A landmark school in the Hudson Valley is being transformed into a TV and film studio.

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The Liberty Street School opened up in the late 1800s in Newburgh. The school taught children in Newburgh until June of 1980. Since the closing, the building remained empty for over 30 years.

Recently, Thomas Burr Dodd purchased the building. His company, RipRap LLC, hopes to rejuvenate historic buildings in Newburgh after about over 20 years of running a business fixing buildings in Brooklyn, according to the company's website.

“We were thinking of doing something similar to what we accomplished in Brooklyn but in Detroit. But in the past few years, we would come north on vacation and go apple picking up here in the Hudson Valley," Dodd said in an interview with NewburghNY.Org.
On a whim, we would drive through Newburgh and we were struck by the beauty of the architecture and the history. One time we went to the Ann Street Gallery, and we just liked the feel here. After attending the Newburgh Rezoning event it helped solidify our feeling that the time was right to make a move here.”

One of Dodd's purchases, the Liberty Street School, is in the process of being turned into a TV and film studio.

“The School will go back to its original layout. It won’t have any apartments, just work spaces. We will have film production facilities, and the third floor opens up very wide and has high ceilings so we can shoot there and also do post production," Dodd said.

The Empire State Development recently awarded PS 6 Liberty Street, LLC nearly $1 million to renovate PS 6 Center for Film and Television.

According to the Empire State Development, the money is expected to help make the Newburgh building become a one-stop-shop film/TV facility including sound stages and production offices as well as rental space for events, weddings and photoshoots. A community flex space on the first floor will be used for job training, mentorship programs, art shows, and screenings.

The Orange County Arts Council, Inc. will help in turning the building at 1 Liberty Street to the P.S. 6 Center for Film and Television.

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