Midday Magazine

It's always nice to hear what our listeners have on their minds. Here are this week's highlights from the WAMC Listener Comment Line. 

Newschannel 13 meteorologist Paul Caiano delivers the Midday Weather Summary for Friday, September 28, 2018.

Leaders in North Adams, Massachusetts have voted to withdraw the city police department from the state’s Civil Service system.

Travelers in our region headed to Lake George and its many tourist attractions often find themselves snarled in traffic, just miles from their destination. Now, the busy exit off the Adirondack Northway is being studied to reduce traffic congestion and increase safety for pedestrians. WAMC’s Southern Adirondack Bureau Chief Lucas Willard reports officials are looking for suggestions.

The Pittsfield, Massachusetts city council has voted to reestablish a revamped homeless committee after a decades-long absence.

A new report from environmental groups in the region warns of a potential resurgence of shipments of crude oil through the Adirondacks. Its recommendations include a call for a federal ban of oil by rail transport through the region.

The New York state Department of Environmental Conservation held public hearings Wednesday on its denial of a key permit for Competitive Power Ventures’ Valley Energy Center in Orange County. The natural gas plant’s operators are contesting the DEC’s decision.

Newschannel 13 Meteorologist Paul Caiano delivers the midday weather summary for Sept. 27, 2018.

The City of Amsterdam has won a transformative grant from New York state to make major upgrades to its downtown.

Volunteers will fan out along the length of the Connecticut River in New England over the next two days September 28th and 29th to collect tons of trash.

Three trailblazing immunotherapy researchers have won this year’s Albany Medical Center Prize in Medicine and Biomedical Research. 

Newschannel 13 meteorologist Paul Caiano delivers the Midday Weather Summary for Wednesday, September 26, 2018.

Last week, Burlington, Vermont’s mayor and Department of Public Works officials announced an accelerated plan to renovate the city’s wastewater and storm water system after chronic problems with overflows this summer.  The $30 million plan went before city councilors this week, who have sent it to the November ballot for voter approval.

In the latest development in a long-running dispute, a judge has halted a proposal to construct an emergency homeless shelter in Saratoga Springs after objections from neighbors.

State and local officials gathered in Pittsfield, Massachusetts Tuesday for the groundbreaking of a project that has been in the works for a decade. 

Many Republicans were hoping Chris Gibson would be running an election this fall. Instead, the former three-term New York Congressman from the 19th House district is teaching at Williams College in northern Berkshire County — as his successor, Rep. John Faso, tries to hold on to the seat. Gibson, who had explored a statewide run, is also working on the campaign of gubernatorial nominee Marc Molinaro, the Dutchess County Executive. Gibson spoke today with WAMC’s Ian Pickus.

One of the defeated candidates in the seven-person Democratic primary for New York’s 19th Congressional District is involved in a new endeavor. Gareth Rhodes is executive director of Show Up 2018, whose motto is “Make America Yours Again.” WAMC’s Hudson Valley Bureau Chief Allison Dunne spoke with Rhodes about his new role.

U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders was on the University of Vermont campus Monday to talk to students about climate change.  WAMC North Country Bureau Chief Pat Bradley spoke with the Independent about federal issues following his speech.  Attention in Washington is focused on whether Judge Brett Kavanaugh should be approved as a U.S. Supreme Court Justice in the wake of allegations of sexual misconduct, which Kavanaugh denies. Senator Sanders agrees with many Democrats that an FBI investigation is warranted.

A beloved Schenectady activist died over the weekend.

Newschannel meteorologist Paul Caiano delivers the Midday Weather Summary for Tuesday, September 25, 2018.

Great Barrington, Massachusetts has made the guiding principles of one of its most famous residents a formal part of its identity.

The City of Poughkeepsie Police Department is striving to improve community relations. To this end, a few thousand residents are receiving surveys to fill out anonymously.

Newschannel 13 meteorologist Paul Caiano delivers the Midday Weather Summary for Monday, September 24, 2018.

The Great Barrington, Massachusetts Selectboard meets again tonight.

    After a successful write-in campaign to secure the Democratic nomination in Massachusetts’ Hampshire, Franklin, and Worcester Senate District, Jo Comerford’s name will be on the ballot in November.

After years in limbo, the City of Albany has sold a parcel of land once earmarked as a target for landfill expansion.

The Burlington, Vermont City council will have a full agenda when it meets on Monday evening. It will decide whether a $30 million proposal to upgrade the city’s waste and storm water system should be put on the November ballot for voter approval.  It will also review a renovation plan for Burlington High School.  At the same time, Council President Kurt Wright says that a Charter Change Committee is reviewing the council’s procedural rules.