English Bulldog Puppies for Sale in Albany, NY

Scooters will Be Available in Capital Region Cities in October

ALBANY, NY (October 1, 2024) The Capital District Transportation Authority (CDTA) will pilot an electric scooter program called SCOOT, beginning Friday, October 4, 2024. There will be pop-up events in Albany, Troy, Schenectady, and Saratoga Springs for people to give the scooters a try.

“CDTA is excited to add another option for customers to our growing mobility menu,” said CDTA CEO Carm Basile. “After working to find an operations vendor and updated technology, we’re excited to introduce SCOOT to Capital Region communities. We hope customers take advantage of this pilot program so we can learn what we need to do to formally add scooters to our menu of services and to have scooters readily available to customers in the near future.”

CDTA is working with DROP Mobility to launch updated software, a new website, and an updated mobile app. Customers will need to create a membership via the mobile app called “CDTA SCOOT.” Scooters will cost $2 to unlock and $0.25 per minute to ride.

SCOOT will be available in the City of Albany Friday, October 4, through Sunday, October 6. Scooters will then be available in the City of Troy from Friday, October 11 through Sunday, October 13. SCOOT will also be available in the City of Schenectady on Friday, October 18 through Sunday, October 20. The City of Saratoga Springs will pilot the scooters from Friday, October 25, through Sunday, October 27. The pilot will include 30 to 40 scooters each weekend, and they will be available from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Fridays, 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Saturdays, and 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sundays.

Customers must be 18 years old with driver’s license verification to rent an electric scooter. Scooters will only be allowed in a specific geofenced area in each city for safety and efficiency purposes. The geofenced areas are shown at https://www.cdta.org/scoot. Users will scan a QR code on the vehicle to begin the rental process, which will end with a photograph showing the vehicle returned to one of the SCOOT racks.

If a scooter leaves the geofenced area, the motor will shut down, and customers will receive a text directing them to return the scooter. Scooters must also remain on roadways, follow traffic laws, and they are not permitted on sidewalks in the geofenced areas. When not in use, the scooter must be locked to one of the SCOOT racks. Customers are encouraged to wear helmets when riding.

The SCOOT pilot program will help test the technology and provide CDTA with operating experience, looking toward the potential for this mobility solution to be more readily available in the future.

Anyone needing more information about SCOOT can visit https://scootcdta.com/ or contact CDTA’s Customer Service Center at (518) 482-8822. Customer service representatives are on duty 6:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m. weekdays and 8:30 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. Saturday and from 8:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. on Sunday and holidays.

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I was at the Spirit Halloween in the Colonie Center up in Albany a couple of weekends ago. While I was there, one of the workers was going around in a Michael Myers costume. For the older customers, he would sneak around and try to scare them. For the little kids, he was really cool and would try to come down to their level and give fist pounds and make heart-hands. When I first spotted him, he was hiding in a fortune teller booth. I thought he was an animatronic at first! This dude was cool! His name was CJ, and he's well over 6 feet tall (I think he said 6 foot 5 inches. I'd believe it). Even though Michael Myers is only 5 foot 10 inches in the movies, CJ's presence was certainly unmatched. My girlfriend absolutely loved it - Michael Myers is her favorite horror icon. You can see CJ in the video below:

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We got talking with him, and one thing that he told us was that Spirit Halloween was looking to do a Christmas-themed pilot program with limited storefronts, and that the Colonie Center location was to be one of them. Ironic, because the storefront the Colonie Center Spirit Halloween was occupying was a former Christmas Tree Shop. He said when they make the transition from Halloween to Christmas, he's going to continue to show up in the Michael Myers costume, but where a Santa hat. Honestly, I'd pay more to get a picture on Santa Myers' lap than I would to get a picture on Santa Claus's lap.

Spirit Christmas is a seasonal retail store operated by Spencer Spirit Holdings. A sister brand to Spirit Halloween, the store offers various decorations and costumes for the Christmas season, along with visits from Santa Claus. If you're expecting it to be a spooky kind of Christmas store, don't. It will be a tried and true Christmas store.

In 1990, seasonal pop-up store Spirit Halloween began extending their leases into November and December to test out a Christmas store concept. Founder Joseph Marver once stated, "The Christmas stores were just something I had to try since it wasn't difficult to add another 2 months to our 3 month lease." Adding "So it seemed like a no brainer to extend into Christmas."

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At some point, the 1990’s incarnation of the store was discontinued. Spencer Gifts tested the concept themselves after acquiring the Spirit Halloween brand in 1999, operating their own Spirit Christmas stores in 2005 and 2006. In 2024, the store was revived once more, with 10 locations set to open.

Spirit Halloween Relaunches Spirit Christmas with 3 New York Locations

Spirit Christmas is a seasonal retail store operated by Spencer Spirit Holdings. A sister brand to Spirit Halloween, the store offers various decorations and costumes for the Christmas season, along with visits from Santa Claus. If you're expecting it to be a spooky kind of Christmas store, don't. It will be a tried and true Christmas store.

At some point, the 1990’s incarnation of the store was discontinued. Spencer Gifts tested the concept themselves after acquiring the Spirit Halloween brand in 1999, operating their own Spirit Christmas stores in 2005 and 2006. In 2024, the store was revived once more, with 10 locations set to open. Below, you can find the full list of locations

Gallery Credit: Conor M Walsh

Below, you can find the full list of locations for the 2024 Season:

Take a Photo Tour of The Great Jack-O-Lantern Blaze

Meander through an 18th-century landscape and discover a breathtaking display of more than 7,000 illuminated jack o’ lanterns—all designed and hand-carved on site by our team of artisans. Complete with synchronized lighting and an original soundtrack, this one-of-a-kind event is not to be missed!

Gallery Credit: Conor Walsh

7 Orange County Cideries to Visit During New York Cider Week

What’s better to drink this season than world-class ciders – especially during New York Cider Week, Oct. 5-13, 2024. Don't worry, these places are available anytime of year, not just Cider Week!

Gallery Credit: Conor Walsh

ALBANY COUNTY, N.Y. (NEWS10) — On the edge of a main road in Albany County, an idyllic white house has sat on a quiet, family-owned farm for the last 200 years. But behind the house lies part of a religious group, that is almost completely unknown to the outside world — and they hold an even darker secret.

To passersby, it’s an ordinary property, but behind the home lies a church, that’s anything but ordinary.

By outsiders, this church has many names, including the “Two by Twos” (2x2s), “The Way,” and “The Truth”. But inside, they deny those names, instead they said their group has no name — “The Church With No Name.”

It’s a sect of Christianity that operates worldwide, with a presence here in Albany County. John Pikcilingis was born and raised in Albany County — on the outside, his life seemed perfectly normal, but on the inside, he was part of the church with no name.

“You get the impression that it is a very good place, and since we weren’t allowed to see outside too much, it was hard to make a good comparison,” said John.

As a member of this mysterious religious sect for 55 years, John recalled spending much of his life in the shadows of the church.

“I was born into it so that became my truth from day one,” said John.

It was a truth that had no name, no singular place of worship, and no official leaders. The 2x2s operate worldwide and claim to follow the New Testament, but their practices are riddled with dozens of uncommon and unspoken rules.

“Females are expected to wear skirts and dresses, you have your hair up in a bun, not allowed to cut your hair, dye your hair, no makeup, no jewelry. I didn’t even know how to wear makeup when I left the church four years ago, so that’s been a steep learning curve,” said Kari Hanks, also a former 2×2 member from Arizona.

Kari said she only left the church a couple years ago, and the list of rules she followed goes on. Members are not allowed to watch TV, dance, play sports, or even celebrate holidays including Christmas. Cherie Kropp-Ehrig, a former 2×2 member who wrote a book on the church, said they believe their practices will save their souls.

“They believe that they’re the only church who is going to get to heaven, and that you must be in that church if you want to have eternal life; that all other churches are false, and their members are sincere, but they’re sincerely wrong,” said Cherie.

Member of this religious group gather together for one weekend in August every year — they call it a convention. These conventions take place across the world, one of them has been happening at a property in Albany County for over a century. John said he attended this annual meeting for about 55 years.

“For us as youths, we were looking forward to it because it was the place we could socialize with a lot of good friends,” said John.

The conventions bring together members of the church from all over the world, but most come from local towns or neighboring states for a weekend of prayer and worship. NEWS10 visited that convention gathering, where the owners declined an on-camera interview but made a rare offer for us to stay and listen to prayer meetings.

NEWS10’s Vanessa Blasi heard preachers talk about the spirit of God, trusting God, and even curiosity, saying members shouldn’t have, “Not even curiosity, because there’s poison there,” and, “If anyone tells you there’s another gospel/Jesus, don’t believe it, it’s so simple.”

For thousands, these meetings can be a place for self discovery and finding peace, but for thousands of others like John, this worldwide secretive group has left them with something else.

“Well, it’s a cult, and cults are something that you can see from the outside, not from the inside,” said John.

Behind enclosed tents, a secret has unraveled. The FBI launched a public investigation into this religious group this past February for widespread child sexual abuse allegations. The investigation is based out of Omaha, Nebraska. ABC News has spoken to dozens of victims in at least 34 states so far.

“These were people we were hearing horrific abuse stories about, that we had grown up around having sleeping in our home,” said Kari.

Inside the group, members are supposed to give up their houses every Sunday for worship meetings. Ministers, who are of higher ranking, travel to those members’ homes each week to practice this faith. Many believe this is where the problems start.

“The preachers living in the homes with people for a few days at a time makes it convenient to molest,” said Cherie. “The manner in which their preachers go about homeless, giving away everything they have, taking just a suitcase, living with the members,” said Cherie.

“They’re shocking because these people, you put more trust in these people than you did your own parents, basically you know, that’s how high you held these people,” said John. “You held them on a pedestal.”

Above the ministers, sit the overseers. Former members said Ray Hoffman is the overseer for the East Coast. We spoke with Ray about the allegations, something no media outlet has done before. He wouldn’t go on camera, but in the statement below, he addressed them.

“They’re just allegations. They claim a great number and say it’s a great crisis, which we agree with, but to us, we know of only a few and have little information, so we’re dealing with them. Most aren’t allowed to go to meetings. We are cooperating with the FBI,” said Ray Hoffman in a statement.

Ray also confirmed a letter was sent out before the convention both this year and last. Part of the letter addressed these allegations.

“In light of recent events, we feel especially compelled to create a welcoming environment where all feel safe and at home,” the letter stated. “If any kind of sexual abuse happens ….do not keep silent. Report it to the authorities (Call 911) immediately and inform a worker/owners of the property as soon as possible. Chat with your children before arriving about what to do if they feel uncomfortable at any time.”

Some former members believe this was not enough.

“Who knows how many are out there?” said Abbi Prussack, a former 2×2 member from Colorado.

Abbi left the church in her 20s alongside her husband — calling it their “little miracle.” She said they left before knowing anything about the allegations. Years later, Abbi and Kari started a support group on Facebook for former 2×2 members, called “Ex-2×2 Support Group.” They said they never could’ve expected the profound impact.

“We’ve had people reach out to us and say, ‘Your group saved my life.’ So that’s obviously a huge deal to us, and I think one of our main focuses is it doesn’t matter what you believe now,” said Kari. “We all have the common shared background of we were a 2×2 and that’s what we share.”

The Facebook group currently has over 5,000 members. For many former 2×2 members, leaving the church also meant leaving their loved ones behind.

“You walk away from something you feel is not right anymore, but you also walk away from all your life,” said John.

All of the former members we spoke to said the decision to leave was both the best and hardest decision they’ve ever made.

“Very happy, best thing I ever did,” said Cherie. “I thank God every day that I left.”

“I would say the hardest part probably was trying to figure out how to have a community that you felt close to starting from scratch as an adult,” said Abbi.

“When you’re brought up believing for 50 years, when you stop, where do you start again?” said John.

Now John said he’s able to see the world in a different way.

“Now I look at the world as free. It’s like it doesn’t matter who you are or where you are, where you came from, where you’re going. Just if you’re a good person, I can be a good person, and we can smile together for a moment,” said John.

While the FBI couldn’t comment further on the investigation, in part of a statement to NEWS10 they said this is an international search.

“The FBI encourages reporting from anyone who thinks that they may be a victim, or from anyone who may have information on this investigation. We also encourage victims outside of the United States to contact the FBI,” said Eugene Kowel, FBI Omaha Special Agent in Charge.

Anyone with information should contact the FBI using their 2×2 information link.

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Lil Wayne will perform at the MVP Arena in Albany, New York, on Friday, October 11. The concert starts at 7 p.m., with special guests Kid Laroi and Selfish Sons supporting.

Tickets are available for purchase online through Ticketmaster and secondary market platforms such as Vivid Seats, SeatGeek and StubHub, which offer verified tickets with a buyer’s guarantee. Prices start at $91.05.

A complete list of Lil Wayne’s tour dates is available here.

With a career spanning over two decades, Lil Wayne gained fame as a member of the Hot Boys and achieved massive success as a solo artist with albums like “Tha Carter III,” which features hits like “Lollipop.”

Known for his influence on the genre and his record label Young Money Entertainment, which launched the careers of artists like Drake and Nicki Minaj, Lil Wayne is often regarded as one of the greatest hip-hop artists of all time.

He’s best known for hits like “A Milli,” “Got Money,” “Stuntin’ Like My Daddy,” “Right Above It,” “6 Foot 7 Foot,” “Love Me” and “Uproar.” You can listen to his extensive discography on Apple Music.

The Kid Laroi, an Australian rapper and singer, is best best known for the hit song “Stay,” featuring Justin Bieber. The Grammy-nominated artist’s other releases include “Nigts Like This,” “Without You” (with Miley Cyrus), “Go” (feat. Juice Wrld), “Too Much” (with Jung Kook and Central Cee), and “Love Again.”