The Bethlehem Town Supervisor has given his annual State of the Town address, focusing on safe water, safe roads, safe neighborhoods and economic development.
Democrat David VanLuven told a packed Town Hall Auditorium Wednesday that those four issues take precedent this year. He quickly acknowledged the town's water problem. The 165-acre Vly Creek Reservoir serves as the primary drinking water supply for the town, providing 3 million gallons per day. Bethlehem’s municipal supply was affected by an algae bloom in late October.
"Now, in response to the unprecedented late fall algae bloom, our dedicated water team worked closely with the Departments of Health and water expert to upgrade our treatment plant with a powder activated carbon filter. That was step one," said VanLuven. "Step Two has been working relentlessly to flush the musty, smelling water out of our 227 highly interconnected water mains. They have flushed from more than 850 hydrants over the last two months. But it is taking time, because we are very, very good at smelling this harmless chemical. We are so sensitive to it, in fact, that just five drops are enough to make an Olympic pool smell like a lake. The result is we don't just have to get most of the unwanted, smelly water out of our water mains. We have to get it all out."
VanLuven says the water has always been safe to drink, and says a "water expert" told him that the unprecedented late fall algae bloom is a result of climate change.
VanLuven says he'll continue the Bethlehem Safe Streets traffic safety education campaign, aimed at getting motorists to slow down and reminding drivers that town roads are for everyone: drivers, cyclists and pedestrians. He says work on rebuilding sidewalks and repaving streets will continue, along with construction of new travel corridors for walkers and bicyclists in the Albany County town. He adds "Safe Streets" construction begins this spring in Elsmere, where Delaware Avenue's four lanes will be narrowed to slow drivers down. There will also be new curbcuts and crosscuts added as pedestrian amenities.
“The goal of the town board and me is to change the speed limit on all of our residential streets from 30 to 25 miles an hour," said VanLuven. "This may sound like a simple thing, but it's actually very difficult, because the objective is not just to change the speed limit, it's to get drivers to drive more slowly. Starting in 2025 we will therefore have to install hundreds of speed signs across town, conduct a comprehensive education campaign so residents know about the speed limit change, and adapt our traffic enforcement to make sure that every driver on every street knows that 25 miles per hour is the new rule of the road.”
VanLuven also says business is booming in the town of approximately 35,000 residents, adding that Bethlehem is one of the best places in the Capital Region to do business.
"In 2024, 21 new businesses opened in town. Investors are in the process of replacing the Dollar Tree in Glenmont with a Trader Joe's. In Delaware Plaza and Elsmere, there's a new restaurant, a bustling indoor playground, and we'll soon have a new Uncommon Grounds here. Food lovers from all over the Hudson Valley are coming to Delmar and our other hamlets to enjoy fine dining, great coffee and great beer. Plug Power, a global leader in green hydrogen, has moved its headquarters into Bethlehem," VanLuven said.
VanLuven noted the town received more than $7.7 million in federal, state and county funds in 2024 to support local projects. He tells WAMC he will be running for a fifth two-year term come November.
