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| Source: Keywest3 / Pixabay |
Picture this when you drive down the heart of
Plattekill on Rt. 32. A quarter-mile stretch of brand new businesses -
perhaps on the bit of land just south of Hannaford - you know the one -
that stretch of road with all the old closed-down buildings. Follow me in my
vision: Those buildings are fully razed to the ground and the land is reworked
and nicely landscaped.
Now picture this - something like Water Street
Market in New Paltz or the Waterfront in Newburgh or the small string of shops
in downtown Gardiner is put in - with parking around the back. In this vision,
a great new restaurant, owned by a CIA grad, sits as an anchor - serving
American fare and offering a variety of local beverages. A bakery sits next
door - offering a variety of baked goods and coffees. Next to that is a
Hudson-Valley themed gift shop, offering anything-and-everything Hudson Valley
along with cards, wrapping, etc. It could have a nice room full of Christmas
ornaments. Also found therein is a great new cafe open for breakfast and lunch.
Reasonably priced, this place becomes a great option for a quick bite to eat
and a cup of coffee. Then you’ve got the ice cream shop - a place that our kids
ask to go to for hard and soft-served ice cream throughout the summer months.
And let’s add a small clothing boutique offering unique and well-priced apparel
for men, women, and kids.
This string of new businesses - possibly called
Plattekill Towne Center - would employ between 50-100 people in our area -
offering our young people, in particular, exciting and worthwhile
part-time work opportunities.
Of course, this vision of the Plattekill Towne
Center that I outline here is one of many possible ways that we could really
revitalize our town.
Since I’ve started campaigning, I’ve talked to
all kinds of people about Plattekill - folks involved in town government,
leaders in the community, Chamber of Commerce members, past and present members
of the zoning board, our county executive, several current legislators of
Ulster County, and many citizens of our fine town. One of the most common
concerns raised has to do with the fact that we in Plattekill could really use
a boost in the business profile of this town.
According to a conversation I had with our
county executive, Mike Hein, our county generates over $500,000,000 of money in
tourism each year. You have to wonder: How much of that makes it into
Plattekill? You know the answer: Not that much.
I am going to be bold and say this: Let’s
change things. I know what you may be thinking: We’ve tried this already
and it won’t work. Of the folks I’ve been speaking to, a certain percentage
of people - particularly those who have spent their time and energy working for
the Town of Plattekill, seem to hold this opinion. And they have good reasons
and they know the history of this town inside and out. We discount this
important experience to our own peril.
This said, let me tell you a little bit about my
work experience. In my 2+ decades in the field of education, I’ve developed a
reputation for getting things done that people have said cannot be done. I developed
new classes at SUNY New Paltz during difficult budget years. People said it
would be hard to do that. Not only did I do that, but I spearheaded the
creation of an entire academic program during this time - one for which I
received hundreds of thousands of dollars as in a grant from the National
Science Foundation. People said that I would not be able to publish much
research when I served for eight years as department chair. Yet I published
dozens of articles and three books during that time span. On September 15 of
this year, I’ll be recognized for this work by the Chancellor of the SUNY
system by receiving a special award for my excellence in scholarship. I don’t
bring this up to boast - not by any means. Rather, I bring this all up to
demonstrate that I have a long and proven history of getting things done
when people say it’s impossible to do so. When someone tells me that some
idea of mine is just not going to happen, I have learned, under some
conditions, that the best way to progress is simply to smile, rally the troops,
and move forward. As I see it, we are only here once and it is up to each and
every one of us to do what we can to leave a positive mark while we are here.
Life is fleeting and I’m not interested in having my mark on this world be
mediocre.
In 2015, a federal report designated three
municipalities in Ulster County as being economically distressed. These were
Kingston, Ellenville, and Plattekill. As a result of the government officials
from two of those municipalities taking active steps to respond to this report,
Kingston and Ellenville made out. Kingston got a satellite branch of Ulster
County Community College added, an outcome that clearly led to increased
economic and educational opportunities. Ellenville got a stimulus package,
through Ulster County monies, of $1,000,000. Yup, that is a MILLION dollars.
And Plattekill got nothing. As far as I can
tell, this is because no one fought for Plattekill.
If I have the privilege of serving our district
in Kingston starting in 2018, you can rest assured that I will be there with
bells on rearing to go. My attendance record in my work at SUNY New Paltz has
been well over 99% since I joined the faculty in 2000 - and I would fully plan
to have one of the best attendance records among the legislators in Kingston if
I’m offered the opportunity to serve in this capacity. I will work tirelessly.
I will seek opportunities for Plattekill. And I will do absolutely everything
in my power to bring about positive change for the thousands of people in our
town.
Plattekill needs infrastructure. We need
businesses. We need to cultivate a town identity that we can all stand behind.
When people think Hudson Valley, they should think Plattekill.
Our town has extraordinary land, a unique and interesting history, and a
multi-faceted population comprised of amazing people. Plattekill pride
starts here. Send me to Kingston, and I will work full-sail,
day-in-and-day-out to get the Town of Plattekill the resources that we deserve.
We all know that Plattekill truly is a gem of the Hudson Valley - let’s work
together to let the world know this as well.
Glenn Geher – Modena – Candidate for Ulster
County Legislator, District 12
