Monday, July 23, 2018

A Preview of What May Be Revealed Tomorrow

Tomorrow at 6 p.m., Hudson Development Corporation is holding its regular monthly meeting. In announcing this earlier today, Gossips speculated that information would be forthcoming at the meeting about how HDC was planning to move forward after the imminent departure of its executive director, Sheena Salvino. 

Tonight, while Gossips was at the Common Council Police Committee meeting, there was meeting of the Board of Supervisors Economic Development Committee at which HDC's announcement of its plans was preempted. Fourth Ward supervisor Linda Mussmann reports this on her Facebook page:
Tonight at the County Economic Committee Meeting it was announced that Mike Tucker/CEDC was planning on taking over Hudson Development Corporation--(HDC the author of the DRI application) for the City of Hudson--some of the language included in the application has caused a lot of controversy--the statement regarding the embracing of Colarusso in the Hudson waterfront--was for some--a false statement. When I said I had concerns because of Mr. Tucker's role in the writing of the DRI application and the inclusion of the false statement--he denied that he had anything to do with it and blamed the statement about the relationship of Colarusso and the city on the "then Mayor"--Tiffany Martin Hamilton.
Mussmann refers her Facebook readers to this Gossips post from May 26: "The Origin of the Language."

If what Mussmann reports is true, this seems to be a very unwise move on the part of the beleaguered HDC Board if the goal is to regain the community's trust.
COPYRIGHT 2018 CAROLE OSTERINK

Update: Mike Tucker issued a statement in response to what Mussmann reported. Click here to see that response.

8 comments:

  1. the city of Hudson does not need or want the HDC
    or the HPCDA -- let's simplify the structure of this micro city and let the elected officials and the citizens run it without all this bureacracy.
    these agencies only created barriers and obstacles and they are archaic.

    lets modernize.

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  2. What a terrible blunder to give Hudson away to the CEDC.

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  3. Why is it "unwise" to ask Tucker to head the HDC? I'm missing something. Is it because he attributes a misguided sentence in the DRI paperwork to our previous mayor? If you ask me, there's no reason to doubt THAT.

    Also, let's find out how long he'd hold the position, or whether there'd be a limit imposed.

    Who's the next choice, Don Moore? Have we learned nothing?!

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    1. This is not about the DRI, in my view. It's about giving the county, even temporarily, an iota of additional influence over Hudson's future. Carole calls it unwise. I would call it something unprintable.

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  4. Mike Tucker recently announced that 700 county businesses were in support of Stewarts expansion. Was there a survey done? Were 700 phone calls soliciting opinions made? Can we see a list? How many businesses were not in favor? A little untruth here and a little untruth there is not a way to start a relationship.

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    1. I don't think that was Mike Tucker. You may be thinking of a letter from Jeff Hunt, the president and CEO of the Columbia County Chamber of Commerce. https://gossipsofrivertown.blogspot.com/2018/03/stewarts-again.html.
      Hunt seems often to begin his letters by saying he is speaking "on behalf of the Board of Directors and the over 700 members of the Columbia County Chamber of Commerce," but I doubt that he actually polls everyone before he makes that statement.

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  5. I'm wary of "the County" too, which is why we'd set conditions for an interim head for the time it takes to re-think the HDC. The man is not abandoning his responsibilities elsewhere; we're only looking to keep the HDC moderately functional through a transition.

    Of course we'll be revisiting ideas for the Kaz site (last I heard the only property owned by HDC), but don't forget that it was the planning approach of the local talent which led to the earlier kerfuffle at HDC. Whoever takes the reins will understand we want it configured differently.

    My crack about the ex-mayor, TMH, was traceable to an unrelated recollection. I was annoyed by that instead, when the FOILed emails reveal no part played in the infamous added sentences (words which never particularly bothered me anyway). My apologies.

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