Reviewing the Year Past: 1913--Part 3

The first two parts of this century-old review, published on Thursday and Friday, constitute the first segment of the article, which appeared in the Hudson Evening Register for January 2, 1914. Today we begin the segment that appeared on January 3, 1914.

The retrospect of the past twelve months in Hudson, showing the many important changes, improvements, etc., occurring, the first installment being in last night's Register, proves interesting. We mentioned some of the industrial institutions experiencing prosperous times, and we might add that Arkinson brick yard; the different bottlers and mineral water manufacturers; the three lumber concerns; the furniture manufacturers, tobacconists and cigar manufacturers, the upholsterers, the printing establishments, etc., had a successful year, too. The retrospect follows:

Mary Adams purchased of Mary A. Crouse the property on Fulton street between Second and Third streets. [In 1913, Columbia Street from Third Street to the river was known as Fulton Street.]

"Christmas Club," novel savings idea, put into effect by the First National bank.

Assembly passed bill allowing Hudson to borrow $27,800 for street improvements.

City bakeries found in very good condition by Health Inspector Armstrong.

Courtesy Historic Hudson

Samuel B. Coffin appointed Surrogate to fill unexpired term of George McClellan, elected to congress.

Improvements made by New York telephone company here, company extending its lines in the county.

Cottage at 15 Worth avenue sold to Charles Hudson, of Greenport, by Frank Mesick.

Joseph W. Lomery purchased residence at 447 State street of Miss Ellen Fitzgerald.

Cooking class organized at St. Mary's Parish with Miss Lillian Randall, instructor.

Addition to northwestern part of William Petry Inc. garage, by Fred Simmons. Building was erected for storage, etc., of Ford automobiles. [William Petry's garage had two locations in Hudson: at 405-407 Diamond Street and at 724-730 Columbia Street.] 

From Hudson Evening Register, October 7, 1915

Final spring election for Hudson occurred in April.

Hyman Miller, of Hudson, purchased George Shafer's meat market at Philmont.

Frank Pough opened barber shop and continued tobacco and cigar business at old Macy stand, formerly conducted by Charles H. Bump. [C. H. Bump sold tobacco at 406 Warren Street.]

Columbia County Auto association formed here, experiencing prosperous year.

Harold Fritts, of Hudson, purchased property of Henry Fleming in Claverack.

Gifford-Wood company began erection of addition to its plant, which will be for sheet iron department.

Kingman Hardware company, of 557 Warren street, added to line of hardware a stock of gasoline engines.

Ice crop poor one; residents forced to pay high price for it.

Ray Dallas opened grocery store on State street opposite Short street.

Buildings at 252 and 254 Montgomery street, owned by Genetz Burnice, sold to Jacob Liepshutz.

James Connelly, cigar manufacturer, occupied store formerly occupied by Ball & Co.

William Lee, laundryman, moved business from Warren Street, just above Third, to Grahne building on Central Square.

Large perpendicular electrical sign placed on front of New York candy store. [The New York Candy Store was located at 407 Warren Street, where The Cascades is today.]

Frank A. Engel, of Hudson, began grocery business in Mellenville.

Campaign to pay off mortgage and to meet the expenses of local Y.M.C.A. a success.

From Illustrated Hudson, N.Y.

Crego place on Fulton street purchased by Samuel Ginsberg and Harris Liepshultz, of Mrs. Joseph DeJoy.

John Scelly, former Hillsdale hotel man, purchased the New St. Charles hotel on Public Square.

Ferryboat George H. Power made first trip across river on March 10.

Courtesy Historic Hudson

John E. Gannot purchased cigar and tobacco business of Jacob Fleahman at 703 Warren Street.

Wallis & Wallis, electrical contractors, opened office at 20 Park Place.

Frederick A. Flick purchased autobus route between here and Philmont from W. G. Williams, later disposing of it to Shute & MacIntyre.

Improvements made on interior and exterior of New Curtis House on South Front street.

Large electrical sign placed on Jacob Martin's saloon by C. H. Evans' Sons. [Jacob Martin's saloon was located at 2 Warren Street. C. H. Evans' Sons owned the brewery that produced Evans Ale.]

Railway Steel Spring company, having a branch shop here, declared a dividend of 2 per cent. This was first dividend on common stock since 1908.

No Holiday from Tickets

Yesterday, when I saw one of the parking officers walking along Warren Street, I wondered why he and his colleagues hadn't just been given a month's vacation. Parking at meters was free for the month of December. How many chances would they get to issue tickets?

This morning, a reader reported that on Partition Street, which is often treated more like an alley than a street and people tend to be more casual about parking, a parking officer was issuing $15 tickets to cars parked heading in the wrong direction. You can't keep people from doing what it's their job to do.

The Fate of 208 Columbia Street

At their meeting on December 19, the board of HCDPA (Hudson Community Development and Planning Agency) passed a resolution to accept sealed bids for the purchase of 208 Columbia Street, which would be due by noon on December 24. 

Earlier in the meeting, city attorney Cheryl Roberts cited New York General Municipal Law Section 507, which deals with the disposition of property, and talked of the need for ten days' public notice, but after the board went into executive session, the need for adequate public notice seemed no longer a concern. The next day--Friday, December 20--this notice appeared on the City of Hudson website, accessed by clicking on "HCDPA--Special Meeting" on the calendar for Tuesday, December 24:

NOTICE: Seal Bid Announcement for Sale of 208 Columbia Street, Hudson, NY and Special Mtg Notice Hudson Community Development and Planning Agency (HCDPA) will sell property located at 208 Columbia Street for the purpose of construction of low to moderate income housing. Successful bidders must demonstrate competency and a proven track record of development and construction of low to moderate income housing. Information about the property may be obtained through HCDPA located at 1 Front Street, Hudson, NY. Bids are due by noon on December 24, 2013. Bids will be opened at a special meeting of the HCDPA board to be held City Hall, 520 Warren Street, Hudson, NY at noon on December 24, 2013. The purpose of this meeting is to select a successful bidder for the purchase of 208 Columbia Street and to conduct and [sic] environmental review of such sale prior to award of the bid.

The language of the notice suggests a predisposition to sell the property to Habitat for Humanity, and that's exactly what happened. Four days after notice was made--two of those days being weekend days--the HDCPA board met to open the only sealed bid received. Responding to an inquiry from Gossips, Sheena Salvino, executive director for HCDPA, summarized what happened:

Habitat for Humanity submitted the only bid for 208 Columbia Street. The bid submitted was $5,000. The Board voted to accept the bid and passed a resolution. Habitat provided a 10 percent deposit to be held in escrow until closing. The last step is to obtain Council approval for the sale of 208 Columbia and the lease at 202-204-206 Columbia to Gardens.

Asked if four days had been adequate public notice, Salvino explained, "There is no minimum time requirement for public notice." 

In the 2013 Final Assessments and Parcel Inventory, the full market value of 208 Columbia Street is given as $25,500.
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Galloway Gallery: The Acquisition Continues

The last time we reported an addition to the Galloway Gallery of Hudson properties, Harmon's Auto Repair on Third Street between Partition and Union, we labeled it Exhibit 46, so this latest acquisition must be Exhibit 47. Trying to pin down the exact number of properties in Hudson owned by Eric Galloway, his LLC or NFP, can get confusing. Consulting the 2013 Final Assessment Roll, as Gossips did in June, reveals a total of 50 properties owned by T. Eric Galloway (2), Galvan Partners (6), and Galvan Initiatives Foundation (42), but that list doesn't include some of the more recent acquisitions. The reason for the discrepancy is that some parcels thought of as one property appear in the tax rolls as more than one. For example, the vacant lot in the 200 block of Union Street, where 900 Columbia Street is to be "reassembled," is listed in the tax rolls as three different parcels: 215 Union, 217-219 Union, and 216 Partition.

Whether it's 47 or 50-something, another property is rumored to have been acquired by Galloway, Galvan Partners, or Galvan Initiatives Foundation: the COARC building, which occupies most of the south side of the first block of Warren Street.

This building stands as a monument to wrong-headed urban planning. It was meant to be a shopping center, with off-street parking, to lure people back to Hudson from the strip malls that were erupting along Fairview Avenue in the late '60s and early '70s. An entire block of 19th-century buildings, with the exception of one, was demolished to make room for this bad idea.

In 1975, a developer from Schenectady named Howard Goldstock built the one-story complex--totally out of character with the surrounding neighborhood--and dubbed it Parkview Plaza. (It's close to Promenade Hill, dontcha know.) Goldstock promised to fill the plaza with retail businesses--an anchor store at the east end and smaller shops in the remainder, but he never made good on that promise. In 1978, after a lengthy foreclosure proceeding, the building, still unfinished, was sold at public auction on the steps of the Columbia County Courthouse as, to quote the Register-Star from August 3, 1978, "disinterested county employees and visitors strolled by."

The buyer, who paid $200,000 for the three-year-old white elephant, was the Hudson City Savings Institution, the very bank that had originally financed the project. (The Hudson City Savings Institution, chartered in 1850, morphed into Hudson River Bank & Trust in 1998 and was sold to First Niagara in 2005.) William Fisher, who was mortgage operations vice president for HCSI at that time, was quoted in the Register-Star as saying, "We are now pursuing all avenues to try to come up with a viable use [for the building] that will be mutually beneficial to the community and the bank." 

In 1981, COARC established Promenade Hill Center, a day activity program, in the building. Thirty-three years later, one wonders what Galloway's plans for the building might be. 
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Reviewing the Year Past: 1913--Part 2

Yesterday, Gossips began presenting a series of articles that appeared in the Hudson Evening Register in the early days of 1914. They inventoried the improvements and developments that had taken place in Hudson during the previous year, 1913. Today we continue this century-old review, with the addition of illustrations and annotations.

Dobler Brewing company, Albany, purchased property occupied by Alexander Smith at 17 North Front street. [The building acquired by Dobler Brewing Company was a saloon.]

Walter H. Burch purchased two-story building at 549 Prospect street of William H. Malone.

Hotaling's Bottling works succeeds W. W. Rice & Co., in building opposite First National bank, drug store being discontinued. [The Hudson directory for 1912 gives the address of W. W. Rice, druggist, as 322 Warren Street, now the location of Warren Street Antiques. In 1913, the First National Bank was located in what it now the West Room of the Hudson Opera House.]

From Illustrated Hudson, N.Y.

Wilson H. Moore purchased property at 239 Warren Street of the Misses Mary and Emma H. Rogers.

C. M. Thorpe bought of Jonas Rossman piece of land on Green street, erecting residence thereon. [Curtiss M. Thorpe was a partner in Van Wyck-Thorpe Company, coal dealers located on South Front Street, opposite the train station. In 1912, Thorpe and his wife, Susan, lived at 67 North Fifth Street, the southernmost dwelling in the larger of the two "Armory houses." The 1920 census has them living at 151 Green Street, presumably the house they built in 1913.]

Courtesy Bruce Mitchinson

Joseph Palazzini, formerly of Central Square, opened shoe repairing shop at 310 Warren street. [Central Square was at Warren and Fourth streets. Palazzini's shop was probably located in the shop partially visible at the far right in the picture below. In 1913, Captain John Hathaway's stunning Federal home still stood at 310 Warren Street, but it must have been significantly altered and degraded if a shoe repair shop relocated there.]

Courtesy Historic Hudson

Courtesy Historic Hudson

Twelve-foot perpendicular electrical sign placed on exterior of Putnam's furniture store. [Putnam & Allen was located at 614 Warren Street, where Gris is now.]

Installation of sanitary drinking fountain and new billiard tables by Masonic club at St. John's hall. [This was the era of the WCTU fountain, when drinking fountains were seen as a means of keeping men from going into saloons to quench their thirst. This same year, 1913, the Women's Christian Temperance Union of Columbia County resolved to erect a drinking fountain in Hudson, which two years later was installed outside the YMCA in the 400 block of Warren Street, the building where Swallow is now located. St. John's Hall, on the southeast corner of Third and Union streets, is now Mid-Hudson Media.]

Courtesy Historic Hudson

New York Cloak and Suit Co. moved from 548 to 520 Warren street. Paris Millinery Co. moving from the latter apartments to 548 Warren. [The idea of retail establishments moving in and out of 520 Warren Street is puzzling since from 1907 that address was the location of the National Hudson River Bank, the building that is now City Hall.]

Children's play room established in Allen street school under direction of Rev. Hamory. 

Grocery business of Charles T. Ball at 235 Warren Street and Mena Hahn at 14 South Front Street, discontinued.

Improvements made to interior and exterior of N[ew] Y[ork] C[entral] depot.

Fred Wheeler disposed of cafe at 713 Warren street to Joseph Orris, who later sells establishment to John Finley.

Go Digital or Go Dark

The New York Times has an article today about the efforts of independently owned theaters in the Adirondacks to respond to the mandated switch to digital technology: "Small Theaters in Adirondacks Face Choice in Switch to Digital: Pay or Perish."

Meanwhile, Hudson's only locally owned independent theater (just across the border in Greenport) faces the same "pay or perish" dilemma. Last August, theater owner Bruce Mitchinson invested $80,000 to equip one of the three theaters at Fairview Cinema 3 with a digital projector and sound system, with the capacity for 3D, but in order to be profitable, the other two theaters need digital equipment as well, which Mitchinson has estimated will cost another $100,000--more than he can afford.

Fundraising efforts by Friends of Fairview Cinema 3--the premiere of Fighting for Freedom, the Dinner and a Movie screening of Odds Against Tomorrow at Basilica Hudson, and most recently the two Breakfast and a Movie screenings of It's a Wonderful Life--have brought in about $12,000 for the projector fund, and a gofundme campaign launched by Kristen Decker, whose grandmother worked as the cashier at Fairview Cinema 3 for many years, has so far raised another $535. There's still a long way to go. Without the umbrella of a not-for-profit, Fairview Cinema 3 is not eligible for the state grants that have bailed out many of the movie theaters in the Adirondacks, but Mitchinson and the Friends of Fairview Cinema 3 are determined to see it through.
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Of Interest

The Register-Star reports today that, despite the fact that HDC (Hudson Development Corporation) has written off the $13,000 still owed as a bad debt, Quintin Cross said, apparently on Christmas Day, that he is "in negotiations with the Hudson Development Corp." to continue paying the restitution ordered in 2007: "Cross plans to make good on restitution." The original amount was more than $16.000; about $3,000 has been repaid so far. 

Reviewing the Year Past: 1913--Part 1

In the first days of 1914, the Hudson Evening Register published, over the course of several days, a "General Review of Many of the Important Developments" that had taken place in Hudson during the previous year, 1913. The review, which began on January 2, 1914, provides a compelling snapshot of Hudson a century ago. Over the next few days, Gossips will reproduce this review, with illustrations and annotations to help readers relate the developments of a century ago to today.

HUDSON DURING THE PAST YEAR

Improvements, Commercial and Labor Conditions.

PROSPERITY IS INDICATED

A general review of the improvements, labor conditions, commercial developments, introduction of new enterprises, financial situations, etc., arising in this municipality during 1913, indicate but one thing--a year of prosperity and progress, of which this city is perfectly justified in being proud. Despite an apparent slackening in some industrial lines throughout the country, Hudson is more than holding its own, and present circumstances denote another prosperous year for 1914.

The improvements made here during the past twelve months were many and appropriate in almost every respect. The city is in a position to boast of one of the best street lighting systems in the State for a municipality of its size, installed last fall by the Albany Southern Railway company. This system thus far is meeting with entire satisfaction, apparently, and is receiving numerous compliments from various towns along the Hudson valley. Then, too, lower Warren and South Front streets were repaved, adding much to the general appearance of the city, and the installation of a new town clock in the tower of the Presbyterian church tended to put a better effect upon the city at large. Various parks were considerably improved, and there was plenty of repairing and relaying of sidewalks, especially in the lower part of the town. The relaying of a new track for the local streetcar was completed; the fire alarm improved somewhat, while numerous business houses were overhauled, repainted and placed in better condition.

Real estate transfers, constructional work for dwellings, etc., experienced a "boom" somewhat during the year, more constructional work occurring than during the preceding twelve months, it is understood. This is another evidence of satisfactory conditions existing.

The wheels of industry revolved very successfully. The Union Mills, the Swansdown mill, the Hudson Fibre company, C. H. Van Deusen Co., the Granite companies, the Gifford-Wood plant, the Railway Steel Spring company, the C. H. Evans & Sons, etc., together with the two big cement plants just over the city line in the town of Greenport, operated practically the entire twelve months, paying good wages, employing hands to their full capacity and operating extra to fill the large number of orders. These manufacturing institutions furnished food, clothing and exisence [sic] to almost half of Hudson's population.

Gifford-Wood Company

Among the new enterprises was the incorporating of the Mechanical Handler company, which is erecting a big plant near the B. & A. railroad, along the State road, south of the Albany Southern car barn. Then there was the mapping cut of the new building lot sites, and an addition to the Gifford-Wood plant started. A movement was started to make Hudson head of sea-going navigation on the Hudson river, and the construction of a new high school building begun. Then, too, a Civic league was organized, which is doing excellent work toward the welfare of the municipality. Another ice company has displayed itself, and is now erecting a large house down town.

New high school building--401 State Street

Merchants report good business during the year, and the number of business houses have steadily increased. We print a retrospect of the past twelve months in Hudson, showing most of the important changes, improvements, etc., that took place, which were as follows:

Thomas Ford opened fish market in Diamond building on North Fourth street. [The Diamond building, where liquor and meat had previously been sold, was located at 22-24 North Fourth Street, on the southeast corner of Fourth and Columbia.]

Organization of Suffrage club with Miss Eloise Payne chairman. [Eloise Payne was a schoolteacher and lived at 38 South Fifth Street.]

Russo & Parker, State road contractors, moved in new apartments at 119 Warren street, building formerly occupied by Leggieri brothers, barbers. [(p.m.) Wine Bar now occupies 119 Warren Street.]

Earl Heermance received wireless license in the radio service.

Service of noon-day meals at Hudson High schools inaugurated.

Concrete floor and other improvements to interior W. L. Speed's hardware store on Columbia street. [William L. Speed sold carriages, harnesses, stoves, farm tools, and dairy goods at 725 Columbia Street, in a building that no longer exists.]

Latest model of dust collectors placed on kilns of New York & New England Cement plant. 

New town clock placed in tower of Presbyterian church.

Photograph of 401 State Street from Historic Hudson's Rowles Studio Collection

William's Christmas Message

On  Christmas Eve, as he settles down for a long winter's nap and waits for a visit from St. Nicholas, William shares this wish for all his dog friends: "May you be exactly where you want to be this Christmas--not alone in some kennel or pet resort, but at home with the people you care about the most. Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good night!"

Hudson in the World of Design

On Sunday, a reader sent me the link to an article in the New York Times Style Magazine, T: "By Design: The 10 Best Pieces at This Year's Design Miami." Two of those ten best pieces--20 percent!--were shown by galleries located here in Hudson: Gerd Rothman jewelry by Ornamentum and Walter Lamb seating by Mark McDonald.

Helga Traxler/New York Times

Design Miami, subtitled "The Global Forum for Design," took place earlier this month--December 4-6. It is the sister fair to Art Basel Miami Beach and attracts an international audience of collectors and curators. Of no small significance, when Ornamentum first started showing at Design Miami in 2008, it was the first jewelry gallery of any kind to be accepted into the venue. Ornamentaum also regularly exhibits at Design Miami/Basel, which takes place in June in Switzerland.

Kudos and gratitude to Ornamentum and Mark McDonald for representing Hudson with such distinction at this major international design event.
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Last-Minute Shopping Tip

Looking for a uniquely Hudson gift for someone who has everything? Gossips recently got word that note cards featuring W. H. Bartlett's 1840 engraving of Hudson, viewed from atop Mount Ray, are now available at Sketch, 701 Warren Street, and Stoddard Corner Bookshop, 757 Columbia Street. An original copy of the engraving, a detail of which is used in The Gossips of Rivertown masthead, is also available at Stoddard Corner Bookshop.

What Gossips Missed

Perhaps because of the snow emergency or the controversy over the lots at Second and Columbia streets or the early morning drug raid, but more likely because Gossips isn't on HCSD's distribution list for press releases, we missed the news that the New York State Education Department has given partial approval to "The Bridge."

It may happen that, as soon as the beginning of the new year, up to 45 sixteen-year-olds from the Hudson City School District and the Catskill Central School District "who are at risk of dropping out of school or have dropped out of school" will be attending school at 364 Warren Street, in an Alternative Transition Program, and that HCSD special education students who are now bused to Berkshire Union Free School in Canaan will also be attending classes at 364 Warren Street. 

You can read more about it in the Register-Star: "SED OKs C-G Partnership Academy"; and The Columbia Paper: "State gives partial OK to Hudson's Bridge program."

Keeping Up with Abramovic and Gaga

A reader alerted me to this feature in Metrosource about Lady Gaga's s recent album, ARTPOP. It identifies Marina Abramovic, "grandmother of performance art," as Lady Gaga's muse and speaks of the Marina Abramovic Institute as if it already existed.

Hudson Long Past

In his book Historic Hudson: An Architectural Portrait, Byrne Fone included, on page 48, this image of the Hudson waterfront. 

The engraving, which is from the collection of the Columbia County Historical Society, is by Jacques Louis Milbert and shows the view from the north, looking south. The Parade, now known as Promenade Hill, appears in the left foreground.

This morning, Fone sent me this image of the Hudson waterfront, also an engraving by Jacques Louis Milbert, also c. 1820. In this engraving, the view of Hudson and the river is from Mount Merino, looking north.

This Is Your Last Chance

In a few hours, It's a Wonderful Life will be screened at Fairview Cinema 3. In case you're still on the fence about going, here's another comment to convince you that you shouldn't pass up this chance, from another member of last week's audience, David Konigsberg:

I've seen the movie probably a dozen times, but nothing beats the experience of seeing it, pristine, on a big screen. The humanity, the great humor, and Jimmy Stewart, larger than life. It's such fun to experience what a fine actor he was--and what a great artist Frank Capra was.

The movie starts at 10 a.m., but come anytime after 9:30 to get your coffee and cake and settle in to enjoy this memorable holiday experience. A donation of $25 is suggested to help our only locally owned, hometown movie house (just across the border in Greenport) survive the switch to digital.

Enjoy a happy ending and be part of making another one happen!

About Those Helicopters

Hudsonians woke up on Friday morning to the sound of helicopters overhead. It was soon learned through social media that a major drug raid was underway. It was the middle of the afternoon before the details were disclosed in a press conference at the Hudson Central Fire Station.

The early morning raid was the culmination of a narcotics investigation that began in March. At the press conference, Ed Moore explained that just days after he was sworn in as the new chief of the Hudson Police Department, he sought state police assistance in addressing the city's drug problem. "People I have talked with," he said, "have less and less tolerance for the sale of drugs," which he called the catalyst for muggings, burglaries, and thefts in Hudson. He spoke of the raid as sending a message: "If you set up a drug business in this city, you will be at risk."

The operation was carried out with the New York State Police Community Narcotics Enforcement Team (CNET), with assistance from the Columbia County Sheriff's Department and the Catskill Police. Moore stressed that every Hudson police officer was involved in some way in surveillance and intelligence gathering and all had volunteered for duty on Friday. He mentioned in particular the key role played by narcotics detective Jason Finn.

Moore reported that of the twenty people targeted in the raid, nineteen had been arrested and the twentieth was part of an active investigation. The drugs involved were heroin and crack cocaine. The mugshots of eighteen of those arrested can be viewed here. Four were arrested at four different locations in Greenport, one was arrested in Catskill, and the remainder were arrested in several different locations in Hudson. News Channel 13's coverage of the story can be viewed here. The Register-Star video of the press conference can be viewed here.

Alderman-elect Tiffany Garriga (Second Ward) came to the press conference to complain about the use of helicopters. She said the sound of helicopters overhead frightened children and made Hudson seem like Afghanistan. She questioned the need for helicopters, saying they had not been used in drug raids in the past. It was explained that it is CNET procedure to use helicopters to provide emergency and visual support for officers on the ground.
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A Garden Divided

The Solomon like resolution to the controversy over the lots at Second and Columbia streets, developed over the past twenty years as a community garden and now sought by Habitat for Humanity to complete its "build out" of Columbia Street, was predictable: 202, 204, and 2o6 Columbia Street will go to Hudson Urban Gardens (HUG); 208 Columbia Street--a lot slightly larger than the other three lots combined--will go to Habitat for Humanity. Sheena Salvino, executive director of HCDPA (Hudson Community Development & Planning Agency), made those recommendations at the outset of last night's HCDPA meeting, but it took the board more than an hour, part of which was spent in executive session, to decide to act on those recommendations.

Mayor William Hallenbeck, who sits on the HCDPA board, seemed persuaded that such a compromise could not be reached. He talked about the amount of effort and time, especially "the mayor's time," that had been devoted to the issue and complained that HUG had rejected every alternative offered--among them plots in Charles Williams Park, across State Street from Bliss Towers, and at Montgomery C. Smith School. "What sense would it make," he asked rhetorically, "to offer a motion to split the lots, if the garden won't accept it?" 

Responding to Hallenbeck's question, Alderman Cappy Pierro (Fifth Ward), also an HCDPA board member, surmised, "What you're telling us is the garden wants it all or nothing." He then spoke of the City's "obligation" to Habitat for Humanity. "We're running out of space," he said. "We have to come up with more space so Habitat can fulfill their mission."

To Pierro's comment, Salvino responded, "We don't need to be beholden to Habitat," and suggested that solving Hudson's housing issues required a much larger housing strategy than "piecemeal putting houses in."

When Vanessa Baehr, director of the community garden, who repeatedly tried to be recognized to respond to Hallenbeck's characterization of HUG's position, finally got a chance to speak, she denied, "just for the record," that HUG had taken an "all or nothing" position. She also commented on what seemed to be the board's favorite alternative location: a strip of land behind the Habitat houses on Mill Street, which is part of Charles Williams Park. She noted that, although the location was being described as just a seven-minute walk from the garden's current location, the walk involved negotiating the very steep hill on Second Street, which would be difficult for people carrying children, gardening tools, and garden produce. [Gossips Note: The foot path down to Charles Williams Park from the north end of Third Street, involving lots of switchbacks to make it suitable for wheelchairs, which was part of the original plan for developing the park, has never been constructed.] Baehr also pointed out that the proposed alternative used to be a clay mine and "you can't grow vegetables very well in clay."

Hallenbeck, who seemed determined to resolve the problem at that meeting, became annoyed when city attorney Cheryl Roberts began quoting Section 507 of New York State General Municipal Law, which deals with the disposal of publicly owned property. One of the requirements specified in the law is notice in the newspaper that you wish to sell a property. Roberts observed, "In the past, what you have done is just given the property away"--something not permitted by General Municipal Law. Hallenbeck wanted to know why this discussion had not happened two weeks ago and at one point petulantly made a motion to adjourn the meeting. The motion was not seconded, and the meeting continued, but when conversation moved toward determining fair market value for the lots, the board went into executive session.

Twenty minutes later, when the meeting was reopened to the public, the HCDPA board voted on two resolutions. The first dealt with 208 Columbia Street and determined that sealed bids for 208 Columbia Street must be submitted before noon on December 24. The assumption seems to be that Habitat for Humanity will be the only bidder, but presumably anyone can submit a bid for the lot. John Mason reports in the Register-Star that Salvino told him after the meeting, "We are accepting the most responsible bid that coincides with the mission of this agency." The second resolution was an agreement to lease 202, 204, and 206 Columbia Street to Hudson Urban Gardens for one year, from January 1, 2014, through December 31, 2014, for an annual payment of $1,000. It was not clear if the lease agreement will contain the option to buy the property, which HUG seeks.
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A Little Known Fact About It's a Wonderful Life

As Gossips pointed out last week, the town of Bedford Falls, New York, in It's a Wonderful Life was, in fact, an elaborate four-acre Hollywood set which involved seventy-five buildings and twenty fully grown oak trees. Gossips has since learned that Seneca Falls is believed to have been the inspiration for Bedford Falls, and the bridge where George Bailey contemplates ending his life and meets up with Clarence Odbody is modeled after the actual bridge over the Seneca River. When you see the movie on the big screen, you may notice this detail: an arrow shaped sign on the bridge that reads "Albany."

This detail was pointed out by Michael O'Hara, who saw It's a Wonderful Life last Saturday at Friends of Fairview Cinema 3's Breakfast and a Movie. He also shared these comments about the experience:

Like many people, I've seen this movie on TV dozens of times and can quote long passages of the script. I attended last week's showing of  It's a Wonderful Life and was very impressed by the difference between the movie theater experience of this film and the TV-based experience. The expansion of the visual field allows for much higher resolution of details and a greatly improved overall "immersion" in the atmosphere of the film. Also, the theme of the movie is very much in alignment with the theme of the fundraising event. This sort of collective experience--sharing a performance with other people instead of in isolation--is worthy of our support. I recommend this film highly and encourage all Gossips readers to use this opportunity to support our community theater.

Don't miss your second chance to see It's a Wonderful Life on the big screen at Fairview Cinema 3 on Saturday, December 21. The movie starts at 10 a.m., but come anytime after 9:30 to get your coffee and cake and settle in to enjoy a memorable holiday experience. A donation of $25 is suggested to help our only locally owned, hometown movie house (just across the border in Greenport) survive the switch to digital.

Enjoy a happy ending and be part of making another one happen!

It's a Wonderful Life--Don't Miss It

How often have you seen It's a Wonderful Life on the big screen? Chances are the answer is never. Most people have only ever seen this holiday classic, which was released in 1946, on TV, so when you get a second chance to see it as it was meant to be seen--in a theater, on the big screen, in the company of people other than just your nearest and dearest--you should seize the opportunity.

Friends of Fairview Cinema 3 have made special arrangements to repeat the Breakfast and a Movie screening of It's a Wonderful Life this Saturday, December 21. Enjoy coffee and coffee cake while watching a beloved holiday classic. 

If you need to be persuaded, here's what Kristen Phillips, who braved the snow with her husband, Joe, to see the movie last Saturday, had to say about the experience:

Joe and I watch It's a Wonderful Life every year at Christmastime--at first from a VHS tape, then from a DVD. Always delightful. We love the story itself, but seeing it in digital format on a big screen Saturday was like seeing it for the first time. We noticed details in expression, set design, and dialog that we hadn't seen or heard before. It was especially fun to be part of a theater audience, not just watching the film at home. And I loved that we all applauded at the end. It's a truly wonderful film and shouldn't be missed this time of year!

The film will be shown in the only theater at Fairview Cinema 3 that has the required new digital equipment. It starts at 10 a.m., but come anytime after 9:30 to get your coffee and coffee cake and settle in to enjoy the film that is for many a Christmas tradition. A donation of $25 is suggested to help our only locally owned, hometown movie house (just across the border in Greenport) acquire digital projectors for the other two theaters and survive the switch to digital.

Enjoy a happy ending and help to make another one happen!

Meeting Reminder

There is a special meeting of the HCDPA board today at 6 p.m. in City Hall. It is expected that, at this meeting, the board will decide the fate of the Hudson Community Garden.

Historic Preservation Report

On Saturday, Gossips reported on two projects that didn't come before the Historic Preservation Commission on Friday, December 13. Today we'll report on the projects that did.

117 Warren Street This building very likely started out as a private residence, but from the early part of the 20th century until about 1985, when the ground floor was converted into an apartment, it had a storefront. The current owner wants to make the ground floor into retail space again and in October proposed to the Historic Preservation Commission adding a "retail size" window. 

The HPC urged the applicant to do some research to discover what the building looked like when there was a storefront, and commission members Rick Rector and David Voorhees, aided and abetted by Gossips, scoured the History Room at the Hudson Area Library to discover this drawing of the building, showing what it looked like before the ground floor was converted into living space.

The drawing was given to the applicant, and two months later, the project came back before the commission. Below is the design for the storefront now being proposed.

The HPC had only one problem with the new design: the doors. What were proposed were not new or salvaged vintage wood doors but new molded fiberglass doors meant to look like mahogany. The HPC requested some visual evidence of what the fiberglass doors would look like and moved on to other projects while the owner of 117 Warren Street dashed out to get a photograph of the door she wanted to use. Half an hour later, she returned with a manufacturer's photograph.

HPC architect member Jack Alvarez noted that he was familiar with the manufacturer and the door proposed was "not your run-of-the-mill Home Depot door." But he also pointed out the canopy proposed for the building "will mitigate a lot of concern with weathering of the doors," which was the applicant's principal reason for not wanting to use wood doors.

In the end, it was decided that the HPC could not make a judgment about the doors based only on a photograph. They voted unanimously to approve every aspect of the proposed design except the doors. They postponed making a decision about the doors until they could see the actual material, but urged the applicant to consider using real wood doors.

105 Warren Street  An application to replace the roof of this house, a bit farther down on the same block, also came before the Historic Preservation Commission last Friday. The house currently has a metal roof over a wood shake roof, and the proposal is to put a synthetic slate roof on the house. Because the back of the house is considered to be outside the HPC's jurisdiction, synthetic slate is already being installed in the rear. 

The HPC had problems with the proposal, not because the material proposed was synthetic but because slate was not a roofing material that would be authentic to the house. As HPC historian member David Voorhees pointed out, "The house would not have had a slate roof; it would have had wood shakes." 

There was no ruling by the HPC on Friday. The application was deemed incomplete because it lacked the necessary historic photographs and documentation. The applicant was asked to submit a complete application by January 10.

12 Willard Place  Hudson's only example of modern architecture interjected into a historic neighborhood is soon to more than double in size. On Friday, the Historic Preservation Commission reviewed the application to build a new structure next to the one that was completed earlier this year in what was once the backyard of 325 Allen Street. 

The new structure, which is to be a residence attached to the existing artist's studio, is the project of HPC member Tony Thompson. Thompson recused himself when the project was presented, and his wife, Margaret Saliske, made the presentation. There were a few questions about materials--"exactly what we used in the studio"--and about the expected completion date--"we have to sell the house [325 Allen Street] first."

Most of the discussion came when an audience member asked if there would be a public hearing. The immediate responses were "Why do we need a public hearing?" and "Absolutely not." Alvarez asked if there had been a public hearing when the first building was approved, and HPC member Peggy Polenberg responded: "Yes, and no one objected." 

Carl Whitbeck, counsel to the HPC, clarified that, if there was "an issue or controversy that the public would be interested in commenting on," there should be a public hearing. Alvarez wondered if, because it is a commission member's project, the HPC might be opening itself to liability if they waived the public hearing. He mused about introducing modern architecture into a historic district, but HPC chair Rick Rector countered, "There's been agreement that a modern structure can go into a historic district."

HPC member Phil Forman suggested there might be "other implications" if the HPC did not waive the public hearing. "We almost never have public hearings," said Forman, "so if we have a public hearing [on this project], we are signaling that you can do modern architecture but you do it at your own peril."

When a motion was introduced to waive the public hearing and grant a certificate of appropriateness, Polenberg, Voorhees, Rector, and Forman voted yes; Alvarez voted no, explaining later that he thought they were only voting on waiving the public hearing.

445-447 Warren Street  The owner of this building appeared before the Historic Preservation Commission seeking a certificate of appropriateness to jack up the oriel and replace the brackets that now support it with four pillars. She reported that there is extreme rotting in the wood of the oriel, and the brackets are pulling away from the building. According to the owner, the oriel, which was added when local 19th-century architect Henry S. Moul turned two buildings into one, was originally supported by columns. 

Rector explained that the HPC needed to see "the design and what you want to do" and invited the applicant to come back in two weeks--on December 27--with the plans.
COPYRIGHT 2013 CAROLE OSTERINK
Photo credit: 105 Warren Street, Rural Intelligence