COMMON SENSE ON STUYVESANT

I was impressed. The meeting Thursday night at City Hall brought together a group of people who would otherwise never meet. All were well behaved.

The Common Fire occupation of 35 Stuyvesant St was the reason for the gathering, and almost everyone voiced their opinion for or against. It was a good exercise for the community.

Many of the supporters crossed the mighty Hudson, from Tivoli, to describe their experience in their current location. Many of the opposition live within two blocks of the Kingston site. For the most part, the opinions split along those lines.

Robert Senor called the meeting for 6pm; I handed out the 150 meeting fliers and Landi provided the crowd with taxation history and the financial woes of the City of Kingston.

Jeff Golden started the meeting with a slide show about global needs, followed by a narrative on the intent of the group. His experience in home modification better be more natural than his presenting skills, but we got the idea.

Robin Mizerak stepped up to walk us through the historic neighborhood and the financial investment several neighbors made on Stuyvesant when the City left it for dead. Both got applause from half of the partisan crowd.

The microphones went around the room until 8:30, allowing everyone the opportunity to speak to the issue and ask questions. Mike Lefever and Sue Cahill were on-hand to offer the latest legal status of the property. With conflicting legislation, the city defines the project as a rooming house, which is strictly out of zoning allowance. Common Fire, no surprise, disagrees.

Leslie Applebee, of E Chestnut, hit it home when she questioned: “How can you spend $80K on preliminary research on a house since November, and not have spoken to the neighbors?” In addition: “ I feel bad that you’ve spent so much to get this far, but I have bought several homes in the area with an average of $20K each from realtor to closing.”

I would add: Who was your realtor and real estate lawyer? We would like to know, so as not to use them ourselves..

Jeff and company were forced to see the need to pay taxes as well as look for another, more compatible space. Those who know the building personally, asked the group to reconsider the location because of the limited space, lack of parking and troubled sewer history. If they plan on being a show place for public tours, they must realize this will compound the parking/traffic issue.

The driveway, it turns out, is owned by the City of Kingston, the shed at the end of it belongs to the church and the grass along 9W belongs to the state.

I’m sure there was a pow-wow across the river to possibly reconsider the location. Common Fire has commendable ideas, and Kingston would be wise to utilize their expertise on energy efficiency, but you can’t claim to want to better the community when suing the community is your first contact.

COMMON FIRE BOARDING HOUSE SAGA

Neighbors around the proposed boarding house on Stuyvesant St are pleased to hear there will be a public meeting this Thursday at City Hall, sponsored by Alderman Robert Senor.

This quiet little street with limited parking is about to get a 12 member family at the cliff-side property of 35 Stuyvesant. A charming Queen Ann style home with a 4 car driveway, this single family home is the focus of "Common Fire" communities based out of Tivoli NY.

With 1 & half bath and an illegally renovated attic space, they plan on sharing expenses amongst the members of the home.

On the surface, the business plan sounds great, and there are some great people running the program, but the location is what has the neighborhood upset. Nestled at the end of this cull-du-sac, this home is slated for renovation. [The Greenification] Well, that means a standard home in “move-in” condition will be the source of additional waste at the dump. Correct? That wont help diminish the waste stream.

I have asked a few proponents of the boarding house to drive to the driveway and turn around, like a homework assignment. No-one has reported back with any pleasant stories. And not one has told me where the off-street dumpster will be located.

Here are some properties on the market that would better serve such a large group of people:

This one on Delaware ave is going for $330K and has 5 bedrooms, all of which are bigger than those in the Stuyvesant home. With a circle driveway around the house, it’s better suited than the proposed site. You could park 10 cars on-site easy.

This one is on Greenkill Ave is close to the three bus routes and houses 5 apartments with enough parking spaces to store five school busses. Going for $450K, the “Fire” people could double their occupancy and greater diminish their dependence on energy. An acre of gardening space would make them the “Garden Co-op” champions of the city.

These are just two examples of better suited properties within Kingston. I’m sure if we look in the Town of Ulster, we would find even more.

All of these choices would be excellent if full taxes were offered. Think about it...People in regular single family homes throughout the city are paying property taxes. They are families struggling to make ends meet.

This proposal intends to take the property off the tax rolls. What effect do you think that has on the greater community?

Some proponents of “Common Fire”, as well meaning as they are, are also touting that they would be happy to pay higher property taxes if it meant this boarding house moved into their neighborhood. I suggest the folks in this income bracket should wear a T-Shirt with that sentiment printed on it and walk around their neighborhood.

In conclusion, the scouting for property and negotiations with the departments could have seen more sunlight long before it got to this stage. Coming to the city or town with pride at the start would have prompted a helping hand from everyone. Now, with lawyers and angry neighbors, it will be hard to shift public sentiment. And thanks for letting the Aldermen know. No, really!

Note: the Tivoli location is in a less dense neighborhood and parking is a non-issue.