Public hearing on Irish center plan likely in April

A public hearing about the proposed Irish Cultural Center on Abeel Street is likely to be held in April, according to the chairman of the city Planning Board.

The board next meets on March 19 and probably will schedule the hearing at that time, Chairman Wayne Platte said this week.

The board will not make any decision about the Irish Cultural Center until after the hearing is held, Platte said.

Earlier this month, the Kingston Zoning Board of Appeals reversed the decision of a city commission that would have prevented construction of the proposed center at 32 Abeel St.

The zoning board voted unanimously in favor of a resolution granting an appeal filed by the developers of the center, which would be at 32 Abeel St. in the city’s Rondout Historic District.

The resolution reversed a Sept. 25 decision by the city’s Historic Landmarks Preservation Commission, which refused to grant the required “preservation notice of action” for the project.

The site plan must be approved by the Planning Board in order for construction to begin.

The board already has declared the project would not have a significant impact on the environment.

In a prepared statement, Bill Kearney, president of Irish Cultural Center Hudson Valley, thanked Zoning Board of Appeals members “for their diligent efforts,” and he thanked “the community for supporting this wonderful project.”

Kearney also thanked the Historic Landmarks Preservation Commission for suggestions that he said helped improve the project.

The Irish Cultural Center is proposed to be a 16,213-square-foot building that would include a 171seat theater and a 70-seat pub, as well as space for educational programs and other activities.

If approved, the center would be built on a vacant 0.44-acre parcel bordered on two sides by private properties and to the rear by the city-owned Company Hill Path that connects West Strand to Abeel Street.

The site overlooks the Rondout Creek.