So if our population isn't growing...why can't we find places to live? In this episode, Leif sits down with Adam Bosch, President and CEO of Hudson Valley Pattern for Progress, and Vanessa McPhillips, the Director of Strategic Planning at the Sullivan County Partnership for Economic Development, to learn about why abundant and affordable housing feels just out of reach in our community and what's being done about it.To learn more about Sullivan County's housing statistics and strategies, check out the 2022 Comprehensive Housing Strategy here: https://sullivanny.gov/sites/default/files/departments/Planning/Housing%20Strategy/SullivanCountyComprehensiveHousingBook.pdfCover photo credit: Jonathan Fox, River Reporter Newspaper
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57:42
Water Works
What exactly happens behind the scenes for clean, safe drinking water to come out of your kitchen faucet? It turns out, there are marvels of engineering and health science right under our feet, but much of our water and sewer infrastructure in the U.S. is outdated—sometimes dangerously so. In this episode, we hear from University of Rochester Professor Morris Pierce on the history of American water works and Town of Liberty Supervisor Frank DeMayo on how our local drinking water and wastewater systems work, and what the most pressing issues are with them that need to be addressed sooner rather than later.
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48:21
Breweries
Name a multi billion-dollar New York State industry that has grown five-fold in the last decade. (Not much of a quiz question when you can see the title of the episode, but work with me here.) Craft brewing is in its prime across the U.S., and upstate New York is one of the great epicenters of it. In this episode, we talk to New York State Brewers' Association President Paul Leone and Big Eddy Brewing Co. owners Jacob and Alison Johnson about the state of the industry, and we learn from the experts about how to make beer and how to build a brewery from the ground up. (Spoiler: it takes more than a little elbow grease.)
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54:07
Policy Chats: Sullivan County Legislators Matt McPhillips and Cat Scott
After a shake up in the composition of the Sullivan County Legislature after last November's elections, the nine-person governing body is looking younger than ever. In this episode, we catch up with two of the new, younger members of the legislature to get an inside look at what it's like to navigate the challenges and opportunities of local governance.
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34:23
Extended Cut: Aviation, Corruption, and Local History Books with John Conway
This is the full interview with John Conway for our episode in May 2024 on local aviation and the Sullivan County Airport. In it, John talks about how he goes about conducting local history research, what the best books on Catskills and Sullivan County history are, aviation, Borscht Belt hotels, and a splash of government corruption.
A twenty-something armchair policy wonk born and raised in the Catskills is heading out into the world, and he's got a lot of questions. In this podcast from WJFF Radio Catskill, we'll take a deep dive into the institutions in upstate New York that are at the foundation of our community and explore how they work (and how they sometimes don't). We'll sit down with educators, farmers, public servants, artists, business owners, and all-around do-gooders to learn what it means to be a part of rural America today--and the part each of us can play in creating a brighter future tomorrow.
Canada - english