HARLEM VALLEY — Another winter holiday season, another new year. Looking back at the last year of the first decade in the new millennium, there was plenty to talk about in 2009. What do you remember about 2009?
January
The economic recession hit the Harlem Valley hard. Dutchess County’s LOOP bus system routes servicing Millerton and Pine Plains were eliminated, leaving the closest bus stop to get around the rest of the county at the Wassaic train station. Both the Webutuck and the Pine Plains school districts looked to cut back on costs, as public discussions on reconfiguring the Pine Plains district and closing Amenia Elementary School continued.
The economic times didn’t slow town planning, though. The idea of a Millerton/North East sewer system moved along as a feasibility study was presented by engineers at CT Male to the Joint Sewer Committee. In Amenia, the Silo Ridge Resort Community’s State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA) was adopted by the town’s Planning Board.
February
The Taconic Newspaper chain of weeklies, including the Harlem Valley Times in Amenia, the Register Herald in Pine Plains and the Millbrook Round Table, shut down, only to be bought by Fox News Channel President Roger Ailes in April, who has yet to resurrect the papers in our immediate area.
In Pine Plains, angry residents filled several Board of Education meetings after hearing of the board’s reconfiguration plans. The school board eventually decided to delay moving plans until the 2010-11 school year.
Amenia and Webutuck both held public forums on the possibility of closing one or more of its elementary schools, especially after the town of Amenia expressed interest in using the Amenia elementary building as a new Town Hall.
March
The Webutuck Central School District eventually voted to close Amenia Elementary School, deciding to move all of its grades (except prekindergarten, still at Millerton Elementary) onto the central campus on Haight Road.
After 134 years in business, Valentine’s Funeral Home announced it was closing — then quickly found a replacement funeral director in Chuck Livsey.
Jay Reynolds joined the Millerton Board of Trustees after the village’s elections.
April
Webutuck had its first of several major staff changes in 2009 as High School Principal Jay Posephney resigned.
After Kirsten Gillibrand became New York’s newest senator, a close special election for the state’s 20th congressional district was held between eventual winner Democrat Scott Murphy and Republican Jim Tedisco.
Members from the
Agriculture and Farmland Protection Planning Committee presented draft recommendations for the town of North East’s farmland protection plan to the Town Board, a process that has continued up to the present.
A $480,000 grant, with a 20 percent match from the applicant, was awarded to the town of Amenia for its Harlem Valley Rail Trail extension project, looking to connect the Metro-North Wassaic train station into the hamlet of Wassaic.
May
Following a stabbing in the center of Amenia, residents banded together and formed a Neighborhood Watch group. The village of Millerton went digital, launching its Web site at villageofmillerton.com.
After purchasing the property in February, Salisbury Bank & Trust broke ground on the newest bank branch in Millerton on the corner of Main Street and Maple Avenue. (The branch is scheduled to open later this month.)
June
Staff changes at the Webutuck and Pine Plains school districts meant a new start for the 2009-10 school year. After High School Principal Jack Howe left the district earlier in the year, Pine Plains welcomed Tara Horst just before summer vacation. In Webutuck, Athletic Director Mike Riddle was fired by the district. A few weeks later, Drew Hopkins was hired as the new principal for grades seven through 12.
The Pine Plains Free Library moved into its new home down South Main Street.
Public hearings concluded in Amenia for Depot Hill Farm Community’s Draft Environmental Impact Statement. Issues regarding the view shed and other issues have yet to be resolved.
The Millerton-NorthEast Library purchased the First Church of Christ, Scientist building adjacent to the old library building. The library is looking to eventually combine the two structures and celebrated the acquisition with a festival held in August.
July
Webutuck continued to make staff adjustments as Superintendent Richard Johns left the district for a job outside Syracuse.
In Pine Plains, the idea of an expanded Paraco Gas site was met with criticism by residents, who said the installation of an additional 30,000 gallon propane tank was a safety hazard to the community. That application is still up before the Planning Board.
August
Millerton and North East first began talks about making Dutchess County Water and Wastewater the lead agency in its application for a joint sewer project. A recommendation by the Joint Sewer Committee was finally adopted by the village and town boards in December.
The South Amenia Community Fair was resurrected and held for the first time since 1942.
Webutuck selected Michael O’Neil as the district’s interim superintendent for three weeks, followed by David Paciencia at the end of the month.
It was a special treat for the village as a special premiere of “Taking Woodstock†was held at the Millerton Moviehouse, in honor of sequences of director Ang Lee’s film being shot at Lone Pine Farm in North East.
September
The first public hearing for the town of Amenia’s possible acquisition of Webutuck’s Amenia Elementary School building was held, where the majority was in favor of the move but pressed the board for more fiscal details. The Town Board has not yet decided to accept the building from Webutuck.
The Millerton Babe Ruth team continued to celebrate its first Colonial League championship since the previous century.
The Millerton News began regular coverage of the village of Millbrook and the town of Washington. The paper will look to expand to full-page coverage this year.
October
Amenia, Millerton, North East, Millbrook and Washington participated in the opening ceremony for the Walkway Over the Hudson, a footbridge in Poughkeepsie, as part of the quadricentennial anniversary of the exploration of the Hudson River.
Pine Plains officially adopted its first zoning laws.
In Millerton, more than 30 shops participated in the first Fall for Art event, which opened to success despite torrential downpours.
November
The middle school principal at Stissing Mountain was held hostage at gun-point for two hours by a Stanfordville resident. No one was hurt, and the 100-plus law enforcement officers on the scene safely negotiated the gunman’s surrender. The suspect was subsequently found incompetent to stand trial and is currently residing at the Mid-Hudson Psychiatric Center in Orange County.
Wayne Euvrard was re-elected as Amenia’s supervisor after battling with Gary Bonds through the primaries. District 25 legislator for 26 years Margaret Fettes was beaten at the polls by newcomer Michael Kelsey. In Pine Plains, Republican incumbent councilmen Rick Butler and Dorean Gardner were beaten by Democratic challengers.
The village of Millbrook rededicated its restored monument in the center of the rotary in time for Veterans Day.
A New York City resident robbed the First Niagara Bank on Route 44 in Millerton and was arrested after a foot chase on Winchell Mountain Road off Route 199.
December
Dr. Seuss was celebrated at the Dutchess Day School in Millbrook. Amenia’s annual dance recital was held in the Eugene Brooks Intermediate School at Webutuck.
The Millerton Overlook project stood on shaky ground, as members of the North East Town Board debated at their last meeting of the year whether to grant Housing Resources an extension on the project. The board decided to table the request until the new year when Housing Resources would have a better idea of where it stands financially.
School districts began to brace for state funding cutbacks as Governor Paterson announced he would be indefinitely delaying payments to school districts in an attempt to balance the state’s budget. Webutuck found a new interim superintendent in Lee Gordick, and Mary Grden replaced Linda Peters as the school’s business administrator.
Finally, the Friends of the Irondale Schoolhouse was designated a not-for-profit entity by the state, allowing the group to move forward with plans to relocate the Irondale Schoolhouse into the center of Millerton, directly off of the Harlem Valley Rail Trail.
Saying ‘farewell’ to residents
Notable deaths in 2009 included:
Donald E. Westlake, Ancram author, 75
Henry ‘Moose’ Karn, Pine Plains sportsman, 85
Lew Schultz, Millerton fireman, 79
Abondio ‘Tony’ Grassi, Pine Plains Town Justice, 84
Ellen Buckley, Amenia U.S. Army nurse, 100
Bob McGhee, North East highway worker, 56
Charles ‘Clocker’ Cunningham, Amenia Yankees fan, 55
Vincent Wright, Pine Plains beach life guard, 95
Donald Flood III, Wassaic construction worker, 23
Stephanie Murphy, Webutuck student, 16
Jerry Stuetzle, Pine Plains Town Supervisor, 80
Ray Reed, Pine Plains Councilman, 88
Saying ‘hello’ to
new businesses
There weren’t too many shops opening at the end of the year, but the Harlem Valley still welcomed a host of businesses into the area:
Santo Pizzeria & Italian Restaurant, Amenia
Nest, Millerton
Harney and Sons Tea Company Tea Bar, Millerton
Hunter Bee, Millerton
Happy Endings, Amenia
Twisted, Millerton
Douglass Electric, Pine Plains
The Hamilton Restaurant (reopened), Millerton
The Big Grill, Millerton
Getty Gas Station, Millerton
Nick Bee’s, Millerton
Hanback Gallery, Millerton
KB Performance, Wassaic
Hard Roll Express, Pine Plains
Just For You, Pine Plains
Number 9 Restaurant,
Millerton
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