Mayor of Middletown, New York, Spurs City Redevelopment Under New Vision

Mayor of Middletown, New York, Spurs City Redevelopment Under New Vision
Mayor Joseph Destefano in his office in Middletown, N.Y. on Dec. 15, 2022. Cara Ding/The Epoch Times
Cara Ding
Updated:
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Middletown Mayor Joseph DeStefano grew up two blocks away from the now vacant O&W train station, a symbol of the railroad industry where his Italian grandparents once earned a living.

As the railroad and manufacturing industry waned in the second half of the twentieth century, his city soon suffered another blow from the development of highways and suburban malls, which sucked out urban businesses, big and small.