Category Archives: Business News

By Christine Graf
Express Employment Professionals, a locally owned small business, opened its second Capital Region location in December.
It is located in the T.J. Maxx plaza on Route 50 in Saratoga Springs. Owner Jordan Modiano opened his first Express Employment franchise in Albany in September 2015.
“To put it simply, we help people find jobs, and we help companies find employees,” he said.
A Long Island native, Modiano moved to the area in 1999. He had a 20-year career in advertising and marketing before purchasing the franchise. Express Employment Professionals was founded in 1983 and has more than 780 franchise locations in the United States, Canada, and South Africa.
“I wanted to do something that made a difference in people’s lives and the community that I live in,” Modiano “That’s been something I’ve wanted to do for a long time.”

By Craig MacDonald
There was a time automatic standby generators for your home or small business were considered an extravagant purchase.
Homeowners and small business owners found it tough to justify such a purchase.
They may also have been using a Rolodex, “selectric” typewriter and even dabbled in a desk-top computer with the most modern DOS operating system available at the time. Some phones may have still worked when the power went out. The wait for the overdue FAX was inconvenient, but there were many manual tasks to be taken care of while waiting.
Enough light seemed to come in from the windows to keep all the manual tasks moving along in the office. At home, there may have been flashlights, candles and canned food to open an heat.
We’ve come a long way.

During International Networking Week in February, BNI’s Winners Circle Chapter in Saratoga Springs was recognized for passing $1,053,000 in business in 2019.
The ceremony took place at the Inn at Saratoga on Broadway.
BNI is the world’s largest networking organization. There are two Chapters in Saratoga Springs.
The chapter meets to exchange referrals to other members. BNI members form a trusted team of referral partners who help each other grow their businesses.
President Kimberly Salerno of Salerno Law said, “It is an honor for us to be recognized in again this year. I am proud to be part of this group and the way we help each other. We have done this for 6 consecutive years.”

By Andrea Palmer
Gordon Sacks, owner of 9 Miles East, a diversified farm and food business, is passionate about what he does. And now he’s expanding services and adding a restaurant, located at 64 Excelsior Ave. in Saratoga Springs.
“Our mission is to make it easy for busy people to eat healthy, local food,” said Sacks.
The company has been around for more than a decade, and has a 29-acre vegetable farm in Schuylerville.
“We make healthy meals that we deliver to the employees of big companies in Upstate New York and in Boston. We have a subscription meal delivery service, where we bring those healthy meals to people’s homes,” said Sacks.
Five years ago, Sacks added a pizza delivery operation.

After almost 50 years, SUNY Empire State College has an official mascot.
After a month-long, online campaign that resulted in a total of 9,922 votes cast, Blue, the Bluebird, beat out its competition and will represent the SUNY Empire community.
Officials said faculty, staff, students, and alumni submitted more than 180 mascot concepts for consideration this past fall. The submissions were evaluated by a committee representing a cross-section of the college community, and three were selected as finalists: Blue the Bluebird, Cam the Chameleon, and Van the Vanguard.

Regan Development has plans to transform the former Victory Mills, a five-story, 230,000-square-foot manufacturing facility that closed nearly two decades ago, into 186 residential apartment units and a commercial microbrewery.
The building is in the Village of Victory Mills in the northeast part of the town of Saratoga, southwest of Schuylerville.
The Saratoga County Prosperity Partnership, involved in the project, calls it one of the largest economic development initiatives in the past decade in Saratoga County; a $60 million project that will breathe new life into a long-vacant industrial building.
A Westchester County-based entity that specializes in redevelopment projects, Regan Development has done other projects in the area and has a portfolio that includes more than $384 million in new construction and adaptive reuse projects.

By State Sen. Jim Tedisco
“I love New York” is New York’s slogan.
Unfortunately, too many people are saying “I’m leaving New York!”
The millions who have fled our state and those who are now contemplating their exodus to a more taxpayer-friendly state have one thing in common: No one wants to be the last one left in New York to pay for our state’s overzealous taxes, regulations, mandates and laws.
New York’s motto is “Excelsior” or “ever upward.” It should not signify “ever-higher taxes.”
While there’s been some positive changes, such as the success of the tax cap in holding the line on property tax increases, I’m not going to sugarcoat it and say everything’s coming up roses.
By any reasonable metric, New York state and Upstate New York is economically struggling. Consider these startling statistics:
The Empire State is ranked number one in the nation for highest tax burden.
New York is ranked 50th in the nation for “Tax Freedom Day” (May 3) when taxpayers symbolically pay off all their tax obligations on the federal, state and local levels and start pocketing their hard-earned money.