Kingston committee names Common Council lead agency, issues negative declaration for Kingston Point Park parking project

The City of Kingston Laws and Rules Committee voted unanimously April 16 to adopt a resolution declaring the Common Council lead agency and issuing a negative declaration on the short environmental assessment form for Kingston Point Park Phase 2, a project to raise and reconfigure the park’s frequently flooded parking area.

The committee’s action clears a key step under the State Environmental Quality Review (SEQR) process by concluding the short-form EAF and finding no significant adverse environmental impact requiring a full environmental impact statement.

Project presenter John said the work will “fix the parking lot that’s subject to flooding at Kingston Point Park,” adding the new parking area will sit “largely in the same area, but somewhat smaller, than the current parking lot and, most importantly, will be elevated.” The proposal would provide 53 parking spaces generally on the eastern half of the current lot; the western half would be left low and allowed to return to wetland vegetation. John told the committee construction is expected “likely in the fall.”

On materials and drainage, John said the raised area would use “select material, clean fill or granular material depending on the ability to compact it. And then ... the top layer would be standard blacktop, like we see in all our parking lots.” He described stormwater routing: runoff from the new lot will drain from east to west into the lower portion of the lot, and a swale on the west end will intercept and treat stormwater before discharge to the wetland.

Committee members asked about alternatives such as pervious pavement. John said pervious surfaces perform poorly where the groundwater table is shallow and that, for this site, conventional asphalt is the preferred surface. He also said, after meetings with New York State Department of Environmental Conservation staff, DEC’s preference was to avoid disturbing the area already recruiting wetland vegetation and to leave the lower western half submerged and undisturbed.

Members asked about construction timing and interim parking. John estimated active construction could take about four to six weeks and said staff intend to schedule work in the fall when park parking demand is lower. He estimated the current, nonflooded lot holds roughly 100 spaces today and will provide 53 when completed; he and committee members noted that exact current counts are not specified because striping and maintenance have varied over time.

The committee passed a resolution, recorded in the meeting packet as “a resolution of the Common Council of the City of Kingston declaring the Common Council as lead agency and making a negative declaration on the short environmental assessment form as per attached.” A motion and second were recorded and the measure “passes unanimously.”

The decision means the project can proceed to the next design and permitting steps under the city and state review frameworks; construction funding and schedule were described as in place and aimed at permitting construction later in the year.

Details recorded at the meeting: the plan calls for elevating the eastern half of the parking area, installing a west-end swale for stormwater treatment, using compacted clean fill/granular material with an asphalt surface, and leaving the western half of the current lot to reestablish wetland vegetation per DEC guidance.