Kyriacou: Beacon Again in ‘Excellent’ Condition

Mayor delivers second State of the City address

Using the same adjective he did a year ago, Mayor Lee Kyriacou said during his State of the City address on Monday (April 1) that Beacon is in “excellent” shape. 

“Beacon has made a spectacular transformation in the 30-plus years since I joined the City Council in 1993 — from a down-and-out factory town with a largely boarded-up Main Street, into a rejuvenated small city with a thriving Main Street, preserved history and natural beauty,” Kyriacou said in his second annual address, calling the Beacon of 2024 “the envy of the Hudson Valley.”

He attributed the transformation to “rethinking the city’s direction, thoughtful zoning and other changes documented in our comprehensive plan, and decades of gradual change led by those who love and serve this city.”

As in 2023, Kyriacou discussed six elements of Beacon’s success during his 30-minute presentation. 

Financial stability

The mayor said he considered the city’s 10-year sales tax-sharing agreement with Dutchess County, which he negotiated in 2022, a watershed. The city last year received $5.8 million from the county, a $1.2 million increase over 2022. That number could exceed $6 million this year. He said the additional revenue allowed the city to set its property tax rates — for both residential and commercial parcels — at their lowest level since 2010. 

Kyriacou also discussed the influx of new construction in Beacon, which added $27 million in 2023 to the tax base and more than $100 million over three years. That has allowed the city to keep tax increases below the mandated state cap and, in recent years, below the rate of inflation, he said. 

Public safety

The largest public safety initiative of recent years is the ongoing construction of a $14.7 million, centralized fire station, a project that Kyriacou said he would not have supported without the Dutchess tax agreement. 

The all-electric, energy-efficient station is on schedule and should be finished by late summer, he said. While the city will need to borrow money to pay for the project, its financial stability allowed it to secure better interest rates, and the mayor said Beacon has saved in recent years to mitigate the cost. Renovating an existing station also reduced costs. “I can assure you we’ve got this figured out,” Kyriacou said. 

Like most municipalities, Beacon has a shortage of volunteer firefighters and emergency responders. As a result, it had to increase the number of paid, or “career,” firefighters and in 2023 hired a private company for the first time to provide advanced life support ambulance service. 

“That’s probably going to be an ongoing commitment and one that we’re going to have to figure out how to cover,” Kyriacou said. “We will do it in a way that’s gradual to make sure that we figure out how to fund this.” 

Infrastructure

“Beacon’s infrastructure is in the best shape it has been in in a long time,” Kyriacou said, noting that $40 million in road, sidewalk, water and wastewater projects are underway or will begin in 2024. The most expensive will be the $8.8 million rebuilding of Route 52 (Fishkill/Teller avenues). The project, which will be nearly entirely funded by state and federal money, should begin this year. 

The city also continues its investment in drinking water and wastewater systems, including settling tanks and a dewatering system and pump station for wastewater treatment, he said. It has finished updates to the Pocket Road and Mount Beacon dams and is awaiting state approval to begin work on the Melzingah Dam.

The mayor poked fun at the Main Street dummy light, which has been hit and repaired several times recently. “We’re trying out new striping and hoping to steer vehicles clear of it,” he said. “I’m not holding my breath.”

Quality of life

Kyriacou summarized some of the “quick wins” achieved by following the recommendations of the Main Street Access Committee — better signage, side-street stop signs, safer pedestrian crossings and “bump-outs” that slow traffic on Main Street. The committee also suggested restriping some municipal lots and side streets to create more parking spaces near Main.

Kyriacou said that since his election in 2019, the Recreation Department budget had doubled to more than $1 million. The department in 2024 saw a record 17 percent funding increase, enabling the city to add staff and expand its afterschool and summer camp programs, he noted.

In 2023, improvements were made at Memorial and Green Street parks. In 2024, the Wee Play Tot Park in Memorial Park is being rebuilt and South Avenue Park will be renovated with resurfaced tennis and basketball courts and new restrooms. 

Climate

Beacon is a silver-certified Climate Smart Community, one of only two cities to achieve the state’s highest accreditation. (The other is Kingston.) “For us to be truly climate-smart, we have to prioritize what matters most and find ways to achieve those goals over time without overburdening taxpayers,” Kyriacou said. 

All city buildings run on renewable electricity, the bulk of which is produced at its solar farm near the Transfer Station, with the remainder supplied through the purchase of renewable energy credits. A planned solar array atop the Highway Garage on Camp Beacon Road will boost those numbers, he said.

The city also expanded its municipal composting program in 2023, diverting more than 100,000 pounds of food scraps from the waste stream.

Government

Kyriacou praised City Administrator Chris White, as well as the outside legal, planning and engineering firms used by the city. He noted the hires in 2022 and 2023 of a new fire chief, city clerk and building inspector, and applauded Sara Morris, the human resources director, for her work in professionalizing the workforce. 

“Residents, taxpayers and employees deserve a professionally run city, one that uses taxpayers’ funds effectively, empowers department managers and develops our employees,” the mayor said.