Highlands Current Audio Stories

C.J. Chenier and squeezebox arrive Sunday

In one Far Side cartoon by Gary Larson, angels greet newcomers with, "Welcome to heaven — here's your harp." Down below, the devil says, "Welcome to hell — here's your accordion."

C.J. Chenier, who plays a bling-encrusted squeezebox, is laughing all the way to the bank. The man works: He has 18 gigs this month, in an arc from Texas to Minnesota to Rhode Island, including a stop at the Towne Crier in Beacon at 6 p.m. on Sunday (Feb. 22) with his group, The Red Hot Louisiana Band.

Zydeco music from southwest Louisiana is a niche, of course, but within the realm, C.J. is royalty: His father, Clifton J. Chenier, who died in 1987 at age 62, is recognized as the king. C.J. switched from saxophone to accordion and kept the mojo going.

On his website, he's described as the Crown Prince of Zydeco. "Other people said that, and it found me," he says. "I never sought it out."

Zydeco pioneer Amede Ardoin used a button accordion, which Clifton Chenier dismissed in a documentary as "a small French" model. Still, its booming tone drowned out Dennis McGee's fiddle, which is nearly inaudible on the 22 tracks the two musicians made together from 1929 to 1934.

The biracial duo exemplified the exchanges among the French-speaking population in Louisiana, who sharecropped or migrated to Port Arthur and Beaumont, Texas, where they were exposed to jazz and blues. "The difference between zydeco and cajun is the same as the blues and country," says C.J.

Before establishing his music career, Clifton lived in Texas and began playing the louder, more versatile piano accordion with white and black keys instead of buttons, which filled rooms with sound in the days before amplification.

In addition, he helped create the washboard vest, made from corrugated stainless steel. His brother, Cleveland Chenier, scraped out the rhythm with bottle caps, although C.J. says his player uses spoons. The original vest frottoir is in the collection of the National Museum of American History.

With accordion and washboard as the base, Clifton began recording in the early 1950s. When electrified instruments revolutionized roots and popular music, Clifton added guitar, bass, drums, keyboards and horns. Unlike Ardoin, an old-timer who played a bit behind the beat, the king stomped out the rhythm.

Playing the accordion is like wrestling with an alligator. "It keeps me in shape," says C.J. Pushing the keys with the right hand and keeping the bellows pumping is a challenge, but he pulls the shoulder straps tight to ensure that he can control the 25-pound instrument.

The Towne Crier often clears out rows of tables to create space because, as C.J. says, zydeco is "happy-feet music that makes you smile, turns a bad day into a good one. Just joyful sounds from the swamps."

The Towne Crier is located at 379 Main St. in Beacon. Tickets are $30 at townecrier.com or $35 at the door.

Program will fund filters for PFAS contamination

Property owners in Dutchess and Putnam counties will soon be able to be reimbursed for testing their wells and installing filters if they exceed limits for a family of chemicals linked to cancer and other health problems.

Both counties have been selected for a state pilot program to address private wells contaminated with per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). Known as "forever chemicals" because of their persistence in the environment and the human body, PFAS have been used for decades in nonstick cookware, water-repellent clothing and other consumer products, as well as firefighting foams.

Researchers have linked them to various health problems, including cancer, low birthweights and high cholesterol. Health concerns have led officials to close contaminated water sources serving the City of Newburgh and other municipalities, and supply filters to well owners in Dutchess and Putnam, including Mahopac and Putnam Valley. According to a groundwater study completed nearly 20 years ago, half of Philipstown's 9,400 residents at the time relied on well water.

While Dutchess has yet to finalize details, Rian Rodriguez, Putnam's public health director, told the Legislature's Health Committee on Feb. 11 that the state chose for the pilot six counties "at higher risk" of PFAS contamination. "The goal is to reduce exposure to PFAS from private wells in communities more likely to be impacted, and assess the feasibility for a more comprehensive, statewide program," he said.

Homeowners and business owners in Philipstown and other parts of Putnam should be able to begin applying for the county's $1.5 million allocation by June, said Brian Stevens, an associate public health sanitarian with the Health Department.

If testing, which can cost hundreds of dollars, confirms levels exceeding the state guideline of 10 parts per trillion for PFOA and PFOS (the two most common versions of the chemicals), homes and businesses can be reimbursed up to $5,000 for installing "point-of-entry" filtration systems on their main water lines.

The state will also subsidize up to $1,000 for "point-of-use" filters installed on faucets or other outlets where water is dispensed, up to $10,000 to connect a property to a public water system and up to $1,500 for ongoing testing and maintenance.

New York and the federal Environmental Protection Agency regulate limits on PFAS in public drinking water supplies, such as the reservoirs that serve residents of Beacon and Cold Spring. But the estimated 1 million homes and businesses in New York state that rely on wells must test on their own unless they are part of a larger investigation tied to a verified source of major pollution.

Dozens of properties near the Mahopac Business District received point-of-entry filters from the state after testing showed more than 100 private wells in the area had PFAS levels above state limits. The state began testing after discovering chemicals in monitoring wells installed during the district's cleanup of volatile organic compounds and other toxic substances linked to the use of dry-cleaning chemicals.

New York has also allocated funds to the Town of Kent, the Birch Hill Acres and Starr Ridge Manor communities in Brewster, and Floradan Estates in Putnam Valley to address PFAS contamination through filtration systems. One such system is filtering water used by students and staff at Putnam Valley Elementary School, whose well once showed levels of 38.3 parts per trillion for PFOS and 23.3 ppt for PFOA. The district blames the problem on the Putnam Valley Fire Department's use of PFAS foams at its firehouses.

State funding is also being used by the Dutchess County Water and Wastewater Authority to connect two water systems with PFAS-tainted wells to Hyde Park, which draws water from the Hudson River.

The federal government estimates that as many as 50 percent of U.S. households have some level of PFAS in their water — whether from a wel...

Former Dutchess executive leaves FTA job after six months

Marc Molinaro, the former Dutchess County executive and U.S. congressman, will resign as administrator of the Federal Transit Administration on Friday (Feb. 20) to return to New York. He held the job for six months.

According to Politico and the Times Union, each citing an anonymous source, Molinaro plans to campaign for a state Assembly seat being vacated by Chris Tague, who is running for the state Senate. The seat represents District 102, which covers Greene and Schoharie counties in the Catskills.

In a post on X, Molinaro wrote, "I'm coming home to be closer to my family and get back into the fight."

Before becoming Dutchess County executive in 2011, Molinaro served five years as a county legislator and two terms in the state Assembly. He was also the Republican candidate for governor in 2018. He was elected to the House in 2023 but lost his bid for re-election to Josh Riley. Before joining the FTA, Molinaro had been a senior advisor to Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy.

Public input on Marathon development

"A More Walkable Cold Spring" will be the focus of a public presentation on March 10 to launch planning for the 12-acre Marathon property on Kemble Avenue, the village's largest undeveloped tract.

The Kearney Group, which owns the property, has hired Jeff Speck, co-founder of Speck Dempsey, a Brookline, Massachusetts-based urban planning firm, to explain the fundamentals of pedestrian-oriented neighborhood design.

"We don't have a lot of young people without children, and there aren't really affordable, entry-level houses in the village," Mayor Kathleen Foley noted at the Feb. 11 meeting of the Village Board.

The Marathon parcel, formerly the site of a battery plant, is zoned for a mixed-use planned unit development. Foley said a series of charrettes will be held in April and June. The developer will then create an application for the Planning Board.

The March 10 presentation will be held at 7 p.m. in the music room at the Haldane school. Registration will be required.

Sidewalk grants

Foley updated the board on the status of federal Transportation Alternatives Program grants to add sidewalks along the north end of Fair Street from Mayor's Park to Route 9D and along Morris Avenue/Route 9D at the northern border of the village.

The sidewalks were extended on Fair Street from the municipal parking lot to Mayor's Park as part of the recently completed stormwater drainage repairs. Cold Spring owns a short stretch of Fair Street north of Mayor's Park to the village boundary. Putnam County owns Fair Street from there to Route 9D. The cost of the new Fair Street sidewalks is estimated at $2 million.

The grant would pay 80 percent of the cost, with the remaining 20 percent paid by Cold Spring, which must show it has the capacity to fund the entire project, a requirement she described as "kind of bananas." Foley said Putnam County is willing to front 80 percent, and the Hudson Highlands Fjord Trail announced this week it would contribute the 20 percent local share.

"We have had less luck on Route 9D," Foley said. State parks, HHFT, the state Department of Transportation and Putnam County have declined to cover 80 percent of the estimated $3 million cost for sidewalks leading to the Washburn parking area, she said. "We have a few Hail Mary asks out to some private organizations to see if they would loan the town the funds," Foley said.

In other business …

Village accountant Michelle Ascolillo reported that the cost of snow removal after the January storm was $68,000. In his monthly report, Robert Downey, the Highway Department crew chief, thanked Marc's Landscaping, Sal Pidala and Sons Excavating, Allen's Dumpster Service, Minardi's Excavation, Harold Lyons and Sons, Putnam County, Philipstown, the state Department of Transportation and state parks for their assistance in the aftermath.

Matt Jackson, the officer-in-charge of the Cold Spring Police Department, reported that officers responded to 87 calls in January. The most frequent were alarms (12), assisting fire departments (8) and assisting local emergency medical services (8). There were also single calls for a domestic incident, a dispute, disorderly conduct and a person in crisis. Saturdays produced the most calls (22), followed by Fridays (18) and Wednesdays (15). He said Tuesdays produced the fewest calls (5).

The Cold Spring Fire Co. answered 16 calls in January, including seven fire alarms, two assists to local EMS, two incidents of propane odor and single calls for a transformer fire, motor vehicle accident with injuries, mutual aid to North Highlands Fire Co., smoke in a structure and a pump out. Stephen Etta answered the most calls (14) with 20 volunteers responding to at least one call.

The village said it will forward 16 cases of delinquent taxes, totaling $37,688, to Putnam County for collection.

250 Years Ago (February 1776)

Maj. Gen. Charles Lee and a contingent of the Continental Army arrived in New York City from Boston to defend the city against British attack. Col. William Alexander, with 1,000 men, came from New Jersey to serve under Lee.

Andrew Allen and Thomas Lynch, delegates from the Continental Congress, met in New York City with Lord Drummond, representing the king, to see if some "accommodation" could be reached.

Gen. George Washington wrote to the Committee of Safety of New York, asking it to send any weapons it could spare to his camp outside Boston.

Eager to join the fight against the British, the carpenters building military frigates in New York City left their posts to volunteer. Congress reassured them that the boats were equally important to the cause.

James Duane, a delegate from New York, noted that Congress was debating the Continental Army's pay, enlistment lengths and whether one colony could use another colony's troops for defense.

150 Years Ago (February 1876)

James Nelson of the South Highlands, who had an impressive numismatic collection, showed off a bronze medallion he had acquired that depicted Gouverneur Kemble (1786-1875), a co-founder of the West Point Foundry. It was dated 1837, when Kemble was seated for the first of two terms in Congress. The medal was 3 inches wide with a relief of Kemble in profile; the reverse had his name and birthdate.

Benjamin Ireland, who suspected his nephews, Jake and Al Ireland, and a neighbor named Williams had stolen a "skip" of honey he valued at $50 [about $1,500 today], persuaded the constable to obtain a search warrant. No trace of the stolen sweets was found, but one nephew was angry enough at the intrusion that he assaulted Ben near Patterson's store in Mollyville [Nelsonville]. Ben then obtained a "peace" warrant that demanded the constable jail the nephew to keep the peace.

A gust of wind blew down C. Manning's chimney, which damaged his roof.

Granville Roberts had left his 3-year-old grandson, Willie, in the kitchen for a few minutes to go upstairs when the boy began to cry and climb the steps. Roberts hurried down and found the tablecloth on fire.

Asa Truesdell, who had run his meat market for 30 years, died at his Fair Street home at age 73. He had advertised the market for sale, saying it was the oldest business in Cold Spring and generated $30,000 [$900,000] in annual sales.

Elias Post sued Ichabod Hunt for cutting wood on his land. After hearing testimony for nearly the entire day, a jury awarded him $4 [$121] in damages.

A son of Mr. Hayden of Garrison was brought to Cold Spring on a railroad handcar after he accidentally cut off some of his toes with an ax.

James Schegel asked Officer Delaney on a weekend to detain Isaac Levy and his son for assaulting him with a club and threatening him with a revolver. Delaney suggested he wait until Monday to obtain an arrest warrant, but by then, Schegel had decided not to press charges.

Mrs. Freley was hanging clothes on a line at West Point when the wind swept her off her feet and down a slope, where she fractured her skull on a rock.

About 30 ferry passengers were stuck at Garrison for half a day because the river was choked with floating ice.

1st Lt. Robert Warren, 29, a Cold Spring native, died at Camp Douglas in the Utah territory of apoplexy [stroke]. He had joined the Union Army in 1862 and fought during several major battles in Virginia.

The Cold Spring Recorder shared the story of a 7-year-old named Dusty who was running with friends on the cakes of ice in the river when he fell in. Rather than return home wet and face punishment, he removed his clothes, put them on a pile of bricks and waited, naked, until they dried.

A high tide overflowed onto the lower end of Main Street, leaving behind blocks of ice that froze fast to the ground.

The water pump at the corner of Parsonage and Bank streets was out of order.

The Rock Street building used by the street commissioners as a tool house w...

Useful for plans and lessons, local educators say

When Ryan McConville wanted a fun project for his ninth grade Global History class at Haldane High School, he turned to Gemini, Google's artificial intelligence tool.

"I used it as a thought partner," said McConville, a 2003 Haldane graduate who has taught in the district since 2012. "I needed some fresh ideas."

He said he asked Gemini for five ideas for how his students could explore Diocletian's decision in 286 C.E. to divide the Roman Empire. One idea was to have students write a newspaper-style investigation of the emperor. "I had them pretend to expose the crisis of the third century and choose whether Diocletian was a hero or a traitor for splitting up ancient Rome," he said.

McConville is one of many teachers in the Highlands using artificial intelligence, or AI, for a wide range of tasks, including generating lesson ideas, reducing busywork, creating student worksheets and customizing teaching materials. That reflects a national trend: Last year, 60 percent of 2,232 public school teachers surveyed for a Gallup Poll reported using AI, with a third using it at least once a week. The most frequent AI users estimated that the technology saved them nearly six hours a week.

At the Garrison School, math teacher Michael Roman uses the tools in an online service called Goblins, which markets itself as a "math teacher cloning device." His middle school students log into the software on their school-issued Chromebooks, and a virtual teacher provides problems like: "Zoe ran 28 miles this week. Next week, she plans to run 15 percent more miles. If she does, how many miles will she run in total over the two weeks?"

When a reporter tried to answer, the virtual teacher said, "I see a 5 on the board. Where did that come from?" The virtual teacher then taught a brief lesson on percentages.

Roman, whose said his class sizes range from nine to 17 students, said he likes Goblins because it provides "real-time adaptive feedback" to each student. He reserves the tool for the end of class, after he's explained the lesson, demonstrated practice problems and done small-group work.

"It's like an exit ticket: They open up their laptops and try a few problems before they go," said Roman, who has been using the program for two years and will often use it to assign extra study. He said the students like the AI teacher that speaks in Gen Z lingo. "They either think it's fun or cringy," he said. "Either way, they're engaged."

At Haldane, Ashley Linda uses AI with students who want additional academic support. She said that she can feed a reading assignment into an AI assistant such as Brisk, a tool designed for teachers, and ask it to modify the text to match a student's reading level. She said that when she is helping a student with a subject outside her expertise, she sometimes relies on AI to get up to speed.

But Linda is wary about using AI for her 10th- and 12th-grade English students. "I'm not going to use it to generate a lesson plan or to grade student work," she said. "I don't think AI can make a better lesson than I can."

She said she is also wary of relying on a tool she wants her students to avoid. "If I want my students to answer questions, think critically and learn how to write an essay without using AI, I'm also not going to use it," said Linda, who worries about allowing young people to become even more hooked on technology. "A generation of young people has been negatively impacted by screens," she said.

Those concerns prompted at least one state lawmaker to propose regulations. Assembly Member Robert Carroll, a Democrat from Brooklyn who chairs the Committee on Libraries and Education Technology, introduced legislation in November to ban the use of AI in elementary and middle schools except for diagnostic purposes, instructional interventions for students with disabilities and administrative and planning purposes.

In Rockland County, the Suffern school district requires teachers ...

Rotating group performs monthly at Savage Wonder

Scroll down the page of gig posters at the Jazzwomen! website and you'll notice Kim Peralta appears in each one. As the ensemble's founder and drummer, she's guaranteed a gig.

"I formed the group so I could play with high-caliber musicians, which helps improve my playing," she says. "I book the dates and provide enough rhythmic reinforcement that they show up."

Peralta has established a third Thursday residency at Savage Wonder in Beacon (the next one is Feb. 19) and will perform at Estilo Y Vino in May. The members are booked up for Women's History Month, so they're skipping the March date at Savage Wonder and will return on April 16.

Peralta assembled a roster of 14 musicians, some of whom have played with Lionel Hampton, Dizzy Gillespie and Wynton Marsalis. Saxophonist Kate Anderson toured with The Temptations and The Four Tops and bass player Jennifer Vincent has performed with k.d. lang and Patti LaBelle.

In addition to playing jazz piano, Heather Bennett is the organist and music director at a New Jersey church. Ellie Lee composes for jazz, classical, pop and gospel.

Peralta began recruiting pianists, saxophonists and bass players in 2023. Sax whiz Jenny Hill adds flute to her arsenal, and Rachel Therrien, who has worked with Arturo O'Farrill, is the sole trumpeter.

Peralta selects the lineups for each gig like a baseball manager. The basic combo is a piano trio (with bass and drums), though adding a saxophone expands the sonic palette; Therrien will round out a quintet later this year.

The players are so accomplished that Peralta needs only to compile a set list and, if necessary, provide lead sheets.

As the exclamation point indicates, Jazzwomen! wants to make a statement. In addition to originals, the group performs compositions by Alice Coltrane and Dorothy Ashby.

"Melba Liston played trombone with the best of them, and Mary Lou Williams wrote 500 songs," says Peralta, who referenced as inspiration the National Public Radio show, "Marian McPartland's Piano Jazz," which the English-born musician and educator hosted from 1978 to 2011. Now known as "Piano Jazz" (McPartland died in 2013), it is NPR's longest-running cultural program.

The gig posters online also include likenesses of Mike Aiese, who does not match the profile. But Peralta notes that there is a general shortage of bass players, so he sat in at Savage Wonder last month and will do so again next week.

At the January show, sax player Maria Lazzaro emitted a furious flurry of notes during "In a Mellow Tone," before displaying her tonal command with bluesy slurs that lifted the classic "On Green Dolphin Street." Pianist Janice Friedman played trills like a heavy metal guitarist. Performing together for the first time, the two musicians engaged in a gentle cutting contest.

Often at jazz concerts, the bass player gets a break or two, but Aiese took flight on all but one tune. Peralta kept it simple on her compact kit.

Even though Aiese walked, vamped and played solid solos, Peralto says she is always on the lookout to replace him, which he understands. "It's magical to perform with all women," she says. "It's hard to describe, but it's special."

Savage Wonder is located at 139 Main St. in Beacon. The Feb. 19 performance, which begins at 8 p.m., is free, but tickets are required. See dub.sh/jazzwomen-2-19.

City Council may add 17 properties

Beacon is considering adding 17 properties near Main Street to the city's historic district.

There are nearly 300 homes and structures in the district, which prevents them and neighboring buildings from being altered in a way that the city believes will harm their historic value. The district also has its own architectural and design standards — a sticking point for some homeowners who have said during public hearings that the rules are too restrictive, limiting choices on paint colors and other elements.

On the flip side, historic structures are eligible to apply for special permits that allow uses associated with history, the arts or culture, such as hotels or other professional uses. Rose Hill Manor Day School, for example, at 1064 Wolcott Ave., is part of the historic district. The Planning Board is reviewing a proposal by the property owner to convert the historic buildings to an inn and restaurant, uses not normally allowed in its otherwise mostly residential zone.

Restoration of properties in the historic district may also be eligible for tax exemptions and, in some cases, for historic preservation grants.

The district is an overlay, meaning its restrictions can apply to any building. It was created in 1991; before the pandemic shutdown in 2020, the City Council held public hearings on 35 properties recommended for inclusion. In July 2021, council members voted to add six properties on or near Main Street. A month later, nine Main Street buildings were added.

Of the 17 sites now being considered, 14 appear to be private homes. The Beacon Hebrew Alliance, at 331 Verplanck Ave., and St. Rocco Society, at 26 South Chestnut, are on the list, along with 17 Church St., which is owned by an LLC.

On the List

These buildings are being considered for inclusion in Beacon's Historic District.

9 Mattie Cooper Sq.

11 N. Elm St.

4 N. Elm St.

17 Church St.

27 Church St.

159 Fishkill Ave.

189 Fishkill Ave.

194 Fishkill Ave.

331 Verplanck Ave.

11 Digger Phelps Ct.

26 S. Chestnut St.

19 Commerce St.

11 Commerce St.

20 South Ave.

22 South Ave.

26 South Ave.

30 South Ave.

The council can designate a site as part of the district because of distinguishing architectural features, cultural or aesthetic value or if it is eligible for the state or national registers of historic places. After a property has been officially nominated, the council must hold a public hearing and vote within 60 days.

The owners of nominated buildings can request exclusion, but a supermajority of the council (five of its seven members) can overrule the objection.

248 Tioronda

The City Council has begun its review of the amended concept plan for a partially completed development at 248 Tioronda Ave.

In November, the City Council gave the developer the go-ahead to draft plans for two new residential buildings with 136 apartments, 27 of which will be offered at below-market rates. That was the trade-off required after Bernard Kohn, the developer, asked the city to allow him to build more apartments (64 have been completed) rather than a commercial building, which had been a condition of approval.

If, after a public hearing, the council approves the amended concept plan, the Planning Board will review and vote to amend its approval of the project.

Planning Board

The Planning Board on Tuesday (Feb. 10) approved Stanza Books' application to construct a partially enclosed patio behind 425 Main St., the former Mase Hook & Ladder firehouse.

There was no vote on the proposal to construct an addition onto the Telephone Building at 291 Main St.; the project attorney requested an adjournment because only five of seven board members were present.

The board will hold a public hearing next month on an application to construct a 49-space parking lot and add five parking spaces to the employee lot east of Dia Beacon. The museum would also like to construct a 60-foot-by-70-foot storage building at the south end of the employee lot.

Public hearings

Th...

Residents seek update to town policy in response to ICE

Some residents have asked the Town Board to update a 2017 policy that limits Philipstown's cooperation with federal immigration authorities.

The board approved the policy by a 3-2 vote during President Donald Trump's first administration. Two current members of the board, Supervisor John Van Tassel and Robert Flaherty, accounted for the "no" votes.

The resolution ensures "equal protection" for all residents, regardless of race, religion, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation and/or immigration status, and forbids town employees, unless required by state or federal law, from assisting in investigations of immigration or citizenship status or participating in arrests or detentions by federal immigration officers. Employees are also prohibited from requesting, maintaining or disclosing details of immigration status.

At a Town Board meeting on Feb. 5, Board Member Judy Farrell proposed amending the policy to specify that employees cannot "voluntarily disclose" identifying information about a resident without a judicial warrant or court order, and that Philipstown would notify anyone whose information is disclosed.

Another amendment would prohibit immigration officers from entering "non-public court spaces" or obtaining court calendars and records without a judicial warrant or court order.

Farrell said the new language was designed to protect personal data, not immigration status, which the town does not collect. "It's about requiring judicial process, which residents are entitled to under the Constitution, and to make sure our town staff aren't sharing residents' information," she said.

In January 2025, the state attorney general, Letitia James, issued guidance that noted federal law does not require a local government to communicate with immigration authorities, but that a federal statute says municipalities cannot prevent employees "from sending to, or receiving from" them information regarding someone's citizenship or immigration status. Nothing prevents governments from withholding other information, said James.

Van Tassel said he opposed the suggested changes. Without a police department and without jurisdiction over Philipstown's court, the measure "is not the town's responsibility" and "jeopardizes the stability and rights" of the town and its employees, he said.

"We have to follow the law; we can't follow sentiment or symbolism," said Van Tassel. He noted the 2017 policy has never had to be enforced.

One resident who spoke at the meeting, Dan Nobel, said: "What you're saying is, 'I can't foresee an issue where it's going to come up.' Great. You never have to deal with it," he said. "My point is, you don't know what's going to come up. These guys are nuts."

Water district levy

Philipstown is facing criticism from residents of the Garrison Landing Water District after it imposed a $2,500 levy on each of 20 parcels.

At the Town Board's Feb. 5 meeting, property owners questioned whether they had received proper notice about the levy and if it was applied fairly.

The town is collecting the annual tax to repay $500,000 it borrowed to cover district-related expenses. Those expenses included buying water when the district's well failed, fixing leaks and drilling and connecting a new well. The town plans to install water meters, which were last used there in the early 2000s, said Van Tassel.

Of the six parcels owned by Garrison Station Plaza, three do not have water service, and one is "mostly submerged" in the Hudson River, said Del Karlen, the organization's president. "It's time to go back to the drawing board — do it right, do it fairly," he said.

A state audit released in May 2025 calculated that Philipstown spent $2.4 million between 2018 and 2023 on the water district, shrinking the town's general-fund balance from $1 million to $53,137. Annual expenses for the district rose from $85,000 to $975,000 during the same period.

Philipstown also discovered that it had mist...

Funds would cover local portion of state grant

Hudson Highlands Fjord Trail Inc. said on Monday (Feb. 9) that it has pledged $450,000 to extend the sidewalks on Fair Street from Mayor's Park in Cold Spring to Route 9D and Little Stony Point.

The village and Philipstown are applying for a grant from the state Department of Transportation that would reimburse 80 percent of the project costs. The $450,000 from HHFT will cover the 20 percent required from the village and town. The project is expected to cost about $2 million.

"We've been talking with the village and the town about sidewalks a lot," said Peter Mullan, the HHFT president. "How do we do something quick to address the situation in the village," to provide a safe pedestrian route from Main Street to Little Stony Point and the Washburn Trail.

The Fjord Trail, a proposed 7.5-mile linear park connecting Cold Spring and Beacon, is designed to alleviate overcrowding in the village and along Route 9D. Many visitors are hikers who walk from the train station down Fair Street to reach Little Stony Point, Bull Hill and points beyond.

Although Fair Street is not part of the proposed trail, HHFT Executive Director Amy Kacala said it has always been on the designers' minds.

"In the master plan, we call Fair Street a 'meander' to acknowledge that people are walking on that route," she said. "It won't be a multimodal route in the same way as our trail, but more ways for people to get out of the village is important to reduce congestion.

"While the connection we'll make to Dockside Park will be part of the trail, this is an alternate route people are already used to taking," she said. "We want to make sure that they're walking safely, and we know that the municipalities share that concern."

The sidewalks on Fair Street will also be needed because the trail itself won't be coming to Cold Spring anytime soon: HHFT announced on Monday that it is delaying construction on the trail between Breakneck Ridge and Cold Spring for at least two years while it collects more ecological data.

HHFT plans to build a boardwalk that extends into the river as part of the southern trail. Many residents, as well as the environmental group Riverkeeper, have expressed concern about the impact of construction on the river.

Mullan said he hopes that because the matching funds for the sidewalks are coming from a local nonprofit, rather than the municipalities, it will make for a "stronger application" for the state grant. He said he also hopes the donation will give the project's detractors — of which there have been many in Philipstown — some pause. "I hope that the people of Cold Spring see this as a measure of our commitment to the community," he said.

In a joint statement on Wednesday, Cold Spring Mayor Kathleen Foley, Nelsonville Mayor Chris Winward and Philipstown Supervisor John Van Tassel said they were grateful for the $450,000 pledge but that the municipalities still must find money to construct sidewalks along Route 9D toward Breakneck.

"HHFT was not willing to contribute to funding for 9D, estimated at $3 million, for which we are pursuing a TAP [Transportation Alternatives Program] grant," they said. "In order to qualify for the reimbursable 80 percent from TAP, local governments have to demonstrate in their applications that the full amount for the projects can be fronted. We are actively working to secure front-end funding for both projects, and the situation is fluid."