The owner of the Albany Sunspot Cafe, Thomas Genovese, has passed away at the age of 38 from injuries suffered in a car-motorcycle crash on the Adirondack Northway in Chester, N.Y. on Tuesday.

Genovese collided with the back of a car driven by Joshua Jaenisch, 30, causing Genovese to lose control of the Suzuki motorcycle and be thrown from it, according to state police speaking with the Glens Falls Post-Star.

Genovese suffered leg and internal injuries, and was taken to Glens Falls Hospital by North Warren Emergency Squad, where he was pronounced dead shortly after the 12:20 p.m. crash.

Genovese’s business, the Albany Sunspot Cafe, which is located on Quail Street diagonal from another coffee shop (the Hudson River Coffee House), remained closed for the duration of Tuesday. It is currently uncertain whether the business will continue operating under the cirumstances. The store recently celebrated its one year anniversary this past Saturday.

In the past, in the event that a small business’s ownership passes away, the business most likely shutters not too long after. In May 2005, Taco Pronto owner Mark Fiato, 53, died from head injuries suffered from a bicycling accident in the town of New Scotland.

With its ornate decor, refined slate tiling, and fireplace, the Albany Sunspot Cafe gave Midtown Albany another cosmopolitan eatery in the same vein as the Gingerman restaurant. Previously, the location had been home to a stained glass workshop.

With his district for the most part eliminated due to redistricting, Rep. Bob Turner (R-Queens) will seek the Republican nomination to challenge Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) this fall.

“I will travel to the Republican State Convention in Rochester later this week and humbly ask for the Republican nomination for the United States Senate. I will respectfully ask for the Conservative nomination a few days later at that Party’s convention. I have made my intentions known to the other Republican candidates in this race,” Turner said in an e-mail posted originally with City & State.

Turner, who defeated David Weprin in the special election to succeed disgraced Rep. Anthony Weiner, would face fellow Republican George Maragos in the primary.

“I ran for the House six months ago as a private citizen fed up with what is happening in Washington.  I could not sit and watch career politicians sink my nation deeper into economic crisis.  Brooklyn and Queens voters, of all political parties, graciously responded by sending me to Congress. It now appears that their district has been eliminated. There is serious work to be done to get this economy back on track, and I will not walk away from that work now,” continued Turner.

“I will run for the Senate, and I will run to win,” Turner states.

Gillibrand, who served in the House from 2006 through 2009 before being tapped as Gov. David A. Paterson’s pick to replace Hillary Clinton in the U.S. Senate, currently enjoys high approval ratings across the stage. If Gillibrand wins this fall, Gillibrand would enjoy a full term in office, compared to completing Clinton’s last two years and earning herself a temporary term in 2010.

Assembly staffer Kevin Frazier won’t be the only Democrat in the race to succeed retiring Colonie Assemblyman Robert Reilly.

Albany County Legislator Phillip G. Steck (D-Loudonville) announced he will seek the Democratic nomination for the Assembly district that includes Colonie, Niskayuna, and a portion of Schenectady.

Steck, who previously ran for U.S. Congress in 2008 (losing to Paul Tonko in the Democratic primary and general election), has been in the Albany County Legislature since 2004. Recently, Steck joined fellow Democrats in the legislature to oppose the nomination of Albany County Attorney Thomas Marcelle (Steck and company were unsuccessful in their opposition).

Steck was the chair of the Colonie Democratic Committee, helping to usher in Democratic control over the town board and the supervisor position (now held by Paula Mahan).

“I am very disappointed that Bob Reilly is not seeking reelection. I worked very enthusiastically to support Bob in all his elections. He has been a credit to the Democratic Party in Colonie,” said Steck to WNYT.

Steck currently is a partner at Cooper, Erving, and Savage, a Downtown Albany law firm.

Steck was one of several Democrats who ran in the Democratic Congressional primary to succeed retiring Congressman Michael R. McNulty (D-Green Island) in 2008, along with Tonko, Tracey Brooks, Lester Freeman, Darius Shahinfar, and Arthur Welser. Since losing the election, Steck’s campaign domain, philsteck.com, was purchased by perennial Republican Congressional candidate Warren Redlich.

New York Students Rising, an education activism group founded by students from both the State University of New York and the City University of New York, took to the State Capitol in Downtown Albany this past Monday, demanding changes to be made within public higher education and reinvestment by the state of funding that has been cut in recent years.

“For years, SUNY and CUNY students have seen the quality of their education decline in lock step with the decline of New York State’s financial support for these institutions. At the same time, we’ve seen our schools’ leaders and elected leaders push and implement measures that would increase the cost of our school. They demand that we pay more for less while passing the costs of public higher education onto working-class and middle-class students,” said the group in a statement.

Over 400 students rallied, with over 30 arrests by state police. As of Thursday, all students who were arrested have been released.

The group sent the following opinions from students, community leaders, and academics:

“In order to take on the immense political, economic, and ecological challenges that the world will have to face, it is imperative to raise a generation of critical thinkers. Individuals of all classes and backgrounds deserve to engage in higher education so that they might broaden the diversity of thought in the learning process, while also making better lives for themselves. Over the past few years, the public education system in New York has taken a number of actions that have stifled critical thought and limited diversity on its campuses. NYSR seeks to address the irresponsibility of the system for limiting the rights that all students deserve,” said Jimmy Swan, an undergraduate student at Binghamton University in Binghamtom, N.Y.

“High school students stand in solidarity with CUNY and SUNY students. Essentially, we all face the same struggle – we are all public school students and decisions that largely impact our lives, whether it be around school closures or tuition hikes, are made behind our backs without any input from students. We are tired of being ignored when it is literally our lives on the line,” said Tafador “Taffy” Sourov, a senior at Belmont Prep High School.

“CUNY faculty and staff also stand in solidarity with these courageous students.  By continuing to allow the richest people in the state to pay less than their fair share of taxes, Albany is, in effect, taking money out of the pockets of our students and handing it directly to hedge fund managers.  There is no justice in a system that pampers the rich and denies our students an education worthy of their dreams,” said Barbara Bowen, President of the Professional Staff Congress/CUNY.

“Students are growing restless as they begin to face bleak futures fraught with debt and punctuated with a lack of opportunity. NYSR is a student response to the growing business that has become education. No student should ever have to relinquish their right of public education to the wallets of private interest,” said Victoria Brown, a graduate student at Binghamton University.

“Last year, Governor Cuomo forced through devastating budget cuts and NYSUNY 2020, meaning students are paying $1,500 more over the next five years for fewer programs, less faculty, and limited services. The only way these anti-student provisions were able to pass was because students were effectively locked out of the process or kept in the dark. If we want SUNY and CUNY policy to adequately reflect students’ interests, we need participatory governance and more student representation. We’re not afraid to demand that from our campuses or the Governor, let’s just hope they are up to the challenge,” said Cathy Rojas, an undergraduate at the University at Albany.

“Years of cuts are devastating the SUNY and CUNY systems and driving up tuition costs for students. The state not only has an obligation to provide a quality K – 12 education, it is also critical that the state invests in our public colleges and universities. When we starve public higher education, and make it more expensive for students, we shrink the middle class, increase student debt and harm our shared economic future,” said Karen Scharff, Executive Director of Citizen Action of New York.

“As higher education increasingly becomes a necessity for any type of career advancement, people who need it the most are being shut out due to high costs. Student loan debt is an issue that not only affects students but working families trying to provide a stable source of income in these tough economic times. This is why we need free public higher education. Our education must also reflect the backgrounds of the students attending. This means support for ethnic and queer studies, rather than just supporting corporate backed research,” said Biola Jeje, an undergraduate at Brooklyn College.

“As a SUNY faculty member, I am honored to stand with NYSR and the students of New York as they list their grievances against the state and assert a forward-looking vision of public higher education.  The savage budget cuts of the past four years have devastated SUNY and CUNY: my campus has seen program closures, faculty and staff firings, reduced funding for graduate students and a host of other reductions, both large and small. Brutal though these few years have been, a slightly longer historical perspective shows education cuts to be the norm rather than the exception as three decades of state cuts have regressively offloaded the costs of education from public funds to private tuition revenues and private partnerships.  We amass here today to permanently reverse this erosion of state funding, and insist that higher education is a public good of enormous social value,” said Bret Benjamin, Assistant Professor of English at the University at Albany.

“The problems that are threatening our institutions of higher educations are so pervasive that they have become normalized, and suddenly our generation has lost sight of what those before us have fought for, namely that education is a right, not a privilege,” said Ashley Dryzmalda, an undergraduate at SUNY New Paltz.

“Our youngest achievers and our college level learners share a dependency on the Governor and the legislature to deliver the resources that they need to succeed. Unfortunately, repeated unsatisfactory state budget cuts to public schools and higher education will mean that far too many young New Yorkers will find it hard to reach their educational dreams. It is time for our state to draw a line in the sand and make a decision about the value of every student receiving an opportunity to learn,” said Nikki Jones, Alliance for Quality Education, Communications Director.

“The conversation around higher education is downright bizarre. We have elected leaders and administrators discussing how the increase of tuition needs to be controlled and predictable for students and their families. Rather than talking about how to temper the rise of tuition, we should be concentrating on how we can bring tuition down. Not only that, but when these conversations take place, students should be participating. NYSR believes it is time to bring an end to having disconnected administrators who collect six figure salaries talk about what they believe is in our best interests when they can’t speak to the financial hardship students have to deal with,” said Sean Collins, an undergraduate at the University at Albany in Albany, N.Y. (note: Sean Collins does not represent the views of the Knickerbocker Ledger, its parent company, or affiliate organizations)

The nomination of Thomas Marcelle, County Executive Daniel P. McCoy‘s pick for Albany County Attorney, passed the Albany County Legislature Monday night in a vote of 27-10 with two abstentions.

Marcelle, who had been most recently the senior counsel for the Alliance Defense Fund, said that the vote was “a great moment for Albany County.” Over 125 residents and onlookers were in attendance for the standing-room-only meeting in the legislature’s newly renovated chamber at the Albany County Courthouse.

“This is about my qualifications, they know my capabilities,” said Marcelle after the vote.

Marcelle’s nomination for the $110,000-a-year post had been met with opposition in the last few weeks, cap-stoned by the creation of stoptommarcelle.com by LGBT activist Libby Post (Post was not present at the vote).

The votes in the opposition included legislators Doug Bullock, Frank Commisso, Bryan Clenahan, Chris Higgins, Raymond Joyce, Noelle Kinsch, Lucille McKnight, Tim Nichols, Joe O’Brien, and Phil Steck.

“This is about a basic vision of government, this is why I have a problem with this nomination,” said Clenahan.

“(Tom) Marcelle does not use judgment, does not understand ‘one man, one vote’,” said McKnight. McKnight alluded to the comments made by former Albany Common Council Member and 2009 mayoral candidate Corey Ellis, who called for a more diversified county government. ”We continue to not embrace diversity,” said Ellis.

“I applaud the legislature for its determination to advance my appointments after an exhaustive vetting process,” said McCoy in a prepared statement. McCoy was not present for the vote.

During the public comment period – which lasted about two hours – the entire first hour of comments were all in favor of Marcelle.

“The county executive is entitled to his county attorney. That should be the issue. Nothing else,” said former county legislator Nancy Wiley.

Bill Ritchie, a labor activist and the president of the Albany Central Federation of Labor, was the first to speak in opposition to the appointment.

“This nomination could have united us, instead of dividing us,” said Ritchie.

Marcelle’s nomination culminated a nearly month long fight between allies of McCoy and the progressive community, who has cited concern over the “closeness” between McCoy Democrats and the Albany County Conservative Party led by Richard Stack.

“I do not support of the arraignment between McCoy and the Conservative Party. I do not support the arraignment between Chairman Morse and the Conservative Party. And I do not support the arraignment between Mike Connors with Conservative Party,” said Steck, referring to all three elected officials taking on the Conservative Party line in addition to running as Democrats.

“I said when I took office that I will run this county as a business and that I will appoint the most qualified individuals to help me lead, based upon their history of accomplishments rather than their political or personal ideology. I will continue to govern by that standard in the best interest of the people who elected me,” McCoy continued.

McCoy’s campaign manager, Tom Nardacci, chimed in on the Marcelle nomination on Twitter, saying “For the record, 99.97% of Albany County residents aren’t paying attention to #albmarcelle. It’s twitter spam at this point.” Nardacci is also the president of Gramercy Communications.

In addition to Marcelle, the legislature unanimously approved Darrell Duncan of the Town of New Scotland as Commissioner of the Department of Public Works and Kathleen Dalton of Colonie as the Commissioner of the Department of Social Services.

Photo Credit: DCA Photos

Opponents of the upcoming Albany live entertainment license bill took to the internet on Wednesday, starting a petition through Change.org that aims on rejecting the bill in it’s entirety.

The petition, started by Jeremy Routhier-James, asks for the Albany Common Council to  reject “the fee of $300-$900 to host live music and other entertainment.”

“Live music and entertainment are integral to a thriving city. Countless independent musicians, comedians, poets, and karaoke and trivia hosts depend on a vibrant nightlife scene in the region for their livelihood and means of artistic expression. Small venues such as coffee shops that host open mics and performances by local musicians play an important role in the local music scene. We fear that the already limited opportunities for performers in Albany will only diminish if the Albany Common Council adopts this proposal,” according to the petition’s statement.

As of 1:57 p.m. today, the petition had 82 signatures out of 250.

The bill would regulate venues per square footage, subsequently changing the authority of licensing live entertainment venues from the Board of Zoning Appeals to five city department heads with license issuance from the city clerk.

The bill’s opponents include business owners and musicians.

“Without good venues (something Albany’s already faced with), the local music scene will crumble. Anyone who went to shows even five-seven years ago knows its a completely new scene around here. Its just starting to get better – lets not take backwards steps here,” said Steve Struss, the drummer for MIRK and one of the petition’s signers.

The bill is up for debate at the Common Council’s planning committee meeting on February 15 at 5 p.m.

In a dramatic finish, the New York Giants have defeated the New England Patriots, 21-17, in Superbowl XLVI in Indianapolis on Sunday night.

The Giants and Patriots repeated their last matchup from 2008, where the Giants defeated the undefeated Patriots 17-14.

Eli Manning, the Giants quarterback, was awarded the Superbowl MVP.

This is the four Superbowl win for the Giants and the second under Manning and coach Tom Coughlin. The Giants previously won in 1986 and 1990 under coach Bill Parcells with quarterback Phil Simms leading the way.

The Patriots, who won in 2001, 2003, and 2004, are now more than a decade from their team’s turning point to become perennial Superbowl contenders. Prior to 2001, the Patriots had never won a Superbowl.

The Giants will also be returning to the University at Albany this summer, according to the university’s vice president of athletic administration. No doubt the Superbowl win will ensure record-setting crowds will hit the uptown campus.

Albany County Executive Daniel P. McCoy, now a month into his first term as chief executive of the most populous county in the Capital Region, defended his choice for county attorney after a barrage of complaints from the progressive and LGBT communities.

In a statement first published by the Times Union this afternoon, McCoy said that Thomas Marcelle, a senior counsel with the Alliance Defense Fund (an organization labeled to watch for by the Southern Poverty Law Center), was “overqualified for the job of county attorney.”

Marcelle will go before a vote of the full county legislature next week. According to a number of sources, at least 16 legislators out of the 39 will oppose Marcelle’s nomination.

“I have every belief that he will follow the law. During his meeting with the County’s Personnel Committee, he unequivocally stated that he would uphold New York’s new same-sex marriage law should it come before him as a matter of county business. With his commitment to this specific law publicly stated, I don’t believe that we should have a political litmus test for county employment,” said McCoy in a statement.

Earlier on Tuesday, the Empire State Pride Agenda called Marcelle’s appointment an “insult” and would bring “grave danger” to the LGBT community.

“My own personal commitment to equal rights is well documented publicly, as evidenced by my previous support for proposed civil rights and equal protection laws, and by the statement I made last June supporting the passage of marriage equality in New York State,” McCoy continued in the statement.

Before marriage equality was passed by New York in June, County Legislator Bryan Clenahan had proposed a pro-marriage equality declaration before the county legislature – a declaration in which McCoy never signed. McCoy at the time was county legislature chair.

Clenahan, along with fellow legislator Noelle Kinsch and others, made the opinion of Marcelle known as the RFK Democratic Club meeting last week.

The fight over Marcelle’s appointment reached a boiling point earlier this month when Libby Post published stoptommarcelle.com, a web site dedicated to opposing Marcelle’s appointment as county attorney. The county attorney is responsible for legal matters within county government and should not be confused with the duties and responsibilities of the district attorney, who is the county’s chief prosecutor.

“It is unfortunate those who oppose this appointment on personal and political grounds are doing so by seeking to frustrate the equal protection rights of an individual. Albany County is committed to providing and assuring equal opportunity is extended to all persons in employment matters without regard to their race, color, religion, age, national origin, marital status, sex or disability,” McCoy concluded.

It remains seen whether McCoy will consider other potential nominees in the event that Marcelle’s vote fails.

Update (2/2/2012, 2:49 p.m.): Bill Ritchie, President of the Albany County Central Federation of Labor (AFL-CIO), representing 30,000 union members and their families in Albany County, has announced the Federation’s opposition to the proposed appointment of Thomas Marcelle to the position of Albany County Attorney and is urging Albany County legislators to reject this candidacy. This position was adopted tonight by a vote of the delegates at the Federation’s monthly meeting.

“Tom Marcelle is by no means well-qualified for the County Attorney job,” said Ritchie.

“While his competence as a lawyer is not being debated, his lack of experience in matters pertaining to labor law and practice – collective bargaining, public employee contracts, arbitration and initiatives such as project labor agreements–is glaring.”

In fiery remarks at a packed backroom at McGeary’s in Downtown Albany on Monday, Albany City Treasurer Katherine M. Sheehan delivered a terse and direct response to last week’s State of the City address given by Mayor Gerald D. Jennings.

The event, billed as a forum on progressive business ownership, was organized by the Robert F. Kennedy Democratic Club (co-chaired by Maureen O’Brien and Matthew Peter). Since it’s resurrection, the club (which is soon to become a PAC according to Peter) has held forums and rallies that have included speakers such as Sen. Neil Breslin, U.S. Rep. Tonko, and others.

Sheehan, who was elected city treasurer against longtime incumbent Betty Barnette in 2009, said that the city “cannot hope to eliminate our budget deficit, revitalize our neighborhoods or reduce property taxes if we continue to engage in magical thinking that all is well in our city.”

Prior to elected office, Sheehan served as general counsel and corporate secretary for Intermagnetics General Corporation before the company was acquired by Philips Electronics. Undoubtedly tying in her previous technology sector experience, Sheehan also called for the creation of a city chief information officer to manage information technology needs in city government.

“As the heart of Tech Valley, we should be at the forefront of smart government. It is time to hire a CIO who can centralize our IT services and rapidly put us on a path to smart technology investment,” said Sheehan.

On education in response to Jennings appointing University at Albany President George M. Philip and College of St. Rose President R. Mark Sullivan to co-chair a committee to structure a new curriculum for Albany High School, Sheehan says that the curriculum design must be “headed by our independent City School District.” In attendance and adjacent to Sheehan was Daniel Egan, the president of the Albany City Schools board.

Both Philip and Sullivan have announced their retirements in the last few months, so it would be unclear whether their successors would continue to be involved.

The remarks followed speeches given by local business owners Anton Pasquill and Sarah Gordon. Pasquill, who owns the Hudson River Coffee House on Quail Street, said that the most often-asked question he gets is why he opened a business in the middle of what some call “the student-ghetto.”

“Most of the time, I give a flippant response. I cite insanity or wanting to avoid looking for a job. The truth is, like any entrepreneur, I saw opportunity,” said Pasquill.

Gordon, who’s the daughter of recently retired Albany County Legislator Alexander “Sandy” Gordon, operates the Helderberg Marketplace that prides itself on organic, farm-fresh produce items that can be delivered to area residents.

With the event’s background focused on building up neighborhoods and the Albany community through smart development, Sheehan concluded that Albany’s best days are yet to come.

“Our brightest days can be ahead of us, but only if we are willing to work together, face our challenges head on and create a City government that works for everyone.”

It’s a crazy awards season, folks. This year, the list of films and actors that would be nominated for Oscars wasn’t as glaringly obvious as it’s been in years past. There are so many “very good” films, and not the usual stack of five or six great ones to choose from.  We believe the nominees are more exciting this year than ever, as many more films were in contention for the coveted nominee spots. In fact, several films that critics were sure would be included were almost completely left out (Young Adult, Drive), and there were films that no one thought would be included that were (Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close…this year’s The Blind Side. Our theory is that old white men in the Academy have a weird thing for Sandra Bullock). The Oscars, thanks to the recent, confusing addition of many smaller films and indie releases getting big, critical praise, as well as the decreasing relevance of the Golden-Globes-as-Oscar-predictor, are pretty up in the air, and as movie fans with a vested interest in watching Hollywood react to its own, incestuous, self-congratulatory traditions,  who could ask for anything more?

So with that, Knickerbocker Ledger’s two self-proclaimed resident People Who Like To Tell You Their Opinions About Movies, Cait Rooney and Robin Zlotnick, give you our Oscar Predictions…

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