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Congratulations, Wine Bar!
The Metroland just released its 2008 Best of List, and the gang at the Wine Bar and Bistro on Lark gave it the nod this year for Best Wine Bar: It's like being in the wine cellar itself, with snug, sort-of- underground rooms in which to tope, and an innovative tapas menu for gustatory accompaniment. There even are some outdoor tables if you seek the open air. The selection is extensive, with many specials, and the servers are happy to help you choose.Additionally, as a wise and beautiful woman once said about the Wine Bar: "It's so... orange!" :) Anyway, congratulations to Kevin, Jonathan, Joni and the rest of the gang who have made the wine bar the success it's become! Labels: Albany, Personal
Not on the List
Forbes has released its list of top 10 "up-and-coming tech cities." Despite all of the money we've been throwing at nanotech, AMD, and everything else tech, Albany didn't make the Top 10. Not such a great return on investment... so much for "Tech Valley." Labels: Albany, Tech Valley, Technology
Another Friday Night...
... another dinner at the wine bar (OK, I'll use the proper name, The Wine Bar and Bistro on Lark). Cavendish Quail and escargot tonight -- really delicious. Speaking of the wine bar, Kevin's trying to get permission from the neighborhood associations to open the place up on Sundays and to keep it open until 2 AM (it currently closes every night at midnight). He's got my support. There's no reason that he should have to kick a full bar of people out at midnight now that he actually has a full bar! There's not a lot on this section of Lark St. (Bomber's up to Washington Ave.) that is open past midnight other than Elda's and Romeo's, and the wine bar doesn't exactly attract a rambunctious crowd. In other Albany news, how did I miss this blog? Labels: Albany, Personal
The Decision...
One more e-mail from Daniel Van Riper seals the deal for me: Here's a little detail you might be interested in. As you know, the Albany City Democratic Committee, which is Jerry Jennings's breakaway from the Albany County Democratic Party, has been ordering all of us City committee persons to campaign exclusively for Hillary. All of us were handed a list of female names in our respective election districts. This turned out to be a list of women 55 years of age or over whom we were supposed to target.My Wife was on that list, erroneously. She's not yet 55. "That's it, I'm voting for Obama," she told the City Party Chairman.One of my biggest problems with Hillary has been the people she associates with, from anti-union types like Chris Lehane and Mark Penn to establishment slimeballs like James Carville. But if Jerry Jennings is going to push so strongly for her, then that does it for me. I'm voting Barack Obama tomorrow. (Unless I change my mind!) Labels: 2008 Election, 2008 Primaries, Albany, Barack Obama, Democratic Party, Hillary Clinton, Politics
Daniel Van Riper's Anti-Clinton Argument
Sent by DVR to me via e-mail: Who am I gonna vote for? Out of the myriad of choices? I'll be voting for the Democrat in November, even if Ralph Nader runs, and especially if Billionaire Michael Bloomberg runs.I'm angry at Clinton for A) voting for and supporting the War Against Iraq, and B) voting for and supporting the so-called "Patriot" Act and related legislation. I mean, c'mon lady.Concerning B), when we were trying to get the City of Albany to pass a resolution opposing the "Patriot" Act (which was ultimately successful, by the way) Melanie Trimble of the NYCLU tried to get an audience with her. She refused to even respond to our request, let alone meet with Melanie. (McNulty met with her, and literally laughed in her face.) As a result, our opponents on the Albany Common Council kept tossing us this line about "undermining Senator Clinton." You think I'm going to forget something like that?So I guess I'm going to vote for Obama because I'm not as disgusted with him. But I'll tell you, I have serious doubts that a black person can win a national election in white America.Labels: 2008 Election, 2008 Primaries, Albany, Barack Obama, Democratic Party, Hillary Clinton, Politics
The Candidates on Energy and the Environment
Nothing particularly visionary from either of the candidates. Both say they'll reduce greenhouse gases by 80% from 1990 to 2050... Nothing about sustainable living to indicate either of them is reading any Kunstler... No points to anyone on this one. UPDATE: Speaking of sustainable living, Daniel Van Riper has a must-read post up this week about suburban sprawl in the Albany area. I think he reads his Kunstler: Yes folks, sprawl makes our taxes go up. This is not rocket science. Automobiles not only allow us to use more land than ever before. Autos demand that we use more land, to drive and park the damn things.
Global warming is not the only price we pay for our gas guzzling pollution machines. The more we drive our automobiles, the more land we need to use and pay for. Driving your car raises your taxes.
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May I make a modest suggestion? To stop property taxes from increasing, we need a crash program to reduce dependence on automobiles. Not to eliminate automobiles, mind you. To reduce dependence.
Wouldn't it be nice to have choice? Imagine how delightful it would be to take a pleasant train ride to work, scanning your favorite electronic device or printed material, sipping your favorite coffee concoction and maybe even having a donut. I've lived in places where I could do that, why can't I do that in the Capital District?
Or imagine being able to hop a bus home at two o'clock in the morning after a raucous night out in a neighboring city. Don't we all want to reduce drunk driving? Again, I've lived in places where late night busses are expected and reliable.
I don't want to give up my pickup truck, nosiree. I need it to haul refrigerators and zip off to lumber yard when I want to. What I want is a choice, to not have to keep it full of expensive imported gasoline, to not be dependent on the damn thing. Is that too much to ask?
To reduce dependence on automobiles would require rebuilding our State. It would require transforming suburban sprawl hellholes into communities where it is easier to walk than to drive. It would be a massive job generator, very attractive to job-creating developers.
And while we're at it, why isn't New York State energy independent? We have wind, water and sunshine. We could cut loose from parasitic international energy corporations would make us a boom state. Our state could become virtually reccession-proof.DVR for President? Labels: 2008 Election, 2008 Primaries, Albany, Barack Obama, Democratic Party, Environment, Hillary Clinton, Politics
Convention Center Done?
We may have dodged a bullet... Jerry Jennings may be giving up on the terribly-conceived convention center project: With state support for the project set at $205 million, the project would require an additional $192 million in funding. "In light of the challenges we're facing, I think it's only right we take a step back and look at this very, very closely," the mayor said. "There are other priorities in the city." Jennings said he is asking the state for money to help balance the city's budget and cope with an excess of rundown vacant buildings.It was a horrible idea from the beginning. I'd say more, but I couldn't say anything that Democracy in Albany hasn't already. Labels: Albany
RIP Ballinger's
Reporting from the wine bar... Just was told by a former employee of Ballinger's that the place is now boarded up with a real estate agency sign on it. So much for "Gone Fishing." Labels: Albany, Restaurants
Salads in Albany! Jackbit and Joltz Finally Opens (and another door closes)
I haven't written anything about Albany in quite a while, but I think I've got some Albany commentary in me over the next couple of weeks... Back in May, I wrote about the then-upcoming opening of Jackbit and Joltz, an Australian-themed cafe in Center Square on Lark. It was supposed to have opened on June 30th, then in August, then October, but today, January 25th, was the day. I've been ridiculing the whole Australian theme, and I still find it a little silly, but it's turned out that the place is just what Lark Street needs. It's basically an Australian-themed equivalent of a Europe Cafe or Pax, like you'd find in NYC or DC. There are probably three dozen different sandwich selections (what the Australians apparently call "sangers" or "jaffles"), and you can walk in and get a salad with fresh greens with whatever toppings you'd like. I got a salad with fresh mozzerella, feta, tomatoes, peas, and chickpeas, for less than seven bucks. They also offer "Joltz," which are made-to-order energy drinks, smoothies, and a lot of other salads and side. I think it's going to do well; it's two blocks from my apartment and a perfect place to do take-out. In other Albany restaurant news, Ballinger's is closed, at least for now. I've been told that Doug Ballinger actually walked into the restaurant a week or two ago while it was open and just sent everyone, both customers and employees, home. Ballinger's website says it's going to reopen in the spring, but I've heard otherwise... fairly sketchy. Anyway, there's another nice, upscale place to be in the area. Antica Enoteca, the wine bar I spend way too much time at on Lark Street, was purchased by Kevin Everleth a few weeks ago and has reopened as The Wine Bar and Bistro on Lark. During the last couple of months under the old regime, the place was pretty empty, but over the last couple of weeks, it's come to life. How did that happen? Well, Kevin's a Culinary Institute-trained chef, and he's not only expanded the once-sparse menu, but made the food both wonderful and reasonably-priced... there's not an entree over $19, and the menu changes regularly. Over the last week, I've had escargot, filet mignon, penne in pesto cream sauce (like three times!) and duck breast. All delicious. The wine list is much larger, too -- at least triple the old one and growing every day. And the place is still as cozy as ever. It's very, very worth a visit (or like five visits a week!). Labels: Albany, Restaurants
Los Angeles, CA -- What I'm Coming Home To
I'm going home tomorrow to a crime spree in Center Square, apparently: The face of downtown's latest crime spree is bruised, broken and soon to be repaired with a titanium plate.
This is the damage wrought by two thugs who assaulted and robbed Louise Finkell while she waited for a bus Monday morning across the street from the state Capitol, according to police and her family.
Finkell, 57, a state worker and city resident, was punched from behind without warning just after 10 a.m. Labor Day at Washington Avenue and Swan Street -- a corner that on most days would have been mobbed with state workers. She was headed to meet her daughter for a day of shopping at Stuyvesant Plaza.
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The robberies have occurred generally in and around Center Square over the last two weeks, though police said the level of violence in Finkell's attack seems to have been an exception.Just peachy... Labels: Albany
Albany, NY -- Another Bad Albany Slogan
Hanging above the Lark Street Florist is a sign that says something like -- "Welcome to Lark Street -- The Village in the City." Why do we have to compare ourselves to New York City? It's a comparison we can never win. Lark Street is not "The Village." It's not the East Village, and it's not Greenwich Village. It's Lark Street. It's like eight blocks, of which five or so are really consequential. Not to say I don't like it, but a dozen or two decent establishments does not a Village make. Along the same lines, I keep reading about this plan or that plan to "make Albany a world-class city." That's absurd, and unrealistic. What would it take, 200 years to make Albany a city even the equivalent of, say, Boston or Denver? I'd be happy with a slogan to the effect of, "Albany: The city that's not losing population." Labels: Albany
Albany. NY -- Another Quick Thought
By the way, who came up with the name "Tech Valley" for the Capital District? Was the name saved from the 1960s and only used now? Must be the case, because if not, some marketing company screwed the county... Labels: Albany
Albany, NY -- Daniel van Riper on McNulty
As soon as I published my last post, I received an RSS notification with a welcome update from Daniel van Riper on Albany Weblog. Daniel, who I wish would post more often, writes this week about Michael McNulty's refusal to support the fledgling effort in Congress to impeach Dick Cheney. From the conclusion of the post: From all evidence, McNulty will not endorse impeachment of Cheney partly because he personally does not like Dennis Kucinich, and partly because he is in absolute awe and terror of Hillary Clinton.
Meanwhile, the bodies pile up in Iraq. America crawls closer to corporate dictatorship. Cheney sneers with delight.Read the whole thing>. Labels: Albany, Democratic Party, Republican Party
Albany, NY -- Howard Street
On a Saturday evening when I don't feel much like going out, I find myself writing about a place where no one's going... I regard the success of Howard Street as very important to the city. Why? Because a city is really only as strong as its side streets; because it's in my neighborhood; because Howard Street is very close to the Capitol, the Plaza, and the Pepsi, and because if Ballingers fails, it's going to discourage a lot of New York City restrateurs. Unfortunately, it seems that Ballingers is in danger of doing just that. After hearing rumors that the owner is already looking to sell after an (at best) lackluster first two months, Ari and I went last Friday evening at around 7 during First Friday. We found an establishment that wasn't even trying anymore. The guy attending the door was lying on the sidewalk, the bartenders and waitresses weren't anywhere to be found, and there were maybe three people in the whole place. We tried to order a drink, but after ten minutes just gave up because there was no one to serve us. Ballingers has been misconceived from the start-- first, as I said two months ago, "I'd love this place to succeed, but it may be too big for its own good." It hasn't succeeded yet. Aside from its size, it had a couple of things working against it from the start. First, it's kind of out-of-the-way. It's on a side street, and it's a few blocks from anything else that's open at night in Albany. Second, it's charging New York City prices in Albany (probably to try to make up for the immense initial expense. Of course, Noche has overcome similar challenges, but it did a great job of promoting itself (it seems like everybody knew what it was within weeks of its opening), and it's done regular events for the groups of people that it's looking to attract -- politicians, young professionals, Jewish singles... a reliable and interesting calendar can be a helpful thing for a restaurant/bar. Ballingers has now been open for more than two months, and their website calendar still says "Coming soon..."! Other than for its opening, its marketing has been haphazard. An aside: In last month's TU Best of 2007, Noche came in second for Best Cocktails. Another reason Howard Street is important, of course, is because it houses the back of the historic Wellington Hotel, and the front of its sister building, the Wellington Annex, which is really a blight on the street. 
The Wellington Annex on Howard Street in Albany
Columbia Development bought the Wellington complex recently, but there hasn't been any news on it in months. I'm constantly keeping an eye on it though. Labels: Albany
Albany, NY -- Mall Sprawl
Quick thought: I ran over to Best Buy at Crossgates to pick up a couple of CDs today, and realized that there was a time where I thought of having one of the biggest malls in the country as an accomplishment for the Capital District! Ugh... Labels: Albany
New York, NY -- Albany's Comprehensive Development Plan Committee
Miriam Axel-Lute of the Metroland has started a blog, The Big Questions, to explore Albany's comprehensive development plan. In her latest post, Miriam asks: So the deadline to apply for the comprehensive plan board, at least through the Common Council, was last Friday. Does anyone who applied want to share their letter of intent with TBQ readers? What inspired you to apply? What would you be bringing?Well, I applied last week just before the deadline, and this is the meat of what I wrote in my cover letter: To Whom It May Concern:
I've lived in Albany most of my life, and recently moved to the Center Square area.
As of late, I've been giving a lot of consideration to the development of the city, and am currently seeking meaningful ways to get involved in the process of revitalizing Albany; the Comprehensive Plan Board seems like the perfect opportunity.
I have previous experience working on real estate development projects in the Hudson Valley and in the Czech Republic. I direct a not-for-profit organization, and I have extensive experience in strategic planning, management, marketing, communications, and technology.I don't think I said everything I wanted to say in it, but it's good enough for government work :) So far, my response is the only one to Miriam's post, but I'm looking forward to what other people have to say. Labels: Albany
Croton-on-Hudson, NY -- Albany Comedy Works
Finally, I get a chance to finish my series from my May photo stroll downtown. I've been really busy, but have gotten on top of things now, so I may do a decent amount of blogging. Anyway, the last place I stopped that day was one of my favorite downtown discoveries, the Albany Comedy Works. I've seen a couple of shows there, and they've been good, but the best part is the venue itself. The Comedy Works is located in the State Room of the Dewitt Clinton Building on Eagle Street. 
An unassuming place on the outside...
Much nicer on the inside
Your hosts, Laurel and Hardy
A developer recently purchased the Clinton Building. Formerly a grand hotel where Mayor Jennings himself worked as a teenager, it's been Section 8 housing for quite a while. The developer has been evicting the tenants with the aim of gutting and restoring the building (you always have to wonder, and worry about, where people like that end up). They're down to just a handful of tenants left, but they'd also like to move the Comedy Works out of there. Fortunately, the Comedy Works has 12 years left on its lease, and hopefully something can be worked out to allow the Comedy Works to stay. We'll see what happens. A beautiful ballroom like that can't be allowed to go unused. The Comedy Works seems to pretty much operate at capacity, unlike another business around the block which I'll talk about in another post this week... stay tuned. Labels: Albany
Albany, NY -- Oy, the Fireworks!
Spending the night of the 4th in my apartment, but I'm certainly not missing the fireworks! Ouch! Who knew the fireworks were so loud? Labels: Albany
Albany, NY -- Ewww...
You just can never trust milk from the convenience stores on Lark Street. Isn't it about time for a better market? Where's that Whole Foods we all want? Labels: Albany
Albany, NY -- Art on Lark
Today, I helped out in the neighborhood at the annual Art on Lark Festival. I staffed two booths at eba's Creative Chaos, a collection of arts and crafts activities. Although I had lots of fun while teaching kids to make magic wands and crowns out of paper, the highlight of my day was probably Dean, the neighborhood wino, making a new friend. The two, both Vietnam vets, were drunkenly cussing up a storm at a table behind my booth in front of the kids. Their conversation felt rather cinematic -- their conversation meandered from the pleasure taken from killing men in Vietnam (these two were both really good arguments against sending our young men to war), to cheap booze, to crack, to sex, to pretty much any reasonably attractive woman that walked by (they really did sing "I'm a Girl Watcher" over and over). The best part was probably when Mayor Jennings walked by them with their open containers and lit joint, greeted them, and told them to stay out of trouble. I didn't get a lot of photos, but I did take some shots from the street art competition:
Labels: Albany
Albany, NY -- Patsy's Executive Cutters
I now have something else I can do downtown rather than at the mall -- Patsy's Executive Cutters, a 1930s-style barbershop on Howard Street. 
Patsy's Executive CuttersMike at Patsy's is responsible for the "do" on this handsome guy, flanked by Ernie and Bert. 
Me at Sesame Place (photo by Lisa)Oh, why do I always look like Stevie Wonder when I wear sunglasses? Labels: Albany
Albany, NY -- New Covenant Staying Open
So says the TU. But why? Fred LeBrun tells us: But when the underwriters for the bondholders got wind of the school closing, they went ballistic and asserted that the school should stay open. A representative flew into town to plead the case, and apparently he was quite persuasive.
With a closing, those bondholders get close to nothing. Not that they were ever promised much if they read the prospectus. Why anyone in their right mind would have bought these bonds to begin with redefines playing long shots.
What we learned Saturday is that the bondholders seem to have put successful pressure on the school to stay open. And offered inducements as well. Thirty-five percent of the year's debt will be deferred for the coming year, and 30 percent the year after. Then its back to full payment, in theory. Good luck.Which means, of course, that in two years, the school had better have its enrollment up, so we'll take more kids (and more money) out of the public school system in Albany. And all because the lenders wanted to get paid. Not much to do with education. That "for-profit mentality" that should NOT be in our school systems is in full force here. Jerry Jennings gets it: Albany Mayor Jerry Jennings is all for pulling the plug at this point and shutting the school down, and of course he's right. Even if it isn't his call. As much of a strain as that would put on the Albany school district, it makes the most sense. He points out that missing from the arguments over whether to close or not to close, is what is ultimately best for the children involved.Labels: Albany
Albany, NY -- Albany Blog Links
As I'm spending more of my time in Albany and thinking more about the city, I decided to introduce a list of blogs that deal with Albany or are written by people who live in Albany. You'll find the list in the right-hand nav. I'm sure the list isn't comprehensive, so if you know any good additions, please e-mail me. Labels: Albany
Albany, NY -- James Street on First Friday
For the fifth month in a row, I headed down to First Friday in Albany (unfortunately, sans camera). For the uninitiated: 1st Friday, administered by the Upstate Artists Guild and coordinated by Michael Weidrich, aims to introduce a wider audience to the unique vitality of the artists and venues of Albany. 1st Friday promotes interest in the arts by making it accessible, thereby strengthening the arts community in Albany.
We invite artists, groups, galleries and businesses to be a part of this cultural event. Contingent on available vacant spaces in Center Square and Downtown, one-night art shows may be arranged during a 1st Friday. We also welcome sponsorship from local businesses and patrons of the arts. Please contact 1st Friday Coordinator Michael Weidrich to discuss becoming a part of this monthly Celebration!In May, at least 1,000 people attended First Friday, and it seemed like more people were out last night. Several hundred people were at Grand Street Arts' Vestuary Operatics event at St. Anthony's Church on Madison and Grand, where several artists showed their work culminating in a rather strange but captivating interpretive dance performance. I spent a lot of time last night in the quickly-developing James Street area right above Broadway. The entire neighborhood had been vacant for over 20 years, but is now appears to be coming back quickly. The first place I attended in the neighborhood was the
Albany Center Galleries, which just moved from Orange Street to its new location at the corner of James and Columbia. 
Albany Center GalleryOne of the exhibits, Chris Stain's Winter in America, was especially poignant. According to Stain's website, "the theme for these pieces was inspired by the current state of affairs in America and the overtaxation of the poor and rising heating costs." I purchased this stencil on steel from the series. It just oozed " Two Americas." Well, one of the two... The second place I attended was the new home of Envision Architects, at 52 James. Apparently, they just moved in yesterday. Last week I was lamenting that no one was occupying the building, which is extremely neat-looking, with firehouse-door windows.  Envision, whose office reminds me of the creative-space type offices you see a lot of in larger cities among marketing firms and architects, had an art show plus some fantastic wine and cheese. I mean, really fantastic cheese. I hope they host another show next month! Several other new businesses appear to be opening on James Street, including Javaman Coffee and Antera Home. Antera, a home furnishing store, will be located in the Arcade Building. The Arcade Building is a large, mostly vacant pseudo-mall between Broadway and James at Maiden Lane. It was purchased by Ronald Laberge in 1998 but hasn't improved much since. I was told recently that Laberge is in fact a lousy landlord who hasn't been very committed to renting the building, which is unfortunate. I'm a firm believer in a city ensuring that its side streets are developed -- any city can have a couple of nice, active main streets, but if those streets are a facade for decaying side streets, it isn't much of a city. Besides, an inviting James Street between State and Maiden would prove a conduit from the 74 State hotel to the Albany Center Galleries, which would seem to be a good match. If people were streaming in the evening between the two (with Javaman Coffee in between), the other businsses on Maiden and Columbia might have a reason to stay open past 2 PM. 
The incoming Antara Home store in the Arcade BuildingApparently, Laberge only outbid Omni Development by a few thousand dollars, and Omni had real plans for the building. Albany's been a lot smarter about development lately, and I don't think the Albany of 2007 would've allowed such an important building to be sold to the wrong developer. At least, the Albany of 2009 hopefully won't be be making mistakes like that after its strategic development plan is completed. Speaking of which, I'm on a personal mission to get on that 30-person committee that will develop the plan. I have some development experience, a whole lot of strategic planning experience, and an unnatural (and possibly unhealthy) interest in the development of the city. I recently spoke to Daniel Herring, the councilman in charge of the committee, and he told me that the application process opens soon. I'm looking forward to applying. A special thanks to another James Street business, Timothy Raab's Northern Photo for taking the excellent photo of me that now adorns the "The Bloggers" section of the navigation on the right side of the page. Tim took it this week for my own company's strategic plan, which we'll be rolling out next week. Exciting times! Labels: Albany, First Friday
Philadelphia. PA -- Salads in Albany
Although I don't kvetch as much as some about the food in Albany, one thing that's hard to find in Albany is a good salad. You know, the kind you can get anywhere in a big city -- with cool stuff, like berries, arugula, goat cheese, bleu cheese crumbles, et al ( Bellini's and Provence have good salads, but those are nowhere near downtown). Even harder to find is a good place to get a take-out salad. While I was walking on Pearl Street the other day, I had lunch at Greenhouse, which is a chopped salad cafe. I can't judge the salad fairly, as I came in 15 minutes after it closed and the salad wasn't so fresh at that point, but it does have a neat menu, the place is cute, and the staff were friendly, so I'll probably go back.
Greenhouse, a chopped salad cafe on Pearl St.
More exciting is the new place that's opening up in my neighborhood, Jackbit and Joltz. Interesting name -- here's why: "It's Australian slang for food or a meal," owner Daniel Batto tells me. "Somebody might say, 'I could go for some good jackbit.'"
Batto, owner of Top Shelf Catering in Clifton Park, isn't Australian and has never been Down Under, so he's justifying the name by offering jaffles, a type of grilled or toasted Australian sandwich. (Translation: Aussie panini.) A jaffle iron is at right.
Jackbit & Joltz, with a seating capacity of 35 to 40, also will feature an energy-drink bar with homemade concotions including a salt-rimmed "Jolterita" and an orange-flavored soother called the "Hangover Hammerhead."
"We'll be the antibooze place on Lark," says Batto, who quickly notes that, as the owner of Northeast Bartending School, he is in no position to oppose alcohol on moral grounds. It's just a good niche. (It also probably facilitated approval from the Lark Street community and the city zoning board.)
The hoped-for unveiling of Jackbit & Joltz is July 1. It will be open 7:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday.Labels: Albany, Restaurants
Philadelphia, PA -- Downtown Albany's Side Streets
Lisa and I are on vacation in Philly for Memorial Day Weekend, but I'd like to continue my Albany thoughts from earlier in the week. As I was meandering down the side streets with my camera, I saw several small businesses I hadn't noticed before. Apparently, they all cater to the workers downtown, and thus they all close down around 2. It's really a shame they can't do business into the evening; I think it would be good for the city. Some examples (how do I not hear about a place called Dos Gringos Burritos?):
Labels: Albany
Albany, NY -- Elk Street
One of the things that upsets me in Albany is that the gorgeous old 1820s historic buildings on Elk Street by City Hall are offices, not residences. People should be living in them! Take a look:
Labels: Albany
Albany, NY -- On the Capitol Lawn in Albany
So, back to my sorta-regularly-scheduled blogging, as I sit here at Totem through another Yankee starter only getting 12 outs before getting yanked... I did stroll the streets of downtown Albany yesterday to get a taste of the city on a weekday afternoon. I got out a little later than I was hoping, so I only caught the tail-end of lunch hour. Still, I did manage to catch real, live people on West Lawn of the Capitol:
Actual people in Albany!
More people!
Always love a good fountain
The Times Union saw a lot more of them the day before. The question remains: How do you keep people like these, who leave downtown in droves between 3 and 5 PM? I spoke to a couple of the women at the BID (Business Improvement District) on Broadway a little while later. They said that their surveys show that if national retail stores open up downtown, those state employees would hang out for the night, making moves like Ballinger's opening four bars in one restaurant a bit less of a stretch. It's a shame that local stores can't have the same pull. Speaking of which, I found a couple of new businesses downtown that will be replacing some of my suburban shopping, and I'll talk about them later. For whatever reason, I've always loved food off of trucks, and there are at least a dozen of them every day by the Capitol and the Plaza when the weather's nice.
I can't make this stuff up... this one's for Ari and Lisa!
Labels: Albany
Albany, NY -- Ballinger's
I was going to post some photos of my photo shoot around Albany today, but I'm in Ballinger's, the new restaurant on Howard Street in Albany and felt it deserved a post of its own. Last week I wrote: I was strolling around downtown a couple of days ago when I passed the old Ogden's restaurant building on Howard Street and noticed that a new restaurant is opening up at the same location. Ballingers (no apostrophe, for whatever reason -- the owner's name is Douglas Ballinger) opens up on May 3rd. It's down the street from me, so I'm going to try to make it. I wonder if it can succeed where Daniel's (the restaurant that succeeded Ogden's in 2003) failed?Well, I don't know if it can, but it's certainly nice: 
Ballingers on Howard StreetAs a foodie, whether a bar does or doesn't have food is really important to me -- it's not a surprise that in Albany, I tend to frequent Justin's, the Wine Bar, Totem, and Lark Tavern, and stay away from Cafe Hollywood and Lionheart. It's almost a month in, though, and there's still no menu here. I was under the impression they'd have one by this point (their fourth week), but it hasn't happened yet. Having said that, the waitresses have been walking around with some great tapas -- the chorizo and mini pizzas have both made me scramble to find more, and I've made quite a nice meal out of them. The service has been good too -- even as the place has gotten busier as the night has progressed (I've been here for hours), Paul, the friendly bartender, has gotten me my Coors Lights almost instantly. The building that houses Ballinger's is a marvel; it's a three story building constructed in 1903. Ogden's restaurant, one of the previous incarnations of this building, was a very successful for many years, hosting Albany's politicos. Ballinger's is using all three of the building's floors, plus its sizable patio. There's a bar on each floor (though the owners are going to have to negotiate the state's limit on three bars per venue). The ambience is great -- all of the floors are decked out in a plush 1920s-era fashion, and the music varies from Sinatra to Stefani to Matthews to Marley to world music and Green Day's "Welcome to Paradise" is blaring as I prepare to post this. I'd love this place to succeed, but it may be too big for its own good. If it does succeed, that says a lot for Albany -- not only is it big, but it's not directly on Pearl Street, Broadway, or Lark Street. I'll keep an eye on it. (Side note: The operator, Gerard, just gave me a free beer, so another point to Ballinger's :) -- wi-fi is a plus, too) I took several photos, and you can check them out by clicking here (note for people on laptops/low-res: these photos are larger than normal, so you may have to scroll down to navigate -- it's worth it though; it's a gorgeous place). 
UPDATE: Another foodie, Albany Jane of Albany Eats, reviewed Ballingers (is it really spelled "Ballinger's" or "Ballingers?" I think I'm switching to the latter) recently. Labels: Albany, Restaurants
Albany, NY -- People!
I've got a couple of days off and the weather is beautiful, so yesterday I went for a walk/run around downtown Albany. It was probably the first time in my life, and certainly the first time since I moved downtown that I walked around the city in the middle of a weekday. The scene was very, very different than at most other times of the week. For one thing, there were actual people around. On the Capitol Lawn, on the Hudson, on Pearl Street, on Washington, and in cafes and stores on side streets that I never even knew existed! It's something worth keeping a visual record of... so, in a little while, I'm going to stroll around again with a camera and will share what I see. Labels: Albany
Albany, NY -- THIS is Why Charter Schools Are a Bad Idea
I don't take the time too often here to complain about charter schools, but they're among the worst blights on the education of a city's youth. Putting kids' education in the hands of a for-profit entity is just a sinister way to hand more of our taxes to the private sector. Public money should NEVER pay for private schools. Charter schools exist largely because a group of the super-rich, like the Walton family of Walmart fame, who do not want to see their family fortunes paid in taxes for public schools, spend lots of money to lobby for charter schools and vouchers -- anything that will siphon funds from the public school system: Critics say the Waltons could do the opposite: weaken public schools by encouraging the flow of tax dollars to less-regulated charter schools and to religious and other private schools through vouchers. The prospect of the Walton billions is "alarming," says Marc Egan, head of anti-voucher efforts at the National School Boards Association. So, I was briefly ecstatic to hear that the New Covenant Charter School, where my mom worked in its early days, will be closing at the end of the year: New Covenant Charter School, which was one of the state's first charter schools and quickly went from a symbol of reform to poster child for failure, will close its doors at the end of this school year.I'm a little bit distraught as I think about it more... closing a school and displacing 600 students is jarring on a community, the kids, and the teachers. Jobs are lost, lives are disrupted, and the existing public schools have to figure out how to shoehorn those kids back into the already overcrowded inner-city public schools. This sort of thing doesn't happen often among public schools, but when you introduce the profit motive, it makes it that much more likely with charter schools. (EDIT -- Thanks, Daniel: I didn't mean that the schools were making money; I was conflating two thoughts. Thought 1: I meant that running the schools "like a business" and requiring a breakeven to keep the schools from shutting down was a bad thing. Having government subsidize things that wouldn't break even on their own, like schools or public transportation, is one of the best functions about government. Thought 2: As alluded to above in the point about the Walton Foundation, the people who stand to profit in the long-term are the super-rich, who would benefit from pulling the rug out from under the public school system, removing their taxes as a source for its revenue. Hope that clears things up a bit.) But doesn't that profit motive push the school to greater success than those old bastions of socialism? No. New Covenant frequently turned in some of the region's lowest reading and writing test scores, and was plagued by reports of disorder and fights in halls and classrooms.So, that makes sense, the school closes because it's a failure. This is about accountability, right? Wrong again -- it's about money: Ultimately, the school's kindergarten-through-sixth-grade enrollment, estimated at 429 for next September, wouldn't bring in enough money to operate the school and meet debt payments on the approximately $16.5 million building, built under the auspices of Edison Schools, one of several for-profit companies that since 1999 have tried to operate New Covenant. The school is currently run by New York City-based Victory Schools.It's time to shut these schools down and enrich the public school system in Albany. Of course, there's the issue of funding. The city schools are in a vicious cycle -- they can't keep up academically with the suburban schools because school because the tax base in the city is lower per capita than it is in the suburban schools, and because the kids come out of school less educated, they never truly succeed and never increase the tax base. We need to level the playing field -- it's time to regionalize the Capital Region's tax base. Socialism? Maybe. But it remains unfair that the suburbs use the city resources -- for instance, the suburbanites live out there and then come into Albany in droves to work each day (more on this later), but leave the less-fortunate in the city behind at night to flounder. Until then, The performance gap between the suburban (mostly white) and the city (mostly minority) students will continue to widen and worsen. Labels: Albany, Education
Albany, NY -- Sematech Comes to Albany
From the TU: Gov. Eliot Spitzer and legislative leaders revealed Wednesday a major Texas-based consortium for computer chip development known as Sematech has agreed to locate a key part of its operation in Albany, as long as the state comes up with a $300 million incentive package.I think this is a good sign; if everything proceeds as planned, Sematech is the second big-name tech operation (along with AMD) with a significant presence in Austin to bring its business to Albany. Next to Silicon Valley, Austin has been the major hotbed of technology activity in recent years. Companies like AMD and Sematech moving from "hot spot" to "hot spot" could be a problem though -- they could just be companies following state money, and there's a lot of it involved here -- $300 million. Of course, it could all be worth it: Assemblyman Tim Gordon, I-Bethlehem, said he envisions growth throughout the state because 500 companies statewide are tied into Sematech's work. Sematech's arrival would create and retain 4,550 high-tech jobs averaging $81,000 a year, he said.If Gordon is right, those jobs will pay a total of $368,000,000 in salary each year once Sematech's presence is fully ramped up. Assuming that each of those employees ends up paying back 10% of salary into state tax, even not accounting for corporate taxes and other positive results, the state would make its money back in nine years. Seems like a good investment. Now, will these companies stay here for nine years? In AMD's case, where a cutting-edge chip fab starts making commodity (read: lower-profit) chips after 3-4 years without major retooling investment, AMD could be more or less out of here by 2015 after opening in 2009. Labels: Albany, Tech Valley
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