The DEC directive became controversial in Guilderland in 2020 when Pyramid, owner of Crossgates Mall, cut trees to make way for a Costco, citing the need to do so to beat the deadline meant to protect the northern long-eared bats while advocates from Save the Pine Bush said the land had not been properly surveyed for the bats.

Elaine Doremus, Albany

Stephanie Klein, Northern Rivers Family of Services

The new redistricting plan will follow the Albany County Legislature’s recommendation that the county concentrate minority voting power in five dense majority-minority districts rather than up to seven, which is what the original plan, rejected by the legislature, would have done. 

ALBANY COUNTY — Numbers for Albany County are headed in the right direction this week — with infection and hospitalizations rates going down and sales-tax revenues and jobs going up.

Stephen H. Burt, who graduated from Guilderland High School in 1962, was a proud Vietnam War veteran who was generous with his family.

A resident of Poughkeepsie, he died on Friday, Nov. 11, 2022, at Vassar Brothers Medical Center in Poughkeepsie. He was 78. 

ALBANY COUNTY — Close-to-home agritourism got a boost on Monday night when the county legislature unanimously passed a measure to create a countywide beverage trail, featuring local breweries, cideries, distilleries, and wineries.

SUNY Polytechnic Institute was one of the first round of awardees of the $40 million New York State Biodefense Commercialization Fund. Researchers at SUNY Poly got a $500,000 grant to develop a more affordable and accurate 30-minute COVID-19 antibody test.

SCHENECTADY — On Sunday, Oct. 23, 2022, Frank Palmeri of Brooklyn, New York who most recently lived in Schenectady, “joined his beloved wife, Trudy, in heaven,” his family wrote in a tribute. “Frank led a truly amazing life.

ALBANY COUNTY — During a recent town board meeting, New Scotland Highway Superintendent Ken Guyer told the board that the Mohawk Hudson Humane Society will not be renewing its contract with the town, nor will it be renewing a number of municipal contracts it holds with local cities, towns, and villages in Albany, Rensselaer, and Schene