Mayor’s Message December 2025
All of us at Village Hall wish everyone a very Happy Holiday Season!
The Village of Rhinebeck is all decked out for the holidays! It’s chilly outside, but the sparkling lights and festive decor bring the warmth and cheer of the holidays to our neighborhoods.
Many thanks to Dave’s Tree Service for installing the lights and to Aileen Valenti for her generous donation which allowed us to purchase more lights. As always, our local businesses partner with residents to make the holidays brighter for everyone who lives here, and those who come to visit our special community over the holidays!
As a community, we are served year round with excellence by the Village of Rhinebeck Police Department. They do even more during the holidays and special events to keep our community safe and secure. The Village of Rhinebeck’s Police Department is staffed by 14 fully qualified part-time police officers who cover 2 shifts a day for the Village, as well as providing contracted services to the Town and the Rhinebeck Central School District. Many of our Officers are retirees from fulltime jobs. New York State regulations limit the annual earnings of retirees who work in public employment to $35,000/year, if they are receiving a pension from a previous public employer. To allow our Officers to work more shifts, we must apply for a temporary waiver which allows us to exceed the cap:NYS 211 waiver .
This year in order to maintain our force, several of our officers worked extra hours and reached their cap limit prior to the end of the year. Many thanks to Officer Pete Dunn and Village Clerk Martina McClinton for tackling the labor intensive job of getting waivers, so that we can operate at full force. Understaffing is an ongoing issue, and we continue to focus on addressing that.
We are looking for qualified contractors for the repair and maintenance of Village equipment, which includes custom fabrication and repair on non-standard parts for specialized equipment including: motors, trucks, mowers, sanders and plow. The Village is also seeking qualified contractors to be on-call or as needed to provide materials, labor and equipment for the Water/Wastewater Department. If you are interested please contact Village Clerk Martina McClinton at mcclinton@villageofrhinebeckny.gov.
The Village of Rhinebeck and Dutchess County Resource Recovery Agency have partnered with HELPSY to expand the County’s reuse and recycling program. Dutchess County Partners with Helpsy to Expand Textile Collection. Helpsy accepts clothing, footwear, linens and accessories in any condition for all ages and genders, as long as the donated items are clean, dry and odorless. All items collected are either reused through sale or donation, or if overly damaged or worn are recycled to be used as rags and fibers.
To learn more about Helpsy, and how its programs have made an impact: https://www.helpsy.com/impact. The Village Board has approved curbside pickup for Helpsy donations in Rhinebeck, which will be available once the county program is up and running.
The Village of Rhinebeck has 24 new trees to grace our streets! The fall planting of trees in the Village on November 28 involved 5 teams of volunteers and numerous locations. The Tree Commission wants to thank you all for your great work!💚
You have probably noticed that the Beekman Arms is doing some renovations to the front of the property. They are re-doing the landscaping, replacing the aging trees in front, and fixing the sidewalks. The historic hotel and landscape are an important part of Village History, and the owners worked closely with the Planning Board, and the Tree Commission. The decision was made to replace the current trees with a specific type of elm. From the 1870s to the 1970’s, tall arching elm trees lined the sidewalk in front of the Beekman. Now, elms will once again spread their branches over the sidewalks in front, and they will work well beneath the recently installed utility poles. They hope to have the new trees planted and the job completed in time for the holidays.
I am pleased to share that the Comprehensive Plan Implementation Committee (CPIC) has begun its work. Members include John Clarke, Co-Chair and Planning Board representative; Ernesto Martynek; Karen Unger; Lisa Fountain; and Mimi Joh-Carnella of the Climate Smart Task Force, all serving one-year terms, as well as Trustee Lydia Slaby, Co-Chair; Donna Warner; Elijah Bender; and Jason Greenwald of the ZBA, serving two-year terms. This group brings valuable experience to the table, and we’re grateful for their commitment. I want to emphasize, however, that implementing the Comprehensive Plan will take time, and progress will unfold gradually. If you’d like to stay involved or share your thoughts, please reach out to Trustee Slaby or complete the survey at Comprehensive Plan — Village of Rhinebeck —your participation remains an important part of this effort.
Reminders:
The Village of Rhinebeck Snow Ordinance prohibits overnight parking (which includes all vehicles, trailers, storage containers, dumpsters, etc.) on VILLAGE STREETS between the hours of 12:01 a.m. and 6:00 a.m. from NOW through MARCH 31st, 2026. OFFENDERS WILL BE ISSUED A TICKET.
Leaf pick-up in the Village will continue until the streets are clear, even as the deadline for putting leaves out has now passed. Our vacuum truck can only pick up leaves, any other debris could damage it. And, please if the leaves on your street have not yet been picked up, please don’t park next to large leaf piles, which makes it hard for the crews to access them.
Happy Anniversary!
Please join me in celebrating our employee anniversaries:
● Wastewater Treatment Plant Operator Andy McDermott- 2 years
● Water Treatment Plant Operator Tom Mueller- 3 years
● Police Officer Jonathan Wilson- 6 years
Welcome Robert Graham who started as a Highway Laborer on November 17th!
As always, please reach out to me with any questions or comments. You can reach me by phone 845-876-7015 ext 2 at Village Hall or via email MayorBassett@Villgeofrhinebeckny.gov