VOORHEESVILLE — Russell Hempel will be riding in style this Saturday.

Selected to be this year’s grand marshal of the Memorial Day parade, Hempel, 80, will ride in a Seabring convertible during the parade, said Scott Pease, a 15-year member of the American Legion Post.

For the last 30 years or more, the Voorheesville post has been holding a Memorial Day parade, said Pease. This year’s parade will be Saturday, May 26, and will step off at 10 a.m.
Each year, the post selects a different person to honor as the grand marshal, Pease said. "We look for people who’ve been in the area a long time," he said, not necessarily veterans, but people who have served the community — like Hempel.

Following the parade, the village will hold its annual party for volunteers. This year, though, it will be held in the village park instead of behind the firehouse due to the renovations there.

Because of the change of venue for the party, the village has opted not to have fireworks, although Mayor Robert Conway said Elaine Nichols, the former owner of the supermarket in the village, wanted to donate the fireworks display as she has done for several years. The village board cited liability issues at its meeting on Tuesday night as the reason for holding off on the fireworks and stressed that it would like to carry on the tradition next year when the party is moved back to the firehouse.

Other business

In other business, the village board:

— Heard from Will Smith, commissioner of public works, that contractors will be retreating and repainting the tennis and basketball courts during the week of June 11;

— Heard from Smith that water flowed well through the village’s interconnect with the town of Guilderland when it was tested last week;

— Heard that the village accepted bids to complete the work on a water pipe that flows under a portion of the railroad tracks. During a workshop meeting on May 9, the village hired HMA Contracting Corp. to work on the sidewalk in that area for a cost of $49,574 and it hired Pollard Excavating to work on the water line for a cost of $85,500. Both were the lowest bids made, said Linda Pasquale, the village clerk;

— Heard from Smith that people who have suffered flood damage from April’s nor’easter may call 1-800-621-3362 to see if they are eligible for reimbursement;

— Discussed holding a music festival at the Voorheesville high school on July 14 from 4 to 9 p.m. It will be a joint effort between the town of New Scotland and the village; and

— Heard that the village received a letter from Paul Devane, clerk of Albany County’s legislature, stating that the legislature is putting together a board to explore the possibilities for sharing services between the county’s municipalities. The letter requested that each of the county’s three cities, 10 towns, and six villages appoint a representative to serve on the board.