All Over Albany

Get your hot dogs (while they last)

Nipper's setup in Monument Square

If you were thinking about checking out the Chicago-style hot dogs from Nipper's, you have two days left to score one in Troy's Monument Square. The stand is finishing up its season on Friday (though you will be able to get them this weekend at The Tug Boat Roundup in Waterford). And there's no telling if they'll be back next year.

Apparently foot traffic hasn't been what the Nipper's folks had hoped. On top of that, the tasty all-beef frankfurters seem to be the focus of some Collar City controversy.

Not everyone is happy to see the Nipper cart in Monument Square.

Sanford Horowitz owns a number of buildings in the area and is part owner of The Illium Cafe in Monument Square. He told AOA that the stand doesn't fit in the historic district. On his visits to Troy from NYC, he prefers not to see the cart from the Illium's window. He's also annoyed that the Nipper's owners aren't paying the same taxes he is for a business in Troy's most high-profile 'hood.

For now though, the city clerk says if Nipper's wants a home in Monument Square next summer they should be able to get one. "I've heard rumors of a complaint," he told AOA, "but no one has filed one with this office. I've only heard wonderful things about the cart."

More nipperlicious details "as the hot dog turns."