Council votes Tuesday on distribution of aid

KINGSTON, N.Y. >> The Common Council is to vote next Tuesday on the disbursement of Community Development Block Grant money that the city gets from the federal government.

The council’s Community Development Committee made recommendations for the funding earlier this week after Mayor Steve Noble pitched his ideas. The committee endorsed the majority of the mayor’s proposals.

In a letter to Common Council President James Noble, the mayor stressed the importance of the funding to the city.

“There is no doubt in my mind that each of the applicants plays a critical role in the lives of hundreds, if not thousands, of our neighbors,” Mayor Noble, the council leader’s nephew, wrote

in his letter.

The mayor also alluded to the possibility of the program being eliminated by the Trump administration.

“As the federal [funding] finds itself on the chopping block, I wish that those in Washington could visit our small city and see firsthand how these funds are being spent,” the mayor wrote. “As we know, at any point, anyone of us could feel the floor drop out beneath us.”

Of the funding to be distributed by the city, $134,000 is expected to be used for administration, while $250,000 is earmarked for housing rehabilitation and emergency repair programs.

The Community Development Committee made the following recommendations.

• The People’s Place, roof replacement, $45,000.

• Kingston Department of Parks and Recreation, Everette Hodge Midtown Community Center improvements, $40,000

• Department of Parks and Recreation, creating opportunities for youths, $30,490.

• Department of Parks and Recreation, Rondout Neighborhood Center improvements, $30,000.

• Family of Woodstock, youth program at Everette Hodge Midtown Community Center and Rondout Neighborhood Center, $25,000.

• Kingston Library, upgrades, $16,815.

• Clinton Avenue Methodist Church, bathroom renovation, $15,000.

• Hudson River Maritime Museum, Universal Access program, $10,950.

• Read and Write program: $9,950.

• Kingston Boys and Girls Club, kitchen renovation, $9,185.

• Ulster Literacy Association, English for Parents program, $8,000.

• Center for Creative Education, after-school, summer arts and technology program, $6,500.

• Kingston Boys & Girls Club, Teen Supreme program, $6,000.

• The People’s Place, Bag Holiday Hunger Program, $4,510.

The Common Council meets at 7:30 p.m. next Tuesday in City Hall, 420 Broadway.