What is the Millbrook Listening Project?
The Millbrook Listening Project is a year-long listening campaign designed to gather input and identify what residents of the Town of Washington and Village of Millbrook care about most when thinking about the future of our community. Between September 2025 and January 2026, residents were asked to submit their community projects or ideas through listening events, word of mouth, and online engagement. A town-wide community ballot will be sent to all residents to vote on their top 3 priorities. The purpose of determining these priorities is to build community engagement and focus around these projects while attracting and establishing sustainable funding streams to make these ideas a reality.
Who is eligible to vote?
All Town of Washington and the Village of Millbrook residents 13 years or older are eligible to cast a vote.
How long do I have to vote?
The voting period for the Millbrook Listens Community Ballot officially opens April 1st, 2026, and closes May 15th, 2026. We welcome you to vote and participate in what matters most to you!
How were ideas and projects included on the ballot?
Through listening events, word of mouth, and online engagement, residents have sent hundreds of ideas between September 2025 and January 2026. After reviewing all projects and ideas submitted, the planning committee removed and/or combined duplicates, bringing the total to 79 distinct ideas submitted by residents of the Town of Washington and Village of Millbrook. The planning committee then determined three screening criteria to omit projects from being included on the community ballot.
The three screening criteria included:
- Projects/ideas that require private business or ownership
- Projects/ideas that are already happening or operating within the community
- Project/ideas that were unclear or could not be completed at the Town or Village level
After removing duplicate submissions, ideas beyond municipal scope, and projects that already exist in our community, 14 distinct ideas and 10 new groups to be formed in the near future were identified and included in the Millbrook Listens Community Ballot.
What should I expect after I cast my vote?
After May 15, 2026, the votes will be counted and assessed for each project, with the results of the ballot presented publicly with the Town of Washington and the Village of Millbrook in the Summer 2026 (Date TBD). Partners for Climate Action will receive a full report as the grantor of funds under the Funding Future Grant Program in June 2026, with the possibility of a successful report submission leading to new funding. Again, the purpose of this planning process is to establish reliable funding streams by which to make the priority ideas and projects a reality. Signees for the 10 future community groups will be contacted via email in order to gather and form these groups by September 2026.
What ideas and projects were submitted during the planning process?
Click here for a complete list of ideas and projects submitted.
How can I get involved?
Sharing information with friends and neighbors about the Community Ballot and signing up for one or all of the new groups to be formed is the best way to stay connected with the Millbrook Listens Project.
For further questions or comments, please email millbrooklistens@gmail.com
Who is on the planning committee?
Members of the planning committee currently include representatives of the Town of Washington, Village of Millbrook, Millbrook Library, the Millbrook Business Association, Innisfree Garden, Grace Church, Cary Institute, Millbrook School District, Millbrook Arts Group, the Millbrook Farmers Market, and other dedicated residents and neighbors of the Village of Millbrook and Town of Washington.
Christopher Wilson, a resident of the Town of Washington, is the lead Funding Future Fellow and point of contact for the Millbrook Listening Project.
What is the Funding Futures Grant Program?
The Funding Futures grant program provides technical assistance and funding for selected applicants to facilitate community-focused listening campaigns in their towns. The process will result in each community coming to a consensus on priorities and establishing reliable funding streams to safeguard their natural features with the ultimate goal of keeping communities and ecosystems healthy and resilient. Millbrook/Washington was one of six communities awarded to conduct outreach and host events over 1 year.
Partners for Climate Action (PCA) was founded in 2019 and is primarily a grant-giving organization, raising their funding from donations and foundations. Its goal is to move multiple forms of capital to where they would be most relevant, efficient, and effective to catalyze local projects that benefit the living systems of the Hudson Valley. PCA’ s grant programs have gone towards ecological restoration, youth-led programs such as water quality testing, increasing energy efficiency, and installing clean energy projects in municipal, school, and nonprofit buildings. PCA has also trained cohorts of climate-smart task force coordinators volunteering for their local municipal governments and developed a sustainability hub program for libraries in the Mid-Hudson network.
