Hudson Valley Landmark Unceremoniously Removed on Monday

A 35-year-old Hudson Valley landmark was quietly removed on Monday marking the end of an era.

If you were stuck in traffic on New Hackensack Road in Poughkeepsie on Monday that's because one lane was closed down to allow road work to be done in the area. The crews weren't replacing potholes or fixing curbs; they were removing a decades-old tradition.

The green stripe that has marked the road in front of Mulligan's Irish House was officially removed by the Department of Transportation. The stripe has been a tradition for decades, but now that Mulligan's is closed, the stripe is also history.

We spoke to Ken Keutmann from the New York State Department of Transportation, who was on hand for the road work. Keutmann told us that usually they would let the paint fade away, but this year's painting job was "a mess."

Those who are familiar with the green traffic paint know that it's usually painted between the double lines. This year, however, it looked as though paint was just poured down the middle of the roadway. The splotchy, green paint covered most of the yellow lines, something that could be considered a driving hazard, especially at night.

The workers were grinding down the middle of the roadway, blowing away the dust and replacing the center of the road. Traffic was down to one lane in both directions to allow the work to be done.

Mulligan's closed it's doors last month and work is already underway on the building. The property will reopen this summer as a "European-style restaurant and bar."