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May 10, 2019 - In This Issue:
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A Message From Mayor Steve Noble:
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Housing in our City has been one of my key issues since I took office, and has especially been on my mind this week. On Wednesday, I signed a memorializing resolution in support of universal rent stabilization as a public statement to this community and to the lawmakers in Albany. It is the first of many steps to ensure that long-term renters don't get priced out of their homes, and is just one of the many housing initiatives I'm currently working on. I want to ensure that everyone in our community can continue to call Kingston home. I am
committed
to doing more, and am working on concrete steps to address affordable housing needs. If you have suggestions for real change, I would love to hear from you!
Don't forget, tomorrow is the Earth Fair at Forsyth Park. It's such a fun event, which will have food, music and lots of great resources. I hope to see you there!
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Kingston Earth Fair this Weekend!
This Saturday, May 11, is the 7th annual Kingston Earth Fair, which will be held from 10am-4pm at Forsyth Park. The event is free and features a variety of sustainability and green initiatives and resources for the community, and will include food, music, electric vehicles, bike rides and more.
Free shredding will be provided by AARP from 10am-2pm or until full (limit three grocery bags per person). UCRRA will provide free electronic recycling. For a full list of what can be recycled, click
here.
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Community Concert at City Hall on May 19
Please join us at City Hall on May 19, from 3:00-5:00pm for a community celebration of music and performance in honor of the late musician, composer, and humanitarian, Pauline Oliveros, who was a resident of Kingston.
Featuring over 25 local and international musicians and composers, this spirited concert will offer attendees the chance to experience some of the dynamic text scores displayed in the Still Listening in Kingston exhibit.
Performances include: Diane Alvarez, Jonas Braasch, Catskill Mountain Gamelan Ensemble, Michael Century, Claire Chase, Viv Corringham, David Garland, Steve Gorn, Susie Ibarra, IONE, Lisa B Kelley, Levanta, Al Margolis, Linda Montano, Alex Peh & Company, and Daniel Weintraub's Tulula!
The doors of City Hall will open at 2:30pm so that attendees can take a moment to enjoy the
Pauline Oliveros: Still Listening in Kingston art exhibit on display on the ground floor. This event is free and open to the public.
RSVPs are welcome.
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Making Bee Pollinators with the BARK Program
I had the pleasure of visiting the BARK program participants, who were learning all about bee habitats from the folks at the Hudson Valley Bee Habitat. We made bee pollinators to help create nests for solitary bees.
Beautifying and Restoring Kingston (BARK) was founded through Participatory Budgeting funds and is run by the YMCA Farm Project team. BARK employs teens to work on beautification projects in Uptown and Midtown.
The crews, which include ten students from Kingston High School, work in Midtown on
Mondays and in Uptown on Thursdays. Already they've done trash clean-up, painted planters in Uptown and helped remediate the bioswales on North Front Street.
Thanks to BARK students for letting me join in, and the YMCA for hosting us at the DRAW (Department of Regional Art Workers)!
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Signing a Memorializing Resolution for Rent Stabilization
This week, I signed a memorializing resolution to support Universal Rent Stabilization, which was passed by the Common Council on Tuesday night. The resolution asks lawmakers in Albany to extend jurisdiction to counties across the state to regulate rent stabilization in their own communities.
We are working on affordable housing in a number of ways:
Currently, the Office of Economic and Community Development is preparing the City's Fair Housing Plan, and is seeking public comment. The Fair Housing Plan is a part of the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program and will be a roadmap for how the City will address housing issues that benefit low-and moderate-income persons for the next five years.
Another of this administration's housing initiatives is the Kingston City Land Bank, which was created to foster an equitable community where vacant or distressed properties are transformed into community assets that improve the quality of life for Kingston residents, stabilize and enhance neighborhoods, and create new pathways for social and economic development. The KCLB currently has a portfolio of 36 properties in the City of Kingston and is determining how it will sell or transfer these properties (called "disposition policy."). The KCLB is asking for feedback to determine the disposition rules that best serve the needs of the community with the Kingston Land Bank Survey. Brenna Robinson, the City's Director of Economic and Community Development, and I discussed the Land Bank on this week's Mondays with the Mayor, you can listen here.
To inform policy, the Common Council has hosted a series of seven Housing Hearings, addressing the needs of various groups including homeowners, tenants, landlords, developers, and homeless or housing insecure. The final Housing Hearing will focus on Policy Advocates and will be held on May 29 at 6:30pm at City Hall.
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2019 Tentative Assessment Roll
The City of Kingston's Assessor has filed the Tentative Assessment Roll for 2019. There has been an undeniable demand for residential, commercial, land, residential rental and commercial rental properties over the past four years. This demand, from a multitude of different buyers, has caused pressure in the marketplace and significant increase in property values over the past three assessment roll cycles.
Over the past three valuation periods, the City of Kingston's commercial real estate market showed consistent positive growth when analyzing property sales compared to their assessments. This upward commercial value trend has been consistent throughout each business district in the City of Kingston, as many new buyers have been entering the market over the past few years. Values in the residential sector have been following similar trends. The residential sector has seen its strongest uptick in value this year over the past few years, due to a healthy demand for residential properties in the City of Kingston. All residential neighborhoods will see upward trending this Assessment Roll year of 2019.
Any property receiving a change in assessed value (positive or negative) or exemption status will be mailed a notice this week. Included in this notice will be the amount of assessment change, any exemptions on the property, and what a property owner should do if they disagree with the assessment.
Grievance Day will be held on Tuesday, May 28, 2019, from 3:00-5:00pm and 7:00-9:00pm at City Hall. The Board of Assessment Review will hear and examine all complaints. Any person believing himself/herself to be aggrieved, should provide a written application, as well as the required RP-524 Grievance Application. A helpful grievance how-to guide is provided by New York State.
Here's a helpful graphic. Since the tax levy was not increased for my third straight budget year, your taxes may not increase, even if your assessment does.
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Traffic Safety Forum on Monday, May 13
The Common Council is hosting a city-wide Traffic Safety Forum on Monday, May 13 at 6:30pm in Council Chambers at City Hall.
In order for the Common Council to take a comprehensive approach to addressing ongoing transportation and traffic safety issues affecting the city, the Traffic Safety Forum will provide an opportunity for Kingston residents to ask questions pertaining to traffic safety, to hear about upcoming projects, and to learn how the City approaches residents'
concerns. Representatives from the City of Kingston's Department of Public Works, Ulster County's Transportation Council and the Kingston Police Department as well as members of the Common Council will be present to discuss traffic calming devices, street design, and other matters that affect traffic safety.
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2019 Summer Youth Employment Program
The
Ulster County Office of Employment & Training is taking applications for their 2019 Summer Youth Employment Program.
This year's program will run from July 1 - August 2, 2019. The pay rate is $12 per hour or $480 gross per week for a 40 hour work week. Not bad for a first job!
Work sites are located across the county with a wide variety of jobs ranging from counselors to maintenance to construction to clerical to information technology to cleaning.
The deadline for applying is May 17. Visit UlsterWorks.com for application details.
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Kingston Happenings 
The City of Kingston often receives requests to share upcoming events happening in our community. Our partners at
KingstonHappenings.org
do an excellent job of centralizing this community information. So while our website is the best resource to gain information about City of Kingston sponsored events and important municipal information, Kingston Happenings can give you a greater preview of community events. Check them out today!
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