HUDseen: What "Inconvenience"? What "Mobilization"? "Who Are You With?"

Today at about noon, soon after gingerly walking on the thick ice covering the entire width of the sidewalk in front of Foley & Cox in the 300 block of Warren Street, a quick online property search indicated that the Galvan Initiatives Foundation owns the parcel known as 317 1/2 Warren Street where the store is located.

When did you close, three days ago?

A quick search of Galvan's website got me the phone number to their offices on Green Street. An employee there answered my call, and I asked him if he could tell me if Galvan owned a property on Warren Street whose sidewalk was covered in ice.
"Sure," he replied. "What's the address?"
"317 Warren, where Foley & Cox is located," I told him.
"Yes, we do own that property, but clearing of the sidewalk is in their lease agreement. They are supposed to keep the sidewalk clear, not us."
"Do you care that they haven't done a thing for a few days and that 50 or 60 feet of sidewalk is covered in ice today in front of a Galvan-owned property? Do you care if someone slips and falls there, maybe hits their head on the concrete or ice," I asked.
"Don't put words in my mouth... we can't keep an eye all of our tenants," and other such nonsense was offered before I hung up.

Thick ice with no hint of slush!

About ten minutes later, I called the Code Enforcement Office, which is located on Washington Street, at least 5 blocks from City Hall. A worker by the name of Matt took my complaint about the ice in front of 317 Warren. Then he offered me the information I had really called for: "We have already informed them."

"Okay, how long ago was that?" I asked

"That's not information I can tell you."

"Well, how long do you typically allow property owners to clear their sidewalks of ice after you notify them?"

"We have to give them time to mobilize their people. We can't expect these things to happen immediately. And that's all I will tell you."

"Thanks, Matt. Goodbye."

"Goodbye."

Sidewalk covered in thick ice in front of 725 Warren Street,
with no signs of any effort in the past two days to remove the ice.

725 Warren is owned by an LLC titled the Fieldstone Property Group. According to a website called Connected Investors, the company owner, Benjamin Feldstein, is quoted as saying, "I am primarily an investor based out of the Bearsville, NY area. I am looking to connect with investment properties."

LLC, of course, stands for Legal Liabilty Corporation. Is there any direct connection between how dangerous our sidewalks are and the obscene number of Hudson properties owned by LLC's?

Ben did not appreciate my call letting him know that the sidewalk in front of his investment property was a thick sheet of slippery ice. Before hanging up on me, he asked, "Who are you with?"

Something told me that Craig Haigh at Code Enforcement hadn't spoken to Ben yet.

It was an absolutely frightening walk today up and down five blocks of Warren Street and several blocks elsewhere today. And it wasn't dark! I can't imagine that anyone carrying a baby in their arms, a disabled person, or an elderly person with difficulty walking surviving Warren Street today. Or yesterday. Or, for that matter, tomorrow and for as long as this frigid air sticks around. Hudson City Hall is woefully unequipped to handle this act of nature that can only be expected in upstate New York.