Letters to the Editor — Thursday, Oct. 22, 2025

Breakfasts support Fire Company

On Sunday, October 19, the Amenia Fire Company sponsored our monthly Pancake Breakfast. We were pleased to have a nice crowd of 186 people in attendance for our monthly meal. We rely on the breakfasts to raise needed money for general operations and we always appreciate the support of the community. We thank everyone who attends our events and hope you will join us at our next breakfast on November 16 at the firehouse.

Andy Murphy,

on behalf of the
Breakfast Committee

Amenia Fire Co. and Auxiliary

Amenia

Vote to support the library on Nov. 4

I received the NorthEast-Millerton Library’s annual report last week. I was thrilled that 6 of the 9 Trustees were former students of mine.I can attest to their honesty, integrity and service to our community as they were all student leaders at Webutuck.I can assure all that the library is in the best of hands.

As a subscriber to the Millerton News, I often read an article that states a meeting was held at the Library Annex.Just last week the Millerton 175th Celebration Planning Committee meeting was held there.Not only is the Library open to numerous public meetings, but public elections are held there too.I consider the Library as an essential hub of our thriving community.

I urge that you support the Library’s budget on November 4th.

Roger Noel Price

Millerton

A secure budget needed for library

As a former elementary teacher and avid reader, I encourage you to support the NorthEast-Millerton Library on November 4th.Serving as a Library Board member for 10 years, I realize how difficult fund raising is.A secure budget allows staff to focus on the needs of the community.

The Library welcomes all and has a wide variety of programs. Please consider supporting your Library!

Diane Price

Millerton

Vote Democratic for progress in Amenia

I’ve worked with all Democratic candidates for local office, some for well longer than my 4 years on the Town Board. All have helped to achieve my campaign promises. In 2 years, we’ve accomplished more than the previous ten. Site-work for a new highway garage is underway, and the full package is ready to go out to bid. Engineers have studied the condition of our neglected drinking water system, developed a repair plan, and started work. We have replaced the AV equipment in the Town Board room and now broadcast all Planning Board and ZBA meetings. There is a new LED signboard in front of Town Hall, and a terrific new website. Both provide lots of information to residents about meetings, events & emergencies. Sidewalk to Park, done.

Rosanna McEnroe Hamm has been an amazing Deputy Supervisor, who seems to know and listen to every member of the community (it helps to have taught at Webutuck for decades). She responds immediately to concerns received from neighbors and starts working on solutions. Parking on Main & Mechanic has been an ongoing project. Rosanna reached out to Maplebrook about using their pool for senior swim and has acted against fentanyl use.

Vicki Doyle has been on our Town Board most of the 23 years I’ve lived here. She not only focused on Board work but also has given lots of hours to grant-writing, especially to create enrichment programs for Amenia kids. Vicki has long served on both the Conservation Advisory & Enhancement Committees. She has always cared deeply about protecting and beautifying the small-town environment of Amenia. Vicki is running for the two-year seat.

Walter Deitrich lives right in the center of Town and is an engaged member of both the Planning Board and Wastewater Committee. He is also a trustee of the Amenia Historical Society. Walter is a vocal advocate of growth that will preserve the character of our downtown and hamlets, and in making our roads and walkways slower & safer. He seeks a 4-year position on the Board.

Charlie Miller has become indispensable as Budget Director. He calculated the percentage of Town taxes paid by Silo Ridge (nearly half). Charlie found a NYS-backed investment fund and convinced the Board to shift taxes there from the bank. We earned $84,000 interest in the first year. He digitized the budget process and simplified the format so it’s easier to use. He continued to serve as chair of Wastewater Committee - bringing it closer than ever before. As Housing Board Chair he’s worked with HRH on 18 starter homes proposed opposite Freshtown.

Charlie’s financial and construction expertise helped achieve capital projects from my agenda - to build needed infrastructure promised for decades. He’s tireless in researching & pursuing grants, engineers and contractors, creating spread sheets and slide decks for the Board. We’ve gained huge benefits from his efforts. Elect him to the Board, if you want this progress to continue.

Leo Blackman

Amenia

Hamm will cultivate a cooperative environment in Amenia

I am delighted to offer my enthusiastic endorsement for Rosanna Hamm for the important and impactful position of Town Supervisor in Amenia. My decision comes after attending not just one, but both the Republican and Democratic "Meet the Candidates" events, where I had the invaluable opportunity to hear from each candidate firsthand and gain insights into their visions for our community.

As someone who has participated in the electoral process for over 55 years, I primarily cast my votes along established party lines—just as my parents and grandparents did before me.This year I have reached an important crossroads. This election cycle, I have made the decision to split my vote equally between party lines, opting instead to place a higher value on the individual character and critical vision of the candidates rather than their party affiliations.

In this particular race, while I genuinely respect and appreciate Terrance McCauley, Ms. Hamm’s opponent.I view him as bright, personable, and possessing strong management and communication skills that would make him a strong option in the future. However, my conscience leads me to extend my support to Ms. Hamm this time around. It is essential for our town that we embrace a candidate who represents a true bipartisan approach to governing Amenia—one that deeply resonates with my own beliefs and values. Ms. Hamm possesses a keen understanding that no single party can claim the responsibility to “fix it all,” and that effective governance is truly rooted in collaboration, community engagement, and collective effort.

What ultimately tipped the scales in favor of Rosanna Hamm is her unwavering commitment to cultivating a cooperative environment within our town. She recognizes that Amenia thrives not because of party divisions, but because of the strength, resilience, and cooperation of its neighbors. Her belief in fostering relationships and building a sense of community is precisely what is needed in our leadership moving forward. I firmly believe that her vision for a more inclusive, engaged, and unified Amenia is exactly what we need to steer our community toward a prosperous future.

I invite you to join me in supporting Rosanna Hamm as our next Town Supervisor. Let us prioritize the person, not the party, and choose a leader who embodies the spirit of togetherness and collaboration that will benefit all residents of Amenia. Together, we can build a better future for our beloved town.

Ken Topolsky

Amenia

We need new energy in Pine Plains government

Thank-you to The New Pine Plains Herald for conducting a candidates’ night in the Community Center on October 13th. The contrast between the two Walshes — Brian, the current Supervisor, and Kevin, his challenger, could not have been more obvious. Both candidates, as well as all four of the candidates for Town Board, agreed that attracting and retaining new businesses to our Town are the most important issues for the well-being of our Town. However, when it came to ideas for how to accomplish this, all we heard from Brian Walsh, who has held this position for four years, was that we need to let it be known that “we’re open for business.”

This phrase is not helpful since it contains no suggestions for action. And it emphasizes Brian Walsh’s passivity as Town Supervisor. Clearly, the question we need to address is how to attract new businesses and help them prosper. Brian Walsh, when asked about the Town’s basic marketing and informational tool — its website — responded that he has invited people to make suggestions for improving the current website but has received no responses. Not only was Brian’s response inaccurate (Kevin Walsh explained that he had written and submitted to Brian’s office a plan of corrections for the current website, which was ignored), but it demonstrates how passive Brian’s approach to his job is.We need a Supervisor who will initiate website changes — as Kevin tried to do as a Board Member — not sit back and hope that others will figure something out.

Brian’s failure to generate a weekly newsletter — a practice started by former Supervisor Darrah Cloud — is another example of his failure to take positive action. When asked about such a project, Brian responded that he currently is busy working on the budget. Presumably, he has not been working on the budget non-stop for the past two years. More to the point, we need a Supervisor with the energy and initiative to do more than one thing at a time. Kevin seems to be such a candidate. Not only has he already made suggestions to improve the Town website and re-started the CAC, but he suggested re-starting the business association, seeking grants for remedying the apparent pollution of the lake, and temporarily reducing taxes on new businesses to attract them to our Town.

Similarly, Town Board candidates Murphy Birdsall and Trevor Roush offered new ideas for improving conditions for businesses in Pine Plains. Murphy pointed out that we are not in a food desert — we are surrounded by farmers who could bring their products to a central place in town if we created one. Trevor talked about using marketing to tout our town’s wealth of natural resources. Neither of the other two candidates offered concrete suggestions for enhancing Pine Plains’ business environment.

In sum, we need new energy in our Town government. In my opinion, Kevin, Murphy and Trevor are the ones to bring it.

Amy Rothstein

Pine Plains