|
Ricci Proposes Restoring the Croft Tavern-Ingersol House
by Edward Paul Greiff
At the March 21, 2007 Town Board meeting PV Councilman Dan Ricci, who has indicated that he will not run again for the Town Board, said that one of the things he would like to do before he leaves office would be to restore the Ingersol House to its original historical condition when it was known as Croft Tavern.
The Ingersol House is just down the road from Town Hall at the corner of Church Road and Oscawana Lake Road. And as Councilman Dan Ricci explains, "The Ingersol House started as a tavern in the 1700's with bedrooms upstairs. Wendy Whetsel, other board members and myself have been inside and it's an ambitious project. I would like to make this one of my last projects as a board member and as a citizen involved in the process of raising the money to restore this building. The current situation, as I explained last month, is the County took the building for non-payment of taxes. The County owns it and has the right to sell it to Putnam Valley for one dollar."
And even though the house is in disrepair, Ricci explained, on a cold winter night you can still smell the seasoned wood burning in the historic fireplace and see the plume of smoke ascending into the sky like a smoke signal telling travelers you are welcome at Croft Tavern just as they did back in the 1700's. It is a memory worth preserving.
Ricci explained that the way to do this project without taping into taxpayer money is for the Town to make the initial purchase of the property. Once the Town takes possession and takes title they would sign it over to either the Historical Society, if they are willing to accept it, or to another non-profit such as the Friends of Croft Tavern. Then fund raising could take place and grants could be sought. Ricci said it would take a while to raise the money; nobody is expecting this to take place overnight.
"What we are looking at here is to restore a 1700s tavern with an interesting pedigree. There are two large rooms downstairs that would be large enough to hold fundraisers and other Historical Society events. On the second floor are bedrooms that can be used for record storage and office space. It all has to come from donations and from any grant money that is available. It's a long road to raise the money, and the reconstruction and rehabilitation of the building would also take a while. Once again we would be calling upon people that are handy that are willing to do the work," said Ricci.
Marvin Odell, a former Putnam Valley Building Inspector, has been through the building and determined that one beam that supports the building is cracked and needs to be replaced, so the scope of work that is needed to restore the building is huge. The only original work are the frames made up of 12 by 12 beams and the fireplaces. During nineteenth- and twentieth-century renovations they put plywood on the floors and the outside. Only the front of the house has electricity. The inside walls need to be removed and insulated to weatherproof the house.
Ricci said, "There's work ahead of it and it's obviously not for the faint of heart but for those who are willing to roll up their sleeves. We could have at that corner something that would really reflect a former period in the Town that people could actually set foot in. A building that was around when Washington and the troops were encamped out here and at Continental Village.
"Putnam Valley is a town that is full of people that have always been willing to do those kinds of things. We have a powerful volunteer force in this town and I have every reason to believe that I will have support for this project. What would be required from us is to pass a Resolution to purchase it for one dollar."
There are presently two people living in the house and Ricci recommended that they remain on the property as caretakers. He suggested that the property is large enough to erect a pre-fab "Granny Cottage" that the couple could live in and perform their caretaker duties.
The Historical Society and Town Board are pursuing the designation of the Croft Tavern as an official historical landmark and become eligible for restoration funding.
David Gordon recommended that the 501c (non-profit status) be in place when the Town acquires the property so they can immediately lease it. The town should be nothing more than a landlord.
Supervisor Sam Davis remarked about his concern that before buying the property that it be verified that its soil is not toxic and if it is, then they would need funds to clean up the site which has a well but no septic fields. "I think it would be a fantastic project for the Town," commented Davis.
Providing local news, information and opinions from
Philipstown and Putnam Valley, NY
Encompassing the Villages of Cold Spring and Nelsonville,
and the hamlet of Garrison, Putnam County, NY.
This site is a publication of The Putnam County News and Recorder, the source for news and information of the Philipstown
and Putnam Valley area. The PCN&R is 139
years old, published in hard copy every Wednesday, and circulated throughout Putnam
County, NY.
The PCN&R prints LEGAL NOTICES
for: Putnam County, The Town of Philipstown, The Town of Putnam Valley, Village of Cold Spring, Village of
Nelsonville, the Haldane Union Free School District and the Garrison Union Free School
District.
Deadline for printed press releases, advertisements and classifieds is Monday at noon for
Wednesday publication. This site is updated on an as-needed basis with a minimum update
weekly on Thursdays. For further information or to request a subscription to the paper, please
contact us with your name and mailing address at:
(845) 265-2468 PO Box 185, Cold Spring, NY 10516, or e-mail us at editor@pcnr.com
If you see an advertiser on line, tell them! | 
