Meet the Council: 

 

Voting Members

John Grossbohlin, Retired; Chair, Voting Member

John Grossbohlin is a lifelong resident of Kingston. He is retired from the health insurance industry where he worked as a project manager and programmer analyst. Previous to that, he worked for a research company; taught management and management information systems courses at several SUNY schools; and worked as a skilled craft interpreter at Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia. 

John has been a part of the local cycling community since the 1970s. He has experience working in a bicycle shop and as president of the former Ulster Cycling Club. John is a veteran cyclist with more than 7,400 miles of long distance touring and tens of thousands of miles of on and off road bicycling behind him. Long distance trips included riding from Florida to Kingston twice; riding from Colorado to Washington state; and riding the Erie Canalway. 

John currently volunteers with Bike Friendly Kingston; Kingston Land Trust’s Greenline management committee; Wallkill Valley Rail Trail, and the Friends of the Catskill Mountain Rail Trail. Additionally, John represents the City of Kingston on the O&W Rail Trial Coalition of Municipalities; serves as a board member of the D&H Canal Heritage Corridor Alliance which manages sections of the O&W Rail Trail; and, is in his second term as a member of the Complete Streets Advisory Council.

Ella Ray Kondrat, Vice Chair, Voting Member

Ella Ray Kondrat is a safe streets and sustainable transportation enthusiast, when she's not playing music or working as a speech therapist. Working in the field of mobility management years ago opened her eyes to the gaping holes in our car-centric transportation system - holes which disabled, poor, elderly and young people - and everyone else! - regularly fall into. She writes a blog called "Sweeten the Streets" with the mission of supporting the local transport conversation, stopping car deaths, and improving mobility for all.

 

Robert Dennison III, PE, Voting Member

Mr. Dennison, former New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) Chief Engineer, leads VHB’s transportation planning and design engineering services in New York. Throughout his 35+ year career, Dennison has made a tremendous impact on shaping the future of transportation and infrastructure in New York. He has held positions of responsibility in Town, County and State governments and understands the internal operations of government.  As Chief Engineer at NYSDOT, Dennison was responsible for New York State’s $1.6 billion annual capital construction program, bridge safety assurance of 17,000 publicly owned bridges, and management of the annual consultant program of $250 million.

 

Brian Slack, UCTC Transportation Planner; Voting Member

Mr. Slack received a Masters in Urban and Regional Planning from the University at Buffalo in 2003 and began working as a professional planner in Rochester NY shortly thereafter.  In 2011 he moved to Ulster County to begin working as a transportation planner for the Ulster County Transportation Council (UCTC) and Ulster County Planning Department.  In his role as Principal Transportation Planner for the UCTC, Brian focuses on all elements of the transportation planning process, including bike, pedestrian, highway, safety, and transit planning as well as state and federal rules governing use of the transportation system and federal aid.

Brian lives in the City of Kingston with his two children and walks and bikes to work whenever possible.

 

Kristen Wilson, RUPCO, Voting Member

Kristen Wilson joined RUPCO in 2021 as the Assistant Vice President for Community Development.  Ms. Wilson brings extensive experience cultivating partnerships for community health, developing projects, planning street transportation, managing municipal infrastructure grants and projects, and writing grant proposals.

Prior to joining RUPCO, Ms. Wilson worked as the Director of Grants Management for the City of Kingston and as Senior Resource Educator for the Healthy Communities Program of Cornell Cooperative Extension of Ulster County.  Earlier in her career, she worked for an environmental non-profit in Oaxaca, Mexico, and she is fluent in Spanish. Ms. Wilson has served as a volunteer on Kingston’s Complete Streets Advisory Council and the Climate Smart Kingston and Live Well Kingston Commissions. She also coaches ski racing for the New York Ski Educational Foundation. As an educator and convener at heart, Ms. Wilson has a passion for bringing people together to move dreams to plans and then to projects in the real world.  

Paul Stankus, Voting Member

Paul Stankus is a recent transplant to Kingston (2021) and the wider Hudson Valley who is interested in making the streets of Kingston safe and welcoming to users of all modes of transportation. He has traveled widely and lived in cities of all sizes and hopes to help to make Kingston a blend of all of the best street design ideas that he has experienced. Paul knows that when the entire population of the city is comfortable using its streets, it will be a great step toward being a more equitable and safe place for all. He is impressed with the steps taken so far by the City and CSAC and hopes to be a part of the next great strides that the City will take in this area. Paul can be seen regularly walking and biking around Kingston.

 

Claudette Ford, Voting Member

Gustavo Saume, Voting Member

EJ Michel, Voting Member

 

Non-voting Members

Emily Flynn, Staff Support

Barbara Hill, Ward 1 Alderman 

Helen Atkinson, Conservation Advisory Council Liaison