Ear to the Ground

In July 2025, the Historic Preservation Commission granted a certificate of appropriateness for the plan to redesign the facade at 541 Warren Street, restoring the door to the stairwell and re-creating a storefront.  

In April 2026, the applicant returned to the HPC seeking to amend the certificate of appropriateness. The change proposed was to install a storefront window at the side of the building and to "wrap" paneling proposed for the front of the building around to the side.  

 

At its April 10, 2026, meeting, the HPC unanimously agreed to grant a certificate of appropriateness to the amended design.

Earlier this week, a preservation watchdog raised the alarm that opening side wall to install the window had damaged the facade and jeopardized the structural integrity of the building. Those concerns were also shared with Nick Fox, Hudson's Code Enforcement Director. Pursuing the story, Gossips contacted Fox, seeking more information. Fox inspected the building today and kindly shared his report with Gossips.

At 2 p.m. today, 9/25/26, I inspected 541 Warren Street after being advised of a potential structural issue that developed when the side wall was opened for new window openings facing the pocket park.

During my inspection, I observed cracking in the masonry next to one of the proposed window openings. The affected area will need additional masonry repairs, but based on what I observed, it does not appear to pose an immediate danger to public safety.

I was told that, immediately after the damage occurred, the contractor contacted the project's structural engineer. The engineer evaluated the condition and provided a temporary shoring plan. A professional shoring specialist, recommended by the engineer, was then hired to install the shoring in accordance with that plan. The project engineer returned afterward, inspected the completed shoring, and approved the installation.

At the time of my inspection, the affected portion of the building was properly shored. The surrounding area was barricaded and closed to the public, and the damaged area was set back from the public sidewalk. Based on the limited extent of the damage, the temporary shoring, and the restricted access around the area, I do not consider the condition to be an immediate danger to the public.

Reports or rumors that the entire building is in danger of collapse appear to greatly overstate the condition I observed. The issue is limited to a relatively small section of masonry next to the new opening and will be repaired as part of the ongoing construction.

Structural steel components intended to provide permanent support are expected to be installed within the next few weeks. Until that work is complete, the temporary shoring and restricted-access area should remain in place and be maintained as directed by the project's structural engineer.

In addition, the structural engineer of 541 Warren recommended temporarily postponing excavation work that is scheduled by 537 Warren on the opposite side of the pocket park related to foundation repairs at that property. That work should remain on hold until the structural steel components at 541 Warren Street have been installed. This is a precaution intended to avoid vibration, soil disturbance, or other conditions that could contribute to further movement or damage while the temporary shoring remains in place.

At this time, I have no reason to believe that the condition at 541 Warren Street presents an immediate threat to public safety, provided that the existing shoring and site protections remain in place, the excavation work at 537 Warren Street is deferred as recommended, and the required structural work continues under the direction of the respective project engineers.  

It appears that the building, which is 1858 was the location Zebulon Hunt's stove works store, will live on in the 21st century.

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A Farewell to Lil' Deb's

Lil' Deb's Oasis has announced it will close in mid-October. On Sunday, October 4, Lil' Deb's is planning a block party to celebrate the closing, from early afternoon to evening, in the street outside the restaurant at 747 Columbia Street. 

Yesterday, Elazar Sontag, food critic for the Washington Post, published a paean to Lil' Deb's Oasis, which opened the same year he started college at Bard: "One of America's most important restaurants is closing. It feels personal." The following is quoted from the article:

I'd heard plenty about the buzzy new restaurant before I made the 30-minute trek from campus, but nothing could have prepared me for what was inside. A bag of tennis balls swayed from the ceiling like a mobile over a baby's crib. Displays of tropical fruits erupted from the bar, and seat cushions were splashed in trippy tie-dye patterns made by a friend of the restaurant. A cook worked the line with their hair wrapped up around a ripe banana. Another had fashioned a shoelace into a necklace dripping with makeshift charms.

I had walked into an iridescent beach shack where to be different was to be normal, and to be gay--something I still had very little practice being--was the only way to be, at least judging by the staff and other diners. I wasn't even seated yet, and already I knew I needed to be a part of this. Not just to eat here, but to become the kind of person who inhabited this impossibly cool restaurant as matter-of-factly as if they were stopping by their local diner. I needed to belong.

Lil' Deb's Oasis closes forever on October 12.

How Many Students?

This is information that, over the years, hasn't always been readily available: the number of students served by the Hudson City School District. At the last meeting of the HCSD Board of Education, the current enrollment was revealed: 1,431 students. The last time Gossips was able to report the number of students enrolled in HCSD was in 2022, when the number was 1,619.

Planning for the Midterms

Early voting in the midterm elections begins one month from today, on Saturday, October 24. Early voting will take place at the Board of Elections' new office at 11 Warren Street. On Election Day, November 3, Wards 1, 2, and 3 will vote at 11 Warren Street.

Well in advance of early voting and Election Day, Mayor Joseph Ferris issued the following statement:

The City of Hudson has announced the following temporary parking changes near 11 Warren Street during early voting and Election Day.

Parking enforcement will be suspended on Warren Street below 1st Street during early voting (full schedule of early voting dates and times are below). And on Election Day--Tuesday, November 3rd--parking enforcement will be suspended on Warren Street below 2nd Street.

Early Voting Dates & Times

Saturday, October 24     9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Sunday, October 25     9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Monday, October 26     9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Tuesday, October 27     Noon to 8 p.m.

Wednesday, October 28     Noon to 8 p.m.

Thursday, October 29     9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Friday, October 30     9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Saturday, October 31     9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Sunday, November 1     9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

For further information about voting and your polling locations, please reach out to the Columbia County Board of Elections by phone at 518 828-3115, email them at elections@columbiacountyny.gov, or visit them at 11 Warren Street, Suite 1, Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

You can also find the information you need on the Columbia County website: https://elections.columbiacountyny.com/. To confirm that you are registered, click here: https://voterlookup.elections.ny.gov/.

Eye on the Street

The church building at 448 Warren Street, constructed between 1867 and 1869 as the Universalist Church, has seen a lot of change in the past dozen years. Its current owner purchased it in March 2014 and in September 2014 embarked on what was described as a "complete and accurate restoration" of the building. The brick was repointed by an award-winning masonry contractor who had also done work at Olana. Brownstone needed for repairs was imported from England because it was most like the brownstone available in this country in the 1860s. The restoration was promised to be "absolutely in kind."

Unfortunately, the textbook restoration of the building was never completed. The last work done on the building happened in 2016, when the missing steeple was replaced with a simple cap. Since then, the building was stood abandoned and ignored, to the extent that property taxes were not being paid. Earlier this year, the building was on the City's foreclosure list for back taxes and penalties totaling $359,763.89. The building was redeemed in July, when the amount due was paid in full and in cash.

Today, furnishings were observed being removed from the building. 

Could it be the current owner is getting ready to sell the building? Who's to say? Gossips will keep an eye on the situation.

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The Future of Mill Street

At the end of the informal Common Council meeting on Monday, Mill Street resident Lakia Walker asked if there was any more discussion about a pathway to settling the lawsuit brought against the City by Mill Street Neighbors. In July, it came to light that, midway through the year, the $80,000 that had been appropriated for legal expenses in the City's 2026 budget had already been spent, and it was estimated that another $103,000 would be needed to meet the anticipated legal fees for the remainder of the year. Walker also asked about the status of the two resolutions proposed by Jack Hornickel in August, the first which 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, the second which dedicates the Mill Street site as municipal parkland and terminates the Kearney contract as inherently void as a matter of law.

Responding to Walker, Council president Margaret Morris said, "We have received your two resolutions. We are getting advice from our attorneys on what the next appropriate action is. I don't have an answer for you right now as to what the next action would be, but the questions you've asked about the possibility of having a meeting with the other entity being sued was one that I did bring up. I can't really discuss the litigation in public session. I encourage you to continue to correspond with us and continue to come to meetings and to ask what the next steps are. We are trying to get legal advice for the Common Council on what the next best steps are for us."

While the Common Council awaits legal advice to move forward, Friends of Mill Street has launched a GoFundMe campaign to cover its ongoing legal expenses. This statement was released as an introduction to the fundraising effort:

From the beginning, our neighborhood has taken every opportunity to avoid the incredibly expensive and wasteful situation we find ourselves in. We spent a year in front of the Planning Board and Council trying to steer the project to a legal, reasonable plan. Our hardworking neighborhood, Jack Hornickel, contributed hundreds of hours to assemble and present legal records to help every branch of city government understand how and why this project broke the law. We've arranged settlement offers that no one in City government has responded to, and drafted resolutions to exit the project that no one has acted on.

At this point, the City has run down its own legal defense budget and exhausted our neighborhood resources as well. We know, from so many conversations with people out in town and passing through our street, just how unpopular this project is. We would be extremely grateful is you'd consider joining our fight and sharing in the costs. You can find the Friends of Mill Street fundraising page here. Thank you so much for your support.

News of the HPC

Because not enough members of the Historic Preservation Commission will be available this Friday to constitute a quorum, Friday's meeting of the HPC has been canceled. (It should be noted that the HPC is the only regulatory board in Hudson that meets twice a month, and canceling a meeting for want of a quorum is something the HPC has rarely if ever done.) As a consequence of the canceled meeting, the public hearing on the new application for the Hudson Public Hotel, 402-406 Warren Street, addressing the list of violations that triggered a stop-work order, has been postponed until Friday, October 9, the HPC's next scheduled meeting.

In the meantime, the new application reflecting the work that was done in violation of the original certificate of appropriateness has been submitted to the HPC and is now posted on the City of Hudson website. It can be found here.

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Ear to the Ground

It seems Hudson is soon to have another coffee roastery. Gossips has learned that Whistle Punk Coffee Roasters is planning to open at 317 Warren Street, the location for nearly two decades of Foley & Cox. 

Whistle Punk already has three locations, all in the Hudson Valley: New Windsor, Beacon, and Cornwall. Hudson will be its fourth and northernmost establishment. (Hudson's Community Character Preservation Law [Chapter 325, Article XIV] prohibits businesses with four or more locations.)

Galvan acquired 317 Warren Street in 2005 and restored its facade, re-creating a period storefront. It is not known if the building is part of the gift to Bard College or not. The tax rolls for 2026 still list Galvan Initiatives Foundation as the owner of the property.

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Mark Your Calendar

This rare opportunity happens on October 10. 

(Click on the image to enlarge.)

Meetings and Events in the Week Ahead

In the week of the autumnal equinox, here is what's happening.

• On Monday, September 21, at 5:45 p.m., the Common Council holds a public hearing on the City's Community Development Block Grant application for $52,500 to undertake a comprehensive study of the City's water system to access capacities and potential future improvements. The hearing takes place in person only at City Hall.
• At 6:15 p.m. on Monday, September 21, 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, September 22, the autumnal equinox occurs at 8:04 p.m.

Henry Ary (1807-1859), Hudson River View

• On Thursday, September 24, Mayor Joseph Ferris holds his Open Office Hours from 3:00 to 5:00 p.m. at City Hall.
• Also on Thursday, September 24, the Hudson Community Development and Planning Agency (HCDPA) 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.
• On Friday, September 25, the Historic Preservation Commission meets at 10:00 a.m. The meeting is expected to include a public hearing on the new application responding to violations to the certificate of appropriateness found at 4o2-406 Warren Street. 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: The Historic Preservation Commission meeting has been canceled for want of a quorum. The public hearing on the new application for 402-406 Warren Street has been rescheduled to take place at the HPC's next scheduled meeting on Friday, October 9.

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News from HHA

At Wednesday's meeting of the Hudson Housing Authority Board of Commissioners, several things of interest were revealed in John Mateo's report to the board. Mateo, of course, works for Mountco, HHA's development partner. 

In his report, Mateo revealed, as he has before, that the person who appears to be the project's principal contact at NYS Homes and Community Renewal is Eu Ting-Zambuto, who, until May 2025, worked for Mountco and in fact worked on this project. That seems like a conflict of interest, but who's to say?

Ting-Zambuto and Madeo at an HHA meeting in July 2024

After reporting that the Planning Board has closed the public hearing and scheduled a special meeting on September 30 dedicated solely to this project, Madeo expressed the hope that the Planning Board "will be in a position to vote" on the project at its October 13 meeting. He commented, "If they do, it will fit with our schedule moving forward." Regarding the site plan review process, Madeo said, "We have never had as many questions from the public and the Planning Board as we've had here."

Madeo also told the board that they still need to get an equity provider to buy the project's tax credits. He indicated the market for tax credits was not good at this time but said that in the past weeks they have gotten "strong interest" from two firms that Mountco has done tax credit deals with in the past. 

As Madeo indicated, there is currently a gap between the amount of money needed for the project and the amount they have. If they cannot fill the gap, the state must decide if it will provide the funding needed to close the gap. He cited three factors that make the HHA project problematic: low rents (82 percent of the units will be designated for households with incomes below 50 percent of the area median income); brownfield conditions that must be remediated; soil conditions that require extraordinary construction techniques.

A couple more things of interest emerged from Wednesday's meeting. It will be recalled that HHA is in the process of selecting a name for the proposed new development. The process began in January, when suggestions were solicited and received. It seems recently there was a vote among tenants to select the name, but the results had to be scrapped because it was discovered that someone had stuffed the ballot box, voting multiple times for their favorite name. As a consequence, there will be a do-over, with controls in place to prevent people from voting more than once.

The HHA Board of Commissioners has been short a member since Sara Black resigned in April after being appointed to the Planning Board. On Wednesday, Mayor Joseph Ferris appointed a new member of the HHA board: Ben Ezinga. Ezinga is a partner in Sustainable Community Associates (SCA) which in April 2016 proposed a plan for the redevelopment of the Kaz warehouses, the same area now proposed to become Waterfront Village. In March 2017, the SCA plan was essentially abandoned.

Ezinga was present at Wednesday's meeting. It was decided that he would take Claire Cousin's seat on the Redevelopment Committee. (Cousin resigned in January when she became a councilmember representing the Fifth Ward.) The Redevelopment Committee, which was created in August 2024, was originally composed of Cousin, Rebecca Wolff, and Nick Zachos, with Revonda Smith as an alternate.

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It Happened on Warren Street

On September 4, an incident took place in the 700 block of Warren Street that has gotten a lot of attention on social media. After being harassed by First Amendment auditors, who were reportedly shouting and videotaping through a shop window, one of the subjects snapped and came out of the shop to confront them. That reaction is what was shared on social media. According to reports, the woman who snapped was arrested. The people who provoked her, whose work can be found here, were not penalized in any way.

At the Common Council Safety Committee meeting on Monday, Gossips asked Chief Mishanda Franklin and Captain David Miller if they would comment on the incident. Calling it "an unfortunate circumstance," Franklin said:

It's good for the public to know that those were First Amendment auditors, and part of what they do is they around . . . and engage in their First Amendment rights, and that means videotaping in a public space, and that may include videotaping from the outside into a private space, however anything that is visible in a private space is legal for them to record. So unfortunately, the circumstances that they may have been there to agitate or "harass" folks inside to possibly get a reaction, they were well within their legal rights to record.

Franklin said the HPD has dealt with First Amendment auditors "a few times" in the past, citing incidents at Rolling Grocer, City Hall, the county clerk's office, and the police department. She advised "anyone [who] finds themselves in that situation to call us." She went on to say, "We can't prevent them from recording inside. We can ask them to move along, but they have a legal right to be there."

Commenting on the incident on Warren Street, Miller offered this advice, "She could have shut it down for an hour, take a breath, walk away. They will continue that kind of activity hoping to get that reaction." Franklin added, "They tend to go into spaces where they think they can get that kind of reaction from someone."

Targets of First Amendment auditors were originally government buildings, with the goal of testing if public officials and law enforcement respected their constitutional right to record. It seems now, however, that people just going about their business in a public space or in a space visible from a public street can also be targets, with the sole goal being an incendiary reel to share on Facebook and Instagram.

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Happening This Weekend

The Friends of the Hudson Area Library are having a Book & Bake Sale. Gently used books and homemade baked goods will be offered for sale this weekend--Friday, Saturday, and Sunday--in the Community Room of the Hudson Area Library, 51 North Fifth Street, to benefit the library. 

The hours of the sale are:

• Friday, September 18--10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
• Saturday, September 19--10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
• Sunday, September 20--1:00 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.