Check out a recent article in the Poughkeepsie Journal that talks about how Newburgh and Kingston are following the lead of the Bardavon Opera house in Poughkeepsie. Being that they are all Hudson River Valley towns, they have a lot in common and, a lot they can learn from each other. According to the article, even Newburgh is setting an example for Kingston. If you don’t feel like reading the entire article here were a few points I found interesting:

• “Chris Silva, executive director of the Bardavon 1869 Opera House on Market Street, is hoping to apply what he learned in Poughkeepsie to downtown revitalization projects involving the Ritz theater in Newburgh and the Broadway Theater at the Ulster Performing Arts Center in Kingston”
• “In Newburgh, the Bardavon is working with Safe Harbors of the Hudson, which operates housing for formerly homeless adults, adults with mental health issues, veterans, victims of domestic violence and artists. Safe Harbors has also embarked on a $12 million renovation project involving an 800-seat theater — the Ritz”
• “staging performances in downtown Newburgh could stimulate the local economy by attracting new businesses that are drawn by the crowds that attend performances.”
• The development of both the Ritz theater and the King’s Inn could have a profoundly positive effect on two distressed parts of each city…In Newburgh, Safe Harbors is up and running with 128 tenants, an art gallery, artist work spaces, and the Ritz will benefit from that development, and vice versa.”
• “The Newburgh campus of Orange County Community College, set to open in about a year, will use the Ritz as a theater facility.”
• “Artists, in many cases…help stabilize a community. Research the business alliance [of Kingston] has conducted shows that they are often homeowners and business owners, and they typically spend their money at local businesses…”