Council panel endorses borrowing for rail trail

The Common Council’s Finance Committee endorse a proposal to borrow $1.72 million for rail trail improvements.

KINGSTON, N.Y. » Members of the Common Council’s Finance Committee have endorsed a proposal to borrow $1.72 million to fund improvements to a mile-long trail on the former Ulster & Delaware Railroad bed.

The committee’s support for the resolution Monday was unanimous. A vote by the full Common Council was expected Wednesday.

“For the Kingston Point Rail Trail, phase one goes from the intersection of Jansen Avenue and East Chester (Street) to Garraghan Drive,” grants writer Kristen Wilson said.

The borrowing resolution comes as officials learned that bids for the project came in $399,992 higher than the estimates.

Wilson said grants from the state Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation were expected to cover the entire costs of the first phase, with additional funding sought to pay for additional expenses.

The Saugerties firm, Merritt Construction, submitted the lowest of six bids for work on the first phase, at $1.59 million.

Efforts to begin the project, which includes paving a 10-foot wide section of the former rail bed, are being spearheaded by Kingston Land Trust.

“Just in this year, we have led seven different walks on the phase one section ... in addition to door-to-door outreach, tabling at community events and meeting with community leaders,” organization stewardship coordinator Greg Shaheen said. “The path will connect their neighborhood with others, creating a more unified Kingston and also bring people in closer contact with Kingston’s treasured packets of forests.”

Alderman Tony Davis, DWard 6, said the trail will be a much safer for pedestrians than when the rail line was still active. Freight service ended in the 1970s.

“I remember as a kid growing up in Rondout Gardens, jumping (on) the train as it came through the Gardens and jumping off (at) Delaware (Avenue),” he said.

Related to the trail was a separate resolution authorizing the city to become responsible for maintenance of a bridge that goes over U.S. Route 9W. Several committee members were unhappy with having to agree to accept a state Department of Transportation permit for use of the bridge without having had a study on expected future costs.

“The Kingston Land Trust is working on a management plan ... of the entire trail system,” Wilson said.

Alderwoman Rita Worthington, D-Ward 4, was among those who noted that resolution’s statement that there was no “financial impact” was misleading.

“If we accept it, we’re going ahead and authorizing the maintenance of it despite not knowing what it’s going to cost to maintain it,” she said.