Highlands Current Audio Stories

Legislature approves DCC upgrades A week after Dutchess County Executive Sue Serino presented her $722 million draft budget for 2027, Budget Director Jessica White dove into the details at the Legislature's Nov. 9 meeting. At her Oct. 30 presentation, Serino, a Republican, said her budget includes no cuts to programs, services or jobs. But the Democratic majority in the Legislature quickly critici...

Finalize $234M budget for next year Putnam legislators on Thursday (Nov. 12) overrode 13 of 19 vetoes by County Executive Kevin Byrne of changes to his draft budget, finalizing a 2027 spending plan that nearly doubles the tax levy cut he had proposed. Spending will rise by 2.7 percent over 2026 in the $234.5 million plan approved by legislators and 2 percent more than what Byrne proposed last mont...

This story originally appeared in New York Focus, a nonprofit news publication investigating power in New York. Sign up for its newsletter here. After weathering a stinging blow in Albany this year, New York's climate movement could be back on the offensive following last Tuesday's elections. The newly expanded Democratic supermajorities in the state Assembly and Senate include some 50 newcomers t...

Bill Papaleo and his easel always on the move Walking through Dockside Park in Cold Spring last week, Bill Papaleo did what landscape artists have been doing for 200 years along the Hudson River: look for a place to set up an easel. "Camille Corot [a 19th-century French painter] said to always start your landscape about 200 yards from your subject — it simplifies," says Papaleo. "This looks nice r...

But 'bluegrass-like' band brings tight sound Founded a dozen years ago, Grain Thief hails from Boston, well north of the Mason-Dixon Line. But the band says it always found acceptance in the bluegrass ecosystem. "If you're an independent rock band hustling out there, you're on your own," says guitarist and lead singer Patrick Mulroy. "Bluegrass has an established community with clubs, alliances an...

Fishkill Farms hosts plein-air art show Last Saturday, as families picked apples, children navigated the corn maze and shuttle buses snaked across hill and dale, a handful of artists fanned out to more remote sections of Fishkill Farms to set up easels. "The cool thing, and the inherent challenge, is that nothing stays the same with the sun and natural light, so you have to make all of these decis...

Gen. George Washington, on the run from the British, withdrew from White Plains to New Castle. The British commander, William Howe, moved his troops to the Hudson River at Kings Bridge in the present-day Bronx. At Fort Washington [located in Manhattan near what is today West 184th Street], a deserter, William Demont, handed the fort's plans to the British. Washington approved two court-martials: M...

Beacon project moves closer to approval Beacon Planning Board members directed their attorney on Tuesday (Nov. 10) to draft a resolution approving amended site plans for the nearly complete building at 364 Main St., but they did not say when they would give the project a final OK. Board members were incensed in May when the development's project team returned to explain nearly two dozen features o...

Winward would resign effective Dec. 31 Nelsonville Mayor Chris Winward has been nominated to replace Cathy Croft as the Democratic elections commissioner for Putnam County and said she will resign from village government on Dec. 31 if confirmed. The county Board of Elections has two commissioners, one Democrat and one Republican, who are nominated by their party committees and confirmed by the Leg...

Legislature to vote Thursday on overrides Putnam County Executive Kevin Byrne announced on Monday (Nov. 10) a slew of vetoes to changes by the Legislature, including doubling the size of a tax levy cut, setting up override votes on Thursday. In his proposed $230 million budget, presented on Oct. 5, Byrne included a $38.7 million tax levy. That was $6.5 million less than in 2026, the largest single...

Residents ask for study of Route 9 intersection The Philipstown Town Board voted on Nov. 5 to ask the state Department of Transportation to study whether a traffic light is needed where Route 9 intersects with Hustis Road and the entrance to the Glassbury Court development. A resolution approved by the board seeks an analysis of traffic volumes and speeds, along with a crash history, sight distanc...

Dismisses Cold Spring, Philipstown claim A state judge issued rulings on Monday (Nov. 2) denying Cold Spring and Philipstown the right to challenge Dockside Park's use for the Hudson Highlands Fjord Trail and dismissing Putnam County from their lawsuit over the state's environmental review for the project. The decisions are the first issued by Judge Gina Capone in a lawsuit the town and village fi...

If approved, seniors and disabled vets could apply The Beacon City School District is considering expanding its property tax exemptions for seniors for the first time since 2007 and adding an exemption for disabled veterans. The district exempts up to 50 percent of a home's assessed value from taxation for property owners 65 or older if their annual household income is less than $32,400. If adopte...

Legislators ask sheriff for briefing Funding for a system of remotely operated drones that can be deployed to police, fire and medical emergencies in Putnam County has been temporarily grounded until Sheriff Brian Hess briefs the Legislature and the public on its details. Despite support among legislators for a Drone as First Responder program similar to one in Dutchess County, Putnam's legislator...

Plan would close gap with $32M from savings Dutchess County Executive Sue Serino shared her draft budget for 2027 with the Legislature on Oct. 30, citing many "tough choices" as she factored in a projected $90 million deficit, a precarious economy, rising inflation and federal cuts. Despite the challenges, Serino said during her presentation at the Legislative Chambers in Poughkeepsie, "we are del...

Asks city attorney to add requirement to proposal The Beacon City Council did not vote Monday (Nov. 2) on zoning amendments that would allow hotels in the district bordering Fishkill Creek. Instead, its members asked the city attorney to add language to the proposed law requiring a 50 percent residential component for new development in the zone. That means a hotel, if permitted, would have to be...

Participation dwindles among boys and girls For over 100 years, Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts have had the same motto: "Be prepared." Whether the organizations are prepared to thrive in the 21st century is unclear. Scouting membership locally and nationwide has dropped significantly over the past decade. The ranks of Beacon Scout Troop 3041, which meets near the Elks Lodge on Route 9D, have dwindled...

This story originally appeared in New York Focus, a nonprofit news publication investigating power in New York. Sign up for its newsletter here. The New York state legislature is about to be bluer than ever. Democrats flipped more than a dozen seats around the state, further cementing the party's hold on Albany. They included District 39, which includes Philipstown and Beacon, where Lisa Kaul defe...

Former Philipstown resident will host Chapel benefit Environmental journalist and singer-songwriter Andrew Revkin lived in Philipstown for nearly 30 years before moving to Maine in 2022. He returns on Saturday (Nov. 7) for a homecoming concert benefiting the Chapel Restoration in Cold Spring, where he married Mary Mechaley in 1996. He is billing the gig as an Evening of Songs and Storytelling. His...

Mischievous mentalist to 'read minds' Old soul Vincent DePonto calls himself a master charlatan who taps the back channels of people's innermost thoughts. During his performances, strangers ask, "How could you possibly know that?" Although he claims to be able to detect thoughts over the phone, he declined to do so with The Current during a remote interview. He is performing his latest show, Mind...

Legislature approves infrastructure aid Putnam County would distribute $10 million in surplus funds to its nine towns and villages over two years under an infrastructure program approved by the Legislature on Wednesday (Nov. 4). Legislators rejected an alternative $6.5 million proposal by County Executive Kevin Byrne in favor of a plan put forward by Legislator Toni Addonizio to award $5 million n...

This story originally appeared in New York Focus, a nonprofit news publication investigating power in New York. Sign up for its newsletter here. Buoyed by blue wave, the governor wins second full term Gov. Kathy Hochul easily won another term as governor of New York on Tuesday (Nov. 3), dispatching Republican Bruce Blakeman and affirming that New York may be returning to its blue-state roots. Othe...

Also: Kaul defeats Rolison in state Senate race Rep. Mike Lawler, seeking a third term representing the House district that includes Philipstown, conceded to challenger Cait Conley on Tuesday (Nov. 3) about 2½ hours after the polls closed, and before the race had been called by The Associated Press. With 57 percent of the votes reported, the Republican incumbent was trailing Conley, 52 to 47 perce...

Rep. Pat Ryan, a Democrat, easily defeated Republican challenger Jackie Auringer for a third, 2-year term in Congress, winning 63 percent of the vote. Ryan's district includes Beacon. The Associated Press called the race 37 minutes after the polls closed. Jonathan Jacobson, whose district includes Beacon, ran unopposed for his fifth, 2-year term. The Democrat and former Newburgh City Council membe...

Democrats could take second seat on Legislature Kevin Byrne, running on the Republican and Libertarian lines for Putnam County executive, fought off a challenge from Brett Yarris on the left and Tatiana Brahimi on the right to win a second, 4-year term, according to unofficial results posted by the Board of Elections on Tuesday (Nov. 3). Byrne received the Conservative Party endorsement in 2022, w...