The City of Kingston will use $10 million in state economic development funds to improve its uptown roads, renovate a stadium and help finance a major redevelopment project.
Kingston was the big winner for the Mid-Hudson region in the 2017 Downtown Revitalization Initiative, an effort launched in 2016 by Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo that awards $10 million to a municipality for downtown improvements in each of the state’s regions.
Kingston won for its Uptown Stockade Business District, a historic, compact section of the city with a mix of small businesses, historical landmarks and entertainment venues.
After being declared the winner, Kingston used $300,000 of the award money to launch a planning committee and develop a Strategic Investment Plan for the district.
Related: Kingston looks to $10 million grant to solidify stockade district
Ten months later, Cuomo stopped into Kingston on July 2 to announce development projects in the district that will receive part of the $10 million.
The Kingstonian, a development proposal led by a partnership of JM Development Group of New Windsor and Kingston-based Herzog Supply Co., will receive $3.8 million toward public amenities near the mixed-use project. The state funds will go toward creation of a public plaza and pedestrian bridge near the $48 million project. The development plans include 132 residential units, 8,500 square feet of commercial space for a mix of restaurants and retail shops, a 34-room hotel and a 420-space parking garage with 250 spaces dedicated for public use.
Dietz Stadium, a 1,500-seat stadium that”™s home to high school football games and the semiprofessional Kingston Stockade FC soccer team, will receive about $2.5 million for upgrades. Improvements will be made to the stadium’s bleachers, water fountains, fencing and gates, lighting, parking and bathrooms. Some of the funds will be utilized for upgrades to the Andretta Pool and picnic facility across from the stadium.
The city will receive $987,000 toward redesigning Schwenk Drive, a commercial thoroughfare lined by shopping plazas on the north end of the district. The funds will be used, according to the governor’s announcement, to “create a desirable, walkable, pedestrian-friendly connection through the Stockade Business District, and eventually the Kingston Greenline trail system.”
Another $1.3 million will be used to improve pedestrian access, traffic circulation and signage within the district. In a separate project, the remnants of a historical home will be stabilized and a public green space created using $472,500 from DRI funds.
Another $600,000 will be utilized for a “Stockade Business District Small Grants and Loans Program,” which will offer grants and loans to small businesses and property owners in the uptown district.
