3/9/2021 Council Workshop Recap
Discussion Items
Discussion of the potential purchase and renovations of Georgetown Road properties for the operations of the Public Works Service Division
My take: Staff showed us some plans for renovating the Georgetown Road location, which is where our public works facility is currently located. The building’s current condition is, frankly, in desperate need of updates so that our public works department can continue to provide the level of service to the people of Hudson that they deserve. If you want to check out the building’s current conditions, watch the video here.
While renovating the Georgetown Road location may end up being the lowest cost option, it may not be the best option in the long run because HPP will not be able to be relocated to this property. For that reason, a parcel on Terex Road may end up being the better long-term solution because we would be able to have everything on one property here. Staff needs more info on this property to determine if it is still available and buildable. Council asked for a cost comparison for these two properties before moving forward with making any decisions.
Downtown Development Community Survey Kick-Off Meeting with Research Analytics Consulting, LLC.
My take: Dr. Walker, with Research Analytics Consulting, LLC. (RAC) was in attendance last night. She talked about the steps she will take to formulate the survey, listened to Council talk about their thoughts on the subject, and took questions. Right off the bat, she raised two points that I have been hammering home over and over again. The most important one was, what is the purpose of this survey? Council is still on different pages as far as what the purpose of the survey is, and she talked about the need for us to get on the same page. Another important point she raised was the need for representation from different demographics in Hudson.
Good news, Council did seem to agree on several points. We all want to learn more so that the next plan, whatever that is, has significant, majority approval from Hudson residents. We all want to make sure that whatever goes into that area will add value to Hudson and the downtown area. Those are great things for us to have consensus on, and it gives me hope that we can get there. Next steps are for her to come back with some sample questions for us to look at and discuss.
Comprehensive Plan Update Discussion
My take: I left this discussion feeling… puzzled. During the Phase 2 survey discussion, at least two of my colleagues mentioned several times that they felt like parts (or all?) of the Comprehensive Plan is flawed. Yet, when given the opportunity to begin a review of the Comp Plan sooner, they all stated that we were putting the cart before the horse and they are not in a rush to start the process. I personally don’t have any issue with the Comprehensive Plan as it stands, I believe it accurately depicts our shared values and expectations for downtown development. I think suggesting Council initiate a review of it early was simply an effort to listen to Council members’ concerns they had expressed, and address them. If the desire is to wait to review the plan on the timeline that the charter outlines, then I am fine with that. I do feel like improvements in technology, changes in housing trends (especially in Hudson), environmental concerns, and the impact COVID has had are all topics our next Comp Plan should address that may really impact the way it looks in future years.
Something else to note is the following item under “Proposed Legislation” for this upcoming meeting:
A RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING THE CITY MANAGER TO ENTER INTO A JOB CREATION GRANT AGREEMENT WITH CLEVELAND STEEL CONTAINER CORPORATION.
Brief Description: Cleveland Steel Container Corporation is requesting a 50% income tax credit for 9 years. The company will establish a headquarters for their corporate offices in Hudson, bringing 85 jobs with a three-year benchmark of $9.3M in payroll.
My take: This is a huge win for Hudson! We have had some great new companies make Hudson their home recently, and this can largely be credited to staff’s efforts in economic development to attract the right businesses to Hudson.
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Have questions? Want to share your thoughts with me on any of the agenda items or issues listed above? As always, I would love to have a conversation! Email me directly at nkowalski@hudson.oh.us.
