CLIFTON PARK — Denise Romeo, Executive Vice President of The Saratoga County Chamber of Commerce, has been elected the Chair of the Board of Directors of the Mechanicville Area Community Services Center (MACSC). 

Romeo, Executive Vice President of the Saratoga County Chamber for 9 years, has had a long time focus on helping Saratoga County active military and veterans through the Chamber’s Veterans Business Council. 

“Mechanicville is in the heart of Saratoga County and MACSC is the heart of Mechanicville,” said Romeo, in a statement. “It is a privilege to work with MACSC’s dedicated board members as well as MACSC dynamic Executive Director, Megan Quillinan. I know our work at the center makes such an impact on community members from the very youngest, to the many seniors who regularly rely on MACSC services. I look forward to making a positive difference for even more people living in and around the wonderful City of Mechanicville.”

The Mechanicville Area Community Services Center mission is to improve the lives of area residents through family support, empowerment, recreation and education with a goal to promote healthy relationships between families and the community at large. For more information visit mechanicvilleacsc.org. 

SARATOGA SPRINGS — For its 80th birthday, Saratoga County Airport may be getting a facelift. 

Initially developed in 1942 and designated as necessary for national defense, the county airport was built as a Civil Aeronautics Administration project. Fed by a small two-lane road, the airport consists of two 4,000-foot runways with parallel and connecting taxiways and houses a main metal hanger that was built about 60 years ago. 

Two recent unrelated events – the announcement of available funding in a new Upstate Airport Economic Development and Revitalization Initiative, and land adjacent to the airport potentially becoming obtainable for purchase – may literally alter the landscape of the airport in the near future. 

What it does not mean, officials quickly point out, is a physical expansion of airport runways.   

In late May, Gov. Cuomo announced $250 million would be made available as a new upstate airport economic development and revitalization initiative, with $230 million targeting projects that promote and accelerate improvements at upstate commercial passenger service airports, and $20 million to be allocated to support safety, infrastructure, and economic development projects at smaller airports. 

The planning, design and construction of terminal expansion or rehabilitation is listed as one example of activities eligible for funding. 

“There have been some major renovations down at LaGuardia, and at JFK, so the governor is saying to upstate airports: hey we don’t want to leave you out and we’re happy to fund some improvements,” said Matthew Veitch, city Supervisor, and chairman of county Buildings and Grounds Committee which counts the airport as among its responsibilities. 

“We feel one of the things our airport lacks is a good terminal building. The idea would be to enhance the airport with some sort of better terminal for both – the experience of people arriving in Saratoga County and also for the people who are waiting there for people to arrive,” Veitch said. 

Saratoga County Airport is one of 24 public-use airports eligible for the competition, which also includes the Adirondack Regional Airport, the Floyd Bennett Memorial Airport, the Schenectady County Airport and the Albany International Airport Authority. Funding applications are due by Sept. 15. Candidate projects will be evaluated on their ability to meet eligibility criteria and also be ranked in a scoring process.

“The minimum award is $5 million, and we would be looking at something north of that,” said Chad Cooke, the county’s commissioner of public works. “We’re at that (discussion) stage right now, where we’re refining ideas moving forward.” The county’s DPW has operated the airport since the Airport was turned over to the county in 1969. 

The revitalization initiative could potentially fund improvements to the airport’s warehouse-looking terminal building, as well as site a café and business center. 

Runway Protection Zones

A second aspect of discussion related to the airport are runway protection zones. 

“The immediate thing we’re looking at is related to safety at the airport,” Veitch said. “There are a couple of properties located within what is called the runway protection zone. The FAA requires us to look at those areas and evaluate them for safety purposes.  At the end of the runway is a trapezoidal shaped area we try to keep clear of any obstructions if there would be an issue of a plane having to land outside of the runway area. This could be houses, trees, anything higher than a certain point. We’re asked to evaluate those areas, and if possible, acquire property to keep those areas clear of obstruction.” 

Cook says the zones – which are basically flat land buffers around the airport – have always existed, but two of the specific have become available for acquisition. “When this happens the FAA always encourages airport owners to seek acquisition of those properties, essentially so you can maintain vegetation growth so planes can safely descend and climb when approaching or leaving the runway.” 

One property is on Rowland Street and has a home on it. Were the county to purchase it, the land would be cleared and the existing structure potentially taken down. “Would we try to forcibly acquire that? We wouldn’t do that. We would only do it if it was available for purchase,” Veitch said.    

The other property, a roughly 20-acre undeveloped parcel, is located on the northwest side of the airport, adjacent to Stone Church Road. Only a portion of the entire parcel is located in the runway protection zone, and were the county to purchase it, Veitch said that the property could possibly be left as open space and used for public use such as trails. 

“We are in discussions with the FAA right now about seeking reimbursement through grant funds for those (potential) purchases. These types of arrangements are something supported by the FAA typically, but the county would need to pay for them first and seek reimbursement,” Cooke said. 

“We would know going into this if the FAA was going to support that and it’s typically about making an aeronautical justification for purchasing the property., so anything that’s inside the Runway Protection Zone is a pretty easy case to make for purchasing that. If you’re purchasing a property that’s partially in the Runway Protection Zone, the FAA may make that a bit more difficult in terms of justifying purchasing the entire piece versus the piece that’s just in the Runway Protection Zone. So that’s where we are right now, in discussions with them about that,” Cooke said. 

During the county’s Buildings and Grounds Committee meeting in June, Turner Bradford, senior engineer at McFarland-Johnson, explained to the committee that the purchase of both parcels would potentially be 95% reimbursed – 90% by the FAA and 5% by DOT. While the county would be required to initially pay for the purchase, under this formula, it would essentially be paying 5% in costs after reimbursement.   

Milton Town Supervisor Benny Zlotnick expressed concern about the county potentially expanding the airport if it acquires the properties. Veitch said the current airport master plan does not include expanding the runways or making them longer in any way.

“One of the things we’re not doing at the airport – and we should make this clear – we’re not expanding our runway area or making it longer. So that limits the type of plane that can come to Saratoga County – smaller jets and smaller propellor planes, those kinds of things. We’re not looking at commercial service or any kind of airline coming here. It’s really the same kind of operation, with a better experience.” 

The county Buildings and Grounds Committee meets Tuesday, July 6 at 4:30 p.m.  To listen in, call 1-978-990-5145, Access Code: 1840389. A full county board meeting next takes place in Ballston Spa on July 15. 

SARATOGA SPRINGS — Saratoga Hospital has named Toni Bishop-McWain as vice president and chief nursing officer. She has 25 years of nursing administration experience, most recently as vice president of patient care services and chief nursing officer at OSF St. Joseph Medical Center, a large, integrated health system in Bloomington, Illinois. 

The Glens Falls native and former Wilton resident also has held nursing leadership roles in critical care, cardiopulmonary services and cardiovascular services. Earlier in her career, Bishop-McWain worked in the intensive care unit of Glens Falls Hospital. 

Bishop-McWain was born at Glens Falls Hospital and has extended family in the region. During her 10 years at Glens Falls Hospital, she, her husband and their son and daughter lived in Wilton. The children attended school in Saratoga Springs.

Bishop-McWain began her nursing education at Adirondack Community College, went on to earn bachelor’s and master’s degrees in nursing from Sacred Heart University in Connecticut, and has a Doctor of Nursing Practice degree from OSF Saint Francis Medical Center College of Nursing. She also holds Nurse Executive Advanced Certification from the ANCC, certification in critical-care nursing from the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses, and Certified Neuroscience Registered Nurse certification from the American Association of
Neuroscience Nurses.

SARATOGA SPRINGS — Fingerpaint, a full-service health and wellness marketing firm with a global team of more than 580 people, has acquired Splice, a healthcare communications business based in Emeryville, California. Details of the transaction were not disclosed. 

Fingerpaint, which was founded by Ed Mitzen, opened in Saratoga Springs in 2008 and four years later moved its offices to Broadway, occupying a free-standing building that previously housed Borders Books. 

Fingerpaint provides analytics-enabled, integrated marketing solutions to a growing roster of healthcare clients, specifically in the pharmaceutical, rare disease, and gene therapy sectors. The acquisition and full integration of Splice into the Fingerpaint brand will bolster the company, which was just named Agency of the Year, Category I, by Med Ad News, give it a footprint on the West Coast, and support its continued commitment to being a best-in-class commercialization services provider for biopharma.

“Splice has built a great company filled with top healthcare communications talent who we are looking forward to welcoming into the Fingerpaint family,” said Bill McEllen, a Fingerpaint Partner who also leads the firm’s advertising group, in a statement. “As Fingerpaint continues to partner with biopharma earlier in the commercialization process, this move will help us grow in a geographical area where biopharma companies are booming.”

As part of the transaction, Splice Co-Founder Paul Hagopian will continue to lead the group’s day-to-day operations, reporting directly to McEllen. 

In March, Fingerpaint announced a strategic investment in Leaderboard Branding, a leading global naming and branding business based in Charlotte, North Carolina. It joined other Fingerpaint companies: 1798, a market access and commercialization firm that specializes in healthcare consulting services, including patient and provider access services, financial impact analysis and analytics, competitive intelligence, and pull-through solutions; and Photo 51, a consultancy focused solely on advanced therapeutics, such as gene and cell therapies.

SARATOGA SPRINGS — Marking the 100-year anniversary of ice cream production by the Dake Family a “Century of Ice Cream!” exhibit celebrating the centennial will be featured at the Saratoga County History Center/Brookside Museum on 6 Charlton St. in Ballston Spa.  Summer hours start June 26 and will be 1 to 6 p.m. Thursdays, and 1 to 5 p.m. Friday through Sunday. 

In 1921, dairy farmers Percy and Charles Dake were busy making milk and butter, but the changing economy created an opportunity for ice cream production. They sold 4,000 gallons of ice cream in the first year, marking the beginning of “Dake’s Delicious Ice Cream.”

Purchasing a bright red Model-T delivery truck, they made deliveries of bulk ice cream to Saratoga, Troy, Schenectady, and Albany for $5 per 5-gallon can.

With the help of Robert McMullen, the ice cream plant was relocated to a new state-of-the-art building on Route 9N at a cost of $150,000. In the same year, McMullen built the biggest, most modern cow barn in the country. Despite all of its fine features, there was never a cow in the barn due to McMullen going broke with the stock market crash. That building eventually became the Stewart’s Shops ice cream plant in 1950.

The Dakes meanwhile became retailers, in 1945, purchasing a small dairy and ice cream business from Don Stewart’s, which became the very first Stewart’s Shop on Church Avenue in Ballston Spa. A Stewart’s Shop exists today in that very location. Today, there are 348 Stewart’s Shops in 31 counties across New York and southern Vermont.

BALLSTON SPA — The Ballston Spa Business & Professional Association (BSBPA) is requesting nominations for its 2021 Property Beautification Awards in Ballston Spa. The awards are given in recognition of the restoration, renovation, new build, and beautification efforts by homeowners and businesses, which have enhanced the Ballston Spa area within the past 2 years. 

Criteria for residential nominations can include exterior renovations and restorations; new builds; outdoor space; or landscaping improvements. Criteria for commercial nominations can include complete renovations; new exterior attractive signage and/or window displays; or new interior improvements.  We also welcome nominations for any other community beautification projects.  All projects should be complete at the time of nomination. 

A nomination form is available to be filled out online at www.ballston.org. Forms may also be printed and either emailed to info@ballston.org or mailed to: 2021 Beautification Awards, c/o BSBPA, PO Box 386, Ballston Spa, NY 12020.  All nominations should be made by September 6, 2021.  Award winners will be honored and recognized this fall.  For more information, please contact Michelle Burlingame at michelle@ballston.org or Ellen Mottola at info@ballston.org or 518 885-2772.

The Ballston Spa Business and Professional Association, established in 1983, is a non-profit organization committed to making the Village of Ballston Spa a great place to live, work and visit. To learn more, visit www.ballston.org.

ALBANY — Shelby Schneider, who last week announced she is departing from her position as President & CEO of Saratoga County Prosperity Partnership announced this week she will join the New York State Economic Development Council (NYSEDC) as deputy director. 

In her new role, Schneider will help the NYSEDC oversee and implement new initiatives, lead policy development, and identify new strategic partnerships to help the NYSEDC achieve and expand its mission.

 In the past four years, NYSEDC has grown its membership to over 900 members, increased event attendance by more than 30 percent, launched a new website and digital communications plan, assisted with developing economic development policies, relocated its office space, and grown its staff. This newly created position will help NYSEDC further advance the four pillars of our strategic plan: Advocacy, Education, Policy Development, and Membership Growth.

Prior to joining NYSEDC, Schneider worked on several transformational projects such as the development of the Luther Forest Technology Campus, and the attraction of AMD, which later became GLOBALFOUNDRIES Fab 8. She also served as Empire Zone Coordinator, administering incentive programs on behalf of Saratoga County. Schneider has over 20 years of economic development experience creating workforce development programs, spearheading national public relations campaigns, and relationship building with key industry decision makers and
site selectors.

The purpose of NYSEDC is to promote the economic development of the state and its communities, to encourage sound practices in the conduct of regional and statewide development programs, and to develop education programs that enhance the professional development skills of its members.

BOLTON LANDING — Laura Bradigan has been named to The Sembrich’s Board of Directors. Bradigan has worked for many years in government, politics, and nonprofit and for-profit organizations in the Capital District and upstate New York including the Hyde Collection in Glens Falls and Bethel Homes and Services in Ossining and Croton-On-Hudson. 

Bradigan is a resident of Saratoga Springs. She is a member of the Saratoga Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution and of the Admission Committee for the Saratoga Golf & Polo Club. She is a former board member of Bethesda Episcopal Church’s Mercy House in Saratoga Springs and of Sculpture Space, a Utica-based residency program for sculptors.

The Sembrich, located in Bolton Landing, features an annual Summer Festival with a mix of world-class musicians, noted musical scholars, a free film series, and the opportunity to enjoy it all on the shores of Lake George. The Sembrich is listed on the National Historic Register. For more information, go to: Sembrich.org. 

We have all seen some version of this in a headline: “Stocks were (up/down/mixed) today as investors (verb) about (current event).” In these financial Mad Libs, an attempt is made to summarize in a few words the reason for the movements of thousands of stocks and interest rates. As human beings, we crave this sort of narrative because it helps us make sense of a very complex system. Unfortunately, a simple explanation is neither pertinent nor useful in the big picture. ‘What’ is happening is infinitely more valuable than ‘why’ something is happening.

By focusing on ‘what’ rather than ‘why,’ you distance yourself from the biases that inadvertently creep into our decision-making process. To start, mental energy might be wasted connecting the dots on something that does not turn out to be true at all. I think back to the people who piled into gold coming out of the financial crisis because the Federal Reserve’s quantitative easing programs would surely lead to hyperinflation and therefore higher gold prices. Gold peaked around $1,900/oz in 2011 and 10 years later, it is currently below $1,800/oz. That is a lost decade for those who have held this entire time. At the time, it was a very reasonable scenario to believe, but it just was not true. Once the narrative took hold, it was hard for believers to recognize that their thesis was not going according to plan.

Recently, we saw an example of this play out in real time when the highly anticipated inflation report came out and drastically exceeded expectations. In such an environment, it would be expected that bonds would be sold. The reasoning behind this is: receiving fixed interest and principal payments in an environment when the value of the dollar is depreciating becomes very unattractive. Instead, bonds were aggressively bought on the news leaving many to scratch their heads. Why were they bought? Frankly, it does not matter. The reality of the situation is that they were and we have to accept that for fact. 

‘Cognitive dissonance’ is a term that psychologists use to explain the psychological stress one encounters when faced with information that contradicts what they believe to be true. We want to be right and will jump through mental hoops in order to convince ourselves that we are, even in the face of opposing information. Being right and making money can be opposing forces at times.  As advisors, we help you look at the big picture and make sure you are on the right side. 

For more information, visit
contwealth.com

David Rath, CFA is the Director of Portfolio Strategies at Continuum Wealth Advisors in Saratoga Springs.

SARATOGA SPRINGS — Saratoga County Prosperity Partnership President and CEO Shelby Schneider has announced she will depart from the organization. 

“I will be moving on to a new opportunity that will allow me to grow personally and professionally but I will miss the incredible people and businesses I have had the pleasure of working with here in Saratoga County over the past 21 years. I wish them all a bright and prosperous future,” Schneider said. 

Schneider was appointment President and CEO of the Saratoga County Prosperity Partnership in February 2020, after serving as Director of Business Retention and Expansion, and as Vice President of the organization, which she joined in 2016.  Previously, she spent 13 years at the Saratoga Economic Development Corporation as a member of the economic development team that brought GLOBALFOUNDRIES to Saratoga County. 

The Prosperity Partnership is a Saratoga County-based economic development organization. The mission of the organization is to secure sustainable jobs and capital investment by attracting new business to Saratoga County, and retaining existing businesses by assisting them to grow.

“I’d like to thank the Saratoga County Prosperity Partnership board of directors and Saratoga County Board of Supervisors for the opportunity to lead this organization,” Schneider said. “Although the past year navigating the organization during a global pandemic has been incredibly challenging, it has also been equally rewarding.” 

Schneider’s new position is focused on economic development, and a formal announcement regarding her move will be made within the next few weeks, she said.