Andy Murphy Neighborhood Center Kitchen Hosts Cooking Workshop in Completed Kitchen

The recently renovated kitchen the Andy Murphy Neighborhood Center was filled with delicious scents of homemade food during a workshop hosted by the City of Kingston and conducted by leading Farm-to-Institution training program, The Teaching Kitchen. The Teaching Kitchen is a training and technical assistance program to help nonprofit organizations to convert their food services to a farm-to-institution model by serving more fresh, healthy and local food—without raising costs.

A dozen attendees from organizations throughout Kingston, including The Mental Health Association, The YMCA, Cornell Cooperative Extension, and The Institute for Family Health gathered to learn from instructors Evelyn García and Briana Ross. The day’s menu included recipes for black bean chili, butternut squash macaroni and cheese, and homemade apple cider vinaigrette dressing. Culinary skills were on display, but the free workshop centered on strategies to localize institutional food systems and strengthen regional farms, economy, and environmental sustainability.

The event was one of many new cooking workshops hosted in the community space. Beginning in 2021, NoVo was grateful to partner with the City of Kingston to do a complete gut renovation of this centrally located community kitchen. Working collaboratively with the City, the kitchen footprint was expanded to 2,600 sq. ft. and all-electric commercial grade appliances were installed to support the City of Kingston’s efforts to make the facility fossil fuel free.

The Metro: Phase One Construction Kick Off!

The Metro Building is gaining major momentum as Phase One of construction officially begins! Located at the intersection of Greenkill Avenue and South Prospect Street in Midtown, The Metro is a major project of NoVo in Kingston and is designed to enhance youth, individual and community development possibilities for local residents.

While initial sitework has been ongoing for many months, this next step is a significant mark in the construction timeline as it begins the buildout of the core and shell of the 70,000 sq. ft. building. Overall, the campus will include opportunities for hands-on education, training, and career opportunities, with an emphasis on the trades and local production.

The 15,000 sq. ft. Fabrication Center will enable access to new technologies such as 3D printing, as well as traditional tools for woodwork, metal work, fabrics, and more. Although it is still too early to accept tenant or programming inquiries, active construction means the project is one step closer to opening those possibilities to the community.

The partnership of Midtown-based Dutton Architecture, under lead architect Chris Smailer, has been a key asset in collaboratively creating an adaptive reuse that incorporates energy-efficient and sustainable green design into every facet. This environment-focused thinking aligns directly with the mission of NoVo in Kingston in creating safe, accessible spaces that contribute to Kingston’s community resiliency. It was also a priority identified by The Metro Youth Design team, a group of local youth who have been serving as an advisory panel for the project under leadership from The Kingston YMCA Farm Project and The Boys and Girls Club of Ulster County.

Sustainable building measures incorporated in the project include ensuring a carbon-neutral building performance by creating an ultra-high efficiency building envelope. This means continuous insulation is being applied to existing un-insulated exterior walls and a new concrete slab will be installed throughout.

Preserving elements of the building’s classical midcentury look were also prioritized in order to respect the character of the neighborhood where it has stood since 1946. Construction will include the replacement of single pane, steel framed factory style windows with premium efficiency triple-pane insulated glass. This will be done by utilizing a stainless-steel thermally broken frame that replicates the original appearance.

Originally designed by locally-renowned architect Albert E. Milliken in the 1940’s, The Metro is a local example of trends in construction as national markets transitioned back to peacetime production in the initial years following World War II.

NoVo in Kingston is honored to play a small part in helping to preserve the beauty and history of Midtown. We know that vacant, unmaintained properties pose challenges to the health and safety of a neighborhood. The teenage youth advising this project have only known this building as an empty shell, but not for long! The team at NoVo in Kingston is thrilled to support bringing this building back to a productive, community-centered use.

Connection Leads Youth Design Team at The Metro

The theme of connectivity was central to a recent presentation by The Metro Youth Design Team. A group of Kingston community members, including elected officials, youth leaders, NoVo in Kingston team members, as well as friends, family, and neighbors in the Midtown area gathered to listen to the youths’ ideas and input for the forthcoming project, which is currently under preliminary construction. Students from the YMCA Farm Project and The Boys and Girls Club comprise the Youth Design Team, and have been researching and designing ideas for The Metro building over the last year.

In the Fall of 2023, the first cohort of youth shared their programmatic and design ideas during a public community presentation on site at the building. In March of 2024, this second group of young people expanded upon the inclusive and creative ideas with the partnership of KaN Landscape Design. During a six-week process, the teenagers underwent a design charette, merging nine separate designs into a single proposal.

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Metro Youth Design Team Essential Design Elements

• Multigenerational connection through programming
• Multilingual signage
• Murals, art and color
• Physical accessibility for all
• Nature and green spaces
• Permeable surfaces and native plantings
• Intentional lighting features
• Wayfinding signage
• Prioritizing pedestrian and bicycle safety and access
• Less parking
• Clear and welcoming entrance