Stefanik Makes Formal Request for Amtrak’s Timeline to Reopen Adirondack Line

Congresswoman Elise Stefanik sent a letter to Chief Executive Officer Stephen J. Gardner formally calling on Amtrak to commit to a timeline for fully reopening the Adirondack line.

“I write to you today again urging Amtrak to publicly commit to a timeline for reopening full rail operations on the Adirondack line. The Adirondack line runs through the 21st Congressional District of New York has been closed since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020. To this point, Amtrak has failed to provide a specific date or details indicating when it will resume service along the Adirondack line. The Adirondack line is a significant economic driver for Upstate New York and the North Country. The continued delays to resume service are causing significant harm to citizens throughout New York State and the North Country, many of whom rely on passenger rail service for critical transportation,” Stefanik wrote. Read the full letter here.

Notice of the Start of Construction for Segments 1 & 2 of the Champlain Hudson Power Express Project (through Dresden)


The Champlain Hudson Power Express Project will run down route 22 through the Town of Dresden.

On or about November 18, 2022, construction activities for certain parts of Segments 1 and 2 of the Champlain Hudson Power Express Project (“CHPE”) are anticipated to begin. The Construction Zone for Segments 1 and 2 consist of a 17.6-mile overland cable route running from the western shore of Lake Champlain in the Town of Putnam to the Canadian Pacific (“CP”) Railroad right-of-way (“ROW”) in the Village of Whitehall. This underground transmission line segment runs through the Towns of Putnam, Dresden and Whitehall, as well as the Village of Whitehall, via County Route 3, Lake Road, New York State Route 22 and Bellamy Street to the CP Railroad ROW, as shown on the enclosed map. The initial construction work will commence at the Project’s construction laydown area located off of Ryder Road in Whitehall.

On October 13, 2022, the New York State Public Service Commission approved CHPE’s Environmental Management & Construction Plan (“EM&CP”) for Segments 1 and 2 of the Project. Upon receipt of a Notice to Proceed with Construction letter sent by the New York State Department of Public Service’s Office of Electric, Gas and Water, CHPE will be authorized to commence construction activities for the approved Segments.

CHPE has established a toll-free number for questions regarding the Project, including a complaint resolution plan for issues arising during construction: 1-800-991-CHPE (2473).

Questions or requests for further information can be directed to: publicoutreach@chpexpress.com or by mail to Molly Hollister, WSP USA, One Pennsylvania Plaza, New York, New York 10119. Facility construction falls under the jurisdiction of the Commission, which is responsible for enforcing compliance with environmental and construction conditions, and which may be contacted through Matthew Smith, Office of Electric, Gas and Water, New York State Department of Public Service, Three Empire State Plaza, Albany, NY 12223, via telephone at (518)474-8702
or email at matthew.smith@dps.ny.gov.

Details of the planned work locations, including construction drawings showing in detail the approved Segments, are available on the Project website at: https://chpexpress.com/overviewof-public-documents/environmental-management-construction-plan/. The full Commission docket for the Project can be accessed via the Commission’s website at:
http://documents.dps.ny.gov/public/MatterManagement/CaseMaster.aspx?MatterCaseNo=10-T0139.

Paper copies of the EM&CP for Segments 1 and 2 will be available for viewing at the following local document repositories: Black Watch Memorial Library, 99 Montcalm St., Ticonderoga, NY 12883; Whitehall Free Library, 12 Williams Street, Whitehall, NY 12887; Dresden Town Hall, 1 Lillians Way, Clemons, NY 12819; and Putnam Town Hall, 14 Putnam Center Rd, Putnam Station, NY 12861.

Fourth of July Movie to Premiere on June 30th


Makeup is applied to an actress before filming of the Fourth of July Movie in Huletts Landing in 2021.

Happy “Fourth of July” premiering June 30th at the Beacon Theatre in New York city. Filmed right here in Huletts Landing last summer.

A new independent film produced and directed by comedian Louis CK. Screenplay by Louis CK and Comedian Joe List.

It is a dramedy – funny, poignant, real-life family shenanigans movie.

More to come! And yes, we will have a roving Huletts Current field representative at the premiere.

Ian Brown named MWC Baseball Position Player of the Week

Following several astounding performances, Grinnell College’s Ian Brown ’25 has been named Midwest Conference Baseball Position Player of the Week.

Brown, a first baseman from Darien, Conn. (Greens Farms Academy), had not one, but two, walk off home runs for the Pioneers as they went 4-1 in the last week. His three-run shot against Cornell College in the bottom of the seventh inning finished off the Pioneers’ 16-6 mercy rule victory, and yet another three-run homer in the eighth inning three days later concluded the Pioneers’ 22-11 win over Monmouth College.

Brown completed his homer trifecta for the week the next day with one more three-run shot in a 20-9 win over Monmouth. For the week, he hit .611 by going 11-of-18 with 13 RBIs, nine runs scored and two doubles while posting a slugging percentage of 1.222. Grinnell put up 71 runs over the five-game span.

Ian is the son of Sean and Delphine (Knight) Brown of Huletts Landing.

Top News Story of Huletts: 2021

Many interesting things happened in Huletts in 2021. An independent film was even filmed in and around Huletts this past summer.

However for the “Top News Story of Huletts” for the year – the biggest one in my mind is clearly how the community again responded to the COVID-19 international pandemic. Life started getting back to semi-normal with vaccine shots, and small gatherings, the Huletts Casino reopened with a shortened and abbreviated schedule and school began again after Labor Day. Masks came off indoors for most of the year. Children and adults were tired of being cooped up for so long.

I received more thank-you letters and emails than I have ever received in one year – the gist of practically all of them – thanks for getting back to normal and having Huletts be a place where fear doesn’t rule. However, I can’t claim credit for that – the community gets the credit. People may have stood a little farther apart but I think Huletts Landing was ahead of the curve in realizing that we can’t shut down permanently – that we have to go ahead with living and being our “best selves.” By trying to follow “best practices” and learning as we go, we can move ahead and get through this.

The recent moves nationally to shorten the quarantine period and keep schools open in response to almost two years of the pandemic, I think reflects this changing thinking. Children have suffered greatly through the pandemic months and there is no better place for children than Huletts. While it appears we are not “out of the woods” yet, hopefully sometime in 2022, we will have the pandemic behind us.

When will things truly return to normal? We don’t know. However we look to the future with hope knowing that we made it through 2021 working together to keep Huletts safe.

May 2022 be a better year, full of glad tidings for everyone.

Happy New Year!

A Very Special Announcement from Elise and Matt

Congresswoman Elise Stefanik and her husband Matt Manda released the following statement recently:

“We are over the moon to announce the arrival of our healthy baby boy Samuel (“Sam”) Albritton Manda at 8:21 AM on Friday, August 27th, 2021. Sam was born at Saratoga Hospital weighing a healthy 9 lbs 3 ozs and measuring 22 inches long. Sam impressed all the doctors, nurses, and staff with his head of dark hair, chubby cheeks, and charm!

“We are grateful to the dedicated team of doctors, midwives, nurses, and staff at Saratoga Hospital for their excellent care of both Mom and Baby Sam. Thank you to our family, friends, and the entire community for the outpouring of love and support during this special time for our growing little family.

“Our hearts are bursting with joy and our lives have never been fuller. We are truly blessed by our most precious gift, Baby Sam. ”

Elise Stefanik & Matt Manda

Governor Cuomo Announces New Mask Guidance for Vaccinated New Yorkers

The following recommendations apply to non-healthcare settings; for complete details click here.

Starting Wednesday, May 19. 2021 – fully vaccinated people can:

Resume activities without wearing masks or physically distancing, except where required by federal, state, local, tribal, or territorial laws, rules and regulations, including local business and workplace guidance

Resume domestic travel and refrain from testing before or after travel or self-quarantine after travel

Refrain from testing before leaving the United States for international travel (unless required by the destination) and refrain from self-quarantine after arriving back in the United States

Refrain from testing following a known exposure, if asymptomatic, with some exceptions for specific settings

Refrain from quarantine following a known exposure if asymptomatic

Refrain from routine screening testing if feasible

For now, fully vaccinated people should continue to:

Get tested if experiencing COVID-19 symptoms

Follow CDC and health department travel requirements and recommendations

Quarantine for Domestic Travel Will No Longer Be Required Starting April 1st

Governor Andrew Cuomo today announced that domestic travelers will no longer be required to quarantine after entering New York from another U.S. State or U.S. Territory starting April 1st. While no longer required, the NYS Department of Health still recommends quarantine after domestic travel as an added precaution. Mandatory quarantine remains in effect for international travelers. All travelers must continue to fill out the Traveler Health Form. Individuals should continue strict adherence to all safety guidelines to stop the spread – wearing masks, socially distancing and avoiding gatherings. Click here for the full release.

Video from Mars Landing

This is actual video from the landing of the United States Mars rover, Perseverance, which touched down on Mars on February 18th. Unbelievably impressive.