Senator Michelle Hinchey and Mayor Steve Noble Announce New Capital Funding in NYS Budget for City of Kingston Road Improvements

KINGSTON, NY – Senator Michelle Hinchey (D-Saugerties) joined City of Kingston Mayor Steve Noble and Department of Public Works Superintendent Edward Norman on Thursday to announce that Kingston will receive more than $1.3 million in a newly dedicated stream of state budget funding through the City Touring Routes program, created to help cities, villages, and towns offset the cost of capital projects on New York-signed touring routes.

The $100 million state initiative allocates aid based on how many miles of state routes are maintained by local municipalities. Until now, repairs and other improvements along touring routes, which are highways and roads that have been signed by state agencies based on their cultural or scenic value, were funded solely by local governments. This new state budget initiative that Hinchey successfully advocated for will ease that burden by reducing capital project costs on the 5.27 state route touring miles that fall within the City of Kingston’s jurisdiction.

“Safe and reliable road infrastructure is the backbone of a healthy economy and essential to providing us with a better quality of life here in Kingston,” said Senator Michelle Hinchey. “Understanding what dire condition our local roads are in, we fought for record-setting infrastructure funding in this year’s budget and were successful in securing more than $2.4 million for City roads along with a new capital project fund to help Kingston offset the burdensome costs of maintaining state-owned roads. The City will see over $1.3 million from the City Touring Routes program alone. Investing in our local infrastructure is about making sure our kids can get to school, parents can get to work, and that all of us can run to the doctor’s office or the grocery store without having to figure out what route has fewer potholes or will spare our vehicle. This funding is so critically needed in the City of Kingston, and I’m proud of the high bar we’ve set through the budget this year to protect and rebuild the transportation channels we use every day.”

“I would like to thank Senator Hinchey and her colleagues in the Senate for creating the City Touring Road program, which will be hugely beneficial for the City of Kingston,” said Mayor Steve Noble. “This $1.3 million in funding will go a long way in helping us improve major roadways through our community. We look forward to working with our Public Works and Engineering departments to devise a plan that best utilizes these funds and getting started on much-need capital improvements.” 

Department of Public Works Superintendent Edward Norman said, “We are grateful for the additional funds to maintain and improve our main thoroughfares in Kingston. Having State assistance is a big help, and we thank Senator Hinchey for securing these much-needed funds for our roads.”

A full breakdown of funding dedicated to the City of Kingston in the 2021-22 State Budget can be found below.

• City Touring Routes Program: 
  • 2020/2021 Budget: non-existent 
  • 2021/2022 Budget: $1,322,027.95
    

• Consolidated Local Street and Highway Improvement Program (CHIPS)
  • 2020/2021 Budget: $595,762
  • 2021/2022 Budget: $739,463
    

• PAVE-NY Funds
  • 2020/2021 Budget: $135,989
  • 2021/2022 Budget: $203,957
    

• Extreme Winter Recovery Funds
  • 2020/2021 Budget: $93,454
  • 2021/2022 Budget: $143,776
    

• Total Change in Funding:
  • 2020/2021 Budget: $825,205
  • 2021/2022 Budget: $2,409,223.95