No surprise that Glens Falls is a great place to live

Queensbury Town Board pulls resolution to replace late councilman

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The New York Post mentioned little Glens Falls this past week.

And it was in a good way. Usually, when you make The Post it is a bad thing.

The New York City tabloid reprinted a story originally published on the Realtors.com website called the "Top 10 affordable towns where you'd actually like to live."

Glens Falls was ranked fourth on its top 10 list.

Martha Banta, one of the founders of Adirondack Theater Festival and a producer in her own right, was telling me about The Post story and what we both already knew.

Glens Falls - that means the entire surrounding region and not just Warren County - is a great place to live.

The Realtors.com article said that because of inflation a growing number of Americans are fleeing big cities for small-town life.

"A tiny, tight-knit community might seem like heaven to those who want a slower pace of life, but that doesn’t mean that smaller towns are sleepy, cultural wastelands," the article said. "Many towns across the country offer the same top-notch amenities found in larger cities—they just come with a more laid-back, know-your-neighbors vibe at an affordable price tag."

Realtor.com examined real estate in every U.S. "micorpolitan area" - counties with a population between 10,000 and 50,000 - then reviewed census data regarding dining, entertainment, recreation and quality of life business establishments. They then calculated places where the median home list price per square foot was lower than the national average. It chose just one area in each state.

Glens Falls was New York's representative.

“Many of these places are attractive to residents because they are far more affordable than the big cities nearby,” says Seamus Nally, CEO of TurboTenant in Fort Collins, CO. “They are towns that aren’t so small that there is nothing to do—there are still decent population sizes and lots of opportunities for things involving community and entertainment—but it doesn’t cost an arm and a leg to live there.”

Realtor.com listed the median list price for the Glens Falls market as $352,450 and the cost of living 1.5 percent below the national average.

It wrote:

"In 1944, Look magazine named Glens Falls “Hometown USA,” and it really lives up to that moniker. Located just 50 minutes north of Albany on the Hudson River, the town is surrounded by natural beauty and near the Adirondacks. In 2021 and 2022, Rocket Mortgage named it the safest city in the country. The town’s history dates to 1766, when it was initially named for Quaker leader Abraham Wing. Even today, traces of this towns Quaker past remain. As one of the oldest settled areas in the country, it features several historically designated buildings and districts. In the summer, the town holds outdoor movie nights, farmers' markets, and the Adirondack Theatre Festival. It also boasts the Hyde Museum, a world-class gallery that contains works from Rembrandt to Rauschenberg."

Also among the top 10 were: 1. Branson, MO; 2. Sprinfield, IL; 3. Sandusky, OH; 4. Glens Falls, NY; 5. Atlantic City, NJ; 6. Baraboo, WI; 7. Altoona, PA; 8. Fairbanks, AK; 9. Kearney, NE; 10. Great Falls, MT.

But as Banta and I quickly agreed, the article did not tell us anything we did not know.

Glens Falls is not only a great place to live, after walking around downtown Saturday night, I found it alive, inviting and better than ever.

https://nypost.com/2024/09/20/real-estate/top-10-affordable-small-towns-where-youd-actually-love-to-live/

https://www.realtor.com/news/trends/top-10-affordable-small-towns/

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McNulty pulls resolution

At the last Queensbury Town Board meeting, councilman Tim McNulty passed a resolution for the board to fill the late Harrison Freer's Ward 2 seat with a vote by the Republican-dominated board. Supervisor John Strough objected.

I argued it sounded like the return of partisan politics to the Town Board in Queensbury.

Nearly 50 people turned out to the Town Board meeting Monday night to see what the board would do.

McNulty began the meeting by saying the resolution had been "demonized" and politicized" unfairly and reflected what is going on nationally in the country. He did not say who did the "demonizing."

He then said that the Town Board would not move forward on the resolution.

That means the Ward 2 seat will remain vacant until the Nov. 5 election. Strough has said he would ask the board to immediately appoint the person who wins the election to the board the day after the election.

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Fun fact

While speaking about a much needed paving project at Pine View Cemetery, Supervisor John Strough brought up a fun fact.

He said most people think Pine View Cemetery is the only cemetery in the town, but in fact there were 13 cemeteries in the town.

Something I did not know.

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Cemetery theme

Cemeteries seemed to be the theme of the evening.

After councilman Tony Metivier talked about how hazardous the roadways were at Pine View, Strough added a plug for this weekend's Cemetery Tour put on by the Chapman Museum.

Strough called it an amazing even and encouraged residents to go see it.

Why all those cans

If you noticed that most of the bottle businesses are overflowing with cans these days, you are not alone.

The Town Board has been receiving complaints about it. After some investigation, it turns out it is not the businesses fault but the fact there is just one truck to pick up cans for the entire region and it is far behind on its schedule.

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Letter from Schumer

When Eliot Spitzer was preparing to run for governor in 2005 or so, I got a nice letter from him praising our staff for all its recent journalism awards.

I believed it was an attempt by an ambitious politicians to get on the good side of a community newspaper editor as he prepared to run for state-wide office.

I wrote a column saying I didn't believe for a second that Eliot Spitzer cared anything at all about how many awards The Post-Star won.

A few weeks later, I got a phone call and it was Eliot Spitzer on the line.

He told me he was offended that I did not take his praise as he intended it and he was surprised I thought he was not sincere.

I started laughing.

I gave the guy credit for calling me out.

On Wednesday, I got a letter from Sen. Charles Schumer expressing his sympathies on the death of my wife, Gillian.

He wrote that he recalled meeting me and our editorial board over the years. Sen. Schumer had a better memory than me. I did not remember meeting him in an editorial board, but it is possible.

But his letter was moving and touched on all the important parts of Gillian's life.

I don't for a second think that Sen. Schumer wrote the letter, but someone in his office did and that means something, too.

When politicians talk about constituent services, they are usually referring to helping someone in their district with some problem.

Sen Schumer is a long-time U.S. Senator and majority leader in the U.S. Senate. That's a big job so he's got a lot of more important things to be worried about, but the fact that someone took the time to think of me and my family during this difficult time is appreciated.

It says something about Sen. Schumer and his mission in the U.S. Senate.

I am a retired editor and there is nothing to be gained from being in my favor. For that reason, the letter is especially appreciated.

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Ken Tingley spent more than four decades working in small community newspapers in upstate New York. Since retirement in 2020 he has written three books and is currently adapting his second book "The Last American Newspaper" into a play. He currently lives in Queensbury, N.Y.