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General News: Senator Schumer Gives Speech in Cornwall
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| Senator Schumer with Clara, Molly and their grandmother Barbara Bogart |
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| Senator Schumer with view of Constitution Island |
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| Senator Schumer speech, with Clara and Molly Bogart. |
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| Senator Schumer with Clara and Molly Bogart. |
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| Senator Schumer receives chain link gift from Betsy Pugh, Chairwoman of Constitution Island. |
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| Senator Schumer with Betsy Pugh, Chairwoman of Constitution Island and her husband Emerson Pugh. |
August 14, 2012
by Wendy Bogart
Last Monday, August 6, 2012, Senator Charles E. Schumer visited Cornwall, on the Route 9W North lookout, to give a speech regarding Constitution Island. Senator Schumer would like to have the island’s ownership transferred from the U.S. Army to the Department of the Interior so that the scenic island can be opened to tourists year round.
I received a tip in the morning from Nancy Peckenham that the Senator was in the area, so I investigated to find out where he might be. Senator Schumer’s press office sent me his location for his speech regarding the island, and the location read: “Route 9W North lookout.” I figured the area might be closed to northbound traffic and thought, “there’s no way I’m just going to drive up with my kids and mother in law and meet the Senator,” but we did just that.
When Senator Schumer exited his car, he greeted us and asked my daughters’ names. Molly, age 7, and Clara, (whom the Senator mistook for Lara), age 8, were invited to stand with the Senator while he gave his speech. He referred to Dr. Zhivago and the character Lara, and when I told him her name was Clara, he corrected himself and mentioned, “Dr. Zhivago is over their heads.”
I said, “It’s over my head as well!”
As Clara stood by and looked confused as to what was going on, and probably wondered why we were standing next to a highway, Molly beamed with the satisfaction of being in the spotlight. My daughters may not have understood the significance of meeting Senator Schumer, and frankly, may not have known who he was, but it will be a wonderful story to tell them when they’re older.
Senator Schumer said, “One of my goals is to make the Hudson Valley a must-see tourist destination for the tens of millions of tourists who visit New York City. It’s the type of place that parents from all over the country would like to take their kids to.” Right now, the landmark is only open to tourists two months of the year. Constitution Island has over 200 acres of trails and scenery and has the potential to become an important part of Orange County’s future tourism revenue. Putnam county already plans to open their own ferry access to their side of the Island from Cold Spring.
Schumer noted that the transfer of the island’s control from one federal department to another is constitutional under the Antiquities Act. He said “Boats can be full again when the tourists go visit. This is good news. We don’t need legislation; that’s very good news given the state of Washington today.”
For more information on Constitution Island please visit
http://www.constitutionisland.org.
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