A letter from Simon Draper

Dear Editor:
On behalf of all the artists who participated in the HFA project we would like to acknowledge two Village of New Paltz Trustees for their ongoing support of efforts to connect the SUNY campus and the New Paltz community through art.
Over the past two years, Shari Osborn brought two project proposals to, and got support for both of them from, the Village Board. One project involved the construction of temporary structures throughout the Village of New Paltz, and the other the installation of fifty signs addressing the laws controlling the concealed carrying of weapons on college campuses. Shari Osborn also helped the project leaders connect to, communicate with, and garner support from, a very diverse array of partners, including the Police Department, Rock and Snow, Historic Huguenot Street, Water Street Market, the Wallkill Valley Rail Trail, the Village Department of Public Works, the Town Supervisor, the Town Board, and the Town’s Recreation and Highway Departments. Shari’s children also helped out with various activities—and documented some of those activities as well.
During the same time period, Trustee—now acting mayor—Jean Gallucci lent her support to both of these projects, assuaging concerns on the Board about liability and other issues. When the projects were given the go-ahead, Gallucci monitored them closely for the Village—and shared her observations about the management of the projects with the lead partners in a forthright and helpful manner.
Making temporary public art that addresses topical issues requires sensitive but no-nonsense teamwork, and that’s just what we got from Shari Osborn and Jean Gallucci.
Sincerely yours,
Simon Draper
Artist and Founder of Habitat for Artists