Month: August 2026

Regional Investment Pipeline Keeps Economic Development Outlook Strong For 2027

August 18, 2026August 18, 2026

By Paul Post

Economic development officials are quite optimistic looking ahead to 2027 as significant private and public investment remains strong throughout the region.

In Warren County, health care, tourism and the arts are extremely high priorities.

Hudson Headwaters Health Network and Glens Falls Hospital together employ almost 4,000 people.

“We’re supporting a number of efforts, but perhaps the most meaningful is one to support the 340B Drug Pricing Program, which is the funding mechanism that supports rural health care development not only Warren County, but throughout northern New York,” said Jim Siplon, Warren County Economic Development Corporation president.

A federal initiative created in 1992, 340B requires drug makers to sell outpatient medications, such as blood pressure pills, at reduced prices to health care organizations that quite often serve low-income, uninsured or vulnerable patients. The savings allow these medical providers to stretch tight budgets and provide more services in underserved areas.

“Most of Hudson Headwater’s 26 facilities were built on the back of 340B,” Siplon said. “So making sure it’s protected and sustained is a huge effort on our part.”

On another front, several multiyear funding efforts are having a transformational impact in various parts of Warren County.

Work is nearing completion on a major overhaul of South Street in Glens Falls, thanks largely to a state Downtown Revitalization Initiative grant the city received a decade ago. A separate DRI grant is having a major impact in Lake George, where a new high-tech performance space recently opened at Shepard Park.

Sweet Rice & Noodle Bowls Finds Early Success With New Glens Falls Location

August 18, 2026

Sweet Rice & Noodle Bowls brings Asian fusion dining to Warren Street in Glens Falls.
Glens Falls Business Journal

By Ann Donnelly

Exactly one month after its highly anticipated July 10, 2026, opening, Sweet Rice & Noodle Bowls at 199 Warren Street is already reshaping the Glens Falls dining landscape. The new venture, located in the former home of Scratch Kitchen, now on Ridge Street near Constitution Circle, has kept its doors busy from day one, drawing a loyal wave of customers from its sister location, the popular Sweet Rice Thai Sushi on Dix Avenue.

For owner Siriluk Siraroj, a native of Thailand who has lived in the U.S. for nearly 20 years, the new restaurant represents a targeted expansion designed to fill a distinct culinary gap in the community.

“The area didn’t have any place for noodle bowls or poke bowls,” Siraroj said of her decision to open the new location. “I saw this as a great opportunity to expand our business and bring something new to Glens Falls.”

While the restaurant is now running very smoothly, the launch was not without its challenges. The culinary team faced a steep learning curve during a demanding opening week, primarily because of the rigorous preparation required for its signature broths.

Understanding Investment Risk Can Help Investors Reach Long-Term Goals

August 18, 2026

Meghan Murray is a financial advisor with
Edward Jones Financial in Queensbury.

Provided By Meghan Murray

One of the most significant risks investors face isn’t losing money in a market dip; it’s failing to reach their long-term financial goals.

Many people focus heavily on short-term losses in the stock market and try to protect their savings by investing conservatively or avoiding stocks altogether. But that runs the risk that their savings won’t grow enough to keep up with inflation or support future needs.

Understanding what investment risk really means helps you make smarter financial decisions, considering these three key aspects.

Risk tolerance describes your emotional comfort with risk. If you’d want to pull your money out of the market during a downturn, that reveals something about your tolerance. Many financial advisors use questionnaires to help clients understand how they might react in different market conditions.

Risk capacity refers to how much risk you can afford to take. Your timeline matters. A 35-year-old saving for retirement has decades to ride out market swings. A retiree drawing income from their portfolio doesn’t have that same cushion.

Required risk describes how much risk you may need to take to reach your financial goals. Higher returns generally come with higher risk, though higher risk does not guarantee higher returns. If you need strong growth to retire comfortably, you may need to accept more short-term volatility.

Sometimes these elements don’t line up. You might be uncomfortable with risk but need strong growth to meet your goals.

Balance and diversification matter: Finding the right balance matters more than you might think. A small difference in your annual rate of return, from 5% to 7% for instance, doesn’t just add up a little. It multiplies. That’s the power of compounding — returns earning their own returns, year after year, building on an ever-growing base. Over 30 or 35 years, that can become significant.

Independent Living Gains Appeal Among Capital Region Seniors Planning Ahead

August 18, 2026

By Carol Ann Conover

Nearly 80% of adults 50 and older want to remain in their own homes and communities as they age, and that same principle of choice — not obligation — is shaping how and when Capital Region seniors move into independent living, according to a regional advocacy group and two local providers.

“People overwhelmingly want to age in place, and they deserve the supports to make that possible,” said Cam Cardinale, director of external affairs for Southern Adirondack Independent Living, known as SAIL, a Glens Falls-based nonprofit serving older adults and people with disabilities across 17 counties. “At the heart of independent living is consumer choice. Every person has the right to decide where and how they live.” SAIL served more than 7,000 people across 17 counties last year, providing more than 20,000 services that help people remain independent, Cardinale said.

That same emphasis on choice is showing up locally, where Warren and Saratoga county providers say more residents are moving in deliberately and early rather than waiting for a crisis. About 25.9% of Warren County residents were 65 or older in 2024, compared with 21.3% in Saratoga County and 18.9% statewide, according to U.S. Census Bureau estimates compiled by USAFacts.

At The Glen at Hiland Meadows in Queensbury, an Eddy Senior Living community, executive director Andrea Hebert said residents entering every level of care — independent living, enhanced assisted living and memory care — have been arriving older over the community’s 25 years.

“People are just waiting longer to get to each level of care,” Hebert said, “and people are healthier longer, which is a positive thing.” More residents are also planning ahead instead of waiting for a crisis. “We’ve had people move in and say, ‘I do not know why I didn’t do this sooner,’” she said, “and we have people who tell others who are considering residency: Do it now, don’t wait.”

RLGC Law Group Explains How Families Can Prepare Secure Access To Digital Assets

August 18, 2026

Debra A. Verni, Senior Counsel RGLC Law Group.

By Debra A. Verni

We live our lives on computers and online, storing assets digitally. If you died tomorrow, could your family get into your physical and online accounts? If your funeral needed to be planned tomorrow, how would they do that? Are all your photos on your phone or computer? Who knows your passwords?

Cellphones can help or hinder loved ones trying to access personal and financial accounts. Some cellphones offer facial recognition or biometrics, such as fingerprints, to sign in, and some applications can use those methods instead of a password. What happens when “facial access” or biometrics are no longer available?

The best thing you can do for your loved ones is give them a list of your assets and passwords, or at least tell them where to find the information they need after you die or become incapacitated.

When my mom passed away, my sister and I flew to Missouri to wrap up her estate. My sister asked if I had the garage code because my aunt had locked the house and taken the keys after my mom’s death. Luckily, my mother had given me the garage code, so we were able to get into the house. We collected all of mom’s electronics, computers, cellphone, iPad, etc., and then looked blankly at each other because neither of us knew how to access them. As you know, the devices only give you a few attempts at the passcode and then they lock you out. We decided that the code from the garage was the key. We tried various combinations of the numbers from the garage code, and luckily for us, they worked. We were able to access all my mom’s accounts and personal information and contact account holders, friends and family. As I said, we were lucky; most people are not.

For those who think there is a website where you can find a list of all your loved one’s assets and digital information, or that you can access their information with a Power of Attorney if they are incapacitated or a death certificate after they die, that is simply not true.

White Glove Laundry Service Finds Growing Customer Base Among Seniors

August 18, 2026

By Carol Ann Conover

White Glove Service, the Queensbury-based cleaning company known locally for its “Grime Fighters,” has opened a stand-alone laundry service, and owner Kris Brunelle said seniors have quickly become some of its most loyal customers.

White Glove Laundry Service opened at the end of June at 309 Bay Road, though Brunelle has owned the building since last October and spent months designing the space before opening to the public. The business operates as a wash-and-fold service only — there are no public washers or dryers available on-site — and offers drop-off, pickup and delivery options.

“I realized that as a cleaning company, I needed a laundry service,” Brunelle said, adding that he once spent more than $2,000 a year running loads at a laundromat, sometimes three times a week, before deciding to open his own facility.

The laundry business is one of three DBAs now operating under the White Glove Service name, alongside White Glove Janitorial Service and White Glove Residential Service. Brunelle said he originally expected the laundry operation to serve primarily Airbnb hosts and cleaners who needed to turn over properties quickly. Instead, seniors have emerged as a significant share of the client base.

“A lot of our clients are the senior citizens, and they really just don’t want to be a burden,” Brunelle said. “It’s not something that they have the capacity to do, and they also don’t want to bug their children to do laundry all the time.”

The Hyde Collection Strengthens Warren County’s Tourism And Creative Economy

August 18, 2026

C.L. Elias is one of over 30 artists who took part in the inaugural Glens Falls Plein Air Festival hosted by The Hyde Collection, a major contributor to Warren County’s economy.
Courtesy Paul Post

By Paul Post

Tourism drives about one-third of Warren County’s economy and one of its most important, often-overlooked contributors is The Hyde Collection, a world-class art museum featuring the likes of Rembrandt, Picasso and Degas.

Hundreds of people turned out recently to view paintings created by more than two dozen participants in the inaugural Glens Falls Plein Air Festival.

“It supports the local economy and arts district here,” said artist Fred Holman of Brant Lake. “We come down here and stay overnight and go out to eat, so that’s part of it. But it also brings people to The Hyde to see its works. Put it together with other things going on and all of a sudden you have a big venue to go to, a destination.”

A retired landscape architect, Holman has taken part in numerous plein air festivals in places such as Saranac Lake, Ticonderoga, Keeseville and Canandaigua.

Plein air is a French term meaning outside, on location. It’s a style of painting, tied directly to 19th-century French Impressionism, made famous by Claude Monet, who was dedicated to capturing natural light. It’s done entirely outdoors to catch changing sunlight and weather patterns, which can be challenging for artists.

The Hyde’s July 27-Aug. 2 event gave artists a chance to paint a variety of scenes, from urban downtown Glens Falls to sites on beautiful Lake George.