Hudson, We Have Problems

 

If you stand to the side of the pedestrian crosswalk at the Warren Street end of Park Place on a busy day and observe pedestrian-vehicle activity (interactions?), it usually doesn't take long to witness a scary WTF moment.  Early yesterday afternoon, such a moment occurred directly in front of me no more than 3 minutes after arriving to the intersection to have a look at the insanity that is that intersection.  And it was a unique WTF moment, having nothing to do with a vehicle turning off of Warren, the prevailing hazard (often unseen) for pedestrians in this crosswalk.  

I watched as a pedestrian essentially got chased out of the crosswalk by a driver on Warren who decided it would be a good idea to turn their vehicle around in the intersection, needing a portion of the city's most dangerous crosswalk to do so.  It didn't seem to matter one bit to the driver that there was a pedestrian well into the crosswalk headed toward their moving multi-ton vehicle.  Pedestrian right of way in a painted crosswalk?  In Hudson?  At Park & Warren?  Are you kidding me?

Hudson, Where Progress Comes In The Form Of "I Don't Think So."

On Wednesday night at 8:30, I came across 4 illegally parked cars surrounding the Pocketbook businesses complex. Four! Two were about to be issued tickets by a HPD officer on the east side of 6th Street across from the business complex where it is extremely rare to see parked cars with no one in them.  It's safe to say that the drivers and passengers of those two cars were not visiting friends in one of the nearby houses. 

Soon Enough There Won't Be Any View Left Of The Refurbished, Historic Upper Depot Building

 

The city code is clear: real estate signs can be no more than 15 square feet in area. 5 feet by 3 feet is all you get!  But the real estate sign that recently appeared at the corner of 7th & State is exactly 6 feet wide by 4 feet high.  That's 24 square feet of sign, more than 60% over the limit allowed by our city code.  Of course, the bottom of the sign is nearly 4 feet off the ground, which means the top of the 6-foot-wide sign is nearly 8 feet above the ground, making the sign appear even larger and more of a disgusting code violation eyesore with no right to be in a residential neighborhood than it already is.  Situate yourself just right on the sidewalk in front of the sign and your view of the Upper Depot completely disappears.  How fantastic is that!  

One wonders if Nick Fox at Code Enforcement has noticed the oversized code violation real estate sign yet.

If The Common Council Continues to Rely On HPD For Help, Nothing -- Absolutely Nothing -- Will Get Accomplished!

During the HPD portion of the January 2024 Common Council Informal meeting, Police Chief Mishanda Franklin described an incident involving a female pedestrian and her "two-year-old child" that occurred the previous month during Winter Walk at the intersection of 7th & State.  She said, "a mother holding her child crossing the street was bumped by a car and fell to the ground. Baby was fine, child was fine.  The mother had some scrapes.  Everything was fine."   The driver of the vehicle, who apparently had been "driving at a slow rate of speed," blamed the incident on "darkness." 

No Matter Their Offer, Do Not Sign Up With Archtop Fiber!

 

Archtop Fiber is printing signs for their customers to display on their lawns.  As close to our streets as possible, of course!  No thank you!

And Then There Were None! And Then There Was No Money To Worry About?

According to the minutes found on the webpage of the City of Hudson Common Council Finance Committee, the committee met 11 times last year.  With the end of this year's fifth month about to arrive, the committee has met just twice.  The city, as we all know, is in financial trouble.

Greenport, Hudson: Same Zip Code, Same Toleration For Ugly!

 

What should we call this most abhorrent development in the public sphere that City Hall has no idea how to handle? Shit creep? The demise of Hudson? Mayor Ferris's legacy? Signs of the ugly (end?) times we live in? Scraping the bottom of the fucking barrel?

Smaller City, Smaller Hole. Equally Dangerous and Dumb.

Did you hear the recent story out of Manhattan where a woman stepped out of her car and immediately fell 10 feet to her death into a manhole missing its cover?  Unlike the pictures here, that incident occurred at night in the dark.

Dear Mr. Perry:

Don't you think you are making Hudson a less attractive city with your lack of attention to our fire hydrants?

The City's Latest Pedestrian Hazards, Weapons and Eyesore Distractions All In One! (And Red Flagged Unnecessary Expenses?)

 

Just in time for a snowy summer, several new metal fire hydrant markers have appeared around town where none (or few) previously existed.  If someone can give me a reason why we need any markers when snow covering hydrants is not an issue, I'd love to hear it.  Or does the Fire Department need reminding where their hydrants are located as they set up to battle a fire?  Typically, there are no more than three fire hydrants per block, almost always on the same side of the street.

Seen This Morning (and Far Too Often) On One Way South Fifth!

 

This morning at 8:27, preparing to turn onto South Fifth from Warren while riding MY BICYCLE, I saw a car turn left off of Union onto 5th and head my way.  The wrong way.  By the time the driver and her car reached me (it didn't take long!) as I was straddling my bike at the outer edge of a parking space on 5th near Warren, she was visibly angry that I was in her way telling her to turn around.  So, she drove around me, with just enough room to do so.  A second or two later, though, she had to stop her car to allow a family of four to make it safely across the crosswalk at Warren.  (The family had the right of way, I guess.)  The driver was probably angry about that delay, too. 

More Unforeseen Problems, Questions and Expenses Regarding Those $10,000 Parking Kiosks!

 

Who ever could have guessed that little plastic bags of dog shit on top of our precious $10,000 parking kiosks (blocking the solar panels) would be an issue that HPD Parking Captain David Miller would have to contend with?

Charging AND Charged ($15)!

This simply should never be allowed!  And there needs to be a parking ticket created to combat it.  It might be called DANGEROUS AND UGLY STUPID SHIT DISRESPECTFUL ELECTRIC VEHICLE PARKING.  $300!

Who Is The Slob At DPW? (Part Five)

Just over two months ago, much to Captain David Miller's delight, DPW did its best to rid the City Hall parking lot of any evidence that it once served its customers with good ol' fashioned parking meters (along with a big helping of what Tom Depietro twice announced as the city's primary malady: "The Tyranny of the Quarter").  I happened to be passing through the lot on a not-so-cold day in March when I came across a DPW crew of 4 or 5 guys filling the several holes (30, I believe) where the meter poles once stood on the black asphalt island in the middle of the lot.  They were using a grey product, likely a quick concrete mix of some sort.  I could see that the mix was too wet, and I knew that what was spilling beyond the holes would not be removed by rain or snow anytime soon.  They didn't seem to care they were making a mess, and since neither Rob Perry nor his foreman, Frank Rogers, were around to keep the results from looking too messy, I guess it didn't matter to anyone at DPW what the island in the city's largest and busiest downtown parking lot looks like.

A Sign Of What's To Come To Hudson? (Garbage News)

 

By one dollar, the Columbia County Solid Waste Management Department just raised the price of each of the three garbage bags it sells to county residents.  Small bags are now $2 each; medium bags are $4 each; and large bags are $6.

The Next "Notice" May Not Be So "Polite"!

As far as I'm aware, the most recent public mention of creating a pair of residential parking permit systems -- one surrounding the Pocketbook business complex and one on Warren Street -- sounded something like this:  "We kind of dropped the ball on that."  (Which is to say, nothing!)  That update came in March or April from 1st ward council member and SAFETY Committee chair Henry Haddad after he was asked about the residential parking permits, and there have been no discussions about the idea since, not publicly at least. 

Hudson, The City That Wants You To Stand In The Street Staring At Your Phone With Your Back To Traffic And No Awareness Of Your Surroundings!

 

How Many Hudson DPW Workers Does It Take To Fix A Streetlight They Don't Know Is Broken? (And More Questions We Shouldn't Have To Ask Rob Perry!)

 

The main reason that the city took over responsibility of each and every one of the city's streetlights from National Grid was to SAVE MONEY IN THE LONG TERM.  We had been paying Grid an annual flat rate for maintaining the energy-sucking incandescent lights and keeping them on at night.  When the lights went out or were on 24/7, a phone call or online request via their website would usually get a National Grid crew to fix broken lights within a few days.  Those days ended early last year.  Now we pay to repair the new LED lights, to replace them, to keep them on at night and off during the day. To maintain them properly and in a timely fashion (as well as the arms they hang from).  DPW does the work and spends the money.  Or Rob Perry is supposed to get it done, at least.  It's pretty simple, don't you think?   When a streetlight is known to be broken in one way or another, it is time -- without too much delay --for DPW to fix it or replace it or just take a closer look at it to figure out what is wrong with it so that it can be fixed soon.  Cross it off your list.  Move on to another broken light or something else that needs fixing, especially something that is COSTING US MONEY by the minute.

Two More Beautiful and Oh-So-Appropriate Deliveries To The Pocketbook Business Complex...

 

... where there is no actual on-street or off-street parking area for truck deliveries.  (Picture taken yesterday afternoon.)

Notice how the truck is blocking access to most of the wide private (household) parking area on the right.  I should have called the police!  And asked for Parking Captain Miller!  

Is This What We Want or Need? Was This Margaret Morris's and Joe Ferris's Idea?

During last month's informal council meeting, 4th ward member Rich Volo asked Henry Haddad if his SAFETY Committee had taken up the issue of "bicycles, E-bikes and scooters going the wrong way down one-way streets."  Henry replied, "No."  A discussion ensued about the issue of E-riders. (What do you call someone on an E-scooter?  An E-scooterer?)

Life Must Be Rough Along The Truck Route!

 

This morning, I came across this frightened-looking young squirrel on the screen of a basement window in the 600 block of Columbia Street.  The fuzzy fella's message was clear:  HELP, it's scary out here!  Please let me in!   Can you blame him?

Now What? (Where Three Perfectly Good, Occupied Houses Once Stood)

 

It's going to be difficult for grass to grow between all the gravel (not that anyone at City Hall cares).  But at least we got a lovely new sidewalk.... surrounded by gravel on both sides!  (Hey, DPW Superintendent Perry, how much of that gravel will eventually make its way into your precious sewer system?  Hey, ADA Coordinator Martin, how much gravel is acceptable on our streets, sidewalks, curb ramps and ADA curb safety mats?)

Our Department of Polite Workers (DPW)

On Wednesday, April 29th, I had the good fortune of interacting with a large crew of DPW workers leaving the site of the Harry Howard Avenue repair project that was nearing completion.  Superintendent Rob Perry was even there!  I tried my best to keep to myself and not interact with any of them or get in their way.

WTF Is Going On At City Hall? (New Mayor, New Council President, Same Dysfunction!)

During Rob Perry's DPW report at last night's Code & Infrastructure Committee meeting -- in which for the first time Nick Fox from the Code Enforcement Department was actually present, showing up in person -- the issue of the Pocketbook Hotel's parking lot on Washington Street came up.  It turns out that the signed lease between the PBH and the City of Hudson that was made late last year -- signed by our dear former mayor and Gabe Katz, the man behind the money behind the PBH -- is null and void.  Or it has just been crumpled up and thrown out.  Or there is no longer an "agreement."  Or the signed lease is just being "amended."

Are The New Common Council Committees Any Help?

It shouldn't surprise anyone one bit that the Common Council, the mayor's office and the so-called SAFETY Committee are all tied up in knots with what to do about too many vehicles turning right on red at intersections throughout the city.  Last I heard, the SAFETY Committee is hoping for more DATA before they decide which approach to choose: a blanket NO RIGHT TURN ON RED law throughout the city or individual signs at intersections that someone deems necessary.  What kind of DATA they are they hoping to get (and from whom) is a mystery to me.  

Has City Hall Officially Ditched The Title of Friendly City For JUNK CITY?

 

A few weeks ago, I notified the Code Enforcement Department of the several mattresses on the ground behind 720 Columbia Street.  The part-time officer I spoke with (only the head officer is full-time) indicated that they were already aware of the situation.  Ugly and most certainly a fire hazard for the building and the nearby gasoline station, nothing has been done about them since. 

Who Is In Charge of That Parking Bureau Department Thingy? Does Anyone Care? Does The Mayor Even Know?

 

There are at least four things to be concerned about (and perhaps amused by) regarding what is written in the automatic email response I got yesterday from the "City of Hudson Parking Violations Bureau."

The Evolution Of A 12-Inch-Wide Hole In The Sidewalk In Hudson, NY, January - April 2026.

 

Click for more pictures...

Can We Trust The Police To Offer Us The Truth?

According to HPD's MONTHLY INCIDENTS reports from January, February and March of this year, police officers made a total of 532 traffic stops (227, 140 and 165, respectively).  While the reports give no details about the reasons for the stops, each incident is given a street name.  Columbia Street and Columbia Turnpike -- the city's longest stretch of road -- accounted for 80 of those stops, or about 15% of the total, the highest by far for all streets.

There's Nothing PRETTY or PRETTY GOOD FOR A CITY About Any Of This!

Can there be a better picture which represents the dysfunction that is the Hudson Common Council and the uselessness of council "president" Margaret Morris's new so-called SAFETY Committee that seems to be primarily concerned with parking?  

Just 24 hours after I came across yet another vandalized plastic scannable paid parking sign in the 700 bock of Columbia Street, this morning I came across this one on South Fifth!

Is It Possible YOU GUYS Are Being Lied To?

The 4th monthly meeting of the so-called SAFETY Committee that took place last night was nothing more than a farce.  This may have been the worst, messiest, most unproductive meeting so far.  It seems that the more the committee is asked to do, the less they get accomplished.  And HPD is no help.

Here are just a few things from the meeting to laugh (or weep) about.

Whose Garbage Is It? And Who Should Pay To Dispose Of It?

On Saturday, I was surprised to see that the large mattress behind the long vacant property at 538 State Street had been removed.  I thought it would never happen.  That was the mattress that had been lying there in plain sight since at least last November when I first noticed it.  It took a few emails to the mayor and one Hudson Hub request two months ago to get it removed, and I can only assume that DPW took care of it, which means city taxpayers, not the property owner, paid to have it disposed of.

Then, yesterday late in the afternoon, I noticed another development having to do with garbage, this one just as fascinating philosophically.  There were two new public trash cans in town. The short metal trash cans surrounding the pocket park in the 300 block of Warren had been replaced with larger, wooden ones that are typical of those found downtown.  Two hours after Mel's Bakery & Cafe had closed, the new can closest to the park (and to the bakery/cafe situated in the park) was overflowing with trash, made up mostly, if not entirely, of cafe customers' disposables. (The metal can on the sidewalk in front of the park had also been replaced with a wooden one, though it was not overflowing.)

How Bad Is The Parking Problem Surrounding The New Pocketbook Business Complex? How About 5 Inches Bad!

 

Last fall, when our new neighbors at the Pocketbook Hotel hired a contractor to replace the sidewalks and curbs surrounding their block-long property, they forgot to do one little thing.  (Well, two, really.  The sidewalk on 6th Street is one foot too narrow.) They forgot to tell the contractor to apply yellow paint to the new corner curb ramps and NO PARKING ZONES beyond the corners.  Where there was yellow paint on curbs telling drivers to stay away, we have been without it for about 7 months.  And no one from DPW or the Code Enforcement Office (directly across the street) cared to make sure the curbs got painted right away before the weather turned cold, if only because no one is ever paying attention.  (I was recently told by Henry Haddad that DPW will get to painting the curbs yellow sometime soon.)  

Where's Gary? Where's Dave? Where's This All Headed?

First ward council member Gary Purnhagen (above right) is the chair of the Public Works Board, a group of people we are relying on to finally fix our dangerous and ugly sidewalks.  Gary did not attend the most recent meeting of the PWB, held this past Monday night.  The chair of the PWB didn't show up in person nor did he show up virtually.  (Was he in a body cast in the hospital?)  The person in charge of the meetings and the board missed a meeting that lasted all of 14 minutes.  Maybe if Gary had showed up it would have lasted all of 17 minutes.  (All joking aside, I hope Gary is okay, though I did see him driving his car on State Street earlier this week.)

HUDseen Was Wrong Again! It Was A VANDAL!

It appears that I rushed to yesterday's conclusion about the reason for missing five parking signs and brackets on Columbia Street.  A few hours after I posted that article, I spoke with a parking enforcer on his way to the 700 block of Columbia for the first time on his shift.  He told me that he had been informed that someone had VANDALIZED several of the signs on the south side of Columbia Street.