By Jeff Mead
Looking forward to 2021, with the COVID-19 pandemic still having a major effect on the world and our industry is not an easy task.
We lost almost 10 months of operations in 2020 due to the pandemic. We had what we considered our strongest arena line-up booked since we took over the operations of the arena in 2015. The closure of the arena by state mandate and the sudden end of the ECHL season is still being felt. The 2021 State Boys Basketball Championships have been cancelled for a second straight year. Most of our staff has been furloughed.
Unfortunately, we are like so many other businesses in our region and across the country,
We made the decision in November to opt out of the 2020-21 ECHL season due to the pandemic. The business model of the ECHL simply doesn’t afford teams to play without ticket sales revenues.
Downtown and local businesses have been negatively affected by not having our 225,000 guests come to the arena in the past 10 months. We know the economic impact we have on restaurants, bars, hotels, and retail when the arena is full.
We must keep looking forward. Realistically, we are looking to June or July as to when we will be able to resume normal operations.
Thunder hockey will be back for the 2021-22 season.
Outlook 2021 – Gina Mintzer
by gina mintzer
The Lake George regional business community has endured the pandemic through tremendous collaboration, innovation and responsible outreach to neighbors, colleagues, clients, visitors, and the communities served throughout the region. Leveraging business, community, industry, and research partnerships has been key to the success of all our efforts.
The pivot came quickly for the Lake George Regional Chamber of Commerce as we rapidly abandoned traditional outward-facing sales and marketing efforts in those first few days. Lightning fast, we turned inward, racing to aid our local business community, turning our considerable expertise in marketing to communicating real-time information to those we serve.
By virtue of our skill in social media and close relationships with elected officials, industry and community partners, clients, and colleagues, we were able to help each survive based on needs, from development of safety best practices to navigating state and federal relief funds, to event postponement and cancellation. Throughout the pandemic and moving forward, safe, and responsible visitation, adhering to county, state and national recommendations has been and will continue to be, the overarching message and mission internally and externally.
The Chazen Companies Based In Queensbury Is Purchased By Rochester Consulting Group
LaBella Associates of Rochester has purchased The Chazen Companies, a multidisciplinary consulting firm that has an office in Glens Falls.
Its headquarters is in Poughkeepsie. The acquisition takes effect Jan. 1, according to LaBella Associates.
The deal furthers LaBella’s growing presence in the Capital Region and extends its reach north to Glens Falls and the Adirondack region, and south to the Hudson Valley and New York City metro regions. Additionally, Chazen’s established offices in Nashville and Chattanooga, Tenn., will complement LaBella’s teams in the Southeast, officials said.
Officials said existing clientele of both Chazen and LaBella will benefit from enhanced serviceability and an expanded depth of resources. All of Chazen’s current employees—across offices in Poughkeepsie, Glens Falls, Troy, White Plains, Nashville, Chattanooga and Portland—are expected to remain with the company, which will operate as Chazen, a LaBella company, through 2021.
A Portland, Ore., office will mark LaBella’s first West Coast presence.
Grants, Donations Help Fund $1.8 Million Transformation Of Park In Hudson Falls
The old basketball nets have come down at Derby Park — the first sign of the once immensely-popular park’s $1.8 million transformation into a newly revitalized community athletic complex and festival space.
When the next ball swishes through the net, it will be part of the grand opening ceremony for the new Moran Derby Park, renamed in recognition of the $500,000 donation from longtime local businessmen and philanthropists, brothers Brien and Mike Moran, which kicked off project fundraising in June 2019.
All that’s needed now is to raise the final $400,000 — a task the Derby Park Revitalization Committee is tackling in earnest this holiday season with a goal of opening the new facility in the fall of 2021.
“This park will belong to the families of our community,” said Mike Moran, “and Brien and I are sure we’re going to see a lot of old friends step up to help — people with lifelong ties to Derby, as well as many of our customers from over the years. We are looking forward to seeing their names join ours in being a part of this project.”
With The Sudden Arise Of Pandemic, Use Of Telemedicine Equipment Sees Huge Rise
By Christine Graf
According to national data, doctors in the United States logged more than 1 billion virtual telemedicine appointments during 2020. Its usage peaked in April at which time 69 percent of all patient visits were virtual.
At Glens Falls Hospital, no telemedicine system was in place when the COVID-19 pandemic began. As a result, administrators had to scramble to get a system in place.
“This was all new to all of us,” said Patti Hammond, vice president for physician practice management. “One of the reasons was that the insurance companies including Medicare were not paying for virtual visits as though it was an in-person visit. Because of COVID, there were some emergency approvals, and the insurance companies said they would pay for that visit just as though the patient was in your office setting.”
In a matter of 48 hours, Glens Falls Hospital had a telemedicine system up and running. The hospital uses the Doxy.me platform and pays a monthly fee for each provider who uses the tool.
“Because we are a health care organization, we had to have a system that was HIPPA compliant. You can’t just do a Zoom call,” said Hammond.
Saratoga Hospital Medical Group, a group of more than 250 providers practicing out of 20-plus locations, implemented a telemedicine platform in the spring of 2019.
Business Report: Develop A Mindset For Health Wellness Success
By Maria Savino
Tis’ the season for health and wellness resolutions. While there is no shortage of diet plans and exercise regimes to follow in a New Year, I believe the most important aspect to achieve any health goal is the mindset you have going into it.
Many wellness resolutions are created from a place of lack and restriction.
For example: “I am going to cut out processed foods,” “I’m going to give up soda” or “I am going to stop sitting all day.”
Although these goals have positive intentions, the mindset behind them is not setting anyone up for success.
As a health coach, I instruct clients to set wellness goals from the mindset of positivity and addition, rather than restriction and subtraction. This mindset shift is a key component of their long term success for two reasons.
The first reason pertains to how we are naturally wired. As human beings, it never feels good when things are taken away or restricted, especially if those things have given you a sense of comfort or happiness in the past. For example, overeating can be a form of comfort, binge watching hours of television can provide stress relief, or grabbing that afternoon chocolate bar can promote a sense of joy during an otherwise dull or stressful day.
Air Pro Solutions Sells, Installs, Services Air Filters To Businesses Throughout The Region
By Jill Nagy
“We’re breathing in a lot of stuff in the air that we cannot see,” said Patrick Schmidt, vice president of sales at Air Pro Solutions, a new business selling, installing and servicing air filtration systems.
When he and other member of his sales staff visit a potential customer, they bring along an air quality meter that can measure that “stuff in the air” and then show it disappearing as one of the company’s Air Box filters goes to work.
Air Pro, located at 229 Washington St. in Saratoga Springs, services an area including Saratoga and Albany counties, the Glens Falls area and the North Country. They are independent dealers for Air Box units manufactured in the Carolinas. Currently, the company employs three sales people and two service people.
Vaccine Distribution In North County Began With Focus On Health Care Workers
Glens Falls Hospital received its first shipment of the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine before Christmas and began vaccinating employees based on the CDC and state Department of Health guidelines.
The first person to receive the vaccine at the hospital was Stephanie Kelly, lab lead, microbiology.
“It was great, I did not feel a thing, less than what I feel with the flu shot usually,” she said. “I would recommend everyone getting this vaccination. It is important. We are so lucky and I am happy to have it.”
Some of the doses received were earmarked for EMS and other first responders. The hospital worked directly with these first responder teams to get members vaccinated.