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| KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews (1480508) | |
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KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews |
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Posted by IRTRedbirdR33 on Sun Jul 8 11:24:51 2018 Kingston Trip Report: Good News, Bad news, Agnews I was in Kingston, New York on Saturday, July 7, 2018. The Trolley Museum of New York has made many improvements to their property. There is now a partially enclosed shelter at the museum station. There is also a portable wheelchair lift which is necessary if the Gas motor car is used. The primary car is Johnstown Traction no. 358 built in 1925 by the Saint Louis Car Company. She has been converted to run with a gasoline engine. The following cars were on display outside the museum; Lo-V Motor 5600, R-4 825, R-16 6398, PATH PA-1C 143, R-3 flat car F401, Doodlebug 120 and a few others. Q-Type 1602A has been moved inside the museum building to protect her from the elements. The motorman couldn’t have been nicer. He had come in to do some work in the shop but was diverted to operations. There were only two other staff members on duty, a very nice lady who worked in the gift shop and a young man who worked as flagman on the trolley. They have a serve shortage of volunteers. This summer hasn’t been kind to the museum. The brutal heat of recent weeks limited attendance. They only had about six paid visitors on all of Independence Day. The folks next store at Rip Van Winkle cruises voiced similar sentiments. I will digress from my main topic here to make some observations. There seems to be a slow motion recession going on, at least here in the Hudson Valley. Toy’s R Us has closed. Bon-ton’s Department store is going out of business and gas has risen to about three dollars a gallon. Many of the local restaurants have seem a ten to twenty percent drop off in customers. No one is pushing the crisis button yet but there are a few clouds on the horizon. I mention this because it affects the amount of discretionary money that folks have to spend. This impacts places that depend on tourist dollars especially the trolley and train museums. The entire waterfront area of Rondout seemed to be less busy then it should have been for the second weekend in July. Well they say that digression is good for the soul but I will return to my trip report. The trolley line extends from Rondout Landing to Kingston Point. It a great ride with nice views of the Hudson and Amtrak trains on the east shore. If you plan a trip to Kingston don’t forget to include the Catskill Mountain Railroad in your itinerary. Larry, RedbirdR33 |
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Re: KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews |
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Posted by Joe V on Sun Jul 8 11:44:38 2018, in response to KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews, posted by IRTRedbirdR33 on Sun Jul 8 11:24:51 2018. 20% of malls will go dead within 5 years. When 2 of 3 anchor stores closes, the whole mall is jeopardized.It is not enough to simply blame Amazon. All too may of these department stores simply do not sell what people want, target only those under 35, or go "upscale". Kingston hasn't been a thriving area in decades, and the trend continues. Unfortunately, rail museums often set themselves up in places people do not want to go or hard to get to. |
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Kingston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews |
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Posted by Olog-hai on Sun Jul 8 13:48:12 2018, in response to Re: KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews, posted by Joe V on Sun Jul 8 11:44:38 2018. Most places that are easy to get to have municipal governments that are unfriendly to stuff like railroad museums. |
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iPhone 6 (4.7 Inch) Premium PU Leather Wallet Case - Red w/ Floral Interior - by Notch-It |
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Re: Kingston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews |
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Posted by Joe V on Sun Jul 8 14:59:29 2018, in response to Kingston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews, posted by Olog-hai on Sun Jul 8 13:48:12 2018. Urban areas don't want to give away ratable real estate. |
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Re: KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews |
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Posted by randyo on Sun Jul 8 15:01:37 2018, in response to Re: KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews, posted by Joe V on Sun Jul 8 11:44:38 2018. I agree with what you said about the department stores. Back when EJ Korvettes (remember them?) was still in business, I had a bit of a difference with one of the floor clerks concerning the price os an item. His attitude was extremely customer unfriendly and when I mentioned that he should have a little more respect for the customers, he commented “Customers like you we don’t need.” With attitudes like that, it’s no wonder that it’s no wonder many stores are going belly up. There was a time when a discourteous employee like that would be fired on the spot upon a customer complaint but, sadly, that’s no longer the case. |
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Re: KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews |
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Posted by Elkeeper on Sun Jul 8 15:15:02 2018, in response to Re: KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews, posted by Joe V on Sun Jul 8 11:44:38 2018. What happened to the planned full gambling casino in that area? |
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Re: KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews |
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Posted by Wallyhorse on Sun Jul 8 15:58:31 2018, in response to Re: KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews, posted by randyo on Sun Jul 8 15:01:37 2018. Attitudes that today would get them fired. |
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Re: KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews |
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Posted by Joe V on Sun Jul 8 17:43:40 2018, in response to Re: KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews, posted by randyo on Sun Jul 8 15:01:37 2018. That clerk probably went to Woolworths or Alexanders when Korvettes went belly up in the early 1980's. |
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Re: KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews |
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Posted by Fisk Ave Jim on Sun Jul 8 17:48:03 2018, in response to KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews, posted by IRTRedbirdR33 on Sun Jul 8 11:24:51 2018. Larry...Is Macys & Sears still open in the Po'town Galleria?? |
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Re: Klingon Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews |
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Posted by Olog-hai on Sun Jul 8 17:50:06 2018, in response to Re: Kingston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews, posted by Joe V on Sun Jul 8 14:59:29 2018. They do when it comes to "affordable housing", though. |
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Re: KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews |
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Posted by IRTRedbirdR33 on Sun Jul 8 18:53:35 2018, in response to Re: KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews, posted by Fisk Ave Jim on Sun Jul 8 17:48:03 2018. Is Macys & Sears still open in the Po'town Galleria?? Yes they are. Larry, RedbirdR33 |
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Re: KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews |
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Posted by IRTRedbirdR33 on Sun Jul 8 18:55:18 2018, in response to Re: KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews, posted by Fisk Ave Jim on Sun Jul 8 17:48:03 2018. Is Macys & Sears still open in the Po'town Galleria?? Yes they are. Larry, RedbirdR33 |
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Re: KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews |
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Posted by Joe V on Sun Jul 8 19:06:46 2018, in response to Re: KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews, posted by IRTRedbirdR33 on Sun Jul 8 18:53:35 2018. Hudson_Valley_Mall_Sears_ClosedHudson_Valley_Mall_Issues |
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Re: KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews |
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Posted by Steamdriven on Sun Jul 8 19:41:59 2018, in response to KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews, posted by IRTRedbirdR33 on Sun Jul 8 11:24:51 2018. thanks for the on-the-ground update.Jobs, at least those that pay, seem to be moving to central locations with high cost of living, and a self-reinforcing loops moves population with them. Outer places continue to shrivel, despite having objectively higher quality of life and lower costs etc, at least for families with kids. I have no idea why this is, it's probably obvious to someone more fluent with such things. |
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Re: KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews |
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Posted by randyo on Sun Jul 8 21:46:44 2018, in response to Re: KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews, posted by Joe V on Sun Jul 8 17:43:40 2018. And now both Woolworth’s and Alexanders stores are both closed! I actually had a similar incident at the Kings Plaza Alexander's because the salesman was too stupid to understand what I wanted. |
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Re: KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews |
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Posted by Lou from Brooklyn on Mon Jul 9 09:06:54 2018, in response to Re: KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews, posted by randyo on Sun Jul 8 21:46:44 2018. Caldours, Gertz, Steinbech even Sears for all tense and purposes.The current Department store model like JC Penny where it tries to cut cost by having one or two register lines so the customer experience suffers waiting online will just make internet shopping more appealing. As the non-computer generation dies off, so will the Department store if you are going to have to wait in line for any length of time. Look at SI Mall, it's new wing is high scale or destination based with eat in movie theater and Dave & Busters. |
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Re: KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews |
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Posted by Spider-Pig on Mon Jul 9 09:55:17 2018, in response to Re: KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews, posted by Lou from Brooklyn on Mon Jul 9 09:06:54 2018. There is a solution to that: mobile checkout! I just love mobile checkout. |
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Re: KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews |
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Posted by AlM on Mon Jul 9 10:25:36 2018, in response to Re: KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews, posted by Steamdriven on Sun Jul 8 19:41:59 2018. Outer places continue to shrivel, despite having objectively higher quality of life and lower costs etc, at least for families with kids.They have subjectively higher quality of life. Others feel differently. People who want the more exciting jobs that cities have to offer also often like the more exciting life that cities can offer. |
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Re: KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews |
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Posted by AlM on Mon Jul 9 10:28:28 2018, in response to Re: KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews, posted by Spider-Pig on Mon Jul 9 09:55:17 2018. I have no moral objection to it, but every time I try to use it I hit a snag that requires human intervention, such as:- receipt wouldn't print - item without a bar code - needed a human to give me my senior discount |
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Re: KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews |
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Posted by Joe V on Mon Jul 9 10:47:09 2018, in response to Re: KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews, posted by Lou from Brooklyn on Mon Jul 9 09:06:54 2018. It's the merchandise they sell and the way they display it. Check out lines are not often that bad because nobody are in the stores anymore. That's why they are closing. For the last couple of years, you could walk around a Sears and not see so much as an employee. They were all part-timers - hiding. Then you can't find what you are looking for. So go home and use Amazon.com or Aliexpress.comThey separate merchandise by brand in separate sections. If I want a polo shirt, I would have to stop at each section. I am not doing that. Their prices are also ridiculous. Some arrange escalator direction to make you walk around it to continue to the next flight up or down. Men in particular don't have the patience for any of that, regard shopping as a task and hunting mission to get their kill quickly and head home. |
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Re: KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews |
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Posted by TransitChuckG on Mon Jul 9 11:00:17 2018, in response to Re: KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews, posted by AlM on Mon Jul 9 10:28:28 2018. I agree. I don't use it. I use regular check -out and they bag my stuff! |
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Re: KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews |
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Posted by HART BUS on Mon Jul 9 11:28:16 2018, in response to KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews, posted by IRTRedbirdR33 on Sun Jul 8 11:24:51 2018. Agnews???? Hey Larry was Spiro and his wife up in Kingston with you ? |
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Re: KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews |
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Posted by Fisk Ave Jim on Mon Jul 9 11:44:03 2018, in response to Re: KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews, posted by Lou from Brooklyn on Mon Jul 9 09:06:54 2018. "...tries to cut cost by having one or two register lines so the customer experience suffers waiting online..."Yep. Same concept was done awhile back with tollbooths to get you to sign up with E-Z pass. Example, for me, the tollbooths at the Throgs Neck bridge was just a freekin nightmare. They would have maybe 3 or 4 manned cash & E-Z pass tollbooths, bunched together on one side, where the rest of the other booths/lanes were E-Z pass only. The lines for the cash only booths were often backed up to the nearby last exit before toll (Bronx side). At the time, I didn't have E-Z pass since then living upstate & now out of state, I didn't drive around the NYC Metro area much. I got the hint & have E-Z pass now. Nowadays, tool booths are going the way of Sears stores with cameras replacing booths. But still have E-Z pass. Saves me a few bucks on the always rising PA. Tnpk tolls. |
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Re: KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews |
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Posted by Spider-Pig on Mon Jul 9 12:10:22 2018, in response to Re: KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews, posted by AlM on Mon Jul 9 10:28:28 2018. 1. Mobile checkout does not use printed receipts. That's another plus.2. Not mobile checkout per se, but Tops, a Western New York supermarket chain used to have an Easyshop feature where you walked around with a pricing gun. Non-barcoded items would work in one of three ways: a. You would scan the barcode on the price display sign. b. The scale would print a barcode after you selected the item using a touchscreen. c. When checking out, you had an opportunity to scan additional items at the register. The process there was just like a standard self-checkout. C is impossible with mobile checkout as the process is entirely on the phone and B works because the app could allow the browsing of products. A is therefore irrelevant. 3. Since mobile checkout would require an account with the app, this is less of an issue; the human could authorize you one time for all time. |
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Re: KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews |
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Posted by Spider-Pig on Mon Jul 9 12:10:49 2018, in response to Re: KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews, posted by TransitChuckG on Mon Jul 9 11:00:17 2018. I think you might be thinking of something else. |
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Re: KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews |
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Posted by Evan on Wed Jul 11 11:27:16 2018, in response to Re: KIngston Trip Report: Good news, Bad news, Agnews, posted by Elkeeper on Sun Jul 8 15:15:02 2018. The closest one is still about 40 miles away, so not close enough to do Kingston any good. |
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