Nine Not to Ignore: No. 8

In April, inspired by the NYS Preservation League's Seven to Save list of endangered sites throughout New York State, Gossips began its list of endangered buildings in Hudson. After a little hiatus, the list resumes today.

8  The Dunn Warehouse

  

Originally constructed in c. 1850 as the Hudson and Boston Railroad Shop, the building, now known as the Dunn warehouse, is the last surviving industrial structure on Hudson's waterfront. It now belongs to the City of Hudson, and, despite its neglected condition, it has gotten a lot of attention in the past decade.

In 2010, the City nearly sold the building for $250,000 to Eric Galloway, whose plan was to open a huge "bistro styled" restaurant and bar in the building, with 200 tables on two floors and in a glass enclosed atrium. The plan was hailed by elected officials of the day as "the ideal catalyst to future development" at the waterfront. 

Fortunately, that plan never made it to fruition. Galloway couldn't find a restaurateur willing to partner in the endeavor, and the City proposed a lot of performance covenants, so the deal never went forward.

In 2015, the City hired Saratoga Associates to do a feasibility study to assess the building's  current condition and envision how it could be used and what it might become. One of the options for developing the building suggested in the study proposed a combination of retail space and community space. 

In January 2017, the City was the recipient of a $500,000 in Restore NY grant funding for the rehabilitation of the Dunn building, but it was unclear if a condition of accepting the money was that the City had to partner with a developer to rehab the building. With that uncertainty hanging over the project, the plans to stabilize the building stalled.

In the Downtown Revitalization Initiative (DRI), $1 million was appropriated to stabilize the Dunn building and prepare it for future reuse. Meanwhile, with the terms of the Restore NY money unclear and the DRI projects still at the starting gate, the condition of the building continues--frighteningly--to deteriorate. 

Unlike some other buildings featured in this series, though, this building's salvation seems assured. The money and the will to stabilize the building are there; it is now just a matter of time. At a recent Common Council meeting, Council president Tom DePietro told a questioner that the five City DRI projects had been prioritized, and the Dunn warehouse was second in line after the re-design of the entrance to Promenade Hill. Earlier this month, the Common Council passed a resolution to issue a request for qualifications (RFQ) for the Promenade Hill project. 

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