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K'hook tables expansion of Historic District
By Paul Crossman
The village of Kinderhook has been considering expanding it’s traditional historic district, but during the August meeting of the Village Board, the matter was tabled until some point in the distant future.
The reason for this, according to Mayor Bill Van Alstyne, there just didn’t seem to be enough public interest in the project.
According to Van Alstyne, this does not mean the expansion will never take place, but the town is listening to the public, whose voice says right now might not be the best time to begin the project.
The idea was originally proposed nearly a year ago by the Historic Preservation Committee, and originally entailed enlarging the historical district to include parts of both Broad Avenue and Chatham Street.
Van Alstyne said when a business or home is brought into the historical district, they must submit all changes they wish to make to the building they reside in to the Historic Preservation Committee before any work can be done, as well as abide by all regulations set out by the committee.
This, it seems, may be one of the reasons the local business and home owners voiced their nearly unanimous decision not to expand the district at this time.
Van Alstyne said that at the initial meeting the HPC made the proposal and gave the reasons for it, etc, but that the great majority of the people were not in favor even then. After that the Village Board left a period of time open for comments and public response, and again nearly all feedback was negative.
Some time after that, the Historical Preservation Committee sent out informational packets to the people who would be effected by the expansion, in the hopes that it would help them see how it would help the community, but even this appeared not to sway any votes.
“[After the packets went out] we received several more negative responses to the project, and zero that were in favor,” he said.
It was at this point that Van Alstyne and the board decided to officially table any action.
“The support of the Village just wasn’t there,” he said. “We felt that because of the economy, it would be more of a burden on them than they need.” He believes the current Historic District is an important part of the Village of Kinderhook, which is why the board tabled the matter, rather than denying it outright.
“I think [the historic district] is a great thing,” he told the Register-Star. “It enhances the historic nature and beauty of our village.”
To reach reporter Paul Crossman call 518-828-1616, ext. 2266, or e-mail pcrossman@registerstar.com.
The reason for this, according to Mayor Bill Van Alstyne, there just didn’t seem to be enough public interest in the project.
According to Van Alstyne, this does not mean the expansion will never take place, but the town is listening to the public, whose voice says right now might not be the best time to begin the project.
The idea was originally proposed nearly a year ago by the Historic Preservation Committee, and originally entailed enlarging the historical district to include parts of both Broad Avenue and Chatham Street.
Van Alstyne said when a business or home is brought into the historical district, they must submit all changes they wish to make to the building they reside in to the Historic Preservation Committee before any work can be done, as well as abide by all regulations set out by the committee.
This, it seems, may be one of the reasons the local business and home owners voiced their nearly unanimous decision not to expand the district at this time.
Van Alstyne said that at the initial meeting the HPC made the proposal and gave the reasons for it, etc, but that the great majority of the people were not in favor even then. After that the Village Board left a period of time open for comments and public response, and again nearly all feedback was negative.
Some time after that, the Historical Preservation Committee sent out informational packets to the people who would be effected by the expansion, in the hopes that it would help them see how it would help the community, but even this appeared not to sway any votes.
“[After the packets went out] we received several more negative responses to the project, and zero that were in favor,” he said.
It was at this point that Van Alstyne and the board decided to officially table any action.
“The support of the Village just wasn’t there,” he said. “We felt that because of the economy, it would be more of a burden on them than they need.” He believes the current Historic District is an important part of the Village of Kinderhook, which is why the board tabled the matter, rather than denying it outright.
“I think [the historic district] is a great thing,” he told the Register-Star. “It enhances the historic nature and beauty of our village.”
To reach reporter Paul Crossman call 518-828-1616, ext. 2266, or e-mail pcrossman@registerstar.com.
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AlbOK wrote on Aug 31, 2009 4:10 PM: