Forum will focus on merging commissions
KINGSTON, N.Y. » Two community groups, in cooperation with the city, will hold a public forum on Mayor Steve Noble’s proposal to combine the city’s Heritage Area Commission and Historic Landmarks Preservation Commission.
The forum, “Historic Preservation in the City of Kingston: Rethinking the Review Process,” is scheduled for 6 to 8 p.m. May 14 at City Hall, 420 Broadway. It’s being sponsored by KingstonCitizens.org and Friends of Historic Kingston, along with the city.
The forum will include discussion among key players in the city’s historic review process. It will be moderated by KingstonCitizens.org cofounder Rebecca Martin.
Panelists will include Noble; Marissa Marvelli, vice chairwoman of the Historic Landmarks Preservation Commission; Hayes Clement, chairman of the Heritage Area Commission; Kevin McEvoy, secretary of the Heritage Area Commission; Linda Mackey, Ulster County representative for the state Historic Preservation Office; and Erin Tobin, vice president for policy and preservation for the Preservation League of New York.
“Kingston’s Historic Landmarks Preservation Commission was created in 1966 in direct response to
the urban renewal-driven destruction of the Rondout,” Marvelli said in a press release about the forum. “The drafting of the city’s first preservation laws and amendments was a collaborative effort of preservation-minded citizens and members of the Common Council.
“Today’s landmarks commission continues its original purpose: the promotion of the educational, cultural, economic and general welfare of the public through the protection, enhancement, perpetuation, and preservation of Landmarks and Landmarks Districts.’
In the same press release, Noble said the city is “pleased to work with our community partners to
share best practices in historic preservation and explore the challenges and opportunities ahead as we consider updates to our city commissions.”
The Historic Landmarks Preservation Commission has seven members; the Heritage Area Commission has 11. Under the proposal, a new panel known as the Kingston Historic Landmarks and Heritage Area Commission would have seven members and three alternates.
City Assistant Corporation Counsel Daniel Gartenstein has said the newly formed Kingston Historic Landmarks and Heritage Area Commission, if approved, would share most of the powers currently held by the two groups.
The proposal to merge the two commissions, which needs Common Council approval and the mayor’s signature to take effect, also states development plans and restoration efforts would continue to be closely scrutinized.
Gartenstein has said the merger would streamline applications for development and renovations in the city. Under the current system, an applicant must appear before both commissions, costing extra money and time.
Gartenstein told the Common Council’s Laws and Rules Committee in April that project applicants often must go before three bodies: the two commissions and the city Planning Board.