Holds conference in Fort Montgomery
Our Congressman picks scenic spots for his press conferences. Not long ago Sean Patrick Maloney invited a crowd to Plum Point on the Hudson River to announce the ban on anchorages.
On April 23, he held a press conference on the patio of the Fort Montgomery State Historic Site. He arrived a few minutes after his guests. As Mr. Maloney approached the microphone, he pointed to the river, the Bear Mountain Bridge and the surrounding mountains. “This is what it’s all about,” he said. “Let’s not screw up this extraordinary gift from God.”
His staff arranged the conference to announce the reauthorization of the Highlands Conservation Act, which will provide $20 million to New York to preserve land for agriculture, wildlife and recreation.
The effort has bipartisan support. And it had enthusiastic support from the Friday morning audience. Many of them were from groups involved in conservation. Seth McKee of Scenic Hudson followed Rep. Maloney at the microphone, and reported that every dollar spent on parks results in nine dollars in sales. He added that visitation in this area has increased by 21 percent since 2011. The population of the area has also gone up. Residential development could easily impinge on areas reserved for agriculture and recreation.
In cautiously introducing Mark Zakutansky, the Congressman paused after each syllable. But apparently he got the name right. “You nailed it,” Mr. Zakutansky said with a congratulatory smile. He’s the director of conservation policy for the Appalachian Mountain Club. He told the people on the patio that the Highlands are “the most visited outdoor landscape in the nation.”
Michelle Smith, the executive director of the Hudson Highland Land Trust, mentioned the recent coalition of 11 land trusts. Referring to the influx of more visitors and more residents, she confirmed that the act “could not have come at a better time.”
The Highlands Conservation Act, a bipartisan land conservation program funded through the Federal Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF), protects critical conservation areas in the Mid-Atlantic Highlands of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, and Connecticut. The Highlands is a nationally significant landscape that yields benefits and resources to more than 11 million Americans.
Since 2007, $70 million in funding has been awarded through the Highlands Conservation Act Grant Program to the four states, including $20 million to New York. The program has helped preserve nearly 11,000 acres in the Highlands region, including over 4,000 in New York alone.
After the conference, the guests remained on the patio. Many of them lingered to admire the scenery on a bright April day.
