HUDSON, N.Y. (NEWS10) – Mexican Radio in Hudson is shutting down after nearly 16 years of operation.

In a statement Monday, the popular restaurant cites immigration crackdown as the reason for closure. Mexican Radio says many of their employees have been “forcibly ejected from the country…”

Owner Lori Selden told News10 in a phone interview that deportation isn’t the only reason the Hudson location is closing.

“We’re getting hit from every angle. We’re getting hit with it on an immigration level, we’re getting hit with it on a basic working middle class level,” Selden told News10, “where people need two or three jobs, or they have to leave, because they can’t afford to live where they’re living.”

Selden also noted that once those immigrants leave, their positions are very hard to refill.

Bryan MacCormack is the Executive Director of the Columbia County Sanctuary Movement. He explained to me that many restaurant staffs in Hudson have been targeted by I.C.E., and that the city is not a “sanctuary city,” but a “welcoming and inclusive city.”

“What that means, primarily, is that Hudson Police Department is prohibited from collaborating with I.C.E. in the majority of circumstances,” he explained. “There are numerated circumstances in which they are allowed to.”

Linda Mussmann, Hudson’s 4th Ward Supervisor, is sad to see the restaurant close.

“The people who owned the restaurant, it clearly devastated their business, and we’re sorry to see them leave, because they were somebody that contributed a great deal to our community,” Mussmann said.

A full statement from Mexican Radio can be read at their website here.