Category Archives: Business Briefs

Whiteman Osterman & Hanna LLP has been named a Tier 1 firm in Albany by U.S. News—Best Lawyers “Best Law Firms” in 2019 in the following practice areas:  corporate law, education law, employment law—management, environmental law, litigation—trusts and estates, and trusts & estates law. 

Firms included in the 2019 Edition of “Best Law Firms” are recognized for professional excellence with consistently impressive ratings from clients and peers. Achieving a tiered ranking signals a unique combination of quality law practice and breadth of legal expertise.

The rankings are based on a rigorous evaluation process that includes the collection of client and lawyer evaluations, peer review from leading attorneys in the field, and review of additional information provided by law firms as part of the formal submission process. To be eligible for a 2019 ranking, a law firm must have at least one lawyer recognized in the 24th edition of the “Best Lawyers in America” list for that particular location and specialty.

***

The Saratoga Springs Heritage Area Visitor Center launched its annual Mitten Tree program. The initiative encourages individuals, organizations and youth groups to contribute new, store-bought or handmade mittens, gloves, hats, scarves, earmuffs or winter wear to decorate their holiday tree.

The Adirondack Trust Co. has once again secured a 5-Star rating from BauerFinancial, a bank rating firm. 

Earning a 5-Star rating indicates this bank excels in areas of capital adequacy, profitability, asset quality and much more. Earning and maintaining this top rating for 49 consecutive quarters, puts the Adirondack Trust Co. in an even higher bracket as an “exceptional performance bank”. 

This title is achieved after successfully earning the top 5-Star rating for 40 consecutive quarters (ten years or longer).

BauerFinancial Inc., based in Coral Gables, Fla., has been reporting on and analyzing the performance of U.S. banks and credit unions since 1983.

***

Colden Co. Inc., an IT Services provider with offices in Ballston Spa, announced the achievement of Microsoft’s Small and Midmarket Cloud Solutions Silver Competency. 

The Ballston Spa Business & Professional Association (BSBPA) announced additional vendors and entertainment for the 16th Annual The Way We Were car show to be held Sunday, Oct. 7, from 9 a.m.  4 p.m. on Front Street in Ballston Spa. 

Rain date for the event is Sunday, Oct. 14.

Front Street in the village will be blocked off from Milton Avenue past the Old Iron Spring to accommodate car exhibits and vendors. In addition to the classic and specialty cars on display, there will be live music from Betsy & The ByeGons, a Kids’ Zone with bounce house and children’s activities, plus car related and other vendors. 

Food will be available throughout the show route from several restaurant, food truck and community organization vendors, including the Brickyard, MeMe’s Snack Shack, Spike’s Sauce, Ballston Spa Rotary and Ballston Spa Lions Club. Brookside Museum will hold demonstrations from local EMS teams on its lawn. The museum’s exhibits will be open to visitors.

This year a record year for Backpacks of Hope, a program of the Chamber of Southern Saratoga County’s Women in Business committee. 

Over 400 new backpacks, with over 200 containing complete school supplies, were donated by the committee to Wellspring on Aug. 15. Every year since 2007, Women in Business Committee members have gathered in August to fill new backpacks to aid Wellspring, the domestic violence services resource for Saratoga County residents. The committee has donated over 1,300 new backpacks to Wellspring.

Baskets of Hope  benefits local families who seek the assistance and refuge of Wellspring. As financial hardships only add to the burden of a family facing domestic violence issues and relationship abuse, providing a child with a new backpack filled with school supplies helps ease that burden at the start of the school year.  

Rebuilding Together Saratoga County has received $25,000 in support from the Adirondack Trust Co. toward their Together We Transform Capital Campaign. 

Rebuilding Together launched this campaign in 2017 with the goal of raising $750,000 over three years in order to purchase and renovate 132 Milton Ave. in Ballston Spa. This building provides permanent office and warehouse space, along with the ability to support the organization’s operations with the opening of The Store at Rebuilding Together Saratoga County.

Saratoga Hospital has received a $100,000 donation from the Hannaford Charitable Foundation to support a new Teaching Food Pantry at the Saratoga Community Health Center. The new Hannaford Teaching Food Pantry will complement and expand on the nutrition, health, and chronic disease management programs offered at the Community Health Center. The dedicated space will...

Lori Childs was named assistant vice president, retail banking administrator and bank security officer at Ballston Spa National Bank (BSNB).  In this position, Childs will have direct oversight of branch staff, providing guidance and support in meeting their customer service and business development goals. She will also design and administer security programs at all...

The Saratoga Builders Association Inc. awarded two scholarships this year to high school seniors or college students who are planning to pursue a career in the construction industry. 

The association normally makes one annual $1,000 scholarship, but awarded two this year due to the number and quality of the applications, the organization said.

Brandon Fitzpatrick and Jakob Wiegand, both of Saratoga Springs, each received $1,000 scholarships.

Fitzpatrick is currently attending SUNY Delhi and is pursuing a career in refrigeration/HVAC. He has a high 3.89 cumulative GPA at college.