Both WRGB and WNYT in Albany are reporting on a major structure fire at 57 North Front Street in Hudson overnight, Wed., Jan. 18. A call went out around 3 a.m., for a fully involved fire in the empty former warehouse next door to the Hudson Terrace Apartments. Firefighters remained on the scene Wednesday morning, and some city streets are closed. The historic brick building was sold to Etsy co-founder Rob Kalin in 2012, and donated to Kite's Nest in early 2016. It is now known as Riverloft, and has been unoccupied for decades. WNYT reported the building was heavily damaged. The Hudson Terrace building sustained damage and some residents were evacuated due to the close proximity of the fire, WRGB said. According to the account posted at Register-Star [dot] com Wednesday morning, Hudson Fire Commissioner Tim Hutchings said as of 8:30 a.m., the fire was still not out. Firefighters are expected to be at the site all day, he said. Several residents reported having no water pressure, Hutchings said, adding that residents may experience low water pressure citywide throughout the day as a result. "Right now, they're letting the smoke rise so investigators can take a preliminary look at the building," Hutchings said. "Once they've taken a look and we start back up, residents might experience low water pressure." Front Street between Warren and Dock streets, Dock Street between Second and Front streets, and State Street between Second and Front streets are all closed. The cause of the blaze is under investigation.

Watch Lance Wheeler's video at the scene (firefighter speaks at :24):

DOWNLOAD or PLAY the audio version of the local news headlines for Wed., Jan. 18 (8:02). (Produced by Philip Grant.)

Roger Hannigan Gilson is reporting in the Register-Star the Columbia County Board of Supervisors Health and Human Services Committee voted unanimously Tue., Jan. 17, to move forward with an assessment of the county's housing needs. Approval by the full board is needed before Capital Advocates of Albany can begin work. The first stage of the project would involve an analysis of the county housing stock and the need for additional low-income housing, and the creation of a communications strategy. Capital Advocates President and CEO William Teator said from a cursory look the need for affordable housing is concentrated in Hudson and surrounding communities. County Department of Social Services Deputy Commissioner Michelle Ublacker said there up to 100 homeless people in Columbia County on a given night, and the department puts many of them up at local motels at the average cost of $90 a night. The housing assessment project would begin Feb. 1 and the research phase is expected to last three months. Read the full story in the Register-Star.

Closings and delays for Wed., Jan. 18:
[Updated: 9 a.m.]

Cairo-Durham Central School District | Closed.
Catskill Central School District | Delayed two hours. No morning pre-K.
Chatham Central School District | Delayed two hours.
Chatham Kids Club | Delayed two hours. Open at 8:30 a.m.
Circle of Friends (Ravena) | Delayed two hours. 2.5-hour class is cancelled; 5-hour classes delayed.
COARC Adult Transportation | Delayed two hours.
Columbia Christian Academy | Delayed two hours.
Coxsackie-Athens Central School District | Delayed two hours. No morning BOCES. No breakfast.
Early Childhood Learning Center | Delayed two hours Closed.
Germantown Central School District } Delayed two hours.
Grapeville Christian School | Delayed two hours Closed.
Greenville Central School District | Delayed two hoursClosed.
Hawthorne Valley School | Delayed two hours.
Hudson City School District | Delayed two hours. No morning pre-K,. No morning BOCES,. No breakfast. No tutoring center.
Hunter-Tannersville Central School District | Closed.
Ichabod Crane Central School District | Delayed two hours.
Mountain Road School | Delayed two hours. No before-school care.
New Lebanon Central School District | Delayed two hours.
O.K. Kids Inc. | Delayed two hours.
Pine Plains Central School District | Delayed two hours. No morning BOCES.
Questar III Catskill Academy | Delayed two hours.
Questar III Columbia-Green Education Center | Delayed two hours. No morning BOCES.
Red Hook Central School District | Delayed two hours.
Rhinebeck Central School District | Delayed two hours.
Taconic Hills Central School District | Delayed two hours.
UMC Daycare Norton Hill | Delayed one hour. No morning pre-K.
Warren Street Academy / The Bridge | Delayed two hours. No breakfast.
Windham-Ashland-Jewett Central School District | Closed.

Rosa Acheson is reporting for Columbia-Greene Media William A. Hills, the last living founding member of the North Amityville Fire Co. on Long Island, celebrated his 100th birthday at the FASNY Fireman’s Home in Hudson last weekend. Hills served as a firefighter for nearly 77 years. When asked what his greatest accomplishment has been so far, Hills said it was turning 100. “I’m feeling pretty good,” he said. Hills helped establish the Amityville fire company in 1940 and remains an active member. When the firehouse was built, Hills paid for and provided the steel. “We didn’t have a firehouse back then or a real fire truck — we had a hose wagon,” Hills said. Gov. Andrew Cuomo's office issued a special proclamation last week in recognition of Hills' service. "The governor wanted to reach out personally to thank him for almost 77 years with the fire company,” Amityville chief Aaron Collins said. Read the full story in The Daily Mail.

Governor Andrew Cuomo's budget briefing for Fiscal Year 2018, from Jan. 17, 2017.

Matthew Hamilton is reporting at Capitol Confidential Gov. Andrew Cuomo Tue., Jan. 17, presented his $152.3 billion executive budget proposal, which includes a $1 billion increase in state education aid and the beginning of an income tax cut for middle class New Yorkers. In a briefing with reporters, Cuomo also said the state cannot do without a so-called millionaires tax, and has proposed extending that tax for an additional three years. Under Cuomo's proposal, for those earning between $40,000 and $150,000 annually their tax rate would decrease from 6.85 percent to 6.45 percent in the coming fiscal year. Read the full story at Capitol Confidential.

The Catskill Eats website reports that the diner in Grand Gorge is moving to Germantown. “We’d been looking for an old-fashioned-style diner for some time,” Vicki Lueck, who is purchasing the diner with husband Mike, told Catskill Eats. “We have a lot of friends who travel around the region, and one of them saw it and told us about it.” The diner was moved from a field in Gilboa in 2008 to 37177 Route 23 at Route 30, just north of Roxbury in Grand Gorge in Delaware County. The Luecks have owned Charlie O’s Hometown Bar and Grill in Red Hook since 2010, and the couple hope to move the 1950s-era diner to a property along Route 9G just north of the village of Germantown. Read the full story at the Catskill Eats website.

The Thruway Authority reports that upgrades to fuel service facilities on the I-87 Thruway this week may affect local motorists. Fuel pumps at the New Baltimore service area will be updated to read credit card chips on Jan. 18 and 19. Fuel service will be temporarily suspended at the New Baltimore service area during the updates.

Liz Page reports in The Mountain Eagle Schoharie County officials are working to update the 2000 Agriculture Farmland Protection Plan, with a Jan. 20 public hearing in the county Board of Supervisors meeting room, 284 Main Street in Schoharie. Agriculture is the county's biggest employer, with 1,124 jobs on 532 farms on 98,369 acres with $157.7 million in total economic output. Increasing Farm Efficiency and Profitability; Diversifying Farm Operations; Expanding Farm Infrastructure; Promoting Schoharie County Ag Products; Increasing Understanding of Agriculture; Increasing Availability of Skilled Labor; Expanding the Next Generation of Famers; Preserving Farmland Promoting Farm-Friendly Policies; and Promoting Environmental Sustainability are the areas of focus in the updated Agriculture Farmland Protection Plan. Read the full story in The Mountain Eagle.

Local weather forecast:

Today : Rain, snow and sleet likely before 11 a.m., then a chance of rain between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m, then a chance of drizzle after 1 p.m. Patchy fog before noon. Otherwise, cloudy. High near 38. Wednesday night, a slight chance of drizzle before 9 p.m. Patchy fog before 7 p.m. Otherwise, cloudy. Low around 29.

FORECAST FOR THE NEXT TWO DAYS
THURSDAY: Partly sunny. High near 42. Thursday night, mostly cloudy. Low around 27.
FRIDAY: Mostly sunny. High near 42. Friday night, a slight chance of rain showers before 10 p.m., then a slight chance of rain and snow showers between 10 p.m. and 1 a.m., then a slight chance of snow showers after 1 a.m. Mostly cloudy. Low around 30.

Sunrise today: 7:23 a.m.
Sunset today: 4:41 p.m.
LENGTH OF THE DAY: 9:18 hrs.

PUBLIC MEETINGS
Today is the third Wednesday of the month.

WGXC suggests calling ahead to confirm time and location.
All numbers are in the 518 area code unless otherwise noted.

CATSKILL Board of Education meeting, 7 p.m. at high school, 341 Main Street, Catskill (943-4696).
CATSKILL Town Board Committee meeting, 6:30 p.m. at Town Hall, 439 Main St., Catskill (943-2141).
COLUMBIA County Board of Supervisors Public Safety Committee meeting, 5 p.m. at 401 State Street, Hudson (828-1527).
GREENE COUNTY Legislature meeting, 6:30 p.m. at County Building, 411 Main St., Catskill (719-3270).
GREENE COUNTY Planning Board meeting, 6:30 p.m. in Room 427, County Building, 411 Main St., Catskill (719-3270).
HUDSON Zoning Board of Appeals public hearing on 317-319 Union Street and 10 Aitken Street, and regular meeting , 6 p.m. at City Hall, 520 Warren St., Hudson (828-1030).
NEW LEBANON Board of Education meeting, 7 p.m. at junior-senior high school, 14665 NY-22, New Lebanon (794-7600).
STUYVESANT Zoning Revision Committee meeting, 7 p.m. at Town Hall, 5 Sunset Dr., Stuyvesant (758-6248).
TACONIC HILLS Board of Education meeting, 6:30 p.m. at high school, Board of Education Room, 73 County Route 11A, Craryville (325-0390).

DOWNLOAD or play the audio version of the local news update for Tuesday, January 17 (3:37). (Produced by Alanna Medlock.)