City Council Discusses Boat Docks on City Property

The issue surrounding the docks owned by the residents who live on First Street was discussed at the Wednesday night’s council meeting.

Mayor Alan Burchill, council member Randy Morrissette and council member John Hoggatt recused themselves, leaving the remaining council members to discuss what to do about the issue.

The current municipal code concerning the docks has not been changed in the past 31 years. According to state records, the railroad was officially abandoned in 1974, and the city of Hudson purchased and acquired the abandoned railway in 1988.

According to city attorney Catherine Munkittrick, any time that there is something on city property, there is potential for exposing the city to liability. If there were to be a claim, homeowners might not have insurance that would cover it because it’s private property on private land, which is not included on the statement of their property.

Sarah Atkins Hoggatt, married to Council Member John Hoggatt and is one of the current dock owners, spoke during the meeting.

“In the past the city had said that the docks were grandfathered in and that having docks were ok,” Atkins-Hoggatt said, “Regardless of the land in question, the city acquired the land and they were aware of the dock that had been there for generations.”

Mitchell Hobbins, who lives on Second Street, said that believes that the city should offer a lottery to all residents in Hudson who want a dock.

“I’m not fortunate enough to live on [First Street], but I would like to have a dock,” said Hobbins. “Even if they had a dock there for 100 years, I don’t care, either they allow everyone to have access or none.”

According to regulations of the city, the only people that can own docks on city property right now is the city and the city has to lease that dock.

Tom Smith, who also spoke at the meeting, stated he believes that there is no adverse possession when it comes to city owned property.

“The homeowners have had this privilege, and they have not been paying for it. And their argument is simply that they have always been allowed to,” said Smith. “And now we find ourselves in the position of taking something away from people that was never theirs in the first place. The tax records clearly show the owners not paying for this access. “

Atkins-Hoggatt presented a power point presentation about what the property owners on First Street believe could be done about the docks.

“This is a very complex topic, there are many groups that have an interest in the outcome,” said Atkins-Hoggatt. “If we had a detailed vision for the walking path, it would be apparent that some of the dock alternatives for the alignment for that vision wound be counterproductive.”

The city council plans to put this back on the agenda and reschedule for further discussion.