COLD SPRING – Residents of western Putnam, northern Westchester and southern Dutchess will have a new facility to handle their DMV necessities next year now that the Putnam County Department of Motor Vehicles will be expanding to Cold Spring.
County Clerk Michael Bartolotti made an announcement Tuesday evening during a budget meeting reviewing his department’s 2027 fiscal expenditure before a marathon four and one-half hour-long meeting of the county Legislature’s Rules Committee.
Bartolotti said the part-time DMV office will be located in the American Legion Hall in Cold Spring. “Money has been placed in our budget to pay for the rental while additional funding has resulted in our department leasing a vehicle to transport equipment to and from Cold Spring when needed,” he said.
Bartolotti added that a need existed for a satellite DMV office in Putnam. “We set up the office at the county fair last summer which was a tremendous success.”
He thanked Legislator Nancy Montgomery for her aid in obtaining the hall in conjunction with village and town officials in Cold Spring and Philipstown.
When asked about DMV offices in nearby Beacon and Peekskill which now serve many western Putnam residents, Bartolotti said the Beacon office has been “bombarded with folks crossing the bridge from Newburgh.”
Bartolotti also stressed that every customer conducting DMV business in Putnam, the county receives 10.75 percent from Albany.
Legislature Chair Dan Birmingham called Bartolotti’s office a “revenue generator for Putnam County. I hear from my colleagues in New York City who live on Long Island and lower Westchester who travel to Brewster for their DMV needs because the office is a well-oiled machine with friendly faces at each window and no waiting. The office runs like clockwork,” he said.
Bartolotti, who initiated an appointment system for DMV during COVID, called the network a complete success. “The stress and pressure in that office that existed when hours upon hours of people waiting to be served was horrible. Appointments brought the temperature down tremendously so much so that people and auto dealers come from near and far to have their transactions taken care of in Brewster by a caring, courteous and professional staff,” he said.
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