NORTHERN
Volume 12, Issue 27 • July 1-7, 2020 • 50¢
DUTCHESS NEWS
& Creative Living
A division of The Southern Dutchess News ~ Entirely produced and printed in Dutchess County since 1959 ~ www.sdutchessnews.com
Molinaro: Tourism, income suffer without Renegades
Dutchess hoping for tourism rebound in face of COVID-19
by Rich Thomaselli One of the biggest tourist draws in Dutchess County for the past 26 years has been the Hudson Valley Renegades minor league baseball team. A short-season Class A franchise of the Tampa Bay Rays, the Renegades have packed Dutchess Stadium in Wappingers Falls, routinely averaging more than 4,100 fans per game for 38 home games played in a 4,300-seat facility. But as the days and weeks fly by, it is becoming more and more likely that baseball will be added to the list of what COVID-19 has taken away from this year. The Hudson Valley Renegades were slated to play their first game of the 2020 New York-Penn League season on June 18, and their first home game at Dutchess Stadium on Wednesday, June 24. Those went by the wayside when the New York-Penn League announced it was indefinitely postponing the season. Now, with coronavirus cases spiking in a number of states that are navigating the different phases of the reopening process, one thing is becoming more and more painfully evident - we might not have Renegades baseball, leading to the obvious question of what happens if the entire season is canceled? Well, for one, it’s a major revenue hit with the tourism lost. Having no minor league season in Dutchess County doesn’t just affect baseball coaches, players and fans, but it has a severe negative impact on the local economy, as well. As each “game day” goes by without a game being played, money is lost. “You’re talking about $40 million worth of economic activity over the last 10 years,” said Dutchess County Executive Marc Molinaro. “So the loss of thousands of fans coming to the stadium every other night for three months, is the loss of a great economic stimulus that will have a profound impact.” Not to mention the players’ loss of salary – though the Rays have been good about providing payment to their continued on page 7
Above: At the Roosevelt Inn in Hyde Park, guests are spaced out in every other room. After checkout, each room is cleaned, sanitized and not used for 24 hours. Right: Samantha’s Sweet Shoppe in Millbrook is reopening for a second season. It’s one of the many resilient small businesses that define Dutchess County as a mecca for tourists who are seeking the simple pleasures in life. Courtesy photos by Rich Thomaselli By all rights, by every metric imaginable, Samantha Martin didn’t have to do this. She didn’t have to reopen her Village of Millbrook ice cream parlor, Samantha’s Sweet Shoppe, for a second summer. Not when her husband, Andre Neyrey, who owns the noted hospitality consultancy Blackwood Hospitality, was recovering from a Stage 3 cancer diagnosis. Not when she and Neyrey were putting the finishing touches on Hudson House Retreat in Amenia, a sober living home for adult men seeking sobriety, which was featured on NBC’s “Today Show” earlier this year. Not when the public relations guru had her own New York City-based business to
Creative Living That’s Italian! Decoding Dutchess’ Past Binox Crossword Puzzle Sudoku Obituaries Public Notices Classifieds
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that define the generally small towns and villages in the area, which are representative of the determination to keep Dutchess County thriving as a mecca for tourists seeking the simple pleasures in life. continued on page 8
Travel quarantine enforcement rests with health departments by Jim Donick
INDEX
tend to, Media Maison, and its high-powered list of clients. And certainly not when we remain in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, which has touched virtually every aspect of life and business as we know it. Except … Except, here we are. Samantha’s Sweet Shoppe reopens for a second season on July 4 at 11:30 a.m. It’s one of the many resilient small businesses
On Wednesday, June 24, Gov. Andrew Cuomo, in cooperation with the governors of New Jersey and Connecticut, issued an executive order requiring residents of eight states to quarantine for 14 days upon entry into the three states. The executive order specifically noted “All travelers entering New York from a state with a positive test rate higher than 10 per 100,000 residents, or higher than a 10-
percent test positivity rate, over a seven-day rolling average, will be required to quarantine for a period of 14 days consistent with Department of Health regulations for quarantine.” Today those states include Florida, Arizona, Alabama, the Carolinas, Utah, Texas and Washington. Depending on infection developments, the list of states may change. As we enter into the summer travel season, the question that arises is how this
order may be enforced. The joint announcement from the three governors made it clear that enforcement would be the responsibility of the individual states. In his executive order, Cuomo mandated “The commissioner of the Department of Health to issue a travel advisory to be communicated widely at all major points of entry into New York, including on highway message boards and in all New York continued on page 6
• OPEN FOR BUSINESS • Brookmeade Community Center for Physical Therapy Conway’s of Red Hook Hyde Park Brewing Co.
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Keil Equipment of Red Hook p 5 Lyceum Theaters p 11 Merritt Bookstore p 19 Must Have Hobby Shop p 12
Red Hook VFW Williams Lumber INSIDE: Graduation 2020 Adams Fairacre Farms
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