Gov. Kathy Hochul visited Doves Diner in Ancram on Thursday, Oct. 29, for a campaign stop that brought state lawmakers and local town supervisors together five days before the Nov. 3 election.
State Sen. Michelle Hinchey and Assemblymember Didi Barrett joined the governor, along with Gallatin Town Supervisor Tara Silberberg and Ancram Town Supervisor Colleen Lutz. In interviews with the Herald during the visit, the two supervisors described challenges involving transportation, law enforcement response times, and erosion prevention.
Hochul emphasized her administration’s affordability agenda in a statement to the Herald, citing an expanded child tax credit, efforts to broaden access to child care, and middle-class income tax cuts. She also highlighted her work with Barrett on a data center moratorium, which she described as a measure to protect residents from higher utility bills.
But lawmakers, including Barrett and Hinchey, have called on Hochul to go further by signing the Responsible Data Center Development Act, which passed both houses of the state Legislature on June 4. Hochul issued her executive order in July.
As the Herald previously reported, the bill would impose a one-year pause on new state environmental permits for data centers with a peak electricity demand of at least 20 megawatts, compared with the executive order’s 50-megawatt threshold. It would also require separate water and electricity rate classes intended to ensure that large data centers pay their share of infrastructure costs, along with stronger labor protections and public hearings in host communities.
In her statement about the visit, Hochul linked her experience in local government to the campaign’s closing days.
“When I see a beautiful community like Ancram, it gives me hope that New York’s future is bright. I got my start in government on my local town board and know firsthand how important it is to meet with local and county leaders to hear from folks on the ground how we can better serve New Yorkers together,” Gov. Hochul told the Herald.
In their interviews with the Herald, the two town supervisors focused on services and projects that require assistance beyond their own municipalities.
Silberberg, a Democrat running unopposed for reelection, pointed to a lack of public transportation in Gallatin, particularly for older residents who need to get to stores. She said some of the town’s challenges require action at the county level, though she was uncertain what role the state could play.
She also raised concerns about law enforcement response times near the Dutchess-Columbia county line. Recalling an accident near her home, Silberberg said Pine Plains police initially responded, but those involved waited about 45 minutes for a Columbia County sheriff’s deputy to arrive because the accident occurred in Columbia County.
Lutz, who is not affiliated with a political party, is seeking reelection against Republican former Town Supervisor James MacArthur.
She identified erosion along the Roeliff Jansen Kill, commonly known as the Roe Jan, as an area where outside assistance could benefit Ancram. Lutz pointed to vulnerable areas near a cemetery and the mills and said a combination of state and federal funding could help the town undertake preventive work.
Securing that assistance presents another challenge for a small town. Lutz said Ancram’s limited staff makes partnerships with county and state officials important, both to identify funding opportunities and to pursue projects the town lacks the capacity to handle alone.
In 2025, New York spent an estimated $64,000–100,000 per asylum seeker living in city shelters, compared with about $6,600 in state Medicaid spending per citizen enrollee. Figures are approximate.
And upstate At least 22,000 acres to solar fields, you get billed monthly but you don’t know what it is look at your electric bill.
And millions/billions is tax revenue leaving NY.
Yet some will still vote for her.