SECOND OPPOSITION LETTER
[Delivered via Email 3/18/2025, Updated 4/13/2025]
RE: OPPOSITION TO THE PAVING OF TEXAS HILL ROAD AND APPLE TREE LANE
Dear Highway Superintendent Briggs, Supervisor Dvorchak and Councilmembers:
We are writing to express our appreciation for the open dialogue with you about chip-sealing and paving the dirt and gravel roads in Hillsdale. Our community coalition looks forward to submitting public commentary at tonight's March 18th Town Board meeting.
Residents and farmers on Texas Hill Road and Apple Tree Lane continue to oppose any plan for chip-sealing and paving our roads. We write with confidence knowing that the vast majority of residents in our area agree with us and object to this proposed change. All chip-sealed roads are a type of paved surface. These new proposed roads will forever alter the character of Hillsdale, and specifically, the unique features of the area of the Taghkanic Creek Headwaters. We know that none of us want this to happen.
When we met during Town Board meetings in January and February, no case was made that chip-sealing and paving increases safety. In fact, we know it’s the opposite: faster roads cause more accidents. And people are in danger on paved roads, whereas they feel safe on dirt roads.
We were not given access to historical or working budgets for these roads projects despite our formal Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) request. We have not seen any actual savings from prior chip-sealed or paved roads compared to properly maintained unpaved roads. Nor has the Town shown that any potential financial considerations outweigh the negative impacts on the residents and the Town as a whole.
We believe that when the town takes the welcome step of consulting the broader Hillsdale community about this significant proposal, we’ll all be able to come together and agree to preserve these roads as they are. The question really must be asked - do we want to pave the remaining scenic dirt roads of Hillsdale or preserve their rural, natural character for the future generations of Columbia County?
We remain convinced that paving Texas Hill Road and Apple Tree Lane would fundamentally alter the rural character of our area, harm both the built and natural environment, and negatively impact the safety and quality of life for residents who value Hillsdale’s unique historic and natural setting.
Key Reasons for Opposition:
Increased Traffic Speed and Volume
Easier access due to paving would lead to a notable increase in traffic, disrupting the peacefulness and safety of our rural neighborhood and roads. When roads are paved, driving speeds and traffic volume increase and the negative impact on noise and safety for residents is often significant.
The Town of Hillsdale and the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office has recently received multiple complaints about dangerous traffic speeds on many of Hillsdale’s paved roads, including West End Road, Craryville Road and Mitchell Street. From our understanding, in 2023 our community suffered a tragic fatal car accident of a minor caused by high speeds on Hunt Road. Our thoughts and convictions rest with this family and all families in Hillsdale.
People should have the right and ability to walk and bicycle on our existing roads in safety.
Dirt roads maintain slow speeds for all drivers of automobiles and farm equipment.
Ecological Impacts
Paving these roads would lead to increased runoff, likely impacting the ecological footprint, altering the local Watershed and wildlife habitats due to the disruption of natural drainage patterns and ground level air temperatures.
The Town of Hillsdale has not adequately addressed these potential damages, specifically on wildlife migration patterns, including amphibians, and the impact to the Taghkanic Creek Watershed.
As our planet warms, the effects paved surfaces will have on ground level air temperatures will require our heightened consideration.
Social Impacts
The area of the Taghkanic Creek Headwaters is celebrated by neighbors and visitors for its iconic, publicly accessible and open viewsheds, transitioning organic agriculture and increasingly rare dirt road community.
The Town of Hillsdale has not adequately addressed the social impacts paving would have on our unique community and sense of place.
Dirt roads have maintained for us a lifestyle of agriculture and deep connections to nature which would be permanently altered if roads were paved.
Recreation
Bicyclists, runners, walkers, families, birders, horse and dog owners and farmers, utilize these dirt and gravel roads as safe park-like public open spaces for scenic recreation and exercise.
Paving these roads would greatly interfere with the ability of residents and visitors to enjoy these activities as part of nature and without fear of speeding traffic.
Our area locally accommodates and attracts gravel cyclists as evidenced by sites like Gravelmap.com. Dirt road connectivity is increasingly rare across the world and these cycling enthusiasts visit Hillsdale to ride on gravel surfaces in a unique setting.
Aesthetic Degradation
The rural qualities of our community are largely attributed to the presence of dirt roads. Paving would significantly alter the visual and physical landscape, detracting from the scenic and overall quality of the area.
The Town of Hillsdale prides itself in attracting year-round visitors and residents because of its bucolic and active farmscapes.
The presence of well-maintained dirt roads is part of the Town’s deeply identifying vernacular.
The chip-sealing and paving of dirt roads that border distinguished active and transitioning farms such as Honey Dog Farm and Pym Farm would be antithetical to the history and culture of Hillsdale.
Significance of the Taghkanic Creek Headwaters
The forested ridgelines, stream corridors and wetlands of the Taghkanic Creek Headwaters have been recognized locally and nationally as a critical forest linkage zone supporting habitat and migration patterns.
Conservation of the Taghkanic Creek Headwaters in Hillsdale is considered a major determinant of our area’s climate resiliency.
Protection of the Taghkanic Creek Headwaters were planned in a public process that was executed by Hillsdale’s Conservation Advisory Council Chair David Lewis and our rural neighbor Sachem Hawk Storm of Schaghticoke First Nations. You can read about the project here - https://www.taghkanicheadwaters.org/.
Regional Significance of Dirt Roads
Local organizations such as the Chatham Dirt Roads Coalition listed below have successfully advocated for the protection of dirt roads in Columbia County.
Last year, the Columbia County Historical Society recognized the historical significance of dirt roads in an exhibition of vintage and contemporary photographs called Dirt Road Life: Images of Rural Community at the James Vanderpoel House.
Our area’s unobstructed and protected park-like setting is being actively protected by private conservations supported by the Columbia Land Conservancy and national Conservation advocacy groups.
Unlike other areas of Columbia County, our dirt roads provide public access to these natural settings and transitioning farmscapes.
Financial Sustainability
Texas Hill Road resident and coalition member Miles Flamenbaum and Councilperson Carano Nordenström have called for financial transparency and access to working capital and maintenance budgets.
We continue to believe that CHIPS funding could be allocated to other priority roads projects in the Town of Hillsdale. Councilperson Carano Nordenström highlighted the opportunity to address other obligations including projects prioritized in a Trout Unlimited Stream Crossing Management and Culvert Rightsizing study conducted for the Town in 2018-19.
The public has not been provided access to historical and working capital and maintenance budgets that would determine real costs of chip-seal and paving versus existing dirt road maintenance.
We urge Town of Hillsdale Highway Superintendent Briggs, Supervisor Dvorchak and Councilmembers to cease any plan to pave Texas Hill Road and Apple Tree Lane, or other unpaved roads, until a thorough and public assessment of all the issues has been addressed.
We oppose the paving of low-traffic area dirt roads which we believe to be critical to maintain Hillsdale’s unique scenic viewsheds, safe driving speeds, ecological footprint and agricultural identity.
We believe any limited benefits of paving these roads are far outweighed by the negative impact on residents in the area and the Town as a whole. We urge the Town to explore ways of improving the dirt and gravel infrastructure and maintenance on these roads in order to address any concern there may be regarding their condition or use.
In the interest of transparency and good decision-making by government, any consideration of paving more of the remaining dirt and gravel roads in Hillsdale should be accompanied by a thorough study to assess and document the views of residents, any potential positive benefits, and any potential negative consequences. Once a road is chip sealed, it is never returned to its previous state. The Town should exercise its duty of care by conducting thorough environmental, economic, engineering, and traffic studies. Residents should also have an opportunity to come together, with due notice, to understand the proposal and to share information and views with the Highway Superintendent, the Supervisor and the Town Board. As such, we seek to respectfully engage the Town in a workshop forum that permits productive conversation instead of polarizing argument.
We all want Hillsdale and our surrounding county to continue to be a wonderful place to live, work and raise our families. Let's come together as a community to make it a place where rural culture and values are preserved and given the respect they deserve.
Let us work together with you to build a future for Hillsdale that makes us all feel safe and good.
In solidarity,
Taghkanic Creek Old Road Society
@TaghkanicCreek
Residents and Landowners of Texas Hill Road and Apple Tree Lane, Hillsdale, NY
Pym Farm
Sam Johnson and Vanessa Howe-Jones
435 Lockwood Road and Texas Hill Road
Honey Dog Farm, LLC
FH Farms, LLC
Nabila and James Cox Chambers
287 Rodman Road
2301 State Rt-23
Amy Davidsen and Jon Katz
308 Texas Hill Road
Joe Ziemer and Carrie Coffee
271 Texas Hill Road
Lauren Mechling and Ben Schrank
139 Texas Hill Road
Mark McDonald and Dwayne Resnick
411 Texas Hill Road
Jeff Paige
48 Texas Hill Road
Miles and Robin Flamenbaum
274 Texas Hill Road
Jennifer Hadley-Thomas
4 Texas Hill Road
Jonathan Kastner and Deirdre Sullivan
240 Texas Hill Road
Susan and Paul Solovay
333 Texas Hill Road
Leandra Solovay
333 Texas Hill Road
Wendy Whelan and David Michalek
290 Texas Hill Road
Peter Cohen and Marty Lieberman
251 Texas Hill Road
Area Hillsdale Residents and Landowners
Jennifer Jamieson and Frank Zacarolli
Rockledge Road
Roger Leaf
413 Craryville Road, Stop 25
Patricia Ackerman and Daphne Joslin
Pumpkin Hill Farmers
1054 Pumpkin Hill Road
Meredith Griffanti and Zachary Wilson
123 Taconic Creek Road
Vicki Passman, Ph.D. and Debbie Melamed
20 Knapp Hollow Lane
Melanie Schneider and Marla Gayle
619 Rodman Road
Irene Young
478 West End Road
Hiba Fenwick
876 West End Road
Jason Swanson
523 Craryville Road
Mary King
18 Anthony Street
Cecelia and Robert Elinson
190 Harlemville Road
Jose G. Calle
2589 NY-23
Alex Beard and Mia Beurskens
261 Lockwood Road
Heather and David Rasche
47 Herrington Road
Laura and Jonathan Johnson
81 Sekonk Road
Alessandra Bautista and Philippe Cao
9355 State Rt-22
Chelsea Arend
255 Harlemville Road
Marissa Priester, William Priester and Jane Priester
187 Tory Hill Farm Road
Nehoma and Joshua Horwitt
375 Rodman Road
Mary-Elizabeth Kress
70 Old Highway
Erich Kress
715 Wolf Hill Road
Jeffrey Peabody
715 Hunt Road
Kristin, Sebastian and Isabel Buckbee
715 Wolf Hill Road
Martin, Christa, Sarah, Rachael and Matthias Stosiek
Markristo Farm
2891 NY-23
William Smolen and Dr. Anthony Leboissetier
40 Walden Road
Robbie and Teresa Haldane
488 Lockwood Road
Christina and Benjamin Gebert
569 West End Road
Luca Borghese
287 Wolf Hill Road
Valerie and Fred Knecht
209 Taconic Creek Road
Jon Furay and Erin Hawker
468 West End Road
Chris Boneau and Bob Bucci
871 West End Road
Courtney Zoffness and Jeremy Gough
11 Cove Road
Lori Leibovich and Lawrence Kanter
726 Wolf Hill Road
Ellen Zaroff
633 Lockwood Road
Cameron Russell and Damani Baker
43 Ridge Lane
Julie Moses Whittingham and Charlie Whittingham
837 Carlson Road
Hillary Hawk
Random Harvest Market
1785 State Rt-23
Aram Fox and Nancy Wiese
143 Taconic Creek Road
Thomas Joergens
327 Dawson Road
Caroline Stewart
10087 Rt-22
Kelly Kramer
143 Taconic Creek Road
County-wide Gravel Road Supporters
Chatham Dirt Road Coalition
PO Box 95
Chatham, NY 12037
Doug Welch
325 Bushnell Road, Chatham, NY
Edward Sawchuk and Family
126 Lakeshore Drive, Copake, NY
Frances Grace
739 Center Hill Road, Copake, NY
Emily Bolevice and John Nafziger
1530 County Rt-11, Craryville, NY
Nathan Sawyer and Taryn Marie Sawyer
1084 Lake View Road, Copake, NY
Elizabeth Frishkoff
50 Old Wagon Rd, Ghent, NY
Chris Gallagher
26 Bobolink Road, Craryville, NY
Peter Meyer
330 Allen Street, Hudson, NY
Bruce Porter and Sara Roszak
Spook Rock Road, Claverack, NY
Rachel Zeig-Owens
172 Sky Farm Road, Copake, NY
Amanda and Dr. Michael Pyform
1275 State Hwy 217
Carole Clark
Box 122, Livingston, NY
Robert Weil
102 Union St, Hudson, NY
Charlotte Sheedy and Miranda Barry
517 Union St, Hudson, NY
Garrick Ambrose and Meghan Folsom
394 Carpenter Road, Ghent, NY
Margaret Davidseon
1095 County Rt-31, Germantown, NY
Tracy Tassinari
PO Box 36, Spencertown, NY
Nora Paholak
503 Union Street, Hudson, NY
Bruce Porter and Sara Roszak
40 Main Street, Philmont, NY
Kevin Nieves
22 Robin Road, Craryville, NY
Randy Stearns
37 Miles Road, Copake Falls, NY
Simone Kaplan-Senchak
740 Rt-11, Craryville, NY
Nancy Barber
William Stone
133 Station Hill Rd, Germantown, NY 12526
Pam Burns and Earl Hotaling
64 Sweeney Rd, Craryville, NY 12521
Donna and Peter Streitz
508 Union St, Hudson, NY