Untitled (14)Stony Kill ready to h,atch?srr
Stony Kill Environmental Education
Center, once treated as a white
,elephant by state officials,e asforaof
(vested a golden egg in
legislated$1,00,000 in state funds
released at long last by the Offa of the
Budget in Albany.
The nest egg will be used to staff the
center, which is located off Route 9D in
the town of Fishkill.
Full-time permanent employees to
staff the DEC (Department of En-
vironmental Conservation) center
include an associate conservation
educator who would direct Stony Kill at
a salary of $16,469; an assistant
director, who is also a conservation
educator, at $14,075; a conservation
educator at $10,640; a farm manager at
$11,904, and a stenographer at $6,770.
Four new part-time seasonals are
expected also; they will be assigned to
the center after training at another
state DEC Center.
Positions for which civil service lists
exist will be filled from them. The
applicants for the conservation
education director and assistant
director positions for which no Civil
Service list now exists must meet
minimum Civil Service requirements
and then take a competitive exam when
... me mullu, _
a listing is created.
Herbert Eschbach, tentatively
selected for the farm manager's job, is
already employed by the Department
of Environmental Conservation. His
hiring would require a promotion and
transfer and should be completed soon.
Eschbach would decree the type of
agricultural program the center would
undertake, organize young workers,
equipment, and 4H programs, and
develop the farm section's budget.
Bob Budliger, an assistant director at
DEC, accused the Office of the Budget
executive division of "dragging its
feet" where Stony Kill's funds are
concerned. Papers needed to release
Stony Kill funds were "in the works"
since the legislature allocated them in
April.
Application papers for designation in
the National Historic Landmarks
Register which would provide
"protection from unauthorized
development" and possibly provide
federal funds are also still "in the
works," according to Budliger.
Determined members of Stony Kill
Foundation Inc., a group which in-
cludes private citizens, sportsmen, and
people with historic and environmentaf
interests in the area feel their efforts to
preserve and promote Stony Kill in the
face of state neglect may have begun to
pay off, but Foundation president Bob
Reiner is somewhat skeptical about
anything concerning promises to Stony
Kill after series of long delays.
Stony Kill may take off now though —
building activity should come with
staffing activity, Budliger suggested at
a recent meeting of the Stony Kill
Foundation.
Construction, sanitary facilities,
septic system repairs, winterization of
a summer cottage and rehabilitation of
a gardener's cottage as well as repairs
including the barn roof and water line
to the green house will be given
priorities and handled internally.
Stony Kill is open to the general
public. Until new staff members arrive
conservation
two temporary educators
run nature programs, lectures, and
trail hikes for school groups and scouts
and a leadership training program
designed to familiarize greater num-
bers with Stony Kill's offerings. Green
Thumb senior citizens handle part time
clerical and receptionist duties.
People interested in Stony Kill are
welcome to drop in or call for in-
formation..