The Kingston city government and developers Brad Jordan and Joseph Bonura of The Kingstonian mixed-used development in Uptown are seeking additional funding for the 143-housing-unit project which also includes a hotel, commercial space and a substantial parking garage. The Kingstonian was first proposed seven and a half years ago.
Two other large Kingston-area developments, RUPCO’s Quality Inn near the Kingston Thruway entrance and the Pennrose-Family of Woodstock partnership at the former sheriff’s headquarters and jail off Route 32, experienced similar difficulties from continued elevated interest rates and skyrocketing building costs. Both were successful in finding new governmental sources of funding.
The city and the developers expect to move forward in a similar direction with The Kingstonian in the coming months, according to an email last Thursday from Summer Smith, the city’s director of communications and community engagement. “We have also applied for the Mid-Hudson Momentum Fund grant to help compensate for the increased cost of materials and interest rates,” Smith said. The Mid-Hudson Momentum Fund contains $150 million.
“The worsening housing shortage and increased demands placed on existing aging infrastructure systems have made it more difficult to accommodate this surge of new residents,” Empire State Development Corporation explained about its Mid-Hudson Momentum Fund. “Investment is needed to provide opportunities for both new and existing populations within the mid-Hudson region.”
The fund invests half its money in mixed-use housing and half in infrastructure projects. Its minimum project award is $2.5 million, its maximum award $10 million.
The city has already allocated $3.8 million in state Downtown Revitalization funding to the project. The project has also received a $3 million Empire State Development grant. The Ulster County Industrial Development Agency granted it an extension of its tax breaks for the project’s construction and operation.
The Kingstonian received site-plan approval from the city planning board for its proposal to straddle the Fair Street Extension between North Front Street and Schwenk Drive, using the existing municipal parking lot and the existing Herzog-owned property on the other side.
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