Vendors and Food Trucks
A few days ago Giovanni di Mola, manager of 3FortySeven, posted on Facebook the renderings of the plans for the lot surrounding the former gas station at 347 Warren Street. Yesterday, Scott Baldinger published those renderings on his blog, along with an enthusiastic post about the proposed project.
Although the prospect of having food trucks offering tacos and burritos, pizza, Thai noodles, and Indian food all in one place is tantalizing to many Hudson residents and to visitors as well, it is having a different effect on some members of local government. When the project was first presented to the Planning Commission in February, commission member Cappy Pierro, formerly the mayor's aide and now Fifth Ward alderman, used the occasion to lament that the current vendors law (Chapter 307 of the City of Hudson Code) did not apply to food trucks situated on private property. Responding to Pierro, Carl Whitbeck, counsel to the Planning Commission, clarified that the vendors law addressed vendors that used public streets and sidewalks, and since the proposal for 347 Warren Street involved food trucks on private property, it had to be judged by the standards that applied in any site plan review, pointing out that there was nothing currently in the city code to prohibit the project that was being proposed.
Pierro's determination to revise the vendors law has not abated. He has brought up the issue both in a Common Council meeting and in a Legal Committee meeting, and his statements give the impression that he is most interested in limiting the proximity of food trucks on private land to conventional restaurants. At last week's Legal Committee meeting, Mayor William Hallenbeck, speaking from the audience, echoed Pierro's concern.
Meanwhile, the Planning Commission's consideration of the project proposed for 347 Warren Street moves forward. Although at their March meeting, because legal counsel was not present, the commission did nothing more than receive the elaborated drawings they had requested the month before, a public hearing has been scheduled for Wednesday, April 11, at 7 p.m., after which, during their regular meeting, the commission will continue its site plan review and possibly render a decision.
Pierro is all upset at food carts but didn't even wince at the ludicrous proposal for a Police Head Quarters and City Court under 2 floors of SRO's .We would pay a lease and pay for everything needed beyond sheet rock rooms with partitions &
ReplyDeleteutilities hook-ups.Tell Cappy the food carts go away,but that Civic Multiplex SRO from Lantern ,will be here to stay.
It's mighty hard to figure out what some of our civic officials are thinking. They seem to be OK with dump trucks running through all five wards of the City and through South Bay. They seem to be OK with the idea of situating homeless people a block-and-a-half from a public school. They seem to be OK with tearing down significant historic buildings. But a food truck threatens their sense of civic order. WTF?
ReplyDeleteWe live in a town where our civic officials are OK with dump trucks running up and down our streets, and all sorts of sub-standard ramshackle houses owned by slumlords, but heaven forbid that a business person wants to put out a decent food truck....
ReplyDeleteWTF?
I'll say it again: all these reactions make sense if you see that in Hudson the most valued business is the Industry of Poverty and Prisons.
ReplyDelete-- Jock Spivy
Entrepreneurial capitalism is squashed and statist socialism is celebrated. Make life hell for the little food trucks and trumpet government waste, graft and corruption because, according to this Cappy person, this is our "one chance" for the money. And don't forget, the pride of Olde Tyme Hudson, American Glory is right across the street, and has the mayor in its back pocket.
ReplyDeleteGood observation , Observer,
ReplyDeleteAmerican Glory has its outdoor food truck on the 5Th and Warren
lot owned by Galloway,that was the failed location for Starboard Project
Galloway's identical proposal as Civic Center(look at fact sheets Identical)
except Police Headquarters and Courthouse was commercial space,
under 32 SRO's.That is literal.
Galvan only will house single formerly homeless
Highest rent payouts to GalVan is criteria.
there are no families , single mothers with children
SRO only
CC Pres Moore and Council were totally against this happening at 5th&
Warren 2 yrs ago
but are suddenly all for it ,1 block over north and one block down south,
across from elementary school,Etsy,Helsinki,River Studio and residential homes
on narrow RTE23B/9G/Columbia Street.
They do not have the zoning ,but watch how fast that variance comes in
GalVan isn't even a recognised non profit by IRS yet.
Yet their grant& tax credit proposal for LANTERN(not Hudson) went in before April 1st
deadline,they needed ,not Hudson.They needed us as a vehicle,so CC signed MOU supposedly non binding,so why sign anything with Galvan on a weeks notice,especially a project of this magnitude?They recycle this crap from the rejected Starboard,so wait,who runs this town?
And if Moore and the 5th ward
slam this through,the tax payer has to sign 30 yr lease on these
condominium sheet rock boxes
with utilities hook ups
Go cityofhudson.org
and click on Meetings
and read the lease/documents/ and on the fly blueprints"presentation blue prints",not the "real blue prints"
March 29, 2012: Special Meeting - Common Council
Time: 6:00
Documents
Agenda:
1) A resolution of support on behalf of the City and the Common Council
for the development of a Supportive Permanent Homeless Housing,
City of Hudson Police Station, and City of Hudson Court House
as part of a Three-Unit Condominium Project.
Documents:
Call of Special Meeting (PDF - 508.3 KB)
Police/City Court/Housing - Proposed Resolution 3/29/2012 (PDF - 9.2 MB)
------------------------------
A proposed family homeless facility at Warren and Worth Ave.
ReplyDeleteby some other ORG. than GalVan
in March this year
was shot down in a quick NIMBY minute
so who are we in the 2nd and 4th Wards?
Taxation without representation?
Our reps in CC and the Pres CC does what the 5th ward tells them to do.
Ex Mayor BOS Scalera 5th ward is on GalVan's board.
Attorney Roberts has done nothing to gain public trust,
the Building Dept is a 5th Ward operation
so the fix is in.
All that's missing is Crawford&Assoc
and Lantern's construction 'outfit'
The only hope is HPD will just say NO
and their union has teeth.
and 2nd & 4th ward businesses and residents pressure 2nd&4th Ward Reps to represent and say NO
It's not Hudson's responsibility to house the homeless
of Columbia County or become a homeless destination
we are doing way more than our share as it stands.
Yes we need to improve our Police Headquarters and City Courthouse
mandated by NYS
Scalera had term after term to do that
He didn't.
We need to own our Civic Buildings
A good portion of our taxes already are going to POLICE DEPT
so add to that ,if this happens
after we pay for everything, except the walls in GalVan Civic Condo
~meaning build out, fixture, furnished complete,everything2012 code
then we are going to add to that$ 8,333.333a month rent direct to GalVan
for 30 years
that goes up 3% in 6 yrs &up to5%at 10th year
+utilities +insurances+maintenance+snow ,garbage removal for next 30 yrs.
and one superintendent for 32 SRO residents
GalVan provides no care GalVan just collects rent,tax breaks makes money.
Everything is going to be run by, paid for by Social Services
state,city fed. ... the Taxpayer- including the building,we have to lease from
meaning we will be paying for rent,food and all services for SRO's too
Are the cops going to babysit them at night?
Where is all this money coming from? The taxpayer.
I do not want to give one penny to GalVan ,ever