Lake Placid

Officials from Lake Placid, New York and the surrounding Town of North Elba held a video conference this week to provide information and answer questions about planned infrastructure improvements to the village’s Main Street.

Lake Placid last hosted the Winter World University Games in 1972. The International University Sports Federation announced in 2018 that the Olympic village will again host the winter competition in 2023. The Adirondack Sports Council, which is coordinating plans for the games, hosted a virtual town hall this week to update the region on progress toward the international competition.

Lake Placid is a popular tourist location, both for its Olympic legacy and its location in the central Adirondacks.  The popularity of AirBnB and other short-term rental options allowing local homeowners to rent their properties is creating some challenges for the village, including complaints from some residents that unregistered hotels are being operated in residential areas. Village Mayor Craig Randall tells WAMC North Country Bureau Chief Pat Bradley the Town of North Elba and Lake Placid have drafted a new short-term rental law and will hold a public hearing on it Tuesday evening.

As the village continues to mark the 40th anniversary of the 1980 Olympics, skaters are back in Lake Placid to celebrate. They met with media Tuesday morning and then were honored in the Herb Brooks Arena.

Lake Placid is celebrating the 40th anniversary of the 1980 Winter Olympics.  A number of athletes who competed are returning to the village to reminisce and reacquaint with residents who helped organize or volunteered during the games.  Three people who worked behind the scenes during the games spoke with WAMC North Country Bureau Chief Pat Bradley this week.  Marina LaDuke was a press photographer — among those selected to travel to Greece on Air Force 2 to get the Olympic flame.

It’s 1980 in Lake Placid. A cauldron is lit and from February 13th to the 24th more than a thousand athletes from 37 countries compete in 38 events during the second winter Olympics held in the village.  Eric Heiden makes Olympic history, winning five individual gold medals in speed skating. Ice skaters Scott Hamilton, Robin Cousins, Tai Babilonia and other team members entrance the world.  The Miracle on Ice stuns even the winning players.

Four decades later, Lake Placid and the Olympic Regional Development Authority are marking the 40th anniversary celebration of the 1980 games.  ORDA spokesman Jon Lundin tells WAMC North Country Bureau Chief Pat Bradley the celebrations will begin with a torch run and cauldron lighting.

For more than two decades, Lake Placid businessman Robi Politi has been a fixture in local politics. He was a magistrate before serving as mayor of Lake Placid from 2001 to 2005.  Following a short break, he was elected supervisor of the Town of North Elba, which includes the Olympic village.  In 2019, Politi, a registered Republican who is known for his independent streak, announced he would not run for reelection and at the end of the year officially retired from politics.  He tells WAMC North Country Bureau Chief Pat Bradley that his goal throughout his 25 years in politics has been to serve the residents of the Lake Placid area.

The town of North Elba’s Supervisor is retiring from politics after serving the North Country town and the village of Lake Placid for nearly 25 years.

It’s an event that began four decades ago and draws over 2,500 young athletes to the Olympic region in northern New York. The Empire State Winter Games run from January 30th until February 2nd. The regional event offers many traditional sports, but is also hoping a new competition will become an Olympic sport.

At its meeting tonight, the Lake Placid/North Elba Joint Review Board plans to review a proposed plan to place a large propane tank near the village of Lake Placid. But opponents fear the board members are not taking safety and environmental concerns seriously.

Researchers from Clarkson University will conduct a study to determine whether two Adirondack villages can lower electricity costs by using a form of battery energy storage.

The latest report assessing the health of Mirror Lake in the Adirondacks finds it continues to be negatively affected by road salt.

While many rush to bars, dinners, and galas to celebrate the New Year, upstate New York has several activities for those looking for something unique such as ice skating, painted yoga, and a chilly plunge into Lake George.

Officials today announced plans for the upcoming Empire State Winter Games in Lake Placid.

Lake Placid is a focal point for winter sports, hosting international championships to regional competitions. But the village holds events throughout the year, bringing thousands of people to hotels and shops along Main Street. That in turn has stressed the infrastructure. Village leaders have implemented a plan to upgrade the water and sewer systems along with improving what has been cramped and competitive parking. Lake Placid Mayor Craig Randall tells WAMC’s North Country Bureau Chief Pat Bradley infrastructure needs have been an issue since he was first elected a decade ago.

A two-time Winter Olympics host, since 1980 Lake Placid has promoted itself and as the Olympic Village and the Winter Sports Capital of the world.  In his offices across from the Olympic speed skating oval, Mayor Craig Randall talks about a number of upcoming international sporting events.

In May, the Appellate Division of the state Supreme Court threw out an effort by Lake Placid to obtain two parcels of land on Main Street by eminent domain. This month village officials approved a bond resolution to purchase the property.

The Ausable River Association has issued its second annual report on Mirror Lake’s water quality.  It finds that the Adirondack lake continues to experience high levels of salt – a threat to aquatic life.

After a year and a half of meetings and negotiations, the organizers of the World University Games have selected Lake Placid to host the 2023 winter games.

Lake Placid, New York will host the Winter World University Games in 2023.

The closing ceremonies of the 2018 winter Olympics are Sunday and the athletes will return home with medals and memories. Communities in our region are planning to celebrate the local athletes who competed in a number of sports.

The Winter Olympics begin this week in Pyeongchang, South Korea.  Lake Placid hosted the 1932 and 1980 winter games and is now a key training site for U.S. athletes. Olympic Regional Development Authority Spokesman Jon Lundin speaks about the athletes from the region and their medal potential.

The Empire State Winter Games begin on February 1st.  Three days earlier, a torch run will begin in Manhattan.  That’s just one of the changes organizers outlined today in Lake Placid, which will host the competition.

The Town of North Elba plans to establish “salt-free zones” on some roads along Mirror Lake in Lake Placid this winter.  It’s part of a years-long effort to reduce salt runoff into the Adirondack lake.

A Lake Placid attorney is challenging the long-term incumbent in the North Elba town supervisor’s race this fall.

Since last November, Lake Placid officials have been investigating the possibility of hosting the 2023 Winter World University Games.  Last month, a delegation made an initial presentation to international sports officials and is now working on a formal bid.

Lake Placid has been chosen to host the 2019 International Children’s Games and the 2021 Bobsled and Skeleton World Championships.  New York’s governor made the formal announcement over the weekend during an annual summer event in the Adirondacks.

Lake Placid, the Olympic village in the heart of the Adirondacks, is in the midst of upgrading its infrastructure with its Main Street Reconstruction Project.  Mayor Craig Randall, who just started his third and last four-year term — due to term limits — says  the improvements will help deal with congestion that is normally seen in larger cities.

Earlier this week, the Lake Placid village board approved the environmental review and findings from a public hearing related to eminent domain actions for an infrastructure project.   It’s a move that the owner of the property says violates New York state’s eminent domain procedural laws.