephones including cell phones. Residents must call Pat or Teresa at 475-0385 to sign up for entrance pass. HOUSEHOLD HAZARDOUS WASTE COLLECTION DAY SATURDAY, May 6,2006 • 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. New Scotland Residents must bring their items to Town of Bethlehem Highway Garage 74 Elm Avenue East Selkirk Residents must call Pat or Teresa at 475-0385 to sign up to receive a list of acceptable wastes and entrance pass. CLEAN WATER? DO YOU HAVE PROBLEMS WITH... HARD WATER, BAD TASTE OR ODORS, IRON, SULFER, STAINS... Exclusive Rent-to-Own Program starting at J per month + be ECO WATER SYSTEMS* SINCE 1925 SAVING THE WORLD'S WATER. ONE TAP ATATIME. [Good Housekeeping ' ^ Promises -«• SERVING THE GREATER CAPITAL DISTRICT CALL TODAY FOR YOUR FREE WATER ANALYSIS • Financing Available • Rent to Own 1-888-384-6967 518-533-9879 j A The Enterprise opinion pages are an open forum for our community. We encourage readers to express their thoughts about issues that appear in this newpaper or affect the community. Letters should be brief (with an outside limit of 1,000 words) and must include the writer's address, name, and phone number for verification. The editors may reject letters that have been printed elsewhere. Letters concerning elections will be cut off one issue before the election at the editor's discretion. No unsigned letters. Deadline for letters is Tuesday at noon. OfaX^SA**} Is a $60K sprinkler system needed for 12-year-olds to play football? To the Editor: I read with some interest, and disbelief, in last week's Enter- prise of the awarding of a con- tract for watering services for the football field at Farnsworth Middle School. The price, of the contract was listed at $59,600. I called the Guilderland Cen- tral School administrative office and spoke with Linda Living- ston. I was told that this was for the installation of a sprinkler system for the field used by the school football team and \some other classes.\ She also said that the fields were occasionally rented out to others, although not on a regular contractual basis. Although-1 didn't ask, I as- sume that there is no reimburse- ment for this expenditure from the state or other outside source. Now I'm not in the habit of writing letters to the editor, but I needed to respond to this. Am I the only one who questions a nearly $60,000 expenditure for lush turf for 12- and 13-year- olds? When we played sports at that level, we were happy to sprinkle some Ajax cleanser at each end to have a goal line. Apparently there is no income derived from a field so well maintained. Is there some safety issue? Is greener grass softer, thereby cushioning landings? Other questions come to mind. Now that we will water on a regular basis (or why bother with an installed system), will the water bill go up? Will addi- tional pesticides and herbicides be required to control the turf? Will the need for mowing in- crease, leading to increased gasoline and maintenance costs of the lawn care equipment? The soccer teams have played on those fields for years (I was a We didn't see the length of an obituary as a contest To the Editor: We would like to comment on the letter to the editor by Robert Giebitz [The Enterprise, April 6,2006]. Mr. Giebitz wrote to ex- press his concern about the length of the obituary regarding Edward Pitcher. Why is Mr. Giebitz concerned about the length of the an- nouncement? He may have known Ed and been friends with him as well, but I don't believe we, the family, see the length of one's obituary as a contest to see how extensive and lengthy it can be. The obituaries, as we see them, are announcements of the pas- sing of a loved one. This is a time when the family is concerned about informing people that our brother, uncle or your friend has died, not that they may have been talented as an athlete or how many people were in his graduating class. We cannot possibly fit all of the special qualities that made Ed who he was in an obituary. If you knew Ed, you already know what you needed to know about him. If you didn't know Ed, there is no chance that we could tell you in a couple of paragraphs how great a person he was. We are at a loss to understand why this letter to the editor was deemed to be important enough to be printed in the paper. Was it the content of the letter or was it the author that made it newsworthy? We also feel very strongly that questioning the family about the way they handle funeral ar- rangements or things related to the funeral is not Mr. Giebitz's place and by printing his com- ments, The Altamont Enterprise has given credence to Mr. Giebitz. We are still dealing with Ed's passing every day and don't appreciate having to defend ourselves to people hundreds of miles away in a different state that use a local newspaper to express their opinions. Mr. Giebitz and The Altamont Enterprise are both wrong and will no doubt see things differ- ently when they are in a similar situation. Michael Deitz for family members of Edward Pitcher Editor's note: We have an open policy on our opinion pages, pub- lishing letters that address local issues or that respond to what we have written. On April 6, we published a let- ter, \Eddy Pitcher was a terrific athlete,\ as one friend's recollec- tions and, we thought, criticism of our newspaper for giving Mr. Pitcher short shrift. We in no way meant to criticize Mr. Pitcher's family and we apologize for the misunderstand- ing. CORRECTION Last week, we reported on a settlement the village of Altamont has reached with Michael and Nancy Trumpler. The village will pay the Trumplers $225,000 for a five-acre well site and for 32 adjacent acres to be preserved for Michael Trumpler's lifetime, as we reported. However, do an editing error, we reported the breakdown of that $225,000 incorrectly. Actually, according to the settlement, $125,000 is for the five-acre well site, and $100,000 is for the additional 32 acres. coach many years ago when my kids participated) and they never required this type of care. Is this really necessary for middle-school-level football? It seems to me that in a time when budgets are constantly questioned and we are told that school officials are trying to contain costs and maintain pro- gramming priorities, this item sticks out like a sore thumb. My business has become so disil- lusioned with the proliferation of sports fund-raising and the overall emphasis on sports that all of our advertising support goes to academic programs and the arts. When the middle school erects bleachers for the field and starts a booster club, leave me off the list of contacts for advertising. I already gave with my taxes. Stuart Fass Altamont Power-crazed bureaucrats need a new attitude towards business To the Editor: A front-page Enterprise story led me to attend the initial meeting of the Coalition for Guilderland Small Businesses. It was astounding to hear one horror story after another of how poorly small businesses are treated by Guilderland's town government. Power-crazed bureaucrats simply don't understand that their jobs wouldn't even exist if it weren't for the revenues gener- ated by private-sector com- panies. Town officials need a new attitude when it comes to the way it treats the hand that feeds it and that change won't occur unless small businesses work together to force the change. The United States Census indi- cates 70 percent of all businesses have no paid employees and they generate $770 billion a year in sales. Small businesses can be an enormous political force if they work together and this new coalition provides the right forum to produce positive change. Consider examining its web- site at www.forguilderland- businesses.com and attending the next meeting on April 26. Mark Grimm Guilderland Editor's note: Mark Grimm owns a media consulting busi- ness in Guilderland. Dollar Savers in the The Enterprise Jaycees Pizza Depot See page 36 Tendercare Child Centers See page 11 Metro Media ^ See page 17 \^WWWja-WJ'fW^Mp*^ 1 ^
