Story updated 3/10/21

By Susan Elise Campbell
The owner of Boats by George has screapped plans to convert the Lake George Forum ice rink and event center into a 50,000-square-foot showroom.
George Pensel  cited escalating construction costs. Eestimates came in more than double the $800,000 thathe planned to spend to turn the arena into a headquarters and showroom.
Pensel was under contract to buy the forum from 2200 Route 9 LLC and Ralph Macchio Sr., owner of Wild West Ranch and Western Town.
Pensel said at the time he would keep the 8,000-square-foot flagship facility at 18 Route 149 in Lake George.
Pensel has owned the business for nearly four decades and his two sons are active partners in the company. He said he had needed a larger showroom for some time, as new boat sales have increased year to year along with the company’s market share.
“Boating has allowed people to get out in the fresh air, social distance, and enjoy the outdoors,” said Pensel. “Manufacturers have had trouble keeping up with the demand for boats. The marine industry has had a big expansion this year.”

By State Sen. Dan Stec
The governor’s promise almost five years ago of high-speed broadband for all remains unfulfilled.
Having heard frustrated pleas from families, businesses, schools and many others, my colleagues and I proposed legislation last year to drill down into this problem and come up with solutions to end this technological inequality. The governor’s recent veto of our proposal is very disappointing.
In 2015, Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced the New NYS Broadband Program, a $500 million investment to reach under and unserved regions. His website assured that as of 2018, “99.9 percent of New Yorkers” would have access to high-speed broadband. The state Broadband office last year claimed 98 percent of New York has that access.
However, based on my conversations with town and county supervisors, school superintendents and parents I am sure that is not the case for upstate New York.
During the first phase of the coronavirus pandemic last spring, over 700,000 students and 18,000 teachers statewide lacked broadband access as estimated by Common Sense Media. At a time when in-person learning was impossible, 27 percent of students couldn’t access remote learning.
On top of this, you had hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers working from home and businesses trying to maximize their online presence to offset the loss of in-person service. We saw that our state’s internet infrastructure was incapable of meeting the needs of a substantial portion of our residents.

By Andrea Harwood Palmer
Gallagher, a global insurance and risk management brokerage firm that acquired Cool Insurance in Glens Falls in December, has decided the arena in downtown Glens Falls will remain the Cool Insuring Arena, at least through 2025.
The Gallagher agency specializes in serving construction and healthcare industry clients, as well as governments and municipalities, which together account for more than half of its revenues.
Anthony Mashuta, Ira Neifeld and their associates at Cool Insurance will continue to operate from their current locations under the direction of Patrick Kennedy, head of Gallagher’s Northeast Region retail property/casualty brokerage operations, and Tom Belmont, Jr., head of Gallagher’s Atlantic Region employee benefit consulting and brokerage operations.
“Cool Insuring Agency has operated for more than 160 years and is viewed as the premier independent agency in Upstate New York. Their specialties align closely with our construction, healthcare, senior living and public entity practices,” said J. Patrick Gallagher, Jr., chairman, president and CEO. “We are delighted to welcome Tony, Ira and their associates to our growing Gallagher team.”
Gallagher has operations in 49 countries and offers client-service capabilities in more than 150 countries around the world through a network of correspondent brokers and consultants.

By Andrea Harwood Palmer
James Joseph Jr., owner of Sharp Presents in Queensbury, has opened a Reiki massage practice.
Reiki Rising is located at 458 Glen St. in Glens Falls.
Joseph is certified for Level 1 and Level 2 of Reiki, which is a form of energy healing, in which hands are placed just off the body or lightly touching the body. He was in the process of setting up studio space when COVID hit. Plans were put on hold.
Joseph felt drawn to focus to the practice in the summer of 2019.
“In my head, I kept seeing a blueish-green Phoenix, and hearing the phrase, ‘It’s time to Phoenix. It’s time to step into service.’ I felt the connection to starting from nothing and come into full potential. With Reiki energy, it can raise you up and bring you from the ashes. You can be at your worst, and Reiki energy can help bring you back up to your fullest capacity,” said Joseph.
Reiki Rising is named from the fabled Phoenix, which graces Joseph’s business card.
Joseph was certified by June Stoddard-Finemore, Reiki practitioner and masseuse at Renew with June, 458 Glen St. in Glens Falls in the same building where Joseph sees clients.

The Hyde Collection in Glens Falls has named John Lefner as its new chief development officer.
Lefner has over 17 years of nonprofit leadership and fundraising experience.
The museum also has temporarily paused public visits to its galleries, exhibits, and historic home. It will open its doors to the public again on Saturday, May 1, with an exhibition titled “The Very Best of The Hyde.”
“Our first and most pressing priority always is to protect our staff and visitors,” said Chief Executive Officer Norman E. Dascher Jr., noting that the rising numbers of COVID-19 cases, predicted to continue this winter and early spring, led to the decision.
The Hyde will undertake internal improvement and maintenance projects during the period and its offices will remain open, though with reduced hours and staff. Some employees will be furloughed, others will work on limited schedules, he said.
In his most recent position, Lefner was the District executive director for the Capital District YMCA, where he led the strategic plan and oversaw all operations of YMCA Camp Chingachgook and the Schenectady YMCA. Prior to that, he was the director of operations for the Saratoga Independent School and the assistant director of operations for the Double H Ranch.
He has served as board member for Wellspring and the state YMCA Foundation, provided leadership to the Schenectady Foundation’s COVID-19 Coalition, and volunteers regularly in the Capital Region.

By Susan Elise Campbell
Global freight networks— needed to get the goods from manufacturers to customers—are complex and challenging. And when the COVID-19 pandemic came along, it threw a wrench into things.
Manufacturing was cut back, ports closed, truckers stayed home and delays increased, affecting the dynamics of an industry that consumers and businesses rely on.
“It was a total nightmare, but we have pivoted to adapt to the changing environment,” said Jake Oswald, an account executive with Trans-Border Global Freight Systems Inc. in Round Lake.
Trans-Border is an award-winning, licensed U.S. customs broker specializing in transportation logistics. Oswald said the firm manages goods as they travel throughout the supply chain by land, sea or air. They do so as safely, efficiently and cost-effectively as possible and in accordance with a litany of changing regulations and financial considerations.
The company has a staff of 65, as well as remote sales reps and independent reps sprinkled across the country. But it takes about 590 international partners, developed over the past 25 years, to manage the importing and exporting needs of companies, according to Oswald.
With the teams of import and export specialists and directors at Trans-Border, Oswald said “there are a bunch of eyes on the supply chain to make sure products get through quickly and efficiently.”