Editing Albany, New York (section)

==Geography==
{{maplink|frame=y|text=City of Albany|frame-align=right|zoom=10|type=shape-inverse<!--shape-->|id=Q24861|stroke-color=#001|stroke-width=2}}

Albany is about {{convert|150|mi|km}} north of New York City on the [[Hudson River]].<ref name="rittner7" /> It has a total area of {{convert|21.8|sqmi|km2}}, of which {{convert|21.4|sqmi|km2}} is land and {{convert|0.4|sqmi|km2}} (1.8%) is water.<ref name="census.gov">{{cite web |url=http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/36/3601000.html |title=State & County QuickFacts: Albany (city) |access-date=July 17, 2010 |date=January 2, 2008 |publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]] |url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100217042746/http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/36/3601000.html |archive-date=February 17, 2010  }}</ref> The city is bordered on the north by the town of [[Colonie, New York|Colonie]] (along with the [[Village (New York)|village]] of [[Menands, New York|Menands]]), on the west by the town of [[Guilderland, New York|Guilderland]], and on the south by the town of [[Bethlehem, New York|Bethlehem]].<ref name="usgsmap">{{cite map |title=New York: Albany Quadrangle (15-Minute Series) |publisher=[[United States Geological Survey]] |year=1950 |url=http://docs.unh.edu/NY/alby50ne.jpg |access-date=June 14, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100801074615/http://docs.unh.edu/NY/alby50ne.jpg |archive-date=August 1, 2010 |url-status=dead }}</ref> The former Foxes Creek,<ref>{{cite web |title=Foxes Creek |url=http://www.nysm.nysed.gov/albany/loc/foxescreek.html |publisher=New York State Museum |date=October 10, 2007 |access-date=May 24, 2010 |archive-date=May 27, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100527180605/http://www.nysm.nysed.gov/albany/loc/foxescreek.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> Beaver Kill,<ref name="beaverkill">{{cite web |title=Beaverkill |url=http://www.nysm.nysed.gov/albany/loc/beaverkill.html |publisher=New York State Museum |access-date=May 24, 2010 |archive-date=May 27, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100527180751/http://www.nysm.nysed.gov/albany/loc/beaverkill.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> and Rutten Kill<ref>{{cite web |title=Ruttenkill |url=http://www.nysm.nysed.gov/albany/loc/ruttenkill.html |publisher=New York State Museum |date=July 29, 2001 |access-date=May 24, 2010 |archive-date=March 4, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304050613/http://www.nysm.nysed.gov/albany/loc/ruttenkill.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> were diverted underground in the 19th century. There are four lakes within city limits: [[Buckingham Lake]]; [[Rensselaer Lake]] at the mouth of the Patroon Creek; [[Tivoli Lake]], which was formed as a reservoir and once connected to the Patroon Creek; and [[Washington Park Lake]], which was formed by damming the Beaver Kill.<ref name="usgsmap" /><ref name="beaverkill" />
[[File:Albany Pine Bush.jpg|thumb|right|The [[Albany Pine Bush]] is the only sizable inland [[pine barrens]] [[Dune|sand dune]] ecosystem in the United States.<ref name="pinebush" />|alt=A few pine trees are surrounded by a number of low-lying oak-scrub bushes and trees during summer months.]]
The highest natural point in Albany is a USGS [[benchmark (surveying)|benchmark]] near the Loudonville Reservoir off Birch Hill Road, at {{convert|378|ft|m}} [[Above mean sea level|above sea level]]. The lowest point is at the Hudson River—which is still technically an [[estuary]] at Albany and is affected by the Atlantic [[tide]]<ref>{{cite book |title=The Hudson River Estuary |last=Levinton |first=Jeffery S. |author2=John R. Waldman |publisher=Cambridge University Press |location=New York City |year=2006 |page=3 |isbn=0-521-84478-9 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6EjpxuZAsH0C&q=%22hudson%20river%22%20estuary&pg=PA3}}</ref>—at an average of {{convert|2|ft|m}} above sea level at low tide and {{convert|4|ft|m}} at high tide.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Hudson River Basin |publisher=United States Geological Survey |author=National Water Quality Assessment Program |date=December 16, 2009 |access-date=October 10, 2010 |url=http://ny.water.usgs.gov/projects/hdsn/fctsht/su.html |archive-date=November 17, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141117201230/http://ny.water.usgs.gov/projects/hdsn/fctsht/su.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> The interior of Albany consists of rolling hills which were once part of the [[Albany Pine Bush]], an area of [[pitch pine]] and [[Quercus ilicifolia|scrub oak]], and has arid, sandy soil that is a remnant of the ancient [[Lake Albany]]. Due to development, the Pine Bush has shrunk from an original {{convert|25000|to|6000|acre|ha}} today. A preserve was set up by the State Legislature in 1988 and is on the city's western edge, spilling into [[Guilderland, New York|Guilderland]] and Colonie;<ref name="burger2736">Burger (2006), pp. 27–36</ref> it is the only sizable inland [[pine barrens]] [[Dune|sand dune]] ecosystem in the United States,<ref name="pinebush">{{cite web|title=Virtual Exhibit |publisher=Save the Pine Bush |date=January 12, 2008 |access-date=June 14, 2010 |url=http://www.savethepinebush.org/Exhibit/Exhibit.html}}</ref> and is home to many endangered species, including the [[Karner Blue|Karner Blue butterfly]].<ref name="burger58">Burger (2006), p. 58</ref>

===Climate===
Albany is in the [[humid continental climate]] zone ([[Köppen climate classification]]: Dfa),<ref>{{cite journal
 |last1=Kottek |first1=Marcus
 |last2=Greiser |first2=Jürgen
 |last3=Beck |first3=Christoph
 |last4=Rudolf |first4=Bruno
 |last5=Rubel |first5=Franz
 |display-authors=2
 |title=World Map of Köppen–Geiger Climate Classification
 |date=June 2006
 |journal=Meteorologische Zeitschrift
 |volume=15 |issue=3 |page=261
 |doi=10.1127/0941-2948/2006/0130
|url=https://opus.bibliothek.uni-augsburg.de/opus4/frontdoor/index/index/docId/40083
 }}</ref> and features cold, snowy winters, and hot, humid summers; the city experiences four distinct seasons. Albany is in plant [[hardiness zone]] 6a near downtown and along the shore of the Hudson and 5b at its western end.<ref>{{cite web |title=USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map |author=United States Department of Agriculture |publisher=[[United States National Arboretum]] |url=http://www.usna.usda.gov/Hardzone/hzm-ne1.html |access-date=June 14, 2010 |author-link=United States Department of Agriculture |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150303152208/http://www.usna.usda.gov/Hardzone/hzm-ne1.html |archive-date=March 3, 2015 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Albany receives {{convert|40.7|in|mm}} of precipitation per year,<ref name="NCDC txt KALB" /> with 138 days of at least {{convert|0.01|in|mm|abbr=on}} of [[precipitation (meteorology)|precipitation]] each year. Snowfall is significant, totaling {{convert|59.4|in|cm}} per season,<ref name="NCDC txt KALB" /> but with less accumulation than the [[Lake-effect snow|lake effect]] areas to the north and west, as it is farther from [[Lake Ontario]]. However, Albany is close enough to the [[East Coast of the United States|Atlantic coast]] to receive heavy snow from [[Nor'easter]]s and the city occasionally receives [[Alberta clipper]]s.<ref>{{cite news |title=It's Winter, So Warm Up to It |author=Scruton, Bruce A. |publisher=Hearst Newspapers |work=Times Union (Albany) |date=January 18, 2005 |page=B1 |url=http://albarchive.merlinone.net/mweb/wmsql.wm.request?oneimage&imageid=6318487 |url-status=dead |access-date=September 6, 2010 |archive-date=April 30, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110430030243/http://albarchive.merlinone.net/mweb/wmsql.wm.request?oneimage&imageid=6318487 }}</ref> Winters can be very cold with fluctuating conditions; temperatures drop to {{convert|0|°F|0}} or below on nine nights per annum.<ref name="NWS Albany, NY (ALY)" /> Summers in Albany can contain stretches of excessive heat and humidity, with temperatures of {{convert|90|°F|0}} or hotter on nine days per year.<ref name="NWS Albany, NY (ALY)" /> Record temperature extremes range from {{convert|-28|°F|0}}, on January 19, 1971, to {{convert|104|°F|0}} on July 4, 1911.<ref name="NWS Albany, NY (ALY)" />
{{Albany, New York weatherbox}}

===Cityscape===
{{wide image|Albany Panorama.jpg|1000px|align-cap=center|Panorama of Albany and the [[Hudson River]] from [[Rensselaer, New York|Rensselaer]], looking southwest|alt=A panorama shows a river in the bottom half, crossed by a highway bridge on left; building towers are seen around the center, where a green zone on the bank of the river is seen, which extends to the right extreme of the image.}}

====Neighborhoods====
{{Main|Neighborhoods of Albany, New York}}

[[File:Ten Broek Triangle.jpg|thumb|Housing in Ten Broeck Triangle, a subset of the [[Arbor Hill, Albany, New York|Arbor Hill]] neighborhood|alt=Rowhouses with arts-and-crafts styled porches (on both first and second floors) sit on a street across from a park.]]

The neighborhoods of Albany<ref name="neighborhoods">{{cite web|title=Albany's Neighborhoods|publisher=City of Albany|access-date=July 6, 2010|url=http://www.albanyny.org/Residents/Neighborhoods.aspx}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.albany.com/neighborhoods/|title=Albany NY Neighborhoods: Mansion, Pine Hills, Center Square & More|website=www.albany.com}}</ref> include [[Arbor Hill, Albany, New York|Arbor Hill]];<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.timesunion.com/local/article/Arbor-Hill-named-one-of-America-s-10-great-5792627.php|title=Arbor Hill named one of America's 10 great neighborhoods|first=Paul|last=Grondahl|date=October 1, 2014|website=Times Union}}</ref> Center Square, "[an] eclectic mix of residential and commercial [buildings], including bars, night clubs, restaurants, and stores";<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bizjournals.com/albany/news/2017/10/13/a-guide-to-the-coolest-places-to-live-eat-and-play.html#g/421163/1 |title=A guide to the coolest places to live, eat and play in the Albany region |work=Albany Business Review |last=Diana |first=Chelsea |date=October 13, 2017 |access-date=July 22, 2021 |url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200925013042/https://www.bizjournals.com/albany/news/2017/10/13/a-guide-to-the-coolest-places-to-live-eat-and-play.html |archive-date=September 25, 2020 }}</ref> [[Pine Hills, Albany, New York|Pine Hills]];<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.timesunion.com/local/article/How-can-troubles-in-Albany-s-student-ghetto-be-1308967.php|title=How can troubles in Albany's student ghetto be fixed?|date=March 27, 2011|website=Times Union}}</ref> and the South End.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.timesunion.com/news/article/South-End-development-13474824.php|title=South End community vigor aims to revive Albany neighborhood|first=Mallory|last=Moench|date=December 30, 2018|website=Times Union}}</ref>