At a glance
Two committee members went to Bliss Towers with a paper survey about the senior center, and what came back was stark: every resident who filled it out had never been to the senior center at all, none knew what programs it runs, and all but one said getting there is a problem. Only five surveys came back, so the committee is leaving them out longer and has put the survey online. Members also sketched a long list of programs the center could run if it gets a commissioner and funding, from tax and Medicare how-tos to bingo and a plant swap. The youth department then gave its summer report: 179 campers registered, about 85 a day, with the school district providing breakfast, lunch and 120 weekend meal bags every Friday.
The Senior Center Survey: Nobody at Bliss Has Been
Two members took a paper survey to Bliss Towers on July 17. The answers were consistent enough that the committee stopped to note it.
Key points
- Every resident who filled out the survey said they had never been to the senior center at all.
- Not one was familiar with the programs and activities the center runs.
- All but one said they had problems getting there, and described transportation as the obstacle.
- Asked what they would want to see, most said workshops. A few said field trips, one said arts and crafts, and one wrote in bingo.
- Only five surveys came back from Bliss, so the committee is leaving them out for a couple more weeks. A member also took the survey to Providence Hall and spoke with the manager there.
- The mayor's office turned the survey into a Google form so it can be filled in online.
Five responses is a handful of people, and the committee said so. The finding is striking but it is not a survey of the building.
What the Senior Center Could Run
A member read out a list of possible programs, framed as what could happen if the center gets a commissioner and funding.
Key points
- Practical how-tos were the category built around what people asked for: how to do your taxes and when to file them, and Medicaid and Medicare signups. A member suggested adding a session on scams targeting seniors.
- Arts and making, creative writing and poetry, a history lecture series, field trips, natural dyeing and flower crown making.
- Gardening, with a talk followed by a plant swap. A session on the Underground Railroad, drawing on a center in Albany. Hudson River conservation, with the maritime museum and a schooner as possible partners.
- Games with friends: bingo, drag bingo, music trivia and board games.
- Movement and exercise already runs, including aerobics at the waterfront, yoga and tai chi. A core strength and balance class meets on the second floor of the senior center but is run by the library, which the committee clarified twice.
- Members discussed starting a Facebook page for the center, to carry the survey, the lunch menu and what is on.
Youth Department: 179 Campers and a Summer Indoors
The youth director gave the department's report for August, covering the summer camp season at Oakdale.
Key points
- 179 campers registered over the summer, averaging about 85 a day across three age pods: 5 to 7, 8 to 10, and 11 to 13. Most landed in the two younger pods.
- Thirteen-year-olds turning 14 become eligible to work at Oakdale, through the county workforce program or the department's counselor-in-training program.
- The school district provides breakfast and lunch, and delivers 120 weekend meal bags every Friday. Bags are given out as needed rather than capped per household.
- County social services funds the busing, without which the director said many campers could not get to camp at all.
- Programs included canoeing for the oldest pod, circus skills, nature sessions with the Columbia Land Conservancy, a bike shop, and a new theater component with open-air Shakespeare that was cut short when the instructor had a medical problem. The department wants to continue theater into the after-school year.
- Field trips went to bowling, a trampoline park in Albany, and a water park, the last being the most popular and the most supervised. Three lifeguards travelled with the group.
The captions render staff first names inconsistently and several surnames are unclear, so this page names people only by role.
No School Building This Summer, So Camp Split Three Ways
The director thanked the partners who made the season work, and explained a logistical problem behind the thanks.
Key points
- The camp did not have the school as a venue this year, so it split across three locations: the 5 to 7 group at the library, the 8 to 10 group at the youth center, and the 11 to 13 group at the central firehouse.
- The department was indoors more than in any year since the director started, because of a rainier summer and because poison ivy grew back quickly on the Oakdale trails.
- Thanks went to the fire department for the space, the school district's food operation, DPW, county social services for transportation funding, and the county workforce program, which placed five young people with the department this summer.
- Three or four new families joined this year, at least two of them from Athens, which the director noted because they have a YMCA closer to home.
- Fall soccer registration is open on the department's website and social media.
An Idea for a Neighborhood Radio Station
A member picked up on the camp's DJ program and floated extending it.
Key points
- The DJ program, an introduction to music and DJing, runs at the library and ends with a party.
- A member described a low-power transmitter that plugs into a mixing board and broadcasts roughly five blocks, normally used by estate agents so passers-by can hear about a house.
- The suggestion was that campers could run their own neighborhood radio station on it, pre-recorded or live, and that it could also carry announcements about registrations and events.
- The member said he has one at home and would look for it. No decision was taken.
An idea raised in discussion, not a proposal before the committee. The meeting adjourned shortly after.
About this page
FUTURE HUDSON is an experiment in civic engagement: every public meeting of the City of Hudson since January 2026, transcribed and made readable, so any resident can follow what the city is deciding without attending every meeting. This page covers one meeting; see the full archive.
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