Amenia’s Isabela settling in to fine-dining scene
American fare with a fine dining flair define Isabela’s menu.
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Head chef and owner of Isabela José Ramirez Ruiz said the menu has changed at his restaurant several times since it opened six months ago. “We’re trying to be as seasonal as possible,” Ramirez Ruiz said. Photo Provided
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Douglas Broughton of Wassaic is slated to install a dispensary at 32 Main St. later this year in the storefront that formerly hosted the Demitasse gift shop in downtown Millerton.
Photo by Nathan Miller
A dispensary is coming to Millerton in a few months, bringing legal cannabis sales to the village for the first time since North East-based growers Alchemy Pure and Harney Brothers Cannabis operated a short-lived pop-up in September 2023.
While the announcement has drawn some criticism from community members, the overwhelming majority have welcomed the new business that will occupy 32 Main St. The Millerton News welcomes Douglas Broughton’s Black Rabbit Farms dispensary, which will generate tax revenue and further the long-standing tradition of diversity among the village’s businesses.
Since New York legalized retail cannabis sales in 2022, the number of dispensaries has grown rapidly across the state. As of November 2025, the Office of Cannabis Management reported more than 550 licensed retailers. Those retail dispensaries accounted for more than $1.5 billion in sales last year, bringing total cumulative sales since legalization to $2.5 billion.
As a result, more than $340.6 million in state and local tax revenue was generated across New York between April 2023 and November 2025, according to the Office of Cannabis Management’s 2025 annual report.
In 2024, 43 towns, cities and villages recorded a total of $7.75 million in revenue from retail cannabis sales taxes, according to data obtained through the New York State Comptroller’s Open Book program.
While it’s unlikely that this dispensary will generate hundreds of thousands in tax revenue, it will still provide Millerton with a meaningful source of new funding.
In a village that’s pursuing a brand-new pool and a centralized wastewater system, all while keeping the lights on in a world where everything is getting more expensive, any additional revenue is a boon.
And, in keeping with an unwritten tradition to keep things local, this dispensary is an arm of Douglas Broughton’s Black Rabbit Farms operation based in Wassaic.
Broughton possesses what’s known as a “microbusiness” license from the Office of Cannabis Management. Those licenses allow smaller-scale operators to grow, package, distribute, sell and deliver their own products.
He grows his cannabis at his home farm in Wassaic, just 11 miles from the storefront he’s rented on Millerton’s Main Street. In conversations with The News, Broughton said he plans to stock additional products from other microbusinesses in the area, emphasizing a commitment to high-quality products from local growers.
Millerton has a time-honored reputation for celebrating and welcoming local business owners, even when new ventures draw criticism.
This dispensary is no different. Readers of The News voiced their support in dozens of comments on social media, and community members told us they were excited about the dispensary coming to town in the weeks since we published our report. Many cited shorter travel times for cannabis purchases as a major benefit.
The News joins those voices in welcoming this new business to Millerton’s vibrant downtown. The village’s diversity is a core strength, one that continues to attract strong businesses and a community ready to support them.
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The following excerpts from The Millerton News were compiled by Kathleen Spahn and Rhiannon Leo-Jameson of the North East-Millerton Library.
January 17, 1935
Town Has $198.32 At End Of Year
The Town of North East received a total of $6,899.16 and spent $6,700.84 in the year just ended, leaving an unexpended balance of $198.32 in the treasury as of December 31, 1934, according to the annual report of Supervisor Frank L. Minor.
Fifteen-Year-Old Girl Prepares Lunches For 200 At Roeliff Jansen Central School
To prepare luncheon for two hundred people, including students and members of the faculty, was the assignment given to a fifteen-year-old girl the day Roeliff Jansen Central School in the Town of Copake reopened after the holiday recess. The girl was Miss Shirley Knickerbocker.
Miss Joyce House, head of the [text unreadable] who ordinarily supervises operation of the cafeteria was unable to return on the opening day of school because of inclement weather, and the when the situation became known to principal Dana Roblee a plan was devised to provide lunches for those who rely on the cafeteria.
This meant the purchasing of supplies and actual preparation of sandwiches, cocos, milk and broth, all of which were on the menu for that particular day.
Shirley planned the menu, estimated the amount of food required, put in the order and received the supplies from a local store. In addition, she did a major share of the actual preparation of the food, and the whole program was carried out so smoothly and many were unaware that the meal had not been prepared under the supervision of Miss House.
January 8 1976
Environmental Quality Law To Be Discussed
The controversial State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQR) will be discussed at an open meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 6, from 7:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. at the Farm and Home Center in Millbrook.
The new law requires the preparation of an environmental impact statement on any local government decision which will significantly effect [sic] the environment. It has been approved by the New York State Legislature and will take effect in June 1976.
Athlete of the Week: Robert Runge
“Reliable” Robert Runge has definitely lived up to his nickname thus far this season. The senior captain of the Webutuck Warrior basketball squad has led his team in every one of the 4 games they’ve played with the qualities that really count on the court: good defense, hustle, high-percentage shooting, and strong rebounding.
Bob is the son of the Rev. Robert and Alice Runge and lives in Smithfield with his family. The ever-smiling, ever-relaxed Runge said he hopes to play a lot of hoop when he gets on the college scene.
January 11, 2001
Town Now Has Powerful Ally: State Attorney General Joins North East Landfill Suit
NORTH EAST — Because of unsuccessful attempts at a voluntary agreement, the town of North East will continue with its federal lawsuit concerning the old town landfill.
But now the town has the support of the office of New York State Attorney General Eliot Spitzer (AG), which has recently joined the suit on behalf of the town, according to Town Supervisor Dave Sherman.
As Trucks Roll on Sidewalk, Officials Are Concerned About Key Intersection
MILLERTON- The issue of school safety generally conjures up images of students with weapons or kids dealing drugs in the boys’ room.
But a village intersection has caught the eye of local officials who fear that children who are coming and going from Millerton Elementary School might be hit by a truck.
“It’s a real safety issue,” said Beverly Gordon, who sits on the village board of trustees. “The state really messed up when they engineered this project.”
At issue is the tight intersection of routes 22 and 44 and the many semi-tractor trailer trucks that negotiate it every day. Trucks headed west on Route 44 (Main Street) have a difficult time turning left onto Route 22 south.
NE Library Gets Tech Upgrade
Thanks to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the North East-Millerton Library has installed four Gateway computers, a contact server and a laser printer for residents to utilize.
Originally, the Gates Foundation only offered the town of North East a discount on the purchase of these computers. According to the foundation’s calculations, the library was not eligible for the grant because it did not fall within the targeted economic circle. However, Library Director Margaret Quick wrote a two-page appeal, highlighting the fact that the inclusion of areas of Connecticut in the figures created a skewed perception of income levels.
After one month, Ms. Quick was pleased to find that the foundation had considered her appeal and would be willing to provide the grant for her library.
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A difficult year for the environment
Jan 14, 2026
2025 turns out to be the warmest year on record followed by the previous ten years. At the same time the Trump administration has removed the term “climate change” from federal agency websites and declared it to be a “hoax”.
The gently progressive environmental policies of President Biden, culminating in the sweeping Inflation Reduction Act of 2023 incorporated a huge array of provisions designed to improve the environment. Since returning to office, President Trump has produced a whirlwind of policy changes and actions, bold and far-reaching in environmental matters. What follows are just a few of those changes.
On his first day in office, President Trump removed the United States from the 2016 Paris Agreement, the accord signed by nearly 200 nations to move forcefully to arrest climate change. Last Wednesday at the U.N., Trump went further and withdrew the U.S. from the 1992 climate treaty which was a pact between all nations to keep global temperatures at safe levels.
Earlier this year when more than 100 nations were poised to approve a deal to slash pollution from cargo ships, the Trump administration launched a successful pressure campaign to halt it.
In November, the US boycotted the United Nations COP Conference for the first time in thirty years thereby leaving it leaderless and ineffective.
The Trump administration also sided with Russia, Saudi Arabia and Iran to block part of a U.N. report about the state of the planet because it called for phasing out fossil fuels and the use of plastics.
Trump’s dislike of clean energy became clear soon after his inauguration when he signed an executive order banning both new solar and new wind power installations on federal property. His executive order to stop work on five large off shore wind farms along the Atlantic coast, two of which were nearly complete and would power close to two million homes puts the wind energy industry in dire financial straits imperilling investments and more than 10,000 jobs.
While the Biden administration was beginning to put significant federal money into rebuilding rail service, Trump has been opposed and pulled support from a number of major rail projects already approved including the North River project featuring a new desperately needed rail tunnel under the Hudson River to help facilitate improved rail traffic along the entire east coast.
On December 16, the Trump administration announced plans to dismantle the leading US atmospheric science center. Constructed in 1960 and housed in an I. M. Pei designed structure in Boulder, Colorado, the National Center for Atmospheric Research had become world famous for its research activities.
Russell Vought, the head of the Office of Management and Budget (and previously the main author of the Federalist Society’s Project 2025) had condemned the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) calling it “one of the largest sources of climate alarmism in the country.” A wide range of federal officials and scientists, not just from NCAR, have lobbied to save the Center and keep it intact.
No cabinet department has been as involved in undoing the efforts of previous administrations in protecting the environment as the Environmental Protection Agency. During the past year dozens of rules and regulations regarding air and water pollution have been dropped or eased. Promised new controls over “forever chemicals” (PFAS) have been postponed or dropped. Fossil fuel exhaust controls have been severely weakened.
Subsidies for solar collectors and electric vehicles have been drastically cut. At the same time, the administration has actively promoted fossil fuel including massive sales of oil and gas abroad and issuing enormous leases on land and sea for oil and gas drilling. The Trump administration’s recent seizure of the Venezuelan petroleum reserves leaves the U.S. with the largest reserve of what turns out to be probably the world’s dirtiest, most polluting oil. At the same time they spent significant sums to recondition coal burning power plants otherwise at the edge of retirement.
Is there anything we can do to improve this troubling situation we are finding ourselves in? Perhaps the most significant action individuals can take would be to become better informed about environmental issues and vote accordingly.
Architect and landscape designer Mac Gordon lives in Lakeville.
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