Voter fraud alleged in Troy, VFW punishes alleged flag burner with duct-taping, big chunk of downtown Albany for sale, mass Thriller dance planned
Thirty-four people in Troy have filed sworn affidavits alleging that absentee ballots were fraudulently cast in their name during the recent primary election. The ballots were handled by or prepared for officials of the Democratic and Working Family Parties. The Rensselaer County DA is asking for a judge to appoint a special prosecutor to investigate. The affidavits were collected by private investigators working for Republican Bob Mirch, who says he will call for a federal investigation. [Troy Record] [TU] [TU] [CBS6]
Troy police have arrested a suspect for the shooting that hit a man in the head two weeks ago. The victim, who witnesses say had told a group of teens outside his house to quiet down and then was taking pictures of a fight that later broke out, is still in the hospital. [Troy Record] [WNYT] [Fox23] [CapNews9]
Members of a VFW in Rensselaer County say they duct-taped a man to a flag pole for six hours as punishment after the man allegedly burned the American flag flying at their post. The man reportedly had gotten angry after he was denied a drink at the post's bar. The post's commander says the man was given three options for punishment: being turned into police, a one-on-one fight with a veteran or the duct-taping. [WTEN] [Troy Record] [TU]
Jerry Jennings has proposed using land from the Harriman State Office Campus to allow a buffer zone between the dorm UAlbany wants to build on the east side of its campus and the residential neighborhood next door. Many of the residents of the neighborhood are not happy about the proposed dorm and have been posting developments about the project to a blog. [TU]
There's some question about where the money for Lieutenant Governor Richard Ravitch's staff will come from -- the current budget doesn't include any money for the LG's office. [PolitickerNY]
The state has been hoping to draw $400 million a year from the planned Aqueduct Racino, but a report from the Rockefeller Institute concludes that the state shouldn't count its chips from gambling revenue before they're cashed. [Rockefeller Institute] [TU]
SPAC says it expects to break even this year, for the fifth time in a row. [TU]
Five buildings along Pearl Street in downtown Albany -- including the Cap Rep building, the Kenmore Building and 1 Steuben -- are for sale. [TU]
Bethlehem police say a 13-year-old was slashed in the face during a fight at a birthday party Saturday night in Glenmont. [CapNews9]
Bethlehem police say they arrested three people in Glenmont who had a stash of prescription drugs, weapons and more than 12 pounds of pot. [WNYT]
One of the Edison Exploritorium's main benefactors says he's been shut out by the Schenectady museum's president -- and apparently the state AG's office is looking into the situation. [TU]
The Knolls Atomic Power Lab's Kesslring Site, which is tax-exempt, is making a payment in lieu of taxes of more than $163k to surrounding municipalities. [Saratogian]
Stuyvesant Plaza is 50 years old this year. [TU]
Engel's farm stand on Rt 155 in Colonie (right near the airport) could be closed for good. [TU]
Saratoga's Downtown Business Association is planning a mass "Thriller" dance on Halloween. [Saratogian]
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Comments
I'm taking up a collection so I can buy the Stueben and Kenmore buildings, two of Albany's most beautiful structures.
I have $23 in my wallet. Anymore got $6,269,977 to give me?
... said daleyplanit on Sep 28, 2009 at 10:14 AM | link
It's a dream come true! I have always wanted to celebrate Halloween by doing a mass Thriller dance! No, seriously! I have!!
... said Kari on Sep 28, 2009 at 10:18 AM | link
"Big Chunk of downtown Albany for Sale" caught my eye. i got excited thinking that maybe some major development was going to happen in the downtown area which is bounded by Lark, Madison, Washington and Broadway. Upon reading the article, I realized that the headline is completely incorrect. The Harriman Office Campus is in UPTOWN Albany, practically in Guilderland, it is not downtown.
Please edit your headlines and articles more carefully.
... said Mark on Sep 28, 2009 at 11:45 AM | link
@Mark: the headline was referencing the five properties for sale on or near Pearl Street:
"Five buildings along Pearl Street in downtown Albany -- including the Cap Rep building, the Kenmore Building and 1 Steuben -- are for sale. [TU]"
... said Greg on Sep 28, 2009 at 11:53 AM | link
Re: downtown....whoops! My mistake, apologies all around.
... said Mark on Sep 28, 2009 at 12:31 PM | link
It's hard to comprehend with the beautiful roads our city hasm the business-friendly taxes our city imposes, and the easily accessable parking, that no one is jumping on these properties.
... said ph on Sep 28, 2009 at 1:44 PM | link
Sadly, the boys at the VFW hall forgot that they went to war so that we could live in a country with laws and courts for trying criminals, instead of vigilante street justice like they have in some of those unsavory places where we send troops these days.
Unfortunately, when that punk sues them in court, they are going to look like the real thugs, and the punk walks away with a victory. He will scream that they never gave him a choice and that he was the victim of an assault.
They should have detained him, called the police, and let the courts handle the situation.
... said Jon (was) in Michigan on Sep 28, 2009 at 9:05 PM | link