KINGSTON – The City of
Kingston is the third governmental entity in the region to be authorized
by the state to create a land bank.
The City of Newburgh was the first and has had much success in rehabilitating
and selling homes.
Last year, Sullivan County was authorized to create a land bank modeled
after Newburgh’s.
The Kingston Land Bank will now file its certificate of incorporation
and the nine-member board will be recruited.
“This is an exciting opportunity for our community to address deteriorating
properties and promote home ownership, ultimately strengthening our neighborhoods
and improving the quality of life or our residents,” said Mayor
Steven Noble.
The land bank will initially be staffed by existing personnel in the Office
of Economic and Community Development with the potential for expanding
staff resources when additional operating funds are secured, said the
mayor.
Brenna Robinson, the city’s economic development director, said
the Kingston City Land Bank “will work to dramatically improve the
city’s housing stock, providing new prospects for homeownership,,
adding open spaces for the community to enjoy, and renovating properties
and restoring them to productive use that will provide opportunities to
both increase community wealth and help to ensure current residents are
able to remain here.”
