The Peekskill Landing Park is a vacant 4.4 acre waterfront site at the mouth of the McGregor Brook and adjacent to the City’s Riverfront Green Park and the Hudson River. The City of Peekskill’s riverfront was historically one of intense commercial and industrial activity for most of the 19th century serving as a port for the shipping and receiving of raw materials and finished goods. The City’s river port thrived and provided an economic engine for the City and region as a whole.

Prior to the construction of the railroad in 1852, which are adjacent to the immediate east of the property, three docks, “Center Dock”, a “middle Dock”, and a portion of an “upper Dock” existed on the subject property. By 1872, the area between the three docks had been filled in and the Center Dock extended farther west into the Hudson River. At this time, the American Stove Works, Ombony and Dain’s Son’s Lumber Yards, as well as the Seymour Coal Yard occupied the subject property. These three industries dominated the site into the first quarter of the 20th century.

During the mid to late 1960’s, the majority of the northern portion of the subject property was vacant land. The Tallix Art Foundry occupied the center dock area from 1976 to 1986. From 1986 to some time after 1989, the “New York Telephone Company” occupied the three buildings located in the Center dock. In 1989, the Dain's Son’s Lumber Yard operated in the center portion of the subject parcel and the “Hudson Valley Yacht Club” operated in the northern portion of the property.

In July of 1998 the City of Peekskill and the SHLT entered into a “Co-Ownership Agreement” to jointly purchase the Peekskill Landing Park to create a mixed-use public park. After Peekskill Landing has been redeveloped into a public park, the property will be deeded to the City for with a payment of $1.00 and protected by a Conservation Easement to guarantee the site being used in perpetuity only for park and recreational uses. Before the property can be transferred, the City is required under the Co-Ownership Agreement to invest a minimum of $1,500,000.00 in the environmental investigation, remediation and redevelopment of the site. The original Land Use Plan of the Co-Ownership Agreement envisioned the Peekskill Landing Park as an extension of the existing Riverfront Green Park. This Land Use Plan proposed to create a mixed-use public park consisting of some or all of the following components: a tourism center, maritime museum, boat building facility, and waterfront trail on Peekskill’s Historic Hudson Riverfront.

Since 1998 several concepts and plans had been designed for the Peekskill Landing Park and the project remained dormant for some time, until the NYSDOS, the funding source for the grants, required the City to renew the public participation process for the project. In 2005 the City hired the Landscape Architectural Firm of Quennell, Rothschild & Partners, LLP (QRP) in order to renew the public outreach and create a new Land Use Plan and design new conceptual plans for the park. This new Land Use Plan (pictured) proposed the construction of a waterfront boardwalk; reconstruction of a pier at the historic “Center Dock;” relocation of the Historic Lent House; a small restaurant and a Community Center.

The City has been in discussion with both the National Maritime Museum and Scenic Hudson to reinstitute the original Land Use Plan, which included the tourism center, maritime museum, boat building facility, and waterfront trail. The City will be initiating a new round of public meetings to incorporate citizen comments and input.