Tag: Albany

In prior posts, I covered the energy situation for transportation. The good news is that New York City is an inherently energy efficient place, thanks to its high transit use and many pedestrian trips. The bad news is there is no political leadership to improve things further, by organizing a large-scale carpooling system for places not readily accessible by transit, for example. This post is about the energy required for other purposes, for heating, cooling, and use in buildings. Here again, the good news is that New York City is inherently efficient, since attached houses, apartment buildings, large office buildings, and other commercial space in multistory mixed-use buildings have less exterior surface area per square foot, and thus require less energy to heat and cool. And, the New York City lifestyle is energy efficient, because New Yorkers have less (because there is nowhere to put it) but do more. Making, moving and disposing of goods takes more energy than services, which rely on the human energy New York has in abundance. The bad news is that Downstate New York faces a local shortage of both electricity and fuel for heating, cooling and cooking — above and beyond the overall energy problem in the Untied States and the world — based on access to supply. And NIMBY’s gone wild, both outside the Downstate area and inside it, are blocking any and all possible solutions to that shortage, stoked by puffery from pandering local pols.

Would-be Governors Eliot Spitzer and John Faso are saying the right things about transportation finance. That is the good news. They want to see major mass transit projects built to support the Manhattan-based economy that is the tax base of the entire state. Spitzer called the finances of the MTA the “greatest transportation concern” and said fare and toll increases, increased local funding, and other tax increases, as well as efficiencies, would be required – reversing 12 years of policy. Faso agreed. They both called for weaning the MTA off debt by going to pay-as-you-go financing; hopefully they have the same idea about financing road construction elsewhere in the state. The candidates even mentioned making tough decisions, a big change after the something-for-nothing-now, then move-to-Florida-later policies of the recent past. All good.

Would-be Governors Eliot Spitzer and John Faso are saying the right things about transportation finance. That is the good news. They want to see major mass transit projects built to support the Manhattan-based economy that is the tax base of the entire state. Spitzer called the finances of the MTA the “greatest transportation concern” and said fare and toll increases, increased local funding, and other tax increases, as well as efficiencies, would be required – reversing 12 years of policy. Faso agreed. They both called for weaning the MTA off debt by going to pay-as-you-go financing; hopefully they have the same idea about financing road construction elsewhere in the state. The candidates even mentioned making tough decisions, a big change after the something-for-nothing-now, then move-to-Florida-later policies of the recent past. All good.

The day after I posted a proposed solution to over-development issues in the portions of Upstate New York closest to New York City, both the New York Times and the Poughkeepsie Journal had articles on the subject. They are worth a read if you are interested in what people are concerned about elsewhere in the state.

From the Journal:

"Increasingly I see it. You look up on a hill or a mountain and all of a sudden there are houses there that weren't there before. It feels like New Jersey. It's worrisome," said Carolyn Torella, a lifelong Dutchess County resident who lives in LaGrange. "I appreciate the landscape and the beauty of the area. It's a shame to see it go so quickly. My hope is there can be some middle ground between open space and development."

The day after I posted a proposed solution to over-development issues in the portions of Upstate New York closest to New York City, both the New York Times and the Poughkeepsie Journal had articles on the subject. They are worth a read if you are interested in what people are concerned about elsewhere in the state.

From the Journal:

"Increasingly I see it. You look up on a hill or a mountain and all of a sudden there are houses there that weren't there before. It feels like New Jersey. It's worrisome," said Carolyn Torella, a lifelong Dutchess County resident who lives in LaGrange. "I appreciate the landscape and the beauty of the area. It's a shame to see it go so quickly. My hope is there can be some middle ground between open space and development."

The day after I posted a proposed solution to over-development issues in the portions of Upstate New York closest to New York City, both the New York Times and the Poughkeepsie Journal had articles on the subject. They are worth a read if you are interested in what people are concerned about elsewhere in the state.

From the Journal:

"Increasingly I see it. You look up on a hill or a mountain and all of a sudden there are houses there that weren't there before. It feels like New Jersey. It's worrisome," said Carolyn Torella, a lifelong Dutchess County resident who lives in LaGrange. "I appreciate the landscape and the beauty of the area. It's a shame to see it go so quickly. My hope is there can be some middle ground between open space and development."

My previous posts on Upstate concerned the portion of the region that is too far away to receive any economic benefit from proximity to Manhattan, the area roughly north and west of State Route 10 and, in the mid to northern Adirondacks, Route 30.  South and west of there, in the eastern Adirondacks, the Catskills, and the Hudson Valley, the economic conditions are different, and so is the issue.  The issue is over-development, and the loss of the natural and rural attributes that draw people to the area to begin with.  When I was a child, my parents took me to northern Westchester County to pick apples.  We brought our children to Northern Dutchess County to do the same.  Projecting current trends forward, our grandchildren will have to head for Washington County to find the first pick-your-own orchard.

My previous posts on Upstate concerned the portion of the region that is too far away to receive any economic benefit from proximity to Manhattan, the area roughly north and west of State Route 10 and, in the mid to northern Adirondacks, Route 30.  South and west of there, in the eastern Adirondacks, the Catskills, and the Hudson Valley, the economic conditions are different, and so is the issue.  The issue is over-development, and the loss of the natural and rural attributes that draw people to the area to begin with.  When I was a child, my parents took me to northern Westchester County to pick apples.  We brought our children to Northern Dutchess County to do the same.  Projecting current trends forward, our grandchildren will have to head for Washington County to find the first pick-your-own orchard.