Woodstock listens to electrical ideas

During the short meeting, other business included the following

Sister city?

Members of the Assembly in Zajecar, Serbia, sought the Town Board’s blessing in becoming a sister city with Woodstock. Zajecar will hold Gitarijada, an annual five-day free music festival July 29 through August 2, and seeks to incorporate the spirit of Woodstock into its festival.

The festival, which is in its 48th year, is older than the original Woodstock festival.

Highlights of the festival include 150 street players and a motorcycle festival.

“We’re trying to connect you as a brand with our brand in Europe, making something very unique…” Bestic said.

“Everything in Zajecar those five days is literally just rock ’n roll,” said Marko Jeftic, a festival organizer. “Wherever you go in the city, you have guitar players. Everybody has great fun.”

The festival will include 30 bands; 20 from Serbia and 10 from the United States. The band Rage Against the Machine will be a major contributor, but the spirit is to include non-established acts, said Jeftic. “We are ready to make some great projects like four days of Woodstock Republic, a Woodstock stage, everything is possible…”

Councilman Ken Panza, while in favor of supporting the Zajecar festival, is concerned about going as far as sister-city status, given the history of turmoil in the region. “The sister-city relationship seems to imply a commonality more than just music,” Panza said, “and I’m reluctant to go that far.” Councilman Jay Wenk disagreed, saying the United States is the last country that should be criticizing anyone else’s actions, pointing to America’s past, starting from the mistreatment of Native Americans all the way to the use drones in the present day.

“This is about culture and friendship. It has nothing to do with politics,” said supervisor Jeremy Wilber said.

No vote was taken on the measure.

Temporary TV studio?

Public access television producer Randi Steele expressed concern that ongoing renovation of the Community Center will displace the town’s television studio and prevent people from doing live shows. Steele said she was told the studio may be out of commission for as long as six months.

This would leave many producers unable to do their shows, as few of them have the capability to record or produce in another location, Steele said.

Steele mentioned that Time Warner Cable has a provision in their contract with the town for a one-time temporary setup.

Steele, who is in the process of constructing a public-access radio station, offered the possible use of the radio studio, once constructed, for television broadcasts. Town Supervisor Jeremy Wilber said the town would look into other possibilities, including the construction of a temporary studio.

Public hearing on bridge repair

Bridges on Chestnut Hill and MacDaniel roads are in need of replacement. The Highway Department received an estimate of $336,626 for Chestnut Hill Road and $51,018 for MacDaniel Road. The Town Board will hold a public hearing April 8 at 7:30 p.m. on the transfer of $400,000 from the Highway Repair Reserve to cover these costs.

Wilber noted that Highway Superintendent Mike Reynolds is confident much of the preparation work for these two bridges can be done in-house, reducing the actual costs significantly.

Dance class, flags and markers

The Town Board approved an instructor to teach a one-hour weekly folk dance class for the Senior Recreation program to be paid $50 per class for eight weeks.

The Town Board approved an agreement with the American Legion to place flags and markers on the graves of Woodstock war veterans. The total financial commitment from the town will be $2,000. Any remaining funds will be donated to Veterans Administration Stratton Hospital in Albany and to the Samaritan Village in Ellenville.