Thank you!
Your support is sustaining the future of local news in our communities.

Letter to the Editor - The Millerton News - 5-14-20

The pains of over-restrictive zoning

 

I write this letter as a citizen interested in the survival of our community. My wife and I have lived in the Millerton area our entire life. Our children are graduates of the Webutuck school system. We have much to be thankful for including the life and prosperity we’ve enjoyed here. Sadly, I feel that prosperity is being threatened from within. Before going on, let me say I’m not doing any finger pointing or mentioning any names. I’ll let the facts speak for themselves.

If you doubt small town survival is at stake, take a look around to envision our future.  Drive through West Cornwall, Conn., at the covered bridge, once a thriving little hamlet, it’s a mere shadow of its former self. Consider the decline of Falls Village and its struggle to maintain an ever declining student body at their elementary school.

Enter Millerton from the east on Route 44 and witness one business after another lying dormant. Progress through Main Street toward Route 22 and notice former mainstays Saperstein’s and Dutchess Auto vacant, Terni’s is sure to follow. Is the picture becoming any clearer?

Seems to me we’re all victims of the I know what’s best for Millerton syndrome. Restrictive zoning and overzealous planning boards share some of the blame. Opportunities lost include a Stewart’s, Hannaford and several others, not to mention Harney Tea being forced to move a new business elsewhere.

I’ve heard statements like “Millerton is too good for a Dollar store,” “We don’t need another tire store in town,” or “Who wants a Dunkin’ Donuts?”  Is that what zoning is all about?  By the way, did you know the Millerton American Legion got permission to use their heretofore illegal outdoor sign?

 Doctor, is it too late to save the patient?

 John Walters

Millerton

Millerton News
The views expressed here are not necessarily those of The Millerton News and The News does not support or oppose candidates for public office.

Latest News

The Millerton News - September 3, 2026

The Millerton News - September 3, 2026

Download directly

At Peggy Mercury, prep meets punk in ‘Imaginary Concerts’

At Peggy Mercury, prep meets punk in ‘Imaginary Concerts’
Greg Fricke and James Boehmer, co-owners of Peggy Mercury in Kent, recently launched their first fashion line, “Imaginary Concerts.”
Provided

Last month, James Boehmer and Greg Fricke of Peggy Mercury launched their first fashion line, “Imaginary Concerts,” wearable art sold exclusively at their store in the Kent Barns section of Kent, Connecticut.

The two fashion industry veterans opened Peggy Mercury more than two years ago, and a quick visit will tell you that people are finding what they’re looking for at the beauty and lifestyle store. But what they’re looking for is never standard.

Keep ReadingShow less
fashion

“Girlbomb” at 20

“Girlbomb” at 20
Photo by Jessica YurkoMillerton author Janice Erlbaum will celebrate the 20th anniversary of her memoir “Girlbomb” at Black Rabbit Dispensary on Sept. 5.
Photo by Jessica YurkoMillerton author Janice Erlbaum will celebrate the 20th anniversary of her memoir “Girlbomb” at Black Rabbit Dispensary on Sept. 5.
With memoir...the character only knows what the character knows.
—Janice Erlbaum

In “Girlbomb: A Halfway Homeless Memoir,” published in 2006, author Janice Erlbaum wrote about the years after she left her family’s Brooklyn apartment at 15, moving through shelters, group homes, squats, clubs and the streets of 1980s New York while somehow continuing to attend high school. The book has sold more than 75,000 copies, stayed in print for two decades and continues to find new readers.

Now Erlbaum, 57, lives in Millerton and on Saturday, Sept. 5, at 7:30 p.m., she will celebrate the 20th anniversary of “Girlbomb” with a reading at Black Rabbit Dispensary. The event is open to the public and will be livestreamed on Instagram.

Keep ReadingShow less
our community
google preferred source

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

Spencertown’s 21st Festival Of Books

Spencertown’s 21st Festival Of Books
Joshua Jelly-Schapiro, author of “Daylight Come: Harry Belafonte and the World He Made” is one of thefeatured authors at the Spencertown Academy Festival of Books on Saturday, Sept. 5.
Mirissa Neff

On Saturday, Sept. 5, the Spencertown Academy Arts Center in Spencertown, New York, will host its 21st annual Book Festival.

With over 20,000 gently used books, CDs, DVDs and vinyl donated by the community, it took volunteers 45 days — and an estimated 750 hours —to set the whole thing up. Most of that time was spent sorting through the vast troves of donations and organizing them by category.

Keep ReadingShow less
community

Paul Newman racing doc to screen in North Canaan on Sunday

Paul Newman racing doc to screen in North Canaan on Sunday
“Winning: The Racing Life of Paul Newman,”will be screened Sunday, Sept. 6, at the Colonial Theatre in North Canaan.
Provided

On Sunday, Sept. 6, Lime Rock Park will host a screening of the documentary “Winning: The Racing Life of Paul Newman” at the Colonial Theatre in North Canaan at 7 p.m.

Newman was one of the most celebrated actors of the 20th century, known for films including “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof,” “Hud” and “Cool Hand Luke.” His 1969 film “Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid” also began a decades-long friendship with co-star Robert Redford.

Keep ReadingShow less
film

Community to take center stage at Dive Barn

Community to take center stage at Dive Barn

A scene from last year’s Dance Barn.

Steven Tayler

On Sunday, Sept. 6, PS21 in Chatham, New York, will host a celebration of community through dance at its second annual Dive Barn performance at the organization’s Dance Barn.

Dive Barn is the brainchild of dancer, teacher and choreographer Sayer Mansfield, who has dedicated her life to contemporary and experimental dance. She studied in the Department of Dance at NYU Tisch School of the Arts and at the Salzburg Experimental Academy of Dance. She’s performed with companies including Pilobolus, Compagnie Marie Chouinardand Mark Morris Dance Group. Her work has been featured in films including “Little Women,” “Maestro” and “Sproutland.” She has served on the faculties of Jacob’s Pillow, Phillips Academy Andover, as well as Harvard and Yale Universities.

Keep ReadingShow less
dance
google preferred source

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