The Register-Star just announced that Winter Walk, which Hudson Hall said last week would not happen in 2024, will happen anyway, thanks to a partnership between the City and "Galvan affiliate, Foundry at Hudson": "Winter Walk 2024 back on, Hudson mayor says."
Foundry at Hudson is a Galvan affiliate no one has heard of before, but it turns out it's the name of the theater and restaurant Galvan is planning for what remains of the Gifford-Wood Foundry building at 724-726 Columbia Street.
🍿 (Pop corn emoji) cc @ HudsonWail to help us make sense of it all with your various sources in the field.
ReplyDelete1 - Winter Walk Cancelled: Ten weeks before the annual event, Mayor Johnson and Hudson Hall announce the cancellation of Winter Walk in a _joint_ press release.
https://www.hudsonny.gov/news_detail_T10_R668.php
2 - Galvan "Saves Christmas?": Three working days later, Galvan intervenes to rescue Christmas/Winter Walk with a new, yet-to-be-opened entity and funding.
3 - Organizers Blindsided: Last year's organizers, who just this week reaffirmed at semi-public meetings at Spark that Warren Street businesses and proprietors were increasingly disengaged—evidenced by decreasing participation rates—are blindsided by the Mayor's announcement today.
However, they may be expected to continue contributing their invaluable institutional knowledge, know-how, and contacts?
Did Mayor Johnson's office and Galvan help financially or operationally last year when the co-producing partnership between Hudson Hall, Hudson Business Coalition, the Hudson Development Corporation, the Columbia County Chamber of Commerce, and the Columbia Economic Development Corporation, carried the burden?
Did last year's co-producing partners and their leaders found out, like residents, about the announcement in Gossips? Or from the Mayor and Galvan directly?
In any event, the Hudson Foundry will presumably not have a hard time getting permits approved now from the Mayor's office and hopefully they will see community support.
Real take-away: All hail the selfless, hardworking, and _Sage_ stars at Hudson Hall, who, like the apolitical, unelected civil workers at City Hall, deserve all the credit and none of the blame.
Excited for the Winter Walk!?
Thank you Eric Galloway and Galvan for stepping in. I didn't attend Winter Walk last year, but my spouse did and really enjoyed it. The citizens seemed very disappointed about the cancellation given all the comments on Facebook and other outlets, therefore I am glad to hear their tradition will continue.
ReplyDeleteNothing about this story sounds kosher ...
ReplyDeleteLast Saturday Gossips indicated that "the reasons given for canceling the festival (Sinterklass) in 2024 were similar (to the cancellation of WW): a shortage of funding and enough people and energy to make it happen." So FNI above may have a valid point: they have the money, but do they have the manpower? Personally, I was kind of happy to hear it was cancelled and was looking forward to something new instead of the same old, same old I saw last year (and the year before, and the year before, etc.). Oh well, time to go dust off Santa's Shacks.
ReplyDeleteI do enjoy gossip for gossip's sake, though I'll add that if anyone is interested in volunteering, performing, vending, or otherwise wishes to share ideas or concerns with us, please feel free to reach out to me at dosofsky@foundryhudson.org!
ReplyDeleteThank you Daniel! I know a certain set of friendly neighborhood immigrants reached out to you even before this gracious comment.
ReplyDeleteBut what would be terrific... is understanding why the Mayor's office (and Galvan?) failed to even notify Hudson Hall that Galvan will be stepping up with funding and esteemed talent like yourself.
Why not provide the funding and help just a few months or weeks earlier... and then more groups would have remain engaged. Less whiplash. etc.
Hopefully you guys are paying Hudson Police Department and Hudson Fire Department for their time?
I did not see a line item in the City's budget for the event and we can only assume that most of HPD will work extra shifts and coordinate with the Sheriff's office weeks in advance.
I’m glad to see that Galvan is supporting the Winter Walk this year and that a Hudson tradition will continue, but it’s important to remember that nothing comes without strings attached. Given their history, I can’t help but question whether this is a genuine act of goodwill or if Galvan will be seeking something in return from the city. It’s natural to be cautious about the intentions of the largest developer and property owner in Hudson.
ReplyDelete