Behind the scenes, Buckingham Pond Conservancy has been making major progress towards our key goal of developing a strategic plan for water quality at the pond. This strategic plan should put us in position to access state and federal grant funds to implement the projects identified during the planning process.

Behind the scenes, Buckingham Pond Conservancy has been making major progress towards our key goal of developing a strategic plan for water quality at the pond. This strategic plan should put us in position to access state and federal grant funds to implement the projects identified during the planning process.

Through a partnership nurtured by Mayor Kathy Sheehan since our last Annual Meeting, we have, together with the City Planning Department represented by Mary Millus and the Department of Water & Water Supply, represented by Commissioner Joe Coffey, received an $8,275 grant from the Hudson River Greenway towards hiring an engineering firm to study the science related to Buckingham Pond. In addition we have been awarded a $10,000 grant from the Bender Family Foundation towards this effort. And finally, while these grants are important, it’s memberships and donations from the many friends of Buckingham Pond that will close the gap between the grant amounts and the amount we need to complete the work.

The above has been the catalyst to awarding a contract to Barton & Loguidice, DPC Engineers for analysis and recommendations to help address our pond’s challenges. Starting this coming Monday, 10/13/14 through the Spring of 2015, you will be seeing members of the Engineering firm, the City of Albany, and the Buckingham Pond Conservancy collecting information and scientific data to help us complete the strategic plan, and ultimately, to fix what may be broken, based on recommendations made at the conclusion of this project next Spring.

What can you do? This is a substantial undertaking, and BPC is a small group. We need anyone who is not a member to become one. Use your credit card or PayPal account to join via our website at http://www.buckinghampondconservancy.org/join, or mail your check for the $25 individual annual membership to Buckingham Pond Conservancy, PO Box 8352, Albany, NY 12208. Also, if you have been a member in the past, and have not recently paid your dues, consider paying or making a donation at this time.