Thomas Dimopoulos

Thomas Dimopoulos

City Beat and Arts & Entertainment Editor
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SARATOGA SPRINGS – The Saratoga Performing Arts Center (SPAC) announced its 2019 lineup which features the summertime return of the New York City Ballet, The Philadelphia Orchestra, and The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center.

The New York City Ballet residency (July 16 – 20) once again features four distinct programs including the story ballet Coppélia, which was premiered at SPAC, an evening dedicated to Balanchine and Tschaikovsky, and a program showcasing four SPAC Premieres by 21st century choreographers, highlighted by Kyle Abraham’s The Runaway, which fuses modern and classical technique and an eclectic soundtrack mixing composer Nico Muhly, singer James Blake, and hip-hop artists Jay-Z and Kanye West. The annual New York City Ballet Gala, on Saturday, July 20, will showcase George Balanchine’s Apollo, Christopher Wheeldon’s This Bitter Earth and a new piece by NYCB Resident Choreographer and Soloist Justin Peck.

New York City Ballet - Tschaikovsky and Balanchine - Tuesday, July 16 at 8 p.m. and Thursday, July 18 at 2 p.m..; SPAC Premieres by 21st Century Choreographers - Wednesday, July 17 at 8 p.m.; Coppélia - Thursday, July 18 at 8 p.m., Friday, July 19 at 8 p.m. and Saturday, July 20 at 2 p.m.

SPAC’s NYC Ballet Gala - Saturday, July 20 at 8 p.m. The finale to New York City Ballet’s 2019 residency will be highlighted by Balanchine's first collaboration with Stravinsky and one of his earliest international successes, Apollo. Also: This Bitter Earth (Richter, Otis/Wheeldon) and Justin Peck’s new work – his fourth collaboration with Oscar-nominated composer Sufjan Stevens. 

The Philadelphia Orchestra’s three-week residency (July 31 – Aug. 17) will be highlighted by 19 SPAC premieres. Back by popular demand will be SPAC’s “Cinema Series,” as the orchestra accompanies, live to picture, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets in Concert (Aug. 3); Disney Pixar’s Up in Concert (Aug. 10) and Charlie Chaplin’s City Lights in Concert (Aug. 14). The season will, once again, showcase two weeks under the baton of Yannick Nézet-Séguin, music director of The Philadelphia Orchestra and of The Metropolitan Opera. Nézet-Séguin will conduct the closing night performance of Mozart’s Requiem.

The Orchestra’s 2019 season will also feature a line-up of acclaimed and emerging artists appearing at SPAC for the first time. Performing with The Philadelphia Orchestra is Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra (Aug. 15) and classical pianist Christian Blackshaw (Aug. 17); making their SPAC debuts in 2019 are young, virtuosic pianists Janice Carissa (Aug. 2) and Jan Lisiecki (Aug. 16), Peruvian conductor Miguel Harth-Bedoya (Aug. 9), and the dancers of PHILADANCO (July 31) in The Philadelphia Orchestra’s opening night performance.

The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center returns, from Aug. 4-20, with a roster of internationally celebrated artists at the Spa Little Theatre featuring 23 works performed by CMS at SPAC for the first time. In addition to performances by David Finckel and Wu Han, co-artistic directors of CMS in residency for all three weekends, audiences can look forward to the return of the Escher Quartet, plus debut appearances by Chinese violinist Angelo Xiang Yu, British flutist Adam Walker, Bulgarian violinist Bella Hristova and renowned American cellist Keith Robinson.

Tickets available online at www.spac.org starting 10 a.m. on Monday, Jan. 14 to SPAC members and Thursday, Jan. 29 to the general public.

NYC Ballet, The Philadelphia Orchestra – (Matinee Performances) Front Orchestra: $53.00 - $63.00; Rear Orchestra: $43.00 - $53.00; Balcony: $28.00 - $63.00; Lawn: $18.00. (Evening Performances) Front Orchestra: $63.00 - $113.00; Rear Orchestra: $43.00 - $83.00; Balcony: $33.00 - $103.00; Lawn: $29.00 - $34.00. (NYC Ballet Gala) Front Orchestra: $98.00 - $128.00; Rear Orchestra: $68.00 - $98.00; Balcony: $58.00 - $108.00; Lawn: $58.00.        

Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center – (Center Orchestra, Center Balcony: $53.00; Side Orchestra, Side Balcony: $48.00.

Children ages 15 and under are free on the lawn (excluding NYCB Gala & American Girl Night). Children 15 and under are $20 in the amphitheater. Individuals 29 and under are $29 in the amphitheater (day of show only); SPAC members receive a 15% discount on tickets purchased before the day of the show.

For more information, go to: SPAC.org.

SARATOGA SPRINGS – There are three Land Use boards in the city, its members comprised of local citizens, who are privy to and make recommendations regarding the architectural changes, designs and developments in Saratoga Springs.  As 2019 gets underway, city Mayor Meg Kelly is looking to appoint new members throughout the year to each of the three boards.

 “The Land Use boards are established by volunteer citizens - who are on each of the three boards. Their job is to review applications before them and make the best, most comprehensive decisions that progresses all the ideas the City Council has already adopted,” explains Saratoga Springs City Administrator Bradley Birge, who specifically advises the Design Review Commission. The DRC, Planning Board, and Zoning Board of Appeals make up the three boards.  

“So, how do we develop as a city? Large-scale that’s done through the Comprehensive Plan. You’ve got the larger objectives of wanting to encourage growth downtown, and we want to protect the natural resources in the outer areas. Applications come before the board for a project and they go through one, two, or sometimes all three of these Land Use boards,” Birge explains. “The Comprehensive Plan provides the policy goals, the objectives. The Zoning ordinance is the law that implements and causes the Comprehensive Plan goals to occur.”    

Planning BoardMeets 1st & 3rd Thursday of every month at 6 p.m. The Saratoga Springs Planning Board is a 7-member citizen board appointed by the Mayor to 7-year staggered terms. The City Council gives the Planning Board the following independent authorities to review development activities within city boundaries: Floodplain Variances, Site Plan Review, Soil Erosion and Sediment Control, Special Use Permits, Subdivision Review.

Kate Maynard, Saratoga Springs Principal Planner, advises the Planning Board: “Typically, the Planning Board will see almost any application of any development that is proposed. As a citizen it really gives you a central spot and view into what’s coming in as a proposed development in the community. It’s very diverse, and very busy in terms of volume with applications coming through. Private, residential, managing things such as Open Space conservation… You have goals such as how the lots are laid out, and a really important thing is the context: how it ties into the community as a whole. So, the Planning Board is very comprehensive in terms of what it looks at.  

“We’re seeing a lot of proposals for mixed-use, or commercial applications or concentrated residential. We’ve seen a lot of growth in our transect districts – areas the city has slated for special development, really where new neighborhoods are being formed. An example of that would be Weibel Avenue, another is Excelsior Avenue.”

Design Review Commission - Meets 1st and 3rd Wednesdays each month at 7 p.m. The Saratoga Springs Design Review Commission is a 7-member citizen board appointed by the Mayor to 5-year staggered terms. The City Council gives the Design Review Commission the following independent authorities to review development activities within city boundaries: Historic Review, Architectural Review. In general, their role pertains to building exterior.

Bradley Birge: “Good board members need to be analytical. They need to understand it’s not their personal preferences of whether they like or dislike a particular project or builder. They need to look and say: how does this application meet the zoning law. It’s the City Council who pass the zoning laws. It’s the zoning laws that indicate how you develop within the city of Saratoga Springs. They need to understand they’re not there on behalf of themselves. They’re there on behalf of the community and to ensure council-approved laws are followed. All board members get training. Our job is to get new members up to speed.”   

Zoning Board of Appeals – Meets 2nd and 4th Monday of every month at 7 p.m. The Saratoga Springs Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBA) is a quasi-judicial 7-member citizen board appointed by the Mayor to 7-year staggered terms. State regulations require communities to have a Zoning Board of Appeals to review the following types of requests for waivers from any of the regulations in the zoning ordinance: Use Variances, Area Variances, Interpretations.

Susan Barden, Saratoga Springs Senior Planner, advises the ZBA: “We do have several attorneys on the board, or those who have been educated in law. That’s beneficial. It might be helpful to have some technical expertise: landscape engineers, architects. I think it’s helpful to understand how to read plans. Again, we do educate the board and have training opportunities, but that’s helpful knowledge.” 

In general, the boards also provide advisory services, or referrals for advisory opinions to the City Council as well as other boards, agencies and departments in the city. Experience-wise, a diverse representation of the city is key, Maynard says.

“In general, what we really stress is representation of the community - whether it’s age, whether it’s what part of the city you reside in, whether it’s expertise you may have regarding your personal background or skills.  So, generally speaking having that diversity and ensuring the representation of the community is one thing that’s very important. “

Residents interested in applying for either of the three city Land Use Boards may do so via an application forms posted on the city’s website. Go to www.saratoga-springs.org, and see section: Applications for Boards and Commissions.

BETHEL –  The Bethel Woods Center for the Arts – located at the site of the 1969 Woodstock festival – will celebrate the golden anniversary of the historic music festival with a three-day event this summer.

The lineup of artists and tickets prices have yet to be announced, but the event is being billed as a “three-day festival of music, culture and community,” to feature “live music, TED-style talks and special exhibits.” Events will take place Aug. 16-18.

Joining forces to produce the Bethel Woods Music and Culture Festival is INVNT – a brand communication agency, and Live Nation Concerts – the organization which books the pop music acts at Saratoga Performing Arts Center every summer.

The site is located approximately 150 miles southwest of Saratoga Springs and includes an 800-acre campus with a Pavilion Stage amphitheater with seating for 15,000, an intimate 440-seat indoor Event Gallery, the Museum at Bethel Woods, and a Conservatory for arts education programming. Since Bethel Woods announcement last week confirming a three-day event will take place in August, many hotels and other accommodations in Sullivan County have already sold out, according to CBS New York.

Meanwhile, Michael Lang, producer and co-creator of the original Woodstock Festival in 1969, issued a statement to announce he is producing the official anniversary, but not at Bethel Woods.

“While the original site in Bethel remains close to our hearts, it no longer has the capacity to hold a real Woodstock Festival. I’m delighted that Bethel Woods is doing events in the coming year to celebrate what we brought to life in 1969.”

Lang said he will be announcing his plans for the official Woodstock 50th Festival during the next few weeks.

SARATOGA SPRINGS — A concept presentation regarding a new five-story spa hotel on Washington Street is slated for discussion by the Design Review Commission, which meets 7 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 9 at the Recreation Center, 15 Vanderbilt Ave.

Concept designs for The Spa Hotel at The Adelphi, a building proposed for development at 19 and 23 Washington St., include a total of 58 rooms which would be spread across floors two through five. The first-floor plan calls for a 3,900 square foot ballroom with a dance floor and table space for about 234 people, a 1,200 square foot lounge, and a spa.

The meeting is also anticipated to feature a discussion regarding the Townhouses for Ballston Ave – a proposal for the development of 18 townhouses at the intersection of Ballston Ave and Finley Street.

Diana Barnes has been a regular visitor to the US-Mexico border since the time she was a child, a half-century ago. She plans to return by month’s end, this time with her own daughter by her side.

“As a young child, I regularly crossed into Mexico at Tijuana,” says Barnes, who teaches US/Mexico border studies and Spanish language and Literature at Skidmore College and is a member of the Saratoga Immigration Coalition.  Tijuana is the busiest land border in the Western hemisphere, if not the entire world. The purpose was to visit her grandfather a U.S. citizen who emigrated from England to Canada, then to the U.S., and then later in life, to Mexico

“We would pack up our red VW bus and head south for an adventure in San Carlos, Sonora, Mexico.   At the border, I loved the sounds, the lights, the colors, the smells, the bustle, and the important-looking uniformed men ushering the cars through to one side or the other,” Barnes recalls. “In the 1960s, crossing to visit my grandfather, or crossing to watch my father race his bicycle in a Mexican/American bike race, was a predictable process that I looked forward to. 

“That Tijuana crossing is a busy, busy crossing. But I’ve been to many crossings, including the one in McAllen (Texas) into (the Mexican city of) Reynosa. They’re all really different,” she says. “You cannot go to the border and say, ‘I know the border,’ even if you spent as much as month in one place,” she notes of a borderland she says is complex as the millions of people who live on either side of the 2,000-mile line that stretches from Texas to California. “If you live on the US-Mexico border, you’re sort of part of this area that’s considered the borderland – not necessarily a US culture strictly, or a Mexico culture strictly, but really a borderland culture, where there is a sense of a hybrid society.”

Barnes remembers the crossing as being pretty fluid, absent of any sense sense of fear, or a feeling of being shut out. Today, there’s still the hustle and bustle but a lot has changed. “It’s sadder,” she says.

Big changes in September 1993, after a border security increase practice called Operation Blockade was instituted in the El Paso sector. Undocumented workers who had previously crossed the border for day work as nannies or busboys or in agriculture were no longer permitted to do so.

“The workforce in El Paso may have been largely undocumented and people would just come across for the day and then go home,” Barnes says. “It was fairly fluid. Well, Operation Blockade stopped all that, abruptly.” The method of enforced border security grew along the Texas, Chihuahua border, at the California, Sonora crossing and along the other main points of legal entry and served to funneled migrants into the deadliest parts of the desert, where some have been victimized by everyone from drug cartels to allegedly corrupt Border Patrol agents.  

“Before the fortified fence was put up, it was very different. People would cross without documentation and go back. Border patrol would know who the kids were coming across, and they would wave and say: going to McDonald’s, and they’d go to McDonald’s and then go back,” Barnes says. “Now, you cannot just walk across the border. It’s very well protected. There are places in the desert that are not - but I would say the deterrents there are greater than any wall anybody could put up would be; not just the natural deterrents of the heat or the cold, but it’s also dangerous in the desert.”

In 2000, Barnes visited the McAllen/Reynosa border with her then-12-year-old son, Andrew, as chaperone for students from the Saratoga Central Catholic High School.

“It was a phenomenal experience,” she says. “Children don’t see borders. They don’t understand them. It’s an artificial construct. Their eyes are clear. They got to see a reality they did not know existed. They got to see people and children living in conditions that were hard for them to believe.” During the trip, there were visits to small, quiet border towns that were home to American-owned factories that produced tariff-free goods for the U.S. through the North American Free Trade Agreement. 

“They were making $40 to $45 a week. They lived in shacks made of shipping crates, in really poor communities without paved roads, no potable water. The kids talked everyday about what was revealed to them,” she says. “The kids were told, ‘We don’t want a lot of money, we just want our children to go to school. We want a life with dignity, that’s all we ask.’ And they could not get it working in NAFTA factories. The kids were fabulous. And it had a wonderful on my relationship with my son, because we shared something that was so unique. And it really changed my trajectory and what I wanted to teach and focus on, personally.”

Since the trip in 2000, Barnes has regularly traveled to different places along the border line, sometimes multiple times a year. The border is a complex place, she explains, every stretch of it distinct, and no single border city like another border city.

“You will find people along the border with very contrary ideas about immigration. Yes, there are people on the border who feel very strongly they do not believe that anybody who wasn’t born in this country should come here, and that they should come the legal way,” Barnes says. “The problem is as soon as you mention ‘Legal,’ or ‘Illegal,’ people shut down. And that’s where the divisiveness comes in,” she says. “Illegality is an act. It’s not a human being. It’s so strong and it’s in our minds: you broke the law, there’s no going back, there’s no forgiveness.”

Currently, just over 6,000 people in a caravan of migrants from Honduras have made their way to the border town of Tijuana, Mexico where asylum officers are processing between 40 and 100 claims a day, according to multiple published reports. In 2016, the United States admitted 84,989 refugees, according to the U.S. Department of State (see attached box for more detail).

“We can and we do accommodate asylum seekers. And we always have,” Barnes says. “You have to go through a process of asylum. We have to find if there is criminality other than crossing the border. You have a credible fear and a (credible fear) interview.”

Since the start of the 21st century, on average, approximately 1,050,000 foreign nationals annually have been granted lawful permanent residence in the U.S. overall – that is, immigrants who have received a “green card,” have been admitted as temporary nonimmigrants, granted asylum or refugee status, or are naturalized, according to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

Over that same period of time, on average, approximately 910,000 “alien apprehensions” have occurred annually, as described by the DHS.  The largest number of apprehensions in the nation’s history occurred during the 1990s, when, on average, 1.4 million apprehensions occurred every year, according to the DHS.  In recent years, the largest number of apprehensions by the Border Patrol occurred at Rio Grande Valley, Texas.

 “The problem is that no one’s addressing the issue. The issue really shouldn’t be: look at all these people coming across,” says Barnes. “It is an absolutely polarizing issue and a contrived issue I believe to be polarizing. I think it is fed by racism, frankly. And it is poison,” says Barnes, who is headed back to the border this month, to visit El Paso for two weeks with her daughter, a college senior. “The issue should be: What is driving the push factor? Why are people coming in and how can that be resolved?  We need a comprehensive immigration policy overhaul if we ever want to dispel the fear that has taken hold of our country right now.”

Friday, 07 December 2018 09:51

Six-Story Condo Targets Putnam Street

SARATOGA SPRINGS – A plan to develop a new six-story, 40-unit condominium complex is moving through the city’s Land Use boards this month.

The “Five-Three,” located at 53 Putnam St., would be constructed opposite the Saratoga Springs Public Library and feature one-bedroom and two-bedroom units at a price range of $400,00 to $800,000, said Laura Manning, of First Fairfield Associates. 

First Fairfield Associates created Putnam Resources LLC - the applicant for the Putnam Street project - and first began negotiating with owners 53 Putnam St. Inc. in 2013 to purchase and redevelop the property. The initial intent was to develop a performance venue with a food service component. However, the site was revealed to be contaminated from its earlier use as a dry cleaning facility as well as sustaining oil contamination from an offsite source, according to a project narrative provided to the city by AND Architecture - a design practice located in Saratoga Springs.  Due to the contamination, it was determined the existing structure could not be salvaged for re-use, and a revised program submitted by Putnam Resources calls for the six-story mixed-use structure. 

The 40 condominiums would occupy space between the second and sixth floors, inclusively. The ground-level floor would feature a shared kitchen to be used as an incubator for restaurant start-ups, and a rooftop green space would feature a lounge area for residents. Parking would be provided for residents through an agreement with a nearby lot, Manning said.

According to sketch plans filed with the city for review, the roof deck would start at 69 feet above the sidewalk and be fitted with a pergola (the top of which would rise to 78-feet above the sidewalk), and a stair tower – which would top-off at 84 feet, above ground-level.

The purchase and subsequent development of the site by Putnam Resources would follow demolition of the existing building on the site and environmental remediation via the state’s Brownfield Cleanup Program –an alternative to greenfield development and intended to remove some of the barriers to, and provide tax incentives for, the redevelopment of urban brownfields.

The Saratoga Springs Preservation Foundation - advocates for the preservation of Saratoga Springs’ architectural, cultural, and landscaped heritage - issued a statement to say that while it does not object to the demolition of the existing structure and supports a new use for the site, the Foundation has “significant concerns” about the project as it is currently proposed, specifically citing the proposed project height, scale, and mass, as well as claims that it is “not compatible with the neighboring structures and the character of the historic setting.”

The Five-Three project was placed on the respective agendas of both the Design Review Commission and the Planning Board this week regarding a sketch plan review for the mixed-use building proposal. 

Following all necessary approvals, the project would take about 14 months to develop at an estimated cost of as much as $30 million, Manning said.

In 2004, a six-level robotic parking garage and banquet facility to feature 189 vehicle spaces and street-level retail was targeted for the location. The proposal was created by Saratoga Parking and Banquet Inc., a group formed by Hank Kuczynski - who served as the deputy to former Mayor Kenneth Klotz, and John Franck, who is today the city's Finance Commissioner.

Friday, 07 December 2018 09:48

Saratoga Springs City News

City Fire Chief Williams Announces Retirement

The city announced the retirement of Fire Department Chief Robert Williams, effective Feb. 28, 2019. Williams, a third-generation Saratoga Springs firefighter, was hired by the City of Saratoga Springs Fire Department on June 23, 1984 and has worked his way through the ranks and has served as Fire Chief since 2009.

“The City is going to miss the Chief tremendously,” Public Safety Commissioner Peter Martin said in a statement. “Bob has a tremendous ability to focus on details and develop broad ranging plans for improved fire and health safety in our city. Every Public Safety Commissioner who has served since Chief Williams joined the force has benefited from his knowledge and work ethic.”

“I have been honored to serve as member and most recently the Fire Chief for the Saratoga Springs Fire Department. It was my dream, as a child, to follow in the footsteps of my father, grandfather, and join the Saratoga Springs Fire Department,” Williams said.

Martin will conduct interviews of eligible candidates for the position of Fire Chief and announce the appointment at a future council meeting. The newly appointed Fire Chief will work alongside Chief Williams as the department transitions to a new leader until Williams’ departure. 

 

PILOT Plan for Proposed Affordable Housing Project on South Federal Street

The City Council proposed a resolution authorizing exemption and payment-in-lieu of taxes (PILOT) agreement for the “Promenade” Saratoga Springs Affordable Housing Project, proposed for development on South Federal Street. The Saratoga Springs Housing Authority is the legal and record owner of the property. 

The proposed development calls for the construction of 63 affordable multi-family rental units - up to 18 units for citizens having household incomes less than or equal to 40 percent of AMI, up to 27 units for citizens having household incomes less than or equal to 60 percent of AMI, and up to 18 units for citizens having household incomes less than or equal to 80 percent of AMI.

AMI – or Area Median Income for Saratoga County is approximately $86,400. Forty percent of AMI or less for a family of four equates to having a household income of up to about $34,500; Up to about $51,800 for 60 percent or less AMI, and up to about $69,100 for 80 pe4rcent or less AMI.   

 

City Leaf Pick-Up Ongoing

In response to some residents’ concerns regarding leaf pick-ups in the city, DPW Commissioner Anthony “Skip” Scirocco said crews have already been through the city three or four times and do continue making the pick-ups.

Scirocco said residents with leaves should “containerize them” –  that is, place the leaves in a bag or put them in a container so that they’re not in the gutter, and that resident are free to call the DPW.  “We came through three or four times already and now as we get through the rest of the city, just call and we’ll put you on the list,” Scirocco said.

SARATOGA SPRINGS – The cost to reconstruct and restore City Hall is anticipated to carry an approximate $11.2 million price tag, city officials said this week. Insurance proceeds are expected to cover roughly half of the total project cost.

City Hall was rendered unusable following a mid-August lightning strike after a drainage pipe on the roof was struck and melted, causing heavy rains to pour into the building which has served as the center of Saratoga Springs’ government since 1871.

The plans call for a new public elevator, which is not covered by insurance, to be installed in the building - with the existing elevator designated for employee use – the relocation and re-design of city department offices, and an audio/visual booth, concession area and entryway lobby installed in an upgraded Music Hall on the building’s top floor. Costs associated with the Music Hall and new lobby are estimated at $1 million.

Additional changes include state-mandated renovations of city courts and a new energy compliant heating and cooling system for all of City Hall. Finance Commissioner Michele Madigan said there are rebates available from National Grid to help offset the utility costs on the back-end, and that the improvements will help reduce utility costs in the future.

MEP (mechanical, electrical and plumbing) systems are expected to account for about $1.4 million of the overall costs, court-related development costs account for just over $1 million, and cost of the new four-stop elevator set at about $200,000.    

The work is slated to take place in two phases, explained DPW Commissioner Anthony “Skip” Scirocco. The job of asbestos abatement, which will take four to six weeks to complete, will be put to bid in early December and awarded prior to the end of the calendar year, Scirocco said. The construction renovation phase of the job is anticipated to be put to bid in March, with construction to commence in the spring. The council is hopeful City Hall will be set to re-open by late 2019.     

Since the building’s closure, city employees have mainly been relocated to the southside city recreation facility on Vanderbilt Avenue. Saratoga Springs City Court sessions have been moved to 65 South Broadway, in the Lincoln bath building house, and public city meetings are currently staged at the Saratoga Springs City Center on Broadway.

The building’s ground floor will largely be occupied by the public safety department; The first floor will be comprised of the Mayor’s office, City Clerks office, Finance and Accounts departments and City Council room – all of which have traditionally been located on the first floor, as well as the addition of the DPW offices.  Floor two will showcase the city court, as well as house offices of the city attorneys, the human resources department and the public safety commissioner and deputy commissioner. The top floor will feature the Music Hall and lobby, as well as several building department and Land Use offices. The existing Saratoga Supreme Court Law Library will be relocated elsewhere. 

Finance Commissioner Michele Madigan, who this week brought to the council the proposed $47.1 million general operating budget for 2019, said the impact of the lightning strike was most evidently felt in the City's Capital Budget – with $5.3 million of the 2019 Capital Budget attributable to the reconstruction and restoration of City Hall. “The remaining $5.9 million for the reconstruction of City Hall will come from capital already bonded, city reserves, and insurance proceeds,” Madigan said. “The lightning strike at City Hall on August 17 resulted in a 2019 City Budget process unlike any I've experienced before.”

The proposed general operating budget for 2019 shows an increase of roughly 2.1 percent, or $960,000, over the 2018 budget. Contractual wages and new hires account for the bulk of the year-over-year change, with personnel up 4.4 percent in total in 2019, said Madigan, adding that the city is in excellent financial health.

GREENFIELD – Photographs and figurines line the shelves of the room accented by a wide assortment of blazers and blouses, masks and uniforms, framed posters, furniture and one particularly wicked looking doll that sits beneath a wall hanging that reads: Chinga.

The collection of items, many of them iconic one-of-a-kind, are related specifically to “The X-Files” television series. It is Jim Thornton’s passion-project.

“The X-Files,” featuring Gillian Anderson as Special Agent Dana Scully, and David Duchovny as Special Agent Fox Mulder, debuted in September 1993. Thornton has been a fan since the first episode was broadcast.

“I loved the show and thought: wow, I’d like to own something from it, but back in ’93, ’94, there wasn’t a lot of stuff out there,” Thornton says.  A mid-90’s visit to a store called That’s Entertainment at Crossgates Mall brought him in contact with X-Files trading cards. Thus began his collecting. “That’s when I first thought: I own a piece of the show,” he says.  

Thornton has collected items related to the show ever since. “I have commercial stuff, I have promotional stuff, I have things given out to crew members as gifts, screen-used props, wardrobe,” he says. “It’s hard to pick my favorite, but one of them would probably have to be from the (1998) episode ‘Chinga.’ It was (co-)written by Stephen King and there’s a doll in it that the lead actress throws in the microwave and it burns it all up. I have that doll.”  

Thornton grew up a fan of the 1970’s show “Kolchak: The Night Stalker,” watching the show with his brother. “That got my hooked on the horror genre and when the X-Files came out, that brought me right back to the Kolchak days, it sucked me right in,” says Thornton, who is a professional painter by day. His kids, he says, for the most part think the collection is “pretty cool.” His wife, Kelly Anthony, is an office administrator.

“I do most of the collecting. If my wife sees stuff, she lets me know. She supports me a lot,” Thornotn says.

“The whole point is to preserve this part of American television history as much as possible,” says Kelly Anthony. “It’s a part of our life. When we find a piece, it’s like: it’s found its forever home. It’s not going anywhere.”

Among the one-of-a-kind items are props used on the show, obtained through the couple’s networking skills. “We’ve acquired some pieces from one of the prop-masters who had worked on the show when it was still up in Vancouver.”

The first five years of the show’s run, which was filmed in Vancouver, are among the toughest pieces to find.  

“The Vancouver years are the absolute hardest stuff to get.  Some of the wardrobe from the first five years is on a dream list. It’s out there, somewhere. If anyone’s got any contacts, or any stuff: let us know.” 

SARATOGA SPRINGS – Josey Kakaty joined a “caravan of moms” earlier this month on a trip to the Texas-Mexico border where she hoped to gain first-person insight of activities occurring at one of this country’s southern boundaries.

 “The whole purpose of this event was to witness and interview people who have been affected by undocumented or illegal immigrants crossing the border,” says Kakaty, a mother of three who lives in Saratoga. She was joined by her 15-year-old son on the journey. The caravan migrants, who are largely from Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala, are fleeing their native lands to escape violence and political upheaval.

“If you listen to just what the media says, I think the whole truth is not presented. We need to have some more awareness. I wanted to see with my own eyes.”

One of the lead sponsoring groups for the trip was Moms for America, a non-profit educational corporation which explains that its purpose is to teach families how to nurture a love and understanding of liberty within their own homes.  The purpose of the trip to the border, said MFA President Kimberly Fletcher: “to meet with families who experience the impact of illegal crossings first-hand, in an effort to share their stories with the American people.”

“It was a full day of travel and we spent two days of going to different locations,” Kakaty says. “We went to an elementary school that was close to the border – Rio Grande Valley, Texas – where the entire perimeter of the school was surrounded by fencing. We also walked to the border and got close to the Rio Grande River just to see what kind of barriers we do have set up.

“There was barbed wire fencing and somewhat of a wall. You keep hearing about this wall – or lack thereof – so it was interesting to witness what’s there. It looks like rusted steel, maybe about 15 feet tall, but this was only 100 feet of it, and then the river just had some barbed wire fencing, no taller than five or six feet,” she says.     

“This was an organized group and I think they asked me to go along because I was on a Fox News panel for Security Moms, so I already had a public voice in this matter,” Kakaty says. The Security Moms are featured on segments of the broadcast network that showcases “a panel of moms” discussing timely issues with a host. 

“The ‘caravan’ is what prompted it and I was there to learn and get my own perspective,” Kakaty says.

The “Caravan”

Across the U.S. border, more than 2,000 people arrived in Tijuana this week, with another 7,000 not far behind, according to Mexican authorities. And that doesn’t include the roughly 3,000 migrants already in Tijuana seeking legal entry into the United States, according to The Washington Post.

“I don’t know what the solution is, but I believe we do need a wall. We have nothing to protect us right now. We live in a bubble in Saratoga, we’re not affected on a daily basis, but it is in our backyard,” Kakaty says. “This is America and we should all be safe. We welcome immigrants, clearly, this is a land of immigrants, but we have a lot of new social issues we have to address and enforcing our security will help with that. It’s a security matter, protecting our national security, that’s the main concern.”

President Donald Trump recently ordered 5,200 active-duty troops to join about 2,100 National Guard forces sent earlier this year to bolster the border, according to Military Times.com, an independent news source which focuses on news and information for service members and their families. The active-duty troops are limited in what function they may perform, however, under federal law, which restricts military engagement in law enforcement on American soil.

The president has also been accused by some of ramping-up the rhetoric strictly for political purposes. For three weeks leading up to Election Day, President Trump posted nearly four dozen tweets mentioning the U.S. border – a number of times specifically referencing the approach of the migrant "caravan" – a practice mostly non-existent since the election. Trump did resume posting about the matter briefly this past week, tweeting that “illegal Immigrants” asking for U.S. asylum will be detained or turned away and that “the U.S. is ill-prepared for this invasion, and will not stand for it…Go Home!” 

The timing corresponds with a Trump-issued proclamation - “Addressing Mass Migration Through the Southern Border of the United States” which institutes new rules for those seeking asylum by insisting “aliens” must test their eligibility for admission into the country at an official entry port, rather than presenting themselves to Border Patrol after crossing into the country illegally. The American Civil Liberties Union has since filed a lawsuit to challenge the president’s new asylum ban, claiming it violates federal law, which recognizes the right of people to seek asylum regardless of where and how they entered the country.

After more than a month on the move, the caravan of migrants from Central America has come to a halt just a few yards from the border wall that divides Mexico and the United States, the New York Times reported this week. It could take several months for the claims of migrants seeking asylum to be heard at ports of entry. 

Kakaty says she visited with mothers whose children were killed by people who entered the U.S. illegally and shares the natural considerations of any mom, regardless of where they live.

“There’s a concern for moms and children on both sides of the border. The people who are coming, they are in jeopardy too, for so many things, including human trafficking,” Kakaty says.

Before even reaching the U.S. border, migrants making an often long and perilous journey suffer assaults, robberies, and abductions – the latter as many as 20,000 each year - by criminal gangs, as well as becoming victims of extortion by police and immigration officials in Mexico, says Salil Shetty, who served as Secretary General for the human rights organization, Amnesty International, from 2010 to 2018. “Health professionals report that as many as six in 10 migrant women and girls are raped on the journey,” writes Shetty, “and activists repeatedly raise concerns that abducted women and girls are vulnerable to trafficking.”

“One thing we saw at the border, it was just horrific; they call it ‘the rape tree,’” Kakaty says. “Some of the stories were just appalling.”

The Moms group visited a local dentist who told them she caters to many clients living in the U.S. without legal permission but who nonetheless are able to obtain medical coverage for dental work, and with local women who say they sleep with a shotgun under their bed, because, they say, people come into their homes at night.

The group also visited a bridge, which has a walkway above ground, where people with their documents in order are legally checked in and allowed to cross the border. Below the bridge, strands of barbed wire cling to posts spiked into the earth. It is here where the group witnessed a border patrol apprehension of a man and woman who tried to mingle in with the visiting group. “We had about 35 people there. One of the women let the border patrol know (about the people attempting to mingle in). They went to hide in the bushes and were trying to call someone, and they were apprehended.

“What is the impact on US citizens who live close to the border? They say the border is supposed to be the safest place, but it’s not what we understand by talking to people there,” Kakaty says.

“The bottom line is: illegal immigration is illegal. I’m a proud immigrant and my family emigrated here (from Sicily) and we came the right way. We used the right process. Why is there all of a sudden a discussion of having people come here not legally?” she says.

“We know these things happen; we just need to create an awareness, because it’s just not working the way it is. I’m glad that I went. I think it’s time we are informed and learn on our own. We need to educate ourselves to know what’s really going on.” 

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