Jake Van Ness

2231 Articles

Holiday Gifts Of A More Personal Nature Can Be Found In Many Smaller Area Shops

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Glen Street in Glens Falls takes on a festive look as shop owners prepare for the traditional shopping season. Downtown shoppers can find gifts outside the ordinary in area boutiques.
Photo by Jesse Winters

By Jennifer Farnsworth

The window of opportunity to find the perfect gift is starting to close. Fortunately, people who are looking for personalized and unique gifts don’t need to travel far from home.

From Lake George to Glens Falls, small area businesses are stocked and ready to help people find that special something. Small shops give personalized attention in an atmosphere that brings joy back to gift giving, something that may be harder to find in larger retail stores or shopping malls.

The selection at small businesses ranges from gourmet food to high-end clothing.

At MinkyMink, 203 Glen St. in downtown Glens Falls, owner Maura Forcier said those looking for curated clothing and accessories at affordable prices will find themselves in luck at her shop. She specializes in statement pieces that she describes as modern and comfortably chic.

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Stewart’s Shops Holiday Match Program Will Again Raise Money For Children’s Charities

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Stewart’s Shops is teaming up with its customers once again to raise money for local children’s charities.

The Stewart’s Holiday Match campaign kicked off on Thanksgiving Day and runs through Christmas Day at all shop locations. The program doubles customer donations penny for penny, and has set fundraising records for three consecutive seasons.

“Already having such a sense of community in our shops, the Stewart’s Holiday Match program has proven to be a perfect match for our friendly partners and loyal customers. By joining together, we can support kids in our own neighborhoods, all year long,” said Stewart’s Shops President Gary Dake.

In 2016, customers donated $926,000 to the program, doubling to more than $1.85 million with the Stewart’s match, he said. This was a $100,000 increase over the previous season. The funds were able to support a record 1,737 local children’s organizations across the 31 counties where Stewart’s Shops are located.

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SPAC Offers Customized Ticket Packages For 2018 Varied Calendar Of Concerts, Events

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In time for the holiday season, Saratoga Performing Arts Center is offering customizable gifts for music lovers through Dec. 31.

The 2017 holiday collection includes the ultimate classical season pass, which features a lawn seat for all performances of the New York City Ballet and the Philadelphia Orchestra and the opportunity to upgrade to the best available amphitheater seat for $5 for any performance, up to five times ($165 through Dec. 31); gift certificates that can be redeemed for tickets to any SPAC performance, Live Nation show or the Saratoga Wine & Food Festival; the flex ticket option for the Freihofer’s Saratoga Jazz Festival ($56 through Dec. 31); and holiday gift subscriptions to Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center at SPAC and Opera Saratoga.

“The ultimate classical season pass is the best kept ‘SPAC insider’ secret. What’s well known about these lawn passes is that they offer the opportunity to experience SPAC’s world-class programming for the entire classical season at an average ticket price of just $7 per performance, less than a movie ticket,” said Elizabeth Sobol, CEO of SPAC.

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With Change Is A Constant, Retirement Plans Should Stay On Course And Be Able To Adapt

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Don Tenne is a senior financial planner for Mass Mutual in Glens Falls.

By Susan E. Campbell

Financial professionals helping clients plan for a comfortable retirement are accustomed to preparing for unknowns. But what happens when foundational systems like income taxes and health care hover on the verge of massive change?

“All the attention in the media is paid to national politics and legislation,” said Don Tenne, a registered representative and senior financial planner for Mass Mutual in Glens Falls. “But we spend our lives locally. How much passed legislation will affect my life, versus my property taxes, zoning or the traffic where I live?”

So he advises his clients, “Don’t get too caught up in tax reform or health care reform, because our lives are lived largely outside of the Washington bubble.”

While tax reform is important, the issue is not change, said Tenne, but how to make a financial plan and stay on course because times always change.

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Business Report: Why Every Child Needs A Roth IRA

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Paul Curtis is a CPA and partner at CMJ LLP in Queensbury. Courtesy CMJ LLP

By Paul Curtis, CPA, CVA, CM&AA

What if your child could invest tax-free money today, and in 40-50 years take the proceeds out tax-free? Would you be interested? Almost anyone who receives compensation can open up a Roth IRA account.

There are two main types of individual retirement accounts, the traditional IRA and the Roth IRA. Traditional IRA’s allow for tax deductions for current year contributions. When distributed, the original contributions, along with any earnings, are then fully taxable. The Roth IRA allows for your contributions and earnings to accumulate tax-free. No tax deduction is allowed for contributions, unlike the traditional IRA, but you never have to pay taxes on qualified distributions.

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SUNY Empire State Saratoga Springs Site Is Named National Testing Center For Veterans

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SUNY Empire State College President Merodie A. Hancock and U.S. Navy Commander Judd Krier cut a ceremonial ribbon opening the national testing center at the college.
Courtesy SUNY Empire State

SUNY Empire State College’s location at 113 West Ave., Saratoga Springs, has been designated as an official national testing center for The Defense Activity for Non-Traditional Education Support (DANTES) and DSST Standardized Exams.

U.S. Navy Commander Judd Krier, commanding officer of the Naval Nuclear Power Training Unit (NPTU) in Ballston Spa, and Merodie A. Hancock, president of SUNY Empire, cut a ceremonial ribbon to mark the occasion.

Krier said that staff at NTPU researched how to provide better opportunities for the sailors to take DANTES and DSST exams and contacted SUNY Empire State College’s Office of Veteran and Military Education, which led to the college’s designation as a national testing center.

SUNY Empire State College already accepts college credit for successful completion of DANTES and DSST Standardized Exams.

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Event Raises $40K To Help Get Area Veterans Affordable Housing And Other Services

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Over $40,000 was raised for the Veterans & Community Housing Coalition at its second annual Veterans Ball at the Hall of Springs in November.

Some 400 people attended to support of the mission of helping  local veterans and their families with affordable housing and services while they transition to independent living.

A highlight of the evening was a special tribute to area WWII veterans who were honored and presented with quilts made by Loving Hands in All Seasons.

The list of honored WWII veterans included Walter Blair, U.S. Army 1943-1945; Marion Buchanan, Women’s Army Air Corps, 1943-1948; Stephen Dennis, U.S. Navy 1942-1945; David Forbert, U.S. Navy, 1943-1946; John Harrigan, U.S.  Army, 1942 -1945; Ralph Nicolson, U.S.  Army, 1943-1945; Corodon Norton II, Army Air Corps, 1942-1945; Dan Riley, U.S. Navy, 1943-1946; Mario Trieste, U.S.  Navy, WWII; Thomas Woods, U.S.  Army, 1943-1945.

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Plans In The Works To Expand Doray Motel With The Addition Of Two-Story Structure

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Ownership of the Doray Motel want to build a separate building behind this one that would consist of two stories and add 32 more rooms.

By Liz Witbeck

Doray Motel at 4 Fort George Road in Lake George has plans to expand and anticipates breaking ground on the project in the spring.

Mohammad and Mussarat Tariq purchased the property in 2011. The husband and wife team have experienced success through the years.

“I felt that after running this motel that there is a huge need to expand. Each year is getting better and better with sales,” he said.

Currently, Doray Motel has 15 rooms on the premises. The expansion would be comprised of a separate two-story building situated behind the motel that would provide 32 additional rooms.

The project also includes an outdoor swimming pool.

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Revitalization Initiative In Downtown Glens Falls Is About To Get Underway, Official Says

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South Street in Glens Falls will be a focal point of the Downtown Revitalization Initiative in the city. Grant funds will soon be dispersed to get various projects started.
Courtesy EDC Warren County

By Maureen Werther

Soon after Glens Falls was awarded $10 million as part of the state’s Downtown Revitalization Initiative (DRI), city officials, business owners and members of the community went to work identifying and compiling its DRI plan, which included a priority listing of downtown projects.

The final plan, approved in February, is about to get underway.

According to Ed Bartholomew, president of EDC Warren County, his organization and the city have been working closely with Empire State Development, the Department of State, and the state Division of Housing and Community Renewal to prepare key components of the various approved projects.

Bartholomew, Initiative co-chairmen Omar Usmani, Dan Hall and others have met with state officials to review protocols and the procurement process for implementing the projects that have been identified.

EDC and city representatives also met with the organizations involved in the DRI projects to develop procedures and plans for moving forward, Bartholomew said. There is a lot of paperwork to manage and officials are being diligent to closely follow proper procedures.

The initial phase of the DRI will include $600,000 going toward façade improvements, developing a program to assist with local retailers, nonprofits, the Adirondack Film Festival,  the Adirondack Film Commission, and capital project improvements for the Charles R. Wood Theater.

The funding is structured as a loan to businesses, who—if they meet certain criteria, such as creating jobs—would not have to repay the loan.

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West Mountain Ownership Continues To Improve And Modernize Queensbury Resort

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The owners of the West Mountain Ski Resort have invested $5 million since taking over the resort during the 2013-14 winter season. Last year was its first break-even year.
Photo by Jesse Winters

By Susan E. Campbell

Spencer Montgomery and the co-owners of the West Mountain Ski Resort are within $2 million of realizing their goal of “rebuilding the nuts and bolts of the core business” and restoring the ski area to the “family run, family focused, affordable resort” it was built to be in the early 1960s.

The partners will learn in December if they will be awarded a $400,000 Empire State Development matching grant. If successful, Montgomery will have received “the spark needed to raise the remaining $1.6 million so that we can operate a full ski center with the amenities that go along with it,” he said.

“We really need that assistance,” Montgomery said. “But I knew that we would have to prove ourselves first.”

Some $5 million has been invested since the partnership took over the resort during the 2013-2014 winter season. Last year was the first break-even year, Montgomery said, noting that  “revenues will double” when fully operational.

“West Mountain had been operating as half of a ski area,” he said, and many acres of land are yet untouched. The owners originally had a five-year timetable for re-branding and updating the resort, he said. But they added another 12 months to the schedule because of a bad winter last year.

Repairing and adding ski lifts, restoring old trails and the Northwest Lodge, additional lighting, and laying 17,000 feet of pipeline to carry water to 20 new state-of-the-art snow guns required welders and other skilled laborers and materials like lumber, dirt, pipe, steel and high-voltage equipment. All were provided from local sources, with Rozell Industries contracted for the more technical projects, such as the finishing work on the towers, according to Montgomery.

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