SARATOGA SPRINGS — Following a thorough review of its contemporary Hall of Fame voting panel and a comprehensive evaluation of the overall nominating and election process, the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame has made the following updates prior to the 2026 election cycle:
• A voter survey was conducted in December 2025 to guarantee an electorate that is deeply connected to the sport, knowledgeable, passionate, and responsive. That survey resulted in more than two dozen voters who received ballots in last year’s election being cycled off prior to the 2026 process. Additionally, several new voters were invited to participate this year, resulting in a contemporary voting group comprised of 154 members in 2026, down from 172 voters in 2025.
• Retired candidates selected by the Nominating Committee as finalists may appear on the Hall of Fame ballot a maximum of 10 times. Previously, there was no limit to the number of times a candidate could be a finalist within the 25-year eligibility window before timing out and transitioning to the Historic Review process. This policy will apply to all horses and retired jockeys and trainers. There will be no limit to the number of times an active jockey or trainer can appear on the ballot, as their credentials are evolving.
• Hall of Fame voters will receive past voting percentages as a reference tool to help evaluate the viability of candidates and how they are trending.
• All Hall of Fame voting will be done electronically (email) through the independent auditor McKenna and Franck CPAs, PC, based in Saratoga Springs. Ballots will no longer be physically mailed to voters. Materials for the 2026 election will be emailed to voters in mid-February when the finalists are announced.
SARATOGA SPRINGS — The New York Racing Association (NYRA) recently announced it will host a job fair on Thursday, Feb. 26 to recruit employees for the 2026 Belmont Stakes Racing Festival at Saratoga Race Course.
The job fair will be held from 2 to 7 p.m. on the first floor of the 1863 Club. Applicants should enter through the Wright Street entrance (Gate 8) with parking available in the 1863 Club lot.
Prospective workers will be able to meet with NYRA, Dyehard Fan Supply, Integrated Staffing, and Levy Restaurants, among others. Positions will include restaurant hosts and staff, premium experience team, mutuel clerks, cashiers, merchandise clerks, customer service, maintenance and grounds crew, white caps, parking attendants, and security guards.
Applicants must be at least 15 years of age and have New York State Certified Working Papers. Prospective security guards, cashiers and betting clerks must be at least 18 years of age to apply; security guards must have a high school degree or GED. All applicants must present a photo ID and Social Security card or I-9 alternative.
Photo of the new ice rink at Lago by Druthers provided.
SARATOGA SPRINGS — Lago by Druthers has officially opened a free ice-skating rink on Saratoga Lake.
The outdoor rink, measuring 90’ x 120’, is located at 550 Union Avenue in Saratoga Springs and is open to skaters of all ages. Guests are asked to bring their own skates.
“With such a cold winter, we wanted to give the community a free place to come together and enjoy the season,” said Chris Martell, president of Druthers Brewing Company. “From skating on the lake to warming up by the fire with hot cocoa, it’s all about getting people outside and making the most of the winter in Saratoga.”
Lago also has multiple outdoor fire pits where guests can enjoy a drink and watch the skaters. In addition to Lago’s full menu, hot cocoa, both boozy and non-alcoholic, will be available for purchase.
Skating hours will be Monday – Thursday 3-7 p.m., Friday 3-8 p.m., Saturday 12-8 p.m., and Sunday 12-7 p.m. The rink will be open weather permitting.
SARATOGA SPRINGS — Tru Cutz Barbershop, founded in 2016, held a ribbon cutting last Friday at its new, soon-to-open location at 148 South Broadway in downtown Saratoga Springs.
Tru Cutz is relocating to South Broadway after outgrowing its original location at 45 Park Place and spending years searching for a space that would support growth while staying close to the community that helped build the business. The new shop is located just two minutes from the original location.
The expanded South Broadway location allows Tru Cutz to grow from five barber chairs to eight, with room for future expansion, helping to reduce wait times and overcrowding. Renovations are nearing completion, with floors finished and barber chairs being moved into place.
The relocation was made possible through the support of Dan Roohan of Roohan Realty, who represented Tru Cutz Barbershop, along with Anne O’Toole and Cindy Hollowood, also of Roohan Realty, who had the South Broadway property listed for lease.
For more information, visit www.trucutzbarbershop.com or follow Tru Cutz on Instagram @trucutzbarbershop, Facebook (Tru Cutz Barbershop), and TikTok @trucutz.
From the Saratoga Springs chapter of the Friendly Sons of St. Patrick: Treasurer Jack Parrish, Vice President Steven Rowland, President Patrick Fleming, Secretary Michael Mitchell, and Past President and Keeper of the Shillelagh Mark Phillips. Photo provided.
SARATOGA SPRINGS — The Saratoga Springs chapter of the Friendly Sons of St. Patrick will celebrate St. Patrick’s Day with their 74th annual dinner on March 17 at the Holiday Inn on Broadway.
The group is a fraternal organization that meets once each year on St. Patrick’s Day to honor the patron saint of Ireland and to raise money for local Catholic charitable organizations.
Last year, the organization had 122 dinner attendees and raised $5,000 for local Catholic charities.
The 2026 officers for the dinner are President Patrick Fleming, Vice President Stephen Rowland, Treasurer Jack Parrish, Secretary Michael Mitchell, and Past President and Keeper of the Shillelagh Mark Phillips.
SARATOGA SPRINGS — Familiar Creature, a Montreal-inspired wine bar on Phila Street, recently won a Best Short List award (a wine list with fewer than 200 listings) from the Star Wine List.
Familiar Creature was one of only four establishments across the globe to receive the Short List honor.
“We were among some amazing wine bars from Brazil to Canada for the finals,” Familiar Creature stated in a social media announcement. “Just a little wine bar in Upstate New York that’s got a lot of heart! Just in time for our one-year anniversary.”
Star Wine List bills itself as the “Michelin guide of wine,” bestowing various honors upon restaurants and wine bars throughout the world. Familiar Creature is a “white star venue,” which means its wine offerings have been vetted and approved by Star Wine List.
Familiar Creature opened its doors in February 2025 and is owned by the team behind Hamlet & Ghost. Miles Merton is the bar’s wine director.
BALLSTON SPA — The Innovation Center at Saratoga recently announced the launch of “Entrepreneurship is Everyone’s Business,” a program designed to strengthen the local economy by helping small businesses start, grow, and succeed.
“One of the great strengths of any community is the success of its small businesses,” said Beth Moeller, founder of the Innovation Center. “This program is designed to support the businesses that shape our region’s identity and vitality—the local shops, restaurants, consultancies, and creative makers and artists that make our community special.”
“Entrepreneurship is Everyone’s Business” is tailored to support main street, hospitality, business consultancies, and creatives (including visual artists, photographers, jewelry designers, and more). Other business types are welcome, and the program is open to both early-stage businesses and ventures that haven’t launched yet.
Unlike a traditional business boot camp, the Innovation Center emphasizes continued coaching, mentorship, and community accountability over time. The program is structured in four phases:
1) Learn (February through April) with six core business classes and then two elective tracks of three classes each serving the needs of artists and creatives, as well as the more traditional business.
2) Guide (May), where class participants are paired with mentors from SCORE or Saratoga Arts to help refine their business plan and model.
3) Pitch (June), where participants present their finalized business plans and concepts to key regional funding sources, including banks, development groups, and government sources.
4) Support (July through December): This phase focuses on building peer-to-peer support networks and a community of entrepreneurs balancing work, life, and startup growth. The program culminates in Everyone’s Business Demo Day, a public showcase where graduates can gain exposure and present to community leaders, potential customers, and investors as they take the next step toward expansion.
“What sets this program apart is that we don’t just teach you and send you off,” Moeller said. “We pair you with a mentor, we bring you together with other entrepreneurs facing the same challenges, and we stay with you for the full year. That’s the kind of support our local business owners deserve.”
Program details and registration information are available at innovationcentersaratoga.org/entrepreneur.
2026 Saratoga County Economic Outlook panelists David DeMarco, Martin Shields, Benjamin Chuckrow, and Charlie Wait, Jr. Photo by Jonathon Norcross.
CLIFTON PARK — Realm Artesian Water, which has a bottling facility in Clifton Park, announced on Monday that it has received its New York State Department of Health certification and will thus begin full-scale production of its Adirondacks-sourced water.
From inception, Realm was designed as a fully closed-loop, vertically integrated water company. Realm owns and controls its artesian source, operates its own bottling facility, and manages its distribution network end-to-end. Realm’s water is transported directly from the source to the bottling facility, where it is bottled on site using stainless steel piping, advanced filtration, and “rigorous” quality control systems. The facility’s cleaning and sanitation processes use Realm’s own artesian water, helping to reduce exposure to outside contaminants.
“This level of integration is uncommon, particularly in the premium water category,” said Todd Kletter, CEO of Realm. “But it’s essential if you want to deliver a product with true integrity. The only thing inside our bottle is genuine Realm Artesian Water — nothing added, nothing compromised.”
With production now underway, Realm’s initial offering will feature a 475 mL (16 oz) still water, followed by a 750 mL hospitality format designed for fine dining and luxury service environments. A sparkling water line is scheduled to launch in Q2 2026.
An extensive sampling and placement program will begin in late February, with early distribution focused on high-end and boutique hotels, fashion houses, professional offices, wellness destinations, and premium hospitality venues.
Realm bottles exclusively in glass to preserve flavor, mineral balance, and overall quality, while reinforcing its sustainability commitments.
“We often ask a simple question — do you know where your water comes from?” Kletter said. “We can answer that with absolute certainty.”
Pre-orders are available at www.drinkrealm.com, with shipping scheduled to begin on March 1.
2026 Saratoga County Economic Outlook panelists David DeMarco, Martin Shields, Benjamin Chuckrow, and Charlie Wait, Jr. Photo by Jonathon Norcross.
SARATOGA SPRINGS — Four executives representing the local institutions Arrow Bank, Adirondack Trust Company, Bouchey Financial Group, and Stifel convened last Thursday at the Excelsior Springs Event Center for an economic outlook panel.
Hosted by the Saratoga County Chamber of Commerce, the event aimed to provide timely analysis and projections on economic conditions affecting local businesses and stakeholders, including perspectives on national and global trends and their implications for Saratoga County’s economic climate.
“I’m bullish on our local economy,” said Charlie Wait, Jr., the president and CEO of Adirondack Trust. “I think we have a lot of resilience here, more resilience than we used to have. I think we’re not just a tourist economy anymore. I think we have some light manufacturing. We have GlobalFoundries, so we have the technology piece, and I think that bodes well for the economy.”
“I can’t see how this area can’t grow, but also grow its tax base because the [GlobalFoundries] employees that are going to be coming to this area are going to be higher salaried employees,” noted Ben Chuckrow, a senior vice president at Stifel. “The other good thing is we’re going to have lots of jobs for these kids who are graduating from our great local community colleges. So I couldn’t be more optimistic about the growth of Saratoga.”
David DeMarco, president and CEO of Arrow Bank, said he agreed with the panel’s optimistic assessment but also had concerns about housing costs.
“Not to get political, I’m not going to talk about affordability, but it’s a big impact,” DeMarco said. “It’s having an impact on our communities. The cost of housing rates are coming down, but…the 10-year yield curve, the longer end, is going up. We’re never going to see the 3% interest rates we saw in mortgages…and that’s going to have a negative impact.”
“I wish there was a little bit more transportation up here so people weren’t so worried about having to buy a house so close to downtown Saratoga; that they could go out and move to areas where the houses were much cheaper,” said Chuckrow. “But people aren’t able to buy those houses because they don’t know how they’re going to get to work because they have to have a car and everything else. Growth is a very good thing, but growth is only really good if it’s anticipated and handled properly.”
Martin Shields, chief wealth advisor of the Bouchey Financial Group, said the topic of affordability was a real concern among his clients, but he also noted that median house prices in the Capital Region were significantly lower than median prices nationally and downstate.
“I think even from an affordability perspective, we’re in a good spot,” Shields said. “We do have one of the highest levels of college graduates compared to other upstate cities and even across the U.S. and New York State. So, [with] all these factors, it’s really hard not to be positive about this area. I think the big element too, is we don’t see the low lows and we don’t see the high highs. Living in that spot, it’s really beneficial.”
“I worry about the affordability that’s happening right now,” Wait said. “I worry about money coming out of the banking system, going to places like private credit, because that credit is opaque and so there could be a crisis building in there… But even in 2008, this area fared much better than other areas. I think because we don’t experience the high highs, but we also don’t experience the low lows. I think just keeping that steady growth is one of the benefits that we have in this area, and that’s what makes it such a great place to be.”
SARATOGA SPRINGS — Local land trust Saratoga PLAN (Preserving Land and Nature) announced last Friday that Executive Director Robert K. Davies will retire in June 2026, following more than four years of leading the organization. As a result, Saratoga PLAN has launched a search for its next executive director, with an anticipated start date in May 2026.
“Rob’s leadership has defined PLAN’s vision for the future,” said Jessica Schwartzman, chair of Saratoga PLAN’s board of directors. “His integrity, dedication, and deep respect for landowners and local communities have built an organization that is trusted, effective, and poised for the future. We are grateful for his service and proud of the legacy he leaves behind.”
Under Davies’ leadership, the organization will have permanently protected more than 2,350 acres of farmland, forests, wildlife habitat, and scenic landscapes across Saratoga County.
Davies focused on building partnerships with private landowners, municipalities, conservation allies, and community members. These partnerships led to the opening of the new 127-acre Curtis Preserve in the Town of Corinth, the permanent protection of Snake Hill on Saratoga Lake, and the creation of the Graphite Range Community Forest as part of the larger Palmertown Initiative.
Reflecting on his time at PLAN, Davies said, “It has been a privilege to work alongside landowners, staff, board members, volunteers, and partners who care deeply about this region and are committed to keeping it a place where people want to live, work, visit and play. Together, we’ve protected lands that will continue to define the Saratoga region for generations. I am confident Saratoga PLAN is well-positioned for its next chapter.”
PLAN’s board is seeking a mission-driven, collaborative leader with strong strategic, fundraising, and organizational management skills. More information is available at saratogaplan.org/executivedirector.
