East Hudson Valley News

Dutchess County is seeking community input regarding the development of the former Schatz Federal Bearings Company property, a 20-acre site on Fairview Avenue in the Town of Poughkeepsie that spans into the City of Poughkeepsie. The County and its partners have established a “Revitalize Schatz” website, revitalizeschatz.com, where residents can learn about and take a survey regarding potential projects, including housing, commercial, and amenity options for the site. There will also be a “pop-up” event on August 6th on the Marcus J. Molinaro Northside Line in Poughkeepsie from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., where project coordinators will be available to discuss the project and hear ideas and comments.

County Executive Sue Serino said, “Dutchess County and our partners have a unique opportunity to transform the long-vacant Schatz property into an asset that can benefit its surrounding communities. We urge residents to engage with Dutchess County and our partners – either in person or online – to help guide the future of the site and make this project one in which we can all take pride.”

The development of the site is part of a Brownfield Opportunity Area (BOA) Nomination Study that the County and its partners – including RUPCO, a nonprofit organization focused on providing affordable housing and community development services in the Hudson Valley, and Kearney Realty Co. – have launched. Under this New York State program, BOAs examine options for the reuse and redevelopment of sites with historical environmental contamination.

The former Schatz Federal Bearings Company produced bearings for the automotive industry for much of the 20th century; however, the Fairview Avenue site was contaminated years ago and has long sat vacant. BOA participants receive state grant funding for various planning work, including site surveys, building structural analysis, market analysis, environmental reports, and community visioning for the future of the site.

The former Schatz site lies between Parker Avenue to the south, Cedar Avenue to the north, and the MJM Northside Line to the west. Public outreach will continue in the coming months to gather community input to help inform decisions regarding types of housing, commercial developments, amenity options to pursue as well as linkages to adjacent resources such as MidHudson Regional Hospital, Marist College, Walkway Over The Hudson, MJM Northside Line Rail Trail and other developments underway like Hudson Heritage and Scenic Hudson’s Parker Avenue campus. Additional information is available on the “Get Engaged” section of the “Revitalize Schatz” website.