By Andrea Harwood Palmer

The West at Saratoga, at 116 West Ave. in Saratoga Springs, is a luxury high-rise condo inspired by  buyer demand and a desire to live in high-rise condominiums that already exist on Broadway, according to real estate broker Scott Varley of Keller Williams in Saratoga Springs.

He is the listing agent for the condos. He said interest in the condos is running high.

The average sale price of the Broadway condos is well over $1 million dollars, said Varley. The COVID-19 pandemic, coupled with many people working from home, have driven buyers away from larger cities.

“There are many people who would love to live that kind of lifestyle, but at half that price. In the condo category of the Saratoga Springs market, half a million dollars is very reasonable,” said Varley.

“Real estate is the fuel for the engine of a booming economy,” said Varley. “And our area is benefiting from the pivot northward happening in the state right now.”

Momentive Performance Materials Inc., which has a facility in Waterford, has reached a definitive agreement to acquire KCC Corp. Silicones business in Korea and the United Kingdom, as well as its sales operations in China, further enhancing its global capabilities in advanced silicones and specialized applications.
Officials said the acquisition will move the capabilities of KCC’s Silicones business from KCC Corp., Momentive’s majority shareholder, to Momentive, consolidating the companies’ combined capabilities and expertise in advanced silicones.
The company also announced that Ravago Chemicals will serve as its authorized distributor of Momentive products into the plastics industry in the United States and Canada.
Momentive develops advanced silicone and specialty products for customized applications in healthcare, telecommunications, electronics, personal care, construction, transportation, agriculture, energy, and many other industries.

Price Chopper/Market 32 has entered into a definitive merger agreement with Tops Markets, a grocery chain based in western New York, that nearly doubles the collective footprints of both in the Northeast, officials said.
Both chains have deep ties to their local communities and shared commitments to service, savings, and convenience, officials said in statement. With increased scale, the merged companies are expected to be better positioned to compete and offer more value and services to their customers.
Scott Grimmett, Price Chopper/Market 32 president and CEO, will be CEO of and serve on the board of directors of the new parent company, which will oversee the operations of nearly 300 Price Chopper, Market 32, Market Bistro and Tops Markets stores and collectively employ more than 30,000 people.
Frank Curci, Tops Markets chairman and CEO, will serve on the board of directors of the new parent company and as a consultant to assist in the transition.
Blaine Bringhurst, Price Chopper/Market 32 executive vice president of merchandising, marketing and store operations, will lead the Price Chopper/Market 32 business. John Persons, Tops Markets president and chief operating officer, will lead the Tops Markets business.

Michael J. Toohey was elected chairperson of the Saratoga Hospital board of trustees for 2021.
The attorney and community leader has served on the board since 2013, most recently as vice chairperson. He also is a member of the board of directors of Albany Medical Center, Saratoga Hospital’s affiliate in the Albany Med Health System.
Joining Toohey on the executive committee of the Saratoga Hospital board are Theresa M. Skaine, vice chairperson; N. Keith Stewart, treasurer; and Heather M. Ward, secretary.
“Our hospital and the Saratoga region benefit enormously from Mike Toohey’s leadership, experience and perspective, especially during these uniquely challenging times,” Saratoga Hospital President and CEO Angelo Calbone said.
Toohey recently retired after more than 45 years with the Law Offices of Snyder, Kiley, Toohey, Corbett & Cox, where he earned a reputation for his expertise in land use, planning, project financing and industrial development. As the author of Planned Unit Development legislation for cities and towns throughout Saratoga County, Toohey has shaped land use and development across the region.
In addition to the hospital boards, Toohey currently serves on the board of the Double H Hole in the Woods Ranch.

Ballston Spa National Bank President/CEO Chris Dowd continues his term as Chamber of Southern Saratoga County chair for 2021, as well as being a member of the Capital Region Chamber Executive Committee.
The Chamber of Southern Saratoga County (CSSC) affiliated with the Capital Region Chamber in 2020. Officials said CSSC spent the year offering support to those in the local business community who needed it the most, while tapping into the regional chamber’s advocacy, education, business growth resources and communications abilities.
Dowd has been with BSNB for 20 years this coming July. He was named its president/CEO in 2004.
CSSC said his role greatly helped the organization retain its local influence and impact while providing expanded programs, services and resources to members and the community at-large.
“Given how challenging 2020 was for most, I’m so pleased that the Chamber of Southern Saratoga County had the added resources and clout of the Regional Chamber to support our businesses and communities,” said Dowd. “Through hard work, innovation and determination, our county and region will emerge from the pandemic with strength, as our Chamber continues to be an essential partner in the recovery process.”

By Jill Nagy
Will Schrade plans to open a GEICO Insurance Co. office at 506 Broadway in Saratoga Springs around March 1.
However, he first needs a change of occupancy from the city Building Department, from business to business/office use. His impression is that the department “is overwhelmed and understaffed,” so the process is taking longer than he anticipated.
The GEICO office will serve Saratoga and the North Country area. Schrade said the only other GEICO office in the area is in Albany. They will be selling all the lines of insurance GEICO sells: auto, homeowners, renters, motorcycle, sailboat, RV, and more.
While GEICO is the biggest automobile insurer in New York state, according to Schrade, the company prefers to have its offices handle relatively large territories. There are only 250 offices in the entire United States, he said.
The local office will employ between 10 and 15 people, about the same size as the Albany office.
“We are hiring as many people as we can,” Schrade said, and have already brought some on board.

By Susan Elise Campbell
Global freight networks— needed to get the goods from manufacturers to customers—are complex and challenging. And when the COVID-19 pandemic came along, it threw a wrench into things.
Manufacturing was cut back, ports closed, truckers stayed home and delays increased, affecting the dynamics of an industry that consumers and businesses rely on.
“It was a total nightmare, but we have pivoted to adapt to the changing environment,” said Jake Oswald, an account executive with Trans-Border Global Freight Systems Inc. in Round Lake.
Trans-Border is an award-winning, licensed U.S. customs broker specializing in transportation logistics. Oswald said the firm manages goods as they travel throughout the supply chain by land, sea or air. They do so as safely, efficiently and cost-effectively as possible and in accordance with a litany of changing regulations and financial considerations.
The company has a staff of 65, as well as remote sales reps and independent reps sprinkled across the country. But it takes about 590 international partners, developed over the past 25 years, to manage the importing and exporting needs of companies, according to Oswald.

By Christine Graf
Rochester-based Flaum Management Co. Inc has secured its first tenant for Malta Grove, the former State Farm Operations Center located off Northway Exit 12 in Saratoga County.
The building sat empty for approximately two years before being purchased at auction by John Senese in March. Senese sold the building to Flaum Management for $2 million.
Flaum Management owns office, retail, and industrial properties throughout the state. In addition to the State Farm building, the company’s Capital Region holdings include Latham Farms and Queensbury Plaza. Pyramid Brokerage Co./Cushman & Wakefield has been enlisted as the building’s leasing agent.
The New York Unified Court System, 4th Judicial District, will be Malta Grove’s first tenant. The court is currently located at 65 South Broadway in the Lincoln Baths in Saratoga Springs. The 4th Judicial District is the state’s largest and includes Clinton, Essex, Franklin, Fulton, Hamilton, Montgomery, Saratoga, Schenectady, St. Lawrence, Warren, and Washington counties.

By Susan Elise Campbell
When Neal Sandin conducts research, he says he is seeking to interpret “the voice of the consumer” who will inform the next steps of a client company’s marketing.
Sandin’s company, 643 Research, is a qualitative research firm he started in 2014 and moved to Malta in November 2019 when he and his wife relocated from New Jersey.
Sandin said he “fell into” focus group research when the moderator of the firm he worked for double booked and was unavailable for one of the clients, who at the time was en route from out of town to observe his company’s session.
“After about 30 minutes of training I jumped in, conducted the group and was good at it,” said Sandin. “The client continued to use me as a moderator.”
He launched his own firm seven years later.
His clients come from various industries and have a range of goals and challenges. Sandin develops the techniques to reach conclusions and recommendations for advancing a client’s brand and improving customer loyalty. In his toolbox are such qualitative methodologies as ethnography, home visits and focus groups, among others.