Message from Steve Block - November 18 Conference

Dear friends and neighbors,

Shortly after taking office last January, we discovered serious problems in the patchwork arrangements the State created historically among the village, town and public schools. Many of us scratch our heads and wonder who is responsible for what? In some instances, there appears to be duplication, in others state law provides different mandates, and in still others, local policy is inconsistent.

What to do?

We've been working on three fronts. First, we created the Rhinebeck Collaboration. The Mayor, Superintendent of Schools and I, along with one member from each of the three boards, meet monthly to discuss problems of mutual concern and ways of working more closely. Our first priority has been traffic and pedestrian safety with a focus on village intersections as well as the dangerous Mt. Rutsen Road. We will have more to report on this initiative as plans emerge in the weeks ahead.

Second, we established an "inter-municipal agreement" between the school district and the town to end the practice of charging each other for use of public facilities.

And third, we have been working to organize the November 18th conference to improve the ways our three municipalities work together. We hope you will spend the day with us from 9AM to 3 PM.

The conference will attempt to do four important things:

1. To inform us about the history of separate municipalities in New York State and in Rhinebeck, as well as the legal impediments to and opportunities for greater cooperation among the village, town, and public school district;

2. To learn about promising developments around the State that can serve as inspiration for us to work on these matters and, hopefully, as models to emulate;

3. To review the current state of cooperation, collaboration, and/or integration in public services and other functions of local government and public schools; and

4. To begin a public dialogue on ways the three municipalities can work more closely, to align public policy wherever possible, and to improve the quality and cost-effectiveness of municipal services and operations in the areas of

* arts&culture

* community development

* environmental protection

* public safety

* public works

* recreation

We look forward to taking the most promising ideas from the Conference and develop them into practical plans for implementation. We are hopeful that our application for State funding will be approved to help us support professional feasibility studies on the proposals that emerge from the Conference.

For this effort to work, we need your support, but more importantly, your participation. Please make every effort to attend the conference. We've asked that each participant fill out a registration form. If it’s more convenient, please feel free to fill out and send back the form below via email.

Thanks so much for your interest in this important public event.

Steve Block, for the Committee:

Deirdre Burns, Meg Crawford, Bill Dowden, Debi Duke, Jane Hoffman,

John Honey, Carl Parris, Michael Trimble

****************************************************************************************************************************

Rhinebeck Conference Pre-registration Form

Name:

Address:

Phone:

email:

identify 1-6, your personal first to last priority workgroup

arts&culture