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Recently, it's been rumored that the agreement and plans for the Dunn warehouse have fallen apart. This was confirmed by Mayor Kamal Johnson in his "rooftop chat" on Thursday when he said they were "putting out RFPs--requests for proposals--for the Dunn building." He went on to say, "We're going to be looking for 'ideals' on what to do with that." He then explained, "That was where the swimming pool was going to be, but there was a lot of backlash and financial issues that we couldn't do the swimming pool so we're looking to see what else could go down there."
The mayor's comments don't tell the whole story, since the proposal from the CGS Group, a.k.a. Dunn & Done LLC, involved much more than the NY SWIMS funded swimming pool.
It will be remembered that in March 2025 Dunn & Done LLC submitted a letter to the Planning Board in which they identify themselves as "leaseholders of the Dunn Warehouse" and call on the Planning Board to impose strict limitations in any conditional use permit granted to Colarusso for its dock operations. The letter, which can be read in its entirety here, reads in part:
If the C.U.P. [conditional use permit] is granted without limitations, it is likely Dunn & Done LLC will not be able to move forward with the re-development due to the serious negative environmental, health, recreational, and economic impacts it presents to Hudson's residents and the waterfront. An active gravel transfer station without City imposed stipulations on industrial activities compromises the waterfront for recreational use and creates an unsafe environment for residents and visitors alike. Thus, we anticipate that the unmitigated risk of increased industrial use at the waterfront will impede our ability to finance and operate the project successfully. . . .
For clarity, if the C.U.P. is granted without stipulations, it is very likely that no revitalization of the Dunn Warehouse or the surrounding waterfront area will occur under our group's initiative.
The fact that the deal between the City and Dunn & Done LLC unraveled even before the Planning Board has rendered its decision on Colarusso's conditional use permit does not bode well for a satisfactory outcome in that review or for the future of Hudson's waterfront.
COPYRIGHT 2025 CAROLE OSTERINK
H/T to The Hudson Wail for suggesting the title of this post.
The waterfront area is no place for a swimming pool, especially one the city won't be able to maintain properly. The idea never should have been taken into consideration.
ReplyDeletePardon me, this "ideal" never should have been considered!
DeleteAny business that starts out by asking the people what the business should be is bound to fail.
ReplyDeleteI remember vividly the survey they asked people to fill in. It contained a section of what type of things should go into the commercial slots. Suggestions in the survey, as I recall, included things like a bike store and a craft station.
At some point they must have realized that their business plan wouldn't work, with or without Colarusso on the waterfront. I assume the extortive letter they sent to the Planning Board was an attempt at saving face and they had already decided then to pull out.
In 2012, when I first took a seat on the council, I was asked to tour the Dunn building with some prospective tenants. At that time, the building was so deteriorated that the costs of rehab and fitting out as a white box interior was commercially prohibitive, especially given its small relative size and lack of a floor (yeah, it’s dirt under that roof). What’s changed since then? Building ain’t any bigger. But the costs have grown a great deal.
ReplyDeleteSo my guess is the developer in fact had no business plan except to latch on to the public tit and suckle for all it’s worth. Since then, the flow of free money has been squeezed by Washington. Cue exit, stage anywhere but here.
As for a swimming pool in the immediate annual flood plain of a river with a notoriously polluted bottom . . . only a fool or a politician would think it was a good idea. And a foolish politician? Well, just look to our mayor and the noises he makes about this “idea.” Makes a Democrat nostalgic for Rick Scalera — and that’s a scary emotion.