You can feel it, can’t you? That extra tinge of warmth in the air. The brightening of the sunshine with each passing day. That smell, of moist dirt, green buds and annual rebirth.
It’s spring, finally, here in the Hudson Valley, and lest you fear that local leaders are still shaking off the cobwebs of a long winter hibernation, improvement projects are already ramping up throughout the area, beginning with the approval of the New York State budget for 2008-09 this week, and with it the inclusion of a promised $8 million in funding for the Walkway Over the Hudson project to turn the Poughkeepsie-Highland Railroad Bridge into a pedestrian walkway and public park. That funding gives Walkway a total of $12 million toward its $30 million fundraising goal for the span, and under the terms of the budget legislation, the $8 million amount is included in a $95 million capital project allocation for the state Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation, which will eventually become responsible for the management of the walkway once it’s completed.
Construction on the project could begin as soon as next month, keeping hope alive that the walkway can be completed before next year’s quadricentennial celebration throughout the Hudson Valley. With the uncertainty that came with former Gov. Eliot Spitzer’s resignation during the budget process, it’s heartening to see the state re-affirm its commitment to a project that could very well become a crown jewel of Hudson Valley tourism.
And speaking of preparations for 2009, the City of Poughkeepsie isn’t lagging far behind, with city leaders focusing on a number of long-ranging projects. Chief among them is the continuing revival of the city’s southern waterfront, and specifically, the DeLaval property, a former milk factory and once-polluted industrial site that is the planned home for a business center, marina, boat dock and education center, among other amenities. Plans for the site have been in the works for several years, but progress has picked up considerably now that cleanup is allowed to move along at the site, and again, the site’s developers, the Bonura family, are hopeful that the marina can be completed before the anniversary celebration next year.
Also announced this week was Poughkeepsie-based environmental group Hudson River Sloop Clearwater’s intention to seek a state grant to help clean up the Fallkill Creek and create a recreational walkway along the creek path. The creek, which flows throughout the city and too often becomes the dumping ground for old tires, toys and garbage, is frequently the subject of volunteer cleanings, but Clearwater’s efforts are a welcome boost to a cleaner image for the city. And coupled with other projects in the works throughout the area – like road improvements in the Town of Poughkeepsie, explored elsewhere in this issue – it’s a good sign that progress, like spring, is continuing unabated.