All Over Albany

Supreme Court doesn't take on SAFE Act challenge, call for lower 787 speed limit in Cohoes, alleged cheese company investment scam

SCOTUS doesn't take up SAFE Act challenge
On Monday the Supreme Court of the United States chose not to hear a challenge to New York's SAFE Act and a similar law expanding an assault weapon ban in Connecticut. The choice won praise from gun control advocates -- and the New York State Rifle & Pistol Association, which figured the current lineup of justices wasn't favorable to a challenge. [NYT] [TU]

Meanwhile: A gun shop owner in Glenville says sales spike after every mass shooting, such as the one recently in Orlando. [Daily Gazette]

School funding
School districts such as Albany and Schenectady are "way off track" in terms of getting the level of state aid owed to them under the 2006 Campaign for Fiscal Equity ruling, the Alliance for Quality Education argues in a new report. At a Monday event held by the advocacy org, Schenectady schools superintendent called the current funding allocation "egregiously discriminatory." [TU] [AQE] [Daily Gazette]

Pedestrian safety
Cohoes mayor Shaw Morse said Monday he'd like to see the speed limit on 787 in his city reduced to 30 miles per hour. The stretch of road has been under scrutiny recently after the death of a teen pedestrian at 787 and Bridge Ave last week. [WNYT]

Indictment in fatal Halfmoon crash
A Saratoga County grand jury has handed up an indictment against the woman accused of hitting and killing a pedestrian on Route 9 in Halfmoon last December, then leaving the scene of the crash and not reporting it until an hour later. [Daily Gazette]

Checking cheddar
The state Attorney General's office alleges an Albany insurance broker scammed investors out of $1 million that he said was going toward building a kosher and halal cheese production company. [News10] [TU]

Hoosick Falls
Chuck Schumer, Kirsten Gillibrand, and Paul Tonko have joined the call for federal hearings about the contamination of drinking water in Hoosick Falls and the handling of the situation. [Politico NY]

Schenectady police contract
The new Schenectady police contract up for approval by the city council includes three years of two-percent raises (two of them retroactive) and new top-step patrol officer salary of more than $73k. [Daily Gazette] [TU]

Saratoga Springs sidewalk sitting law
Saratoga Springs police chief Greg Veitch tells WNYT his officers will be using their discretion over whether to enforce the city's new law banning people from sitting on sidewalks (so far no one has been cited). [WNYT]

Proposed apartments near SUNY Poly
The Albany Common Council public hearing Monday night about the proposed zoning change that would allow the construction of apartments near the SUNY Poly campus drew multiple residents of Guilderland who say they oppose the project. [TU]

Downtown Troy
The Downtown Troy Business Improvement District has hired Katie Hammon as its executive director (she had been serving in that role on interim basis). [Troy Record]

Principal Forth
Craig Forth -- the starting center on Syracuse's 2003 national champ basketball team -- has been named the Mechanicville junior high school principal. [MCSD]

Stuff going on today

Nitty Gritty
The Nitty Gritty poetry slam is back at The Low Beat. Tuesday 7 pm

Copa America
The US Men's National Team faces Argentina in Houston in the semifinals of the Copa America Centenario. This is a big tournament -- not World Cup level, but up there. And if you're looking for a place to watch with a bunch of fans, the Albany chapter of the American Outlaws fan group will be watching at Wolff's in Albany. Tuesday kickoff at 9 pm

Music: Dead & Company at SPAC
Mickey Hart, Bill Kreutzmann, John Mayer, Bob Weir, with Oteil Burbridge and Jeff Chimenti. 7 pm -- $40 and up