It’s fun but use caution

Early anglers on the banks of the Hudson River at Henry Hudson Waterfront Park on Monday, July 26, report there’s “good fishing.” These fishermen hauled in a number of catfish before 10 a.m. But anyone casting a line in the Hudson should check online with the New York State Department of Health, which posts fishing advisories. Sadly, because of PCB pollution, many species carry a “Do Not Eat” warning. Also, the majestic Hudson is an estuary, its currents are strong and move in different directions depending on the tide. Photo by Lance Wheeler

 

Hudson schools days are hazy but not lazy

by JEANETTE WOLFBERG

HUDSON—Summer school, food matters, instruction time, new staff, and elementary school sports received attention at the Hudson City School District (HCSD) Board of Education meeting July 20.

Summer school started this month and district Superintendent Dr. Maria L. Suttmeier announced there are 154 students in 6th through 12th grades and 142 in kindergarten through 5th grade for a total of 296 summer students.

The total is 18.6% of  the state Education Department’s latest count of 1,591 for the total enrollment in the HCSD in kindergarten through 12th grades for the 2020-21 school year. Read more…

Is there a factory in their pocketbook?

by JEANETTE WOLFBERG

Sean Roland (l) and Gabriel Katz are planning to develop the empty Hudson building known as The Pocketbook Factory at Prospect and N 6th Streets for multiple uses. Photo contributed

HUDSON—The new owners of a large, long-empty factory building in Hudson are seeking municipal permission to convert it into a mixed use facility with a hotel, a wellness center, artists studios, businesses and community space.

The 70,000-square-foot, three-story+ attic brick building stands on Prospect, Sixth and Washington Streets, across Sixth Street from a fire house, near Oakdale Lake. The owners are already talking with the Hudson Planning Board and hope to begin “hard construction” in the spring of 2022; they expect construction will last 24 months.

Known earlier as Union Mills and later as the Pocket Book Factory, the plant ceased operations in the 1970s, according to Gabriel Katz and Sean Roland, the owners of PBF Hudson, LLC, which was established in January this year. They bought the factory building from the Eleanor Ambos Foundation. Read more…

Gibson speaks; Nat’l Grid pays attention

by EMILIA TEASDALE

KINDERHOOK—Representatives from National Grid attended the in-person Village Board meeting Wednesday, July 14 to explain plans for the electric power transformer bank recently installed on a pole on Hudson Street and the overall plan for upgrading the voltage in some parts of the village.

Mayor Dale Leiser announced at the beginning of the meeting, held at the firehouse, that “Zoom is done.” The board had been hosting on-line meetings using Zoom software, but since the governor did not extend the executive order on open meetings law allowing municipalities to hold remote meetings, the village will have to return to in-person meetings going forward.

Over half the people attending the meeting were the residents affected by the platform-mounted ratio transformer bank that was attached on poles in front of the home of former Congressman Chris Gibson and Mary Gibson, who were both at the July 14 meeting. Three representatives from National Grid, including the company’s Hudson engineer, Serena Hazzard, explained the reason for the large transformer platform on the pole and the plan to have it removed eventually. Read more…

Solar farm footprint may shrink yet again

by DIANE VALDEN

COPAKE—Hecate Energy is reportedly in the process of further shrinking its proposed industrial-sized solar facility in Craryville.

At the same time, the Town of Copake has taken legal action to throw a monkeywrench into the application process Hecate is using to get its project approved in violation of town zoning law.

Copake became the lead petitioner in a lawsuit challenging the New York State Office of Renewable Energy Siting (ORES), June 29. Donors from across the state are paying for the litigation and the town will not pay any legal fees or expenses for its participation. Read more…

Getting right to the points

by DAVID LEE

The Columbia Land Conservancy (CLC) has been conducting a Floating Friday event in which volunteers are invited to explore Meizinger Lake at the Hand Hollow Conservation Area in East Chatham and to help clear out the invasive water chestnuts. CLC has used a water tractor to pull out the plants, but clusters near the shore need to be pulled out by hand. Retired CLC Executive Director Peter Paden shows how and displays a water chestnuts on his paddle Friday, July 16. Volunteer Coordinator J.J. Kathe says that they have some kayaks at the lake for use by volunteers; or people can bring their own boats. The Floating Friday events will continue through September. The hours are 9 a.m. to noon. Photo by David Lee