Village receives grant to support pool project work

Eddie Collins Memorial Park in Millerton will be the site of a new community pool, with construction expected to begin by Spring 2025.
Archive photo


Eddie Collins Memorial Park in Millerton will be the site of a new community pool, with construction expected to begin by Spring 2025.
MILLERTON — The Foundation for Community Health has awarded the Village a $23,557 grant to help cover the cost of administering the Eddie Collins Park project.
The announcement of the grant was made at a Village trustee workshop meeting held on Monday, March 10.
In December, the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation awarded the village a matching grant of up to $675,000 in support of the Eddie Collins Memorial Park Swimming Pool Project. With these monies, funding for Phase II of the project, which stems largely from a NY SWIMS capital grant, is now at $7.56 million.
The FCH grant will support the cost of a grant administrator for the project, one of the largest undertaken by the Village.
Trustees also discussed the upcoming budget, which Mayor Jenn Najdek said would be the subject of a public hearing at a date in April to be determined.
The trustees also voted to approve the purchase of a new highway truck at a cost of approximately $189,000.
In other matters, Dick Hermans of Pine Plains addressed the trustees as a member of the board of LJMN Media, Inc., which publishes The Millerton News and The Lakeville Journal.
Hermans discussed plans for a Millerton News Community Event to be held on June 28 in the Village.
Aly Morrissey
Traffic is rerouted through Franklin Ave in downtown Millbrook after a power line falls on Route 44 Saturday, May 30.
MILLBROOK – Strong winds ripped through the region Friday night into Saturday morning, knocking down tree limbs and bringing down a power line near the intersection of Route 44 and Franklin Ave Saturday, May 30.
The downed line forced the closure of Sharon Turnpike from Hart Village Road to Franklin Ave from about 11 a.m. until 4 p.m. Saturday, according to Millbrook Police Chief Keith Dworkin.
Emergency crews responded to the scene between 11 and 11:30 a.m. Millbrook Fire Department officials diverted traffic through downtown Millbrook, creating heavier-than-usual traffic in the area.
Dworkin said the police department did not receive any complaints about homes losing power, but suspected that a number of homes near Ciferri Place may have been affected.
As of 3 p.m., one fire official at the scene said she could not predict when the road would reopen.
“We’ve been here for more than three hours, and it could be another three,” she said. “We just don’t know.”
Crews from Central Hudson cleared the scene and opened the road around 4 p.m.
Millerton News
EAST CANAAN — Pauline K. (King) Garfield, 94 of 77 South Canaan Rd. formerly of East Canaan, died Sunday May 24, 2026, at Geer Village.She was the wife of the late Duane Garfield who passed August 14, 2017. Pauline was born April 3, 1932 in North Canaan, CT in the former Geer Hospital. She was the daughter of the late Charles and Rose (Van Vlack) King.
Pauline spent her career at Becton Dickinson in Canaan, after being a stay-at-home mother for many years.She was employed at Becton Dickinson for 23 years. She enjoyed bus trips with her late husband Duane to the Casinos, spending time with her family watching the grandchildren grow up. Recently she made a comment to care givers that was “wait until I see that husband of mine for leaving me here, I am going to read him the riot act.” Over the years she enjoyed many crafts, but her favorite was crocheting gifts for everyone.
Pauline is survived by her daughter Paula Ducharme and husband Tom of York, Pennsylvania. Her son Michael Garfield and wife Joann of Winchester Center, Connecticut. Her granddaughter Koren Garfield and her great grandchildren, Alyssa Jade, Addison Jacob and Brennden Leo of Colebrook, Connecticut.
Pauline is also survived by her sister, Althea Marshall and her husband Corky of North Canaan, Connecticut. She was predeceased by her brothers, Everett and Alan King.
A Celebration of Pauline’s life will be held on Monday June 1, 2026, at 10:00 a.m. in the North Canaan Congregational Church 172 Lower Road East Canaan, CT 06024.Burial will follow at Hillside Cemetery in East Canaan, CT. Memorial Donation can be sent to the North Canaan Volunteer Ambulance Corps P.O. Box 178 North Canaan, CT 06018. Arrangements are under the care of the Newkirk-Palmer Funeral Home 118 Main St. Canaan, CT 06018.
Graham Corrigan
WASSAIC — The Wassaic Project started its 2026 season in style on Saturday, May 16, with an exhibition that featured 39 artists whose work was showcased at its flagship Maxon Mills location and plans for its new space at Gridley Chapel.
The chapel, which was erected in 1873 and is located across the street from Maxon Mills, is a recent addition to the Wassaic Project.
Wassaic Project acquired the property in 2024, when the organization was approached by the property owners. “It wasn’t master planned at all,” said Jeff Barnett-Winsby, who co-founded Wassaic Project in 2008. “But our town and our county have been able to support us, and we haven’t embarrassed them.”
The chapel has quickly been folded into the organization’s larger programming plans. Coming up in 2026, Newburgh-based artist Liz Nielsen and her unique photograms will be the first visual artist to have a long-term installation at the chapel.

Barnett-Winsby, now the organization’s co-executive director, said they have big ambitions to turn the space into a year-round music and performance venue — once it’s insulated. “That’s essential for us,” said Barnett-Winsby. “For years, it felt like every other festival was a monsoon situation.”
Preserving the chapel’s historic architecture is also a priority. “We’re trying to respectfully utilize these buildings, and also preserve them,” Barnett-Winsby continued.
Meanwhile, the summer exhibit, called “Because, now is the time of monsters,” was thronged with crowds that packed into the nooks and crannies of the Maxon Mills space and spilled out onto the lawn. The exhibit took place across the area.
Curated by Jeff Barnett-Winsby, Bowie Zunino, Eve Biddle and Will Hutnick, the show is aptly described by the organization as “something between a vision and a fever dream.” Climbing through the mill’s seven levels, the viewer is transported to worlds wrought from paint, plaster, paper, ceramic, metal, and more. It is both dreamlike and nightmarish, comforting and uncanny.
These projects are made possible in part by funding from the National Endowment for the Arts, which recently approved a grant application sought by the Wassaic Project.
Also returning is Wassaic Project’s Art Nest, an all-ages classroom led by Special Projects Manager Emi Night. On opening weekend, a group of young art lovers were engrossed in projects based on two of the exhibition’s artists: felt tapestries in the style of Saul Chernick, and collaborative sculptures inspired by Samuelle Green. The art nest is open every Saturday from 12-5.
The larger Wassaic Project is open Thursday-Sunday from 12-5. Admission is free, with a suggested donation of $10.


Want more of our stories on Google? Click here to make us a Preferred Source.
Millerton News
Last Week’s Question
What is one change you’d make to your town center to make it more welcoming?
“Town centers that want to be welcoming this day and age should provide free wifi and plug points amongst seating and parks since everyone is on their phones nowadays. Especially in Millerton there is no service for anyone using T-Mobile towers.”
— Andres Vialpando, Millerton
This Week
Bear encounters are being reported with increasing frequency across the region — rummaged trash cans, damaged bird feeders, and face-to-face surprises.
Have you had a run-in with a bear? What happened, and how did you handle it? And what do you think towns and neighbors should be doing to keep both people and bears safer?
Send your responses to publisher@lakevillejournal.com by Monday, June 1, at 10a.m. or comment on Facebook or Instagram.
We’ll publish a selection in next week’s paper.
Leila Hawken
MILLBROOK — A long-vacant landmark in the center of the village is one step closer to a major transformation after the Planning Board unanimously approved renovation plans for the historic Thorne Building on Monday, May 18.
The project, proposed by the Millbrook Community Foundation, would convert the former school building — vacant for roughly two decades — into the new Thorne Center, a multi-use arts and community hub designed to host performances, educational programming, music instruction and public events.
Conditions attached to the approval were limited, according to board engineer Richard Rennia. They included minor revisions to the site plan to more clearly define the area that will be disturbed during construction and to clarify parking. The plan calls for 56 parking spaces, along with overflow parking on a grassy area. A final condition bars childcare services from being offered in the building.
The Millbrook Community Foundation, led by Millbrook native and building namesake Oakleigh Thorne, submitted a formal application earlier this year. A number of public hearings drew mostly favorable comment.
Plans call for converting the existing auditorium into a full performance space while restoring the building’s exterior and modifying the carriage arch on the east side of the structure in keeping with its historic architectural design. The project also includes accessibility improvements and construction of a room to accommodate a loading platform.
Envisioned as an active community arts center, the Thorne Center will host music, lectures and a variety of programs. The basement level will include an education center with a kitchen that could accommodate cooking classes, along with an arts lab, digital instruction space, music practice rooms and a recording studio.
The Planning Board also unanimously approved plans for a new two-family residence behind Reardon Briggs Hardware despite objections from neighboring residents who said the project would reduce privacy and sunlight near their homes.
The approval marks the second phase of renovations to the property, which fronts Franklin Avenue and Merritt Avenue. The first phase included renovations to the second-floor apartments above the hardware store and updates to the retail sales floor.
Plans presented by engineers from Day Stokosa of Wappingers Falls call for demolition of an existing single-family home on the 0.66-acre lot and construction of a new two-family residence containing two 2-bedroom units. The new building would occupy a footprint of 1,347 square feet, replacing a smaller 630-square-foot home currently on the site.
Before discussing the application, Planning Board Chairman Frank Redl noted the board had received additional written comments following the April 20 public hearing. Four submissions supported the project, while five opposed it.
Neighboring residents argued the new building would sit too close to adjacent homes and reduce privacy, airflow and direct sunlight. Some suggested moving the building farther back on the lot and placing parking spaces closer to the street.
“We understand that they have a right to build,” adjacent property owner Arthur Kascsak said, “but we also have a right to privacy. We’re asking them to allow us to have air and direct sunlight.”
Redl said the proposal complies with village zoning requirements, though parking remained a concern.
“The applicant is proposing something that is perfectly legal, conforming with code,” Redl said. “The parking is the only problem, always an issue in the village.”
Redl also noted the applicant reduced the building footprint by approximately 500 square feet in response to neighbors’ concerns.
“This is a tough one; I feel sorry for the neighbors,” Redl said.
As part of the approval, the board required the applicant to seek review from the Dutchess County Planning Board, define the two permitted rear parking spaces and submit architectural plans for the new building.
Millerton News
A ceremonial firing party honored fallen soldiers at Millerton’s American Legion on Route 44 on Monday, May 25. Legion representatives originally planned a parade down Millerton’s Main Street and a ceremony at the Veterans Park monument in front of the Methodist Church, but rain forced the events inside at American Legion Post 178.
Wet weather this past Memorial Day weekend cast a hazy drizzle over much of northeast Dutchess County, forcing holiday ceremonies inside in Millerton and Amenia.
Pine Plains and Millbrook pushed on with parades in those towns, attracting thronging crowds to Main Streets to mourn and reflect on the sacrifice of fallen soldiers.
Check out photos from the ceremonies on Monday, May 25:
Photo by Nathan Miller
A group of veterans and their loved ones observes a moment of silence inside American Legion Post 178 on Route 44 in Millerton.


Photo by Leila Hawken
VFW Post 5444 Commander Nick Woodard opens Amenia’s Memorial Day ceremony at Amenia Town Hall on Monday, May 25. The traditional ceremony, featuring remarks from local officials and religious leaders, was held inside the Route 22 building due to the threat of rain.





Photo by Natalia Zukerman
Onlookers of all ages crowd the sidewalks along Franklin Avenue in Millbrook on Monday, May 25, for the village’s annual Memorial Day parade. Festivities included a parade, a military flyover and a period of reflection at Millbrook’s Tribute Gardens.



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

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