Easing the Mind: Discussing a Plan for Healing April 6 at Northshire Bookstore
SARATOGA SPRINGS- The statistics: one in six American adults takes at least one psychiatric drug over the course of a year. Hundreds of millions of prescriptions for psychiatric medication are written annually.
Depression and anxiety disorders affect millions of Americans. To that point, Saratoga based psychiatrist Bick Wanck, MD, has authored “Mind Easing: 3-Layered Healing Plan for Anxiety and Depression” - a new book that introduces a holistic approach to mental health treatment. Wanck will lead a discussion about his book and the topic at 7 p.m. on Saturday, April 6 at Northshire Bookstore Saratoga, 424 Broadway.
“It became clear to me when I was about 15 years old that helping to relieve suffering was a mission of mine. I wasn’t sure what that would look like, but I wanted to help people to get out of a bad situation, no matter what that bad situation may be,” says Wanck, who has practiced in Saratoga since 1986.
While at medical school he grew increasingly intrigued in the specifics of how the mind works. “It brings in issues of literature, philosophy, science, biology – everything. That captivated me. I decided psychiatry it would be, but I became disenchanted with medicine, because there didn’t seem to be an adequate focus on healing for my purposes,” Wanck says. “The primary issue in regard to getting well is healing. Healing happens naturally. I said: wow, why aren’t we studying that? Why aren’t we putting more emphasis on how healing works and assist that process, rather than jumping right into treating symptoms. I made trouble for myself talking about that a lot.”
Wanck grew frustrated over the lack of emphasis on healing. “I just got fed up. So, I graduated from medical school, got an old van, fixed it up and hit the road. Eventually I ended up in Peru, in the jungle. I was looking for answers about healing and it was the experience in the jungle with the shaman that put it together for me,” says Wanck, who grew up in a rural area of Pennsylvania and spent a lot of time in the wilderness as well as on reservations. His grandmother was an herbalist.
“Sometimes the psychiatric providers are so rushed that when someone walks into their office and looks upset, the first thing they think about is: ‘I wonder what I can prescribe for this person, so they’ll feel better?’” Wanck says. “When someone walks into the office of a healing person who takes more time that person sees someone upset walking into their office - and they’re not going to think, what can I prescribe for them; They’re going ask: I wonder what’s wrong? And then take some time to find which of the three essential causes of anxiety and depression might be happening here.”
Wanck describes the three essential causes as: excessive current stress, early adversity and trauma, and genetics. “Two things that mimic them are medical problems like low thyroid, or addiction problems that can look like anything,” he says. “People can have any one of them, or all three of them.”
“Mind Easing” explores, among other things, when medicine might help with anxiety and depression, and when it might hinder the healing process. The use of psychiatric medication, for example, comes in to play when the degree of suffering from anxiety or depression is so severe that it interferes with a person’s capacity to make use of healing methods such as diet, exercise and stress management.
“The subtitle is the three-layered healing plan for anxiety and depression. And I do show in the book how to apply the three-layered healing model to anything: dental, cancer, heart disease…I think it’s an approach that can be helpful and empower people to promote healing,” he says. “I only include the wellness approaches and therapy approaches that have some scientific merit, where there are outcome studies that show it works for a sufficient percentage of people.”
Wanck studied at Penn State and eventually relocated Princeton, New Jersey where he ran the addiction programs for a private hospital and helped start the American Academy of Addiction Psychiatry.
“I suggest that everybody put together a package of wellness activities for themselves so either they don’t get anxious or depressed or sick in some physical way, or if they do that whatever they do with therapy, or western medicine will be more effective,” he says.
“The body and the mind constantly heal themselves. You cut yourself, it heals. If there’s some dirt in it: wash it out. It’ll need some help, but it will heal on its own. If it’s a bad enough cut, you might need a couple of stitches - that would be layer three - a medical intervention to assist the natural process of healing,” Wanck says. “It’s the same way with the mind: every day there are times when people feel empty, scared, sad. You might not even know why. But the mind adjusts, it copes. So, there’s a natural healing process that happens all the time. The goal of this three-layered healing plan is to assist that process, to empower the strength of healing.”
Northshire Bookstore Presents: Saturday, April 6 at 7 p.m. - Bick Wanck - Mind Easing: The Three-Layered Healing Plan for Anxiety and Depression. Author and psychiatrist Bick Wanck will share his book and his healing plan for the three essential causes of anxiety and depression. This book is intended as a guide for both mental health practitioners and for general readers. Bick Wanck is one of the founders of the American Academy of Addiction Psychiatry.
Northshire Bookstore Saratoga, is located at 424 Broadway. Also this month, the bookstore will present:
6 p.m. Monday, April 8 - Pulitzer Prize Finalist Luis Alberto Urrea – “The House of Broken Angels,” Pulitzer Prize-finalist Luis Alberto Urrea will share his riveting novel about the De La Cruzes, a family on the Mexican-American border, celebrating two of their most beloved relatives during a joyous and bittersweet weekend.
7 p.m. Friday, April 12 - Matt Lesniewsky in conversation – “The Freak.” Author and artist Matt Lesniewsky will celebrate the publication of his debut graphic novel. Lesniewsky will discuss the book and his art with Chris Martinez of the Evil Geek Podcast. The Freak tells the story of a man thought of as the world’s ugliest man.
Noon, Thursday, April 18 - Lunch at Hattie’s Restaurant with Juliette Fay – “City of Flickering Light.” A special lunch at Hattie’s with bestselling historical fiction author Juliette Fay. Her new novel transports us back to the Golden Age of Hollywood and the raucous Roaring Twenties, as three friends struggle to earn their places among the stars of the silent screen—perfect for fans of La La Land and Rules of Civility. Tickets required for this event.
For more information, call 518-682-4200 or 1-855-339-5990, or visit the Northshire Bookstore website at www.northshire.com.
Songpoet Legend: Eric Andersen Performs at Caffe Lena Sunday
SARATOGA SPRINGS – It was shortly before the Summer of Love, just before the Monterey Pop Festival in June 1967 and around the time Muhammad Ali was stripped of his boxing world championship for refusing to be inducted into the U.S. Army.
Eric Andersen, by that time, already had a couple of albums to his credit. He’d made an appearance in an Andy Warhol film alongside “Girl of the Year" Edie Sedgwick, and was being recruited by Brian Epstein to be taken under the Beatles’ manager’s wing. Epstein arrived in New York with an advance copy of “Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band,” and invited Andersen to give it a preview listen.
“He had just flown over from London and was at the Waldorf Astoria,” Andersen recalls. “We had a little record player and he just played it. We heard ‘A Day In The Life.’ We heard a bunch of tracks, there, in the dark, with only a little light coming from the bathroom that was open just a crack.”
Three years later, Andersen journeyed alongside Janis Joplin and the Grateful Dead atop the rails of their legendary trans-Canadian train tour, and a handful of years after that was on stage harmonizing with Patti Smith in a prequel to Bob Dylan's equally legendary Rolling Thunder Revue. Legendary status finds him resting easily.
“Live long enough and you’ll get to meet everybody,” he says with a laugh.
Fast-forward to the present day where on an early spring afternoon, the singer-songwriter-poet is motoring between a booking in Philadelphia – where he sang about Lou Reed in Anthony DeCurtis' music journalism class – and Montclair, New Jersey, where a 1960s themed concert is being staged. Over the past two weeks, he’s appeared in Greece to give a speech to a psychoanalytic convention – “I know, go figure,” – and celebrated Lawrence Ferlinghetti's 100th birthday on the Lower East Side alongside Anne Waldman, Ed Sanders and Laurie Anderson.
Now, he begins a springtime tour, which visits Caffe Lena in Saratoga Springs on Sunday, April 7. Andersen will be accompanied by percussionist Cheryl Prashker, producer, musician, and audio engineer extraordinaire Steve Addabbo, and violinist Scarlet Rivera - whose majestical bowing is forever sonically imprinted on the Bob Dylan tracks “Hurricane,” and “One More Cup of Coffee,” and on David Johansen’s “Lonely Tenement,” among others.
Twenty or so years ago, Andersen co-wrote a song titled "You Can't Relive the Past" with Lou Reed. And while maybe you can’t relive the past, he seems mostly OK talking about it, albeit amid all kinds of mayhem going on around him.
“We just missed an accident. Just got by it. Collision of two cars right on the street. Two firetrucks. Two ambulances. And a freight train going by overhead,” Andersen says. Further complicating matters is he is being navigated in a vehicle with an apparently wonky tire. “The car is vibrating,” he reports. Or, it could be the making of a song.
Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 1943, Andersen received his early schooling in Buffalo, where he taught himself guitar and piano, watched Buddy Holly and the Everly Brothers play at his high school gym and saw Elvis Presley perform in a gold suit at the Buffalo Memorial Auditorium.
“What do you remember about Elvis in Buffalo in 1956?”
“When that first chord hit, the chairs were kicked away within one nanosecond and everyone was standing,” he responds.
In the early 1960s, Andersen hitchhiked west and landed at job at City Lights Bookstore in San Francisco, where he attended a party following a Haight-Ashbury poetry reading on a memorable November night in 1963. “I wrote a 26-minute-long tone poem called ‘Beat Avenue,’ about it,” he says. “The day John Kennedy was killed. I was at a party with Allen Ginsberg and Ferlinghetti, and (Kerouac’s friend) Neal Cassady – the protagonist of ‘On The Road.’ They were all there. And Allen was walking around with no clothes on. That was funny. Like a naked Buddha.” The double CD set, “Beat Avenue,” features 14 original compositions in all, and was released in 2003.
At the invitation of Tom Paxton, Andersen headed to New York City where a flourishing Greenwich Village songwriting circle included Phil Ochs, Dave Van Ronk, Bob Dylan and Ramblin’ Jack Elliott. His first New York gig was opening for John Lee Hooker. He performed at a plethora folk and jazz clubs. And when not performing, was watching others - the Velvet Underground, the Doors, and John Coltrane, among them – stage their own performances.
“John Coltrane… on stage he could put himself in a trance and play. And eventually he’d put you in a trance,” Andersen says.
During the 1970’s, Andersen divided his time between California and New York, the latter being where a new scene was unfolding with people like Sam Sheppard and Leonard Cohen, Robert Mapplethorpe and Patti Smith. “Patti Smith: she was working at the book store, and we were all living at The Chelsea Hotel.” Manhattan, meanwhile, isn’t what it used to be. “It’s so gentrified and expensive,” he says.
The early ‘70s also delivered the release of “Blue River,” perhaps his best-known and best-selling record. “One crazy (concert) was when my album ‘Blue River’ came out. I did a show with the Jefferson Airplane in front of 400,00 people. They had a band. I had a guitar. I mean, I figured if I didn’t get a heart attack that day… I’ll live forever.”
More recently, Sony/Legacy Recordings issued “The Essential Eric Andersen” last spring. The 42-track retrospective covers 50 years of Andersen’s recorded history. A retrospective documentary, titled “The Songpoet,” is slated for release later this year. (The trailer, which looks awesome, may be viewed HEREHERE.
On April 7, Andersen returns to Caffe Lena, where he last performed 12 months ago.
"Saratoga. If I had done better at the track, I could be living in my Range Rover on my small estate in Saratoga Springs, one of those houses with the pillars with a chandelier 100 miles up over the front door," he says with a laugh. Of Sarah Craig, Caffe Lena’s executive director, Andersen says: “she’s one of the most interesting people I’ve ever met. She’s a repository of arcana. She knows all kinds of facts and figures about the world; a reservoir of fascinating information,” he says. “You can print that for everybody to know.” So, there it is.
Eric Andersen, with Scarlet Rivera and Cheryl Prashker, performs 7 p.m. Sunday, April 7 at Caffe Lena, 47 Phila St., Saratoga Springs. Tickets are $35 general admission, $32 café members, $17.50 students and kids. More information and tickets, go to: caffelena.org, or call 518-583-0022.
Putnam Street Eyesore Demolished, Condos Planned
SARATOGA SPRINGS – An eyesore that stood for decades on Putnam Street was demolished Monday afternoon. In its place will rise a five-story mixed-use building with plans calling for a restaurant at the street level and approximately two-dozen condominium apartments upstairs.
“Everyone I know has loathed that building for decades,” said Jason Letts, shortly after a massive excavator, boasting more than 80,000 lbs. of operating weight, extended its 20-foot boom and clawed at the architecture, laying to waste the last wall standing and leaving a debris field comprised of twisted metal and broken bricks, splintered wood and chunks of concrete.
“Before I got involved with this, whenever I’d take my son to the library (across the street) I’d think: somebody’s got to do something about that, so I’m glad to be doing something about it,” said Letts, one of the co-owners of the proposed “Five-Three” development that will be located at 53 Putnam St., opposite the Saratoga Springs Public Library.
The initial intent was to revamp the existing two-story building and create a performance venue with a food service component. Those plans changed after the site was revealed to be contaminated from its earlier use as a dry clean facility as well as sustaining oil contamination from an offsite source.
“When we learned about all the environmental conditions, it wasn’t feasible,” Letts said. “The building had asbestos and was completely dilapidated. It had to go. The next step is removing five feet of soil, and also some oil.”
Environmental remediation is being conducted 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.
Late in 2018, the group proposed the development of a six-story building featuring 40 condominium units in the $400,000 to $800,000 price range topped by a roof deck, pergola and a stair tower – which would top-off at 84 feet above ground-level.
Those plans have since been scaled back to a proposal of four floors and a partial “setback” fifth floor, Letts said. The number of condo units has also been amended to about 23 apartments in all. The price point will stay the same as initially proposed.
Earlier plans for a ground floor communal-type kitchen have also been amended and will instead likely feature a restaurant. Letts said there is strong interest from Capital Region based restaurants seeking to move into Saratoga.
The group is currently responding to some unresolved questions posed by the city’s Land Use boards, but the hope is that approvals will be secured in short order.
“We’re hoping to really get going in the fall. From that point, our construction manager is talking about an 18-month construction period,” Letts said. There are no plans for on-site parking. “That’s something we’re still working out,” he added. “We’re excited about making our city cleaner and more vibrant and we think this will be a big revitalization to some of the slightly off-Broadway areas.”
City Center Looks to Multi-Level Parking Structure at High Rock
SARATOGA SPRINGS – The development of a new, multi-story parking structure adjacent to the City Center could begin as early as this summer. The structure would provide spaces for about 600 vehicles and could be fully operational by the summer of 2020.
“As far as design goes, a building permit in June would be great. That’s what we’re pushing towards,” said Ryan McMahon, who joined the staff of the City Center in 2011 as the operations manager before taking over as executive director in 2017.
The development of the parking facility, located on city-owned land between Maple and High Rock avenues, would mark the first use of a multi-phase project that could see the development of the entire 2.6-acre parcel of land extending to Lake Avenue, behind City Hall. Discussions about potential uses regarding the development of that particular stretch of land have been ongoing for several years, and through many different City Hall administrations.
On Thursday, March 21, the Design Review Commission and the Planning Board will stage a joint meeting to hear a presentation from the LA Group regarding details of the Flat Rock Centre Parking Structure. The public meeting will take place 5:30 p.m. at the City Recreation Center, 15 Vanderbilt Ave.
An initial concept plan was publicly unveiled late last year. “We’ve narrowed down what we’re working on, and it’s in the same mold as the concept drawings the LA Group did for the city,” McMahon said. “While one structure overall, it’s going to have different looks and feels to it, so it will look like multiple structures, multiple types of architecture from the outside. There are sections that are conventional, sections that are more glass, and sections – while it’s not really the right term - of what I call a brownstone look.”
In May 2018, city Mayor Meg Kelly created the Flat Rock Working Group – comprised of area residents, City Center Authority representatives, county leaders, city officials and other community members – who were tasked with developing a Concept Plan for the 2.6-acre parcel. Last November, members of the City Council unanimously agreed to a resolution regarding the Flat Rock Centre Concept Plan.
That Concept Plan includes: the establishment of a public park at the south end of the parcel along Lake Avenue; the continuation of the park at the easterly side of the parcel along High Rock Avenue, which will connect Flat Rock Park to High Rock Park and include the Greenbelt trail, Downtown Connector; and the development of a municipal parking structure.
The design and development of the Greenbelt Trail, Downtown Connector, and a municipal parking structure were identified as a priority to be included in Phase One of the project’s development.
The City Council also recommended the Saratoga Springs City Center Authority proceed with design proposals for the municipal parking structure, albeit with a number of parking spaces reduced from the 754 originally proposed.
The updated plan calls for “600-ish parking spaces,” said McMahon said, with the height of the structure being four to five levels. Currently there is no retail space dedicated, but approximately 70 percent of the structure is “flat” – that is, having level decks, which offers the possibility of an altered usage for the structure should the future usher in the age of autonomous vehicles, coach lobby roundabouts, and VIP rideshares.
“If the time came where there were not as many cars coming to conventions, it could be repurposed,” said McMahon, adding that there are existing communities that have already repurposed former parking garages into shopping areas and condominiums.
The 600 or so new spaces in the parking structure would be designated “paid” parking spots. Motorists’ costs to park have not yet been decided. Eliminated would be more than 200 “free” parking spots on the current paved lot, where the future structure will stand. That paved lot holds 277 spaces in all.
“As of late spring or early summer this year, the city is probably going to be losing a large number of parking spaces because of the construction that’s going to go on for the City Center garage, the Flat Rock lot,” Public Safety Commissioner Peter Martin informed the City Council last week. Martin said his department will soon suggest changes to the existing time limits of other existing spaces “to accommodate our merchants and to take into account that we’re losing 210 spaces for a period of approximately one year.”
There are currently about 1,300 spaces of public on-street parking and 1,480 public off-street parking spaces in the city, including lots and decks, according to a city-issued request for proposals in 2018.
“Starting doesn’t mean you immediately tear up the whole thing; it could be sectional work,” McMahon said. “There’s never going to be an ideal time, we’re busy year-round now, it’s not just the summer place to be (anymore). We’re working on some alternative parking places with some shuttles.” The duration of construction would take approximately 10 months, he added, while persuing designs for the proposed structure at his office this week.
The City Center will be funding the structure, its specified level of ownership not yet decided, although a land-lease arrangement with the city maintaining ownership of the land is a likely scenario. The total cost is likely to be higher than the estimated $11 million price tag of a standalone parking garage the City Center had previously explored.
“The biggest thing about the financing is that this will be something that is built without local taxpayer money going into it. This is not going to be raising anyone’s property tax. And it will be maintained by the City Center – plowing, salting and upkeep,” McMahon said.
The City Center Authority has long stated it needs additional parking for its venue to remain competitive with other regions in drawing visiting tourists for conventions and other events. McMahon said the lack of parking has already cost the center millions of dollars. The hope is that a parking structure could be fully operational by the summer of 2020.
Flat Rock Centre Parking Structure aside, Phase II of the overall project - which stretches to the southern end of the parcel closest to Lake Avenue - will look to increase and reconfigure the public park and green space. City Mayor Kelly said she will seek to reconvene the Flat Rock Working Group in the future to address Phase II of the project, although there is no specific timeline as to when that group will get back together.
Greg Veitch Announces Retirement after 23 years with Saratoga Springs Police Department
SARATOGA SPRINGS – The Veitch name traces a path through city history that extends over several decades.
City Police Chief Greg Veitch’s great-grandfather’s generation were comprised of horsemen and jockeys, his grandfather serves as director of the city Urban Renewal Agency, and his dad was a schoolteacher in the Saratoga Springs School district for more than 30 years. A number of siblings, including Supervisor Matt Veitch, currently work for the city in a variety of departments.
For Greg Veitch, his career path was revealed to him one day as the teen sat in a local church.
“There was no law enforcement in my background, but like a lot of little boys, you grow up wanting to be a cowboy, a fireman, an army man,” Veitch recalls.
“I was 15 or 16 and sitting in St. Mary’s Church. The priest was quoting from Matthew,” he says. The verse that jumped out at him reads: Blessed are the peacemakers for they shall be called the children of God.
“That really clicked with me. When you’re 16 or so you want to be on God’s Team, you want to have an exciting life,” Veitch says. “That’s when it dawned on me: that’s what cops do. So, it’s really been a calling for me from that point on.”
Veitch began his law enforcement career in Burlington, Vermont where he worked just shy of a year before getting hired in his Saratoga Springs hometown in 1995. He moved through the ranks of the police department – from patrol officer and narcotics investigator to sergeant and was named chief of police in May 2013. The date is significant.
“Last year, I felt I was being called to do something else. I was on a Mission Trip to inner-city Miami and I started to get the feeling: hey, listen, you’ve got to do something other than what you’re doing.” Veitch expressed his thoughts to his wife, Jen, and May 31, 2019 was chosen as his retirement date from the Saratoga Springs Police Department. The date marks his six-year anniversary of his appointment chief.
Veitch plans to continue to teach criminal justice courses at SUNY Adirondack -which he has done the past five years, as well as instructing officers on a variety of topics at the regional Zone 5 Police Academy. In the fall, he plans to publish a follow-up book to his initial publication - “All the Law in the World Won't Stop Them,” featuring stories of criminals in the Saratoga Springs of yesteryear.
Veitch says he’s most proud of the police department. “The officers, the supervisors who every day go out and do the job they’re supposed to in an honorable way. I’m also proud of the relationships we’ve built with all the local enforcement agencies and the victims’ advocacy groups, because without good relationships it can be a disaster.”
He credits his colleagues, partners and mentors in law enforcement and the love and support of his family for providing him love and encouragement over his 23-year career.
Technology, says the chief, is the biggest change he’s witnessed over the decades, providing officers with rapid access to records and information. “Anyone in a job 20 or 30 years will see those types of changes. For us, I never would have thought that you would be recording yourself all the time,” he says of the body cameras with which that all city officers are equipped. “Not that I’m opposed to it. When I was starting out as an officer, I would have liked that.”
Chief Veitch’s retirement is effective May 31. Public Safety Commissioner Peter Martin will appoint a new police chief.
TV’s “American Pickers” to Film In New York, Seek Regional “Hidden Treasures”
Mike Wolfe, Frank Fritz, and their team return to New York in May when they plan to film episodes of the series American Pickers throughout the region.
The documentary series explores the fascinating world of antique “picking” on the History Channel and follows pickers Mike and Frank as they hunt for America’s most valuable antiques.
American Pickers is looking for leads to explore regional hidden treasures.
From the show’s casting associate producer: If you or someone you know has a large, private collection or accumulation of antiques that the Pickers can spend the better part of the day looking through, send us your name, phone number, location and description of the collection with photos to: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call 855-OLD-RUST.
Pete Seeger Centennial Celebration to feature Live Concert and Regional Events
The Egg celebrates the Pete Seeger Centennial with a concert on Thursday, May 23 at 7 PM and a series of related events in various Capital Region cultural centers May 3- 5, as part of its “New York Living Legacy” series.
Additional events will include multiple venues in Saratoga Springs, including Caffe Lena, and the Saratoga Springs Public Library.
Seeger’s career as a musician was highlighted by popular success with the group The Weavers and songs such as “Where Have All the Flowers Gone,” “Turn, Turn, Turn” and “If I Had a Hammer”; Grammy Awards including a Lifetime Achievement Award, a National Medal of Arts, induction into the Rock ‘n Roll Hall of Fame.
Seeger used his music to further social, humanitarian and environmental causes – most notably in the founding of the Clearwater in an effort to save the Hudson River, and one of his closest musical associates Arlo Guthrie will be joined by artists including Amythyst Kiah, Cary Morin, Dan Zanes & Claudia Eliaza, Dar Williams, David Gonzalez, Guy Davis, Richie Stearns & Rosie Newton, Taina Asili, Tony Trischka, Toshi Reagon and Bill & Livia Vanaver - that are keeping his message alive for an evening of music, dance and poetry inspired by Pete Seeger in celebration of his centennial.
Net proceeds from the concert will benefit Clearwater, Caffe Lena and WAMC Public Radio.
Tickets are $40, $35 and $25 and currently available to members of The Egg at The Egg Box Office at the Empire State Plaza and by telephone – 518-473-1845.
In advance of the concert, The Egg will present the program “Wasn’t That a Time” featuring music writer Jesse Jarnow in a number of venues on May 3, 4 and 5. Mr. Jarnow will explore the life of Pete Seeger, focusing on the research done for his 2018 book “Wasn’t That a Time: The Weavers, the Blacklist, and the Battle for the American Soul.” Live music will be performed by banjoist Richie Stearns - who performed with or for Seeger on numerous occasions. The multi-media program will be enhanced by photo projections as well as recorded music by Pete Seeger and the Weavers.
Additional events – these are free and open to the public:
FRIDAY, MAY 3 - Noon: Caffe Lena, 47 Phila Street, Saratoga Springs; 7 PM: Crandall Public Library, 251 Glen Street, Glens Falls.
SATURDAY, MAY 4: 11 AM: Guilderland Public Library, 2228 Western Ave, Guilderland; 1 PM: Bethlehem Public Library, 451 Delaware Ave, Delmar; 3:30 PM: Clifton Park – Half Moon Public Library, 475 Moe Road, Clifton Park; 7 PM: Sanctuary for Independent Media, 3361 6th Avenue, Troy.
SUNDAY, MAY 5: 12:30 PM: Saratoga Springs Public Library, 49 Henry St, Saratoga Springs; 3 PM: Voorheesville Public Library, 51 School Rd, Voorheesville.
City Dems, Republicans Endorses Their Candidates for June Primary, November Elections
SARATOGA SPRINGS – Primaries will take place June 25, and the General Election on Nov. 5. All five City Council seats and both city Supervisor seats are up for election this year.
The Saratoga Springs Democratic Committee endorsed all four Democratic incumbents running for re-election: Meg Kelly, Mayor; Michele Madigan, Finance Commissioner; John Franck, Commissioner of Accounts; and Tara Gaston, County Supervisor.
The SSDC also voted to endorse one of its members, Dillon Moran, for Commissioner of Public Works. “Dillon’s engineering education, business background and close study of the City’s infrastructure and operations all form a solid basis for our support,” SSDC Chair Courtney DeLeonardis said, in a statement.
For Public Safety Commissioner, where the Democratic incumbent is not seeking re-election, the Committee decided not to endorse at this time.
“We heard from two strong, well-qualified candidates – Eileen Finneran and Kendall Hicks -- who each impressed Committee members,” DeLeonardis said. “Both individuals have a lot to offer the City. I believe Committee members, along with other supporters, will help both candidates qualify for the primary election in June, when voters will decide who runs for Public Safety Commissioner on the Democratic line in the fall.”
The Saratoga Springs City Republican Committee endorsed four candidates at their meeting Feb. 26.
Anthony “Skip” Scirocco received the committee’s endorsement for Commissioner of Public Works; Robin Dalton received the committee’s endorsement for Commissioner of Public Safety and Matthew Veitch and Stephen Mittler, each received the committee’s endorsement for County Board of Supervisor.
“I am honored to receive the endorsement of the Saratoga Springs Republicans for another term,” said Matt Veitch, a current member of the County Board of Supervisors. “I look forward to campaigning on my record of public service and representing the residents of our city at the county level. Keeping the County on a continued path of low taxes, efficient government, and maintaining our great quality of life are my priorities for the upcoming year."
City Dems Endorse Five Candidates, Public Safety Primary: GOP Meets Tuesday Night
SARATOGA SPRINGS - The Saratoga Springs Democratic Committee announced its
candidate endorsements for city office in 2019.
The SSDC endorsed all four Democratic incumbents running for re-election: Meg Kelly, Mayor; Michele Madigan, Finance Commissioner; John Franck, Commissioner of Accounts; and Tara Gaston, County Supervisor.
The SSDC also voted to endorse one of its members, Dillon Moran, for Commissioner of Public Works. “Dillon’s engineering education, business background and close study of the City’s infrastructure and operations all form a solid basis for our support,” SSDC Chair Courtney DeLeonardis said, in a statement.
For Public Safety Commissioner, where the Democratic incumbent is not seeking re-election, the Committee decided not to endorse at this time.
“We heard from two strong, well-qualified candidates – Eileen Finneran and Kendall Hicks -- who each impressed Committee members,” DeLeonardis said. “Both individuals have a lot to offer the City. I believe Committee members, along with other supporters, will help both candidates qualify for the primary election in June, when voters will decide who runs for Public Safety Commissioner on the Democratic line in the fall.”
City Republicans will meet Tuesday and subsequently announce their endorsements for 2019, GOP chair Matt Hogan said Monday.
Primaries will take place June 25, and the General Election on Nov. 5. All five City Council seats and both city Supervisor seats are up for election this year.
"Dream Big": Japanese Resort Sets Sights on Saratoga
SARATOGA SPRINGS – An international resort company with a stated mission to “dream big” is eyeing the Spa City as a place to potentially develop its latest luxury hotel.
Hoshino Resorts, which operates 37 facilities both in and outside Japan, operates four distinct brands: luxury flagships, hot spring resorts, resort hotels, and city tourism hotels, featuring venues which vary from countrified mountainside resorts to the heart of big-city Tokyo. The company entered into a Memorandum of Agreement of Sale in September as purchaser regarding two parcels of land totaling nearly 87 acres, located just south of Saratoga Spa State Park. A “deed agreement” was filed with the Saratoga County Clerk’s Office on Oct. 3.
According to the company’s literature, Hoshino Resorts provides “a unique experience focused on the local charms of each destination and a high level of omotenashi Japanese-style hospitality.”
Hoshino Resorts was first established as a traditional Japanese inn in 1914. Today, the hotel management company is run by 4th-generation family member Yoshiharu Hoshino.
The company was formerly known as Hoshino Onsen Co., Ltd. and changed its name to Hoshino Resorts Inc. in 1995, and is based in Kitasaku, Japan, according to Bloomberg.com. An Albany-based attorney representing Hoshino Resorts did not return a phone message requesting information for this story.
The memorandum of agreement notes two specific parcels: 6.88 acres at Route 9 and Columbia Avenue, and 79.34 acres at 38 Columbia Avenue. The lands are located in a mostly wooded area, just south of the Saratoga Spa State Park and East West Road, just off Route 9. According to the document, the closing and transfer of title is slated to potentially take place within 30 days of the end of the due diligence period, specified as Nov. 1, 2020. Hoshino has the exclusive right to purchase the properties under the agreement.
Specific plans for the type of development under consideration for development in Saratoga Springs are not known.
Bradley Birge, the city’s administrator of planning and economic development, said formal applications that would signal the potential start of a project – such as a building permit - have yet to be filed with any of the city’s Land Use boards. Salomone and Company – a limited liability company with offices in New York City, is listed as the “seller” of the properties, according to the memorandum of agreement of sale.
Steven Salomone, whose grandfather Saverio Salomone purchased the property in the 1940s, was unable to confirm or deny anything relative to a potential transaction. He does remember visiting the property as a young man.
“When I was kid, we would go up there every summer,” recalled Steven Salomone, who is 64 years old. “I remember the State Park being next door. That was exciting to us. There is a small pond or lake on the property towards the back and when it would freeze, Saverio would go out and chop the ice and sell it. He was apparently running a pretty good business doing that,” Salomone says, with a laugh. “Back in the day people were still using ice boxes up there. I think they used to call it the Ice Lake.”
In 1949, Saverio was granted Zoning Board approval to erect six cabins off Columbia Ave., according to city records.
“Buying land in Saratoga to my grandfather, it was like buying farmland,” Salomone says. “You know he was an Italian immigrant and owning land was something that was important; having land in the county was important to them. My grandfather and grandmother also put a small hotel up – not a hotel by today’s standards, but they had rooms they would rent out. It was called the Salomone Motel and when the racetrack was busy and people were looking to rent anything that was possible, we used to have people stay in the rooms.”
As the grandparents got older, the property was used less frequently. The bungalows eventually came down and a main house, which had been rented out, has been dormant for the past handful of years, Salomone says.
