Six years into the mission, AVR Realty is awaiting final approval for its project on Kingston”™s waterfront, Hudson Landing.
As  director of design development for the Yonkers-based company, Dan Simone is the point person most folks in Kingston and the town of Ulster have come to know ”“ and either love or hate.
“Through the process, I”™ve grown older and a lot wiser,” says Simone stoically.
Original plans called for  2,200 homes; 45,000 square feet of waterfront restaurant and retail space; and 200,000 square feet of office and industrial space.  The 500-acre property is located on the city”™s and town of Ulster”™s last mile of Hudson River waterfront, a long-dormant quarry site owned by Tilcon Cement.
No sooner was the scope of the project announced than the debate began. Dozens of meetings, public hearings, open tours of the property, countless revisions and reviews over the past five years have added another $3million to $4 million to the original $6 million-plus price tag paid for the site, estimates Simone.
Responding to concerns voiced  by an advocacy group called Friends of Kingston Waterfront and led by Scenic Hudson, Simone and staff  visited several states to see how others have incorporated new design trends in older cities. They came back to Kingston planners and Friends of the Kingston Waterfront with a scaled-down traditional neighborhood design concept AVR hopes everyone will embrace.
Obstacles to overcome: negative effects on the viewshed both from those using the river and from neighboring Dutchess County across the river; the ability for the city”™s aging sewage-treatment plant to handle the additional capacity; that the so-called “city within a city” would detract from Kingston”™s overall efforts to reinvent itself after IBM”™s massive pullout in the early 1990s; and impacts unrelated to views on neighbors and the school system.
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Now that Kingston city planners have the final draft generic environmental impact statement on their desks, AVR awaits their blessing and approval. Simone hopes “the sincere effort we put into this project is evident ”¦ but we know we are not going to please everyone, no matter how hard we try.”
Hudson Landing is now envisioned to comprise 1,750 single family units, townhomes, condos, live-and-work townhomes and  rentals; plus 15,000 square feet of retail and commercial space within the new  neighborhood and an additional 40,000 square feet tucked within the live-and-work units.
Public parkland linked by a mile-long promenade to be built by AVR will contain canoe and kayak launch areas and kiosks representing Kingston”™s and the town of Ulster”™s industrial heritage. And 15,000 square feet of waterfront and retail space will complement the main-street type of shopping experience AVR hopes to create for visitors. “We see it as a destination feature for everyone, not just people living in the development,” Simone says.
Approximately 250 acres will remain open space.
Simone says AVR has been sensitive and in touch with concerns and has “tried to address them all ”¦ but there will always be someone who is not going to be happy.
“The project will be built into two neighborhoods,” he says. “The north cove and the south cove will be connected by a conservation zone, where we plan to build a LEED-certified environmental learning center for the public.” LEED stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design. “A thousand-foot-wide zone between the two neighborhoods will protect the viewshed from both the river and for those on the Dutchess side.”
On Oct. 18 at Kingston”™s Hillside Manor, AVR met with local representatives, including city planner Sue Cahill, Ulster County economic chief Lance Matteson, Mayor Jim Sottile, Scenic Hudson”™s general counsel Warren Reiss, members of Friends of Kingston Waterfront and several local business owners and residents. Â Plans for what AVR hopes is the final vision for Hudson Landing and its 15- to 20-year build-out were on the table.
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Sewer capacity concerns were addressed directly by city planners, who brought in independent consultants to assess the situation. Tidal water inflow will be redirected away from the treatment plant so as not to overwhelm it and AVR has committed to making the necessary improvements. In addition, homes in the East Kingston neighborhood adjacent to the development site will have access to a new sewer line. “We are going to lay the pipes there, and while we will not pay to hook up individual homeowners, they certainly will be able to tap into the system if they so desire,” said Tom Perna, AVR”™s vice president.
The plans also call for steep rock ledges from years of Tilcon”™s quarrying that created a ridgeline along a portion of the property to become hiking trails. An old mule barn will be preserved and turned into a community center.
AVR has pegged 10 percent of the housing “entry level,” with prices set by U.S. Dept. Housing and Urban Development guidelines. “All the homes will look the same from the outside,” said Perna. “The entry-level homes may have Formica countertops, while the higher-priced ones will have Corian, but from the outside, you won”™t know the difference.”
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Now that the subprime mortgage morass has significantly weakened the housing market ”“ at least nationally ”“ many asked how AVR will move forward with the residential portion of the project. “We do not build housing on spec,” said Perna. “If the market is there and we have buyers, the houses will be built.”
Hudson Landing”™s main entrance will be on Route 32, bypassing side streets, another concern voiced by residents. Â “We are not here to disturb the neighborhood,” said Perna.
Scenic Hudson”™s Reiss said, “They have made significant improvements, but there are things they could do a bit better.”
Don”™t tell that to Delores Falatyn, a native of Ulster County who hopes to buy into the new project. “I”™m ready to downsize,” said the septuagenarian. “My house is too big for me, and I would be the first on line to buy into it.”
Simone told the audience that while there is no specific senior housing incorporated into the blend, the Kingston market leans towards single professionals and young families, and to folks like Falatyn, who want to downsize. Simone estimates at least 30 percent of Hudson Landing will be populated by seniors.
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Lowell Thing, a member of Friends of Kingston Waterfront and a 30-year resident of the city, originally hails from Manhattan, where its skyscraper skyline has worldwide recognition. He doesn”™t want to see Kingston go the way of his former home turf. “We want Kingston to stay the way it is,” said Thing.
“One thing is certain: Kingston has a long way to go before it will ever be another Manhattan,” said Simone. “But our population is growing and spreading out. We see our project as one that will complement Kingston and become a vibrant part of the Rondout, the city and the town of Ulster.”
AVR”™s project has the potential to bring $6 million a year into city coffers and no negative impact on what the school district predicts will be a shrinking population within its system. “We believe when built out, our project will add approximately 360 children to the system,” Perna told the group.
Barring unforeseen market conditions or lawsuits, “There is always the possibility of an Article 78 (suit) lurking in the wings,” said Perna at the meeting. AVR hopes to break ground on Hudson Landing by the end of 2008.
The Web site is www.hudsonlanding.com.
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