Shipping Containers for Sale in Albany, NY

ALBANY, N.Y. (WRGB) — Election Day is less than a week away, and this year there’s just one statewide measure on the ballot in New York— Proposal 1, a constitutional amendment aimed at resolving a decades-old land issue deep in the Adirondacks.

The measure centers on the Mount Van Hoevenberg Olympic Sports Complex, a state-operated facility near Lake Placid that has hosted world-class winter sports dating back to the 1930s.

Over time, portions of the complex expanded onto protected Forest Preserve land within the Adirondack Park — land safeguarded by New York’s “Forever Wild” clause in the New York State Constitution, which prohibits logging, sale, or development of state-owned forest lands.

That means parts of the complex have technically been in violation of the state constitution for years.

“Mount Van Hoevenberg has long been the site of cross-country skiing, bobsled, luge, and other skiing activities,” said Joe Martens, chairman of the Olympic Regional Development Authority (ORDA). “This amendment very simply would authorize the activities that have been going on there for a very long time.”

Proposal 1 amends the constitution to allow the state to use up to 323 acres of Adirondack Forest Preserve land for Nordic skiing and biathlon trails.

In return, New York would be required to purchase and add 2,500 acres of new land to the Adirondack Forest Preserve.

“I want voters to understand that much of this has already been built,” said Claudia Braymer, executive director of Protect the Adirondacks. “The state is also required by the proposal to purchase 2,500 acres to add to the state Forest Preserve. We don’t yet know where those lands will be located.”

Environmental organizations, including Protect the Adirondacks and the Adirondack Council, support the measure, calling it a common-sense fix that brings the Olympic training site into compliance and expands protected wilderness.

“We have a goal in New York to protect 30% of our lands and waters by 2030,” Braymer said. “We’re falling short of that goal, so we do need to add more land to our protected assets.”

Martens said the state already has several dedicated funding sources for land acquisition, including for projects outside the Adirondacks.

“These are pre-existing approved pots of money for land acquisition,” he said.

If voters reject the measure, Martens said the state may try again in the future.

“If the amendment is not approved, I’d like to think we’ll go back to the voters again and try to better educate them,” he said. “But it does sort of put a cloud over our continued use of that facility and particularly any improvements that we might want to or need to make in the future.

Although the amendment directly affects only Mount Van Hoevenberg, it appears on every ballot across the state because the Forest Preserve belongs to the people of New York — and any constitutional change requires approval by voters statewide.

Election Day is November 4.

PROPOSAL 1: Amendment to Allow Olympic Sports Complex In Essex County on State Forest Preserve Land The proposal amends the State Constitution. It permits new Nordic ski and biathlon trails in the forest preserve. Development there requires Constitutional permission. That is because the facility is in the Adirondack forest preserve. It is part of an Olympic Sports Complex in North Elba. North Elba is in Essex County, New York. The project touches up to 323 acres. The facility covers 1,039 acres. This use is offset. 2,500 new acres are added to the forest preserve. The New York Legislature must approve the offset. If not, the project will not happen.

The New York Fallen Firefighters Memorial added the names of 126 firefighters who gave their lives in the line of duty at a ceremony on Tuesday in Albany, NY.

The names of 126 New York firefighters were added to the state’s Fallen Firefighters Memorial wall this week at the 28th annual New York Fallen Firefighters Memorial ceremony. The ceremony, which takes place during Fire Prevention Week each year, honors firefighters who gave their lives in the line of duty.

This year's ceremony added the names of 126 fallen firefighters from New York to the memorial wall, joining 2,692 others, including a few names from the Hudson Valley region. Chief Fred Ostrander from the Walden Fire Department, and Robert H. Van Tassel, a senior fire technician from Global Foundries Fire Brigade in Dutchess County, NY. Chief Daniel J. Raftery from the Greenville Fire District, Captain Richard A. Raus from the Mount Vernon Fire Department, and Paul R. Sutorius, a firefighter from the Pelham Manor Fire Department, were also added to the memorial wall this year.

James B. Cable, New York State Fire Administrator, said that most of those being honored this year, unfortunately, lost their lives from 9/11 related illnesses. He told WTEN,

"Unfortunately, that’s a number that continues to rise. That includes members both from FDNY and other departments that responses on that day. Others were lost to heart attacks, or incidents on fire scenes."

The memorial mall, which was dedicated by New York Governor George E. Pataki in 1998 is located on the Empire State Plaza (1 Lancaster Street) in Albany, NY, between the Justice Building and The Egg. Each family that lost a loved one is presented with a flag during the yearly ceremony.

In 2024, 32 firefighters who gave their lives in the line of duty were added to the memorial wall.

ALBANY, N.Y. (WRGB) — The University at Albany has earned the prestigious Seal of Excelencia distinction for 2025, becoming the first public institution in New York to do so.

The seal was awarded to 18 institutions across the country, representing less than 1% of all colleges and universities in the U.S. Yet, according to a release, those 18 institutions enroll 16% and graduate 18% of Latinos students nationwide.

“Seal of Excelencia certified institutions are investing in transformation, ensuring access to excellence, and becoming places where Latino, and all, students thrive,” Excelencia in Education Co-founder and CEO Deborah Santiago said. “These institutions have made demonstrable efforts to ensure students’ return on investment in a degree while cultivating talent that fuels our country’s future.”

UAlbany was recertified with the seal for 2025, along with Mercy University in New York; San Antonio College in Texas; University of California, Santa Cruz; and the University of Texas at Arlington.

According to a release, institutions earn the seal by going beyond enrollment to serve Latino students intentionally. Santiago said the certification is data-driven.

“They have orientation programs that are in Spanish and English, but they also do it so that the parents and grandparents and family are invited because they learned once the family learns what's expected of a college education – it's not just the hour or two you go to a classroom, but then all the triple time to do the homework and the studying – that then the parents become equal partners in helping that student,” she told CBS6. “They don’t just serve Hispanics, but amongst all those students that might not be as academically prepared as some others, providing a program between high school and starting college where they get them on campus, make them familiar with the environment and the space, provide access to advising support and strategies.”

Institutions must be recertified every three years, so the efforts to uplift Latino students are continual. In turn, Santiago said she hopes that yields success for all students from these colleges and universities.

“The Hispanic population is the growth population in this country, and from a national perspective, educating the youngest fastest growing population is going to benefit communities across the country,” she said. “The exposure to a quality education yields so much benefit for leadership opportunities, for civic engagement, for the ways we need to create innovation in advance as a society, not just an economy, and it's part of the American dream.”

UAlbany was granted the initial certification in 2022. In a release, University at Albany President Havidán Rodríguez said:

This designation is not simply an honor — it represents the dedicated work of our entire campus community to ensure students are fully supported in pursuing their academic and personal goals. Our work to elevate outcomes for Latino and Latina students strengthens the University for everyone — building a more vibrant, accessible, and academically excellent community where we can educate engaged global citizens. I am grateful to Excelencia in Education for their work to advocate for higher education programs that support all students.

Although UAlbany is not an HSI, or Hispanic-Serving Institution, meaning the college or university enrolls at least 25% Latino and Latina students and receives Title V federal grant funding to support that education. Yet, there are a number of programs supporting the school's Hispanic and general student populations: