Beacon Mayor Lee Kyriacou is running unopposed for re-election, as are incumbent City Council members Molly Rhodes (Ward 1), Wren Longo (Ward 3), Dan Aymar-Blair (Ward 4) and Paloma Wake (at-large). Jeffrey Domanski (Ward 2) and Pam Wetherbee (at-large) will take seats vacated by Justice McCray and George Mansfield, who did not run for a second and eighth term, respectively.
LEE KYRIACOU
What have you accomplished in your current term in office, and what are your goals for another term?
In my four years as mayor, Beacon has achieved major progress in the city’s finances, public safety for all, record infrastructure investments, enhanced quality of life, climate leadership and in transparent and diverse government. I personally renegotiated Beacon’s sales tax-sharing agreement with Dutchess County, bringing to the city more than $1 million in 2023 and $20 million over 10 years — the equivalent of an extra year and a half of property tax revenue over 10 years.
We also brought home millions in extra funds from grants, hauler fees and other sources, while negotiating stable multi-year agreements with employee unions. This has enabled the city to undertake large capital investment projects or increased services and quality of life — all while keeping property tax increases at or under the state property tax cap.
Capital projects include: a new fire house; repaving Main Street and sidewalks; water, dam and sewer projects; park improvements; and more. Increased services include: expanded recreation programs, a mental health officer to work alongside police, additional firefighters, first-time private ambulance service, adding a human resources director and more. We’ve accomplished this while continuing to professionalize city government by attracting the best people, empowering managers, paying appropriate salaries and removing politics and personal preferences from the day-to-day workings of the city.
Going forward, major capital projects to finish include the firehouse, Melzingah Dam, Teller/Fishkill Avenue reconstruction, sewage treatment plant upgrades, Tioronda Bridge and major improvements for South Avenue and Seeger parks — again, while keeping property tax increases at or below the state tax cap. And probably the most exciting opportunity: We must partner with the county to plan, fund and build a rail trail on the tracks that run from our train station, along Fishkill Creek, through downtown and out along Route 52.
I love Beacon and am honored to serve as mayor now and as a City Council member as far back as 1993 — re-setting the city’s vision and zoning, listening and working with all, and steering its amazing comeback.
What are the most significant challenges facing Beacon and what can the City Council do to resolve them?
First and foremost, prioritizing what, when and how much to spend is always a difficult task for a city. Trying to do every new idea or project sounds nice, but without considering how to prioritize and finance, it often doesn’t get done, pushes out other priorities and costs taxpayers far too much. I hope to continue to provide steady leadership and financial discipline to city government while listening to all.
Other specific challenges to address include: continuing smart growth as a city (which has brought in 1 to 2 percent new tax revenue each year); improving quality of life services, such as recreation, parks and trails; improving home affordability where we can, by encouraging denser housing and using public property for high-impact affordable projects.
CITY COUNCIL
Asked of incumbents: What have you accomplished in your current term in office and what are your goals for another term?
Aymar-Blair: The two most significant proposals I made that became law this term were renters protections and building electrification. For the last year-and-a-half, Beacon renters have enjoyed the strongest protections in New York state with our good-cause eviction law — protections that all renters deserve. And by ensuring that all new construction and major renovations are free of fossil fuels, we are protecting public health, fighting climate change and — since most Beacon homes are burning fracked gas — giving prospective homeowners and renters healthy living options.
I’m also proud of the little things that, in fact, have a big impact on our quality of life. My advocacy has won us new playground equipment, new traffic signage, new basketball courts, paved roads where they are needed, pollinator gardens and more in Ward 4. I sweat the small stuff.
In the next term, I will re-introduce a law protecting Fishkill Creek from new construction and other threats. I also want to see demonstrable progress on creating new homes that are accessible to working-class folks. And I won’t let up on making Beacon safe for pedestrians and cyclists, especially creating safer paths to Beacon schools.
Longno: It has been gratifying to work with a devoted team on the council this term. My proudest moments were in being a small part of the community meetings that Council Member Paloma Wake envisioned. I’ve learned how informal gatherings like these can produce incredible results in Beacon, when just a couple of dozen people get together and plan. So, while I cannot take any credit for these, they delight me, and especially if I got to play some small part.
Among my favorite recently Beacon-born hatchlings — and they are not all City Council-related — but they all are happening here and have the potential to change the way we live: the Conservation Advisory Committee’s citywide composting program; pollinator pathways; the City Council community quarterlies-produced Beacon Bicycle Coalition; the Foundation for Beacon Schools’ film festival; Beacon Climate Action Now-led efforts to ban gas in new construction; and the work of the council and numerous committed coalitions and individuals statewide who worked on getting just cause eviction passed in Beacon and other municipalities.
Rhodes: Collectively, we’ve ensured the city is leaning into protecting our people and our natural resources, such as through good-cause eviction and electrification of new buildings, and that we are continuing to modernize our central infrastructure, such as reservoir improvements and our new firehouse. We’ve done so in the context of ensuring we still have a strong overall financial base.
I look forward to our work to continue to enhance our community, particularly an enhanced community center, and a robust plan for the future of the Fishkill Avenue corridor. I also look forward to continuing to work with our police advisory committee to ensure we have a strong understanding of what is going on in our community and can focus on opportunities to enhance everyone’s safety and success.
Wake: I would first like to acknowledge that all of my accomplishments have been possible only through community support, for which I am incredibly grateful. Highlights of my first term in public office include passing legislation on good-cause eviction and new building electrification, and the implementation of participatory budgeting, which kicks off this week for its second year, in collaboration with Beacon High School.
In a second term, my goals would be to continue addressing affordable housing, climate resilience, participatory governance to build civic engagement, and what I will broadly call cultural and community connection. In short — to ensure that Beacon is a livable city with a diverse and connected community. To do so, we must reckon with the size and scope of the challenges present alongside these goals.
Asked of all: What are the most significant challenges facing Beacon and what can the City Council do to resolve them?
Aymar-Blair: The overarching challenge facing Beacon is making all this new development work for the people of Beacon. While we’ve made incremental progress since I joined the City Council, we need nothing less than a whole new mindset where the city is in the driver’s seat, insisting on public benefits from every project. Other cities do it; why aren’t we? We can and should demand more: more money for parks and sidewalks, more jobs, more green infrastructure and of course more housing that’s affordable to our lowest-income neighbors.
Developers aren’t all going to do these things out of the kindness of their hearts; Beacon must give them a framework for giving back to the people and reversing the ill effects of their gentrification. That’s the hard work ahead of us still, and it will require pressure from the public to make it happen.
Domanski: I was born and raised in the Hudson Valley, and I’ve proudly called the City of Beacon home for more than 12 years. In my professional life I have helped many communities with municipal programs and projects to improve the way they operate and serve their citizens. Much of my work has focused on energy and environmental issues, as well as promoting sustainability strategies, which is a broad way of thinking about how organizations operate.
While sustainability does prioritize environmental issues, it asks us to put equal effort into the economics of decisions and, very importantly, how decisions affect people; finding ways to involve more people in an ongoing way to work together to make the community work for them. A sustainable community brings people together with different priorities and opinions, a challenge faced by most communities, and provides ways to have them connect outside of their bubbles and engage productively.
There are two issues that impact every community today, especially as we emerge from the pandemic: 1) a need to feel a sense of belonging and agency, that your voice matters and that systems are set up to help with issues big and small, and 2) the widespread problem of isolation, which was accelerated during the pandemic and has led to a mental health crisis, addiction and housing insecurity.
When thinking about running, I created a list of goals for my service. In the near term, I plan to learn a great deal about Beacon’s budget, our financial priorities, if there are opportunities to make adjustments to reflect our greatest needs. I believe a budget reflects the city’s values as well as provides a map of its biggest challenges. We are working with taxpayer money and public trust. It is important to me to understand how funds are allocated and that we are thinking in terms of resiliency, as we are a diverse city that has rapidly gentrified and the disparity between wealthy residents and those who are struggling has become much wider.
Longer term, the process of citizens engaging with local governments needs to be simple and transparent. How are issues identified, discussed and addressed in Beacon? How can we foster good decision-making by making sure the council understands the issues we’re addressing, including the downstream impacts? While attending dozens of city council, town board, and village trustee meetings in New York state and around the Hudson Valley in a professional capacity, I’ve seen Beacon’s challenges are not unique. I’ve seen both good and bad examples of group problem-solving, and lessons, which I look forward to applying to my work here. We do have a unique opportunity to improve this special place we all cherish.
Longno: Recently we began discussion around rezoning Route 52, which was not given much attention in Beacon’s comprehensive plan. I hope that we can learn from the work of some of these coalitions and execute a plan for Fishkill Avenue that considers pedestrians, cyclists, affordable and multi-family housing, affordable businesses, mixed use, and environmental conservation and water protection. The many voices needed for a creative vision on Route 52 can come in concert through a participatory process.
In the future I want to see the city taking an active role in helping to foster, maybe on city-owned land, through incentives/requirements, the development of more housing that puts people before profit. Before I stared on council, every person I sat with at the table each Monday night shared an interest in truly affordable, multi-family development in Beacon, and to see that happen would be a testament to the power of a small city with a cohesive vision.
Rhodes: Our most significant challenge is how to maintain and increase opportunities for the city to be as inclusive as possible to all the people who make up our community, especially for those who are most marginalized, in the context of overall rising costs and the desirability of Beacon.
The City Council can continue to look for ways to expand affordable housing and protections for those in vulnerable housing situations, and champion critical community and infrastructure projects — from wastewater improvements to sidewalk, trail and bike lane enhancements — that are for the benefit of everyone in Beacon.
Wake: Regarding housing, it is both a basic human right and one of the largest challenges Beacon is facing. My policy priorities in this area include increasing affordability carve-outs through more ambitious inclusionary zoning, rent stabilization and supporting the expansion of public housing.
Beacon’s history as a leader in addressing climate and environmental issues lends momentum to addressing the present crisis. My local policy priorities include strengthening protections for our waterways and parklands, continuing to improve sidewalks for better pedestrian access, adding safe bike lanes along strategic corridors, and pairing an investment in public transit with a decrease in car-dependent infrastructure.
Regarding civic engagement, our democracy is strengthened by direct engagement between members of the public and elected officials around policy development. Initiatives like participatory budgeting, open-office hours and public forums all invite citizens into the process of making policies that affect everyday lives, and I am eager to invest more of my time and energy into these initiatives.
At one such public forum around safety, a Beacon resident shared that it is community itself that keeps us safe. Housing insecurity and displacement destabilize our communities. Extreme weather events and the health effects of poor climate policy destabilize our communities. My vision for Beacon contains stable housing and model climate policy as well as spaces that promote cultural exchange and community connection through gatherings, including an eventual municipal community center.
Through the next term, I intend to help craft policy solutions that meet lived realities by continuing to engage the dedication and inspired vision of this community.
Wetherbee: The most significant challenges Beacon is facing today are development, affordability, transportation and quality of life issues.
I moved to Beacon over 37 years ago. My top reason why was affordability. I don’t think too many local people move here today because of that reason. Many can’t afford to live here anymore, especially our younger generations. With Beacon’s rent already high and still rising, and home prices out of reach for many, this has rapidly become a crisis.
Affordability is important for a whole range of incomes. It is the middle class that seem to be caught between low-income housing and luxury apartments. The speed at which development has been happening in the past several years seems too fast and overwhelming for many residents. Moving too fast can create missed opportunities that we may later regret. We must be proactive and work together on the future vision for Beacon.
While being on the Main Street Access Committee, we saw many positives for Main Street, but we also found many gaps and issues, especially with handicapped accessibility and traffic. These issues aren’t just on Main Street; they affect the whole city.
We have a new fire department building and structure, future larger recreation center, future rail trail, more electric bikes and cars, more senior citizens and more growth. We need to make smart, proactive decisions for our growth and our challenges. The City Council can’t solve these challenges on its own; we need the help of our county, state and federal governments to make this happen.
We live in a wonderful community. It is much nicer then when I moved here in the mid-1980s. Main Street is booming and we have so many opportunities to enjoy our natural surroundings of the mountains and river with all the beautiful parks and trails in between. I look forward to further discussions with the City Council to address these challenges and more.
