FROM THE MID-HUDSON NEWS SERVICE:

KINGSTON – The Kingston Common Council approved two measures that could get a Kingston-Rhinebeck ferry up and running.  The council, Tuesday night, approved a ferry service feasibility study and an inter-municipal agreement with Rhinebeck

The feasibility study will assess the plausibility of bringing large scale ferry service to several locations along the Hudson River. Council President James Noble said the study will take a broad look at the possibility of implementing full-scale ferry service to locations all along the Hudson River such as Kingston, Rhinecliff, Hudson, and many other areas.

He said that the study will address everything from potential ridership to issues with docking at each location.

The study, according to Noble, could possibly cost as much as a few hundred thousand dollars but large scale ferry service would definitely be good for tourism because “it would get people here” to enjoy what the waterfront has to offer.

“Tourism brings sales tax and sales tax helps the city, bottom line. So anything we can do to foster that we’ve in favor of it.”

The idea of doing a ferry feasibility study was proposed most recently in November 2009 and, as a result of the common council’s decision Tuesday evening, the city will now begin the process of engaging in the necessary research.

The other measure passed by the  Common Council gives the go-ahead for an inter-municipal cooperation agreement between the city and the Town of Rhinebeck to install and utilize a docking area on the Rhinebeck side of the Hudson River so that ferry service can be extended to communities in that region.

According Noble, Rhinebeck will be providing the funds and materials while the City of Kingston will provide the manpower to seasonally install a docking area on the opposite side of the river to generate local commuter and tourism traffic.

“Trying to alleviate traffic but at the same time if you don’t have a vehicle to be able to get back and forth and get to the city.”

Noble said commuters will have the ability to park in the Rondout area and take the ferry to the Rhinecliff Ferry Station where access to trains servicing New York City is readily available.

Noble added that the future ferry service to Rhinebeck will be seasonal and will consist of passenger boats that Kingston already has in place.

Join Drinking Liberally tonight as they mark the 4th gathering of Drinking Liberally Rhinecliff.

"Come out to toast the decade gone by & drink while discussing the decade to come with your local progressive social club.

While it's true the Farmers Almanac predicted a “numbing” winter, with below-average temperatures for at least two-thirds of the country, we can still warm ourselves with the company of fellow progressives.

Rhinecliff gatherings take place on the first Sunday of every month from 7:00pm - 9:00pm at The Rhinecliff Hotel. Last weeks regularly scheduled meeting was moved to tonight due to the holiday weekend.

Drinking Liberally Rhinecliff is the first and currently the only Dutchess county chapter of DL."

Click HERE to read previous articles on Drinking Liberally Rhinecliff or READ Drinking Liberally Rhinecliff's site.

(Tonight is also a Tweetup for Drinking Liberally Rhinecliff and rhinecliff.org. #DLrhinecliff http://twtvite.com/ih1awd)

The Dutchess County Sheriff’s Office reports the recent investigation into numerous residential and commercial burglaries throughout Dutchess County, as well as the arrests of two people in connection with them.

The investigations began in mid-November and quickly expanded as more burglaries were committed and reported to police. A total of 12 burglaries have been investigated and closed by these arrests so far with more suspected, and the burglaries span throughout the entire county of Dutchess and even into other jurisdictions including Ulster County and Connecticut. The arrests were followed by the execution of four (4) search warrants at various locations within Dutchess County, after which numerous stolen items were recovered. The recovered proceeds include electronic items such as large screen TV’s and computers as well as jewelry, all of which total in the many thousands of dollars.

The identity of the defendants is being withheld in order to protect the integrity of the investigation. The defendants will only be described at this time as being male and female, and they are charged at this time with Burglary in the 2nd Degree (Class C Felony). Both defendants were arraigned and remanded to the Dutchess County Jail in lieu of $50,000 cash bail. In addition to the burglary charges the male subject is also wanted on a NYS Parole warrant, and the female subject is wanted on a warrant in Connecticut.

The Sheriff’s Office was assisted in the investigation by many other agencies including the New York State Police, Connecticut State Police, Town of Poughkeepsie Police, Town of Hyde Park Police, and the Town of New Paltz Police. The investigation is ongoing and more information will be provided as it becomes available.

Due to the New Years Holiday weekend tonight's meeting has been moved to next Sunday.

Drinking Liberally Rhinecliff normally meets at The Rhinecliff Hotel on the first Sunday of every month from 7:00pm - 9:00pm.

Click HERE to read previous articles on Drinking Liberally Rhinecliff or READ Drinking Liberally Rhinecliff's site.

The Dutchess County Sheriff’s Office is advising residents to be aware of burglaries this holiday season. The Sheriff’s Office has noticed a surge in burglaries that are occurring during the daytime hours when residents are typically not home.

Homeowners are encouraged to report any out of the ordinary or suspicious vehicles that are seen near their homes. If you come home to see an unfamiliar vehicle in your driveway, call the Dutchess County Sheriff’s Office immediately at 845-486-3800.

It’s very important to memorize the vehicle’s license plate number, as well as any other identifying information, such as vehicle make and model, color, damage, aftermarket accessories, etc… If the vehicle flees, we need the description as well as the direction of travel. If you can get a description of the operator, including height, weight, sex, race, and dress, that is important as well.

RHINEBECK — The Town Board expects to vote Dec. 21 on town comprehensive plan and zoning law updates that will require gun clubs to try to reduce noise, but won’t force them to make changes if the cost is prohibitive.

The meeting will be 6:45 p.m. in Town Hall, 80 E. Market St.

A Town Board meeting is also scheduled for 6:45 p.m. Monday, when officials expect to be given final versions of the comprehensive plan, zoning law, and wetlands regulations.

READ MORE at The Daily Freeman

The following update was provided by Rhinecliff resident John F. Lyons

The Town Board voted unanimously to abandon the proposed changes to the RA10 zone. Town Hall was packed and almost 30 citizens spoke in opposition. In addition, the Dutchess County Planning Department, the Rhinebeck Conservation Advisory Council, Hudson River Heritage and Scenic Hudson all came out in opposition to this proposal.
 
Thanks to all of you who wrote letters, attended the meetings and made your voices heard. This was a terrific community effort. And in the end the right thing was done for our community.
 
Our sincere thanks also go out to the members of the Town Board. They patiently listened to all of the public comment and, once again, took positive action in response. We commend them and appreciate their effort.
 
There is more good news. The new Comp Plan and zoning law are on track to be enacted by the end of this year. The Town Board will hold a special meeting on Monday, December 21 at 6:30 PM. At that time it is anticipated the Board will adopt: (1) the final SEQRA Findings Statement; the new Comprehensive Plan; the new zoning law; the local wetlands law; and the new subdivision regulations.
 
Thanks again to everyone for all your participation and effort.
 

The last scheduled public hearing concerning adoption of the Comprehensive Plan; Local Law No. 6 of 2009 entitled "A Local Law Amending the Town of Rhinebeck Zoning Law"; and Local Law No. 7 of 2009 entitled "Freshwater Wetlands Law of the Town of Rhinebeck" ("Proposed Actions") will be held  Monday, November 30, 6:30 PM at Rhinebeck Town Hall.

All residents of Rhinecliff and Rhinebeck are encouraged to attend.

There have been proposed last minute changes to the zoning that have concerned many area residents.

To view some of the letters from concerned residents CLICK HERE.

(Via Mid-Hudson News)

KINGSTON – The idea of running a ferry between Kingston and Rhinecliff, and possibly Tivoli and Saugerties, is very much alive.

The idea was first advanced years ago and discussion has been on and off.

Now, the City of Kingston is revving up the idea. City Economic Development Director Stephen Finkle told the Waterfront Advisory Committee Wednesday the city hopes to hire a consultant in the not too distant future to study the feasibility of making ferry service a reality.

“There’s a federal ferry discretionary program that is seeking applications for 2011 and I hope we have enough information to put in an application,” he said.

If the city hires the company it could have some answers by next spring.

In addition to the ferry feasibility study, Finkle noted the $1.4 million Walkway project that is currently underway to open up access to new areas of the waterfront should be substantially completed by the end of the year.

The National Climate Seminar at Bard CEP

The National Climate Seminar is a bi-weekly, national phone conversation featuring top climate scientists, political leaders, and policy analysts. Hosted by the Bard Center for Environmental Policy, the seminars are available live to educators, students and citizens, by telephone at no charge.

Click HERE for additional details:

Fall 2009 National Climate Seminar Schedule: The World Decides

ROAD CLOSING AND DETOUR ANNOUNCEMENT

Please be advised that the Dutchess County Department of Public Works

will be replacing the culvert on CR 101, a.k.a Violet Hill Road, in Rhinebeck. 

Beginning the week of June 1, 2009, CR101 will be closed between NYS Route 308 and Burger Road for construction activity.  A detour route will be posted.  It is anticipated that the project will be completed September 2009. 

Questions related to the project or the detour should be referred to the Dutchess County Department of Public Works at (845) 486-2925.

Memorial Day Observances in Rhinecliff May 25, 2009

Memorial day gun salute following the annual parade in Rhinecliff.

Rhinebeck Town Supervisor Tom Traudt, Board Member Dan Staley, Board Member Dod Crane, and Dutchess County Legislator Joel Tyner observe Memorial Day ceremony in Rhinecliff.

A Hudson River water taxi that will ferry people from Kingston to Rhinecliff and back will be launched today.

The official launching of the taxi, known as The Lark, will be at 5 p.m. from the Rondout Creek docks at the Hudson River Maritime Museum in Downtown Kingston.

At 2 p.m. Saturday, the inaugural ride to the Rondout Lighthouse near Kingston Point will take place. That ride, too, will start at the Maritime Museum.

READ MORE

Update provided by John Lyons:

At the Town Board workshop meeting this January 29th, the Board reversed its December 15, 2008 decision and voted 5-0 in favor of abandoning the idea of a special 200 unit senior housing zone for the Holy Cross School (HCS) property. They opted to revert to virtually the same zoning that is presently in place for that property (5 acre zoning plus the possibility of the floating senior housing zone subject to special use permit conditions). Board Member Ellen Silverstein took the lead in stepping out first and endorsing that the Board reverse its position. All the other Board members followed fairly quickly. The Board received applause from those in attendance both after the vote and at the conclusion of the meeting.
 
The Rhinecliff Hamlet extension still lives. At the meeting, Dod Crane advocated dropping it from the plan. After discussion, the Board decided to retain the possibility, at least for the purposes of including it in the environmental review, with the understanding that they have the option to drop it out at a later juncture. 

In perhaps the most well attended Town meeting in recent memory, just a day before new years eve, a hundred or so residents showed up to voice strong opposition to the votes cast by the board on December 15th.

By 7:30pm the board had finished Town business and opened the floor for public comments. First up was Rhinecliff resident John Lyons. He read from a letter that spelled out the adverse impacts on the community and ended by urging the board to reverse their decision. (Click HERE to view letter)

Mr. Lyons was followed by Rhinecliff Advisory Council member Tom Holsapple who read a letter from the Council that spelled out the Council's dismay over the Board's actions. (Click HERE to view letter from the RAC)

Morton Road resident Michael DeCola spoke next and handed the board a petition signed by more than 100 residents requesting additional public hearings given the substantial changes made to the original Comp-Plan. Mr. DeCola was interrupted by Supervisor Traudt’s informing the room that the votes of December 15th were simply to “tell the Town’s planners what to look into.” Essentially the board said the votes of December 15th were not final votes, just a “poll” of the board for the purposes of a working meeting to direct planners to “look at issues”. This explanation did not sit well with anyone in the room. Chants of “read the minutes” (of the last meeting) could be heard for several minutes. Clearly uncomfortable, the board attempted to explain why they had no minutes prepared from the last meeting.

Additional members of the community spoke as well as Jeffrey Anzevino from Scenic Hudson (Click HERE to view letter from Scenic Hudson) The comments were unanimous in their disapproval of the Board’s actions.