Legislators debate cuts proposed by Hochul’s 2025 Executive Budget
Senator Michelle Hinchey leads rally on Friday, March 22 opposing cuts to education funding in the Governor Hochul’s proposed FY 2025 Executive Budget for New York State.
KINGSTON — In the final weeks of budget negotiations, State Senator Michelle Hinchey led the New York State United Teachers (NYSUT), parents and school superintendents from schools across the 41st Senate District to call for changes to Governor Kathy Hochul’s Proposed Executive Budget for 2025, which cuts last year’s state record $34.5 billion in public education funding by $419 million.
The cuts would impact all of the state’s nearly 700 school districts, say opponents of the budget; they note that the cuts to education would most heavily impact high-needs districts and small, rural areas.
The cuts are due to a change Hochul has proposed to the state Foundation Aid Formula, which, at over a decade old, is still used to determine school district funding.
Schools in the Mid-Hudson region would be hit hardest by the change, with a 4.2% decrease in total funding, a cut of over $31 million dollars.
In Hinchey’s district alone (parts of Greene, Columbia and Ulster counties as well as northern Dutchess), the cuts would total $25.7 million if the proposed budget is enacted in its current form.
State Assemblymember Sarahana Shrestha of Assembly district 103, which includes Red Hook, Rhinebeck, and parts of Ulster County, partnered with Hinchey in organizing the March 22 rally.
In our schools
Robert Farrier, business administrator at the Webutuck Central School District, said that if enacted, the cuts would impact Webutuck CSD’s academic programs, though which ones and how much has not yet been determined.
Elliot Garcia, Assistant Superintendent of Business and Personnel of the Millbrook Central School District, said that the proposed state budget “has certainly influenced our budget planning for the 2024-25 school year.”
He said that Millbrook CSD had also overestimated the state funding that Millbrook CSD could expect this year (school year 2023-2024) .
“Given that fact, we must plan for the coming school year as if our state aid package will be unchanged, and could potentially be reduced,” he said. He said that the problem “is further compounded by the reality that over 60% of our budget contains expense increases which are either fixed or contractually obligated.
“With that being said, we are being very conservative with our budget projections for next school year,” he said. “We continue to fine tune the proposed budget for the 2024-25 school year to identify any and all opportunities to responsibly reduce our proposed expense budget in kind in order to maintain our existing programs.”
Dr. Brian Timm, Superintendent of the Pine Plains Central School District, said, “The proposed cuts to Foundation Aid by Governor Hochul are extremely impactful to a number of school districts across the state,” including Pine Plains CSD.
He added, “I wouldn’t say at this point that anything in the proposed budget would negatively impact student lives,” but continued, “we are making adjustments to the Pine Plains CSD budget for 2024-2025.”
Timm said that Pine Plains CSD will look at adjusting some services with BOCES and faculty and staff health insurance, but would mostly offset differences by reallocating appropriations funds — “a one time cost to the district that would present a problem moving forward,” said Timm. “It’s not sustainable.”
Legislators’ alternative
On March 14, the Senate and Assembly passed a one-house budget resolution which proposes amendments to Hochul’s proposed Executive Budget including the restoration of the “hold harmless” provision, which ensures that school districts are allocated at least as much aid as they received the previous year, regardless of declines in enrollment.
The budget resolution proposes $747 million in aid to school districts throughout the state (as opposed to the $507 million increase proposed by Hinchey’s budget).
Legislators are also requesting a review of the Foundation Aid formula.
Earlier in March, Hochul’s budget director, Blake Washington, said that a revenue consensus meeting with the State Legislature determined there is $1.3 billion in tax collections coming to the state which had not been previously allocated, which could be used to negate the changes to the Foundation Aid.
“We are hopeful that some if not all of the Foundation Aid is returned for the 2024-2025 school year and that the Foundation Aid Formula is revised,” said Timm.
The final enacted budget will evolve from negotiations between Governor Hochul and the legislative branch.
The budget deadline for New York State is April 1.
Aly Morrissey
Fernando Nottebohn says he appreciates Sharon Farm Market as part of a weekly circuit he does from his home in Lithgow, New York, that also includes Paley’s Farm Market
"We're going to fix the store."
— Chris Choe, co-owner of Sharon Farm Market
SHARON – Despite months of speculation fueled by half-empty shelves, inventory shortages and the planned departures of two longtime businesses, Sharon Farm Market is not closing, according to owner Chris Choe.
“We’re not shutting down,” Choe said, adding that he and his wife, Kim, are planning a series of upgrades they hope will transform the market over the coming months. Choe said they expect to receive a new 20-year lease from the property’s landlords and are moving forward with plans to revitalize the business.
Asked about the store’s appearance and inventory concerns, Chris Choe acknowledged that changes are needed.
“We’re going to take care of everything,” he said. “We’re going to fix the store.”
Choe said remodeling will take place at night so the market can remain open during normal business hours. He describes a grand vision with a revamped deli, online ordering, home grocery deliveries, and a cafe and bakery serving coffee and organic juice,
“My team is almost ready,” he said of the next iteration of the market. He estimates the updates will take several months, and that shoppers can expect a better store experience that will even allow for Door Dash.
The comments come as rumors about the market’s future have circulated throughout Sharon in recent months. Shoppers have reported difficulty finding common grocery items, while two popular businesses operating inside the market have announced plans to leave at the end of September.
At the end of September, Jam Food Shop, the deli and prepared-food business that has operated inside Sharon Market for 16 years, will relocate to Salisbury.
Jam owners said the company will relocate to 19 Main St. in the location of the former Neo Restaurant & Bar – which closed its doors permanently last month – and that the decision was not made lightly.
In a letter penned to the community (see letter on A6) Jam expressed its gratitude to the Sharon community, while highlighting a years-long dispute with market ownership.
“For years, we have made attempts to gain clarity around our lease renewal at the Sharon Farm Market,” the letter said. “Unfortunately, in the end, we were unable to reach an agreement with the market, leaving us with a short amount of time to find Jam a new home.”
Choe said the departure of Jam comes after 16 years of partnership, and didn’t get into the specifics of the lease negotiations.
“They want their own place, and I want to make it a better store,” he said.
Choe also pointed to Jam’s prices, which he views as high.
Blue Sea Seafood, another longtime fixture inside the market, has also confirmed it will depart at the end of September after 16 years in Sharon Farm Market. Owners Sarah and Chuck Lee said they will officially close down on Sept. 30. The pair said they will not be opening a new location elsewhere.
“We’ll miss it,” Sarah Lee said.
Some residents have pointed to the Choes’ latest venture — Market360, a grocery store near Yale University in New Haven that opened in June 2025 — as a possible factor in the market’s recent inventory and operational challenges.
In an interview with Kim Choe last October, she said the store had required significant time as they worked to find their footing and build a team.
Several shoppers said they have noticed changes at the Sharon market in recent months and worry about its future.
Ann Spindler, a Sharon resident, said she has noticed changes that have sparked concerns throughout town.
“For the last couple months I’ve noticed there are fewer things on the shelves and I’m worried that something is happening and I hope that they’re going to stay around,” Spindler said.
Janay Gregory of Sharon said common items like milk, yogurt and bread have been inconsistently stocked.
“It’s a problem,” Gregory said. “I hear it a lot in the town that there have been a lot of issues, even since Christmas.”
Ellen Moon of Cornwall said she was concerned by an apparent low stock in the store.
“There are blank spaces on the shelves,” she said. “I thought, Oh dear, I hope they’re alright.”
While browsing the shelves Saturday, Sharon resident Michelle McBreairty said she also noticed a lot less inventory.
“I think it would be the demise of this plaza without a grocery store,” she said, recalling the years before Sharon Farm Market opened in 2010.“I hope they do stay,” she added.
Jennifer Naylor, a Sharon resident of 20 years, said she’s concerned for the store’s future. “The seafood’s going, Jam’s going – they’re going to struggle, I think.”
“I would love this to be totally revamped,” she added, noting that she’s always taken issue with what she described as high pricing.
A revamp is exactly what Chris Choe has in mind, and he says he and his wife are hoping to sell their New Haven store just one year after its grand opening to return their attention to Sharon and Millerton.
Across the state border in Millerton, New York, another grocery store owned by the Choes has endured speculation over the last year amid rumors that they had abandoned the venture. Choe disputes those rumors, as well, saying he and his wife plan to open the store later this year.
The store was originally scheduled to open in June 2025, and was pushed to October before the Choes eventually said the timeline was unclear.
The pair, who purchased Millerton Square Plaza on Route 44 in December 2024 from Joseph Trotta, now say the final construction stages are imminent.
“We’re going to start the construction very soon,” Choe said, adding that he has a new business partner for the Millerton store, though he declined to identify the individual or company, citing ongoing negotiations.
“Together we’ll be fast moving,” he said, noting that he hopes to open the store by Thanksgiving, just ahead of the holiday season.
Among the renovations completed so far are a roof replacement and significant HVAC upgrades. Choe said the remaining work includes installing new flooring, replacing the ceiling,reconfiguring the parking lot and upgrading the storefront. Eventually, they plan to stock locally-sourced produce, meat and seafood from Boston and New York City.
Some residents are skeptical that the Millerton store will open in the fall of 2026.
“Chris has said that for years now,” said longtime Sharon resident Mike Rand.“I’ll believe it when I see it.”
Additional reporting by Nathan Miller, Alec Linden and Madi Long.
Leila Hawken
Celebrating the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, the 14-member Smithfield Chamber Orchestra presented “Our American Composers,”a Spring Pops Concert at the Smithfield Church on Saturday, May 30. Part of the Bang Family Concert Series, the sixth annual pops concert played to a full house under the direction of Michelle Demko, serving her first year as Music Director.
Leila Hawken
AMENIA — The Planning Board moved closer to completing the environmental review of the proposed Cascade Creek subdivision during its regular meeting on Wednesday, May 27, agreeing to consider a formal environmental determination at its June meeting.
The discussion centered on completion of the Environmental Assessment Form, a key component of the project’s review under New York’s State Environmental Quality Review Act.
“First you have to decide the impact,” board engineer John Andrews said, explaining the process.
While no decision was made, board members agreed to review a draft negative declaration, a finding that would certify the project is not expected to have a significant adverse impact on the environment. If adopted, the declaration would satisfy SEQRA requirements and allow the project to move forward to the site-plan review stage.
The Cascade Creek proposal, first submitted in 2024 by the nonprofit Hudson River Housing of Poughkeepsie, calls for a 28-lot affordable housing subdivision on 24.13 acres. According to project plans, approximately 59% of the property would remain conserved open space.
Since the application was filed, engineers and planners have worked through the conservation review process while the Planning Board has conducted public hearings and meetings to gather community input. Project plans have been revised in response to concerns raised by residents and board members.
Addressing a previous request from the board for updated traffic information and guidance from the New York State Department of Transportation (DOT), Senior Planner Peter Sander reported that the project’s access plan has been revised to include a single entrance and exit on Route 22 directly across from the Old North Road intersection.
Andrews added that the DOT determined neither a traffic signal nor a dedicated left-turn lane would be necessary at the intersection. The agency suggested a marked crosswalk could be beneficial and noted that existing pull-off lanes provide adequate space for pedestrians along the highway.
Board member John Stefanopoulos asked about reducing the speed limit in the area.
Questions about groundwater and well capacity generated significant discussion.
Andrews said that once the environmental review is completed and the project enters the design phase, developers will be required to conduct detailed analyses of well construction and groundwater availability.
“Those results have to be acceptable to the Department of Health,” Andrews said, noting that until that approval is received, the water issue remains open.
Planning Board member James Walsh observed that some residents along Cascade Road have needed to drill their wells deeper over the years.
Board member Ken Topolsky referenced a letter from residents who argued that groundwater testing conducted to date had been inadequate. Topolsky added his continuing concern about stormwater drainage plans and the potential for flooding downstream in an area with a history of flooding.
Topolsky also expressed concern that the development’s housing designs could appear too uniform and may not reflect the town’s character.
But Sander disagreed.
“We’ve added variety, landscaping and buffers,” Sander said, adding that the actual design drawings will illustrate diverse design decisions. He reminded the board that the development will bring people to the town.
“It’s people and families,” Sander said.
Asked about next steps in the process, Andrews explained that if the board adopts a “negative declaration,” the SEQRA review would be complete and the application could advance to site-plan review. A “positive declaration” would require additional environmental analysis before the project could proceed.
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Millerton News
SHARON — Yerger Johnstone, former managing director in the mergers and acquisitions department at Morgan Stanley and a decorated veteran of the Vietnam War, died on April 19, 2026, in Chelmsford, England. He was 86.
Born in Mobile, Alabama, on March 7, 1940, Mr. Johnstone was the son of architect Henry Inge Johnstone, architect, and Kathleen Yerger Johnstone, the noted nature writer and civic leader after whom Alabama’s state seashell, Johnstone’s Junonia, is named. He graduated from Murphy High School in Mobile in 1958, received his bachelor’s degree from the University of the South at Sewanee in 1962, and earned his M.B.A. from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business in 1964.
Following his M.B.A., he was commissioned through Officer Candidate School before serving in the United States Marine Corps from 1966 to 1968, rising from First Lieutenant to Captain. Stationed principally at Da Nang, Vietnam, he served as an intelligence officer and was awarded the Bronze Star with combat “V” for meritorious service.
Yerger married Eve Chamberlain, also of Mobile, Alabama in 1963 and they resided in North Carolina during this USMC training. Later moving to Brooklyn, New York, where his first child, Bartley, was born in 1968.
After his discharge, Mr. Johnstone joined Morgan Stanley, working in both Paris and New York City, where he became one of the firm’s first forty partners and served as deputy director of the Mergers and Acquisitions department under Robert Greenhill, at the very dawn of the M&A boom. He later worked in M&A at Blackstone and UBS Warburg Dillon Read. He also served on the boards of Hampshire College and Indian Mountain School at different times in his life.
Yerger was an accomplished sailor, having grown up on boating excursions for shell hunting with his parents in areas of Alabama and Florida, later on receiving certifications in sailing trips around Corsica while working in Paris. While working in banking in the late 1970’s and early 1980’s he spent evenings and weekends reading sailing training manuals, autobiographies of sailors and geographies of various archipelagos, further advancing his skills with a month of yacht chartering each summer in Greece.
Yerger first became enchanted with Litchfield County, when he and his second wife, Marguerite, found their dream weekend escape in Ellsworth in Sharon, Connecticut in the mid 1970’s. A one time builder of hot rod cars in his teens, he enjoyed spirited late night drives from NYC in a friends loaned Ferrari. In Ellsworth the newly weds and then young family (when his second daughter Katherine was born) enjoyed many weekends, hiking, bird watching, star gazing, cross country skiing, growing fresh herbs and gardening and barbecuing Yerger’s famous steaks for guests. Yerger enjoyed exploring the back roads of the area on his BMW motorcycle and the Housatonic River as an avid fly fisherman.
Upon leaving Morgan Stanley, he and his wife Marguerite whom he married in 1975, built the 67-foot ketch Asteroid in Aalsmeer, Holland. They conducted sea trials in Norway, Scotland, Ireland, & England before sailing her around the world, a near 6 year circumnavigation, passing via Suez and Panama canals, spending majority of the time in Pacific Ocean isles from Marquesas to Fiji, New Zealand (where his son Rule was born in 1986) and Micronesia. Encounters with storms, pirates, technical difficulties in remote islands and simply the rigors of daily yachting life were all met with courage, confidence and enthusiasm by Yerger. It became one of the defining adventures of his life.
Returning to America at the end of the sailing trip in 1990, the family settled in Falls Village, Connecticut, where they lived and built a house until Yerger was transferred to London, England
Yerger lived between Salisbury, Connecticut, and the UK for several years before permanently relocating to live between the Cotswolds in the UK and Tuscany in Italy with his third wife, Pamela. They enjoyed an active retirement with regular travels in Asia, New Zealand and Greece. In his final years, he was mainly in his homes in Italy and UK, with short trips in France, with his second daughter. In Trequanda, Italy he enjoyed cycling, feasting at home and throughout Tuscan villages with his and Pamela’s many friends, and soaking up the Tuscan sun. In his home village of Stebbing, UK, he headed the local pond fishing club and took short trips to London to hear his daughter Katherine sing in her many choirs.
Mr. Johnstone is survived by his wife, Pamela Johnstone; his daughters, Bartley Inge and Katherine Inge; his granddaughter, Evie Inge Scofield; his son, Rule; his former wife, Marguerite; his brother, Justice Douglas Inge Johnstone. He is predeceased by his first wife, Eve Chamberlain Purdy.
Cremation took place May 18, 2026, at Dunmow Crematorium, Blatches Farm, Stebbing CM 6 3AL England.
There will be a Requiem Mass said on June 7th, at St George’s Aubrey Walk, W8 7JG England.
Millerton News
WEST CORNWALL — Richard R. Stover, 82, of West Cornwall, died peacefully at Noble Horizons on May 26, 2026.
Son of the late Robert and Leona (Heinbockel) Stover, Rick was born Feb. 6, 1944 in Edina, Minnesota. He attended the University of Pennsylvania where he majored in Economics and was a member of Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity.
After graduation, Rick began a long career as a financial and pharmaceutical analyst working at Mitchell Hutchins, Smith Barney, Alex Brown & Sons, Pfizer, and Arnold and S. Bleichroeder. He was then President and CEO of PeriCor Therapeutics, a bio tech company he founded in Manhattan.
Rick was an avid golfer and skier, and he liked nothing better than wrestling with the wilderness. After he and Marnell bought their home in West Cornwall, he enjoyed clearing brush, felling trees, and splitting logs. He was the proud owner of every tool and machine necessary for landscape maintenance.Rick was a parishioner at St. Bridget Church where he worked on the building and grounds committee and served as Chairman of the Finance Council.
Rick is survived by his wife Marnell (Bukovac) and his four daughters and their families; Shaw (Christofer) Ruder and Beckett, Elliot, and Hattie; Sara Stover (Chris Sherwin); Christian Stover (Jeffrey Knutsen); Anne (Andrew) Ruder and William, Charlie, and Sadie. He is also survived by his stepchildren and their families: Mary Brunelli (Christopher Edgar) and Alexander and Catherine; and Michael (Ellen) Brunelli.
Rick was preceded in death by his sister Barbara McCurdy.
A Mass of Christian burial was held at St. Bridget Church (St. Kateri Parish) 7 River Road, Cornwall Bridge, on Saturday, May 30, 2026 at 11:00. Burial followed at St. Bridget Cemetery.
Contributions in Rick’s name may be made to St. Kateri Parish (St. Bridget Church), PO Box 186, 90 Cobble Road, Kent, CT 06757.
The Kenny Funeral Home has care of arrangements.
Millerton News
SHARON — Floyd Irving Isham Jr., 87, a longtime area resident, died Tuesday, May 26, 2026, at Sharon Health Care Center in Sharon. Mr. Isham worked for the Tri-Wall Container Corp. in Wassaic, New York, for fifteen years and also worked as a self-employed private caretaker for over twenty-five years, caring for local estates in Shekomeko, Pine Plains and Ancramdale, New York, prior to his retirement.
Born Aug. 25, 1938, in St. George, Vermont, he was the son of the late Floyd Irving and Hazel (Thompson) Isham, Sr. Following his high school years, he enlisted in the United States Navy and served from 1958 until his honorable discharge in 1961. Mr. Isham also served in the Vermont National Guard. On Aug. 11, 1990, in Dover Plains, New York, he married Nancy L. Cross. Mrs. Isham died on July 8, 2005.
Mr. Isham was a life member of the Millerton American Legion Post # 178 in Millerton, and was a former member of the Amenia Fish & Game Club in Amenia. He served for eight years as president of the Dutchess County Federation of Fish & Game Clubs and also served on their legislative committee for a number of years. He was an avid hunter and fisherman and enjoyed gardening, watching the New York Mets and the Boston Red Sox on television and spent a great deal of time following the horses at OTB. Floyd will be deeply missed by his loving family and his many dear friends. Floyd’s family wishes to extend a heartfelt thank you to all the nurses, nursing assistants and staff at Sharon Health Care Center for the kind and respectful attention provided to Floyd while in their care.
Mr. Isham is survived by two children, Mary Kunda and Theodore Isham; three stepchildren, Candy Strong and her husband Bill, Brian Marshall and his wife Kathy and Tanya Mayhew; two grandchildren, Samantha Harrison and her husband Raymond and Cody Mayhew; one great grandchild, Harper Lee Harrison; several siblings and many nieces and nephews and friends. In addition to his wife and parents, he was also predeceased by three sisters, Lucille, Leonna and Roselyn.
Graveside services and burial will take place on Wednesday, June 3, 2026, at 11 a.m. at Ellsworth Cemetery, 25 Cemetery Road, Sharon with Standard Naval Honors. Pastor William Mayhew will officiate. Memorial contributions may be made to the Millerton American Legion Post # 178, 155 Route 44, Millerton, NY 12546. To send an online condolence to the family, flowers to the service or to plant a tree in Floyd’s honor, please visit www.conklinfuneralhome.com
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