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Code Blue and animal care: City Council highlights, from Tuesday’s meeting
Quick recap of Tuesday’s meeting, together with Saratoga Civic Pulse.
Public hearing re: lowering speeds school speed limits outside the tax district (think Saratoga Springs High School zone on West Avenue) from 30 mph to 25 mph will remain open until the next meeting, March 3.
Code Blue update, via Supervisor Sarah Burger: 196 unique individuals have used the shelter this season; the current capacity is 75 beds. The County Board of Supervisors will vote on March 11 to declare lead agency status for the proposed permanent Code Blue shelter on Ballston Avenue.
The mayor’s department honored City Attorney Anthony “Tony” Izzo for 40 years of service to the City of Saratoga Springs…and reappointed Amy Bloom and Eden Compton to the Arts Commission.
The finance department reported that the bank accounts are reconciled through 2025 — excluding the General Fund, which is undergoing a detailed transaction review.
The public safety department authorized money to the Capital District Veterinary Referral Hospital for emergency care of a malnourished stray dog — and a contract was authorized for the Rood & Riddle Equine Hospital for the Mounted Police Unit.
For more details, please visit Saratoga Civic Pulse.
Speaking of our City Council…
They’re going to need a redo on their vote regarding former Public Works Commissioner Jason Golub and the legal fees he incurred while fighting a 2024 official misconduct charge, reports Melanie Snyder in the Daily Gazette. The Council voted 3-1 last August to decline paying his criminal defense costs (a staggering $47,270.97) after the charge was dismissed. But on Wednesday, State Supreme Court Justice Richard A. Kupferman granted the lawsuit. “The ball,” writes the outlet, “is back in the city’s court.”
…and speaking of Opera Saratoga alum
Did you know that Golub served on the Board of Opera Saratoga before he was tapped by the governor for a state role? Two other OS alum made the news this week — and deserve a massive round of applause. Sopranos Shannon Crowley and Shelén Hughes Camacho were named national semi-finalists in the Metropolitan Opera’s storied Laffont Competition. Crowley was a Festival Artist with our local company (the Capital Region’s only professional opera company) in 2023, and Camacho brought the house down as Musetta in December’s first-ever holiday show, La bohème — and returns this summer to star in The Elixir of Love. They will compete Sunday, March 15 onstage at the Met.
The “weekend vibes” Dish Saratoga (think foodie news and other lighter fare) will be delivered on Sunday.
Got a hot tip before then? Does your restaurant or favorite hotspot have news to share? Simply respond to this email.
Local News
What’s old 🚶♀️ is new again (neon visor not required)
Step-counting with a touch of nostalgia: why ‘mall walking’ is cool again (yes, really)
I love a sedate mall walk. No, I’m not pumping my arms and walking as fast as I would if I were late for meeting. (Although many of my fellow striders are).
Instead, I’m catching up with friends, or keeping myself busy while my teenage children and their friends cavort in the arcade, peruse the lotions and potions at Ulta, hit me up for cash to buy cookies at Saratoga Dessert Bar, all at the conveniently located Wilton Mall. (And I can hit up BJ’s and Target after too!)
I’m not alone.
This relatively brutal winter has stirred up some major cabin fever among Saratogians, who (anecdotally anyway) have really hit the mall in force this year, tying up their sneakers for laps with friends. Who can blame them: no ice, even surfaces, people to socialize with — plus coffee and cookie opportunities and a touch of nostalgia.
“Mall walking” is officially trending in the 12866.
“The temperature is a big win,” says devoted strider Christa Hyland, who was chaperoning a trio of kids, returning things and shopping at Old Navy, reviewing requests for Noobies—all while hanging out with her own friends and racking up those steps.
“Plus, you get your dose of Vitamin D,” says Laura Tilton, pointing to the skylights.
Not everyone is ready to drink the mall walk Kool-Aid though. My father, a longtime member of the AARP, asked me: “Isn’t it for old people? I mean mall walking? Really?”
Yes Chris, really.
He’s right to be skeptical. Mall walking has been a national trend for a few years, stemming from Gen Z’s love for social workout trends — and throwbacks. So yes, mall walking is old. But nostalgia is in, and in Upstate New York it became a necessity, too, thanks to this epic cold snap inspiring a new crop of walkers ready to hit the mall like it’s 1985.
Like my dad, Dan De Federicis, a former New York State trooper and publisher of the Saratoga Report, is also unmoved by the charms of the mall walk.
“I did it once, and that was enough,” he says. “My daughter was in a cheerleading class, so I said, ‘Why not get some exercise?’ My knees are now screaming in pain. Maybe I wasn’t wearing the right shoes. My friends love it, but it’s not for me.”
I’m on Dan’s friends’ side.
For me, I get gossip, mom points and a climate-controlled, safe and even environment sans ice. The thought, “Will I break a hip?” never enters my addled, perimenopausal mind. And I can reward myself with a cookie at the end.
I will admit though: I look forward to the time—seemingly many many weeks into the future—when the snow will melt, and I can walk outside without fear of hitting the deck, or the 20-minute project of bundling up.
📌 ICYMI…