Golden Hill considered for housing

Proposals to develop the county-owned property in Kingston would have to include affordable housing

KINGSTON, N.Y. » Ulster County is considering developing property it owns on Golden Hill to include a component of affordable housing and has asked city lawmakers to be willing to consider zoning changes that might be necessary.

“The county is going through a process of reevaluating and reestablishing its concern with respect to housing, both at the county executive level and at the county Legislature level,” county Planning Director Dennis Doyle told the Common Council’s Laws and Rules Committee during a virtual meeting Wednesday. “They’ve passed a series of resolutions relative to looking at housing. One has to do with actually requesting the city’s land bank to expand to a county-wide land bank.”

Doyle said his office was also tasked with identifying countyowned lands that might be available for possible development to help meet the county’s housing needs. He said the county Planning Department identified the vacant lands on Golden Hill, particularly those around the former jail. There are approximately 15 acres of land available, of which seven to 10 acres is suitable for building, Doyle said.

The county has since issued a “statement of qualifications” seeking proposals from developers to utilize the land on Golden Hill, Doyle said. He said he hoped the Common Council, as part of that, would consider potential rezoning requests for the property. The property is currently zoned RRR, which is for single-family residential use, Doyle said.

“That frankly does not meet

the potential and opportunities that Golden Hill affords us,” Doyle said. With the council’s support, he added, the county could speak to developers about possible uses of the land. Any zoning petition would have to be submitted to the Common Council, which aldermen would have complete authority over, Doyle said. He added that any development would have to go through the necessary Planning Board approvals and the state Environmental Quality Review process.

The committee endorsed a resolution stating that “the current regulatory scheme for Golden Hill is unsuited to its existing uses and unresponsive to the potential for development” and the intent of Kingston’s comprehensive plan. The resolution also states the city “pledges to work cooperatively” with the county should it decide to move forward and use the lands on Golden Hill to meet housing needs in the community.

That resolution will go to the full council for consideration next month.

Doyle also said the county’s statement of qualifications requires developers to include a concept plan and to meet other goals, not the least of which is to provide affordable housing in any project proposal.

Council Majority Leader Reynolds Scott-Childress, D-Ward 3, said increased traffic to and around Golden Hill would need to be considered as part of any development. Still, he said, he is excited about the potential development of Golden Hill.

Doyle said the rezoning and environmental review of any project would be controlled by the city. He said that review could look at traffic issues and mitigation of them.