Displaying items by tag: Nicholas P Morelli
A New Record!
Stewart’s Holiday Match Raises Over $1.5M for Children’s Charities
SARATOGA SPRINGS – Donations to the Stewart’s Holiday Match program set a new record in its 28th season; raising funds which will help support hundreds of local children’s charities year round. From Thanksgiving Day through Christmas Day, Stewart’s customers donated over $770,000 to the program, which is then doubled to more than $1.5 million with the Stewart’s match.
This impressive number was made possible by the generosity of Stewart’s customers, many regularly giving their spare change and others who contributed larger gifts, as well as the hard work of Stewart’s partners and support from media partners.
“Each year our customers meet the challenge of raising more funds for children’s charities,” said Stewart’s Foundation President Susan Dake. “We are so grateful to our customers for their generosity and loyalty to Stewart’s Shops.”
This was a 15 percent increase in customer donations compared to the past two years, where $1.34 million was raised. The previous Holiday Match record, set in 2011, was $1.39 million. After this year’s funds have been distributed, the Stewart’s Holiday Match program will have allocated more than $20 million since the program’s inception in 1986.
Donations were collected from Thanksgiving Day through Christmas Day at all 331 Stewart’s Shops in upstate New York and western Vermont. Stewart’s then matched all individual customer donations. There are no administrative costs and 100 percent of the funds collected and matched benefit children’s organizations directly within the communities where Stewart’s Shops are located. Those funds will be allocated in March.
Children’s charities can still apply for funding from the Holiday Match program. Applications are available at all Stewart’s Shops or online at stewartsshops.com.
Applications must be submitted or postmarked by January 31, 2015 to be considered for funding. All groups applying must be locally based, benefit children under 18, and be a qualified, charitable 501c3 organization.
For more information visit stewartsshops.com.
Where Your Contributions Go
SARATOGA SPRINGS – Stewart’s Shops uses the tag line of “We are closer to you,” and nowhere is that more true then with its Holiday Match. When you drop your change into the Stewart’s Holiday Match containers at any of their shops, you are making a direct impact upon a staggering number of organizations right in your own community. All of these organizations are not for profit and benefit children under 18 years of age. The following are a list of Saratoga County groups – touching every aspect of society – that received funds from last year’s Holiday Match:
- Arthur Gonick
4-H Fillies & Colts
After the Fire
AIM Services, Inc.
Angel Names Association
Arthritis Foundation of NENY
Ballard Elementary H S A
Ballston Area Community Center
Ballston Spa Education Foundation
Ballston Spa High School PTSA
Ballston Spa HS Robotics Team 3044
Ballston Spa Jr Baseball
Bemis Heights CAR
BH-BL Education Foundation
BH-BL Junior Baseball
Birthright
Boy Scout Troop 18, Middle Grove
Boy Scout Troop 24, Wilton
Brave Will Foundation
Bridging People and Places
Capital District Young Life
CAPTAIN Youth and Family Services
Catholic Charities of Saratoga County
Catie Hoch Foundation
Charlton Historical Society
Charlton School
Children’s Museum of Saratoga
Christopher Dailey Foundation
Civil Air Patrol, Wullenwaber
Clifton Park Chabad/Chabad Center
Clifton Park Nursery School
Corinth Cub Scout Pack 22
Corinth Youth Comm. Summer Theatre
Corinth Youth Hockey
Cub Scouts Pack #18
Cub Scouts Pack #25
Division Street PTA (12-082)
Domestic Violence/Saratoga Rape Crisis
DonovanHouse/Catholic Charities
Dramahawks Corinth School Drama Club
Faith Baptist Church Food Pantry
First Baptist Church of Ballston Spa
floydwarriors.com
Franklin Community Center
Friends and Neighbors of Ballston Spa
Friends of Shendehowa Crew
Friends of the Clifton Park-Halfmoon Library
Friends of the NYS Military Museum
Friends of the Stillwater Glen Hollow Park
Gabby Rocco Let It Shine Foundation
Galway Ambulance Corps, Inc.
Galway Food Panty
Galway High School Drama Club
Galway Players Youth Theatre
Galway PTSA, After Prom Party
Galway Public Library
Girl Scout Service Unit 165
Girl Scout Troop 3228
Girl Scouts of NENY – Troop 3126
Gordon Creek Elementary PTA
Greater Schuylerville Youth Program
Halfmoon Baseball League
Halfmoon Girls Softball, Inc.
Harrison Avenue Elementary HAS
Harvest Church
Hawley Foundation for Children
Helping Hands School
Historical Society of Moreau
Hudson Crossing Park, Inc.
I Am I Can
Iroquois Reading Council
Jake’s Help From Heaven
Junior Achievement of NENY
KIDS Reaching Out Club, Inc.
Koda Mentor Program
Lake Ave. Elementary School Drama Club
Little Ones Child Care Center Inc.
Malta Avenue Elementary PTA
Mechanicville Area Community Services Center
Mechanicville District Public Library
Mechanicville-Stillwater Youth Soccer
Miss Scotties Softball
Miss Shen Softball
Moreau Elementary School
National Bottle Museum
National Museum of Dance
Newmeadow, Inc.
Nick’s Fight to be Healed Foundation
Northeast Mobile Search & Rescue
Northeast String Orchestra
NorthStar Church
Not So Common Players
Odyssey School of Fine Arrts
Okte PTA
Old Saratoga Athletic Association
Opera Saratoga
Race Track Chaplaincy of America
Round Lake/Malta Youth Baseball League
Rugrunners Robotics Inc.
Saratoga American Little League
Saratoga ArtsFest
Saratoga Bridges
Saratoga Center for the Family
Saratoga Challengers Inc.
Saratoga Children’s Theatre, Inc.
Saratoga Co. Children’s Committee
Saratoga County 4-H
Saratoga County E.O.C.
Saratoga County Historical Society
Saratoga Hospital – Community Health Center
Saratoga Mentoring ProGram
Saratoga PLAN
Saratoga Reads!
Saratoga Regional YMCA
Saratoga Rowing Association, Inc.
Saratoga Sponsor A Scholar
Saratoga Springs Recreation
Saratoga Synchronized Skating
Schuylerville Community Theater
Schuylerville High School After Prom Party
Schuylerville Robotics
Search Team 5-1
Second Chance Sports
Shelters of Saratoga
Shenendehowa Dollars for Scholars
Skribblers Magazine Inc.
Southern Saratoga County YMCA
Spa Christian School
Stillwater Area Community Center
Stillwater Battle Youth Football
Stillwater Education Foundation
Stillwater Free Library
Streaks Running Club
Tesago Elementary School PTA
The Beagle School
The Fisherman’s Net Youth Program
The Karen & Gary Dake Foundation for Children
The King’s School
The Moreau Community Center
The Prevention Council
The Salvation Army
The Saratoga Automobile Museum
The TEARS Foundation
The Wildlife Institute
Transitional Services, Inc.
Troy USBC Youth Association
Venturing Crew 936, BSA
Village of Round Lake
Waterford Little League
Wilton Wildlife Preserve & Park
Wilton Youth Baseball
Youth2-Youth Helping Youth
Source: Stewart’s Shops.
Malta Town Board: The Process of Progress
MALTA— The Malta Town Board meeting on Monday, April 7 brought about significant actions on two fronts:
The first was the adoption, by a 4-1 vote (with Councilman Peter Klotz voting against) of the adoption of the Stewart’s Planned Development District (PDD) #315, which would eventually lead to the issuing of a building permit for a Stewart’s Shops (with gasoline pumps) and an Adirondack Trust branch office.
This building would be sighted on the high traffic roundabout at the intersection of NYS Route 67 and Luther Forest Boulevard – on the way to and from the nearby technology park.
As noted in Saratoga TODAY’s issue of February 28, the Stewart’s Corporation has offered a sum of $200,000 in seed money to the town, to pay for the costs of construction extending water lines (via Saratoga Water Services) along old Route 67 and Dugan Hill Road in a neighborhood to several homes, in the nearby neighborhood of Maltaville. Stewart’s agreed to not receive their building permit until this condition was completed.
A presentation/public hearing preceded the final vote, the last in a series over several town meetings, that was delivered by Mr. Tom Lewis, who has retired as Real Estate Representative at Stewart’s, but was staying on to shepherd this project through the process.
At Monday’s meeting, he delivered his portion of the proceedings before an audience which included Charles Wait, Jr. and Mr. Lewis’ successor at Stewart’s, Chuck Marshall.
On February 28, the story was subtitled “Growth That Works” and despite Klotz’ dissent, it says here that this was a favorable deal for the town and for everyone concerned. It is an example of a good public-private sector partnership that any place, let alone the Town of Malta, should want to replicate as often as possible.
The epitome of win-win. As in you get your water; I get a make-your-own sundae and some unleaded on the way home from the tech park. Mr. Lewis scored on his final drive and those who have seen him in this arena before were not at all surprised with the result.
The second front concerned a trio of resolutions regarding what is labeled the Round Lake Improvement Plan, or more commonly “the roundabouts”. The town board voted, also 4-1, but this time with Councilman John Hartzell voting no, to formally seek determination of the town itself as the lead agency, and to authorize the town’s designates to begin the process of eminent domain on several parcels along the corridor by evaluating the public benefit and providing a calculation of ‘just compensation offers’ to the given landowners for their parcels, a mix of both commercial and residential properties.
Round Lake resident Woody Sloat, in the pubic comment period, reminded the town board that continued action on roundabouts was contrary to the wishes of over 500 petition-singing area residents (see: mymaltany.nationbuilder.com) and later elaborated:
“A number of citizens who live in this area consist of professional engineers, educators, doctors, lawyers and law enforcement professionals who work in highway safety every day. These residents refused to be duped by the slanted statistical data that supports the point of view of individuals who created their position based on profit. The residents’ genuine concern is safety and quality of life.” Mr. Sloat said.
“It is a big disappointment to see the town supervisor and three of his councilpersons dismiss the 514 residents who appealed to their common sense. Their poor decision will not be forgotten.”
Growth That Works
Stewart’s Seed Money To Make It Happen in Maltaville
MALTA— The town of Malta has been challenged with coping with some of Saratoga County’s greatest growth issues arising out of the as a result of the siting of GlobalFoundries at the Luther Forest Technology Campus.
Often the results have been regarded as haphazard: either overreaching or inadequate – a dozen roundabouts (with potentially more on the horizon) and the retail vacancies in the Ellsworth Commons project being two visible examples.
The Town Board, to its credit, has attempted to take a fresh approach. At the February 3 town meeting, they established a Route 9 South/Route 67 Rezoning Committee, which is charged with looking at the entire area in a comprehensive way to avoid individual “spot zoning” of parcels in this key gateway area to the GlobalFoundries plant.
This will be a developing story for quite a while, but there is a situation in process currently that, if adopted, can illustrate how growth and development can have multiple positive outcomes.
It may come as no surprise that this situation sprang forth from the private sector.
The Stewart’s Shops Corporation is advocating the formation of a Planned Development District and the Town Board has heard presentations by Mr. Tom Lewis, who is now a consultant but formerly was the company’s Real Estate Representative. Stewart’s has an option on a key parcel (see aerial map) along the roundabout located on route 67 and Luther Forest Boulevard – a key entranceway to GlobalFoundries and the LF Tech Park. It would like a building permit to construct a shop that would have gas pumps.
The desirability to Stewart’s to have this site is obvious; also obvious is the desirability of having a convenient gas/convenience store for the thousands who will be passing by to and from work at Fab8 and other sites.
Stewart’s would be able to hook up to an existing water main. As part of an incentive to receive a building permit for the site, they have offered the town the sum of $200,000 as seed money for the purpose of extending water lines along old Route 67 and Dugan Hill Road in a neighborhood known as Maltaville. Mr. Lewis had a representative from Saratoga Water Services verify that for that amount of seed money, a 10” water main could be extended 1000 feet, which includes lateral connections to individual (both existing and future) parcels as needed.
This could be the spur needed to stimulate future residential development in a desirable location that is very close to the Technology Campus. After this, the water lines could be extended further in the neighborhood by residential developers.
The next stages are to develop the final legislative language. There are some minor issues to be settled, such as the Saratoga County Water Authority taking ownership of the parcel upon which a water tower would sit. The water authority needs that provision in order to borrow money for the tower. Mr. Lewis also indicated that he was willing to accept a contingency that Stewart’s would receive a building permit after the pipes were in the ground.
Once the legislation is finalized, an item can be put on the town board’s agenda that would schedule a public hearing. It appeared that everyone was going to push to finalize the language in time for this item to be on the next meeting’s agenda, which takes place on Monday, March 3, with a public hearing at the April meeting.
This could be an example of growth that works—a win/win for everyone concerned.
As noted above, Stewart’s option on the parcel is contingent upon receiving a building permit but “the optimist in me says this is going to happen,” Tom Lewis said.
Stewart’s Eyes GlobalFoundries
Water and Zoning Issues May Prevent Approval
MALTA — There are a few more obstacles for Stewart’s Shops to overcome before they are able to get their plans for Shop #315, potentially to be located on Route 67 across from the entrance to Luther Forest Technology Campus, approved by the Malta Town Board.