Wallkill Valley Times Jun. 13 2018

Vol. 36, No. 24 3 WEDNESDAY, JUNE 13, 2018 3 ONE DOLLAR Champion gymnast Walden celebrates Flag Day Page 40 Page 2 w w w .W a l l k i l l V a l l e y T i m e s . n e t Valley Central’s second budget vote is June 19 By TED REMSNYDER After months of negotiations and numerous budget permutations, Valley Central taxpayers will have the final say Town moves ahead with farmhouse restoration on the school district’s second 2018-2019 proposed budget when the public vote commences on June 19 at Valley Central High School. The balloting will run from 6 a.m until 9 p.m. in the school’s gymnasium, as the district hopes to get a budget passed after residents voted down Valley Central’s first proposed spending plan on May 15. The adjusted budget that was adopted A lien S troll by the Board of Education on May 29 includes $104,023,293 in spending with a 3.11 percent tax levy increase, down from the original $104,203,711 proposed budget Continued on page 6 Book store faces demolition Benedict House to become educational area Wallkill Center project could spell end for Friends’ Bookshop By LAURA FITZGERALD [email protected] By LAURA FITZGERALD [email protected] The town board of the Town of Montgomery approved a motion for the interior demolition of the Benedict Farm House, restoring a structure that has been vacant for more than a decade. The farmhouse, located in Benedict Farm Park at 1675 State Route 17K, will be turned into an educational area with pictures depicting the history of the Benedict farm and the local area. “The educational area would be for not only the up-and-coming generation but for people who are new to the area who would understand that this is a farming community in Montgomery, New York,” Town of Montgomery Supervisor Rod Winchell said. The Benedict farm was used as a dairy The Friends’ Bookshop in Wallkill might face demolition as the Wallkill Center, a mixed-cluster subdivision that would be built on the site, nears approval. Shop Manager Mike DeMeo said the shop’s future is still uncertain. While he is looking for someone who would like to donate space, there are few options in the small hamlet of Wallkill, and the shop couldn’t operate if it had to pay rent. The Wallkill Library is too small for a used book shop. The shop only pays for its utilities because the building was donated by Stewart Crowell, a local landowner, when it opened in 2010. DeMeo said that while the Wallkill Center would be a good opportunity for Continued on page 10 Carl Aiello One of the highlights of the annual Pine Bush UFO Festival is the Alien Stroll down Main Street. More photos on page 20. Continued on page 3 SERVING CRAWFORD, GARDINER, MAYBROOK, MONTGOMERY, PINE BUSH, SHAWANGUNK, WALDEN AND WALLKILL