January
The Saratoga Springs City Council unanimously vote to adopt a resolution urging state legislators to address and take immediate action on VLT and racing issues at the first meeting of 2011 on Tuesday, Jan. 4. The resolution is proposed by Mayor Scott Johnson and is meant to target the main threats to New York State racing, like OTB and casino gambling. All council members voice support for the resolution and say they feel it is a necessary action to take early in newly elected Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s tenure because of racing’s importance to the economy of Saratoga.
Clifton Park Town Justices James F. Hughes and Robert A. Rybak work to organize and compile a complete history on the Clifton Park Town Court to help the public understand the importance of their work. The pair recruit the town clerk and Town Historian John Scherer to help.
The goal is to discover what the jobs before them entailed, who held them and what types of cases the court handled in the past. They find modern cases are not much different from the cases heard by town judges in the 1800s. Most of the cases were complaints between neighbors, but the court changed slightly throughout the years.
The project started as a list of all the judges and the years they served. Rybak and Hughes hope find pictures to go with all the judges, then display the names, photos, old court records and some history in the public safety building so people have something to look at while they wait.
Concerned citizens voice their opinions to Canadian Pacific Railway representatives, New York State Department of Transportation officials and Judge Robert Rybak regarding the possible impending closure of three railway crossings in the Town of Ballston on Thursday, Jan. 6.
Residents listen to five hours of testimony by CP reps and DOT officials who seek to offer possible solutions to the contentious issue concerning the closure of crossings at Connolly Road, Saunders Lane and Whites Beach Road by Saratoga Lake, all private roads.
According to CP, four Amtrak passenger trains and 16 freight trains pass over the crossings daily at speeds up to 60 miles per hour. The rail company says it plans to operate an additional four freight trains per day on the line and that the crossings are located in the State’s proposed “high speed rail” corridor, where future Amtrak trains could reach speeds of 79 miles per hour.
Railway officials hope to engage in meaningful discussions with homeowners regarding the safety, use and maintenance of the crossings, while Supervisor Patti Southworth says the council supports continued operation of the roads and railways, but the town cannot be responsible for their upkeep. Residents feel the same way. Rybak tells CP to meet with residents and submit a progress update to him in about three months.
Town of Ballston officials draft a Farmland Protection Plan. Agricultural districts had been designated in the past, but a protection plan would make the town eligible for state, federal or county funding if it becomes available and would make state-funded purchase of development rights (PDR) an option for farmers, according to Joan Pott, chairman of the Farmland Protection Plan committee.
Supervisor Patti Southworth says the plan is important because of Ballston’s value of agriculture and as a right to farm community. The committee holds a meeting open to the public on Thursday, Jan. 20, to offer information and gather opinions and insight from farmers.
Some of the main concerns of farmers are whether there are other options besides state-funded PDRs; if the plan can be drafted so as not to interfere with someone’s private property rights; if it can offer protection through zoning and still encourage farming; possible intrusion of motorized vehicles like snowmobiles and ATVs tearing up cropland; and problems of vandalism and trespassing.
One option farmers suggest is finding ways to better market and promote their products for sale. Pott says they don’t necessarily want anything from the government, they just want freedom from government burden and intrusion.
February
Thomas Prusinowski, a retired U.S. Navy sailor from Saratoga Springs, is one of a handful of sailors chosen to appear in the made for TV film “Lost Valentine.” The Hallmark Hall of Fame movie starring Jennifer Love Hewitt and Betty White, premiers on CBS on Sunday, Jan. 30. Prusinowski shot for 16 hours in October near a submarine base in Georgia and was part of the funeral detail in the movie. The movie is about a woman whose husband goes off to war and is shot down. For the next 65 years, she goes back to the same train station platform she dropped him off at to see if he will come home. After enlisting the help of a local reporter, the remains of her husband are found and the Navy brings them back for a proper military burial. Prusinowski says the acting he did in the movie was a role familiar to him, as it mirrored true life.
The temporary exhibit “Agrippa Hull—Ordinary Soldier, Extraordinary Man,” is displayed in the visitor center of Saratoga National Historical Park during February for Black History Month. Park Ranger Eric Schnitzer gives a presentation on Sunday, Feb. 13, that offers information about the role of African American soldiers in the Revolutionary War, specifically at the Battle of Saratoga. Contrary to what many people think, the Revolutionary War wasn’t just a battle between red-coated white British soldiers and blue-coated white American soldiers. Between the two armies, thousands of African-American soldiers fought, including nearly 500 at the Battle of Saratoga alone.
Barbara Bird, also known around the Capital Region as “Sparky” the clown since 1993, is named Clown of the Year by Clowns of America International in Florida. People she works with nominated her for the award. Miriam Kleinberger of Loudonville coordinated Barbara’s nomination because she said Bird was the best example of how a clown should perform for audiences and shares her knowledge of clowning with others. Bird, a consulting nurse practitioner in Clifton Park, says she cried when she heard the news. She is later recognized for her achievement at the annual clowning convention in California in April.
The Prevention Council’s program “Too Good For Drugs” is named as a replacement for the D.A.R.E. program after it was eliminated from the Saratoga Springs City School District budget in April 2010. The intensive, science-based curriculum is tested out on fifth graders at Division Street and Geyser Road elementary schools in the in early February and the remaining four schools are set to start the curriculum later in the year. The new program is more interactive and covers tobacco, talks about resistance skills, ways to reduce pressure, role playing, communicating effectively and how to tell someone pressuring students how they feel about drug use, while promoting assertiveness.
Nicole Smith is the first woman to be elected to a chief’s rank in the Clifton Park Volunteer Fire Department. With 14 years in the department, Smith moved up the ranks and served as training captain and training lieutenant. She was elected second assistant chief by department members at the end of 2010 to oversee the operations portion of the fire department, making her responsible for all the fire trucks and firefighting gear. She joined the firehouse when she was 16 but couldn’t go out on calls until she was 18. Smith hopes her rise toward the top will serve as inspiration among other female firefighters in the department.
March
The search for a 19-year-old missing in Saratoga Springs is called off Tuesday, March 8, after a search crew finds his body submerged in Putnam Creek at around 11 a.m. According to Saratoga Springs police, the body of Alexander Grant is found by a search crew consisting of Saratoga Springs City Firefighters and New York State Forest Rangers.
His body is recovered within three tenths of a mile from where he was last seen at 3 Care Lane, police say, and is about 300 yards north of Sunnyside Gardens and 200 yards from the railroad line. Grant was visiting friends at Skidmore College and went missing after leaving a private house party on Church Street around 11:30 p.m. He was reported missing the next day.
At about 1:15 a.m. Sunday, Grant was observed on surveillance video breaking into a medical office building at 3 Care Lane. At that time he was dressed only in a pair of shorts, a long sleeve shirt and had only one sock on his feet, police say. The surveillance video indicates Grant had become injured and was bleeding. He was last observed leaving the office building at about 2:15 a.m.
The National Guard checks an old rifle range for potential environmental concerns that was used from 1878 to 1951 and is located just east of Weibel Avenue in Saratoga Springs.
Property owners of the designated area grant the National Guard permission to be on the property, which is one of 23 former training sites within New York inspected under mandates from the Department of Defense Military Munitions Response Program. The program is being conducted worldwide to address human health, safety and environmental concerns at former non-operational defense sites. Officials are unsure of what would be found at the site, if anything. If action were to be required, that process would be eligible for Defense State Memorandum of Agreement funding under the Defense Environmental Restoration Program.
The County Technology Committee created by the Board of Supervisors in 2010 brainstorms ways to bring the county up to date. Michael Veitch, Saratoga Springs supervisor, attends the National Association of Counties’ Technology Summit in Washington, D.C. for ideas, since the county is still using paper time cards and walking documents door-to-door instead of sending emails. Veitch says he wants to look into consolidating services by integrating systems between departments, such as the probation department, sheriff’s office and D.A.’s office. Other ideas include putting more documents online and centralizing the IT for use in all departments to create efficiency.
Brooke Martin, 11, of Galway, travels to Los Angeles in early March to compete on Jeopardy’s Kids Week. She says she was excited to meet Alex Trebek and visit California for the first time. Martin has been a fan of Jeopardy for years and says the experience was so much fun that she wants to find a way to do it again. The episode airs later in the year, in early July. The winner of each game receives a minimum guarantee of $15,000, second place gets $2,000 and third place earns $1,000.
Robyn Ringler was a 24-year-old assistant head nurse at George Washington University hospital in 1981 when Ronald Reagan was shot in an assassination attempt. She spent 10 days as his night nurse and kept in touch with many people she got to know during his hospital stay. Ringler became friendly with Jerry Parr, the Secret Service agent who pushed Reagan into a car and saved his life.
Now, Ringler lives in Ballston Lake and owns East Line Books in Clifton Park. She travels to Washington, D.C. on March 29 and 30 to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the assassination attempt.
April
Jim Gula, a physical education teacher at Milton Terrace South Elementary School in Ballston Spa, starts a running club for the district’s elementary school children after deciding more kids need to run. Over the course of 13 weeks, meeting twice a week after school, the students run 26.2 miles, or the equivalent of a marathon. The new program is called “Mission Possible.” Gula teaches runners the basics of the sport, like proper form, breathing and footwear. More than 60 kids participate in the program from the start.
Alyssa Litvaitis rings in her double digits with a birthday party in early April and asks her friends to bring items for the Saratoga County Animal Shelter. The 4th grader from Ballston Lake gathers $100, dog food, cat food, toys, treats and towels, and delivers it all to the shelter. Her love of animals inspired her generous idea, which is greatly appreciated by employees. In June, Litvaitis plans to donate her hair to Locks of Love once it’s long enough.
On Friday, April 8, nearly 75 middle school students from the Capital District spend a day at HVCCs Tec-Smart facility in Malta for “Bring the High-Tech World to Middle School” program, part of Time Warner Cable’s “Connect a Million Minds” initiative. The students tour the campus, visited the five laboratories and learn about STEM learning, the semiconductor industry and energy efficiency. Learning stations focused on various technological topics are set up for students to visit, where they participated in hands-on activities. Some of the things they learn about are how the Internet, phones and televisions work.
A group of Chinese educators visit seven regional school districts on Tuesday, April 12, including Ballston Spa and Saratoga Springs. The educators on their trip observe various classrooms and travel to San Francisco for a language conference as part of a new partnership between Washington-Saratoga-Warren-Hamilton-Essex BOCES and Southwest University in China. Chinese educators are interested in student-centered instruction. BOCES plans to begin exchanging information, materials and ideas between the two countries electronically and eventually provide a way for students to meet face-to-face. The cultural initiative works hand-in-hand with the already established BOCES program Project Chinese, which is an extracurricular language program.
The Malta Ridge Volunteer Fire Company receives a $1,200 fire prevention grant. The money is used to implement a computer software system to aid in response, since the company will be tasked with responding to any chemical or hazardous material emergencies when the GlobalFoundries facility opens. The fire department installs a Computer-Aided Management of Emergency Operations (CAMEO) System, a series of software applications that can be used to plan for and respond to hazardous material emergencies, instead of using hardcover books and phone calls to relay messages.
May
Chris Bemis of Ballston Spa studies morphology and comes up with his own theory about what the world could look like hundreds of thousands of years from now. In his novel, “My Travels with Eos,” he introduces a matured alien species called Nyx who come to Earth and interact with humans to exchange information about their different cultures. The difference between Nyx and humans are that Nyx can control their own evolution and adapt to any environment, allowing them to take the form of a cluster of bacteria or a human being. He is working on the sequel.
Clifton Park senior Schuyler Smith is named one of 141 U.S. Presidential Scholars for 2011. The U.S. Presidential Scholars Program was created in 1964 to honor academic achievement of high school seniors around the country. Seeking more of a challenge, Smith decided to be homeschooled during elementary school. The 18-year-old travels to Washington D.C. in June to receive his award and later met the president.
Results from the biannual Prevention Needs Assessment Survey show alcohol and substance abuse rates are down among students in grades 6 to 12 in the Saratoga Springs City School District. At the same time, prescription drug abuse in surrounding counties is up, causing concern for parents and officials. The survey is administered to students in physical education classes on certain days to gather a random sampling of students and is voluntary. This time about 1,500 students were surveyed. According to the survey results, substance abuse by 6th- and 7th-graders is “nearly as low as they can go.” On the high school front, fewer than 50 percent of 9th- to 12th-graders reported using substances regularly, which is in line with the national level. A large percentage of students who reportedly drink say they binge drink (five or more drinks in a row) and marijuana use is above the state and national averages in tenth and eleventh grade.
June
After Assemblyman Jim Tedisco pioneered Buster’s Law, which established a felony category for animal abuse crimes, he and Sen. Greg Ball spearhead the first New York State Animal Advocacy Day in Albany on Wednesday, June 1. Tedisco says his own pets (he has four) add love and companionship to his family and are a large part of the reason why he’s advocated so strongly for animals in the past. Tedisco said animal abuse is becoming almost “epidemic” and requires further education, awareness and legislation to halt it. He said awareness is important because the abuse is often a sign of “trouble to come” from the people committing the acts.
After a decade as chair of the Saratoga County Democratic Committee, Larry Bulman announces he will step down at the end of June. First Vice Chair Todd Kerner of Clifton Park takes his spot. Bulman said he is leaving his post to run for international representative of the United Association of Plumbers and Steamfitters after being asked to run by his general president.
The Town of Clifton Park begins holding public workshops to learn how residents hope the town will look in the future. The Planning Board wants input about the Town Center Plan. With the Route 146-Clifton County Road intersection at its core, the plan stretches from Moe Road to the town’s border with Halfmoon, and from Plank Road to Clifton Park Center. The meetings begin on June 7, when transportation and walkability are the focus of conversation.
Saratoga Springs Police Chief Christopher Cole is placed on paid administrative leave after he admits to sending lewd text messages while on duty. Saratoga Springs Commissioner of Public Safety Richard Wirth announces at an afternoon press conference on Monday, June 13, that he will investigate the incident and Captain Michael Chowske will assume command during the investigation. Cole, who had been chief since December of 2009, says he would fully cooperate while on leave. He is eventually suspended without pay for one month.
After 27 years in business, the Frank Sinatra themed My Way Café in Mechanicville closes. Owner and chef John Bove says the decision to close wasn’t easy, but at 75 years old he feels it is time for him to retire. Bove says he will miss his customers the most since towards the end he was serving the great-grandchildren of his original patrons. To pass the time, Bove plans to take some cooking classes with a local community college.
