Category Archives: Business News

By Maureen Werther

Conifer Real Estate, Development and Management Co. based in Rochester in the early phases of building a new apartment community on 10 acres along Route 67 in the town of Ballston, near East Line Road.

Conifer Realty, which has developed residential communities and commercial properties in New York, New Jersey, Maryland and Pennsylvania, purchased the property from Hal Schultz, formerly head of H.R. Schultz construction and local real estate developer. Schultz originally envisioned the land to be developed as both commercial and residential property. But he revised his plans, choosing to market it as a residential property.

The property was sold last July. Conifer broke ground in December.

By Maureen Werther

During a recent luncheon at the Hall of Springs celebrating Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Blake, Realtors 95 years of helping residential and commercial buyers and sellers across the Capitol Region, the prevailing theme was as much about giving back to the community as it was about being successful in business.

Blake Realty was founded in 1922 by Samuel Blake and has flourished under four generations of family guidance. Throughout the course of its history, the family owned-and-operated company has sponsored a wide variety of local and regional philanthropic causes, and it has encouraged employees and agents to do the same.

The company has gone through several iterations, from Blake to Prudential Manor Homes, to its recent acquisition by Berkshire Hathaway. Despite the changes of name, the culture continues its philanthropy. JoAnn White, vice president of the company’s Saratoga Springs office on Broadway, has always embraced the philosophy of giving back, through her team’s ongoing support of the city’s Code Blue program for the homeless.

The Freihofer’s Saratoga Jazz Festival was recognized for its landmark 40th anniversary by the State Legislature on April 25 in a joint resolution sponsored by Sen. Kathleen Marchione and Assemblywoman Carrie Woerner.

Presented annually by Saratoga Performing Arts Center (SPAC) since 1978, the two-day festival is one of the longest running and most acclaimed events of its kind. Present for the occasion were Elizabeth Sobol, SPAC’s president and CEO; festival producer Danny Melnick, president of Absolutely Live Entertainment; and William Sullivan, director of sales for Freihofer’s Baking Co., the title sponsor of the festival since 1998.

“The 40th Anniversary of the Freihofer’s Saratoga Jazz Festival is a milestone worth celebrating, not only for the longevity it represents, but for its contributions to this extraordinary, uniquely American art form, which marks  its own 100th anniversary this year,” said Sobol. 

“In each of those 40 years, this festival has showcased the jazz giants, innovators and rising talents whose music has kept the genre thriving, evolving and expanding to new audiences. At its most personal, this event has been, and continues to be, a meaningful and joyous part of the lives and memories of countless people, including many for whom it’s an annual tradition. It all adds up to an impressive legacy and one that grows with each new season,” she said.

The event is also an annual boost to tourism in the city.

The festival, originally titled the Newport Jazz Festival – Saratoga, was founded in 1978 by iconic jazz impresario George Wein, the creator of the celebrated Newport Jazz Festival, the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival and several other nationally recognized music events. 

Circus Smirkus, an international youth circus, returns to the outdoor soccer field at the Saratoga Casino Hotel for four performances this summer.

It is a fundraiser for the Waldorf School on York Avenue in Saratoga Springs.

The event on July 11 and 12 is part of the circus’ 30th anniversary “big top tour.” Performances are scheduled for 1 p.m. and 6 p.m. each day. Tickets are $25 for adults 13 and older and $20 for children 2-12. Children younger than 2 are free on an adult’s lap.

This year’s tour continues the tradition of Smirkus theme-based shows. This year it is “Midnight at the Museum.” It creates the excitement of an adventure through the hallowed halls of a magical museum. Attendees “will embark on an enchanted journey with astonishing aerialists, courageous clowns, and wily wire walkers as they explore a museum that springs to life when the clock strikes midnight,” circus officials said in a news release.

It features 30 budding circus stars ages 12 to 18 from 13 states—California, Illinois, Massachusetts, Maine, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Virginia, Vermont, and Washington—as well as Canada and Zambia.

The Waldorf School of Saratoga Springs first brought Circus Smirkus to Saratoga in 2007 as a fundraising and outreach event.

The Saratoga Convention & Tourism Bureau held its 32nd annual meeting and dinner at the Saratoga Springs City Center in March where the organization highlighted the successes of 2016, reviewed initiatives for 2017 and welcomed new members to its board of directors and Executive Committee.

Successes were listed in the 2016 annual report. It showed that the convention/group business continued to grow throughout 2016. More corporate group, sports and wedding leads and associations signed multi-year contracts again in 2016.

The year saw 627 events hosted, compared to 422 in 2015. Those events resulted in 90,908 room nights, up 11.8 percent from 2015. The estimated economic impact of those figures was $57 million last year, compared to $45 million in 2015.

  The report said the group market contributes one in five room nights in Saratoga Springs.

Recognized at the dinner were those elected to serve on the Executive Committee for 2017-18. They are Cindy Hollowood, chairperson, Holiday Inn Saratoga Springs;  Thomas Newkirk, immediate past chairperson, Saratoga National Golf Club; AJ Bodden, incoming chairperson, Townsquare Media Group; Marianne Barker, treasurer, Impressions of Saratoga; and Robert Berrey, at-large officer, The Gideon Putnam.

By R.J. DeLuke

Congress Plaza in Saratoga Springs will soon  be the home of a new taproom selling craft beers from a Washington County farm brewery business.

R.S. Taylor & Sons Brewery is renovating a 1,600-square-foot space in Congress Plaza. The business will go into the end unit in the southern portion of the plaza that was formerly Bubbles Laundromat.

Renovations involve putting in a bar and tap service. “It shouldn’t take long to do what we need to do,” said Rich Taylor, owner of the farm brewery business and its chief brewer. The main issue is getting all the necessary operating permits.

“We hope to be open by Memorial Day weekend,” he said.

The company currently operates a tap room on the farm property where people go to quaff the locally made product and occasionally listen to music. Under the farm brewery license, companies like R.S. Taylor & Sons are allowed to open up to five tap rooms.

The one in Saratoga Springs will be the second. A third is being planned in the Albany area, Taylor said.

R.S. Taylor & Sons specializes in brewing English-style ales with a brewing system custom crafted by Portland Kettle Works in Portland, Ore.  They use a combination of home-grown hops, hops grown for them at nearby Cold Spring Hop Farm in North Hebron, and a selection of British-grown hops. The water is from the artesian wells on the farm.

Feigenbaum Cleaners, one of the oldest dry cleaning businesses in New York state, with locations in Saratoga Springs and Wilton, is celebrating its centennial anniversary.

The company was started in Glens Falls, where it is still headquartered, in 1917 by Herman Feigenbaum and his wife Jennie, both emigrants from Austria-Hungary. They met and married in New York City in 1909.

The local shops are at 33 Railroad Place in Saratoga Springs and at Wilton Square, 3039 Route 50 (near Staples). The business also has shops in Queensbury and in Latham.

“After working as a tailor for years in the crowded garment factories of New York’s Lower East Side, Herman decided to leave New York City to purchase a tailor shop in Whitehall,” said Todd Feigenbaum, the third-generation owner.

“On their way to Whitehall, the family of five decided to spend a night in Glens Falls. After exploring the community and falling in love with its charm, they decided Glens Falls would be their new home.”