Debora Gilbert in The Columbia Paper has a detailed story that also gets the big picture about Tuesday's meeting about the future of the Bliss Towers housing complex on N. 2nd St. in Hudson. Yet, like the Register-Star story that ran before the meeting, this recap does not say where the meeting was held.

”Are you saying you are going to knock it down?” someone asked at a meeting held this week to discuss the future of Bliss Towers, the 36-year-old public housing complex. “We're entertaining the idea of replacement. Maintenance has become a headache,” said Jeffrey First, who manages the building as executive director of the Hudson Housing Authority, a program associated with the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development. Bliss Towers, the only federal housing project in the city, needs either significant renovation or replacement. A renovation that would bring the building up to new green energy and health standards required by HUD could cost $17 million or more, over $100,000 per unit. The concrete apartment complex was built before planners designed for greater energy efficiency, water conservation and sustainable maintenance costs. The first informational meeting to discuss its possible replacement with new housing was held last September. The meeting Tuesday, April 13, brought together a roomful of green housing experts, city officials and five tenants to exchange information and ideas about the possibility of replacing the towers... But tenant Tiffany Garriga voiced her opposition to such [green energy] plans. “I don't want my kids to be squeezed because you guys want to go green,” said Ms. Garriga, who lives in a 7th-floor, 3-bedroom apartment with a view of the Catskill Mountains. She was not the only tenant present who said that high-rise construction deterred crime. She just wants officials to fix the building and add a fully equipped playground. Since it was built in 1973, repairs to the structure, boilers, elevators, windows, plumbing and roof, have cost $1.75 million. A lobby renovation in the planning stage for the past 10 years has not yet been realized. The experts in the room agreed that renovation costs are usually higher than new construction, and said it was a harder sell to get HUD to agree to renovation. Read the entire article here.

From Tom Grace in The Daily Star:

Later Thursday, Chuck Pinkey of Otego said another Tea Party Protest will be held at River Valley New Holland in Otego on Saturday, April 24. Among those to speak that Saturday will be state [New York State] Sen. James Seward (who represents Greene County], R-Milford, and two Republican congressional candidates, Richard Hanna of Barneveld and [Republican Congressional challenger in the NY-20 race against Scott Murphy] Christopher Gibson of Kinderhook, he said.

International Community Dinner and Cultural Festival at First Presbyterian Church, 4th and Warren Sts. in Hudson.


(Left, David Gallardo and Oscar Santillan performed songs of Ecuador. Center, Carline Murphy of the Haitian Community Development Project spoke about the prospects for long-term relief for the people of Haiti. Right, Jody Rael of Sun Dog Solar in Chatham spoke about sending solar ovens to Haiti.)



(Left, Hosneara Kader, Kaniz Fatima, and Salami Miah played Bangladeshi music. Right, Abby Lappen played her guitar.)

CONGRESSIONAL COMPARISON

Click here to search for Federal Election Commission finance reports from candidates from March 31.

Chris Gibson (Republican)
Receipts $108,519
Individual $102,119
PAC $1,500
Party $0
Candidate $4,900
Other $0
Cash on hand $91,826

Scott Murphy (Democrat)
Receipts $3,730,535
Individual $1,821,342
PAC $1,252,403
Party $8,807
Candidate $250,000
Other $397,983
Cash on hand $1,090,368

Lady Moon at Savoia, 244 Warren St., Hudson.
Mother Fletcher at Main St. Pub, 12 Main St., Philmont.
Smokin' Aces Blues Band at Fernwood Theater, 341 Malden Ave., Palenville.
NYC-based Girls in Trouble focused on obscure female characters in the Bible, with area songstress Ali Dineen at Spotty Dog Books & Ale.

New York State Assemblyman Marc Molinaro (R,C,I-Red Hook) and Assembly Minority Leader Brian M. Kolb (R,I,C-Canandaigua) will speak at a public forum in Hudson, NY to discuss the People’s Convention to Reform New York Act (A.9157) Wednesday in Hudson. This legislation would place a question on the ballot for the 2010 elections calling for a Constitutional Convention, according to a news release from Molinaro's staff. The forum is Wednesday, April 21, 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at Hudson Elks Club, 201 Harry Howard Ave., in Hudson.

Ninth annual International Community Dinner and Cultural Festival admission-free event includes traditional cuisine (potluck), music, and dance from diverse nations and cultures, including Haitian, Bangladeshi, Puerto Rican, Nicaraguan, African-American, Mediterranean, and African Sat. Apr 17, 2010 from 5:30 p.m.-8 p.m. Please bring your ethnic food to share! Information at 366-2551 or 672-7901. Also, hear about efforts to rebuild Haiti, including a shipping container going there from Columbia County. (Donations welcome: tents, sleeping bags, soap, toilet paper, rice, pasta, canned fish, dried beans, and powdered milk.) At First Presbyterian Church, 4th and Warren Streets in Hudson.

From Susan Campriello in The Daily Mail:

An organic waste disposal company hopes to open a composting facility for food and yard waste on town-owned property on Route 145. The facility, which could process 3,000 tons of material a year, could be located on a roughly seven-acre portion of the former Cairo Cement Plant and quarry behind the Cairo Highway Department complex. The developer, Charles Docktor, of Catskill Mountain Organics, must enter into an lease agreement with the town in order to proceed with the facility. Read the entire article in The Daily Mail.

The Associated Press reports economist David Malpass announced Wednesday he would seek the Republican nomination to challenge Democratic Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand.

In the wake of the mine disaster last week in West Virginia, yesterday U.S. Rep. George Miller (D-CA), chair of the House Education and Labor Committee, released a list of 48 mines identified by federal mine safety officials in August 2009 for increased scrutiny, but were not targeted due to unresolved appeals filed by mine operators. The list includes Greene County's Holcim (US) Inc mine, and notes the owner contests 29.95 percent of violations against the mine. Holcim has 126 employees. Firedoglake has a table here.

Club Helsinki has inspired at least one musician, Evan Randall, and now, apparently, a store, to make the move from Great Barrington to Hudson, per Rural Intelligence:

When Club Helsinki closed last year, “It broke my heart,” says Meri Avratin (left), who had been a bartender there for over seven years. “I still miss it. For me, it was the cultural epicenter of the Berkshires, and I loved being part of it.” With the center ring suddenly dark, Avratin cast about for something new to do, and, a year ago, she opened Sideshow Clothing Co., purveyors of vintage and used clothing for men and women, in Sheffield, MA. Recently, she relocated her store from the tiny space it had occupied on Route 7, just south of Great Barrington, to a much larger storefront across from the park in the 700 block of Warren Street in Hudson. Read the entire article on Rural Intelligence.

The Fallons have a long and respected reputation with the annual antique & classic bicycling auction Friday, April 16, 8 a.m.-7 p.m. at Copake Auction House, 266 Cty Rt 7A, Chatham. A recent addition is a day long Swap Meet before the auction. Browse their online catalog at www.copakeauction.com.

Click on WGXC or WGXC Newsroom for more information. Send news, tips, etc. to news@wgxc.org.

Senator James L. Seward (R/C/I- Oneonta) is proposing a state constitutional amendment that would permit New York residents to opt out of the federally mandated requirement to purchase health insurance. Under Senator Seward’s New York Health Care Freedom Act (senate bill 7374), "individuals would have the right to choose their health care plans, and also be allowed to opt out of coverage. The bill is intended to protect the liberty of New York citizens to control their own medical care, and wouldn’t affect those who want the federal care." Seward's staff says similar amendments have already been signed into law in three states and proposed in 36 others. An mp3 audio file from Seward is here:
NY State Sen. James Seward on amendment to opt out of health care.

Click on WGXC or WGXC Newsroom for more information. Send news, tips, etc. to news@wgxc.org.

Per the Woodstock Film Festival (h/t The 12534), Ulster County-based actress Vera Farmiga (Up in the Air, The Departed) makes her directorial debut with a low-budget production called "Higher Ground" that films nearby and is looking to hire Hudson Valley crew members for May-June film production. Send e-mail with resume to highergroundmovie@me.com. They are looking for: 1st A.D; Art Department Personnel; Caterer; Gaffer; Key Grip; Production Designer; Sound Person, and crew and cast housing. If you have a rental available in Kerhonkson area during May-June, e-mail highergroundmovie@me.com. Farmiga will also star in the film, which is based on This Dark World, a memoir by Carolyn Briggs. The script is by Briggs and Tim Metcalfe, and production is slated to begin here this June, according to /Film.

Rick Karlin of Capitol Confidential reports that this morning the New York State Senate passed an absentee ballot bill 35-27. The bill, previously passed by the Assembly, will make it easier to cast an absentee ballot, removing requirements to "disclose the special circumstances requiring his absence," among others. Not surprisingly, Greene and Columbia counties' Republican legislators are against the bill. Both local Assemblyman, Marc Molinaro in Columbia and Pete Lopez in Greene, voted against the bill. Both Senator Jim Seward (Greene) and Sen. Steve Saland (Columbia) voted against the bill this morning. Recently, Republicans in Columbia County have challenged many absentee ballots, targeting second-home owners as the voting totals have turned from slightly Republican to slightly Democratic in the county.<

From North Country Public Radio:

State Senator Kirsten Gillibrand looks less and less vulnerable these days, and more and more like a juggernaut. The last truly viable Republican who might have taken her on, former Governor George Pataki, has formally bowed out. So have the Democrats who once threatened to challenge her in a primary. Meanwhile, Sen. Gillibrand's war-chest has grown dramatically -- she's raised more than $8 million dollars in the year since Governor Paterson anointed her. Read the entire article from North Country Public Radio.

Congressman Scott Murphy will hold a town meeting in Palenville Monday, April 19, at 1:30 p.m. at the Palenville Fire Department, 717 Rte. 32A, Palenville. Murphy is running for re-election against Republican Chris Gibson.

Click on WGXC or WGXC Newsroom for more information. Send news, tips, etc. to news@wgxc.org.

New York State Senator Jim Seward will speak at a "Tax Day Tea Party" at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, April 15 at Lancaster Development, Inc., 145 Podpadic Road, Richmondville, in Schoharie County.

Click on WGXC or WGXC Newsroom for more information. Send news, tips, etc. to news@wgxc.org.

From Jimmy Vielkind in Capitol Confidential:

Chris Gibson, the retired Army colonel from Kinderhook who is running against Rep. Scott Murphy, has raised $108,000 toward his race against Rep. Scott Murphy. According to his quarterly FEC filing, Gibson has $91,825.97 on hand for his run against Murphy, a freshman Democrat from Glens Falls. Murphy’s quarterly disclosure is not yet filed (it’s due tomorrow) but his aides have indicated he raised $475,000 this quarter, bringing his total war chest to $1.1 million. Gibson formally declared his candidacy March 6, and said he would report a “respectable” amount of money, that would make him competitive “in the air” against Murphy. Read the entire article in Capitol Confidential.

From The Daily Freeman:

The state Department of Transportation has announced the Roeliff Jansen Kill Bridge, on the Germantown-Livingston town line on state Route 9G, will be closed beginning Monday, April 19, until October. The closing for replacement of the bridge deck, among other work, will require through traffic on state Route 9G to detour to U.S. Route 9. The bridge is located on the segment of state Route 9G between Block Factory Road and Columbia County Route 10. From the Rip Van Winkle Bridge and points north, motorists will be detoured to state Route 23 east to Route 9 south; to Route 9G north. From the Kingston-Rhinecliff Bridge and points south, traffic will be routed to state Route 199 east to Route 9G south; to Route 9 north to Route 23 west. Read the entire story at The Daily Freeman.