Jordan Carleo-Evangelist
Times Union
Albany, NY, United States
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Past articles by Jordan:
McCoy signs law raising Albany County's age to buy tobacco
County Executive Dan McCoy is expected to sign the legislation passed last month by county lawmakers as part of national push to raise the age in hopes of preventing young adults from ever taking up a tobacco habit. McCoy angered anti-tobacco activists in September 2014 when he vetoed first-in-the-state legislation that would have banned the sale of tobacco products in stores that also included… → Read More
Albany County lawmakers OK raising age for buying tobacco to 21
Albany County lawmakers on Monday became the latest in New York to raise the age to buy tobacco products from 18 to 21 — sending the law to County Executive Dan McCoy for his signature. Chautauqua County's law passed in late April, and just last week Gov. Jerry Brown of California signed legislation barring people under the age of 21 — excluding active duty military personnel — from buying… → Read More
Fresh fire in assessment fight
For the moment, the battle over the value of the Alexander at Patroon Creek is academic thanks to a 10-year state tax break that has shielded its owners, Stockton, Calif.,-based Spanos Corp., from paying taxes on all but a fraction of the property's assessed value. The corporation controlled by the Spanos family — owners of the San Diego Chargers football team — will have to pay the full tax… → Read More
Albany Council defeats repeal of new trash fee
City lawmakers on Monday fought off a bid to repeal Albany's unpopular new trash fee on small apartment buildings just three months after they adopted it to help close the city's $18.5 million budget gap. The Common Council defeated the repeal by an 8-5 vote after 90 minutes of withering public comment and sometimes contentious debate, sparing Mayor Kathy Sheehan from having to make good on a… → Read More
City lawmakers vow to vote on scrapping Albany's new trash fee
Killing the fee now, Krasher says, will force the city to come up with a more equitable solution to the city's trash and budget problems sooner. [...] opponents of the repeal — even those who want to see the law reformed — argue the push to dump it is politically motivated and that scrapping it now without a plan to replace it is premature, especially given that Krasher's repeal won't take… → Read More
Comparisons still blurry in red-light camera data
There were 39 crashes at or near intersections that are part of the city's red-light camera program in the last three months of 2015, but police Chief Brendan Cox says it's too soon to tell if the unblinking eyes are making Albany's streets safer. Sixteen of those wrecks were rear-end crashes — the kind camera opponents feared would spike as panicked drivers suddenly hit the brakes to avoid… → Read More
Charges filed against UAlbany students who claimed bias attack
Burwell and Agudio are also charged with third-degree falsely reporting an incident in connection with 911 calls they made immediately after the Jan. 30 confrontation on the bus, which roiled tensions on campus and garnered national media attention. "The assault charges are based on evidence which shows that the three defendants physically assaulted another passenger on the bus, a 19-year-old… → Read More
Public airs ideas for Albany police cameras
Community members called Tuesday for a neutral third party to have access to the video captured by the body cameras soon to be worn by city police officers. Creation of an independent review mechanism was the most common theme as police brass sought public input on the body-camera program, a pilot of which could hit the streets as soon as this summer. William Barnette, a former city school board… → Read More
Times Union, Albany County reach deal on arena naming rights
ALBANY — The Times Union has struck a deal with Albany County to extend the newspaper's naming rights for the county-owned South Pearl Street arena through 2020, according to documents submitted to county lawmakers. [...] the amount of money that the arena and event promoters are required to spend with the newspaper on advertising, which is also currently tied to the CPI, would be reduced from… → Read More
Albany’s $12.5M comes with a catch
Note: See update below with a response from Mayor Kathy Sheehan. Albany got a much-needed, albeit temporary, budget reprieve last week when Gov. Andrew Cuomo amended his proposed state budget to in… → Read More
Sheehan aide to run Albany parking; new budget director hired
ALBANY --— Mayor Kathy Sheehan's top City Hall aide is leaving to run the Albany Parking Authority, while a former state official and advisor to U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand has been named the city's new budget director. McEneny has also worked as a deputy commissioner in the state Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services and as a top advisor to Gillibrand and District Attorney David… → Read More
Albany High project opponents mull legal challenge
The vote, held three months after a more costly version of the project failed by 92 votes, was plagued with problems from open to close — with some polling locations opening late and at least seven running out of ballots midday due to higher-than-anticipated turnout. Despite reports of questionable voting practices — like unguarded paper ballots and some voters being asked to sign their names to… → Read More
Authorities shared 'contradictory' statements in UAlbany bus incident
The evidence shared by prosecutors with community leaders in the nine days since the alleged racial assault on three black female University at Albany students is broader than just surveillance video of the early morning fracas onboard a CDTA bus. The presentation last Friday included excerpts from statements given to police by other passengers on the bus — among them other students of color —… → Read More
CDTA video of alleged UAlbany attack 'not clear-cut'
What happened among University at Albany students last weekend on a CDTA bus is "not clear-cut at all," a prominent African-American activist said Friday. On Friday afternoon, Albany County District Attorney David Soares showed videos of the alleged attack on three African-American students to a group of concerned parties. Afterward, Alice Green, executive director of the Center for Law and… → Read More
Sheriff's son pleads guilty in drunken driving case
ALBANY - Kyle Apple, the son of Albany County Sheriff Craig Apple, pleaded guilty Friday morning to misdemeanor drunken driving in connection with a July crash on Central Avenue. The younger Apple will lose his license for six months and be restricted to only driving vehicles equipped with an ignition interlock device for a year after that, according to the plea entered before City Court Judge… → Read More
Albany city aide gets political pay
Mayor Kathy Sheehan's top City Hall aide was paid $7,300 for political work by her campaign last year while remaining on the city payroll, according to financial disclosures with the state Board of Elections. [...] critics contend it poses a conflict of interest to have a top staffer paid with money donated in part by companies, lawyers and engineering firms doing business with the city.… → Read More
Albany weighs charging residents for how much they throw out
Advocates — including the federal Environmental Protection Agency and state Department of Environmental Conservation — tout fairness as among pay-as-you-throw's greatest virtues. Charging landlords — and, by extension, renters — based on the number of dwelling units has no connection to the amount of trash produced, critics said. Other fears include a spike in illegal dumping by residents who… → Read More
Albany's Wendell Street to close for convention center crane
Wendell Street, a one-block stretch of road that connects Howard and Beaver streets near the Times Union Center, is expected to remain closed until late fall, serving as a staging area for construction of the $66.5 million Albany Capital Center, Spinella said. The crane will provide the muscle to hoist the massive steel plate girders that will hold up the convention hall's second floor and the… → Read More
Empire State Plaza-TU Center walkway to close for face lift
The 1,500-foot walkway linking Empire State Plaza to the Times Union Center is expected to shut down in April for a multimillion-dollar renovation tied to the new downtown convention center. Project officials have billed the upgrades to the 26-year-old walkway as a linchpin in the $66.5 million Albany Capital Center project to allow conventioneers to move comfortably from the Plaza to the new… → Read More
Black Lives Matter protesters disrupt Albany mayor's speech
Scores of protesters shouted and sang over Mayor Kathy Sheehan Monday night, hijacking the feel-good soap box of the annual State of the City address to vent still-simmering anger over the April death of an unarmed mentally ill black man in police custody. [...] a grand jury declined to indict the officers in connection with his death, caused by a heart attack, which police Chief Brendan Cox has… → Read More