Chamber Joins Fight Against Hudson Prison Closure

Hudson, NY – The state's threatened closing of Hudson Correctional Facility has the local community up in arms. Today the Chamber Board of Directors voted unanimously to oppose the closure of the Hudson Correctional Facility. The Chamber joins Mayor Rick Scalera, Congresswoman Kirsten Gillibrand, Senator Stephen Saland, Assemblyman Marc Molinaro, Assemblyman Tim Gordon and County Board of Supervisors in their efforts to get this decision reversed. To personally call on Governor Spitzer click here.

Citing a decline in the state prison population and a need to find funds for newly mandated programs, the state Department of Correctional Services announced earlier this month plans to close the medium security Hudson prison as well as three prison camps elsewhere in the state by January 2009. According to the Department, closing Hudson would save $15.7 million in operating costs and $21.7 million in capital projects over the next five years, even though Hudson runs near its inmate capacity.

It would keep open Hudson 's Work Release program and offer jobs to Hudson 's employees at other prisons.

But the impact on Hudson, a community already designated as economically distressed, as well as Columbia County would be a major body blow.

The 270 full-time employees at the prison along with as many as 45 part-timers who will lose their Hudson jobs means an annual payroll loss in Columbia County of $14.7 million.

The multiplier effect of that payroll translates to between $60 million and $100 million of lost local business. As the jobs go elsewhere, so too does buying gas, food, clothes, and services, a potentially devastating hit for the already struggling local economy.

And these numbers fail to factor in the payroll and buying power of the spouses and families of those who work at Hudson Correctional. If the prison employees are forced to relocate in order to take a job opening at another state prison, then so too goes the rest of the family.

Knowledgeable insiders say there are few if any openings at the other prisons in the area, so finding work for 270-plus employees will mean either traveling long distances, which will not make economic sense with gas prices so high, or picking up stakes and relocating elsewhere in the state or out to find work.

A coalition of local business and elected leaders is marshalling forces to fight the announced closing. Leading the business charge is the Columbia County Chamber of Commerce. Chamber President David Colby and Chamber Board Chairman John Maiuri have already had several meetings to plan an orchestrated response.

“The state can't take credit for salary savings if it is promising new jobs to everyone,” points out Mr. Maiuri. “And the state is not taking into account the cost of transfers, which are very expensive. There will be upfront expenses they are not putting in the equation.”

Local officials also question whether the state is calculating the cost of keeping open the Work Release program. All the power to operate any part of the prison campus comes from the bottom of the hill, with a staff of engineers for the water, steam and gas, and the miles of infrastructure tunnels. And where will the food and medical services come from for the Work Release prisoners if the rest of the campus is supposedly shut down?

Getting the facts and figures supporting the state's decision to close Hudson has proved extremely difficult, if not impossible. Mr. Colby requested details from the local prison superintendent, while state Senator Steve Saland (R-41st) and Assemblyman Marc Molinaro (R-103rd) asked state Correctional Commissioner Brian Fischer for the specifics. No information was provided by either Correctional official, further calling into question the supposed facts on which the decision was based.

Some argue that it is political, a Democratic governor trying to reduce the budget deficit by shuttering prisons located in upstate Republican districts. But it is not just Republicans who are decrying the move.

Democratic Congresswoman Kirsten Gillibrand (20th District) says she is “very concerned about the jobs lost in Columbia County . Even with the transfers, coupled with the cost of gas, it will be very difficult and uprooting to the lives of the men and women and families who work there. Therefore,” says the congresswoman, “we are advocating to the governor and his staff not to close the prison.”

Local leaders are also struck by the incongruity of Governor Eliot Spitzer's State of the Upstate address that promises $1 billion Upstate Revitalization Fund to jump start economic development in failing upstate communities and then, practically in the same breath, announcing upstate prison closings with enormous negative economic impact.

In making the prison closing announcement, the state made passing reference to “providing a report for a reuse plan for the prison facilities at least six months before closure.”

But one need look no further than Dover just down the road in northern Dutchess County to see what a chimera reuse can be. The Harlem Valley Psychiatric Center , a campus similar to Hudson Correctional, also with rail and state highway access, has been empty since the early 1990s. Despite the fact that a developer purchased most of the campus, site redevelopment is still stalled 15 years later.

“Hudson Correctional is not readily adaptable for other uses,” points out Sen. Saland.

“Without enormous state investment,” adds Assemblyman Molinaro, “you'll never get through redevelopment. It is within the state Coastal Zone which means 13 state and federal agencies would have to review any project.”

Hudson Mayor Richard Scalera worries about the financial impact on the city's budget of losing the many hours of inmate community service. “Inmates do all the lawn mowing at the cemetery,” he says by way of example. If the city has to start paying for that, it squeezes an already tight budget even further.

And the city is not the only loser here. The inmates do a wide variety of community service projects, both for local governments and local non-profits. An inmate crew, for example, paints and does minor repairs and prep work for two weeks before the opening of the Columbia County Fair. Much of the work the inmates do throughout the county would go un-done. They do the jobs local residents do not want.

Hudson Correctional, in addition to its sizeable payroll, purchases locally more than half a million dollars of supplies annually, from 88 Columbia County companies.

“We simply cannot stand by,” says Chamber President Colby. “The economic impact is too enormous. Our neighbors and friends who work there need our strong voice.”

The Chamber will reach out to its 850 members, mobilizing them to flood the governor's switchboard, e-mail Correctional Commissioner Fischer, and write letters to the editor calling on the state to look elsewhere for savings. The Chamber encourages everyone in the community to call the office of Governor Elliot Spitzer to express their displeasure at (518) 474-8390.

For more information about the proposed closing and how to get involved, contact the Chamber at 828-4417.

The Columbia County Chamber of Commerce, with its 850 members, is the leading voice of business in Columbia County , providing advocacy, promotional and benefit solutions for its members. Those seeking more information concerning the Columbia County Chamber of Commerce and membership can contact the Chamber at (518) 828-4417 or visit the website at www.columbiachamber-ny.com.