By Kingston Land Trust, on November 12th, 2011
After a successful year of gardening and learning farming practices, The Dig Kids (an Urban Farming Program) held their final work party to close their garden at the Everett Hodge Center on Franklin Street in Kingston.
Later in the afternoon, volunteers joined some of our ‘Dig Kids’ at the City Hall Victory Garden to collect the harvest and close the garden there for the year as well. City Hall staff did a fantastic job maintaining the gardens this season! With pounds of greens, we all made our way over to the Queens Galley Soup Kitchen to make a food donation to help feed the community.
Plans are underway to expand ‘The Dig Kids” program in 2012 to include the Van Buren Street Park in Midtown.
If you wish to be a volunteer or make a donation to this valuable farming initiative, please contact Rebecca Martin at 845/877-5263 or email kingstonlandtrust@gmail.com
 Harvesting the final tomatoes at the Everett Hodge Center.
 The garden at the Everett Hodge Center retired in 2011. The youth did a fantastic job.  The City Hall Victory Garden was beautiful this season thanks to the Kingston Clerks Office and other City Hall staff.  Garden Volunteer Lei Isaacs helps to prepare Kale and other greens for delivery to the Queens Galley Soup Kitchen.  "The Dig Kids" close the City Hall Victory Garden. Great work!  Kingston Land Trust Executive Director Rebecca Martin is surrounded here by 'The Dig Kids'. Greens picked and packed to be delivered to the Queens Galley Soup Kitchen.
By Kingston Land Trust, on November 9th, 2011
 The Galley Community Garden Retires in 2011 and looks ahead to 2012! The Galley Community Garden had it’s first full year in 2011. Led by residents in the Uptown Kingston area, the Kingston Land Trust and the Queens Galley were happy to get this new project off the ground.
We are all looking forward to a future collaboration with Creating Healthy Places (to Live, Work and Play) – a grant project secured by Cornell Cooperative Extension in 2012. Together, the partners will continue to work to engage and support new community garden interest in the city of Kingston.
If you wish to join us in this work, please contact Rebecca Martin, Executive Director of the Kingston Land Trust at 845/877-5263 or by email: kingstonlandtrust@gmail.com
By Kingston Land Trust, on November 3rd, 2011
The Fall 2011 LSA Mini- Grant: New Gardens! is a mini-grant award that is designed to fund youth led service-learning garden projects in Ulster County. This grant will fund materials for the construction of a new garden at your site and does not provide capital funding to the grantees. Community groups must have youth participants and are encouraged to work with nearby schools and teachers.
WHO CAN APPLY?
Not for Profit Groups in Ulster County are eligible. This includes schools, churches, hospitals, community and neighborhood groups and other organizations who may not have 501c3 IRS exemptions, but whose interests are working with youth to create a healthy supply of food for their community.Community groups which have received LSA funding in the past are not welcome to apply for this round of funding. Click on the link below for an application.
For more information, contact Julie Noble, Environmental Educator at 845/481-7339.
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By Kingston Land Trust, on October 24th, 2011
On behalf of Parks and Trails New York (PTNY), the Kingston Land Trust was awarded a ‘Healthy Trails, Healthy People’ program mini-grant toward the cost of development of a Kingston Rail Trails friend page for the Kingston Land Trust website.
This exciting addition to our website will get underway shortly, so stay tuned!
By Kingston Land Trust, on October 24th, 2011
(Albany, NY) Mark Castiglione, Acting Executive Director of the Hudson River Valley Greenway is pleased to announce the Kingston Land Trust has received a $10,000 Greenway Conservancy Small Grant for an engineering study on a 1.5 mile right-of-way to connect Midtown to Rondout Waterfront with a multi-use trail. A total of $50,000 was awarded to eight community projects in the Hudson Valley through the 2011 Greenway Conservancy Small Grant Program.
The Kingston Land Trust will use the funding to match an approved community development block grant for a project that will engage a consultant for engineering support services to identify alternatives for conversion of an urban rail bed to a multi-use trail as part of the Kingston Point Rail Trail Project. It will enable the transformation of the rail corridor running from the vicinity of Kingston Hospital in Midtown to the Strand into a multi-use urban trail and connect to an existing waterfront walkway along the Rondout Creek. The first phase of the project will consist of the development of design concepts, completing the preliminary engineering, drafting environmental documents and cost estimates for alternatives. The second phase will consist of plans, specifications, and design schematics.
Mark Castiglione, Acting Executive Director of the Hudson River Valley Greenway, stated “This project will help set the stage for enhanced recreational opportunities, better waterfront access, better connections within the city, enhanced quality of life for residents, and will help increase tourism. The Greenway is proud to be able to provide the financial assistance to municipalities and non-profits in their efforts to improve the connections between communities in the Hudson River Valley, ultimately resulting in a regional network of trails. We applaud the Kingston Land Trust and their commitment to the expanding trails and public access in the City of Kingston and throughout the Hudson River Valley Greenway.”
“Healthy, liveable cities are critical for economic resiliency in our region. Thanks to a grant from the Greenway Conservancy, we will be able to take the first steps necessary to create a rail trail hub in the City of Kingston where several rail trails will converge” says Gregg Swanzey, Board Member of the Kingston Land Trust.
The Greenway Conservancy Small Grant Program is an annual competitive grant funding opportunity available to communities and not-for-profit organizations within the designated Hudson River Valley Greenway area, which extends from Saratoga County and Washington counties to Battery Park, Manhattan. The program offers funding for trail planning and design, construction and rehabilitation, and education and interpretation. Emphasis is placed on trail projects that seek to implement the goals of the Draft Greenway Trail Vision Plan, fill in identified gaps in the Greenway Trail System, and make improvements to designated Greenway Trails.
The Hudson River Valley Greenway Conservancy is a New York State public benefit corporation established by the Greenway Act of 1991. The Greenway is designed to encourage Hudson River Valley communities to develop projects and initiatives related to the criteria of natural and cultural resource protection, regional and local planning, economic development, public access to the Hudson River (as well as other regional and local resources), and heritage and environmental education. It provides technical assistance and small grants for planning, capital projects, and water trail and land-based trails that reinforce the Greenway Criteria. Presently, the Greenway has designated over 450 miles of land trails from Saratoga County to New York City. The Greenway is also the management entity for the Hudson River Valley National Heritage Area.
Visit www.hudsongreenway.ny.gov for more information on the Greenway
Visit www.hudsonrivervalley.com for more information on the Hudson River Valley National Heritage Area
By Kingston Land Trust, on October 21st, 2011
Congressman Hinchey Helps Secure Federal Support for Kingston Rail-Trail Connections Project
Congressman Maurice Hinchey (D-NY) today announced that the National Park Service’s Rivers, Trails and Conservation Assistance (RTCA) program will provide technical assistance to help plan and sustain the Kingston Land Trust’s Kingston Rail Trail Connections project. The project will help connect existing trails throughout the greater Kingston region. Hinchey wrote the RTCA program manager in July requesting federal assistance. The Kingston program was selected from the most competitive field of requests ever received by the agency and was one of only a handful of new projects accepted in New York State.
“I am pleased to have helped secure federal assistance for this project, which will help knit the City of Kingston together with a network of trails along historic rail corridors,” said Hinchey. “The Kingston Rail Trail Connections project is going to strengthen our growing trail system so that it can be enjoyed by local residents and visitors to our region. It will engage the local community and young people, create linkages between neighborhoods and commercial districts, and increase the traffic flow of customers towards local businesses, which can only have positive effects for our economy.”
“The Kingston Land Trust is honored to have the support of the National Park Service for our ‘Kingston Connections’ project.” said Rebecca Martin, Executive Director of the Kingston Land Trust. Gregg Swanzey, Kingston Land Trust Board Director and Chair of the Kingston Land Trust Rail Trail Committee added, “we are all excited in finding ways to restore connections along historic pathways in the city of Kingston to create a ‘Midtown Hub’ or rail trails and greenways.”
The RTCA will provide the technical assistance necessary to improve existing rail trails by addressing overgrowth, drainage problems and other issues. It will also help the Kingston Land Trust negotiate right-of-way agreements with private landowners to connect the trails together and link them to neighborhoods and business districts. The RTCA will also help expand public engagement through a community planning workshop in early 2012 and by convening a Friends of Kingston Rail Trails group to undertake ongoing community and youth involvement with operation and maintenance of the trail system.
The project will help to further the goals of the National Park Service’s America’s Great Outdoors initiative, which supports community efforts to increase access to outdoor recreation, and to cultivate stewardship and appreciation of America’s natural and recreational resources through innovative partnerships. Through the RTCA Program, the National Park Service helps communities and neighborhoods develop new trails and greenways, and protect and manage open space and improve rivers. These projects are locally-led with RTCA staff supporting community based conservation and recreation leaders. This year, 52 projects in 13 states were selected to receive technical assistance from the Rivers, Trails and Conservation Assistance Program. In 2011, RTCA efforts helped over 175 communities leverage $1.65 million in funds for targeted projects.
By Kingston Land Trust, on August 22nd, 2011
The South Pine Street City Farm launches a Midtown Farm Stand in Kingston, NY. Fresh vegetables from the farm can be purchased by residents three days a week beginning on August 29th for the remainder of the growing season.
Kingston, NY – The South Pine Street City Farm located at 27 South Pine Street off of Greenkill Avenue in Midtown, Kingston has successfully turned a vacant lot into a thriving organic farm created by first generation farmer Jesica Clark. Beginning on August 29th, a “Midtown Farm Stand” will be operated on site selling fresh vegetables three days a week, Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 4:00pm – 7:00pm for the remainder of the growing season.
The Farm, a program of the Queens Galley, grows fresh, local and organic produce that feeds guests at the Queens Galley less than a mile away. In addition, Farmer Clark delivers seasonal vegetables to local stores and restaurants in a ‘farm to table’ effort. With the addition of the Midtown Farm Stand, residents can now purchase seasonal organic vegetables at a better price due to the elimination of transportation and other associated costs.
The South Pine Street City Farm is a program of the Queens Galley in partnership with Binnewater Ice Co. and the Kingston Land Trust. The Midtown Farm Stand was made possible by a material and build donation by Hugh Cummings of Hugh-Name-It Builders, Kingston NY.
For more information, contact Farmer Jesica Clark at 845/380-9183 or Rebecca Martin, Executive Director of the Kingston Land Trust at 845/877-5263.
By Kingston Land Trust, on August 15th, 2011
 "The Dig Kids" prepare what they grow. Last week, “the Dig Kids” processed tomatoes from their garden at the Everett Hodge Center for salsa. Using additional ingredients from the South Pine Street City Farm thanks to Farmer Jesica Clark such as red onion, cilantro and jalapeno – the youth learned cubing, dicing and chopping skills to make their dish delicious. It’s very cool to be able to eat the food that you grow or to be able to grab veggies from another garden just a few blocks away from where you are.
 Fresh salsa using all locally grown ingredients.  It's a good feeling to make your own food.
By Kingston Land Trust, on August 15th, 2011
The Kingston Land Trust is a proud partner of the Healthy Kingston for Kids program. In addition, KLT Executive Director Rebecca Martin is co-chair of the Healthy Kingston for Kids Garden Committee alongside City of Kingston’s Environmental Educator Julie Noble. Recently, the committee’s efforts in creating a community garden resolution passed unanimously through Kingston’s nine member Common Council.
This first step is a big one on the sustainability front for gardens in the city of Kingston. Congratulations to all who helped to make this possible.
The HKK Garden Committee is seeking new members. If you are interested in community and school gardens and policy work, please contact Rebecca Martin at kingstonlandtrust@gmail.com
What is the Healthy Kingston for Kids Garden Commitee?
The Healthy Kingston for Kids School and Community Garden Committee is charged with effecting policy and environmental change at the municipal and school level through supporting the installment and use of food gardens within the geographical area of the Kingston City School District.
By Kingston Land Trust, on July 29th, 2011
 Picking fresh corn from the South Pine Street City Farm for the grill. Can't beat that. By Rebecca Martin
The Dig Kids – an Urban Farming Program created by the Kingston Land Trust with a grant from the Columbia Foundation and a donation from Family of Woodstock celebrated its successful garden season with a garden walk through Midtown and BBQ at the South Pine Street City Farm this afternoon. 75 people attended the event and enjoyed local hamburgers and hotdogs from Kingston’s own Fleishers Grass Fed and Organic Meats (at least a dozen people made a point to tell me that they had never tasted such good burgers and dogs). The Church Community cooked for us all – and after, the Mid Hudson Youth Chorale performed for our guests at the farm.
The Kingston Land Trust wishes to expand ‘The Dig Kids’ program in 2012 – and we are searching for donors and sponsors. If you are interested, please contact me at: Rebecca Martin 845/877-LAND (5263) or 845/750-7295.
Special Thanks: Jesica Clark and the South Pine Street City Farm, the Queens Galley, Binnewater Ice, Fleisher’s Grass Fed Meats, Kingston Cares, the Everett Hodge Center, the Church Community, Mark Foley and Volunteer Music, Mathew Camara and the Hudson Valley Youth Chorale Julie and Steve Noble, Adams Fairacre Farm and our biggest thanks to the Kingston Land Trust’s Dig Kids this year. You have made a big impact in our community!
 Parents and Children line up to participate in the garden walk through Midtown.  Led by Farmer Jesica Clark, who created the South Pine Street City Farm on South Pine Street in Midtown, Kingston.  Final stretch! Participants crossing Greenkill Avenue on their way to the South Pine Street City Farm.  The children begin to arrive to the farm for a game of tag!  Everyone enjoyed Fleisher's Grass Fed meats cooked to perfection by the Church Communities.  The children gathered to make a wish and release their balloons.  There they go...  We were entertained by the Mid Hudson Youth Chorale.  The audience was captivated. It was a great event for all!
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