(Credit: Sustainable Saratoga, 2023)
Warren County Planning Director Wayne LaMothe Recipient of Prestigious Award for Planning Excellence
From a press release: Wayne LaMothe, Warren County’s Director of Planning and Community Development, has been selected as the 2023 recipient of the New York Planning Federation’s highest award for outstanding accomplishments in the field of planning.
LaMothe was chosen to receive this year’s “Heissenbuttel Award for Planning Excellence,” which is presented by the NYPF annually to an individual, municipality, or agency for their work in planning.
He received the award recently at the NYPF’s annual conference in Saratoga Springs.
LaMothe was recognized for his remarkable 42-year career with Warren County, starting as an intern in 1981 and rising through the ranks to become the Warren County Director of Planning and Community Development in 2012.
During his career, he helped secure over $36 million in program funding, and an additional $10 million of in-kind and private financing to support county and local projects.
He also helped initiate the First Wilderness Heritage Corridor, started in 1988, and was awarded over $9.5 million for communities along the historic and culturally significant Upper Hudson River watershed.
LaMothe was instrumental in using Geographical Information Systems (GIS) technology to improve Warren County’s tax maps, and helped develop the GIS into a crucial mapping and data resource for Warren County and its communities.
“We are very thankful that the New York Planning Federation recognized Wayne for the outstanding work he has done for Warren County for more than four decades,” said Kevin Geraghty, Chairman of the Warren County Board of Supervisors.
Bosshart elected chair of the National Preservation Partners Network
From a press release: Samantha Bosshart, Executive Director of the Saratoga Springs Preservation Foundation, was elected Chair of the National Preservation Partners Network. NPPN is a membership-based, independent association of non-profit organizations that advances the growth and effectiveness of the organized preservation movement through communication, education, training, and a common advocacy agenda. NPPN currently has 119 members – representing local, statewide, regional, and national organizations as well as friends – from across the United States and Territories.
Samantha joined the National Preservation Partners Network’s Board of Directors in 2018. She was appointed as the chair of the Governance Committee in 2020 and elected Vice Chair in 2022.
“It is an honor to serve as Chair of the National Preservation Partners Network. I have benefitted so much from being a part of the network. It provides valuable educational and networking opportunities to allow historic preservation professionals to learn from one another and advocate for initiatives that will benefit the movement nationally,” Bosshart said.
Bosshart has served for 15 years as Executive Director of the Saratoga Springs Preservation Foundation. Prior to joining the Foundation, she was the Director of Preservation Services at Historic Albany Foundation. She moved from Texas to New York to attend Cornell University, where she completed her Master of Arts Historic Preservation Planning coursework. Prior to attending Cornell University, she worked at Galveston Historical Foundation where for five years she was the Manager of the Preservation Resource Center, which offered historic property research, neighborhood information, and technical rehabilitation guidance.