Category Archives: Business News

By State Sen. Dan Stec

The 2022 Legislative session in Albany marks a historic first with Gov. Kathy Hochul, New York state’s first female chief executive, at the helm.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s resignation in August, after resisting calls to do so for months, was a welcomed relief for me and I know many New Yorkers. Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have been eager to turn the page and begin a new chapter that we hope is much less contentious or controversial. I wish Gov. Hochul well as our session gets underway and look forward to good conversations and productive debates with her and my colleagues.

The state budget is always our focus from January until the beginning of April. This year we have the additional early session focus of the once-a-decade process of redistricting. Following the U.S. Census, new legislative maps are drawn for all of New York’s congressional, state Senate and Assembly districts. 

Unlike years past when lawmakers exercised complete control and engaged in the oft-criticized process of gerrymandering, a voter-approved amendment to our State Constitution in 2014 created an independent redistricting commission.

The commission has held hearings statewide over the past half a year to gather input from citizens and concerned groups about how best to redraw the lines. I appreciate people from our region made the effort to submit testimony. It is very important that, in the best interests of representative democracy, the commission complete its work on-time this month and propose lines which, ideally, the State Legislature will accept. This is something to keep an eye on as the process continues over the next several weeks. 

Going back to the budget, I think it is important that Gov. Hochul set an optimistic tone. One way of achieving this is to commit to helping our businesses—big and small—recover from the impact of the pandemic. Many of our businesses showed remarkable resolve and resilience the past year and a half; others tried extremely hard but the sustained shutdown was too big a blow to their bottom line. 

The SUNY board of trustees appointed Dr. Lisa Vollendorf as president of SUNY Empire State College.

She was  interim provost and chief academic officer at the University of Northern Colorado. She replaces Dr. Nathan Gonyea, who has served as officer-in-charge at SUNY Empire since December 2020.

Vollendorf, who was selected after an extensive national search, will be SUNY Empire’s sixth president since its founding in 1971.

“I am both honored and excited to join SUNY Empire State College as its next president. I’ve spent my entire career championing the power of higher education to build a more inclusive, equitable society,” she said. “I believe deeply in SUNY Empire’s mission of meeting students where they are to help them achieve their educational dreams. I look forward to working with the SUNY Empire college community to advance the vital work already underway, find new and innovative ways to serve today’s diverse student population, and support the faculty, staff, and alumni at the heart of this amazing institution.” 

The search committee included four members of the college council, six faculty representatives, two students, an alumni representative, a campus-related foundation representative, an academic dean, a professional employee, a support staff member, a college senate member, a member of the chancellor’s senior staff, and three non-voting representatives. Consultants from Storbeck Search partnered with the search committee. 

John Maggiore, SUNY Empire State College presidential search chair and chairman of the SUNY Empire State College Council, said, “The breadth of Dr. Vollendorf’s administrative skill set, together with the depth of her academic experience and achievement, make her a compelling choice to lead SUNY Empire State College into its next half century of accessible, top-quality, innovative education for motivated adult learners. SUNY Empire is poised for strategic growth. 

“Dr. Vollendorf understands the college’s opportunities and challenges, and she has the determination and ability to move us forward in accordance with our mission.”

By Christine Graf

Bucks County Biscotti, a family-owned biscotti bakery, is moving forward with plans to relocate its Pennsylvania bakery to the Airport Industrial Park in Kingsbury.

The company was founded in 1993 by husband and wife Karen and Craig Silbert. Their son, Riley, joined the family business after working for a startup company in New York City.

“I joined about two years ago to help them grow and to eventually take over the business,” he said.

The decision to relocate the bakery occurred after the company maxed out on its production capabilities at their Hilltown Township, Pa., facility. The Queensbury area was chosen because that is where Karen and Craig plan to eventually retire. The couple purchased property in Queensbury and will be building a house there.

Bucks County Biscotti had humble beginnings, and Karen’s homemade biscotti was originally sold at farmer’s markets. It was a weekend endeavor. After perfecting her recipe and garnering a local following, she and her husband began selling the products wholesale to coffee shops and cafes.

The business moved its operation from the couple’s kitchen, to extending and converting their home into a fully registered and certified production bakery. The company now has an online store and ships gift boxes nationwide to consumers.

“My dad originally hand delivered from Washington, D.C., to New York,” said Siebert. “When the pandemic hit, we transitioned almost everything to shipping. In conjunction with that, we opened wholesale accounts throughout the country. We are now shipping nationwide to both retail online customers and our wholesale accounts.”

The Lake George Winter Carnival takes place each weekend throughout February, featuring family friendly events, may of them free and open to tourists and area residents as well.

 For 2022, the dates are the weekends of  Feb. 5 -6, 12-13, 19-20 and 26 -27.

Through the course of those weekends there are chowder, chili, BBQ, and chicken wing cook-offs. There are activities like outhouse races, ATV races, polar plunges, fireworks and more.

Events are coordinated by the Lake George Regional Chamber of Commerce.

Kids can participate in children’s activities like pony rides or  toast marshmallows on the beach. 

Although Lake George is usually frozen solid by February, there are some years when mild temperatures cause the ice to be unsafe for normal activities. If ice-dependent events need to be canceled or relocated, that information will be announced on the Winter Carnival’s Facebook page or website.

 There are plenty of places for tourists to stay overnight. 

For more information and schedules, visit www.lakegeorge.com/winter/carnival.

By Susan Elise Campbell

Saratoga Eagle Sales & Service is in the process of acquiring two companies that will expand its reach distributing beer, wine, soft drinks and water to an additional eight counties upstate, according to president and chief operating officer Jeff Vukelic. 

With roots stretching back to Buffalo in 1928 with parent company Try-It Distributing, what started as a beverage bottling business by the late Stephen Vukelic is now a multi-generational family company. With the most recent acquisitions the company will hold exclusive distribution rights to such brands as Budweiser, Rolling Rock and Michelob in a total of 21 counties in upstate New York. 

According to Vukelic, the new acquisitions are Northern Eagle Beverages Inc. out of Oneonta and Seneca Beverage Corp. of Elmira, both Anheuser-Busch distributors. Both will operate under the Saratoga Eagle name.

Saratoga Eagle has been in a growth-through-acquisition model since 2004-2005. This is the time frame when Try-It expanded into the Saratoga and Glens Falls areas with a new distribution hub subsidiary out of Saratoga Springs and grandson Jeff Vukelic took on the role of COO.

“Typically we are purchasing the rights to distribute beverages in the territories of the companies we acquire,” said Vukelic. “Occasionally we acquire a brick and mortar facility, but it is more typical to lease the space where the trucks are loaded for delivery to customers.”

by Jill Nagy

Premium Velocity Auto LLC has purchased nine Jiffy Lube franchises that were part of the  the Hoffman Car Wash chain. The sale closed Dec. 15. 

This is the first venture into New York state for the purchaser, which operates 55 Jiffy Lube franchises in 10 other states.

The car wash chain decided to get out of the Jiffy Lube  business and concentrate on expanding the car wash side of thingss, according to owner Tom Hoffman Jr. His last new Jiffy Lube franchise opened in 2004. Meanwhile, other companies were aggressively expanding their Jiffy Lube portfolios.

Hoffman recently opened a 23rd car wash in Yorkville, a suburb of Utica. Plans for 2022 include outlets in Rome, Gloversville, Cohoes, and Queensbury. When Hoffman opens a new car wash in Oneonta, they will be joined by a Premium Velocity Jiffy Lube franchise.

The newly purchased Jiffy Lube franchises “fit our network,” said Don Hill, president of Premium Velocity. The new owner purchased all of the assets of the Hoffman Car Wash Jiffy Lube outlets and plans to continue operating all of them. Seven of the nine franchises are in buildings  owned by Hoffman. The new owners will lease the buildings from Hoffman. 

“So, we are now landlords,”  Hoffman said. 

All 145 employees will keep their jobs and benefits.