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North East board approves commercial zoning overhaul after four-year process
Nathan Miller
Apr 10, 2026
The Town of North East’s Boulevard District — a stretch of Route 44 between Millerton and the New York State border — is the town’s largest commercial zone. The adopted zoning rewrite will allow mixed-use buildings with residential apartments above ground-floor retail.
Photo by Nathan Miller
MILLERTON — North East Town Board members unanimously approved an overhaul of the town's commercial zoning code, bringing a more than four-year process to close.
The Town Board voted to pass Local Law no. 1 of 2026 at its regular meeting on Thursday, April 9, officially adopting a 181-page zoning code rewrite that allows for mixed use development along Route 44, updates definitions across the town's code and creates new permitted land-use tables for improved readability.
Town Supervisor Chris Kennan, board members and attorney Warren Replansky praised the work and the volunteers on the town's Zoning Review Committee for their commitment to the years-long process. Kennan called out to two members of the review committee that attended Thursday's meeting — Chair Edie Greenwood and Bill Kish — to thank them and their fellow volunteers for years of work on the zoning rewrite.
"On behalf of the board, we want to say thank you," Kennan said. "We hope that you are pleased to see something come to a stopping point."
The approved zoning overhaul modernizes regulations that have remained largely unchanged since adoption in the '70s, aligning them with the town’s 2019 Comprehensive Plan and current economic and housing needs. The revisions place a strong emphasis on encouraging reinvestment in commercial districts, expanding housing options — including multifamily, mixed-use and affordable housing — and updating standards to reflect modern land uses and technologies.
Town officials have said the goal is to support local businesses, streamline approvals, and provide clearer, more predictable rules while preserving neighborhood character and quality of life.
The code also includes language for a Zoning Enforcement Officer, intended to provide more power for the town in enforcing and regulating land use in the town.
A full version of the adopted zoning code will be available online at townofnortheastny.gov.
The new code put an emphasis on housing options in the town's commercial center, encouraging developers to construct apartments above commercial spaces by allowing larger building footprints and lot coverage.
Since January, board members have revised the draft to allow additional retail uses in the Boulevard West district, which includes parcels from the eastern border of the village along Route 44 to Kelsey Brook, a tributary of Webatuck Creek. The additional retail uses will allow sales of pre-fabricated sheds and playground equipment after a request from property owner Rob Cooper.
Among the more substantive revisions was the decision to impose an overall size cap on accessory dwelling units. The board voted to limit ADUs to a maximum of 1,200 square feet and specified that they must be accessible from an existing driveway on the property. Board members also discussed adding language to clarify how ownership through an LLC or trust would comply with the requirement that the property owner reside in the principal dwelling.
Other adopted changes to the code include breaking up long sentences in some definitions to improve clarity. Board members also opted to require new parking lots to construct at least 10% of spaces with electric vehicle-ready equipment for later installation of EV chargers, and to require marked pedestrian infrastructure and lighting in all parking lots.
One proposal — which would have allowed retail businesses and restaurants in the so-called Irondale District, a small commercial area encompassing seven parcels along Route 22 near Winchell Mountain Road and Irondale Road — was withdrawn at the board's March 20 meeting after sharp criticism from the town’s Zoning Review Committee, residents and the Village of Millerton’s Board of Trustees.
That decision continued to draw debate into the final public hearing Thursday night, with North East resident Rob Cooper submitting a written comment to the board expressing his support of expanded commercial uses in Irondale. Cooper's comment was the sole comment provided at the final public hearing — which the board rejected.
Zoning Review Committee Chair Edie Greenwood expressed pride in her committee members in a brief comment following the Thursday night meeting. Bill Kish said he was glad the process had come to an end.
"I'm looking forward to doing the next one, if I get on the committee," Kish said.
Additional reporting from Aly Morrissey
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Hunting for eggs
Millerton News
Apr 08, 2026
The annual Millerton Fire Company Easter egg hunt returned to Eddie Collins Memorial Park on Saturday, April 4.
Nathan Miller
Tyler Dehoff discovers a piece of chocolate in a plastic egg at the zero to two-year-old egg hunt area.Nathan Miller
Families crowd into hay wagons for a parade down Main Street to the park before the egg hunt.Nathan Miller
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Amenia board approves herbicide use at Troutbeck, awards painting contract
Leila Hawken
Apr 08, 2026
Amenia Town Hall on Route 22.
Photo by Nathan Miller
AMENIA — The Town Board approved two resolutions by unanimous vote at its Wednesday, April 1, meeting, including one authorizing herbicide use at Troutbeck’s spa and hotel facility.
The second resolution awarded a contract to paint the stage area in the Town Hall auditorium.
The herbicide approval follows a recommendation from the Housatonic Valley Association, which advised allowing controlled spot spraying and removal of small patches of invasive plant growth within the property’s conservation easement area. The organization assists the town by monitoring activities within Troutbeck’s easement acreage.
Larry Weaner Landscape Associates, based in Glenside, Pennsylvania, will perform the spot spraying work.
The painting project, initially suggested by resident George Bistransin, will apply black paint to the walls and ceiling surrounding the auditorium stage, enhancing the flexibility of the space to accommodate the needs of stage productions or other performances. Invitations to bid resulted in one bidder, Jaybird Painting of Wassaic, providing an estimate of $1,685 to complete the work.
The project will cover approximately 1,264 square feet and includes surface preparation, patching, application of matte black paint, protective masking and final cleanup.
During public comment, resident Ken Topolsky said his research into fair housing laws suggests the legislation may allow municipalities to prioritize local families for future affordable housing opportunities. He cited several regulations governing priority selection systems and urged the Town Board to review those provisions.
Topolsky said families of local workers could qualify for priority status under certain guidelines.
“All code elements have provisions for a point system as long as the system is not discriminatory,” Topolsky said.
People eligible to receive points are local volunteers in fire departments or EMTs, municipal or school employees and families with children in the local public school system.
“Unless it’s codified, it cannot happen,” Topolsky told the town board, urging them to study the legal citations and continue active discussion.
In other business, the board continued discussing how to allocate revenue generated from leasing its tower space to communication service providers.
“It should be used for a specific purpose,” said resident Judy Moran, urging that the revenue not be deposited into general funds.
The board agreed to discuss the issue further at its next meeting, allowing time for more research into how it has been used in the past and any restrictions on its use.
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Millerton’s expenses increase 15.8% over last year’s budget
Nathan Miller
Apr 08, 2026
The Millerton Village Offices on Route 22.
Photo by Aly Morrissey
MILLERTON — The Board of Trustees approved the coming year’s budget Monday, April 6, following no public comment.
The village’s expenses increased 15.8% over last year’s adopted budget. Board members attributed those increased costs to unavoidable spikes in health insurance rates and retirement payments.
Mayor Jenn Najdek said property assessments are slated to increase, which would provide the village with additional revenue. Najdek estimated tax increases of about $11.48 per $250,000 of assessed property value.
Tentative budget documents available on the village’s website reflect that wage increases and newly filled staffing positions further drove increases to the budget. Expenses for the Clerk and Treasurer’s office, along with the building department, each increased by more than 40% over last year. Deputy Mayor Matt Hartzog emphasized the board’s desire to provide raises to village staff.
“We have not given ourselves a raise,” Hartzog said. “But we would like to give all of our employees a raise, so that they can keep up with inflation.”
Hartzog called attention to rising medical insurance rates. Medical insurance expenses rose 15% to $38,300, representing roughly 4% of the total budget.
“Health insurance has just gone through the roof,” he said. “Nobody’s going to be happy about that.”
The Village Clerk budget increased by more than $21,000, driven by the separation of the Clerk and Treasurer line items, with both receiving hikes. The 15.9% rise, bringing the total to $70,240, represents the largest share of this year’s overall budget increase.
A similar additional line item in the Building Department expenses drove the 44% increase in that department’s budget. In addition to the “Building sec salary” line receiving a small increase, a “Building sec” line lists $11,700, contributing much of the total $11,852 increase to that department’s overall budget.
Police salaries increased by a total of $5,000. Highway crew salaries increased by $4,210 total.
Overall, the village expects to spend $975,156 this year, an increase of $132,836 over last year’s budgeted expenses.
Increases to expenses are partially offset by a $70,000 increase in expected non-tax revenue. That’s 22% higher than in 2025, but not quite enough to make up for the increased costs.
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Repair cafés set for April 25 in Millerton, Millbrook
Millerton News
Apr 08, 2026
The NorthEast-Millerton Library Annex on Century Boulevard in the Village of Millerton.
Photo by Aly Morrissey
MILLERTON — The NorthEast-Millerton Library is set to host a free repair café on Saturday, April 25, in the library’s annex on Century Boulevard.
Fixers will offer free repairs for small electronics, clothing and textiles, and minor bicycle repairs among other things such as lamps and knife sharpening.
The event will run from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Repairs are limited to two items per person. Five knives count as one item.
The Millbrook Library will also be hosting a repair café on April 25 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. That event coincides with Millbrook’s community-wide yard sale.
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North East Town Board adds extra meeting to monthly schedule
Nathan Miller
Apr 08, 2026
North East Town Hall on Maple Avenue in Millerton.
Photo by John Coston
MILLERTON — The North East Town Board will add a workshop meeting to its regular monthly schedule after members said an additional meeting could help advance projects more efficiently.
Councilwoman Rachele Grieco Cole first proposed holding two meetings per month at the board’s March meeting. The discussion was continued at a workshop meeting on Wednesday, April 1, with council members agreeing to regularly hold a workshop meeting on the first Wednesday of every month at 5:30 p.m.
The additional meeting will provide time for discussion and planning, while the regular business meeting will continue on the second Thursday of each month. Council members supported the change, citing major projects and grant opportunities that would benefit from additional discussion.
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