Watertown Daily Times

NNY Capitol Report; Behind the scenes of NY's $72 million Capitol stairway renovation

Title: NNY Capitol Report; Behind the scenes of NY's $72 million Capitol stairway renovation
Runtime: 5:53
Date posted: 1 month ago
Description: In this special off-season edition of the NNY Capitol Report, we go behind the scenes of a major, years-long project to restore the New York State Capitol's Eastern Approach. The 77-step granite staircase built in the early 1890s has been structurally unsound for most of it's life, and fenced off from the public for over a decade. Now, state officials are working to restore it and the park around it by 2029.

NNY Capitol Report: NY lawmakers wrap up 2026 legislative session

Title: NNY Capitol Report: NY lawmakers wrap up 2026 legislative session
Runtime: 3:34
Date posted: 2 months ago
Description: In this last edition of the NNY Capitol Report for the year, the state legislature left Albany on Friday for the rest of the year, concluding the 2026 legislative session. After passing hundreds of bills in rapid succession over the course of the week, those bills will now be drip-fed to the Governor's office for review and her final approval, veto or negotiated changes.

NNY Capitol Report: NY Senator Mark Walczyk talks late state budget, legislative priorities

Title: NNY Capitol Report: NY Senator Mark Walczyk talks late state budget, legislative priorities
Runtime: 5:06
Date posted: 3 months ago
Description: On this week's edition of the NNY Capitol Report, we caught up with state Senator Mark Walczyk, R-Sackets Harbor, to talk about the latest on the now 6-week-plus late state budget and his legislative priorities as the 2026 voting session draws to a close.

NNY Capitol Report: GOP candidate for NY governor talks energy policy, governing

Title: NNY Capitol Report: GOP candidate for NY governor talks energy policy, governing
Runtime: 3:09
Date posted: 3 months ago
Description: In this week's edition of the NNY Capitol Report, GOP gubernatorial candidate Bruce R. Blakeman paid Albany a visit on Wednesday where he laid out his plans for energy policy, talked about his approach to government and made the case for why voters should pick him and flip the state's leadership red.

NNY Capitol Report: NYS Sheriffs protest efforts to block working with federal immigration agents

Title: NNY Capitol Report: NYS Sheriffs protest efforts to block working with federal immigration agents
Runtime: 4:07
Date posted: 3 months ago
Description: On this week's edition of the NNY Capitol Report, a group of NYS county sheriffs paid the Capitol a visit on Tuesday, demanding that state lawmakers stop efforts to keep them from working with federal immigration authorities.

NNY Capitol Report: State lawmakers looking to pass PFAS testing bill this year

Title: NNY Capitol Report: State lawmakers looking to pass PFAS testing bill this year
Runtime: 4:38
Date posted: 3 months ago
Description: On this week's edition of the NNY Capitol Report, Watertown Daily Times Capitol bureau chief Alex Gault looks into the details of the latest bill in Albany that aims to shore up the state's water testing requirements for PFAS, a wide class of chemicals believed to pose serious health hazards.

NNY Capitol Report: Albany lawmakers asking for gas tax holiday

Title: NNY Capitol Report: Albany lawmakers asking for gas tax holiday
Runtime: 3:20
Date posted: 4 months ago
Description: As gas prices across New York surpass the $4-per-gallon mark, some state lawmakers are asking for leadership to back a gas tax tax holiday to help cut down on prices at the pump.

NNY Capitol Report: Lawmakers pushing for New York For All immigration protections

Title: NNY Capitol Report: Lawmakers pushing for New York For All immigration protections
Runtime: 5:52
Date posted: 4 months ago
Description: In this week's edition of the NNY Capitol Report, progressive state lawmakers are pushing hard to pass the New York For All Act, a bill that would significantly restrict state and local authorities from working with federal immigration authorities. Energy behind the legislation continues to build as federal immigration authorities continue to crack down in other areas of the country, and there's confidence that some form of the bill will come to a vote this year.

NNY Capitol Report: UUP President wants nearly $50 million for distressed SUNY campuses

Title: NNY Capitol Report: UUP President wants nearly $50 million for distressed SUNY campuses
Runtime: 3:29
Date posted: 5 months ago
Description: In this week's edition of the NNY Capitol Report, Watertown Daily Times Capitol Bureau Chief Alex Gault spoke with UUP union president Dr. Fred Kowal about what his organization is asking state lawmakers for this year; a one-time cash infusion of nearly $50 million for four SUNY campuses with some financial troubles.

NNY Capitol Report: Assembly Energy Ranker Scott Gray talks CLCPA, calls for rollback

Title: NNY Capitol Report: Assembly Energy Ranker Scott Gray talks CLCPA, calls for rollback
Runtime: 6:32
Date posted: 5 months ago
Description: In this week's edition of the NNY Capitol Report, Watertown Daily Times Capitol Bureau Chief Alex Gault spoke with Assemblyman Scott A. Gray, the new ranking member for the GOP on the Assembly Energy Committee. In a week where Gov. Kathleen C. Hochul has announced she wants to roll back some of the timelines in the state's landmark climate laws and discussions over skyrocketing energy prices have dominated the media, Gray said he's happy to see attention to the matter, and that there's a lot of work to be done.

NNY Capitol Report: Assemblyman Ken Blankenbush talks Hochul's auto insurance plans

Title: NNY Capitol Report: Assemblyman Ken Blankenbush talks Hochul's auto insurance plans
Runtime: 5:09
Date posted: 5 months ago
Description: In this week's edition of the NNY Capitol Report, Watertown Daily Times Capitol Bureau Chief Alex Gault spoke with Assemblyman Ken Blankenbush, a longtime insurance broker and Assembly Insurance Committee member, to get his thoughts on the raft of proposals Gov. Kathy Hochul has put out with the goal of cutting New Yorker's auto insurance bills.

NNY Capitol Report: NY dairy industry asking lawmakers to restore cut funding for dairy research

Title: NNY Capitol Report: NY dairy industry asking lawmakers to restore cut funding for dairy research
Runtime: 2:47
Date posted: 5 months ago
Description: In this week's edition of the NNY Capitol Report, we spoke with a Clinton County dairy farmer who visited the Albany this week to ask lawmakers to restore $125,000 in funding the Governor has proposed to cut from the Cornell PRO-DAIRY program, a statewide research and development project that works directly with the state's 2,800 dairy farms to boost the state's dairy industry. As the advocates point out, that help is needed if the state wants to make sure all the milk going into the many new and under-construction dairy processing plants is sourced from New York farms.

NNY Capitol Report: Canadian Consul General to NY talks international relationship, New York's role

Title: NNY Capitol Report: Canadian Consul General to NY talks international relationship, New York's role
Runtime: 7:11
Date posted: 6 months ago
Description: In this week's edition of the NNY Capitol Report, Canadian Consul General to New York Tom Clark spoke with Watertown Daily Time Albany Bureau Chief Alex Gault about the latest developments in the international relationship between the U.S. and Canada, Canadian's reactions to hostile rhetoric from the U.S. president, and the New York is doing to maintain its own links with the northern nation.

NNY Capitol Report: Sen. Mark Walczyk discusses Gov. Kathy Hochul's $260 billion state spending plan

Title: NNY Capitol Report: Sen. Mark Walczyk discusses Gov. Kathy Hochul's $260 billion state spending plan
Runtime: 6:22
Date posted: 6 months ago
Description: In this week's edition of the NNY Capitol Report, Watertown Daily Times Albany Bureau Chief Alex Gault sat down with state Senator Mark C. Walczyk, R-Sackets Harbor, to get his thoughts on the $260 billion budget plan the Governor has put forward for New York's next fiscal year.

NNY Capitol Report: Assembly Transportation Committee takes testimony about e-bikes

Title: NNY Capitol Report: Assembly Transportation Committee takes testimony about e-bikes
Runtime: 4:50
Date posted: 7 months ago
Description: On Thursday, the New York Assembly Transportation Committee heard from over a dozen people on the subject of e-bikes, battery powered scooters and other micromobility devices. Lawmakers are weighing how to support the growing transportation sector without compromising on safety.

NNY Capitol Report: Albany returns for 2026, Governor lays out her plans for the year

Title: NNY Capitol Report: Albany returns for 2026, Governor lays out her plans for the year
Runtime: 3:24
Date posted: 7 months ago
Description: Albany kicked off the new year with a whirlwind two weeks; lawmakers flooded back to the capitol to start the next session, Governor Hochul laid out her 2026 State of the State agenda, and the state's Republican Senators cried foul over her now two-year focus on affordability. This and more in the first edition of NNY Capitol Report for 2026.

Title: Scott Gray Assembly Update 9 29 25
Runtime: 14:53
Date posted: 10 months ago
Description: Assemblyman Scott Gray (R-Watertown) sat down with Assembly Radio-TV Producer Ted Flint for this month’s Assembly Update, where he spoke in depth about New York’s path to electrification, which is increasingly opening up to discussions of nuclear energy as part of a diversified strategy to reduce spiking costs. Gray also spoke about his trip to the southern border with Fort Drum’s 10th Mountain Division.

Stefanik visits Albany, protestors push for NY For All as state legisalture wraps up 2025 session

Title: Stefanik visits Albany, protestors push for NY For All as state legisalture wraps up 2025 session
Runtime: 2:20
Date posted: 1 year ago
Description: Congresswoman Elise Stefanik paid Albany a visit last week to trash the state's Democratic leadership and keep the buzz alive for her own potential gubernatorial run. A few days later, protestors shut down an Albany city street and later the state Senate itself in an attempt to convince lawmakers to pass New York For All, a sanctuary state bill that got no vote in either chamber this year. And as lawmakers left the New York state Capitol for the year, they undertook a whirlwind voting marathon to send hundreds of bills to Governor Kathy Hochul's desk.

Dairy supporters speak out against bill to limit NY dairy farm size

Title: Dairy supporters speak out against bill to limit NY dairy farm size
Runtime: 2:59
Date posted: 1 year ago
Description: In this week's edition of the NNY Capitol report, a coalition of upstate NY Republican lawmakers, dairy industry boosters and farmers themselves spoke out against a proposed bill in Albany that would cap NY dairy farms from expanding beyond 700 cows into the future.

NY lawmaker rallies to expand state's Commission on Corrections

Title: NY lawmaker rallies to expand state's Commission on Corrections
Runtime: 3:50
Date posted: 1 year ago
Description: On this week's edition of the NNY Capitol Report, Brooklyn Assemblymember Emily Gallagher is hoping to push her bill to add six more members to the state Commission on Corrections, in the hope that a new class of commissioners will spur the oversight agency into action as a watchdog over the beleaguered New York state prisons and jails.

Chaumont fire chief rallies for solar storage battery safety bill in Albany

Title: Chaumont fire chief rallies for solar storage battery safety bill in Albany
Runtime: 2:14
Date posted: 1 year ago
Description: In this week's edition of the NNY Capitol Report, Chaumont fire chief Will Lipczynski came to the state Capitol to urge lawmakers to pass a battery energy storage system safety bill. Lipczynski and the Chaumont fire department battled a fire at a BESS facility in the summer of 2023, an effort that took days and stretched the technical capabilities of modern firefighting equipment. With Watertown Assemblyman Scott A. Gray, the chief met with lawmakers and urged them to support the bill.

Title: Blind Bay Spring Cleaning 2025
Runtime: 3:57
Date posted: 1 year ago
Description: @savetheriver and Thousand Island Land Trust clean up Blind Bay on the St. Lawrence River on May 20, 2025

New York state lawmakers take hours of testimony on state prisons, look towards reforms

Title: New York state lawmakers take hours of testimony on state prisons, look towards reforms
Runtime: 4:32
Date posted: 1 year ago
Description: It's been a difficult few months for the state prison system - high-profile killings of incarcerated people at the hands of COs, a weeks-long strike of security staff and an ongoing state of emergency behind the walls have left the system in seriously poor condition. In this edition of the NNY Capitol Report, we look into some of what the lawmakers heard, and what they're looking for in terms of reform.

Albany lawmakers finalize quarter-trillion dollar state budget

Title: Albany lawmakers finalize quarter-trillion dollar state budget
Runtime: 3:11
Date posted: 1 year ago
Description: In this first edition of our new video series from our Albany bureau, reporter Alex Gault walks through the basics about the New York state budget for 2025-26, and talks with north country lawmakers Mark Walczyk and Scott Gray about their thoughts on the spending plan and how lawmakers got to the finish line.

At 40 years, Advocate Drum is firing on all cylinders

Title: At 40 years, Advocate Drum is firing on all cylinders
Runtime: 2:04
Date posted: 1 year ago
Description: For 40 years @advocatedrum8336 has been a leader in the North Country when it comes to standing up for Fort Drum and the surrounding community. Advocate Drum produced this video to promote general knowledge about the organization.

Title: Flash Flood Potsdam, NY
Runtime: 0:59
Date posted: 2 years ago
Description: The severity of the situation is evident as Market Street in Potsdam, near the intersections of Sandstone Drive, Pleasant Street, Elderkin, Canal Street, and Garden Street, experienced flooding. The heavy rain from storm Debby has saturated the north country, leading to weather alerts and travel advisories in the tri-county area and a state of emergency declaration for all of New York from Gov. Kathleen C. Hochul.

Flash flooding is expected in several villages and towns, including Potsdam, Canton, Parishville, Colton, Brasher Falls, Pierrepont, Norwood, Norfolk, Stockholm, Moira, Bangor and Brushton.

Seaway Visitors Center at Eisenhower Lock

Title: Seaway Visitors Center at Eisenhower Lock
Runtime: 1:33
Date posted: 2 years ago
Description: The new Seaway Visitor Center at Eisenhower Lock offers 38 interactive exhibits, including ship piloting simulations, opening May 13. Exhibits cover Lost Villages, Seaway construction, and more. It aims to educate on maritime careers, promote tourism, and host community events. ADA compliant, offering audio tours, it celebrates the St. Lawrence Seaway's impact.

Eclipse at Thompson Park , Timelapse April 8, 2024

Title: Eclipse at Thompson Park , Timelapse April 8, 2024
Runtime: 0:16
Date posted: 2 years ago
Description: The total solar eclipse at Thompson Park cast a shadow over thousands of spectators, leaving them in near complete darkness for almost four minutes. Zachary Canaperi/Watertown Daily Times

- Myers Bounce - Northern New York Golf Association championship 2023

Title: - Myers Bounce - Northern New York Golf Association championship 2023
Runtime: 0:16
Date posted: 3 years ago
Description: Dalton Myer had to clear the scorers' tent at the Northern New York Golf Association championship when he shot out of the rough on the 18th hole at St. Lawrence University golf course in Canton. The sound of Dalton's ball bouncing off the winner's plaque can be heard as it enters play.

Title: Carlton Peck Band Day
Runtime: 1:25
Date posted: 3 years ago
Description: The Carlton Peck Band Day is a 59-year-old family tradition that takes place at the Gouverneur and St. Lawrence County Fair.

Title: Smoke from Canadian Wildfires
Runtime: 1:26
Date posted: 3 years ago
Description: The smoke from Canadian wildfires that has plagued many regions of the nation over the past month returned Thursday morning to Northern New York.
The air quality index score for the Eastern Lake Ontario Region Reporting Area was 162 at 6 a.m. Thursday, considered unhealthy for those with respiratory problems. This information comes from the state Department of Environmental Conservation.

Title: Water Chestnut Removal
Runtime: 0:44
Date posted: 3 years ago
Description: The Black Lake Association, along with the Town of Oswegatchie and the Village of Heuvelton, are working together to remove the invasive water chestnut from the Oswegatchie River. The goal of this effort is to prevent the water chestnut from spreading into Black Lake and the St. Lawrence River.

Title: American Legion Flag Burning
Runtime: 0:32
Date posted: 3 years ago
Description: On June 14, Norwood American Legion Post 68 held a solemn and dignified Disposal of Unserviceable Flag Ceremony. During the event, the post properly disposed of numerous flags collected from various locations throughout St. Lawrence County.

Title: Wayside Roadhouse - Russell, NY
Runtime: 1:27
Date posted: 3 years ago
Description: George Dodds has transformed a St. Lawrence County landmark. Live music is preformed at the Wayside Roadhouse in Russell starting at 1 p.m. Thursday through Sunday.

Title: Japan Women's Hockey Bow
Runtime: 1:31
Date posted: 4 years ago
Description: After their win, Japan Women’s Hockey Team bows to show their appreciation for the spectators and respect for the ice they played on.

(Volume levels have been lowered as the arena was playing copyrighted music.)

Title: Birthday Party Fundraiser
Runtime: 1:19
Date posted: 4 years ago
Description: Interviewed by her mother Holly S. Mealus, Bailey M. Mealus talks about her birthday party fundraiser where, instead of gifts, guests brought supplies to donate to the Lewis County Humane Society.

Title: SLU/Brown Postgame
Runtime: 7:02
Date posted: 4 years ago
Description

Title: Clarkson/Brown postgame
Runtime: 7:41
Date posted: 4 years ago
Description

Title: VR Roller Coaster
Runtime: 1:27
Date posted: 4 years ago
Description: MaxFlight VR2002 virtual roller coaster at Clarkson University is being used to test wide range of human subjects both with and without a fear of roller coasters. Reactionary data; muscle activation, brain activity, and heart rate variations are collected using electroencephalography (EEG) sensors attached to the subjects. Research is looking to determine specific neurological cause in hopes of easing anxiety.

Title: North Country Folk Orchestra
Runtime: 1:15
Date posted: 4 years ago
Description: North Country Folk Orchestra under the direction of Gretchen Koehler, who also plays fiddle, practice, November 28, at TAUNY on Main Street in Canton. The ensemble plays a wide variety of fiddle tunes popular in the North Country. The musicians have practiced together nine times since late September, after session 11 the group will present an end-of-semester public performance.