Mayor says inequality in city must be addressed
KINGSTON, N.Y. » The city was able to weather the hardships it faced in 2020, but now its leaders must work to make it better and address the deepening inequality within the community, Mayor Steve Noble said in his annual State of the City address.
In t he prerecorded speech, shown during an online meeting of the Common Council on Tuesday, Noble said Kingston will recover from the difficult past year that was marked by the COVID-19 pandemic and rebuild.
“But instead of simply rebuilding what once was, we can do better,” Noble said. “We must do better. It is not lost on me that too many of our residents are struggling, despite the fact that we are living in a moment in history when everything we could ever possibly want or need lies in abundance.
“There is no doubt in my mind that Kingston will f lourish once more,” he said. “But without addressing the deepening inequality in our community, our future will continue to be shaped by those who wish to profit from our city, who measure success by the height of the stock market or the price of our homes. We, Kingston’s leadership, must work together to alter this path, and mend the division within, for the good of our city.”
Noble said Kingston might be hurting now, but there is a brighter future ahead.
The mayor also spoke about the city’s financial standing and the public safety and infrastructure work that is underway. He said the city’s Re-envision Public Safety Task Force will soon present its research and recommendations to the Common Council regarding improving police accountability, examining the use of force, alternatives to police intervention, and recruitment. The mayor said the city’s 2021 budget includes $100,000 to fund some of the initiatives that the task force will put forth.
Regarding infrastructure, Noble said the city was able to keep a variety of major projects moving forward despite the pandemic. He said that includes the Broadway Streetscape project and the state Department of Transportation’s work to create a roundabout at the intersection of Broadway, Albany Avenue and Col. Chandler Drive. Those projects are to be completed by the fall of 2021, and many other projects will advance this year, including traffic improvements to Schwenk Drive and Clinton Avenue, the mayor said.
Moving forward, Noble urged the Common Council to reconsider his proposal to update the city’s zoning code to one that is form-based.
“Our current zoning code is needlessly complicated and hasn’t been updated since the 1960s,” he said. “Form-based zoning has been extremely effective in spurring economic development and smart growth while encouraging the creation of much-needed housing. The sooner we adopt this code, the faster we make new housing a reality.”
Last year, the council tabled Noble’s proposal to update the zoning code over concerns regarding the cost of the project amid the pandemic.
Noble also urged the council to consider recommendations outlined in the vacant buildings report created by Pattern for Progress as well as a proposal to use two city-owned properties in Midtown for affordable housing projects.
After the council meeting, Noble said in an email that his State of the City address was prerecorded because of technical complications with “giving a side-byside address, speaking, and PowerPoint.” He said it was not possible to do that during an already initiated online meeting.