Setting records

The Big Bang theory has it that about 13.8 billion years ago an explosion marked the beginning of the expansion of the universe. The word we’re fixed on here is “expansion.” The American economy is experiencing an economic expansion, and as long as the expansion continues, investor confidence appears ready to hang on for the ride. Last week we witnessed new milestones as major stock market indexes continue to rise.

The S&P 500, a broad index of of stocks, crosssed over the 5,000 level for the first time ever. The S&P 500 rose for the 14th week out of 15 by last Friday’s close, something that hasn’t happened since Richard Nixon was in the White House in 1972. The Nasdaq Composite, a tech stock barometer, also climbed, continuing a winning streak for the 15th week that it hadn’t seen since 1997. So did the Dow Jones Industrial Average, a basket of 30 stocks. All three indexes ended the week with gains.

Investors have been buoyed by strength in the labor market — a job-growth report showing employers added 353,000 jobs — and by solid corporate earnings.

In Connecticut, the economic picture also remains positive, according to the Connecticut Business and Industry Association. Real GDP grew by 4.7 percent in the state in the third quarter last year, which was slightly below the national average of 4.9 percent but double the rate for all of 2022. In November, Connecticut’s Department of Labor reported job growh for the third month in a row. And in the Hudson Valley, private sector jobs rose to 809,800, an increase of 6,100, over the year that ended in December, according to the New York State Department of Labor. Two of the New York region’s private sectors — health care and social assistance — posted year-over-year growth of at least 5.2 percent, the department reported.

Yet we have another set of data points that don’t relate to any kind of metaphorical Big Bang expansion at all. In an economy hallmarked by steady growth, approximately one in four households in our local region struggles to make ends meet.

According to the Connecticut United Ways, in its 2022 Alice report, an acronym that stands for Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed, 25 percent of the households in Northwest Connecticut earn more than the Federal Poverty Level but less than the basic cost of living in the area. The basics include: housing, food, child care, health care, technology and transportation. The United Way in the Dutchess-Orange County Region, reported in 2021 that the same percentage — 25 percent — of households in Dutchess County fell into the Alice category.

There are economic and market reports that set records, reflecting positive growth and aspirations for a continued expansion — with chronic shortcomings in the mix. In 2023 there were 1,111 households on waiting lists for affordable rental housing in the 21 towns that comprise the Northwest Hills Council of Governments. It’s a similar story in Dutchess County, where, according to DATAUSA, 19.5% of the population was living with severe housing problems in 2022. From 2014 to 2022, the percentage expanded by 1.1%.

Latest News

Yellowjackets lose to Hawks in Falls Village

FALLS VILLAGE — The Gilbert/Northwestern/Housatonic Yellowjackets co-op football team lost 47-14 to the Woodland Regional High School Hawks Saturday, Oct. 5.

Woodland’s explosive speed created breakaway plays on the ground and in the air. Woodland QB Jack Brunetti Brunetti threw for 160 yards and the Hawks’ backfield combined for 298 rushing yards.

Keep ReadingShow less
Economic pressures jeopardize Connecticut's farming future

Marble Valley Farm in Kent leases land from the Kent Land Trust at below-market rates. The model enabled owner Megan Haney to grow her vegetable operation in an otherwise harsh economic climate for Connecticut farmers.

Photo by Sarah Lang

In August, the USDA’s 2024 Land Values Summary reported that Connecticut has the third most expensive farm real estate in the country (tied with Massachusetts) at two times the northeast average for dollars per acre.

To Chelsea Gazillo, the senior New England policy manager for American Farmland Trust, these numbers reflect a “farmland access and succession crisis” that has impacted the state for “the last 15 years at least.”

Keep ReadingShow less
Fashion and fun mark a century of service

Tom Barret shows off some Rummage Sale finds.

Natalia Zukerman

On Saturday, Sept. 28, the Cornwall Woman’s Society hosted its 100th anniversary celebration at Mohawk Mountain ski lodge.

“This celebration is to thank the people of Cornwall for their support and to celebrate the 100 years that the Woman’s Society has contributed to Cornwall and to needs near and far,” said Nancy Berry, co-chair of the Cornwall Woman’s Society (CWS).

Keep ReadingShow less
Haystack Festival returns to Norfolk

Now in its sixth year, the Haystack Book Festival brings together writers and thinkers in unmoderated conversation. Produced in conjunction with the Norfolk Foundation, whose mission is “to contribute to the vitality and sustainability of Norfolk, particularly in relation to the town’s natural setting and multiple artistic and cultural attractions,” the Haystack Book Festival takes place at the Norfolk Library. On Sunday, Oct. 6 at 1:30 p.m. the festival will have an event for middle grade readers at The HUB featuring Sarah Maslin Nir.

“We’re excited to be celebrating the sixth year of the festival. This year we have a great program discussing topics as wide ranging as ballet, interpreting the landscape, and looking at the horse as a treasured companion throughout history, along with other ideas that will be discussed on our stage,” says Michael Selleck co-director of the Haystack Book Festival.

Keep ReadingShow less