Meet school board write-in winner Chris LaBelle
Chris LaBelle will join the Millbrook Central School District Board of Education on July 1. Photo submitted
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Families: Get a globe
Oct 15, 2025
Those of us old enough, we remember our parents and our siblings asking questions about the world we lived in. “Where is Anzio and Normandy?” “Where is Inchon?” “Where is Cambodia and what’s the Gulf of Tonkin?” And “Kuwait? What’s Kuwait?” “Kabul? Where is that?” Sadly, you will be asking these questions again all too soon.
American youth, woefully undereducated, were always being sent “over there” to fight battles vital for our national interests and security. Parents desperately try to find out how far away they were going to be, what were the strange lands, strange peoples, strange customs they were going to encounter. And if all this is about to happen again, U.S. education is still lacking in every possible geographic way.
In 1890-1910 the disparity between the worker and the very rich in all industrial societies including America was desperately evident. Natural resources (metals, oil, power, engineering) outstripped social balancing, allowing a handful to become so wealthy they make today’s billionaires look like paupers. Meanwhile, new inventions across the world as a result of the industrial revolution made those very wealthy here and especially in Europe, to want to keep their power by expanding control and territory. Countries fought such unopposed expansion until, finally, they became embroiled in an all-out war – the first world war in 1914 (WWI) – to stop the expansion of these powers. American elites and the most wealthy, desperate not to chose sides and lose their own positions of power and wealth, kept us out of the conflict until 1917 when American interests across the globe were threatened and we joined in to stop the Kaiser and his allies. That war was fought in 17 countries in Europe (can you name any of them?), 12 countries in Asia, 26 in Africa, and 12 in the Pacific basin. WWI killed about 40,000,000 people – about half of all the people in the USA at the time.
Korea, Vietnam, Kuwait, Afghanistan, Iraq – all followed since WWII ended in 1945. Why? Study history, but it usually boils down to powerful cabals wanting more.
Now, once again, there are potentates (domestic and foreign) and several governments that seek superiority over their fellow citizens, are re-writing the moral codes of civilization, and are seeking to protect the wealth and prestige of the most wealthy.
And that battle, which will come – history always repeats – will take place in locations across the globe your children may never have been aware of, and you may find yourself asking, “Where is Panama? Where is Sandy Cay? Where is Bahrain? Where is Suriname and Paraguay? Where is Heimaey? What is Gaza? Why are our kids fighting there?”
Go get a globe and teach yourself and your kids before it is too late, to really know what is going on and where. Their lives are at stake.
Peter Riva, a former resident of Amenia Union, New York, now lives in Gila, New Mexico.
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Open houses to learn about library funding
On November 4, the NorthEast-Millerton Library will be asking voters to vote on a proposition to increase library funding by $50,000. Like the members of our community, the library is also feeling the effect of increasing costs.We are pleased to report that library usage, as noted in our Annual Report to the community, continues to rise.For those two reasons, we find it necessary to approach our community this year asking for an increase.
The funding provided by the local voters is only used for operating expenses, which includes salaries, material and supplies, maintenance, and utilities. The library continues to offer free programming to all ages, as well as free access to computers, Internet and Hot Spots, food assistance, and of course books.
To answer any questions you may have regarding the proposition, the library trustees will be holding two Open Houses. The first is scheduled for Oct. 21, from 5 to 6 p.m., followed by another on Oct. 25, from 11 a.m. to noon.Please join us in the library to hear more and see some of the wonderful things happening at the NorthEast-Millerton Library.
The proposition will be on the back of the ballot.
The staff and trustees of the NorthEast-Millerton Library appreciate your continued support.
Debbie Ruppel
President, Board of Trustees
Millerton
Town Board’s delay is a failure of leadership
The North East Town Board officially voted to delay our zoning amendments indefinitely. Their rationale was flimsy, inconsistent and deeply disappointing for anyone who cares about fairness, economic vitality and integrity.
We were not asking for sweeping changes. We sought a simple modification to the existing Country Inn code, allowing new construction in addition to the current allowance to convert existing structures. And a separate amendment to permit farm-related events.
These changes are essential for the success of our vineyard and winery project. Without them, the math simply doesn’t work.
For almost a year, the Town Board promised, repeatedly and publicly, that our amendments would be reviewed independently. Then, with no real explanation, they reneged. Now, our amendments are being rolled into the Ag District rezoning, which will take 4+ years, mirroring the glacial pace of the Boulevard District rezoning.
The stated reason? Concern over “spot zoning.” That claim doesn’t withstand even basic scrutiny. Our proposal modifies an existing allowance that already applies to 42 farms. By definition, code that applies broadly cannot be considered spot zoning.
What matters is that the amendment itself was carefully crafted to apply not to just one farm, but to 42 eligible properties. To dismiss that reality reflects a disregard for the facts.
The 2019 Comprehensive Plan, developed through community surveys, workshops, and hearings, exists precisely to guide decisions like this. It explicitly calls for supporting agriculture through farm diversification, agritourism, farm stays, and events. Our proposal mirrors that language almost word for word. Yet the Town Board has ignored its own blueprint, undermining the will of the residents who helped create it.
The economic cost of inaction is real. Moving forward with our amendments would unlock millions in private investment, creating local jobs for electricians, carpenters, farmers, and hospitality workers, while supporting local businesses. Delaying sends the opposite message: that North East is closed to growth.
We’ve followed every directive in good faith — hiring legal counsel at the Town’s request, paying over $30,000 in fees, plus escrow to cover town consultants and lawyers. For the Board to reverse course now, without a public hearing, is irresponsible governance.
The worst part is that I have no recourse. There is no way to appeal. The Town Board has given itself unchecked authority, while leaving residents and businesses powerless to respond. That lack of accountability should concern everyone in the community, regardless of how they feel about my project.
Deferring decisions may feel safe, but it’s not leadership. It’s avoidance. And it leaves North East poorer, both economically and culturally.
So where do we go from here? I am calling on the community for help, ideas, and advice on how to get this back on track. We followed the rules, invested in good faith, and proposed amendments that the Town’s own plan demands. The question is whether North East wants to support agriculture, jobs, and economic vitality, or whether we allow bureaucratic delays and broken promises to define our future.
John King
Millerton
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Rio Jazz at Smithfield Church
Oct 15, 2025
Photo by Leila Hawken
A program of Brazilian Jazz delighted the audience at The Smithfield Church on Saturday, Oct. 11. One in the series of Bang Family Concerts, the concert was titled “Rio Jazz: Intimate Brazilian Jazz.” An ensemble ofrenowned area musicians was assembled by Matt Finley, the group’s director and pioneer in popularizing the genre. Finley’s wife, Denise Jordan Finley provided the vocals on “When She’s Gone,” one of the concert’s highlights, drawing robust applause.
AMENIA — A continuing effort on the part of the developers of the Keane Stud subdivision to create a required environmental impact analysis was the subject of long discussion at the regular Planning Borad meeting on Wednesday, Oct. 8.
Termed a scoping analysis, since June the developers havde consistently sought planning board guidance on the preparation of the scoping analysis of the environmental and visual impacts of the proposed subdivision on the landscape, including the panoramic view from DeLaVergne Hill.
Representing the Keane Stud developers was attorney Diana Kolev, Partner of DelBello Donnellan Weingarten Wise Wiederkehr, LLP, of White Plains. The process is also being advised by the board’s visual consultant George Janes, in attendance at the meeting.
Following discussion, the planning board agreed to authorize Janes and planning board attorney Paul Van Cott to work together with the developer’s representatives to create a presentation that will detail the potential environmental and visual impact of the subdivision.
Due to the lack of a quorum at that point in the meeting, Van Cott advised that an authorization would suffice, rather than a formal motion. Planning Board member James Vitiello had abstained and board member Nina Peek had recused.
“The applicant is seeking to move the project forward,” Van Cott said.
Proposed Keane Stud subdivision plans call for 605 acres to be divided into 23 large agricultural lots.
Part of the public-facing process is to prepare an initial public presentation of the impact analyses well in advance of eventual required public hearings. Accordingly, the planning board has scheduled a public information presentation for Wednesday, Oct. 22, beginning at 8 p.m. A regular Planning Board meeting will begin at 7 p.m.
A copy of the scoping analysis is expected to appear on the town website in advance of the meeting.
“There are presentation alternatives within the draft of the scope analysis already,” said Janes, describing two ideas.
The first idea is a cluster design incorporating natural features that might create another Amenia hamlet.
“The present panoramic view has been shaped by men and women over the past 100 years,” Janes noted, adding, “There are no particular right answers.”
Van Cott suggested that the subcommittee should find alternatives that would help the applicant achieve goals, seeing potential for examining certain site areas that would be less visible than others.
“When you start to lessen one negative impact, you may worsen another,” Planning Board Engineer John Andrews observed.
“When you start clustering housing, then you need central water and sewer,” Andrews noted as an example.
“The hope is to look for something that will avoid visual impact,” Van Cott said.
Attorney Kolev reminded the board that the proposal is for a subdivision, dividing the acreage into agricultural lots.
Vitiello reminded the board to be looking for alternatives that conform with what has been proposed in the application.
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