William J. Kemble is reporting in the Daily Freeman a riverfront rally in Germantown will be held April 22, Earth Day, to protest an Amtrak proposal to erect gates and fences to bar public access via railroad maintenance roads. The stretches of the access road slated to be closed “...have for many years been active with fishing enthusiasts, bird watchers, dog walkers, joggers and walkers,” the town Waterfront Advisory Committee wrote. “Also, a ... fence parallel to the tracks and along the terminus of Germantown’s lower Main Street would seek to block river access at an unofficial crossing to an area of shore that has been busy with recreational activity dating back at least 105 years.” Columbia County sites in the Amtrak plan include Stuyvesant, Stockport and Germantown. In Dutchess County, locations similarly affected would be Tivoli, Rhinebeck and Rhinecliff. The April 22 riverfront rally will be held from noon to 2 p.m. at Ernest R. Lasher Memorial Park off Anchorage Road. Read the full story in the Daily Freeman.