All Over Albany

Blizzard warning issued, projecting Preet Bharara probabilities, expansion of Albany County styrofoam ban voted down

Blizzard
+ The National Weather Service has issued a blizzard warning for the area through Wednesday morning: "Extremely dangerous travel conditions due to snow covered roads, white-out conditions along with blowing and drifting snow." [NWS Albany]
+ Snow totals are now forecasted to be in the range of two feet. [NWS Albany]
+ The governor has declared a state of emergency in all counties and directed non-essential state employees in affected areas to stay home. [Cuomo admin]
+ Many local offices, businesses, and other places are closed today. If you're wondering if it's closed, the answer is probably yes.
+ CDTA says that, for now, it's running on its regular schedule today. (Though there are sure to be delays.) But keep checking for updates if you plan on riding. [CDTA]
+ The city of Albany has issued a snow emergency starting Wednesday at 8 pm with EVEN side parking. [City of Albany]

Preet Bharara
Differing views on what's next for Preet Bharara after he was let go by the Trump administration:
+ Sara Foss: "Politics does seem like a good fit for Bharara, who has spoken of the need to change the culture in Albany, criticized legislators for ignoring and enabling their corrupt peers and suggested that the best way to reform state government is to elect politicians with an interest in cleaning up the capitol." [Daily Gazette]
+ Chris Churchill: "[T]he glow around Bharara would dim as soon as he entered the race. His investigation of the Cuomo associates would suddenly seem politically motivated. He would be Bharara the Politician instead of Bharara the Crusader for Justice." [TU+]
+ Jim Tedisco: "He'd probably make a great judge. I'm not sure he'd make a great governor." [TWCN]

US Attorney for this area staying on a little while longer
Richard Hartunian, the US Attorney for the district that includes the Capital Region, was also asked to resign and will be leaving -- but he's being allowed to stay until the end of June to get his 20 years of service with the Department of Justice in. [TU]

Free tuition proposal
A former top Cuomo admin official said Monday he expects there will be "tweaks" to the free SUNY/CUNY tuition proposal, including adjusting for differing cost of living around the state. [TU]

Proposed Albany County styrofoam ban
The Albany County Legislature voted down a proposed expansion of the county's ban on the use of styrofoam containers. (The current ban applies to food chains.) The vote was 21-16 (with one abstention) -- 11 Democrats and 10 Republicans voted against it. [News10] [TU]

Lawsuit over opiates
Schenectady County is considering joining other counties in a lawsuit against drug companies that would allege the companies engaged in misleading advertising that contributed to overprescribing of opiates and resulting addiction. [Daily Gazette]

Two home invasions
The Saratoga County Sheriff's Office says it's arrested four alleged to have been involved in an incident that included two home invasions, a kidnapping, and stabbings. Sheriff Michael Zurlo says the case is drug related.[News10] [Daily Gazette]

Man accused of trying set wife on fire
Police allege a Schenectady man tried to set his wife on fire Saturday -- she wasn't harmed, but the building caught fire. (It was only a week earlier that another Schenectady woman died after, police allege, she was set on fire by her husband.) [Daily Gazette]

Alleged security deposit theft
A husband and wife are accused of stealing more than $200k in unreturned security deposits for Troy apartments that were rented to parolees under a contract with Rensselaer County during a period that stretches back to 1999. Their attorney says they provided reports to the county of kept security deposits. [TU] [News10]

Airport parking
A look at how ALB is trying add and reshuffle parking to accommodate demand for parking closing to the terminal. [Biz Review]