Category Archives: Uncategorized

By Brian M. Johnson, MBA, CLTC

Many clients have qualified assets they intend to use for retirement income. However, there is one risk that could potentially jeopardize even the most well thought out plan—the need for long-term care or extended healthcare. 

Long-term care is defined as needing assistance or supervision with everyday activities of daily living or ADL’s. A long-term care event is generally not cure oriented and the need for services, whether in home or a facility, is expected to last longer than 100 days. This type of care of referred to as custodial care, and a reason why traditional health insurance, Medicare and/or Medicare Advantage plans don’t cover it. Our default plan includes trying to qualify for Medicaid, which is a financially means tested program, which typically covers a nursing home, zero assisted living and limited home care or to use our own assets and income. 

A hybrid long-term care policy is another popular way to address the risk. It’s a type of permanent life insurance policy which offers three core benefits: An income tax-free life insurance death benefit long-term care services aren’t needed, cash indemnity benefits to pay for home care, assisted living and/or skilled nursing and a return of premium rider, which allows the insured to surrender the policy and receive either all or a portion of their premiums back with no penalty or charges.

Unlike a traditional long-term care policy, policy premiums are guaranteed and can never increase and benefits for are paid in cash to the insured, meaning the insured can use the funds however he/she sees fit, whether it’s to offset other bills, pay a family member or licensed providers. It’s an asset allocation approach to financing long-term care needs. 

In what the Lake George Association believes to be the world’s first use of a woodchip bioreactor at a municipal wastewater treatment plant, the Town of Bolton is using woodchips to reduce the release of algae-causing nitrate into groundwater and a tributary that feeds Lake George.

A 27-month monitoring study conducted by the LGA, Lake George Waterkeeper and the town, found that the town’s woodchip bioreactor removed 38 percent of nitrate from the wastewater that flowed through it, compared to 0 percent removal of nitrate from the rest of the plant’s effluent stream.

The study was funded by a Lake Champlain Sea Grant. 

Nitrate is a chemical compound present in organic waste that, when discharged to water in high quantities and over long periods of time can result in human and ecosystem health problems and foster the growth of algae, including harmful algal blooms (HABs). The Bolton wastewater treatment plant was constructed in the late 1950s and early 1960s and, like other plants of that era, is lacking the denitrification stage found in modern-day plants that converts nitrate to nitrogen gas and releases it harmlessly into the air. 

Instead, nitrate is discharged as part of the effluent to sand infiltration beds where it enters the groundwater and sometimes resurfaces and flows into nearby tributaries, the LGA said. The bioreactor adds a wholly natural denitrification process to Bolton’s treatment capabilities.

By Jim Siplon

It is certainly not news to say that the last two years of COVID have reshaped our area economy and the work we do to support it. 

One of the often acknowledged aspects of the COVID era is the observation that the pandemic often exposed and accelerated shifts that were already underway but perhaps not yet fully understood. Our economy and its dynamic elements , things like an aging workforce and a lack of new housing, are perhaps the greatest example of this. Constructing the framework that will underpin the post-COVID economy requires us all to lean into this together-to understand and retool around the “Economy of Now.”

EDC Warren County has long been focused on the strategic work required to attracting, growing and retaining business for our community. Classically, this was a process built around enticing new business to locate here and utilize our workforce to run them. Our programs, incentives and resources were deployed primarily in ways designed to capture transitory or relocating business ventures. 

While that work continues, it is transitioning before our eyes to a model that flips the traditional approach on its head. We are now in a competition for workforce, and those areas that have it will attract and grow the most successful business and economic entities while those that do not will struggle to build a sustainable economy. 

This need for workforce is not new, in fact it has been building slowly in the demographics for years. Baby boomers are aging out, birth rates have declined and flight of our young has been going on for some time. But today this problem is not limited to the North Country or other less populated areas but is now almost universal. 

By Christine Graf

In the early days of the pandemic when non-essential businesses were forced to close, companies relied on information technology professionals to help keep their businesses running.

At Glens Falls-based TIMIT Solutions, software professionals helped customers by writing software that allowed them to work remotely. TIMIT works with small to medium-sized companies around the globe to develop software applications that improve efficiency.

“If people are working from home, they are having to do things that normally they might have done in the office using old fashioned paper and pen. We help to digitize some of those things on the software end of it,” said Tim Montgomery, one of TIMIT’s three principal owners.

When the pandemic shut down non-essential businesses, many companies reached out to TIMIT to write COVID screening software which in some cases needed to be HIPPA compliant.

“We had some local customers that deal with the medical and healthcare industry, and they need a HIPPA-compliant screening setup where they would have fully encrypted end-to-end data and people could do that on their cell phones from wherever before they were to come into the office or meet with somebody outside of the office. We did that for customers in multiple states.”

Within these application, all personal health information was fully encrypted to ensure patient privacy.

By Jennifer Farnsworth

Adirondack Axe  has moved to a new location in the Aviation Mall. Owner Steven Greene said the new spot allows for more space for not only axe throwing, but also other activities.

The business has added a knife throwing room, a private throwing room and a paint room experience “where you get a 16×20 canvas, choice of paint colors, a suit, and goggles to make your masterpiece,” said Greene.

Adirondack Axe was created to bring a unique experience to the North County which used to be the heart of the logging industry, according to the company website. 

The Greene family started the business in 2019 as a way for people to experience the sport of axe throwing. With over 20 years in the tourism attraction business, Greene said they are especially excited about the mall location near Dick’s Sporting Goods.

“We have a lounge area which helps us with parties and events. The new location is working well with better exposure, foot traffic, and just a better overall presentation,” said Greene.

By Lisa Balschunat

40 Oak Classic American Grille restaurant opened in the spring at 925 Route 9 in Queensbury and for the past few months has been building its staff and fine tuning its schedule.

In October it introduced a new fall menu. It also recently expanded its hours to include breakfast six days a week, and the bar now features five local beers on tap.

“We’ve come a long way,” said Jim Campione owner and operator.  “We’re keeping it fresh and keeping it local. We are a family run business. We are not a chain and we look forward to serving visitors and locals here for years to come. We want people to come in, have a seat, have a drink and a great meal.”

The restaurant is currently open six days a week from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m., but is closed Tuesdays. 

“We have a sign on the front door asking for people’s patience,” Campione said. “Like many other businesses, we are understaffed right now, but are doing our absolute best to serve our customers in a timely fashion.”

The restaurant presently has 20 people on staff and is looking to hire 20 more.

The breakfast menu includes omelet and Egg Benedict variations, pancakes, French toast, Belgian waffles, homemade sausage over biscuits, and classic breakfast sandwiches, wraps and quesadillas. 

By Andrea Harwood Palmer

A new space-themed candy store has opened in the French Mountain Commons outlet center on Route 9 in Lake George.

Business partners Chad Rabinovitz, Jeffrey Small and Zach Moore had the grand opening for The Candy Space on July 8. The store has thousands of different candies, toys, cotton candy and space-themed paraphernalia, as well as 180 bulk bins of candy.

Rabinovitz and Moore had been talking about opening a store together in an empty retail space Moore had available at the outlet center.

“I said, ‘Here’s the deal. I’m in if it’s a candy store’,” said Rabinovitz.

“I’d love to say there was a ton of market research that happened, but the reality is I’ve always wanted to open a candy store. So that’s how it happened,” he said.

After the business partners made the decision to open a candy store, Rabinovitz started playing with ideas of what the business model should be and how they would offer something that didn’t already exist. With Amazon being the current retail leader in candy sales, Rabinovitz knew he needed to give people a compelling reason to come into a brick and mortar location.

by Andrea Harwood Palmer

Christy Alexander has moved WorkSmart to 237 Glen St. in Downtown Glens Falls.

Alexander is the sole owner of WorkSmart, and the anchor tenant for the historic 1914 building.

The structure most recently housed the downtown branch of TD Bank.

WorkSmart was previously housed in the Homestead Funding building on Warren Street near the traffic circle. When Alexander was initially searching for a new space for WorkSmart, 237 Glen St was for sale. She said she immediately saw the possibilities. With the vast amount of space, she felt the need to further validate the business idea before risking the investment.

“After testing the market and gaining traction, I began to dream bigger,” said Alexander. “We began to explore the opportunity to bring new life to the old lobby.”

V&H Construction was the general contractor on the renovations.

Alexander said planning the new space was a collaborative effort, with WorkSmart members giving feedback and insight throughout the process.

Alexander said the new space will impact existing and prospective clients tremendously.

“Offering fully furnished private offices with a premier business address will elevate our clients’ businesses,” she said. “Frictionless access to client meeting spaces makes it easy to project a professional image to clients. Creative spaces make these kinds of resources accessible with minimal investment.

By Erin Nudi

GlensFalls.com

Fitzgerald Brothers Beverages of Glens Falls have installed the soda fountains at restaurants; stocked the soft drink coolers at convenience stores and hired people for summer jobs or full-time positions.

The company is a family-owned, sixth-generation Pepsi distribution company in Glens Falls.  Although they exclusively bottle and distribute Pepsi, Fitzgerald Bros. got its start distributing various alcoholic beverages beginning in 1857 in Troy.

Until Prohibition was enacted, they even brewed their own beer, Fitzgerald’s Beer and Ale.

In 1960, the company purchased the former Pepsi Bottler on Dix Avenue in Glens Falls, and from 1986 to 2011,  distributed all of the Coors brand products to area customers as well.

Today, Fitzgerald Bros. operates out of the same Dix Avenue location and provides Pepsi products and self-service vending to over 950 customers in Warren, Washington, and Saratoga counties.

All customers are within 60 miles of the Glens Falls facility and include schools, hospitals, grocery stores, restaurants, convenience stores, and dozens of other types of businesses.

Fitzgerald Bros.’ connection to the community extends beyond customers. The company is  involved in local nonprofit organizations, including Big Brothers Big Sisters, Operation Santa Clause, Glens Falls Kiwanis, Glens Falls YMCA, South Glens Falls Marathon Dance.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Fitzgerald Bros. provided free beverages to a dozen local school districts to support lunch programs, and has provided free beverages to area nursing homes, Glens Falls Hospital, Glens Falls Housing Authority and others.