SAUGERTIES – Ulster County Executive Jen Metzger Tuesday night delivered her annual state of the county address at the Orpheum theater in Saugerties and she pledged to continue her mission of building a sustainable, resilient and thriving county.
Among the top priorities, she said, is providing suitable housing for the homeless. That began last year with upgrades to motels, converting the former Rodeway Inn in the Town of Ulster and starting a UCAT shuttle for parents without a car.
She also created, with support from the county legislature, a $15 million Housing Action Fund with the first cycle planned for this spring and she is working with legislative leaders to commit 25 percent of the county’s occupancy tax revenues to that fund annually.
Metzger also noted that she has been fighting the Central Hudson utility billing debacle.
The county executive said that “tragically, we lost 30 people to suicide in 2023, up 67 percent from the previous year. Our county government is very focused on this issue, and I feel fortunate to have many great partner organizations in Ulster County dedicated to this work.”
Among her programs to fight the issues involving mental illness include providing services to students in their homes, schools and communities, and the county will take “a giant step forward this year” with the Ulster County Center for Well-Being, “an integrative model of mental health and wellness services in Kingston that is available to everyone.”
Metzger also touched on one of her major initiatives – sustainable environment by making “smart, climate-responsible capital investments,” “bolstering sustainable purchasing requirements,” greening the county fleet of vehicles, expanding UCAT ridership, and diverting 100 percent of organic waste from landfills by 2030.
The county executive also talked of the Sustainable Ulster Workforce Innovation Center being created at iPark 87 in the Town of Ulster.
Tourism last year brought in $979 million dollars to the county, a 143 percent increase from 2019 and she wants to grow sustainable tourism.
