Glens Falls Business Journal

The Warren County Bikeway Is The Site Of An Exciting New Challenge For History Buffs

June 17, 2024

Letterboxes have been placed along the Warren County Bikeway to challenge history buffs.

To many people who use the Warren County Bikeway, the multi-use trail is just a neat place to bike, walk or run. But to local history buffs, the bikeway is much more than a recreational outlet, as many sites along the route were the scenes of significant events in two 18th century military conflicts.

To celebrate that history as the nation’s 250th birthday approaches, Warren County Department of Planning and Community Development has created a new Letterboxing challenge that combines history and recreation on the bikeway, celebrating the centuries-old road that became the bikeway with a fun challenge to identify 10 important sites along the trail.

Letterboxing is a growing hobby that incorporates orienteering, art and puzzle solving to find hidden treasures and complete a challenge.

The new Letterbox the Bikeway challenge takes participants from the bikeway’s beginning in Glens Falls to its end at Battlefield Park in Lake George, with stops at 10 historically significant locations in between.

Workers Benefit Significantly From Employee Stock Ownership Plan At Stewart’s Shops

June 17, 2024

By Christine Graf

If you’ve visited your local Stewart’s Shops lately, you may have been waited on by a millionaire. Thanks to the company’s Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP), a significant number of employees have become millionaires.

Nationwide, only about 6,300 companies offer ESOPs, employee benefit plans that give workers ownership interest in their company in the form of shares of stock. Stewart’s Shop is one of just a handful of local businesses to offer this benefit to its employees.

“ESOP programs have been getting a lot more attention from leaders in the state and other businesses,” said Robin Cooper, public relations manager for Stewart’s Shops. “I’m only aware of four or five companies in the region that have them.”

At Stewarts, both full- and part-time employees ages 19 and up are eligible to enroll. A person must work 500 hours in a quarter or 1,000 hours in a year, whichever occurs first. After a period of six years, the employee is fully vested. At that point in time, the balance of his or her ESOP is equivalent to approximately one year’s salary.

In 2022, Stewart’s Shops made $19 million in contributions to the ESOP accounts of 3,000 active employees, each one receiving the equivalent of 16 percent of his or her annual salary. That year, ESOP participants saw their account balances grow by 12.5 percent compared to the previous year.

The Stewart’s ESOP was established in 2001, and employees now own 40 percent of the privately-held company. The plan is 100 percent company paid.

“We have also been paying dividends for about the past ten years,” said Alison Abbey, personnel manager for Stewart’s Shops. “Those are paid quarterly. People can take them as cash or roll them into their balance.”

Business Report: Changes To 401 Plans

June 17, 2024June 17, 2024

Meghan Murray is a financial advisor with Edward Jones Financial in Glens Falls.

PROVIDED BY MEGHAN MURRAY, CRPC®

If you own a business and you offer a 401(k) or similar retirement plan to your employees, you’ll want to stay current on the various changes affecting these types of accounts. And in 2024, you may find some interesting new developments to consider.

These changes are part of the SECURE 2.0 Act, enacted at the end of 2022. And while some parts of the law went into effect in 2023 — such as the new tax credit for employer contributions to start-up retirement plans with 100 or fewer employees — others were only enacted this year.

Here are some of these changes that may interest you:

New “starter” 401(k)/403(b) – If you haven’t already established a retirement plan, you can now offer a “starter” 401(k) or “safe harbor” 403(b) plan to employees who meet age and service requirements. These plans have lower contribution limits ($6,000 per year, or $7,000 for those 50 or older) than a typical 401(k) or 403(b) and employers can’t make matching or nonelective contributions. These plans are low-cost and easy to administer but the credit for employer contributions doesn’t apply, as these contributions aren’t allowed, and since start-up costs are low, the tax credit for these costs will be correspondingly lower than they’d be for a full-scale 401(k) plan.

Matches for student loan payments – It’s not easy for young employees to save for retirement and pay back student loans. To help address this problem, Congress included a provision in Secure 2.0 that allows employers the option to provide matching contributions to employees’ retirement plans (401(k), 403(b), 457(b) and SIMPLE IRAs) when these employees make qualified student loan payments. Of course, if you offer this match for student loan payments, your costs will likely increase, although these matching contributions are tax deductible. In any case, you may want to balance any additional expense with the potential benefit of attracting and retaining employees, particularly those who have recently graduated from college.

NBT Bancorp Inc. Promotes Four Executives As It Implements It’s CEO Succession Plan

June 17, 2024

NBT Bancorp Inc. has announced that its CEO Succession Plan unanimously approved by NBT’s board of directors in January was executed with Scott A. Kingsley succeeding John H. Watt, Jr. as NBT’s 15th president and chief executive officer. Kingsley was also elected to NBT’s board of directors. Watt will continue to serve on the board and has been named vice chairman.

NBT also announced the promotion of Joseph R. Stagliano to president of NBT Bank, N.A., the company’s wholly-owned banking subsidiary, Annette L. Burns to executive vice president and chief financial officer, and Shauna M. Hyle to executive vice president, retail community banking.

NBT Board Chairman Martin A. Dietrich said, “Smooth leadership transitions are a characteristic of high-performing companies. The board enthusiastically and unanimously approved the succession plan we announced in January. We thank John for the vision and energy he has invested in NBT, and we are fortunate to have a tested and aligned executive management team with strong and experienced leaders like Scott, Joe, Annette and Shauna.”

Kingsley joined NBT in 2021 as executive vice president and chief financial officer. He has more than 35 years of experience, including 16 years as a member of the management team at Community Bank System, Inc., where he served as chief operating officer and, prior to that, as chief financial officer. Kingsley started his career with PricewaterhouseCoopers, LLP before joining the Carlisle Companies, Inc., a publicly traded global manufacturer and distributor, where he served in financial and operational leadership roles.

A certified public accountant, Kingsley earned his bachelor’s degree in accounting from Clarkson University. He is an active community advocate, volunteer and fund-raiser. He currently serves on the Crouse Health Foundation board of trustees and the audit and finance committee for the Catholic Diocese of Syracuse and was previously chair of the board of directors of the Food Bank of Central New York.

Two Local Businessmen Bring Individual Skills To The Launch Of TechFirst Insurance Agency

June 17, 2024

Kevin O’Brien has extensive experience as an insurance agent.

Two area businessmen have announced the launch of TechFirst Insurance Agency Inc.

It is a collaboration between co-founders Kevin O’Brien and Mark Shaw. O’Brien is a seasoned insurance professional while Shaw is a successful entrepreneur.

Shaw founded StoredTech in 2010, and since then has started three other companies. He has been named on Upstate Businesses Top CEO’s list by the Times Union and regularly supports the local community.

O’Brien has contributed significantly to various organizations, including the Tri-County United Way, Rotary Club of Glens Falls, Conkling Center, Adirondack Independent Insurance Association, 211NY, Glens Falls Civic Center Foundation, United Way of New York State, and The Glen at Highland Meadows. He is the 2013 recipient of the J. Walter Juckett Award and the first winner of the Ethics in Business Award.

Over several years the friends explored ways to modernize the insurance brokerage, discussing the extreme complexity of getting coverage for clients. They looked for ways to streamline that, which would free up time for agents to focus on clients’ needs.

TechFirst has built out a robust back-office process, partnering with more than 10 insurance providers. This allows them to be trusted advisors to businesses and families. One broker can address both business and personal needs. Also, they pledge to re-rate accounts every year to make sure their clients are getting the best coverage at the fairest price.

Carpenters Local Union 291 Works To Ensure Those In The Trade Are Well Trained

June 17, 2024

New York State Assemblywoman Carrie Warner visits a group of high school students interested in learning about a career in the carpentry trade.

By Susan Elise Campbell

Carpenters Local Union 291 is not rapidly growing but has the potential to, according to its president, James Margiotta. Skilled union carpenters can make a six-figure income with benefits, and no vocational school education or even a high school diploma is required, he said.

“Membership has been at the status quo the better part of the past 20 years,” said Margiotta, who has been a member of Local 291 for 25 years and in several of its elected positions for 11 years.

There are 1,600 members currently in 14 counties encompassing the Capital Region and North Country of New York. There are surges in membership at times but Margiotta said the union is “staying afloat because of a two-fold issue.”

“One reason growth isn’t as good as it could be is the ability to find skilled people that could command the wages that we negotiate for members,” he said.

“There has also been an issue of finding younger people interested in starting this kind of career in the carpentry trade,” said Margiotta.

U.S. Supreme Court Ruling Should Ease The Burden Of Impact Fees On Developers

June 17, 2024

By Paul Post

Area builders applaud a recent federal court ruling that could save them large sums by prohibiting some types of development fees local municipalities charge them.

Towns, cities and counties quite often impose such fees for new construction projects and use the money for things such as road, infrastructure and recreation facility upgrades.

But the U.S. Supreme Court, on April 12, sided with a rural California resident whose local government required him to pay a $23,420 “traffic impact fee” in order to obtain a building permit for a small pre-fab home he wanted to put at the rear of his property for his grandson.

“How’s that going to impact traffic? It wasn’t going to impact anybody,” said attorney David Robinson, of the California law firm Holland & Knight, whose clients include numerous builders and developers.

“This decision will have a major impact because it will result in a lot of changes in the way government operates,” he said. “For so very long the fox has been running the henhouse. If a developer wants to build something on one side of town, they’ve been charged a massive fee to build a public amenity on other side of town that has nothing to do with project in question. The bottom line is, that’s going to be really hard for the government to do now.”

Moving forward, impact fees must be able to stand up to two basic considerations. One is a proximate test. The impact local government is seeking compensation for has to be in some way logically or proximately related to the development.

Second, is the fee in reasonable proportion to the impact? For example, government couldn’t require a $100,000 fee for a $10,000 impact.

“This is going to be a serious check on what governments can do,” Robinson said. “It’s not going to be business as usual any more. It’s new, it’s very powerful. It will save developers money. But it’s also going to create a lot of litigation. There’s no question about that. You’re going to see a whole lot of experts on both sides, arguing whether an impact is directly related or proximate and whether the fee charged is reasonable. There will be a lot of debate about how this new rule is applied in any given situation.”

John Munter, president of Greenfield-based Munter Enterprises Inc., said, “Municipalities in some cases make a ridiculous request like, we want you to put in a mile of sidewalk where there isn’t any. They can come up with very expensive mitigation that doesn’t fit into the economics of a project. If you have a $1.5 million project, but have to spend $300,000 to do it, obviously it doesn’t make any sense. In those cases a law like this would certainly help.”

Darrah Land Surveying Provides Important Information To Homeowners And Developers

June 17, 2024

Kristin Darrah, owner of Darrah Land Surveying, became interested in the profession while attending Paul Smith’s College in the Adirondacks.

By Christine Graf

It was while attending Paul Smith’s College in the Adirondacks that Darrah Land Surveying’s Kristin Darrah developed an interest in becoming a land surveyor. After meeting some neighbors who worked in the field, she changed her major from environmental studies to surveying technology.

“I had never even heard of land surveying,” said Darrah. “I observed them working on one of their projects– hand drafting a topographic map. I thought it was really interesting.”

The field of land surveying has a rich history, George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and Abraham Lincoln all having worked as land surveyors. The famous duo of Meriwether Lewis and William Clark created close to 140 maps while surveying the Louisiana Purchase and the Pacific Northwest.

Land surveying draws heavily on mathematical principles, the fundamentals of geometry being of particular importance, used to calculate angles, distances, and elevations.

Well Trained Physician Assistants Are Integral To Goal Of Providing Quality Medical Care

June 17, 2024

Antoinetta Backus, physician recruitment and retention manager at Glens Falls Hospital, is responsible for ensuring that nurses and staff physicians have qualified PAs with whom to work.

by Christine Graf

During the past decade, the number of board-certified physician assistants (PAs) has increased more than 75 percent, with more than 168,000 currently practicing in the field. Each year, PAs are responsible for more than 500 million patient interactions, collaborating with physicians and surgeons to diagnose and treat patients.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects that the PA profession will increase 28 percent from 2021 to 2031. Currently, the demand for PAs is so high that 75 percent of graduates receive multiple job offers upon graduation.

In the late 1960s, Duke University established the country’s first physician assistant program. There are now 245 accredited programs in the United States, one of them at Albany Medical College where 42 PAs graduate each year from the 28-month program. Established in 1972, Albany Med’s PA program began as a collaboration with Hudson Valley Community College.

The Workplace Health And Wellness Council Addresses Issues That Hinder Productivity

June 17, 2024

At the May meeting of the ARCC’s Workplace Health and Wellness Council these professionals in a variety of fields presented Wellness From Head to Toe to an attentive audience.

By Jill Nagy

The Workplace Health and Wellness Council of the Adirondack Regional Chamber of Commerce tries to spread a culture of wellness in the business community. An all-volunteer committee plans monthly meetings with guest speakers on timely topics.

The May meeting, Wellness from Head to Toe, focused on mental health as well as physical wellness.

“It was a really beautiful panel,” said Ava Kanninen, the council liaison and the chamber’s membership chair. “It was beautiful to see these women calling back to the other speakers’ messages,” she added.

All three speakers that month were women. Erin Kivitski, a psychologist and wellness coordinator, moderated the program. Speakers were Susan McManus, a mental health and addiction specialist; Cathy Reichen, a physical therapist who manages the return to work program at Glens Falls Hospital; and Lyndsey Brainard, who discussed the importance of access to nourishing food.

The June meeting will observe Pride Month with a look at LBGTQ health issues, led by Pam Cardinale of Lower Adirondack Pride. July’s meeting will focus on gun safety. In August, the council will work with the Glens Falls Collaborative on a celebration of city parks. Earlier meetings this year examined autism awareness, colorectal cancer, and breast cancer awareness.