Public Spaces Initiative December Board Update
Mission To develop and facilitate the creation of public park, art, and community spaces throughout the Village of Red Hook
Public Meetings are held the 4th Saturday of each month at 10 am, in person at Village Hall. The October PSI meeting was not held because of the time conflicts with the Pumpkins in the Park event. The final meeting of 2024 took place on Saturday November 23[rd] at Village Hall.
Key Topics
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Seed Library : The PSI seed library is located at the Red Hook Community Center, and at the start of summer was moved to a more accessible location by the building entrance. Community members have started to drop off seeds to help realize the vision of a local seed exchange.
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Repair Cafe : The PSI will participate in the next scheduled Repair Café on January 25[th] at the Red Hook Community Center with a “repair your garden” table providing information on winter garden activities such as soil amendments, seed starting, and planting layout planning.
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Village Hall Garden Planning: Discussions on an initiative to plant pollinator plants at the Municipal Lot will continue to review the plans and discuss design, budget, and maintenance considerations. A possible site near the electric vehicle charging station was discussed as a manageable size project in a visible location.
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Abrahams Park: The October Pumpkins in the Park event was well received both for the fun activities as well as providing a reason for attendees to visit Abrahams Memorial Park. Quite a few of the attendees had not previously visited Abrahams Park and were excited to learn about this excellent community resource. All the attendees were happy to learn about the recently opened trails and many took the opportunity to explore them for the first time. The PSI group has been involved in the strategic planning discussions aimed at further improving the park and looks forward to continued engagement in this process.
Planning Update
The Village’s planner, Nelson Pope and Voorhis, has prepared an initial draft of zoning language to amend the existing code to create a Gateway North zoning district where the proposed mixed‐use project on, and adjacent to, the Cookingham East property will be located. Once initial conversations on the draft have been completed, the revised document will be made available for further review, public community discussions and public hearings. As part of the review process a December 11 meeting will be held with RUPCO, the potential obtainable housing developer of the on the southern portion of the Gateway site, to discuss zoning and infrastructure issues.