Margaret Irwin, lead consultant with River Street Planning and Development and one of the grant writers and consultants for the application for the NY Forward Grant, presented the projects that Copake hopes to develop if they win the 4.5 million dollar grant. The grant will help revitalize downtown Copake.
COPAKE — Members of the New York Forward Advisory Committee held their second community meeting to discuss their progress and to invite public comment at Town Hall on Thursday, Oct. 10.
Margaret Irwin, lead consultant with River Street Planning and Development and one of the grant writers and consultants for the application, opened the meeting saying that this year they have “stronger projects” and “a shared vision and the backbone to succeed” in winning the grant. It is the third time they will try for the grant.
Irwin said there are twenty projects under consideration for the 20 page application. Important to the application are 39 proposed affordable housing units and a possibility of 174 new jobs in Copake.
The “Copake Spur” is a key element to the revitalization plan. This is a foot trail that will connect the town of Copake to the Harlem Valley Rail Trail.
Included in the plan are three catalyst projects. One is the renovation of the historic Copake Grange. Repairs and upgrades are proposed for the whole building as well as the 94 seat theater.
The second catalyst will be improvements to Route 7A, with plans to reconstruct and pave 1.74 miles of road, add storm water drainage, curbing, sidewalks, and lighting to improve safety.
The third catalyst project is the Astor Court Gardens. A proposed agrotourism hotspot, the bed and breakfast will host wellness workshops, fitness classes, spa treatments, event space, a farm market and 24 rooms.
Other projects include restaurants, farm stores, renovation of the Copake schoolhouse and the Copake Inn and rehabilitation of fire damaged buildings for apartments.
Winners are to be announced in January and if Copake should win, the entire process begins again with projects being reviewed and picked.
In response to a question from the crowd, Irwin advised the best way to help Copake win the grant is to write a letter. Irwin also urged the crowd to take the survey on the Copake Waterfronts website.
Go to www.copakewaterfronts.com/nyforward to find the email address to send letters to, take the survey and find out more about the New York Forward Grant and the projects that are being proposed.
The official results of the 2024 election have been finalized in Dutchess County as Presidential Inauguration day approaches on Jan. 20.
Dover was the only town to vote for all three Republican candidates at the federal level among the eight towns in Northeast Dutchess County. In Dover 61% of voters favored Donald Trump for President.
In Pine Plains and Stanford 18 or 19 votes decided the presidential winner with 57 votes on the conservative line in Pine Plains putting Trump over the top, and in Stanford the 87 votes on the Working Party line making the difference to Harris.
The total results in our area in the tight Presidential election where neither major party candidate won the majority reflect the close national outcome with Harris with 50.7% of votes. In contrast Harris received 53% in Dutchess County overall and 56% in New York State.
Both incumbents, Kristen Gillibrand for the Senate and Pat Ryan for the House of Representatives, outperformed Harris in every town in their races, including Dover, the only town where both lost. Although Gillibrand won 54% of votes in Northeast Dutchess, this was not as decisive as her 58.9% statewide win. Likewise, Ryan’s result in our towns of 52.6% was also lower than his district wide win of 57.2%.
Millerton Inn kicks off the series. Veterans Park planter lights courtesy of Townscape with arrangement by Joanne Scasso at Country Gardeners.
MILLERTON — The North East Historical Society’s Dine Out for History is returning this year with six participating restaurants.
On select dates from Sunday, Jan. 26, to Wednesday, March 19, restaurants will be hosting “Dine out for History” night. Ten percent of the profits will be donated to the North East Historical Society.
The donations will help the organization perform further research, digitize more of their collections and create content available for the public, especially teachers.
In conjunction with the North East Historical Society, the Millerton Inn will kickstart the celebration on Sunday, Jan. 26. Attendees may participate in an optional short presentation and a local quiz, beginning at 5:30 p.m. Attendees of the presentation will be offered a free glass of wine to enjoy with their meal at the Inn afterward.
More participating restaurants are Taro’s on Thursday, Feb. 6; The Oakhurst Diner on Sunday, Feb. 16; Willa on Thursday, Feb. 27; Round III, on Monday, March 10; and the Golden Wok on Wednesday, March 19, takeout only.
To ensure a table is available for your party, reservations are preferred for most participating restaurants.
For a reminder of this upcoming event, please sign up for the North East Historical Society newsletter by contacting Ed Downey at eddowney12@gmail.com.
Troutbeck's sign at the intersection of Leedsville Road and Route 343 in Amenia.
AMENIA — Public hearings continued from the previous meeting concluded at the regular meeting of the Amenia Planning Board on Wednesday, Jan. 8. Having considered public comment, the board approved applications from Troutbeck for an indoor pool and from DaVinci Windows for a sign installation.
No public comment was heard in connection with the Troutbeck proposal to construct an outdoor pool as briefly described by project engineer Rich Rennia of Rennia Engineering of Dover Plains. The application is part of Phase 8 of Troutbeck’s adaptive reuse application, revised recently to reduce the environmental impact.
Plans call for renovation to the existing pool, the bathhouse and the snack bar — all contained within the wellness area — and construction of a new indoor pool inside the Amenity Barn, Rennia said, explaining that the wellness area will not expand in area, only configuration.
Planning Board attorney Paul Van Cott said that the Phase 8 plans remain consistent with previous planning board approvals and are consistent with the site plan. Board engineer John Andrews indicated that the application was in order and ready for planning board decision, clearing the way for the unanimous vote to approve.
Residents’ concerns about traffic safety were repeated during the continued public hearing to approve installation of a two by six sign at the Route 343 location of DaVinci Windows’ showroom. However, following discussion, the planning board voted unanimous approval of the sign permit, providing that a site plan be submitted showing details of the new sign.
Resident George Bistransin echoed neighbors’ concerns that the sign might pose a dangerous distraction for motorists negotiating a nearby highway curve. He also offered his opinion that conversion of a residential property into a commercial enterprise should have been subjected to further review.
Engineer Andrews reported on his visit to the site accompanied by town highway and building officials. Andrews said that the property is located in a mixed-use district and that the project renovates a single-family residence to add a commercial use.
Andrews added his findings that the sight lines would not be impacted by the sign’s location.
Atty. Van Cott advised that Andrews will need to sign off on the sign’s site plan, a plan that will show illumination details.
Board member Nina Peek suggested that approval be delayed until the site plan with sign details is submitted, but board member James Vitiello favored moving ahead with a vote to approve, pending receipt of the site plan.
The Planning Board heard a preliminary review of impending plans for a Cascade Road affordable housing development to be proposed by Hudson River Housing of Poughkeepsie.
Plans were introduced by Senior Planner Peter Sander of Rennia Engineering. The site would use the land for workforce housing, envisioning a potential layout of 28 small lots to hold single-family, 4-bedroom homes with on-site shared water and septic systems. Half of the land would be conserved, Sander said, asking the board to provide any preliminary comments to assist with preparing for the application process.
Engineer John Andrews asked for a detailed analysis of the conservation elements on the property and he said that the precise acreage needs to be determined.
Atty. Van Cott noted that the planning board is not going to be looking at the subdivision plans at the current early stage. Rather, the board will be considering the plot of land as a whole including the conservation value.
“The applicant’s job is to design around these land resources,” Van Cott added, indicating the presence of a stream corridor at the site.
Board member Vitiello asked about impact on any wildlife to which Van Cott responded that the applicant would need to acquire the services of a professional biologist who would define any habitats. An alternative, Van Cott noted, would be for the Planning Board to hire a biologist at the applicant’s expense.
Spotted salamander is present at the site, as noted by board member James Walsh who indicated that he has caught trout when fishing the site.
Water and septic concerns were of interest to board member Kenneth Topolsky, including water quality, wastewater treatment plans, and run-off from storm water and Cascade Creek and how it might affect surrounding properties.
MILLERTON — Calling the ongoing revitalization of Eddie Collins Memorial Park “the largest project the village has taken on,” Mayor Jenn Najdek has disclosed additional funding has come through in support of its upgrade.
This past December, the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation awarded the village a matching grant of up to $675,000 in support of the Eddie Collins Memorial Park Swimming Pool Project. With these monies, funding for Phase II of the project, which stems largely from a NY SWIMS capital grant, is now at $7.56 million.
This most recent grant, which Najdek explained was the final one for which the village had applied, will go toward planned improvements for the park which include a new swimming pool and bathhouse, a community room and an on-site septic system. Additionally, all sections of the park will be accessible, making the venue ADA-compliant. The hope is to have complete and final designs of the project submitted over the next month or so. Completion of the project is expected by spring of 2026.
“It’s going to be great when it’s all done,” said Najdek, who acknowledged the need for quality outdoor recreation in Millerton, and who fondly recalled the swimming pool which was previously in place. “I’m excited,” she added.
The revitalization of Eddie Collins Memorial Park has been a work in progress for just under a decade, but strides have been made in recent years with the implementation of a soccer field, the recent installation of donated lights for the baseball field, and the paving of the parking lot as well as other revisions.
