Radio Chatskill

Evictions spiked across upstate New York immediately after the state’s eviction moratorium ended in 2022. And while some housing experts say eviction trends have returned to pre-pandemic levels, some public housing tenants say the threat of eviction still lingers.At the Monticello Housing Authority, some tenants allege years of landlord harassment, building mismanagement, and retaliation in the years after the pandemic.Housing authorities are public agencies responsible for managing public housing buildings for low-income families and individuals. Radio Catskill’s Kimberly Izar has more.

Crystal Run Healthcare in Sullivan County will be closing its OB-GYN practice starting July 1st. Radio Catskill’s Kimberly Izar spoke with local and state officials and health providers to understand what this means for rural healthcare in the region.

Nurses are demanding a fair contract at Garnet Health Medical Center after their latest contract expired in September 2025.Dozens of healthcare workers, local officials, and labor advocates with the Hudson Valley’s 1199 SEIU chapter formed a picket line on April 30 outside Garnet Health Medical Center in Middletown. Radio Catskill's Kimberly Izar has the details.

Nurses are demanding a fair contract at Garnet Health Medical Center that includes fair wages and safer staffing practices. Headquartered in Middletown, Garnet Health provides healthcare to over 500,000 residents in Sullivan, Orange, and Ulster counties.Radio Catskill’s Kimberly Izar has more.

New York state’s school districts are in the final push to finalize their budgets ahead of the state budget vote deadline of May 19. Last Tuesday, the Liberty Central School District Board of Education adopted a $72 million budget for the upcoming 2026-2027 school year with no tax levy increase. Now, it heads to voters to decide on May 19.Radio Catskill’s Kimberly Izar spoke with the district’s Superintendent Dr. Patrick Sullivan about the budget and what residents should know.

New York really is the Big Apple. New York is the second-largest apple producing state in the country, averaging 29.5 million bushels of production annually, according to the USDA. But last Tuesday early morning, apple farms were hit with a late Spring freeze with temperatures that left some orchards devastated with severe crop loss. Radio Catskill’s Kimberly Izar has more.

The Hudson Valley awaits its first Black trans-owned bookstore coming this summer. Born and raised in the Hudson Valley, founder Awa-Moon Barnett is a community educator and organizer based in Newburgh who has been fundraising over the past year to open “home home” — a mobile bookshop and political education center grounded in her belief that education serves as a central site of liberation for Black and queer folks. Radio Catskill’s Julia Kim had the chance to sit down with Barrett on the origin story of home home, the vision she sees for the bookshop and community space and the fight for racial justice and trans liberation within the Hudson Valley. 

New York state’s health department data shows a major decline in the rate of newborns dependent on opioids in Sullivan County. From 2020 to 2024, the rate of babies born with neonatal withdrawal symptoms has declined by about 70 percent in the county.Radio Catskill’s Kimberly Izar spoke with Sullivan County Commissioner John Liddle this morning about the progress.

With the 2026 midterm elections having already begun, the ongoing Supreme Court case Watson vs. Republican National Committee is debating a Mississippi law that allows mail-in ballots to be counted after Election Day as long as they are postmarked for Election Day. 14 states and the District of Columbia provide this grace period for voters, and 29 states in total allow additional time for at least some voters, namely military and overseas voters. The case comes amid general scrutiny and disinformation on the security of mail-in ballots by the Trump administration.To understand the potential impacts of this issue on voters, Radio Catskill’s Julia Kim had the chance to speak with the Brennan Center of Justice’s Andrew Garber, who was involved in the amicus brief that was submitted, as well as David Becker of The Center for Election Research and Susan Lerner of Common Cause New York, a nonpartisan group that aims to advance voting rights and protections. 

While some federal data shows that national ICE arrests have slowed down, advocates say the fear of deportation has been devastating for immigrant communities.In New York, more than half of the state’s farmworkers are undocumented – leaving many navigating the growing risk of deportation, and workplace labor abuses such as wage theft and medical neglect.Radio Catskill’s Kimberly Izar spoke with Emma Kreyche [KRAY-cee], Director of Advocacy, Outreach, and Education at the Worker Justice Center about their work supporting farmworkers.

Families and community advocates gathered in Liberty on Friday for a special community baby shower with a purpose.Hosted by the nonprofit Maternal Infant Services Network, the event offered free community resources and support for expecting and new families with children under two. Radio Catskill’s Kimberly Izar brings us this report from the celebration.

School budget season is underway in New York, with districts facing a May 19 deadline to put their budgets up for a vote. But rising costs and uncertain revenue streams are squeezing some school districts into a tight financial spot. Radio Catskill spoke with David Albert, Chief Communications and Marketing Officer, at the New York State School Boards Association – which serves more than 600 local school boards and BOCES across the state –  about what New York’s school districts are up against this budget cycle.