Mid Hudson Times Apr. 11 2018 | Page 3

3 Mid Hudson Times, Wednesday, April 11, 2018 So. William St. building slated for restaurant, lofts By SHANTAL RILEY [email protected] The city is paving the way for a new project to turn a South William Street building into a space housing lofts, office space and a restaurant. The Newburgh City Council is expected to approve a development agreement between R.L. Baxter Building Corp. and partners in the coming weeks. “They put in an application for 109 South William that has a restaurant on the ground floor, office spaces, communal space on the second floor and living spaces on the third floor,” said City of Newburgh Director of Planning and Development Deirdre Glenn. The $2.7 million project is expected to produce loft spaces up to 500 square feet, and market-rate living units 700 to 1,300 square feet in size. Six to seven tenants will occupy the living spaces. According Baxter’s letter of intent, the restaurant will offer “a casual, sit-down restaurant, a bakery and a food-hall style area with several options of prepared foods to be eaten in the communal seating area.” Food choices will include salads, sandwiches and Neapolitan pizza baked in a wood-burning oven. Glenn spoke about the project at City Hall last week, explaining Baxter was one of six applicants to reply to a city RFP to develop the property, located between Liberty and South Lander streets. “They have an incredible reputation in the Hudson Valley,” Glenn said. Baxter will partner with Chef Sisha Ortuzar - cofounder of Wichcraft, a casual- Plans are underway to convert a vacant 109 South William Street into lofts, office restaurant. food chain with locations throughout New York City. Another partner is architecture firm Mapos, which boasts clients such as Nike, Clinique, Viacom and the New York Stock Exchange. Baxter built the Mill House Brewing Company in Poughkeepsie and Heritage Food and Drink in Fishkill, among other businesses in the region. “These folks are the real deal,” said City Manager Michael Ciaravino at City Hall on Monday night. “This is right off Liberty Street, which continues to grow in leaps and bounds.” Built in 1895, the South William Street building has sat vacant for years. The city-owned building has three floors, with more than 21,000 square feet of space. It was once home to the Sun-Ray Factory Clothing Outlet and underwear manufacturer Chesnin Leis & Co. Inc. The building is located next to the Eco Shrimp Garden and across the street from Atlas Industries, which developed a similar vacant warehouse into artists’ studios and a furniture manufacturing facility a few years ago. “The structure is pretty sound,” said city Planner Alexandra Church. “It needs some cleanup,” she said, including some electrical and plumbing work. Due to the age of the building, it is possible that some environmental testing will be needed, she said. “It’s an exciting concept,” said Church, who was part of a local committee that reviewed the project. “They have what it takes to get it done. And, this neighborhood has been neglected for a long time.” Church noted the project also has the potential to produce jobs. “There is the potential for up to 50 full- time employees to work in this building,” the planner said. A land development agreement is expected to be signed by the city and the three partners in the next few weeks, said Church. “We will go back to the council city and they will vote to approve the agreement,” she said. “Our hope is the development team will then start their work.” The project will need to go before the city’s Architectural Review Commission and possibly warehouse at before the city planning spaces and a board, Church said. WE ATTRACT NEW BUSINESSES THAT CREATE JOBS SO YOU CAN WORK CLOSE TO HOME That’s Just One of Our Goals! For 32 years, the Orange County Partnership has been instrumental in attracting new business and assisting existing companies with their expansion needs - all toward the goal to bring in new jobs. 40 Matthews Street, Suite 108, Goshen, NY 10924 845.294.2323 • www.ocpartnership.org ORANGE MEANS BUSINESS: LEGO, the LEGO logo, the Brick and Knob configurations, the Minifigure and LEGOLAND are trademarks of the LEGO Group. ©2016 The LEGO Group. LEGOLAND is a Merlin Entertainments brand.