March 22, 2024 - In this issue: | |
State Supreme Court Uphold ETPA | |
City of Kingston Tree Counter | |
Midtown Thriving to Launch with Public Meeting | |
Mid-Hudson Energy Transition Programs & Public Meeting | |
Dietz Stadium Construction Update | |
City of Kingston Job & Board Opportunities | |
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Mayor's Message:
Dear Friends -
We will be kicking off the Midtown Thriving initiative with a public meeting in April. I encourage everyone to participate -- this effort will help spur the revitalization of underutilized parcels in Midtown Kingston to create environmentally responsible, mixed-use and walkable infill redevelopment. The Midtown Thriving plan should represent a true community vision, so keep an eye out for the many upcoming opportunities for public engagement.
A reminder that nominations for the 2024 Kingston Distinguished Artist Award are due today- nominate your favorite local artist!
Nominations can be creatives from any artistic discipline and must be a resident of Kingston for at least 2 years. The awardee will be chosen based on their level of artistry, commitment to the art form, commitment to the community, and recognition in the field locally, nationally, or internationally.
-Steve
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State Supreme Court Upholds ETPA | |
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Mayor Noble is pleased to announce that the City of Kingston’s vacancy study, and the passage of the Emergency Tenant Protection Act (ETPA) has been upheld in the State Supreme Court.
In a statement, Mayor Noble said, “The Appellate Court’s concise and thoughtful decision provides hope and support for our tenants here in Kingston who have been suffering during this housing crisis. The judges unanimously concurred that the City of Kingston correctly applied the 2019 Emergency Tenant Protection Act to our community in an effort to reign in outlandish rent hikes by a few property owners at a time of critically low vacancy. Before ETPA, renters in our community had no support system in place to provide the necessary protections and stabilized rental costs and I am glad that this panel has continued to empower our rent guidelines board. These vital protections have improved the quality of life for thousands of our residents. This decision sets a precedent for the rest of New York State that communities can conduct their own thorough vacancy studies and have a right to declare a housing emergency when warranted. I would like to thank my Corporation Counsel Barbara Graves-Poller for her excellent legal work on this case, as well as my Director of Housing Initiatives for his work on our vacancy study and his efforts stabilize, protect, and build housing in Kingston.”
On Thursday, March 21, 2024, the Appellate Division ruled in favor of the City of Kingston, declaring: “The record leaves no doubt that [the 2022 study] was conducted in good faith and delivered results that were based upon precise data. It follows that the Common Council could, and did, reasonable rely upon its results to determine that the net vacancy rate for certain properties in the City had fallen below the 5% threshold requited to invoke the provisions of ETPA. As such, the Supreme Court correctly determined that the adoption of the emergency declaration was proper.”
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Mayor Noble signing ETPA in July 2022 | |
City of Kingston Tree Tracker | |
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In order to track progress toward meeting the goal of planting 1,000 trees by 2030 as set in the City’s Open Space Plan, a tree counter has been created to record the number of new street and park trees planted in Kingston.
“Trees are increasingly vital to the well-being not just of humans, but of cities. We are so lucky here in Kingston to have such a wealth of trees, but we need to ensure that we are protecting our trees and increasing our tree count for future generations,” said Mayor Noble. “When working on new projects, we sometimes need to remove dead or diseased trees to proceed, but we try to preserve every healthy tree possible when planning infrastructure improvements. With this tree counter, we are keeping track of all the trees that the City plants to guarantee that we are always adding more trees than we are removing.”
In addition to trees planted for municipal projects like Henry Street Safe Routes to School, Franklin Street Complete Streets, Midtown Parking Lots Improvements and others, the City’s Street Tree Planting program installed 38 street trees in 2023. With funds from the NYSDEC Urban and Community Forestry Grant program and the annual City of Kingston Shade Tree budget, four cherry trees were planted in Academy Green, four trees at Rondout Gardens Apartments, three at St. Mary’s Cemetery, three at Community Action on Lindsley Ave, two at Kingston Point Beach, one at the Andy Murphy Neighborhood Center, one at the former Visitor’s Center at 20 Broadway, and at 20 residences throughout Kingston, with a concentration in Midtown.
The Street Tree Planting program application is open to City of Kingston residents and business owners with the agreement that the care and maintenance will be the property owner’s responsibility. Species are chosen by the Tree Commission, which identifies types of trees that will have a positive impact on biodiversity and will be the appropriate size for the planting locations. At least 20 street trees are expected to be planted this year.
In 2024, 125 new trees will be planted as part of the Dietz Stadium Improvements Project, 28 will be planted at the new Post Office Park, and eight will be planted as part of the Clinton Avenue Improvements Project.
The tree counter can be found at https://engagekingston.com/tree-counter.
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Midtown Thriving to Kick-off with Public Meeting | |
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The Midtown Thriving project will officially kick off with a public meeting on Wednesday, April 10, 2024, at 6pm at City Hall and virtually via Zoom. Live Spanish interpretation and childcare will be available.
In November, the City of Kingston, in partnership with Hudson Valley Pattern for Progress, won a Brownfield Opportunity Area (BOA) grant for $238,559 from the New York Department of State. With the funding, the City and Pattern for Progress will create Midtown Thriving: A Community Vision to Revitalize Vacant Properties, a plan for the redevelopment of vacant and abandoned properties within a 270-acre area running along the Broadway corridor. The planning process is an opportunity to proactively align future development and investment in Midtown with the local community’s priorities and needs.
The final plan, which is expected to take two years to complete, will be submitted to the State to complete the BOA nomination. Designation as a BOA by the State will give development in the area priority and preference for State programs, eligibility for pre-development funding, and will unlock additional brownfield cleanup program tax credits for property owners and developers.
City of Kingston Housing Director Bartek Starodaj said, “With the City’s new form-based code in place, now is the time to remediate and redevelop vacant and underutilized properties in Midtown. The Brownfield Opportunity Area is an opportunity to create a community vision for these properties that can be implemented with public, non-profit, and private partners.”
Midtown Thriving Public Meeting
Wednesday, April 10, 2024
6:00-7:30pm
City Hall Council Chambers
& virtually via Zoom (registration required)
Live Spanish interpretation available
More information at https://engagekingston.com/midtown-thriving.
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Free Mid-Hudson Energy Programs & Public Meeting | |
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Join local experts from Mid-Hudson Energy Transition to discuss Empower+, HEAP, and their Housing Demonstration Project. These free programs can make your home healthy, energy efficient, and save you money!
Learn how to save at the Kingston Library temporary location, 61 Crown St. on March 27 at 6:00pm. Register here: https://bit.ly/MHET_savemoney
Mid-Hudson Energy Transition is also looking for potential Board Members. The description and application are at this link.
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Dietz Stadium Construction Update | |
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The Dietz Stadium project is currently at approximately 45% complete and tracking well with the substantial completion deadline of August. Although additional uncovered rock within the grandstand and discovered contaminated soil in the northwest corner of the property has slowed that process slightly, additional crews have been brought on board to help make up for lost time.
Rock removal from the site continues, total rock exportation to date is 2620cy (164 trucks) of an anticipated 3500cy. Mass re-grading has progressed north from behind the grandstand. The under-slab utilities in the grandstand are near complete and the installation of all new concrete slabs is about to begin.
Concrete footings, foundations and slabs have been completed for the new ticket booth, visitor concessions and visitor side storage building. Excavation for the home concession stand is scheduled to begin the first week of April. The storage building’s structural steel has been installed and the walls are framed. Installation of the masonry walls for the visitor concession/toilet building has been started. New underground drainage lines, track timing systems, electric and data services around the field are being installed.
Installation of the turf and track is scheduled to begin in late May.
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Mayor Noble's Tuesday Radio Show | |
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Mayor Noble's weekly radio show, "It's the Mayor" airs on Tuesdays at 5pm on Radio Kingston. This week, Mayor Noble spoke with City Engineer John Schultheis, discussing the upcoming Clinton Avenue Transportation Improvements Project, which will begin soon, and the other spring construction projects kicking off in the near future. Click below to hear their conversation!
Mayor Noble will be back with a show on April 9.
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Weekly Roadwork Update for Week of March 25 | |
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Clinton Avenue/Uptown Transportation Improvements Project: A public information meeting for the Clinton Avenue Uptown Transportation Improvements Project will be held on Tuesday, April 2, 2024 from 5-7pm, at Old Dutch Church, 272 Wall Street. City staff, consultants, and contractors will be available to help answer stakeholder questions about project scope, maintenance of traffic and sidewalks during construction and more.
The Clinton Avenue project will improve pedestrian access, traffic circulation, and key intersections within the Stockade Business District. The Albany/Clinton Avenue intersection will receive a replacement traffic signal, and the Clinton/Westbrook intersection will feature a new traffic signal. Sidewalk, curb, drainage, lighting, and paving improvements, along with landscaping, signage and striping improvements will be installed.
Work is expected to begin in May and continue through the end of 2024.
Prospect Street Sewer Project: in order for the sewer project to get started, four trees along Prospect Street between Liberty Street and St. James Street will be removed on Monday and Tuesday.
Post Office Park: work began on the Dederick St. side of Prince St. Crews will begin excavation on the Dallas Hot Weiner side of Prince Street next.
Central Hudson will start gas line replacement construction in April.
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Construction at Post Office Park | |
City of Kingston Job & Board Opportunities | |
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The Kingston 311 app, website, and phone system allow residents to quickly and easily report issues and submit service requests.
The Kingston 311 app, available for Android & iPhones, is a fast and simple way to connect to City officials in non-emergency situations. Photos can be attached to illustrate service orders.
This system is a valuable resource to submit municipal service requests. Examples include:
- Streetlight replacement
- City signage, including overgrowth blocking traffic signs
- Snow removal, reporting parking violations, and other snow-related issues
- Parks & playground repairs
- Report graffiti or vandalism
- Trail issues
Dial 311 from any phone within City limits to reach us, use the app or visit www.kingston-ny.gov/311/
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Sent on behalf of:
Mayor Steven T. Noble
845.334.3902
mayor@kingston-ny.gov
The purpose of this newsletter is to share important information, project updates, pictures and news from the City of Kingston. For more detailed information, visit:
www.kingston-ny.gov
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