These words summed up the determintion of the Partnership members to solve problems in the city.
By Nancy Peckenham
A group of business leaders and stakeholders in the future of the city of Newburgh gathered on Tuesday at the Powelton Club to describe their vision of reclaiming a section of the decayed city center and energizing a revitalization that has eluded city leaders for years.
Allan Atzrott, the President and CEO of St. Luke’s Cornwall Hospital, the city’s largest employer that abuts the targeted area, told a crowd of more than 100 civic and business leaders that Newburgh can accomplish the kind of turnarounds that he’s seen in places like Camden, N.J. and Cleveland, Ohio.
Atzrott is the chair of the Greater Newburgh Partnership, which will work hand-in-hand with the Newburgh Community Land Bank to reclaim abandoned private and city-owned property, demolishing or restoring buildings in a section of town from Broadway to South Street and from the riverfront to Robinson Avenue. That area roughly includes two colleges and the hospital which can anchor the reclamation of what Atzrott now called College Heights.
Allan Atzrott talked about the Partnership's work with the Land Bank to revive the city.
The Land Bank, which grew out of a project of PACE Land Use Law Center to identify ways for the city to deal with its decaying and abandoned housing stock, will be led by a city employee, Fire Chief Michael Vatter, a person who already oversees the code enforcement department. City councilmember Curlie Dillard also has a role on the Land Bank board.
To achieve the objectives of the Partnership, Atzrott called on other members of the business and civic community to donate their money and time. The city can’t afford to enact the plan, he said, describing the dire fiscal restraints on its budget. “We need you all to be righteously indignant about what happened to the city,” Atzrott told the crowd, asking them to contribute to the Partnership’s success.
The Partnership is asking for sponsors to investment as much as $20,000 in the Partnership, an act that will secure a spot on the board. Smaller commitments are welcome, including individuals who are willing to donate their time.
Work on one of the more unsightly blocks in downtown Newburgh had been scheduled to start on Monday but was delayed by the snowstorm. The fence that surrounds a multi-lot site on Broadway and Lander Street will come down, and the empty lots behind it will be graded and made more appealing until city leaders decide what they want to build on that strategic spot. Next will come better lighting for that area, thanks to the involvement of Central Hudson in the Partnership. Security cameras will soon follow and, finally, community watch groups will provide the eyes to maintain security for residents.
Carol Link (l) talked about problems with cleaning up the area around her Broadway building while Jessica Bascher of PACE moderates the discussion.
David Potak, of Unitex and a sponsor of the Partnership, talked about the group’s goals as being very attainable and very real. Atzrott then asked people in attendance to talk about the ideas promoted by the Partnership and a couple of questions were presented about the role of an elected city government and how city residents could benefit from the work to be done.
A second informational session with the leaders of the Partnership and the Land Bank will be held on Thursday, November 3, at 5 pm, at the Powelton Club in Balmville. To learn more about the organization, visit www.greaternewburghpartnership.org.
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