SARATOGA COUNTY —Saratoga County Fair board member Lauren Delaney was named Fairperson of the Year by the New York State Showpeople Association – a 150-plus member not-for-profit organization comprised of people involved with the outdoor amusements business in New York State.

Delaney is the first person from Saratoga County named as award-winner since the organization began presenting the award in 1983.  

“It was overwhelming, and a huge honor,” said Delaney, who lives in Greenfield Center with her husband Rob and their two dogs, Oliver and Grace. She has worked at the Saratoga Springs City Center since 2012.   

Delaney began her love of fairs at the age of 18 months, she says, when she was the first complaint department in her highchair at the Saratoga County Fair.  Summers growing up were spent traveling the tri-state area with her parents and visiting fairs. Her dad, Dick Rowland was the first general manager at the Saratoga County Fair. Delaney grew to become a chairperson of various committees, district director, and a vice president of New York State Association of Agricultural Fairs. 

She has been a member of the board of directors at the Saratoga County Fair since 2009 and currently serves as the Concessions and Commercial Exhibits Chairperson and the Complimentary Ticket Coordinator.  She also serves on the Safety & Security committee.

Delaney is currently the 1st Vice President of the NY State Association of Agricultural Fairs and has served as District 2 Director, Recording Secretary and Scholarship Chairperson and Coordinator. In addition to the Saratoga County Fair and the NY State Association of Agricultural Fairs, Lauren is involved in the Queensbury Walk to End Alzheimer’s committee as their Logistics/day of chairperson. 

SARATOGA COUNTY — The Saratoga County History Center (SCHC) at Brookside Museum presents a virtual presentation by Theodore Corbett on “The Rise and Fall of Ballston Spa as Resort.”

The event will take place at 7 p.m. on Thursday, March 21, through Zoom.

After the Revolutionary War, the new nation’s earliest resorts were spas, following the tradition of those in England. Ballston Spa was one of the earliest and soon eclipsed its rivals in terms of springs, hotels and amenities. New York City’s Nicholas Low was the most enterprising of the Spa’s developers. By the 1830s, however, Saratoga Springs’ resort had surpassed Ballston Spa, which continued using its waterpower and railroad to establish the mills of the Industrial Revolution.

The event is open to the public. It is free for SCHC members, and $5 for non-members. Pre-registration is required through the website www.brooksidemuseum.org.

SARATOGA SPRINGS — Registration has opened for Kelly’s Angels’ annual Mother-Lovin’ 5K Run/Walk, which is returning to Saratoga Spa State Park on Mother’s Day, Sunday, May 12 to raise money for children and families in need.

The 12th annual event will again serve as the main annual fundraiser for Kelly’s Angels’ mission to help families who have lost loved ones to cancer or other illness or are battling life-threatening conditions.

“We would love for you and your family to join us for our morning of fun for a great cause,” said Kelly’s Angels founder Mark Mulholland. “Last year was our best Mother-Lovin’ 5k yet, and we plan to make it even better in 2024.” 

The activities on Mother’s Day step off at 8:45 a.m. with a free Kids’ Fun Run in which children ages 9 and under race toward the finish line with moms and dads rooting them on or running alongside.

The Mother-Lovin’ 5K begins at 9:15 a.m. It is Kelly’s Angels’ signature annual fundraiser and much more than a walk (or run) in the park. It features an auction of great prizes such as restaurant gift certificates, wine, fitness and beauty baskets, and gifts for kids. There will be complimentary goodies, including chocolate milk from King Brothers Dairy, Westy’s Cider Donuts and gelato from Saratoga Gelato.

Advance registration is $30 for individuals, race-day registration is $35. In-person participants will receive a commemorative shirt, but t-shirt sizes will only be guaranteed for those who sign up by April 19. Individuals, families, and teams are encouraged to sign up as soon as possible. 

Online registration is open now and continues through May 10 at 2 p.m. Sign up at KellysAngelsInc.org. Those participating in person can pick up their registration packets in advance on Saturday, May 11, from 2 to 4 p.m. at Orenda Pavilion. Day-of-race registration and packet pickup begins at 7:30 a.m. Sunday, May 12 at Orenda Pavilion.

Now in its 14th year, Kelly’s Angels has brought much-needed joy to hundreds of Capital Region children who have lost a parent or primary caregiver to cancer or other illness or event. Kelly’s Angels was founded by NewsChannel 13’s Mark Mulholland in memory of his wife Kelly. who passed away at the age of 37, leaving behind the couple’s 7-year-old son Connor and 5-year-old daughter McKenna. Since then, Kelly’s Angels has provided hundreds of thousands of dollars in grants and scholarships to Capital Region children and families. 

SARATOGA SPRINGS — The City Council on March 5 unanimously adopted a resolution in favor of reducing the speed limit on a section of South Boadway opposite the Saratoga Spa State Park.    

The move follows the recommendations of the city Planning Board, which last month met with officials from the Tree House Brewing Company interested in siting a micro-production of alcohol and a new eating and drinking establishment on a 10-acre parcel at 3376 Route 9 (South Broadway). 

The resolution posted by the city did not detail the specific length of road that might be affected. Public Safety Commissioner Tim Coll specified it would be on “by 3376 Route 9 South Broadway.” 

The anticipated increased pedestrian activity with the siting of the new business is deemed to warrant a reduction in the speed limit, from 55 mph to 40 mph.   

The city’s request, which will be submitted to the state Department of Transportation, asks that the DOT address several items.

“One is to reduce the speed limit, the other one is to address the crosswalk at the southern intersection of Crescent Avenue, and the third issue is to use the right-of-way to potentially expand sidewalks,” said Commissioner Coll.   

“We’re very much in favor of this,” said Mayor John Safford. 

Accounts Commissioner Dillon Moran added that he had recent conversations with Saratoga Economic Development Corporation (SEDC) CEO Greg Connors related to the potential speed change. “He mentioned that its often very difficult to get some of these mileage reductions on some larger highways like that is, but Malta did some work and dropped theirs to 40,” said Commissioner Moran.

The South Broadway site is currently located an open field bounded by Saratoga Honda to the north and Homewood Suites to its south.   

The initial proposal for “Tree House Saratoga Springs” was presented to the city Land Use Boards last fall. Tree House Brewing Company was founded in 2011 and currently operates six facilities – five in Massachusetts and a farm in Connecticut. According to the company, it is the largest direct-to-consumer on-premises brewer in the country, and said the proposed project in Saratoga Springs will be their only expansion in New York. 

The land where Tree House would be located operated as Murphy’s Driving Range and Mini-Golf from 1945 to 2013. 

As initially proposed: the project space of approximately 10 acres would include four structures, a 22,680-square foot brewery and taproom building, outdoor pavilions, picnic tables, small gathering areas and walking paths.

Representing the Tree House Brewing Company at the Planning Board in February, attorney John Cannie noted that the square footage of the building had been reduced and a pavilion eliminated since the company’s original plans were filed with the city last year.

The company said it anticipates the siting of its venue in Saratoga would add more than 60 jobs of varying skill sets – production, restaurant and hospitality staff among them – and estimates its economic impact to the region as $30 to $40 million.