POUGHKEEPSIE – The Common Council is meeting tonight for the purpose of voting on a resolution criticizing Joe Bonura, Jr. of Bonura Hospitality Group for allegedly delaying the development of Poughkeepsie’s last undeveloped parcel on the waterfront; the DeLaval site.
Bonura had entered into an agreement with the city more than a decade ago to remediate parcels that contained hazardous materials. Some of the remediations took place on the parcels that have been developed into Shadows on the Hudson, Shadows Marina, and the Grandview catering hall.
Bonura Hospitality had presented a plan to develop the leveled parcel, known as the Poughkeepsie Landing, including retail space, an amphitheater, apartments, and a public pool. The plan was met with resistance from members of the council including Sarah Brannen and Sarah Salem, the latter of which has become the council’s chair. The plan was unveiled at a March 2018 press conference.
The council sought to hire an outside lawyer for the purpose of further reviewing the plan submitted by Bonura. The lawyer was vetoed by Mayor Rob Rolison.
In July of this year, Council Chairperson Salem met with Bonura to discuss the future development of the site. According to Bonura, there was an agreement for a follow-up meeting. The developer claims that no second meeting occurred and he has not heard anything until he saw the resolution on Monday’s agenda.
An email from Bonura to Salem, obtained by Mid-Hudson News says in part “Putting this resolution up for a vote feels like a slap in the face to decades of hard work. I am requesting you to table this resolution tonight and let’s schedule a meeting of the decision-makers to work on a path to move forward. If no progress has been made in a month then you can always bring this resolution back.”
Bonura also reminded Salem, in the email, that “My family and I have had a long-standing positive relationship with the City of Poughkeepsie. Since purchasing the Radisson Hotel (now the Poughkeepsie Grand Hotel) in 1994, we have spent tens of millions of dollars revitalizing the city, created over 400 permanent jobs, paid millions in property taxes and tens of millions in sales tax along with an enormous amount of charity and non-profit work.”
A public hearing on the creation of a Civilian Review Board is scheduled for 5 p.m. today, followed by the meeting including the DeLaval project will begin at 6:30 p.m. Information on viewing and/or participating in the meeting can be found here.
