Expectation is less road congestion, more parking
Earlier this month, the Town of Cornwall Planning Board unanimously passed a resolution of special permit approval and Phase 1 site plan approval granting Storm King Art Center permission to move forward with its improvement project.
“Storm King is pleased to have reached this milestone in the Master Plan process, thanks to the efforts of the Town Planning Board and the board’s consultants,” said Jessica Burke, communications and marketing manager for the art center. The Phase 1 improvements address the art center’s most urgent needs to reduce traffic impact on the surrounding community, preserve on-site visitor experience, and ensure the staff’s working environment is ideally suited to support Storm King’s industry-leading work with our collections and artists.”
Nearly a year ago, Storm King Art Center planners and staff began appearing before the Planning Board to present a two-phased project aimed at improving public safety and the flow of traffic on public roadways. The project includes the construction of new buildings, the reshaping of the landscape, and a significant change in parking operations.
Over the last six decades, the center’s popularity has grown and so too has the traffic woes which have plagued Orrs Mills Road and Old Pleasant Hill Road on weekends. Currently the art center employs a pay then park model, but this procedure has contributed to some of the traffic back-up.
The plan calls for the consolidation of all the existing parking lots to create a new north parking lot with a total of 587 spaces.
Visitors will then approach a ticket pavilion located adjacent to an existing 18th century house. By switching to a park then pay model, cars will be able to stream in from Orrs Mills Road, onto Old Pleasant Hill Road, and then file directly into the parking lot without causing congestion on roads leading to the grounds.
The current parking lots will be landscaped to allow daylight to hit the stream which runs through the property, as well as add more space for future art and sculpture exhibition.
The plans include the construction of a new administration building aimed at bringing all staff into a single location. Its proximity to Old Pleasant Hill Road will provide direct access for deliveries, visitors, and staff.
Also incorporated into the plan is a conservation, fabrication, and maintenance building to better support the world class production and restoration work done at the art center. There will be direct access to Old Pleasant Hill Road off of Bunny Road.
The existing bike barn will be refurbished for educational programming and one of the barn structures will be refurbished for exhibition space.
A groundbreaking date for Phase 1 has not been set, said Burke. Storm King is presently developing a construction schedule that takes into account on-site operations, construction bidding, and funding.
Although Phase 2 elements were outlined as part of the overall submission materials to the Planning Board, they are intended for the distant future and would require additional reviews once Storm King is ready to proceed. No additional meetings with the Planning Board are scheduled at this time
