Jake Van Ness, Author at Glens Falls Business Journal

Jake Van Ness

2231 Articles

Official: Community Bank NA Branch Shows ‘Commitment To Saratoga-Glens Falls’

March 21, 2022

Paul T. Wersten is the vice president, commercial banking officer, at Community Bank NA branch in Saratoga Springs. The office will serve commercial customers in Saratoga and Warren counties.
©2022 Saratoga Photographer.com

By Jill Nagy

Community Bank NA has opened an office in Saratoga Springs, fillinga gap between its outposts in Latham and Whitehall and providing a more convenient location for commercial banking customers in Saratoga and Warren Counties. Jeffrey M. Levy, Community Bank president of commercial banking, who heads the new office, said that it “demonstrates our commitment to the Saratoga-Glens Falls community.”

The office is located on the second floor of The Washington building, 422 Broadway, upstairs from Northshire Bookstore and Kilwins. At least initially, the office will serve commercial clients with lending, insurance and wealth management services. It will not accept deposits and there are no tellers’ cages. Its four employees are “just the start,” according to Levy. Two of them will concentrate on making loans and one each will provide insurance and wealth management services.

Community Bank has 11 branches in the Capital Region, including Albany, Latham, Whitehall, and Lake Placid. Their southernmost office is in Albany’s Corporate Woods. Their community focus places them in non-metropolitan areas, i.e., not in large cities. In addition to the Capital Region, the bank has offices in Northeast Pennsylvania, Vermont, Western Massachusetts, and every county in Upstate New York, Levy said.

There are no immediate plans for further expansion, Levy said, but noted that Gens Falls “fits in with our whole model.”

Business Report: Staying The Course In Uncertain Times

March 21, 2022

by Kenneth J. Entenmann

Kenneth J. Entenmann, senior vice president at NBT Wealth Management.
Courtesy ARCC

As the world watches the events unfold in Ukraine, it goes without saying that what we are witnessing is tragic and the human toll is something that cannot be understated. Military action always brings uncertainty, and it is difficult to assess the full extent of the situation while it is unfolding. The Russia-Ukraine conflict is no exception, and it has resulted in stunning market volatility.

However, strictly from an investment and economic perspective, geopolitical events rarely cause major bear markets or recessions. The markets tend to view them like natural disasters. That is, they are highly regionalized, they cause significant loss of property and life, but tend to be short-lived.

Historically, dating back to the Iraq invasion of Kuwait in 1990, there have been nine global military “interventions.” The time period from the onset of the event and the market bottom ranges from 0 days to 70 days. For example, the market bottomed out 10 days after the 9/11 attack in 2001. The average decline in the S&P 500 is -6.9 percent. Importantly, the markets tend to recover quickly.

The average one-month return after the bottom is 2.2 percent, the three-month return is 5.4 percent and the one-year return is 13.5 percent. Like all geopolitical events, the Russia-Ukraine conflict is impossible to predict. That said, it is likely to follow history’s pattern for a few reasons.

Business Report: Women May Need Financial ‘Catch-Up’

March 21, 2022

John Gable is a financial advisor with Edward Jones Financial in Warrensburg.

By John Gable

It’s unfortunate but true: If you’re a woman, you face more obstacles than men in achieving financial security. And that means you may well need to put in some extra effort.

Just how serious is your challenge? For one thing, women still face a gender pay gap – based on median incomes, women earn about 82 cents for every dollar a man makes, according to the Census Bureau.

This pay gap amounts to a nearly $470,000 difference in lifetime earnings, according to an Edward Jones/Age Wave study. Furthermore, when factoring in the career disruptions women face because of caring for children and elderly parents, that $470,000 becomes a $1.1 million lifetime earnings gap, according to the study. Finally, women tend to live longer than men, meaning their lifetime earnings must last longer.

Everyone’s situation is different, but these figures at least point to the challenges many women encounter. To help yourself, consider these moves:

• Pay yourself first. You always have to pay your bills – but, at the same time, pay yourself by moving money automatically from your checking account each month into a low-risk, liquid vehicle, such as a money market account or some type of cash management account connected with your investment portfolio. This move can help give you a “bucket” of money to use for any reason, such as the need to step away from your job to care for children or aging parents.

Hilltop Construction, Busy And Growing, Will Build New Office Space Near Airport

March 21, 2022

By Paul Post Hilltop Construction Co. epitomizes the phrase, “build a better mousetrap and the world will beat a path to your door.” The Hudson Falls firm, handling commercial and residential projects since 1975, is growing fast and recently purchased 3.6 acres at Airport Industrial Park on which to build a new 10,000-square-foot base...

Gore Mountain, With Facility Improvements And Key Races, Is Poised For More Growth

February 22, 2022

Through Jan. 31, the state-owned Gore Mountain ski center had welcomed 101,000 visitors this year, with more than two full months to go.
Paul Post

By Paul Post

Athletes from across the country are converging on Gore Mountain this month, setting the stage for one of the world’s largest sports spectacles a year from now.

The Holeshot Cross Tour (held Feb. 5-11) and USASA Futures Tour ( held Feb. 11-18) give the nation’s top junior freestyle skiers and snowboarders a chance to earn points in their quest to race professionally.

“These are two types of events, ski cross and slope style, we’ll be hosting for next year’s World University Games as well as big air,” said Stephanie Backes, Gore Mountain marketing director. “It’s putting Gore on the map for this caliber of competition and exposing us to people from around the country who have never been here before. It definitely helps lodging and restaurant business.”

World University Games are surpassed in size only by the Olympics, with about 1,600 athletes from 50 nations expected for next year’s competition based in Lake Placid. But Gore will host all freestyle skiing and boarding events, further enhancing its already prominent role as an economic engine in Warren County’s winter tourism industry.

Gore hosted 217,000 guests last winter, up significantly from the 189,000 who visited in 2019/20. Backes attributed this to the COVID-19 pandemic that sparked a major rise in all types of outdoor activity as many other forms of entertainment weren’t available.

In addition, the pandemic gave people working from home more opportunities to take time off. Last year, Gore saw a huge rise in midweek, non-holiday period visits, which have leveled off a bit this winter, but are still higher than pre-COVID attendance.

‘Ice Castles’ Attraction In Lake George Proves To Be A Tremendous Draw In First Year

February 22, 2022

Ice Castles—a 1.5-acre sculpture with frozen 25-foot-high archways, tunnels and slides—is expected bring more than $4 million for lodging, meals, fuel and more to the local economy.
Courtesy Warren County Tourism

By Paul Post

Only a week after opening, more than 75,000 tickets had already been sold to a major new winter attraction that officials hope can contribute to transforming Lake George into true year-round tourist destination.

Visitors to Ice Castles—a 1.5-acre man-made sculpture with frozen 25-foot-high archways, tunnels and slides—are expected to spend more than $4 million for lodging, meals, fuel and similar services.

Located at Charles R. Wood Park’s Festival Commons, 17 West Brook Road, it coincides with this year’s 60th annual Lake George Winter Carnival, featuring a slate of fun activities each weekend in February.

“This is big, really big,” said long-time Mayor Robert Blais, who has worked to promote winter tourism for many years. “All the businesses that have been open all these years, that have struggled through the winter and supported the Winter Carnival, I say thanks to them. Now you’re going to be rewarded. To the ones that don’t stay open and take advantage of it, I say, ‘You don’t know what you’re missing’.”

In addition to Utah, where Ice Castles is based, the company has similar attractions in Minnesota, Wisconsin and New Hampshire. This is its first time in upstate New York.

“We researched it very carefully,” Blais said. “I called communities wherever Ice Castles has been or still is, and talked to the mayors and supervisors. It fills every (hotel) room that’s available.”

Room reservations at Fort William Henry Hotel & Conference Center are up nearly 20 percent, said Tom Wysocki, sales and marketing director.

Sustainable PR Reports That Business Tripled During Its First Year Of Operation

February 22, 2022

Sustainable PR, a public relations agency supporting the growth of green businesses, has tripled in its first year of operations.

Fueling the PR firm’s growth is the demand for media relations services among innovative green companies, its founder said..

“Whether it’s COP26 or the Biden PlSustainable PRan on combatting climate change, we are benefiting from significant tailwinds in the sustainability market,” said Tony DeFazio, a 30-year PR veteran and founder and principal of Sustainable PR. “Our services, strong team, and strategic location will continue to serve us well as sustainable innovations shape the green economy.”

The public relations agency provides media relations services including key message development, press relations, media training, and influencer engagement to clients. Since launching a year ago, the company has signed multiple clients in green technology, renewable energy, impact investing, sustainable water, and green agriculture. The firm has been leading communications for Glens Falls Urban Agriculture Pilot, a hydroponic project to convert unused or under utilized industrial buildings into productive year round urban farms.

The company recently opened an office at 46 Elm St. in downtown Glens Falls, a block off South Street, where a $10 million economic development initiative to revitalize the corridor is expected to get underway in 2022.

Carl T. Baker Is The Recipient Of This Year’s Walter Juckett Community Service Award

February 22, 2022

Carl T. Baker, Esq., founding shareholder of FitzGerald Morris Baker Firth PC.
Courtesy ARCC

The Adirondack Regional Chamber of Commerce announced that the 33rd Annual J. Walter Juckett Community Service Award will be presented to Carl T. Baker, Esq., founding shareholder of FitzGerald Morris Baker Firth PC.

Baker will be presented with the award at the ARCC annual dinner on April 1 at The Sagamore Resort in Bolton Landing.

“Carl exemplifies all that defines the J. Walter Juckett Community Service Award. He has given much of himself to our region as a volunteer in so many ways. Carl has done so much for others, yet he is so humble never expecting anything in return except the satisfaction of helping those around him. Congratulations Carl on a well-deserved award given to you by your peers in the business community,” said ARCC President and CEO Michael Bittel.

Baker’s contributions to our community include service on multiple boards, councils, and committees including: Kiwanis Club of Glens Falls; Glens Falls Kiwanis Foundation; board of governors of Glens Falls Hospital; Planned Giving Council of Glens Falls Hospital; Glens Falls Hospital Foundation; Widowed Persons Service of Greater Glens Falls Area; Compre-Care Inc; Glens Falls YMCA Legacy Club Committee; WAMC Gift Planning Advisory Committee.

Born in Gloversville, Baker went on to pursue a career practicing law, achieving a B.A. from Cornell University in 1973, then his J.D. from Albany Law School in 1978. He was admitted to the bar in 1979. Baker is married to Sandra Stoffolano and has two children, Christopher and Jessica. He is a founding shareholder of FitzGerald Morris Baker Firth PC, and former managing partner and current head of the firm’s Trusts and Estates practice group.

‘Sleep And Spa’ Store In Lake George Offers Mattresses, Hot Tub Spas And Accessories

February 22, 2022

The new Sleep and Spas location at 1851 Route 9 in Lake George is one of five locations for the business. Others are in Saratoga Springs, Latham, North Greenbush, and Kingston.

By Jill Nagy

At the new Sleep and Spas location at 1851 Route 9 in Lake George, they are selling almost as many hot tubs as mattresses, according to sales manager Kevin King.

Maybe a few more mattresses, he admitted, but dollar-wise, “it’s really even.” This is a good time of year for hot tubs, he said, noting that the company had just delivered two tubs to customers in Queensbury that day.

Business, so far, has been “very good,” King said.

The Lake George location, at the Log Jam Outlet Center just off Route 9, opened two months ago and it is the fifth location for the business. They also have stores in Saratoga Springs, Latham, North Greenbush, and Kingston.

King pointed out that the store is easy to find. It shares a parking lot with the Log Jam restaurant, a Lake George landmark.

In addition to mattresses and hot tubs, Sleep and Spas sells massage chairs, patio furniture, and swimming pool supplies.

Personnel Briefs: February 2022

February 22, 2022

Capital Bank, a division of Chemung Canal Trust Company, announced that Tracey L. Wardwell, assistant vice president and Saratoga County retail manager, was named 2021 Banker of the Year by Pursuit Community Finance, formerly known as NYBDC.

The award, presented to Wardwell by Pursuit Vice President Nicole Scribner, recognizes outstanding dedication to the small business community.

Wardwell joined the company in 2018 and currently oversees Capital Bank’s branch offices in Clifton Park and Wilton.

Wardwell graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Business, with a concentration in finance and a minor in economics, from St. John Fisher College in Rochester.

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Arrow Financial Corp. has promoted named executive officers David S. DeMarco, David D. Kaiser, Edward J. Campanella and Andrew J. Wise to senior executive vice presidents of Arrow and its subsidiary banks as a reflection of the company’s strong operational and financial performance.

Each will continue in their primary roles overseeing the management of critical functions for Arrow, Glens Falls National Bank and Trust Co. and Saratoga National Bank and Trust Co.

In addition to serving as chief banking officer of Arrow and Glens Falls National Bank, DeMarco is president and CEO of Saratoga National Bank and Trust Co.

Campanella continues as treasurer and chief financial officer, Kaiser continues as chief credit officer, and Wise continues as chief operating officer, each for Arrow and its two banks.

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