The Weekly Digest

What happened.Hudson's one privately owned Flock camera is being switched to Axon, the system the police department already uses. The owner pays for it, and HPD gets footage only on request for an incident, which the chief said is no different from any other private security camera in town.

Why it matters.Access to these systems is granted, agency by agency, by somebody who decides to grant it. A council member wants Albany to say who can't be on that list: no agency outside New York, and, under the non-cooperation law, no federal immigration authority. The chair said technology moves faster than the language of the law. Cameras are on the Council's informal agenda September 21.

Where it’s headed.Cameras are on the agenda for the Common Council informal meeting on September 21. The chief, the mayor and the committee chair were to meet later in the week of September 14.

What happened.A 92 minute meeting with a program cut, a vacant seat filled, and a capital bill over budget.

• The Writing Center is gone. The ex officio student representative told the board this will be the first senior class in 13 years without it, described it as the main college resource the high school offered seniors, and asked the board to restore it. The superintendent said the extended school day grant might fund something like it, though only outside school hours.
• The vacant seat is filled. Three residents wrote in for the seat Maureen Sheridan left in July. Kirsten Gustafson, a former board member, took four votes and was sworn in for a term through June 30, 2027.
• Smart Schools is $92,000 over. Quotes now total $1,870,096 against the $1,719,004 the state approved a year and a half ago, covered by money the district held back. The work includes wireless that is 12 years old and carries computerized testing.
• "I've never had a beginning of the year like this." A staff member of 26 years disputed the administration's account of the opening, said it is not good, and asked for an anonymous staff survey. A board member proposed extending it to parents, on the reconfiguration and the buses.
• A bus run was added Monday, after a week of complaints about crowding. This is the first year the junior senior high runs as a single 6 to 12 campus, with one main office and changed entry, parking and lunch schedules.
• Next year's budget work starts in October. A new development calendar, with a stated aim that significant decisions and potential reductions get discussed early enough to allow consideration of their educational and community impact.

Why it matters.The student representative told the board a private college admissions counselor runs from $1,000 to $50,000 and a private essay review service from $400 to $5,000, and that the Writing Center provided the same help at no cost so that finances were not a barrier, particularly for low income and first generation students. She said she understood the cuts were made in good conscience, but that the programs which prepare students for college and let them aim beyond Hudson are disproportionately underfunded.

Where it’s headed.Board goals, the activity calendar and the budget development calendar all come back for approval in October. The first budget presentation of the year is in December.

What happened.The fire department told the committee it is losing one of its five busiest responders, who cannot afford to stay in Hudson and is moving out of state. The department described the pattern as gaining one member and losing two.

Why it matters.Members tied it to the combination of rents and the jobs available rather than rent alone, and one suggested the state offer tax relief to volunteer firefighters.

Where it’s headed.No action was proposed at the committee.

What happened.Three stop-work orders in August, two at properties that broke the historic preservation code: the Hudson Public Hotel and 123 Union. The third, at 202 State Street, was an accessory building put up without a permit, underbuilt, and it has to come down. Fox also wrote eight violations, ran 13 title searches, issued 21 permits for $4,743 in fees, and issued one order to vacate after stairs collapsed inside a house.

Why it matters.The chair thanked Fox directly, saying the developer involved had never been stopped or fined for stepping outside HPC decisions, and called it a breath of fresh air for the integrity of the city's architecture. Fox said it was just the job.

Where it’s headed.Fire inspections are planned for City Hall and other city buildings, which Fox said were overlooked in the past.

What happened.Parking brought the city $139,000 in August, up 28 percent on the $100,000 it collected the same month last year. 2,459 tickets were paid, and 12 cars were booted, for $2,800.

Why it matters.Whether that is more tickets or better collection is not something the meeting answers. The number issued was garbled in the captions, and the report gives no comparison beyond the two revenue figures.

Where it’s headed.The report is monthly.

What happened.Chief Mishanda Franklin reported 44 arrests on 75 charges in August, seven emotionally disturbed person calls and no drug overdoses. The detectives division recovered a gun within 24 hours of its theft from a vehicle belonging to a registered gun owner. An officer resigned the week before.

Why it matters.Franklin said she has asked civil service for a new candidate list, and that an already trained officer transferring in is possible given the circumstances.

Where it’s headed.She said she hopes to fill the position before year end.

What happened.A records request about vacant buildings found two registered. There are now four. Fox said the previous code enforcement administration was not actively enforcing the code, and that parts of it need amending before stronger enforcement.

Why it matters.A member asked whether there are obviously vacant buildings not being accounted for. Fox said there are buildings the city knows are vacant, and then there is what is registered and paying fees, which is four. The amendments are with the Legal Committee, expected back in about a month.

Where it’s headed.Resolutions and amendments on the vacant building and demolition codes are with the Legal Committee, expected back in about a month.

What happened.The City of Hudson Industrial Development Agency voted Monday to terminate its agreement and its financial assistance for 620 Union Street. The project was due to be finished in 2024 and has never begun, and the agency's attorney said the owner has not pulled building permits. The owner's lender has filed to foreclose.

Why it matters.Termination ends the project's access to sales tax and mortgage tax exemptions and to a pilot. The owner still owns the property and can still build, but would have to come back and reapply. Staff said the owner told them he lost an equity partner during COVID and wanted more time, but never named a prospective partner or an alternative. One board member said an extension would be more of the same, that the agency is six years out from COVID, and that it needs to put a line in the sand so future applicants know it is serious about its rules.

Where it’s headed.The board went into executive session on the foreclosure and authorized counsel to represent the agency. Separately, Arena Capital, which has the St. Charles Hotel under a purchase and sale agreement, is expected to apply for benefits in time for the October meeting.