What had been a yellow, 32-passenger city school district bus for 16 years has been transformed by the district’s mechanics into a sparkling blue utility truck capable of carrying a sand spreader in winter.

State Labor Commissioner M. Patricia Smith says that backstretch worker pay and living conditions have long been an ugly part of thoroughbred racing that is breezily swept under the rug as people enjoy a day at the races.

Fishing is temporarily banned at a popular spot for angling on the Mohawk River beneath the Crescent Bridge as a safer access and more comfortable conditions are constructed to reel in bass, northern pike and walleyes.

“As long as the weather is good we’re happy,” said Bev Kantrowitz, publicity director for the Schaghticoke Fair, as she zipped around in a golf cart showing off the sights.

Advanced Micro Devices Executive Chairman Hector Ruiz says he expects to announce by the end of the year whether or not his company will build a computer chip factory in the Luther Forest Technology Campus.

Some horse trainers working at Saratoga Race Course failed to pay their workers minimum wage and overtime, a state Labor Department investigation has found.

Hector Ruiz, executive chairman of Advanced Micro Devices, said he expects to announce by the end of the year that his company will be building a computer chip fabrication plant in the Luther Forest Technology Campus.

A 53-year-old soccer referee has been accused of attempting to induce a 14-year-old referee into a sex act.

A horse at the Saratoga Race Course broke away from the pack this morning — and onto Union Avenue.

The state Labor Department will provide details today of alleged “widespread violations” of minimum wage and overtime laws at Saratoga Race Course.

Town planners want to make it safer for students using the southern entrance into the Shenendehowa school campus, and for their parents and bus drivers dropping them off.

Bob Israel made a name for himself revitalizing the city’s West Side and developing Federal Square, and now he’s moved on to another tourist city in a much warmer climate.

On the one-year anniversary of Joseph R. Riley’s death, family members and investigators still search for the driver of the vehicle who police say caused the accident that killed the former Clifton Park town supervisor and then fled the scene.

Property assessments in Saratoga County rose 2 percent to 4 percent last year, the first time in recent memory the percentage rise hasn’t been in the double digits, but school officials in the county said the figures were in line with their spring projections so taxpayers shouldn’t get any big surprises .

Perfect summer weather over the past week gave the Saratoga Race Course its strongest attendance and betting numbers of the rain-plagued racing season.