Montgomery Board to Consider Hanover NY Forward Mixed-Use Project at 71-73 Clinton

At a late-January meeting, the Village of Montgomery Board advanced multiple municipal items and scheduled a full-board review on Feb. 24 for the Hanover Development, a proposed three-story mixed-use building at 71-73 Clinton Street. The proposal, put forward as part of the village’s NY Forward initiative, would place ground-floor commercial space with residential apartments above in the downtown corridor.

The project has cleared the Planning Board, which approved the plan last December, but final approval rests with the full Board of Trustees. Residents have raised concerns about the development’s scale for the site, the potential for increased traffic congestion, and spillover parking on village streets. The board’s decision on Feb. 24 will determine whether the project proceeds or requires additional conditions.

Montgomery’s NY Forward application frames the downtown target area south and east of the Wallkill River as compact and walkable, with a high concentration of historic buildings and the village’s primary commercial and civic functions. In its application the village proposed approximately $7.5 million in transformational project opportunities, citing examples such as new sidewalks and bike lanes, municipal parking acquisition and development, park upgrades, and a lamppost initiative. A state announcement tied to NY Forward activity in the Mid-Hudson region referenced $4.5 million in awards involving Montgomery and Highland Falls; the materials reviewed do not map that $4.5 million directly to specific Montgomery project line items or to the village’s $7.5 million proposal.

State housing officials framed NY Forward awards as a lever for downtown reinvestment. NYS Homes and Community Renewal Commissioner RuthAnne Visnauskas said, "Today's DRI and NY Forward awards in the Mid-Hudson region will help create transit-oriented housing in downtown White Plains and will breathe new life into the villages of Highland Falls and Montgomery with streetscape improvements and increased walkability. Enhancements like these can unlock the potential for additional private investment and economic growth. These awards are only the latest example of Governor Hochul's continued focus on strengthening New York’s communities by directing resources to downtown districts and making our state a more affordable place to live."

The village began public engagement on NY Forward in 2023, holding a public hearing on Sept. 19, 2023, at Montgomery Village Hall, 133 Clinton Street, with a written-comment deadline of Sept. 29, 2023. The public notice stated that if selected for an award, "the Village would have the opportunity to engage in widespread improvements to the physical resiliency, aesthetic character, and overall connectivity of its downtown corridor." The notice was signed by Village Clerk Monserrate Rivera-Fernandez; residents may direct follow-up questions or submission requests to the clerk at Montgomery Village Hall, 133 Clinton Street, Montgomery, NY 12549.

Key factual gaps remain: the Planning Board minutes from last December have not been published in the materials reviewed and do not show vote tallies or conditions; the development application excerpts do not list the number of residential units, on-site parking counts, traffic studies, or any proposed mitigation measures. With the Feb. 24 Board meeting now set, those details and any public comment submitted before the meeting will shape the final decision and how the Hanover project fits within Montgomery’s broader downtown revitalization plans.