You Think We've Got Challenges Now?

Here is what I have recently heard through the grapevine about four upcoming employee retirements at our Department of Public Works, two of which HUDseen reported on a few months ago.

Charlie Webster is the long-time, friendly head maintenance worker who has the unenviable task of keeping our parks and other public areas looking decent.  You may also know him as the worker driving to his next city property in need of attention in the van with the Hudson Department of Youth logo on the sides that he began driving over a year ago.  Don't be fooled, though -- Charlie works for DPW.  Well, he does until April 4th, or so he tells me.  His maintenance assistant, whose name I do not know, will be taking over the steering wheel from Charlie.

Ronald "Ronnie" Van Benschoten is the DPW foreman who has been putting out proverbial fires all over the city for at least the past few years.  He has probably put a million miles on his city-issued white pickup truck you can see him driving around town off to the next problem needing attention.  Ronnie told me a few weeks ago that he was retiring in early April, but I just heard that his retirement has been put off until the end of April.  Charlie told me that a DPW general laborer is slated to take over Ronnie's position as foreman.

Both Charlie and Ronnie know this city inside and out, and their shoes will not be easy to fill.

Actually, no!

George Topple is the Chief Water Treatment Plant Operator at the facility at the top of Rossman Avenue.  According to city records, George has been working for the DPW for a long, long time, longer than his boss, DPW Superintendent Robert Perry, who signed on in 2009.  I just got word that George is planning on retiring in November of this year.

I was told that Peter Wrigley, the Senior Motor Equipment Operator, will also be retiring later this year.  Peter has been with DPW for quite a few years as well.

Finally, the word on the street is that a DPW Water Department laborer will soon be transferring to the regular (non-water/sewer) DPW, possibly to work in general maintenance alongside Charlie's sidekick out of the former Youth Department van.

With all this upcoming commotion at DPW, I decided to take a look at the help wanted page on the city's website.  Finding that important page is not easy or intuitive -- you really have to dig for it.   In this day and age of staffing issues, you would think that the city would offer a link to a CAREERS page somewhere on the main page, like most municipalities do.  Hudson, of course, is the exception in so many ways.  What do we get on our main page instead?  A slick and nauseating video of our mayor trying his best to attract visitors, businesses and new residents to Hudson!  Hell, at least there is a help wanted page buried in the city's website -- it appeared only about 8 months ago!  Progress!

But first, to arrive at that page, one must click on the ABOUT HUDSON offering (why would it be there?), then find the JOBS & VOLUNTEERING link inside.  (Really, guys?  JOBS?  Is there a less inspiring term than JOBS for people looking for work?  Are you only looking for summer lifeguards?  How about CAREER OPPORTUNITIES!)  

Apparently, the only JOB that is presently available at Hudson City Hall is that of a dispatcher at HPD, though I'm pretty sure that position was filled a month or two ago.  It looks as though there are no positions at DPW to be filled right now or any time soon.  Is it possible that Robert Perry has no staffing issues now or in the foreseeable future?

The other question is this: How did Robert Perry advertise for open positions at DPW before the JOBS & VOLUNTEERING page was created (like for the past 15 years), and will he be advertising on that page when his next vacancy arises?  Something tells me that he might need to utilize that page pretty darn soon.

(Don't quote me on any of this information -- things change, people change their minds, people talk about what they know not, and memories are often inaccurate.  It's what I have been told!  It may all come to be.  Or not.)

You can quote me on this, though:  On Friday afternoon, I spoke with a worker for Mullen, National Grid's contractor doing the gas line replacement work all over town for the past several months and presently on N. 5th, N. 6th and the 500 block of Warren.   I asked him when he thought their project in Hudson would be finishing up.  "Hopefully, by the end of April.  It depends though.  We are at the mercy of property owners.  If we can't get into their basements, it delays our work."  Yesterday, the entire 500 block of Warren Street was closed to traffic while Mullen was doing their work.  Today, that block had just one lane of traffic with a flagger or two.  Yesterday and today, it was N. 5th between Columbia and Warren that was completely closed off. (This portion of National Grid's project on Warren will not be going any further east than 6th Street.) 

Let's check back in early May to see where things stand and how many holes are still in the ground, shall we?  Of course, when Mullen is finished there will still be the task of repaving the streets they began tearing into 7 months ago.  National Grid will be hiring someone else to do that, not Mullen.