Longdock Beacon, on the Hudson, has been our own little dogwalking paradise since we moved here. There has been talk of developing a green dock, hotel and conference center for years, but the area remained untouched.
That is, until a few months ago. The bulldozers and cranes showed up seemingly overnight. It’s a construction zone now. How many mornings we had that pier all to ourselves! Alas, those days are gone. The dogs will have to stay on leash, if they will even be allowed down to the “new” pier at all.
Even though I’d rather see NO development to green development, I’ve gotta admit that the plans look pretty exciting. Most importantly, if it brings more restaurants to Beacon, I’m in.
The developers are aiming for LEED Gold for the 166 room hotel and conference center. Not only will the building be green, but the plan is to operate the hotel in a sustainable manner. This will include the use of bulk dispensers in rooms instead of cute little bottles, cleaning with chemical free products and furniture that is constructed from low VOC materials.
The hotel will occupy 8.5 of the 25 acre peninsula. Scenic Hudson, which owns the site, is building a 13-acre nature preserve on the land to the south of Long Dock. The area will include meadows, a boardwalk, wetlands and a boat launch for non motorized boats.
There will be a farmer’s market and performance space at the site.
All sounds fabulous, but guess who is going to be bitching about the crowds once it’s finished?
Better take advantage of this while we can.