All Over Albany

Look ahead to Obama visit, Troy City Center project stalled, NYRA president fired, state workforce aging and shrinking, parents upset school didn't stop bully's beating of 11-year-old

Barack Obama's visit to Albany isn't officially a campaign stop, and New York isn't a swing state -- but highlighting advanced manufacturing fits with the administration's theme of transforming the economy. And, of course, there are influential politicians from New York -- Andrew Cuomo and both Clintons. The POTUS visit will also continue to focus national attention on the growing tech scene in this region. [TU] [AP/Troy Record] [Daily Gazette]

The NYRA board fired president Charles Hayward and general counsel Patrick Kehoe Friday afternoon because of the scandal in which the racing org allegedly knowingly withheld millions from bettors. Hayward says the report indicating NYRA knowingly held back the money "badly misinterprets documents and was prepared without interviewing me or any other individuals relevant to their investigation." A tax examiner for the state Department of Taxation and Finance, the last on-track parimutuel monitor, who might have caught the problem was encouraged to retire shortly before NYRA allegedly started withholding the money. [Daily Gazette] [TU] [TU]

The City Center project in downtown Troy is stalled after it came to light the project included subsidized housing -- the city has bounced the plan back to the developer to be reformulated as fully market-rate housing. [TU]

A partnership called The Albany Promise, modeled on initiatives such as the Harlem Children's Zone, is aiming to create a comprehensive support system for kids in Albany's poorest neighborhoods. [TU]

The workforces for the "bureaucratic cores" of state agencies have contracted by about 18 percent over the last three years because of early retirements, regular retirements, and cuts, according to a Times Union analysis. [TU]

The Cuomo admin is planning to propose a new law enforcement and oversight agency to oversee the care of people with developmental disabilities. [NYT]

With just $76k in the bank, and costs outpacing revenues, the city of Schenectady's budget outlook this year is grim. [Daily Gazette]

In Troy, one woman's effort to keep order and decorum during city council meetings is another's gavel-happy heavy hand. [Troy Record]

The parents of a Schenectady 11-year-old are upset officials at the girl's school didn't do more to head off a beating from a bully that allegedly included being "knocked down, stomped on, punched repeatedly and dragged across the road." [Daily Gazette]

One of the adopted sons of the woman who got the Extreme Makeover house in Colonie has been arrested for allegedly having child pornography. Police say the man, who's now 20 years old, worked at a group of schools and a youth center. [TU]

A car crash knocked out power to about 1000 households Sunday in Green Island. The driver managed to hit two utility poles, four other vehicles, a house porch. Surprise: speed and alcohol are suspected causes. [TU] [Troy Record] [Fox23]

Bethlehem police say a man fired a shotgun in a laundromat during an argument with girlfriend two weeks ago (map). [TU]

Troy police say they nabbed a 15-year-old with a loaded hand gun in North Central on Friday (map). [News10]

The city-sponsored Troy gun buyback netted about 20 guns this weekend. [Troy Record]

Saratoga Springs' public safety commissioner wants to crack down on loud motorcycles. [Saratogian]

The city of Saratoga Springs is in the process of finalizing a deal to buy a stretch of land along the Kayaderosseras Creek, which would be the first city-owned official public access point to the waterway. [Saratogian]

A proposed sidewalk district on Route 50 in Glenville near the new Target has been held up because property owners' concerns about liability and maintenance costs. [Daily Gazette]

The Saratoga Springs DPW is testing porous asphalt on a recently re-paved street. [Saratogian]

Developer Sonny Bonacio -- known for his many projects in Saratoga -- has bought the Keenan Buidling in downtown Troy (streetview). [TU]

The Honest Weight Food Co-op has consolidated its management team. [TU]

The Schenectady High School's concert band was the grand champion at a recent national music festival. [Daily Gazette]

A new data center in Latham gets as much as 75 percent of its power from rooftop solar panels. [Troy Record]