Notes from around town

 WROW listeners got a pleasant surprise last weekend when veteran DJ John Gabriel returned to the station after a few years away.

Gabriel, whose resume also includes a long stint at WTRY, and doing traffic reports for Spectrum News 1, as well as the This Day in NY History interstitals, worked the midday shift on July 30, and this morning is filling in for morning host Ben Patten, though it sounds like this could be a regular thing going forward, at a time when WROW used automated programming most of the time on weekends after dismissing DJ's Kevin Richards & Richie Norris in the last couple of years.

Welcome back to radio, John.

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Yesterday, we talked about how there are plans to convert the Uncle Sam Atrium into an apartment complex. Those plans won't take effect until after production concludes on season 2 of HBO's The Gilded Age, but long term, it means the indoor farmer's market may be moving again.

You'll recall that the 2020-1 winter season had the market relocated to the former Price Chopper in North Troy, and that was not a popular place for some folks, even though it is accessible on the bus line, resulting in the indoor market returning to the Atrium in November 2021. I honestly don't think Atrium owner David Bryce thought this one out completely.

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As television stations are putting younger talent on the air, older veterans are walking away, a few at a time.

In the last 2 years, WNYT has said goodbye to anchors Jim Kambrich, Jerry Groetzinger, and Benita Zahn. On Friday, meteorologist Bob Kovachick became the latest to announce his retirement.

From WNYT's YouTube channel:

Kovachick signed with WNYT in 1988 after a stint at WTEN and other stations. In the early 90's, Kovachick would contribute to WFLY's morning show with Todd Pettengill, I believe, and at one point, they heralded Bob in a chorus parody of the "Hallelujah Chorus", just a sample of the goofy comedy on the air at the time. Kovachick's final day will be Monday, October 3, at which point Paul Caiano will likely be named senior meteorologist. Kovachick will be a part-time contributor, mostly as a mentor to the rest of the staff.