Amenia Fire Co. plans parade, live music and fireworks for America 250
The Amenia Fire Company on Mechanic Street in Amenia.
Photo by John Coston
Latest News
Legal Notices - June 25, 2026
Millerton News
Jun 24, 2026
Legal Notice
Notice of Filing
Completed
Assessment Roll with Clerk
Notice is hereby given that the Final Assessment Roll for the Town of Pine Plains in the County of Dutchess for the year 2026 has been completed by the undersigned assessor, and a certified copy is filed in the office of the town clerk on the 1st day of July, 2026, where the same will remain open for public inspection by appointment during normal business hours.
Assessor for the Town of Pine Plains Sara Foglia
06-25-26
Legal Notice
Notice of Formation of Kaits Kleaning LLC. Art. Of Org. filed with SSNY on 05-22-2026. Office Lo-cation: Dutchess county. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail process to: 24 Attlebury Hill Road, Standfordville NY 12581.
06-04-26
06-11-26
06-18-26
06-25-26
07-02-26
07-09-26
NOTICE OF COMPLETION
OF FINAL ASSESSMENT ROLL
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN THAT THE FINAL ASSESSMENT ROLL FOR THE TOWN OF AMENIA, COUNTY OF DUTCHESS, FOR THE YEAR 2026, HAS BEEN COMPLETED BY THE UNDERSIGNED ASSESSOR, AND A CERTIFIED COPY IS FILED IN THE OFFICE OF THE TOWN CLERK OF AMENIA, 4988 ROUTE 22, AMENIA, NY, ON THE FIRST DAY OF JULY, 2026, WHERE THE SAME WILL REMAIN OPEN FOR PUBLIC INSPECTION. A COPY OF SUCH WILL BE AVAIL-ABLE ONLINE AT AMENIANY.GOV
DATED THIS 1ST DAY OF JULY, 2026.
DONNA DIPIPPO ASSESSOR
TOWN OF AMENIA
845-373-8118 x 104
06-18-26
06-25-26
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Classifieds - June 25, 2026
Millerton News
Jun 24, 2026
EMPLOYMENT
HELP WANTED
Isabella Freedman Jewish Retreat Center is a year-round 120-person retreat facility that is located in Falls Village, CT. Want to work at a beautiful, peaceful location, with great people? This is the place to be!We are currently seeking positions for Seasonal Lifeguard(s), Cook, Retreat services associate (banquet server front of house) and Mashgichim (F/T or P/T) for our summer season. For more details please visit our website at Careers - Adamah or email a copy of your resume to rebecca.eisen@adamah.org
SERVICES OFFERED
Héctor Pacay Landscaping and Construction LLC: Fully insured. Renovation, decking, painting; interior exterior, mowing lawn, garden, stone wall, patio, tree work, clean gutters, mowing fields. 845-636-3212.Old Houses and Barns my specialty: Renovations and Re-pairs. 25 years serving the tri-state area. Licensed and Insured. Based in Canaan, CT. David Valyou 917-538-1617. davidvalyou@yahoo.com
MERCHANDISE & SERVICES
HORSES & EQUIPMENT
Looking for a small farm to board my 22 year old mare ideally located near trails. She gets along well with other horses. No drama. Available to help with feeding and or turnout if needed. 860-786-2546.
REAL ESTATE
PUBLISHER'S NOTICE: Equal Housing Opportunity. All real estate advertised in this newspaper is subject to the Federal Fair Housing Act of 1966 revised March 12, 1989 which makes it illegal to advertise any preference, limitation, or discrimination based on race, color religion, sex, handicap or familial status or national origin or intention to make any such preference, limitation or discrimination. All residential property advertised in the State of Connecticut General Statutes 46a-64c which prohibit the making, printing or publish-ing or causing to be made, printed or published any notice, statement or advertisement with respect to the sale or:rental of a dwelling that indicates any preference, limitation or discrimination based on race, creed, color, national origin, ancestry, sex, marital status, age, lawful source of income, familial status, physical or mental disability or an intention to make any such preference, limitation or discrimination.
HOUSE FOR RENT
2 Bedroom House. Millerton, NY. Quiet. 4 miles from town.$2500 monthly, plus utilities. 518-567-8277.
TAG SALES
Massachusetts
Estate Sale. Rain or Shine. July 3, 4. 9-5. 1011 Crossroads to Canaan Valley Road New Marl-borough, MA 01259.
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Millerton renovation turns aging home into ‘passive house’
Nathan Miller
Jun 23, 2026
Cole Shapiro, left, shows a picture of the State Line Road house that he helped renovate taken during the early stages of rebuilding walls for the structure during an open house on Saturday, June 20.
Photo by Nathan Miller
MILLERTON — A unique home renovation on State Line Road is joining the ranks of thousands of buildings across the U.S. that use little to no energy for heating and cooling.
Wendy Hill’s home on State Line Road, which she rented for 10 years before buying the property and embarking on the renovation in January 2025, will be a Passive House Institute US-certified “Passive House” once renovations are completed in the coming weeks.
Passive houses are buildings that rely on thick insulation as well as heat from the sun to cut down on energy costs. The concept was developed over the past 50 years as advancements in insulating building materials allowed for more efficient construction that uses little to no energy to maintain comfortable temperatures.
Hill’s home is a standout from the typical passive house, primarily because of her decision to retrofit an existing home rather than build new.
But Cole Shapiro and his Kingston-based boutique contracting firm Building House took on the task, implementing a modern take on a two-story Cape Cod-style design with a basement garage utilizing the existing foundation.
Shapiro led a presentation on the construction of the home and discussed some specifics about passive home building at an open house at Hill’s home on Saturday, June 20.
The retrofit required the original home — built in 1992 — to be torn down to its studs and the roof removed so the entire structure could be rebuilt to passive house certification standards, Shapiro said.
“This is our first retrofit,” Shapiro said. “Good bones, a little rundown.”
From there, with nothing but the existing foundation and timber studs where the house used to stand, Shapiro’s crew began building up the walls, installing new windows and eventually building a brand new roof.
Shapiro joked with attendees, saying that the site of the nearly-demolished house was a shock in early construction.
“No matter how good you are as a builder at setting expectations with your client, nothing prepares them for this,” Shapiro said. “There was probably a lot of tears during those early days.”
The walls and windows are important aspects of a passive house build, Shapiro explained. The structures must be airtight to minimize heat loss as much as possible. Walls also have to be much thicker than typical, and are packed with high-efficiency insulation and membranes that allow moisture to escape the structure while trapping air and heat.
The windows and doors used in the build resemble vault doors, with thick frames and a flanged shape that locks in air. Passive houses are required to be essentially air-tight because leaks contribute the most to heat loss in a structure.
Passive houses seek to address this issue by sealing the building and using special air circulation systems that release stale air and ingest fresh air from the outdoors. Hill’s house uses what’s known as an “energy recovery ventilator,” or ERV, to ventilate the home without compromising heating efficiency.
ERVs transfer moisture and heat between the expelled inside air and ingested outside air, allowing fresh air to enter the home without compromising the home’s other heat-trapping measures.
The build process wasn’t entirely straightforward, Shapiro said. One hurdle was the electrical and plumbing work that Shapiro said poked holes in the house’s airtight seal and caused unacceptable air leaks. Crews had to conduct tests and patch holes to fix the leaks and bring the house into compliance with passive house certification standards.
“Our plumber-slash-electrician just could not understand what an air barrier was,” Shapiro said. “And I think at some point seemed to be making a sport of turning our air barriers into Swiss cheese.”
Airtight design requirements still allow for homeowners to open their doors and windows to let in a nice breeze, which Hill demonstrated at the open house by letting in a gentle summer breeze.
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‘Workers over billionaires’ banner draws scrutiny from Amenia Town Board
Leila Hawken
Jun 23, 2026
A white banner reading “workers over billionaires” has become a part of regular weekly anti-Trump administration protests led by Amenia resident Kimberley Travis.
Photo Provided
AMENIA — A banner used during weekly political demonstrations in downtown Amenia has sparked debate over whether protesters can attach signs to town-owned lightpoles and other municipal property.
The issue came before the Town Board on Thursday, June 18, after protest organizer Kim Travis requested clarification on whether a banner reading “workers over billionaires” violates the town’s sign regulations.
Travis, who has organized regular anti-Trump demonstrations at Fountain Square since 2025, said Town Supervisor Rosanna Hamm contacted her before the meeting to say the banner was not permitted because it was secured to a town-owned light pole.
“Our temporary sign is exempt,” Travis told the board, arguing that the group removes the banner and other materials after each protest and does not damage public property. She said nylon rope is used to protect the painted surface of the lamp post.
Town Attorney Ian Lindars disagreed, saying town code prohibits attaching signs to municipal property. “I don’t agree with the interpretation of the code,” Lindars said, adding that the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that lamp posts are not considered to be available for public use.
“You cannot tie signs to town property,” said Councilmember Nicole Ahearn.
Amenia’s Town Code regulates signs as part of the town’s zoning ordinance under chapter 121-39. Those regulations include a blanket ban on placing signs on “municipally owned property” without prior approval from the Town Board.
Hamm said her office did not receive formal complaints about the sign, but she had received phone calls and noticed complaints on FaceBook.
In response, Travis defended the sign and the weekly protest.
“We must all stand up,” Travis said, arguing that the protest is only for one hour.
Councilmember Walter Dietrich supported the usage of the banner, indicating that the protesters are not placing a permanent sign on the post.
Hamm recognized that the protesters nor the sign block the sidewalk or impede pedestrians. She indicated that she would like more time to consider the issue.
During public comment, resident Ken Topolsky spoke in support of allowing the banner, while resident Judy Moran said she was concerned about how sign regulations could be interpreted in the future if exceptions were made.
Lindars agreed that the board could delay a decision, and board members ultimately agreed to seek additional clarification on the sign regulations before taking any action.
“Nothing can be tied or attached to town property,” Ahearn reiterated.
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Thai tea shop moving forward after winning Board of Health approval
Nathan Miller
Jun 23, 2026
Kanchisar Jiradhanaiphat, left, and John Schildbach hope to open Muanjai Tea on Main Street in Millerton by late July.
Photo by Nathan Miller
MILLERTON — Owners of a Thai tea shop planned for Main Street expect to get started with interior renovations this week after receiving approval for septic system plans from health officials.
John Schildbach, who plans to open Muanjai Tea at 28 Main St. in July, said on Monday, June 22, that the shop is awaiting one final approval from the Dutchess County Board of Health on the interior space itself and expects to begin installing counters and seating immediately after.
Discussions with the Board of Health over septic capacity caused earlier delays. Schildbach originally planned to have seating for 20 people inside the shop, but health officials required him to scale back that plan. The shop’s septic system was approved with the condition that only 14 seats be installed inside the shop.
He said the build out will likely take at least three weeks longer, meaning the storefront is not expected to open prior to Millerton’s 175 celebration running from July 11 to July 19. But Schildbach is planning to operate a pop-up tent offering a limited variety of tea drinks during the celebration.
Schildbach also plans to distribute 25% discount coupons to shoppers that stop by the pop-up. Customers can then use those coupons once the shop opens to get a discount at the shop once it opens later in July.
“It’s a little bit of a discount for people who want to try us out,” Schildbach said.
Schildbach announced plans to open the tea shop with his wife, Kanchisar Jiradhanaiphat, in late April. The shop will occupy the storefront formerly occupied by Candy-Os on Main Street.
“This isn’t going to be a bubble tea shop,” Schildbach said in April, describing a menu that seeks to bring authentic Thai tea culture to Millerton.
Highlights will include nom yen — a pink milk tea made with sweetened condensed milk and flavored syrup — as well as coffee cham yen, a blend of coffee and tea. The menu will also feature Thai tea ice cream floats, lattes and matcha drinks.
But the pair don’t want to limit the menu to just desserts and sweets. Schildbach said they are aiming for a sophisticated — yet affordable — menu that offers an authentic, approachable take on Thai tea shops.
That desire for authenticity will be built into the space itself, Schildbach said. Plans for the tea shop include adding a wall to create a service window typical of Bangkok tea shops, accented with tile and wood details.
The goal is to fit in with Millerton’s current lineup of Main Street businesses, while providing a unique experience for locals and visitors alike.
“It’s going to be like you’re in a tea shop in Thailand,” Schildbach said.
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As EMS costs continue to rise, Dutchess County looks for answers
Graham Corrigan
Jun 23, 2026
Amid growing calls for action on emergency medical service contract costs, solutions are lagging as county officials explore options.
The county has allocated $4 million for EMS over the last two budgets, hoping to combat rising costs, a diminishing workforce, and declining numbers of volunteers. But six months into 2026, data reflecting results from the infusion has been hard to come by — and the problems persist.
At issue is the very status of emergency responders: unlike fire and police departments, there is no state mandate for a town to employ EMS responders. The cost of these services falls to the individual towns, and they’ve ballooned in recent years: North East, Amenia, and Dover split a $1.3 million contract, and Stanford pays $768,000 for its ambulance services. “This is a runaway train,” said county legislator Eric Alexander, who represents Amenia, Washington and a portion of Pleasant Valley. “So the first stop is to slow it down.”
“I was pleased when the county executive agreed that this needs to be a priority,” said Chris Drago, who represents northern Dutchess in the county legislature, “but this continues to be a Band-Aid solution.”
That’s due in part to a lack of competition. Empress EMS is the region’s primary EMS provider, and it just acquired Northern Dutchess Paramedics in late 2025. The company is the only provider of advanced life support services, commonly known as ALS, like ambulances. Basic life support, or BLS, which entails non-invasive life-saving techniques, can be administered by volunteers or first responders.
Even those BLS volunteers, however, are subject to the inherent challenges of providing timely support in rural areas such as north Dutchess. Round-the-clock coverage for an area that receives lower call volume gets expensive fast.
The high costs run parallel with Empress’ profit model. That hasn’t led to any complaints about their service, but as Rep. Drago put it, “I feel we need to take profit out of the equation of saving people’s lives.”
There are three primary ways the ambulance service makes money: billing patients and receiving reimbursements from insurance companies, taxpayer subsidies, and inter-facility transport. The latter involves moving patients to better-equipped facilities, usually in a non-emergency capacity.
In short, the more a patient uses an ambulance, the greater the profit. That’s led to northern Dutchess County to receive less attention than communities in the south — Empress ambulances tend to concentrate in the more populous southern towns, where call volume is higher. The vast majority of grants that fund fly cars, which are vehicles with basic medical equipment that allow for EMTs to provide some immediate triage care, awarded as part of the county’s EMS initiative, went to mid- and southern Dutchess towns.
But help may be on its way. Northwell Health is a healthcare provider that has been expanding north from its base in Long Island and New York City. It recently acquired Sharon Hospital in Connecticut, and has been speaking with lawmakers about providing supplemental ALS coverage to the area. At a March meeting in Milan, Northwell representatives made their pitch to town officials and emergency response leaders from northern Dutchess.
In the meantime, Northwell is implementing its own ALS program at Sharon Hospital. It involves employing hospital-based paramedics to provide a number of services. Instead of waiting for a call to come in, these paramedics will be an extra pair of hands in the emergency room and provide inter-facility transportation, in addition to their emergency response duties.
“We wanted to facilitate a dependable and effective movement of critical care patients,” said Matthew Cassavechia, Director of Emergency Services at Northwell. “We want to have a paramedic following these patients after they’ve been discharged, integrated into the larger continuum of care…it’s proven to be very effective in the general Sharon Hospital area.”
For now, Northwell hasn’t been integrated into the northern Dutchess emergency response pipeline. But that day may be fast approaching. “We’re eager for them to come online as an EMS provider in Dutchess County,” said Rep. Drago. “We could use their help.”
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