Town of the Week: Milan

  |  November 18, 2013
winding creek milan ny

Winding Creek in Milan; one of the many plots of land for sale in town

The town of Milan in Dutchess County might be considered a bit of an outlier:  Its topography has always prevented it from becoming a thriving agricultural area, like so many areas in the Hudson Valley, and there’s never been any real town or village center. Furthermore, the smallest town in Dutchess County saw a drastic decrease in its population between the mid-nineteenth century until just after the Depression, when it started to climb again. These days, Milan, which is comprised of six hamlets, is still the smallest town in Dutchess County…but now, it has the fastest growing population. While iron mills and other businesses sprang up in Milan during its heyday around 1840, the town was essentially abandoned for fast-growing river towns, which some folks say may have played a part in why Milan has managed to avoid over-development through the years. In fact, many people in Milan hope to keep their grip on its rural, sleepy, untouched character. This desire has been apparent over the years, when various mining operations have tried to set up shop in town, all met with fierce opposition from Milan’s residents.

If you love old-fashioned rural architecture (and hey, who doesn’t?), put a driving tour of Milan on your list of places to visit. Areas like Cases Corners, which branches off where Milan Hollow Road meets Salisbury Turnpike, and Jackson Corners are the historic hubs of the town, with charming red barns, Colonials, and Greek Revivals. At Jackson Corners, you’ll find the buildings that once served as the town’s blacksmith, grist mill, and post office, now transformed into private residences. There are two parks within the town’s limits: Milan Recreational Park, and the Wilcox County Park, which has a swimming and boating lake. Roeliff Jansen Multiple Use Area is just on the other side of the Taconic. Speaking of which, part of the reason for the town’s uptick in population is due to its proximity to the Parkway, not to mention that it’s close to Red Hook, Rhinebeck, and Pine Plains. Since Milan lacks its own school district, the children in town attend schools in one of those three areas.

milan

Milan is even pretty from Google Street View

There are some truly stunning properties on the market in Milan, but it’s definitely not the place to go looking for some five-figure fixer-uppers. Most of the good stuff is listed between $300,000 and $600,000, with some stuff on either end of that, including several multimillion dollar properties. There’s also a ton of land available in Milan, and you can bet your bippy it’s breathtaking.

Milan is located in northern Dutchess County, approximately 9 miles from Red Hook, 24 miles from Poughkeepsie, and 94 miles from NYC.

milan capture

GMAP

Town of Milan Website

MilanConcerns.com

 

About Kandy Harris

Kandy is a writer and musician/music teacher living in Saugerties, NY.

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