Gina White led a smaller-than-usual group in tap warm-ups in her studio, Mandala Yoga & Arts, in Hillsdale, New York, Tuesday, Nov. 15. The group lesson started when Mary Givens asked for tap lessons and quickly grew into a regular affair.
HILLSDALE — Across Route 22 and just south from the old Roeliff-Jansen Central School campus in Hillsdale is an unassuming brown building with a sign out front bearing the name “Roe-Jan Plaza.” Two poles sticking out of the ground in the east shoulder proudly proclaim “hair salon,” and “yoga,” ushering drivers in for a shave and a sun salutation.
The yoga studio, Mandala Yoga & Arts, is run by Hillsdale resident Gina White, a dancer and actor who has worked since the late ‘90s with dance companies, touring shows, professional cheerleaders and in film and television.
At her studio in Hillsdale, she shares her professional experience with dancers of all disciplines and skill levels.
“I’ve been teaching since I was 15,” White said. “It’s something I’ve always done. I love getting people excited about things, especially dance.”
On Tuesdays at 5:30 p.m., the yoga studio transforms into a rag-time playground. A small group of “adult beginner” tap dancers gather every week to practice slaps, flaps, brushes, hops and jumps.
White’s teaching style is encouraging and energetic. When a first-timer (a reporter who lacked the proper footwear) struggled to grasp the slap-leap-slap-leap pattern at the Tuesday, Nov. 12, lesson, White looked at him in the mirror and cheered his efforts, even though she and her regular students had moved on to the next maneuver.
White grew up in Bristol, Connecticut, and knew she was going to be an actor and dancer from a young age.
“When it came time to start talking to the counselor about college plans I already knew I wasn’t going to be doing any of that,” White said. “Right after high school I went to New York City.”
In 1997, after White graduated, she moved to the city and started auditioning. After a short time, and missing the audition the first time, White and her sister, Lindsey, landed spots on “Rugrats: A Live Adventure.” The tour took the 18-year-old across the United States, to the United Kingdom, Australia, Mexico and Ireland.
White took advantage of touring at such a young age to experience nightlife and culture across the country in unexpected places. “Morgantown, West Virginia — dropped in the middle of nowhere — I did not expect that there was going to be streets and streets of people lighting couches on fire because their football team won,” White said. “Morgantown is hot. It’s a lot of fun there.”
When the “Rugrats” show ended in 2000, White went back home to spend time with her family in Bristol before moving to Boston to study theater and dance at the University of Massachusetts. She danced with the Boston Blazers cheerleaders for a few years before transferring to South Connecticut State University to be closer to home while her dad battled illness.
“Boston in the 2000s was a great place to be,” White said. “I loved it.”
After graduating, White decided it was time to join Hollywood as a screen actor. She joined SAG-AFTRA and started working, securing background acting and stand-in work on shows like “The Deuce,” starring James Franco, “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,” and “Saturday Night Live (SNL).”
“SNL is like a relationship with a bad boyfriend,” White said. “I get a call on Monday like ‘Hey, whatcha doing this weekend? I maybe wanna see you,’ and I, of course, say I’m available, and then I wait until Thursday to get a call like ‘hey I need you to come tomorrow, can you be here?’ and I’d rush to the city as fast as I could.”
In 2022 and 2023, White worked on every episode for season 48 of SNL, but the SAG-AFTRA strike killed that momentum and she’s only returned to the studios a handful of times since the strike was lifted on Nov. 19, 2023.
It was the strike that led White to open Mandala, her second yoga studio since moving upstate before the pandemic.
“It’s never been about the business for me,” White said. She operates the studio as an open space for creativity, seeking to share her love of dance and yoga with as many people as will come. “My lessons are $20 if you can afford it.”
She’s also open to sharing the space with other groups and teachers that need a good studio. White said she’s gotten lots of requests from locals to start a line-dancing class, but she needs a qualified teacher to run it.
White teaches acrobatics, tap and jazz to beginner children in addition to the adult beginner tap dance lessons. Her schedule is flexible, she said, so students in search of a teacher need only reach out to set up lessons. Teachers in need of space are also encouraged to reach out if they’d like to lead a group class at the studio.
White can be reached by email at mandalayogaandarts@gmail.com.
Water from the damaged pipe has bubbled up to the surface of Route 44 near Park Avenue in Millerton on Monday, Nov. 3. Water department crews are expected to repair the leak between 5 p.m. and midnight.
MILLERTON — Drivers passing through Millerton should expect delays on Main Street/Route 44 around Park Avenue as a Water Department crew works to repair a leak under the westbound lane.
Interim Superintendent of Public Works Joe Olenik said the work will begin around 5 p.m. tonight, Nov. 3, and he expects repairs to be finished by midnight. “There’s concrete under that, so it’s going to take a little longer,” Olenik said, pointing to a picture of the puddle that has accumulated on Route 44 because of the leak. “It’s not just blacktop and dirt.”
The crew will close one lane of traffic on Route 44 to complete the repair.
Residents and businesses in the area of Park Avenue and Main Street/Route 44 should expect water outages while the repair is being made.
Village officials sent out a notice of the repair work around noon today, Nov. 3.
Demolition crews from BELFOR Property Restoration began demolishing the fire-ravaged Water and Highway Department building in the Village of Millerton on Monday, Oct. 27
MILLERTON — The long-awaited demolition of Millerton’s Highway and Water Department building began Monday, Oct. 27, marking a major milestone in the village’s recovery from the February fire that destroyed the facility.
The demolition, handled by BELFOR Property Restoration, is now underway. Eddie Collins Park, located next to the site, remains open to the public, though visitors are asked to steer clear of the demolition area.
One village official is particularly invested in seeing the process move forward. Caroline Farr-Killmer, the village’s fire project manager, has been working closely with Mayor Jenn Najdek and the Board of Trustees to oversee every phase of the recovery. She has coordinated contractors and engineers, tracked inventory losses, and ensured compliance with building codes.
Mayor Jenn Najdek noted in a Monday, Oct. 27, meeting of the village's Board of Trustees that air quality management is one of the aspects of demolition that contributes to the price tag.Photo by Aly Morrissey
“This milestone is a significant one,” Farr-Killmer said. “It has been a work in progress that individuals have poured a lot of their time and effort into.” She acknowledged that while it may have seemed like progress was slow, this process required thoughtful and thorough management. “It is not something that can be accomplished overnight. I am grateful for the team effort put in by all of those involved.”
In the weeks after the fire, Farr-Killmer visited the charred building almost daily and documented damage to the structure and inventory. She said the fire itself was only the beginning, and pointed out that navigating insurance, rebuilding plans and deadlines have been hidden challenges.
The demolition marks the first physical step toward rebuilding. Farr-Killmer and Village leaders are developing plans for two replacement facilities — one for the Highway Department and another for the Water Department, designed to meet modern building codes and accommodate future needs.
“For the Village, it means we are starting from scratch, but things will continue to run smoothly, efficiently and effectively,” Farr-Killmer said.
With demolition underway, the Village of Millerton will begin a new chapter — one that will be complemented by the upcoming renovations that are planned at Eddie Collins Memorial Park. Construction for that major project, which will include a short-course Olympic pool and pool house, is scheduled to begin in July 2026 after the 175th celebration.
A preliminary draft of an impact analysis study for a Keane Stud subdivision application drew residents to a Planning Board meeting on Wednesday, Oct. 22.
AMENIA — Residents had the opportunity on Wednesday, Oct. 22, to weigh in on the proposed Keane Stud subdivision, a plan that would divide roughly 605 acres into 27 mostly residential lots, during a meeting of the Amenia Planning Board.
The session was part of the State Environmental Quality Review Act process, following the board’s decision that a Draft Environmental Impact Statement should be prepared to evaluate potential environmental and scenic impacts from the project.
The study will help inform the board’s review and approval process.
Wednesday’s meeting served as a public scoping session, allowing residents to suggest which environmental and community issues should be analyzed as part of the study.
Peter Feroe, an environmental planner with AKRF, Inc. of New York City representing the developer, presented an overview of the project and outlined the preliminary scope of analysis.
About 35 residents attended the meeting at Town Hall, where Feroe explained that the plan calls for 23 residential-agricultural lots and four lots to be set aside for conservation and equestrian use. Two of the preserved parcels would remain forested as conservation areas, while the other two would support equestrian activities.
The 23 lots would be sized at 10 acres each. Since the entire area is within a designated Scenic Protection Overlay District, the layout requires Planning Board approval.
The proposal calls for the 23 lots to be served by three roads that presently exist as farm roads on the acreage, Feroe said, although the three roads would need to be improved for use.
“This is not a public hearing on the subdivision application,” Planning Board attorney Paul Van Cott said, noting that the decision will be made after the completion of the impact studies.
“There will be full public hearings on the impact studies and on the full Keane Stud subdivision application, perhaps two months from now,” Van Cott said.
Feroe reviewed maps of the property located on Depot Hill Road, off Old Route 22. Nine of the ten acres on each lot would be conserved.
“A full 90% of the site would be reserved for agriculture,” Feroe said, noting that no buildings are envisioned as part of the subdivision application. Purchasers of the lots would need to come before the Planning Board for site plan approval.
The Planning Board had asked the applicants to consider the effects of future potential residential build-out on the acreage.
“The goal is to continue to promote agriculture to preserve the rural character,” Feroe said, noting that the town’s comprehensive plan favors balance in development.
Since planning for the subdivision began in 2021, Feroe said, multiple project modifications have been made, including reductions in size, removal of lots, and revisions to the layout. The maximum home footprint was scaled back, and the maximum home height reduced to 28 feet.
All development restrictions imposed by the Planning Board would be included in covenant deed restrictions to be adhered to by lot purchasers, Feroe noted.
Residents’ comments centered on the theme of a feared loss of agricultural heritage inherent to the community’s character, and the desecration of the view from the DeLaVergne Hill lookout to the west.
Resident George Bistransin spoke of diminished agriculture in the area and its impact on farming, noting that he now buys hay from a Salt Point supplier for his animals.
Mark Doyle, representing the Conservation Advisory Council, described potential impacts on water bodies and active farmland.
“There should be no division or construction on the viewshed area,” said resident Sharon Kroeger, secretary of the Committee to Save the View from DeLaVergne Hill, an organization dedicated to protecting the viewshed seen as key to the community’s identity.
Recalling his past experience serving on the Planning Board, Town Supervisor Leo Blackman spoke of the iconic view from DeLaVergne Hill, called by many the “Gateway to the Berkshires.”
Blackman said he was troubled by the idea that the unobstructed agricultural land would be broken up, suggesting the house lots should be separated from the agricultural expanse.
The next Planning Board meeting, on Wednesday, Nov. 12, is expected to include adoption of the final draft of the current scoping analysis. The study can be viewed in full on the town website.
AMENIA — Amenia budget officer Charlie Miller has been accused of submitting the town’s tentative budget with an old signature from Town Clerk Dawn Marie Klingner.
Klingner said she reported the issue to the Town Board in executive session on Oct. 3, prompting members to assign the town’s labor attorney, Robert Schofield, to investigate.
Officials say the issue stems from Miller’s use of an old cover page that included Klingner’s digital signature. Miller, who serves as the town’s budget officer, said the incident was unintentional.
Miller said the problem began with a computer error while assembling the file. He said he failed to save the document properly and lost most of his work. When he went back to recreate the file, he said he hastily put it together with the wrong cover page and sent it to Klingner and Blackman by email.
“It’s an honest mistake,” Miller said.
But Klingner said the action circumvented her duties as Town Clerk.
“I’m legally responsible for receiving and certifying the budgets, and my responsibility was taken from me when someone else used my signature and seal without my knowledge or consent,” Klingner said.
Miller reports directly to Blackman, who serves as chief financial officer for Amenia as part of his duties as Town Supervisor. As budget officer, Miller said he assists in drafting the budget but has no other control over the town’s finances.
Miller said he has cooperated with the investigation.
“The town board — I think rightly — engaged the town’s labor attorney to look into it, and so I completely support that process,” Miller said. “But that process should play out, in my opinion.”
The investigation comes as Miller, who is running for Town Board, faces a wave of rumors in the days leading up to the election that he said are unfounded. Rumors — which surfaced on now-deleted public posts on FaceBook — range from breaking in to the Town Clerk’s office to forging notary seals.
“There are a lot of extremely false accusations being thrown at me, which to me, looks very much like a political hack job,” Miller said, noting the election is just days away. “It’s almost bordering on libel at this point.”
Klingner said her report only concerned improper process in submitting the tentative budget and denied Miller broke into her office or forged a notary seal.
“I don’t want this to become a political matter,” Klingner said. “It’s not good for this board or this town — and I respect the work that Charlie has done here — but this is not the first time that we’ve had issues with process.”
