This week’s News + Notes

HVNY News + Notes

Jan 12

Written By HVNY

Dutchess County Clerk’s Record Room to be Temporarily Relocated Starting January 15

Starting Thursday, January 15, 2026 the Dutchess County Clerk’s Record Room and Requisition Desk will be temporarily relocated to the third floor of the Dutchess County Office Building (COB) at 22 Market Street in Poughkeepsie. The facilities, currently located on the second floor, will close to the public at 4pm on Wednesday, January 14 for the move and will reopen on the 3rd floor at noon on Thursday, January 15. Signage will be posted directing visitors.

The temporary relocation is part of ongoing work in the COB on a multi-year, building-wide HVAC improvement project. During construction, which is anticipated to continue through the summer, there may be delays with accessing paper records or record retrieval.

Many Dutchess County land and legal records are available 24/7 online at https://www.dutchessny.gov/countyclerk. Dutchess County Supreme Court records are also available online at the New York State Courts Electronic Filing website. For questions or concerns, contact the Dutchess County Clerk’s office at 845-486-2125.

Dutchess County Veterans Affairs launches Operation: Mobile Outreach

Dutchess County’s newest Veterans Services Officer (VSO), Beth-Anne Canero, is offering mobile, in-person help in communities throughout Dutchess County on evenings and weekends to make it easier than ever for veterans and their families to connect with us and find out about their benefits and all the services available to them. Upcoming outreach sessions are scheduled for January 15 and January 30 in Beacon, and February 9 in Red Hook, from 5 to 7pm. Check the Veterans calendar online for more details.

Ulster County: Community health trend data released

The Ulster County Health Department last week released a new Community Health Assessment (CHA), presented for the first time in an interactive ArcGIS StoryMap format to explore key health trends down to the zip code level: https://ulstercountyny.gov/health/2025CHA

The Ulster County CHA “highlights opportunities for improvement across preventive care, chronic disease, communicable disease, mental health, and substance use.” A sampling of some of the findings in the assessment, include:

Vaccinations: 64% of children aged 24-35 months completed the combined 7-vaccine series, exceeding the state average of 59.3% as well as the target of 62.3% set by the NYS Department of Health’s Prevention Agenda for 2025-2030. However, the County is below the state average in girls aged 13 who have received the HPV vaccination (14.5% in our County compared to the state average of 25.7%). Human Papillomavirus (HPV) is the most common sexually transmitted infection, and it can lead to such conditions as cervical cancer.
Cancer screenings: The community health survey found that 71% of those surveyed recognized cancer screenings as “very important.” However, screening rates in the County are below national goals.
Communicable diseases: Tick-borne illnesses (primarily Lyme disease) in Ulster County far exceed the statewide average (for Lyme: 501.3 cases per 100,000 in our County compared to 109.1 statewide). Several sexually transmitted diseases have generally seen a decline, including a steep decline in gonorrhea cases in the Hispanic population, but there are disparities in trends by race and ethnicity.
Maternal & infant health: At 68.4%, Ulster County falls below both New York State, excluding NYC (77.3%) and the Prevention Agenda Goal (80.5%) for births with adequate prenatal care, which improves health outcomes for pregnant people and babies. In good news, in-hospital breastfeeding rates significantly exceed the state average (61.3% compared to the state average of 46.7%). Breastfeeding is linked to numerous health benefits for the parent and child.
Injury: The rate of hospitalizations from falls for older residents is 26 per 1,000, which is 50% lower than the national Healthy People 2030 goal. The estimated incidence of assaults was 9 in 1,000, with disparities by race and ethnicity. Ulster County rates for homicide fatalities are 66% lower than the state average (which includes NYC), and 90% lower than the national average. County suicide rates are lower than the national average, but higher than the state average. Half of suicides in Ulster County in 2024 involved a firearm; 85% were white males.
Mental Health & Substance Use: Mental health conditions and substance use disorders are significantly linked to higher mortality rates. These issues often co-occur, and factors like social isolation, stress, and barriers to care can exacerbate the risks. Ulster County's unintentional overdose death rate was 25.8 per 100,000 in 2024. This rate is well below that of the United States (44.7 per 100,000) but just above that of New York State (21.6 per 100,000).

Ulster County: Midtown Thriving Plan & Upcoming Public Meeting

The Midtown Thriving plan, focused on vacant and abandoned properties within a 471-acre area that runs along the Broadway corridor, summarizes the research work done by Pattern for Progress, including community input received over the life of the project, and covers topics such as population and demographic trends, economic development, housing, transportation, and infrastructure. Based on research and community input, the plan includes detailed policy recommendations and an implementation strategy.

Representatives from Pattern for Progress and city staff will host a public meeting on January 14, 2026, at 6pm at Kingston City Hall to present the final draft and answer questions. The full Midtown Thriving plan will be presented at the public meeting on January 14, 2026. Comments will be accepted until January 31, 2026.

The study, a link to the input survey, and more information can be found at https://engagekingston.com/midtown-thriving.

Orange County: New, free Narcan map available

Orange County officials have announced the launch of a new, free Naloxone (Narcan®) Map and Information Page, now available to the public: https://www.orangecountygov.com/2614/Naloxone-Narcan-Locator

Westchester Executive launches weekly podcast

Westchester County Executive Ken Jenkins is starting off the New Year, and every week, with a podcast. The podcast, titled This Week in Westchester (no affiliation) will feature Jenkins’ Monday briefing, county news, policy updates and community highlights. Episodes will stream weekly on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Updates are also available to watch live on Facebook and YouTube on most Mondays at 2 p.m. https://www.westchestergov.com/all-press-releases/westchester-county-launches-this-week-in-westchester-podcast

Westchester: Officials gather to urge the state to reject Con Ed rate hikes

Westchester County officials gathered on Monday morning to urge state public service commission “to reject or significantly modify” and hold rates at the current levels, county executive Ken Jenkins said.

“This particular proposal is a concern because we are fundamentally in an affordability crisis, we cannot afford another round of rate increases,” Jenkins added.
”Residents are making impossible choices: paying their rent or paying their utilities.

The proposed delivery rate increases electricity 4.3% increase in 2026, 5% increase in 2027, 3.3% increase in 2028, gas rates would increase 0.3% in 2026, 7.2% in 2027, and 3.7% increase in 2028 – all these increases exceed inflation, Jenkins added.

According to filings with the PSC: Con Edison is requesting an increase in annual electric delivery revenues of approximately $1,612 million (an 18.0 percent increase in base delivery revenues, or an 11.4 percent increase in total revenues). The requested increase in delivery revenues results in an average residential monthly delivery bill increase of $26.60 (a 19.1 percent increase on the delivery bill, or a 13.4 percent increase on the total bill) for a 600 kilowatt-hour/month customer.

The primary drivers of the requested electric increase are local property taxes (which account for an overall electric bill increase of 3.1 percent), new infrastructure investment (2.6 percent) and operating expenses (2.6 percent). Con Edison purports that its filing will help accommodate demand growth, especially with clean energy options and substation investments, while maintaining reliability with investments in feeder replacements. The company says it is also enhancing its system resiliency for more frequent and severe storms, as well as warmer temperatures.

More information from the PSC: https://dps.ny.gov/pending-and-recent-electric-rate-cases#consolidated-edison