Hudson Connects--The Vision and the Reality

Work on the City's largest DRI (Downtown Revitalization Initiative) project, first known as Hudson Connects and more recently as Hudson Streetscapes, is winding down. One of the last elements--the installation of the metal railings on the Second Street stairs--began this weekend but is still not complete. This photo shows the state of things late Monday afternoon.

The centerpiece of the entire project, one of the goals of which was to reconnect the city with the river, was the raised "pedestrian plaza" at the western terminus of Warren Street, at the entrance to Promenade Hill.  

Early renderings of this "plaza" made it appear that it might be composed of some type of natural stone, as the surfaces in the re-creation of the entrance to Promenade Hill are. Despite appearances, the Hudson Connects Connectivity Plan indicates the plaza was to be constructed of "scored concrete," which makes sense, given that cars and even the occasional Colarusso gravel truck would be passing over the plaza on a regular basis. 

The plans for the entire project date from April 2021, but as recently as January of this year, mayor's aide Justin Weaver led the Public Works Board through a review of the plan for the plaza at the end of Warren Street. Given the current status of Hudson Streetscapes, I was puzzled that no work has been done on the plaza. So today I asked Weaver and Rob Perry, superintendent of Public Works, about the status of the plaza. Both informed me that, given cost constraints, the plaza had been eliminated from the plan.

It turns out that what was proposed in the Hudson Connects Connectivity Plan was going to cost $6.6 million. The amount available for the project--a mere $3 million--was less than half that amount, so the scope of the project had to be drastically reduced. The plaza was eliminated, along with the following things:

• 450 feet of sidewalk from Hudson Terrace to the former Furgary site
• 1,000 feet of sidewalk and bike lanes on lower State Street, connecting Bliss Towers to Front Street
• New intersection with bump-outs, seating, and plantings at Second and State streets
• New ADA ramps, crosswalks, and sidewalks at Henry Hudson Riverfront Park
• New intersection at First and Columbia streets between Schuyler Court and Providence Hall
• New sidewalks and ADA ramps on South Second Street between Partition and Allen streets
• New intersection with sidewalks and ADA ramps at Second and Union streets
• New intersection with sidewalks and ADA ramps at First and Union streets and sidewalks for Cherry Alley
• New sidewalks and plantings on Allen Street from Second Street to South Front Street and the new Ferry Street Bridge

What survived the cuts was the street furniture, which, in the opinion of many, would be more appropriate for a mall in New Jersey than it is for our historic main street.

According to Perry, the furniture is back-ordered, but it is still part of the plan.

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