Police reform advocates say they’re frustrated by the Common Council’s failure to move ahead quickly with legislation that would make major changes to the makeup and power of the city’s police commission and revamp the process for handling civilian complaints of officer misconduct.
Mayor Steve Noble is seeking the Common Council’s support for a plan that would fold the city’s Parks and Recreation Department into the Department of Public Works. Noble’s proposal also calls for the appointment of his wife, Julie Noble, and his former confidential secretary, Lynsey Timbrouck, to senior positions in the department. The merger proposal comes as longtime Parks and Rec chief Kevin Gilfeather gets set to retire in April.
Ulster County lawmakers say they anticipate a “hard conversation” about staffing levels at the Ulster County Jail in light of both the new bail reform law and a broader trend away from incarceration for low-level offenders. But Ulster County Sheriff Juan Figueroa said this week he believes it’s still too early to predict what the long-term impact of the reforms on the jail population will be.
The Kingston Common Council is expected to begin deliberations next month on whether and how to adopt new regulations that would cap annual rent increases at some city apartments. The proposed rent stabilization rules are part of a broader effort by city officials to stem gentrification and displacement.
Following a campaign season that brought it to the brink of extinction, the new chairman of the Kingston Republican Committee said that he was planning to rebuild the group from the ground up.
District Attorney Dave Clegg was formally sworn into office last week in a packed ceremony at the Ulster County Courthouse. The 66 year-old former trial attorney is the first Democrat to hold the DA’s office since 1850. The swearing in comes after a weeks-long process to verify the results of November’s election where Clegg prevailed over Republican former Chief Assistant District Attorney Mike Kavanagh by just 78 votes.
Kingston Republicans have a new leader who will take on the task of reviving the party’s flagging fortunes in an increasingly Democrat-dominated city.
A proposal by Gov. Andrew Cuomo would create a new state park on a rugged patch of land along the Hudson River straddling the City of Kingston-Town of Ulster border. But whether the proposed 508-acre park becomes a reality depends on voters’ approval in November of a $3 billion bond intended to preserve and restore natural resources, fight climate change and boost New York’s tourist economy.
Just two weeks after it went into effect, state lawmakers are weighing changes to New York’s historic bail reform law, which effectively ended bail in most cases. The main change cited was the need to give judges discretion to require bail when the defendant was deemed to be dangerous.
Major construction along the Broadway corridor, more civilian oversight of city police and new laws to fight rising rents are part of Kingston’s 2020 agenda, according to Mayor Steve Noble and leaders of the Common Council.