JANUARY BREAKFAST MEETING RECAP
Chamber President, Eliza Starbuck addressing a full room for the Chamber January Breakfast at Hudson Hil’s.
A standing-room-only audience filled Hudson Hil’s this month at the annual “Meet the Elected Officials” Chamber breakfast meeting. We’d like to thank the officials who came to speak with our members and Hudson Hil’s for hosting the event.
The Chamber president, Eliza Starbuck, opened the meeting by noting the increased attendance at the breakfasts and thanking the members for helping the Chamber grow. But she also pointed out the need to increase the membership, explaining that the Chamber’s community projects, advocacy, communications, promotion, and events depend largely on member dues. Growing the membership will be a priority of the Chamber in 2020.
“If every member committed to getting 1–3 new members to sign up this year, the membership would double. A good start is to aim to talk about the Chamber to one person who does not know about us each week.” —Eliza Starbuck
The vice president, Nat Prentice, then introduced the elected officials in attendance, summarizing their careers in public service. Each official spoke.
Dave Merandy, Marc Weiss of the Garrison Institute, and Fran Murphy. Photo by Lydia Langley.
Dave Merandy, Cold Spring’s mayor, said it was important for business owners to attend the meetings of the village trustees and help the village achieve its financial goals. For instance, he suggested that the Chamber could marshal its member businesses to get a reliable estimate of the sales taxes that Cold Spring tourism generates. The estimate could help the village argue for greater financial support from the county government. Fran Murphy, a village trustee, seconded the theme of participation, giving the example of the zoning-code revision currently under way. Lisa Mechaley, a Nelsonville trustee, and Mindy Jesek, the clerk of Nelsonville, were also present and encouraged businesses and residents to reach out to them for information and guidance.
Richard Shea. Photo, cropped, by Lydia Langley.
Richard Shea, the Philipstown supervisor, expressed his gratitude to his fellow elected officials and described some of the challenges that he and others have faced in the over twenty years he has served on town and village boards. He urged the Chamber to ask the Putnam County legislature to provide more funds for responsible tourism management. Judy Farrell, a Philipstown council member, was also present and mentioned how educational local government meetings are.
Tracey Walsh. Photo, cropped, by Lydia Langley.
Tracey Walsh, Putnam County’s new director of tourism, expressed her willingness to work with the Chamber to promote events and tourism in the area and urged businesses to reach out to her if they have events they would like her to promote.
Nancy Montgomery, and Archie Broady, owner of Chapeau. Photo, cropped, by Lydia Langley.
Nancy Montgomery, a Putnam County legislator, said what a joy and honor it was to serve Philipstown and described her determination to fight for the needs and rights of everyone in the community.
Robert Langley. Photo by Lydia Langley.
Sheriff Robert Langley expressed his concern that his department is not getting enough funding to buy necessary equipment. He encouraged residents to urge the Putnam County legislature to finance appropriate equipment for the sheriff’s department.
The meeting ended with an announcement of the next month’s breakfast meeting, to be held on February 5, 9:00–10:30 a.m., at the Philipstown Behavioral Health Hub (5 Stone St., Cold Spring). There will be a panel discussion on physical and mental wellness in Philipstown.