SPOTLIGHT Interview with Mayor Noble of Kingston on Housing

BY Bond Brungard for Ulster Strong

KINGSTON – Enjoying life in the Hudson Valley comes at a cost when there is so much natural beauty, cultural opportunities, and the technology to let us work and live at home comfortably. One of the consequence of our local bounty is the high demand for housing.

“Like many communities, we have a shortage of housing at all levels in Kingston,” said Mayor Steve Noble. Geopolitical issues, like the 9/11 attack and the COVID shutdown has put pressure on the housing markets, especially due to Kingston’s stop on the Thruway less than two hours north of New York City.

 “We have been working tirelessly to address the housing shortage in Kingston,” said Noble. “In 2020, I foresaw the need to address housing issues with swift action and a multi-pronged approach.” Noble created the city’s first Office of Housing Initiatives to help address shortages, especially for renters, by revising the zoning code and allowing for Accessory Dwelling Units.

“From overhauling our zoning code – a year’s long process that just came to fruition last month – to conducting a vacancy study in order to prove what we already knew – Kingston has a severe lack of rental housing available,” said Noble. “We were the first municipality outside of NYC and Westchester to take action and opt into rental protections. We’ve also instituted Right to Counsel programs, Landlord-Tenant mediation, instituted short-term rental regulations, and made Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) legal across the City of Kingston.”

The Accessory Dwelling Unit concept helps both homeowners and renters. Grants are made available to city homeowners to build attached, up to 50 percent of the existing square footage, or up to1,000sf detached units that fit well in existing neighborhoods and rent those spaces for 10 years. It helps property owners to provide close housing for an aging relative, or earn money through rent collected to pay a mortgage. And by allowing for such units in the revised zoning code, parking minimums were eliminated and rents can stabilize because more units are available.

“The big effort we’ve just completed is the new zoning code, which replaced an outdated 1960s-era zoning code to a form-based zoning code,” said Noble. “This encourages infilling, density, and makes building housing easier. It took away parking minimums, allows for ADUs citywide, and institutes strict short-term rental regulations.”

Renters are also protected by the Emergency Tenant Protection Act as part of Noble’s support for rent regulations.

“As part of the Emergency Tenant Protection Act being passed here locally, the Common Council has mandated that a new vacancy study be conducted every three years” said Noble. “That survey will take place in 2025.”

The Kingston City Land Bank helps the city turn abandoned or foreclosed properties into residences for first-time homeowners. This also helps chip away at the housing shortage and gets properties back on Kingston’s tax map. Finding possible solutions to the city’s housing issues have been put in place and now require a sustained effort to ensure they are successful for future generations of city residents.

“The housing crisis in Kingston was decades in the making. Sustainable solutions will require a dedicated and long-term focus,” said Noble. All cities are limited by space, creating density issues, which eventually cross borders into neighboring communities. Kingston is trying to get help for its needs, as Noble acknowledges this really a regional issue. “In Kingston, we are doing everything we can, with every available tool. We have great partners in Ulster County and at the State level, and we need the support,” said Noble. “Kingston can’t do this work alone; we need other surrounding communities to contribute to housing solutions and to also be willing to approve new housing projects.”