All Over Albany

State ethics panel slammed for being unethical and ineffective, UAlbany gets new president, Saratoga Springs mayor running for re-election, giant sinkhole opens in street

After a report from the state inspector general blasted the state Commission on Public Integrity -- an ethics panel -- for leaking info about its investigation of the Spitzer Administration, David Paterson called on all of the commission members to quit. The commission's response: no. Leaks or no leaks, there no indications the commission might not have exactly been doing a great job. [NYT] [TU] [NYDN] [NYDN]

UAlbany has a new president: George Philip, who's been serving as the school's interim president. The university's presidential search took three years and cost $300,000. The selection of Philip -- who had been there all along -- had at least a few students scratching their heads. [TU] [ASP]

GlobalFoundries says the EU's fine of Intel for anti-competitive practices will help the Luther Forest chip fab project -- because Intel's main rival, AMD, is currently GloFo's only customer. An Intel spokesperson says the ruling won't be sorted out for years and probably won't have any impact on the Luther Forest project. (some broader perspective) [Daily Gazette] [Saratogian] [TU] [Post-Star]

The week in murders and shootings: Two brothers have been charged with the murder outside a former night club in Schenectady last month. A man was indicted for the stabbing murder on Bradford Street last week in Albany. And federal marshals in Georgia picked up the guy accused of shooting a woman outside the Playdium in March. [Daily Gazette] [TU] [TU]

Saratoga Springs mayor Scott Johnson says he will run for re-election this year. [Saratogian]

The head of the New York National Guard is taking over the US Army National Guard. Major Gen. Joseph Taluto grew up in Schenectady. [TU] [Daily Gazette]

The median age of Schenectady County's population (39.6) is the oldest of of the Capital Region's four core counties, according to new data from the Census Bureau. [TU]

The state DEC has fined the Clifton Park compost facility for what one resident described as its "stench."

Troy is installing new "pay and display" parking meters near the RPI campus. [Troy Record]

NYRA's worried that the national horse racing scene could be collapsing. [Saratogian]

SPAC will have recycling bins for the first time this season. Also new: there will be a no-smoking section on the lawn during classical shows. [Daily Gazette]

A giant sink hole -- it looks big enough to swallow a car -- opened up on Morton Ave in Albany yesterday.

Here's video from yesterday's commuter cruise on the Hudson between Troy and Albany. [Troy Record]