By Paul Post

Hal Raven could drive the train, but he’d rather be the conductor punching tickets like Tom Hanks on the Polar Express.

“That’s my thing, talking with people, interacting, getting kids excited,” he said.

His company, the Saratoga, Corinth & Hudson Railway, gives people Christmas-themed memories to last a lifetime on the Candy Cane Express, a fun festive ride that runs through Dec. 22 highlighted by visits from Santa, music, lights and hot cocoa refreshments.

Raven, a Queensbury resident, gave up a 28-year railroading career to fulfill his dream of owning a scenic line. It operates year-round between South Greenfield and Hadley on 17 miles of track owned by the Town of Corinth.

“We do all the maintenance and repairs,” he said. “When we first took over, weeds were chest high and overgrown. We had to fix all the crossings.”

Two previous operators had run tourist trains from Saratoga Springs to North Creek, but couldn’t make a go of it. This is Raven’s third year in business and by all accounts it’s full steam ahead.

GlobalFoundries (Nasdaq: GFS) (GF) and the U.S. Department of Commerce have announced an award of up to $1.5 billion in direct funding to GF through the CHIPS and Science Act. The award follows the previously signed preliminary memorandum of terms announced in February 2024 and will enable GF to expand its essential chip manufacturing and technology development in the U.S., strengthening supply chains and supporting customers across a range of vital end-markets including automotive, smart mobile devices, IoT, datacenters, and aerospace and defense.

“The idea of strengthening U.S. semiconductor manufacturing has been five-plus years in the making. With bipartisan support, that idea evolved into the CHIPS and Science Act,” said Dr. Thomas Caulfield, president and CEO of GF. “GF’s essential chips are at the core of U.S. economic, supply chain and national security. We greatly appreciate the support and funding from both the U.S. Government and the states of New York and Vermont, which we will use to ensure our customers have the American-made chips they need to succeed and win.”

GF’s CHIPS and Science Act award will support three projects:

• Expansion of GF’s existing Malta, New York, fab by adding critical technologies already in production at GF’s Singapore and Germany facilities, to enable a secure and reliable supply of domestically manufactured essential chips for the U.S. auto industry.

•  Modernization and upgrading of GF’s existing fab in Essex Junction, Vermont, to expand production capacity and create one of the world’s leading facilities capable of high-volume manufacturing of next-generation gallium nitride (GaN) semiconductors for use in electric vehicles, data centers, IoT, smartphones and other critical applications.

• In alignment with market conditions and customer demand, construction of a new state-of-art fab on GF’s Malta, New York, campus to meet expected demand for U.S.-made essential chips across a broad range of markets and applications including automotive, AI in the data center and at the edge, as well as aerospace and defense.

The Saratoga Springs Preservation Foundation recently announced that it purchased 128-130 Clinton Street, two small cottages on one property that have been on the Foundation’s endangered property list for more than a decade. 

 Based on preliminary research, it appears that the house at 130 Clinton Street, built circa 1877, was the first house constructed on the property by Dennis O’Brien, who was listed as a laborer residing at 108 Clinton Street.  It is particularly unique because it is the only example of a shotgun style residence in Saratoga Springs. O’Brien built the second house, a one-and-a-half- story vernacular front gable house with a full-width front porch, at 128 Clinton Street in 1883.  Both houses were built as rental properties. 

 A shotgun style house is a narrow – typically no more than 12 feet wide, rectangular residence typically with two to four rooms arranged one behind the other without a hallway.  

“As the saying goes, one could shoot a shotgun through the front door and the bullet would fly straight through the back door,” said Samantha Bosshart, executive director.  

The shotgun house is believed to have emerged in New Orleans in the early 19th century and was predominantly popular throughout the South.  

 According to the directories, the residents of the two houses were laborers, coachmen, teamsters, farmers, maids, gardeners, firemen, and employees of various businesses. In 1965, Nettie B. Dekalb and her son Ronald Dekalb acquired the property.  The DeKalbs moved into 128 Clinton Street and rented 130 Clinton Street to others.

 It was during the DeKalb family ownership that the houses fell into disrepair and became vacant.  Earlier this year, the Foundation attempted to contact the owner to provide assistance to preserve the buildings or to offer to purchase the property. Their attempts went unanswered.  Neighbors expressed concern that the buildings would be lost when they saw the red X’s appear on the buildings, indicating that the buildings were unsafe for first responders to enter.  

Saratoga Springs author Francine Dingeman is celebrating the one-year publication anniversary of her book, The Animal Menagerie: A Curious Collection of A to Z Animal Tales, with an award of literary distinction. 

On November 9, Dingeman was awarded the Moonbeam Children’s Book Award silver medal in the category of Learning Order (Alphabet/Counting Books) by the Jenkins Group of Traverse City, Michigan. Since 2006, The Jenkins Group has been celebrating authors, illustrators, and publishers from around the world for their creation of inspiring and imaginative works for young readers. They recognize these works for the role they play in fostering a lifelong passion for reading and learning.

The Animal Menagerie, written by Dingeman and illustrated by Marta Maszkiewicz, is an enchanting A to Z picture book filled with captivating characters from the animal kingdom for children ages 4-7. The book is written to entertain and educate by introducing dozens of creative new words into a child’s vocabulary. Each letter of the alphabet comes to life with vibrant illustrations and story vignettes, making early literacy development a delightful adventure.

A first-time author, Dingeman is passionate about the art of rhyme and the creative use of words. She is a firm believer in speaking to children with vocabulary that encourages them to reach toward advanced levels of literacy and comprehension. 

The Saratoga Builders Association has presented proceeds totaling $60,000 from the 2024 Saratoga Showcase of Homes to Rebuilding Together Saratoga County and Habitat for Humanity of Northern Saratoga, Warren and Washington Counties. The association has announced that the total contribution to local charities from this area’s premiere new home tour event is now over $1.6 million.

The 2024 edition of the Saratoga Showcase of Homes had eight homes from seven builders on tour this year – Abele Homes, Bella Home Builders, Belmonte Builders (2), Kodiak Construction, Stephen James, Trojanski Builders and Witt Construction. Congratulations to Kodiak Construction for winning the People’s Choice Award for Executive Home and Bella Home Builders for winning the People’s Choice Award for Luxury Home. 

This year’s event attracted over 3,000 visitors to these beautiful new homes, which were on display over two weekends. In what has become an autumn tradition in the area, the Saratoga Builders Association is dedicated to this long running show being an integral part of the fabric in our fall season.

The Saratoga Beer Summit is returning to the City Center in Saratoga Springs on Saturday, February 22, 2025. The beer summit will once again feature its traditional menu of delicious local and national craft beers, along with a robust selection of ciders, seltzers, and malt beverages!

“Saratoga Beer Summit is the Capital Region’s premiere beverage sampling event, and is still the ultimate tasting session for local craft beer lovers. With additional beverage options there is something for everyone to enjoy,” said Townsquare Media Vice President of Sales Jake Demmin.

There will be two three-hour sampling sessions at the Saratoga Beer Summit from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. and 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., which include a souvenir tasting glass. There is also a four-hour VIP option from noon to 4 p.m.

Saratoga Casino Hotel celebrated ‘Giving Tuesday’ by donating $130,000 to 13 Capital Region non-profit organizations during their annual ‘Make A Difference’ holiday luncheon in Vapor recently.

“Twenty years later, this is still the event we look forward to most every year,” said Skip Carlson, vice president of external affairs at Saratoga Casino Hotel. “Giving back to organizations that improve the lives of so many and impact our guests, team members and the overall community is an integral part of our company’s principles and something our owners truly believe in. We are honored to be in the position to help.”

The Saratoga Springs Police Department K9 Unit, one of the recipients of a donation this year, consists of four highly trained police dogs and their handlers. This specialized unit provides essential support to the Patrol Division in various operations, including tracking, building and area searches, item location, narcotics and explosives detection, and suspect apprehension. Handlers and their canine partners undergo a rigorous selection process, followed by extensive training to develop effective teams that are deployed in a wide range of situations.

Lieutenant Paul Veitch was on hand to accept the $10,000 donation to the Saratoga Springs Police Department K9 Unit, 

By Susan Elise Campbell

Looking back on their first full year of production, entrepreneurs Max and Nikki Poritzky have counted one ton of produce grown and distributed to restaurants and schools from their hydroponic farming facility, Foothills Farm, in Greenfield Center.

The farm is a 40-by-eight-foot container housing an efficient, vertical growing system that produces high quality lettuces and herbs using a fraction of the space of traditional farming.

The couple have backgrounds and careers in the field of nutrition and come from health conscious families, they said. 

She studied nutritional biochemistry at UC Davis and was a commercial executive marketing dietary supplements, an industry in which Max also had an executive career spanning 25 years. He said his mother founded Wild Oats, the first health food store in Saratoga Springs. 

“‘Let food be thy medicine’ might sound clichéd, but this is how our families live,” Max said. 

The couple met in and resided in California and later while in Boston, their careers and life took a new trajectory. About six years ago Max was visiting a technology museum in San José and was exposed to hydroponic farming at a kiosk display.

“Hydroponic farming lets you grow nutrition-rich food year-round in any environment,” he said. “We were interested in the concept but didn’t know how or if to get into the business.”