Concern About HHA Proposal
At the end of tonight's informal Common Council meeting, former Council president Don Moore expressed his concerns about the development on State Street being pursued by the Hudson Housing Authority.
He pointed out that the original assumption was that this would be a forty-unit mixed income building for households with incomes from 30 to 120 percent of the area median income (AMI), but the plan has expanded from forty units to 150 units--more units than are currently in Bliss Towers--available only to people who qualify for Section 8 housing. He characterized the original proposal as "a stab at smart growth" and noted that, in its original form, the plan was for Hudson residents. The plan was now fulfilling a regional need for low income housing not a city need and suggested that 150 new units of low income housing "implies additional city services." He urged the Council to ask, "What impact does this project really have, and is this what we really want?"
Responding to Moore's comments, Council president Tom DePietro said he and city attorney Andy Howard were "making it clear to the Planning Board that they have a wider purview" than environmental issues, parking, and traffic.
Mayor Rick Rector commented, "We spent almost a year creating [the Strategic Housing Action Plan], and that document is in almost complete contradiction to what is being proposed."
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It's not easy to follow what's going on, but it almost looks like some knuckleheads from somewhere else came up with a plan to enrich themselves by turning Hudson into something it's not, and now the mere existence of their plan is driving the process.
ReplyDeleteIf that's not accurate, then who or what is driving such a profound modification of the original idea?
exactly true. "affordable housing" is not affordable to the City of Hudson. Hudson needs tax paying parcels to support the service for the people who live here.
ReplyDeleteHudSon has too much section 8 housing and subsidized apartments. the city is no longer a poor outpost where everyone is suffering. it is a thriving town of creative people who can il afford New York and Brooklyn. It is the new nexus for the future.
It is a lousy place for the poor. There is no public transportation, no supermarkets, and the cost of living in new york state is high. It makes no sense.
it only makes sense to the old Hudson politicos who feasted on the federal dole of a flood of fees to develop this housing. it is an old idea and the young and new here need tax payers.
this is an over scaled proposal made by the old boys of Hudson for their enrichment only.
Actually, there are no "old boys of Hudson" involved in this proposal at all. Just NYC developers of low income housing--PRC (Property Resources Corporation).
DeleteIt's a ridiculous idea for Hudson of today, the original one of mixed housing is so much better. I hope sense prevails and this proposal goes no further. Give Hudson a break. Reeks of the old days when the powers that were, were advertising Section 8 housing in Hudson in the Village Voice.
ReplyDeleteWe definitely need more moderate income housing. This smacks of public support for ghettoizing poor people. Mark Orton
ReplyDeleteHere we go again.
ReplyDeleteIs there an existing Hudson survey as to how many new low income apartments are needed?
I sure hope one exists that justifies an increase from 40 to 150.
Or is someone asleep at the wheel.
Now there is public transportation in the City of Hudson that provides inexpensive fairs to all the shopping areas of Greenport.
There is a time table available along with the route the bus takes.
Yes it includes Warren St. too.
So it appears that the Hudson residents that fall under the classifications of low income, color and other should be overcome with joy to have another wonderful housing project planned for the North by Northwest Territory.
So now the people of wealth, fame and white will once again be able to relax knowing "those people" will be staying on the farm/reservation and kept in "their place"
The good old boys or good new boys.
Is there a difference?
History does repeat itself.
So is it fair to say that the developers, the PRC, are driving the process?
ReplyDeleteEarlier I called them "knuckleheads," but if the city's future is so at the mercy of outside interests then maybe we're the knuckleheads.
Why do we sacrifice self-determination so easily, in a heartbeat it seems at the first whiff of an "expert" consultant or trained manager-type (e.g., our erstwhile grant-writers [who, as one example of many, based the City's BOA application on nonexistent zoning]; BFJ Planning [c.f. failed LWRP]; Delaware Engineering [sewer separation HUD fraud]; Stearns & Wheler Engineering [whose work for our DPW attracted the attention of the FBI]; the CAC's Randall and West [who in 2017 stole $16K the City should never have released to them] and any number of bumbling City attorneys who sold out the South Bay because each new generation of local politicians puts its faith in experts over constituents ... the list goes on and on, and we never learn).
Hudson represents the antithesis of what a republic needs to survive, which is care, formative values, and participation, all of which are disappearing from our culture generally.
Hudson, post WW2, has always been a target for government subsidized housing, and other "urban renewal" ideas and programs.
Deletewhat has always been the result ? None of it is inspiring, and none of it is in the spirit of the old City of Hudson. it was pretty ugly.
Urban renewal and all the subsidizing of housing eviscerated the character of a 19th century city by tearing down historic buildings, and replacing them with faceless low quality tract type buildings.
the newly revived Hudson has been restored by individuals with sweat equity, and it has risen from the ashes to be a thriving alternative to down river cities.
It is actually affordable to writers, artists, and young couples. is that bad ?
Let Hudson grow the way it has for the last 20 years. the old boys fought it tooth and nail, every step of the way. but we won. until now.
this is just another iteration of what they did to hudson to wreck its original character in the first place.
look at what they tore down in the name of progress and "affordability". it was a tragedy.
lets not go there again with this bad over scaled idea.
We're in agreement.
DeleteI encourage everyone to attend the HHA board meetings to get the FACTS....not what uninformed people are saying. There is a meeting tonight, January 9th, at 6pm in the Bliss Tower Community Room. Again, I encourage all to attend.
ReplyDeleteOh, you're "informed"? I hadn't heard.
Delete