As the nation and the meetings industry continue to grapple with the effects of COVID-19, the Lake George Regional Convention and Visitors Bureau (LGRCVB) has pivoted its marketing efforts to develop an incentive program called Meet Safely Now and Save.
Officials said the goal of the program is to help generate bookings for new traditional and hybrid meeting business as well as benefit the meetings and local hotel industries.
“With so many meetings getting cancelled or re-booked, and budgets getting slashed, we wanted to provide an opportunity that was beneficial to both the meeting planner and the hotel properties by offsetting some of the audio visual costs that might be incurred when trying to create hybrid meetings,” said Kristen Hanifin, CSEE, Lake George Regional CVB special event and convention sales director, who devised the program.

The Arts District of Glens Falls is beginning to roll out physical markers as well as colorful banners and numerous sidewalk markers featuring the Arts District logo.
In addition, branded bicycle racks are also in production and will be installed at key arts institutions to facilitate bike traffic from the nearby Warren County and Feeder Canal trails, officials said.
Arts District organizers said the markers are only the beginning of the overall plan for public art in Glens Falls.
As part of the Downtown Revitalization Initiative, spearheaded by the late Ed Bartholomew of EDC Warren County, artwork ranging from painted electrical boxes to large-scale murals and sculptures are slated to begin production this fall and into 2021.
“This will create an Arts Trail within the Arts District accessible to both pedestrian and vehicular traffic highlighting downtown, Warren Street and neighborhood arts organizations,” the group said in a news release.

By Lisa Balschunat
“Glens Falls is a city on the rise,” said Peter Hoffman, developer and president of Glen Street Associates. “I have seen such positive growth in this community and am happy to be a part of it.”
The developer recently acquired two buildings in Glens Falls—at 74 Warren St., formerly the American Red Cross, and 80 Warren St., formerly Mailings Made Easy.
There are also 50 to 60 parking spaces between the two buildings.
Hoffman is also preparing to develop another building in the city and recently sold one of his anchor properties, the historic 1786 Power’s Inn and Pub in Clifton Park, to longtime chef and manager Bryah Gifford.
At 74 Warren St., the first floor of the 12,000-square-foot building will be home to the Dance Center of Queensbury. The second floor has been remodeled into a quaint two-bedroom apartment with an open floor plan.

By Lisa Balschunat
The Warren-Washington County Association for Mental Health (WWAHM) will open a 29-unit apartment complex at 47-50 Cooper Street in Glens Falls in the spring. It will provide permanent supportive apartments to homeless people in the community.
Mercer Construction Co. of Ballston Lake, is constructing the building on the former site of Mullen Iron Works, adjacent to a portion of the Warren County Bikeway.
Despite some challenging road blocks over the past three years—including unexpected litigation expenses totaling $60,000 as a result of a lawsuit attempting to cease or delay construction of the apartment project—Chief Executive Officer Andrea Deepe said she anticipates opening in four months.
“Thankfully, our project was deemed essential by New York state at the beginning of the pandemic, so our contractor and the subcontractors were able to continue building throughout these difficult times,” she said, “Our organization began the process three years ago to design a building that would offer not only apartments, but also common areas for socialization and education programs.