Gibson, Sayward to host town hall meeting in Lake Placid

A pair of state and federal lawmakers will host a town hall-style meeting in Lake Placid next week.

Chris Gibson, who represents New York’s 20th Congressional District, and Teresa Sayward, who represents New York’s 113th Assembly District, will participate in a town hall forum from 2 to 4 p.m. Friday, Feb. 18 at the High Peaks Resort on Saranac Avenue.

The event is being hosted jointly by the Plattsburgh-North Country Chamber of Commerce, the Saranac Lake Area Chamber of Commerce, and the Regional Office of Sustainable Tourism.

Gibson and Sayward – both Republicans – will make opening remarks, with a question-and-answer period to follow.

What's your superpower?

Marist College released a poll this week showing that the preferred superpower for Americans is either mind-reading or time travel.

Other top desired powers include the ability to fly and invisibility.

Here's the rest of this afternoon's AP brief:

Time travel and mind reading tied for first place in a Marist College poll released Tuesday. Both superpowers received 28% of the votes out of 5 choices. Flying came in third followed by the ability to teleport and invisibility.

Trudeau to stay in SL

Officials with Trudeau Institute announced this morning they intend to keep the research facility in Saranac Lake.

Here's the official press release:

The Trudeau Institute’s Board of Trustees announced today that the Institute is committed to staying in Saranac Lake.

“The Trudeau Institute is committed to Saranac Lake and is dedicated to advancing biomedical research in the region,” said Trudeau President Dr. David Woodland. “As we further develop our long-term plan focused on maintaining our status as a premier research organization, our goal is to continue to thrive in the Adirondacks while pushing the frontiers of biomedical science.”

Local man looks to purchase Sears

Reports surfaced Friday that a local restaurant owner is nearing a deal to purchase the Sears building, with the intent of reopening the parking lot to public use.

The Adirondack Daily Enterprise says Paolo Magro, who owns the Little Italy pizzeria on Main Street and the Nonna Fina restaurant on River Street, is under contract to purchase the 1.41-acre parcel from Phil Vivlamore and Larry Mullen.

The pending deal does not include the Sears business itself. That remains on the market.

Gibson wants repeal of 1099, won’t support Owens’ bill

North Country Congressman Chris Gibson says he wants to repeal the 1099 reporting requirement included in last year’s Affordable Care Act.

But the Kinderhook Republican won’t support a repeal measure introduced this week by his Democratic colleague, Bill Owens.

The reporting requirement, which doesn’t take effect until 2012, forces businesses to submit IRS Form 1099s for every business-to-business transaction of $600 or more.

Owens, who represents New York’s 23rd Congressional District, says the measure small businesses are already overburdened with tax paperwork and reporting requirements.

ORDA worker injured at Whiteface Mountain

An employee of the state Olympic Regional Development Authority was injured earlier this week while performing maintenance on a ski lift at Whiteface Mountain.

ORDA spokesman Jon Lundin says the worker was attempting to restart the chair lift at Kids Kampus when the accident occurred at about 10:15 a.m. Monday.

According to reports, the lift had malfunctioned and crews were using a standby, auxiliary engine to help unload a pair of skiers and two instructors from the top of the lift.

Senator looks to stop congressional pay raises

New York’s junior senator introduced legislation this week aimed at halting congressional pay raises.

Democrat Kirsten Gillibrand’s bill would prohibit automatic raises for members of Congress. 12 of her colleagues in the Senate are cosponsoring the legislation.

The bill mirrors a similar one introduced last year by Senator Russ Feingold, a Democratic from Wisconsin.