Homelessness Revisited

Back in 2010 to 2012, dealing with the county's homeless population was a regular topic of discussion in county government, and a couple of different plans to address the problem were advanced--all of which centered on Hudson.

The first was "congregate housing," which involved renovating and furnishing two three-bedroom apartments in this house on Columbia Street, owned by Phil Gellert, and housing eight homeless people there--four in each apartment. Although the county entered into a lease agreement with Gellert to rent the apartments for $2,300 a month, that scheme had to be abandoned when it was discovered that the City of Hudson zoning code does not permit such group homes in that part of the city.

Then there was the "three tier program" to help people out of homelessness. This time the Galvan Initiatives Foundation played a central role. Tier I and Tier II were to be housed in the old orphanage and former car garage at State and Seventh street, dubbed "Galvan Quarters," properties owned by Galvan, and Tier III was to be atop the proposed police and court building, called "Civic Hudson," to be built by Galvan at the corner of Fourth and Columbia streets.

Then in 2013, all talk of providing for the homeless suddenly ceased when it was revealed that the homeless population of Columbia County dwindled to eight. 

Now it seems, according to an article in the Register-Star today, the topic is back on the table: "County Department of Social Services looks into homeless issue." Supervisor Rick Scalera (Fifth Ward), who probably should recuse himself from all discussion of the subject since he is a "special adviser" to the Galvan Foundation, which figured largely in a past scheme to address homelessness, is quoted as saying, "There was a time when the homeless issue was on the front burner and it quickly went on the back burner, and all of a sudden the issue went away. Amazingly, in six months time there were no homelessness issues."
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