Hudson Council Votes Down Proposed High School Site

By a five to one vote, the Hudson City Council Monday voted down a zoning change request by the local school district that would have re-developed a long-shuttered dog track into a new high school, after a months-long acrimonious and divisive debate.

The central question was whether the city could afford to lose the 130-acre site's property taxes if the location was rezoned from general commercial to public or quasi-public.

"Does it make common sense to take one third of our - the city of Hudson's available commercial property off our tax rolls? No," council member Randy Morrissette said before casting a 'no' vote. "No one has more to lose than the city of Hudson's taxpayers."

Council member John Hoggatt, who acknowledged that, "I lay awake at night thinking about this," after the Council was inundated by community comments about the issue, was the lone 'yes' vote.

"Rezoning supports the will of the voters," Hoggatt said during the council meeting. "I'm confident that the people have made a solid choice for the city of Hudson and for the entire school district. Rezoning is a known choice with public support."

Watch our story above to hear more from Monday's council meeting and learn how much in taxes governments could give up if the rezoning had passed.

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