All Over Albany

Stefanik/Faso vote "no" on tax bill, Mero found guilty on all counts in double murder, tax exemption questions on two more Albany properties, local car dealer taking Bitcoin

Tax bill
Both Elise Stefanik and John Faso voted "no" on the tax reform bill that passed in the House on Tuesday. The bill heads for the Senate today. Chuck Schumer said Tuesday that House Republicans will "Rue the day"the legislation was passed. [TU][Washington Examiner]

+Town and city governments are seeing a number of requests for people to pay their 2018 property taxes early, before the new law takes affect. [Gazette]

Two more Albany properties may have wrongly received tax exemptions
The Albany assessor's office says two downtown parking lots with ties to the Albany Convention Center may have wrongly been granted exemptions over the last seven years, but convention center authorities contend the exemptions are legal.[TU]

Mero verdict
The Jury in the Edward Mero murder trial convicted Mero on all counts on Tuesday in the murders of Megan Cunningham and Shelby Countermine. [TU][Spectrum]

Stover gets additional jail time
Nineteen year old Raekwon Stover, convicted in October for the murder of Median Knowles in Schenectady, had an extra five years tacked on to his sentence this week, for attacking another inmate at the Schenectady County jail in March. [Gazette]

Plea in Colonie Crash
Michael Carr, the 19-year old charged with the fiery car crash into Blessings Tavern, accepted a plea deal from the Albany County D.A. this week. Under the terms of the deal, Carr aadmitted responsibility for the crash and faces up to six years in prison and three years post-release supervision. [Spectrum][TU]

Abelove
Rensselaer County has agreed to pay Joel Abelove's legal costs in his unsuccessful attempt to stop the NYS attorney general's ability to take over cases from local district attorneys when unarmed civilians are killed by police. [TU]

Narcan
An Albany police officer used Narcan nasal spray to help save the live of a man suffering from an opioid overdose on Tuesday. [TU]

Man dies after being turned away from homeless shelter
Employees at the Homeless Action Committee shelter say Kendal Haight froze to death on December 7, after he chose a bottle of vodka over staying at the drug and alcohol free shelter where he'd stayed for 18 years. [News 10]

"You can't encourage walking on a trail where there is hunting. It's a recipe for disaster."
Saratoga County has banned target shooting on a 22-acre plot of land that includes a trail near the Wilton Mall, but hunting is still allowed there -- something neighbors want to see changed. [TU]

T.U. Center LED screens
Sarah Foss says the new LED screens on the TU Center are affective and annoying. [Gazette]

Shen land vote
Shenendahowa Board of Education has certified the December 5 vote to allow the $1.1 million sale of its controversial 37-acre parcel of land to the show of Clifton Park.[Gazette]

Cuomo on Adirondack oil train cars
Andrew Cuomo is promising to take legal action to stop Iowa Pacific Holdings and the Saratoga North Creek Railway from storing oil train cars in the Adirondack woods. [News 10]

Bitcoin
An East Greenbush car dealership is now accepting Bitcoin. [Spectrum]

Foal Patrol
The National Museum of Racing has created the Foal Patrol, a way to allow people to view the births of racehorses. [Saratogian][Spectrum]

Stuff going on today

Stage

She Loves Me
Tuesday-Sunday: This is the last week for Capital Rep's production of She Loves Me. "This confection of a musical is based on the timeless story by Miklos Laszlo that also served as inspiration for the classic film The Shop Around the Corner and more recently You've Got Mail." Tuesday-Sunday various times -- $25 and up

Cooking

It could be fun to take a break this week and take a cooking class with a friend (or by yourself). Gio Culinary Studio has classes this week about the Feast of the Seven Fish (Wednesday), and Italian street food (Thursday).

Skating

The ice skating rink at the ESP recently opened for the season, and if you're looking for some midweek fun, you might think about stopping by for an evening skate (or day skate, depending on your schedule). The rink is open Monday-Sunday 11 am-8 pm (closed 3-4 pm for maintenance) -- weather permitting. It's free to skate. Skate rentals are $4 / $3 for kids / free on Fridays.

Swinburne: The city of Albany's Swinburne Skating Rink also recently opened for the season.