Explore Hudson's Whaling Past

The Hudson Area Library has published a walking tour booklet focused on Hudson's whaling and maritime history. The booklets are available at the library, City Hall, and Spotty Dog Books & Ale, as well as hotels and other businesses in Hudson.

As a special launch of the walking tour, members of the library's History Room Committee will be on hand for a free community tour using the booklet on Sunday, September 13, 11:00 a.m. We will meet at Promenade Hill, the first stop on the tour. To register for the tour, email brenda.shufelt@hudsonarealibrary.org. Copies of the walking tour booklet will be available for participants.

The walking tour Hudson: A History of Whaling & Maritime Commerce, which utilizes the extensive research and collection of primary resources gathered for the 2025 library exhibit of the same name, is a self-guided tour to many of the buildings and sites that represent Hudson’s beginnings and some of its most storied history. The tour begins at the land between the North and South Bay areas and includes historic homes such as the Robert Taylor, the Charles Coffey Alger, the Captain Laban Paddock, Elishu Jenkins, and the Cyrus Curtiss houses and the sites of early Hudson businesses such as candleworks, printing offices, the ferry service, and hotels.

Something New at Warren and Park Place

Improving safety at intersections is a priority for Mayor Joseph Ferris. He spoke of it during the debate with Kamal Johnson last year. He mentioned it again in his inaugural speech in January. Evidence of his following through with his intentions appeared yesterday, at the intersection of Warren Street and Park Place, where a stop sign was installed in a rather unusual position, with a row of traffic delineators leading from the curb to the sign. 

Photo: Virginia Martin

Asked to comment on the installation, Ferris provided Gossips with this statement:

The new stop sign and flexi-posts for westbound traffic on Warren Street are much needed improvements for what is a dangerous intersection for pedestrians and drivers. Stand at the corner of Park and Warren for just a minute or two, and it becomes clear just how many near misses there are between drivers turning right from Warren and pedestrians looking to cross Park. The stop sign, along with the daylighting of the crosswalk on the Diner side of Warren, will give all street users the opportunity to move safely through the intersection. I look forward to continuing to work with the Department of Public Works and Hudson Police Department to improve street safety across the city.

Gossips learned from Rob Perry, DPW Superintendent, why the stop sign was positioned where it was:

The sign would not fit on the sidewalk. Between the streetlight, the RRFB [rectangular rapid flashing beacon] for the crosswalk, and the NYSDOT signage for the truck route, there was no place to install the sign and have it be visible. . . . Given the numerous conflicts, ideally the sidewalk would be demolished and a bump-out would have been installed to extend closer to the travel lane. But that would be a significant project.

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Such Cleverness

On Instagram this morning, Mark Allen published anagrams of familiar names in Hudson, and The Gossips of Rivertown is honored to be among them. The best anagrams are for Trixie's List and Hudson Common Sense. What could he have done if he had thrown in the article that is part of this blog's title? 

Following the Furgary

In January 2025, using funds from the Downtown Revitalization Initiative (DRI), a concept plan was completed for the area in North Bay once known as the Furgary Boat Club: Furgary-Shantytown Park Vision Plan. In September 2025, the City was awarded a Hudson River Estuary Grant "to advance planning and engineering for the redevelopment of the historic Furgary Fishing Village site along the city's waterfront." Today, the City issued a request for proposal (RFP) to oversee the final design and regulatory review process for the project. 

Mayor Joseph Ferris made the following statement about this step in the project:

I'm excited to announce that the City of Hudson issued an RFP that will bring us one step closer to a new park at the Furgary Fishing Village. Thanks to a New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Hudson River Estuary Program Grant awarded last year during the Johnson administration, we will be able to move into the planning phase for a project that will greatly expand community access to the North Bay.

While this 1.75-acre space--once home to a 20th-century fishing village--remains a draw for people looking for waterfront access, it has the potential for so much more. The upcoming work will ensure that the final design retains traces of its past, creates a more resilient waterfront, and provides a new natural resource designed to bring people and the North Bay together.

The planning process will ensure that the very community who will get to enjoy this park space have a seat at the table during the design process. By doing so, we will ensure the legacy of the fishing village lives on with public education opportunities built around local history and ecology.

I look forward to sharing more in the coming weeks and months as planning advances, community outreach begins, and other public engagement opportunities arise.

Ferris's statement makes it sound like they may be planning to do the whole community outreach process carried out in the fall of 2024 and reported in the Furgary-Shantytown Park Vision Plan over again.  

Let's hope that's not the case and that this new phase of planning moves forward from the work that has already been done.

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Mill Street: Of Procedure and Parkland

At the Common Council Legal Committee last week, Jack Hornickel presented two draft resolutions for the committee's consideration, both having to do with the sale, by the City of Hudson, of this land on Mill Street to Kearney Realty & Development. 

It will be recalled that in May, Mayor Joseph Ferris amended the agreement of sale, without the knowledge or authorization of the Common Council, changing the date of closing from a fixed date to an open-ended one: "thirty (30) days after the Seller has discontinued all pending actions/proceedings relating to the ability of the Seller to convey the Property." The sale of the property is currently the subject of an Article 78 proceeding.

The first of the two draft resolutions declares the contract extension by Mayor Ferris unenforceable and declares a default on the Kearney contract for their abandonment of the State Street and Rossman Avenue projects, which were part of the original agreement with the City. The second draft resolution dedicates the site as municipal parkland and terminates the Kearney contract as inherently void as a matter of law. Both draft resolutions can be found here.

Hornickel presented these arguments in support of the first resolution:

The contract extension signed by Mayor Ferris on May 20, 2026, is unenforceable, because it altered a material term to the contract for sale of municipal real estate without authorization by Common Council. Therefore the original contract closing date of May 3, 2026, is still in effect, and only the Common Council may act to determine its outcome.

Common Council should declare Kearney in default under this contract and terminate its relationship with the developer. Kearney failed to close on Mill Street in the allotted time; more importantly, Kearney abandoned its projects for State Street and Rossman Avenue, without explanation. These failures represent a material, willful, and substantial breach of the contract, one that defeats the original intent of the parties. Abandonment of these sites by Kearney also fails to satisfy a legislative condition of sale placed by Common Council and undermines the “scattered-site” development program envisioned by the Mayor.  

After some discussion, it was decided that the Legal Committee would seek counsel from the Council's attorney, Ken Dow, who was not present at the meeting, before bringing the resolutions to the full Council for consideration.

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Everybody Talks About the Weather

An event happening at the Martin Van Buren Historic Site on Saturday, August 29, explores how weather was monitored in the 19th century.

Conrad Vispo of the Farmscape Ecology Program explains the historic De Witt Rain Gauge to visitors at the Martin Van Buren National Historic Site.

Martin Van Buren National Historic Site will host a free "Historical Weather Day" featuring an interactive historical weather station and meteorological display created and staffed by Conrad Vispo and Anna Duhon of the Hawthorne Valley Farmscape Ecology Program on Saturday, August 29, from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

The Historical Weather Day will be an opportunity for visitors to experience and imagine what a weather station from the 1800s might have been like, and to learn how local 19th-century weather stations in places like Kinderhook and Hudson were part of one of the earliest meteorological networks in the country. It will also be an opportunity to explore what these early, local 19th-century weather observations might reveal about current weather events, such as the record-breaking rainfall that Kinderhook and surrounding areas experienced at the end of July.

The weather station display will feature a collection of antique and replica weather instruments, predominantly from the 19th century, including some that were made or used locally and are still functional. This includes the replica De Witt Rain Gauge (circa 1830) that was expressly designed for the 19th-century New York meteorological network and would have been used locally in sites like Kinderhook. Accompanying the rain gauges at the network sites were thermometers made by the Kendall family of New Lebanon. Some Kendall meteorological equipment from the second half of the 1800s will be on display.

Visitors will be invited to try their hand at reading the weather conditions on some of the still-functional instruments, and learn more about their history and use. They will also have a chance to view handwritten meteorological records from the 19th-century network that are in the process of being transcribed and historic weather books that help tell the story of early meteorology and how it evolved. A daily almanac derived from meteorological and seasonal observations made by network observers in Kinderhook and nearby towns on the early to mid-1800s will be available for perusing, as well as historic weather maps. These historic weather observations provide a window into how weather and climate has changed since Martin Van Buren's time, and some of the local effects of those changes. 

Breaking News

Tonight's informal Common Council meeting is in person only. Apparently, City Hall "cannot get online."

Proposed Code Amendments

At the Common Council Safety Committee meeting on August 3, Code Enforcement Officer Nick Fox proposed three changes to the city code. Two of them have to do with the demolition of buildings.

Fox pointed out that Section 91-3 C of the code lists demolition as the first option for removing a structure from the Vacant Building Registry. Fox is proposing, appropriately, that demolition be the last resort. Here is his reasoning:

While demolition is, in some cases, an appropriate means of protecting public safety, I believe it should generally be considered a last resort after reasonable opportunities for rehabilitation have been evaluated or determined to be impractical. The purpose of the Vacant Building Law should not only be to eliminate unsafe structures, but also to encourage the rehabilitation, preservation, and productive reuse of buildings whenever feasible. Demolition certainly has its place, particularly where a structure poses an imminent hazard or is beyond repair. However, where rehabilitation remains a viable option, preserving existing buildings often better serves the interests of neighborhoods, property owners, historic preservation, housing availability, and the long-term tax base of the City. 

Fox's proposed amendments to Section 91-3 C, which prioritize returning buildings to  appropriate occupancy or use, can be found here.

Fox also suggested changes to Chapter 97 of the code, the chapter on demolition. He pointed out that Section 97-3 F currently places the responsibility for protecting adjoining or adjacent properties on the owners of those properties. Of this situation, Fox stated:

I believe this responsibility should instead rest with the property owner and/or contractor performing the demolition. The party undertaking the demolition is in the best position to anticipate potential hazards, implement appropriate protective measures, and conduct the work in a safe and responsible manner. Accordingly, I believe the owner and/or contractor performing the demolition should be responsible for protecting all persons, buildings, structures, utilities, vehicles, and properties that may be affected by the demolition activities. Furthermore, any damage resulting from those activities should be promptly repaired or restored by the responsible owner and/or contractor at no expense to the affected property owner. 

Fox also pointed out that Chapter 97 "contains limited requirements regarding the condition in which a property must be left following demolition." The consequences of this are readily seen in at the corner of State and Seventh streets, where the Galvan Foundation demolished a historic building, the original home of the Hudson Orphan Asylum, in 2019. 

Seven years later, the site remains a fenced hole in the ground. These pictures were taken today.

Fox is suggesting the following addition to Section 97-3, as item K:

Upon completion of demolition, the property owner and/or contractor shall restore the site to a safe, clean, and finished condition. The site shall be backfilled, compacted, and graded to a finished grade that provides proper drainage and eliminates hazardous depressions, exposed foundations, or other unsafe conditions. 

Upon completion of the work, all temporary fencing, construction barriers, warning devices, and other temporary protective measures associated with the demolition shall be removed unless otherwise required by the Code Enforcement Officer or applicable law. 

The resulting vacant lot shall be maintained in a neat and orderly condition and shall remain in compliance with all applicable provisions of the City of Hudson and NYS Property Maintenance Code. Under no circumstances shall the property be left in a condition that constitutes a public nuisance, blighting influence, or hazard to the public health, safety, or welfare. 

Fox's suggestions for changes to Chapters 91 and 97 will be introduced to the Common Council at its informal meeting tonight.

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News of the Public Square

Readers may recall that the bids for Phase 1 of the restoration of the Public Square, a.k.a. Seventh Street Park, were due last week, on August 11. 

This morning, Katherine Kanaga of Friends of the Public Square (FOPS) provided this update:

FOPS received two bids for renovations in the Seventh Street Park. Both came in significantly higher than the amount we had estimated based on the scope of work and the funds FOPS has raised to date. Accordingly, FOPS decided to reject the bids and solicit new bids for a first-phase project that will not include certain infrastructure work, such as the sewer hook-up for the future fountain. This expensive work will be part of the next phase, for which we are continuing to fundraise. We are working with our landscape architects at Starr Whitehouse to put out a revised bid solicitation in short order.

Meetings and Events in the Week Ahead

It's hard to believe, but we have passed the midpoint of August, and we are now two-thirds of the way through summer. As we savor the last weeks of August, here is what's happening.

• On Monday, August 17, Mayor Joseph Ferris holds a public hearing on two proposed local laws: the first increases the dollar thresholds for budget transfers requiring approval from the Board of Estimate and Apportionment and the Common Council; the second amends the City's procurement policy to conform with the provisions in New York State General Municipal Law, Section 103. The hearing takes place at 1:00 p.m., in person only, at City Hall.
• At 6:00 p.m. on Monday August 17, the Common Council holds its informal meeting. The meeting is a hybrid, taking place in person at City Hall and on Teams. Click here for the link to join the meeting remotely. 
• On Tuesday, August 18, the Conservation Advisory Council meets at 6:00 p.m. The meeting is a hybrid, taking place in person at City Hall and on Teams. Click here for the link to join the meeting remotely.

Update: Because City Hall is experiencing some unexplained and unresolved technical difficulties, the Conservation Advisory Council meeting will be in person only.

• On Wednesday, August 19, Waterfront Wednesdays, the last of the season, features the Camphill Hudson Players and Bollywood Dancing. As always, the event begins at 4:00 p.m. and continues until dusk at Henry Hudson Riverfront Park. Performances are at 6:00 p.m.

• On Thursday, August 20, Mayor Joseph Ferris has open office hours from 3:00 to 5:00 p.m. This month, the mayor will be stationed in Council Chambers on the first floor of City Hall, which is fully ADA accessible.
• Also on Thursday, August 20, Third Thursdays at Olana features outdoor movie night. In collaboration with the Hudson Area Library and Story Screen, the classic 2003 fantasy-adventure film Holes will be shown at 7:30 p.m. For more information visit olana.org/thirdthursdays. 

And that's it for the week

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News of HCSD

There's an opening on the school board. Maureen Sheridan, who retired last year as a teacher in the Hudson City School District and was elected to the Board of Education in May 2025, resigned last week. The Board of Education is now soliciting letters of interest from people who want to be considered for the position. In their letters, candidates are asked to answer these three questions:

1. Why are you interested in serving on the Board of Education?
2. What skills will you bring to the Board?
3. Do you anticipate any problems committing to the board meeting schedule and additional work between meetings?

Letters should be submitted by September 11, 2026, to the board clerk Leslie Coons (coonsl@hudsoncsd.org). A new member will be appointed by the board at their meeting on September 15. Candidates should be present at the meeting. The selected candidate will be sworn in that evening for a term that continues through June 30, 2027.

In other news, the new HCSD superintendent, Todd Hilgendorff has introduced "Ask the Superintendent."  

As we prepare to welcome everyone back for a new school year, Superintendent Hilgendorff wants to hear from you!

Whether you are a student, parent/guardian, staff member, or community member, this is your chance to submit a question about the upcoming school year, our schools, teaching and learning, student life, programs, facilities, or anything else you'd like to know.

Over the next couple of weeks, the Superintendent will review your questions and provide answers.

We'll share selected questions and answers on social media.

To submit a question, click here.

Following Up with 537 Warren Street

A dumpster and activity in the vicinity of 537 Warren Street, the location until 2019 of Mexican Radio, have raised questions about what's going on there. The building is being renovated to be the location of a new restaurant, one that has been described as having "a general store feel." The Historic Preservation Commission granted a certificate of appropriateness to proposal for exterior alterations in March 2025: "Change Coming to Warren Street."

At the its meeting on Friday morning, the HPC approved a change to the original proposal. The doors in the side of the building, which open onto the pocket park, were originally going to have sidelights. 

In the new plan, the sidelights have been eliminated. 

When asked if the change was being made for structural reasons or because of cost, the applicant indicated cost was the determining factor.

So far, the work on the building has focused on the interior. Work on the exterior of the building is expected to begin soon. The changes to the exterior involve the removal of the mural that was painted by Stirling Krusing in November 2009. 

The mural was painted on metal siding, and the plan presented last year was to remove the metal intact so that the mural could be preserved. The mural was not mentioned on Friday, but it is assumed that is still the plan.

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Don't Ask Permission. Ask Forgiveness.

The title of this post expresses the attitude that T. Eric Galloway and everyone associated with him have consistently shown toward the Historic Preservation Commission. Among the most egregious examples is coating the historic marble piers and lintels at 260 Warren Street with some unknown white substance which, it was explained after the fact, was meant to "protect" the ancient marble.

Far from protecting the marble, the white coating, whether it was paint or something else, gave future tenants license to slap more paint on the marble colonnade.

Learning from the experience of 260 Warren Street, the HPC was careful, when granting a certificate of appropriateness to 501 Union Street, another Galvan project, to specify: "The original patina of the brick shall be maintained." Nevertheless, the building was sprayed with limewash, to "even out the appearance of the brick" because Galloway "thought it looked terrible." Because the limewash cannot be removed without harming the brick, we are now just waiting for the weather and time to wear away the limewash. How many decades that will take is not known.

Despite the fact that the Galvan Foundation has given most of its real estate holdings in Hudson to Bard College, Galloway/Galvan continues to do irreparable damage to Hudson's historic buildings.

On July 27, the Historic Preservation Commission approved the installation of awnings on the buildings at Warren and North Fourth streets that are to become the Hudson Public Hotel.

At the time, the only member of the HPC to have an issue with the awnings was John Schobel, who noted that the awnings diminished the ability to appreciate the architecture of the building because they covered the marble colonnade. That may have been exactly what was intended.

At this morning's meeting of the HPC, Phil Forman, who chairs the HPC, said there were "issues with the property regarding the previous C of A and the facade." He went on to say the awnings would violate the previous certificate of appropriateness. Code enforcement officer Nick Fox then explained that the cornice above the windows was missing and "now they want to put awnings there."

Further discussion revealed that it was the marble lintels over the windows and doors that were missing. The status of the original marble pillars was also in question. Many of the pillars on the Warren Street facade were lost during the abuse suffered by the building over the years, but two survived, and the conditions set forth in the certificate of appropriateness specified that the surviving pillars and lintel were to be preserved--at least that's what we thought.

During the discussion, Forman wanted to know if the original marble was gone, or if it was now buried under other material. Walter Chatham, who is the architect for the project, did not answer that question. When public comment was permitted, Matt McGhee did have the answer. The original marble columns were removed. McGhee provided Gossips with these pictures, taken in June 2025. The first shows one of the columns still in place. (It has since been covered up.) The second shows the other marble column and a fragment of the lintel removed and on the ground.

Photo: Matt McGhee

Photo: Matt McGhee

McGhee also pointed out that the height of the doorway had been lowered, and the columns on the infill building to the right, which were supposed to be the same width as the columns on the main building, were not the same width.

McGhee reported that the brickwork had been sanded, and the mortar used for repointing was "extremely white" and did not match the original mortar--all in violation of the specifications in the certificate of appropriateness. 

It was decided that, because the Galvan Foundation ignored many of the stipulations of the original certificate of appropriateness granted in March 2023, and some of the deviations from that C of A are irreparable, the Galvan people would submit a new application for a certificate of appropriateness based on what they actually did, not what the original certificate of appropriateness required them to do. 

Don't ask permission. Ask forgiveness. 

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