The New Scotland Planning Board granted Cynthia Elliott a special-use permit to have 15 events per season on Brownrigg Road. The board also heard plans for a residential subdivision and for a retail center.

While town officials say there are guidelines in place to protect the district, members of a grassroots group want a change in the law to protect the area.

Setting up a system to easily certify home businesses that don’t disturb neighbors or the environment would benefit all.

A lawyer representing the owners said, “Smitty’s is going to close. Period. What is going in there...will not drastically affect village lives.” 

Three of the many conditions the planning board wants to require for Cynthia Elliott to get a special-use permit to run a party business on her property don’t sit well with her.

Supervisor Vasilios Lefkaditis continues to push for additional business districts in Knox as the board deals with the logistics of mapping out the three proposed districts and informing neighbors. Lefkaditis questioned the validity of the planning board’s recommendation against a new business district, calling members “a bunch of appointees.”

The owners of Crossgates Mall, who are hoping to build a hotel next door, are seeking tax exemptions of $2.4 million from Guilderland’s Industrial Development Agency.

VOORHEESVILLE — The public is invited to attend a Community Visioning Workshop to inform the village’s Comprehensive Plan Committee.

The workshop will be held at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, April 5, at St. Matthew’s Church at 25 Mountainview St. in Voorheesville.

A proposal for a nine-acre array on Route 156 that would have been Guilderland’s first solar farm was withdrawn this fall. Now the town is considering a proposal for a zoning district change to allow for construction of a solar farm about twice the size.

Some board members expressed concern over aging or disabled residents living on a portion of Stage Road closed for the winter, while highway Superintendent Randy Bashwinger said it was a dangerous intersection to plow.