New Toolcat Roars Through District

The Central Business Improvement District has a new pair of hands shoveling snow and cleaning curb cuts. The CBID is currently leasing a 5600 Toolcat vehicle to assist with district clean-up.

The lease is on a trial basis. “We want to try it out, see if we like it,and see if it can handle the work load,” said Anthony Capece, Executive Director for the BID. The vehicle is equivalent to a 1-ton truck, with hauling capacity, and offers 40 different attachments to work with, including a sweeper and mini-bulldozer.

Before getting the Toolcat, the 16 miles of sidewalk clean-up was done by hand, with brooms and shovels, and, during the winter months, it took days for the five-person staff to complete. “It was tough,” said Stephen McBride, Supervisor of the BID Maintenance Crew.

“We couldn’t keep up with the weather, and I was wearing out the crew,” Capece added. Especially in a heavy winter like the one we’re having now, when there’s been no real thaw, and snow banks have built up along the sidewalk. “Everything’s hard as a rock,” Capece said.

But the Toolcat, emblazoned with the CBID logo, makes short work of the mountainous cliffs of snow. In seconds, Maintenance Crew member P.J. Stone scoops up a load of snow and carts it away. The vehicle is also great for punching out "cuts" in the snow banks and for spreading salt on crosswalks, to ensure safer pedestrian crossing. The new machine makes snow removal a pleasure (almost). The CBID helps the City and the property owners in keeping the crosswalks open in bad weather. It's just another way we try to make the BID area safer and cleaner.

“With the Toolcat the guys don’t mind the snow so much anymore,” said Capece, with a smile.

'Spare' Time: Bowling is affordable fun

Looking for a fun, affordable way to spend an evening with friends or family? Consider bowling! But whatever you do, don’t call the bowling center, a bowling alley. Bowlers don’t like that. After all, alleys call to mind unseemliness and subterfuge—and what’s more above-board than bowling?

“Calling it a bowling alley is a no-no,” said Bowler Hal Bieber. “It’s a bowling center.”

Bieber, 77, and his pal, Norman Greenfeld, 83, are both volunteers with the Albany Bowling Association, a district resident since 1974. The bowling association is a not-for-profit organization, with just over 6,000 members, and as a member of United States Bowling Congress, the association is responsible for organizing bowling leagues and competitions in the Capital Region. The organization is also the interceptor for national bowling tournaments and athletes, Bieber said.

Bieber, Association Manager, has been bowling since 1953, and began to work for the association after he retired from AT&T in 1986. At that time, the association had just over 24,000 members, spread across three groups, the American Bowling Congress, the Women’s International Bowling Congress, and the Young American Bowling Association, but in 2006, the association merged these groups to trim expenses. Today membership is dwindling because there are so many different leisure activities competing for people’s free time, said Bieber. “It’s just too many things going on, and people can only participate in so many things,” he said.

The association offices are chock full of reminders from bowling’s heyday. The walls are decorated with murals of bowlers in mid-swing, as well as the giant aluminum bowling pins that decorated Sunset Lanes on Central before its recent remodel. There’s also a hooked rug of President Richard Nixon bowling, allegedly taken from the White House Lane. The offices also contain a case full of trophies and memorabilia—photographs from the Moscow Musical Theater Troupe in 1988 (what else?) bowling—and certificates and plaques commemorating historic accomplishments. Against one wall is the association’s Hall of Fame, showcasing the names of meritorious achievers, in two categories: good deeds and good bowlers, Bieber explains.

What does it take to be a good bowler?

“Depends what you mean by a good bowler,” Bieber says immediately.

“There’s guys who throw the ball all kinds of ways and get strikes, but I wouldn’t define them as good bowlers,” adds Greenfeld. Greenfeld, a retired University at Albany psychology professor writes a column for the association’s newsletter, titled ‘Why Bowling?’ and has devoted a lot of time to meditating on what it takes to be a good bowler.

According to this savvy bowler, good bowlers need know-how and good technique, and they have to be consistent. Good bowlers are also mindful of the surfaces they’re working with, including the surface of the ball and the lane, Greenfeld said. The weight of the ball can affect how it rolls, and the relative slipperiness of the lane can also be a factor in getting that strike.

“You need physical coordination, mental stick-to-itiveness, and consistency,” said Greenfeld. “It’s mechanical and psychological.”

Recently, Greenfeld was diagnosed with tendonitis in his shoulder and has had to take a break from bowling. He was asked to join a Wii Bowling League, a video game version of the sport, but he declined. For him, bowling is largely social, and he doesn’t see the sport in sitting around video-gaming. “You can find sport now in twiddling your thumbs,” he joked.

When asked about the future of the sport, these two bowlers are thoughtful. “It’s not going to get any bigger,” Bieber allows. However, as long as people are looking for an affordable team sport that is inclusive and promotes camaraderie, bowling will be there, he said.

For those of you looking to try the sport, here’s some tips from our pros:

*Your arm should swing like a pendulum. A lot of people try to force the ball, instead just let it roll off.
*Your body should be bent forward at a 6 degree angle as you walk up to the line, and as you reach the line, you want to put a slight slide and bend in your knee to act as a shock absorber.
*Keep your eye on the target, and keep your head still.
*Whatever you do, don’t call it a bowling alley. It’s a bowling center.
*Likewise, don’t call them gutters, they’re called channels. By that token, a gutter ball shouldn’t be called a gutter ball, then? “Right,” said Bieber. However, after a moment’s pause, he sighs, and concedes, “It shouldn’t be, but it is.”

The Albany Bowling Association is located at 253 Central Avenue. For more information about the sport or about joining a league, call (518) 465-4878.

Everett Road puts best face forward for city visitors

The massive multi-million dollar road construction project on Central Avenue continues, and the latest piece heralds a new era for the city. Illuminated banner poles have been erected on both sides of Everett Road, to mark a grand new entrance to the city of Albany's main commerical corridor, Central Avenue.

Everett Road has been long recognized as one of the city's highest volume access points, with traffic from the east and west coming in from 1-90. The banner pole treatment will serve as a big entrance to the city, and will welcome thousands of visitors every year.

The banner poles are just the latest facelift for Everett. The busy road was also repaved this year, and to make pedestrian navigation easier, sidewalks, curbs, and medians were added. Look for world class flower plantings and a grand gateway sign.

Banners will most likely be mounted in the spring.

Salsa Latina Delivers Authentic Latin American Cuisine

On a recent snowy night, I braved a wintry storm to get a little heat at Salsa Latina. The new Latin American and Mexican grill on Central had come highly recommended--and not just by the locals, but by other Mexican food enthusiasts. These are people like me, who came from the southwest, and now find themselves stranded in a land of ice storms and ketchup parading as salsa. This little group of expats is always on the lookout for a spicy fix, and they said they found it at Salsa Latina, so my expectations were high when I went in that night--and I wasn't disappointed.

We started with chips, salsa, and queso. The queso wasn't any of that cheez whiz goop that you find other places--this was homemade, a thick white sauce in the true Mexican tradition. And the salsa was...well, fresh homemade salsa, and that's a high compliment.

We ordered Carne Asada, which came with two big steaks, pounded thin and seasoned just right. They had that fresh-off-the-grill flavor, and were served with avocado, pico de gallo, beans and rice and warm tortillas, so I could eat them with a knife and fork, or roll 'em up. We also ordered the combination platter with beef enchilada and tamale. The enchilada was smothered with the cheese the way it's supposed to be, and the tamale had a nice crumbly masa shell with a flavorful filling. The service was great with plenty of soda refills, and a couple of trips back to the kitchen for more salsa. Our bill for dinner two came to about $28.

Owner Luis Uzhca caters to a range of tastes here, with authentic dishes from Central America as well as Mexico, including Bistec Salteado and Pollo al Limon. This isn't your average Tex-Mex experience, and fresh-baked breads and import sodas only reinforce that fact. The interior is warm and inviting--lots of dark wood booths, Spanish tile, and rounded arcades. They offer dine-in and delivery, and a Sunday breakfast, which now tops my to-do list. If their huevos rancheros or breakfast burritos are anything like their dinner entrees, I may have found a new home.

Salsa Latina is located at 315 Central Avenue. Call 426-7050 for more information, or visit their website at www.misalsalatina.com

Auto dealerships shovel out this winter

Winter clean up isn't easy, and yet the car dealerships on Central Avenue are sparkling. From Armory Auto to Orange Motors to Lia Hyundai and Advantage Suzuki, Central Avenue is home to some of the biggest auto dealerships in the area. How do they manage to get all of winter's mess of those brand new hoods every day?

"It's a job, I'll tell you," said Armory Auto Salesperson Alan Alpart. With the spate of snow and ice storms we've had lately, the dealerships have to scrape the cars down almost weekly, and then drive them around the lot in a carefully choreographed series of moves, to allow for the snow plows to come through.

At Lia Hyundai, the staff cleans the 300 cars off by hand, using long snow brooms with foam pads, said Larry Burwell, Sales Manager at Lia. Once cleaned, they move them to one side of the lot so they can plow, then move them to the other side so that side can be plowed. "We move them around the lot all day," Burwell said. Usually, the whole staff teams up to make quick work of the clean-up project, he said. "You just get out there and do it."

At Armory, the sales staff runs the cars through the car wash they have on premises, and then hires an outside company to do the plowing and salting. With 800 cars on the lot, clean-up has to be strategic, Alpart said. They keep some cars inside, and try to clean the cars in front first, and then move back through the lines, depending on the time and weather, he said. Freezing rain is the worst, because the cars can't be banged up or scratched, so the ice has to be melted off.

"We hope that we don't have too much weather, but this year we've had some," Alpart said.

We wish you a short, dry winter, guys!

Holiday Gift Guide-Good time gifts: With budgets tight, give the gift that keeps on giving

Cash is tight this year, not just for consumers, but for local businesses, too. Why not give a gift that supports local businesses, and enhances quality of life?

Research shows that money spent at local businesses stays local. When you spend a dollar at a local business, about half of that dollar stays in the local economy, in contrast with the dollar you spend at a national chain, where only about 13 cents of that dollar stays in the nearby economy. Likewise, money spent at independent locally-owned businesses recirculates an average 3.5 times more than money spent at a chain business. When you Christmas shop locally, you're not just keeping businesses open and preventing vacancies, you're helping your neighbors--and isn't that the true spirit of Christmas?

This year, consider giving the gift of a good time. Season tickets or the gift of a membership help defray someone's entertainment costs throughout the year. Experiential gifts like restaurant gift certificates and concert tickets can also help local businesses keep their doors open, since extras like outings and tickets are some of the first items that get scratched off a budget when times are tight. Give an experiential gift, and you give a gift that keeps on giving.

And the Central Business District has a lot of affordable entertainment options, from live music to gym memberships to basketball tickets--so there's something for just about everyone on your list.

Music, film, debates and theater--It's all happening at the Linda, WAMC's Performing Arts Studio at 339 Central Avenue. And with prices ranging from $6 to $25 and up, you can go online and buy a handful of tickets for a year's worth of events. Check out the schedule and buys tickets at http://www.wamcarts.org/ or call at 465-5233 ext. 4.

Know someone who could use a little relaxation or rejuvenation? Think about giving the gift of yoga classes or introducing them to Nia, a new fitness fusion program. The Center for Nia and Yoga at 4 Central Avenue offers a range of yoga, Nia, and meditation classes that reduce stress and promote wellness. You can purchase passes to individual classes or get a season pass through their website: http://www.nia-yoga.com/ or call the center at 463-5145.

Want to give the gift of health? Buy someone you love a gym membership.

Best Fitness at 911 Central Avenue, offers memberships, for fees as low as $19.99 a month. Membership includes access to fitness equipment, a full schedule of classes, childcare, and tanning and steamroom facilities. Check out their website at http://www.bestfitness.us/ or call the gym at 435-2378.

Another option is the the Capital District YMCA with fees starting at $11 a month for youth, and $46 a month for adults. Membership includes access to fitness equipment, a full schedule of classes, child care, camping, and a swimming pool. Check out their website at http://www.cdymca.org/ or call at 869-3500.
Fees to join vary.

Got a culinary enthusiast? Everyone loves a good meal, and Central offers food from around the world. Buy a gift certificate to your favorite restaurant, and you can introduce someone you love to something new! Check out some of the different options at http://www.dinetheavenue.com/

Capital Kidzwear: Urbanite brings urbanwear to Albany

Before opening Capital Kidzwear, Suwie Waweru did her homework.

Waweru is an M.B.A., who was working in the financial services field in Manhattan. She describes herself as a "New York City girl pretty much forever," but after the events of September 11, she like so many other New Yorkers, decided to make a change.

Waweru decided to open her own business, and she approached the task with determination and energy. She began researching the Capital District, looking at census information for each city, and did surveys of the area. After learning about Albany's charter school boom, and its diversity, she decided it was the perfect location for the business she had in mind--a clothing store for children that specializes in urban wear and school uniforms. It was the kind of store that she saw all over New York and northern New Jersey, but there weren't any in the here, she said.

According to the store slogan, the store carries "clothes kids wanna wear," including stylish namebrands like Rocawear, Bank Street, and Pellepelle, as well as shoes, boots, and outerwear. They also have a range of formalwear for boys and girls, including little boys' tuxedos and christening clothing.

She and her husband, Patrick Waweru, opened the store in 2006, and business has been good since opening, she said. "It's following the economy," she said. Store sales were relatively stable until July, and then they took a sharp dive, she said. But Waweru, who regularly talks to the surrounding shopowners and other neighbors nearby, said that all small businesses are having trouble right now.

Many local businesses are not making a profit, and they haven't been since July, she said. They need some help or they're going to go out of business. "And you really don't want them to go out of business," she warned. "You really don't, because it will be harder to get that momentum going again."

Capital Kidzwear is on the block of Washington that overlooks Townsend Park, a section of the district that's been known for difficulties with vagrants and graffiti, but these days there's more security and more police support, and that's making it easier to do business here, Waweru said.

More businesses have also come to the area, and that's helping the community reclaim this part of the city. For a long time, many of the surrounding buildings had vacancies, but with the recent addition of Townsend Park Bakery and the new Trustco Bank on the corner, the area is almost fully occupied, and the large office building just down the street at 4 Central Avenue is being renovated to attract new tenants. With just a continued guidance and support, the area can be fully revitalized, she said.

Waweru is full of ideas for revitalizing the area. She believes the Townsend Park area needs better and more consistent signage. Similar signs in an area provide a sense of continuity and security, she said. Business owners could use some help with funding those signs; even $400-$500 in grants for businesses would be a big help, she said.

Waweru also wants businesses to work together to stamp out graffiti. "If you see graffiti, get rid of it," she said. Local businesses don't know that the BID and the city will help them remove graffiti, they think they have to do it themselves, she said.

She also wants more initiatives like Larkfest, to help drum up business. This year, for the first time, Larkfest included the lower part of the Central Business District. The event was "a Godsend," she said, and only wishes there were more events like it. Perhaps businesses could organize sidewalk sales, or another street festival. She also pointed to the themed events that take place in the Empire Plaza Concourse, and said it would be nice if more businesses were invited to participate in these events.

Central Avenue's diversity is valuable, and it should be seen as something positive, she concluded. "People shouldn't be afraid of people who aren't like them coming in and opening businesses. Most people are just the same as you. They're trying to make a buck and raise a family," she said. She urged the community to communicate with these businesses and to open a dialogue with them. They have ideas for initiatives, and input for new businesses, and they can provide guidance for one another, she said.

Neighborhood associations should reach out to business owners as well as residents, she said. The meetings could be a place where local businesses are promoted, and also a forum where residents can ask for goods and services that they need from surrounding businesses, she said.

"There's a lot of good smart people on Central. They're from different places, but that doesn't mean anything," she said. "They should tap them, and ask them questions. They'd be surprised."

Capital Kidzwear is located at 204 Washington Avenue in Albany, 462-2791. www.capitalkidzwear.com The store carries clothing, shoes, and accessories for boys and girls, ages ranging from infant to teen.

NABA Day--by Mayoral Proclamation: NABA Celebrates 100th Anniversary

This year, the Northeastern Association of the Blind at Albany is celebrating its diamond anniversary. The non-profit organization has offered services and programs to the blind and vision-impaired in the Capital District for the last 100 years.

Today, Mayor Jerry Jennings celebrated the organization's anniversary with a proclamation, designating the day as NABA Day. The mayor and media crews were on hand to help celebrate the association's accomplishments. The festivities included a speech by the mayor, and punch and cake provided by Crisan Bakery.

Executive Director Chris Burke read congratulatory letters from President George W. Bush, NYS Governor David Paterson, Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton.

Jennings also offered his thanks and congratulations, saying Albany is fortunate to have NABA, and to celebrate the "camraderie and friendships" built there over the last 100 years. To show his appreciation, Burke presented the mayor with a safety vest sewn at NABA's manufacturing center. The vest was emblazoned with the word "Mayor."

Afterwards, a tour was taken through the center and the Harry M. Judge Vision Rehabilitation Center, which opened in 2006 to help clients with diminishing vision. Clients with visual impairments are provided with a variety of tools, including magnifying televisions, check registers, talking watches, and canes.

Begun as a program that offered craft workshops and dances, NABA has expanded to a full-scale service organization with a variety of programs and employment. The center provides employment for 95, 45 of whom are legally blind. Many work at the center's industrial sewing facility. There, these men and women manufacture and ship 70,000 safety vests a year, said Brooke Newell, Director of Development for NABA. The industrial sewing operation gives these men and women independence and satisfaction that comes with a job and earning a regular paycheck, she said. NABA currently manufactures uniforms for MTA, and NYS, and hopes to expand operations this year, she said.

The anniversary celebrations also included a gala event and silent auction at the Albany Institute of History and Art on December 4. The show featured the work of the Blind Artist's Society, a collective of 25 artists coping with vision loss. The exhibit was the group's first official show. The event was attended by about 180 guests, and judged very successful, said Newell.

NABA began on December 7, 1908, when 10 blind men and women got together to offer social and workshop activities. The organization was housed at 105 Lancaster Street. To raise money to support the organization and offer employment for the blind, the members began to manufacture goods, a practice that continues today. In 1923, the organization moved to State Street, and then in 1958, moved to their present location at 301 Washington Avenue, across the street from the YMCA.

Today, NABA offers programs that cater to every age group. They provide free vision screening for toddlers, summer training programs for grade school age-children, internship programs for teens, employment training and transition programs to help high school students move into adulthood, vocational counseling for adults, and training for seniors to help them learn to use canes, magnifying glasses and special software.

Honest Weight Solicits Help to Make Dream Store a Reality

Honest Weight Food Co-Op, a member-owned grocery and natural foods store on Central Avenue, is reaching out to the community, and asking for help to build a new store on Watervliet Avenue. The co-op is soliciting $2 million in private loans from shareholders to help make the new dream store a reality.

The co-op would like to raise as much as possible through shareholder loans, so that they can rely less on loans from financial institutions with all their attendant costs. According to the store's facilities committee, other cooperatives have had great success borrowing money from their shareholders.

According to the pamphlet sent to shareholders, loans must be in a minimum of $1,000, and interest on a loan for up to $10,000 will be 1-4% and 1-6% on loans for $10,000 or more.

Currently cramped for space at its location at 484 Central Avenue, the co-op bought a under-utilized, concrete block building at 100 Watervliet Avenue last fall (pictured above), with plans to renovate it. This fall, they announced plans to tear down the old building to build a new more environmentally sustainable Green building on the site, pushing their move-in date to 2010. The co-op hired 3t architects, and have reviewed designs for the new building. Construction is slated to begin in 2009.

As an interim solution to current space constraints, the store has transformed warehouse space into retail space. They spent the fall reorganizing floor plan to allow for more room and smoother flow of traffic. The produce section has expanded into health and beauty, and health and beauty has moved into the new warehouse space. Likewise, the bulk section and dairy have moved into the new space, to allow more space for canned and packaged goods. The new layout is much more appealing overall, and shoppers have more room to perambulate, without worrying about crashing carts with other shoppers. Their newly expanded orgainic cheese/deli department is the best for miles around.

The new store will be over 18,000 square feet, including a deli and bakery, a juice and coffee bar, and a teaching kitchen, and expanded parking facilities. This new construction project is also looking to meet high LEED standards.

Security Supply doubles facilities on Central

Security Supply, a regional heating and plumbing supply business, has doubled the size of their retail space on Central Avenue.

Security Supply purchased the building next door to their location at 475 Central, which was previously owned by PHAC Products, Inc. After knocking down the PHAC building, they built a brand new showroom and office space. The showroom will offer additional space to showcase their tubs, showers and sinks, with large windows right on Central to beckon customers in. Security Supply's old showroom will become a training facility.

Security spent the fall constructing the new building, and is currently completing the interior finishing. Work is expected to be completed this summer.

Security Supply has been in business for 75 years. They have 11 locations in the region.