Kimm’s also sells rice cookers—premium and affordable, take your pick—wooden bowls, tea caddies, bamboo steamers, tea and sake sets, and wonderfully painted chopsticks, of course. Rummage around some more, and you’ll come up with other treasures, gifts from Asia that preclude taking a trip: kimonos ($20 each), flat cloth rubber-sold shoes, gorgeous blue glazed bowls from Japan and China, in all kinds of patterns; paper hanging light shades; bamboo place mats; aromatic oils and soaps; incense; and origami. Kimm, who was born in Korea, said he wished Wall Street traffic went both ways, or headed west instead of east, and the taxes were lower (he owns the building). He’s too busy stocking items and taking change to say much more, but I’ll definitely be back to pick up some duck sauce and ginseng tea.

If you like your East Asian food already prepared, you have a choice of five Chinese restaurants located along the corridor, bracketed, like book ends by Kyoto Sushi on Washington Avenue and Golden Ginza Japanese Restaurant, on lower Broadway, in the Rondout (both serve sushi, teriyaki, and other Japanese specialties). Everyone has their favorite for Chinese take-out, but sometimes it’s hard to decide where to order your sesame beef, bean curd with oyster sauce, and pork chow fun, it’s all so good and unbelievably affordable. For example, at No. 1 House, located at 598 Broadway, the lunch selections start at $3.25 (and that’s not for something ultra basic such as fried rice, but, say, chicken with garlic sauce). The plentiful portion is enough for two days, which means it’s much cheaper to order out than cook at home. The Chinese restaurants are also convenient: the earliest closing hour is 10 pm, and Sunshine Chinese Restaurant, located at 364 Broadway, near the hospital, is open until 11:30 on weekends.

Eng’s Chinese Restaurant, located at 726 Broadway, is a Kingston institution and as much as a sit-down place, with its dimly lit dining room, lined with comfy booths. When Jimmy Eng opened it in 1927, it was Kingston’s first Chinese restaurant. Today Eng’s owned by Tom and Faye Sit, having been in business since 1927. The restaurant expanded and moved to its current location in 1978. General Tsao’s chicken and Cantonese steak are among head chef Hong Chan’s more requested specialties, and the prices have remained very reasonable, with lunch starting at $4.50 and the all you can eat buffet, offered Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 5 to 9 pm and Sunday from 4 to 8 pm, for $9.50.

The other two places are Wing Shui, at 53 North Front and Hong Fu, at 694 Broadway. Wing Shui has an extensive selection of Szechuan specialties, including Kun Pao Shrimp with peanuts, fresh pork with scallion, Hunan Bean Curd, and Sesame Tofu. Wing Shui also has a separate dining room.

The Rip Van Winkle goes out twice a day six days a week for three-hour narrated tours to the Vanderbilt estate, in Hyde Park, and back. When it isn’t being chartered, the Teal takes one-and-a-half hour tours of the Hudson during the weekend. Both boats do weekend evening music cruises, featuring a live band or DJ. The boats of all four companies are available for charter to celebrate a special birthday, anniversary or other event, or to impress a client or reward staff if you’re a business. Some of the companies also partner with local restaurants, which either rent out the boat or cater the food.

Sandy Henne, owner of Hudson River Cruises, has been in the Rondout for 30 years, before there was even a dock. “We tied up to a guard rail at the end of the parking lot,” she said. She purchased the 300-passenger Rip Van Winkle cruise boat in 1986. In July and August it goes out on scheduled tours twice a day six days a week, in addition to a Friday evening cruise with live bands. The company also schedules four murder mystery cruises over the summer, and the boat is available for private charters.

Last week the passengers included people from the Netherlands and Australia. On one music cruise, an Australian Aborigine—he was a friend of a band member—played his didgeridoo during intermission. Henne operates a second boat, the Lark, a launch that’s taking people Thursdays through Sundays to the Rondout Lighthouse for tours (a docent from the Hudson River Maritime Museum, which manages the lighthouse, is onboard). Although she hasn’t done much marketing, the tours are picking up.

Henne also hopes to be operating service on the Lark between Kingston and Rhinecliff soon. She’s waiting to get approval from Rhinecliff two officials. On August 6 there’s a big event with Obama for which she hopes to be transporting dignitaries across the river.

The cross-river service would be mostly geared to tourists. In general, she said the Rondout could use more focus, to maximize its potential. “The new walkway is helping a lot. If you build it, they’ll come,” she said. Parking, however, remains a problem. On a weekend, “between the Teal and our boat and everybody at the restaurants, there’s no place to park. We tell people to come early.”

The Teal, which is owned by Joe Thomas—he and partner John DeForest own parent company North River Charters –does mostly charters, for weddings, birthdays, anniversaries, Sweet Sixteen parties, and the like. Businesses also charter the boat, although the economic downturn has led to a falloff in company picnics. The 80-passenger vessel also does sightseeing tours on weekends when it isn’t being chartered and evening music cruises; call 750-6024 for times. The boat has a full bar and serves snacks on the public cruises.

Thomas, who’s owned the boat for five years and worked on it for eight—it’s been docked at the Rondout since 1993—said the walkway has brought a lot more foot traffic to the area (although on the downside, there have also been more incidences of vandalism). Local restaurants such as The Steelhouse and Ship to Shore also on occasion rent out the boat, catering all the food, selling tickets, and conveying customers from their establishment to the boat, benefiting both businesses. “I’d love for the businesses to know we’re down here,” said Thomas. “The restaurant trips are going very well.” One of the biggest challenges is the limited season. “It’s just a matter of bringing more people down there and maximizing those couple of months,” he said.

Scott Herrington, owner of Blue Dolphin Charters, takes up to six people out on the Hudson for private trips on his antique, 34-foot Hatteras Sports Cruiser. It has a small cabin with a galley and a head (toilet), and the boat has been chartered for a special birthday or anniversary celebration. It’s also popular with sightseeing tourists and even book authors. The longest trip was eight hours—down to New York City—though Herrington has taken the boat on his own as far as Montauk and Massachusetts. Sometime a family will bring along fishing rods, though Herrington doesn’t do official fishing trips anymore. Meals can be catered from a local restaurant.

Herrington also charters to businesses, for example an insurance company that’s rewarding a client or staff. “We do lots of trips with the Maple Ridge Bruderhof,” he said.

Herrington also owns the Kingston City Marina. “I believe very strongly in the waterfront,” he said. “We have tried to work with the city to build a park that’s for everyone. People are now coming in much greater numbers.” He’s made improvements to the marina and collectively advertises and markets the area with other businesses. “It’s a very cooperative business group.”

Dan Feldman, owner of Hudson Sailing, does charters on his racing 28-foot trimara, a three-hulled sailing boat that can accommodate up to six passengers. The standard trip is three hours, and clients often enjoy a swim and picnic on the cruise. Because the boat is so light, it can sail even in the slightest breeze. If the weather is bad, he’ll reschedule a trip.

Many of his customers are celebrating a special event, and many are people from the city up for the weekend. He’s listed in a couple of travel guides but many people find him simply by Googling “sailing on the Hudson.” A couple of times he’s picked up people from New York City arriving by train from the dock in Rhinecliff.

Word of mouth is helping spurring his business, which is growing, despite the fact Feldman does little advertising.  “Someone who leads a stressful life comes up from city, has a drink, eats, relaxes on the trampoline and goes to sleep. They’re in heaven,” he said. “People have told me it’s like a mini vacation. All you hear is the wind and waves. A family came out this season and e-mailed me to thank me. They said the kids said it was the best thing they did as a family.”

Will we find the answer to this blight over bagels, coffee, sketch pads and easels? Not sure, but when The Business Alliance conducted five focus groups this spring – tapping the wisdom of more than 100 residents, building owners, restaurateurs, artists and business owners – we heard over and again that “someone should do something, NOW.”  When we pressed for specifics, we heard that Kingstonians want to embrace their evolving image as friendly to the arts, and as an incubator for a re-purposed economy fueled by solar and green tech companies. Anything to encourage more artists and other professionals to move here would be a good thing, they said. Artists certainly include creative people like the Digital Corridor advocates and the cluster of New Media people bustling around in 721 Media Center in the Ellenbogens’ lovely space. They’re here already, we just need to encourage and improve the environment that drew them here so that others will follow.

We’ve been told it’s premature to host a design charrette when there’s no developer in sight. We can’t dress up the King’s Inn when potential investors come looking; it looks awful. What we can do is demonstrate the tremendous human capital that’s invested in Kingston, even if our real estate hasn’t caught up yet. Developers need to see market potential for an investment, and on Friday we’re going to illustrate that we’re here, we welcome others here, and we want this place to work again. We recognize the serious financial strain the city is under, but more drug stores and dollar stores are not the answer; let’s look at some new, fresh ideas for what could work.

Pat Courtney Strong
President, Business Alliance of Kingston

http://www.businessallianceofkingston.org/8.html

A tattoo the size of a silver dollar starts at $50. Most of the owners apprenticed with a tattoo artist to learn their craft, and all offer a free consultation and a preliminary drawing if it’s customized, as opposed to “flash” (taken from one of the “flats”—books of tattoo designs). By state law, clients have to be over age 18 (piercings are legal for those under 18 with a parent’s permission), but other than that requirement, anything goes.

Michael Francis, whose shop, Ink, Inc., has been a fixture at 327 Wall Street for the past 14 years, is a master tattoo artist,  judging from the complex imagery that covered the arm of client Greg Burhans, which included a portrait of his three-year-old son, his footprints at birth, depictions of a lotus and other “birth” flowers, a sinuous, waterfall-like landscape and several Japanese characters signifying family protection. Francis, who was working on Burhans’ other arm with his needle (“it’s dark and organic,” he said of the tattoo), has been a tattoo artist for 27 years. His air-conditioned, silver-colored shop has hundreds of flats laid out in books and provocative art—including skulls, crosses, and a reproduction of a detail from Michaelangelo–on the walls.

The most challenging body part is the rib or side. The client’s “pain threshold is challenging,” Francis said. “I have a heart.” He’s happy with his location Uptown: “I love the people, the shops, the relationships I built up with everybody. It’s changed for the better.” He is assisted by apprentice David Matthews and is open from 11 to 9 Monday through Saturday and Sunday by appointment.

Down in the Rondout, Paul O’Donnell, owner of The Body Shop, at 25 Broadway, was busy working on Bonnie Snyder, etching a dark swirl of flowers below her right collar bone. O’Donnell, a native of England who said he’d wanted to be a tattoo artist from the age of 10, having admired the decorated arms of his sailor-uncle, originally was a staff artist at the location and bought out the owner (who was Francis; the two remain close friends) five years ago. “Black and gray is my thing,” said O’Donnell, noting he prefers to do his own customized designs. “Anything big and scary I like.”

“I get to meet all kinds of awesome people,” he added. “I live in the dream. I love my job.” Business is mostly word of mouth, and in this unregulated industry O’Donnell cautions people to avoid “kitchen magicians” and get their tattoos in a proper shop. He also advises people to make sure the tattoo artist uses a new needle, which is taken out of a package and disposed of afterwards, so as to avoid harmful infections. The Body Shop is open Monday, Tuesday and Thursday through Saturday from one to 9 pm and on Sunday from one to six.

Brian Smith, owner of Body Graffix Tattoo, has been tattooing for 20 years, opening his job at 354 Broadway in 2006. One of his most expensive tattoos was a full back, which cost $3,500 and took months. Like his colleagues, he prefers customized work. His shop is elegant, with its pale wood floor, track lighting, hand-crafted cabinet–displaying cans of after-care spray– and high tin ceiling. Smith has an employee and an apprentice. He’s open Monday through Saturday from 12 to 8.

A little farther up Broadway, across from the high school, is Metamorphosis, located in a brick Gothic house. Tania Trowbridge, who owns the business with her husband Jorian, bought the building in 1997, after renting space in the Rondout. One room is dedicated to the sale of piercing jewelry, displayed under two glass counters, while the other three are occupied by tattooing stations. Trowbridge said she always loved to paint and draw and became a tattoo apprentice after she realized it offered her way to make a living off her art.

Working with her husband and Ed Dempsey, an independent contractor, she said that lettering and phrases are popular, along with rib tattoos. Most customers are in their early twenties, although people in their sixties have also gotten tattoos. She said the Midtown location has better parking than in the Rondout, and “it seems to be busier.” Metamorphosis is open Monday through Friday, from 1 to 9, on Saturday from 12 to 9 and Sunday from 12 to 5.

Some of these nuts and bolts businesses have deep roots in the city’s history, harking back to the day when Kingston was a manufacturing center. Industrial supply company Fowler & Keith, located in a four-story building at 104 Smith Street, started out down in the Rondout in the early 1900s. Besides plumbing and power tools, the store, which is owned by real estate developer Steve Aaron, still stocks an array of historic hardware.

Ulster Electric Supply Co., located at 9-15 Cornell—it also has an Ulster Lighting showroom at 572 Broadway, plus a location in Poughkeepsie—also started out in the Rondout and has been in business over 50 years, according to president and owner Barry Gruberg. Gruberg’s grandfather was the first licensed electrician in Kingston, and the supply company was started by his son—Gruberg’s father–in the back of a pick up.

Ulster Electric wholesales anything you can think related of to lighting—pipe, wire, wiring devices, commercial lighting. “We have 25,000 electrical supply products,” said Gruberg. The company sells to municipalities, hospitals, schools and other large entities in the commercial market. It delivers up to a radius of 70 miles and also has customers in Manhattan.

Gruberg said its retail store on Broadway has developed a niche in high-end lighting, offering a free layout service. “We can send our lighting retail specialist to your home, do the layout for free, and collaborate with the builder or architect,” said Gruberg. He said the company has had to lay off workers due to the economic downturn. “We’re surviving. We’re profitable, and are hanging in there, hoping for some upturn,” he said.

Herzog’s True Value Home Center, located at Kingston Plaza, is a fourth generation company owned by brothers Bradley and Todd Jordan. It has 100 local employees, with annual sales more than $20 million. The store has successfully competed against the big box stores by expanding: it became affiliated with True Value Company, a member owned co-op that gives it more buying power, in 1995 and added a state-of-the-art Kitchen and Bath Design Center, with free design consultations, in 2006. It acquired a paint supply company in Albany and has locations in Poughkeepsie and Wappinger’s.

Besides hardware, paint, lumber, plumbing and other supplies, Herzog’s has a garden center as well as a service center for power equipment. Its green products are particularly popular, according to Julie Jordan, marketing and advertising director. “Especially with the government rebates, there’s a lot of demand for green products in all departments,” she said. Herzog’s sells organic soils, fertilizers, and composters; Benjamin Moore eco-paints, which have low or no VOCs; energy efficient windows, doors, lighting, and insulation; and energy efficient a/c, heaters, humidifiers, and fans.

Herzog’s celebrated its centenary last year. Founder Matthew Herzog opened the first store on Wall Street, and his son Robert greatly expanded the company, developing a flourishing wholesale business in the 1940s. Robert developed the Kingston Plaza shopping center in the early 1960s, with Herzog’s relocating to the plaza in a new building in 1971.

Tim at P&T Surplus

P & T Surplus, located at 190 Abeel Street, started out in 1968, buying mainframe computers from IBM, each one delivered in fire tractor trailer loads, according to Tim Smythe, who has owned the business with his father since 1997. The company still breaks down machines, selling high-tech parts online to the semiconductor industry in Europe and Asia, as well as in the U.S., which Smythe said is about a quarter of its business.

At the other end of the spectrum, it sells surplus hardware and exotic metals, such as copper, brass, aluminum and stainless steel, locally, numbering among its clients many artists, including Judy Pfaff, whose large-scale assemblages gained her international fame. The art departments at Bard and SUNY-New Paltz regularly visit P & T with their students, said Smythe. For seven years straight, the company hosted an annual art show consisting of works crafted from its supplies, and Smythe said the store is planning another show this fall.

P& T is the place for that “hard to find metal angle or widget part, which is not standard,” said Smythe. The store also sells new items, including hardware, gloves, rope, hand tools, and tarps. It has three employees and a truck on hand to pick up business surplus, which has become harder to find: “It’s become more competitive,” said Smythe. “Scrap metal has caught on a lot, and now businesses sell their excess inventory on line.”

Boitson’s, whose casually elegant, dark blue and gray décor was the work of Kingston interior designer Brian Early, opened June 4. “It’s been great, really busy,” said owner Maria Philippis. She named the eatery after her Brooklyn landlord, who had always encouraged her to open her own place. Boitson’s has a raw bar, and it’s open for lunch and dinner Thursday through Monday. Burgers, fried chicken, steak, trout, and a beet risotto are served every night, along with five or six specials cooked up by chef Fred Duffus. The prices range from $10 for a burger to $25 for a New York strip steak. Bread pudding, chocolate pot de crème, and lemon tart are among the delectable desserts. There’s a full bar.

Be sure to check out the frescos in the bathrooms, which were inspired by sailor’s tattoos and are the work of New York artist Impala. There’s also a deck in back, with a view of the Catskills. Philippis said she is drawing customers not just from the neighborhood but also Rhinebeck, Stone Ridge, and High Falls—and that’s without advertising.

Giovanna Vis and her husband, Paul Maloney, describe the Stockade Tavern as a traditional American drinking establishment. The federal mantel behind the bar, built- in seating beneath the Tudor windows and vintage frosted glass lights certainly are the perfect setting for a classic cocktail, with a fresh squeeze of lime. Prohibition killed the art of the cocktail, and Vis and Maloney are restoring that tradition. They serve 13 cocktails, ranging in price from $7 to $10, plus have four beers on tap, 20 beers in the bottle, and nine wines. Their Citron Presse—sparkling lemonade—can be served straight or spiked and is a delectable antidote to the summer heat.

The Stockade also has a selection of 15 comestibles to accompany the drinks, including a pickle platter and tin of sardines. Located in the former Singer Sewing Machine retail store—the “S” logo still graces the door—the Stockade opened on Memorial Day weekend. “We’ve had a few big nights,” said Vis. She said the couple love “being on a back street in the heart of Uptown.” The Stockade opens at 4 pm Thursday through Sunday.

Jean-Jacques Carquillat made Kingston a destination for authentic French cuisine when he opened his traditional bistro, Le Canard-Enchaine, at 276 Fair in 1996. The restaurant is open seven days a week, and its prix fixe lunch–$14.95 for an appetizer and entrée—is one of the best values around. Le Canard also added a prix fixe dinner, which is $25 for a three-course meal ($30 with a glass of the house red or white). Specials are available every day. Le Canard is open Sunday through Thursday.

At the Hoffman House, located at 94 North Front in a landmark, 330-year-old stone building, you experience Kingston’s history while feasting on a delicious lunch or continental inspired dinner. “We have a wide variety of appetizers, salads and full course dinners,” said Pat Bradley, who opened the restaurant 33 years ago with his wife, Virginia. “Everything’s fresh, and the menu changes daily.” Dinner entrees are around $22, while lunch is $12.50. Hoffman House is pleasantly intimate, with four dining rooms plus an outside patio and bar.

Pat said the restaurant has a loyal business lunch and city clientele that it’s built up over the past three decades. It also attracts tourists, and word of mouth accounts for many new customers.  Hoffman House is open Monday through Saturday.

Stella’s Italian Restaurant, at 44 North Front, is a family owned and run business, with Barbara and Edward Burns’ five grown children all helping out. They started with Artie’s, the bar next door, eventually expanding to the restaurant, which was named after Barbara’s mother, who was a chef. Sitting down to a meal on its checked tablecloths is like being in the kitchen of an Italian grandmother. “It’s home cooking,” said Barbara. Perennial favorites are the chicken dishes—served sorrentino, marsala or francaise style—lasagna, and eggplant parmesan. Dinner entrees are priced from $11 up. Stella’s is open for lunch and dinner Wednesday through Saturday.

Ugly Gus Café and Bar, located at 11 Main St., across from the County Office Building, is celebrating its tenth anniversary this week, according to owner Chris Seche. The spacious eatery is open for lunch and dinner from Tuesday through Saturday. It specializes in American cuisine, serving homemade soup and specialty sandwiches for lunch and steaks, pasta, fish and chicken for dinner, with specials every night. Particularly popular are the Big Ugly burgers, said Seche.

On Saturday night, Ugly Gus serves prime rib. Tuesdays in the summer it features a lobster bake, and Wednesday is frozen margarita night. It’s open Tuesday through Saturday to midnight (1 pm on weekends). Seche said before opening Ugly Gus he owned another restaurant in Uptown and loves the area. “There’s a lot of business,” he said. “A lot of people who come for lunch are within walking distance.”

Stefan Sanzi opened Maxwell’s @ Community Gourmet at 32 North Front three years ago. The restaurant is offering outdoor seating on the site of the former parking garage, turning a former eyesore into a wonderful al fresco dining experience. It serves lunch and dinner Monday through Saturday, with a great selection of salads, sandwiches, appetizers, and pizzas. Four kinds of pasta are served, and a roasted half chicken, pan seared scallops, and herb roasted salmon are among the regular entrees, which are priced from $15 to $21.

Restaurants Uptown:

Ashley’s Cafe 243 Fair Street 845-331-2043

Gabriels Cafe 50 John Street 845-338-7161

Dallas Hot Wieners 51 N Front Street 845-338-6094

Deising’s Bakery & Restaurant 111 N Front Street 845-338-7505

Dietz Stadium Diner 127 N Front Street 845-331-5321

Dominick’s Café at Dream Weavers 34 North Front Street 845-338-4552

Ecce Terra 288 Fair Street 845-338-8734

Elena’s Diner 51 Schwenk Drive 845-331-2767

Elephant 310 Wall Street 845-339-9310

Gabriels Cafe 50 John Street 845-338-7161

Hoffman House 94 Front Street 845-338-2626

Hudson Coffee Traders Inc. 288 Wall Street 845-338-1300

Kingston Indian Restaurant & Grill 298 Wall St 845-331-3611 & 331-2661

Kyoto Sushi 37 Washington Avenue 845-339-1128

Le Canard-Enchaine 276 Fair Street 845-339-2003

Lucy’s Taco 38 John Street 845-338-2816

Market Basket Deli 308 Wall Street   845-338-2755

Maxwell’s Pizza 31 N Front Street 845-340-1004

Portobella 39 John Street 845-338-3000

Stellas N Front Street 845-331-2210

Ugly Gus 11 Main Street 845-331-5100

Wing Shui Chinese 53 N Front Street 845-339-3397

Alicia Beisel, owner of Avante

Alicia Beisel, owner of Avante, just reopened her shop in an expanded space at 61 Broadway, adjacent to her old location. With twice as much space and a lovely renovation, Beisel has expanded her salon to include full spa service, both massage and facial wraps.  The two-floor space is stunning, reminiscent of the premises of a five-star hotel, with its shiny wood floors, high ceilings, and architectural details. There’s even a secluded, leafy patio in the back.

Avante

Downstairs, there’s two separate rooms, one for hair cutting, the other for manicures and pedicures. Three massage rooms, including a deluxe space with a marble mantel, are on the second floor, which is a great place to get away from it all without leaving the city. Avante also does body waxing, spray tanning, and makeup, with a brisk business in wedding parties.

Beisel has eight employees, including hair cutter—artist might be a better word–Willie Lennon, who trained under Vidal Sassoon. She just hired an extra receptionist and esthetician (skin care specialist) and hopes to hire a female masseuse soon. The business celebrates its 13^th anniversary on July 15, by which time Beisel expects to be completely up to speed in the new location. She lived in the Rondout for many years and loves doing business in the area. “I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else,” she said. “It’s so quaint, with the river close by. It’s just a beautiful little area.”

Rage

Rage, located at 40 North Front Street, has three owners—Joe Perry, Susan Benincasa and Michael McGowan. They’ve been friends for many years and all worked at the same salon before deciding to open their own business 28 years ago. Rage also has three employees.

Besides hair cutting, hair highlighting and coloring is a big part of their business. Rage specializes in high-quality L’Oreal coloring products, and it is only one of two salons in Ulster County featuring the brand-new color line Inoa, according to Perry. He said that the Inoa line is ammonia free. “It doesn’t dry out the hair,” he said. “It’s an oil-based system and makes the hair healthier.” There also is no chemical smell. “We try to keep up in times,” said Perry. “Inoa is the newest thing in 40 years for color.”

The shop also offers Great Lengths, a service offering 100 percent human hair extensions. The natural extensions are bonded to the client’s hair, adding fullness and body to thin hair. Benincasa and McGowan are the two technicians who do the hair bonding.

Mark Ferraro

Next door, the eponymous owner of Mark Ferraro Hair Design, 56 North Front Street, has styled some famous hair: his clients include Chris Stein, the bass player of 1980s band Blondie, Robbie Dupree, and the CEO for Marc Jacobs, along with many other prominent musicians, including some of the members of Mercury Rev, which regularly tours the world. Ferraro, who trained with Paul Mitchell and worked in the city for some years, is sought out by hipsters everywhere for his creative way with hair. He said before it got popular he did the “upside down shag,” inspired by skater Dorothy Hamill. The sky’s the limit when it comes to hair styling, and Ferraro’s ahead of the game.

Ferraro, whose mom was a hairdresser, began cutting his friends’ hair when he was 12 years old, collecting payment in a coffee can. He said when the Dorothy Hamill wedge got popular—he calls it “the upside down shag”—the 17-year-old haircutter figured out how to do it and was booked solid for six months.

He has been cutting hair at his current location for 21 years and said he couldn’t be happier. “I feel like I’m in a village,” he said. “It’s like St. Mark’s Place upstate. I like that city vibe. I’ll do a homeless person off the street who doesn’t have five cents, then a person whose world famous for their art.”

Suzy Marello

Tangles Hair Salon, at 693 Broadway, is located in the only octagonal building in Kingston, so you can’t miss it. Owner Suzy Marello and an employee cut hair and do manicures and pedicures, earning a following for their reasonable prices. Marello opened the hair salon 11 years ago after she tired of running the Fountain Lounge, a bar owned by her family that had occupied the space for 30 years. (Before that, the building housed an appliance business.)

The building is one of a handful of octagonal structures in New York State, which were built in the 19^th century and promoted by phrenologist Orson Fowler, who believed the octagon allowed for better air circulation than the standard quadrangle. “People come from all over the take pictures,” said Marello. She’s open Tuesday through Saturday.

List of Hair Salons along the Kingston Corridor:

Abeel Street Hair Studio     105 Abeel Street     338-2251

Albrecht’s Hair Design      22 Broadway                339-8272

A Razor’s Edge                               290 Fair St                    331-2806

Ashe                                                   688 Broadway             331-2297

Avante                                               61 Broadway               340-4786

Caterino’s Hairstyling                 209 Hurley Ave          331-4314

Class Act Hair Designers            1 Albany Ave               331-8955

Cutting Corner Hair Salon         223 Boices Lane          382-2400

Cutting Crew                                   Kingston Plaza               339-2981

The Cut Off Point                           349 E. Chester              331-9008

Danny Kay’s Unisex Salon         87 St. James St.           338-6853

Dream Weaver’s                             34 N. Front St.             338-4552

Fashinista                                         474 Broadway             340-0672

Finesse                                               388 Broadway             331-1718

Mark Ferraro Hair Design          56 North Front            331-4547

Greenberry Hair Inc.                   275 Fair St.                   338-2100

Hair Affair                                         460 Albany Ave.        339-1111

Leshag Beauty Salon                     276 Fair St.                   338-0191

Joseph Roberts Hairstylist        159 Green                      338-4175

Rage Hair Salon                               40 North Front           331-2211

Secrets Hair & Nail Salon             504 Delaware Ave     338-1339

Anna Sembar Hair Designer       197A Boices Ln          336-4795

Majorie Shorter                               38 McEntee                  338-2413

Stylorama Beauty Salon            62 Guyon St.                   331-1485

Tangles Hair Salon                    693 Broadway                  338-9481

Taylor’s Haircutting                 162 Foxhall                       338-7887

Trends Hair Design 29 West Strand                 340-9100

A Touch of Class                         474 Broadway                 331-5676

Uptown Elegance                       333 Wall Street                338-6595

Village Nails                                 49 N. Front                       339-6323

The business, which occupies three of the four floors of the 25,000-square-foot building—it was formerly a shirt factory, and judging by an old photo, before that a dry goods store–has a staff of twenty, including draftsmen, cabinet makers, millworkers, estimators and project managers. It also sells, made to order, a finely crafted pool table—so far, 25 have been built—that’s guaranteed to improve your billards game: the piece is crafted of sturdy hardwoods  topped by a piece of premium Brazilian slate which is covered with a special cloth. The rails feature ebony sights and walnut burl corners, the billiard balls are crafted and imported from Belgium, and the cues are fashioned out of fiberglass-reinforced maple.

While Catskill Woodworking’s success is based on old-world artisanship that harks back to the workshops of the Middle Ages, it’s also a cutting edge business that utilizes the latest in green technology. Its roof is covered with 135 solar panels, the key components of a 28.6-KW solar energy system that went on line in January. The system is expected to meet a third of the company’s energy needs, Allen said. The company also has a wood-burning boiler that consumes the sawdust that’s perhaps its most plentiful byproduct.

Business was a little slow over the winter due to the economic downturn, but now things are picking up. Allen said he enjoys working out of a historic building on a quiet street that’s yet near restaurants and other conveniences. Kingston’s convenient access to New York City is another advantage. So if you’ve always dreamed of a having a specially paneled room—or maybe just a beautifully designed shelving unit and bench—where you can read, entertain and loaf but never knew anyone with the skills to build it, consider Catskill Woodworking, a local business that builds world-class products.

Zaborski Emporium is the king of the vintage/antiques stores, judging by the sheer epic variety and amount of items it stocks. Occupying four floors of a former shirt factory at 27 Hoffman Street, the Emporium attracts movie set people (the film industry represents 10 percent of its business), New Yorkers seeking to decorate their lofts and even celebrities with homes in the area. Restaurants and other businesses come to Stan’s for vintage lights and other fixtures, while the used radiators are a popular item among home owners. Roaming amid the dusty corridors stacked with stuff spanning a century of American material culture–tables, claw-footed bathtubs, mirrors, dressers, columns, signs, doors, Victorian bird cages, rugs, chairs, trunks, vending machines, door knobs—is a trip down Memory Lane. In the basement is an entire room filled with doors.

Stan Zaborski started the business in 1976 and bought the building 13 years ago. The company has four employees and will delivery almost everywhere, for a fee. His prices range from 50 cents to $25,000, for a suite of bedroom furniture that once belonged to Robin Williams and was shipped east in a chartered plane.

“I love Kingston,” said Zaborski, who gets help from his partner, Sandy Balla, who also works as a cruise boat tour guide. “I’ve seen it in its boom times and I’ve seen it depressed. I really enjoy it here.” He is going to put a few tables outside with “really cheap merchandise” for the yard sale. (Stan remembers the first book about yard sales, published in the 1960s, which featured his father, who was a “‘used item business” pioneer.)

Other Kingston businesses that sell antiques are Velsani Arts and Antiques, on Wall Street, and On the Hill Antiques at the Skillypot Antique Center, which features multiple vendors, Mezzanine Antiques Center, and At Home Antiques, all on lower Broadway in the Rondout. Larry Zalinsky, who owns Mezzanine with his wife, B.C. Gee, said his store specializes in “smalls”—vintage items that can at least fit into the back of a Subaru SUV. They include Victorian jewelry, a variety of paintings and prints, and mid-century furniture.

Just up the block, At Home Antiques is the latest entrant, opening six months ago in a capacious, warehouse-like space in a building owned by Judith and James Milne. The Milnes have been in the antiques business for 40 years—they operated a shop on the Upper West Side of Manhattan for many years—and they have an eye, stocking items you’ll see nowhere else, including a coffee table inset with a geometric pattern of linoleum, painted screens from a Parisian café, a deco-painted bedroom set, sturdy farm tables, and a wonderful selection of metal porch chairs, each like a character out of a Gorey cartoon.

Judith said the couple bought the building in 2004 and opened the store after they lost their tenant. “We love Kingston and didn’t want it to have another empty storefront,” she said. “We wanted to help the business community. Kingston needs to become more of a destination.”

Businesses are also showing artists, from opticians and physicians that display local art on their walls to retail shops that are using art to beautify the premises as well as give artists another place to show their work.

Ken Darmstadt, owner of Darmstadt Doors on Cornell Street, has transformed the entire second floor of his business into a series of gallery spaces. More than a dozen artists were featured in the recent show, “The Art of Spring.” The galleries are both large and intimate, with comfy couches inviting people to linger.  Catskill Art & Office Supply began showing work by individual artists in its storefront last April. The watercolors of Nathan Milgrim, a former textile designer who has exhibited in New York City (his works are part of the collection of the State House in Albany) will be displayed in June.   “With the Featured Artist Series, I hoped to establish a better connection between local artists and the community at large,” said store manager Nick Peluso. “By giving artists an opportunity to display their work in Catskill Art’s storefront windows (an attractive setting accessible to everyone in the busy Uptown business district, day or night), we can bring attention to the incredible creative energy happening in our midst.”

Dolce Café and Mint, owned by Alessandra Tecchio, showcase the fauve works of Samara, who is featured in the July-August edition of American Artist. The brick walls of Dolce are the perfect backdrop for Samara’s poetic scenes of the Rondout, which include monumental, birds’ eye views as well as night scenes. The café also displays the lyrical works of Samara’s late partner, Leslie Miller.

The Wall Street branch of Ulster Savings Bank started exhibiting artwork in March, with the display of colorful posters created by elementary school children last year for the Hudson-Fulton Quadricentennial Celebration. For the months of June and July, the bank will be exhibiting the art of Howard Miller, a New Paltz-based artist. “This gives an opportunity for the public to see local artists and introduce ourselves to the community,” said branch manager Bernard Feeney. “We’ve been uptown for 158 years, and we’re an old-style bank,” whose columns and wood paneling are an attractive setting for art.

Other businesses that exhibit local artists are Ship to Shore, Coldwell Banker Village Green Realty, on Fair Street, and Seven 21 Media Center. Everywhere you look, Kingston is blossoming with art!