You know, that old wreck of a church on the corner of Franklin and Pine?
So the City of Kingston opened it up to bids; and out of the four bids the three lowest were from non resient owners, and the higest ( hence would be logically the winning bid) was from a young couple who actually would fix it up and live there; contributing to our neighborhood and community.
So what does the City of Kingston do?
They are thinking about putting an MLS listing on the pro[erty so they could get more money from some, and you know it is true, slum lord. Yeah, they care about the people who actually have to live here.
Hence, my letter to both the Kingston Alderladies of my ward and the properties:
Fifth Ward Ann Marie DiBella
adibella5@yahoo.com
Fourth Ward Shirley Whitlock
sloveglee@yahoo.com
Hi Ann Marie and Nice to "meet" you Shirley,
I am writing this email to you regarding the former church located at 131 Franklin Street in Kingston NY. It is my understanding that a decision of some sort is pending regarding the bid and future development of this building.
My family, now 12 year residents of uptown at 168 Wall Street, has been very close friends with both Richard ( Murry) Lorberer and Lorien McCabe, the young couple who currently has the highest bid on the property for over 10 years. Not only can I vouch for both of them as being fine human beings and wonderful people, but, for the city of Kingston and the neighbor; they are indeed the most qualified and most desired sorts of home owners;
- Both have extensive community and family ties with the area
In addition, a large group of our extensive friends are also living and buying in the area including Rich's sister a mere few blocks away on the other side of George Washington School. - Not only did they submit the highest bid for the property, but they are the ONLY bidders who intend to be living in the building which is a definite bonus as well all know that this area of Kingston does NOT need any more absentee landlords.
- Lorien is a professional horticulturist and I can guarantee you that the gardens and landscaping on the property will be a show stopper and an asset to the beauty of the neighborhood and the community home values.
- Both wish to provide some of the larger spaces in the church building for possible community events which is something this area needs; currently the only common areas locally consist of bars, restaurant, Backstage Productions and church auditoriums.
- When they do have children which they eventually will, the children will be attending George Washington Montessori.
- Having owner occupied and a repaired/restored loved building on that site will also further to push the "ghetto line" further away from the rest of the Uptown neighborhood and will provide a solid foundation point for Pine & Franklin. Plus we all know how one building getting "love" results in a overall neighbor regentification and improvement.
I find it so very disturbing and unfair, that after making them go through the bidding process, that now the city is thinking about listing the building on the open market. Granted, the bids for the building are not as much as the city might have wanted in back taxes; but are we really willing to take a chance and deny people who really would not only love and take care for that sad lot for years just in an attempt to recoup? It's not like the city is making any money on that place now, nor has it done more than cost the city in both money and overall community health for years.
If the city wanted to list the building on the market, then they should have done so from the get go. Now, it really sounds as if greed and some sort of favoritism might be at play here? How come Tom Murphy gets the listing? How come, if it is to go to MLS, then that is not sent out to be bid on by some of the other real estate agents in the city, like my husband?
And then; if the city denies Lorberer/McCabe and puts the poverty on the market and some nasty absentee landlord buys it and breaks it up into a bunch of slums which then get rented out to a slew of drug dealers; how does THAT help Kingston and our community at all??? Because, realistically, in this economic environment; THAT is the realistic probability for that property!
I urge you both to do whatever means necessary to convince all on the board that 131 Franklin and our community would be best served by awarding that property to Richard Lorberer and Lorien McCabe.
Thank you very much!
Claudia Corrigan D'Arcy
Director of Social Media; DragonSearch Marketing @ 280 Wall Street
Mother, Homeowner, neighbor @ 168 Wall Street
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They are deciding on Wednesday if the City will do the right thing for us all and award them the bid. If you care about having decent worthwhile neighbors, then I suggest that you share your voice and concerns!
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