SARATOGA SPRINGS — Saratoga County 4-H is receiving $100,000 from the Stewart’s Shops/Dake Family for their 4-H Lead the Legacy Campaign to raise funds for a new educational facility at the Saratoga County 4-H Training Center in Ballston Spa. The Center is used by 4-H youth clubs and for community events and attracts over 12,000 youth each year. 

“It’s an honor that Stewart’s Shops and the Dake Family Foundation found this project to be worthy of such a donation, but not unexpected. Stewarts has always been a strong supporter of agriculture and 4-H, including providing support for the original 4-H Training Center back in 1980. They continually see our ‘worth’ by funding countless projects through the annual Stewart’s Holiday Match Program,” said Gregory Stevens, 4-H Extension Issue Leader.

The facility is located at 556 Middle Line Road in Ballston Spa. Originally built in 1988, they have outgrown their current building. The new multi-functional facility will offer more space and will break ground in Spring 2023. The expansion will include 3,780 square feet of additional classroom space, a dedicated space for STEM space to host robotics teams, additional restrooms, and community event space. 

According to Susan Dake, Stewart’s Shops Foundation President, “Stewart’s Shops/Dake Family are longtime supporters of the 4-H, and we are proud to support the education they provide for our youth.”

SARATOGA SPRINGS — Longtime family-owned plumbing and HVAC business Capitol District Supply has officially moved under new ownership, but not much else is expected to change for the local company.

Capitol District Supply was purchased by N&S Supply, a Fishkill-based plumbing supply store, in March. Capitol Supply manager Adam Zima said the sale will allow the generation above him to retire while also allowing the company to maintain current operations and realize opportunities for future growth.

“We just had to figure out a way to allow the generation above me to retire,” said Zima. “We employ a lot of people, how do we keep everyone going? I think we found the right mix.”

N&S Supply is also a family-owned business, and incorporated in 1946, just one year after Capitol District Supply first opened. In addition to the sale, Zima purchased the real estate of Capitol Supply’s physical locations in Saratoga Springs, Albany, and Schenectady.

N&S itself is owned by Watsco, an HVAC distributor headquartered in Miami, Florida. Zima said Capitol Supply had a prior relationship with N&S, and that they will be left to continue operations mainly as usual moving forward.

“Watsco buys companies like us, and the point is to leave us alone and just provide us kind of the resources in the background,” said Zima. “The Nussbickel family still runs (N&S). There’s a corporate person in the background, but they have nothing to do with it. It’s still the Nussbickels, and that’s the whole point.”

“You could see what happened to them over the last three years. They technically sold, but they just grew the business and kept all their people. We’re doing the same thing.”

Zima said his father and uncles will have the opportunity to retire “in the near future,” and said the sale allows the company to remain stable in its operations and employees.

“We’re transitioning a bunch of things,” said Zima. “I get to keep all of our people, and I get to help them get more resources and help them grow. We have a ton of long-term people with us. At our Saratoga store, I’ve got a bunch of people who have worked for us since the ‘80s, and are still with us.”

Now, as owner of the company’s real estate, Zima said there will be some improvements he will look to make, including a new roof on the back warehouse in Saratoga Springs.

He also said that being part of a larger company will allow Capitol Supply more opportunities, including with green tax credits being adopted by New York State.

“There’s a ton of rebates and credits all geared toward HVAC equipment,” Zima said. “We now have access to different manufacturers and different lines that we didn’t have before, so that will be great to be able to really help contractors and help homeowners make their houses green. … We get to stay local, but I know in the background, I can better support the contractors when they’re doing big project work.”

Zima also noted it is meaningful for the company to continue operations in the area, 78 years after initially opening for business. He said he has strong memories and a strong connection to the area.

“I remember being in a hot tub, in a parking lot, in the summer of ‘86 for a grand opening,” said Zima. “That’s how far back we go. I was a little kid. … So I’ve got memories and a connection obviously to the building and to Saratoga.”

MECHANICVILLE — In its 75th year in business, family run local beverage distributor DeCrescente Distributing Company (DDC) has won the Molson Coors President’s Award for the second consecutive year and 10th time overall.

Only 32 beverage distributors nationwide earn this prestigious award each year. Winning the award twice in two years is uncommon and a testament to the hard work and creativity of the DDC team, said DeCrescente Distributing Company President C.J. DeCrescente.

“We set a high bar here,” DeCrescente said. “Each year, we create a strategic plan for each of our suppliers to help take their products to new heights. Winning this award proves that our entire team brought their A-Game to help us achieve our ambitious goals for the Molson Coors family of brands in 2022.”

In addition to winning the President’s Award, DDC is one of seven Molson Coors Founders Award finalists. This award recognizes the nation’s top Molson Coors distributor for exemplary sales and distribution performance over the last year. DeCrescente is the only distributor in the nation to have ever won the Founders Award four consecutive times.

The Founders Award winner will be announced later this year.

In 2020, C.J. DeCrescente was awarded the Molson Coors “Legends” award for his impact on the beverage industry. He followed in the footsteps of his father, Carmine “Carm” DeCrescente Sr., who was named a MillerCoors “Legend” in 2005.

Founded by Angelo DeCrescente in 1948, DDC will celebrate its 75th year in business this June with a series of events for its employees, customers, suppliers, and the community.

DDC distributes over 11 million cases of beer, soft drinks, and snacks to 11 counties in the Greater Capital Region, including Albany, Columbia, Fulton, Greene, Montgomery, Rensselaer, Saratoga, Schenectady, Schoharie, Warren, and Washington.

SARATOGA SPRINGS — Jones Steves, LLP has officially announced a new named partner, as the Saratoga Springs-based firm has become Jones Steves Grassi, LLP.

The law firm is best known for its work in land use and development, representing companies such as GlobalFoundries, Saratoga Hospital, Albany Medical Center, Skidmore College, RISE Housing, and more. The name change adds partner Justin Grassi, Esq. to the firm’s title, who originally became a partner in April 2021.

Grassi said the new name does not change any operations at the firm, saying he will continue to work with fellow partners Matthew Jones and Bruce Steves.

“Largely, there’s three partner attorneys here,” said Grassi. “We’ve always collaborated, we will continue to collaborate. It doesn’t change anything other than becoming a financial partner with the office.”

The firm has existed in some form since 1980 under Jones, the senior partner. Steves and Grassi both attended Albany Law School, and each joined the firm after graduating, Grassi said.

“I think we’re all excited to have found the three of us,” Grassi said. “The firm, almost certainly, will grow, but will have the backbone of the three of us. We’ve worked together now for over a decade, which is awesome.”

Grassi said adding his name will help clients associate him as a partner.

“When they see the name on the sign, and they know you’re a partner, it’s just a little bit of a different dynamic,” said Grassi. “They understand that you have that experience, that you have that knowledge to have made it there.”

Grassi grew up in Schuylerville and currently lives in Saratoga Springs, he said, noting it is enjoyable to see and assist with development in the local community.

“We see all these projects come forth, we get to be involved with them, and watch them grow and end up building up our city,” Grassi said. “In that regard, it’s a very fun area of law to practice in. …  Living here, watching that happen, it’s fun for me to talk with my family about the projects we have.”

For those unaware, Silicon Valley Bank became the first bank to fail since 2020 and the largest bank to fail since the Global Financial Crisis in 2008-2009. Is our current situation an echo of the last financial crisis, or is it a one-off? While the circumstances surrounding their failure are mostly unique to them, it is important to look at the implications for the rest of the banking industry.

To truly understand this story, we first need to look at the preceding 10+ years of low interest rates and how the seeds were sown for the situation we are in today. A low interest rate environment allowed money to flow freely into companies that had big dreams about their future potential but were short on current profits. A lot of these companies are concentrated in Silicon Valley in California, which is where our story picks up.

Given this backdrop, the foundation for this failure was in place – the pandemic was the catalyst to set it into motion. We all remember the COVID economic environment: stimulus checks and soaring stock prices. This created a mountain of cash, especially in Silicon Valley, that needed somewhere to go, and personal and corporate checking and savings accounts at SVB saw a large influx of cash.

When you deposit money at a bank, that money becomes a liability for the bank because they need to be prepared to give that back to you on demand. Simplistically, banks need to offset those liabilities from deposits with assets in the form of loans to customers or investments held by the bank. The appetite for loans was not enough to offset the growing deposit base, so SVB chose to invest this excess money in high-quality bonds. The problem with these bonds is that they were exposed to the risk of rising interest rates, which manifested itself last year as interest rates rose, driving the prices of these bonds down. Executives at SVB did not take enough action to hedge this interest rate risk, so they were vulnerable to needing to meet any large-scale withdrawal of money from checking and savings accounts.

The Federal Reserve’s actions to quell inflation have primarily focused on raising the rates on short-term bonds. This had a dual-pronged effect on SVB’s balance sheet. First, higher interest rates slowed the growth prospects for many of its customers’ businesses, which led to these companies withdrawing some of this cash to pay for continuing operations. Second, there became an opportunity cost for holding cash in a checking account, paying close to 0% interest.  People started withdrawing cash to buy things like Treasury Bills. These withdrawals left SVB in an unenviable position of selling some of their bond holdings that were at a loss, which raised some red flags, and caused account holders to try to withdraw their money at once. Just like that, a 40-year-old institution was forced to close up shop.

The banking system is built on trust, and things can get messy once that trust erodes. The government has taken steps to alleviate concerns about other similar banks, but nobody truly knows how this will play out, which can be unsettling. However, this is nothing like 2008 which saw our largest financial institutions with truckloads of bad loans on their books from making questionable lending decisions. This is not the first time something like this has happened, and it won’t be the last.

David Rath, CMT, CFA, is the Chief Investment Officer at Continuum Wealth Advisors in Saratoga Springs. Continuum Wealth Advisors, LLC is a Registered Investment Advisor registered through the Securities and Exchange Commission. For more information, visit contwealth.com.