Red Hook beat reporter Athan Yanos joins Emily Sachar to break down a closely watched village board election that brought two political newcomers to power. Perry Allen and Craig Rothstein unseated incumbent Anthony Maccarini, with Rothstein winning by just 17 votes after a recount. Yanos walks through what drove the results, from a meticulously run grassroots campaign to the outsized role of trustee Frances Uku's endorsement, and explains why the troubled wastewater treatment plant became the defining issue of the race. The conversation also covers the potential shift in board dynamics under Mayor Karen Smythe, the stakes of a planned fourfold expansion of the village sewer system, a new zoning study for the village's northeast quadrant, and the steep learning curve awaiting two trustees with just one-year terms and a full agenda.

Produced by Emily Sachar, Walter Mullin, Matty Rosenberg, and Jennifer Hammoud at the Radio Free Rhinecilff studio

Walter Mullen and reporter Claire Greenberger take up a proposal from Clinton Vineyards owner Barry Milea to convert a former tasting-room barn on Schultzville Road into an 80-seat fine-dining restaurant with a limited events component. The plan has landed before the Clinton Planning Board, where traffic concerns have taken center stage: a new study projects peak hourly vehicle counts could jump from roughly 25 to around 60, more than doubling, on a narrow, winding road with constrained sight lines. Nearby residents are also worried about what a busy restaurant would do to the road's quiet, rural feel. Milea frames the project differently, arguing it would keep the land in agriculture and head off residential development, and he points to a 2023 town law permitting farm restaurants under certain sourcing rules. The Planning Board has paused the hearing pending revised plans; a review is expected in April, with the hearing set to resume after that.

Produced by Emily Sachar, Walter Mullin, Matty Rosenberg, and Jennifer Hammoud at the Radio Free Rhinecilff studio

Emily welcomes Betty Olson, 82, who shares what it means to become the sole caregiver for her husband of decades. Peter Olson, 84, was diagnosed with Alzheimer's — symptoms that came into sharp focus following a kidney transplant in July 2023. Betty traces the arc of their life together: meeting in a scuba class, their complementary strengths, building a home in Clinton. She describes the early signs of cognitive decline, the practical challenges of managing a household when familiar tools and simple directions become obstacles, and the emotional weight of watching someone you know completely change. The conversation includes moments of unexpected humor, honest fears about the cost of in-home care, and Betty's determination to hold onto her own identity through church, choir, volunteering, and an upcoming shoulder replacement.

This episode was Sponsored by Hudson Solar and Battery Solutions.

Produced by Emily Sachar, Walter Mullin, Matty Rosenberg, and Jennifer Hammoud at the Radio Free Rhinecilff studio

Emily Sachar of The Daily Catch hosts The Catchup, sponsored by Hudson Solar and Battery Solutions, and sits down with Bard Observer co-editors Luc Redgate and Mica Rajakumar, who have been leading student coverage of Bard College President Leon Botstein since DOJ documents tied to Jeffrey Epstein named him. The editors walk through their exclusive interview with Botstein and a Feb. 12 open house at his campus home that drew 60 to 80 people and grew tense, with some students pushing for his resignation. Botstein stayed composed but kept returning to the same points: he won't step down, calling that a decision for the board; he should have cut ties with Epstein in 2015; and he's proposed a $400,000 fund, drawn from Epstein-linked money, to address sexual violence.

Produced by Emily Sachar, Walter Mullin, Matty Rosenberg, and Jennifer Hammoud at the Radio Free Rhinecilff studio

Host Emily Sachar and Rhinebeck beat reporter Eloise Goldsmith dig into a brewing Democratic primary for town supervisor, one that got interesting fast after Supervisor Elizabeth Spinzia announced she won't seek reelection and threw her support behind Deputy Supervisor Debbie Hecht. Hecht, a relative newcomer to the area and co-founder of Beck Hook Pride, says she came up through the work: attending meetings, handling communications, learning the town from the inside out. But she's got company. Attorney and former First Vice President of Rhinebeck Chamber of Commerce Amanda Miller is running on a reform platform, term limits, a streamlined planning code, and a harder look at what she calls closed-door governance, pointing to the Six Senses lawsuit as Exhibit A. Town board members aren't taking the criticism lying down, pushing back on Miller's claims about proposed parking penalties and the Amtrak station project. Petitioning runs through April 2, with a June primary to follow.

Produced by Emily Sachar, Walter Mullin, Matty Rosenberg, and Jennifer Hammoud at the Radio Free Rhinecilff studio

Host Walter Mullen speaks with Rhinebeck reporter Eloise Goldsmith about Linwood, a 51-acre historic compound overlooking the Hudson River. Established as an estate in 1774 and later given to the Sisters of St. Ursula, the property is now for sale via a formal RFP process developed with the Town of Rhinebeck. The discussion covers the site's restrictive HP-20 zoning, the town's openness to variances for the right project, preservation requirements tied to the property's historic designations, and questions about transparency and public input. Proposals are due April 17, with a preferred buyer expected by June and a sale anticipated in July, though any development would likely take years.

Produced by Emily Sachar, Walter Mullin, Matty Rosenberg, and Jennifer Hammoud at the Radio Free Rhinecilff studio

Walter and Emily examine the recently released Jeffrey Epstein files and what they reveal about Bard College president Leon Botstein's connections to the disgraced financier. They look at Botstein's decades-long leadership of Bard, the achievements, the institution-building, the outsized reputation, and then at the uncomfortable details now coming to light, from fundraising ties to campus visits. What does this mean for Bard? How should colleges vet their donors?

Produced by Emily Sachar, Walter Mullin, Matty Rosenberg, and Jennifer Hammoud at the Radio Free Rhinecilff studio

In this episode of The Catch Up, Emily talks with reporter Maggie Baribault to examine the quiet transformation that occurs when memory loss enters a marriage. Through conversations with three couples navigating different stages of dementia and Alzheimer's, we witness how love adapts when the architecture of shared history begins to crumble. These intimate portraits reveal both the weight of caregiving and the surprising moments of connection that persist, small acts of creativity, flashes of recognition, the muscle memory of devotion. What emerges is not a clinical study but a deeply human exploration of what remains when remembering becomes impossible, and how couples forge new ways of being together even as the past slips away.

Produced by Emily Sachar, Walter Mullin, Matty Rosenberg, and Jennifer Hammoud at the Radio Free Rhinecilff studio