PINE PLAINS — Dutchess County Legislator Chris Drago, D-19, will host a public forum later this month to discuss ongoing childcare challenges — and potential solutions — facing families in Northern Dutchess. The discussion will take place on Wednesday, Feb. 25, from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at The Stissing Center in Pine Plains and is free and open to the public.
Drago said the goal of the forum is to gather community feedback that can be shared with county and state stakeholders, as Dutchess County positions itself to benefit from $20 million in state funding as part of a new childcare pilot program.
Earlier this month, Dutchess County was named as one of three counties in New York selected to participate in the pilot, which was announced by Gov. Kathy Hochul as part of a broader plan to bring universal childcare to the state. The funding is expected to support expanded childcare capacity, with a focus on infants and toddlers.
“We are inviting people who have expressed concern about childcare in Northern Dutchess, along with local school and faith-based program leaders, nonprofit organizations, and elected officials,” Drago said in a statement, calling childcare solutions a “critical need in our communities.”
The event follows the recent closure of the North East Community Center’s Early Learning Program (ELP), which left a number of families in Millerton and surrounding towns without childcare options — and left teachers without jobs. NECC announced the closure of ELP in early November and officially closed its doors on Dec. 18, 2025.
In a signal of support, Assemblymember Didi Barrett — who represents a largely rural district that covers parts of Dutchess and Columbia Counties — joined childcare advocates in the state capital last week to hear concerns from constituents. Barrett has praised recent state investments aimed at addressing childcare gaps, saying she will fight to ensure funds reach rural parts of her district.
“I am committed to ensuring that this is truly universal childcare and that the program addresses the childcare needs in Millerton, North East, and the surrounding communities, especially with the recent closure of the North East Community Center’s Early Learning Program,” Barrett said.
In December, Barrett secured $1 million in funding to expand childcare services at Dutchess Community College, and said she is committed to ensuring that new state funds will benefit those in rural communities.
Nathan Miller
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.
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.
Leila Hawken
A white banner reading “workers over billionaires” has become a part of regular weekly anti-Trump administration protests led by Amenia resident Kimberley Travis.
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.
Nathan Miller
Kanchisar Jiradhanaiphat, left, and John Schildbach hope to open Muanjai Tea on Main Street in Millerton by late July.
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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Graham Corrigan
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.”
Leila Hawken
The Webutuck High School Class of 2026 received diplomas at the 72nd annual Commencement ceremony, held on Saturday, June 20.
AMENIA — Fifty-one members of the Webutuck High School Class of 2026 received their diplomas during the school’s 72nd annual commencement ceremony Saturday, June 20.
Family members, friends, educators and classmates filled a large tent on the high school grounds to celebrate the graduates, who will pursue careers, military service and higher education in the months ahead.
“You’ve made it,” said Webutuck Superintendent Raymond Castellani during welcoming remarks to the graduates.
After 11 years of serving the Webutuck School District, Castellani began by announcing that he would be ending that service.
“I’ve witnessed extraordinary moments,” Castellani said. “Serving this district has been one of the greatest honors of my life.”
Castellani spoke of the future to be faced by graduates.
“Change will happen faster than ever before. Technologies will evolve,” Castellani told the seniors. “Kindness matters, integrity matters, character matters,” he said, citing those qualities as ones that will carry the graduates through their future lives.
“Success is measured by the difference you make in the lives of others,” Castellani said, urging graduates to view any failures as lessons.
High School Principal Matthew Pascale began his remarks in praise of Castellani’s leadership.
“You taught me how to lead,” Pascale said. “Working in education is a vocation, not a job.”
“You are standing at the starting line of what comes next,” Pascale told the graduating class. “Go out and make a difference,” he added, reminding the class that their success will be defined by how they treat others. Kindness and humility are key.
Pascale urged each graduate to save 10% of income. “Put it away,” he said. “Pay yourself first. It isn’t about greed, it’s about security.”
Elementary School Principal Amanda Coppola presented the commencement address, recalling that she began her Webutuck teaching career as a fifth grade science teacher.
“While I was teaching you, you were teaching me,” she told graduates.
“Life keeps evolving,” Coppola said. “Keep going. Keep growing.”
Class Salutatorian Zaina AbouEid presented the traditional speech to the graduates.Photo By Leila Hawken
Salutatorian Zaina AbouEid brought appreciative laughs from her audience as she recalled jokes often voiced by Principal Pascale, jokes that were familiar to the class.
Thanking the various constituencies within the school and her family, AbouEid went on to exhort classmates to overcome fears.
“Fear is never strong enough to hold us back,” she said.
Class Valedictorian Giana Kall delivered the traditional valedictory address to her fellow graduates.Photo By Leila Hawken
“Anything is possible,” said Valedictorian Giana Marie Kall, who said that her study of psychology has taught her that people really need to believe in themselves.
“Follow your heart. It’s OK not to be perfect,” Kall told graduates. “You are only in competition with yourself.”
Kall went on to express thanks to the school’s various constituents and her family.
Graham Corrigan
The Stissing Mountain High School Class of 2026 celebrates graduation as 82 seniors receive their diplomas.
PINE PLAINS — The largest graduating class since 2014 — totalling 82 seniors — celebrated the end of high school on Saturday, June 20.
Seniors from Stissing Mountain High School had their graduation at the school on Church Street in Pine Plains. Cloudy weather threatened rain but didn’t follow through as classmates, friends and family gathered to recognize the graduates’ achievements.
Principal Cristopher Boyd, School Board President Amy Fredericks, and Superintendent Dr. Brian Timm delivered opening remarks to a crowded auditorium of friends, family, and congratulatory balloons.
Dr. Timm urged the students to seek out growth through creative tension in their next chapter, and to embrace challenges as opportunities to grow. He extolled the group’s determination, and encouraged them to remember Nelson Mandela’s words: “It always seems impossible until it’s done.”
Then came the student speakers: Michelle Blackburn, Siena Millar, Salutatorian Violet Bliss, and Valedictorian Alyssa Fredericks shared messages of gratitude for the support they had received throughout their education, both from their family and community. “Pine Plains helped build the foundation we all stand on,” said Valedictorian Fredericks.
This was the last step for a class that has, in large part, been classmates since kindergarten. They were together one last time on Saturday, awash in purple robes and graduation caps for the occasion.
The class of 2026 will be spreading out next year. Popular college destinations include Dutchess Community College, the SUNY system, colleges in Boston, and the armed services. More than a quarter of graduates are starting full-time jobs after high school.
The school’s chorus performed twice during the graduation, singing the Pine Plains alma mater to introduce the student speakers, and Fleetwood Mac’s “Landslide” to play them off.
Finally, it was time: one by one the 82 seniors shuffled off the risers to shake hands with the administrators, receive their diploma, and make that long walk across the stage to the jubilant hoots of their family and friends. As they processed off the stage and into those waiting arms, one chapter ended and another began.
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