The EVERETT NACK ESTUARY EDUCATION CENTER
The City of Hudson, in partnership with The Hudson Sloop Club has been awarded $91,780 from the Hudson River Estuary Program to develop a community education center at the Hudson Riverfront. This grant will fund the development of the Everett Nack Estuary Education Center in Hudson, named in memory of Everett Nack, a local fisherman, naturalist, and advocate for the river. The site for the ENEEC is an acre of Hudson River frontage with the remnants of an historic pier and slips, directly south of Rick’s Point and the Hudson Waterfront Park. The Hudson Sloop Club will be administering the project for the City of Hudson and running the facility with partner organizations once the project is complete.
The site will need to be cleared of brush and overgrowth before light landscaping can occur. Next, the ENEEC building will be constructed using a recycled shipping container, customized with windows, doors, and a solar system to enable it to operate “off the grid.”
The ENEEC will be designed to offer hands on and experiential displays and activities, and will host visiting environmental educators and scientists. The ENEEC will also serve as a riverfront information center for community members and visitors to Hudson. An aquarium, regularly stocked with local marine life will be a visual centerpiece, alongside wildlife and habitat displays. River data about tides, temperature, turbidity, and other factors will be displayed on real time screens. The center will have a learning library of books and resources about the Hudson River’s ecology, and history, and information about local boat rentals, tours, and other recreational opportunities. The facility will be equipped with technology for water quality monitoring and recording, for seine netting, and with shared fishing gear and tackle. A full cycle estuary viewing station will include a digital microscope connected to a computer and projector for large scale viewing, and educational purposes.
When complete, ENEEC will become a resource for local scientists, students and researchers enabling access to valuable ecological data and flexible space for interpretive learning. The Center will be an educational resource accessible not only to the community within the city of Hudson, but for the larger communities of Columbia and Greene counties and the Hudson valley at large. Schools, environmental groups, summer camps, individuals and families will have access to this new facility for classes, workshops, talks and on-the-water programming. The Center's mission and programming will be developed by a collaborative team of local educational, environmental and river based organizations working together with the community.
The Hudson Sloop Club is so excited to partner with City on this project, and is grateful to the Hudson River Estuaries Program for making this dream possible.
Stay tuned for more info to come soon, and upcoming community meetings to discuss this amazing development......