Should We Be Concerned With Our Current Police Chief, Too?

Not long before former HPD Police Chief Ed Moore resigned 3 years ago, HUDseen ran a piece or two calling into question his cognitive soundness.  I noticed him saying things at council meetings that made no sense.  He didn't seem like he was able to pay attention.  Something was amiss.  Then he said goodbye after ten years as our top law enforcement official, handing the baton to Lieutenant Mishanda Franklin.  Moore, a Germantown resident and former NY State cop who grew up in Hudson, had been called in from recent retirement to right the ship at the troubled HPD, long plagued by dysfunction and misconduct. 

The State of State? Not So Good!

About a week ago, I had the misfortune of finding myself walking on the odd side of the 300 block of State Street.  (Note to self:  If possible, avoid in the future!)  The word obscene came to mind.  These 5 pictures show the last stretch approaching 3rd.

SINKHOLE CITY

It's been at least two years, but it's time once again for another HUDseen article titled SINKHOLE CITY.   There are a lot of little holes to go around this time, some of them big expensive.  Our aging infrastructure is getting the best of us, and I can't imagine how much money we are spending just to keep up.  All of this comes on the heels of the huge (and hugely expensive) repair of the failed section of Harry Howard near Underhill Lake.  Though the State DOT covered the costs for that emergency which Colarusso was hired for (about $250,000, I believe), the work necessary to fix what follows below will have to be paid for with city taxpayer funds.  If they are available.

From "250 Or More" To 15! "I Mean, It's Possible." Gettin' It Done At The So-Called SAFETY Committee!

Just over two months ago, HPD Captain David Miller did his best to convince everyone at the May meeting of the so-called SAFETY Committee that HPD issued "200 to 250 or more" speeding tickets in the first quarter of this year.  It was laughable.  It was an outright lie, though Miller conceded that since he didn't have the data with him that he was just approximating.  And it didn't help that, as he admitted later in an email, he thought he was being asked (by two different residents!) about traffic tickets in general, not specifically about speeding tickets.  (Both residents uttered the term "speeding tickets" multiple times.)   Last month, Miller also didn't have the data with him when asked by the same concerned Warren Street resident who showed up to the meeting again and had asked him for the same numbers the month before.  During last Monday's July meeting, Miller didn't have the data again because, as Mishanda Franklin explained, he was on vacation.  It must have been an unplanned vacation, because at last month's meeting Miller was asked by committee chair Henry Haddad if he would bring the speeding ticket data with him to the "next meeting," and he said that he would.  Fortunately, Chef Franklin brought the speeding ticket data for the second quarter with her to share with everyone.

Just Six Months In Office, And He's Already Lost Support From People Who Got Him There

I first noticed the posters critical of our mayor's handling of the Mill Street Lofts project this afternoon at State & Dodge.  I don't recall seeing anything similar during his predecessor's six years in office.  Ferris has really disappointed a whole lot of residents who voted for him.

Scheme or Scam? Or Both?

 

It's not dumb enough that anyone standing in front of or interacting with one of the city's $10,000 sidewalk parking kiosks has no way of knowing what hours and days paid parking is in effect. No, it gets dumber than that, thanks to HPD Parking Captain David Miller. (Though, I imagine, he would deny being in charge of decorating, maintaining or programming the kiosks, saying instead, "that's someone else's responsibility, not mine."  Miller is glad to give his monthly parking report to the SAFETY Committee with data from the Parking Bureau that is supposedly run by someone else, but he'll take no responsibility for anything that goes wrong with the Parking Bureau's GREAT new paid parking scheme.) 

But WHY Was It Demolished? Simply Due To Neglect? Because Galvan Said It Had To Happen? Or Because It Doesn't Matter?

About two weeks ago, Galvan's long neglected and vacant house at 59 Short Street was demolished. Gone. Yet another case of demolition by neglect, brought to us in equal parts from City Hall (ignoring Galvan's neglect) and from the city's largest landowner (neglecter associate of City Hall, Galvan).