The last week's worth of items on AOA
This week was brought to you by
Wait? Did somebody let me oversleep?
This week was brought to you by 60 degree temperatures, Super Bowl hype and one really confused groundhog.
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Here's are the folks who supported your AOA information fix this week:
Helpful stuff
+ Buying or selling a home or commercial property? You need a great real estate lawyer. Dorothy Tischler, an attorney with 24 years experience helping buyers and sellers in commercial and residential real estate.
+Recenter Square is ready to help you jump start your new year's resolution right now. They've got personal trainers, classes and there's off street parking.
+ Sunmark Federal Credit Union is partnering with Regional Food Bank to help distribute prepared and non perishable food. They're also temporarily easing the loan process to get cash to people who need to make repairs, necessities and clean up efforts.
+ Best Cleaners will pick up and deliver your dry cleaning to your home or office at no extra charge.
Stuff to learn
Endorphin Business Center will help teach you the tools to make your new idea or business a success.
Albany Law School presents "From Lark Street to Nuremberg" a program on Supreme Court Justice and Albany Law Grad Robert Jackson.
Food and Drink
+New World Bistro Bar is now taking reservations for their three course prix fixe Valentine's day menu. Here's a sample : Truffle butter stuffed pheasant, Mexican coffee crusted beef filet, lobster and mushroom fettucine, ginger mushroom flan and more. Reservations at 694-0520.
+Our Daily Eats -- serving up fresh basil pesto, roasted nuts and seeds. They also have four granolas. Available at the Delmar Farmers Market, Schenectady Greenmarket and the Empire State Plaza Wednesday Farmers Market. Local retailers are listed on their website.
+ The Wine Bar and Bistro on Lark is now offering a five-course tasting menu with seatings at 6 and 9 pm Tuesday-Saturday. You'll need to make a reservation for those.
+ Capital Wine on State and Lark in Albany. They've got tastings every Friday night, so stop by on your way out to dinner. And they've got great tips on wine and food pairings.
+ Taste is holding after work French wine tastings with their wine steward. Tastings start at 5PM.
+ Stop in at The Point for dinner on in the "Don Draper Room."
+ There are lots of great seasonal flavors waiting for you at Honest Weight Food Coop.
Stuff to do
+Proctors presents jazz great Branford Marsalis with the Joey Calderazzo Duo and the Branford Marsalis Quartet, Friday, February 3rd.
+The Troy Savings Bank Music Hall has three great shows coming up: Cedric Watson & Bijou Creole on February 4th, John Waite on February 9th and the Pickin' All Star Bluegrass All Star Jam on February 10th.
+The Sisters Rosensweig opens this weekend at Capital Rep.
Albany Dodgeball is looking for players. Join them any Thursday nights at The Washington Avenue Armory.
Stuff to Do
+The Hellions of Troy are celebrating their third year in the Capital Region.
+The Albany All Starsare back at The Washington Avenue Armory.
Stuff to live in
17 Chapel Boutique Condominiums in downtown Albany still has a few condos available. You can check out their new model condo and see the furnished rooftop patio. A special tax discount from the City of Albany means that combined utility costs, homeowners fees and property taxes are as low as $250 per month.
Stuff to Try
+ Get $250 off your 2011 website design and development from Brayton Graphics when you mention you came from AOA!
+ Get a FREE MONTH of Wink High Speed Internet Service from Tech Valley Communications. Enter this code when you sign up for service at: www.winkinternet.com: w1n87k0
Photo: Flickr user D.Fletcher
Atop the Capitol
Check out this beautiful photoset of the Capitol restoration by Elisa Vietri. She got a tour of the project from the Capitol architect. Some of her photos from the Capitol's roof are great. [via Sebastien]
"Wait, what are you doing for the next 45 minutes?"
Over the Hairpin today a story by KT Kieltyka about the 2009 TulipFest and the woman she picked up at the Albany bus station. "She looked like she could maybe get a callback for the part of a boring mom in a Lifetime movie, so I figured she was legit." Those are the ones you always have to keep an eye on... [via @ElizabethEss]
Eating the buffalo chicken wing cupcake from Coccadotts
Buffalo wings and cupcakes together -- as nature probably never intended.
When we heard this week that local cake shop Coccadotts was making Buffalo chicken wing cupcakes for the Super Bowl, we were intrigued. Because... Buffalo chicken wing cupcakes. It seemed unnatural, possibly wrong -- and perhaps, in some weird way, maybe kind of good.
So we stopped by the bakery today to eat one.
Talking into the wind
A photo and story by Tim were featured on Pictory yesterday. The photo is beautiful. The story is sad. Earlier: Tim on AOA
Stuff to do this weekend
Branford Marsalis plays Proctors tonight with pianist Joey Calderazzo and quartet.
Maybe you're prepping for a Super Bowl party this weekend, but if you're looking for something to do before the game, you have a long list of options.
After the jump, a few things going on this weekend that we thought you might enjoy. Got other plans? Share, please.
And whatever you're up to, have a great weekend.
Loss of public sector jobs holds back local economy, youth club director accused of rape, problems for a winter carnival during the non-winter, sir -- is that a cattle prod?
The Capital Region's job market has been slow to bounce back from the recession in large part because of a loss of public sector jobs, according to a state comptroller report out this week. [TU]
State inspector general Ellen Biben has been picked to head the state's new Joint Commission on Public Ethics. Her selection came during a closed-door meeting and was only officially confirmed publicly two days later after it was reported by the New York Times. Biben has close ties to Andrew Cuomo and her selection has prompted questions about the independence of the new panel. A Cuomo spokesman argued Biben is "the most successful public integrity prosecutor in modern political history." [TU] [NYT] [YNN] [State of Politics] [AP/Troy Record]
A couple of voters witnesses in the Troy ballot fraud trial testified they never saw the absentee ballots that were allagedly intended for them. [Troy Record]
There were six cases of Legionnaire's disease connected to the Best Western hotel near UAlbany, according to the state Department of Health (map). DOH says there were higher than normal levels of the bacteria that cause the disease in the hotel's water system. The hotel says it's fully cooperating with DOH. [Daily Gazette] [TU] [WTEN]
Miss Albany Diner building sold to Matt Baumgartner and partners
Miss Albany Diner.
Matt Baumgartner posted today that he and business partners Jimmy and Demetra Vann have bought the Miss Albany Diner building. The name "Miss Albany Diner" and its recipes are not part of the deal:
Mrs. [Jane] Brown and her son Bill, are legally keeping the name "Miss Albany Diner" as well as their recipes, and they maintain the right to open another diner in another location, as well as having the right to sell the name Miss Albany Diner and it's recipes to an interested party at another location. As new owners of the property, we legally can not continue to operate the space as Miss Albany Diner or use their menu items. I'm only noting that because it is important to us that it is clear that we are not "closing down Miss Albany Diner". They sold us the property, and we are not legally allowed to re-open Miss Albany Diner in that space.
On a personal note, I would like to thank Jane and Bill Brown, for giving us the opportunity to care for a building that is considered by many to be one of the most iconic buildings in the capital region. I know the Browns hold the diner very dear to their hearts, and I promise we will respect the history, the memory, and the integrity of Miss Albany Diner.
Baumgartner told Steve Barnes they don't have immediate plans to re-open the place as a diner. [Table Hopping]
The diner had been for sale since 2009. Cliff Brown, who owned the diner with his wife Jane, passed away in 2010. [TU] [TU]
The diner was built in 1941 and is on the National Register of Historic Places. It's had at least three names prior to being called the Miss Albany. [National Register] [Wikipedia]
Of course, Baumgartner and his partners own Wolff's, which is just next door to MAD.
photo: UpstateNYer via Wikipedia
The organic milk shortage
A sign on the dairy case at the Hannaford in Albany.
Over the last month or so we've noticed signs popping up on dairy cases at both Hannaford and Price Chopper noting that there's an organic milk shortage. And the shelves in the case have appeared rather bare at times. (We were the ones who took the last half-gallon of organic milk at the Slingerlands Price Chopper the other day. Sorry about that.)
So, what's going on?
Hevey D, Koz, and Ja Rule
Odd trio story of the day: the New York Daily News' interview with rapper Ja Rule about his prison friendships with former NYS comptroller Alan Hevesi (corruption involving the state pension fund, using state drivers to chauffeur his wife) and former Tyco exec Dennis Kozlowski (corruption, a $15,000 umbrella stand), while serving time together in Oneida. Says Mr. Rule: "Outside, you don't meet guys like this every day. This place is amazing." [via Gannett Albany]
Schenectady during the Super Bowl
The video embedded above is a GE commercial that the company says will run during the Super Bowl on Sunday -- it highlights the turbine factor at GE's campus in Schenectady, along with some of the people who work there.
The spot's cinematography is good -- the turbines looks like sleek sculptures. Not as good: the odd turn in the last third about how the turbines make Bud beer possible.
The company says it will be playing two commercials during the game broadcast, the Schenectady spot and one about an appliance factory in Louisville (embedded after the jump). They both put emphasis on the fact that GE is building stuff -- and employing people -- in the US. (Possible subtext: don't just focus on taxes...)
Earlier on AOA: President Obama at GE in Schenectady
The dude abided in Saratoga -- and he wore a dinner jacket
The next time you call someone "dude," you'll remember this.
Apparently one of the earliest uses of the word, back in 1883, did not describe a bro. The word was used as a put down for a man who paid too much attention to clothing and fashion. Yes, the opposite of the Dude.
It turns out that the "King of the Dudes" back then was a guy named Evander Berry Wall, a multi-millionaire who reportedly drank champagne instead of water, wore a walrus mustache, had 5,000 neckties -- and like many wealthy East Coasters of the day, spent a fair amount of time in Saratoga.
Smart
Check it out: Angela Wang, a Shaker High School student from Latham, is a finalist in the prestigious Intel Science Talent Search. Wang has been working with researchers at the Wadsworth Center on a brain-to-computer interface that would allow people with disabilities to communicate via their thoughts. Past finalists in the science contest have gone on to win many of the scientific world's top awards -- including seven finalists who have won Nobel awards. [Daily Gazette] Earlier: I think, therefore I Twitter
White Nose Syndrome continues to kill off bats
Bats with White Nose Syndrome in Hailes Cave in Albany County.
White Nose Syndrome -- the bat disease first identified in the Capital Region -- has killed as many as 6.7 million bats, according to recent estimates by biologists working with the US Fish and Wildlife Service. Since first being documented in 2006, the disease has now spread to 16 states -- and at many sites it's killed almost 100 percent of the bats. It has some biologists worried that some once-common varieties of bats could be facing extinction. [US FWS] [NYT]
The "white nose" in the syndrome's name refers to a fungus that grows on the face of the bats. Last fall researchers confirmed the fungus was responsible for the syndrome after 100 percent of the bats exposed to it in captivity developed the symptoms in a study. The fungus infects the bats' skin and causes lesions. [Nature News]
In 2010, New York State's Department of Environmental Conservation reported the White Nose Syndrome was likely in all bat caves in the state. The population of some species of bat had declined by 90 percent. [NYS DEC]
The disease was first identified in Howes Cave in Schoharie County -- it spread to other caves in the region and large bat die-offs followed.
Bats don't necessarily have the best reputation with a lot of humans, but they're an important part of the ecosystem because they eat huge numbers of insects -- including mosquitos.
photo: Nancy Heaslip, NYS DEC
Calls for mistrial in Troy voter fraud trial, state employees leaving Schenectady reportedly will be replaced by greater number, mobile phone video submitted as evidence in fatal stabbing case
Two voter witnesses in the Troy ballot fraud trial testified yesterday that the signatures on the affidavits submitted to the grand jury in lieu of their in-person testimony are not their signatures. That prompted the defense to ask for either the indictments to be dismissed or a mistrial declared. [TU] [Troy Record]
Andrew Cuomo described the push for his proposed budget as the "Battle of Albany," pitting him against teacher unions, "wholly unacceptable" legislative redistricting, and "a system that for 15 years has been dysfunctional." One of the weapons in Cuomo's arsenal: Photoshop. Also yesterday: education lobbyists continued to press their case that the state's education aid is falling short. [AP/Troy Record] [State of Politics] [Fox23]
The state has recovered 46 percent of the jobs it lost during the recession, according to a report from the state comptroller's office. [State of Politics] [NYS OSC]
The 240 state DOT employees moving from a downtown Schenectady office building will reportedly be making way for as many as double that number of employees to be moved in. [Daily Gazette]
Freihofer's Run 2012 registration
Registration is now open for this year's Freihofer's Run for Women -- it's June 2. There's a discount for entering early, as low as $25 if you register by the end of February. Race organizers say last year's 5k had about 5000 runners, which is approaching the course maximum. If the continues to grow this year, they may have to close registration early -- for the first time ever.
This is February?
Just before 4 pm on Wednesday.
The high temp for today was 59. That's short of the record for the date (65 in 1989) -- but it's still 27 degrees higher than the normal for the day. [NWS]
The forecast for the rest of the week: highs in the 35-40 range, no snow.
Earlier on AOA: Where's all the snow?
Albany St. Patrick's Day Parade route changes
Steve reports that Jerry Jennings has changed the route of the St. Patrick's Day Parade this year to avoid passing the bars on Pearl Street -- because, in the words of Jennings executive assistant Bob Van Amburgh, "We witnessed some things that were disturbing last year." [Table Hopping]
Not quite the warmest, but close
To say it's been unseasonably warm seems like an understatement today, but this is not the warmest Capital Region winter on record. According to a new report from Northeast Regional Climate Center at Cornell University, the 60 day average for December 1- January 29 in Albany was 31.2 degrees. A climatologist from the Center says this makes it one of the 20 warmest early winters on record. The warmest local temperature in this time period was 34.6 back in 1932.[News10]
Parsons Corporate Trivia Challenge
Here's a chance to get the office nerds intellectuals together to have some fun and help out a good cause.
Parsons Child and Family Center is hosting its first Corporate Trivia Challenge on March 1st at Jillian's. You can register your office team of up to five people until February 8th. It's $15 dollars for an individual or $60 for a team.
Here's how it works:
+Teams compete in 20 rounds of questions, administered by Kevin Baker of Trivia Nights Live.+Questions range in difficulty, and also in point value. Teams receive positive points for every correct answer, but lose points for each incorrect answer. For the final question teams bid, up to their maximum point total, based on the final category (before hearing the question)
+The team with the most points at the end of 20 questions is the winner
Now, look around the office and choose your experts wisely.
(Thanks, Chuck!)
Old Songs music classes
Looking for accordion lessons? Hammer dulcimer? Penny whistle? This is the place.
Here's something we thought looked kind of fun.
The people who host the Old Songs Music Festival and concerts series are about to begin another semester of music classes in old school instruments.
Old Songs is dedicated to preserving traditional folk music, and as part of their mission they'll teach you how to play it on everything from the accordion (yep, accordion lessons) and the penny whistle, to the ukulele and mountain dulcimer. A lot of the classes are open to beginners who may not even read music.
What's up in the Neighborhood
Among the topics in this most recent spin around the Capital Region's online neighborhood: Columbia County, fun in Vermont, the Radix Center, a coyote, Troy's beautiful city hall, Edith Wharton, an angel with attitude, local radio, mini hot dogs from scratch, BYOB, CSA, Sunday yoga, school bus habits, Saratoga ointment, and an eggplant.
Resolution shmezolution!
Frankencake -- it's enough to make you break a good resolution
We have a winner! Congrats Lola!
Drawing's closed! Thanks for entering!
It's February 1st.
So how's that resolution coming along?
Yeah -- ours too.
By this time a lot of folks have given up on their New Year's Day promises. Rather than bemoan that fact, today we're celebrating our freedom to opt out of our resolutions with a big, fat, delicious drawing.
We're giving away a whole bunch yummy goodies you can share or -- you know -- not.
+A carnivore's delight -- $100 gift card to Central Steak in Albany.
+Sweets from Schenectady -Four pounds of chocolate from Uncle Sam's.
+Beer, beer, beer - A $50 membership to the Mug Club at Brown's
+Cheesecake in all your favorite flavors --A Frankencake from Cheesecake Machismo.
+Edible art from Crisan-- Crisan has reopened after their winter break -- $25 gift certificate.
Too much?
OK, so stop salivating on the computer and answer this question to enter the drawing:
What do you think is "just too much?"
It could be anything -- prices, hype, the number of cupcakes you've eaten today -- whatever.
We'll draw a winner at random from the entries.
Important: All comments must be submitted by 10 am Friday (February 3rd 2012) to be entered in the drawing. You must answer the question to be part of the drawing. One entry per person, please. You must enter a valid email address (that you check regularly -- seriously, if you win, we want to give you your stuff) with your comment. The winners will be notified via email by 5pm on Friday and must respond by Noon on Monday (February 6th).
Senate approves DNA samples for all convicted criminals, DOT moves 240 workers from Schenectady to Colonie, Jar of bed bugs at housing authority workshop,voters testify in Troy ballot fraud, national show features Rainwalker case tonight
The Senate has approved Governor Cuomo's proposal to require everyone convicted of a crime -- from felonies to misdemeanors -- to submit a DNA sample. Currently the law only requires DNA samples from those convicted of felonies and certain violent misdemeanors. A similar bill died in the legislature last year over democrats demand for a stipulation that would make it easier for defendants to get access to the information. [YNN] [Reuters] [NYT]
Senate Democrats filed suit yesterday in an effort to block the newly proposed legislative redistricting plan. [Newsday]
The Chairman of the board of commissioners of the Saratoga Springs Housing Committee said Tuesday that the Authority's embattled executive was doing the work of three people and tripled his salary through merit raises. The city held two meetings yesterday to look into allegations of mismanagment and a bedbug problem in the city's public housing. At a public workshop, residents spoke out in favor and against Spychalski -- and one Stonquist resident showed up with a jar of dead bedbugs he collected from his apartment. [Gazette] [TU] [Saratogian]
240 DOT workers will be moving from their offices in Schenectady to the DOT headquarters in Colonie as part of a cost saving "restacking" plan. Schenectady city officials are hoping another state department will move into the offices. [Gazette] [TU] [YNN]
A dozen voters testified in the Troy ballot fraud trial of Ed McDonough and Michel LoPorto yesterday, some claiming they were asked to fill out absentee ballot info, others claiming signatures on ballots with their names were not theirs. [Record]
,
Testimony has begun four weeks early in The Matthew Slocum murder trial. The gravely ill grandmother of one of the victims in the case was allowed to submit her testimony yesterday. Slocum is charged with murdering his mother, step-father and step-brother and setting fire to their home. [YNN] [WNYT] [Fox23]
One of defendants charged in the fatal stabbing of Tammi Washington in Schenectady on Monday served 60 days in jail for stabbing someone with a steak knife in Downtown Schenectady 3 years ago. [TU]
Police are searching for the man who robbed the Sunoco station across from UAlbany's downtown campus at gunpoint Monday night. [TU]
The senators from Beer York and Beer Hampshire
Chuck Schumer and New Hampshire senator Jean Shaheen have bet a craft beer for every member of the US Senate on the Super Bowl. If the Giants win, Shaheen has to buy cases of beer from six New York craft breweries -- including Brown's Brewing in Troy. If the Patriots win, Schumer has to buy craft beer from New Hampshire (among them: Smuttynose). Andrew Cuomo and Massachusetts governor Deval Patrick also have a food wager on the game, but it's not as fun. [Schumer press release] [TU CapCon] Earlier: Chuck Schumer would like you to drink NY beer with your chicken wings
Severed dog head found along Route 85
Weird/disturbing story of the day: Albany police say a severed dog head found along Route 85 near the Harriman State Office Campus Monday morning. From the press release:
The Animal Control Officer located a pit bull's head that had been severed. It was on the roadway just before the Washington Avenue overpass. A search of the immediate area initially did not locate the body of the dog. ...
It initially could not be determined whether it's had been intentionally severed or if it was struck by a car.
A search was conducted late this morning and the dog's body was found in between the eastbound and westbound lanes in between the cement supports of the Washington Avenue overpass.
The owner of the dog, who lives in Albany, was located today and she told police the dog was acting strange this past Friday and it got loose from her and took off. She had put out flyers and posters for her dog and called the Mohawk Hudson Humane Society to report her dog missing.
APD spokesman Jimmy Miller told the TU today that the DEC pathologist who examined the dog called the case "very unusual."
Full press release after the jump.
Behold: the chicken wing cupcake
That's brown sugar sprinkled on top, apparently.
Update: We tried them -- and they're... different.
____
Colonie cake shop Coccadotts is now offering a savory chicken wing cupcake.
Yep, you read that correctly.
From the shop's Facebook page:
Here it is! Go wild with our savory Chicken Wing cupcakes! All the goodness of a typical party platter, fitting in the palm of your hand. With a buttery corn bread base and bleu cheese frosting, the only thing that makes these better is the amazing chicken wing on top!
The store says in a comment on its FB page that the cupcakes will be available this Friday through Sunday for pick up -- or by call-ahead order. Also: "Trust us, they are better tasting than you think!"
Perhaps it was only a matter of time before these two great handheld snacks were united. The idea seems to have originated -- or at least gained popularity -- with Stephanie Polluck, who writes a blog called the Cupcake Project. As you might imagine, the internet then didn't quite know what to do with itself.
[via @derryX]
Earlier on AOA: Coccadotts on Cupcake Wars
photo: Coccadotts
Where to get a birthday cake?
Jessica asked via Twitter:
Where can I get a good, non-grocery store birthday cake? Bakery in Renss has let me down for the last time.
The first place that springs to mind is Crisan in Albany, which makes beautiful cakes, birthday or otherwise. Daniel and Jen have evidence.
But there are many places to get a birthday cake in the Capital Region. Got a favorite? Please share!
Earlier on AOA: A good local bakery for cookies?
photo: Flickr user Will Clayton
Mountain Jam 2012
The initial lineup for the annual Mountain Jam music festival at Hunter Mountain in the Catskills is out.
Among the top-billed acts this year: Steve Winwood, Gov't Mule, Michael Franti & Spearhead, The Roots, Ben Folds Five.
This year's festival is May 31-June 3. Tickets start at $150 -- and presumably will get more expensive as they're sold (the next price levels are "TBD"), though there were deals last year.
Earlier on AOA: No Solid Sound Festival at MASS MoCA this year -- but there will be Wilco
Egg and Cheese Sandwich at Jack's Diner
Hard roll, two eggs, cheese.
Update: Details on the full Tour de Egg Sandwich are now available at fUSSYlittleBLOG.
All egg sandwiches are not created equal.
And I'm not even talking about different forms of egg sandwiches that can be enjoyed all around the country. Like in Philly where they scramble the egg and put it on an Amoroso hoagie roll. Or in New Jersey it comes with Taylor ham and saltpepperketchup. In New Mexico you will find scrambled eggs in the form of a burrito stuffed with green chile. Here, we put flattened fried-eggs and American cheese on a grilled hard roll, which I've recently discovered is decidedly not hard.
In the Capital Region almost every diner, deli, convenience store, bakery, and cherished institution produces a version of this sandwich. So, to better understand what makes our egg and cheese so special, I recently went on a Tour de Egg Sandwich along with 17 other likeminded eaters.
The competition among the five places was close. Very close. In the Tour de Egg Sandwich voting, Jack's Diner in Albany edged out McCarroll's in Delmar by a nose, with Famous Lunch in Troy nipping at their heels.
So what sets this diner apart?
Cooking the Tree of Life: evolution, milk, cheese, cheesecake
The popular Cooking the Tree of Life series is back at the State Museum February 8 with an evening about milk, cheese, and cheesecake. From the press release:
Dr. Jeremy Kirchman, the State Museum's evolutionary biologist, will lead the presentation, and Dr. Reid Ivy, creamery manager for the award-winning Old Chatham Sheepherding Co, will explain how cheese is made. Together they will consider the evolution of mammals, milk production, and the ingenious ways that humans (with help from bacteria) have used this mammalian adaptation to create some of our richest culinary pleasures. Dr. Ivy and Drue Spallholz from Albany's Honest Weight Food Co-op, will lead the audience in a cheese tasting. Lynn Beaumont from Albany's Cheesecake Machismo will be on hand to describe how to make cheesecake, and will offer the audience samples of cheesecake made at her shop. Fresh local milk from Clarksville's Meadowbrook Farms Dairy will also be available for sampling.
The program starts at 7 pm on February 8 (that's a Wednesday). Tickets are $5 at the door.
Earlier on AOA:
+ Old Chatham Sheepherding Company's Kinderhook Creek cheese
+ Milk delivery options in the Capital Region: Meadowbrook Farms Dairy
+ Cheesecake from Cheesecake Machismo
An Albany aquarium?
From the National Aquarium in Baltimore's Inner Harbor area.
Rob (@paintaneight) pointed out a recent letter to the editor in the TU calling for the construction of an aquarium in downtown Albany instead of a convention center. From the letter by Lino Verelli of Slingerlands:
... An educational center to see, feel and be able to interact with the creatures and beauty of the oceans.
Open seven days, it would provide jobs for a dedicated staff of professionals and the countless support services necessary to its maintenance.
If managed correctly, this center would generate jobs, sales taxes, hotel taxes, visitors' fees and something totally unique to the fabric of this city.
Rob was curious what people thought about this idea (we get the sense he likes it, but we're just reading between the tweets) -- and so are we. So, aquarium -- yes/no/maybe?
We re-tweeted Rob's question yesterday and there were a handful of responses -- they're after the jump. Update: We've also embedded comments from AOA's Facebook page.
Our initial reaction to the idea: skeptical. It seems like an urban planning cliche, a possible white elephant (or maybe "white whale" is more apt).
photo: Flickr user seannaber
Silver proposes minimum wage hike, Common Cause proposes alternative redistricting plan,Saratoga Mayor calls for state audit of City Housing Authority, murder/suicide in Saratoga County, suspects arrested in fatal Schenectady stabbing
Assembly speaker Sheldon Silver says his proposal to raise the minimum wage from $7.25 to $8.50 is "a matter of human dignity." Silver proposed the minimum wage hike yesterday, but not everyone is happy about it. [Capitol Confidential] [WNYT] [YNN]
The group Common Cause New York has proposed an alternative legislative redistricting map. Assemblyman Jack McEneney says the former is being called the "incumbant protection program" and the later "the incumbent destruction program." [Common Cause][WNYT]
Spa City mayor Scott Johnson has asked the New York State comptroller to audit the city housing authority. A public hearing is slated for tonight
about concerns of nepotism and questionable financial practices in the housing authority.
[Saratogian]
Two people have been arrested in connection with the fatal stabbing of a woman in broad daylight in downtown Schenectady yesterday. [ YNN] [TU]
Saratoga County Sheriff's deputies are investigating a murder/suicide. An 85 year old man apparently shot and killed his wife, and then himself on Sunday in their Porters Corners home. [YNN] [TU]
A 19 year old Albany man who passed the exam the Albany police officer exam last spring has been charged in the murder of Albany High School Student Tyler Rhodes. [TU]
A State Police investigator testifying in the Troy ballot fraud trial says former City Clerk William McInerney admitted to forging absentee ballots in the 2009 primary when he was questioned over the summer. Later, Working Party members whose absentee ballots were turned in to the County Board of Elections testified that they never cast ballots [TU] [Record]
For your yeti needs, try Troy
This made us smile: Kristofer snapped this pic of a yeti for sale in a storefront on River Street near Monument Square in Troy this past weekend.
No doubt this has been a difficult winter for local yeti, what with the lack of snow and all that. We can only hope this guy finds a good new home.
Is this your yeti? We'd love to hear the backstory.
They yeti is by Amy Pollicino. She writes in the comments:
That is right, this sweet, cuddly, well behaved Yeti is looking for a new home. Even with the mild weather and lack of snow he has remained well tempered and optimistic that he may find a good forever home somewhere in the Capital Region :) He was originally created for the Winter Wonderland window display contest run by the Troy BID. Now that the contest is over he is hoping to find a more permanent place to reside. Although he appears to be more fitting for a colder climate he enjoys troy and Upstate New York, curious to stick around to possibly meet up with one of his close cousins, the Sasquatch. If you have any interest please contact me vie FB or email PollicinoA@yahoo.com
(Thanks, Kristofer!)
An alleged inside job -- by an 11-year-old
Albany police say they've arrested an 11-year-old boy for allegedly breaking into cars near Washington Park -- and running an inside job robbery on a Lark Street store. From the APD press release:
Officer Michael Geraci was following up on a burglary report last Thursday with the owner of Frame Workshop at 215 Lark Street. The owner stated that someone had entered the business through a unlocked window between Wednesday night and Thursday morning and stole $240 from the cash register. Several picture frames, which were in front of the window, were also damaged when the suspect climbed in.
The owner told Officer Geraci that a young boy, who he had befriended, had been hanging around the business over the last couple of days and was inside on several occasions. He believed that the boy had intentionally unlocked the window while he was inside the shop so he could get inside when the business was closed. The owner gave Officer Geraci the boy's name and showed him a picture of the boy on Facebook.
The full press release is pasted after the jump.
This is at least the second recent arrest that's resulted from Geraci noticing something on his Center Square beat (the other: the man who allegedly posed as a detective). Both cases point to the potential payoff of having beat cops and community policing (and admittedly, it's a tiny sample). Would those arrests have been made without it? Sure, maybe. But having an officer out in the neighborhood, talking to people, making connections couldn't have hurt.
Passion Pit at Northern Lights
Electrpop band Passion Pit is scheduled to play a show at Northern Lights April 23. Tickets go on sale this Friday -- they're $25.
You've heard Passion Pit even if you've never heard of Passion Pit. For example: "Little Secrets". They're filed in the same bin as MGMT. And for whatever reason, they seem to get remixed and mashed up a lot. (What? A Passion Pit/MGMT mashup? Now the electropop bands are feeding on each other! Madness! Someone turn off the lights at American Apparel!)
Earlier on AOA:
+ The Avett Brothers at the Palace
+ Ingrid Michaelson at The Egg
+ Bruce Springsteen playing the TU Center
+ Some shows that are coming up, winter 2012
photo: Justin Borucki
Albany High School: An alum's perspective
Some people I've met have found it hard to believe that I'm a graduate of Albany High School.
When I was in high school I worked at a store in Stuyvesant Plaza. An older customer once asked where I went to high school, so I told her. She subsequently went on to tell me how she, too, was an Albany Academy girl and what a fabulous education I must be receiving. I hated to correct her, as she was so happy to reminisce, but I said, "No, no -- I go to Albany High."
Her response? A rather deflated, "Oh."
I attended Albany High from 1995 through 1999 and the perception of the school hasn't changed much in 12 years. And while I can't attest to the student experience today, I've always been appreciative of my time at Albany High and am proud to be a Falcon.
Let me tell you why.
Where to have a tea party?
Cassie emails:
I've been tasked with planning a bridal shower for my friend. Her sister is the MOH but, she's not near the area to plan it so she's given me her ideas and now I need some help. She wants to have a tea party - think "ladies that lunch" more than "Victorian tea." We're looking for a venue that is unique/unusual with a view other than a parking lot and within 45 minutes of Albany.
I know bridal shower locations have been discussed before but, I looked through the comments and didn't see anything that fit the bill. Any ideas?
Maybe you have some ideas that will help Cassie find those ladies some lunch (and tea). If so, please share!
photo: Flickr user halahmoon
Cambridge Hotel, after Hell
Steve ate at the newly Ramsay-ed Cambridge Hotel this past weekend and reports the food was great -- it also sounds like he'll make an appearances on the episode of Hotel Hell. (See Jerry's before-Ramsay meal there.) Said celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay of the hotel during an appearance at Willard Mountain this weekend: "It's the pillar of the community, so we need to put it back into the community and make the owners understand that you need to carry that momentum forward and more importantly fall in love with it again. It's an amazing place." [TU] [derryX] [Fox23]
My Exit: Steven Zimring
It's Monday, which means WEXT is running another My Exit show -- where the listeners get to pick their own playlists.
This week, a high school senior takes you on an eclectic tour from Surf Rider, to Zeppelin, to The Grouch and Eligh...
Cuomo says he'll veto redistricting lines, talk of primary for McDonald because of same-sex marriage vote, Cops-like incident in Albany, fist bump for the record
Due to problems with our hosting company, AOA's website was offline Monday morning. So things were a bit (or a lot) delayed. Sorry about that.
Andrew Cuomo said Friday that he will veto the proposed plans for redistricting, which will most likely prompt negotiation over changes to the maps. In an op-ed in the Times Union Sunday, Neil Breslin argued the creation of a new state Senate district that would cover the southwest part of the Capital Region is unconstitutional and "outrageous": "... Albany County as we know it would be drastically distorted, separating communities and disenfranchising voters."[AP/WSJ] [TU] Earlier: The Capital Region's legislative districts, before and after proposed new lines.
Sheldon Silver is reportedly going to introduce a bill today that would increase the state's minimum wage to $8.50 and include yearly increases for inflation. [NYT]
Records indicate the Saratoga Springs Housing Authority has spent tens of thousands of dollars over the last two years on travel so employees could attend conferences around the nation. Among the reported expenses: more than $5000 to send a receptionist to conferences in Vegas and DC. [TU] [Daily Gazette]
The Schenectady County SPCA says a Great Dane was found tied to a tree near the Mohawk by SCCC, malnourished and shivering Friday night. It says it appears the dog wouldn't have made it through the night. Two people have claimed ownership of the dog. [TU] [WNYT] [WTEN]
Look for To Catch a Test Strip Black Marketeer, hosted by Paul Grondahl, next fall on a TV schedule. [TU]
The week ahead
Sean Rowe has a show lined up this week.
Here are a few things to keep in mind, look forward to, or keep busy with this week, from the weather (still weird), to Ryan Gosling, to cosmology, to documentary, to dance in the air, to Branford Marsalis, to Sean Rowe, to roller derby...
A quick recap of the week
Here are a few highlights from the past week on AOA:
+ Soapbox: Siobhan and the robins have something in common -- they're both a little thrown off by the kinda, sorta winter we've been having.
+ We picked a sampling of cooking classes.
+ A trio of local public radio made a funny video: Sh*t Public Radio Listeners Say.
+ We gave away tickets to a whole season of screenings at EMPAC by asking: What's your favorite film character?
+ We met the guys who are starting a distillery in downtown Albany.
+ Ecovative was featured in Wired.
+ Capital Region home prices were basically flat in 2011 compared to the year before -- we looked a breakdown of median prices for cities and towns around the area.
+ Here are a few more details about the movie that's shooting at the TU Center.
+ What was up in the Neighborhood this week: jumping into freezing a pond, mediocrity, Saratoga rumors, cross country skiing, ballot stuffing, the Illium, eating at bars, Taiwan Noodle, boar short ribs, seitan sliders, important work at Stewart's, cafeterias, tracking wildlife, finding a dress that fits, getting framed, and Pearl Street exposed.
+ Bennett took the snow train to North Creek -- and came back with some beautiful photos.
+ Robert asked about spots for romantic weekend getaways.
+ We talked with Molly McGrath about her new production -- and how the theater scene in the Capital Region is changing.
+ A few of the items found on Craigslist this week: a Newt prohibition, the unfortunate side effects of alcohol, a street blimp, and a pay phone.
+ And we did a side-by-side comparison of the Capital Region's legislative districts with the proposed new districts. There's a good chance one of your reps is changing.
If you'd just like the whole week unfiltered, check our listing of the last seven days of AOA.
Thanks to everyone who posted a comment or shared a photo or idea this week!
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... said Wendy Voelker about The organic milk shortage