Author: Thomas Dimopoulos

SARATOGA SPRINGS —The message is simple: Do something fun, get healthy and get rewarded in exchange for your efforts. 

“It’s a No Excuses – Just Start” clinic, says program coordinator Billy Yaiser. “And this is something everyone can do.”

How it works: participants sign up in advance and attend one clinic a week for about an hour at a time, where low-impact physical activity games will be on the agenda. Attendees earn points for their attendance, and those reward points earn certificates redeemable at area eateries or stores.

The program is anticipated to begin in mid-January and Yaiser is eyeing the Saratoga Springs recreation facility on Vanderbilt Avenue as the program staging ground where a flexible schedule of events are expected to be held weekday nights and Sundays. 

The pre-holiday season is an appropriate time to be thinking about some physical activity in the immediate post-holiday, Yaiser says.  

“You go at your own pace, and it will give you a little cardio without killing you,” he says with a laugh.  “Also, a portion of the proceeds will go to fund programs for disabled community members,” says Yaiser, who as founder of Second Chance Sports has helped coordinate events and fitness therapy clinics across the state for several decades, as well as teaching sports to the mentally and physically disabled.  

Each clinic session can host about a dozen people. Activities will help with hand-eye coordination and balance, and the physical activity involved is something anyone can do, regardless of age or physical condition, Yaiser says. 

For more information about sign-ups and clinic times call or text Yaiser 518-226-5888. Everyone who signs up will receive a special Saratoga present that can’t be purchased anywhere else, Yaiser said. 

SARATOGA SPRINGS — City Mayor-Elect John Safford announced this week he has selected Joanne Kiernan for the position of Deputy Mayor of Saratoga Springs. 

Kiernan, the Republican-endorsed candidate for Commissioner of Finance in 2021, has served as a business advisor and accountant for a variety of local businesses, and also served 9 years on the Saratoga Springs School Board.

Safford, running on the Republican Party line, secured the two-year term to begin Jan. 1, 2024 with 3,752 votes, besting incumbent Ron Kim (D, WF) – 3,172 votes, and independent party challenger Chris Mathiesen – 1,420 votes, according to Election Day tallies posted by the Saratoga County BOE. 

“I am proud to announce Joanne as my Deputy-Mayor,” Safford said, in a statement. “I am humbled by the interest shown by so many applicants interested in serving alongside me and thank them for their interest. Joanne is a proven leader and I know she will serve the office of the Mayor and the citizens of Saratoga Springs well”The mayor is chief executive officer and official representative of Saratoga Springs and counts as one vote on the five-person City Council. 

Each of the five council members is charged with appointing a deputy to serve their department, and each deputy serves at the pleasure of, and not longer than, the term of the Council member making the deputy’s appointment.

“I am excited to get to work for the people of Saratoga Springs and look forward to hitting the ground running with Mayor-Elect Safford and the rest of the City Council,” Kiernan said.

JoAnne Kiernan for Finance transferred $1,000 to the Safford for Mayor 2023 campaign, according to NYS Board of Elections Oct. 27 disclosure reports. 

SARATOGA SPRINGS — The Saratoga Springs Planning Board announced it will meet 6 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 30 at City Hall. Applications under consideration that may be part of the night’s agenda include: 

-South Broadway Treehouse Brewing Special Use Permit for an outdoor dining and micro-production of alcohol associated with an eating and drinking establishment.

Tree House Brewing Company has submitted plans to build a brewery, taproom, and “expansive indoor and outdoor experience” across the street from the Saratoga Performing Arts Center on Route 9. It will be the brewer’s sixth location overall and first outside of New England.

The company said it expects to create at least sixty jobs and generate $30 to $40 million in economic activity.

• A Special Use permit and a Site Plan Review is sought for a private/social club proposed at 118 and 121-125 Woodlawn Ave. 

Saratoga TODAY first reported on the venture last June when it was detailed the club’s anticipated operation hours of 8 a.m. – 10 p.m. Sundays through Thursdays and 8 a.m. – 11 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, when it would provide light meals and bar service for its approximately 200 members, as well as a place for members “to relax and unwind after a day at the office,” according to documents filed with the city.  

The building at 118 is located on the corner of Woodlawn Avenue and Van Dam Street, just west of the convergence of Broadway/Route 9 and the Saratoga Hilton. For more than a century, the property was owned by various religious operations and operated as a religious house of worship, The existing gravel lot at 122-125 would be upgraded and consist of 22 parking spaces.  

•12 Ballston Ave., Chipotle. Site Plan Review of a proposed 2,344 square foot restaurant with outdoor seating and associated site work to be located on lands that was formerly the Starting Gate Bar and Grill, which has been vacant since 2015. 

•400 Louden Road, Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Saratoga Springs. Special Use permit for a place of worship is sought by the Unitarian Universalist Congregation. 

UUCSS is currently under contract to purchase just over 5 acres on Louden Road for the construction of the new church. Just over three of those acres are in “conservancy“ – not allowing for development – leaving about 1.93 acres of currently vacant land where the proposed two-story, 8,840 square foot church would be developed. 

The primary development area is located in Saratoga Springs with the road frontage being in the town of Wilton. The proposal also includes parking availability for 64 cars.

•126 West Ave.  Site Plan Review of a proposed mixed-use development on West Avenue, that would include office and residential units. The initial Site Plan application (including PUD) was submitted to the city of Saratoga Springs in October 2021, and called for a mixed-use development consisting of four townhouses, office and apartment. Seven new illustrations were submitted to the city of Saratoga Springs on Nov, 13, 2023.  

SARATOGA COUNTY — The 46-year-old local man suspected of abducting a 9-year-old girl in September was indicted by a Saratoga County grand jury. 

Craig N. Ross Jr., was charged with kidnapping in the first-degree, a felony, shortly after being taken into custody in early October. Ross was arraigned at Milton Town Court and sent to Saratoga County Correctional Facility without bail. 

An arraignment on the grand jury indictment is scheduled to take place Nov. 17 when any potential additional charges are anticipated to be made known.  

The 9-year-old girl went missing Sept. 30 while on a bike ride in Moreau Lake State Park. 

The Oct. 2 arrest followed the issue of an AMBER alert, and the discovery of a ransom note left in the family mailbox of the abducted girl’s home, according to authorities. Fingerprints on the letter were entered into the New York State database and a match was made involving a DWI in 1999 in Saratoga Springs. 

The subsequent investigation led authorities to a camper where the girl was located safe and in good health by state police, and Ross taken into custody, authorities said.   

SARATOGA SPRINGS — A new mayor and a new public safety commissioner will be joined by three returning commissioners when the five-member City Council convenes in 2024.  

“I pledge to work with everyone to advance the interests of our beautiful city,” said John Safford, shortly after declaring victory in the city mayoral race on Election Night.   

Safford, the Republican challenger, secured approximately 45% of the vote to emerge victorious over incumbent Mayor Ron Kim (D, WF) – who secured 38%, and Chris Mathiesen (One Saratoga) – who received 17%, according to the unofficial results reported by the Saratoga County Board of Elections. Safford will be the city’s first Republican mayor since Scott Johnson’s third term concluded in December 2013. 

Most of the 8,443 voters counted cast their ballots Tuesday beneath a heavy November sky that saw shafts of light trying to punch holes in a gun-metal gray drape of clouds, wind-blown leaves swirling like mad straphangers at rush-hour, and an indecisive climate unsure whether to leap into winter, or quietly fall back. 

In the city of Saratoga Springs, there are just over 20,000 voters actively registered, with registered Democrats accounting for approximately 40% of voters, registered Republicans about 28%, and Blanks –those registered to vote but purposely unaffiliated with any party, counting for about 26.5%. The remaining 5.5% balance of voters are comprised of those registered with either the Conservative Party, Working Families Party, or a variety of independent lines. 

In actual numbers, Safford collected 580 more votes than Kim, as the results currently stand. Prior to the election, some Democrats expressed concern that Mathiesen – who previously sat at the council table as a three-term Democrat Public Safety Commissioner – may secure some votes that otherwise would have gone to Kim. Mathiesen garnered a total of 1,420 votes in his mayoral bid. 

Safford previously worked for nearly 20 years as a professional managing agent to multiple Homeowners Associations and Condo boards and ran on a platform to “bring back civility to City Hall,” and “address homelessness with solutions that actually work.” 

In the contested race for Commissioner of Public Safety, Tim Coll – a registered Democrat running on the Republican and One Saratoga line, secured 49.2% of the vote, besting independent line candidate Kristen Dart (28.9%) and incumbent Democrat Commissioner Jim Montagnino (21.8%) for the seat. 

Coll is a retired former Special Agent of the FBI with 30 years of law enforcement experience.

The new mayor and new public safety commissioner will start their two-year terms in January. The balance of the five-person council will be comprised of three returning sitting commissioners, all Democrats, and each of whom received more than 5,000 votes running unopposed this election year. They are: Jason Golub (Public Works), Dillon Moran (Accounts), and Minita Sanghvi (Finance).

BALLSTON SPA — Matt Veitch and Michele Madigan were chosen by a majority of city voters to represent Saratoga Springs at the county level for the next two years. 

Veitch, running on the Republican and independent One Saratoga ballot line, was re-elected with 36.4% of the vote to the city Supervisor seat he has held since 2008. 

Veitch will be joined by Madigan, who received 33.4% of the vote running on the Democratic and O.S line. She previously served as city Finance Commissioner for five two-year terms, from 2012-2021. 

Gordon Boyd (D, WF) finished just out of the running for the two available seats with 30.2% of the vote.  

In the last city race for the two Supervisor seats, held in November 2021, Democrat Tara Gaston (4,460) and Republican Matthew Veitch (4,334 votes) were elected. Democrat Shaun Wiggins received 3,828 votes, and Republican John Safford – this year’s city mayoral winner – received 3,775 votes.

The Board of Supervisors, comprised of 23 members, is the legislative and executive authority of county government. The Board meets monthly at the county complex in Ballston Spa and manages a $400 million annual budget. Each Supervisor has a weighted vote based on population. 

Each of Saratoga County’s 21 municipalities have at least one elected supervisor who represents them at the county level; Saratoga Springs and Clifton Park – the county’s highest populated municipalities, each have two supervisors.   

Prior to this year’s Nov. 7 election, 21 of the 23 Supervisors were affiliated with the Republican Party, while 2 Supervisors were affiliated with the Democratic Party. Democrats added two additional seats as a result of Election Day’s five contested races.   

In Malta, Cynthia Young (D) defeated incumbent Mark Hammond (R,C), and Jessie Fish, Jr. (D, M.U.) secured three-of-every-four votes in besting incumbent Theodore Kusnierz, Jr. (R,C) in Moreau.  

In addition to representing Moreau as its supervisor, Kusnierz is currently serving his third one-year term as Chairman of the Saratoga County Board of Supervisors.

The Board Chair serves as the Parliamentarian to the Board of Supervisors and its presiding officer with the power to issue proclamations on behalf of the county as well as assigning member appointments to the county’s 12 Standing Committees. It is anticipated the incoming 2024 Board will select a new Chair at its annual Organizational Meeting in early January. 

In the other contested supervisor races in Saratoga County, incumbent John Lant (R, C) defeated Toni Sturm (D) in Wilton, and Ian Murray (R,C) won the town of Saratoga seat over challenger James Sullivan (D). Murray served as town supervisor since July, completing the term of the late Tom Wood.