MILTON — The town of Milton and the village of Ballston Spa continue to discuss an agreement for Milton to purchase the Woods Hollow Nature Preserve from the Village.

The nature preserve is located in the town of Milton but is currently owned by the village of Ballston Spa. Milton Town Supervisor Scott Ostrander said the town has been paying for maintenance of the preserve for “probably the last 30 years,” at a cost of roughly $8,000 to $10,000 per year.

A memorandum of agreement was signed between the municipalities on March 17. The agreement is not a formal contract nor legally binding but is a mutual understanding between the two parties to work toward the listed terms.

The memorandum states the sale price would be $360,000, and that the preserve would receive a conservation easement designating it as ‘forever wild,’ with minor exceptions.

Exceptions would be for maintenance and emergency response vehicles, for forest management work, and construction of minor unenclosed structures and benches, Ballston Spa Mayor Frank Rossi, Jr. said in a Facebook post.

The deal would also ensure that the Village of Ballston Spa does not face any liability for the cancellation of its contract with the Saratoga Land Management Corporation (LUMAC), who the Village had hired to conduct tree-cutting on dead or dying trees in the preserve. Rossi said that no trees in the preserve were taken down under the contract.

Milton has raised funds for the purchase through “the sale of land to the Community Emergency Corps, monies paid in lieu of parklands by our development committee, and through the Saratoga County Open Space Preservation Grant Program,” according to a statement released on the town’s Facebook page.

As part of the agreement, Milton would establish water districts within four to six months of the sale, and handle snow removal, treatment, and brush pickup in the Colonial Hills neighborhood for the next five years. The town would also recognize the need to increase its annual support for the Ballston Spa Public Library and the Ballston Spa Village Pool, according to the memorandum.

The Town of Milton would plan to make some improvements to the preserve, but Ostrander said they are mainly looking at “preserving it the way it is.”

“We basically want to keep it forever wild, like it looks now,” Ostrander told Saratoga Today on March 22.

He said the town would look to pave the main parking lot off Northline Road and pull-in entrances off Rowland Street, add more benches throughout the preserve, and clean up trails and surrounding areas.

The Town of Milton voted to approve the terms of the memorandum at their Town Board meeting on March 22. 

Ballston Spa held a Board of Trustees meeting on March 27, where the Board voted against placing Woods Hollow into the village surplus. Some trustees at the meeting raised concerns over proper publicization of the agreement, as well as rights to water in the preserve. 

The memorandum states, “The Village retains any and all water and mineral rights but neither party can mine.” Rossi said that while some Village trustees spoke of concerns over potentially signing away future water rights in the preserve, he felt it was “resolved” based on feedback from the audience at Monday’s meeting.

Declaring surplus is a needed step to move forward in the sale process, Rossi said.

“That was disappointing that we weren’t able to get there, but we’ll see where it goes,” said Rossi.

Ostrander also said it was “disappointing” that the Village was unable to move forward.

“At this point, the attorneys are trying to work out the details,” Ostrander said on Wednesday. “Like I said, we signed the memorandum. The Town of Milton’s all set on their end.”

The Ballston Spa Village Board of Trustees will hold a special meeting on April 6 to discuss sidewalk and ethics codes, Rossi said. The next Board of Trustees regular meeting will be 7 p.m. on April 10. Rossi said on Wednesday he was unsure of which meeting the topic will be brought up again, saying the Village has to advertise the terms of the agreement.

“I’m just not sure what the timing will be on that,” said Rossi.

MILTON — The Gateway House of Peace Thrift Store officially opened its doors this month, helping to raise funds for end-of-life services provided by the Gateway House of Peace.

Located at 408 Geyser Road, proceeds from all of the thrift store’s sales go toward the Gateway House of Peace’s services. Elaine Pearson, director of the Gateway House Thrift Store, said they began renting the space in December before officially opening on March 1.

“It’s been wonderful,” said Pearson of the experience since opening. “We’ve been blessed with a lot of donations from the community. Our sales have been great. The community has been very supportive.”

The Gateway House of Peace offers end-of-life care at no cost to its residents or their families. Typically, the Gateway House has raised money through a variety of fundraisers. Pearson said the thrift store will allow Gateway to see a year-round revenue stream.

“We’re hoping the thrift store is going to help alleviate all the fundraising that we have to do,” Pearson said. “That was our ultimate goal. We’ve talked about it for five to ten years now, doing this, and we just never did it. Finally, we said, ‘We’re just going to do it.’”

After searching for a location for roughly two years, Pearson said the Geyser Road location became available “out of the blue.” She said having the space available is “a wonderful feeling.”

“It’s an accomplishment,” said Pearson. “We’ve been planning for so long, and for our dream to come true, it’s an absolutely wonderful experience and wonderful feeling.”

The Gateway House of Peace runs an annual yard sale to help raise funds, with Pearson saying the thrift store began as an extension of the yard sale.

“We have hundreds and hundreds of people that come through,” said Pearson of the yard sale. “That’s really why we wanted the thrift store, because the yard sales were such a big hit, and great fundraiser.”

Pearson said the funds raised at the thrift store will go toward day-to-day operations at the Gateway House, including paid nursing staff, utilities and bills, and more. The thrift store has just one paid employee, manager Cassandra Roner, who is assisted by a variety of volunteers. 

Roner said it has been “amazing” to see how many volunteers have offered their time to the store.

“I’m involved in a lot of organizations, from sports to my church, and sometimes it’s hard to get volunteers,” said Roner. “So to see people come in here and want to volunteer their time, it shows you what the mission of Gateway House means to people.”

Pearson also mentioned the community has been very supportive, noting that many local businesses helped provide various donations when the store was being prepared for opening.

“So many of the businesses, there’s so many of them that have donated to us with paint, and jewelry counters, and shelving,” Pearson said. “They’ve been absolutely wonderful, donating items to us to get started.”

The store’s location on Geyser Road is also an advantage, just over a mile from the Gateway House of Peace. Pearson said that while the thrift store’s current location is “a little bit too small,” it provides strong connectivity between the two locations.

“I really wanted to stay close to Gateway House,” Pearson said. “I didn’t want to leave the area for a bigger space. It’s connected. People know, just go around the corner and there’s Gateway House.”

The store will hold a ribbon-cutting ceremony “once the weather gets nicer,” said Pearson. She said they hope to eventually raise $100,000 yearly for the Gateway House of Peace.

“What I’d like to see is $100,000 a year,” said Pearson. “That’s my ultimate goal. If we make that, I’d be very happy.”

SARATOGA SPRINGS — PDT Market, a specialty grocery store, is preparing to open in downtown Saratoga Springs in the coming weeks. 

PDT Market is located at 55 Railroad Place, taking over the former Price Chopper location. The store has a wide variety of offerings, selling typical grocery items in addition to offering deli, seafood, and produce areas. PDT also offers a hot bar, a make-your-own charcuterie station, and a full-service bar, and will sell grab-and-go foods, flowers, personal items, and much more.

Adam Foti, owner of PDT, said it is “super exciting” to be nearing an opening date.

“I’ve been in here while they’ve been finishing all the shelves and stuff, but just to see what they’re doing on the shelves, and the signage up and everything, is beyond exciting,” said Foti. “It’s such a labor of love that I’m so passionate about, that it’s just so exciting to see everything here.”

PDT’s kitchen and bar will also offer limited menus, and cooking classes will be offered near the bar area. There are tables throughout, allowing spaces for people to sit and eat or have a drink. The bar area can also be rented out for private events.

“It’s exciting that people can sort of choose their own adventure, in a way,” Foti said. “Do you want to head toward the bar? Do you need to go shopping, because you’re looking for something specific on a shelf?”

PDT has developed its own coffee and jams that will be for sale. Foti said they are hoping to work with other local businesses, including the Schuylerville-based King Brothers Dairy.

Foti said the idea behind PDT’s wide variety of offerings is to “make your life easier,” offering a convenient space where customers can find a range of products and services.

“There’s so many different things you can do here, that you can experience it in all types of ways,” said Foti. “Our idea is that we want to make your life easier. … The idea is, no matter what you want to do, we sort of have that for you.”

For more information, visit pdtmarket.com.