The Saratoga Wilton Flag Day Parade on July 4 will mark the inaugural parade for the Bikeatoga Bicycle Battalion.
All persons with a bike, large or small bike, e-bike or pedal powered are invited patriotically decorate their bikes and selves for the Saratoga Elks Flag Day Parade, according to a statement from Dan Lynch, of bikeatoga.org.
Cyclists will be meeting on 2nd Street, between N. Broadway and Bryan St. starting at 4:30 p.m. The Bikeatoga Bicycle Brigade will be stepping out shortly after 5 p.m. and riding in front of Santa Claus.
July 4 Celebration in Saratoga Springs features live music, Flag Day parade, and a fireworks display.
SARATOGA SPRINGS — Saratoga’s All-American Celebration is back on July 4 in downtown Saratoga Springs.
The day will include the annual Firecracker4 Road Race, the Saratoga-Wilton Elks’ 55th annual Flag Day parade, a family-friendly concert featuring Tops of Trees and a spectacular fireworks display. All events are free and open to the public.
This year will also feature the Saratoga-Wilton Elks Flag Day parade, rescheduled due to June’s Belmont Stakes Racing Festival.
Schedule of events:
– Firecracker Road Race 4 begins at 9 a.m. at the Saratoga Springs City Center
– Saratoga-Wilton Elks’ 55th annual Flag Day parade steps off at 5 p.m. on Broadway
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– Tops of Trees performs from 7:30 to 9 p.m. on Ellsworth Jones Place stage
– Fireworks display starts shortly after 9 p.m. from the top level of the Saratoga Springs City Center Garage
The event is organized by the Saratoga County Chamber of Commerce. Saratoga’s All-American Celebration draws thousands of attendees each year.
SARATOGA SPRINGS —On Wednesday, the Saratoga Springs Preservation Foundation celebrated the completion of the 1851 Alexander A. Patterson House at 65 Phila St., and the completion of the 1851 Reverend Hawley House at 69 Phila.
Phila Street was temporarily closed between Henry Street and Circular Street for a celebratory block party.
Food and beverages were served and live music was performed by singer/songwriter Cassandra Kubinski.
SARATOGA SPRINGS – RISE Housing and Support Services is celebrating a year of success at the Adelphi Street Shelter in Saratoga this week.
RISE reported the following accomplishments in the past year at the shelter:
Served 38,325 meals
Assisted 160 unhoused individuals
Moved 98 individuals to permanent housing
Navigated 799 instances of services requested
Executed an average of a 6 month stay for each individual
The shelter is able to house 34 residents, and there are more than 20 on a waiting list.
Of the individuals who have transitioned out of the shelter, 23.7% of guests moved into fully independent apartments, 12.9% moved in with friends and/or family, 11.8% moved into housing for either mental health support, or substance use support, and 4.3% moved into Veteran Supported Housing.
The average length of stay at the shelter for an individual moving into permanent housing is approximately 6 months.
“We so appreciate all that our community partners have done to support RISE in making the County’s first year-round, low-barrier shelter such an overwhelming success,” Lindsey Connors, Associate Executive Director at RISE said in a statement.
The organization specifically credited community support provided by Sonny and Julie Bonacio and Meg Kelly of Bonacio Development.
“We are eternally grateful to everyone who was able to join us in celebrating all the lives touched and personal progress attained at the shelter throughout the last year,” Connors said.
A 34-year-old woman was taken into custody June 18 on the suspicion of a hit-and-run incident during which a city police officer was injured.
The driver, Theresa H. Travis, is a Greenfield resident and was located and arrested in Warrensburg.
Travis is accused of fleeing a traffic stop in Saratoga Springs in a blue Dodge Caravan, and in the act of fleeing, dragging a police officer who was in conversation with her during the stop.
“The minivan vehicle took off and tried to escape and dragged Sgt. (Adam) Dingmon for a bit,” Saratoga Springs Public Safety Commissioner Tim Coll said, addressing the incident during the June 18 City Council meeting.
“He was taken to Albany Med where I understand he is in stable condition, so I want to keep Sgt. Dingmon’s family in our thoughts and prayers,” Coll said. Sgt. Dingmon was treated for his injuries and subsequently released to recover at home with extended treatment and recovery time.
At the time of her arrest, Travis was being sought for two Bench Warrants, one issued by Schenectady County Court and the second by Saratoga County Court, both for failing to appear with sentences pending. She was charged with felony assault, reckless endangerment and criminal impersonation – both misdemeanors, and numerous vehicle and traffic law charges.
The Saratoga Springs Public Safety Department expressed gratitude to the Saratoga County Sheriff’s Office, the New York State Police, the Warren County Sheriff’s Office and the Capital Region Crime Analysis Center, who assisted in locating and apprehending the suspect, as well as the public for their support by sharing social media posts and providing information.
“Lastly, we are especially grateful for our public safety partners at the Saratoga Springs Fire Department who took immediate and exceptional care of our officer.”
Minita Sanghvi (blue shirt) and Joe Seeman (wearing tie) joined by supporters at Milton Town Hall on June 17, 2024 to call upon the Milton Town Board to reverse their ban on flags on public property and to raise the Pride flag at Town Hall. Photo by Thomas Dimopoulos
MILTON — The section of Rowland Street runs through a mostly residential neighborhood rich with a variety of flags where the hanging cloths depict floral arrangements, and star-spangled banners, bright yellow streamers stitched with the words “Don’t Tread On Me,” blue-backed flags that read “Trump 2024,” and an arrangement of rainbow colors that fly atop a pole.
It is a discussion of the flag with the rainbow pattern that this week brought a group of Milton area residents on a sun-filled June afternoon to the brick compound that serves as the seat of town government. The rainbow Pride flag, which stands on private property, was torn down by vandals last week. It was not the first time.
“We call upon the Milton Supervisor and Council members to express their solidarity and opposition to hate,” said Martha Iacolucci, a long-time resident of the community who also serves as the chair of the town Democratic Committee. “I have lived here for 39 years and a lot has changed, mostly for the positive, and we would like the positive to continue happening.”
Iacolucci was joined by Minita Sanghvi and Joe Seeman – Democrat candidates for State Senate, and Assembly, respectively – and local residents to ask the Milton Board to allow for the raising of the Pride flag on town property.
The group said the tearing down of the rainbow flag flown on private property in Milton are the actions of a hate crime targeting the LGBTQ+ community and are calling on elected officials to publicly denounce the act and demonstrate their support for inclusivity.
“Tearing down the Pride flag isn’t a partisan issue,” said Sanghvi. “Everyone should feel safe in their community, everyone should feel safe in their home…as attacks on LGBTQ community are rising around the country, we need our community to stand up and be allies.”
The FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program in late 2023 revealed a 13.8 percent increase in hate crimes based on sexual orientation compared to date of the previous year, and a 32.9 percent hike in those targeting gender identity.
“Repeatedly tearing down a Pride flag on private property is not just ordinary vandalism,” added Seeman, referring to the incident as an act of destruction to intimidate against all who support equal rights. “That’s an attack on decency and civility,” he said.
In 2020, a Pride flag on display in the Milton park was stolen at least three times, according to a WRGB News 6 report.
In May 2022, the five-member town board approved a resolution stipulating that only the U.S. flag, state Government flags, U.S. military and veteran flags, and state Militia flags be allowed to be flown on town property.
In Milton, Town Supervisor Scott Ostrander serves as the town’s Chief Executive Officer and presides over the Town Board, which is an elected body that votes on matters concerning the town.
“In ’22…we saw an increasing number of groups coming forth at that point, so in order for us not to offend anyone we thought it was best that we would fly only the American flag, the state flag and the military flag to not leave anybody out,” Ostrander told Saratoga TODAY on June 18, shortly following the county Board of Supervisors monthly meeting in Ballston Spa.
The most recent Pride flag torn down was flown on Rowland Street on private property offered by a resident because the town wouldn’t allow it to be flown on public property.
“My suggestion is if you’re having a problem with people destroying it, obviously somebody’s offended by your flag or whatever what they’re doing it for I don’t have a reason for it, I suggest she puts a camera up, she’s going to catch who’s doing it, and turn it over to the authorities,” Ostrander said.
Some neighboring communities such as the city of Saratoga Springs and the village of Ballston Spa hold Pride flag raising ceremonies in June at their respective city and village halls. By comparison, some residents of Milton view their town’s measure as specifically prohibitive and would like to see it changed. The Milton Town Board next meets on June 26.
Work underway on pay station on Monday, June 17, 2024 at the Woodlawn Parking Garage regarding Saratoga Springs’ new paid parking scheme. Photo by Thomas Dimopoulos.
SARATOGA SPRINGS —The installation of pay stations towards the implementation of a city garage parking program got underway this week.
In its inaugural year, the seasonal program will run through Labor Day and in effect in three city owned parking garages – Walton/Woodlawn Parking Garage, Woodlawn Ave. Parking Garage, and Putnam St. Parking Garage, and three city surface parking lots – specifically located at Woodlawn Ave., Spring Street, and High Rock.
To park in any of the six facilities, fees up to $2 per hour will be charged. An online portal where city residents and downtown business owners could apply for permits to park for free was created earlier this year.
The City Council unanimously approved the plan in April, and the city anticipates nearly $1.6 million as first-year estimated revenue, with about $450,000 in expenses.
At the hour of 6 a.m. yesterday, a tall, stalwart young fellow, 6 feet in his stockings, and with muscles tough as steel wire, stood at the corner of 59th St. and 8th Ave. He was about to start for Saratoga…
– On a Bicycle To Saratoga, New York Times, July 4, 1879. –
SARATOGA SPRINGS —Wentworth Rollins set off on a 52-inch Columbia high wheel bicycle from 59th Street and 8th Avenue in New York City bound for Saratoga Springs. The N.Y. Times chronicled the trip in a series of articles, calling his journey “the longest ever made here on a bicycle.”
“Rollins was among the first, and quite possibly the very first, bicycle tourists in America,” said Ed Lindner, Advocacy Chair for Bikeatoga, “and he chose to ride to Saratoga.” The trip was challenging. Bad roads and bad weather forced Rollins to walk in some places and to take the train for parts of the trip. But he arrived in Saratoga Springs in early July, 1879, and summer visitors reportedly flooded out of the hotels to gawk at him.
Rollins visited Saratoga for more than two weeks before continuing his journey west, cycling more than 1,300 miles, and earning the title of “king of bicyclists in America.”
“We want to celebrate the fact that he chose to ride to Saratoga Springs,” Lindner said.
At 11:30 a.m. on Wednesday June 26 Saratoga nonprofit Bikeatoga will unveil a new historical marker celebrating Rollins’ ride. The marker, funded by a grant from the William G. Pomeroy Foundation, will be installed in front of the GAP store at 341 Broadway.
The Saratoga County Bar Association last week held a swearing-in of new officers at its installation dinner at McGregor Links County Club.
During the ceremony, Judge James Walsh, Saratoga County Supreme Court Justice, administered the oath of office for the following officers: Hon. Francine Vero: President, Scott Iseman: Vice President, Gordon Eddy: Treasurer, Anthony Morelli: Secretary
Francine Vero, Saratoga Springs City Court Judge, also presented the outgoing president, Shawn Lescault, with a plaque for his leadership and service to the bar association.
Saratoga County Bar Association Swearing-In Ceremony. Photo provided.
BALLSTON SPA— Sen. Jim Tedisco (R,C-Ballston Lake) and Assemblywoman Mary Beth Walsh (R,C-Ballston) this week announced new legislation that they sponsored had final passage in both houses of the legislature.
The first bill waives the Saratoga County residency requirement for Assistant District Attorney positions in Saratoga County, the idea being to expand the pool of eligible applicants for the position. The legislation allows those who reside in adjoining counties to Saratoga the opportunity to apply for the job.
“We need to support our district attorneys and ensure they have the tools they need to recruit and retain the best and brightest prosecutors to serve residents in Saratoga County and protect our communities. That’s why this legislation is so important,” Sen. Tedisco said in a statement. The exemption does not apply to the office of first assistant district attorney or chief assistant district attorney.
The second bill sponsored and passed by Tedisco and Walsh is for a conservation easement land transfer of the Woods Hollow Nature Preserve from the Village of Ballston Spa to the Town of Milton., with the Woods Hollow Nature Preserve to continue to remain protected and forever undeveloped, and the land to now be owned by the Town of Milton.
“The sale is critical to the future of Woods Hollow, as it will require the addition of a conservation easement that will ensure it remains forever undeveloped, and it makes future maintenance of the large parcel more certain as it is likely to be better maintained by the Town in which it resides moving forward,” Ballston Spa Mayor Frank Rossi, Jr. said in a statement.
Both bills now move to the governor’s desk for review.
