Following a two-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Adirondack Wine & Food Festival will return to Lake George on Saturday and Sunday, June 25 and 26.

The event will feature more than 120 of New York wineries, distilleries, breweries, cideries, artisan food producers, food trucks and more at the Lake George Festival Commons at Charles R. Wood Park in Lake George Village.

Organizers of the family friendly event said over 7,700 attendees are expected this year.

“Two years ago, we didn’t know when we’d be able to hold this festival again,” said Sasha Pardy, who founded the festival in 2014. “We are 100 percent committed to bringing our guests the experience they have come to know and love over the years: sampling the state’s best craft beverage and food products with beautiful Lake George as their backdrop.”

The last Adirondack Wine & Food Festival was held in June 2019. Over 6,700 guests attended, with 73 percent of attendees saying they planned a trip to the Lake George area specifically to attend the festival.

Tickets for this year’s festival are selling at a record pace. “This tells us our event has been missed and we look forward to giving our attendees an experience they’ll never forget,” Pardy said.

She said the 2022 festival is expected to generate 4,745 overnight stays in the area and produce a $3.6 million economic impact on the region.

“As the Adirondack Wine & Food Festival returns from their pandemic hiatus, the event is attracting even more new and different visitors,” said Gina Mintzer, executive director of the Lake George Regional Chamber of Commerce. “The event producers have been very strategic in their growth plans that enhance the Lake George vacation brand of unique experiences. Because of their efforts, the festival continues as a substantial economic engine for the region adding tremendous impact to the area.”

For a third time, Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Southern Adirondacks (BBBS) will return as the festival beneficiary. A portion of every ticket sold is donated to the organization that provides mentorship, tutoring and experiences to youth in Warren, Washington, and northern Saratoga counties. BBBS raised $15,000 at the 2019 festival.

By Paul Post

Unlike the Marines, area builders need a whole lot more than “A Few Good Men.”

A severe nationwide labor shortage is being felt locally, too, as understaffed firms can’t keep up with customer demand.

Several factors have contributed to the labor shortage. First and foremost, many skilled workers have aged out of the industry and there hasn’t been enough emphasis put on showing kids the careers this field has to offer, builders say.

At Glens Falls-based VMJR Companies, laborer, carpenter and mason apprentice jobs start out at $16.98, $19.46 and $23.33 per hour, respectively. The worker can obtain journeyman status within five years, which pays $30.86, $35.40 and $38.69 per hour, respectively, plus supplemental benefits for each position.

“We have a core group of 35 field employees and are having a difficult time hiring skilled masons and carpenters,” president and CEO Victor Macri said. “Plus, for office operations we could use two more project managers and project engineers and another administrative assistant. We’ve been searching for over a year to fill these positions.”

Stewart’s Shops and the Dake Foundation, has donated $75,000 to SUNY Adirondack for the college’s athletics facilities renovation project.

“The Dake Family Foundation and Stewart’s Shops are among the college’s most generous corporate donors and, once again, they have lent their generous support to the college and our community,” said Dr. Kristine D. Duffy, president of SUNY Adirondack. “Their commitment to the communities they serve is unsurpassed and greatly appreciated.”

The donation will go toward replacing the college’s playing fields with a turf surface, part of a plan approved by the college board of trustees in 2019, but delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic. The work, when completed, will help extend the playing season for sports including soccer, baseball, lacrosse and softball, and allow the region to attract tournaments during the off-season, bringing tourists to the region.

The Lake George Regional Convention & Visitors Bureau has given its website, lakegeorgeishiring.com, a new look to offer features for both employers looking to post jobs and job seekers. 

There is no cost for employers to post jobs on the website, officials said,which focuses on Warren County job openings specifically.

LakeGeorgeisHiring.com was developed in the summer of 2020 by Mannix Marketing of Glens Falls, with support from the Lake George Regional Chamber of Commerce, Lake George Regional Convention & Visitors Bureau, Adirondack Regional Chamber of Commerce, Warren County Tourism Department, Warren Employment and Training and Behan Communications.

“Recognizing the need to provide a single online location for employers and potential employees to see current opportunities, the LGRCVB accepted the task of continuing this collaborative project as part of its scope of community development,” said Gina Mintzer, Chamber executive director. “To support our partners and employers in their growing hiring needs, we are thrilled to share an updated job portal, which offers the opportunity for employers to create their own account profiles, maintain job listings, and add links to their own contacts and hiring pages.”

Zobel & Co. Kitchens, a kitchen design and custom cabinetry showroom located in the Union Square Building in Glens Falls, announced the addition  of two new product lines, signaling continued growth for the firm in residential  renovation and construction.  

The firm now offers a  line of cabinetry made  especially for outdoor living, along with fully custom and semi-custom cabinetry  lines, the company said.

“In the past, outdoor kitchens were a harder  investment to make because of our short summers,” said Arthur Zobel, owner and  senior designer. “But now many folks are working from home or spending the full  summer at their vacation house so elevating their outdoor space makes great sense.”