Dutchess County Poor House / Infirmary Site
SAVE A Dutchess County CEMETERY!
&
A piece of Dutchess County HISTORY!

Picture taken March 2000 by a volunteer,  Paula
 

Dutchess County Legislature
Monday, September  9,2002
PRESENT:  Legislators Meserve, Kelly, Fonnan, Hass, Hammond, Hutchings, Swartz, Ballo, Johnson, Price
ABSENT:  None
EX OFFICIO: Kendall, Higgins, Babiarz, Sears,  Absent Reilly
GUESTS: None

QUORUM PRESENT.
 

Legislator Meserve called the Public Works & Transportation Subcommittee meeting to
   order. He stated that the purpose of this meeting was to vote to accept the report from the
Ad Hoc Committee on the Infirmary. Report attached. He asked if anyone from the
public would like to speak before the Committee voted on the report.

Frank Genova, Town of Washington resident, stated that he had a petition (attached). He
stated that the residents of Washington enthusiastically endorsed the petition endorsing
the County complex.

Legislator Meserve stated that there was a north wing with about 18,000 square feet and
about 35,000 square feet of the old building that the County felt should be torn down. He
stated that the Committee agreed that the buildings were well founded and should be
used. He stated the report that came back from the County last fall stated that its needs
were about 35,000 square feet. He added that there was a counter petition that was
circulating amongst the neighbors with about eighty signatures opposing the county
complex.

Robert Dyson, Town of Washington resident, stated that his concern was that the County
might expand too much. He stated that he believed that the Infirmary property should be
carefully controlled. He stated that the County offered three categories of services, which
were hard (sheriff, jail, probation), soft (taking care of the mental retarded, poor,
handicapped, elderly), and retail (motor vehicle). He believed that the County should
hold onto the property. He stated that the hard and retail services should not be offered at
the Infirmary site and that the County should offer the soft services. He stated that the
remaining property should be under some kind of conservation easement or land use
where the potential to build on it to any further degree than what they have now would be
minimized or would have a great deal of public input and scrutiny. He stated that the
concern that most people have was overpopulation, density, and what the County was
going to do with the property.

       Virginia Buechele, Town of Poughkeepsie resident, stated that she was very interested in
the preservation of cemeteries and the history in Dutchess County. She stated that there
    was a cemetery located on the Infirmary property. She stated that her main reason for
 being there was to ask the Committee to preserve the cemetery and have someone from
the Department of Public Works go out there and find the boundaries, clean it out, and
provide a fence so that people would be able to come and pay their respects to their loved
ones buried in the cemetery. She stated that if the County could not provide the funds to
contact her and she would find the money, clean it up, and provide the fence.

Legislator Meserve stated that he would try to get her a copy of the interim and final
report. He stated that in both reports it mentioned the need to preserve potters field. He
stated that he did not realize that there were records missing and that they would look into
that. He asked if the Committee would accept the report into the record.

Legislator Horn stated that the Subcommittee had voted in favor of senior housing for the
Infirmary site and that a majority did not vote in favor of the Eastern Services Center that
was proposed in the resolution. She stated that she thought that the Committee should
not submit this report but should expand on the majority vote of the Ad Hoc Committee.
She added that the Public Works Committee should take the Infirmary site future into
consideration with another site located in Pleasant Valley if there was going to be further
discussion on an Eastern Services Center. She stated that she was strongly opposed at
this time of accepting the Committee report with its recommendations and to further
memorialize the request to the County Executive as proposed in the Public Works
Committee.

Legislator Meserve stated that the focus of the Subcommittee was to look at what was the
best use of the Infirmary and not where the County complex could be placed.
Legislator Kelly stated that there was 15 minutes scheduled for the meeting and that there
was not enough time for discussion on this resolution. He added that he wanted to be
thorough in the job that they do and present the citizens with a thorough report from the
Public Works Committee and asked if further discussion could be done at the regular
Public Works Committee.

Legislator Donahue stated that he was concerned that they were being asked to accept a
report that contradicts its own recommendations, which was a six to three vote. He
questioned the ability to affordably reconstruct the Infirmary site. He stated that he
believed the people who signed the petition were misled into thinking that the services
in the Eastern part of the County were going to be eliminated if they were not located on
the Infirmary site.

Legislator Meserve stated that the Committee could either accept the report then let the
Public Works Committee consider what to do or send it back and ask that it be redone
with recommendations. He asked for a motion to accept the report.

Legislator Ballo made the motion to acknowledge the report without accepting it.

Legislator Higgins seconded the motion and unanimously carried.

There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned.
 

*      *      *      *      *      *      *

Links

Ad-Hoc Sub-Committee  INTERIM REPORT - 2 May 2002

Ad-Hoc Sub-Committee  FINAL Report - 1 September 2002

Public Works and Transportation Committee - RESOLUTION - 17 September  2002
 

  Dutchess County Alms House 1908 Report
Notes Of Inspection Of The Dutchess County Alms House , Oak Summit, N.Y.

 Dutchess County Genealogical Society
Established in 1972 to help organize and direct genealogical work in Dutchess County, N.Y.

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