Don't forget your photos!

Remember, we're counting on you to share your childhood (or young personhood) holiday pictures for inclusion in a presentation to match our "Childhood Memories Holiday Party" theme.

Bill Dowd (if you don't recognize him, he's in the photo at the right) is collecting whatever you'd care to share, either in hard copy (to be returned in good shape) or by e-mail to Bill Dowd as soon as possible.

The latest possible date to submit your photos is Saturday, Dec. 1.

(Don't confuse that with the deadline for party reservations, which is Tuesday, Nov. 27!)

Holiday party menu & reservations

Here are the menu selections for our "Childhood Memories Holiday Dinner," scheduled for 5 to 8 p.m. Sunday, December 9, at The Epicurean, Route 7, east of troy.

Please contact April or Bill Dowd (238-1950 or williamdowd@nycap.rr.com) as soon as possible with your reservations and menu choices.

The ABSOLUTE DEADLINE for turning in your reservations is Tuesday, Nov. 27, so we can give the chef at The Epicurean a head count.

The price is just $30 per person, which includes hors d'ouvres (wine is extra, like last year).

FOR THE COCKTAIL HOUR

Feuilletés au Fromage
(Warm light puffed pastries filled with cheese)
Croutons ~ Fromages & Pâté du Chef
Assortment of farmstead cheeses & chef’s artisanal pâté
French bread & crackers
Spécialité du Chef - Senteurs de Provence
Four Provençal Sauces - aïoli, tapenade, pistou & tartare
Fresh seasonable vegetables & toasted French bread
Calamar à la Provençale (sautéed calamari with tomatoes & garlic in a white wine reduction)

DINNER (Choose one)

• Mignon de Porc & Sauce Calvados
(Sautéed pork tenderloin, served with Calvados sauce, caramelized apples & rustic garlic mashed potatoes)

• Filet Bistro Grillé, Sauce Bordelaise
(Grilled bistro beef filet, served with Bordelaise sauce, vegetables & gratin dauphinois)

• Saumon Grillé à l’Estragon
(Grilled Atlantic salmon with tarragon sauce, served with wild basmati rice and sautéed vegetables)

INTERMEZZO

Salade de Mesclun
(Delicate field greens salad served with 12-Year-Old balsamic vinaigrette)

DESSERT

Tarte aux Pommes & Myrtilles
(Warm apple or apple-blueberry pie à la mode served with Epicurean coffee or tea selection)

Holiday party save-the-date

Childhood Holiday Memories

“Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens;
Bright copper kettles and warm woolen mittens;
Brown paper packages tied up with strings;
These are a few of my favorite things.”

This year, the Terrace Holiday Party will be a time to share our childhood holiday memories in words and images.

Please dig into your scrapbooks and memories to find childhood photos, holiday poems you wrote or that were written to you, holiday anecdotes you can put on paper ... all of which we can share during the festivities.

We can scan your precious photos and get them right back to you. The scanned versions will be used at the party. Just deliver them to Bill Dowd absolutely no later than Saturday, December 1.

Since the response to partying at The Epicurean was so positive last year, we're re-visiting it, but with a different menu.

5 to 8 p.m. Sunday, December 9
The Epicurean
Route 7, Raymertown (east of Troy)

More details to come

In memory of Dorothy DeLuca

• Dorothy DeLuca, a longtime resident of the Terrace, died on Wednesday, October 3. Here is her obituary, as published in local newspapers. The sympathies of all the residents of the Terrace go out to Dorothy's family.

---

Dorothy DeSorrento DeLuca, 85, of Hyland Drive, Troy, entered into eternal life on Wednesday, October 3, 2007 at the Eddy Ford Nursing Home in Cohoes.

Born Domenica Camille DeSorrento on January 18, 1922 in Watervliet, she was the daughter of the late Nazzareno "Ned" and Rose Romeo DeSorrento and was a graduate of Watervliet High School. She was the beloved wife of Arthur A. DeLuca and the late Joseph F. Alaskey Jr. and Leland Sorensen.

She retired from the New York State Department of Transportation. She had been a longtime communicant of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Church in Watervliet, cherished the times spent with her family and friends, enjoyed golfing and bowling and was formerly a member of the Van Schaick Island Country Club.

Devoted mother of Joseph F. Alaskey III, J. Ned (Donna) Alaskey and the late JoAnne Valente; loving sister of Otto M. DeSorrento, Ned DeSorrento Jr., Maria Jablonski, Frances Gil-coyne and the late Anthony J. DeSorrento; cherished grandmother of Michael Valente, John Jay Valente, Christine Alaskey, Patricia Alaskey and Jacqueline Alaskey; also survived by many loving nieces, nephews, grandnieces and grandnephews.

Funeral will be held on Monday morning at 8:45 from the John J. Sanvidge Funeral Home, Inc. (Corner of 115th St. and Fourth Avenue), Lansingburgh, thence to St. Patrick's Church in Watervliet, where at 9:30 a.m. the Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated. Relatives and friends are invited and may call at the funeral home on Sunday from 2:00 to 6:00 p.m. Interment will be held in St. Mary's Cemetery, Troy.

In lieu of flowers, the family desires that memorial contributions may be made to the DeSo Foundation, c/o Suraya De-Sorrento, 155 South Garfield St., Denver, CO 80209, in memory of Dorothy DeSorrento DeLuca.

Minutes of October 2, 2007, meeting

The Terrace at Highpointe Homeowners Association
General Membership Meeting
October 2, 2007
Minutes

Roll Call: 23 units were represented. Absent: 1, 2, 3, 5, 10, 13, 19, 20, 31, 32, 33.

I. Minutes of May 2007 Meeting

A motion to accept the minutes as revised was made by Jerry Gordon, seconded by Bill Wade and approved without dissent.

II. Report of the Treasurer

Kathy Wade distributed the 2007 Asset Summary and the 2007 Budget/Expenditure Report. The proposed budget for 2008 is the same as the 2007 budget, with the exception that $1,000 was shifted from snow rmoval to grounds maintenance/utilities. A motion to accept the 2008 Budget Proposal was made by Russ Golino, seconded by Harvey Bailey and approved without dissent.

III. Reports of Committees

• Rules: In anticipation of his absence from this meeting, Joe Claeys submitted a written recommendation that a summary of provisions in the Declarations and By-Laws be prepared and distributed instead of a fully revised document. The committee will proceed after Joe returns from vacation.

• Grounds: Harvey Bailey reported that (1.) The lawn maintenance contract with Vintage Landscaping will be renewed at the same price for the coming year; (2.) The snow removal contract with Mark Vincent will be renewed for the coming year (less salt will be applied at a time and the charge for removing heavier snowfalls will increase); (3.) The committee will be seeking bids from other contractors for the coming year. The contract will probably need to include additional applications for grub control.

• Beautification: Nothing to report.

• Architectural: Bill Dowd reported that the committee had approved a request from #29 for replacement of step and sidewalk.

IV. New Business

• Elections: Bill Dowd said the current Association Board has offered to serve an additional term unless there were other candidates interested. There were none. The entire Board was reelected by acclamation.

• The next meeting will be held at 7 p.m. Monday, May 12, 2008, at Faith Lutheran Church.

Adjourned at 7:55 p.m.

Submitted by Patricia E. Whitman, Secretary of the Board, October 3, 2007.

Minutes of May 5, 2007, meeting (revised 10/2)

The Terrace at Highpointe Homeowners Association
General Membership Meeting
May 7, 2007
Minutes

Roll Call: 20 units were represented. Absent: 5, 6, 10, 11,12, 13, 18, 19, 20, 25, 27, 31, 32, 33.

I. Minutes of October 2006 Meeting

A motion to accept the minutes as offered was made by Bill Wade, seconded by Shirley Fischer, and approved without dissent.

II. Report of Treasurer

Kathy Wade distributed the 2006 Asset Summary and the 2006 Budget/Expenditure Report. Dead trees were removed ($200); snow costs were less than expected.

III. Reports of Committees

• Rules: Joe Claeys reported that the bylaws have been revised and recommended that they be sent to HOA members for review at the fall meeting. The expenses related to filing and recording the bylaws will be determined by the fall meeting.

• Grounds: (1.) All Seasons applied fertilizer on 5/7/07. Everyone needs to water their lawns for the fertilizer to become effective. The next two applications will be for dandelions and then for weed & feed. (2.) Vintage will call Harvey the day before each application and Harvey will post a notice on the bulletin board. (3.) The snow removal contractor terminated his contract, citing too little profit for the amount of work involved. Harvey has contacted Mark Vincent to discuss. This will be placed on the agenda for the fall meeting. (4.) Spring Clean-up Day will be June 2, starting at 9 a.m. A notice will be posted on the bulletin board.

• Beautification: Shirley Fischer is stepping down due to family commitments. Lorraine Bailey agreed to assist the remaining members in caring for the flowers by the mailboxes.

• Architectural: (1.) Bill Dowd reported that the committee approved one request for an awning and two requests for patios.
(2.) Tom Chichester reported that some units have had problems with their sump pumps. Each unit needs to make sure the power to their pump is on since one unit usually affects the adjoining unit. Residents may contact Tom with any questions.

IV. New Business

(1.) It was agreed that the summer picnic will be held on July 21. Members of the picnic committee are Terry Page, Joe Claeys, Claire Steiner, Joan Coyne and Maryanne Gordon. Bob Hayward will be responsible for the tent.

(2.) April Dowd volunteered to be in charge of the annual Holiday Party again.

(3.) Bill Dowd announced that the election of board members will take place at the fall meeting and requested anyone interested in participating on the board contact him in advance of the 7 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 2, meeting at Faith Lutheran Church.

Adjourned at 7:45 p.m.

Submitted by John Milliren, Vice President; distributed by Patricia E. Whitman, Secretary of the Board, May 14, 2007 (rev. 9/27/07).

Dues are due

Fourth-quarter association dues must be submitted no later than Monday, Oct. 1, to Treasurer Kathy Wade.

Thank you for your cooperation.

Fall meeting coming up

Mark your calendar for 7 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 2. That's the date for our Homeowners Association fall meeting, set as usual for Faith Lutheran Church.

Summer Picnic '07

The weather and a lot of volunteer effort combined for an excellent day for Terrace Spring Picnic 2007.

Between games of bocce and darts that, while fun, didn't reach professional caliber, Fil Steiner laboring over the grill, numerous others donating chicken, burgers, salads, desserts and more, and an imaginative picnic committee that came up with a '50s & '60s theme for the day, a good time was had by all.

Here are some scenes from the Sunday, July 22, event, shot by April and Bill Dowd and Jerry Gordon. Jerry gets credit for this "poster" shot of Mary Donohue Ricci reenacting her youth, both in garb and games.



Now, here are the rest:

Welcome to Summer '07 -- and a memorable day

If you get a sudden urge to go galumphing through fields of flowers, it's not witchcraft. It's summer.

Summer officially arrived Wednesday afternoon, which made June 21 the longest day of the year.

Want to know what else happened on various June 21's throughout history? Here, courtesy of the Brainy History online site, are some interesting ones:

• 1990: Little Richard gets a star on Hollywood's walk of fame
• 1989: Supreme Court rules OK to burn U.S. flag as a political expression
• 1987: Boxer Mike Tyson sexually harasses a parking lot attendant
• 1985: American, Brazilian and West German forensic pathologists confirm skeletal remains exhumed in Brazil were Nazi Dr. Josef Mengele
• 1982: John Hinckley found not guilty of attempted assassination of President Reagan by reason of insanity
• 1977: Former White House chief of staff HR Haldeman enters prison
• 1963: Giovanni Battista Montini succeeds John XXIII, takes name Pope Paul VI
• 1948: The first stored computer program run, on the Manchester Mark I
• 1945: U.S. defeats Japanese on Okinawa
• 1939: Doctors say baseball great Lou Gehrig has amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
• 1913: Tiny Broadwick is first woman to parachute from a plane
• 1893: Ferris wheel premieres at Chicago's Columbian Exposition
• 1788: U.S. Constitution goes into effect as New Hampshire is ninth to ratify
• 1633: Inquisition forces Galileo to abandon sun-centric theory

And, for a very special treat, click here to see and hear the late Ella Fitzgerald sing the classic "Summertime" during a 1968 concert in Berlin.

3rd Quarter dues coming up

The third installment of your 2007 Homeowners Association dues comes due on Sunday, July 1.

Dues are $355 per household, in accordance with the rate set at a special meeting of the Association on Oct. 16, 2006. Please get your checks to Treasurer Kathy Wade ASAP.

Note: Dues for the fourth quarter will be due on Oct. 1.

Troy strolling back to the future, briskly

Photos & Story by William M. Dowd

(Double-click to enlarge images.)

In some cities street festivals are weekly events. In the Capital Region they're far less frequent, but can be every bit as much of a crowd pleaser.>

The annual River Street Festival in Troy was such a place on Saturday, June 16, another sign that the gradual but perceptible revival of the waterside city is working.

Thousands -- some city officials claim 20,000 over the course of the day-long event -- crowded River Street from just north of City Hall down several blocks into the Antiques District, with live music at either end. Food and craft vendors lined both sides of the street, along with strollers, dogs, kids and people looking for a spot of shade in the glare of a near-90 day.

This is what a lot of Troy must have looked like many years ago, with crowds milling about, lots of pleasant noise, and folks just generally having a good time. It's what you hear when oldtimers reminisce about the city's heyday.

There will be more such, if repeated comments I overheard by non-Troy residents are any indication. Things like, "The architecture down here is fantastic. I want to come back." "I always thought it was hard to find your way around Troy. It's easy and they have loads of parking." "Let's come back next week and try the antiques shops."

Larry Schepici isn't wasting any time trying to keep the momentum going. The much-decorated chef who owns two downtown establishments -- the Illium Cafe on Monument Square and the fine-dining Tosca just a few steps away -- told me he's planning a Troy Chowderfest competition on Saturday, Aug. 18, that might cordon off another part of River Street: the food-and-fun block just above the Green Island Bridge where Jose Malone's, Ryan's Wake, Deli-icious, River Street Cafe, Troy Brew Pub and Revolution Hall are located.

"There's no reason to limit ourselves to just once in a while," Schepici said. "We've got something going here and we need to take advantage of the momentum."

The concept of the event, Schepici said, is to feature Troy restaurants working with local farms and produce to showcase the relationship between chefs and the farms of the Capital Region.

Luckily, Troy hasn't blocked itself off from the Hudson River as its downstream neighbors in Albany did when I-787 was constructed on the west bank. Its proximity to water, affording ambiance and views, is among the major drawing cards luring condo builders, redevelopers and businesses to the Rensselaer County side.

This all may sounds like a very hopeful pronouncement, especially from the guy who christened Troy "Plywood City" in frustration over the number of derelict, boarded-up buildings that create pockets of eyesores throughout a community on the comeback trail. But both views have been rooted in reality.

Where once there were few signs of revival, we now see redevelopment of former factory and commercial buildings, planning for the massive Congress Street corridor project, and new buildings at RPI popping up like toadstools after a warm rain.

It's fair to say Troy no longer is just a place you drive through to get to Vermont.

(This story was written originally for the Web site of Capital Region Living magazine.)

Busy Troy entertainment calendar

• The inaugural Folk Fest For Food is scheduled for 2 to 5 p.m. Saturday, June 9, in the Troy Antique District on River Street. The event, sponsored by Jim Barrett's River Street Beat Shop and Kaleidoscope 104.0 FM, is a charity event for the St. Patrick's Food Pantry. Local favorites Roseanne Raneri and the Ramblin' Jug Stompers are scheduled to perform. Admission is by voluntary donation.

• Troy's famous Flag Day Parade is scheduled for Sunday, June 10 (even though Flag Day isn't until the 14th), at 1 p.m. The 40th annual event is the largest such parade in the nation. You can get additional details here.

• Troy’s River Street Festival is scheduled for 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, June 16, with a "Grassroots & Antiques" theme. The family-oriented event also offers food and entertainment. Details are available here.

Annual Spring Cleanup a sparkling success

Grounds Committee Guru Harvey Bailey cracked the whip and the volunteer crew spruced up the Terrace during the annual Spring Cleanup project last weekend. Many thanks to all who participated.

Here are a few scenes, courtesy of Jerry Gordon.

Women In Art

There's an extremely clever morphing selection posted on the You Tube site, showing a collection of paintings of women done by various artists over the years.

Click here to see it. I guarantee it's worth the time.

About those 'cute' deer ...

A local store has a reminder posted near its pet food supplies:

IT IS ILLEGAL UNDER NYS LAW TO FEED WHITE-TAILED DEER

Some reasons:

• Overpopulation has affected deer survival.
• The proliferation of Lime Disease caused by deer-borne ticks is endangering many humans.
• Attracting deer to neighborhoods encourages them to roam the area, where they destroy landscaping.
• Getting deer used to human activity creates road hazards.

According to the Cornell Cooperative Extension's Wildlife Damage Management Program:

"Deer frequently feed on flowers, fruits, and vegetables and the buds and twigs of fruit trees and ornamental shrubs. Damage to landscape plantings and ornamentals may occur at any time of year but is usually most severe in the late winter and early spring when other food supplies are limited. Damage to fruit trees may cause both the immediate loss of the crop and residual tree injury that leads to reduced yields in the future. Deer browsing may permanently disfigure ornamental trees."

For a copy of Cornell's excellent deer factsheet -- which includes information on repellants, deer-resistant plants and shrubs as well as general information about deer -- click here.

Oakwood goes big Times

Terry Page and Oakwood Cemetery are featured in a May 25 New York Times story on historic cemeteries around the country.

Diamond Ridge gets a partial OK

(DOUBLE-CLICK ON MAP TO ENLARGE.)

The Troy Planning Board approved "stage 1" of Diamond Ridge's expansion project Wednesday night.

What that approval covers is seven two-family units to be constructed on the east side of Harris Road. What it leaves up in the air is "stage 2," a proposal for a three-story, 60-unit residential building and the possibility of a connector road between Harris and Hyland Drive.

Duncan Barrett, president of Omni Housing Development which is handling the expansion work, has told the Terrace Homeowners Association that Diamond Ridge concurs with the Terrace that such a connector is not needed. However, under pressure from the city Fire Dept., his firm prepared four different scenarios for undertaking such work, ranging in potential cost to Diamond Ridge of $30,000 to $165,900.

The arrows on the map above show the two most likely emergency access pathways that have been drawn up. The top one is a Hyland-Harris connector, the bottom a paved version of the current Hollywood Drive dirt road. The other two access possibilities are a new driveway to Gurley Avenue and a driveway through the current commercial parcel (Dunkin' Donuts, etc.) onto Oakwood.

Because of continued Terrace opposition to a Hyland-Harris connector, City Engineer Russ Reeves agreed to call a meeting among the Terrace, Diamond Ridge, the Planning Board and the Fire Dept. to discuss the merits and demerits of such a project.

One other neighborhood-related item that came before the Planning Board this week was Thomas Murley's latest project -- construction of a gas station and a bank on a now-vacant plot on Oakwood opposite Biscayne Boulevard.

Several members of the Terrace Homeowners Association, as well as a representative of the Greens Party, spoke at the Planning Board meeting in opposition to the idea of a Hyland-Harris connector. Association President Bill Dowd delivered the following statement on behalf of the Terrace community:

"Ladies and Gentleman of the Planning Board:

"My name is William Dowd. I am here in my capacity as president of the Terrace at Highpointe Homeowners Association. Our community abuts Diamond Ridge.

"In February of 2006 I addressed this panel to explain our community’s opposition to any ill-advised attempts to create a connector between Harris Road, Diamond Ridge’s street, and Hyland Drive in the Terrace.

"Now we’re here again because of a change in Diamond Ridge’s planned expansion. Parenthetically, we are not opposed to that expansion. Diamond Ridge has been a good and cooperative neighbor. Plus, we recognize the growing need for senior housing. However, while the parameters of the project have been changed somewhat, what has not changed is the harm that will be done to the Terrace community if the two aforementioned roads are connected in a manner being pushed by the city -- and, I should note, with no effort to involve the Terrace Board in the matter as should be the case.

"Such an eventuality would turn the Terrace at Highpointe from a quiet extended cul-de-sac development into one with a through-street accessible by hundreds of vehicles daily attempting to circumvent traffic lights at Oakwood and Northern and redirecting vehicle traffic from Highpointe, Moneta Overlook and the Terrace that now flows directly onto Oakwood.

"As a result, Terrace residents on Hyland Drive -- and on Hyland Circle and Hyland Court whose homes adjoin Hyland Drive -- would suffer a decline in property values, an increase in unhealthy vehicle emissions, and greater potential for mishaps due to increased and faster traffic.

"If the city seeks to add an emergency egress or entrance for the benefit of the Terrace, there is no empirical evidence one is needed. We have been adequately served in a timely fashion with police, fire and EMT vehicles on call.

"It is with these very real concerns in mind that this association of taxpayers, voters and owners of 34 homes in Troy respectfully asks that the Planning Board take into serious consideration their point of view.

"As I noted here 15 months ago, the residents of the Terrace made an important decision to invest in Troy. Many moved here from other parts of the Capital Region to become active and productive members of the community. Endangering their financial investment and quality of life would set a poor example for others considering making similar investments in the future of Troy.

"Simply put, there is no concrete reason for connecting Hyland and Harris.

"One version of such an idea is to put a locked gate or barrier there which could be unlocked by fire emergency personnel. We submit that is patently useless. Any such equipment coming up Northern Drive from the lower Lansingburgh area would not need such a connector. Any such equipment coming out on Oakwood would merely have to access Diamond Ridge via Northern and Gurley, without stopping.

"Even should a Harris-Hyland connector be considered without a locking barrier, emergency equipment would have to considerably slow down and make several turns onto narrow residential streets.

"These streets, not so incidentally, usually are barely wide enough for a single passenger vehicle to navigate in winter because of the minimal city plowing we have experienced in the more than a dozen years the Terrace has been in existence.

"In conclusion, we submit that nothing has materially changed from the original Diamond Ridge plan that would necessitate proceeding with a connector road.

"Thank you for your attention."

Diamond Ridge on the docket; please turn out

Those who check this Web site or who attended the annual spring Homeowners Association meeting on Monday night were forewarned: The Diamond Ridge expansion project is back on the city planning agenda and so is the idea of a connecting road between it and the Terrace. (See preceding entry.)

As you know, we have testified several times before the Troy City Planning Commission against the idea of a connecting road, noting that it would destroy the character of the Terrace, which is an extended cul-de-sac design, as well as create unnecessary traffic and the dangers inherent in that.

Representatives of Diamond Ridge did not argue with that and, in fact, have been working against the idea of a connector as well. Duncan Barrett, president of Omni Development which is handling the expansion, told me in an e-mail earlier this week: "I continued to hope the city engineer would quash this whole notion. He hasn't, so it's better to be prepared."

Part of being prepared is showing up in force before the Planning Commission. As before, I plan to present a formal statement on behalf of the Homeowners Association, but all Terrace residents are free, of course, to make their own statements as well.

The Diamond Ridge project is second on the agenda for this Thursday's planning meeting at City Hall, so it is best to arrive no later than 6 p.m. when the meeting is scheduled to begin.

City planners meet May 10

The monthly meeting of the Troy City Planning & Zoning Board is scheduled for 6 p.m. Thursday, May 10, at City Hall on River Street.

The agenda items have not yet been publicly released, but I suggest you keep abreast of it by clicking on City of Troy in the menu at the right and going to "Economic Development." There you will see the P&Z Board and be able to select a copy of the agenda when it is posted.

At the April meeting, the proposed Diamond Ridge complex expansion went back to square one since changes had been made in the conceptual plan by the residential facility owners and the possibility of connecting Harris Road and Hyland Drive has resurfaced. Preliminary review was given to Diamond Ridge's desire to construct seven two-family apartment buildings and a 3-story building containing 60 units for senior living. The applicant is Omni Housing Development, 40 Beaver St., Albany.

Also at the April meeting, several projects in the general vicinity of the Terrace were discussed.

• A proposal was delivered to demolish the Spring Garden restaurant building and reconstruct it in the same footprint. It is located at Second Avenue and 112th Street in Lansingburgh.

• A proposal was delivered to convert a former dance studio into a retail store selling cell phones and jewelry. It is located at 20 Northern Drive in Lansingburgh.

Spring membership meeting coming up

The Terrace Homeowners Association will hold its annual spring meeting at 7 p.m. Monday, May 7, at Faith Lutheran Church. Secretary Pat Whitman is sending out formal notifications by mail.

If you have any items you would like placed on the formal agenda, please let President Bill Dowd know no later than May 1 at 238-1950 or by e-mail (see top right of screen).

Ready for a laugh?

If today's pop music isn't to your taste, how about one of the classics?

The popular viewer-supplied Web site YouTube has this video of a group of English oldsters and Alf, the lead singer (seen here), doing their version of the rock 'n' roll classic "Talking 'bout My Generation," by The Who.

Just go there and click on play. Guaranteed to bring a smile to your face.

The Who, by the way, first began appearing publicly in 1964, more than four decades ago. The original quartet was John Entwistle, Roger Daltrey, Keith Moon and Pete Townshend. Moon died in 1978. The rest probably could blend right in with this video group.

Down in the 'Burgh

The decrepit, abandoned Friehofer bakery facility down the hill from the Terrace in Lansingburgh, is nearly gone.

After years of wrangling among developers, real estate agents, landowners, city officials and preservationists, the brick eyesore and the adjacent yacht club building are being torn down and the debris carted off.

The choice piece of land, right on the Hudson River next to the Union Bridge between Troy and Waterford, is one of those rare opportunities. The problem at the moment is that we don't know what is going to be done with it. One hopes it won't be another cookie-cutter drug store as had been talked about a year or so ago.

Photos by April Dowd.

Snow going

When an equipment malfunction occurs during the winter's heaviest snowfall, you're bound to have some plowing problems.

Despite that, Mark and his crew got Terrace driveways pretty much cleared in time for people to get out to work Thursday morning and by 10 a.m. was doing what he calls the "finesse" work -- clearing walkways, moving two feet or more of snow out of the way after it wound up in large piles from City plowing (which took place around midnight last night) and his first-pass work.

Thanks to all Terrace residents who kept their cars out of the way of City and private plows, making the Great Valentine's Day Mess a lot easier to handle that it might otherwise have been.

Murley strikes again! Plus, Diamond Ridge expansion progressing

Thomas Murley, the man who started Moneta Overlook, the pizza-and-donut complex on Oakwood Avenue next to the empty, disintegrating restaurant building, and other enterprises, now wants to construct a gas station and a bank on his property at 310 Oakwood, opposite Biscayne Boulevard.

That's right. A gas station just a few doors from an existing Stewart's gas station/convenience store.

Murley, who lives at 32 Hialeah Drive across Oakwood from us, is scheduled to present a "conceptual review" of his proposal at the Thursday, Feb. 8, meeting of the City of Troy Planning Board.

The meeting will be held at 6 p.m. in the Council Chambers of City Hall, second floor. Murley's proposal is the seventh item on the agenda. Four pieces of old business, then two pieces of new business are scheduled to precede his turn.

The second item of old business also is a "conceptual review," this one of the Diamond Ridge expansion project. It consists of two phases:

• The first, which Diamond Ridge officials tell us they hope to have compp;leted by the end of the 2007 building season, calls for seven two-family units along Harris Road.

• The second, which still has to undergo state review as well as the city approval process, calls for a three-story building containing 60 senior housing units. Because it would be built at a grade level well below that of the Terrace, Diamond Ridge officials say the highest point of the building would be on a direct line with the front doorstep of the Claeys house so sightlines should not be disturbed.