NORTH EAST — Talks regarding the proposed supermarket slated for the Boulevard District moved from the Planning Board’s domain to the Town Board’s, as the subject of water service was broached last week. The Town Board held a special meeting at Town Hall on Thursday, April 7, to conduct that discussion among supermarket applicant Southern Realty & Development, LLC (represented by John Joseph), project engineer Rich Rennia, project architect Ray Nelson, Town Engineer Ray Jurkowski, Attorney to the Town Warren Replansky and the members of the Town Board. The goal of the meeting, according to town Supervisor Dave Sherman, was to hash out a framework of how to approach the concept of water service for the as-of-yet-unnamed supermarket planned for Route 44 East, near the Connecticut border.First choice, exploring other options While the conversation focused on the 10-acre site owned by Quinmill Properties Inc., which Southern Realty & Development, LLC (SRD) is looking to develop, SRD acknowledged its first choice is still to come to an agreement with C&S Wholesalers, which runs the Grand Union supermarket in Millerton and leases that space from property owner Robert Trotta. That pursuit has thus far been unsuccessful.At last week’s meeting, Rennia gave an overview of the applicant’s second option.“The Quinmill property site, we’ll develop that site and put in an almost 36,000-sqare-foot supermarket and redo the entrance into Ken Thompson’s building, and move that [entrance] farther to the west, and have one joint entrance in,” Rennia said, adding there would be a large loop around the building for truck traffic. The engineer also said there is “plenty of room” to install a septic system.“There is room to install a private well and put together a private water system,” Rennia said, before reviewing the applicant’s water service options. “Seeing that the water district is very close, about 1,200 feet down Route 44, west to the site, [there] is the possibility of connecting to that system. There are two ways: One is an expansion of the district and one is to create, out of the district, a user contract agreement between the developer and the town.”Rennia said either way the same 8-inch water line extension would be used.Who wants in, who wants outJoseph interjected that the adjoining property owners, Ken Thompson (owner of Thompson’s Plaza) and Basil Gabriel (owner of Basil’s Auto Shop) “have no need or desire to connect” to the town’s water district. He added the supermarket would like to be an out-of-district user. It expects to use approximately 2,000 gallons of water a day, which led the developer to describe the market as “not a tremendous water user,” but added it would be willing to cooperate with the municipality as needed.“We would construct [it], and also, if the town felt at a later date it needed to form a district and bring those people in, we would be happy to contribute our share or even pay the district at that time,” he said. “But at this point we would try to keep it as simple as possible.”Rennia sent a letter dated March 3, 2011, to the town supervisor. The matter was put succinctly.“It is anticipated that Southern Realty & Development, LLC would bear the costs to expand the water district including construction, design and permitting,” he stated. “The proposed project will require an estimated 2,000 gallons per day for normal consumption purposes and fire flow needs are 1,000 gallon per minute.”It’s the details that countCouncilman Dave McGhee raised an important point, reminding those present the town’s water district receives its supply from the village.“First of all I think it isn’t going to be up too much to the Town Board — it’s up to the Village Board if they’re going to be able to make another district. They’re the ones that control the water. Secondly, I’m very interested if there’s enough pressure to sustain all that way out there. I hope you do.“I will throw in this comment,” he added. “I know you have different ideas, I’ve lived here all my life, and you should be able to hook onto a line at the state line by Thompson Plaza and Basil’s, because they’re not going to stay there. Once we’re going this far, whether we do [the supermarket] or not, we should be able to hook up. Things are going to change; once somebody offers [those businesses out by the state line money to buy them out] they’re not going to stay there.”Councilman Carl Stahovec then brought up the wetlands issue and the buffer that usually accompanies them.“The last project had a 300-foot buffer,” he said. “You obviously don’t have that here. I’d be interested to see where that’s going. We’ve been getting letters [concerning wetlands]; another issue is the bog turtles. That’s another hurdle that’s there.”The applicant has engaged a biologist to do a bog turtle survey, which will be conducted sometime this month. The developer said in more than two decades doing his work he’s never seen the turtles yet.“As long as there’s a habitat there don’t have to be turtles,” Councilman Steven Merwin rebutted.Who is SRD? At that point Sherman asked Joseph what his exact relationship to Southern Realty & Development was.“I’m it,” responded Joseph, later adding he works with another investor. “We are owners, operators, of shopping centers. We acquire land and develop on behalf of tenants and then they become our tenants and they rent from us.”Getting off track and regaining focusTalk quickly reverted to focus on water. Merwin raised concerns about whether the village could handle the load, or if another water tank might be needed. He made reference to the town’s decision in the 1990s to not build another storage tank, which caused a brief skirmish with the town supervisor. The two quickly settled back to the business at hand.“We need to look out for the village on this,” Merwin said.“You’re right,” Replansky said. “The village has to make sure it has the capacity for this. The village can look at the plans for the proposed development on the site and see what the water requirements are, but if they’re talking about a district expansion, they have to look at the other properties then to see if they have the capacity.”“I don’t want the public to pay for anything,” McGhee said, adding an escrow account must be established.Two escrow accounts will actually be created; one escrow account will be for the planning process reviewed by the Planning Board and the other will be for the professional review undertaken by the Town Board. Neither account has been created yet, nor has a dollar amount been set for either of the two accounts, according to the town supervisor.
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Greg Fricke and James Boehmer, co-owners of Peggy Mercury in Kent, recently launched their first fashion line, “Imaginary Concerts.”
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Fricke and Boehmer are not there to stock their shelves with the same products customers find at standard makeup retailers. They’re there to help customers find what works for them. That usually means asking customers about themselves and learning about their beauty habits, skin, style and the way they like to present themselves. Fricke and Boehmer believe it’s their job to help customers bring out the qualities that suit them and determine what works best for their look.
So much of the Peggy Mercury world is about emboldening people to become more creative, and possibly bolder, versions of themselves. Some of this comes through the store’s creative collaborations with artists, designers and stylists.
It’s part of an ethos that encourages them and their friends to use the shop as a kind of laboratory, trying out new creative experiments without knowing how they might turn out. Whether in fashion, painting, fiber arts or photography, the projects almost always turn out marvelously.
A line of sterling silver charms they sell started as a small project by their friend Nolan Percival. In the beginning, the pieces were for close friends and loved ones. But Boehmer and Fricke encouraged Percival to get a little more serious about the project and create a whole line for the store. Today, it’s one of their top-selling collections.
Classic styles, bold colors, and creative concerts make up the “Imaginary Concerts” line at Peggy Mercury.Provided
“Imaginary Concerts” has the duo taking their own advice.
The project started as a way for Boehmer to connect with his mother, who had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. Taking old concert shirts from his own collection, Boehmer and his mother began cutting out the graphics with the idea that they would make a quilt together. Unfortunately, she died before they could complete the project in 2025. The pieces, which were ready for production, were put on the back burner as Boehmer and Fricke dealt with their loss and the whirlwind of projects that never seemed to cease at Peggy Mercury.
But the harsh winter of 2026 presented an opportunity to take some time and focus on themselves. Part of that meant revisiting and redefining the concert T-shirt project. This time, instead of looking to the warmth and comfort of a quilt, they turned to another passion — fashion.
Taking a page from their own book, they wanted to create something that felt comfortable to them. They took two disparate loves — one rooted in simple preppy style, with clean lines and classic silhouettes, and the other in the nitty gritty worlds of punk rock and pop — and blended them together to create something entirely new. Pulling from the staples of vintage Brooks Brothers and Charvet collections, they applied the graphic elements with bold stitching reminiscent of punk jackets of the ‘70s and ‘80s, but with a much more sophisticated air.
But the remixing isn’t just the pairing of prep and punk. The pieces are not canon. They take liberties with the realities of concert tours, combining one band’s dates with another band’s logos, mixing them all up until the reality is lost and imagination is the only truth.
Shirts from Peggy Mercury’s first fashion line, “Imaginary Concerts,” hang on display.Provided
Adding to the mix is an element of perpetual creativity. Art can be messy, both figuratively and literally, and many of Fricke and Boehmer’s artist friends carry evidence of their work on them at all times. As a nod to these tireless creatives, the duo added haphazard splashes of bright color, giving the line an even more distinctive feel.
For them, “Imaginary Concerts” passes the “Peggy Test.” The mythical Peggy Mercury is a fictional figurehead for the company, a character who thrives on creativity and change. The name, much like the clothing line, is a mixture of interests: Mercury is a planet, a deity and an elusive, transformative element, while Peggy is the wonderfully stylish and boundary-pushing Peggy Guggenheim.
Everything Fricke and Boehmer put in their store has to pass this test: Would Peggy Mercury approve? For their first collection, the answer is a resounding yes.
Peggy Mercury is at 9 Maple St., Unit 2, Kent.
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