All Over Albany

Why it's taken decades to implement safety system for trains, news crew threatened with arrest, landmark status for Yaddo

Oil trains: A Hearst investigation looks at how the railroad industry has blocked/slowed the adoption of a safety system called Positive Train Control for decades. [TU]

A group of families is planning to file suit today in Albany in an attempt to challenge teacher tenure in New York State. Teachers union and other advocacy groups have been gearing up for the fight. [NYDN] [TU]

The town of Colonie is among a few local municipalities that have been reporting police income from private duty jobs as eligible for pension system consideration -- something the state comptroller's office has said should not be done. [TU]

Schenectady's property value are already above the market value of many properties, apparently -- the system appears to be warping further because large property owners have been more likely to successfully grieving their assessments. [Daily Gazette]

Republican Matt Doheny announced he won't continue to run for the 21st Congressional District on the Independence Party line, and backed fellow Republican Elise Stefanik. (Doheny lost to Stefanik in the Republican primary.) [Post-Star]

A YouTube video appears to show Paul Tonko speeding on the Thruway at speeds around 90 mph. [Daily Gazette]

Mount McGregor prison in Wilton was scheduled to permanently close Saturday, and the state is looking for a new use/tenant. [Daily Gazette]

While reporting a story about Grant's Cottage, a state historic site on the grounds of Mount McGregory, a WNYT crew was threatened with arrest by corrections employees for filming at the site. [WNYT x2]

A member of the East Greenbush town board has withdrawn her support of the proposed casino there, citing concerns about changes to the project. [Troy Record]

Colonie's attorney says there are currently no motels in the town that have the license necessary to house sex offenders placed by county social services. (Over the last few years the town has been focusing on a range of issues at motels along Central Avenue.) [TU]

Mechanicville police say a boy reported missing was found, with his mother, in Mexico. [TU]

Many bodies of water in the Adirondacks appear to be recovering (slowly) from the effects of acid rain. [Daily Gazette]

A Skidmore professor is part of a research group that recently published a paper in PLoS about the incidence of sexual harassment during field research -- many young researchers reported being the subject of sexual harassment or assault. [Saratogian]

Yaddo's designation as a National Historic Landmark was officially unveiled. [TU]

Wanted: Someone to do something with a small, historic building in downtown Schenectady. [Daily Gazette]

A 76-year-old Schenectady man was named the state's Senior Citizen of the Year -- the latest in a long series of awards for him. [TU]