It's Getting Better All The Time!

 

The new 4-foot-wide concrete sidewalk on North 6th Street between Prospect and Washington was created late last fall by the new business complex known as Pocketbook Hudson. But our code is explicit: new sidewalks must be no less than 5 feet wide.   A four-foot-wide sidewalk does not allow two people to walk side by side comfortably, safely or possibly at all.  The Code Enforcement Department is literally directly across the street from the city's latest non-compliant pedestrian sidewalk.  

Moreover, with the help of a paid local engineering firm, the city's relatively new Public Works Board is diligently, albeit slowly and quietly, continuing with its herculean task of making all of the city's sidewalks code compliant, ADA-compliant, uniform, safe and pedestrian-friendly.  That group met the same month that the PBH's paving contractor created that 4-foot-wide non-compliant concrete sidewalk.  But not one of the board's four members ever noticed!  They were too busy talking amongst themselves, probably virtually.

Then there is this that I noticed this morning next to that 4-foot-wide sidewalk at a new curb ramp for delivery drivers in a fire hydrant zone.

  

It's a piece of lumber imbedded in the ground that was used as part of the concrete form that created the curb ramp last fall.  It kept the wet concrete contained and allowed a straight edge of concrete to harden.  And there it remains.  Why just one portion of the concrete form was left behind is way beyond me.  Why not leave all the pieces of wood in the ground stuck to the concrete?  Where is the consistency and attention to detail from those fine concrete craftsmen?  Did Sean Roland and Gabe Katz of the PBH allow any of their contractors to leave something so stupid and ugly inside their business complex that local residents will likely never see?

Alas, someone decided that the city would be better off if that piece of wood were left behind to remain as part of Hudson's improved infrastructure located next to a business complex that caters to visitors from outside Hudson and is a literal stone's throw from the Code Enforcement Department's offices on Washington Street!  Maybe Craig Haigh noticed it and said, "Yeah, so?"  Or maybe not.

Then there is this curiosity and ugliness a few steps north that the PBH also gave us. I have no idea what they were thinking or who at City Hall approved this concrete "curb" or inspected it and gave it the thumbs up after it was installed and painted. Have you ever seen anything like this in Hudson or anywhere else? Neither have I. But at least they painted that "curb" yellow, unlike the useful curb ramps at the ends of the 4-foot-wide sidewalk.

Before the old curb was removed 6 or so months ago
to be replaced by this one, this car would have 

  been parked illegally against a yellow curb.

Then, around the corner on Washington, I came across this new, concerning and unwelcome little sign.

That sign recently replaced a much larger handmade sign with many more words but the same message, the sibling of the sign a few houses away who, along with its now lost sibling appeared several months ago, remains unchanged.  

Things are really looking up in the neighborhood! 

It's worth noting that during the most recent SAFETY Committee meeting, chair Henry Haddad said there would be further talk at April's meeting about the idea of the city offering residential parking permits... for residents of upper Warren Street.  No mention was made of permits for residents of Washington Street, Prospect Street or any street near the busy Pocketbook business complex at 549 Washington Street that relies on vehicles bringing employees and monied guests to the many businesses there.  Of course, all those vehicles need a place to park, sometimes for a night or three. 

Of course, no one at the meeting bothered to explain how residential parking permits might have anything to do with the issue of SAFETY.

Whatever!