Fresh-roasted coffee beans and baked goods may soon fill the vacant building that sits at 1 Madeline Lane in Rosendale.

The structure sits between the Rosendale Recreation Center baseball fields and the Citgo gas station, on the left side of Route 32 when you’re driving into town from Tillson. Its garden-esque outdoor patio is currently overgrown, but the building itself appears to be in decent condition with its red roof, barn doors and black horizontal panels still intact. While the café applicants have not yet closed on the building, they wanted to bring the idea before the board to gauge its response.

“We are ready to grow some roots in Rosendale,” said applicant and Catskill resident James Armata, who manages MUD Coffee LLC. “It was a sweet spot for us, the location is beautiful and it’s a great space to grow [as a business.]”

Readers might recognize the building as the Market Market Café, which Murphy Realty Group described as a “hipster hub” in a previous listing. Before its closure in 2018, the café offered an array of food and drinks, while hosting multiple live music events. It seemed fitting that Armata would breathe a similar life back into the building, as he has owned the MUD Spot, a café in Manhattan, for the past two decades. This isn’t Armata’s first taste of the Rosendale community, as his wife used to teach art classes at the Women’s Studio Workshop on Binnewater Lane.

During the week, the building will mostly be used for coffee roasting, cooking green coffee beans to a toasty, brown finish. Armata said that the coffee would be sold in bags on a retail basis, but did not say if it would be sold, wholesale, to grocery stores or other coffee retailers. The roasting end of the business would be open during the week, starting at 7 a.m., and folks could also grab a cup of mud, pastries, or some daily provisions. This will be especially helpful for folks visiting the Trailways bus station across the street.

On weekends, the owners intend to keep the shop open until 10 p.m., where they will offer a light brunch menu during the day, plus some beer and wine options for the evening. About 25 percent of the space will be used for customers, while the rest will be saved for roasters and a small kitchen, Armata explained.

Planning board member Jere Brown noted that the location had a history of parking issues, especially during the live events. The space currently only has between eight and 10 parking spaces, Armata said. Brown explained that folks used to illegally park in the Recreation Center lot, which is owned by the Palisades Interstate Park Commission. People, and delivery trucks, also used to illegally park on the lawns of residents on Madeline Lane and in the dirt lot across from Citgo (which proved dangerous when people tried to cross the busy road after a few adult beverages). Another MUD LLC representative said they plan to foster quick interactions with customers and have no immediate plans to incorporate live music. They noted a lack of a crosswalk near the bus station, but the board explained it won’t be easy to get one since the route is owned by New York State.

Before the application is discussed at a public hearing, the board has asked the applicants for a boatload of information. Aside from technical details about the property, the board is looking for a lighting plan, with downward and inward lighting, for the site. If a new sign will be added, design details and a lighting plan for the sign will be needed as well. The board also wanted the types of plants and locations of landscaping features that Armata plans to use to spruce up the patio garden out front, along with screening plans for neighboring properties. A rough floor plan, including proposed interior and exterior changes to the building, will help the board ensure that the building will adhere to the character of the surrounding area.

“I feel like we have a circular problem here,” said one MUD LLC representative. “Our purchase is dependent on the site plan review approval, but our final design is dependent on the purchase [of the building].”

This means that details on paint colors and lights may not be ready for a few months, the representative explained. Planning Board Chairman Billy Liggan explained that all of these details would be “proposed” and used as a framework to ensure “harmonious development” with the surrounding area.

“We need business in Rosendale and that area does not have a business,” said Planning Board Vice Chairman Joseph Havernek. “I think you have a very nice business fit, but you need to consider these things we are talking about to you today. It will make the project work in the long run without having hassles.”

A public hearing for the application was set for December 9 at 7 p.m.

Natural Resource Maps

Nate Nardi-Cyrus, a Rosendale Environmental Commission member and Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) employee, presented a brief overview of the “natural resource inventory” maps he had been working on. In the town board meeting room, at the RMC, you may have noticed a set of multicolored maps of Rosendale lining the back wall of the room. These were the last versions of the resource maps made in 2010, also by Nardi-Cyrus, which help the town keep track of its environmental treasures, determine the highest-value resources to preserve, and help inform future development decisions. The DEC recommends that these maps be updated every 10 years or so, Nardi-Cyrus explained.

Nardi-Cyrus began working on the new crop of 25 maps in 2019 and into 2020, until progress was delayed slightly by the pandemic. The maps keep track of the town’s geology and soil contents, water resources, habitats and wildlife, land use, and cultural resources like historic landmarks. One new addition is the “climate resilience” map, which shows areas expected to maintain wildlife with the current climate change projections. Another included the “solar feasibility” map, which outlined which areas would be good for solar array development. While the drafts of these maps are available on the town website, they won’t be finalized until next year.

Nardi-Cyrus explained that the county is looking to either update its “parcel viewer” or create new maps to create a county-wide natural resource inventory map. The project is supported by $1.5 million in funding from Gov. Kathy Hochul, which is administered through the Department of Environmental Conservation's Hudson River Estuary Program, according to a press release from Hochul’s office. As of October 26, the Hudson River Watershed Alliance, an organization protecting local water sources, was awarded roughly $39,000. This money will support the Rondout and Esopus Creek Land Use Leadership Alliance Training Program, partnering with Pace University's Land Use Law Center, to create a community-based “Land Use Leadership Alliance” training program for the Rondout and Esopus Creek watersheds to foster the development of sustainable communities, according to the release. Nardi-Cyrus said he would offer the data gleaned from his work to supplement the county’s efforts.