Last Night at City Hall

A few topics of interest were taken up at last night's informal Common Council meeting--chief among them the budget and the LWRP.

2011 Budget  Mayor Scalera will present the budget to the Common Council at a special meeting tomorrow night, Wednesday, November 10, at 6 p.m. Once that presentation has been made, the budget will be online for public review at the City of Hudson website. A public hearing on the budget will take place on Wednesday, November 17, at 6 p.m.

LWRP  Council President Don Moore had hoped that Cheryl Roberts and Frank Fish from BFJ would present their compendium of the comments made on the LWRP and their suggested responses to the Common Council at last night's meeting. That did not happen. According to Moore, the comments and responses are still being reviewed by the Department of State. It seems strange that the Department of State should review these responses before the legislative body whose responses they presumably are gets a chance to see them, but apparently this sequence of review is not unprecedented. 

Washington Hose  At last month's Economic Development Committee meeting, it was unanimously agreed to move forward a resolution to appropriate $325,000 from the general fund to make up the difference between the amount committed to the renovation of Washington Hose and the actual cost of the project set by the lowest responsible bidder. No such resolution was introduced at last night's meeting. When asked, Council President Don Moore explained that it had been decided that the cost could be written into the 2011 budget and there was no need for a separate resolution.

Dogs  The 2010-2011 New York State budget relieved the Department of Agriculture and Markets of the responsbility of issuing dog licenses, transferring it to municipalities. A resolution assuming for the City of Hudson dog licensing responsibilities and setting impoundment fees was introduced at last night's meeting. The annual licensing fees will remain the same: $12.50 for spayed or neutered dogs; $20.50 for dogs not spayed or neutered. The resolution doubles the impoundment fees. If the resolution is passed, it will cost $50 to redeem a dog the first time it is impounded, $150 the second time, and $300 for the third impoundment. There is nothing in the resolution that defines the penalty for keeping an unlicensed dog.