The Poestenkill Library was my favorite part of growing up in this town, but is also my favorite…read morepart moving back as an adult. The library director, Donna, has done a great job updating the library's physical materials and online offerings, and has also worked to ensure a wide variety of programming options are offered for all ages. There are also "extras" available like museum passes, cake pans and fishing supplies that you can check out as well. For a small town library, I feel like it always has so much to offer and is a huge part of our community.

Poestenkill Library is a small town library at its best. The library is in an old house at the main…read moreintersection in town. Fiction, new books and children's books are on the first floor, non fiction, juvenile fiction and magazines are on the second. The building isn't ADA compliant but I'm sure the very helpful library staff would be willing to get what you need from the second floor. They've got a fairly small selection of books but they can get you almost anything you want through inter-library loan. And best of all, they lend cake pans - you want to make a teddy bear cake? stop at the library and they've got a pan for you!

Wonderful, friendly, helpful librararians can get you whatever you need. Nice children's library…read more Be sure to check out the Williamstown Historical Museum in the back of the library.

One of the best libraries in the area! The librarians all care so much and provide so many programs…read moreand such a welcoming clean environment for children! There is a beautiful community that frequently comes through here also. Thank you all for all you do!!!

The library is a mostly quiet place to read. The exception being on Tuesdays (?) when it turns into…read morea day care center. There is a children's room which should have doors on it so that the noise is contained within that room. I thus avoid Tuesdays for this reason.

As an Albany homeowner since 1999, I couldn't be more pleased with the services provided by the…read moreAlbany DGS. In many nearby towns garbage service is privately contracted and recycling has to be carted to the center. I only have to lug my garbage and recycling to the curb each week and the City takes care of it for me. I can't say that I like the smell of the dump wafting over to Central Ave on a hot day, but that's not really DGS' fault. Large item pickup has been a breeze. The hazardous waste drop off is really helpful. The newly offered all-in-one-bin recycling has cut down on my sorting time each week too. Even though it's a pain, I try to always bundle my cardboard and yard waste as per the city's instructions, although when I walk my dog on garbage night I see that not many people follow the guidelines. It really irritates me to see that. The folks who are out picking up trash before dawn have to put up with so much crap. The rental properties downtown seem particularly notorious for piling huge mounds of crap on the city's curb (especially at the end of the school year). The City still carts away all of these items. One night I saw someone had large pieces of wood sticking out of their garbage can with nails poking out on all sides. Imagine being a garbage collector in the dark hours of the morning having to deal with those unseen dangerous objects. I really appreciate what the garbage collectors, in particular, face on a regular basis. I'm not a huge fan of two lanes of snow being plowed into the end of my driveway on snowy days in the winter (or the one time right after I'd cleared it, a snow truck went by and I could see the driver laughing at me as plowed a fresh pile of snow in the my drive). That snow pushes over the curbs and onto the sidewalks, making them nearly as impossible to clear as the end of my drive. That being said, Albany is a big city and we get a lot of snow and the plows out there do a fine job of quickly and efficiently clearing the main roadways - especially when compared to some of the surrounding communities. It would be nice if the City could offer plowing/blowing assistance for sidewalks and driveways of the elderly - or coordinate trusted providers for paying homeowners. Right now plowing service prices are all over the map and it's hard to find a steady service from one snow storm to the next.

This department is very unprofessional. The workers are constantly skipping my trash on purpose and…read more1 female employee named "Robin" is always rude to me, when I call to complain about their treatment. She constantly hangs up on me and very condescending concerning my concerns. She needs to be retrained in customer service.

Located at one end of the Empire State Plaza, this memorial honors the firemen and firewomen who…read morelost their lives in the line of duty in New York State since 1811. It is located between the Justice Building and The Egg in a small park-like area. Nicely designed to show what firefighters do, the two that are helping their colleague (and carrying his helmet) are walking away from the Wall of Death. There are entirely too many names listed there. They are in random order on the 21 panels. The website lists them in alphabetical order so that you can research their department, end of service date and where they are located on the wall. If you look carefully, you'll see that the paved area is shaped like a Maltese Cross. [Review 11514 overall, 1294 of 2019.]

A memorial to commemorate those who have made the ultimate sacrifice in NY. Dedicated in 1998. This…read morewas my 1st time and it was such a honor. New York State Fire will help you locate a loved one and provide material to do an etching as a keepsake Very moving

This simple memorial sits in a paved island with a flag-pole in front of the Shaker Road…read moreLoundonville Fire Department. It's surrounded by well maintained landscaping and flowering shrubs, and is prominently displayed by the front entrance. The monument takes the form of a statue - a figure of a uniformed firefighter cradles an infant with both hands. The firefighter wears a fireman's hat, coat and boots. The statue sits on a stone base that is engraved with "In honor and memory of departed firefighters and members of the ladies auxiliary". It's very dignified and very understated. I couldn't find anything on the age of the statue, but it looks to be pretty new and is in great shape.

What a beautiful spot in Glorious downtown Pittsfield! Our favorite spot on Earth . Excellent…read moreescape in the Berkshires great used book media selection too. The MCM architecture is fab too!

I am sorry to read negative reviews of the Pittsfield Library. I have always found staff to be…read morehelpful, upbeat and personable. The library has a great selection, comfortable spots to relax with a book or magazine and plenty of computers to access. The online reservation program is simple to use. I do agree that there should be a way to check out books in person. Keep up the great service. An excellent public library like ours is essential to our community.

The Scotia Library is easy to spot as you pass by Collins Park on Mohawk Avenue. (Especially in the…read morespring and summer when the flower garden is a popping!) Housed in the Abraham Glen House, which was built in the 1730s and a part of the National Register of Historic Places, this local gem went through a restoration in recent years. Schenectady County made sure historic renovation standards were met during design and execution of the renovation, which included a new addition providing space for community programs and events, as well as restroom, sidewalk and curb updates improving accessibility for visitors. The staff of the Scotia branch of the SCPL system is wonderful! The librarians are always incredibly kind - a truly warm and welcoming bunch. In my visits over the years, I have witness dozens of exchanges with patrons and community members and have been impressed with the interactions I've seen - full of knowledge sharing, question answering, resource finding, and all with a heavy dose of genuine human connection. I often find something new to appreciate during my visits to the Scotia library. Most recently, I enjoyed walking through local students' art that was on display and taking a stop at the jigsaw puzzle table, fit with a sign explaining the benefits of puzzling and encouraging patrons to take a break to put some pieces together during their visit. Though this is a smaller branch, it has a decent collection of reading materials to choose from the shelves. (If you ask me, though, the magic of any county library system is the ability to request from other branches and have them delivered to your local library for future pick-up.) The bulletin boards and announcement flyers are always displaying upcoming events in the library system and the community as a whole.

This review for the Scotia branch. This very tiny and cute branch library sits in an historic…read morebuilding, which was a private home from the early 18th century until the early 20th. It may be, as far as we can tell, the oldest library building in the state (dating to 1707 - the sign in front saying 1730 is inaccurate) - possibly the whole country. When it was converted into the Scotia Library in the 1920s, the librarian's family lived upstairs for decades, until it was converted into a small community/reading room after being absorbed into the Schenectady County system; it is now inaccessible because of safety and capacity concerns. Unfortunately the medieval basement, with its many odd additions and nooks and crannies, is also not open to the public, but if you ever get a chance for a tour, seize it. Because it's an old house dating back practically to the Dutch period that has had numerous alterations and renovations (there was once an attached small dairy barn), the layout is idiosyncratic. There's a reading nook opposite the circulation desk, and to get to the children's room in the back you have to meander through four different rooms. It lacks a bit of lounge space, and has only two computers for public access to both the catalog and internet resources. That said, there's a comfy and cozy vibe to the place the library patron may well find pleasing on uncrowded days, and the tiny collection does try to address general readership. The branch has suffered from funding issues, although it's still open five days a week (closed Wednesdays and Sundays), most days are only part-time. Check out the Schenectady County Public Library website (scpl.org) for current hours. You can still get interlibrary loan from any branch and return items from other branches here. I will add there's a huge advantage to patronizing this library for families: it's adjacent to Collins Park, with its large fields, lake (although the swim beach seems to be permanently closed for undisclosed reasons), and playground equipment and sports courts, and across the street from that is Jumpin' Jacks Drivein, for your summer gross fast food eating pleasure. Right now they're tearing up the roadbed on one of the Freeman's Road bridge spans across the Mohawk for replacement, so there's a whole string of cheap entertainment for the younger set right now. There's also a Dunkin Donuts right across the road from the library, although it requires navigating a somewhat weird crosswalk setup to get there, it can be done without reparking the car.