City of Plattsburgh looks into Margaret Street makeover

PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. (WCAX) - The city of Plattsburgh is looking into a Margaret Street makeover. Our Kelly O’Brien has more on the process and what local business owners have to say.

Margaret Street is in the heart of downtown Plattsburgh, home to local hotspots like restaurants, bars, and boutiques.

“Right when you walk down Margaret Street there are potholes,” said Plattsburgh Mayor Chris Rosenquest. “There really is a need to invest in our downtown.”

The city is looking to re-imagine the street over the next three years and hopes to do so in different phases involving planning and design, water and infrastructure, and streetscapes. The idea of turning a portion of the street into something similar to Burlington’s Church Street Marketplace has also been tossed around.

The city is also looking to work on Brinkerhoff and Court Street -- direct lines from downtown to the college. “It is still very early, we just selected the engineering and planning firm,” Rosenquest said.

But some business owners on the street say they are concerned that years of construction will disrupt commerce and repel customers. “Very concerning,” said Peter Kritziotis, the owner of Aleka’s, a Greek restaurant on Margaret Street. “Without thinking that you are going to hurt the small businesses is impossible in my opinion.”

Kritziotis says he understands that the street needs work and wants to see it done, but also wants to make sure local business owners are part of the conversation. “I hope that they have a good plan if this goes through and I hope they discuss it with us, the small business owners,” he said. Kritziotis says it should be done in sections so it’s not disrupting businesses all at once.

Mayor Rosenquest says a top priority of the re-design is to hear from the community on what they want to see. “At the same time, we have to understand that it’s going to be a major interruption to downtown, major interruption to businesses, and we want to be mindful of that and we want those folks to have input on how this process goes,” he said.

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