All Over Albany

Snowstorm leaves thousands without power, Schenectady police officer demoted for alleged violence, Cuomo makes light of potential Nixon challenge, Stefanik challenger drops out

Snow
An estimated 7,000 Capital Region residents are without power after Wednesday's snowstorm. Twenty-eight flights were canceled at Albany International Airport. Amtrak will continue operating on a modified schedule on Thursday due to the storm.[Gazette][TU][TU]

Jay street fire
A survivor of the Jay Street fire comes to terms with the verdict in the David Tyree case, and with his own suffering.[Gazette]

Schumer's infrastructure plan
Chuck Schumer's proposal to improve infrastructure and create jobs by eliminating tax breaks from the nation's wealthiest individuals and corporations. [TU]

Schenectady officer demoted for excessive force
Schenectady Police officer Mark McCracken has been demoted from Lieutenant to patrol officer after a woman filed a lawsuit claiming was violent with her when she was in custody, and took a photo of her head injury. In January, McCracken was placed on administrative leave for violating an order of custody and visitation. [Spectrum]

Cuomo on Nixon
A day after it was revealed that actress Cynthia Nixon is in serious conversations about challenging Andrew Cuomo in a primary,
Cuomo denigrated Nixon as a second tier celebrity and suggested NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio was behind Nixon's interest in a run. [Politico][NYT]

One less challenger for Stefanik
Ron Kim, the former Saratoga Public Safety commission, has become the third Democrat to withdraw from the race to challenge Elise Stefanik for her 21st Congressional seat. [Saratogian]

Guilty plea in gun charge
A 21-year-old Schenectady man faces up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000. ">is facing 10 years in prison after pleading guilty to unlawfully possessing a firearm. [Gazette]

Victim shot with gun from Schenectady files suit
A medical resident shot in a Bronx hospital with a gun sold in Schenectady
has filed a law suit in an effort to end the sale of AR-15 rifles to civilians. [Gazette]

Gun sales at Saratoga City Center
The Saratoga Springs City Council will meet Friday to adopt an amendment the Saratoga City Center lease, banning all sales or displays of firearms and ammunition. [TU]

Search for missing man scaled back
The search for a Guilderland psychiatrist who abandoned his vehicle near Thacher Park last month has been scaled back. [TU]

Missing teen
Schenectady police are searching for a 15-year-old city boy who has been missing for two weeks.[TU]

Support for criminal justice reform
A new statewide poll shows bipartisan support for criminal justice reforms like eliminating cash bar for low-level offenses.[TU]

Troy church apartment moves forward
Troy's Zoning Board of Appeals voted to allow the conversion of a closed church into an apartment building, a move that angered some of the neighbors of the Hillside building. [TU]

Momentive
Dozens of union employees Momentive chemical plant in Waterford are taking cash buyouts as part a contract negotiated following a long and bitter strike last spring. [TU]

GE energy storage project
A new line of energy storage batteries by General Electric Co. was developed at GE Global Research in Niskayuna and GE Power in Schenectady. [TU]

Colleges and immigration reform
Rhetoric around immigration has area colleges and universities concerned about future cuts in federal aid programs and potential international student enrollment declines. [TU]

Video game companies
The video game industry is on the rise in the Capital Region, and there are efforts underway to seek tax breaks for video game companies that locate in the area. [TU]

Schenectady's Statue of Liberty
Controversy over where the Electric City's Statue of Liberty should live -- Steinmetz Park or Goose Hill. [TU]

Stuff going on today

Stage

The Humans
Today-Sunday: A touring production of the Broadway play The Humans will be at Proctors:

Stephen Karam's The Humans is an uproarious, hopeful, and heartbreaking play that takes place over the course of a family dinner on Thanksgiving. Breaking with tradition, Erik Blake has brought his Pennsylvania family to celebrate and give thanks at his daughter's apartment in Lower Manhattan. As darkness falls outside the ramshackle pre-war duplex and eerie things start to go bump in the night, the Blake clan's deepest fears and greatest follies are laid bare.

The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee
Thursday-Sunday: The Park Playhouse production of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee continues at the Cohoes Music Hall. Thursday-Sunday various times -- $25 / $15 kids

Hamlet
Thursday-Friday: Proctors will be screening the National Theatre production of Hamlet starring Benedict Cumberbatch. Thursday 6:30 pm, Friday 1 pm -- $15

Arts and sciences

June Millington
Thursday: Musician/actor June Millington will be at HVCC for a talk about her autobiography. "June Millington, a Filipino American guitarist, songwriter, producer, educator and actress, may be best known as the lead guitarist for Fanny, the band she co-founded in 1970 and the first all-female rock band to release an album with a major label (Reprise)." Thursday 7 pm, Bulmer Telecommunications Center Auditorium -- free

Women of the Albany Institute
Thursday: The Albany Institute has a tour exploring stories of women at the museum. "We will highlight stories about the suffrage and anti-suffrage movements in Albany, female artists of the Hudson River School, and much more!" (There's free museum admission that day from 5-8 pm.) Thursday 6 pm -- free

Music

Thursday: The Matt and Kim show at The Hollow is sold out.

Thursday: Lyle Lovett & Shawn Colvin at Troy Music Hall
Acoustic show. 7:30 pm -- $29 and up

Thursday: Ellen Arkbro at EMPAC
"Ellen Arkbro is a musical alchemist whose work oscillates between the pop music of the '90s and the American minimalism of the '60s, while exploring microtonal realms that blur the standard tunings and harmonies of Western music." 7:30 pm -- $18

Thursday: InnVasion 2018: Benefit for Caffe Lena
More than 15 acts at the Union Gables Inn. 6:30 pm -- $60