Category Archives: Business News

By Susan Elise Campbell

The first of 14 custom homes broke ground some months ago at Riley Farm, a unique new development near Lake Lonely in Saratoga Springs. But developer Mike Phinney, owner of Phinney Design Group, said he would “be happy to take four or five years” to complete construction of the kind of “uniquely designed and sustainable homes” that Phinney is winning prestigious awards for.

“I am not just trying to kick out a subdivision,” he said. “The owner of the land, Kenneth Scott, wants to develop it in concert with nature.” 

Scott is a scientist who has traveled the world as an expert in gene therapy and anti-aging technologies, Phinney said. Scott purchased the former working farm in the 1980s.

“He has done his research and has high sustainability goals to make homes net zero,” said Phinney. 

Phinney has been a leader and pioneer in the sustainable design movement since the mid-1990s. His firm focuses on environmentally responsible construction methods and is headquartered in a sustainable green building.

When Scott approached him, Phinney didn’t sense a good match at first. 

“As soon as he mentioned a subdivision, I thought, we don’t do generic houses that aren’t tied to a site and where the only thing that differentiates them is the paint color,” said Phinney.  

But after a few discussions, Scott convinced him their goals were aligned and told Phinney he wanted him to be the dedicated builder, designer and architect, Phinney said. 

“I think I turned him down three times,” he said. “But he is a unique client with a passion for real estate as well as the ways that habitat can affect health.” 

By Natali Cobb

As we approach six years since the COVID-19 pandemic started, people are starting to notice the long-term impacts, and continuous aftershocks of this historical inflection point. About a year after the world shut down, people began to call this phenomenon “this generation’s 9/11”. Although I was just two years old when our country suffered the aforementioned tragedy on September 11th, I knew exactly what they meant. An event so impactful that history begins to be separated into timelines of ‘pre’ and ‘post’ event. We can draw many similarities between the post-9/11 and post-Covid worlds—heightened awareness of safety, generational rise in anxiety, shifting personal priorities, changes in travel, and cultural and workplace shifts. As a commercial interior designer, that last point is crucial to understand how people need to work and exist in this new world. 

Human centric design revolves around just that—human beings. It explores the needs, comforts, and well-being of humans in the built environment, and aims to create spaces that increase productivity, foster connections, and improve health and wellbeing. We as people spend an average of 90% of our time indoors, yet it has only been in recent years that the health of the spaces we exist in has really been considered. We are seeing more and more companies push for employees to return to the office, but are being met with resistance. People have become accustomed to working in their homes, with limited peer interactions except through virtual conferencing platforms like Zoom or Teams. Employees in the post-pandemic world crave comfort and flexibility in their workplace, and they are demanding more from an office than just a desk and wi-fi. 

Pre-pandemic offices prioritized efficiency of space over individual needs, but offices lined with cubicles are becoming a thing of the past. Some people thrive in buzz and collaboration, and others require quiet focus, and both can be true in the modern office. Flexibility in employees’ work environments has become critical to productivity—in Gensler’s 2024 Workplace Survey, employees who have a choice in where they work reported 14% higher productivity. This might include spaces like quiet zones, collaboration hubs, social lounges, and wellness rooms. Creating comfort in the workplace boosts creativity, reduces stress, and encourages employees to spend more time in the office. 

By LEE COLEMAN

Two local businessmen have purchased the long vacant Suzuki Autoworld building on Route 9 in Moreau and are renovating the structure to serve multiple small businesses.

Ben Alden and Brian McKenzie are calling the transformed building Moreau Commons. They purchased the Suzuki property from Robert Vittengl for $1million.

The 12,000 square foot building has been vacant for more than a decade. Suzuki discontinued automobile sales in the United States in 2012 although the Japanese company still continues to produce and sell vehicles in other global markets.

“We’ve had a lot of interest in the property,” Alden said.

“The building itself needs lots of maintenance, all new walls, new electrical, and insulation,” he said.

Alden owns Platinum Protective Coatings LLC at 1330 Saratoga Road (Route 9) in Moreau and McKenzie owns McKenzie Drywall, a local company that has done projects throughout upstate New York. The two men have known each other for 25 years and have done many projects together. They both live in Moreau. They started working together many years ago when they brought Linex truck liners to the region.

By Jeffrey B. Shapiro, Esq.

Are you protecting your business’s most valuable information? Losing control of it could give your competitors exactly what they need to take your customers and profits. In New York, trade secrets are the lifeblood of many businesses, whether you run a manufacturing company, a professional services firm, or a growing start-up. They can include client lists, pricing models, proprietary processes, source code, or strategic plans. The risk often becomes real when a trusted employee leaves. Imagine a sales director who copies your client database before resigning. With access to pricing structures, purchasing histories, and decision-maker contacts, they could quickly undermine years of relationship-building. This is why drafting enforceable agreements to protect this information can mean the difference between staying ahead of your competitors and watching them profit from your hard work.

The case of AdMarketplace Inc. v. Salzman¹  shows how an employer’s ability to protect vital business information often depends on how effectively its restrictive agreements are drafted. AdMarketplace Inc., an online advertising company, sued two former employees and their new employer, a direct competitor, alleging they had taken confidential client data, solicited employees and customers, and attempted to access its password-protected database after leaving. Both employees had signed non-disclosure and non-solicitation agreements, and one reaffirmed those obligations in a separation agreement. When the defendants moved to dismiss, the court drew a sharp line between overbroad non-compete provisions, which it refused to enforce, and narrowly tailored protections for confidential information and client relationships, which it upheld.

By Rod Bacon

During the Golden Age of Golf, which is typically referred to as the period from the early 1900s to the 1930s, the sport experienced a significant surge in popularity and golf course design by renowned architects flourished.

A local course that was created during this period is the Ballston Spa Country Club. It was founded in July 1925 by a group of golf enthusiasts who purchased 116 acres of the John Gilman farm that was located a mile west of the village of Ballston Spa.

This year the club celebrated its centennial with a series of events June 20-22. 

According to Jake DeVito, a member of the board of directors and the driving force behind the celebration, the weekend started with a ceremonial ribbon cutting attended by local officials that included Sen. James Tedisco, Assemblywoman Mary Beth Walsh, Town of Milton council members, Village of Ballston Spa trustees, and representatives of the Saratoga County Chamber of Commerce and the Capital Region Chamber.

That night there was a hickory cocktail scramble in which 72 players used the old fashioned wooden sticks from the era of the club’s founding. 

By Paul Post

Looking for a fun day at the track?

There’s plenty of exciting activity and entertainment in store.

Five premium giveaways are still on tap including a Hawaiian shirt (July 20), blanket (July 25), pennant (Aug. 8), tote bag (Aug. 22) and sweatshirt (Aug. 31).

The 40-day meet got under way July 10 with paid attendance of 24,418 and on-track handle of more than $2.6 million, and continues through Labor Day Monday (Sept. 1) with racing five days per week, Wednesday to Sunday.

For handicappers, two huge dates are upcoming on the racing calendar, starting with Whitney Day (Saturday, Aug. 2) that will include four Grade 1s and six total stakes headlined by the Grade 1, $1 million Whitney. New this year, the Grade 1, $750,000 FanDuel Fourstardave has been added to the card.

The annual Best in Pink fashion photo contest is also scheduled that day from 1-3 p.m. at the Jockey Silks Porch. 

By Susan Elise Campbell

On June 30th The Putnam Market, a prominent fixture on Broadway for decades, held a well-attended ribbon cutting ceremony for its latest addition to Saratoga’s offerings of exceptional eateries. The new Café at Putnam Market has taken over the space that was the market’s popular Wine Shop for more than 25 years.

“This is a food town with a ton of seriously good restaurants,” said co-owner Cathy Hamilton. “We have to keep changing to keep up.”  

Hamilton’s husband, William Roach, ran the wine shop since its inception. When he announced his retirement last fall, Hamilton announced the Wine Shop would retire with him. There would be a bistro in its place to make up for the contribution wine sales made to the company’s bot-tom line, she said.

“From strictly a business standpoint, we needed $250,000 in sales at a 50 percent gross mar-gin to replace the earnings from wine,” Hamilton said. “There aren’t many things that can ac-complish that.”

Hamilton is one-half of the sister duo who founded and owns The Putnam Market. Hamilton describes herself as “the big picture person” on their team who “makes sure we can make payroll.” Her sister, Gloria Griskowitz, “is extremely good at planning and execution.”

It was Hamilton’s idea to have a café and offer specialty coffees, teas, chai, and lattes in the morning and wine and beer by the glass in the afternoon “to keep our customers here longer,” she said.

“Sometimes I come up with a new idea and staff just look at me,” she said. “When I sprung on them last autumn what was going to happen this year, one long-term employee burst into tears. But that was because she didn’t want William to go.”

There were no new hires to staff The Café. “We just re-deployed one full-time and one part-time employee who worked in the Wine Shop,” said Hamilton.

The Café provides plenty of room to sit and enjoy beverages with baked goods like scones, muffins, and rugelach. Any hot or cold signature sandwich, homemade soup, or specialty salad purchased in the main store can also be consumed at a table or window stool in the Café.

Hamilton said, “There is so much more light now that the space is very open.”

By Susan Elise Campbell

Frameology is reaching its one-year milestone as an optical shop for “people who love eyewear and want to stand out,” said co-owner and on-site optician Amanda Twohig, LDO. 

Twohig has been in the business of fitting clients with frames or contact lenses for 25 years. Her father was an ophthalmologist in Utica and she worked in his office growing up, she said.

“I met Stacey Daniel through the industry,” said Twohig. “Daniel owns two Frameology shops in Syracuse where I worked before relocating to Saratoga about a year ago.”

Her family still resides in western New York and her husband’s is in Massachusetts. She said, “Saratoga is in between, and we have always loved it here.”

Soon she told Daniel, “we need Frameology in this community.” A new partnership was formed.

“Frameology sells high quality, high fashion brands of eyeglass frames that have unique DNA as to bold colors and distinctive shapes,” Twohig said. 

She shopped for space on Broadway among its boutiques and special shops but settled on 426 Maple Avenue for the store’s location. The ample parking, extra interior space, and beautiful natural lighting at Maple Avenue influenced the business co-owner’s final decision, she said. 

“When purchasing this kind of eyewear, it may take two to four visits,” she said. “Often clients want their family members of friends to come in and we give them the space and time to see their selection before committing.”