Some of the stories that made the news Fri., Sept. 26 through Mon., Sept. 29:

Jimmy Vielkind reported at Capital New York that after months of not campaigning and ignoring challenges by opponents to debate, Andrew M. Cuomo’s campaign has agreed to participate in two debates in October. The governor's campaign has agreed to a one-on-one debate with Republican challenger, Westchester County executive Rob Astorino in New York City. The second debate will occur in Buffalo, and include Cuomo, Astorino, Libertarian nominee Michael McDermott and Green Party candidate Howie Hawkins. No dates have been set for the debates as of yet.

Arthur Cusano reported in the Register Star a resolution to change the Federal Aviation Administration designation of the Columbia County Airport is scheduled to be voted on by the full Board of Supervisors, Mon., Sept. 29. The board's Airport and Public Works committees have approved plans to accept the FAA re-designation of the airport, based primarily on the number of aircraft landings and takeoffs that occur every year. The FAA notified the county on June 5 that it could reclassify the airport. The new classification will make updating the airport to required FAA safety code regulations easier. The board resolution will authorize the committees to work with the FAA to meet the new designation, said Airport Committee Chairman Art Bassin. After the expected approval, the county will need to submit plans to the FAA to implement the necessary changes. Final approval from the FAA will take a few months, Bassin said.

The Daily Freeman reported Columbia-Greene Community College will hold an instant admissions day, Oct. 29, at its Greenport campus. Representatives from both the admissions and financial aid offices will be on hand. Participants who bring official transcript(s) and who do not require a placement test or information session, can be accepted on the spot. More information is available at mycommunitycollege [dot] com.

A widespread electrical outage the morning of Sun., Sept. 27, left more than 3,300 National Grid customers in Hudson and Greenport without power, according to Columbia Co. 911. The power loss knocked out traffic lights throughout the area, and took WGXC off the air for approximately two hours. The outage was caused when a squirrel found its way into an unidentified, area power substation, according to the account by Arthur Cusano in the Register Star. A National Grid spokesman said squirrels will place their front paws on one wire and their back paws on the other and create a live circuit as a result. The system them shuts down to avoid additional damage.

Audrey Matott reported in The Daily Mail travelers gathered at 31 feet of freshly laid train tracks at the site of the Cairo Railroad Depot, Fri., Sept. 26. The Cairo Historical Society drew the crowd to celebrate its revival of the Cairo Railroad. It is hoped the project will lead to the reconstruction of the depot, which will likely serve as a museum. “This is a very historic event for us and the town,” said Cairo Historical Society President John Kargoe. The historical society is expected to now focus its efforts on the fundraising necessary to move the project forward.