It Actually Does Matter What Poles That Signs Are Posted To

City-owned sign and pole
on Warren Street

At this month's Informal Common Council meeting, DPW Superintendent Robert Perry, Jr. included in his monthly report an explanation of the 24 oh-so-helpful new CROSS ONLY ON GREEN signs.  I was in the City Hall chambers trying my best to hear Perry's Zoom presentation but could not very well understand every word of it.  I'm not sure if he claimed that the signs were a requirement, but he did put some sort of official-looking document on the screen that may have illustrated the justification for the signs. 

        

Not DPW's utility pole!

What I did clearly hear Mr. Perry mention during his report is that the installation of the 24 small signs did not require the purchase or installation of any new sign posts, which appears to be accurate. The new signs meant to keep pedestrians safe crossing the side streets along Warren were all installed on existing sign posts. Mr. Perry even provided a picture of one of the newly purchased and posted signs along Warren Street.  Strangely, all 20 of the signs on Warren face east-west (from 3rd to 7th), so no signs were installed to help pedestrians safely cross Warren at those side streets.  Warren Street, of course, is the busy two-way street in central downtown Hudson.  The side streets (except 3rd) are ONE WAY and much less busy with traffic than Warren.  But I digress. 

What I did not notice during Mr. Perry's report was a picture or description of 4 of the useless signs which were installed on 2 wooden utility poles at the corner of South 3rd Street and Union Street.  DPW installed city property on utility poles which they do not own.  Tag sale signs and concert notices?  Sure!  Traffic control devices?  Absolutely not!  No one is supposed to do this, much less Hudson DPW.  It is dumb; it is rude; and, it reflects lazy, amateurish work.   But it is consistent with the 2 contradictory NO PARKING signs that DPW recently installed one block north on 3rd at Warren, isn't it?  (A picture of mine was included in a Gossips post about those signs and, voila, DPW removed one of the signs 2 days later.)  It's like no one at DPW, including Rob Perry, cares to pay attention.

Is this the norm going forward?

Can we assume that Mr. Perry was and is fully aware that his workers installed city-owned signs on a utility pole owned by National Grid?  If he isn't aware, why isn't he?

Anything attached to a utility pole not owned by a utility utilizing the pole is fair game for removal by anyone.  If they wanted to, National Grid could even remove the 4 useless DPW signs and put them in the trash -- where they belong.  I wish they would.