BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING MINUTES AUGUST 16, 2026
I. Organizational Matters
1. L. Daily called the meeting to order at 4:15 p.m.
2. Attendance: L. Daily, (Chair), A. Church, R. Monteverde, A. Niles, C. Carter, A. Schrijver, J. Morris (Acting City Manager) Others Present: J. Welles (Executive Director), E. Talbott (Project Director), D. Leonor (Admin. Manager), J. Sidd (Legal Counsel, Hancock Estabrook, LLP) D. Weisz (Legal Counsel) Absent: J. Werner, D. Walker-Duncan.
3. Review & Approval of July 2026 Minutes: A. Church made a motion to approve the July 2026 Minutes. C. Carter seconded the motion. All members approved with hand raises, none opposed.
4. Review of July 2026 Financial Reports: The Board reviewed the July 2026 Financial Report which reflected the first month financial balances of the fiscal year. The audit of the Financial Report is still being drafted and should be ready by the next Board meeting. July has a negative net income because the new fiscal year just started and there was no income reflected in July. State funding for pre-development has been released but it’s only for new projects leading to completed units using the next round of capital funding. Capital award funding will be released this fall. LBI operations funding was renewed. A motion to approve the July 2026 Financial Report was made by A. Church. A. Niles seconded the motion. All members approved with hand raises, none opposed.
II. Property Related Matters
1) Legacy City Access Program
a. Round II: 140 Chambers, 128 Dubois, 11 S. Miller, 238 First – The Newburgh Legacy II HDFC was recently formed for the new Legacy City Access program. J. Welles has been working closely with CPC on the underwriting process. There is still a gap in financing due to high costs and insufficient subsidies. Other strategies are being considered such as increasing sales prices while remaining within the 80% AMI limit and reducing the developer fee to help close the financing gap.
b. Construction/Predevelopment update - The structure located behind 238 First will be demolished as it’s in poor condition.
2) Restore NY project: 72-76-78 Lander update
a. Structural stabilization update – a limited amount of structural stabilization work to begin at 76 Lander, including clean out, interior shoring and roof replacement. A contract amendment was signed with Carlos Arturo Contracting to add the work to the previous contract for 72 and 78 Lander.
b. Site Plan Review – Site plans are being updated based on the comments received from the previous Planning Board meeting. NCLB staff will attempt to attend the next planning board meeting scheduled for September 15, 2026. One item under review is ADA access for the commercial spaces at 76 and 78 Lander. Open Structure is designing a ramp along the northern and rear sides of the buildings. A. Schrijver suggested that in many locations, a temporary ramp may be permitted if paired with a doorbell.
3) Purchaser updates
a. 34 Lander – The owner attended the ARC meeting on August 11, 2026, but had not submitted any architectural plans for review. There are concerns regarding exterior work being completed without necessary approvals and the need for the owner to retain an architect and comply with ARC requirements. J. Welles will notify the owner that ARC approval is expected by October. The Board will continue to monitor the situation and may allow additional time if progress is being made.
b. 38 Lander – Property owner has accepted the proposal of selling the property to an approved buyer and receiving proceeds of the sale equal to the original sale price and the cost of verified repairs. A general list of the completed repairs has been provided but the verified receipts are missing and have been requested.
c. 146 South – Property owner offered to settle in court and is requesting 2 years to complete. The City of Newburgh Building Inspector confirmed that they have passed certain inspections and that they could comfortably complete the project within 6 months, if they work on it consistently. The purchaser’s father is now overseeing the process and responding in court. The board agreed to proceed with a settlement for the owner to complete the project in one year and to structure the agreement based on the land bank attorney’s specific recommendations to ensure compliance, including holding a deed in lieu of foreclosure and demonstration of taxes being up to date and paid going forward. The owner must also comply with ARC guidelines.
d. 104 Washington – the property owner of building gave an update on the status of the delayed project. The property was sold in 2021 and $100k was spent to demolish the building. The proposed project recieved ARC approval and from there they developed constructions drawings for a building permit. However, inflation and significant increases in interest rates became a big obstacle, which forced a redesign of the project to include more commercial area, which led to an award of $2 Million from the ESD MidHudson Momentum Fund. However, geotechnical conditions on Washington St consisting of a high-water table led to the need to redesign the building again, eliminating commercial space in the basement. A. Schrijver requested the plan and timeline. Property owner stated that the timeline is unclear due to additional issue related to a recent change in State law regarding County IDA PILOTs requiring prevailing wage, which only impacts Orange County. If the City of Newburgh grants the PILOT instead, they won’t have that requirement. However, the City only grants PILOTs to HDFCs. J. Welles suggested that the land bank could possibly set up an HDFC with them for this purpose. The owner will provide further updates when they have more information.
4) Property Acquisition:
a. 88 Gidney and 236 Powell-The properties were purchased from Mt. Saint Mary College at the end of July.
b. City/land bank acquisition process– The draft agreement for the City/Land Bank acquisition process was submitted to the City’s Assistant Corporate Counsel for discussion. We are awaiting feedback before it can be submitted to the City Council.
5) Property Sales
a. 302 Grand St RFP released – The RFP was posted, and applications are due September 11, 2026. No applications have been received to date.
6) Other property related issues
a. 10 Chambers update – J. Morris gave the history of the DEC clean up at 151 Liberty St which is the adjacent parcel. The City of Newburgh acquired the property in 2013 as a tax foreclosure. In 2018 the DEC approached the city inquiring about the possibility of fuel tanks being buried in the site as it was a former gas station. They found tanks throughout the site. DEC entered the site for cleanup. They excavated the entire site and recompacted with clean fill. J. Welles confirmed there were no tanks on the 10 Chambers side, but the DEC did request access to remove and replace contaminated soil. The work is complete and there is nothing else to sign off on with DEC. However, J. Morris stated that recently the City received litigation on the parcel and he can’t say anymore. J. Welles to reach out to the City attorney to see if the litigation would affect 10 Chambers or if there is anything outstanding with the DEC, so we can proceed with plans for the property.
b. Artist in Vacancy Program with The DIA Beacon – Diana Manganser from Open Structure is working together with The DIA Beacon on a project related to vacancy and abandonment and using 128 Dubois as a site. More information will be provided later once everything has been confirmed.
III. Next Meeting: Sept 16, 2026, at 4pm