Village of Red Hook ’ Mayor s Report March 2026
PARKING LOT/STREETLIGHTS: Electrician was on site April 2 and repaired the lights around the municipal parking lot. Red Hook Commons streetlights are out. DPW is working with Central Hudson and ElecticAce to resolve the issue. We have not been able to locate the same streetlight & pole so we will be looking to replace it with something similar. The prior pole and lightbox were taken out probably by a snow plow.
HEALTH INSURANCE/HRA: Lifetime Benefits Solutions (LBS) was conditionally approved at our last meeting as the company to handle the deductible payments for employee health plans. I spoke with our health insurance broker, Marshall & Sterling, and our agent said that LBS is the company that administers the HRA integrated with CDPHP medical – meaning that if we were to go with a different company, employees would have to send their EOBs in to substantiate claims. This would be a different process than we’ve had in the past and appears to be what causes the negative reviews for LBS. With that information, I chose to proceed with LBS. The Village is now signed up, and employees should be receiving their new cards shortly.
SAWKILL WATERSHED COMMUNITY ADVISORY COUNCIL (SKWC): The SKWC met on Mar. 4[th] at 6:30pm in Village Hall. Attendees were Sheila Buff, Henry Woods, Amanda Sandor, Tony DiSalvia and Karen Smythe. We also met on Mar. 25[th] at 6:30pm at Village Hall. Attendees were Sheila Buff, Henry Woods, Amanda Sandor, Amy Shein, Jen Adams and Karen Smythe.
The first meeting was to primarily discuss priorities for 2026. These are the sampling program, well water testing in addition to the amphibian project. It was reported that there was $1600 left from the Hudson River Foundation Grant (HRFG) which will be used to satisfy the Open Spaces Institute (OSI) starting requirement.
The second meeting discussed the following:
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preparing a proposal for the Town of Red Hook for funding a follow up round of water sampling this Spring
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determine an appropriate admin fee to charge for projects and grant requests
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what specific chemicals to test for in the sampling program
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whether an additional test site should be added prior to the Benner Road site, and also whether to add the Fisk Pond to the test sites
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discuss approaching the Fisk Pond owners about a buffer program through Dutchess County Soil & Water
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results to date of the Amphibian migration project – they were halfway migrated, 3/11 was a big night!
The next meeting is scheduled for Wed. April 22[nd] at 6:30pm in Village Hall.
WAVEMAKER AWARD – The Sawkill Watershed Community and Karen Schneller-McDonal are receiving a 2026 Hudson River Watershed Alliance WaveMaker award. The Award dinner will be on June 3 at the Falcon in Marlboro. For information and registration, go to
www.hudsonwatershed.org/wavemaker/. Congratulations to Karen and the team!!
CLIMATE SMART COMMUNITY TASK FORCE: Michelle Gluck and I met on March 16[th] to discuss the Task Force and next steps. Michelle has agreed to Chair the committee. She is looking for a co-chair.
Next meeting is being scheduled.
PUBLIC SPACES/ABRAHAMS PARK: The Public Spaces Committee met on March 16[th] at 7pm in Village Hall. Attendees were Ash Bradley-Rickard, Betsy Brauer, David Sokol, Camille Norvell, David Pearson, Perry Allen, Linda DiGasper.
Betsy discussed her meetings with Amy Parrella, Bard College Director of Horticulture and Arboretum who also worked with the team on the development of Hettling Park at Clermont. Amy shared ideas about how to prioritize the work, what to look at, how to organize the path forward. Betsy also reported that the Bard student that she had met with was interested and available to intern this summer. The Committee would like to apply for a Community Foundation of the Hudson Valley grant to cover payment for the intern as well as a grant to cover initial civil engineering work for the proposed parking lot off Linden Avenue.
Ash is stepping down as Chair. Perry has agreed to be both Chair and Board liaison. Thank you, Perry.
DUTCHESS COUNTY TRANSPORTATION COUNCIL (DCTC)
The DCTC Policy Board met in person on March 25[th] at 11am at the Henry A. Wallace Visitor Center in Hyde Park. The board approved the following 3 resolutions: Adoption of the DCTC Transportation Safety Action Plan, Endorsement of Modifications to the Federal Functional Classification of Select County and Local Roads in Dutchess County, Amendment to the DCTC 2026-2030 Transportation Improvement Program (TIP).
There is a lot of information on the DCTC webpage (dutchessny.gov/Departments/TransportationCouncil/Transportation-Council.htm). And I will have more on the Safety Action Plan in future meetings. You can find the report on the DCTC webpage.
The Annual Traffic Count program will be starting soon. 2025 counts will be added to the DCTC website in March.
RED HOOK TOGETHER (RHT): I attended the April 2[nd] meeting that was held at Simon’s Rock at Bard College at the Massena Campus in Barrytown. The group was reminded that RHT has been meeting since 2008. There was no fixed agenda. After lunch in the cafeteria, we met in their library. Everyone gave updates on activities of their represented organization. A date of note: Historic Red Hook’s 4[th] grade walking tour is returning May 12 with 5 classes of 4[th] graders getting walking tours of the Village with stops including Village Hall. Walter Mullin, Publisher of the Daily Catch, reported that they have hired Adam Stone as Senior Editor. I believe he will be focused on Red Hook. Sara Ugolini reported that the Dutchess County Community Services Board is looking for members for the Rural Mental Health SubCommittee. If anyone is interested in finding out more, please contact Sara.
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
March 7[th] – I attended the Dutchess County Regional Champer of Commerce Gala at the Grandview in Poughkeepsie. Walter Joseph of the Children's Home of Poughkeepsie, Krista Jones of Sparrow’s Nest, The Hudson Valley Fresh farmers and Michael Mullaney of Hudson Cadillac Buick GMC were all honored.
March 11[th] – Congressman Pat Ryan’s C.A.R.E.S. Van (Constituent Advocacy Resources Empowerment Services) was in Village Hall from 2-4pm. The goal is to bring help with federal agencies directly to people. The C.A.R.E.S. Van travels around the Congressman’s District each month.
March 14[th] – I attended the Red Hook High School Spring Musical – “Hello, Dolly!”. The whole performance from the singing to the sets to the choreography to the orchestra was fabulous! Congratulations to the whole crew!
March 23[rd] – I was invited to attend a reception at the Governor’s Mansion in Albany to celebrate Women’s History Month. Though it was snowing when I got to Albany, the reception was warm and inspiring. Governor Kathy Hochul, the first female governor of New York, NY State Senator & Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, the first woman in NYS to lead a conference in the NYS Legislature, and Assembly majority leader Crystal Peoples-Stokes, the first woman to serve in this role, all spoke, recognizing women of all backgrounds who have made historic contributions to NYS and the nation through advocacy and achievements.
March 27[th] – I attended Historic Red Hook’s Tavern Night at the Elmendorph Inn. It was a wonderful opportunity to see neighbors, meet new friends, enjoy live music and the wonderful historic Elmendorph!