Saratoga thoughts - Maestro's, McDonalds, Borders, Ellsworth Commons and more

While I continue my fruitless quest to create a snappier title to this recurring feature, let's see what's going on in one Saratogian's mind.

1. I haven't made it to Maestro's new location yet in the Van Dam Building - have any of you?  This is exciting for them so I'd like to get there and check it out.
2. I caught this post in the Times Union's "On the Edge" blog about working at the Saratoga Race Course during track season.  I thought comment # 3 had some interesting things in it.
3. Big Mac -n- Fries, coming soon to South Broadway (perhaps as soon as this week)

 

 

      4. Across from Mickey-D's is an old building which used to house the Enterprise Rent-a-Car location. It is available for rent, and you can contact the Realtor here. It's a nice old building, and I hate to see it sit there all empty. 

 
    5. Speaking of sad and empty buildings, has anybody heard anything about the Borders building?  I was hoping something would be announced by now.  Please tell me that's not going to sit there all empty and dark this summer through track season.  I hate to give up on any worthy cause, but perhaps it's time to take down the Save Borders in Saratoga Facebook page.

    6.   From the "You gotta be F-ing kidding me file", have you noticed signs like this one below around town?  Is this a scam?  A joke?  Would any halfway intelligent parents send junior across the pond to live with strangers under the care of an organization that is this half-assed and unprofessional in their advertising?  It's a joke, right? 

 

7. If you're traveling the northway southbound these days give yourself some extra time - the construction today had cars backed up in the exit 11 area and it wasn't even rush hour.  I think this work will be going on for a while.

8.  Virgin Alexander update:  The Saratoga filmed movie will be screened this summer in NYC, Vegas, and Oklahoma City.  No word yet on when there will be a Saratoga screening.

9.  Have you been on Route 9 in Malta lately?  The Ellsworth Commons development sure jumps out at you, both for its size and perhaps the location close to the highway.  I don't know if the project suffices as a "downtown", as it is often referred to as, but there sure is significant density there.  The pictures below were taken earlier this month, and you can also click here to see a YNN story about from back in March. Finally, click here to see more photos and artist renderings of what Ellsworth Commons will look like when completed.

 

 

 

 And last but certainly not least, I took this picture last week of Stormin' Esther, the three year old unraced filly that I own a small percentage of.  She was relaxing in her stall over at the Oklahoma Track where she is training for her first race, hopefully sometime next month at Belmont, then of course a race or two here at The Spa.  Track season starts in less than two months! 

 

 

Comments

[Took]

You know what go great in the borders building: another bar. (Just saying...) As for the students from Spain, when I was in high school my Mother had a thing for hosting students from other countries; I am pretty sure she just thought it would be more children around the house thus, more slave labor. We really liked the ones from France, they are my friends on Facebook. The ones from Spain though we did not like that much. The way it generally works is they have English classes during the day that someone picks them up for and other planned activities throughout the course of their stay. You are supposed to kinda show them around but it is more feeding them and putting a roof over their heads. I have never seen the signs done any other way in Poughkeepsie or here. I am sure someone makes a couple grand by getting suckers to host students and tell the students they get to go to the US. It pushes all the costs on someone else and makes you feel bad that you don't want to host students who need some place to live. While they just rake in the cash by keeping overhead low (hence the cardboard signs).

[Dan De Federicis]

Thanks for commenting everybody. Those cardboard signs just took me aback. I tried renting out an apartment in Albany recently using Craig's list and man did that bring out the wierdos. I would have to think cardboard signs do the same thing - isn't there a better way through the schools, churches etc. to find suitable host families and would you send your kid overseas knowing this was the method used?

[Natalie]

I saw the same exact cardboard signs in Queensbury and Glens Falls last summer. Has anyone tried to call the number to see if it's legit or is it just some obscure graffiti art?

[Kristi Gustafson]

Thank you for the link.