Troy approves One Monument Square plan
One Monument Square on the riverfront in downtown Troy may see development after the city planning commission approved a six-storey, mixed-use development plan for the property, the Albany Business Journal is reporting this morning. Hoboken Brownstone Co. of New Jersey, has pursued a project for the vacant property for three years, the story says, despite the failure of other plans to see fruition. The company told the Journal they focused on delivering a plan the whole community could get behind, and therein lay their success.
On the auction block: Holiday Inn Express on Broadway in Albany
The 134-room Holiday Inn Express hotel on Broadway in Albany is open, but heading to auction, the Albany Business Journal says. The owners, DC Hotels Two LLC of Voorhees, New Jersey, and Mahavirsinh Chudasama, owed $7 million on the commercial mortgage plus about $4 million in interest and fees. They stopped paying when the pandemic hit.
LGPC delaying herbicide use
The Lake George Park Commission will not test the herbicide ProcellaCOR EC in two locations on Lake George until at least mid-June, the Post-Star is reporting. The Lake George Association, the Lake George Waterkeeper and others filed suit in the state Supreme Court in Warren County last week to stop the test use of the herbicide. The LGPC and Adirondack Park Agency had granted the test use.
Fort Edward Police Sergeant may be disciplined
The Fort Edward Village Board may bring disciplinary action against police Sgt. Dean Watkins, the Post-Star says. Watkins and Fort Edward Police Chief Justin Derway face felony charges, and have pleaded not guilty, in Albany City Court for falsifying training records in October 2019. The village chose a lawyer to conduct a hearing on the matter, and the board will determine whether to pursue the disciplinary action after the lawyer reports back, the story says.
Morrissey Fountain in Congress Park vandalized
The Morrissey Fountain in Congress Park was damaged by vandals in about 2:30 a.m. Sunday, the Times Union is reporting. Three men were caught on video surveillance the Saratoga Springs Police Department told the T-U. The police department is not releasing photos until they are more sure that the men committed the crime, the story says. The fountain has been vandalized twice in the last decade, the story says.
Short-term Rental meeting in Lake Placid
The Lake Placid-North Elba Land Use Code Committee saw more than 100 people attend two recent public hearings for new short-term vacation rental regulations, the Adirondack Daily Enterprise is reporting. The committee floated the ideas to prohibit unhosted STRs in densely-packed residential neighborhoods but to allow unhosted STRs in more the commercial areas of town. They first implemented STR regulation in 2020 but were challenged by a lawsuit that has since been lifted and the municipalities have issued a six-month moratorium on new STR permits while they reconsider the regulations, the story says.