MILLBROOK — The Village Board of Trustees met on Tuesday, Jan. 8, for its first regular business meeting of the month. Mayor Laura Hurley took the board through the department reports. County Legislature Michael Kelsey wasn’t present to give his county report that evening, as he usually is. Officer in Charge Justin Scribner and Fire Chief Ted Bownas were also absent that evening, so there was no fire and rescue or police report. Shade Tree Commission Chairman Earl Myers gave a brief report on trees that were planted in the village last year. Myers said that Twin Brooks in Millbrook planted nine trees throughout the village; Myers was in charge of finding the proper location for the trees. The newly planted trees included maple trees, oak trees and a shade bush in locations like Merritt Avenue, Elm Drive and Maple Avenue. Myers also told the board that for Arbor Day, the last Friday in April this year, they found a space on Maple Avenue to plant a tree. Hurley asked Myers how many trees need to be replaced after the severe weather events of last year. Myers passed the question to Highway Superintendent Bob Collocola, who said that the village is in really good shape regarding the issue and doesn’t need to replace its trees.After Myers finished his report Village Clerk Linda Wiltse gave her monthly clerk’s report. Wiltse said that the county informed the village recently that its request for a Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) for the handicap-accessibility ramp for the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) Post 9008 was denied. Wiltse said the letter also stated the county will come out in February to schedule an appointment to review the village’s grant application and suggest ways to strengthen the application so that the village has a better chance of getting funding in the future. Wiltse said she was disappointed the grant was denied because of the hard work she put into writing it.Hurley said it would be beneficial for the VFW to continue trying to get a ramp added to the building at some point in the future. The current stairs are “tight,” and many senior members have trouble climbing them and getting upstairs where their meetings are held.Wiltse then talked about the water resources survey. She provided the board and public with drafts of a letter that is going to be sent to anyone who has yet to respond to the village’s survey. There are about 10 parcels out of 314 that have yet to respond to the survey. The letter will be sent certified mail and regular mail. If the property owner fails to respond to this final request, a Village Board appointed official will be sent to inspect the property. Trustee Edward Cox said that the language in the letter was vague in stating what action the village of Millbrook would take as required by law. Herzog said that the certified letter is intended to make sure property owners are being correctly informed that the village wants the information. Herzog said by law the only time the village has a clear right to come and inspect a property is if there has been a complaint by a neighbor that there has been a violation on the property that needs to be investigated or the violation can be seen from the road. Herzog said beyond that it’s sketchy and the village cannot say that since a parcel failed to respond to the survey it will go and inspect a property. Trustee Joseph Spagnola asked who the village plans to appoint as an authority in this situation. Herzog said that the New York State Board of Health is the enforcement authority. Wiltse said whomever the board appoints can be the authority. According to Herzog, the most recent certified letter is the last of the certified mailings that are to be mailed, with the intent of verifying that the surveys have gone to the proper persons.
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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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