An Account of the Closing

Steve Barnes reports in the Times Union today about the closing of Hudson Valley Fisheries: "Steelhead farm Hudson Valley Fisheries abruptly closes." In the article, the closing is attributed to "financial instability." The following is quoted from the article:  

A statement from Hudson Valley Fisheries to the Times Union on Monday said multiple factors contributed to the closure decision, including inadequate water supply and higher prices from fuel costs and tariffs that made it financially unsustainable to continue doing business.

Update from City Hall

After this morning's outage, City Hall just made the following announcement:

Please be advised that City Hall's internet and phones are now fully functional after Mid-Hudson Fiber's outage reported earlier this morning.

Of Interest

Hudson Common Sense has published a new editorial which is worthy attention: "The Fourth Quadrant of Waste."

Expanding the Crusade for Literacy

From 2016 to 2024, Peter Meyer ran an in-school journalism program in the Hudson City School District called School Life News. The program showed measurable results in improving students' literacy skills, but in 2024, former HCSD superintendent Juliette Pennyman put an end to the program. 

"Mr. Peter" bidding farewell to fifth-graders at Montgomery C.  Smith in March 2024

Now, Meyer has launched a "Race to Literacy" campaign. offering his School Life News program to other area school districts. The press release that follows explains.

School Life Media (SLM), the 15-year-old non-profit dedicated to school improvement, and its popular and successful in-school literacy program, School Life News (SLN) have launched a “race to literacy” postcard campaign, offering school districts within a 40-mile radius of SLM’s home in Hudson, NY, a chance to help boost their students’ State English Language Arts (ELA) grade level proficiency scores. The campaign reached out to 40 schools with grade-level proficiency levels of 40 percent and below, says Sarah Nolan, SLM’s Director of Social Media, who compiled the list using State education data. 

“We reached out to the schools with drawings by local artist Bobby Atwell, who creates his own literacy lessons for his grandkids,” says SLM Board president and Hudson native John Cody, who has been on the board since its inception in 2012. “For our postcards he has a racecar made of #2 pencils speeding across the Higher Test Scores finish line.”

Both SLM and SLN are the brainchild of Peter Meyer, a former News Editor of Time and Life magazines, reporter and Manuscript Editor at Harvard’s Education Next, and a former member of Hudson’s Board of Education. 

“I tried to merge the best of our curricular thinkers, like content guru E.D. Hirsch (“the more you know, the more you can know”),” says Meyer, with what he thought were the best practices for hands-on learning: journalism. “With much new research and interest in how young minds work,” concludes Meyer, “it turns out that journalism is one of the best classroom exercises to build working memory, which is the engine of all learning.” 

SLN, which trains teachers in using its unique program, has been especially successful at making students “better readers,” with over 3,000 students–third through ninth grades–taking some or part of SLN’s comprehensive and detailed 20+ lesson program since 2016. “One fifth grade class (150 students) raised its ELA scores by 11 points,” boasts Meyer.  

“We saw real growth in the students’ ability to write non-fiction text,” says Mark Brenneman, principal of MC Smith Elementary School in Hudson. “SLN staff’s dedication and caring for our students made this program a complete success.” Says former fifth grade teacher Megan Sullivan, "My students were more eager to write and more attentive to details around them and in texts. Teaching students to be journalists is incredibly valuable as they grow as writers and imaginative learners."  

“The global reach of journalism’s interests and applications,” says Meyer, “has allowed us to access our children’s insatiable curiosity about, and interest in, anyone or thing. Popular assignments for these junior journalists include `an interview with my shoe,’ a press conference with Tate the barber, and a close reading of a New York Times story about making robotic stick bugs.”   

“SLM delivers evidence-based instruction on gathering, assessing, creating, and presenting news and information,” concludes recently retired Hudson superintendent Maria Suttmeier. “The program gained strong support and respect from our teachers.” 

Words to Learn By 

“Learn to read, you will be forever free." —Frederick Douglass  

"The best education for the best is the best education for us all."  

—Robert M. Hutchins, President, University of Chicago (1929-1945)

“Excellence does not happen by accident.”  —Aristotle  

A Message from City Hall

City Hall has made the following announcement:

Mid-Hudson Fiber is experiencing a widespread internet outage, which they've been working to remedy since 6 a.m. City Hall is open, but able to offer only limited services as all computer systems and phones are down. We will provide updates from Mid-Hudson Fiber as they become available.

Depot Lofts Update

The marketing of the apartments at Hudson Depot Lofts, 76 North Seventh Street, started in May 2025. A year later, Jacob Meglio, senior head of operations at Galvan, told the IDA (Industrial Development Agency) that "upwards of 50 percent" of the apartments had been leased. 

For the past few months, there's been a sign on State Street announcing the availability of "luxury apartments" in the building.

At the IDA meeting on Monday, Jonathan Spampinato reported that the building was now 62.5 percent leased--that is, 40 of the 64 units are occupied, 24 are still available. 

According to Zillow, 20 of the 24 available units are one-bedroom, with monthly rents ranging from $1,975 to $2,600. There are also three two-bedroom units renting for $2,750, $2,800, and $2,825, and one three-bedroom unit with a monthly rent of $3,500.

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An Appeal to the State

It has caused people to call the police to report shots fired. It interferes with restoration work on the Dr. Oliver Bronson House. It limits public access to a National Historic Landmark and its green space. It's the firing range at the Hudson Correctional Facility. 

Photo: Starr Whitehouse

Yesterday, Mayor Joseph Ferris sent the following letter to the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision asking that the firing range to closed.

Commissioner Daniel F. Martuscello III

New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision

1220 Washington Street

Albany, New York  12226-2050

Dear Commissioner Martuscello,

Hudson is unique among New York communities when it comes to green space. Our city's shoreline meets the river we are named after. Across the Hudson is the Catskill Mountain range. And neighboring Greenport is home to Frederic Church's Olana Estate. And yet, in our city of 2.2 square miles, publicly accessible green space is at a premium.

It is for that reason that I ask the State of New York to close the target range at the New York State Hudson Correctional Facility which is also home to a National Historic Landmark--the Oliver Bronson House, four additional outbuildings, and 55 surrounding acres.

Built three decades after Hudson's founding in 1785 during the height of the city's first whaling boom by Samuel Plumb, the Oliver Bronson House is a rare Hudson Valley example of Romantic-Picturesque landscaping.

Access to the Bronson House today is severely limited by the presence of the shooting range which neighbors the Bronson House. The proximity's impact can be seen first-hand in the gunshot that pierced a second-floor window.

The limited access also impacts the ability to schedule restoration work at the Bronson House.

The shooting range is open three days a week for six months of the year. These are the same six months when much-needed restoration work can be done. The shooting range's irregular schedule hampers the ability to bring workers on site, accelerating the property's continued deterioration.

Closing the target range and increasing access to the Bronson House would be a critical first step in aligning this green space with New York State's 2020 Statewide Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan.

The City of Hudson believes the time is now to close the range. We have a skilled partner in Historic Hudson, a nonprofit advocacy group that holds a 30-year renewable lease on the house and 1.2 acres. They share my belief in the importance of reimagining this crucial green space in our city.

When I think of the Bronson House's potential once the shooting range is closed, I am reminded of an October 1, 1859, Hudson Daily Star article that read, "A more charming spot could not have been found.…"

The "spot" remains charming. All that is needed [is] for the community to have greater access to the "spot." Closing the shooting range will make that a reality.

Sincerely,

Joseph Ferris

Mayor, City of Hudson

The Fate of Hudson House

Early in 2020, David Kessler presented his plan to develop the McKinstry Mansion at the corner of Seventh and Union streets, which had been the Home for the Aged from 1895 to 2014, as a 50-room boutique hotel to be called Hudson House. The plan involved constructing an addition to the building and included magnificent landscaping designed by Wagner Hodgson.

Over the next year, the plan was reviewed by the Planning Board for site plan approval, by the Historic Preservation Commission for a certificate of appropriateness, and the Industrial Development Agency (IDA) for a PILOT agreement and other tax abatements. Approved by the Planning Board and the HPC, the project entered into an agreement with the IDA on March 1, 2021. Among the terms of that agreement was that the project would be completed in three years, by March 1, 2024.

All of this was happening during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the fear and uncertainty engendered by the pandemic caused Kessler's lenders to decide investing in a hotel might not be a good idea and withdraw. As a consequence, work on the project did not proceed as expected, and on March 1, 2024, the project was not completed. Indeed, it hadn't even begun. It was regularly reported that Kessler was seeking other investors. In February 2024, just days before the deadline for completing the project written into the contract with the IDA, Kessler appeared before the HPC seeking a new certificate of appropriateness, which was granted, because the design had not changed since the HPC had granted the original C of A in February 2021.

In the two years since the deadline passed, IDA staff kept in touch with Kessler. In his reports to the IDA, Mike Tucker regularly included 620 Union Street, indicating there was no change in the status of the project and noting that, if the project were to proceed, it would require an entirely new application. 

At the IDA meeting today, Jonathan Spampinato, who took over as administrative director of the IDA on June 15, said he had met with Kessler and asked him to schedule a meeting with the IDA, with his lawyers and lenders present, to explain his intentions. Because no such meeting was scheduled, Spampinato sent a letter to Kessler on June 29, which he emailed on July 30, explaining that the IDA would, at today's meeting, be considering a resolution to authorize a recapture process to the recoup the $25,000 of exempted mortgage recording tax received by the project. That resolution can be found here. (Scroll down twelve pages to find it.) At today's meeting, the resolution was approved.

There are also taxes owed on 620 Union Street, and city treasurer Heather Campbell, who serves on the IDA, wondered if 62o Union Street might belong on the foreclosure list. "If he doesn't come current with the taxes," Campbell asked, "what happens to the property?" Christine Chale, legal counsel to the IDA, advised, "Foreclosure would be a separate process. The City would have to follow up." Meanwhile, the missed payments are in default of the agreement with the IDA.

Gossips followed this project closely in 2o2o and 2o21, during its review by the Planning Board, the HPC, and the IDA. Gossips will follow it closely through this process as well.

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Food News

Since 2018, many of us have purchased at the Hudson Farmers' Market and enjoyed in Hudson restaurants the steelhead trout grown by Hudson Valley Fisheries in Greenport. In recent days, Hudson Valley Fisheries has announced it will be ceasing operations.  

How or if this development relates in any way to the scandal surrounding Greenport Town Supervisor Kathy Eldridge is not known.

Meetings and Events in the Week Ahead

Here we are in the first week of August. After last week's downpour, more rain is expected at various times throughout the coming week. In the meantime, here is what's happening.

• On Monday, August 3, the Hudson Industrial Development Agency (IDA) meets at 2:00 p.m. This will be the first IDA since Mike Tucker retired and Jonathan Spampinato took his place. Last month's meeting was canceled because there was no business to be considered, so it will be interesting to see what business is now before the IDA. The meeting is a hybrid, taking place in person at 1 City Centre, Suite 301, and on Zoom. Click here to join the meeting remotely.    
• At 5:30 p.m., on Monday, August 3, the Common Council Safety Committee holds its monthly meeting. The meeting is a hybrid, taking place in person at City Hall and on Teams. Click here to join the meeting remotely.
• On Tuesday, August 4, from 5:00 to 8:oo p.m., Hudson observes National Night Out in Henry Hudson Riverfront Park. The purpose of this community event is "to foster and celebrate police-community partnerships by bringing people closer together."

• Also on Tuesday, August 4, 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: The meeting of the Conservation Advisory Council will be rescheduled for later this month.

• On Wednesday, August 5, Chronogram brings its pop-up photo studio to Waterfront Wednesdays from 4:00 to 7:00 p.m. Show up and document yourself for posterity.

• On Thursday, August 6, the Common Council Services Committee meets at 5:30 p.m. The meeting is a hybrid, taking place in person at City Hall and on Teams. Click here to join the meeting remotely.

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Where Hudson Ends and Greenport Begins

Tassilo von Parseval, Greenport resident and frequent commenter on Gossips, has launched his own brand of local journalism, The Greenport Perimeter. With a focus on investigative reporting, his first offering deals with the current maelstrom surrounding Greenport Town Supervisor Kathy Eldridge: "The Greenport Uprising." 

If Greenport's proximity to Hudson and the shared ZIP code were not enough to pique the curiosity of Hudson readers, two of the major players in this drama are former Hudsonians. Eldridge has been the domestic partner of former Hudson mayor Dick Tracy (2006-2007) for more than two decades. Jim Dolan, the primary source of much of the information, was at one time the chief of police in Hudson and has a long history in Hudson politics, recounted here by Sam Pratt. Also figuring in the drama, John Porreca, the Greenport Democrats' choice to replace Eldridge, lived in Hudson up until 2011 and was active in Hudson politics.

For any number of reasons, "The Greenport Uprising" is recommended reading.

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News of the Charter Revision Commission

This post might better be titled "Nothing Is Ever Easy," but that title was already used once this week. 

If you are going to revise the city charter, who would you want crafting the proposed changes? The task promises to be an arduous and tedious one. The charter is not a simple document. It is the framework for how a municipality governs itself. Given that, it would seem reasonable to want people assigned to the task who can think analytically, are willing to do the hard work, are familiar with the charter as it exists now, and have knowledge of how government functions. Not everyone fits the criteria.

At the Common Council meeting on Tuesday, Council president Margaret Morris presented for discussion a proposed local law establishing a charter revision commission. She explained that there were basically three ways to approach charter revision: the mayor can appoint a charter commission; the Common Council can appoint a charter commission; a citizens' group can form to propose revision. "At the end of the day," Morris told the Council, "everything ends up on the ballot for referendum." 

According to the proposed law, the commission would consist of seven members. Six would be community members appointed by the Council president, and the Council president would serve ex officio as the seventh member. At the meeting, Morris amended the suggested makeup of the commission to include the Council majority leader as an ex officio member. She explained that, since announcing her intention to create a charter revision commission,  members of the public had approached her and expressed interest in serving on the commission. She had five people in mind who might serve. She did not, however, disclose who those five people were.

Jennifer Belton (Fourth Ward) was the first councilmember to comment, saying she wanted the selection process to be "more open and inclusive." She objected that she didn't know who the five people were. Morris responded, "These are people who raised their hands and said they are willing to do the work."

Claire Cousin (Fifth Ward) said she agreed with Belton, and Gary Purnhagen opined, "It's hard to fully reflect Hudson with seven people." Belton suggested that each ward should be represented on the commission. She noted there was a problem with the citizens' group that proposed a charter amendment last year "because they all looked alike."

Ken Dow, counsel to the Council, explained that, once a commission is established, "a lot of what they do is dictated by New York State law."

During the public comment period, Ron Kopnicki pointed out that the Common Council could constitute itself as a charter revision commission. Matt McGhee called for a public hearing on starting a commission. Lloyd Koedding wanted the five people Morris had chosen identified, suggesting they "might have an agenda." He went on to allege that last year's Citizens' Initiative for Charter Change "had it out for the mayor."

Morris invited councilmembers (and presumably also the public) to send their comments about the proposed law to her, indicating that she wanted to bring a revised version of the law before the Council at its August meeting. She also made the point that meetings of the charter revision commission would be open meetings.

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Building Collapses on Columbia Street

It was first reported on the Columbia County Fire-Rescue Facebook page that this building at 225 Columbia Street had collapsed.

A video of the scene by Brian J. Decker, Jr., has been posted on Facebook. It can be viewed here.

Of Interest

Columbia Economic Development Corporation (CEDC) sent out its August newsletter this afternoon. Among the items in the newsletter is this:

CEDC is partnering with Greene County Economic Development Corporation and The Hunter Foundation on the Greene & Columbia Counties Brownfield Assessment Initiative, a $1.5 million EPA-funded effort to identify blighted, abandoned, and underutilized properties that may be impacted by environmental contamination and have the potential for future redevelopment. The initiative aims to turn neglected sites into productive community assets that attract investment, create jobs, and strengthen our local tax base.

We are asking residents, property owners, municipal leaders, and community stakeholders to help us identify potential properties--vacant, distressed, or long-neglected sites that may be holding back neighborhood revitalization. If you know of a property that should be considered, please visit the Greene & Columbia Counties Brownfield Assessment Initiative page at http://greenecountyny.gov/brownfield-assessment/ and submit the property information for review.

Community input is essential to helping us uncover redevelopment opportunities and build stronger communities throughout Columbia County.

The Evolution of Route 66

Spenser Walsh reports in the Register-Star about an apartment complex being proposed for Route 66: "120-unit apartment complex proposed in Greenport."

The site for the proposed 120-unit apartment complex is the site of the former V&O Press building, next to the Sunoco gas station and the A&W, almost right across the street from the 116-unit apartment complex known as The Falls. 

The report of the new proposal brings to mind that fifteen years ago, there was a different proposal for the site. Gossips reported about it here: "Get Your Kicks on Route 66." A developer named Harbalwant Singh wanted to create on the site what he called "Greenport Crossing," which he predicted would cause a "ripple effect," with the result that "Route 66 will be totally Route 9 in Poughkeepsie." 

Greenport Crossing was to be built in two phases. The first phase would consist of an A&W restaurant, a twelve-pump gas station, and an "upscale" liquor store. The second phase was to consist of an 80-room Comfort Inn, with an indoor pool and fitness center, and a family entertainment center, with, among other attractions, "boutique" bowling lanes, laser tag, bumper cars, a carousel, a climbing wall, and "upscale" arcade games.

For his ambitious project, Singh sought a 100 percent tax abatement for twenty years from the Columbia County Industrial Development Agency (IDA). He didn't get it. In the end, only the first part of the project was built: the gas station, with the A&W and the liquor store.

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The Hudson Wail Nails It

This Instagram post by The Hudson Wail is too good not to share. You can view it for yourself, with all the comments, here.

Help for Flood-Impacted Businesses

The following announcement was just received from Columbia Economic Development Corporation (CEDC):  

In response to the recent devastating flooding across Columbia County, the worst flooding to hit the area since Hurricane Irene fifteen years ago, the Columbia Economic Development Corporation (CEDC) is making $200,000 in emergency relief financing available to local businesses impacted by the disaster. Small businesses that have experienced physical damage, business interruption, or other flood-related financial hardships may be eligible for an expedited five-year microloan up to $15,000 at 3.75%, to support recovery efforts, stabilize operations, and fund critical repairs. . . .

CEDC’s Rapid Recovery Microloan program is designed to provide flexible and timely financing for businesses facing immediate recovery needs, helping to bridge the gap while insurance claims, state assistance, or other recovery resources are being pursued.

“CEDC stands ready to support the businesses that drive Columbia County’s economy,” said Jonathan T. Spampinato, President and CEO of CEDC. “We understand that cash flow disruptions and unexpected repair costs can threaten the viability of even the strongest businesses following a natural disaster. Our goal is to provide fast, accessible financing that helps business owners recover, rebuild, and emerge from this challenge stronger than before.”

For more eligibility information or to apply, please email us at loans@columbiaedc.com or call (518) 828-4718.

News of Seventh Street Park

At the Common Council meeting last night, Katherine Kanaga, co-chair of Friends of the Public Square (FOPS), presented an update on the renovation of Seventh Street Park. Kanaga began her presentation by reminding the Council that FOPS has been working on the project for five years. The plan now being pursued, which was unveiled in June 2022, was developed through community workshops and online surveys to learn what changes and improvements the public wanted to see in the park.

Kanaga said they are currently soliciting bids for Phase 1 of the project, which includes the following:

• New pathways
• Repositioning of the war memorial
• Additional lighting
• Some landscaping
• All new site furnishings
• Removal and replacement of selected trees

The bids for the project are due on August 11. Work on Phase 1 is expected to begin in the fall.

Kanaga said the group is currently working on a consolidated funding application (CFA) for $675,000 (the maximum ask) for Phase 2, the fountain phase. That application is due this Friday, July 31. The $250,000 grant secured by Congressman Josh Riley and $125,000 of the grant initiated by State Senator Michelle Hinchey are also designated for the fountain phase of the project.

Although she did not mention it explicitly, Kanaga seemed to be responding to the alternative proposal that appeared on Facebook in recent days when she explained that most of the money that has been raised for the project is in the form of grants. The grants are for very specific purposes, so they cannot be redeployed. Also the grant money is released only after the work has been done. The project does not have the money now; the money is released as reimbursement. 

Kanaga mentioned that Mayor Joseph Ferris was applying for a grant for the sidewalk improvements around the perimeter of the park, which is Phase 3. Later in the meeting, the Council unanimously approved a resolution authorizing the mayor to submit an application to the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) for a Climate Smart Communities Implementation Grant "to make pedestrian and streetscape improvements around Hudson's Public Square."

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More Documentation of the Flooding

Lance Wheeler was also out this morning, recording what was happening in the vicinity of Mill Street, North Second Street, and Dock Street. His video of the conditions can be viewed here.

Waterfront Wednesdays Not on the Waterfront

Hudson Hall just made the following announcement:

Due to predicted inclement weather, tonight's edition of Waterfront Wednesdays is moving indoors to Hudson Hall.

Early music band Ruckus will bring the spirited dance tunes of 18th-century Scotland. There will also be free pizza for kids and all the fun of Waterfront Wednesdays, including the Hudson Juggling Club, knot-tying and microscopes with the Hudson Sloop Club, arts and crafts, drumming with the Ujima Community Collective, and even a spot of badminton.

Doors open at 4 p.m. Drumming begins at 5:00 p.m. Ruckus performs at 6 p.m.

So embrace the rainy gloom and come dance up a storm with us! 

Flooding Closes City Offices

City Hall has issued the following statement:

Due to today's flooding and several more inches of rain expected to fall throughout the day, all non-essential City offices are closed. This includes City Hall, Code Enforcement, and the Youth Department.

Please be safe and stay off roads to whatever extend possible.

Flooding in Hudson

The editors of Hudson Common Sense were out and about early this morning surveying the flooding. Mill Street, where the addition of a 70-unit apartment complex has wrongheadedly been proposed, is completely impassable.

Photo: Hudson Common Sense

Photo: Hudson Common Sense

Dock Street as it approaches North Front Street is also closed because of flooding.

Photo: Hudson Common Sense