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New Paltz station

Coordinates: 41°44′49″N 74°05′20″W / 41.746837°N 74.088954°W / 41.746837; -74.088954
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For other uses, see New Paltz station (disambiguation).
La Stazione
The station as viewed from the Wallkill Valley Rail Trail.
General information
Location5 Main Street, New Paltz, NY 12561[1]
Coordinates41°44′49″N 74°05′20″W / 41.746837°N 74.088954°W / 41.746837; -74.088954
Owned byRocco Panetta[2]
Construction
Parking18 spots[3]
History
OpenedDecember 20, 1870[4]
ClosedDecember 1958[5]
Rebuilt1988[6]

La Stazione is a restaurant and former train station in New Paltz, New York. The station was originally built by the Wallkill Valley Railroad in 1870, but burned down and was rebuilt in 1907. Passenger service along the line ceased in 1937, and by 1958 the station was completely closed and sold off. The building was in such a state of disrepair by the 1980s that it was almost demolished. It was renovated in 1988 and used as a real estate office. In 1999 it became an Italian restaurant, and served as the setting for a scene in a 2008 mob film. It is the only former station of the Wallkill Valley rail line standing at its original location.

History

Construction and opening

An 1875 map showing the newly built rail depot in the village, east of the Wallkill River

As early as February 1864, plans were underway to extend the proposed Wallkill Valley Railroad between the towns of Shawangunk and New Paltz.[7] A civil engineering survey to determine a possible route and cost of such an endeavor was undertaken in March of that year.[8] The proposed route sparked a controversy over whether the route would run east or west of the Wallkill River in New Paltz. The western route was roughly 100 feet (30 m) shorter, and the eastern route would cost $25,000 more. However, it was felt that the increased economic activity from having the rail line run east of the river, and directly through the village of New Paltz, would offset the expense.[9][10] Bonding for the rail line through New Paltz, a cost of $123,000, was completed by January 1869.[11][2]

By November 1869, the Gardiner rail depot had opened and was seeing regular traffic.[12][13] The railroad was contractually obligated to be in New Paltz by May 18, 1870,[14] and work on the New Paltz station commenced that day. The depot was designed to be 20 feet (6.1 m) by 80 feet (24 m).[15] It included freight and baggage rooms, as well as a water tank and engine house. The station also had two waiting rooms, while most stations on the Wallkill line only had one.[16]

Half the lumber came from Honesdale, Pennsylvania via the Delaware and Hudson Canal.[17] The depot's framework was raised on July 1, 1870,[18] and the depot itself was completed by September 1870. John C. Shaffer had been the contractor, John C. Deyo had provided the carpentry, and Snyder and Fuller had painted it.[19]

The masonry for a bridge over the Plattekill Creek between Gardiner and New Paltz was completed by late June 1870,[20] and trestle work was done by July.[21] Beginning in late September 1870, the railroad had begun laying tracks between Gardiner and New Paltz.[22] The tracks reached the Plattekill Creek bridge by the end of October,[23] and the rail line finally reached New Paltz on December 1, 1870.[24] The rail line was officially opened at New Paltz on December 20, 1870 during a day-long celebration. At that time, the Wallkill Valley Railroad was connected to the Erie Railroad's Montgomery–Goshen branch to the south; an inaugural train ran to Goshen, making stops at each station along the way, before heading back to New Paltz with about 350 passengers.[4]

As soon as the station was completed, a second station was built at Springtown,[25] a hamlet in the northwestern part of the town of New Paltz.[26] It burned down and was not fully rebuilt until 1911.[25] The New York Public Service Commission, a regulatory agency founded in 1907,[27] ruled in May 1911 that the new Springtown station was adequate.[28] The Springtown station had no station agent or freight house.[25]

Two sheds had been built adjacent to the New Paltz station by 1881.[29] The land the sheds were built on was purchased the previous year by Mohonk Mountain House co-founder Albert Smiley for $500.[30][31] A sewage line was placed from the station down to the Wallkill River in 1905.[32]

1907 Fire

The original station burned down on April 23, 1907. The fire damaged freight and killed the station agent's dog.[33] A passenger car was used as a temporary station while the building was rebuilt.[34] By late September 1907, the concrete foundation and the framework of the new building had been put in place,[35] but work on the interior didn't begin until November, due to a lack of lumber.[36] The depot was completely rebuilt by December 31, 1907,[37] and in active use by February 7, 1908.[38] While the original station had a gabled roof, the rebuilt station was hipped.[39] The rebuilt freight house was placed a distance from the depot.[40]

Closure and renovation

Passenger service along the Wallkill Valley line ceased in 1937,[41] and by December 1958 the building (then owned by the New York Central Railroad) was no longer used as a railroad station.[5][6] It was sold off in 1959,[42] and hosted a number of local endeavors, serving as a chapter house for the Knights of Columbus and as an office for a public-access television station.[43] Under the ownership of the television station, the roof and floorboards were repaired.[44]

In April 1977, the owners of the property, Fetner and Gold Associates, attempted to open the building as a bar. The zoning permit was rejected; the village mayor was "unalterably opposed" to the prospect, and the board believed that opening the building as a bar would lead to complaints from nearby apartments. It was also believed that it would be unsafe to open a bar adjacent to an active rail line, and that such a venture would threaten the nearby Huguenot Street Historic District.[42][43] On December 31, 1977, all regular freight service ceased along the Wallkill Valley line.[45] By the early 1980s the depot had become a "hangout for youths to drink and carouse" and the village considered dismantling it.[46] Conrail, at that time the owner of the rail line, removed all tracks along the corridor between 1983 and 1984 and salvaged the steel.[47]

Robert Mark Realty bought the former station in 1986,[2] and renovated it at a cost of $175,000.[6] Renovations began in October 1987 and were more than halfway done by January 1988. Matt Bialecki, the architect who had overseen the renovation of the former New Paltz opera house as a restaurant, served as the project's architect. Wilro Builders acted as the contractor. The building served as a real estate office.[48] On February 9, 1999, the village approved a plan to allow the building to open as a 36-seat Italian restaurant, under the co-ownership of two men, Jeff DiMarco and Rocco Panetta. The station was given its current name, La Stazione.[3][2][49] DiMarco had previously managed construction for an adjacent restaurant, the Gilded Otter. He sold his ownership of La Stazione in August 2000.[50]

The building is adjacent to a rail trail.[51] In 1991, the village of New Paltz purchased its section of the former Wallkill Valley rail corridor from Conrail, formally opening it as a public walkway, the Wallkill Valley Rail Trail, on October 9, 1993.[52] The permit allowing La Stazione to operate as a restaurant required the placement of a sign in the building's parking lot to indicate the presence of the trail.[49] The village allowed La Stazione to place a public picnic table under an overhang by the rail trail, on the condition that the restaurant does not provide outdoor food service. In August 1999, the restaurant was forced to remove a gas tank and gas line that were placed under the trail, or risk losing its certificate of occupancy.[53][54] When the Gardiner station burned down on October 10, 2002, La Stazione became the last former rail station of the Wallkill Valley Railroad remaining at its original location.[16][55]

A scene from the 2008 mob film Front Man was filmed at La Stazione; the film's director, Ray Genadry, is the cousin of the restaurant's owner, Rocco Panetta. The scene featured Chris Colombo, son of the late Joseph Colombo, a former boss of the Colombo crime family.[56][57] Colombo had previously starred in a 2005 mobster documentary on HBO.[58][59]

See also

Former Wallkill Valley stations

References

  1. ^ "La Stazione". Metromix. Chicago, IL: Gannett Company. Retrieved 2010-11-09.
  2. ^ a b c d "Pasta junction – on the right track in New Paltz". Times Herald-Record. Middletown, NY: Dow Jones Local Media Group. 1999-07-02. p. 24.
  3. ^ a b Suzuki, Chiho (1999-02-11). "Rail station to become restaurant". Daily Freeman. Kingston, NY: Journal Register Company.
  4. ^ a b Mabee 1995, pp. 12–14
  5. ^ a b "New York Central to Close Stations at New Paltz, Wallkill, Walden, Rosendale, Gardiner". New Paltz Independent and Times. New Paltz, NY. 1958-12-17.
  6. ^ a b c "Back on Track". Times Herald-Record. Middletown, NY: Dow Jones Local Media Group. 1988-03-09.
  7. ^ "Railroad Meeting". New Paltz Times. New Paltz, NY. 1864-02-14.
  8. ^ Miller, Sidney G. (1864-03-25). "Wallkill Valley Railroad from Shawangunk to New Paltz Report and Estimate". New Paltz Times. New Paltz, NY.
  9. ^ "Rail-Road Meetings". New Paltz Times. New Paltz, NY: C.J. Ackert. 1868-02-13.
  10. ^ "Wallkill Valley Rail Road". New Paltz Times. New Paltz, NY: C.J. Ackert. 1868-12-03.
  11. ^ D.C. McMillan (1869-01-07). "Wallkill Valley Railroad Meeting". New Paltz Independent. New Paltz, NY.
  12. ^ New Paltz Independent. New Paltz, NY. 1869-11-11. {{cite news}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  13. ^ New Paltz Independent. New Paltz, NY. 1869-11-18. {{cite news}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  14. ^ "Railroad Progress". New Paltz Independent. New Paltz, NY. 1869-08-19.
  15. ^ New Paltz Independent. New Paltz, NY. 1869-05-25. {{cite news}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  16. ^ a b Mabee 1995, p. 47
  17. ^ New Paltz Independent. New Paltz, NY. 1870-05-09. {{cite news}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  18. ^ New Paltz Independent. New Paltz, NY. 1870-07-07. {{cite news}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  19. ^ New Paltz Times. New Paltz, NY. 1870-09-01. {{cite news}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  20. ^ New Paltz Times. New Paltz, NY. 1870-06-30. {{cite news}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  21. ^ New Paltz Independent. New Paltz, NY. 1870-07-14. {{cite news}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  22. ^ "Railroad Items". New Paltz Independent. New Paltz, NY. 1870-09-22.
  23. ^ "Railroad Items". New Paltz Independent. New Paltz, NY. 1870-10-27.
  24. ^ "Rail Line Completed to New Paltz". New Paltz Times. New Paltz, NY. 1870-12-01.
  25. ^ a b c Mabee 1995, pp. 52, 155
  26. ^ Sylvester 1880, p. 13
  27. ^ Reports of the Board of Public Utility Commissioners of the State of New Jersey. Vol. 4. Union Hill, NJ: Hudson Printing Company. 1917. p. 240.
  28. ^ "Springtown Satisfied". Daily Freeman. Vol. 40. Kingston, NY. 1911-05-26. p. 2. Retrieved 2011-01-23.
  29. ^ New Paltz Independent. New Paltz, NY. 1881-06-23. {{cite news}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  30. ^ New Paltz Independent. New Paltz, NY. 1880-12-16. {{cite news}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  31. ^ "Alfred H. Smiley and Albert K. Smiley". Redlands Historical Society. Retrieved 2010-12-22.
  32. ^ New Paltz Independent. New Paltz, NY. 1905-07-28. {{cite news}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  33. ^ "Fire Damages New Paltz Station". Daily Freeman. Vol. 32. Kingston, NY. 1907-04-23. p. 3. Retrieved 2010-12-08.
  34. ^ "Station in a Car". Daily Freeman. Vol. 32. Kingston, NY. 1907-05-03. p. 1. Retrieved 2010-12-08.
  35. ^ New Paltz Independent. New Paltz, NY. 1907-09-27. {{cite news}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  36. ^ New Paltz Independent. New Paltz, NY. 1907-11-08. {{cite news}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  37. ^ New Paltz Independent. New Paltz, NY. 1907-12-31. {{cite news}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  38. ^ New Paltz Independent. New Paltz, NY. 1908-02-07. {{cite news}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  39. ^ Mabee 1995, p. 49
  40. ^ New Paltz Independent. New Paltz, NY. 1907-08-30. {{cite news}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  41. ^ New Paltz Independent and Times. New Paltz, NY. 1937-08-12. {{cite news}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  42. ^ a b "'No Bar in R.R. Station', Zoning Bd. Of Appeals". New Paltz News. New Paltz, NY. 1977-04-13.
  43. ^ a b "Railroad Station Bar Denied by Zoning Board". Huguenot Herald. New Paltz, NY. 1977-04-13.
  44. ^ Thomas, Lauren (1999-01-14). "Old New Paltz railroad station may become Italian restaurant". Huguenot Herald. New Paltz, NY.
  45. ^ Mabee 1995, p. 135
  46. ^ Muise, Jeff (1984-01-25). Times Herald-Record. Middletown, NY: Dow Jones Local Media Group. p. 30. {{cite news}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  47. ^ Mabee 1995, p. 139
  48. ^ "New Paltz rail station to become real estate office". Huguenot Herald. 1988-01-07.
  49. ^ a b Fanelli, Diane (1999-02-17). "A new restaurant for the New Paltz Gateway". New Paltz News. New Paltz, NY.
  50. ^ "Custom home building". Huguenot Herald. New Paltz, NY. 2000-08-17.
  51. ^ Perls, Jeffrey (2003). Shawangunks Trail Companion: A Complete Guide to Hiking, Mountain Biking, Cross-Country Skiing, and More Only 90 Miles from New York City. Woodstock, VT: Countryman Press. p. 342. ISBN 978-0-88150-563-4.
  52. ^ Mabee 1995, pp. 141–144
  53. ^ Fanelli, Diane (1999-08-18). "La Stazione required to meet site plans". New Paltz News. New Paltz, NY.
  54. ^ Quinn, Erin (1999-08-19). "Dispute concerning La Stazione's encroachment on the rail trail settled". Huguenot Herald. New Paltz, NY.
  55. ^ Mabee, Carleton (2003). Gardiner and Lake Minnewaska. Mount Pleasant, SC: Arcadia Publishing. p. 22. ISBN 0-7385-1185-4.
  56. ^ Mackson, Oliver (2007-08-18). "New Paltz restaurant a hit in 'Mob" movie". Times Herald-Record. Middletown, NY: Dow Jones Local Media Group. Retrieved 2010-12-14.
  57. ^ "Front Man (2008)". IMDB. Retrieved 2010-12-14.
  58. ^ Mackson, Oliver (2007-04-01). "After a trial fails to find him guilty of racketeering, Chris Colombo explores a few new possibilities". Times Herald-Record. Middletown, NY: Dow Jones Local Media Group. Retrieved 2010-12-14.
  59. ^ "House Arrest Starring Chris Colombo (TV 2005)". IMDB. Retrieved 2010-12-14.

Bibliography

  • Mabee, Carleton (1995). Listen to the Whistle: An Anecdotal History of the Wallkill Valley Railroad. Fleishmanns, NY: Purple Mountain Press. ISBN 093579669X. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  • Sylvester, Nathaniel Bartlett (1880). History of Ulster County, New York, with Illustrations and Biographical Sketches of its Prominent Men and Pioneers: Part Second: History of the Towns of Ulster County. Philadelphia, PA: Everts & Peck. ISBN 978-1557871305. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
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