On July 1, 1986, I moved to River Avenue with my wife and son. Two years later we bought a 200-year-old fixer-upper on Angola Road, where we raised our two sons. I restored and loved that house for 33 years, before relocating to Newburgh.

This past July, 40 years to the day, I moved back to Cornwall into a house on Hudson Street. I’m over the moon to be back in the Hudson Valley’s cutest little town.

Coming home has me thinking about what makes Cornwall special and what it means to protect it.

After moving to Angola I learned of a massive development nearby. Having grown up on overdeveloped Long Island I organized opposition to the Canterbury Brook Ranch development: a hotel, shopping center and 400 homes around a golf course.

Our efforts paved the way for Scenic Hudson to purchase and transfer the property to the Hudson Highlands Nature Center. My involvement led to a seat on the 1992 Cornwall Master Plan Committee. I learned that a Comprehensive Plan is more than a document. It’s a community deciding what to protect and how to grow. Preservation and progress aren’t opposing forces. Good planning makes room for both.

My Cornwall story comes full circle. My son attended the Nature Center’s first preschool class. In 2018 I became its Executive Director, on the land I’d helped save. However, protecting it didn’t mean leaving it untouched. We added an after-school program, refurbished Grasshopper Grove, increased attendance and teacher pay, and with grants and support from the village and Mayor Gagliano renovated the Wildlife Education Center. We increased offerings without sacrificing the things that made it worth saving.

Loving a place doesn’t mean standing still.

Over the last 30 years Cornwall has added housing, schools, and businesses without losing our essential character. More recently, Storm King Theater, Donahue Farm, and riverfront improvements have enriched Cornwall.

What makes these different from the development I opposed in 1990? Scale, purpose and respect for the community they serve.

The question isn’t whether Cornwall should evolve. It’s whether that evolution makes Cornwall better without losing what we love about it.

I’m grateful to be home. Josh’s years as Town Supervisor and Scott’s Chamber of Commerce leadership have coincided with thoughtful improvements in Cornwall. I believe they understand the nuance of balancing what makes this town special with what it needs to thrive for generations to come.