By Jill Nagy

Laurella’s Restaurant at 21 Bay St. is new to Glens Falls, but its owner, Jerry Porreca, has a 40-year pedigree in the business.

The new restaurant opened in late December. The ambience is Italian-American, as is most of the menu. 

Although most of the entrees are Italian, Porreca said, Laurella’s also offers hamburgers, salads, chicken wings, flat bread pizza, sandwiches and a children’s menu. The restaurant opens at 3 p.m. and the kitchen is open until 9 p.m. seven days a week. There is a full bar and “happy hour” is from 3 to 6 p.m. everyday.

Porreca owned Smokey Joe’s in Lake George for 15 years, then operated the Olde Trading Post in Queensbury.  He started his career in Hudson. 

Southern Adirondack Realtors  installed a slate of new leaders at its holiday gala in December. 

SAR officers include Eden Whitaker of DeMarsh Real Estate, president; Jessica Sherry of the Sherwood Group, president-elect; Lisa Ostrander of Howard Hanna Real Estate, secretary; and Saraha Millington of Gallo Realty ADK, treasurer-elect. 

Whitaker, who also served in the same role in 2017, intends to lead the association and its members through the transition from a very active housing market to a changing industry in the legislative landscape, focusing on both the professional development of Realtors and their advocacy efforts. 

“Realtors engagement in the legislative and political process protects the rights of property owners and ensures the availability and affordability of housing,” said Whitaker. “We are the ‘Voice for Real Estate’ in the region, and part of that charge is the responsibility of being advocates for our clients and customers.”

 Whitaker also reaffirmed the local trade association’s commitment to the community, adding that Realtors “are caring members and dedicated volunteers to their communities. We will always prioritize partnership and collaboration with any organization looking to improve our quality of place.”

By Paul Post

The Lake Placid-based, January 12-22 World University Games are having a direct economic impact on the entire North County including Warren County as Great Escape Lodge in Queensbury is the official athlete village for 200 people taking part in freestyle ski events at Gore Mountain.

This includes athletes, coaches, delegates and officials from more than two dozen countries.

“We worked closely with community and state leaders to provide a bid for the opportunity to host this amazing event,” said Jennifer Mance, resort marketing and sales manager. “We’re honored for the opportunity to provide a fantastic experience for visiting athletes. While the popularity of our property is year-round given our indoor waterpark, we are proud to support this event along with our entire region and believe it will have a positive impact for many businesses in our area for the duration of the Games.”

The 2022 Holiday Match Program conducted by Stewart’s Shops has raised over $2 million for local children’s organizations, the company said. 

From Thanksgiving Day through Christmas Day, Stewart’s customers donated $1,011,281 to the program. Each individual donation was doubled by Stewart’s Shops. With no administrative fees, 100 percent of the funds benefit local, nonprofit children’s organizations.

“We are continually amazed by the generosity of our customers. We are proud to double their gifts allowing us to share more with our communities. These gifts have the power to accelerate progress where it’s needed most and support projects and services that can fuel real change in our communities,” according to Jennifer Frame, Stewart’s Shops director of corporate philanthropy.

Some 1,716 children’s organizations received funding from last year’s Holiday Match campaign.The grants help children all year long.

The Gene Haas Foundation recently awarded the local Employment Training for Adults (ETA) Machine Tool Technology program a grant to assist with student tuition and program needs.

ETA is affiliated with the Washington-Saratoga-Warren-Hamilton-Essex BOCES. The grant will help people enroll in the  Machine Tool Technology program and prepare themselves for a successful career. 

Dave Sharpe, local sales engineer with Allendale Machinery, recently presented the check to ETA instructor Jason Viele and Michelle Stockwell, administrator for adult programs.

Allendale Machinery Systems supplies manufacturing solutions for local businesses with a main product provided by Haas Automation, the largest supplier of American-made machine tools in the country. Both Allendale and Haas are big supporters of education.

“If you look around, you won’t see a product that didn’t have a machine tool involved in its creation,” Sharpe said. “For example, your toaster, refrigerator, or furnace all had machine tools making components or tooling. Medical products like the MRIs used in diagnosis are made locally. The list seems endless. The demand is behind the supply for trained people to operate the manufacturing equipment for industry. 

By Jill Nagy

A new consignment shop, Fashion Follies,  has opened at 32 South St., Glens Falls, next to Peter’s Diner.

“People love consignment stores,” said Lori Arpey  who opened the new venture with her sister Lisa Arpey.

Fashion Follies is almost like two stores in one. One section offers day-to-day items like casual clothing, pocketbooks, and jewelry. The other side features wedding gowns, prom dresses, fancy hats, and other special occasion clothes.

“Everything is gently used” and much of it looks new, Arpey said. Some items still have their original price tags. We want things other places don’t have,” she said.

The store accepts contributions by appointment. They insist that everything be clean and in good condition. 

“If it needs cleaning, we usually ask the consignor to take it back and clean it,” Arpey said. Proceeds are shared equally between the consignor and the business.