Meetings of Interest This Week . . . and a Gala

The calendar was free of meetings and events today, but that's hardly true for the next three days.

On Tuesday, July 17, there are three meetings of interest, but one of them won't be open to the public.

• At 1 p.m., the nominating committee of the Hudson Development Corporation (HDC) board of directors meets to interview potential new board members. It has been announced that this meeting will be held in executive session. In May, four members of the board--Seth Rapport, Kristal Heinz, Duncan Calhoun, and Brian Stickles--resigned after Common Council president Tom DePietro, who serves on the board ex officio, asked the city attorney to "look into how does one get rid of an LDC [local development corporation]." The whole crisis of confidence grew out of discontent and mistrust regarding HDC's handling of the Kaz redevelopment project.  
• At 5:30 p.m., the Common Council Finance Committee meets at City Hall. The agenda for the meeting can be viewed here.
• At 7 p.m., the Common Council holds its regular monthly meeting at City Hall. A number of resolutions introduced last week will be voted on at the meeting, and presumably Council president Tom DePietro will allow the public to comment on the proposed zoning amendment that would allow Stewart's and Scali's to expand in exchange for some unnamed amount of money from Stewart's in the form of a host community benefit agreement. Also to be voted on at the meeting are the resolution to adopt the Strategic Housing Action Plan and the resolution to support the route of the Empire State Trail through the city.

On Wednesday, July 18, there are meetings all day, not all of them open to the public. The good news is that the day ends with a gala.

• At 12 noon, the HDC governance committee meets to discuss planning for agency administration--something necessitated by the imminent departure of HDC director Sheena Salvino. There is no indication that this meeting will be held in executive session.
• At 1 p.m., the HDC nominating committee meets again to interview potential new board members. It has been announced that this meeting will held in executive session.
• At 5:15 p.m., the Common Council Public Works and Parks Committee meets at City Hall. The main business of this meeting is always to receive DPW superintendent Rob Perry's report.
• At 6:00 p.m., the Zoning Board of Appeals will hold a public hearing on a request from Hudson Mainstay, at 437 Warren Street, for an area variance for five offstreet parking spaces behind the building. After the public hearing, the ZBA will conduct its regular monthly meeting.
• At 7:00 p.m., OutHudson holds its Awards Gala at Helsinki Hudson. There will be live performances, much banter, and the presentation of awards to the most fabulous entries in the 2018 OutHudson Pride Parade. Awards will be given in the following categories: Best in Theme: Superheroes; Most Kitschy-est; Most MARVEL-ous; RainBOWIE-est; Most Villainous, Most Gender-bending; and Most OUT-rageous. A $5 to $10 donation is suggested.

On Thursday, July 19, the Common Council Economic Development Committee meets at 6:00 p.m. at City Hall. No agenda is yet available for this meeting.
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