government

County legislator Eric Alexander visits Amenia Town Board

County legislator Eric Alexander visits Amenia Town Board
Amenia Town Hall on Route 22.
Photo by Nathan Miller

AMENIA — After nearly a month on the job, Dutchess County Legislator Eric Alexander, representing District 25, attended the Amenia Town Board meeting on Thursday, Jan. 22, to report on the work of the county committees to which he has been assigned.

“The legislature has switched to a Democratic majority,” Alexander noted, adding that Republican County Executive Sue Serino has said that she welcomes the opportunity to work in a bipartisan framework.

Alexander said that he will be serving as chairman of the Public Safety committee. Responsibilities will include Emergency Management Services (EMS) and the Sheriff’s department.

“It will give me a platform to set the agenda and focus on priorities like the growing cost of emergency care,” Alexander said, adding that he is seeking affordability options.

In response to a request by Gov. Kathy Hochul, each county will need to submit a comprehensive plan. Alexander said that the plan must include EMS service plans.

Having reviewed bids from three qualified locksmiths, the Town Board accepted the lowestbid, that of Stat Locksmiths of LaGrangeville to update the locks on Town Hall doors.

In other action the Town Board approved the hiring of a consultant planner to assist the Planning Board with projects under their consideration. The planner could also assist the Comprehensive Plan Committee with its updating process. The planner might also advise the Town Board on occasion, said Town Supervisor Rosanna Hamm.

Planning Board engineer John Andrews will be asked to draft a Request for Proposals document, used to solicit applications. The vote was unanimous.

Hamm reminded residents of the town’s overnight parking ban that prohibits on-street parking between 11 p.m. and 7 a.m. between Nov. 1 and April 1.

government

Latest News

Speed cameras gain ground in Connecticut, stall in Dutchess County

Speed cameras gain ground in Connecticut, stall in Dutchess County

A speed enforcement camera in New York City.

Photo courtesy NYC DOT

Speed cameras remain a tough sell across northwest Connecticut — and are still absent from local roads in neighboring Dutchess County.

Town leaders across northwest Connecticut are moving cautiously on speed cameras, despite a state law passed in 2023 that allows municipalities to install them. In contrast, no towns or villages in Dutchess County currently operate local automated speed-camera programs, even as New York City has relied on the technology for years.

Keep ReadingShow less
law enforcement

In remembrance: Tim Prentice and the art of making the wind visible

In remembrance: Tim Prentice and the art of making the wind visible
In remembrance: Tim Prentice and the art of making the wind visible
In remembrance: Tim Prentice and the art of making the wind visible

There are artists who make objects, and then there are artists who alter the way we move through the world. Tim Prentice belonged to the latter. The kinetic sculptor, architect and longtime Cornwall resident died in November 2025 at age 95, leaving a legacy of what he called “toys for the wind,” work that did not simply occupy space but activated it, inviting viewers to slow down, look longer and feel more deeply the invisible forces that shape daily life.

Prentice received a master’s degree from the Yale School of Art and Architecture in 1960, where he studied with German-born American artist and educator Josef Albers, taking his course once as an undergraduate and again in graduate school.In “The Air Made Visible,” a 2024 short film by the Vision & Art Project produced by the American Macular Degeneration Fund, a nonprofit organization that documents artists working with vision loss, Prentice spoke of his admiration for Albers’ discipline and his ability to strip away everything but color. He recalled thinking, “If I could do that same thing with motion, I’d have a chance of finding a new form.”

Keep ReadingShow less
people
google preferred source

Want more of our stories on Google? Click here to make us a Preferred Source.

Strategic partnership unites design, architecture and construction

Strategic partnership unites design, architecture and construction

Hyalite Builders is leading the structural rehabilitation of The Stissing Center in Pine Plains.

Provided

For homeowners overwhelmed by juggling designers, architects and contractors, a new Salisbury-based collaboration is offering a one-team approach from concept to construction. Casa Marcelo Interior Design Studio, based in Salisbury, has joined forces with Charles Matz Architect, led by Charles Matz, AIA RIBA, and Hyalite Builders, led by Matt Soleau. The alliance introduces an integrated design-build model that aims to streamline the sometimes-fragmented process of home renovation and new construction.

“The whole thing is based on integrated services,” said Marcelo, founder of Casa Marcelo. “Normally when clients come to us, they are coming to us for design. But there’s also some architecture and construction that needs to happen eventually. So, I thought, why don’t we just partner with people that we know we can work well with together?”

Keep ReadingShow less
architecture

‘The Dark’ turns midwinter into a weeklong arts celebration

‘The Dark’ turns midwinter into a weeklong arts celebration

Autumn Knight will perform as part of PS21’s “The Dark.”

Provided

This February, PS21: Center for Contemporary Performance in Chatham, New York, will transform the depths of midwinter into a radiant week of cutting-edge art, music, dance, theater and performance with its inaugural winter festival, The Dark. Running Feb. 16–22, the ambitious festival features more than 60 international artists and over 80 performances, making it one of the most expansive cultural events in the region.

Curated to explore winter as a season of extremes — community and solitude, fire and ice, darkness and light — The Dark will take place not only at PS21’s sprawling campus in Chatham, but in theaters, restaurants, libraries, saunas and outdoor spaces across Columbia County. Attendees can warm up between performances with complimentary sauna sessions, glide across a seasonal ice-skating rink or gather around nightly bonfires, making the festival as much a social winter experience as an artistic one.

Keep ReadingShow less
performances

Tanglewood Learning Institute expands year-round programming

Tanglewood Learning Institute expands year-round programming

Exterior of the Linde Center for Music and Learning.

Mike Meija, courtesy of the BSO

The Tanglewood Learning Institute (TLI), based at Tanglewood, the legendary summer home of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, is celebrating an expanded season of adventurous music and arts education programming, featuring star performers across genres, BSO musicians, and local collaborators.

Launched in the summer of 2019 in conjunction with the opening of the Linde Center for Music and Learning on the Tanglewood campus, TLI now fulfills its founding mission to welcome audiences year-round. The season includes a new jazz series, solo and chamber recitals, a film series, family programs, open rehearsals and master classes led by world-renowned musicians.

Keep ReadingShow less
education
google preferred source

Want more of our stories on Google? Click here to make us a Preferred Source.