All Over Albany

NYSTI board votes to close theater institute, GE says it will go along with phase 2 of dredging, demand up at local homeless shelters, Siena tops Georgia Tech

Aggregated links for the Albany hostage situation.

The NYSTI board voted unanimously to close the theater institute at the end of this year. The acting head of NYSTI had asked the board to allow the org to pursue a line of credit to keep it running with the hope that it would get funding in the next state budget. The chair of the board (who's also David Paterson's top aide) says NYSTI's assets will be put in escrow until the new administration decides what to do with them -- or the legislature dissolves the org. [Troy Record] [Daily Gazette] [YNN]

Andrew Cuomo has picked Joseph D'Amico, currently the head investigator in the state attorney general's office, to be the next State Police superintendent. [NYT]

GE says it has decided move along with the second phase of the Hudson River PCB dredging project under the guidelines recently laid out by the EPA. [AP/CBS6]

Concessions made by Schenectady firefighters in a new contract will head off 14 planned layoffs. [Daily Gazette] [TU]

NYRA says the season at Saratoga will again be 40 days next year. [Saratogian]

Local homeless shelters say demand for space, meals and toys for kids are all up this year. [TU]

A vote on whether the local union that reps Albany police would stay with its umbrella group was settled by one ballot -- which was found, unopened, after the initial tally. [TU]

The state Department of Conservation has issued new rules for outdoor wood boilers that it says ensure the boilers burn 90 percent cleaner. These boilers are often used by farmers and in rural areas. [NYS DEC] [YNN]

Scott Murphy on his short time in Congress: "The frustration people feel with government and partisan gridlock is very real. ... But the process of being involved in government is very rewarding." [Post-Star]

The Scotia village board has rejected a proposal to add a drive-thru to a Dunkin Donuts (the village does not allow drive-thrus). [Daily Gazette]

Target is expanding the grocery options in some of its local stores. [Daily Gazette]

Farther afield: Syracuse has gotten 72 inches of snow this month. [NYT]

Fran Zyglewicz, proprietor of Mother's Roadhouse in East Greenbush and "the last of the true biker chicks," passed away recently. [TU]

The Siena men's basketball team beat Georgia Tech (and former Siena coach Paul Hewitt) 62-57 at the TU Center last night. The Saints' Ryan Rossiter had 19 points and 13 rebounds. [TU] [ESPN]