Did The Owner of 458 Union Request A New Taxpayer-Funded Sidewalk AND DRIVEWAY? Or Did They Demand Them Both?

It was suspicious enough that the Public Works Board determined months ago that the relatively decent, not-at-all dangerous 120 feet of sidewalk along the South 5th side of 458 Union was in need of replacement as part of the taxpayer-funded Sidewalk Improvement District project (which began in earnest last week).  Add to that the fact that, according to public records, our Common Council "president," Margaret Morris, owns 458 Union Street.  And now that Morris's lengthy sidewalk has been replaced with taxpayer funds, not solely her own, we can plant another red flag into what only points to an elected city official who continues to confound with her bizarre behavior, bad optics, and questionable motives.  It never seems to end with her.

Notice where the PWB's paving contractor, Vosburgh, painted white arrowed lines more than one week before last week's removal and replacement of the sidewalk alongside 458 Union.  Those lines were nothing more than a reminder to Vosburgh where they were to excavate and replace sidewalk and where they were to stop excavating.  Boundaries, if you will, and kind of important.   Notice, also, that nearly the entire surface in front of the garage where Margaret Morris drives her car (from garage to street), unlike the remainder of her sidewalk to Union, was made of asphalt, not concrete. Notice that the asphalt was in pretty rough shape (and, with help below, had been for a long, long time!).  Notice, finally, that the asphalt surface to the right of the asphalt sidewalk in front of the garage was to be excluded from Vosburgh's replacement of the sidewalk alongside 458 Union, a detail that one can only assume Vosburgh and the PWB agreed on. One would hope that the owner of 458 Union was made aware of the boundaries of their sidewalk slated for replacement, though most people know where sidewalks end and driveways and streets begin.  Sometimes a reminder is necessary, though. You know, just so everyone is on the same page.  "Stick to replacing sidewalks; do not include any areas not considered sidewalks or that are used exclusively by vehicles, including and especially driveways. This is called the Sidewalk Improvement District, not the Sidewalk, Driveway, and Walkway Improvement District!  We are not billing taxpayers $100 per year to repave anyone's driveway, no matter its length or width, and no matter who they are or who they work for.  Do not deviate from our objectives and goals.  Do not create a precedent that we will cause us trouble, one that we will regret for the next 30 or 50 years." 

The area directly in front of the garage at 458 Union that, according to Vosburgh's own pavement markings, was not "slated for replacement" -- an area of approximately 130 square feet, according to my feet -- would be considered by any reasonable person to be part of a private driveway, certainly not a sidewalk/public right-of-way.  Presumably, that's why it was left out of the plan that the PWB and Vosburgh must have agreed on. Must have, right?!  The area has never been a public right-of-way, regardless of who has owned 458 Union. No pedestrians are ever forced to walk on the 130 square feet of surface in front of that garage, nor would any pedestrians be expected to ever walk there, a notion that one would hope Margaret Morris could agree on without hesitation, regardless of where she lives.

But, early last week, Vosburgh went ahead and excavated that 130 square feet of asphalt next to the asphalt sidewalk and leading to the garage where Margaret Morris keeps her car parked on her private property.  Right up to the door of the garage, 10 feet from the sidewalk and 20 feet from the street.  They ignored their own markings that they had painted on the old, horribly undangerous sidewalk alongside the property owned by our common council "president."  For some bizarre and concerning reason or reasons, Vosburgh decided to ignore their own plans, as well as the PWB's plans, instead replacing the private half of Margaret's ugly, damaged, unsmooth asphalt driveway while they were replacing the public half of it that pedestrians do need to walk on.  Who told Vosburgh to excavate outside their own boundary markings on the sidewalk, and how was that decision made?  Was it Vosburgh?  Ignoring their own markings is not the way Vosburgh typically operates and will continue to operate for the remainder of this first leg of the SID project (and perhaps in future years), is it?  Let's hope not!  Someone must have told them to ignore their own markings, right? 

A few weeks ago.  The pallet remained 
there for at least 6 weeks.

  Morris appears to have purchased 458 Union
   in 2010.  For 15 years she never spent a penny
  on improving her driveway or sidewalk.  Thank
 goodness she waited long enough so that we
could take of it for her.  (2019 Google maps shot)

Can't you just imagine Margaret coming out of her house while Vosburgh was ripping out her sidewalk and convincing the Vosburgh manager to do the same to the 10-feet by 13-feet private portion of her driveway where no pedestrians walk and only she and/or her car would ever need to walk or roll over it?  Perhaps she worked her magic and flashed her badge, so to speak.

"I'm the common council president, and you should remove and replace all of my driveway.  It needs to be done; it should have been done years ago. One half of my driveway shouldn't remain a rough mess when you are done.  Plus, the colors and materials won't match.  You are here, so you might as well do it now."

"Okay, lady, we don't want any trouble.  But we're going to have to bill the city for the extra concrete and work we weren't expecting to do."

"That's fine with me.  Do it.  I'll be back later to check on your progress."

Even if the owner of 458 Union did not make Vosburgh deviate from the plan by replacing the totality of their partially public and partially private driveway, they certainly didn't stop Vosburgh from proceeding with the unplanned work.  Whatever the cause was, none of this should sit well with anyone, and it certainly shouldn't sit well with whoever claims to be the "president" of the Hudson Common Council or is a member.  It's creepy, it doesn't smell good, and we're seeing too much of such nonsense from City Hall officials these days.  Just like Margaret Morris's little vehicle "accident" last winter in a city parking lot that involved -- depending on who you speak to -- ice, her foot apparently not on the brake, a 5-inch curb, impacting and damaging the wall of a building a few feet away, and an interrupted salad lunch at a restaurant across the street thanks to a pesky Hudson cop.  Morris felt comfortable shutting down public comments or questions on the incident during a subsequent council meeting, calling it a "private matter," whatever the hell that means.  She appears to me to have acquired an air of entitlement since taking over the common council.  Being referred to as a "president" does that to most people.

What'll be next with our so-called council president?  Stay tuned, as HUDseen has a fascinating revelation about recent construction work at 458 Union.  It never ends with Margaret Morris. 

If Margaret Morris didn't happen to be the owner of 458 Union and the 130 square feet of driveway had been replaced, I still would have written this article. Different name (or LLC), same pictures and examination shedding light on suspicious nonsense and possible corruption.