City of Poughkeepsie Sets Public Information Session For YMCA Site Submissions

Poughkeepsie, NY – The City of Poughkeepsie will hold a public information session on
Wednesday, Oct. 23 regarding possible future uses for the former YMCA site on Montgomery
Street. The meeting will be held from 6:30 to 8 p.m. at the Changepoint Church, 260 Mill St.,
Poughkeepsie.

In early September, the city released the four submissions it had received in connection to
reuse of the site and then appointed an advisory committee that includes members of the
public to review the applications and make recommendations to the administration.

Two of the respondents – one suggesting a Swimming Past the Boundaries Aquatic Center,

the other seeking the creation of an arts museum – have subsequently withdrawn from the
process.

Two others – one proposing a multi-use facility that would include community and
recreational services, the other envisioning a Poughkeepsie Museum of Contemporary Art –
are expected to make presentations to the public at the Oct. 23 meeting.

“This has been an effective and open process,” said Mayor Rob Rolison. “The city took
ownership of this property earlier this year after the site sat dormant for about a decade, and
we are making great strides to bringing it back to life.”

As part of this process, city officials held two well-attended meetings and then answered
dozens of questions the public posed at those meetings. The city also presented to the public a
video showing extensive damage to the inside of the building that has been vacant for about a
decade.

The 35 Montgomery Community Coalition has one of the remaining proposals. The coalition
includes Community Matters 2, Inc., DAY ONE Early Childhood Learning Community,
Dutchess Community College, Dutchess County, MASS Design Group, Nuvance Health,
Poughkeepsie Farm Project, Poughkeepsie Public Library District, Vassar College, and
YMCA of Kingston and Ulster County.

Andrew Gori and Ambre Kelly, co-founders of The They Co., have put forward the other
remaining proposal calling for a contemporary arts museum.

At the public information session, each respondent will get 20 minutes to make a presentation
and then answer questions from the public.

Members of the city’s YMCA Site Selection Advisory Committee also will be at the public
information session. Mayor Rolison has appointed Dutchess County Legislator Barbara Jeter
Jackson to chair the committee, which also includes Common Council member Sarah Salem
of the Second Ward, where the former YMCA is located. Other members of the committee
are city residents Tamoya Norwood, Sashawna Isaacs and Arthur T. Rollin; Paul Calogerakis,
the city’s economic development director; and John Penney, the city’s community
engagement director.

Links to the submissions are below:
• 35 Montgomery Community Coalition, Community Campus
• Contemporary Art and Museum Space, Andrew Gori and Ambre Kelly
To make a comment about the submissions, email
PoughkeepsieRFEI@cityofpoughkeepsie.com

For more information contact:
Community Engagement Office: 845-451-4241
John Penney- jpenney@cityofpoughkeepsie.com