Schumer, Clinton, Hinchey Urge GSA to Site Courthouse in Middletown
Washington, D.C. - U.S. Senators Charles Schumer (D-NY) and Hillary Clinton (D-NY) and U.S. Representative Maurice Hinchey (D-NY-22) today wrote to the General Services Administration, expressing strong support for locating a federal District Courthouse in Middletown, New York. The establishment of such a facility in Middletown has been a longtime goal of Mayor Joseph DeStefano and other government and business leaders in Orange County.
"You can't pick a better location for a federal courthouse than Middletown - it's got a growing population and increasing caseloads. And a federal courthouse would be just the shot in the arm that the Middletown economy needs," Schumer said. "GSA needs to finish its study of locations for the courthouse so we can get this project back on a fast track and bring it to Middletown where it belongs."
"Regions thrive when their urban centers remain healthy," Clinton said. "I would urge the Administration to build a federal courthouse in Middletown as a way of promoting the revitalization of the community and as a way of attracting people downtown. Locating a federal courthouse in Middletown would be a major step in reenergizing the city center, and in strengthening the entire region."
"The positive impact of a District Courthouse on the city's economic development activities will be significant," said Hinchey "Middletown meets all the government's specifications and requirements and will be an ideal location for this facility. That was already established over four years ago. The sites that were selected then are still available today. I expect GSA will reach the same conclusion it reached under the previous administration."
In 1996 the late U.S. Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan (D-NY) and former U.S. Representative Benjamin Gilman (D-NY-20) passed legislation authorizing the establishment of a new U.S. District Courthouse, specifically naming the "Wallkill/Middletown area of Orange County." GSA accepted bids and identified locations in the city before cost considerations stalled the process in 2000.
Since then Senators Schumer and Clinton have continued to push to get the project back on track. Schumer has visited Middletown and the city's preferred sites, and has been in contact with the Mayor, bar association, and County Executive to detail his support for the Middletown location. Senator Clinton made her advocacy of the Middletown Courthouse a focal point of her Community Forum, held in July 2002, which discussed the need for federal support for the city as a whole.
Hinchey, who began representing Middletown in January 2003, met in August with Chief Judge John Walker, Jr., of the Second Circuit Court of Appeals, attempting to reopen the issue. Walker subsequently wrote to Hinchey, stating that the Second Circuit was overseeing a study to determine whether a Middletown courthouse is justified. A separate "Building Project Survey" from GSA on this matter is currently overdue.
Last June, Schumer and Hinchey learned from GSA that a new federal magistrate and probation facility, for which they had advocated, would almost certainly be located in Middletown. While not directly connected, Middletown's selection as the site of this facility is seen as an important step toward securing the larger District Courthouse. The announcement of the magistrate court site is expected shortly. In their February 11 letter to Karl H. Reichelt, GSA's Regional Administrator, Schumer, Clinton and Hinchey expressed their strong support for locating the District Courthouse in Middletown. They explained that the need for this facility has grown since the process was derailed and reminded Reichelt that the sites offered for sale or lease in 2000 are still available. Moreover, the lawmakers pointed out, executive orders currently in place provide that first consideration in these decisions be given to central business areas in order to encourage redevelopment in central cities. |