If anyone was wondering how the City of Newburgh was going to pull off the resurrection of the old Armory at 355 S. William St., they needed only to look to Bill Kaplan, a man of miracles.

William Kaplan

Tuesday morning, a meeting of powerful city residents gathered around Bill Kaplan, as he began the process of making the Armory into what he called “a most interesting project.”

“A couple of weeks ago, George Garrison gave me the grand tour of the Armory,” Kaplan told a crowd of about 100-125 citizens and media. “I then visited with members of the City Council and staff – and I set a goal,” he said, making the action sound like a routine event.

Phase 1 was the basketball court, Kaplan said. George Garrison supplied him with some figures of what would be needed and Kaplan called Habitat for Humanity of Greater Newburgh Director Deirdre Glenn.

“Would they take it on with a $100,000 grant from the Kaplan Family Foundation?”

Now, the Kaplan name is a powerful motivator in the City of Newburgh. When he takes on a project, he doesn’t hold back. This has to be more than a recreational project, he insisted. It has to be educational, as well.

Once he established that Habitat would commit to $100,000 in in-kind labor to work on the basketball courts and bathrooms at the Armory to bring them up to American Disability Act standards, Kaplan moved on to recruiting educational partners – Mount Saint Mary College, Newburgh’s campus of Orange County Community College quickly committed.

Next, Kaplan did some gentle arm-twisting of politicians state Sen. Bill Larkin and U.S. Rep. Maurice Hinchey. Larkin was in the crowd Tuesday, while Chris White, Hinchey’s top aide explained that the meeting was put together so hastily that Hinchey was in Washington for a House vote and would be back Tuesday evening.

Deirdre Glenn confirmed Kaplan’s version of their meeting on the Armory matter, saying that Habitat International is just starting its own Neighborhood Revitalization project and her local board “overwhelming” voted to participate in the Armory project.

“The plan is to make it sustainable,” she said. “Get it open and get it going.”

She said that Habitat for Humanity will be helping with some basic things: making it handicap accessible, cleaning the Armory and refurbishing the floor.

“I don’t know much about basketball floors, but I have some experts on which I can fall back,” she said.

Others committing to help included Jim Garrity of Mount Saint Mary College, who said he discovered Bill Kaplan waiting for him as Garrity reported for his first day on the job at the Mount.

“Part of the mission of the college is to be involved in the community,” he said. “Suddenly I was the chair of the Armory Business Committee.”

Others lining up in support of Kaplan and his backing of the Armory included Ralph Pizzo, assistant superintendent of the Newburgh Enlarged School District, who recalled attending events at the Armory when he was a young boy.

“Newburgh is coming back,” Pizzo predicted. “There are beautiful people here, those who are working hard to bring the city back to its glory of the 1950s when it was an All-American City.”

Sen. Larkin said he marveled at the idea of the city taking over the Armory when he first heard of the city’s proposal.

“Bill Kaplan does a lot of things,” Larkin said. “When his fingers are on a project, you can be sure that it will get accomplished.”

Chiding the media, Larkin said: “The city, like a ripe tomato, doesn’t need any more blemishes.”

He then urged us to report some of the good things going on in the city.

Kaplan wasted little time in putting the arm on potential backers of the Armory project.

“Fifty thousand a year for three years,” he hit up several backers.

Mayor Nicholas Valentine, Deputy Mayor Regina Angelo and council members Marge Bell and Curlie Dillard were on hand for the event as were Acting City Manager Rick Herbek and numerous members of city staff.

One supporter used the term “hope” during his short speech, drawing this quiet commentary from Bill Kaplan:

“You don’t need hope. It’s going to happen.”

By ALLAN GAUL
agaul@tcnewspapers.com