On the Subject of a Parks Department

Last Tuesday, at their first meeting of the new year, members of the Conservation Advisory Council expressed the desire to have a Parks Department in Hudson, whose responsibility would be the care and keeping of the public parks and open spaces in the city. 

Last night, at the informal meeting of the Common Council, DPW superintendent Rob Perry addressed the issue of parks and the discussion of a new Parks Department. He assessed the work that would fall to such a new department, mainly in terms of the mowing and maintenance of 35 sites totaling 22 acres. His statistics did not include the cemetery, which is a separate department within the Department of Public Works, or Oakdale Lake.

Perry told the Council that the money allocated for the parks, which totals about $145,000, is less than 3 percent of the total DPW budget, but the parks are 30 percent of his headache. He went on to say, "If they want put parks somewhere else, I'm handing' the keys tomorrow."

It may be that a Parks Department is an idea whose time has come.

COPYRIGHT 2022 CAROLE OSTERINK

More News of the Common Council

One thing that typically happens at the organizational meeting of the Common Council is the announcement of committee assignments. That did not happen last night. 

In the past, dating back to the earliest days of the Common Council, there were standing committees. Most recently, there were eight: Housing and Transportation, Legal, Fire, Police, Public Works and Parks, Economic Development, and Youth, Education, Seniors and Recreation. At the beginning of 2021, Council president Tom DePietro did away with all the standing committees in favor of ad hoc committees, formed to address specific issues and disbanded when the issue was resolved. This year, DePietro explained that a bad cold had prevented him from making the committee assignments but told the alders, "The committee arrangement will be ready by the formal meeting," which takes place next Tuesday. By "committee arrangement," DePietro meant not only committee assignments but what committees will exist. The Legal Committee was brought back in August 2021. What other committees may exist 2022 is not known. 

When asked by Alder Margaret Morris (First Ward) about the process of forming committees, DePietro told her, "I do it." Past Council presidents have asked the alders which committees they would like to serve on. DePietro's process is different. He explained that he had interviewed all the alders to determine their interests and strengths, and he would use that information to make committee assignments.

COPYRIGHT 2022 CAROLE OSTERINK

News of the Common Council

At the organizational meeting of the Common Council tonight, it was revealed who would be the majority leader and minority leader. Dominic Merante, who is beginning his third term as an alder representing the Fifth Ward, will serve as majority leader, and Ryan Wallace, who is beginning his sixth month as an alder representing the Third Ward, will serve as minority leader.  

The two were elected by a caucus made up of the entire Council, since all the members are of the same party, which met this past Friday. The majority leader and the minority leader serve ex officio on the Industrial Development Agency (IDA) and Hudson Community Development and Planning Agency (HCDPA).

Tonight's meeting also provided some clarity about the process for filling the vacancy on the Council. It is rumored that Calvin Lewis has officially made known his intention not to take office. Tonight, in response to a question from Merante, Council president Tom DePietro said they would be "acting on that in the immediate future, probably at the next meeting." So far, only Amber Harris, who ran a write-in campaign in November that garnered 84 votes, is the only person to express interest in filling the vacancy. Tonight, as he has done in the past, DePietro invited any Third Ward resident interested in serving on the Council to contact him.

COPYRIGHT 2O22 CAROLE OSTERINK

Dogs and Humans . . . Now and Then

Today, if you were to leave a dog tied up in the backyard overnight in January, you would very likely be reported for animal abuse. The general opinion of those who would do such a thing is expressed by this meme which appeared recently on Facebook.

Facebook|DCRSA

A hundred and fifty years ago, someone who would do such a thing might be subject to shaming in the local newspaper, but not necessarily for the inhumane treatment of the dog. This notice appeared in the Hudson Daily Star on January 10, 1872.

COPYRIGHT 2022 CAROLE OSTERINK

COVID-19 Update

After taking the weekend off from reporting, the Columbia County Department of Health released its numbers early today--at 1:00 p.m. Since Friday, there have been 3 more deaths from COVID-19 and 335 new cases. The number of active cases being reported today is 114 more than on Friday, from which it can be inferred that, since Friday, 218 county residents have recovered from the virus. There are 92 fewer county residents in mandatory quarantine today than on Friday, but the number hospitalized remains the same. Of those hospitalized, there is 1 fewer in the ICU. 

The New York Forward dashboard is reporting a positivity rate for Columbia County today of 18.5 percent and a seven-day average of 21.0 percent. By comparison, the daily positivity rate for the Capital Region is 19.6 percent and the seven-day average is 19.5.

A year ago today, the CCDOH reported 56 new cases of COVID-19. The total number of cases was 2,175, and the number of active cases was 296. There were 353 county residents in mandatory quarantine, 26 were hospitalized, and 1 was in the ICU. The total number of deaths attributed to COVID-19 at this time last year was 53.

Dine Early . . . or Late

The city charter (Section C12-2) dictates the following regarding the organizational meeting which takes place tonight: "The Common Council shall meet at the Common Council chambers annually on the second Monday preceding the third Tuesday of January at 7:00 p.m., prevailing time." As a consequence, unlike other Council meetings nowadays, the meeting tonight will begin at 7:00 p.m., followed immediately by the informal meeting of the Council for January. Click here to join the Zoom meeting. 

Meetings of Interest in the Week Ahead

When it comes to meetings, the year begins in earnest this week, with something to Zoom in on every day but Thursday.

• On Monday, January 10, the Common Council holds its organizational meeting at 7:00 p.m., followed by the informal meeting for the month. At the organizational meeting it is expected the majority and minority leaders for the next two years will be announced. On the agenda for the informal meeting is a resolution reappointing to the Conservation Advisory Council the four people whose terms have expired: David Konigsberg, Hilary Hillman, Tom O'Dowd, and Michael O'Hara. Click here to join the Zoom meeting.
• On Tuesday, January 11, the Planning Board meets at 6:00 p.m. No agenda for the meeting is available, but there will be the continuation of the public hearing on the proposal to convert 26 Warren Street, now used as a bed and breakfast, into a hotel. The meeting will also be an opportunity to learn who has been appointed to fill the two vacancies left by Stephen Steim and Laura Margolis. Click here to join the Zoom meeting. 

• On Wednesday, January 12, the Hudson Housing Authority Board of Commissioners meets at 6:00 p.m. The meeting will take place on Zoom, but the link to the meeting has not yet been published.
• On Friday, January 14, the Historic Preservation Commission holds its first meeting of the year at 10:00 a.m. The meeting will be held on Zoom. The link to the meeting has not yet been published. 

COPYRIGHT 2022 CAROLE OSTERINK

Winding the City Clock

In October, Gossips published a post called "Time Stands Still" which quoted DPW superintendent Rob Perry talking about the experience of climbing the steep passageway into the tower of the First Presbyterian Church to wind the city clock and proffering the invitation, "Anyone who would like to have the job of winding the clock, please see me."

As it turns out, someone took Perry up on his invitation, and there is now a volunteer who winds the clock every Friday. The new clock winder wrote a blog post about why and how he came to volunteer for the task, which can be read here. Those of us who value the clock and its long tradition owe him a great debt of gratitude. Gossips is honored to have played a small role in making this happen.

COPYRIGHT 2022 CAROLE OSTERINK

Happy Birthday, Betty White

On the last day of 2021, Betty White, comedienne, actress, and well-known lover of animals, especially dogs, died at the age of 99, just weeks before her 100th birthday.

Soon after her death, a plan for honoring Betty White's 100th birthday, which takes place on January 17, began circulating the internet. The suggestion, which has become known as the "Betty White Challenge," was that on her 100th birthday people donate $5 in her name to their favorite animal rescue or shelter.    

On Thursday, the Columbia-Greene Humane Society announced that a generous donor will match contributions made to CGHS in memory of Betty White, up to $5,000. Donations to CGHS in the Betty White Challenge can be made by clicking here on January 17.

COVID-19 Update

The Columbia County Department of Health has released its numbers for today, and the news is mostly bad--stunningly bad. Since yesterday, there has been another death from COVID-19 and 188 new cases. The number of active cases being reported today is 33 fewer than yesterday, from which it can be inferred that, since yesterday, 220 county residents have recovered from the virus. There are 15 more county residents in mandatory quarantine today than yesterday, and 6 fewer are hospitalized. Of those hospitalized, 1 more is in the ICU.

In a press release from Board of Supervisors chair Matt Murell today, it was announced that the CCDOH plans to discontinue contact tracing:

As of Monday, January 10, the Columbia County Department of Health will dramatically cut back on the amount of contact tracing it is doing with COVID-19 cases. This comes as a recommendation from the NYS Health Department as a result of the dramatic spike in positive cases. Those who have newly tested positive will continue to be contacted by county DOH.

“Contact tracing is the most time consuming part of the work we do during our case investigations,” said DOH Director Jack Mabb, “and people have become increasingly unwilling to tell us their family, work and social contacts. It rendered the time spent tracing unproductive. Concentrating on contacting the positives is the most productive thing we can do. The department will still be doing contact tracing when there is a positive case in a congregate setting such as a nursing home.”

The New York Forward dashboard is reporting a positivity rate for Columbia County today of 17.5 percent and a seven-day average of 18.9 percent. By comparison, the daily positivity rate for the Capital Region yesterday was 20.1 percent and the seven-day average was 18.9 percent.

A year ago today, the CCDOH reported 77 new cases of COVID-19. The total number of cases was 2,010, and the number of active cases was 386. There were 329 county residents in mandatory quarantine, 23 were hospitalized, and 1 was in the ICU. The total number of deaths attributed to COVID-19 at this time last year was 51.

About the Mayor's Public Hearing

Yesterday, Mayor Kamal Johnson held a public hearing on two local laws that the Common Council had voted to enact. The first was labeled "A Local Law Amending Chapter 325 of the Code of the City of Hudson to Allow Eating and Drinking Establishments in the R-4 Zoning District." The Council has been struggling with the need for this amendment for a few years now. The immediate impetus for the law has been one man: Basil Nooks, who bought a building on North Third Street, in an R-4 District, which had been a tavern for decades--first Christie's, then Joe's, then the Flying Frog--but not recently enough for its commercial use to be grandfathered in. 

The proposed Local Law No. 9 of 2017 would have addressed the problem, as well as solving the problem of Stewart's not being able to upgrade its facility at Green Street and Fairview Avenue, but the Council instead opted for a change to the zoning that allowed Stewart's to expand, demolishing two adjacent residential properties in the process, and will allow Scali's to the same should they ever decide to.

At yesterday's public hearing, only one person commented. That was Keith Kanaga, who was speaking from written comments he had previously submitted to the mayor and afterward shared with Gossips. In those comments, he points out that, although only eating and drinking establishments are mentioned in the title of the law, the proposed law actually refers to a number of commercial uses:

• Retail stores and banks
• Personal service stores, including but not limited to barbershops, beauty parlors, and tailors
• Eating and drinking places
• Service establishments furnishing services other than of a personal nature, including convenience stores

Kanaga's statement goes on it say:

An important rationale for the proposed law is given in Section 2. Legislative Findings, Intent and Purposes which states the inability to operate the uses above in the R4 district ". . . is too broad because it effectively limits commercial uses to the Warren Street commercial center. . . ." But that is followed by "By Local Law 9 of 2018, the City permitted such establishments within the R-2 and R-2H districts. . . ." Although not referenced in Section 2, these uses are also permitted in the Residential Special Commercial (RSC) district. It is also the fact that Warren Street is only part of the Central Commercial district, which also includes much of Union Street and Columbia Street. These uses are permitted throughout the entire Central Commercial district, not just Warren Street.

So the rationale for this proposed law is not supported by the facts.

I also find it troubling that there is no indication of the number of structures to which this proposed law would apply, and where they are located in R4. Surely this information is basic to understanding the potential impact of the proposed law and should have been addressed by the Common Council before passing the proposed law. 

Comment at the Common Council public hearing by Steve Dunn indicated that this proposed law was designed to benefit one person, bypassing any other remedies such as Zoning Board of Review approval for a use variation. I believe it inappropriate that a law is being passed to benefit one person.

Kanaga urged the mayor to veto the law and send it back to the Common Council for re-examination, citing these reasons:

• The premise of the legislation is incorrect as to the limit of these uses in the City, showing a lack of understanding of the current City zoning.
• Section 2 of the proposed law emphasizes eating and drinking places when the proposed law permits a number of uses. No discussion of these additional uses, and the impact on R4 district appears to have taken place.
• The proposed law is designed to benefit one person without considering the wider impact on the entire district while alternative courses of action are open to the person benefiting from this proposed law.
• No inventory of eligible structures has been provided. Common Council and the public are in the dark about the potential impact on R4 district.

It is not known if the mayor has vetoed the law or has signed it into law, but Kanaga is right to criticize the Council for not examining the impact of the proposed law more closely. The truth is there is a finite and easily identified number of buildings that will be affected by this law. They are buildings that were constructed for commercial purposes or had commercial uses prior to 1968, when the City of Hudson adopted its zoning, and found themselves in areas designated R-4 Residential by that zoning. 

A prime example is the building at South Third and Partition streets that was Harmon's Auto Repair. It had been an auto repair shop prior to 1968, and that use was grandfathered in whenever the business and the building changed owners. The building was sold in 2013 and stood vacant for more than a year, so a commercial use could no longer be grandfathered in. When the proprietors of Ör sought site plan approval from the Planning Board in 2015 for a coffee shop/wine bar cum art gallery, they were advised to emphasize the art gallery aspect of the business, because an art gallery was a conditional use allowed in an R-4 district. A coffee shop/wine bar was not.

Other buildings that will be affected by the proposed new law are also found on South Third Street, just across Partition Street from this building, which is now the location of Wylde. 

Both of these buildings have storefronts. One was the location for many years of Ritter's Grocery. Neither building could be a retail store again without the zoning amendment in the proposed law. Those with misgivings about the proposed law might have been reassured if the Council had, as Kanaga suggests, provided an inventory of the buildings that would be eligible for commercial uses. There are not that many of them.

Kanaga suggests that there are other remedies for Nooks' plight. Unfortunately, he has exhausted them. He has twice applied to the Zoning Board of Appeals for a use variance--once in 2007 and again in 2017. Neither attempt ended in success. One of the four requirements for a use variance is that the hardship is not self-created. Nooks' building ceased being the Flying Frog Tavern & Grill in 2004. Nooks bought the building in 2007, two years after the commercial use could be grandfathered in.

The other law that was the subject of the mayor's public hearing yesterday was the one regarding the honorary naming of streets. There were no public comments about that law. Both laws were the initiative of former Second Ward Alder Tiffany Garriga.

COPYRIGHT 2022 CAROLE OSTERINK

Do We Need This?

According to the Columbia County Department of Health, there were 172 new cases of COVID-19 in the county since yesterday. People are calling what's happening now "the pandemic of the unvaccinated." But if you venture to the village shops in Chatham anytime soon, here's what you will encounter on your way back to Hudson.

COVID-19 Update

The Columbia County Department of Health released its numbers a bit early today, and the number of new cases reported seems to be the highest it has ever been: 172. The number of active cases being reported today is 95 more than yesterday, from which it can be inferred that, since yesterday, 77 county residents have recovered from the virus. There are 38 more county residents in mandatory quarantine today than yesterday, but there are 2 fewer hospitalized. Of those hospitalized, 1 more is in the ICU. There has not been a death from COVID-19 in Columbia County since Tuesday.  

The New York Forward dashboard is reporting a positivity rate for Columbia County yesterday, when there were 106 new cases, of 25.2 percent and a seven-day average of 18.2 percent. By comparison, the daily positivity rate for the Capital Region yesterday was 19.9 percent and the seven-day average was 18.0 percent.

A year ago today, the CCDOH reported 70 new cases of COVID-19. The total number of cases was 1.933, and the number of active cases was 364. There were 329 county residents in mandatory quarantine, 23 were hospitalized, and 1 was in the ICU. The total number of deaths attributed to COVID-19 at this time last year was 51.

New Year's Goals: New Department, New Board

At Tuesday night's Conservation Advisory Council meeting, the members of the CAC, the terms of some of whom have expired, talked about goals for the new year. Britt Zuckerman said she wanted a Parks Department in the city with the expertise to care for the parks as well as the street trees. She argued, "We cannot rely on volunteers to maintain the parks. We cannot rely on property owners to plant street trees." 

Hilary Hillman expressed the desire to adopt a tree ordinance and establish a Tree Board. She noted that the previous day three apparently healthy trees had been cut down on lower Union Street and explained that a Tree Board would review requests to remove trees to prevent unnecessary loss of street trees.

Marie Balle suggested that a Parks Department could also handle the care and maintenance of street trees and manage other public spaces, including the cemetery. 

Maija Reed, who was recently reappointed as Youth Commissioner, said she wanted a Parks and Recreation Department, which seemed an unusual request since it would seem a Parks and Recreation Department would eliminate the need for a Youth Department.

Neither adopting a tree ordinance and a Tree Board nor creating a Parks Department is a new idea. Both have been around for a decade or more. The question is: Will either of these things ever actually happen? A tree ordinance is a distinct possibility. It would cost the City virtually nothing, and a draft of such an ordinance already exists. A Parks and Recreation Department is different issue. Can a city of fewer than 6,000 inhabitants with a very small tax base afford another taxpayer funded department? It would seem only possible by cobbling together portions of the current budgets for the Department of Public Works and the Youth Department to fund the new department. 

COPYRIGHT 2022 CAROLE OSTERINK

COVID-19 Update

The Columbia County Department of Health has released its numbers for today. Since yesterday, there have been 106 new cases of COVID-19. The number of active cases being reported today is 19 more than yesterday, from which it can be inferred that, since yesterday, 87 county residents have recovered from the virus. There are 8 more county residents in mandatory quarantine today than yesterday, but the number hospitalized and in the ICU remains the same. There has not been a death from COVID-19 in Columbia County since yesterday. 

The New York Forward dashboard has not been updated since yesterday.

A year ago today, the CCDOH reported 54 new cases of COVID-19. The total number of cases was 1,863, and the number of active cases was 325. There were 301 county residents in mandatory quarantine, 29 were hospitalized, and 1 was in the ICU. The total number of deaths attributed to COVID-19 at this time last year was 51.

Regarding the Planning Board

At the inauguration on Sunday, some mayoral appointees were sworn in. Among them was Theresa Joyner, who will be the new chair of the Planning Board. Stephen Steim, who was appointed to the Planning Board by Mayor Kamal Johnson at the beginning of 2020 and became chair in June 2021 when Betsy Gramkow resigned, did not, for health reasons, seek reappointment. 

Yesterday, the Register-Star published an article about the inauguration with the headline "Joyner first woman of color to lead planning board." The first paragraphs of the article are of particular interest. 

Theresa Joyner was sworn in Sunday as the first woman and first woman of color to lead the city Planning Board . . . .

Joyner said she wants community members to know that the great ability she can bring to her job is availability as the Fair Housing Officer.

"First, I want to make sure that people know we are here and understand the position of Fair Housing Officer," Joyner said.

She plans to visit all of the affordable housing buildings in Hudson to hand out information on how she can be of assistance and will be available Friday afternoons from 3 to 5 p.m. in the Assessor's office at City Hall.

Joyner is actually not the first woman to chair the Planning Board. Up until only six months ago, Betsy Gramkow was chair of the Planning Board, and, if memory serves, Judy Meyer chaired the Planning Board back in the early 2000s. Some clue about how Joyner sees being chair of the Planning Board in relation to her position as Fair Housing Officer may be found in her response to a preliminary presentation in February 2021 by Benchmark Development for the market rate apartment building being considered for the first block of Warren Street. Joyner wanted to know who the tenants of the building would be, explaining, "My biggest concern is the need. Will it benefit the citizens?"

The chair of the Planning Board serves ex officio on the board of HCDPA (Hudson Community Development and Planning Agency) and the IDA (Industrial Development Agency. When Gramkow chaired the Planning Board, she designated John Cody as her proxy to represent the Planning Board on the IDA. That situation continued when Steim took over as chair. It is likely that Joyner will want to serve on the IDA herself.

COPYRIGHT 2022 CAROLE OSTERINK

COVID-19 Update

The Columbia County Department of Health has released its numbers for today. Since yesterday, there have been two more deaths from COVID-19. It is known from a press release issued earlier today from Matt Murell, chair of the Columbia County Board of Supervisors, that one of the two deaths was a 62-year-old man who was unvaccinated. The CCDOH also reported 107 new cases of COVID-19 since yesterday. 

The number of active cases being reported today is 74 more than yesterday, from which it can be inferred that, since yesterday, 31 county residents have recovered from the virus. There are 31 fewer county residents in mandatory quarantine today than yesterday, but the number hospitalized remains the same. Of those hospitalized, 1 fewer is in the ICU.  

The New York Forward dashboard is reporting a positivity rate for Columbia County today of 13.0 percent and a seven-day average of 16.3 percent. By comparison, the daily average for the Capital Region is 20.3 percent and the seven-day average is 16.3 percent.

A year ago today, the CCDOH reported 27 new cases of COVID-19 and one death. The total number of cases was 1,774, and the number of active cases was 271. There were 333 county residents in mandatory quarantine, 30 were hospitalized, and 1 was in the ICU. The total number of deaths attributed to COVID-19 at this time last year was 51.

Of Interest

The River, which is a project of Chronogram, has an article about the anti-vax movement in Columbia County, specifically about the group calling itself Do We Need This?: "Anti-Vaxxers Maintain Persistent Presence in the Hudson Valley."   

The article is a worthwhile read.

The Struggle Over Solar

In his remarks at the inauguration on Sunday, Mayor Kamal Johnson said, "We've accomplished a lot on climate this year, but I would like to see us look more into solar, just not at North Bay." He then added, after a little burst of laughter had subsided, "I'm gonna talk to Tom about that." (In the recording of the inauguration, these remarks can be heard at 5:07.) It's hard to tell if Johnson was serious about his opposition to installing solar panels in North Bay. Earlier in his remarks, he told the audience that he and Council president Tom DePietro "receive a lotta shots." His comment about solar and North Bay may have been a humorous allusion to opposition from the Conservation Advisory Council to siting solar arrays on the capped landfill in North Bay. A week or so before the inauguration, Johnson and DePietro, as well as the rest of the Common Council, had received a communication from the CAC which read in part:

We, the members of the Conservation Advisory Council (CAC), are concerned about the fast tracking of an RFP for large-scale solar development on RC-zoned land in the North Bay. This includes the capped former Columbia County Landfill, a parcel whose disposition our charter specifically asks us to weigh in on.

In our most recent meeting with Commissioner of Public Works Peter Bujanow and Council President Tom DePietro, we expressed our resistance to this proposal without, at the very least, incorporation of long-sought recreational/conservation objectives. Our recommendation is to use, as a starting point, the Starr Whitehouse design for the Columbia Land Conservancy’s proposed North Bay Conservation and Recreation Area.

If this land is to be part of this project, we strongly advise the Common Council to seek provisions that will benefit the city and its environment. These include protection of Hudson River viewshed and important grassland habitat, and incorporation of a long-sought trail system that will connect the City by foot to the Greenport Conservation Area. This trail will enable residents of the city to walk to one of the County’s most beautiful landscapes without needing a car; it would be a major recreational asset for the City, and achieving it is a matter of environmental justice.

It is particularly important to seek such benefits since the proposed solar development may, in fact, deliver few other significant advantages to the City of Hudson. The landfill—the part that interests developers most—is owned by the County, not the City, and the City would depend on the County’s largess for any share of revenues. As to lowering energy costs for our residents and businesses, as one of our members noted last week, the County already has plans for community solar development that would bring savings to all Columbia county residents, including residents of Hudson.

Given the lack of immediately identifiable benefits—and the loss of rare open space—the rush to an RFP on the part of the City is difficult to fathom. While we heartily support the development of renewable energy, we believe the City should be thoughtful about this proposal, and that the CAC should have the opportunity to consider features and design parameters that would achieve a balance between solar development, recreational amenities and habitat/open space.

 

The entire memo from the CAC, as well as a statement from CAC member Michael O'Hara, who chairs the Columbia County Environmental Management Council, regarding plans for community solar at the county level, can be found here.

Alternatives for hardscape siting of solar panels, as well as goals for the new year, will be topics of discussion at tonight's CAC meeting, which takes place at 6:00 p.m. Click here to join the Zoom meeting.

News from the Board of Supervisors

The Common Council will not hold its first meeting of the new year until next Monday, but this afternoon the Columbia County Board of Supervisors held its organizational meeting. The following press release from the Columbia County Democratic Committee tells what happened at that meeting.

On January 3, 2022, the Board of Supervisors held their Organizational Meeting. At the meeting, in an unusual and unprecedented move, Republican Chairman Matt Murell called for a vote on a resolution severing the Emergency Management Office (EMO) from the Columbia County Sheriff's Office. A majority of the Town Supervisors voted against the measure, but it narrowly passed because of weighted vote. No public comment was permitted on the measure.

"We needed to gather more information and do our due diligence before voting on this very important issue. Many supervisors, including myself, first learned about this proposal at the November public safety meeting. I requested that Chairman Murell postpone this vote and allow time to investigate best practices for emergency management. He declined to seek consensus. I'm disappointed in today's vote, but I hope that we can find common ground on other issues facing our county in the future," Tistrya Houghtling, New Lebanon's Town Supervisor and Minority Leader.

"The explanations for creating a new department and severing the EMO from the Sheriff's Office have been muddled and inconsistent. The timing, budget, and reasoning keep changing. And yet one thing that remains consistent--there hasn't been a compelling reason for why this decision needed to be rushed," said Michael Chameides, a Supervisor representing Hudson's 3rd Ward. "The voters elected Sheriff-elect Don Krapf to run the Sheriff's office and to have oversight over Emergency Management. Immediately following the election, it was proposed to reduce the Sheriff's budget and remove the Emergency Management Office. This is against the wishes of the voters." . . .

Supervisors Chameides and Houghtling were not the only Supervisors who were unhappy with the rushed voted on the future of the EMO. Jeanne Mettler, Copake's Town Supervisor, said, "I am disappointed that in the first days of 2022 we are departing from that goal of bipartisanship. For me this vote boils down to this: wholeheartedly accepting the results of an election and respecting the person who the voters have elected as Sheriff or not."

It was apparent during the roll call on the resolution that some Supervisors were confused on what they were voting for and the implications of passing Chairman Murell's partisan proposal. More than one Republican Supervisor gave those watching the meeting the impression that they believed they were voting on moving the offices of the EMO, not creating a completely new department. . . .

It is obvious from his quoted statement that Chameides voted against the proposal. It is not reported how the other four Hudson supervisors--Claire Cousin (First Ward), Abdus Miah (Second Ward), Linda Mussmann (Fourth Ward), and Rick Scalera (Fifth Ward)--voted, but since they are all Democrats, one can assume that they voted against the proposal.

Update: The link to the recorded Zoom meeting was provided by Steve Dunn in a comment on this post. To access the recording, click here. The discussion of this issue begins at about 21:09.

COVID-19 Update

The Columbia County Department of Health released its COVID numbers at 7:00 p.m. today. Since yesterday, there have been a staggering 126 new cases of COVID-19. The number of active cases being reported today is 17 more than yesterday, from which it can be inferred that, since yesterday, 109 county residents have recovered from the virus. The number of county residents in mandatory quarantine is 3 more than yesterday, and 1 more county resident is hospitalized. Of those hospitalized, the number in the ICU remains the same. There has not been a death from COVID-19 in Columbia County since Wednesday, December 29.  

The New York Forward dashboard is reporting a positivity rate for Columbia County today of 15.0 percent and a seven-day average of 17.4 percent. By comparison, the daily positivity rate for the Capital Region is 19.8 percent and the seven-day average is 16.1 percent.

A year ago today, the CCDOH reported 43 new cases of COVID-19. The total number of cases was 1,747, and the number of active cases was 258. There were 346 county residents in mandatory quarantine, 23 were hospitalized, and 1 was in the ICU. The total number of deaths attributed to COVID-19 at this time last year was 50.

Events of Interest in the Week Ahead

The new year is starting out slowly when it comes to city meetings. The Common Council doesn't have its organizational meeting until next Monday, January 10, so this week we are easing carefully into 2022.

• On Tuesday, January 4, the Conservation Advisory Council meets at 6:00 p.m. On the agenda for the meeting is a report about outreach regarding hardscape alternatives to the open space of North Bay for establishing solar arrays. The terms of half the members of the CAC--Hilary Hillman, Tom O'Dowd, David Konigsberg, and Michael O'Hara--expired at the end of 2021, and Gossips has received no word about reappointments. Since appointments to the CAC are made by the Common Council, that may have to wait until after the Council's organizational meeting on January 10. Tuesday's CAC meeting will take place on Zoom. Click here to join the meeting.  
• On Thursday, January 6, at 4:00 p.m., Mayor Kamal Johnson holds a public hearing on two proposed laws: Introductory K of 2021, which would amend the zoning code to allow eating and drinking establishments to exist in R4 zoning districts, and Introductory L of 2021, which would allow for the honorary naming of city streets. There are a few things to be noted about the two laws. For the law regarding commercial uses in R4 residential districts, the zoning change would apply only to buildings that currently have commercial uses or have had commercial uses in the past and have not subsequently become dwelling units. It would not allow a residential property to be converted into a restaurant or retail store. The second law, regarding the honorary naming of streets, does not allow for streets to be renamed. A street, or a portion thereof, would be given a second, honorary name "to commemorate individuals who have made significant contributions to the community and humanity." The law outlines the following criteria for honorary street naming:

1. The honoree must have made a demonstrable and significant positive impact on the community or contributed to the cultural, economic, educational, intellectual, political or scientific vitality of the community or have made an extraordinary contribution in the service of humanity.
2. The honoree must be a natural person, and no living individual shall be the subject of a proposed dedication, except by unanimous consent of the Common Council.
3. Proposals shall not be for names that could reasonably be considered derogatory, obscene or blasphemous.
4. Honorary designations shall be confined to the right-of-way within the vicinity of the home, organization, or location associated with the honoree.
5. The proposed name may not duplicate or be potentially confused with the name of an official City street name.
6. Each Council member and the Mayor may propose up to two honorary dedications per calendar year except in the circumstance where the naming is upon the request of the Mayor, in which case it shall not be counted as a dedication by the Council member. Dedications by Council members shall be within their respective wards.  

The mayor's public hearing will take place on Zoom. Click here to access the hearing.

COPYRIGHT 2022 CAROLE OSTERINK

Watch the Proceedings

Yesterday's inauguration can now be viewed on YouTube.

Part 1--The Mayor 

Part 2--The Common Council

COVID-19 Update

The Columbia County Department of Health has not reported COVID numbers since before New Year's Eve--three days ago. Since then, there have been 155 new cases of COVID-19. The number of active cases being reported today is 96 more than were reported on December 30, from which it can be inferred that, since last Thursday, 59 county residents have recovered from the virus. There are 149 fewer county residents in mandatory quarantine today than on December 30, and there are 3 more hospitalized, but 3 fewer of those hospitalized are in the ICU. There has not been a death from COVID-19 in Columbia County since Wednesday, December 29.  

The New York Forward dashboard is reporting a positivity rate for Columbia County yesterday of 20.9 percent and a seven-day average of 16.5 percent. By comparison, the positivity rate yesterday for the Capital Region was 16.3 percent and the seven-day average was 14.6 percent.

A year ago today, the CCDOH reported 77 new cases of COVID-19. The total number of cases was 1,704, and the number of active cases was 215. There were 393 county residents in mandatory quarantine, 23 were hospitalized, and 1 was in the ICU. The total number of deaths attributed to COVID-19 at this time last year was 50.

New Year, New Council

The new Common Council was sworn in today--at least eight of the ten alders were. Art Frick (First Ward) was not present. He reportedly had been sworn in last week at City Hall. Calvin Lewis (Third Ward) also was not present. It is still not clear if he intends to take office or not.

Margaret Morris, First Ward

Mohammed Rony and Dewan Sarowar, Second Ward

Ryan Wallace, Third Ward

Malachi Walker and Theo Anthony, Fourth Ward

Vicky Daskaloudi and Dominic Merante, Fifth Ward

The swearing in took place at the Central Fire Station. Seating was limited, and admission was by invitation only. Gossips was not invited and not present, but it was reported that Council president Tom DePietro delivered a speech at the event, in which he urged the new alders to emulate former First Ward alder Rebecca Wolff, who brought $1 million to the City in the form of the anti-displacement grant from Enterprise Community Partners. DePietro said the impact of the grant would be felt long into the future.

Gossips' Note: Back in 2008, when I was starting my second term as an alderman for the First Ward, I discovered that the representatives on the City Council in the very cool city of Madison, Wisconsin, were called alders, thus avoiding the gender specific terms alderman and alderwoman. I suggested to my colleagues on the Common Council that we should do the same in Hudson, but the idea was pooh-poohed by the Council president at the time, and it got no traction. In the past year, I have noticed that some of the alderwomen have taken to calling themselves alders. So, from hence forward, Gossips will use the term alder to refer to the women and men who represent the people of Hudson on the Common Council.

COPYRIGHT 2022 CAROLE OSTERINK

About the Colarusso Lawsuit

On New Year's Eve, Our Hudson Waterfront and the Valley Alliance submitted a four-page letter to the Planning Board, Mayor Kamal Johnson, and Council president Tom DePietro urging the City "to take swift action to protect the integrity of its Zoning Code and authority of its agencies, and to deter nuisance lawsuits designed to undermine their necessary and proper review processes" by asking the court "to summarily dismiss the recent lawsuit filed by A. Colarusso & Sons."

The letter goes on to assert:

The purposes of Colarusso’s action appear to be to intimidate Board members, delay the application of established local laws, and waste public resources in hopes of exhausting civic officials’ patience and budgets. This is just the latest in a series of attacks on your agencies and appointees, and cannot be tolerated without rendering the City’s entire Code meaningless.

The letter presents and elaborates on these five "clear and ample grounds for requesting and obtaining immediate dismissal of this lawsuit":

1. The issue of jurisdiction was already decided in the City's favor, and can't be re-litigated.
2. The lawsuit is premature and untimely because no final determination has been reached.
3. The DEC Commissioner upheld Hudson's jurisdictional responsibilities for the project.
4. Having filed applications and participated in their review, Colarusso can't turn back time and erase that ongoing process.
5. If anything, Colarusso has benefited from the City's indulgence, and many instances of bias in its favor.

Elaborating on the fifth point, the letter argues:

Despite the issuance of an Order to Remedy, the loss of all grandfathered status, and a court decision requiring applications for permits for the entire operation, the City has taken no action to stop the ongoing activities at the Hudson dock by Colarusso.

Though the company lost any claim of a prior right to continue operations, it has been allowed to do so throughout this long process—a process which has been greatly extended by Colarusso’s own intransigence and litigiousness.

The entire letter, which was signed by David Konigsberg and Donna Streitz for Our Hudson Waterfront and Peter Jung and Sam Pratt for the Valley Alliance, is reproduced here. 

To read the lawsuit filed by A. Colarusso & Sons, click here. Select "Search Records as Guest," enter "Colarusso" in the "Party 1" field, and click on "Search." Go to page 4 and scroll down to the bottom of the page. The link to the current lawsuit is the fifth item from the bottom.

COPYRIGHT 2022 CAROLE OSTERINK

Year in Review: 1921

On January 3, 1922, the Columbia Republican published a full page of "Happenings in Hudson During the Past Year--1921." Gossips shares some of the more interesting events of a hundred years ago.

January

1    Dr. Galster assumed his new duties as Mayor of Hudson.

8   A team of horses of the Mt. Ida Dairy caused considerable excitement on State St. by a sensational runaway in which bottles of milk flew in all directions. The driver was injured but not seriously.

9   Hundreds of skaters were on the pond to enjoy the first that skating has been possible since the recent warm spell.

13  For the first time the river was frozen from shore to shore and the ferry boat had considerable difficulty making its last trip.

15   Some variety of homebrew is thought to be responsible for the extremely unusual actions of a man who left a number of articles of clothing, a gold watch and considerable money in the hallway of the Hoffman home on No. Third St.

18   The coldest weather to hit Hudson so far this season came today, with the mercury hovering around zero and a March gale blowing.

21   The 25c haircut is back in Hudson again for the first time since pre-war times.

23   The police made more than the usual number of arrests for assault and intoxication charges. 

24   The mercury dropped 23 degrees in the past 24 hours, and the city is in the grip of the second cold snap of the season.

February

15   The warm weather makes impossible the use of the ferry sleigh on the Hudson-Athens route; but people are walking across.

25   Several hundred persons enjoyed coasting on Diamond St.

26   To-night was an unusually busy one in police circles and as the result five men spent the night in jail.

March

2    At one o'clock to-night, after a long filibuster the Common Council adopted the proposed charter for the city.

3    At a meeting of the Board of Health a case of sleeping sickness was reported; it is an epidemic to some extent thruout the country.

4    The welcome notes of a robin introduced spring 1921 to Hudson.

8    Ferry boat made its first trip, the river being cleared of ice.

14   James F. and Edwin C. Riley have purchased the Worth House and will conduct it in the future.

16   Unemployment situation in the city was greatly relieved when the Knickerbocker Cement plant started up on full time.

27   To-day was the warmest and fairest Easter day in years; there were unusually large congregations at every church.

28   The Anshe Amass congregation has purchased the Evans building at 247 Warren Street and will use it for the Hebrew School.

31   Common Council voted for daylight saving and the clocks in the city will be turned ahead the last Sunday in April.

April

27   Prohibition agents visit city, find no violations.

30   Police raid small grocery stores down town for hidden liquor.

May

9    Park Theatre opened.

30  Memorial Day parade largest and best ever seen here.

June

21   Fifty gallons of alcohol seized in down town barn; two men arrested.

23   Acker girl, who was kidnapped from Orphan Asylum by parents, taken back to the Home.

26   Kennel Club show proves great success; Hudson dogs are winners.

July

4    Holiday quiet and uneventful in Hudson; very warm.

7    Mercury hits 99. No relief from heat wave in sight.

16   Police, Sheriff and State troopers in booze raid find home brew and liquor in four Hudson places and a still on a county farm. Joseph Robinson and another Hudson man named Egan arrested for stealing beer from plant of C. H. Evans & Sons.

22   More "wet" goods discovered in raids by police and county officials. 

25   Contracts for streets and sewers of city awarded to A. Colarusso and M. Kearney.

26   Police and deputy sheriff raid four downtown places; destroy 5 barrels of home brew.

30   Seven Hudson cafe proprietors arrested after booze raids.

August

5    Frances Savage, 3 years old, of Hudson, dies of sleeping sickness; first death here from that malady.

23   Debris on city dump found afire.

September

2    Board of Health meeting discloses case of infantile paralysis in city.

29   Common Council has fiery meeting.

October

2    Three down town lads find loaded revolver; two slightly injured when it goes off.

16   Police raid Fulton street pool room.

23   Three girls escape from Training School.

27   Common Council held very quiet session. 

29   Police search Columbia street place, find 93 bottles of home brew. Police find crap game going on in Front St. place. 

31   Hallowe'en celebrated rather quietly, parade and Co. F ball being biggest features.

November 

4    Announcement made that C. H. Evans & Sons' plant will reopen for manufacture of India pale ale and brown stout if manufacture of medicinal beer is permitted.

 

December

2    Board of Education asks for new grammar school. . . . Three little girls found to be shoplifters.

3   Girl shoplifters put on probation.

15   Navigation on Hudson officially closed.

16   Charles Henry Foster, walking to San Francisco, arrives here.

24   85 Christmas baskets distributed to poor and 600 children receive presents at community Christmas tree.

29   No Council meeting owing to lack of quorum.