The year may have started off with a whimper instead of a bang, but municipal leaders hope to create a friendlier business atmosphere in their southern Dutchess County communities.
Joan Pagones, town of Fishkill supervisor; town of Wappingers new Supervisor Christopher Colsey; Beacon”™s new Mayor Steve Gold; and John Hickman, elected to his second term as supervisor of the town of East Fishkill, made up the panel of elected officials who presented their 2008 agendas to more than 250 members of the Greater Southern Dutchess Chamber of Commerce at Fishkill”™s Holiday Inn Jan. 9.
Pagones, who has served as supervisor of Fishkill since 1992, said part of the town”™s 2008 initiatives include finalizing its comprehensive plan, expanding opportunities for developers to build affordable housing, as well as amending current signage code to make it more business friendly. She also stressed the need for the contiguous municipalities to “create intermunicipal agreements ”“ that”™s the way government functions well.” In light of the current economic climate, Pagones told peers, “We have to learn to do more with less. We are having a housing crisis and the need for affordable
