Month: December 2025

By Paul Post

A sales tax hike is inevitable as skyrocketing, unavoidable costs continue to mount, Warren County officials say.

Health insurance, retirement, salary and Medicaid increases are just some of the items that caused expenses to rise $6 million this year alone.

Also, demand for Emergency Medical Services continues to grow and more funds are needed to keep roads, highways and bridges safe.

“What concerns me is that the vast majority of costs are going to be back next year, another $6 million increase,” Budget Officer Frank Thomas said. “I don’t see that slowing up any time soon.”

Officials discussed such issues during a recent panel discussion hosted by Adirondack Regional Chamber of Commerce, with dozens of business and civic leaders on hand, at Crandall Public Library.

“The biggest challenge for us is that only 25 percent of our budget ($215 million) is discretionary,” county Administrator John Taflan said. “The rest of that is state or federally mandated. That pretty much ties our hands.”

By Paul Post

Washington County officials are baffled by the state’s apparent undermining of its own environmental program and local economic development initiatives.

Montreal-based Boralex has plans for a100-megawatt solar project covering 567 acres surrounding a DEC Wildlife Area where rare grassland birds nest and breed in southern Fort Edward.

The state is fast-tracking large-scale solar and wind projects with a goal of having all electricity coming from renewable energy sources by the end of this decade. But projects such as this might come at considerable cost.

The endangered short-eared owl and threatened Northern harrier are among many species that need wide open grassland to survive. These two birds alone attract large numbers of naturalists and birding enthusiasts, contributing to the county’s ongoing tourism efforts.

The site in question is about two miles from the Alfred Z. Solomon Grassland Viewing Area on County Route 42 where people come to see and photograph scarce species. A separate, fairly large solar complex has already been built just beyond the Viewing Area’s eastern boundary.

By Paul Post

Santa has something extra special for a select group of people this year.

At Kringle Kottage, kids and adults alike can enjoy personal one-on-one meetings with St. Nick, telling him exactly what they want for Christmas.

The attraction is designed specifically for people with sensory sensitivities or neurological disorders such as autism and attention deficit-hyperactivity.

Sound, light and décor may be adjusted to suit each visitor’s comfort level to create the most calm, safe environment possible.

Kringle Kottage was developed by Roger Allan, of Hadley, who plays Santa Claus professionally. It’s located on the grounds of Fort William Henry Hotel in Lake George.

Allan understands special needs persons because his adult son is autistic, and he wants everyone to experience the joy and excitement of a meeting with St. Nick.

“The magic of Christmas should be comfortable, accessible and meaningful for every child, every adult and every family,” he said. “Kringle Kottage was created to fill a gap, a place where the lights aren’t too bright, the crowds aren’t too large and the experience meets each guest where they are.”

“Every detail was designed with comfort and care so that every visitor feels seen, supported and included,” Allan said. “This Kottage is more than a building; it is an affirmation that everyone deserves a holiday experience that feels right for them.”

By Ann Donnelly

Felicia Lynn launched Hometown Board Shop with the goal of rebuilding the snowboard community she remembers growing up with in Queensbury. The shop operates within Inside Edge on Glen Street, though Lynn said it already feels far more established than its short history suggests. The 2025-26 season will mark its first official winter season.

Lynn and her husband, Matt, are Queensbury High School graduates who returned to the area after 10 years of coaching competitive freestyle skiing and snowboarding in Vermont and Minnesota. Lynn said the idea for the business was sparked by a simple question: Where did the snowboard shops go? The name Hometown Board Shop grew from a suggestion by Matt referencing Glens Falls’ “Hometown USA” nickname, with community forming the core of the brand.

Lynn brings extensive experience in ski, snowboard and outdoor sports retail. She raced for Queensbury in high school and studied outdoor recreation at Cortland. For a decade, she and Matt coached high-level youth athletes in freestyle skiing and snowboarding. That background now shapes her approach to staff training and mentoring young riders who visit the shop.

Arrow Financial Corporation is pleased to announce the appointment of Darrin Jahnel to the Arrow Financial Corporation Board of Directors, effective November 25, 2025.*

Jahnel, a dynamic CEO, entrepreneur and AI expert, brings more than 25 years of experience building and scaling high-growth technology companies. He is the founder and CEO of Jahnel Group, a 150-person software consulting firm headquartered in Schenectady, New York. Under his leadership, the company has been named to the Inc. 5000 list for seven consecutive years and has earned multiple best workplace awards for its thriving culture.

A graduate of the University at Albany and New York University’s Stern School of Business, Jahnel is also a paid speaker, a recognized expert on AI in business and scaling high-performance teams, and a member of Mensa. Beyond Jahnel Group, he founded InfoLink, an R&D tax credit firm, and acquired LTI, a 40-person software company. He has delivered more than 100 talks on AI, leadership, entrepreneurship and culture and facilitated peer groups of emerging entrepreneurs.

By Paul Post

Everything about the new Bay Road Animal Hospital was designed with comfort in mind, for both pets and owners.

Widened hallways, large treatment area windows, heated kennel room floors and a sunken scale that animals simply step on without having to be lifted when first entering the building are just some of its many unique features.

Trent Hunnicutt, DVM, recently held a grand opening for the practice, the former home of Convenient Medical, at 319 Bay Road near the intersection of Quaker Road, in Queensbury.

“We basically blew the building out to four walls and redid everything to what’s needed for a veterinary hospital instead of a medical clinic,” he said.

A South Carolina native, Hunnicutt grew up on a hobby farm surrounded by all types of animals large and small, and knew he always wanted to have a practice of his own someday. He did undergraduate work at Clemson University before going to Ross University School of Veterinary Medicine at Saint Kitts in the Caribbean for most of his classroom instruction; finishing up with clinical rotations at Auburn University in Alabama.

By Paul Post

From neighborhood bars and breakfast spots to The Hyde, which ranks among the Northeast’s most prestigious art museums, and Finch Paper – the city’s largest industrial employer – the East End of Glens Falls is an incredibly diverse area with deep-rooted ethnic heritage.

It’s also home to one of the state’s smallest school districts, part of the historic Feeder Canal and unique architectural gems such as the former National Guard armory on Warren Street.

Building on the transformative economic development taking place on South Street, officials are now turning their attention across town to the East End, a roughly four-square-mile area from Ridge Street east to the Queensbury town line, and from Dix Avenue down to the Hudson River.

“It’s not just about coming up with a vision, but actionable projects that receive funding,” said Nora Greenberger, senior planner with LaBella Associates, a Glens Falls engineering and consulting firm. “The goal is to understand what are the restraints and opportunities for redevelopment. How do you incentivize investment in abandoned, vacant sites.”

By Ann Donnelly

Inside Edge and Reliable Racing represent a business legacy spanning more than half a century in the Glens Falls area. The enterprise evolved from a small family ski shop established by Tom and Marilyn Jacobs at West Mountain in 1963 into an international supplier of ski racing equipment. Former owner John Jacobs, their son, reflects on that success as the result of the family’s blend of retail experience and product innovation.

The family moved to Glens Falls in 1958 so Tom Jacobs could take a job at Finch Pruyn & Co. The retail operation soon followed, originally operating as the West Mountain Ski Shop and managing ski rentals, the ski school and race programs for the mountain. By 1968, the family relocated the business to Bay Road in Glens Falls, and Tom and Marilyn committed to the enterprise full time.

A near-miss airplane disaster soon became a defining moment. Tom Jacobs missed a Mohawk Airlines flight from New York City to Warren County Airport at the last minute. The plane later crashed into Pilot Knob Mountain near Lake George, killing all aboard. The next day, Jacobs left his job at Finch and dedicated himself entirely to the shop, which became known as The Inside Edge.

By Carol Ann Conover

Katie Margison officially launched Athena Nutrition earlier this year, but the foundations of her coaching practice were laid several years ago through her own personal transformation and extensive professional development.

In December 2023, a former member of Lake George Community Fitness approached Margison about nutrition coaching. At the time, she declined, still navigating her own wellness journey. But by mid-2024, after beginning her sobriety and focusing on her health, she reconsidered.

“I very naively thought I will lose a lot of weight because I’m not drinking anymore,” Margison said. “But the opposite happened, and I sought a dopamine response from food wherever I could.”

That realization ultimately shaped her philosophy: sustainable, evidence-based coaching focused on behavior change, not quick fixes.

Margison named her company after her dog, Athena, but the symbolism runs deeper. In Greek mythology, Athena is the goddess of wisdom and practicality — qualities Margison brings to her craft as both a coach and an educator.

Over the past several years, Margison invested heavily in her training. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Management; a Master’s Degree in Healthcare Administration; and an extensive list of coaching and fitness credentials, including Precision Nutrition L1, WAG Certified Nutrition & Sports Performance Coach, CF-L2 Trainer, USAW-L1 Coach and Referee, and multiple CrossFit specialty certificates in Gymnastics, Kettlebell, Anatomy, Lesson Planning, Spot the Flaw, and Scaling. She is also a Chronic Disease Self-Management Peer Educator through Stanford University.

By Paul Post

Brett Rodriguez wants to level the playing field for local kids who dream of playing in the big leagues someday.

A three-sport star at Queensbury High School, he reached Triple-A with the Seattle Mariners, a teammate of Cal Raleigh who set big league records this year for most home runs by a catcher and a switch-hitter.

But Rodriguez can’t help wondering how far he might have gone, given the opportunity to play ball year-round like kids from California, Texas, Florida and the Caribbean islands.

“Where you come from matters,” he said. “When I was a senior in college, my coach said, ‘Think how many more reps this freshman has had, being from Southern California compared to you from upstate New York.’ I asked the kid, ‘How many sports did you play?’ He said, ‘What do you mean? I play baseball all year round’.”

“My big vision, what I want for this community, is something I didn’t have,” Rodriguez said. “I want to give kids a chance. This gives them a place where they can come and get high-level development during our harsh winter months.”

His new baseball training center, On Deck Athletics, opened this month at Aviation Mall, filling a 10,000-square-foot space previously occupied by Sears Auto Center. He’s sub-leasing the site from Jeremy Treadway, owner of a new entertainment complex, ADK Karting Experience, in the mall’s former Sears store.

“I thought about this for a long time,” said the 27-year-old Rodriguez. “It was a big step for me, if I wanted to do this or continue playing because I do have a couple more years left on my contract in Puerto Rico. I’ve already told the general manager and players, I’m not going to be able to start my business, my baby, and go play this winter. I want them to win, but I have this going on right now.”