MILLERTON— For many years, Andres Vialpando and his wife, Nicky, have been making the 3-minute drive from their Main Street home in Millerton to nearby Taconic State Park, where they safely leave their car parked on Belgo Road and then head out for their favorite walk around Iron Mine Pond. Depending on the time of day they may either both take the trek, or sometimes only one of them may make the short journey. Whoever prepares for the daily or perhaps even more frequent hike, rest assured their two Welsh Corgi dogs, 3-year-old Jefe (Spanish for “Boss”) and 2-year-old Momo (Tibetan for “Dumpling”), are by their side.
Discovery of tents
Last Wednesday, April 28, it was Andres who headed to the ore pond, and it was Andres who said he was horrified by what he saw when he got there.
“I was immediately upset,” he said. “It’s a great place for the local community. I grew up in Millerton and still live in Millerton… I find that a very comforting place to go.”
But last week while walking Jefe and Momo, Andres saw four semi-permanent tents standing on concrete blocks, set up by the national tent-renting company, Tentrr, which has its headquarters in NYC. Tentrr has “over 1,000… campsites available across the U.S.,” according to its website, www.tentrr.com, and $318.7 million in total funding, according to www.crunchbase.com, with investors who include actor Benedict Cumberbatch.
“When I saw the tent units there, first I said, this is a private company, so what business does it have being on public land?” asked Andres. “Only afterwards I realized the park made a deal with the units to generate income, which isn’t really a big concern of mine. If the tents were placed properly [I wouldn’t have minded], but I didn’t feel these were.”
Private tents, public land
Millerton resident Arthur Moshlak, however, was not so forgiving.
“Does the town, the village, the county, the state, the feds — do they have the right to subcontract to private enterprises with no public notice?” he asked, underlining the fact that no public notice was published and no public meetings were held by either the North East Town Board or the Millerton Village Board informing residents the tents were being erected in the park.
Moshlak said Tentrr is known for putting about 90% of its tents on private land, but that the remaining 10% of its structures are installed on public lands.
“To do something like that overnight, to put them on the trail, who gave them permission?” Moshlak asked. “The fact that the tents were planned stupidly is a separate thing.”
According to State Sen. Sue Serino’s (R-41) office, which responded to inquiries from this newspaper on Monday, May 3, one Millerton resident contacted her office to complain about the Tentrr site at Iron Mine Pond last week upset about the tents.
However, the arrangement is about to become big news in New York, according to the state senator’s office, as Governor Andrew Cuomo planned to announce news on Tuesday of a brand-new agreement between New York and Tentrr of a public-private partnership with the goal of encouraging camping in state parks, specifically reaching out to residents who are not avid campers but might be spending more time outdoors ever since the COVID-19 pandemic hit last March.
So far, Serino’s office has heard of two Dutchess County parks that will be working with Tentrr: Rudd Pond at Taconic State Park in Millerton and Norrie Point in Hyde Park. Serino’s spokesperson said the state really wants this to be a positive experience, and that’s why it worked to remedy the issue at Iron Mine Pond so swiftly.
Revenue for park
“The New York State parks department has been looking for ways to bring in revenue to support the parks, and they seem to have reached an agreement with a company called Tentrr,” said North East town Supervisor Chris Kennan, who confirmed the state’s Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation (OPRHP) granted approval for Tentrr to install tents at Taconic State Park. “I’ve never stayed in one but I’m sure they’re quite nice, in beautiful spots, but the choice of the Iron Mine site in the park at Rudd Pond was a bad location, a bad choice, because it’s very special. It’s a beautiful, quiet, undisturbed place and for the enjoyment of the pond it just would change the whole nature of that spot.”
Andres said the four tents were “literally on the trail and directly overlooking Bash Bish Falls,” blocking much of the path that loops around the ore pond, which can be walked in a leisurely 20 to 30 minutes. It’s about a 10-minute walk to Rudd Pond one mile away, which is more popular and well-known, said the native Millertonite.
24-hour petition
He and others were so incensed by what they considered the inappropriate placement of the tents, that Andres went home on the 28th and started a petition against Tentrr. He blasted it all over social media, and by the time he closed the petition on Friday night, roughly 24 hours later, 558 people had signed it. Not only did he get an enormous response, he got the powers that be to notice it as well.
“I’m not sure what I expected. I was hoping to get 200 or 300 signatures,” he said. “Maybe it speaks to how many people use the pond. Most everybody around here knew of the place and were more than willing to sign the petition, so I’m glad the tents are going to be removed and we won’t have to worry about it. It seems the least I could do. I was just happy to start the petition. I did my best. I posted the petition everywhere online. That played a part, definitely; it was a huge verification of the amount of people [who were upset].”
Kennan said he was impressed by Andres’ initiative and the feedback he received.
“It’s a place that has been enjoyed by the people of Millerton for many years, which is obvious from the social media response. I was awestruck by the power of social media [and what] happens when it’s something that people feel strongly about,” said Kennan. “It’s very dear to many people, and the idea of putting these tents up there really was not well thought through.”
Andres agreed word spread quickly, especially with the boost he got from modern technology.
“Social media is way to communicate right now, that’s all there is to it. It’s fast, quick, I mean, what can I say about that? That’s the way we live now. If you don’t have cell phone or you don’t have a computer, you’re not really up to snuff on things like the rest of us.”
Park response
Andres contacted Taconic Park Manager Christopher Rickard about the tents, who told him he went out last winter with the parks commission to survey potential sites. Andres said his impression was the park manager may have felt pressured to find the tent sites.
While Rickard did not respond to repeated calls for comment by press time, Kennan said he wanted to support the park manager and all he has done for the local resource and would be surprised to learn if the choice of the Iron Mine location was Rickard’s.
“Chris Rickard is a very good guy, and a great park manager for Rudd Pond,” said Kennan. “He does so much with such limited resources. Chris should be supported and recognized for all he has done for the Rudd Pond Park area.”
A request for more information was also sent to Regional Park Director Linda Cooper, including details on when the parks department signed the original agreement with Tentrr; what the terms of that agreement are; how much revenue the parks department earns from allowing Tentrr to rent tents at Taconic State Park; how many tents are allowed to go up and over how long of a period of time; and if more tents will be going up in the near future.
Cooper did not answer any of those questions directly, but did respond the following day with the comment below:
“Public Affairs will work with you,” she emailed. “Thanks for fleshing out the questions you are interested in. Referring you to Dan Keefe, our PIO [Public Information Officer].”
Keefe swiftly replied with the below statement within the hour:
“Yes, the Iron Mine Pond sites are being relocated,” he emailed. “The sites have not yet been occupied and we [are] working to find the best locations within the park. We are finalizing the details of this pilot project with Tentrr and will have more information next week.”
According to both Andres and Kennan, Rickard said the four tents would likely be moved to Rudd Pond by the end of this week.
Andres said he holds no animus toward the parks department, which he said is at a deficit because it lacks manpower — even Rickard typically works in Copake, not in Millerton.
“I think Rickard and everybody at the park was surprised [by the petition]. They made their decision in good faith,” said Andres. “They quickly had their meeting to remove the tents. I don’t think they expected pushback. They didn’t understand the way the area was used by local people.”
Cooperation has its benefits
Kennan agreed and said, “It’s state park land, and basically the state parks don’t require input from the town on things that they do within their [land]. It would have been a good idea to have gotten some input from the town, but we were never asked or informed about the tents.”
He added it would be helpful for the OPRHP to coordinate with both the town and village, like the Harlem Valley Rail Trail Association does with Dutchess and Columbia Counties; the Rail Trail is owned by the state, managed by the county and run through the town.
“We’re all involved in different ways in that and the recent dedication of the Rail Trail showed that,” said Kennan, referencing the ribbon cutting held on Thursday, April 22. “I think [when you don’t have regional cooperation] you miss getting local input; sometimes people at the local level are just more familiar with a particular site or particular issue.”
Tentrr response
Mike Donny Amidon stated in a group post on the Millerton Amenia Community Forum Facebook Page, which had posted Andres’ petition, that “Tentrr is committed to preserving outdoor resources for everyone, especially those who already call the area home. Once Tentrr outfits a site in a new location or state park, we are dedicated to being a part of the local community, culture and environment. The sites have not yet been occupied and we are working with New York State Parks to find the best locations within the park. Tentrr respects the significance of the Iron Pond history, and work is underway to immediately get these sites relocated within the park.”
Amidon promised “more details on this partnership” this week.
Second petition
A second petition against the Tentrr campsite was also started by Millerton native Kara Panzer on her Instagram account, which garnered roughly 133 signatures as of Saturday afternoon when it was still posted on her account. Andres said it likely didn’t overlap with those who signed his petition, as Panzer mainly appeals to those who follow her on social media for postings about yoga and other similar topics.
“It’s not the audience who would have used the park except for some of her local friends, because she also grew up in the village,” he said, just appreciative that she made the effort to get the tents removed or relocated. “But I think probably there weren’t a lot of duplicates between the two petitions.”
First-time effort huge success
This was Andres’ first time ever starting his own petition, although he’s signed dozens before, mostly for national issues.
“When something affects you personally, in your local area, only you can stand up personally for your own issue — it spurs you on to take action. That’s just how it goes,” he said. “I noticed my mom signed the petition. I’m proud of her.”
And for what it’s worth, his mom, former North East Town Clerk Nancy Vialpando, said she’s proud of him, too.
“I’m so glad he was a part of this,” she said.
Andres’ final thoughts? Simply that the whole process “exceeded my expectations… and personally I’m very relieved they decided to remove the tents and they’re not intending to place them at the Iron Mine Pond ever again.”
NORTH EAST — Habitat for Humanity of Dutchess County will conduct a presentation on Thursday, May 9 on buying a three-bedroom affordable home to be built in the Town of North East.
The presentation will be held at the NorthEast-Millerton Library Annex at 5:30 p.m.
Any first-time home buyer interested should attend the information session.
The application for this pilot program home-buying opportunity must be made between May 1 and June 10.Minimum household income for the pilot program is $55,000 while maximum income is determined by family size.
Applications are available at the North East Town Hall.Habitat for Humanity describes itself as a nonprofit with global reach, working across the United States and in approximately 70 countries.
‘Migration Collage' by ransome
If you claim a single sobriquet as your artistic moniker, you’re already in a club with some big names, from Zendaya to Beyoncé to the mysterious Banksy. At Geary, the contemporary art gallery in Millerton founded by New Yorkers Jack Geary and Dolly Bross Geary, a new installation and painting exhibition titled “The Bitter and the Sweet” showcases the work of the artist known only as ransome — all lowercase, like the nom de plume of the late Black American social critic bell hooks.
Currently based in Rhinebeck, N.Y., ransome’s work looks farther South and farther back — to The Great Migration, when Jim Crow laws, racial segregation, and the public violence of lynching paved the way for over six million Black Americans to seek haven in northern cities, particularly New York urban areas, like Brooklyn and Baltimore. The Great Migration took place from the turn of the 20th century up through the 1970s, and ransome’s own life is a reflection of the final wave — born in North Carolina, he found a new home in his youth in New Jersey.
‘Square Quilting painting' by ransomeAlexander Wilburn
Map fragments of North Carolina feature heavily in a large collection of eight-by-eight collage and acrylic paintings, sold individually but together mounted on Geary’s wall resembling the stitched patterns on quilts, like the quilts by the late Black American artist Arlonzia Pettway. Along with artists like Annie Mae Young and Mary Lee Bendolph, Pettway was a renowned artist associated with the quilts of Gee’s Bend, generations of women in the town of Gee’s Bend, Alabama who preserved African American culture in beautiful and vibrant textile art with bold combinations of stripes, textures and colors. The influence is also wonderfully clear in ransome large-scale collages and acrylic paintings like “Square Quilt painting” on display at Geary. It’s a powerful symbol of Gee’s Bend’s legacy continuing on, even under a new artistic medium.
In the smaller works, called “Migration Collages,” painted portraits are combined with pieces of floral and pastel paper, evocative of the tradition of “Sunday Best” splendor worn in Black churches in the South. “The women elders at my Baptist church often greeted each other that way on Sunday mornings when one hat was more elaborate, colorful, or wider brimmed than another,” New York Times veteran Lena Williams wrote in her 1996 essay, “In Defense of the Church Hat.” “It was traditional to put on one’s newest finery for church, and in many historically black churches, the wearing of fancy hats by women carried both spiritual and cultural significance.”
“The Bitter and the Sweet” is on view at Geary through Sunday, June 2.
Hospitality, ease of living and just plain fun are rolled into one for those who are intrigued by the leisure-time Caravana experience at the family-owned Four Brothers Drive-in in Amenia. Tom Stefanopoulos, pictured above, highlights fun possibilities offered by Hotel Caravana.
The month-long process of unwrapping and preparing the various features at the Four Brothers Drive-In is nearing completion, and the imaginative recreational destination will be ready to open for the season on Friday, May 10.
The drive-in theater is already open, as is the Snack Shack, and the rest of the recreational features are activating one by one, soon to be offering maximum fun for the whole family.
Tom Stefanopoulos, the second generation helping to guide the Stefanopoulos family’s recreational complex, brings a deep understanding of hospitality and business sense in support of the multi-faceted enterprise, begun in the 1970s, that is now a mainstay of the town of Amenia, located on a corner in the heart of the commercial district. He paused for an interview on Friday, April 26.
Two luxury camping trailers, each with an attached wooden deck and fire pit, make up Hotel Caravana, and each offers a different fun vibe, Stefanopoulos explained. The larger of the two, offers a California lifestyle, retro to 1967, although its modern where it should be. It can sleep four.
The smaller Caravana sleeps two and offers a lifestyle of the future dating to about 2041. It’s a brand-new Airstream, Stefanopoulos noted. It also has an attached deck with firepit.
“We get a lot of New York City people,” Stefanopoulos said when asked what sorts of people are apt to be attracted to Hotel Caravana. “They want to experience the upstate life,” he added. The idea of sitting out on the deck while watching an actual drive-in movie appeals to them, as does room service offered by the restaurant.
The lobster rolls prepared by the Snack Shack, are served on brioche hot dog rolls, either Maine-style or Connecticut-style, and the lobster can be topped with caviar. Four Brothers version is praised by customers for the generous portion of lobster in each, and the price is competitive.
Caravana guests may book for a single night, or maybe two, or even longer, taking advantage of the bicycles to pedal along the nearby rail trail, a local amenity, Stefanopoulos noted.
“We make our guests feel like movie stars,” Stefanopoulos said of the hospitality. And, if they like miniature golf, it is just a few steps away from their Caravana deck.
Asked how and why the Caravana idea began, Stefanopoulos recalled that as the drive-in theater grew in popularity, people were traveling from greater distances away. The last film of the night might start at midnight, he said, so the idea grew that Four Brothers might be able to offer an accommodation to stay the night.
In addition to Caravana, Four Brothers offers an alternative of two or three tent camping sites.
Future plans may include a third Caravana, Stefanopoulos said. Also, there is a giant mastodon skeleton, presently in storage, that should be on display, he said.
“It’s pretty big,” Stefanopoulos added.
The playground might be enlarged in the coming seasons, and perhaps an old-fashioned arcade added for retro amusement.
The community that surrounds Four Brothers remains important to the Stefanopoulos family as they offer substantial summer employment opportunity. Stefanopoulos said that a goal is to contract locally for business needs, such as musical entertainment and advertising. The drive-in also schedules occasion fundraisers to benefit local organizations, including the Amenia Fire Company and area schools.
If you’ve been thinking that you have a constitutional right to happiness, you would be wrong about that. All the Constitution says is that if you are alive and free (and that is apparently enough for many, or no one would be crossing our borders), you do also have a right to take a shot at finding happiness. The actual pursuit of that is up to you, though.
But how do you get there? On a less elevated platform than that provided by the founding fathers I read, years ago, an interview with Mary Kay Ash, the founder of Mary Kay Cosmetics. Her company, based on Avon and Tupperware models, was very successful. But to be happy, she offered,, you need three things: 1) someone to love; 2) work you enjoy; and 3) something to look forward to.
Like a lot of advice — to lose weight, for example, eat less and exercise, that’s one I’ve heard a few times — this is deceptively and falsely simple. It’s pretty hard, really, to be lucky enough to enjoy your work day in/day out. And given divorce rates, it seems that someone to love can be a bit scarce on the ground, too, and so this category may need to be expanded to include whatever else you might be able to love. The last condition — something pleasing on the horizon— is, perhaps the one most able to be made to happen. Vacations on the high end, looking out the window or a good night’s sleep on the low.
What Mary Kay failed to mention is how very difficult it is to have all three of these things working for you at the same time. It’s tough. So best not to think about that too much, but instead just close our eyes and focus on what might be possible. Small small, that’s the ticket.
Based on what makes some days better for me, and on what is realistic, here’s a suggestion for a low key approach to adding an attainable, achievable something to look forward to to your life. If there’s one thing I don’t look forward to, it’s having to face an evening of standing at the sink and the stove at the end of a long day. Fast food and take-out fortunes have been made by people who figured out how to capitalize on this, to the detriment of neighborhood bank accounts everywhere. Much better to plan ahead, bothering in advance to fix something that’s good and ready to eat at the end of the day, so that all that’s needed is a quick heating up. Look at it as one step taken on the road to a happier few moments as shadows lengthen at the end of the afternoon. Works for me. Well, along with a toast to those who are with us, and to those who are not.
This recipe can be put together from items you may already have on hand. You might want to give it a try, it’s simple and good.
This stew, though served hot, is light, and fine for this still between-seasons time of year.
And, happily, you will find it to be easy and economical. If you are feeling pinched these days, you can leave out the fish and add more beans. In that case, you might want to add fish stock cubes instead of the vegetable stock cubes specified, for a bit of extra flavor. You can, of course, use fresh fish instead of frozen, but that defeats the convenience of having a pantry-available meal. Regardless, and by the way, this is more than good enough to serve to a table of friends, if you choose to do that, and no one, including the cook, will feel hard done by. Or, if it’s just you or a few at the table, make a potful, dip out what you need for a meal, and heat it in the microwave for a few minutes. Keep the rest for an easy tomorrow, it keeps well.
8-10 servings
2 or 3 TB olive oil. A neutral oil is fine. I use Berio.
2 TB unsalted butter
2 sticks celery, halved lengthwise and very finely sliced, just a bit more than paper thin
Some celery leaves from the center of the bunch, rinsed and dried
4 medium shallots, peeled and quartered, OR 1 medium onion—red or yellow—roughly chopped
4 or 5 garlic cloves (small to medium), peeled and very finely sliced. And no, it won’t taste too garlicky: it isn’t smashed or pressed, which intensifies that.
1 1/2 tsp. fennel seeds
A bunch of parsley, washed and dried. You will use the stems for the stew, the leaves for garnish. You want about 3/4 cup finely chopped parsley leaves. Medium chop the stems, 1/4” to 1/3” long.
1/2 c. dry white wine. I used what remained of a bottle; it may have been a bit more than half a cup, and had been sitting in the fridge for several weeks.
2 28-oz.cans of peeled plum tomatoes. I use Cento, and you needn’t buy the more expensive San Marzanos. With my washed hands, I take the tomatoes out of the can one by one and put them in a bowl, having removed the stem end and any stringy bits hanging from it, and any overlooked pieces of skin. Check the remaining tomato liquid for random bits of skin, too, before adding it to the bowl. All of these are indigestible, basically, and removing them improves the end product. But if you don’t care about that, just dump in the can as is. The tomatoes will need to be broken up a bit as you stir, with a wooden or silicone spatula.
One 15.5-oz. can of small white beans, rinsed and drained; Roman, flageolet, navy. I buy Goya.
One 15.5-oz. can of larger white beans, rinsed and drained. Butter beans are good, cannellini would do, too. Again, Goya.
2 cubes of vegetable stock. Mince these into small pieces before adding, they’ll dissolve more quickly.
Two pounds of frozen fish, thawed, rinsed, and cut into largish pieces, as they will break apart when cooking. Use a flaky fish, not a meaty one. I used one package of cod, and one of bay scallops, both bought on sale, which were in my freezer. The scallops (and by the way, in the past bay scallops were considered a delicacy compared to sea scallops, and were much more expensive; the reverse is true now, go figure) were very good, but all cod would be fine, too. If you’re not using fish, rinse and drain another can of beans, add that, see if one additional can is enough. This is not a thick stew, it should be a somewhat thinner, soupyish one. Add another can if you think it might be a good idea. The beans will swell as they cook, and will thicken the broth a bit; so if you’re uncertain, be conservative. You can always add more beans later.
Lemon wedges to serve, with Maldon salt and freshly ground pepper, and hot pepper flakes or oil
Melt the oil and butter in a large pan (a six or seven-quart Dutch oven, for example) over low heat. Add the celery, shallots, fennel seeds, and chopped parsley stems, with a pinch of salt. Cook slowly, stirring frequently, until the shallots and celery are very soft, but not browned at all. When they are nearly soft, add the garlic slices, being careful not to let them burn, and cook to soften. Raise the heat to medium, add the wine and let it simmer for 3 or 4 minutes, and then add the tomatoes, beans, and chopped vegetable stock cubes, which will dissolve. Add a cup of water, if things look too thick. Bring to a boil, turn down the heat, and simmer for about half an hour, stirring periodically.
Add the fish pieces, nestled into the top of the stew. Reduce the heat to low. Cover the pot and let this cook for about ten minutes, no more, until the fish is opaque and flaking. If you are using bay scallops, add them later, cook only 3 to 4 minutes. Once the fish is cooked, you can stir it in.
This should be prepared several hours ahead, so that the beans have mellowed and the seeds have softened. If serving the same day, I leave the base on the stove, covered, and reheat it slowly at dinner time. In that case, don’t add the fish until the base is hot, shortly before you’re serving it. If you have leftovers, keep the casserole in the refrigerator, and dip out and reheat only what you will need at that time.
Wrap the chopped parsley and celery leaves in waxed paper, wrap that in a damp paper towel, and wrap that loosely in plastic wrap. This will keep for several days in the refrigerator, and should be sprinkled over the stew. Serve with lemon wedges, etc., as above, along with some good bread. If you aren’t serving this to a crowd, you will have some easy evenings ahead, with very little to clean up. Cheers!
Sun all day, Rain all night? A friend once told me he’d had a perfect childhood, and this evocative short description of it was the only one offered. So peaceful and simple, and a guide.
Pamela Osborne lives in Salisbury.
