Category Archives: Business News

Three special honorees were recognized at the Saratoga County Chamber of Commerce annual gala in May at the 1863 Club at Saratoga Race Course.

Representatives from area businesses and nonprofit organizations attended the gala, which this year was a newly reimagined event replacing the former annual dinner. The new trackside venue offered guests the chance to experience one of the New York Racing Association’s newer luxury facilities, located at the clubhouse turn of the race course.

Honored were 2023 Joseph Dalton Community Service Award recipient Dr. Bill Long, 2023 Impact Sector Volunteer of the Year Richard Ferguson and the Chamber’s immediate past chair of the board Tara Anne Pleat of Wilcenski & Pleat PLLC.

The gala also serves as a networking opportunity for event goers. 

“Beyond the celebration and recognition of Tara, Bill, and Rich for their tremendous volunteer efforts, this gala is meant to be a powerful and productive networking event for the organizations who sponsored and the individuals who attended,” Chamber President Todd Shimkus said. “This is one of the Chamber’s signature events and an important fundraiser for our organization, so I want to thank NYRA, Mazzone Hospitality, our sponsors, and attendees for continuing to support the work we do to help our members and the community to succeed, grow, and thrive.”

The owner of Northeastern Fine Jewelry, a destination for fine jewelry for more than four decades, has purchased Olde Saratoga Coin  and upgraded his new stores.

Olde Saratoga Coin  has storefronts at 1593 Central Ave. in Colonie and 385 Broadway in Saratoga Springs.

“Coins have always been one of my passions and how we got our start in business back in 1980,” said Ray Bleser, owner of Northeastern Fine Jewelry. “Our original store was Northeastern Coin Gallery in Schenectady. For me, returning to my roots is deeply nostalgic, intensely gratifying and truly exciting.”

In its heyday, Northeastern Coin Gallery carried an inventory of hard-to-find currency, jewelry and estate pieces. In 1985, the business was reincorporated as Northeastern Fine Jewelry, which has evolved into one of the Capital Region’s leading, independently owned jewelers, featuring an extensive selection of world-renowned brands, diamonds, engagement rings, wedding bands, watches and estate items.

Northeastern Fine Jewelry will continue to operate under its own banner with three locations in Albany, Schenectady and Glens Falls, according to Bleser.

The Bowling Proprietors Association of America (BPAA) has named Doug Bohannon of Queensbury its 2023 National Proprietor of the Year.  

Bohannon, along with his wife Alison, own Kingpin’s Alley Family Fun Center in South Glens Falls along with Kingpin’s Alley in Latham.  

Bohannon is a native of Glens Falls and is a 1985 graduate of Glens Falls High School. He has been in the bowling business for the past 25 years.  

In 2013 Doug and Alison purchased their first bowling center in South Glens Falls. Over the past 10 years, the center has been transformed from a traditional bowling alley into a modern family fun center.

Bohannon credits his success primarily to his previous employer, Bowl New England, from which both of his centers were purchased.  

“Having worked for one of the industry leaders for 13 years prepared me for what owning my own center would be like”, Bohannon said.  “The knowledge and insight that I gained during my time with Bowl New England has been invaluable in growing a successful business.”

Bohannon is no stranger to award recognition as his South Glens Falls business was awarded the Adirondack Regional Chamber of Commerce Small Business of the Year in 2018. Also, in 2018 he was named the New York State Bowling Proprietor of the Year.  

By Christine Graf

United Ag & Turf and United Construction & Forestry are now located under one roof in a brand-new facility located at 20 Deere Lane in Clifton Park. The 27,000-square-foot retail store is located just a short distance from Northway Exit 10.

Prior to relocating, United Construction & Forestry was located at 14 Crossing Boulevard  in Clifton Park. The store operated as Nortrax before being acquired by Fernandez Holdings in 2021. Fernandez Holdings’ portfolio includes both United Construction & Forestry and United Ag & Turf. 

Before moving to Deere Lane, United Ag & Turf was located on Route 9 in Clifton Park, the longtime home of Hudson River Tractor. 

Prior to selling the company in 2020, Hudson River Tractor operated five stores in the Capital Region.

Headquartered in Fairfield, Maine, United Ag & Turf has 42 locations throughout the northeast. In addition to offering a full line of John Deere equipment dealer, they sell and support other brands including Stihl, Honda, Western Plow, and Ariens. 

By Jill Nagy

North Country Commons, one of Clifton Park’s oldest shopping centers, is in the midst of a major facelift— a new facade and a new layout—and is welcoming new tenants, including a swim school and computer games parlor. 

Part of the center, at 1206 Route 146, is a former church that once housed an Albany Public Market. That has been divided into four smaller spaces. The occupant of one of them, Flipside Gaming, opened in November and already has customers lined up every morning waiting for the video and computer game facility to open, according to Howard F. Carr, a broker with Berkshire Hathaway Real Estate, who is managing the center and the renovation project.

Goldfish Swim School, a swim school, already has 600 children signed up for lessons, Carr said. He represents the owners, Whitney Lane Holdings LLC of New York City.

Another tenant new to the center is Clifton Park Beverage Center. The center already has outlets in Colonie and South Troy.

Make-A-Wish Northeast New York is moving its office from Albany to Saratoga Springs this summer. 

Its new headquarters, will be in downtown Saratoga, right off Broadway next door to Fat Paulie’s Delicatessen, 92 Congress St. It will serve as the heart of Make-A-Wish Northeast New York’s community of wish families, volunteers, and staff. 

The organization also welcomes back Kirsten Broschinsky as director of development. Broschinsky brings with her nearly a decade of experience building crucial community and corporate partnerships

“Saratoga, with its cultural heritage, beautiful scenery, and abundant recreational opportunities, provides an ideal stage for creating inspirational wish experiences for children with critical illnesses, their families, and the people that love them,” agency officials said about the move.

 “On behalf of all Saratogians, I extend a joyful welcome to Make-A-Wish Northeast New York,” said Saratoga Mayor Ron Kim in a release. “We are thrilled they have chosen Saratoga Springs as their new home to pursue their all-important mission of making dreams come true to children and their families.”

By Christine Graf  

MRK Real Property, a Clifton Park-based real estate development company, plans to invest between $4 million and $5 million to build apartments at Crescent Commons. Located at 1471 Route 9, the retail and office plaza is currently home to several businesses.  

According to MRK’s Michael Klimkewicz,  “the units will be built on top of the existing plaza’s footprint. All of the existing tenants will remain, and there will be a new roadway going out to Plank Road which will be done this fall.”

The current tenants occupy the first floor of the two-story building, and the second floor is currently vacant. The second floor will be converted into apartments, and a third floor will be added to the building. The residential component of the building will have access to Plank Road while the retail component will face Route 9.

MRK owns several office buildings in the area, and Klimkewicz said it was the decline in demand for office space that was the impetus for the company’s decision to build apartments. At one time, the second floor of Crescent Plaza was occupied by office tenants. 

“The medical market is very strong, but the demand for general office space has been in decline for the past four to five years, and we found that it was becoming more difficult to keep those spaces occupied long term. So, we looked at alternatives, and one of them was to convert that space into apartments. It just made sense,” he said. 

The company received Planned Development District approval from the town of Halfmoon to construct 60 apartments, 40 garages, two new means of access to the plaza, expansion of the Fred the Butcher business, expansion of Emma Jayne’s Restaurant, and a new commercial building on Route 236. Emma Janye’s has already added a 1,400-square-foot deck to the restaurant.