Developer Seeks final signoffs for 70‑unit Broadway project as board weighs three zoning waivers

Baxter Development Company LLC representatives asked the City of Kingston Planning Board to move forward with site plan review of a mixed‑use project at 615 Broadway and 35 Cedar Street that would create ground‑floor commercial space and roughly 70 residential units, while seeking three zoning waivers and awaiting a final easement/purchase agreement with the Salvation Army.

Project representative Natalie Quinn said the team has “moved from the regional approval. So we now have regional approval,” and that drafts of a regulatory agreement and the easement/purchase agreement had been submitted to the city’s corporation counsel for review.

Why it matters: The project proposes a publicly accessible plaza, on‑site parking and 20% of units designated as affordable under the city’s definition — roughly 14 units — making the site a major near‑term addition to downtown housing. The board must weigh the requested waivers against historic context and public‑access commitments, and the development cannot proceed to final filings until legal agreements and engineering sign‑offs are complete.

The developer presented design updates and a shadow analysis done for summer and winter equinoxes that staff had requested. Key zoning waivers the applicant formally requested were: - Frontage occupancy: the form‑based code requires a 90% minimum frontage occupancy; the applicant reported roughly 72% and said the shortfall was necessary to provide a visible and usable publicly accessible plaza. - Ground‑floor commercial height: the code requires a 16‑foot minimum; the applicant proposed 14 feet 6 inches to match the cornice line and proportions of adjacent historic buildings (notably 609–611 Broadway). - Rear 20‑foot height/stepback rule: the code limits additional height within 20 feet of an adjacent rear lot line; the applicant sought relief to retain a 5‑story portion that would otherwise be limited to about 4 stories under the code, arguing the additional units were needed to preserve feasibility and the public benefits offered.

The applicant said it had updated its lot‑line calculations to reflect the planned purchase of 9,053 square feet from the Salvation Army and had submitted a draft regulatory agreement intended to govern the affordable units. The team also provided a site‑work cost estimate and bond figure for city review: $819,000.62, which the city engineer must approve before final action.

Board members asked for clarification on: whether affordable units are distributed by unit type (studio/1‑bed/2‑bed) and how the regulatory agreement would attach to the property; the exact wording and exhibits for the easement and purchase agreement; and the city engineer’s review of the site‑work bond and stormwater comments.

The board discussed whether to close the public hearing and vote tonight. Multiple members indicated support for granting the three zoning waivers on a contextual basis — to preserve the historic cornice line and the publicly accessible plaza — but they also stressed that final approval depend on: a) corporation counsel signoff on the regulatory and easement/purchase agreements; b) city engineer review and acceptance of the site bond estimate; and c) final exhibits for the lot‑line and easement documents that have been reviewed by the other easement parties.

Because the Salvation Army, the city and the other third‑party owners must sign off on the easement documentation, the applicant and staff requested the board carry the matter forward so the outstanding legal items could be resolved. Chair Wayne Platt moved to carry items 8 and 9; the motion passed and the board agreed to revisit formal action at a subsequent meeting once the outstanding agreements and engineering items are complete.

Board members and staff also asked the applicant to provide a final distribution plan for the 20% affordable units (unit types and placement within the building), and requested that the regulatory agreement specify any perpetual deed restrictions for the subset of units that must remain affordable.

The board did not grant final approvals tonight; instead it signaled conditional support for the waivers and requested the outstanding legal and engineering items be delivered and reviewed before a final vote.

Ending: The applicant will continue coordination with corporation counsel, the city engineer (staff identified Keith Phillips as the engineering contact) and the Salvation Army; the board carried the items to a future meeting to allow those documents and the site‑work bond review to be completed.