Thursday, December 27, 2012

Advisory: Snow Emergency in Effect for the City of Albany

Please be advised that the City of Albany has issued a SNOW EMERGENCY that will begin at 8:00 PM on Thursday, December 27, 2012 at which time all normal parking rules and regulations are temporarily suspended.

During the first 24 hours of the snow emergency all vehicles must be parked on the even numbered side of the street.

Beginning at 8:00 P.M. Friday, December 28, 2012 all vehicles must be parked on the odd numbered side of the street for the next 24-hour period.

If you are parked on the wrong side of the street during the snow emergency your car will be ticketed and may result in it being towed.

After the second 24-hour period please stay tuned for further announcements. For SNOW EMERGENCY information, call 476-SNOW or log into the city of Albany’s website at www.ALBANYNY.GOV.


If your vehicle has been towed, call Albany Police Department at 438-4000 for information on how to retrieve your vehicle. Snow emergency brochures, which outline all of the Snow Emergency procedures, can be picked up at any City firehouse, police station or branches of the Albany Public Library. Thank you for your cooperation.

Snow Emergency Additional Parking

Due to the snow emergency declared for the City of Albany to start at 8:00 p.m. December 27, 2012, the City of Albany has made available additional parking located at various lots in the city the locations are as follows:

ARBOR HILL/SHERIDAN HOLLOW
1. PARKING AREA ADJOINING ARBOR HILL SOFTBALL FIELD
(NORTH LARK ST.)
2. 230 COLONIE ST. (PLAYGROUND LOT)
3. 178 COLONIE ST. (PLAYGROUND LOT)
4. TEN BROECK MANSION (PARKING LOT & SIDEWALK WEST END)
5. 124 SECOND STREET (PLAYGROUND LOT)

PINE HILLS
1. RIDGEFIELD PARK (ENTER ON PARTRIDGE ST.)
2. WOODLAWN PARK LITTLE LEAGUE
3. WATERSON PARK (WESTLAND HILLS) ENTER ON COLVIN AVE.
4. WASHINGTON PARK (ALL ROADWAYS AND PARKING AREAS)
SOUTH END
1. KRANK PARK AREA
2. FRANKLIN ST. (BETWEEN SCHUYLER & BASSETT STS. – EAST SIDE)
3. LINCOLN PARK (ALL INTERIOR ROADWAYS & PARKING AREA)
4. FRISBEE AVENUE PARKING LOT BETWEEN SECOND AVE. AND MCCARTY AVE.
CENTER SQUARE/MANSION
1. 77 PHILIP ST. (PLAYGROUND)
2. 88 PHILIP ST. (PLAYGROUND)
3. 179 MYRTLE AVE. (LOT IN FRONT OF COMMUNITY GARDENS)
4. WASHINGTON PARK (ALL ROADWAYS AND PARKING AREAS)

NORTH ALBANY
1. PARKING AREA ACROSS FROM NORTH ALBANY AMERICAN LEGION POST

WEST END
1. BLEECKER STADIUM (PARKING AREA & ROADWAYS)
2. NORTH SIDE OF LIVINGSTON AVE. (OPPOSITE JUDSON ST.) Parking Lot

Thursday, December 20, 2012

ALBANY PUBLIC LIBRARY'S HOLIDAY SCHEDULE

Visions of sugarplums -- and New Year's Eve toasts -- dance in our heads

With Christmas and the New Year almost upon us, we want to remind you about the library's holiday schedule of service. All APL locations will be:

Closed all day on Monday, Dec. 24
Closed all day on Tuesday, Dec. 25
Closing early at 5:30 pm on Monday, Dec. 31
Closed all day on Tuesday, Jan. 1

From everyone at APL, have a safe and fun holiday season! And don't forget to stock up on great books and DVDs for those extra days off from work and school.

Friday, December 14, 2012

Get Through the Holiday Blues

The holidays aren't joyous for everyone. This time of year can bring stress and feelings of loneliness. Exercise, focusing on positive relationships, and doing things that you find rewarding can help with depression. Get tips on what to do if you feel depressed.

Keep in mind that winter depression could be a sign of seasonal affective disorder (SAD), which may be caused by the lack of sunlight. Treatment for SAD is much like other forms of depression, but also involves light therapy.

Get more holiday tips.

Thursday, December 13, 2012

CDTA to shift to exclusive use of monthly Rolling Swiper passes

The Capital District Transportation Authority (CDTA) will shift to the exclusive use of monthly Rolling Swiper passes beginning January 1, 2013. Rolling Swipers are offered at the same price as monthly passes while providing customers with more flexibility and convenience.

CDTA's 5-day and 7-day calendar passes will be replaced by their Rolling Swiper equivalents. A public education campaign entitled We're on your schedule now is underway to educate customers on the transition, and the added benefits of more flexibility, convenience and value.

The Rolling Swiper is a discounted monthly pass in 5-day ($55) and 7-day ($65) options, which are also available to eligible half fare customers. Rolling Swipers allow riders to start using their pass at any time, and customers who wish to remain on a calendar schedule just need to validate their new rolling pass at the beginning of the month. Rolling Swipers include a start date and end date printed on the back of the card for tracking convenience.

How Rolling Swipers work:
- Purchase either 5-day or 7-day Rolling Swiper at any CDTA sales
outlet or online
- Insert Rolling Swiper into the farebox for validation
- Swipe and go every time thereafter for a full month of rides
- Passes can be purchased and activated at any time
- Customers control their own schedule and maintain full value of
their pass
- Corporate partners have a simplified administrative process with
no returns

Improved technology over the past decade has taken CDTA customers from bus tokens to swipeable fare media. Rolling Swipers were first introduced in 2009 and now constitute 30% of pass sales across the system with more than half of CDTA customers using prepayment.

Rolling Swipers are available at cdta.org, at area Price Chopper Supermarkets, Hannaford Supermarkets, and ShopRite supermarkets, select Keybank locations and the CDTA Sales Center at 85 Watervliet Avenue in Albany. Window hours at the Sales Center are Monday-Friday from 9:00am - 5:00pm)

Wednesday, December 12, 2012

NYCLU program on cable channel 18 in Albany

A program from the Project Liberty series produced by the NYCLU will appear on Channel 18 in Albany. The program will air on the following dates.

Wednesday December 12 at 3 pm
Thursday December 13 at 5 pm
Friday December 14 at 5 pm
Saturday December 15 at 2 pm

Here is the description from NYCLU:

Project Liberty, the New York Civil Liberties Union’s very own television show, is back and broadcasting across New York State. Our fourth episode highlights the NYCLU’s relentless fight to guarantee that New York’s criminal justice system respects the rights of all New Yorker’s, not just those who can afford their own Johnny Cochran.

This episode marks five years since we filed Hurrell-Haring v. State of New York – our landmark, class-action lawsuit challenging New York’s failed system for providing effective legal counsel to poor people accused of crimes.

It features two of our lead plaintiffs, Kimberly Hurrell-Haring and Jackie Winbrone, whose heart-wrenching stories provide viewers unique insight into how the state’s fractured and dysfunctional public defense system is ruining people’s lives.

On the advice of her now-disbarred public defender, Kimberly pleaded guilty to a much more serious crime than the one she committed. As a result, the mother-of-two lost her job and her home. Jackie’s assigned counsel was missing in action as she languished in jail for a crime she did not commit. Her husband died during the 52 days she was incarcerated.

NYCLU Senior Staff Attorney Corey Stoughton, lead counsel on the case, explains the over-arching consequences of New York’s five-decade long failure to provide a functional public defense system. Each day in courtrooms across New York, people face judge and prosecutor without a lawyer accompanying them. When lawyers do appear, they struggle under huge caseloads to find time to investigate accusations and properly counsel clients about their rights.

Barrie Scheck, co-founder and director of the Innocence Project, and Thomas Giovanni, counsel to the Justice Program at the Brennan Center for Justice, offer perspective on grave harms that occur when our adversarial process is permanently skewed to favor prosecutors.

The whole point of this process is to ensure that the right people go to jail. When the system breaks down, people’s lives are upended – just ask Jackie and Kimberly.

For more information or to find out when Project Liberty will air on your local cable access station, visit our website: nyclu.org

Friday, December 07, 2012

C-SPAN at UAlbany

The M.E. Grenander Department of Special Collections and Archives is prominently featured on C-SPAN2’s BOOKTV show that will broadcast on Saturday December 8 at 12:00 noon on CSPAN2. The program is part of C-SPAN’s LCV (Local Content Vehicle) 2012 Cities Tour of all of America’s state capitals and will also be available on their web page later today. Here’s a link to the C-SPAN Local Content page for Albany.

Sunday, December 02, 2012

Sandy Update: Top Reasons You're Eligible to Apply for SBA Disaster Assistance

From SBA:

A month after Hurricane Sandy devastated the East Coast, homeowners, renters and businesses are dealing with the challenging task of rebuilding their homes, businesses and communities.

There’s a lot of information out there about different forms of federal assistance, and a lot of confusion about the U.S. Small Business Administration’s role in helping homeowners, renters and businesses recover. The SBA is committed to the long-term recovery of the people and businesses affected by Hurricane Sandy.

Don’t let misinformation keep you from getting an SBA disaster loan! Here are the facts:

You don’t have to be a business owner to apply for an SBA disaster loan. SBA makes low-interest loans to homeowners of up to $200,000 to repair or replace the residence. Renters and homeowners are also eligible to apply for up to $40,000 to repair or replace damaged personal property – like furniture, cars, appliances – that isn’t fully covered by insurance.