He keeps Spa park in bloom
Gardener at Saratoga Spa State Park has been putting his touch on park's entrance
By LEIGH HORNBECK, Staff writer
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First published: Thursday, August 13, 2009
SARATOGA SPRINGS -- Dan Urkevich, the gardener at the Saratoga Spa State Park, first turned a barren entrance to the park into a bountiful garden in 2000.
Under Urkevich's fastidious care, the beds to the left and right of the Route 9 entrance to the Avenue of the Pines have tripled in size since then.
"I look for tall, eye-catching plants you can see from the road," said the 50-year-old Mechanicville native who works for the State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation.
Urkevich says he chooses low-maintenance, invasive plants that will spread on their own for the garden, which contains about 70 percent perennials and 30 percent annuals.
You won't see Geraniums or many Petunias in Urkevich's beds because the old blooms on those plants must be pinched off in order for new flowers to bloom. Instead, the flower beds next to the avenue are filled with such specimens as bright yellow Heliopsis, lavender joe pye weed, tall purple Cleome and Veronica flowers, and the huge green leaves of elephant ear plants.
Urkevich works with Sunnyside Gardens in Saratoga Springs to try new things and grow bigger-than-average annuals, like the Salvia and Impatiens that line the road-side border of the beds. He also brings plants from home, including barrel-sized thickets of iris. Although the state park employs seasonal workers who cut the grass, Urkevich mows the grass around the beds himself.
Over years of gardening both at work and at home, he's learned what plants work best -- the ornamental grasses are pretty even in the fall as they change colors; the red bee balm has a stronger stem than the pink variation, so it will stand up to wind and rain; sedum, which looks like broccoli now, will turn pink in the fall -- hence the name of the variation Urkevich chose, "autumn joy."
Although Urkevich maintains a garden at home, much of his energy is channeled into the upkeep of the beds at the state park. He also plants beds in the medians on Route 9 near the park entrances, around toll booths in the park and at the Victoria Pool. In the winter he plows and does other maintenance work around the park.
The gardens draw visitors other than human admirers: honey bees, butterflies and finches. Urkevich also fights four-legged intruders such as woodchucks, chipmunks and voles that feast in the gardens. Voles destroyed the sunflowers this year, Urkevich said. However, he's humane toward the critters: the woodchucks he traps in cages and relocates to other parts of the state park.
The heavy rains this summer took a toll on the gardens, pushing apart flower stalks and driving holes in hosta leaves. But only the gardener's careful eye picks out the damage. For the passerby, the view is a bright welcome to the southern end of Saratoga Springs.
Leigh Hornbeck can be reached at 454-5352 or by e-mail at lhornbeck@timesunion.com.
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Royalty reigns at sales
Sheik leads buyers at Fasig-Tipton with $11.9M
By DENNIS YUSKO, Staff writer
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First published: Wednesday, August 12, 2009
SARATOGA SPRINGS -- Chuck Simon found himself shopping yearlings Tuesday next to one of the wealthiest men in the world, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum.
The horse trainer from Saratoga Springs and his wife, Paula, stood in a freshly framed, new outdoor pavilion about five feet from the prime minister of the United Arab Emirates/ruler of Dubai during the final night of the Fasig-Tipton Selected Yearlings auction.
Both men admired the animals on their way to the auction block. Both were looking for strong bloodlines. Only one was definitely buying. Only Sheikh Mohammed spent $2.8 million, the auction's highest price, on a single horse Tuesday, bringing his total for the two-day event to nearly $12 million spent.
"We don't usually play at this level," Simon acknowledged.
No buyers this year were on the level of Sheikh Mohammed, who made his first visit to the city in more than decade to shop horses and inspect his 106-acre Greentree Training Center horse farm at 36 Nelson Ave.
The "CEO of Dubai Inc." is a big horse buyer and breeder with an estimated worth of more than $12 billion, according to Forbes.com. He bought Greentree two years ago for $17.5 million, and many believe he's the force behind a Dubai company's purchase of Fasig-Tipton, a Kentucky-based horse auction company, last year.
Millions in renovations were made to the East Avenue facility, with more to come. The work seemed to please His Highness. After scoping the main pavilion's art offerings, he walked through hundreds of people in the property's backyard with several bodyguards and his bloodstock agent, John Ferguson, stopping to sign autographs. Asked by a reporter how he liked Saratoga, the sheik said, "very much" and gave a thumbs-up sign. He later returned and said, "I love it here."
Ferguson on Tuesday purchased six yearlings for nearly $6.4 million, including $2.8 million for a colt sired by Storm Cat named On A Storm. Those purchases came after Ferguson bought six horses for $5.5 million on Monday, including all three yearlings that sold for more than $1 million that night.
Fasig-Tipton employees said Sheikh Mohammed's purchases helped boost this year's auction totals well above last year's. Figures were up in all categories.
The average price paid for a yearling at this year's sale was $328,434, compared with $295,738 last year. The sale generated more than $52 million in total sales vs. $36 million in 2008. A total of 160 horses sold and 45 did not, compared with 122 and 42 last year.
Dennis Yusko can be reached at 454-5353 or dyusko@timesunion.com.
2009 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga Selected Yearlings Sale
Number of horses that went on the block: 160
Total amount sold: $52,549,500
Number that didn't sell: 45
Average sale: $328,434
Top dollar horse: $2.8 million
Horses sold for more than $1 million: 4
Source: Fasig-Tipton
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Sunday, August 09, 2009
lovely saratoga article in nytimes.com, escape section, on fri,8/7/09
Saratoga Springs, N.Y.
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The Waters of Saratoga Springs
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Saratoga Springs, N.Y. WE came for the waters because, after all, that’s what made the town famous.
Discovering, and then splashing in, mineral baths had been a favorite sport of our family during years spent living in Europe. So we came to Saratoga Springs, not three hours away from New York City, with the distinct purpose of investigating the ways we could sample the waters.
We ended up splashing, soaking and sipping — but we also absorbed the intriguingly melancholy air of a health-giving resort for the masses that had been rendered obsolete.
A minor setback came when we learned that the only operating mineral spa on the grounds of Saratoga Spa State Park, home of a once-mighty baths complex dating back to the New Deal era, did not accept children under 16, thus leaving out half the clan.
So we made our first approach at the park’s Victoria Pool, reachable through entrances off of Route 50 and Route 9 just on the edge of town. The park itself, with a main drive lined by towering pines, is a complex of graceful, low-slung brick architecture, sweeps of manicured lawns, woods with walking trails and the Saratoga Performing Arts Center.
The Victoria Pool, the nation’s first heated pool (but no longer heated), is surrounded by arcaded brick galleries, landscaped flowerbeds and hedges. A bar and restaurant occupy one part of the slate deck, where there were plenty of lounge chairs. Opened in 1935 and renovated about five years ago, the pool costs $8 for an adult and $4 for a child.
The park’s other pool, the Peerless, costs $6 a car load and $2 for an adult and $1 for a child. Larger and shallower, it is a no-frills pool but has a terrific water slide. After the pool visits we stopped by the Roosevelt Baths. Appointments were necessary. The only ones available were late the next day or 9:15 a.m., which we took. My wife and I drove back for a soak, taking part in a ritual with long-ago origins.
Saratoga’s springs had been known to the area’s Indians for centuries when the first Europeans sampled the waters in the late 18th century. Within several decades the earliest resorts appeared, and in the years just after the Civil War, Saratoga Springs became one of the most favored tourist destinations in the country.
In the 1930s federal relief money helped build the complex of bathhouses named Roosevelt and Lincoln. (Franklin D. Roosevelt, who had polio, had a special interest in the springs.) Two symmetrical arcade buildings face each other in the heart of the park, with a reflecting pool in the middle surrounded by a lawn. One used to be the Hall of Springs, where people would flock to take curative sips of mineral water. The other housed a laboratory. Modern medicine, of course, killed the spa regime as a treatment for illness, and the lawn was empty the day we were there except for joggers and dog walkers. Science had silenced this place.
Now most of the buildings have been turned into something else: offices, a banquet hall, a dance museum. Many are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. One wing of the Roosevelt bathhouse still functions, operated by the Gideon Putnam Resort.
It was at the bathhouse that we signed up for a 40-minute soak, at a cost of $25. (The spa also offers a long list of therapies, massages and treatments.) The attendant, Jess, collected us and brought us along corridors with the original tiles to our rooms — each with a massage table and the original built-in tub. The water was a murky rust color, the room the size of a small bedroom in a Manhattan apartment. Jess assured me that she scrubbed the tub and refilled it for every customer.
Since Saratoga’s mineral water is cold, about half of the tub was filled with hot tap water (two tubs of heated pure mineral water were available but booked). A dim light filtered through the window. The reflection of water rippled on the tile wall as I slid in. Bubbles from the slightly carbonated water detonated daintily on the surface.
I couldn’t resist sipping the liquid. It was surprisingly sweet but also tangy. A fact sheet listed 16 substances in the water. The largest concentrations were of bicarbonate, chloride, sodium, calcium, potassium and magnesium. Soon Jess had knocked on the door and left a towel and bathrobe outside. I don’t know if I was cured of anything, but a sense of calm filled my bones.
Later that day we met with Rebecca Mullins, a park naturalist, for a tour of some of the park’s 10 springs. (Tour schedules are available on the park’s Web site, saratogaspastatepark.org.) Some spouted upward, others poured out from fixtures. Each had its own taste, ranging from the State Seal spring, which was sweet like “melted snow,” in Ms. Mullins’s words, to the pungent Hayes Spring, a salty carbonated water.
At the State Seal people filled up gallon jugs to bring home. (There is no fee.) Ms. Mullins said some of the springs, particularly the Orenda, with its high iron content, attracted people who drank from it for health reasons. At the Hayes Spring four slightly guilty looking teenagers lingered around a carbon-dioxide exhaust valve near the spigot. Local lore has it that sucking in the vapor produces a buzz. The result, instead, is nothing more than a headache.
Along with the springs, pools and baths, one of our best water experiences came in the hotel, the otherwise mediocre Inn at Saratoga, which calls itself the oldest operating hotel in town (from 1843). I chose it because it had suites available for $200 a night, saving us the cost of booking two rooms.
Our suite had not only a whirlpool bath but also a steam shower. For our children they were worthy substitutes for the hot baths.
IF YOU GO
WHERE TO STAY
Rates are significantly higher during racing season in late summer.
The Adelphi Hotel (365 Broadway; 518-587-4688, adelphihotel.com) is the grande dame of Saratoga Springs.
The Saratoga Arms (497 Broadway; 518-584-1775, saratogaarms.com) has a terrific front porch.
WHERE TO EAT
Hattie’s Restaurant (45 Phila Street; 518-584-4790, hattiesrestaurant.com) serves dinner nightly, 5 to 10 p.m. Southern and Louisiana cooking since 1938. About $50 for two.
Ravenous (21 Phila Street; 518-581-0560, ravenouscrepes.com) serves brunch and dinner; crepes are around $11; closed Mondays.
WHAT TO DO
Other than taking the waters or going to the races, there is:
The Saratoga Automobile Museum (110 Avenue of the Pines; 518-587-1935, saratogaautomuseum.com), which has a fine permanent collection and periodic exhibits of vintage cars.
The Saratoga Performing Arts Center (108 Avenue of the Pines; box office, 518 587-3330; spac.org) is a summer home of New York City Ballet and the Philadelphia Orchestra and also hosts jazz, pop and chamber music concerts and the Lake George Opera.
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Skip to next paragraph
Saratoga Springs Travel Guide
Where to Stay
Where to Eat
What to Do
Go to the Saratoga Springs Travel Guide »
Multimedia
Slide Show
The Waters of Saratoga Springs
Map
Saratoga Springs, N.Y. WE came for the waters because, after all, that’s what made the town famous.
Discovering, and then splashing in, mineral baths had been a favorite sport of our family during years spent living in Europe. So we came to Saratoga Springs, not three hours away from New York City, with the distinct purpose of investigating the ways we could sample the waters.
We ended up splashing, soaking and sipping — but we also absorbed the intriguingly melancholy air of a health-giving resort for the masses that had been rendered obsolete.
A minor setback came when we learned that the only operating mineral spa on the grounds of Saratoga Spa State Park, home of a once-mighty baths complex dating back to the New Deal era, did not accept children under 16, thus leaving out half the clan.
So we made our first approach at the park’s Victoria Pool, reachable through entrances off of Route 50 and Route 9 just on the edge of town. The park itself, with a main drive lined by towering pines, is a complex of graceful, low-slung brick architecture, sweeps of manicured lawns, woods with walking trails and the Saratoga Performing Arts Center.
The Victoria Pool, the nation’s first heated pool (but no longer heated), is surrounded by arcaded brick galleries, landscaped flowerbeds and hedges. A bar and restaurant occupy one part of the slate deck, where there were plenty of lounge chairs. Opened in 1935 and renovated about five years ago, the pool costs $8 for an adult and $4 for a child.
The park’s other pool, the Peerless, costs $6 a car load and $2 for an adult and $1 for a child. Larger and shallower, it is a no-frills pool but has a terrific water slide. After the pool visits we stopped by the Roosevelt Baths. Appointments were necessary. The only ones available were late the next day or 9:15 a.m., which we took. My wife and I drove back for a soak, taking part in a ritual with long-ago origins.
Saratoga’s springs had been known to the area’s Indians for centuries when the first Europeans sampled the waters in the late 18th century. Within several decades the earliest resorts appeared, and in the years just after the Civil War, Saratoga Springs became one of the most favored tourist destinations in the country.
In the 1930s federal relief money helped build the complex of bathhouses named Roosevelt and Lincoln. (Franklin D. Roosevelt, who had polio, had a special interest in the springs.) Two symmetrical arcade buildings face each other in the heart of the park, with a reflecting pool in the middle surrounded by a lawn. One used to be the Hall of Springs, where people would flock to take curative sips of mineral water. The other housed a laboratory. Modern medicine, of course, killed the spa regime as a treatment for illness, and the lawn was empty the day we were there except for joggers and dog walkers. Science had silenced this place.
Now most of the buildings have been turned into something else: offices, a banquet hall, a dance museum. Many are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. One wing of the Roosevelt bathhouse still functions, operated by the Gideon Putnam Resort.
It was at the bathhouse that we signed up for a 40-minute soak, at a cost of $25. (The spa also offers a long list of therapies, massages and treatments.) The attendant, Jess, collected us and brought us along corridors with the original tiles to our rooms — each with a massage table and the original built-in tub. The water was a murky rust color, the room the size of a small bedroom in a Manhattan apartment. Jess assured me that she scrubbed the tub and refilled it for every customer.
Since Saratoga’s mineral water is cold, about half of the tub was filled with hot tap water (two tubs of heated pure mineral water were available but booked). A dim light filtered through the window. The reflection of water rippled on the tile wall as I slid in. Bubbles from the slightly carbonated water detonated daintily on the surface.
I couldn’t resist sipping the liquid. It was surprisingly sweet but also tangy. A fact sheet listed 16 substances in the water. The largest concentrations were of bicarbonate, chloride, sodium, calcium, potassium and magnesium. Soon Jess had knocked on the door and left a towel and bathrobe outside. I don’t know if I was cured of anything, but a sense of calm filled my bones.
Later that day we met with Rebecca Mullins, a park naturalist, for a tour of some of the park’s 10 springs. (Tour schedules are available on the park’s Web site, saratogaspastatepark.org.) Some spouted upward, others poured out from fixtures. Each had its own taste, ranging from the State Seal spring, which was sweet like “melted snow,” in Ms. Mullins’s words, to the pungent Hayes Spring, a salty carbonated water.
At the State Seal people filled up gallon jugs to bring home. (There is no fee.) Ms. Mullins said some of the springs, particularly the Orenda, with its high iron content, attracted people who drank from it for health reasons. At the Hayes Spring four slightly guilty looking teenagers lingered around a carbon-dioxide exhaust valve near the spigot. Local lore has it that sucking in the vapor produces a buzz. The result, instead, is nothing more than a headache.
Along with the springs, pools and baths, one of our best water experiences came in the hotel, the otherwise mediocre Inn at Saratoga, which calls itself the oldest operating hotel in town (from 1843). I chose it because it had suites available for $200 a night, saving us the cost of booking two rooms.
Our suite had not only a whirlpool bath but also a steam shower. For our children they were worthy substitutes for the hot baths.
IF YOU GO
WHERE TO STAY
Rates are significantly higher during racing season in late summer.
The Adelphi Hotel (365 Broadway; 518-587-4688, adelphihotel.com) is the grande dame of Saratoga Springs.
The Saratoga Arms (497 Broadway; 518-584-1775, saratogaarms.com) has a terrific front porch.
WHERE TO EAT
Hattie’s Restaurant (45 Phila Street; 518-584-4790, hattiesrestaurant.com) serves dinner nightly, 5 to 10 p.m. Southern and Louisiana cooking since 1938. About $50 for two.
Ravenous (21 Phila Street; 518-581-0560, ravenouscrepes.com) serves brunch and dinner; crepes are around $11; closed Mondays.
WHAT TO DO
Other than taking the waters or going to the races, there is:
The Saratoga Automobile Museum (110 Avenue of the Pines; 518-587-1935, saratogaautomuseum.com), which has a fine permanent collection and periodic exhibits of vintage cars.
The Saratoga Performing Arts Center (108 Avenue of the Pines; box office, 518 587-3330; spac.org) is a summer home of New York City Ballet and the Philadelphia Orchestra and also hosts jazz, pop and chamber music concerts and the Lake George Opera.
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Thursday, August 06, 2009
Wednesday, August 05, 2009
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Modern Dance bombs at SPAC amphitheater, bring back 3rd week of NYC Ballet!
SPAC officials look hopefully to future
By STEVE BARNES, Senior writer
Click byline for more stories by writer.
First published: Sunday, August 2, 2009
Although the Saratoga Performing Arts Center is one of the Capital Region's largest arts institutions, its relative smallness, in terms of staff and budget, has helped it better survive and more quickly adapt to an economy that has done grievous damage to cultural behemoths, according to company leaders.
Now, as the opening of another Philadelphia Orchestra residency this week signals that the end of the fifth season under the current leaders is just a month away, SPAC officials are cautiously optimistic. They also are contemplating several major decisions, including whether the New York City Ballet's season should be restored to three weeks and if the orchestra's might need to be cut to two. And they're mindful of hard facts and harder choices faced by major institutions:
The City Ballet, SPAC's producing partner in the dance troupe's annual July residency, now has an endowment of approximately $138 million, down from a recent high of $187 million, and its annual deficit for the 2008-09 season was estimated at $5.5 million, according to company management and financial filings. The straits resulted in 11 dancers being let go this year and were the prime reason City Ballet officials asked SPAC in late 2008 to reduce the upstate season from three weeks to two; both SPAC and City Ballet had been losing about $1 million apiece on the residency each summer.
The New York City Opera, which performed at SPAC each June from 1986 to 1997, over six years has seen its endowment plummet by more than 70 percent, to $16 million, as a result of market losses and withdrawals to offset deficits. Some experts predict it could fold entirely.
The Philadelphia Orchestra, starting its 44th summer at SPAC on Wednesday with Alec Baldwin narrating Aaron Copland's "Lincoln Portrait," announced plans to battle multimillion-dollar current and predicted budget deficits with $4 million in cuts over the next two years, including a 5 percent salary reduction for musicians.
"We've joked that SPAC's actually in a good situation -- when you're poor, it's hard to get poorer," said Bill Dake, the humorously blunt chairman of SPAC's board of directors since 2005 and chairman of his family's Stewart's Shops chain.
SPAC's endowment stands at about $3.5 million, less than half what it was in 2004. But since Dake, a fresh board and a new executive director, Marcia White, took over in 2005 after a scandal involving the former management, about $3 million in lingering debt has been paid off. Millions have been spent on improving the facility, and SPAC has finished each of the past four seasons with a budget surplus, in contrast to 15 prior years of significant annual deficits.
"Although it was a trauma to go through, the reduction from three weeks to two (of the ballet season) has worked out better than we'd thought," said Dake. "It was the right thing to do."
The numbers seem to bear out his contention: Although total attendance for City Ballet's 2009 season was less than last year's, as a result of there being 14 performances instead of 21, average attendance per performance was up 24 percent. And although ticket revenue was down by an estimated quarter-million dollars, that will be more than offset by an estimated $335,000 savings in production and support costs for the season, according to White. Finally, the amount SPAC lost per ticket sold for the ballet this summer dropped by 15 percent, to $22, or about $57,000 per performance.
In contrast, the orchestra is notably more expensive to produce: SPAC lost $39 per ticket sold in 2008, or about $96,000 for each of the 12 performances of its three-week residency last August.
"We have not talked with (orchestra officials)" about shortening the residency, Dake said. But, he said, alluding to the orchestra's financial problems and a shake-up in its senior management and board staffing, "Sometimes when there is a dramatic change because of a tough situation, it gets even tougher in the short run. But any decision about (shortening the residency) would have to come from them."
White said it is too early to begin considering whether City Ballet could return to a three-week season in 2010. (Dake believes it will take a few more seasons before that happens.) White said, "We know our economy is still not strong, so we have to be very cautious about every decision, even things we've always done."
It is a central irony of the White-Dake administration that it has been lauded for stabilizing SPAC, but among the main options it pursued in doing so -- shortening the City Ballet season and offering modern dance programs -- were the very alternatives that got former longtime President Herb Chesbrough and his board thrown out. The difference is that the Chesbrough regime voted in secret in 2004 to cancel City Ballet entirely, a quickly reversed decision that created such a firestorm of criticism all were eventually sent packing.
In contrast, White and the Dake-led board have been exceptionally open with the public about SPAC's challenges and their efforts to meet them.
"It's important for people to know what the reality of the situation is," White said during an interview last month, on the closing night of the ballet season. "And that reality is the programs are expensive to produce and audiences are not as large as we would like them to be."
The reality is also starkly visible in the swaths of empty seats on slower nights at the ballet, orchestra and, especially, during performances by the two modern-dance companies that SPAC booked this summer, Paul Taylor and Mark Morris. The Taylor shows, in June, attracted about 1,300 people to each of two performances; Morris's company, about 750 to three -- and that's inside the 5,000-seat theater as well as on the lawn.
White is philosophically opposed to "papering the house," the industry term for giving away free tickets to make a venue look full, or to offering sharp discounts.
"When we first reorganized (in 2005), you could get a 50-percent-off ticket starting at 7 p.m. If that's available, what's the incentive to buy a subscription or even get just a few tickets in advance? There isn't any. It just isn't a good business model," White said.
Referring to programs, underwritten by sponsors, that include free lawn admission for children, $10 student tickets and a variety of other discounts, White said, "There are special promotions and special nights, but to try to pack the house by basically giving tickets away, just for the sake of packing the house -- I don't think it's realistic."
SPAC is looking to the future in other areas as well: It already has announced a five-year extension of its initial, 10-year contract with the promoter Live Nation, which produces rock concerts at SPAC and pays about $1 million per year to do so. And White, Dake and the rest of the board are looking for deep-pocketed donors to replace a $2.5 million gift, paid over five years and ending in 2009, from five donors, Dake included, that was announced in 2005.
White has already gotten a promise of $250,000 from an anonymous arts patron in New York City, and the SPAC development staff continues to create more and varied sponsorship opportunities for underwriters, including promotions like Times Union Date Night, Family Night with free Stewart's ice cream, Girls' Night Out and Emma Willard American Girl Night, all of which brought in extra audiences.
Citing his background in convenience stores, Dake said, "I'm always willing to try (eclectic) marketing ideas, and I think we've learned things from Live Nation, things that maybe in the past someone would have said, 'Oh, we don't do that.' Well, maybe we should."
Steve Barnes can be reached at 454-5489 or by e-mail at sbarnes@timesunion.com. Visit his blog at http://blogs.timesunion.com/tablehopping.
By the numbers
Decrease in ballet attendance between 2008 and 2009
7,400
Decrease in ticket income
$250,000
Decrease in costs because of shorter season
$335,000
Average attendance per performance
2,500,
up 24 percent from 2008
Numbers have been rounded.
7,400
$250,000
$335,000
2,500, up 24 percent from 2008
15 percent
By STEVE BARNES, Senior writer
Click byline for more stories by writer.
First published: Sunday, August 2, 2009
Although the Saratoga Performing Arts Center is one of the Capital Region's largest arts institutions, its relative smallness, in terms of staff and budget, has helped it better survive and more quickly adapt to an economy that has done grievous damage to cultural behemoths, according to company leaders.
Now, as the opening of another Philadelphia Orchestra residency this week signals that the end of the fifth season under the current leaders is just a month away, SPAC officials are cautiously optimistic. They also are contemplating several major decisions, including whether the New York City Ballet's season should be restored to three weeks and if the orchestra's might need to be cut to two. And they're mindful of hard facts and harder choices faced by major institutions:
The City Ballet, SPAC's producing partner in the dance troupe's annual July residency, now has an endowment of approximately $138 million, down from a recent high of $187 million, and its annual deficit for the 2008-09 season was estimated at $5.5 million, according to company management and financial filings. The straits resulted in 11 dancers being let go this year and were the prime reason City Ballet officials asked SPAC in late 2008 to reduce the upstate season from three weeks to two; both SPAC and City Ballet had been losing about $1 million apiece on the residency each summer.
The New York City Opera, which performed at SPAC each June from 1986 to 1997, over six years has seen its endowment plummet by more than 70 percent, to $16 million, as a result of market losses and withdrawals to offset deficits. Some experts predict it could fold entirely.
The Philadelphia Orchestra, starting its 44th summer at SPAC on Wednesday with Alec Baldwin narrating Aaron Copland's "Lincoln Portrait," announced plans to battle multimillion-dollar current and predicted budget deficits with $4 million in cuts over the next two years, including a 5 percent salary reduction for musicians.
"We've joked that SPAC's actually in a good situation -- when you're poor, it's hard to get poorer," said Bill Dake, the humorously blunt chairman of SPAC's board of directors since 2005 and chairman of his family's Stewart's Shops chain.
SPAC's endowment stands at about $3.5 million, less than half what it was in 2004. But since Dake, a fresh board and a new executive director, Marcia White, took over in 2005 after a scandal involving the former management, about $3 million in lingering debt has been paid off. Millions have been spent on improving the facility, and SPAC has finished each of the past four seasons with a budget surplus, in contrast to 15 prior years of significant annual deficits.
"Although it was a trauma to go through, the reduction from three weeks to two (of the ballet season) has worked out better than we'd thought," said Dake. "It was the right thing to do."
The numbers seem to bear out his contention: Although total attendance for City Ballet's 2009 season was less than last year's, as a result of there being 14 performances instead of 21, average attendance per performance was up 24 percent. And although ticket revenue was down by an estimated quarter-million dollars, that will be more than offset by an estimated $335,000 savings in production and support costs for the season, according to White. Finally, the amount SPAC lost per ticket sold for the ballet this summer dropped by 15 percent, to $22, or about $57,000 per performance.
In contrast, the orchestra is notably more expensive to produce: SPAC lost $39 per ticket sold in 2008, or about $96,000 for each of the 12 performances of its three-week residency last August.
"We have not talked with (orchestra officials)" about shortening the residency, Dake said. But, he said, alluding to the orchestra's financial problems and a shake-up in its senior management and board staffing, "Sometimes when there is a dramatic change because of a tough situation, it gets even tougher in the short run. But any decision about (shortening the residency) would have to come from them."
White said it is too early to begin considering whether City Ballet could return to a three-week season in 2010. (Dake believes it will take a few more seasons before that happens.) White said, "We know our economy is still not strong, so we have to be very cautious about every decision, even things we've always done."
It is a central irony of the White-Dake administration that it has been lauded for stabilizing SPAC, but among the main options it pursued in doing so -- shortening the City Ballet season and offering modern dance programs -- were the very alternatives that got former longtime President Herb Chesbrough and his board thrown out. The difference is that the Chesbrough regime voted in secret in 2004 to cancel City Ballet entirely, a quickly reversed decision that created such a firestorm of criticism all were eventually sent packing.
In contrast, White and the Dake-led board have been exceptionally open with the public about SPAC's challenges and their efforts to meet them.
"It's important for people to know what the reality of the situation is," White said during an interview last month, on the closing night of the ballet season. "And that reality is the programs are expensive to produce and audiences are not as large as we would like them to be."
The reality is also starkly visible in the swaths of empty seats on slower nights at the ballet, orchestra and, especially, during performances by the two modern-dance companies that SPAC booked this summer, Paul Taylor and Mark Morris. The Taylor shows, in June, attracted about 1,300 people to each of two performances; Morris's company, about 750 to three -- and that's inside the 5,000-seat theater as well as on the lawn.
White is philosophically opposed to "papering the house," the industry term for giving away free tickets to make a venue look full, or to offering sharp discounts.
"When we first reorganized (in 2005), you could get a 50-percent-off ticket starting at 7 p.m. If that's available, what's the incentive to buy a subscription or even get just a few tickets in advance? There isn't any. It just isn't a good business model," White said.
Referring to programs, underwritten by sponsors, that include free lawn admission for children, $10 student tickets and a variety of other discounts, White said, "There are special promotions and special nights, but to try to pack the house by basically giving tickets away, just for the sake of packing the house -- I don't think it's realistic."
SPAC is looking to the future in other areas as well: It already has announced a five-year extension of its initial, 10-year contract with the promoter Live Nation, which produces rock concerts at SPAC and pays about $1 million per year to do so. And White, Dake and the rest of the board are looking for deep-pocketed donors to replace a $2.5 million gift, paid over five years and ending in 2009, from five donors, Dake included, that was announced in 2005.
White has already gotten a promise of $250,000 from an anonymous arts patron in New York City, and the SPAC development staff continues to create more and varied sponsorship opportunities for underwriters, including promotions like Times Union Date Night, Family Night with free Stewart's ice cream, Girls' Night Out and Emma Willard American Girl Night, all of which brought in extra audiences.
Citing his background in convenience stores, Dake said, "I'm always willing to try (eclectic) marketing ideas, and I think we've learned things from Live Nation, things that maybe in the past someone would have said, 'Oh, we don't do that.' Well, maybe we should."
Steve Barnes can be reached at 454-5489 or by e-mail at sbarnes@timesunion.com. Visit his blog at http://blogs.timesunion.com/tablehopping.
By the numbers
Decrease in ballet attendance between 2008 and 2009
7,400
Decrease in ticket income
$250,000
Decrease in costs because of shorter season
$335,000
Average attendance per performance
2,500,
up 24 percent from 2008
Numbers have been rounded.
7,400
$250,000
$335,000
2,500, up 24 percent from 2008
15 percent
Thursday, July 23, 2009
Victoria Pool needs more chairs on sunny days. Good suggestion from Victoria pool patrons.
Victoria Pool should have enough stackable chairs for Capacity crowd instead of using Park Rangers who can be much more useful in other ways than acting as chair police. Parks just spent $15,000 on chairs for the Ice Cream Parlour at Victoria Pool. Obviously, the cost of pool chairs would be much less and free up the Park Rangers for important duties.
Monday, July 20, 2009
Victoria Pool news?
Why would Park Administrators allow a Gideon Guest to get into the Victoria Pool with unsafe NON Coast Guard approved equipment? Another pool patron who obviously had had too much to drink and was loud and abusive was allowed to stay at the pool without Administrators on-site calling the Park Police. Everyone's safety is compromised when such infractions are allowed.
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
Ah, summer, wise words from Allan P..
Wherefore art thou, summer?
July off to chilly start; warming trend on way
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
By Lee Coleman (Contact)
Gazette Reporter
Photographer: Barry Sloan
Nick Guilder of Hudson Falls and his 10-month-old son Nicholas enjoy Lake George's Million Dollar Beach despite Monday's cooler-than-normal temperatures.Text Size: A | A | A
CAPITAL REGION — Get out the sweat shirt and forget the shorts.
The low temperature this morning is expected to be near the record low temperature for the day: 49 degrees set in 1940.
Lower than normal temperatures have dominated the first 13 days of July, keeping swimmers out of area pools and forcing people to wear sweat shirts or jackets in the early morning and evening hours.
Ingrid Amberger, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Albany, said the jet stream of cool air coming out of the north has remained farther south than it usually is in July.
“It hasn’t retreated north,” Amberger said. “It usually goes up into Canada.”
The first 12 days of July were, on average, nearly 5 degrees cooler than normal, Amberger said.
The normal high temperature for July is in the low 80s, and the average low is about 60. For the first part of the month the average high temperature has been 75.5 degrees and the average low 56.2.
The low temperature Monday morning was 51 degrees at Albany International Airport, where the weather service gets its readings. The high in the afternoon was 74.
But a warming trend is on the way, with high temperatures in the low 80s by Wednesday, the weather service said.
Michael Greenslade, manager of the Saratoga Spa State Park in Saratoga Springs, said activity at the park’s two swimming pools, the Victoria and Peerless pools, has been slower than usual for this time of year.
But he said the Peerless Pool continues to have decent crowds even on cooler days, because local day camps have bus trips planned to that pool most days.
On Sunday, with lots of afternoon sunshine and a rock concert later in the day, the Victoria Pool in the Spa State Park was at capacity, said Allan Polacsek, a park employee.
The capacity for the Victoria Pool is 344 swimmers, while the capacity for the larger Peerless Pool is more than twice that number. The Peerless Pool includes an Olympic-sized swimming pool, a sliding pool and a wading pool for children.
Park officials said the thin crowds at the park’s pools have been noticed on weekdays during this cold spell.
But whether the pools are just about empty or filled to capacity, the park still must staff the pools with lifeguards.
“They are scheduled, rain or shine,” Polacsek said.
He said a larger number of people applied to be lifeguards this summer, possibly because of the weak job market. Most years, park officials struggle to sign up the necessary number of lifeguards to staff their pools.
At the Edison Club on Riverview Road in Rexford, the swimming pool is being used a lot less this summer, said Andy Hughett, the golf club’s general manager.
He said the only time the club shuts down the pool is when there is a lightning storm or when the forecast is for rain throughout the day.
Rainfall during the first part of July is also above average, according to the National Weather Service. The average rainfall for the entire month of July is 3.5 inches at the Albany International Airport while this year 4.09 inches of rain has fallen in less than half a month.
“There has been a lot of lightning with recent storms,” Amberger said. She said the Adirondacks and North Country have been especially hard hit by electrical storms and scattered power outages over the past two weeks.
Today is expected to be sunny again with highs in the mid-70s. On Wednesday, the temperature will get up to 80 degrees but later Wednesday and into Thursday a low pressure system will arrive, bringing some showers, Amberger said. However, the high temperatures are expected to remain in the low 80s, despite the showers.
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July off to chilly start; warming trend on way
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
By Lee Coleman (Contact)
Gazette Reporter
Photographer: Barry Sloan
Nick Guilder of Hudson Falls and his 10-month-old son Nicholas enjoy Lake George's Million Dollar Beach despite Monday's cooler-than-normal temperatures.Text Size: A | A | A
CAPITAL REGION — Get out the sweat shirt and forget the shorts.
The low temperature this morning is expected to be near the record low temperature for the day: 49 degrees set in 1940.
Lower than normal temperatures have dominated the first 13 days of July, keeping swimmers out of area pools and forcing people to wear sweat shirts or jackets in the early morning and evening hours.
Ingrid Amberger, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Albany, said the jet stream of cool air coming out of the north has remained farther south than it usually is in July.
“It hasn’t retreated north,” Amberger said. “It usually goes up into Canada.”
The first 12 days of July were, on average, nearly 5 degrees cooler than normal, Amberger said.
The normal high temperature for July is in the low 80s, and the average low is about 60. For the first part of the month the average high temperature has been 75.5 degrees and the average low 56.2.
The low temperature Monday morning was 51 degrees at Albany International Airport, where the weather service gets its readings. The high in the afternoon was 74.
But a warming trend is on the way, with high temperatures in the low 80s by Wednesday, the weather service said.
Michael Greenslade, manager of the Saratoga Spa State Park in Saratoga Springs, said activity at the park’s two swimming pools, the Victoria and Peerless pools, has been slower than usual for this time of year.
But he said the Peerless Pool continues to have decent crowds even on cooler days, because local day camps have bus trips planned to that pool most days.
On Sunday, with lots of afternoon sunshine and a rock concert later in the day, the Victoria Pool in the Spa State Park was at capacity, said Allan Polacsek, a park employee.
The capacity for the Victoria Pool is 344 swimmers, while the capacity for the larger Peerless Pool is more than twice that number. The Peerless Pool includes an Olympic-sized swimming pool, a sliding pool and a wading pool for children.
Park officials said the thin crowds at the park’s pools have been noticed on weekdays during this cold spell.
But whether the pools are just about empty or filled to capacity, the park still must staff the pools with lifeguards.
“They are scheduled, rain or shine,” Polacsek said.
He said a larger number of people applied to be lifeguards this summer, possibly because of the weak job market. Most years, park officials struggle to sign up the necessary number of lifeguards to staff their pools.
At the Edison Club on Riverview Road in Rexford, the swimming pool is being used a lot less this summer, said Andy Hughett, the golf club’s general manager.
He said the only time the club shuts down the pool is when there is a lightning storm or when the forecast is for rain throughout the day.
Rainfall during the first part of July is also above average, according to the National Weather Service. The average rainfall for the entire month of July is 3.5 inches at the Albany International Airport while this year 4.09 inches of rain has fallen in less than half a month.
“There has been a lot of lightning with recent storms,” Amberger said. She said the Adirondacks and North Country have been especially hard hit by electrical storms and scattered power outages over the past two weeks.
Today is expected to be sunny again with highs in the mid-70s. On Wednesday, the temperature will get up to 80 degrees but later Wednesday and into Thursday a low pressure system will arrive, bringing some showers, Amberger said. However, the high temperatures are expected to remain in the low 80s, despite the showers.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Wednesday, July 08, 2009
New York City Ballet is home in Saratoga more magnificent than ever. Restore 3wk. season please!
New York City Ballet shines in Saratoga Springs opener
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
By Wendy Liberatore (Contact)
Gazette Reporter
Text Size: A | A | A
SARATOGA SPRINGS — New York City Ballet is back at its summer home, the Saratoga Performing Arts Center. And though the company’s stay will be shortened to a mere two weeks, its 44th season here is not short on terrific dance and music.
Evidence of that was Tuesday’s opening night in a salute to Russian music. The orchestra, led with vigor by Faycal Karoui, was freshly tuned. And the dancing, in George Balanchine’s “Theme and Variations” and “Symphony in Three Movements,” was spectacular.
Certainly, it’s what audiences have come to expect from City Ballet, one of the greatest companies in the world. And much of their greatness is due to its founder, the world’s most masterful choreographer, the late Balanchine.
His “Symphony in Three Movements” to Stravinsky’s daring score was one of the highlights. The strength of this ballet is the striking corps de ballet and the exotic pas de deux. And the tableau ending with all the men crouched, as if ready to pounce, is so original that it never fails to elicit gasps and whoops.
The ballet begins with a diagonal line of women. They wheel their arms and march about en pointe as if soldiers readying for battle. They disperse and Sterling Hyltin and Daniel Ulbricht appear. They jump straight up and sideways with their feet tucked underneath their rumps. As they bounce, the women return, flinging their arms and legs, heightening the hum of the music and bulking up the already large energy output.
The duet, with Abi Stafford and Jared Angle, is quieting and engrossing. They move toward each other, their arms snaky. As they approach with small steps, they entwine their arms and then move to the center. As they circle each other, hands and feet flexed, the look is strange, but alluring.
At the end, the music purrs as the full cast joins together for an eye-popping finale.
The marvelous “Symphony in Three Movements” is the antithesis of Balanchine’s formal and cool “Theme and Variations.” Yet it is equally enjoyable. Here, Megan Fairchild, with Andrew Veyette, becomes a turning machine. Her petite allegro is extremely taxing, but she pulls it off with regal ease.
Veyette, too, is impressive. He has matured from a slouchy, faceless dancer to one of princely status. He’s always had the chops, but now he owns the persona. It was wonderful to see.
The program opened with Christopher Wheeldon’s atmospheric “Mercurial Manoeuvres,” to music by Shostakovich. The music and dance, though initially foreboding, grows into a vision of beauty. Gonzalo Garcia was ebullient as the solo dancer in red. And Tiler Peck, with Adrian Danchig-Waring, was the soul of exquisite calm.
Finally, the bill was filled out by Sean Lavery’s lovely “Romeo and Juliet” pas de deux to music by Prokofiev. The lovers’ earnestness is clear in the choreography, but as danced by Yvonne Borree and Tyler Angle, it was only evident with Romeo. Borree, though she makes all the right moves, was icy until the very end as she kissed her Romeo and fled up the balcony stairs.
Reach Gazette reporter Wendy Liberatore at 395-3199 or at wendy@dailygazette.com.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
By Wendy Liberatore (Contact)
Gazette Reporter
Text Size: A | A | A
SARATOGA SPRINGS — New York City Ballet is back at its summer home, the Saratoga Performing Arts Center. And though the company’s stay will be shortened to a mere two weeks, its 44th season here is not short on terrific dance and music.
Evidence of that was Tuesday’s opening night in a salute to Russian music. The orchestra, led with vigor by Faycal Karoui, was freshly tuned. And the dancing, in George Balanchine’s “Theme and Variations” and “Symphony in Three Movements,” was spectacular.
Certainly, it’s what audiences have come to expect from City Ballet, one of the greatest companies in the world. And much of their greatness is due to its founder, the world’s most masterful choreographer, the late Balanchine.
His “Symphony in Three Movements” to Stravinsky’s daring score was one of the highlights. The strength of this ballet is the striking corps de ballet and the exotic pas de deux. And the tableau ending with all the men crouched, as if ready to pounce, is so original that it never fails to elicit gasps and whoops.
The ballet begins with a diagonal line of women. They wheel their arms and march about en pointe as if soldiers readying for battle. They disperse and Sterling Hyltin and Daniel Ulbricht appear. They jump straight up and sideways with their feet tucked underneath their rumps. As they bounce, the women return, flinging their arms and legs, heightening the hum of the music and bulking up the already large energy output.
The duet, with Abi Stafford and Jared Angle, is quieting and engrossing. They move toward each other, their arms snaky. As they approach with small steps, they entwine their arms and then move to the center. As they circle each other, hands and feet flexed, the look is strange, but alluring.
At the end, the music purrs as the full cast joins together for an eye-popping finale.
The marvelous “Symphony in Three Movements” is the antithesis of Balanchine’s formal and cool “Theme and Variations.” Yet it is equally enjoyable. Here, Megan Fairchild, with Andrew Veyette, becomes a turning machine. Her petite allegro is extremely taxing, but she pulls it off with regal ease.
Veyette, too, is impressive. He has matured from a slouchy, faceless dancer to one of princely status. He’s always had the chops, but now he owns the persona. It was wonderful to see.
The program opened with Christopher Wheeldon’s atmospheric “Mercurial Manoeuvres,” to music by Shostakovich. The music and dance, though initially foreboding, grows into a vision of beauty. Gonzalo Garcia was ebullient as the solo dancer in red. And Tiler Peck, with Adrian Danchig-Waring, was the soul of exquisite calm.
Finally, the bill was filled out by Sean Lavery’s lovely “Romeo and Juliet” pas de deux to music by Prokofiev. The lovers’ earnestness is clear in the choreography, but as danced by Yvonne Borree and Tyler Angle, it was only evident with Romeo. Borree, though she makes all the right moves, was icy until the very end as she kissed her Romeo and fled up the balcony stairs.
Reach Gazette reporter Wendy Liberatore at 395-3199 or at wendy@dailygazette.com.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Friday, July 03, 2009
The public ignored at Saratoga Spa State Park in these tough economic times.
Many people have contacted us to say with the raise in fee to $8 at Victoria Pool and Season Tickets to the pool eliminated without explanation they will not pay it when rain is predicted. Catherine's restaurant which also pays part of every check to nys parks will also be adversly affected by the raise in fee at Victoria Pool.
NYS Parks lower fees at Mine Kill Park but raises fee at Victoria Pool to $8.
Mine Kill Park cuts fees to aid public
Thursday, July 2, 2009
By Edward Munger Jr. (Contact)
Gazette Reporter
NORTH BLENHEIM — While some parks increased fees in the face of budget cuts this year, the cost of a day at Mine Kill State Park in Schoharie County is going down.
Park Manager Brian Strasavich said officials agreed to lower costs to ensure families can enjoy nice things even when times are tough. “The way the economy is and everything, it really just made sense,” Strasavich said Monday during a tour of the 650-acre park tucked in the rolling Catskill foothills alongside the Schoharie Creek.
Roughly 45,000 people visit the park year-round to picnic, swim in three swimming pools or buzz along the waters of the New York Power Authority’s lower reservoir.
The park, which opened this past weekend, has already drawn guests from New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Brooklyn and Italy, according to a guest book at the top of the small trail leading to the Mine Kill Falls overlook.
“It’s awesome,” said Carol Jacobs of Rhinebeck, who noticed the Mine Kill Park sign while driving south on state Route 30 Monday. Jacobs was checking if there was anything at the park she might bring her grandchildren to see.
After a peaceful walk down an elaborate stair system with several overlook decks, Jacobs decided she’ll be back. “I didn’t know it was here.”
Last year, guests paid $6 per car to enter. That fee was cut to $3. Renting the pavilion for group outings cost $75 last year, now it’s $50.
Strasavich said reservations for the pavilion were “blown out” after the rate cut.
Using the pools costs $2 for adults and $1 for youth, and that includes swimming lessons when available.
The bath house and locker rooms were renovated during the off-season, and staff added a new self-guided nature trail with signs identifying unique features.
The nature trail has been added to a new trail map for the park that features its own hiking trails and a segment of the Long Path Northern Excursion, an 80-mile trek that extends from the Schoharie Reservoir to Thacher State Park in Albany County. About 8 miles of trails are on the site, which is popular among mountain bikers and hikers, Strasavich said.
A half-dozen youths participating in the Schoharie County Youth Bureau’s summer adventure program were using the pavilion Monday to learn back-country camping skills.
The park’s natural setting makes for an ideal learning site, said George McDonnell, a program coordinator at the Schoharie County Youth Bureau.
“This is exactly what we wanted. Everything’s here,” McDonnell said.
Strasavich, an avid hiker who studied recreation, adventure travel and eco-tourism at Paul Smiths College in the Adirondacks, has managed Mine Kill, with a staff of about 50 in the summer, for two years.
“It’s my dream job.”
The day use park is open year-round, with snow shoeing, skiing and hiking.
Strasavich said overnight campers at the Max V. Shaul State Park, situated 10 miles north on Route 30, can use the Mine Kill Park for free.
Information on the park can be found at www.nysparks.state.ny.us.
Thursday, July 2, 2009
By Edward Munger Jr. (Contact)
Gazette Reporter
NORTH BLENHEIM — While some parks increased fees in the face of budget cuts this year, the cost of a day at Mine Kill State Park in Schoharie County is going down.
Park Manager Brian Strasavich said officials agreed to lower costs to ensure families can enjoy nice things even when times are tough. “The way the economy is and everything, it really just made sense,” Strasavich said Monday during a tour of the 650-acre park tucked in the rolling Catskill foothills alongside the Schoharie Creek.
Roughly 45,000 people visit the park year-round to picnic, swim in three swimming pools or buzz along the waters of the New York Power Authority’s lower reservoir.
The park, which opened this past weekend, has already drawn guests from New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Brooklyn and Italy, according to a guest book at the top of the small trail leading to the Mine Kill Falls overlook.
“It’s awesome,” said Carol Jacobs of Rhinebeck, who noticed the Mine Kill Park sign while driving south on state Route 30 Monday. Jacobs was checking if there was anything at the park she might bring her grandchildren to see.
After a peaceful walk down an elaborate stair system with several overlook decks, Jacobs decided she’ll be back. “I didn’t know it was here.”
Last year, guests paid $6 per car to enter. That fee was cut to $3. Renting the pavilion for group outings cost $75 last year, now it’s $50.
Strasavich said reservations for the pavilion were “blown out” after the rate cut.
Using the pools costs $2 for adults and $1 for youth, and that includes swimming lessons when available.
The bath house and locker rooms were renovated during the off-season, and staff added a new self-guided nature trail with signs identifying unique features.
The nature trail has been added to a new trail map for the park that features its own hiking trails and a segment of the Long Path Northern Excursion, an 80-mile trek that extends from the Schoharie Reservoir to Thacher State Park in Albany County. About 8 miles of trails are on the site, which is popular among mountain bikers and hikers, Strasavich said.
A half-dozen youths participating in the Schoharie County Youth Bureau’s summer adventure program were using the pavilion Monday to learn back-country camping skills.
The park’s natural setting makes for an ideal learning site, said George McDonnell, a program coordinator at the Schoharie County Youth Bureau.
“This is exactly what we wanted. Everything’s here,” McDonnell said.
Strasavich, an avid hiker who studied recreation, adventure travel and eco-tourism at Paul Smiths College in the Adirondacks, has managed Mine Kill, with a staff of about 50 in the summer, for two years.
“It’s my dream job.”
The day use park is open year-round, with snow shoeing, skiing and hiking.
Strasavich said overnight campers at the Max V. Shaul State Park, situated 10 miles north on Route 30, can use the Mine Kill Park for free.
Information on the park can be found at www.nysparks.state.ny.us.
Wednesday, July 01, 2009
Monday, June 22, 2009
BUSINESS WEEK applauds Saratoga as a livable city in 6/18/09 issue.
New Urbanism June 18, 2009, 5:00PM EST
Livable Saratoga
Urban planners predict buyers will flock to cities with a small-town feel where you can walk to work and shopping
This Week
June 29, 2009
Housing Market 2012
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Saratoga Springs is anti-suburbia. In this town of 28,500 that's part of the Albany area, boutique shops, not chain stores, dominate downtown. Natural spring water flows from the public fountains. Some residents walk to work. "Architects and planners got together with local politicians to make sure we stayed vibrant to compete" with other communities, says Daniel Neary, a local architect.
Just as the boom years bred car-centric subdivisions and strip malls, the bust may lead buyers to cities and towns centered on a commercial, retail, and residential hub. That should be a boon to places like Saratoga Springs and Kentlands, an enclave of Gaithersburg, Md., that typify this "new urbanism" model. What makes a city livable, says urban planning and policy expert Robert E. Lang, is "the ability to walk and not drive to go pick up the basics in your life." James Kunstler, the anti-sprawl prophet and author of The Geography of Nowhere, lives in Saratoga Springs.
Prices in those communities will get a boost as buyers eschew the exurbs in more rural locales in favor of urban centers. The U.N. predicts rural environs in the U.S. will shrink by almost 2 million people between 2010 and 2015. In the face of the bust, home values in the Saratoga Springs area have held up well, falling just 1% in 2008; and prices should continue to rise steadily as the area attracts families like the Longs. Kristen Long, 40, and her husband, Jeff, 38, traded a seven-acre horse farm near Rochester, N.Y., for a $300,000 custom-built three-bedroom home near Saratoga Springs. "We are so close to great shopping and restaurants," says Kristen. "It's quaint, and you feel comfortable and safe."
When gas was cheap, the remote suburbs of Chicago, Scottsdale, and Las Vegas made more financial sense. Homes in those areas sold for a fraction of their city equivalents. And suburbanites readily drove 20 minutes to a supermarket or commuted 90 minutes to work. Then gas prices surged and the economy soured, crimping housing demand in exurbs. Even though gas prices have since fallen, those markets likely won't see boom-level prices for many years. In Kane County, Ill., empty McMansions sit beside soybeans fields. Local corn and soybean farmer Steve Pitstick says housing contractors are offering to help plant his crops and do other odd jobs. He hasn't had much work for them. "The economy imploded, and everything stopped," he says.
Manhattan transplant Jeffrey Cannizzo moved to Saratoga Springs, home of the eponymous race track and Skidmore College, for a change of pace. Cannizzo, a former manager at Microsoft who now heads a horse-racing trade group, wanted a small-town feel. After renting for a while, the 30-year-old started looking to buy in February. He recently bid $302,000 for a four-bedroom colonial two miles from his office, and the offer was accepted. Cannizzo likes the town's neighborliness: "People here are involved far more than in other communities I've been around."
Saratoga Springs, N.Y.
Urban planners predict a flight to cities with a small-town feel where you can walk to work and to shops
POPULATION
850,957
2007 MEDIAN HOME PRICE
$208,540
2008 MEDIAN HOME PRICE
$206,000
Numbers reflect metropolitan area; Data: Fiserv
Reader Discussion
Post a comment about this story in Reader Discussion…
Livable Saratoga
Urban planners predict buyers will flock to cities with a small-town feel where you can walk to work and shopping
This Week
June 29, 2009
Housing Market 2012
Previous Issue
Next Issue
Story Tools
post a comment
e-mail this story
print this story
order a reprint
suggest a story
digg this
save to del.icio.us
Saratoga Springs is anti-suburbia. In this town of 28,500 that's part of the Albany area, boutique shops, not chain stores, dominate downtown. Natural spring water flows from the public fountains. Some residents walk to work. "Architects and planners got together with local politicians to make sure we stayed vibrant to compete" with other communities, says Daniel Neary, a local architect.
Just as the boom years bred car-centric subdivisions and strip malls, the bust may lead buyers to cities and towns centered on a commercial, retail, and residential hub. That should be a boon to places like Saratoga Springs and Kentlands, an enclave of Gaithersburg, Md., that typify this "new urbanism" model. What makes a city livable, says urban planning and policy expert Robert E. Lang, is "the ability to walk and not drive to go pick up the basics in your life." James Kunstler, the anti-sprawl prophet and author of The Geography of Nowhere, lives in Saratoga Springs.
Prices in those communities will get a boost as buyers eschew the exurbs in more rural locales in favor of urban centers. The U.N. predicts rural environs in the U.S. will shrink by almost 2 million people between 2010 and 2015. In the face of the bust, home values in the Saratoga Springs area have held up well, falling just 1% in 2008; and prices should continue to rise steadily as the area attracts families like the Longs. Kristen Long, 40, and her husband, Jeff, 38, traded a seven-acre horse farm near Rochester, N.Y., for a $300,000 custom-built three-bedroom home near Saratoga Springs. "We are so close to great shopping and restaurants," says Kristen. "It's quaint, and you feel comfortable and safe."
When gas was cheap, the remote suburbs of Chicago, Scottsdale, and Las Vegas made more financial sense. Homes in those areas sold for a fraction of their city equivalents. And suburbanites readily drove 20 minutes to a supermarket or commuted 90 minutes to work. Then gas prices surged and the economy soured, crimping housing demand in exurbs. Even though gas prices have since fallen, those markets likely won't see boom-level prices for many years. In Kane County, Ill., empty McMansions sit beside soybeans fields. Local corn and soybean farmer Steve Pitstick says housing contractors are offering to help plant his crops and do other odd jobs. He hasn't had much work for them. "The economy imploded, and everything stopped," he says.
Manhattan transplant Jeffrey Cannizzo moved to Saratoga Springs, home of the eponymous race track and Skidmore College, for a change of pace. Cannizzo, a former manager at Microsoft who now heads a horse-racing trade group, wanted a small-town feel. After renting for a while, the 30-year-old started looking to buy in February. He recently bid $302,000 for a four-bedroom colonial two miles from his office, and the offer was accepted. Cannizzo likes the town's neighborliness: "People here are involved far more than in other communities I've been around."
Saratoga Springs, N.Y.
Urban planners predict a flight to cities with a small-town feel where you can walk to work and to shops
POPULATION
850,957
2007 MEDIAN HOME PRICE
$208,540
2008 MEDIAN HOME PRICE
$206,000
Numbers reflect metropolitan area; Data: Fiserv
Reader Discussion
Post a comment about this story in Reader Discussion…
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Spencer Trask, we need a new Spencer in Saratoga.
Spa City recalls a 'titan'
Businessman Spencer Trask honored by book, summer benefit at Yaddo
By DENNIS YUSKO, Staff writer
Click byline for more stories by writer.
First published: Thursday, June 18, 2009
SARATOGA SPRINGS -- One hundred years after he was killed in a tragic accident on his way to saving the city's famous mineral springs, Spencer Trask's financial and philanthropic legacies remain mostly unknown.
Trask became a Gilded Age baron before coming to Saratoga Springs in 1881 and purchasing an Italianate villa on 500 acres. A tenacious Wall Street banker, Trask had invested in Thomas Edison's idea of electricity, railroads and more, and he'd intervened to rescue the New York Times when it faced bankruptcy.
But the Brooklyn native from Puritan ancestors always had an idealistic bent and was as fastidious about culture as he was about finance. In the later years of his life, Trask fought to establish this upstate community into a hub of artistic expression. The seeds he planted bloomed after his death into the Yaddo artist retreat, Saratoga Spa State Park and other city icons.
"His legacy was supporting American creativity and Yankee ingenuity," said Kevin Kimberlin, a venture capitalist who named his Manhattan equity firm after Trask. "What really inspired me was that he lost his eye, four children and his home, but he never lost his faith."
A big supporter of Yaddo, Kimberlin this year commissioned "Enigmatic Titan," a 124-page book about Trask's life, which he calls "the greatest story that's never been told."
Even in death, Trask contributed to city culture. In 1915, noted sculptor Daniel Chester French dedicated the "Spirit of Life" statue in Congress Park to Trask. The bronze sculpture has become the city's emblem.
Trask "was one of the fathers of the city," said Elaina Richardson, president of Yaddo.
This week marks the centennial anniversary of Trask being appointed head of the State Reservation Commission. The work of the mundane-sounding outfit would come to define the city.
Trask lobbied the state Legislature to form the commission in an effort to stop private gas companies from commercially mining carbonic gas from the city's natural springs. The companies extracted the gas to make carbonated drinks. But the spring water was a major area attraction because people believed it contained healing and recuperative powers. By 1908, the natural gas had been nearly depleted, threatening tourism and the health of the city.
Trask worked to preserve the springs and baths by having the state purchase lands that contained them. The effort would become the historic community's first and biggest act of preservation. By 1930, New York purchased more than 1,100 city acres, designated four state park reservations, including Congress Park, and built the Washington and Lincoln bath houses in what became Saratoga Spa State Park.
The reservation commission led to the liberation of the springs, the establishment of the Spa park, the city's Visitor Center and the Spirit of Life, said Lew Benton, city administrator of parks, open land and historic preservation.
"Absent the genius of Trask and his willingness to commit his considerable political and financial capital, the Saratoga Springs of today would be a greatly diminished place," Benton said.
Trask was a bearded, patient man who married the love of his life -- poet Katrina Trask -- but sustained several personal disappointments. His four children -- Alanson, Christina, Spencer Jr., and Katrina -- all died young between 1880 and 1889 from various illnesses.
Spencer Trask contracted a near fatal case of pneumonia in 1891 at the same time that the original Yaddo mansion burned in a fire. Within two years, he built the elaborate 55-room English manor residence that still stands. He lost his eye in a traffic accident in 1909.
With no immediate heirs, the Trasks turned Yaddo into an artist residence in 1900 to nurture the talents of writers, painters, composers and others. Visitors throughout its history include James Baldwin, Truman Capote, Langston Hughes, Sylvia Plath and Mario Puzo. Writer John Cheever once said that Yaddo had seen more distinguished art "than any other piece of ground in the English-speaking community and perhaps the world."
But Spencer Trask would never get to see the artists or his commission's achievements. While riding in a train to New York City to deliver final revisions on the commission's work on New Year's Eve, 1909, another train struck the car in which he was riding at Croton-on-Hudson. He was the only person to die. Found on Trask's body was a tattered note that he always carried with him: "For a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth."
Dennis Yusko can be reached at 454-5353 or by e-mail at dyusko@timesunion.com.
If you go
WHAT: Yaddo Saratoga Springs Summer Benefit, silent auction and party
WHEN: 8 p.m. Friday
WHERE: Yaddo Mansion
WHO: Television writer and producer Matt Witten challenges the audience to solve a murder
RESERVATIONS: $150. Sponsorships start at $600
INFORMATION: www.yaddo.org or 584.0746
Businessman Spencer Trask honored by book, summer benefit at Yaddo
By DENNIS YUSKO, Staff writer
Click byline for more stories by writer.
First published: Thursday, June 18, 2009
SARATOGA SPRINGS -- One hundred years after he was killed in a tragic accident on his way to saving the city's famous mineral springs, Spencer Trask's financial and philanthropic legacies remain mostly unknown.
Trask became a Gilded Age baron before coming to Saratoga Springs in 1881 and purchasing an Italianate villa on 500 acres. A tenacious Wall Street banker, Trask had invested in Thomas Edison's idea of electricity, railroads and more, and he'd intervened to rescue the New York Times when it faced bankruptcy.
But the Brooklyn native from Puritan ancestors always had an idealistic bent and was as fastidious about culture as he was about finance. In the later years of his life, Trask fought to establish this upstate community into a hub of artistic expression. The seeds he planted bloomed after his death into the Yaddo artist retreat, Saratoga Spa State Park and other city icons.
"His legacy was supporting American creativity and Yankee ingenuity," said Kevin Kimberlin, a venture capitalist who named his Manhattan equity firm after Trask. "What really inspired me was that he lost his eye, four children and his home, but he never lost his faith."
A big supporter of Yaddo, Kimberlin this year commissioned "Enigmatic Titan," a 124-page book about Trask's life, which he calls "the greatest story that's never been told."
Even in death, Trask contributed to city culture. In 1915, noted sculptor Daniel Chester French dedicated the "Spirit of Life" statue in Congress Park to Trask. The bronze sculpture has become the city's emblem.
Trask "was one of the fathers of the city," said Elaina Richardson, president of Yaddo.
This week marks the centennial anniversary of Trask being appointed head of the State Reservation Commission. The work of the mundane-sounding outfit would come to define the city.
Trask lobbied the state Legislature to form the commission in an effort to stop private gas companies from commercially mining carbonic gas from the city's natural springs. The companies extracted the gas to make carbonated drinks. But the spring water was a major area attraction because people believed it contained healing and recuperative powers. By 1908, the natural gas had been nearly depleted, threatening tourism and the health of the city.
Trask worked to preserve the springs and baths by having the state purchase lands that contained them. The effort would become the historic community's first and biggest act of preservation. By 1930, New York purchased more than 1,100 city acres, designated four state park reservations, including Congress Park, and built the Washington and Lincoln bath houses in what became Saratoga Spa State Park.
The reservation commission led to the liberation of the springs, the establishment of the Spa park, the city's Visitor Center and the Spirit of Life, said Lew Benton, city administrator of parks, open land and historic preservation.
"Absent the genius of Trask and his willingness to commit his considerable political and financial capital, the Saratoga Springs of today would be a greatly diminished place," Benton said.
Trask was a bearded, patient man who married the love of his life -- poet Katrina Trask -- but sustained several personal disappointments. His four children -- Alanson, Christina, Spencer Jr., and Katrina -- all died young between 1880 and 1889 from various illnesses.
Spencer Trask contracted a near fatal case of pneumonia in 1891 at the same time that the original Yaddo mansion burned in a fire. Within two years, he built the elaborate 55-room English manor residence that still stands. He lost his eye in a traffic accident in 1909.
With no immediate heirs, the Trasks turned Yaddo into an artist residence in 1900 to nurture the talents of writers, painters, composers and others. Visitors throughout its history include James Baldwin, Truman Capote, Langston Hughes, Sylvia Plath and Mario Puzo. Writer John Cheever once said that Yaddo had seen more distinguished art "than any other piece of ground in the English-speaking community and perhaps the world."
But Spencer Trask would never get to see the artists or his commission's achievements. While riding in a train to New York City to deliver final revisions on the commission's work on New Year's Eve, 1909, another train struck the car in which he was riding at Croton-on-Hudson. He was the only person to die. Found on Trask's body was a tattered note that he always carried with him: "For a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth."
Dennis Yusko can be reached at 454-5353 or by e-mail at dyusko@timesunion.com.
If you go
WHAT: Yaddo Saratoga Springs Summer Benefit, silent auction and party
WHEN: 8 p.m. Friday
WHERE: Yaddo Mansion
WHO: Television writer and producer Matt Witten challenges the audience to solve a murder
RESERVATIONS: $150. Sponsorships start at $600
INFORMATION: www.yaddo.org or 584.0746
Monday, June 15, 2009
800 lb. female moose loose in Saratoga. It stopped at Siro's for a drink?? and went on to the Racetrack.
Moose visits Saratoga Race Course
Staff reports
Last updated: 10:29 a.m., Monday, June 15, 2009
SARATOGA SPRINGS -- A different sort of four-legged creature is attracting a crowd to Saratoga Race Course this morning.
A large female moose is walking calmly in the executive parking area just inside the front entrance of the track on Union Avenue.
City police, the state Department of Environmental Conservation and about 50 people are looking on.
Police blocked onlookers about 25 feet from the moose.
City police officer Ed Lewis said the department is working with DEC to remove the moose. An officer is coming from Ray Brook to tranquilize the creature and move her.
Lewis said the first call came at 3:45 a.m. when a person reported seeing the moose crossing Broadway downtown.
The next call came at 6:20 a.m., saying the moose was near Siro's restaurant near the track.
Police worked with the New York Racing Association to corral the animal within the fencing of the racecourse.
Hope to save Saratoga Tree Nursery but fate still unsure.
Fate of Saratoga Tree Nursery unsure
Monday, June 15, 2009
By MARIA McBRIDE BUCCIFERRO
For The Saratogian
SARATOGA SPRINGS — Saratoga Tree Nursery manager David Lee is feeling cautiously optimistic as the nursery’s possible closing date of July 1 looms near.
“It’s gotten very quiet. I was told my higher-ups haven’t heard anything, and they’re not sure what’s happening. They feel that things are looking better for us,” Lee said this week. “They said keep doing what we’re doing until we hear otherwise. We’re still in limbo.”
“Since the governor has come up with an agreement with the unions, it’s to our benefit. Time will tell,” Lee said. “As far as we know as of right now, we’re not closing.”
With a $14 billion state deficit looming, the Department of Environment Conservation announced in April that the state’s sole remaining tree nursery may close as early as July to cut costs.
On June 5, Gov. David Paterson and the state public employees unions announced an agreement to reduce pension benefits for future public employees, saving the state $30 billion over 30 years, though most of the savings won’t be realized for another decade. In return, the governor will shelf his plan to lay off 8,700 state workers.
Whether state officials will keep the nursery opens remains to be seen. “We don’t know if they’ve changed their minds. We haven’t heard anything positive; we haven’t heard anything negative,” Lee said. “We’ll keep running the program as we’ve always run it … until we hear otherwise.”
Lee oversees a staff of 10 full-time and up to 50 seasonal workers. The annual budget is about $750,000. The 1.2 million seedlings grown annually are used by the state for projects, sold to private landowners for conservation plantings, and given away to schools, generating about $250,000 a year in revenue.
He said he only learned recently the story of Col. William F. Fox, the Ballston Spa native who was Superintendent of Forests when the first state nursery was started in 1902. “I never knew that he was one of the founding fathers of the New York state nursery program,” Lee said. “He started what is now the forest rangers and was a leading factor in the creation of nurseries in the state.”
Saratoga Tree Nursery opened in 1911, two years after Fox’s death. A memorial service will be held Tuesday, the 100th anniversary of his death.
URL: http://www.saratogian.com/articles/2009/06/15/news/doc4a35b724f15d0877416394.prt
© 2009 saratogian.com, a Journal Register Property
BALLSTON SPA — As the fate of the Saratoga Tree Nursery is threatened, the Civil War soldier who oversaw the creation of the first state nursery as state Superintendent of Forests is being remembered in his hometown.
Born in Ballston Spa on Jan. 11, 1840, Colonel William F. Fox died a century ago, on June 16, 1909, after 24 years of service with the state. A graveside memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. Tuesday at Ballston Spa Village Cemetery on Ballston Avenue for Fox, who served as Superintendent of Forests for the Forest, Fish and Game Commission until his death.
“It was through Col. Fox’s foresight and efforts that the forest ranger force was created,” states the invitation from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Division of Forest Protection, which is holding the memorial service in Fox’s honor.
Mayor John Romano and the Ballston Spa Village Board Monday night authorized Chris Morley, Saratoga County history consultant, to represent the village at the ceremony. Morley, who is 88, said he will obtain a G.A.R. marker and flag for Fox’s grave. Fox belonged to Dawson Post No. 63 of the Grand Army of the Republic.
A 1860 graduate in engineering from Union College, Fox served as a lieutenant colonel with the 107th Regiment in the Civil War. “The first regiment organized and sent to the war under the new call from the president for 300,000 volunteers was the 107th,” wrote Thomas Seaman Townsend in “The Honors of the Empire State in the War of the Rebellion,” in 1889. “The regiment fought bravely at Chancellorsville and at the battle of Dallas, Ga. Lieut.-Col. William F. Fox, a gallant officer of the 107th, has, since the close of the war, rendered the country a service by the compilation of an invaluable work entitled ‘The Chances of Being Killed in Battle.’”
Ten years later, in 1898, Fox wrote “Regimental Losses in the American Civil War, 1861-1865,” an authoritative compilation of mortuary losses in the Union regiments. He later wrote three volumes of “New York at Gettysburg,” “Slocum and His Men,” and “A Life of General Green.”
Fox’s family was in the lumbering business. Fox went to Germany to study scientific forestry techniques there, and worked for seven years as a private forester for the Blossburg Coal, Mining, and Railroad Company of Blossburg, Pa., writes Alfred Lee Donaldson in “A History of the Adirondacks.” Fox was appointed assistant secretary to the first Forest Commission in 1885, then served as assistant forest warden, from 1888 to 1891, when he became superintendent of forests upon the creation of the Adirondack Park — “a position which he held, through many political storms and changes, until his death,” Donaldson wrote in 1921.
“He was a sincere lover of the woods and an honest servant of the people. He worked for all that was best in forest methods, but had to face the handicaps of public apathy, changing administrations, and shifting policies. He was from the first an ardent advocate of forest-preserve purchases, and kept urging the state to buy land while the buying was cheap. The beginning of reforestation and the plan of selling trees to private owners — which proved so successful — were of his devising. He had keen foresight and sound judgment in forest matters, and his advice, if more frequently followed, would have often saved the state both money and trouble.”
In 1902, Fox hired the first graduate of the first forestry school in this country — Clifford R. Pettis, who established the first state nursery at Saranac Inn, “and there developed a system of nursery practice which has been adopted by the United States Forest Service and is now taught in all forestry schools,” wrote Donaldson. Pettis was named Superintendent of Forests in 1910, a year after Fox’s death.
The 250-acre Saratoga Tree Nursery has produced 1.6 billion seedlings since it opened in 1911. Once one of at least nine tree nurseries around the state, it is now the only one left, as nursery operations were consolidated to Saratoga in 1972. The tree nursery grows more than 1.2 million seedlings a year for state projects or to sell to private owners, as Fox envisioned, and it gives away more than 32,000 seedlings to state schools.
During the Depression, men and women of the Civilian Conservation Corps planted seedlings from the nurseries throughout the state. With looming state budget deficits in the current recession, the Saratoga Tree Nursery has been threatened with closure to save money. The Saratoga County Board of Supervisors last month passed a resolution in support of keeping the nursery open — a measure Col. Fox would strongly support.
Fox was a strong advocate for planting trees on city streets and along highways. “As in Washington and Paris, every city should establish nurseries supported by municipal appropriations, in which the various species best adapted to street planting can be propagated and grown,” he told the New York Times in June 1900. “Washington is known as one of the most beautiful cities in America on account of the 70,000 trees planted along its streets.”
But it will be his role as the father of the state Forest Rangers that Fox will be especially remembered for Tuesday.
In 1899, he recommended that fire wardens be supplemented with “an adequate force of forest rangers who should be assigned to districts of a suitable area, which should be patrolled constantly and thoroughly…The ranger should be required to live on the township, and a log cabin should be built for that purpose ... He should live in the woods, not in some distant village. During dry seasons, the highways should also be patrolled because more fires start at a roadside than anywhere else.”
Fox’s proposal to hire 35 forest rangers was passed by the New York State Senate, but failed to receive approval by the governor.
Comments
The following are comments from the readers. In no way do they represent the view of saratogian.com.
Monday, June 15, 2009
By MARIA McBRIDE BUCCIFERRO
For The Saratogian
SARATOGA SPRINGS — Saratoga Tree Nursery manager David Lee is feeling cautiously optimistic as the nursery’s possible closing date of July 1 looms near.
“It’s gotten very quiet. I was told my higher-ups haven’t heard anything, and they’re not sure what’s happening. They feel that things are looking better for us,” Lee said this week. “They said keep doing what we’re doing until we hear otherwise. We’re still in limbo.”
“Since the governor has come up with an agreement with the unions, it’s to our benefit. Time will tell,” Lee said. “As far as we know as of right now, we’re not closing.”
With a $14 billion state deficit looming, the Department of Environment Conservation announced in April that the state’s sole remaining tree nursery may close as early as July to cut costs.
On June 5, Gov. David Paterson and the state public employees unions announced an agreement to reduce pension benefits for future public employees, saving the state $30 billion over 30 years, though most of the savings won’t be realized for another decade. In return, the governor will shelf his plan to lay off 8,700 state workers.
Whether state officials will keep the nursery opens remains to be seen. “We don’t know if they’ve changed their minds. We haven’t heard anything positive; we haven’t heard anything negative,” Lee said. “We’ll keep running the program as we’ve always run it … until we hear otherwise.”
Lee oversees a staff of 10 full-time and up to 50 seasonal workers. The annual budget is about $750,000. The 1.2 million seedlings grown annually are used by the state for projects, sold to private landowners for conservation plantings, and given away to schools, generating about $250,000 a year in revenue.
He said he only learned recently the story of Col. William F. Fox, the Ballston Spa native who was Superintendent of Forests when the first state nursery was started in 1902. “I never knew that he was one of the founding fathers of the New York state nursery program,” Lee said. “He started what is now the forest rangers and was a leading factor in the creation of nurseries in the state.”
Saratoga Tree Nursery opened in 1911, two years after Fox’s death. A memorial service will be held Tuesday, the 100th anniversary of his death.
URL: http://www.saratogian.com/articles/2009/06/15/news/doc4a35b724f15d0877416394.prt
© 2009 saratogian.com, a Journal Register Property
BALLSTON SPA — As the fate of the Saratoga Tree Nursery is threatened, the Civil War soldier who oversaw the creation of the first state nursery as state Superintendent of Forests is being remembered in his hometown.
Born in Ballston Spa on Jan. 11, 1840, Colonel William F. Fox died a century ago, on June 16, 1909, after 24 years of service with the state. A graveside memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. Tuesday at Ballston Spa Village Cemetery on Ballston Avenue for Fox, who served as Superintendent of Forests for the Forest, Fish and Game Commission until his death.
“It was through Col. Fox’s foresight and efforts that the forest ranger force was created,” states the invitation from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Division of Forest Protection, which is holding the memorial service in Fox’s honor.
Mayor John Romano and the Ballston Spa Village Board Monday night authorized Chris Morley, Saratoga County history consultant, to represent the village at the ceremony. Morley, who is 88, said he will obtain a G.A.R. marker and flag for Fox’s grave. Fox belonged to Dawson Post No. 63 of the Grand Army of the Republic.
A 1860 graduate in engineering from Union College, Fox served as a lieutenant colonel with the 107th Regiment in the Civil War. “The first regiment organized and sent to the war under the new call from the president for 300,000 volunteers was the 107th,” wrote Thomas Seaman Townsend in “The Honors of the Empire State in the War of the Rebellion,” in 1889. “The regiment fought bravely at Chancellorsville and at the battle of Dallas, Ga. Lieut.-Col. William F. Fox, a gallant officer of the 107th, has, since the close of the war, rendered the country a service by the compilation of an invaluable work entitled ‘The Chances of Being Killed in Battle.’”
Ten years later, in 1898, Fox wrote “Regimental Losses in the American Civil War, 1861-1865,” an authoritative compilation of mortuary losses in the Union regiments. He later wrote three volumes of “New York at Gettysburg,” “Slocum and His Men,” and “A Life of General Green.”
Fox’s family was in the lumbering business. Fox went to Germany to study scientific forestry techniques there, and worked for seven years as a private forester for the Blossburg Coal, Mining, and Railroad Company of Blossburg, Pa., writes Alfred Lee Donaldson in “A History of the Adirondacks.” Fox was appointed assistant secretary to the first Forest Commission in 1885, then served as assistant forest warden, from 1888 to 1891, when he became superintendent of forests upon the creation of the Adirondack Park — “a position which he held, through many political storms and changes, until his death,” Donaldson wrote in 1921.
“He was a sincere lover of the woods and an honest servant of the people. He worked for all that was best in forest methods, but had to face the handicaps of public apathy, changing administrations, and shifting policies. He was from the first an ardent advocate of forest-preserve purchases, and kept urging the state to buy land while the buying was cheap. The beginning of reforestation and the plan of selling trees to private owners — which proved so successful — were of his devising. He had keen foresight and sound judgment in forest matters, and his advice, if more frequently followed, would have often saved the state both money and trouble.”
In 1902, Fox hired the first graduate of the first forestry school in this country — Clifford R. Pettis, who established the first state nursery at Saranac Inn, “and there developed a system of nursery practice which has been adopted by the United States Forest Service and is now taught in all forestry schools,” wrote Donaldson. Pettis was named Superintendent of Forests in 1910, a year after Fox’s death.
The 250-acre Saratoga Tree Nursery has produced 1.6 billion seedlings since it opened in 1911. Once one of at least nine tree nurseries around the state, it is now the only one left, as nursery operations were consolidated to Saratoga in 1972. The tree nursery grows more than 1.2 million seedlings a year for state projects or to sell to private owners, as Fox envisioned, and it gives away more than 32,000 seedlings to state schools.
During the Depression, men and women of the Civilian Conservation Corps planted seedlings from the nurseries throughout the state. With looming state budget deficits in the current recession, the Saratoga Tree Nursery has been threatened with closure to save money. The Saratoga County Board of Supervisors last month passed a resolution in support of keeping the nursery open — a measure Col. Fox would strongly support.
Fox was a strong advocate for planting trees on city streets and along highways. “As in Washington and Paris, every city should establish nurseries supported by municipal appropriations, in which the various species best adapted to street planting can be propagated and grown,” he told the New York Times in June 1900. “Washington is known as one of the most beautiful cities in America on account of the 70,000 trees planted along its streets.”
But it will be his role as the father of the state Forest Rangers that Fox will be especially remembered for Tuesday.
In 1899, he recommended that fire wardens be supplemented with “an adequate force of forest rangers who should be assigned to districts of a suitable area, which should be patrolled constantly and thoroughly…The ranger should be required to live on the township, and a log cabin should be built for that purpose ... He should live in the woods, not in some distant village. During dry seasons, the highways should also be patrolled because more fires start at a roadside than anywhere else.”
Fox’s proposal to hire 35 forest rangers was passed by the New York State Senate, but failed to receive approval by the governor.
Comments
The following are comments from the readers. In no way do they represent the view of saratogian.com.
Sunday, June 14, 2009
Thursday, June 11, 2009
Saratoga Living Magazine, Summer 2009
The Summer 2009 issue of Saratoga Living Magazine has a marvelous article on the Victoria Pool.
Tuesday, June 09, 2009
NYS Senate coup may not be a bad idea.
Is it time for NYS Parks to stage a coup like our esteemed state senators? Kick the high officials out of their low cost mansions and give the parks back to the people.
Friday, June 05, 2009
Check out marcia white/spac blog at timesunion.com
http://blog.timesunion.com/marciawhite/the-spac-experience/2/#comments
Thursday, June 04, 2009
Since the Riggis control the dance museum/Washington Baths at Saratoga Spa State Park we hope they will respect our history.
Riggi family behind historic Greenfield Avenue home purchase
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
By ANDREW J. BERNSTEIN, The Saratogian
SARATOGA SPRINGS — Nearly a month after neighbors first raised concerns over apparent demolition work being performed at 23 Greenfield Ave., the property’s new owners have come forward and announced their immediate plans for the building.
The two-story brick building on the corner of Greenfield and Woodlawn avenues was sold by James Taylor, owner of Taylor Made Products, manufacturer of boating accessories, to 23 Greenfield Avenue LLC on May 4.
On Monday, attorney John J. Carusone Jr., an agent of the LLC, identified Ronald Riggi as a principal in the LLC and sent a letter to the City Council indicating such. Riggi and his wife, Michele, are a high-profile couple in the Spa City social and philanthropic scene.
Carusone said the owner’s intention is to demolish the building as soon as a permit is approved by the city. A permit application was filed May 29.
“Beyond that, I don’t know,” said Carusone of plans for the property. Ron and Michele Riggi own a home on the corner of North Broadway and Greenfield Avenue, and their property abuts 23 Greenfield Ave. Reached by phone Monday evening, Michele Riggi deferred all comment on the matter to Carusone.
Following an asbestos assessment, abatement was conducted at the building in early May, which focused on removing asbestos in building materials, window frames and some roofs. This step is required by New York State law before a demolition permit can be approved. Although abatement was also conducted on the building in the early ’90s, work focused on pipe insulation in the basement, Carusone said.
23 Greenfield Ave., built in 1865, has been the subject of an outcry from some corners of the city, which culminated in a call for a moratorium on demolitions. The building is identified as a “contributing structure” to the city’s historic district, although it is not within the district itself.
The City Council is expected to vote on a moratorium at their meeting at 7 p.m. tonight, and Samantha Bosshart, executive director of the Saratoga Preservation Foundation, has called for the public to attend a public hearing at 6:40 p.m. to testify about the house.
“The built environment serves as an important link to our past that Saratoga Springs cannot afford to slowly erode with demolitions,” Bosshart stated in a press release. “The historic preservation of this building and others that are contributing buildings to a historic district listed on the National Register of Historic Places benefit our community and deserve protection even if not located in the local historic district. It is buildings like 23 Greenfield Avenue that make the city of Saratoga Springs the wonderful place it is to reside, work and visit.”
Carusone said the property owners might consider litigation should the city pursue a moratorium on demolition, although he added that the city may be within its rights to adopt the rule.
Since rumors first circulated that the Riggi family had bought the home, members of the community have questioned why the prominent family would demolish an historic structure.
“Everyone has a right to their opinion, but there can still be discussion between reasonable people,” he said, adding that property owners have a right, with proper permitting, to demolish a structure.
When first contacted about purchasing the home, Michele Riggi said she did not know anything about the building. Carusone said she was probably taken by surprise at the time.
NYPost, 5/31/09, NYParks Commissioner Ash mansion sweetheart deal is truly shocking.
The state Parks Department commissioner has a sweetheart deal to rent for just peanuts a Victorian mansion on bucolic parkland.
Carol Ash pays $713 a month for the mansion, which is located on an eight-acre section of Tallman Mountain State Park in Rockland County and is inaccessible to the public, The Post has learned.
The house, in Sparkill, could fetch $2.5 million on the open market or bring in $4,500 to $7,500 in monthly rent to help fill state coffers, according to a local broker.
Ash is one of about 1,250 state workers, including 69 in the Parks Department, who get cut-rate housing -- some paying less than $100 a month, according to information obtained by The Post from the Office of state Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli.
The accommodations also include trailers used by correction officers on prison grounds and houses for college presidents.
The assistant manager of Heckscher State Park, in Long Island, rents a shingled house with a turret for $856 a month, less than half the price of rentals in the area.
The Parks Department tries to fill its homes "with people we know can take care of the properties," such as park managers, said Eileen Larrabee, a department spokeswoman.
Ash's deal goes back to 1999, when she was named director of the Palisades Interstate Park Commission. The commission controls who rents the house, and the revenue goes to the state.
In 2005, she led a public tour of the 1850s house, known as the Hopson-Swan Estate, and described it as a mansion with high ceilings, tall windows and "spacious interiors." It is on the National Register of Historic Places.
Ash, commissioner since 2007, kept the mansion despite working in Albany and living outside the capital in Rensselaerville. Her husband, Joshua Friedman, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist who works at Columbia University, has an 18-mile car ride from the house in the park.
Ash stays in the park mansion a few days a month, and her husband uses it as well, Larrabee said.
Larrabee also said Ash and Friedman are leaving the park, a decision made in March -- before The Post started asking about her living arrangements.
Rents for state houses are set by the Division of Budget based on the location and number of rooms.
No employee pays more than $902 a month, according to the Comptroller's Office.
melissa.klein@nypost.com
Carol Ash pays $713 a month for the mansion, which is located on an eight-acre section of Tallman Mountain State Park in Rockland County and is inaccessible to the public, The Post has learned.
The house, in Sparkill, could fetch $2.5 million on the open market or bring in $4,500 to $7,500 in monthly rent to help fill state coffers, according to a local broker.
Ash is one of about 1,250 state workers, including 69 in the Parks Department, who get cut-rate housing -- some paying less than $100 a month, according to information obtained by The Post from the Office of state Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli.
The accommodations also include trailers used by correction officers on prison grounds and houses for college presidents.
The assistant manager of Heckscher State Park, in Long Island, rents a shingled house with a turret for $856 a month, less than half the price of rentals in the area.
The Parks Department tries to fill its homes "with people we know can take care of the properties," such as park managers, said Eileen Larrabee, a department spokeswoman.
Ash's deal goes back to 1999, when she was named director of the Palisades Interstate Park Commission. The commission controls who rents the house, and the revenue goes to the state.
In 2005, she led a public tour of the 1850s house, known as the Hopson-Swan Estate, and described it as a mansion with high ceilings, tall windows and "spacious interiors." It is on the National Register of Historic Places.
Ash, commissioner since 2007, kept the mansion despite working in Albany and living outside the capital in Rensselaerville. Her husband, Joshua Friedman, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist who works at Columbia University, has an 18-mile car ride from the house in the park.
Ash stays in the park mansion a few days a month, and her husband uses it as well, Larrabee said.
Larrabee also said Ash and Friedman are leaving the park, a decision made in March -- before The Post started asking about her living arrangements.
Rents for state houses are set by the Division of Budget based on the location and number of rooms.
No employee pays more than $902 a month, according to the Comptroller's Office.
melissa.klein@nypost.com
Wednesday, June 03, 2009
yes, folks, let the peasants sweat outside the Victoria Pool while we all pay for Parks Commissioner Ash to live in a mansion.
You pay for N.Y. Parks Commissioner’s weekend placeBy student_bee_reporter ( June 1, 2009 at 5:34 pm) · Filed under NY Politics, student bee reporter
We can hope that New York State’s fiscal crisis helps flush out more news about wasteful spending such as this. The N.Y. Parks Commissioner occupies in a state-owned mansion on public land, and doesn’t even live in it full time.
Carol Ash pays $713 a month for the mansion, which is located on an eight-acre section of Tallman Mountain State Park in Rockland County and is inaccessible to the public, The Post has learned.
The house, in Sparkill, could fetch $2.5 million on the open market or bring in $4,500 to $7,500 in monthly rent to help fill state coffers, according to a local broker.
…
Ash, commissioner since 2007, kept the mansion despite working in Albany and living outside the capital in Rensselaerville. Her husband, Joshua Friedman, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist who works at Columbia University, has an 18-mile car ride from the house in the park.
Ash stays in the park mansion a few days a month, and her husband uses it as well…
She is one of over 1200 state employees who receive cut-rate housing. The Comptroller’s Office says none of them pay more than $902 a month. No doubt some of them must live on-premises for their work…. but come on, let’s get real. The state is cutting back and laying off workers, so let’s reset our priorities.
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We can hope that New York State’s fiscal crisis helps flush out more news about wasteful spending such as this. The N.Y. Parks Commissioner occupies in a state-owned mansion on public land, and doesn’t even live in it full time.
Carol Ash pays $713 a month for the mansion, which is located on an eight-acre section of Tallman Mountain State Park in Rockland County and is inaccessible to the public, The Post has learned.
The house, in Sparkill, could fetch $2.5 million on the open market or bring in $4,500 to $7,500 in monthly rent to help fill state coffers, according to a local broker.
…
Ash, commissioner since 2007, kept the mansion despite working in Albany and living outside the capital in Rensselaerville. Her husband, Joshua Friedman, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist who works at Columbia University, has an 18-mile car ride from the house in the park.
Ash stays in the park mansion a few days a month, and her husband uses it as well…
She is one of over 1200 state employees who receive cut-rate housing. The Comptroller’s Office says none of them pay more than $902 a month. No doubt some of them must live on-premises for their work…. but come on, let’s get real. The state is cutting back and laying off workers, so let’s reset our priorities.
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Related posts:
National Parks give 3 free weekends and Saratoga Spa State Park is jacking up the Victoria Pool fee to $8.
Fee-Free Weekends in Your National Parks
America’s Best Idea – the national parks – gets even better this summer with three fee-free weekends at more than 100 national parks that usually charge entrance fees*.
Mark your calendars for fee-free weekends this summer:
June 20-21, 2009 (Father’s Day weekend)
July 18-19, 2009
August 15-16, 2009
And to make the fun even more affordable, many national park concessioners are joining the National Park Service in welcoming visitors on this summer’s fee free weekends with the their own special offers.
Here’s a tip – many national parks never charge an entrance fee, so you can plan inexpensive visits year round!
For a list of family fun activities this summer, visit National Parks: The Place to Be for Family Fun.
*Fee waiver includes: entrance fees, commercial tour fees, and transportation entrance fees. Other fees such as reservation, camping, tours, concession and fees collected by third parties are not included unless stated otherwise.
America’s Best Idea – the national parks – gets even better this summer with three fee-free weekends at more than 100 national parks that usually charge entrance fees*.
Mark your calendars for fee-free weekends this summer:
June 20-21, 2009 (Father’s Day weekend)
July 18-19, 2009
August 15-16, 2009
And to make the fun even more affordable, many national park concessioners are joining the National Park Service in welcoming visitors on this summer’s fee free weekends with the their own special offers.
Here’s a tip – many national parks never charge an entrance fee, so you can plan inexpensive visits year round!
For a list of family fun activities this summer, visit National Parks: The Place to Be for Family Fun.
*Fee waiver includes: entrance fees, commercial tour fees, and transportation entrance fees. Other fees such as reservation, camping, tours, concession and fees collected by third parties are not included unless stated otherwise.
Tuesday, June 02, 2009
It's raining Chairs, Chairs, everywhere.
Saratoga Spa State Park we understand is busy buying $200+ apiece fancy chairs for the ice cream parlor instead of opening Victoria Pool. Let's see-70 chairs times $225 each comes to over $15,000. We are predicted to have the third beautiful weather weekend in a row since Memorial Day.
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Save the Victoria Pool Society went public after many years of quietly meeting with NYS Park administrators.Victoria Pool was falling apart by 2003.
Some of your comments lead us to believe you do not understand what bad shape the Victoria Pool was in by 2003. For many years Save the Victoria Pool Society members quietly met with Saratoga Spa State Park administrators alarmed at the steady deterioration and nothing was done. We went public only after our pleas were ignored year after year.
Victoria Pool may open one week earlier,keep your fingers crossed folks.
Group pushes for early pool opening at Spa State Park
Sunday, May 31, 2009
By PAUL POST
The Saratogian
SARATOGA SPRINGS — State parks officials expect to open Victoria Pool on Saturday, June 27, but might opt for a week earlier if conditions permit.
However, that’s still not early enough for Save the Victoria Pool Society members, who gathered at the site recently to protest its scheduled opening.
The cash-strapped state could make money by opening the pool Memorial Day weekend or early June, society co-founder Louise Goldstein said. But parks officials say it takes at least five people to staff the pool, and if weather doesn’t cooperate, it actually loses money.
“It’s a balancing act,” said Robert Kuhn, assistant regional parks commissioner. “Monday (May 25) was a beautiful day. If people really wanted to go swimming, they could have gone to one of our beaches. We were almost turning people away at Moreau Lake State Park. At this point, the pool water is still so cold that most people don’t want to go in. You might get a few sunbathers. But if it’s cloudy and nobody shows up, you lose money.”
Moreau Lake’s beach stayed open throughout Memorial Day weekend because the park’s campgrounds were 98 percent full.
Staffing the pool requires three lifeguards, a certified pool operator and someone to take money. Pool fees are going up this year from $6 to $8 for adults. The cost for children is $4.
Several years ago, the state spent $1.5 million to upgrade Victoria Pool, located behind the Gideon Putnam Hotel & Resort. “It’s our (taxpayer) money they spent and it’s just sitting there,” Goldstein said. “People would rather go to a hotel that has a pool open.”
She said many people are taking vacations close to home this year, another reason the pool should open earlier.
“A third of our very short summer should not be denied state residents whose hard-earned money paid to save it,” Goldstein said.
The park’s Peerless Pool is also scheduled to open on Saturday, June 27. Kuhn said the pools might open a week earlier if lifeguards are trained, water quality is sufficient and the weather cooperates.
Goldstein also protested the increased pool fee, saying it’s coming at a time when people can least afford it.
Statewide, the parks department was hit hard by this year’s fiscal crisis and forced to scale back or close a variety of facilities. Both the Victoria and Peerless pools will close an hour earlier (6 p.m.) and Peerless Pool will be closed Tuesdays. Use was lightest on Tuesdays the past several years, Kuhn said.
Goldstein said Tuesday is the only day Saratoga Race Course workers can go to the pool, when the track is dark. Kuhn said most of the workers go to Victoria Pool anyway, to avoid large numbers of camp children at Peerless Pool.
To access Peerless Pool, visitors must go through one of Spa State Park’s admission booths and pay a $6 day-use fee. On top of that there’s a pool fee, $2 for adults and $1 for children.
Park visitors can get to Victoria Pool via Avenue of the Pines, which can be accessed without going through an admission booth.
Spa State Park pools
Victoria Pool
ä Fee — $8 adults, $4 children
Peerless Pool
ä Fee — $6 park day-use plus $2 adults, $1 children for pool use.
ä Opening — Saturday, June 27 (both pools). Possibly one week earlier if conditions permit.
URL: http://www.saratogian.com/articles/2009/05/31/news/doc4a21f47d2eeeb049132421.prt
© 2009 saratogian.com, a Journal Register Property
Monday, May 25, 2009
Saturday, May 23, 2009
tree nursery still needs saving
Tree nursery’s fate uncertain
The Saratoga County Board of Supervisors threw their support behind the Saratoga Tree Nursery earlier this week.
The reason: state officials have indicated the nursery may be shuttered as a way to help close the budget gap. The 250-acre nursery, with a staff of ten, commands a budget of around $750,000 which is offset by $250,000 in revenue.
County officials, in their resolution, said state officials should address the nursery’s business plan to “make it more self supporting.” They also said buying trees from other sources will cost the state more than they can save by shutting down the operation.
The nursery, adjacent to Saratoga Spa State Park, once produced as many as 15 million seeds a year for reforestation efforts across the state. They now produce around 1.5 million seeds a year.
David Lee, the nursery manager, told the Post Star in January that the facility was being “strongly looked at” for closure. Today, he said it remains unclear if state officials will move to shut down the facility, which opened in 1902 and is the last remaining state-run nursery.
“At this point, we’re still operating as normal,” Lee said.
Photo: Forester Michael Echnter shows a button bush seed sample while technician Mike Svoboda takes a break from sorting seeds at nursery in January.
– Drew Kerr
post star
The Saratoga County Board of Supervisors threw their support behind the Saratoga Tree Nursery earlier this week.
The reason: state officials have indicated the nursery may be shuttered as a way to help close the budget gap. The 250-acre nursery, with a staff of ten, commands a budget of around $750,000 which is offset by $250,000 in revenue.
County officials, in their resolution, said state officials should address the nursery’s business plan to “make it more self supporting.” They also said buying trees from other sources will cost the state more than they can save by shutting down the operation.
The nursery, adjacent to Saratoga Spa State Park, once produced as many as 15 million seeds a year for reforestation efforts across the state. They now produce around 1.5 million seeds a year.
David Lee, the nursery manager, told the Post Star in January that the facility was being “strongly looked at” for closure. Today, he said it remains unclear if state officials will move to shut down the facility, which opened in 1902 and is the last remaining state-run nursery.
“At this point, we’re still operating as normal,” Lee said.
Photo: Forester Michael Echnter shows a button bush seed sample while technician Mike Svoboda takes a break from sorting seeds at nursery in January.
– Drew Kerr
post star
Sunday, May 17, 2009
this comment bears repeating to be sure that everyone sees it. We can only hope the powers-that-be will take a hint for the Victoria/Peerless Pools
George said...
By MARIA McBRIDE BUCCIFERRO, For the Saratogian
BALLSTON SPA —Some good news for village kids: The public swimming pool in Kelley Park will open two weeks earlier this year, weather permitting, and fees will stay the same as last summer.
The pool is scheduled to open at noon June 13, with weekend hours and a shortened schedule on weekdays, trustee Donna Thomas told the Village Board Monday night. The hours will be “weather-driven. If it’s 60 degrees and there’s not anyone in the water,” the pool will close, she said.
Sign-ups for summer swimming lessons will be held from 9 a.m. to noon June 27 and 28. Information will be sent home from the schools and will be posted on village bulletin boards.
More than 500 children usually take lessons. Despite increased costs for payroll, chlorine and other pool expenses, fees won’t go up. “We‘d love to raise them,” said Thomas, but in today’s economy, rates will stay the same.
Two years ago, the board voted to increase the price for a seasonal pool pass from $25 to $35, but kept the daily pool rate of $2.
8:43 AM
By MARIA McBRIDE BUCCIFERRO, For the Saratogian
BALLSTON SPA —Some good news for village kids: The public swimming pool in Kelley Park will open two weeks earlier this year, weather permitting, and fees will stay the same as last summer.
The pool is scheduled to open at noon June 13, with weekend hours and a shortened schedule on weekdays, trustee Donna Thomas told the Village Board Monday night. The hours will be “weather-driven. If it’s 60 degrees and there’s not anyone in the water,” the pool will close, she said.
Sign-ups for summer swimming lessons will be held from 9 a.m. to noon June 27 and 28. Information will be sent home from the schools and will be posted on village bulletin boards.
More than 500 children usually take lessons. Despite increased costs for payroll, chlorine and other pool expenses, fees won’t go up. “We‘d love to raise them,” said Thomas, but in today’s economy, rates will stay the same.
Two years ago, the board voted to increase the price for a seasonal pool pass from $25 to $35, but kept the daily pool rate of $2.
8:43 AM
Friday, May 15, 2009
We do not understand why the Victoria Pool cannot be opened for Memorial Day? It is filled and ready to go.
King of the Victoria Pool and Board Member, Stanton, enjoying being poolside. The pool is filled and just needs algae cleaned up on the bottom. It should be opened as soon as possible.
Thursday, May 14, 2009
SPAC losing members ever since benefits cut out 50% ticket discounts and NYCBallet cut to two weeks.
By PAUL POST, The Saratogian
SARATOGA SPRINGS —Byproducts of a negative economy include pent-up demand for entertainment and people taking closer-to-home vacations.
Saratoga Performing Arts Center is banking on such trends to produce positive results during a 2009 summer season that begins just nine days from now.
While touting SPAC’s relatively strong fiscal condition, officials Wednesday expressed concerned about the fate of New York City Ballet and Philadelphia Orchestra, both of which continue to suffer major attendance and financial losses.
"It’s critical that we go to these performances and get our friends to go," Treasurer Abe Lackman told the roughly 80 people gathered at SPAC’s annual membership meeting. "There is a trend here that is extremely worrisome."
Financial conditions have forced the ballet to cut its Saratoga residency from three to two weeks.
"The ballet loses over
$1 million when they’re up here," SPAC Chairman William Dake said. "It was their decision. They have such a serious financial position that they had to go ahead and cut it. I’m very concerned about the orchestra as well. They also have very severe financial difficulties."
Major banks and corporations that typically support the arts can no longer do so, at least not at past levels.
"History doesn’t mean much these days," Dake said. "We’re in a rapidly changing world."
The economy continues to impact all segments of the sports and entertainment industry almost daily. Major racetracks such as Churchill Downs and Del Mar have cut back their schedules, and empty seats at the new Yankee Stadium have been highly publicized since last month’s opening.
"NASCAR, the hottest thing in the world last year, is suffering these days," Dake said.
But he said SPAC’s location, population base and program flexibility puts it in a position to survive the current economic storm. Classical events have been expanded this year to include two modern dance companies. In the future, more such offerings or touring ballet companies might be added to complement New York City Ballet.
In addition, the annual Freihofer’s Jazz Festival along with pop and rock concerts help SPAC appeal to a variety of interest groups.
SPAC’s box office opened Sunday and preseason ticket sales, accounting for 20 percent of admissions revenue, appear strong, Chief Financial Officer Richard Geary said. "I think we’re going to be okay if we can get people to come this summer," he said.
The arts center realized its fourth straight year of finishing in the black in 2008. Signaling a mixed financial bag, however, Geary said 2009 memberships are 10 percent behind last year’s. SPAC expects to conduct a large direct-mail campaign soon to get more people on board.
"We really have to see, what does our audience want? How do we get it? And how do we get it for less?" SPAC President Marcia White said.
Four years ago, several parties made substantial multi-year gifts to SPAC, whose final installments are due this year. White said she continues to seek new private and business sponsorships. GlobalFoundries, the firm expected to build a computer chip plant in Malta, has already become a SPAC member and has expressed interest in further involvement, she said.
"On one hand we are in very, very good shape," Dake said. "On the other hand, it’s chaos out there. In these economic times you have to accept that everything’s on the table."
What SPAC did
Saratoga Performing Arts Center’s Board of Directors took action on the following items Wednesday at the Hall of Springs in Saratoga Spa State Park.
ä Elected — Carol Farmer, new board member. Farmer is the wife of noted thoroughbred horse owner Tracy Farmer. The couple has a summer home in Saratoga Springs. She is a noted philanthropist and supporter of the University of Kentucky, is on the board of Kentucky Children’s Hospital and co-chairs the new Chandler Hospital’s Art Committee.
She serves on the boards of the National Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation and Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. It’s hoped that Farmer’s membership will encourage other horse owners to become involved with SPAC, President Marcia White said.
ä Officers — Made the following appointments for 2009/10 – Honorary Chair Marylou Whitney; Chairman William Dake; Vice Chairman E. Stewart Jones; Secretary Ed Lewi; Treasurer Abe Lackman; President Marcia White.
ä Re-elected — Matthew Bender, John Gilbert, George Hearst, Lawrence King, Eleanor Mullaney, John Nigro, Arthur Roth were re-elected to new three-year terms on the board.
ä Announced — New "Stay Green" recycling campaign. SPAC’s more than 300,000 visitors will be encouraged to place recyclables in bins
located at strategic points around the grounds. This includes 70 bins for beverages and cardboard bins for the thousands of boxes brought to SPAC by vendors and concessionaires.
Upcoming events
Several programs are planned this month as part of SPAC’s extended season. They are:
ä May 23 – Boys and Girls Choir of Harlem Alumni
Ensemble.
ä May 29 – Rachael Price.
ä May 30 – Arturo O’Farrill & The Afro Latin Jazz
Orchestra.
ä For information call 584-9330 or see the Web site: www.spac.org
Comments
The following are comments from the readers. In no way do they represent the view of saratogian.com.
kaiser soze wrote on May 14, 2009 10:52 AM:
" SPAC HAS TIRIED EVERYTHING BUT LOWERING PRICES.
This will turn out to be SPAC’S worst season ever. Marcia J. White continues to run the organization for her own benefit. She renewed the give away contract with live nation continues to use Ticketmaster instead of her own box office there bye giving more of SPAC’S income to the corporate giant.
And when the dust is settled and SPAC is in ruins she will blame everyone one but herself.
This is a nursing shortage Marcia go do what you do best.
But then again nurses don’t make 120000 or have a Manhattan apartment or a free BMW "
Report Abuse
catdeli wrote on May 14, 2009 12:42 PM:
" I began attending SPAC in 1973 for rock concerts and it was the best place to see a show. The lawn on a nice Summer night can't be beat. I saw many memorable shows there over the years but the restrictive policies and police state mindset of the place has turned me off to ever going again. Overeager security and a "get 'em in and treat 'em like cattle" operating style has resulted in a totally unenjoyable experience. Now that I am older, I have no time for this kind of treatment after I have paid my money to have a night of entertainment. Last times I went to a show was several years ago when security walked the aisles constantly for no discernable reason other than to distract from the performers onstage. Searches at the gate included removal of hats! I was expecting to have to drop trou next. A catle pen "Beer Garden" is humiliating and a nuisance. Not being able to take even water or soda into the amphitheater seats is an outrageous policy. Contrast this senario with that of a recent visit to Proctor's in Schenectady where we were actively encouraged to enjoy our night out with little restrictive conditions and were treated like the responsible adults that we are by the courteous staff. We will certainly return THERE. SPAC is poisoning itself from within and blaming the Capital District. We stay away for good reason. "
Report Abuse
one eyed fatman wrote on May 14, 2009 1:47 PM:
" Spac just doesn’t get it. We just saw the Moscow ballet in Proctors and paid 36 dollars for a great seat with no hidden service fees or handling fees. Spac wants the Ballet to fail so there will be more dates open for Live{lice} nation along with more money for perks for Marcia.
And just like George Bush who said You’re doing a hell of a job, Brownie in Hurricane Katrina's aftermath
Dake will come out and say You're doing a hell of a job,Marcia.
Too bad about the ballet leaving, "
Report Abuse
CP12345 wrote on May 14, 2009 2:16 PM:
" why is attendence down?
#1 - ridiculous prices for concert tickets and fees (considerably more than at the Syracuse NYS Fair or Darian Lake / Buffalo Outdoor Amplitheater)
#2- adults wanting to drink a beer are coralled like cattle into this fenced area to spend $10 a drink. Aside from ridiculous prices, you have no view of the stage while in here.
#3- the lawn area is just too crowded. The mall like food court and restrooms should have been built further back leaving more viewing / seating area on the lawn.
#4 - the food is bad- years ago there was a grill to buy from, or you just brought in a cooler with your own.
I grew up in Saratoga and SPAC was a blast. Not anymore. Lawn seats were under $30 and you were allowed to bring in coolers with drinks / food.
But lets not worry- the board of directors will spend countless hours and I am sure excess money on meetings / lunches / etc to try to figure out these common sense issues. "
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kaiser soze wrote on May 14, 2009 4:11 PM:
" When the Yankees seats went unsold they cut price is that a concept you can understand Dake? "
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SARATOGA SPRINGS —Byproducts of a negative economy include pent-up demand for entertainment and people taking closer-to-home vacations.
Saratoga Performing Arts Center is banking on such trends to produce positive results during a 2009 summer season that begins just nine days from now.
While touting SPAC’s relatively strong fiscal condition, officials Wednesday expressed concerned about the fate of New York City Ballet and Philadelphia Orchestra, both of which continue to suffer major attendance and financial losses.
"It’s critical that we go to these performances and get our friends to go," Treasurer Abe Lackman told the roughly 80 people gathered at SPAC’s annual membership meeting. "There is a trend here that is extremely worrisome."
Financial conditions have forced the ballet to cut its Saratoga residency from three to two weeks.
"The ballet loses over
$1 million when they’re up here," SPAC Chairman William Dake said. "It was their decision. They have such a serious financial position that they had to go ahead and cut it. I’m very concerned about the orchestra as well. They also have very severe financial difficulties."
Major banks and corporations that typically support the arts can no longer do so, at least not at past levels.
"History doesn’t mean much these days," Dake said. "We’re in a rapidly changing world."
The economy continues to impact all segments of the sports and entertainment industry almost daily. Major racetracks such as Churchill Downs and Del Mar have cut back their schedules, and empty seats at the new Yankee Stadium have been highly publicized since last month’s opening.
"NASCAR, the hottest thing in the world last year, is suffering these days," Dake said.
But he said SPAC’s location, population base and program flexibility puts it in a position to survive the current economic storm. Classical events have been expanded this year to include two modern dance companies. In the future, more such offerings or touring ballet companies might be added to complement New York City Ballet.
In addition, the annual Freihofer’s Jazz Festival along with pop and rock concerts help SPAC appeal to a variety of interest groups.
SPAC’s box office opened Sunday and preseason ticket sales, accounting for 20 percent of admissions revenue, appear strong, Chief Financial Officer Richard Geary said. "I think we’re going to be okay if we can get people to come this summer," he said.
The arts center realized its fourth straight year of finishing in the black in 2008. Signaling a mixed financial bag, however, Geary said 2009 memberships are 10 percent behind last year’s. SPAC expects to conduct a large direct-mail campaign soon to get more people on board.
"We really have to see, what does our audience want? How do we get it? And how do we get it for less?" SPAC President Marcia White said.
Four years ago, several parties made substantial multi-year gifts to SPAC, whose final installments are due this year. White said she continues to seek new private and business sponsorships. GlobalFoundries, the firm expected to build a computer chip plant in Malta, has already become a SPAC member and has expressed interest in further involvement, she said.
"On one hand we are in very, very good shape," Dake said. "On the other hand, it’s chaos out there. In these economic times you have to accept that everything’s on the table."
What SPAC did
Saratoga Performing Arts Center’s Board of Directors took action on the following items Wednesday at the Hall of Springs in Saratoga Spa State Park.
ä Elected — Carol Farmer, new board member. Farmer is the wife of noted thoroughbred horse owner Tracy Farmer. The couple has a summer home in Saratoga Springs. She is a noted philanthropist and supporter of the University of Kentucky, is on the board of Kentucky Children’s Hospital and co-chairs the new Chandler Hospital’s Art Committee.
She serves on the boards of the National Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation and Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. It’s hoped that Farmer’s membership will encourage other horse owners to become involved with SPAC, President Marcia White said.
ä Officers — Made the following appointments for 2009/10 – Honorary Chair Marylou Whitney; Chairman William Dake; Vice Chairman E. Stewart Jones; Secretary Ed Lewi; Treasurer Abe Lackman; President Marcia White.
ä Re-elected — Matthew Bender, John Gilbert, George Hearst, Lawrence King, Eleanor Mullaney, John Nigro, Arthur Roth were re-elected to new three-year terms on the board.
ä Announced — New "Stay Green" recycling campaign. SPAC’s more than 300,000 visitors will be encouraged to place recyclables in bins
located at strategic points around the grounds. This includes 70 bins for beverages and cardboard bins for the thousands of boxes brought to SPAC by vendors and concessionaires.
Upcoming events
Several programs are planned this month as part of SPAC’s extended season. They are:
ä May 23 – Boys and Girls Choir of Harlem Alumni
Ensemble.
ä May 29 – Rachael Price.
ä May 30 – Arturo O’Farrill & The Afro Latin Jazz
Orchestra.
ä For information call 584-9330 or see the Web site: www.spac.org
Comments
The following are comments from the readers. In no way do they represent the view of saratogian.com.
kaiser soze wrote on May 14, 2009 10:52 AM:
" SPAC HAS TIRIED EVERYTHING BUT LOWERING PRICES.
This will turn out to be SPAC’S worst season ever. Marcia J. White continues to run the organization for her own benefit. She renewed the give away contract with live nation continues to use Ticketmaster instead of her own box office there bye giving more of SPAC’S income to the corporate giant.
And when the dust is settled and SPAC is in ruins she will blame everyone one but herself.
This is a nursing shortage Marcia go do what you do best.
But then again nurses don’t make 120000 or have a Manhattan apartment or a free BMW "
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catdeli wrote on May 14, 2009 12:42 PM:
" I began attending SPAC in 1973 for rock concerts and it was the best place to see a show. The lawn on a nice Summer night can't be beat. I saw many memorable shows there over the years but the restrictive policies and police state mindset of the place has turned me off to ever going again. Overeager security and a "get 'em in and treat 'em like cattle" operating style has resulted in a totally unenjoyable experience. Now that I am older, I have no time for this kind of treatment after I have paid my money to have a night of entertainment. Last times I went to a show was several years ago when security walked the aisles constantly for no discernable reason other than to distract from the performers onstage. Searches at the gate included removal of hats! I was expecting to have to drop trou next. A catle pen "Beer Garden" is humiliating and a nuisance. Not being able to take even water or soda into the amphitheater seats is an outrageous policy. Contrast this senario with that of a recent visit to Proctor's in Schenectady where we were actively encouraged to enjoy our night out with little restrictive conditions and were treated like the responsible adults that we are by the courteous staff. We will certainly return THERE. SPAC is poisoning itself from within and blaming the Capital District. We stay away for good reason. "
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one eyed fatman wrote on May 14, 2009 1:47 PM:
" Spac just doesn’t get it. We just saw the Moscow ballet in Proctors and paid 36 dollars for a great seat with no hidden service fees or handling fees. Spac wants the Ballet to fail so there will be more dates open for Live{lice} nation along with more money for perks for Marcia.
And just like George Bush who said You’re doing a hell of a job, Brownie in Hurricane Katrina's aftermath
Dake will come out and say You're doing a hell of a job,Marcia.
Too bad about the ballet leaving, "
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CP12345 wrote on May 14, 2009 2:16 PM:
" why is attendence down?
#1 - ridiculous prices for concert tickets and fees (considerably more than at the Syracuse NYS Fair or Darian Lake / Buffalo Outdoor Amplitheater)
#2- adults wanting to drink a beer are coralled like cattle into this fenced area to spend $10 a drink. Aside from ridiculous prices, you have no view of the stage while in here.
#3- the lawn area is just too crowded. The mall like food court and restrooms should have been built further back leaving more viewing / seating area on the lawn.
#4 - the food is bad- years ago there was a grill to buy from, or you just brought in a cooler with your own.
I grew up in Saratoga and SPAC was a blast. Not anymore. Lawn seats were under $30 and you were allowed to bring in coolers with drinks / food.
But lets not worry- the board of directors will spend countless hours and I am sure excess money on meetings / lunches / etc to try to figure out these common sense issues. "
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kaiser soze wrote on May 14, 2009 4:11 PM:
" When the Yankees seats went unsold they cut price is that a concept you can understand Dake? "
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Wednesday, May 13, 2009
Victoria Pool to cost $8 and parking fees going up at Saratoga Spa State Park.
Spa State Park pool, parking fees to change
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
SARATOGA SPRINGS — Pool and parking fees at the Spa State Park are set to change this year, according to the 2009 operation schedule released by the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation.
Changes to the fees and operating schedule at Saratoga Spa State Park are part of a region-wide plan to adjust services to meet patron demand, promote underutilized facilities and implement cost-saving measures during a period of state budget reductions.
The contact stations opened for weekends May 2 and will be open everyday starting May 23 to collect a $6 vehicle use fee (VUF) for entrance into the southern end of the park through Oct. 12. The southern end of the park includes the Peerless Pool complex, Geyser Creek picnic area and all of the park’s eight picnic pavilions, which are available for rental.
The Victoria Pool and the Peerless Pool complex will open Saturday, June 27, and will close for the season Monday, Sept. 7. The Victoria Pool will be open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. seven days a week. The Peerless Pool complex will be open six days a week from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. The complex will be closed Tuesdays throughout the summer.
The pool fee at the Victoria Pool will be $8 per adult and $4 per child. The pool fee at the Peerless Pool will be $2 per adult and $1 per child. The park has raised the entrance fee at the Victoria Pool and lowered the entrance fee at the Peerless Pool in an effort to encourage families and other pool-goers to patronize the Peerless Pool complex. In prior years, the Victoria Pool has suffered from overcrowding and intermittent closure because of its limited capacity of 344 patrons. The Peerless Pool complex can accommodate more than 1,000 patrons and has amenities like water slides, a kiddie pool, a zero-entry pool, a new playground and picnic areas nearby that are not available at the Victoria Pool.
The park is also increasing parking fees this year for Live Nation rock concert events to encourage carpooling and mass transportation to the event; reduce negative impacts to the park; and to offset the extra security, life safety and clean-up costs associated with the rock concert series. On nights when there is a rock concert at the Saratoga Performing Arts Center (SPAC), the fee for parking in Saratoga Spa State Park will be increased to $10. The VUF for concert patrons entering the park will be raised from $6 to $10 when the SPAC Route 50 parking lots are opened for the event. Typically, the Route 50 lots open two hours before showtime, or three hours before showtime for the larger events. Parking at the Route 50 parking lots will continue to be free of charge. The $10 parking fee will only apply to concert-goers parking in the park. The fee will be applied in both the southern end of the park, where it has traditionally been collected at the contact stations, and in the northern end of the park when and where lawn parking is required within the main campus or mall.
A parking fee will not be charged for SPAC’s classical programming.
Sunday, May 10, 2009
House at Saratoga Spa State Park being leased by Private Waldorf School of Saratoga Springs
We assume the private Waldorf School is paying for the renovations to 45 Kadeross Ave. part of Saratoga Spa State Park(road behind pj's bar-b-q). They have leased the property for a year round "forest kindergarten" for their students.
The public is very upset that several cutbacks to Saratoga Spa State Park are affecting both public pools this summer.
Fiscal difficulties will close the Peerless Pool on Tuesdays in 2009 and close both the Victoria and Peerless Pools one hour early. Rumor also has it that the Victoria Pool fee is being raised to $8. It is already the most expensive State pool admission at $6.
Tuesday, May 05, 2009
Forest kindergarten hosted by Saratoga spa State Park
Forest kindergartenMay 4, 2009 at 11:47 am by Dennis Yusko, Staff writer
Up to 40 area kindergarten students will attend class outdoors all year long under a new agreement between the Waldorf School of Saratoga Springs and the Saratoga Spa State Park.
The school’s new “Forest Kindergarten” program will launch in September on state park land off Kaydeross Avenue. The school and park are doing minor renovations to a farmhouse at the site and will build a garden on a half-acre of mowed land. Students will use the 300 acres of State Park forest land as their classroom.
“They will spend the vast majority of their days outdoors, even in the winter,” Gina Michelin, the school’s development director said. The students would be brought in the farmhouse’s two traditional classrooms on prohibitively cold or wet days, she said.
The program is unique to the U.S., though countries like Denmark have tried nature-based approaches to education since the 1950s, said Michelin, whose 4-year-old son Sam is one of 20 children already enrolled in the program. The program can accept up to 40 students, she said.
The outdoor classroom aims to battle “nature deficit disorder,” or a lack of free, outdoor play in the lives of today’s children and how it is negatively impacting their physical, emotional and intellectual health, the school says.
Up to 40 area kindergarten students will attend class outdoors all year long under a new agreement between the Waldorf School of Saratoga Springs and the Saratoga Spa State Park.
The school’s new “Forest Kindergarten” program will launch in September on state park land off Kaydeross Avenue. The school and park are doing minor renovations to a farmhouse at the site and will build a garden on a half-acre of mowed land. Students will use the 300 acres of State Park forest land as their classroom.
“They will spend the vast majority of their days outdoors, even in the winter,” Gina Michelin, the school’s development director said. The students would be brought in the farmhouse’s two traditional classrooms on prohibitively cold or wet days, she said.
The program is unique to the U.S., though countries like Denmark have tried nature-based approaches to education since the 1950s, said Michelin, whose 4-year-old son Sam is one of 20 children already enrolled in the program. The program can accept up to 40 students, she said.
The outdoor classroom aims to battle “nature deficit disorder,” or a lack of free, outdoor play in the lives of today’s children and how it is negatively impacting their physical, emotional and intellectual health, the school says.
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