The Gossips of Rivertown

Wednesday, June 9, 2021

Curiouser and Curiouser

At the informal Common Council meeting on Monday, when the resolution to create the position of Assistant Youth Director was introduced and it was revealed that Third Ward alderman Calvin Lewis was to have that position, Council president Tom DePietro said that, although there was no rule that would prohibit Lewis from continuing as an alderman, doing so "raises too many problems." In an article published in the Register-Star yesterday, Lewis is quoted as saying he wants to stay on the Council when he starts his new job.

Discovered in the draft minutes from the May 18 meeting of the Common Council is an example of the "too many problems" DePietro may have had in mind. That was the meeting at which the Council voted on a resolution to increase the annual salary of the newly hired Youth Director from $50,000 to $58,000. According to Gossips' account, the resolution passed with the narrowest possible margin: 6 to 5. One of the six votes in favor of the salary increase was cast by Lewis. In the draft minutes from the meeting, following the account of the discussion of the resolution and the vote, this notation appears, on page 348:

There is no explanation offered about why the vote was deemed illegal, but it's easy to infer that on May 18 Lewis was already being considered for the position of Assistant Youth Director and hence it was inappropriate for him to vote on a salary increase for a person who was among those making the hiring decision and who might become his boss.

Update: Aliya Schneider explores the situation of Lewis and the invalid vote in much greater detail in an article that appeared in the Register-Star online this evening: "Conflict wipes out youth department director's raise."

HCDPA: Its Board and Its Properties

HCDPA (Hudson Community Development and Planning Agency) is a relic of urban renewal. Its page on the City of Hudson website explains:

HCDPA was established as the City's Urban Renewal Agency. HCDPA is a corporate governmental agency, constituting a public benefit corporation. Although urban renewal agencies were initially created for the purposes of implementing the Federal Urban Renewal Program, many, such as HCDPA, have remained active and vital by aggressively initiating and managing a broad range of community development activities.

The HCDPA Board is made up entirely of people who serve ex officio--the mayor, the majority and minority leaders of the Common Council, the chair of the Planning Board, and the chair of the Hudson Housing Authority Board of Commissioners. In past decades, its mission has not always been clear, but HCDPA now sees itself as a key player in combatting Hudson's housing crisis. It is administering Hudson's ADLN (Anti-Displacement Learning Network) grant. Indeed, the ADLN grant was characterized at the HCDPA meeting on Tuesday as the agency's "main focus."

HCDPA owns property. Some parcels attributed to HCDPA in the tax rolls cannot be located, but there are four that can be: 202, 204, 206 Columbia Street (what remains of the community garden); 238 Columbia Street (a vacant lot that HCDPA has tried to sell twice in recent years); 6 to 14 State Street (a series of lots along the north side of the street); and 2 and 4 Warren Street (what is now a park on the northeast corner of Warren and Front streets). Two of those parcels were topics of discussion at Tuesday's meeting of the HCDPA Board--the first being the former community garden at Columbia and Second streets.

There are two parties interested in managing a community garden on the three parcels at Columbia and Second streets: the Hudson/Catskill Housing Coalition and an unnamed individual who is buying an adjacent property. Because there are two interested parties, the process calls for an RFP, and issuing an RFP requires legal counsel. At its May meeting, the board voted to do an RFP, which was prepared by Branda Maholtz, whose job with HCDPA is described as "coordinator." At yesterday's meeting, Maholtz asked the board to approve having assistant city attorney Victoria Polidoro provide legal counsel for the project. Maholtz explained that, although HCDPA is a city agency, it is not represented by city legal counsel. Legal counsel must be retained on a project by project basis.

Tiffany Garriga (Council majority leader) said she wanted to go into executive session to discuss the details, complaining, "All of this interest all of a sudden from people we've never heard of." When it was decided that there was no need for an executive session, Garriga questioned the choice of Polidoro as legal counsel, wanting to know if she had been recommended by anyone on the board or only by Maholtz. Maholtz explained that Polidoro was the only one of the city's attorneys willing to take on the task and reminded the board that Polidoro had worked on the ADLN grant. Rebecca Wolff (Council minority leader) and Mayor Kamal Johnson both said they were comfortable with Polidoro as legal counsel, and Steve Steim, newly appointed chair of the Planning Board, also expressed support for Polidoro. When a motion was made to have Polidoro represent HCDPA for the management of the community garden, Wolff and Johnson voted in favor, Garriga and Revonda Smith (chair of the HHA Board of Commissioners) voted against, and Steim abstained. Wolff observed, "We are not going to have action without an attorney," but Smith said she was not comfortable with the choice but would be elaborate about why.

During the discussion of the community garden parcel, Smith brought up another parcel: the lots at the western end of State Street. She said, "It seems like there is a lot of running around on this board," explaining that it had been six months since she asked about the parcels on State Street with the hope of acquiring them for HHA. She went on to say that she wanted "the running around to end today." Smith called for a special meeting. Wolff suggested there be a motion "to have a conversation about how HCDPA works with HHA." Council president Tom DePietro, who is not an HCDPA board member, suggested a resolution "that indicates which properties HCDPA wants HHA to develop." In the end, Johnson suggested they set a date for a special meeting "to hash this all out." That special meeting has been scheduled for Tuesday, June 15, at noon. The meeting is now on the city calendar, but the Zoom link has not yet been made available.

Tuesday, June 8, 2021

A Bear in Town

It was June 6 last year when a young bear ambled into town and spent a long afternoon perched in a tree behind 32 Warren Street.

Photo: Justin Weaver|Facebook 2020

Gossips just learned that once again this year, at almost the same time of year, a bear was sighted in the 200 block of Allen Street at about 10:45 this morning. Something to remember if you are out and about on these early summer days. Stay alert. You could encounter a bear when and where you least expect it.

COVID-19 Update

The Columbia County Department of Health has released its numbers for today. Since yesterday, there has been one new case of COVID-19. The number of active cases being reported today is one more than yesterday, from which it can be inferred that since yesterday there have been no new recoveries. There are five more county residents in mandatory quarantine today than yesterday, but the number hospitalized with the virus has not changed. No one is in the ICU, and there has not been a death from COVID-19 in Columbia County since May 4.

The New York Forward dashboard is reporting a positivity rate for Columbia County yesterday of 0.0 percent and a seven-day average of 0.7 percent. By comparison, the daily positivity rate for the Capital Region is 0.4 percent and the seven-day average is 0.6 percent.

A year ago today, the CCDOH reported no new cases of COVID-19 but two deaths. The total number of cases was 402, and the number of active cases was 34. Twenty-eight additional county residents were consigned to mandatory quarantine, 11 were hospitalized, and none was in the ICU. The total number of deaths attributed to COVID-19 at this time last year was 36.

At the Docks This Summer

After the uncertainty over who would manage the docks at Henry Hudson Riverfront Park, the Common Council rescinded a resolution authorizing the mayor to enter into a licensing agreement with Hudson Cruises and passed another authorizing a licensing agreement with the Hudson Sloop Club. Today, the Hudson Sloop Club issued the following press release:

The City of Hudson signed a license agreement with the Hudson Sloop Club to manage the commercial docks last week. Since that time the dock has hosted the Riverkeeper Patrol Boat, the Dutch Apple II, AND we have welcomed back Spirit of Hudson and the Little Spirit as well. Hudson Sloop Club is showing that we can support our local tour boats AND host visiting vessels, maximizing the impact and public good our docks can create.

Despite the challenges along the way, Hudson Cruises and Hudson Sloop Club have signed a dockage agreement that works for both parties. "We are so glad to see the Spirit and Little Spirit back in Hudson, the sightseeing and ferry services that these vessels provide is of great benefit to our city," said Sam Merrett, newly appointed Commercial Dock Coordinator for the City of Hudson.

"Our goal is to maximize the use of the dock for public programming and benefit, we will do this through the Waterfront Wednesday event series, hosting Hudson Cruises tour boats, and additional visiting vessels." The John J. Harvey will be on the list of vessels coming to Hudson this season. The Harvey hasn't been to our waterfront in over 15 years. Other vessels, such as Impossible Dream, a universally accessible sailing catamaran that is dedicated to improving the quality of life for people with disabilities through getting them out on the water, will come to Hudson this season for the first time ever!

If any additional vessels want to come to Hudson they simply need to reach out to the Hudson Sloop Club. The rates vary depending on the programming being offered. "Dockage will be calculated through a combination of vessel size, length of stay and programming they bring," Merrett explained. "The City sets the rates but the Sloop Club makes suggestions based on public benefit. The message is simple, public programming is just as valuable as revenue and we welcome either form of payment. Vessels providing private programming should expect to pay $1.50/ft. These low rates are aimed at increasing activity at our waterfront."

The Sloop Club will be installing clear signage and updating their website to make the docking process as transparent and vessel friendly as possible. In the meantime anyone with direct questions can reach out to Sam Merrett at (518) 303-6060. Stay tuned for more.

Gossips Note: It hasn't been more than fifteen years since the John J. Harvey visited Hudson. The historic fireboat was here in 2009, along with a number of other historic and replica vessels, for the Namesake Celebration, Hudson's commemoration of the Quadricentennial of Henry Hudson's journey on the river that bears his name. That was twelve years ago.

Code Enforcement Is Moving

At the last meeting of the Common Council ad hoc committee focused on City-owned property, Council president Tom DePietro announced that a new location for the Code Enforcement Office had been found, but he did not reveal where that new location was. Last night, at the informal Common Council meeting, it was revealed that Code Enforcement will be moving to 751 Warren Street, into the office suite formerly occupied by Assemblymember Didi Barrett, the availability of which was advertised here on Gossips. (I'm not claiming that's how the City decision makers found out about it, but you never know.)

A resolution was introduced last night to enter into a lease agreement for the space, which will cost $2,000 a month. DePietro told the Council that $24,000 a year was considerably less than renting modular units to be parked across Washington Street from the Central Fire Station, which was the original plan for rehousing Code Enforcement.

The lease at 751 Warren Street begins on July 1, 2021. Once the Code Enforcement Office is relocated, the way is clear for the City to sell 429 Warren Street, the building that is the current location of Code Enforcement.

People Who Live in Glass (Fire)houses

Last night, at the informal Common Council meeting, Nick Pierro, representing the Fire Department, reported that one of the overhead bay doors at the Central Fire Station on North Seventh Street had fallen and was crushed on impact. No equipment or people were injured in the incident.

Insurance will cover replacing the door, but what Pierro was proposing was replacing the broken door and two others with glass doors. Glass doors, he argued, would bring natural light into the fire station, reducing energy costs, would allow people to see into the fire station and view the fire apparatus, and would increase the building's "curb appeal."

Later in the meeting, a resolution was introduced to transfer $19,498.00 from the fund balance to the Fire Department Building Fund account to replace three of the current aluminum doors with tempered glass doors. The plan is eventually to replace all seven bay doors with glass doors.

Monday, June 7, 2021

Another Role Change

Tonight, at the informal meeting of the Common Council, a resolution was introduced creating the position of Assistant Youth Director. As the resolution explains, the position of "Rec Attendant 5" will be eliminated, and the salary budgeted for that position will be reallocated for the position of Assistant Youth Director. The change is being made at the request of Youth Commissioner Maija Reed. It was also revealed who would fill the new position: Third Ward alderman Calvin Lewis.

When the question was asked if Lewis would be resigning as alderman, Council president Tom DePietro said, "Technically, he could remain an alderman. . . . There is no rule that would prohibit him." However, because his continuing as as alderman "raises too many problems," Lewis will be resigning.

The process of replacing Lewis on the Council is easily understood. It's happened a few times in recent decades. The Council appoints a replacement. It is all explained in § C3-6 of the city charter. But how the election in November is going to be handled is another story. Only two candidates have filed designating petitions to run for the two positions of Third Ward alderman, and one of them is Lewis.

Update: According to an article that appears in the Register-Star, Lewis wants to continue as an alderman even after he becomes an employee of the City: "Lewis accepts youth department position."

COVID-19 Update

The Columbia County Department of Health has released its numbers for today. Since Friday, there has been one new case of COVID-19. The number of active cases being reported today is one fewer than on Friday. There are three fewer county residents in mandatory quarantine today than on Friday, and one fewer is hospitalized with the virus. No one is in the ICU, and there has not been a death from COVID-19 in Columbia County since May 4.

The New York Forward dashboard is reporting a positivity rate for Columbia County yesterday of 0.0 percent and a seven-day average of 0.7 percent. By comparison, the daily positivity rate for the Capital Region is 0.9 percent and the seven-day average is 0.6 percent.

A year ago today, the CCDOH reported two new cases of COVID-19. The total number of cases was 402, and the number of active cases was 47. Thirty-one additional county residents were consigned to mandatory quarantine, 17 were hospitalized with the virus, and none was in the ICU. The total number of deaths attributed to COVID-19 at this time last year was 34.

What's in a Name?

We know that 327 Warren Street, now known as Hudson Hall, was originally Hudson's City Hall. Its construction began in early July 1854, and six months later, on January 2, 1855, the building had its grand opening.

At some point in its history, the building came to be known as the Hudson Opera House, but precisely when that happened is not known. Today, while perusing the Hudson Daily Star from 150 years ago, on June 7, 1871, I discovered this item, which sheds light on how the notion of changing the building's name got started.

Hudson never did get an opera house. Instead, sometime around 1881, the upstairs auditorium at City Hall was outfitted with a proscenium, a stage, and dressing rooms, and people began calling the building the Hudson Opera House. Given the disdain expressed in this op/ed from 1871 about the people of Hudson having to content themselves with "a Hall," it's interesting that in 2017, when the restoration of the building was finally complete and the grand performance hall reopened, it was decided to ditch the name Hudson Opera House, which had been used since 1992 when a handful of Hudsonians took on the task of rescuing and restoring the building, in favor of the name Hudson Hall.

An Interesting Development

About half an hour ago, Mayor Kamal Johnson made the following announcement on his Facebook page:

Michael Chameides announces he is leaving his role as City of Hudson Mayoral Aide and ADA Coordinator. Chameides's last day as Mayoral Aide is June 11, 2021.

As Mayoral Aide, Chameides supported Mayor Johnson's project priorities, including affordable housing, public health initiatives related to Covid, the creation of an accessibility policy and ADA compliance, and Promenade Hill Park improvements.

"I am honored to have assisted Mayor Kamal Johnson and support the equitable city platform," says Chameides. "I have valued the opportunity to serve our community and work with residents, volunteers, city employees, elected officials, and city partners. I will continue to support the Mayor and the equitable city platform."

"I'm thankful to Chameides for his service to our city," says Mayor Kamal Johnson. "I look forward to continuing to work with him through his role as County Supervisor in order to make our city more equitable."

Mayor Johnson is reviewing candidates for the Mayoral Aide position and anticipates an announcement in the coming weeks.

Meetings of Interest in the Week Ahead

Although the summer solstice is still two weeks away, this week begins with sweltering heat and promises a few meetings worth Zooming in on.

On Monday, June 7, the Tourism Board meets at 5:00 p.m. No agenda for the meeting is available nor is the link to the Zoom meeting. The latter should be published on the City of Hudson website prior to the meeting, Scroll down to the calendar.
Also on Monday, June 7, the informal meeting of the Common Council takes place at 6:00 p.m. This is the meeting at which department heads make their reports to the Council and new resolutions are introduced. So far, no agenda items for the meeting have been published. Click here to join the Zoom meeting.
On Tuesday, June 8, the board of Hudson Community Development and Planning Agency (HCDPA) meets at noon. Updates on the status of the former community garden and the anti-displacement grant may be forthcoming. Click here to join the Zoom meeting.
At 6:00 p.m. in Tuesday, June 8, the Planning Board holds its regular monthly meeting, the first since the resignation of Planning Board chair Betsy Gramkow. The agenda for the meeting is not yet available, but it is expected that the public hearings on the Verizon proposal to install communications equipment on Providence Hall and the Galvan Foundation proposal to construct two apartment buildings on North Seventh Street will continue and the public hearing on the proposal for the adaptive reuse of the Pocketbook Factory will begin. Click here to join the Zoom meeting.

On Wednesday, June 9, the Hudson Housing Authority Board of Commissioners meets at 6:00 p.m. The 54-page RFQ (request for qualifications) for new development may be presented at this meeting. The link to the Zoom meeting can be found on the HHA website.
On Friday, June 11, the Historic Preservation Commission meets at 10:00 a.m. Click here to join the Zoom meeting.

Saturday, June 5, 2021

Happening Next Weekend

Last weekend, Hudson Hall reopened its main performance hall with concerts on Saturday and Sunday by Camille Thurman and the Darrell Green Trio. This weekend, Hudson Hall continues its post-pandemic reopening season with the Marcus Strickland Quartet performing in the main hall, tonight at 7:00 p.m. and tomorrow at 5:00 p.m. Click here for more information.

Next weekend, Hudson Hall reopens its galleries with the first retrospective survey of work by children's author and illustrator Hudson Talbott. Talbott is familiar to many of us for his work and because he lives just across the river. He has written and illustrated more than twenty-five books for young readers. His book We're Back! A Dinosaur's Story was adapted into an animated film by Steven Spielberg. He illustrated Show Way, by Jacqueline Woodson, a Newbery Honor Book, and Leonardo's Horse, by Jean Fritz, an ALA Notable Book and a VOYA Honor Book. His book River of Dreams: The Story of the Hudson River, a companion book to Picturing America: Thomas Cole and the Birth of American Art, was named the New York State Children's Book of the Year in 2009, the year of the Quadricentennial of Henry Hudson's journey on the river that now bears his name. Talbott is a member of the Board of Trustees of the Thomas Cole National Historic Site.

The exhibition of Talbott's work is a prelude to a new staging of the musical pageant River of Dreams which Hudson Hall plans to mount in 2022. River of Dreams, based on Talbott's book and with music by Frank Cuthbert, was first produced in 2019 by the Bridge Street Theater in Catskill, under the direction of Jay Lesenger. Lesenger returns to direct the children of Harmony Project Hudson in the production at Hudson Hall.

There is a members only preview of the exhibition on Friday, June 11, from 4:00 to 7:00 p.m. The exhibition opens to the public at noon on Saturday, June 12, and continues through August 15. The gallery at Hudson Hall is open from noon to 5:00 p.m., Friday and Saturday. The exhibition is free, but reservations must be made for timed entry. Click here for more information.

Friday, June 4, 2021

Of Interest

Talbott & Arding's imminent move from Warren Street to Second and Allen streets is the subject today of an article in Chronogram: "Talbott & Arding Cheese and Provisions Shop Gets a Supersized Space Upgrade."

The extensive alterations to the former factory building at 202 Allen Street are happening primarily on the inside, but here are the exterior changes that were approved by the the Historic Preservation Commission last month. The first rendering shows the Partition Street side of the building; the second shows the Allen Street side.

COVID-19 Update

The Columbia County Department of Health has released its numbers for today. Our two-day streak of no new cases is over. Since yesterday, there have been two new cases of COVID-19. The number of active cases being reported today is three fewer than yesterday, from which it can be inferred that five more county residents are now considered to be recovering from the virus. There are fourteen more county residents in mandatory quarantine today than yesterday, but there is one fewer hospitalized with the virus. No one is in the ICU, and it has been a month since there was a death from COVID-19 in Columbia County.

The New York Forward dashboard is reporting a positivity rate for Columbia County yesterday of 0.0 percent and a seven-day average of 0.3 percent. By comparison, the daily positivity rate for the Capital Region is 0.3 percent and the seven-day average is 0.7 percent.

A year ago today, the CCDOH reported one new case of COVID-19. The total number of cases was 394, and the number of active cases was 108. Forty-nine additional county residents were consigned to mandatory quarantine, 18 were hospitalized with the virus, and 1 was in the ICU. The total number of deaths attributed to COVID-19 at this time last year was 34.

A Statement from the CAC

Today, Hilary Hillman and David Konigsberg, representing the Conservation Advisory Council, made the following statement regarding the landfill and the issue of siting a solar array there.

Conversation about the landfill is critical because it involves multiple environmental issues--from the preservation of habitat and viewshed, to the problems of development on brownfield sites, to the rising need to preserve open space in a dense urban center like Hudson--even if that space is still healing and not yet ready for widespread public use.

Photo: Andy Milford

Most immediately, CAC will provide the Common Council with advisories regarding the landfill site. In the long run, though, we will have to focus on the much bigger picture: how to capture renewable energy opportunities throughout the City of Hudson, but without sacrificing important habitat, viewshed, and future public open space.

Update on Inclusionary Zoning

The work on drafting an inclusionary zoning law continues. The hope was that Jeff Baker, counsel to the Council, would have a working draft of the law ready for review at Wednesday's meeting. That did not happen, but there was some interesting discussion. Early on in the meeting, Baker cautioned, "It is not realistic that adopting this law is going to result in a significant increase in affordable housing." Nevertheless, the ad hoc committee, composed only it seems of Rebecca Wolff (First Ward) and John Rosenthal (Fourth Ward) along with Council president Tom DePietro, continues its work.

What is typical for inclusionary zoning programs is to require developers to sell or rent 10 to 20 percent of new residential units to lower income residents at prices they can afford. The inclusionary zoning that is already in place for the Riverfront Gateway District in Hudson requires any development of ten or more units to set aside at least 20 percent of the units as affordable. The ad hoc committee started out wanting a 25 percent set aside, but it was reported on Wednesday that Bruce Levine of 3d Development Group, LLC, who built Crosswinds here in Hudson, said 20 percent was more reasonable than 25 percent. The change from 25 percent to 20 percent also impacts the size of a development that would be affected. Originally, it was any development with four or more units. Now, because there cannot be 20 percent of four, the number of units has increased to five.

There was discussion of the possibility of a buyout--that is, a developer could avoid having to meet the inclusionary zoning requirement by making a contribution to a housing trust fund. Wolff was opposed to the idea, saying she didn't think there was a legal requirement for giving developers an out. Rosenthal advised, "Making this mandatory is going to affect development." DePietro warned against imposing a law that was "so onerous that a project would just run away." Wolff insisted, "It's clear that given an out developers will take it. . . . In this city, it would be a real misstep to allow a buyout."

Given that the set aside is meant for workforce housing, Wolff said it was necessary to determine what is "the actual workforce wage of Hudson." Baker suggested the workforce means people who provide essential services, naming specifically hospital staff (not including doctors), teachers, and police officers. Finding out the annual incomes of hospital workers will be a challenge, but for teachers and police officers there is SeeThroughNY. In 2020, the annual salaries for 201 people employed by the Hudson City School District ranged from $191,005 to $55,259, with 32 people being paid more than $100,000. Granted some of those 32 are principals and administrators, but about 25 of them appear to be classroom teachers. The range of salaries in 2020 for the 23 members of the Hudson Police Department listed goes from $133,078 to $47,298, with 10 officers making more than $100,000 a year.

The meeting ended with two cautionary statements. Rosenthal warned, "We don't want do go so far that we stifle development." Baker advised, "Everyone's profit driven. If they can't make a profit, they will go somewhere else."

Thursday, June 3, 2021

COVID-19 Update

The Columbia County Department of Health has released its numbers for today. For the second day in a row, there are no new cases of COVID-19. There are seven fewer active cases today than yesterday, from which it can be inferred that seven more county residents are now considered to be recovering from the virus. There are two fewer county residents in mandatory quarantine today than yesterday, and one fewer hospitalized with the virus. No one is in the ICU, and there has not been a death from COVID-19 in Columbia County since May 4.

The New York Forward dashboard is reporting a positivity rate for Columbia County yesterday of 0.0 percent and a seven-day average of 0.3 percent. By comparison, the daily positivity rate for the Capital Region is 0.5 percent and the seven-day average is 0.7 percent.

A year ago today, the CCDOH reported one new case of COVID-19. The total number of cases was 393, and the number of active cases was 115. Forty-nine additional county residents were consigned to mandatory quarantine, 18 were hospitalized with the virus, and 1 was in the ICU. The total number of deaths attributed to COVID-19 at this time last year was 34.

A Solar Farm and the Landfill

Tuesday's meeting of the Conservation Advisory Council was attended by some people who don't normally attend CAC meetings: Council president Tom DePietro, Public Works commissioner Peter Bujanow, and Christine Vanderlan from the Columbia Land Conservancy. Bujanow was there, DePietro explained, "to clarify misinformation that seems to be out there." DePietro was referring to a post on Gossips reporting that, in the discussion at a Common Council ad hoc committee, the scope of the area being considered as a possible site for a solar farm had expanded to include the capped landfill at the end of North Second Street. This "misinformation" had provoked comment from former mayor Tiffany Martin and First Ward supervisor Sarah Sterling and prompted the CAC to get involved--all of which DePietro characterized as "kerfuffle."

In clarifying the situation, Bujanow explained that DePietro had "assigned him" to look at two parcels: the plateau above Charles Williams Park, the site that had been discussed all along, and another parcel on North Second Street that bordered and appeared to "overlap with the landfill." Referring to the capped landfill, Bujanow said, "It only made sense to me to explore that as well." He mentioned again a conversation he'd had with Ron Knott, supervisor for the Town of Stuyvesant and chair of the county Public Works Committee, and said Knott was "looking to develop landfills throughout the county." He mentioned a study done by the EPA in 2017 which found the landfill in Hudson would be a "great site" for solar. When CAC member David Konigsberg asked if any study had been done that considered viewshed and habitat, Bujanow answered, "That is not what I do."

Bujanow asserted, "You can't really walk on that landfill," and opined, "It's not intended to be a park." Vanderlan clarified, harking back perhaps to an idea proposed decades ago of turning the landfill into a amphitheater, that "creating new places for people to gather is not a possibility" for the landfill, "but a walking path is very doable." She noted that the design done several years ago by Starr Whitehouse includes a path over the landfill that connects to the Greenport Conservation Area. Former youth director Nick Zachos opined, "Having a trail and access to the conservation area is a social justice issue."

CAC member Tom O'Dowd asked, "Can solar and trails coexist?" Later, CAC member Hilary Hillman reiterated, "[The question] can the solar coexist with the natural situation has yet to be answered." At the end of the meeting, the question of coexistence remained unanswered.

There seems to be a certain amount of mission drift when it comes to this project. In the beginning, it seemed the principal purpose was to put a parcel of City-owned land to some useful and revenue-producing purpose. During much of the discussion at the CAC meeting it seemed that creating a solar farm was the main objective, and the challenge was finding a site. At one point, Bujanow asked, "If not a capped landfill, where else in two square miles do you put it?" DePietro commented, "The original idea was to use an open space that has no other use and is not highly visible." Presumably he was talking about the site just north of Charles Williams Park.

At the end of the meeting, it was not clear what was to happen next. Bujanow suggested he would "put the RFP out with the two sites without the landfill," but he added, "Since I was in that vicinity, being proactive, I think it will generate more interest if it includes the landfill." DePietro asked, "Are we worried that if we don't do solar ourselves [on the landfill] the county will do it?" Bujanow responded, "Ron Knott is seriously considering putting solar on all landfills in the county, including Hudson." CAC member Michael O'Hara asked if the other landfills in the county were flat, asserting, "The Hudson landfill is not going to work [because it is sloped]." O'Hara questioned if the EPA had done a site visit and realized that the landfill is sloped.

It is reassuring that, despite their concern being called by DePietro "kerfuffle" and "a tempest in a teapot," the CAC is focused and involved with this issue.

Wednesday, June 2, 2021

Times Are Changing

I bought my house and became a full-time resident of Hudson in 1993. Back then, it was considered a good thing when a house that been constructed as a single-family home but had in subsequent years been divided into apartments became a single-family home once again. My own house was such a house, as were most of the houses in my neighborhood. Tonight, at the meeting of the Common Council ad hoc committee pursuing inclusionary zoning, Michelle Tullo, the recently hired Housing Justice Manager, asked if there was a penalty for doing such a thing.

COVID-19 Update

The Columbia County Department of Health has released its numbers for today. Since yesterday, there have been no new cases of COVID-19. The number of active cases being reported today is four fewer than yesterday, from which it can be inferred that four more county residents are now considered to be recovering from the virus. There are nine fewer county residents in mandatory quarantine today than yesterday, but the number hospitalized with the virus has remained unchanged since Saturday, Mary 29. There has not been a death from COVID-19 in Columbia County since May 4.

The New York Forward dashboard is reporting a positivity rate for Columbia County yesterday of 0.0 percent and a seven-day average of 0.4 percent. By comparison, the daily positivity rate for the Capital Region is 0.9 percent and the seven-day average is 0.7 percent.

A year ago today, the CCDOH reported 2 new cases of COVID-19. The total number of cases was 392, and the number of active cases was 116. Forty-four additional county residents were consigned to mandatory quarantine, 17 were hospitalized with the virus, and 1 was in the ICU. The total number of deaths attributed to COVID-19 at this time last year was 34.

Another Proposal, Another Contention

The historic industrial building at Sixth and Washington streets has been vacant for decades. It started its life as one of the two locations of Union Mills.

The building's last industrial use, up until the late 1960s or early 1970s, was manufacturing purses and other leather goods, hence the familiar name the building now has: the Pocketbook Factory.

One of the few surviving remnants of Hudson's industrial past, the building, has stood vacant and virtually unused for decades. It was cause for celebration when, earlier this year, the word was out that the building had new owners whose goal was "to revitalize the property so that it can be widely enjoyed."

The plans for the building made their public debut at the Planning Board meeting on May 11, but even before the project was presented, the Planning Board received five letters protesting the proposed project. For the most part, the letters characterized the project as a "hotel and spa," terms that evoke luxury and privilege. One of the letters argued, "The city has a housing crisis. Not a hotel crisis." An article about the proposal that appeared in the Register-Star the day after the Planning Board meeting focused on the negative: "Pocketbook factory proposal draws criticism."

The public hearing on the project is scheduled to begin next Tuesday, on June 8. Before then, it makes sense to revisit what is being proposed.

Although the project's critics have focused on the hotel and spa, those uses account for only half of the building. Sean Roland, one of the principals for the project, explains these uses are needed to make what is the massive restoration project economically viable. The hotel is meant to be inclusive. There will be a diversity of room sizes, and the room rates are promised to be affordable.

What critics call a spa, Roland prefers to call a wellness center, maintaining that "wellness is more of a right than a luxury." The wellness center will offer, among other things, education about nutrition and yoga classes and will serve local residents as well as visitors.

The other half of the building and the outdoor garden will be public spaces--leasable commercial space, spaces for entrepreneurial businesses, inclusive and diverse spaces for hospitality. Roland told Gossips that in their plans for diversity in restaurant offerings involve both a restaurant and a scaled-down cafe, the latter to accommodate Nick Zachos's suggestion that kids coming from nearby Oakdale Lake need a place to buy a hotdog or an ice cream cone. Also planned are comfortable, open spaces--a lobby and lounge and a garden, designed by Wagner Hodgson--which will be open to the public "without expectation of commercial gain."

The project also involves the restoration of the historic industrial building, which is in need of rehabilitation, in accordance with the standards set by the State Historical Preservation Office (SHPO).

Reacting to the initial presentation to the Planning Board on May 11, Steven Steim, who is now interim chair of the Planning Board, said, "Looking at it on paper, it's a beautiful project. My concern is the neighborhood." Betsy Gramkow, who was chairing her final Planning Board meeting, called the presentation "an outstanding first look at the proposal." She advised, "You want your neighbors to be happy at the end of the day. I have great faith in this project, and your ability to solve the problems."

Visit the Eleanor

Gossips has been following the progress of the Eleanor for ten years, ever since the project for restore the historic Hudson River sailboat was first announced back on January 2011.

Now that the restoration is complete, and the sailboat is back in the water, the Hudson River Historic Boat & Sailing Society invites you to celebrate the return of the Eleanor to the Hudson River and to Hudson.

For three days in June, the Eleanor will be docked at the Hudson Power Boat Association, 23 Ferry Street, on the Hudson waterfront.

Friday, June 18, 12:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.
Saturday, June 19, 10:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
Sunday, June 20, 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

Learn about the Eleanor's history and restoration and about the Hudson River. Memberships will be available for sailing throughout the season.

Tuesday, June 1, 2021

Still No News of the Buyer

The Hudson Development Corporation just issued the following press release. Unfortunately, for those of us eager to know the identity of the buyer, that information is not contained herein.

The Hudson Development Corporation (HDC) called a special meeting at noon today to review offers to purchase its 4.5 acre parcel on Montgomery Street, often referred to as the Kaz Warehouse. It was announced that the board voted unanimously to accept a letter of intent to sell the property.

“A portfolio of real estate holdings doesn’t fit with our mission,” said Robert Rasner, President of the HDC. “Our mission is to grow business and support the economic growth of the city of Hudson. Real estate sitting idle just doesn’t do that.”

The HDC began divesting itself of real estate assets last year with the sale of a building lot on Mill Street and the pending sale of 3.3 acres on Mt. Merino. An immediate benefit to the city, even before construction begins, is the property will go back on the tax rolls. It has been off the tax rolls since 1985. “This will contribute significantly to the city fund balance and to the school budget,” said HDC Executive Director Branda Maholtz. “The site’s tax contribution as it develops will only provide increasing revenues to the city for the years to come.”

The Montgomery Street property was recently assessed at $2.3 million and listed for sale at $2 million. Numerous parties expressed interest, and of that, two parties submitted offers. The two prospective buyers were very similar in the monies offered, their conceptual use for the site, and each was committed to using DRI monies. On Monday, May 31st, for unexplained reasons, one of the parties withdrew their letter of intent taking them out of consideration.

The special meeting went on as planned with Rasner explaining the situation asking the board if they were prepared to consider only the one offer, the board went into executive session to review and discuss the financial merits and terms of the remaining offer. After less than an hour in executive session, the board returned to a public session and took a vote. The vote was unanimous to accept the offer.

Those members of the public present when the votes were taken were not privy to the amount of the offer or the name of the buyer. “The specifics of the agreement can’t be made public until the sale is completed and the deed is filed with the County Clerk,” said Rasner. “However, the sale price has far exceeded our expectations and the buyer’s mixed-use plans for the site are in sync with the HDC mission. What we can share,” said Rasner, “is that this will go down as one of the largest real estate transfers in recent years in City of Hudson.” The actual sale is expected to occur within 90-days.

Once the sale occurs, the HDC will pay off a $200,000 loan to the Columbia Economic Development Corporation (CEDC) that was used to purchase an adjoining CSX parcel. The HDC board is preparing for the management of the remaining proceeds from the sale.

“With these substantial funds, the HDC is fully back on track with its mission and the HDC board is stronger than ever,” says Rasner. “The collective makeup of the board includes talent and experiences in the fields of Law, Real Estate, Hospitality, Manufacturing, Public Relations & Marketing, Business Management, Transportation Planner and Not-for-Profit Administration. With inclusion of the Mayor and Common Council President, they are all personally invested in the City of Hudson and only have the best interest of the city at heart.

“Business is the life-line of the City and if business and economic development is strong, the entire City of Hudson benefits,” said Rasner. “The HDC is poised and capable, now more than ever, to help make it happen."

COVID-19 Update

The Columbia County Department of Health has released its numbers for today. Since Saturday, there have been two new cases of COVID-19. The number of active cases being reported today is four fewer than Saturday, from which it can be inferred that six more county residents are now considered to be recovering from the virus. There are fourteen fewer county residents in mandatory quarantine today than on Saturday, but the number hospitalized with the virus remains the same. None of the hospitalized is in the ICU. There has not been a death from COVID-19 in Columbia County since May 4.

A year ago today, the CCDOH reported one new case of COVID-19 and one death. The total number of cases was 390, and the number of active cases was 114. Thirty-six county residents were newly consigned to mandatory quarantine, 18 were hospitalized, and 1 was in the ICU. The total number of deaths attributed to COVID-19 at this time last year was 34.

News from the HDC

We still don't know who the buyer is, but at a special meeting at noon today the board of the Hudson Development Corporation (HDC) voted unanimously to accept the letter of intent from one of the prospective buyers for the Montgomery Street property.

In his opening comments, Bob Rasner, who chairs the HDC board, reported that early yesterday morning he received word that the offer from one of the two prospective buyers had been withdrawn, with no explanation given. He met with the person who had made the other offer, and it remained, but that offer too would be withdrawn if the board could not make a decision by the end of today's meeting.

Rasner likened the process of selling the parcel to a road trip, with children asking from the back seat, "Are we there yet?" At the beginning of the meeting, he suggested that the answer was, "We are very, very close." At the end of the meeting, after an executive session that lasted for half an hour followed by a unanimous vote to accept the letter of intent, Rasner returned to his metaphor of the road trip to conclude, "We are pulling into the Disneyland parking lot right now."

HDC did not reveal the identity of the buyer at the request of the buyer, who wants to make his own announcement. When that announcement is made, you can trust that Gossips will share the news.

Meetings of Interest in the Days Ahead

After a cold and rainy Memorial Day weekend, there are a number of interesting meetings to start off the month of June.

Today, Tuesday, June 1, the Hudson Development Corporation (HDC) Board of Directors holds a special meeting at noon to consider its two offers on the Montgomery Street property. It is likely that much of the meeting will take place in executive session, but it is possible that some information about the potential buyers may be revealed. Click here to join the Zoom meeting.

Also today, Tuesday, June 1, the Hudson Industrial Development Agency (IDA) holds a special meeting at 1:00 p.m. It is expected that at this meeting the IDA will review the financial analysis of the PILOTs sought by the Galvan Foundation for the two buildings proposed for North Seventh Street. The financial analysis compares the cost of the project to the City in foregone taxes to the benefits it offers. Click here to join the Zoom meeting.

At 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday, June 1, the Conservation Advisory Council holds its regular monthly meeting. The intent to site a solar farm on the capped landfill at the end of North Second Street, made known at last Wednesday's meeting of the Common Council ad hoc committee pursuing the idea of solar farms, will be a topic of discussion. Click here to join the Zoom meeting.

On Wednesday, June 2, the subcommittee of the Hudson Housing Authority Board of Commissioners pursuing development of HHA properties meets at 6:00 p.m. Last week, the group held a town hall meeting with tenants. This week, the subcommittee is likely to discuss what was learned at that meeting and possibly review a draft RFQ (request for qualifications) for the project. Click here to join the Zoom meeting.
Also on Wednesday, June 2, at 6:00 p.m., the Common Council ad hoc committee on inclusionary zoning holds its monthly meeting. What is now being considered is a law that would require that 25 percent of the units in any new or substantially renovated building with four or more units be set aside as affordable housing. What is meant by affordable has not yet been defined. The Zoom link to this meeting should be posted on the City of Hudson website prior to the meeting.

And it's it for the week. Happy June!