The Register-Star has an article today about the Hudson Housing Authority and its appearance before the Planning Board on Tuesday, which has a rather deceptive headline: "Hudson Bliss Towers demo, replacement passes hurdle."
The article reports:
The board approved the housing authority's partially completed two-phase plan enough to send it on to a crucial next step in the construction process.
What actually happened is this. Explaining that "parking is driving our application," HHA presented a revised parking plan and asked for approval of the parking plan before moving ahead.
The parking plan would provide 174 parking spaces: 141 spaces on site; 33 spaces on the street. The plan is to widen State Street to allow parallel parking on both sides.
The article also reports, erroneously:
The board approved the authority's request to become the lead agency for the project as it undergoes its environmental review, which means the authority will be the chief city government group for coordinating the review.
What actually happened is the Planning Board passed a procedural resolution that did the following three things:
- classified the project as a Type 1 action under SEQR (State Environmental Quality Review);
- declared the Planning Board's intent to serve as lead agency in the SEQR process;
- directed the Planning Board secretary to notify all involved and interested agencies of its intent to serve as lead agency.
The Planning Board not the Hudson Housing Authority will be the lead agency in SEQR process. The Hudson Housing Authority is not a "city government group"; it is the applicant. Given all its perceived shortcomings, the Planning Board hasn't yet ceded its authority in reviewing a project to an applicant.
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Was it always in the plan to take city property, a block of First Street, and turn it into their parking lot? Also, doesn’t there need to be an act of the Common Council to alienate or sell city property, and public right of way, and turn it into “private property” as described by their lawyer at the PB meeting? I can’t remember since HHA hasn’t recorded their meeting in months, obviously to keep these plans below the radar of concerned citizens.
ReplyDeleteFirst Street between Columbia and State streets does not currently exist. It didn't exist in 1888, and I don't believe it ever existed. HHA's original plan was to continue First Street from Columbia to State. That would have required approval from the Common Council. But the plan for the parking lot going along the path of what would be North First Street if it actually existed involves land that currently belongs to HHA.
DeleteHa! You’re right. I was just confused because the lawyer made it sound like it was being converted, but yeah, it doesn’t exist.
DeleteThere are not 33 on street parking spaces on lower State Street and N 2nd, the street is packed on alternate side nights. There is also no capacity for the neighborhood to absorb an additional 174 cars driving up and down the street without degrading the neighborhood for the existing residents. This plan has no regard for the people who live here, it will blacktop over grass, cut down the mature trees, degrade the neighborhood and inspire long time residents to sell their houses and abandon Hudson (if they will even be able to next to this mess). I suppose it's not as corrupt as murdering people on boats off the coast of Venezuela, but I'd say the sick crew backing this have the same level of disregard for the interests of the people who elected them.
ReplyDeleteAch! The Register Star is really something else. When I read that article, the bit about the HHA having been elected the lead agency caused me some mental distress.
ReplyDeleteSpenser actually sat next to me across the isle and that was the early part of the Planning Board meeting when he was still paying attention.
Later into the Colarusso proceedings, he had fully checked out (a pretty eventful portion of the meeting that has so far seen no press coverage) and was exclusively dicking around on his phone. That was while occupying a precious seat in the room as Ben Fain and Tony Stone had to stand outside in the hallway for four hours.
There is a federal government shutdown.
ReplyDeleteThe current HUD Secretary (see his videos) is taking public housing in a very different direction.
New York State's fiscal situation is dire and will soon be needed in New York City post Mamdani.
When federal and state government money dries up.... who will pay for this?
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If only pro public housing advocates focussed on distributed public housing across all wards (instead of this near cult-like focus to concentrate it all on 2 city blocks) then more people would be housed by now in better housing.
Everything that Hudson and HHA does goes against common sense, and clear empirical data:
https://opportunityinsights.org/policy/cmto/
Federal housing policy and research are clear: large, isolated public-housing blocks often limit opportunity and reinforce inequality. HUD’s deconcentration rule and the Supreme Court’s Inclusive Communities decision both emphasize fair, integrated development—not expanding high-density complexes.
DeleteWe could build more affordable housing—but it should be 21st-century housing: human-scaled, mixed-income, environmentally responsible, and connected to neighborhoods, not cut off from them. We can expand affordable housing in ways that are dignified, sustainable, and inclusive, without replacing park space and green corridors with massive blocks of concrete and asphalt.