EV production on Green Island
The new company Green Island EV plans to make electric shuttles on its eponymous location on the Hudson River. The company plans a 150,000-square-foot facility at the location of a former Ford factory. The shuttles are aimed at public transportation in cities and will eventually be autonomously operated, says a story in the Albany Business Journal. The company will employ about 200 people.
269 Broadway wins approval
Saratoga Springs’ Design Review Commission approved a proposed six-story building at 269 Broadway that neighbors and historic preservationists say will overwhelm the street. The commission’s chair and vice chair opposed the design, saying that the height and the setbacks are concerning so close to the urban core of Victorian-era buildings. Others on the committee approved it saying it was walkable but not in conflict with the nearby architecture, a story in the Times Union says. It next goes to the city's planning board. [Read our coverage of the plan, here.]
More foreign workers needed
The country is facing a labor shortage, with 10.5 million open jobs currently, says the Albany Business Journal. Once the darling of seasonal employment, the international workers are now needed all the time, and in all industry positions from fry cooks to fabricators, the story says as it runs through current statistics with local business owners and Human Resources professionals.
Clifton Park’s Cornerstone Veterinary Clinic to open in Ballston Spa
All the pets purchased during the pandemic mean more veterinarians are needed, and Cornerstone Veterinary Hospital of Clifton Park is urgently trying to expand into Ballston Spa to fill the need, a story in the Daily Gazette says. The trouble for the animal hospital: a moratorium on development. The Ballston Town Board has a month to allow, or not, this special case, the story says. The town has stopped large construction as it updates various zoning and land use planning.
Golden parachute for Malatras
Outgoing State University of New York Chancellor Jim Malatras is eligible for one year of paid leave, at $450,000, and lifetime employment as a tenured faculty member of SUNY Empire State College (where he was president before taking the Chancellor role), or at another college, with a salary of $245,000, a story in the Times Union says. Ambiguities surrounding the nature of his leaving might force the details of his compensation to work out differently than currently reported, the story says. Today is his last day in the top position.