Moving Funds From the Carnegie Library Renovation? Contact Your Alderman To Learn More.


There was a tribute to city clerk Kathy Janeczek (who passed last year quite suddenly) this week on the lawns of Kingston’s City Hall.  If there was ever one deserving of such a thing, it is most certainly she.

I had the opportunity to work with her in breaking ground for the Victory Garden at City Hall in 2009 – and it was a great pleasure to do so.

While reading about the ceremony in the Freeman, I learned that the Mayor wished to recommend to the council to move $50,000 away from the Carnegie Library renovation this year in order to create (in addition to the City Hall tribute) a stage/screen in the Rondout for films, plays and the like in her honor.

What an odd thing to find in the midst of a memorial read.

I think this is important for citizens of Kingston to pay close attention to, as I’m  not sure this is such a good idea.

Why?  Overall, there is a lack of long term planning and proper follow through on any given project in the city of Kingston. As a matter of fact, though this idea might have been kicking around City Hall,  I have never heard it mentioned anywhere until just the other day.

Moving funds now in the tune of $50,000 away from a project long underway with much support from the community  and otherwise doesn’t make much sense in what appears to be an instant. Especially given the current budget crisis. I have my doubts that that money could be replaced. Who knows what next year is going to bring?

…and the Carnegie Library restoration project needs to occur for our children and in providing an opportunity to protect our rich history.

Though I didn’t know Kathy well, what I suspect by her endeavors and her heart is that she would prefer the Carnegie Library restoration over a small stage for films. Especially in these tough economic times where there are no guarantees from year to year now on the  resource front.

We’ll pursue this further, and we encourage you to do the same. Speak to your Alderman to get relevant details and voice your opinion because that’s really all we are hoping to inspire in this post. If we all take a moment to move meaningfully forward, than we’re going to be in far better shape in the long run. Every decision is an important one, and the council is there to represent you.

Here is a LINK to the Daily Freeman article.

– Rebecca Martin

3 thoughts on “Moving Funds From the Carnegie Library Renovation? Contact Your Alderman To Learn More.”

  1. I don’t know that it is a big hit on the Carnegie. I don’t know why it is in the Rondout, or what it will buy…
    However, if it hurts the Carnegie, then the death of that project would be one helluva terrible memorial.
    I know that Ward 4 was looking for about 5K for the summer basketball league and so far has none of that against a 2500 that the do have: they need more.
    There are lots of people I think that really loved that nice lady. I don’t think anyone could oppose it on any grounds. I could be wrong.

    Reply
    • There isn’t any doubt that Kathy is beloved to Kingston citizens. However, I think she would have agreed – that if a stage meant a potential loss of $50,000 to the Carnegie Library renovation for movies and plays, she would have wished it to stay with the Library. The trouble now is that the Mayor suggests that the money can be replaced in next years budget. Perhaps that is true. It is in our best interest to understand the transaction for ourselves, rather than taking his word to the bank so to speak.

      We owe that much to ourselves.

      Contact your Alderman for more.

      As for the Summer Sizzle program and funding allocation from the CDBG monies – I say look into the costs that are incurred by the city staff. There are big savings right there. Between Mr. Murphy, his employed staff and the consultants that are paid outside of that – there is money that could be used in abundance. His salary is way out of line if you ask me.

      Reply
  2. I sat in on a very interesting meeting in which we discussed what we will be doing about The Kings Inn now that it is going to be acquired by the city. How the Carnegie Building funds were explained there is that the Carnegie building is not yet ready to receive the $50,000 a year that was allocated to it (for a total of an eventual $200,000). Meanwhile, everyone who lives in Midtown should be showing up for The Kings Inn Meetings. The committee that was assigned to make recommendations are well-intended but the voice of the people of Midtown needs to be there at every meeting. Re-imagining the center of the city is important to us all but critical to the people who will live next door to it. For me, how the Kings Inn is replaced and by what will make or break this city.

    Reply

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