The County intends to install EV (electric vehicle) chargers in the courthouse parking lot. The installation is part of a NYSERDA initiative and is being carried out with NYSERDA grant funding. The EV chargers require that new 60-foot utility poles be installed to bring power to the chargers, and where it is proposed these poles will be installed is on the 300 block of Allen Street, Hudson's "stately homes block," the block that contains the city's finest collection of grand 19th-century houses, including a rare example of Egyptian Revival style architecture. Beyond the simple unsightliness of these additional poles, bringing power to the EV chargers would involve the brutal pruning of a century-old silver maple at 342 Allen Street and the removal of two mature trees at 357 Allen Street.
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| 342 Allen Street |
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| 357 Allen Street |
COPYRIGHT 2025 CAROLE OSTERINK
While I don’t think this is near on the level as harmful to Hudson as the whole 11 Warren debacle, it’s not ideal. I’m not privy to the specifics of what’s logistically needed but opinions that should be considered are bringing the line up the industrial route of Power Ave. (Even the name fits), or - what Hudson should be pushing for with all new wired infrastructure: bury the damn lines!
ReplyDeleteI don’t know if the Council has the power to legislate the burying of new lines, but some municipalities have had luck creating legislation to deal with the “double pole” problem that is becoming a big problem here. Basically it mandates utility companies to remove the old poles in a defined amount of time or face dally/monthly fines.
And to the residents of Allen that this is negatively affecting, I’m sure they can afford to chip in together and file a good ol article 78.
⁉️ Hmmmmm… if only there was a way….
ReplyDeleteA way to have an experienced person take point on an inter-departmental response from the City of Hudson to find a reasonable and cost effective common ground with the County. Someone who could anticipate these issues BEFORE they happen… so we don't always have to play catch up.
Oh wait; it is called a City Manager and we can elect to have one, find out more here;
👉 https://hudsoncharterchange.com/
⚡️ That said... this is good progress... not too long ago Hudson had no real chargers and residents had to line up at The Wick... then Trixie & friends applied for grants to get more chargers off of Warren, and Tesla installed a great charging station by the Rip Van Winkle bridge.
Sad reality is that the current Mayor and Common Council President spent more time politicking to engineer the Hot Swap between Claire Cousins and her replacement on the Board of Supervisors than engineering a solution to this solvable problem.
🏛️ It ought to be possible to respect the historical character of our "dictionary of American architecture"... while enabling convenient EV charging.
🇬🇧 See what London's 1st Ward did to blend historically accurate lampposts and charge cars overnight;
https://ubitricity.com/en/case-studies/kensington-chelsea/?utm_source=chatgpt.com
Carole - might you know the type of chargers and if they are available to all residents/visitors or only public workers?
NYSERDA recently changed some of the rules now that Tesla is open/interoperable to Rivians and other electric car makers.
Mr Martin - please let the 1st Ward know here how they can help you or reach out directly if we can help you represent the 1st Wards' needs.
p.s. And just to head off Tom's alter ego or his burner accounts sliding into my DMs...trying to paint this as a rich vs. poor issue... EVs' Total Cost of Ownership in NY now make them less expensive than equivalent gas powered cars.
Some of the biggest Democrats and progressives in town are yet to dispose of their Musk-mobiles... 😘