State legislators allocate $400,000 toward North East’s new Town Hall

MILLERTON — State Senator Michelle Hinchey and Assemblymember Didi Barrett have directed $400,000 in state funding to North East’s plan for a new Town Hall.

The money covers about 28% of the $1.44 million renovation estimate that will transform the former Kingdom Hall of Jehovah’s Witnesses on Route 22 into municipal offices.

The funding comes as construction is set to begin this winter. In September, the Town Board authorized the remodel of the building at 5603 Route 22. It also approved the $1.44 million cost estimate prepared by LAN, the engineering firm overseeing the project.

On Tuesday, Oct. 13, Hinchey and Barrett gathered with North East Supervisor Chris Kennan to tour the facilities.

The state moneyis split down the middle: $200,000 each is coming from Assemblymember Barrett and State Senator Hinchey’s offices.

The new town hallbuilding will consist of 4,513 square feet of floor space, nearly twice that of the current Town Hall at 19 N. Maple Ave. Plans call for separate offices for most employees and departments, extra room for town records and a meeting room, also used as the town court, for up to 40 people. The single-story building has no basement, so all town operations will be on one floor.

The mostly empty building is barely recognizable as a former house of worship. Two defining features remain: a stage at the front of the meeting room and a glass wall at the rear overlooking several small rooms.

Those rooms will become offices when the building is converted. Construction is expected to be completed next fall.

“Our small town infrastructure was built for a previous time,” Hinchey said. “And has not been upgraded with the needs that exist today.

“It’s really important that a town building is a welcoming space, that people know how to contact their local representatives and be involved in what makes the town run.”

Barrett added that town employees “are largely either volunteer or not very well paid community members, who are putting in their time to help our communities thrive…so we’re happy to be able to put state resources here.”

Both legislators credited Supervisor Kennan with helping move the project forward.

The new town hall will replace the Maple Avenue building, which Kennan has described as inadequate. “There are no elevators, and the stairs are steep,” he said in late 2024.

The building will be fully compliant with the Americans With Disabilities Act. The former Jehovah’s Witness hall is a single-story structure.