With flowers in hand and shovels in soil, volunteers ushered in a new chapter for downtown Pine Plains this month — replacing worn whiskey barrels with 22 modern planters, funded by more than $12,000 in community donations. Members of the Garden Club filled the new containers with marigolds, zinnias, coleus, and petunias on May 22, following their installation by the Beautification Committee the week before.
The new planters cost $4,568.08, with the remaining funds raised set aside for future beautification projects. The planters now line Church Street and South Main Street. They replaced the wooden barrels that had long marked the town’s seasonal streetscape but had become difficult to maintain. Subject to weather extremes, the wood split and the iron hoops loosened, leaving some containers beyond repair.
“There is a real interest in sprucing up the town,” said Thayer Durell, a member of the Beautification Committee. “Everyone wants to see our village thrive.”
The new containers, purchased through Demeter Home, are made from a fiberglass-metal composite. Each one is a 22-inch cube in gunmetal gray, with a recessed panel design on all four sides.
“The design works well with the existing architecture in town, but it adds a modern aesthetic,” Durell said.
The planters are designed to last well beyond their five-year guarantee. Each includes a PVC sleeve for holding American flags during national holidays. The planters will also support evergreen trees during the winter holiday season.
In addition to Durell, committee members Jeanne Valentine-Chase and Elena Meccariello raised the funds from at least 14 businesses and individuals. The project reached its goal in less than a week.
The committee also installed new garbage and recycling receptacles and said more are on the way.
The Beautification Committee is an outgrowth of the Parks Committee, which led the redesign and reconstruction of the pocket park at the intersection’s northeast corner in 2021. Today, the group meets monthly to plan further improvements.
According to Valentine-Chase, the team is now focused on signage and pedestrian safety. Some town signs are rusted, illegible, or misaligned, and the committee hopes to add a crosswalk across South Main Street near the library.
The committee thanked the project’s donors, including Bank of Millbrook, the Cichetti family, Chaseholm Farm, Factory Lane Auto Repair, Lo-Nan Farms, the Mashomack Community Fund, Pine Plains Pharmacy, the Shaving Parlor, Keith Sisco, Eliot Spitzer, Storybook Cafe, Sugar Hill Farm, T.L.CIE Antiques & Decorations, and Tower Pizzeria & Restaurant.
The committee also highlighted new stone planters at the base of the Town Clock. Local resident Jim Boyles donated his time and labor to build the structures using bluestone salvaged from the original Town Park, constructed around 1988 on the former Ketterer Hotel site.
The Beautification Committee is composed of volunteers appointed by the Town Board. Members include co-chairs Meccariello and Vikki Soracco, along with Lenora Champagne ( a volunteer contributor to the Herald), Durell, and Valentine-Chase.
Residents with suggestions for future projects are encouraged to contact Meccariello at elenam617@gmail.com.
(Patrick Grego/ The New Pine Plains Herald)