Summer Update: Around the District!
| Dear neighbor, Every day, my team and I speak to residents about the need to protect local farmland, bolster support for first responders, revitalize our aging water systems, and balance our tourism economy – which brings important economic activity into our rural communities – with the need to safeguard our environment and address infrastructure challenges. It’s important that we turn these conversations into solutions, which is why I invited my colleague, Senator Pete Harckham, the Senate’s Environmental Conservation Chair, to our district as part of his statewide tour. We visited Copake, Catskill, and Hunter to showcase some of the issues we’re fighting for here in SD-41. |
| Stop 1: Copake to talk about smart solar development We met with Supervisor Jeanne Mettler and Deputy Supervisor Richard Wolf to talk about how, in many instances, the siting of renewable energy in New York State is overtaking small, rural communities and the local environment, putting our farmland, forestland, wetlands, and waterways at risk, and threatening to exchange one crisis — the Climate Crisis — for another, a food crisis. That’s why we need to take a smarter, more informed approach to how we scale renewable energy developments. Locally in Copake, a proposed solar project is slated to engulf over 107 acres of prime farmland, 40 acres of trees, significant wetlands, and streams. This situation is becoming increasingly common in rural and upstate communities across New York State because developers are not required to take the importance of local lands into consideration when siting projects. The fact is, New York needs more solar energy, more climate-resilient farms, and more protected natural resources — all are pivotal in the fight to save our planet, and we cannot afford to think that these are antithetical goals. We need solutions, and I sponsor several pieces of legislation to address this challenge, which I’ll be pushing for in the 2024 legislative session. |
| Stop 2: Catskill to discuss water infrastructure fundingAccess to clean and safe water is a fundamental right that we have now enshrined in our own State Constitution, and yet, in the Hudson Valley and communities across our state, this access is threatened by failing water infrastructure and one-time grants that rarely make their way to the small towns and cities that urgently need them. It was important to me that we discussed this issue on our tour, which is why I brought Senator Harckham to Greene County for a conversation with local stakeholders, including Athens Mayor Amy Serago, New Baltimore Town Supervisor Jeff Ruso, former Catskill Town Supervisor Doreen Davis, several members of the Catskill Town Board, and Adam Bosch, President & CEO of Pattern for Progress to talk about some of the challenges they’ve experienced with water main breaks and inequitable funding. Last year, the Village of Athens had six water main breaks, which, unfortunately, makes sense for a village whose infrastructure dates back to the 1930s. There are so many communities, just like Athens, that are in major need of water replacements, and we need to add a new funding tool to our toolbox to better serve our smaller towns. This year, we created major momentum for my bill, the Safe Water Infrastructure Action Program (SWAP), which would deliver reliable, year-over-year aid to help municipalities fix broken lines in the immediate and plan long-term water system maintenance. Next session, with our partners at the New York Conference of Mayors, NYS Association of Counties, Riverkeeper, and many more, we’ll resume our fight to fund this program in the State Budget. |
| Stop 3: The Kaaterskill Clove and Fawns Leap in the Town of Hunter to talk about infrastructure and environmental conservation support for rural tourism-based communitiesOur final stop was the Town of Hunter, where we met with Town Supervisor Sean Mahoney, Town Board Member David Kukle, Jeff Senterman from the Catskill Center, and Ryan Chadwick, local business owner and proprietor of the Kaaterskill Trolley, which served as our mobile meeting spot! Our Hudson Valley region, and especially the Catskills, has seen a dramatic increase in visitors since the pandemic. This has been an incredible driver of economic activity for our rural communities, but it’s also created high-use hot spots – like our local swimming holes – and serious corresponding issues that have taken a severe toll on the small communities that host these popular attractions. Our communities experience everything from parking hazards to the degradation of natural resources and an extreme strain on local first responders, Forest Rangers, and Environmental Conservation Officers who are responsible for conducting frequent rescues. Right in the middle of our tour, flash flooding trapped 19 swimmers at Rat Hole and Fawns Leap, who needed to be rescued. Our incredible first responder crews — nearly a dozen, including NYS Forest Ranger Dawson, Greene County Paramedics, Kingston Fire Department, Twin Cloves Technical Rescue Team, Greene and Ulster County Sheriff’s Department, and many more — jumped into action and got people, thankfully, to safety. This was a scary but very clear demonstration of why our municipalities need enhanced support. It’s imperative that we have the resources, both human and financial, to protect our communities, which is why I’m fighting for more stewardship dollars, funding to retain more Forest Rangers and EnCon Officers so they can effectively uphold their duties safely, better infrastructure to ensure our communities can continue welcoming people, and support for our first responders. When a community doesn’t have the funding and local infrastructure to manage these challenges, they only grow in severity, and that makes both visitors and our neighbors unsafe, it hurts our wild spaces, and it harms the local economies that depend on the preservation of our natural resources. Our visits sparked many more ideas for how the state can enhance support for our local infrastructure and natural resources. As a member of the Senate Environmental Conservation Committee, I’ll continue to advocate for actionable steps to address these issues head-on in the 2024 Legislative Session. |
| Giving Hull-O Farms in Durham a Historic Business Designation Agriculture is more than a profession for the Hull family – it’s a passion that spans and connects seven generations of Hulls who, with a deep respect for the land and a dedication to sharing its gifts with the world, have sustained the legacy of Hull-O Farms for over two centuries. I was incredibly proud to award Hull-O Farms with a place on the NYS Historic Business Preservation Registry, which we celebrated at the farm in Durham! The Hulls, Sherry and Frank, and their sons have built on the ideas and creativity of every ancestor who has worked the land before them, preserving the farming tradition, opening their doors for education about the importance of a strong local food system, and bringing a sense of stability and pride to their community. It is my hope that their designation to the New York State Historic Business Preservation Registry will help more people find and support this exceptional farm business. I’m deeply honored to be able to help secure their place in New York State history. |
| Can Rhinebeck and Red Hook’s Abysmal Cell Service Be Fixed? Hinchey Has a Plan, and it Starts With Maps“‘The cell phone service in the Rhinebeck-Red Hook area is a nightmare,’ said Margie Katz. Under a plan developed by State Sen. Michelle Hinchey, a first step towards fixing the issue is in the offing. Hinchey has introduced a new bill, the Cellular Mapping Act of 2023.”READ MORE |
| Hinchey secures $100,000 for Tivoli Fire Company“The funding will be put toward a 4,000-square-foot extension of the existing firehouse, originally constructed in 1985, which will include a new bay for fire and emergency medical service trucks, a lift, a command center to transmit emergency communications between first responders and agencies, and showers.”READ MORE |
| Hinchey calls for end to food insecurity cycle“Highlights of some of Hinchey’s recent work include $135 million in new funding secured to expand access to free school meals, making 88.7% of schools in Hinchey’s district eligible to provide students with free breakfast and lunch.”READ MORE |
| More grocers to ‘double up’ produce for SNAP beneficiaries“Customers receiving benefits from SNAP have been able to purchase more nutritious food thanks to “Double-Up Food Bucks,” a state-funded program that matches SNAP purchases with credits for fresh fruits and vegetables. Now, due to a $2 million budget appropriation pushed by state Sen. Michelle Hinchey and other legislators, more grocers will be able to offer the program.”READ MORE |
