All Over Albany

The Albany Patroons return for another season

The new-again Albany Patroons will be back for a second season and the 2019 schedule is now out. Their home season at the Washington Ave Armory opens January 12. (The full home schedule is below.)

The Patroons play in a basketball league that's now know as... The Basketball League (TBL). Its inaugural season was last year as the North American Premier Basketball. And, as is typical for many minor leagues, the makeup of the league continues to shuffle. This year's league includes 10 teams spread around the country.

Last year the Patroons were runners up for the league championship to the venerable Yakima SunKings (CBA throwback).

The Patroons are coached by Derrick Rowland, who was a player for the team during its CBA heyday. And they're returning Edwin Ubiles, the former Siena star who was the TBL MVP last year.

Tickets for Patroons games this season are $15 for adults / $5 for kids. Season tickets are $95.

The regular season runs through April.

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The new-again Albany Patroons open their home season this weekend

The resurrected Albany Patroons open their home schedule at the Washington Ave Armory this Saturday. The Patroons face the Rochester Razorsharks at 7:05 pm. Tickets are $10-$30 and available online.

The new-again Pats are playing in the new North American Premier Basketball, an 8-team pro league that's a bit of throwback to the old the CBA (Yakima Sun Kings!) in which the Patroons had their heyday in the 80s and 90s.

And the Albany roster includes a few players you might recognize, including former Siena star Edwin Ubiles and former NBA player Smush Parker. And the coach/general manager is Derrick Rowland, the all-time leading scorer in Patroons history.

The Patroons and Razorsharks opened the league December 31 in Rocester, a 110-92 Albany win in which Ubiles had 24 points.

The Armory seats about 2,500 people for a basketball game, so there's basically not a bad seat in the house. And if the games can draw decent-sized crowds, the atmosphere could be fun. The season runs through April, with playoffs in May.

Earlier:
+ The Albany Patroons are making a comeback
+ What's up with the Washington Ave Armory

Albany Craft Beer Festival 2018

The Albany Craft Beer Festival is set to return to the Washington Ave Armory April 7. And tickets are already on sale -- they're $65. The ticket includes "access to an unlimited tasting of 100+ rare and special release beers" along with five-ounce tasting glass.

This is the second year for the festival, which is run by the crew at the Brew Crew / Oliver's. This time around it's breaking the festival up into two sessions -- noon to 3 pm, and 4-7 pm. Each is capped at 750 people.

The website has yet to list participating beers and breweries. "As you know, many of the breweries we feature are famous for their hoppy beers. Due to the importance of the freshness associated with IPAs, DIPAs and Pale Ales, confirmation of specific offerings won't happen until very close to party time. If you attended last year, you know we brought the noise!"

The festival is part of a larger Albany Craft Beer Week, which stretches from April 2-7.

What's up with the Washington Ave Armory

This week's announcement that the Albany Patroons are making a comeback also represents another step for the Washington Ave Armory.

The historic venue at Washington Ave and Lark Street in Albany effectively shut down for a period in 2015 following an incident at a concert that March in which multiple people were stabbed. It was the last in a series of incidents at music/dance events there in the years leading up to 2015 that prompted concern from city offiials and neighborhood residents about security and crowd control.

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Albany All Stars Roller Derby opens 2016 season this weekend

The Albany All Stars Roller Derby opens its new season this Saturday, January 9 at The Armory on Washington Ave in Albany.

The Brawl Stars will be taking on the Battle Cats of the Southshire Roller Derby. There will be music from DJ Trumastr and halftime activities. A portion of the proceeds will benefit Orange Street Cats.

The first whistle Saturday is 7 pm. Tickets are $10 ahead / $12 at the door / $4 for kids 12 and under.

The All Stars have home bouts scheduled just about once month from now through June. And if you're interested in joining the derby, there's an info/recruitment night Wednesday, January 13 at 6:30 pm at The Armory.

Earlier on AOA: How to behave (or not) at a roller derby bout

Washington Ave Armory suspends music events

/ photo: CC-BY-SA-3.0/Matt H. Wade at Wikipedia

The Washington Ave Armory announced Thursday that it's suspending all music events at the venue until further notice. A clip from the statement:

The suspension is effective immediately, as the Armory conducts a full review of arena operations, ticketing, and security procedures. The Armory will look forward to having a discussion with the City of Albany, neighborhood associations, and community organizations in order to work together.

All other programming, which includes upcoming sporting events, family-friendly entertainment, trade shows and exhibitions, and political demonstrations, will not be affected by the suspension.

Four events have been suspended -- two concerts and two dance party events.

The move follows the six stabbings and a reported assault at a concert there this past weekend. Earlier Thursday the Times Union reported that the state was investigating the Armory and its licensing (or lack thereof) for handling its own security. [TU]

The concert this past weekend wasn't the first time the Armory caught high-profile attention for trouble at an event. Back in 2012 Albany police said the crowd for a foam party event at the venue got "combative" and fought with police. That incident set off an attempt by the city to ban these sorts of events at the venue via zoning, an effort that ultimately ended up in court and was decided in the venue's favor.

Following this most recent incident, it sounded like city officials were again looking at options to address safety concerns at the Armory -- Kathy Sheehan called the situation at concert "unacceptable." [News10]

(Insert Name) Arena

The (for now) Washington Avenue Armory. / photo: CC-BY-SA-3.0/Matt H. Wade at Wikipedia

If you could name an arena, what would you call it?

The Washington Ave Armory announced Monday that its naming rights are up for bid. It's looking for bids of at least $100,000 per year, with the term of the deal to be negotiated.

From the request for proposals:

Respondent has the complete naming right of The Washington Avenue Armory. This includes but is not limited to, all media coverage, published material, and the right to display signage on the interior/exterior of the building. The Respondent's requested place of the existing "The Washington Avenue Armory" title.

Joe Bonilla -- managing partner of Relentless Awareness, which is handling the bidding process for the Armory -- told us Monday that the name could take the format of "Local Company Arena" or "Local Company Arena at the Armory" or any sort of variation on that.

Bids are due to Relentless Awareness by August 29 (with a postmark no later than August 22). Bidders that meet the requirements will make presentations in September, and the winner will be chosen in October.

By the way: The Armory averages about 70,000 a year in attendance for the various events there, according to the RFP. And it expects to hit 85,000 this year, and 100,000 by 2015.

Washington Ave Armory dance party court decision: It depends on what you mean by "auditorium"...

The Washington Ave Armory. / photo: CC-BY-SA-3.0/Matt H. Wade at Wikipedia

A state appellate court today reversed a decision by the Albany Board of Zoning Appeals last year that prohibited the Washington Ave Armory from holding "rave"-type dance events.

A year ago the BZA ruled such events violated the Armory's zoning. That decision hinged on the definition of the word "auditoria," the category under which the Armory is classified. The BZA ruled that an auditorium includes fixed seats, and because these dance party events didn't have fixed seats for each person in the audience, they were not allowed. The BZA's ruling was upheld by a state Supreme Court in Albany County last May. (The issue had grown out of an October 2012 foam party event at the Armory at which Albany police say crowd members had gotten combative while waiting to enter the venue.) [TU 2013] [Justia] [AOA 2012]

Like that BZA decision, this new ruling from an appellate division of state Supreme Court also focuses on the term "auditorium" and its definition -- or, rather, definitions.

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Kendrick Lamar at the Washington Ave Armory

Rapper Kendrick Lamar is scheduled to play a show at the Washington Ave Armory May 30. Tickets start at $50 and they're on sale now.

Lamar's good kid, m.A.A.d city album -- about growing up in Compton, and including contributions from Dr. Dre, Pharrell Williams, and Drake (among many others) -- scored fantastic reviews after its release last fall. He was a musical guest on SNL in January. And MTV just named him the "the hottest MC in the game."

Also on the slate for the tour stopping at the Armory: ScHoolboy Q, Ab-Soul, and Jay Rock.

photo: Michael Allin

Washington Avenue Armory says it can host concerts again

photo: CC-BY-SA-3.0/Matt H. Wade at Wikipedia

The Washington Avenue Armory says it's reached an agreement with the city of Albany that will allow it to hold music events again.

The status of the Armory as a music venue has been uncertain since an incident in mid October in which Albany police say a crowd outside a foam party at the Armory became combative -- seven were arrested, and the APD said three officers were injured. There have also been complaints from neighbors about the crowds -- one person described the foam party situation as being like "the zombie apocalypse." [TU]

The new agreement includes a handful of changes to how the venue operates for music events, spokesman Michael Corts says. Among them:

+ A 2,100 limit on floor tickets. (The armory can hold 4,480 for music events -- so anything above the floor limit will have to be in the seats.)
+ Doors must open by 7 pm. Events must end by 1 am on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights. On other nights, they have to wrap up by midnight.
+ Changed entrance procedures and will call windows aimed at keeping more structured lines into the building.

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Albany Antiquarian Book Fair

Something else to do this weekend: The Albany Antiquarian Book Fair, Sunday at the Washington Ave Armory. From the blurbage:

Have all your books, posters, ephemera, and collectibles appraised at the 38th Annual Antiquarian Book and Ephemera Fair. 60 dealers selling antiquarian and out-of-print books, manuscripts, autographs, postcards, maps, posters, photographs, and ephemera. Special silent auction.

Ooh, the ever popular ephemera. Even if you're not a buyer, it sounds like there could be some quality item gawking. (Is there anything better than an old map? No, there is not.)

The fair is from 10 am-4 pm Sunday. Admission is $6.

Lupe Fiasco and Steve Aoki at Wash Ave Armory

Lupe Fiasco | Steve Aoki

The Washington Ave Armory has two interesting show lined up back-to-back in April:

Steve Aoki - April 12
The DJ/producer has worked with a bunch artists from all over -- Rivers Cuomo, Kid Cudi, MGMT, Lil John. In case you're wondering: "Who the F*** is Steve Aoki". Also: he apparently opened a Korean BBQ restaurant with Julian Casablancas and Mark Ronson. Sure.
tickets start at $25

Lupe Fiasco - April 13
The rapper/singer/producer released a long-awaited album earlier this month that was a top seller on iTunes. Reviews were all over the board -- some loved it, others were tepid, and still others hated it.
tickets are $35

Lupe Fiasco photo via Atlantic Records | Steve Aoki photo via Dim Mak