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Candidates split over Six Senses resort and Rhinebeck's role in lawsuit
Summary
At a Daily Catch forum in Rhinebeck, candidates Amanda Miller and Debbie Heck sharply disagreed over the proposed Six Senses resort and whether Rhinebeck should join a lawsuit challenging neighboring towns' zoning and environmental review; Miller opposed using town resources to sue, while Heck defended the town's challenge on spot-zoning and SEQR grounds.
Amanda Miller and Debbie Heck, the two Democratic primary candidates for Rhinebeck town supervisor, used Thursday's forum to draw a clear contrast on how the town should respond to an upscale Six Senses resort proposed outside Rhinebeck.
Heck said Rhinebeck's involvement in a lawsuit is warranted because neighboring approvals appear to amount to "spot zoning" and may have avoided required environmental review. "We as a budding municipality have the right to speak up when our neighbors are not following their own laws," Heck said, noting that the Clinton planning board has issued a "positive declaration" under the state environmental quality review process (SEQR), which triggers a full environmental review of the project.
Miller said she sympathizes with concerns about any large development but opposed the town's lending its name to litigation over a project outside Rhinebeck. "We should not be using our tax dollars to sue a neighboring town for a project that is not in our town," she said, adding that she worried the town's name was being used to add "legitimacy" to residents' suits in neighboring communities. Miller said litigation decisions should follow a clear policy rather than selective choices.
Both candidates addressed claims the project would bring local revenue. Miller listed figures reported by proponents and opponents: she said Six Senses had said it would pay roughly $700,000 in school taxes to the Hyde Park district while sending no students, about $200,000 in property taxes to the town of Clinton, and that an occupancy tax in Clinton could yield roughly $1 million annually; she also described a proposed half-percent gross contribution to a local sustainability fund and the developer's sustainability certifications.
Heck urged a cautious route that uses SEQR to test whether the site is appropriate, saying the environmental sensitivity of the area requires more information before any town action is taken. She also stressed that the town's litigation costs were capped at $10,000 and that, as of her remarks, that cap had not been exceeded.
The candidates' exchange highlighted a broader divide in Rhinebeck politics over growth and the use of town authority: Miller emphasized the economic role of tourism and the need to protect village businesses that rely on visitors, while Heck stressed protecting aquifers, wells and neighborhood character and using environmental review to guide decisions.
Next steps: Clinton's SEQR process and any court filings will determine whether the project proceeds and whether Rhinebeck's legal position becomes relevant; neither candidate suggested an immediate plan to change the town's litigation policy beyond their stated positions.
