The Weekly Digest

What happened.Hudson has used license plate readers for over two decades, Police Chief Mishanda Franklin told the Council, and the city owns the data on its Axon system. Council President Margaret Morris said she, the chief and the mayor's office agree plate data should not leave New York, and that a city policy still has to be written.

Why it matters.Residents pressed on what the cameras capture and who could reach the data. A Green Street resident said new Axon cameras on Green and Third Streets photograph faces and bumper stickers. A student said ICE could reach the system through Axon's Homeland Security contract. Councilmember Henry Haddad said the system helped solve Hudson's last murder and find a 2-year-old this year.

Where it’s headed.Morris and the chief will keep working with the mayor's office on a policy and report back. The topic stays on the Safety Committee agenda.

What happened.The Legal Committee reviewed revisions to the vacant buildings and demolition codes on September 17, and on Monday Morris laid both laws on the Council's desks. They reorder the vacant buildings code to favor returning a building to use, and rewrite the demolition code's liability, insurance and penalty rules, including raising the fine for demolishing without a permit from $250 to $5,000.

Why it matters.A councilmember said the city has not collected any vacancy fees since that law passed several years ago. Asked whether the new rules would reach a lot already demolished, the answer given was probably not.

Where it’s headed.Vote expected September 29. Morris said the fine could be revisited once the research is done.

What happened.A $52,000 grant application to assess the water system is due Wednesday, so Morris asked the Council to vote Monday rather than wait a week. It took roll-call votes on a new equal employment opportunity policy and on designating a fair housing officer. The Council also named Michelle Tullo the city's fair housing officer.

Why it matters.Morris said the new policy is more robust than the current one, which mostly covers filing complaints with the clerk, with no timelines and nothing on accommodations for people with disabilities.

Where it’s headed.The signed resolutions go in with the grant application, due September 23.

What happened.City departments have turned in their budget requests, and the Board of Estimate and Apportionment begins meeting on them the week of September 28. Councilmember Jason Foster asked for the requests to be posted publicly, and Treasurer Heather Campbell said they can be, probably under the treasurer's section of the city website.

Why it matters.The meetings are open to the public, held in the afternoons on Tuesdays, Fridays and sometimes Mondays, and the city will try to make them virtual so people can listen in.

Where it’s headed.First meetings the week of September 28. None the week of October 5.

What happened.A local law before the Council sets how unpaid parking fines escalate: double at 30 days, triple at 60, quadruple at 91 or more. At 120 days, the ticket goes to collections.

Why it matters.The penalties are written into the city code, not the fee schedule, so changing them takes a local law, the city attorney explained.

Where it’s headed.Vote expected Tuesday, September 29.

What happened.Two residents online asked why Monday's public hearing on the water grant could not be joined remotely, and why the meeting link showed as locked. Morris said the Council had used the link for an attorney-client session on litigation, between the 5:45 hearing and the 6:15 meeting.

Why it matters.One resident said he had seen a locked link only during executive sessions. Morris said attorney-client sessions do not have to be announced.

Where it’s headed.Morris said she will look into making future public hearings hybrid.

What happened.At both meetings, residents asked whether the Council will act on draft resolutions they submitted about the Mill Street Lofts lawsuit. On September 17 Morris said she had been trying for weeks to schedule a meeting with the attorney handling the case; on Monday she said the Council was getting advice from its attorneys.

Why it matters.The resident at the Legal Committee asked that city attorney Ken Dow be included, saying the Council's legislative actions could fix the issues behind the lawsuit.

Where it’s headed.The deadline for papers in the lawsuit has been pushed back to October, Morris said.

What happened.A resolution on next week's agenda would authorize the mayor to seek proposals for managing and maintaining the city dock. Councilmember Jen Belton pointed to a simpler resolution used in Kingston; another member said Kingston's riverfront is far larger.

Where it’s headed.Council President Margaret Morris said no action would be taken until the regular meeting Tuesday, September 29, and suggested Belton raise her comparison with the mayor, whose office sent the resolution.

What happened.The Columbia Economic Development Corporation, a nonprofit that lends Small Business Administration money in Columbia and Greene counties, met three times in the period. Its Loan Committee approved a $10,000 working capital loan to a florist and gift shop opening in Athens next month, at 7.75% over 36 months. Its portfolio holds 27 active loans to 23 businesses, just under $600,000 in all.

Why it matters.Staff said collections work has grown: more borrowers are falling 30 days or more past due, and one has made no payments at all and hung up when called. Members said many small businesses in the region cannot find workers, and one suggested housing is part of why. A separate committee interviewed three candidates for an open board seat, and the Executive Committee discussed nominees in executive session on September 8.

Where it’s headed.The three board candidates, a Key Bank branch manager, a property manager and a financial planner, go to the full board.

What happened.About 20 residents spoke against the Flock license plate cameras the sheriff's office installed this year. Sheriff Jackie Salvatore said the office proposed the cameras in 2023 and was turned down because private individuals would have funded them, then bought them in 2024 with a $279,000 state law enforcement technology grant the Public Safety Committee approved. Eight of the 10 cameras are up.

Why it matters.Chairman Matt Murell said the 2024 grant resolution never named Flock, that the sheriff's office broke no rules, and also that he does not believe it should use the cameras. The board will tighten that language. The sheriff said the cameras read plates only, with no facial recognition, and that searches require a case number and a reason. A supervisor asked the Public Safety Committee to draft a resolution supporting Senator Michelle Hinchey's bill, the same bill Hudson's police chief says city policy already mostly follows.

Where it’s headed.A group brought a petition with more than 300 signatures to the Health and Human Services and Public Safety committees on September 15. The board cleared the room for an executive session with the sheriff, then voted to waive its confidentiality so members could discuss it publicly.

What happened.The Health and Human Services and Public Safety committees approved a five-year contract for a 24-unit shelter on Healy Boulevard at $132 a night, roughly $1.15 million a year. The developer is building the facility specifically for the county contract.

Why it matters.The rate is higher than the county's current contracts, which run $110 to $125 a night. Staff said the site is on the bus line and within walking distance of shops and services, and comes with caseworkers, a clinician, an employment specialist, 24-hour security, front desk staff, cleaning and maintenance.

Where it’s headed.The committees also took up a request to look at banning synthetic kratom locally, as neighboring counties have done, and a contract for a home cleaning service meant to keep children out of foster care.

What happened.The County Government Committee authorized a contract with the City of Hudson for a 2029 reassessment, with data collection starting in 2028.

Why it matters.A reassessment resets the values Hudson taxes are figured from. The same meeting covered a dispute with the city: Hudson's code enforcement officer told the county to stop exterior work at 11 Warren Street until it appears before the Historic Preservation Commission.

Where it’s headed.The county is waiting on updated exterior sketches from its architect before a second public meeting on the 11 Warren Street renovation.