Family-owned Clinton Tractor & Implement recognized with Catalyst award

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CLINTON, N.Y. — Clinton Tractor & Implement Co. — a family-owned tractor, trailer, farm equipment, and power-equipment business in Clinton — was among the Utica–area companies recognized with a 2021 Catalyst Small Business Week Award. The Catalyst Group — the young professionals’ group of the Greater Utica Chamber of Commerce — presented the honor on […]

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The Catalyst Group — the young professionals’ group of the Greater Utica Chamber of Commerce — presented the honor on May 4.

“I’d like to thank the community for all their support over the years,” John Calidonna, co-owner of Clinton Tractor & Implement, said. “We’re a family business that started in 1953 and are in our third generation and going very strong. Our service is our number one seller. We sell a lot of products from lawn and garden, construction and agriculture, so we’re very fortunate that we cover all three segments. With that array of equipment to sell, it’s kept us alive all these years and during the tough times.”

Clinton Tractor & Implement is located at 31 Meadow St. (State Route 12B). The Calidonna Brothers — Dominick, Frank, and John — started the business 68 years ago in response to a newspaper advertisement seeking a farm machinery dealer to serve the agriculture industry of Clinton and surrounding communities, per the company’s website.

Catalyst Small Business Week Awards

Greater Utica Chamber member businesses and organizations were nominated for Catalyst Small Business Week Award based on various criteria, including charitable actions, employment growth, area pride, and community development. Clinton Tractor & Implement was one of five local businesses to receive the award.

“We’re so happy to be supporting a local family with a local business,” Kari Puleo, executive director of the Greater Utica Chamber of Commerce, said. “Not only do they train and educate their employees, they also give back to the community. That’s why it’s so important to shop local and support small businesses during Small Business Week.”

Besides Clinton Tractor & Implement Co., the Catalyst Group also recognized McGrogan Design, Innovation Collective, Utica Zoo, and Universal Bookkeeper with a Small Business Week Award.

For more than 50 years, the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) has observed National Small Business Week, which this year was held May 2-8. It recognizes the contributions of America’s entrepreneurs and small-business owners.

Seattle firm acquires Ensemble Video, which originated at SU

Small Business, Subscriber Only, Technology

Ensemble Video, a company that has its origins at Syracuse University (SU) in the mid-2000s, is now under the ownership of a Seattle, Washington firm. Panopto, a video-management system provider for education and enterprises, acquired Ensemble Video in a deal that closed on April 21. The companies didn’t disclose financial terms of their deal. For the time

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Ensemble Video, a company that has its origins at Syracuse University (SU) in the mid-2000s, is now under the ownership of a Seattle, Washington firm.

Panopto, a video-management system provider for education and enterprises, acquired Ensemble Video in a deal that closed on April 21. The companies didn’t disclose financial terms of their deal.

For the time being, the Ensemble and Panopto brands and platforms will remain separate, but the companies are working through a “strategic collaboration that will open up a number of opportunities” for their customers, according to a spokesman for Panopto.

In September 2022, after a transition period, the Ensemble Video brand will sunset. Efforts are underway to “take the best” of Ensemble Video and build it into Panopto’s platform.

Panopto and Ensemble Video previously competed for customers, but “in many ways, [have] been working together since 2007,” the spokesman said.

About the companies

In 2005, a small team of Syracuse University employees set out to make managing and publishing video content easy for the school. Their efforts led to what became Ensemble Video. The company originally worked from the CASE Center at Syracuse University after inventing the platform. Local employees are now working remotely for Panopto.

Ensemble has five full-time employees, and seven full-time contractors.

The entire Ensemble Video team is now a part of Panopto, and its core team remains in Syracuse and surrounding areas. Some of its independent contractors work in Boston, Massachusetts and Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Scott Nadzan, CEO of Ensemble Video and co-inventor, was a former director of technology services and adjunct instructor at Syracuse University.

Andy Covell, founder, current COO, and co-inventor, was a long-time technology leader and adjunct instructor at Syracuse.

Ensemble Video has dozens of customers, including more than 100 school districts and more than 20 universities in New York that Ensemble Video hopes to continue servicing. Its local customers include Syracuse University, SUNY Cortland, Hamilton College, Nazareth College, and the CNY Regional Information Center.

Besides its Seattle headquarters, Panopto operates offices in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Sydney, Australia; Singapore; and London, UK. Eric Burns is the CEO of Panopto.

Panopto has more than 180 employees. Panopto is used by every Ivy League school, 22 of the top 25 universities in the world, and a number of “prestigious enterprises,” per the spokesman.

Survey: American Workers Left Jobs for Caregiving in Pandemic

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Four in 10 U.S. hiring decision-makers report that employees have left their company during the COVID-19 pandemic to care for children or other family members. That finding is from a survey conducted by the Harris Poll and commissioned by Express Employment Professionals. Data for the survey was collected between Nov. 16 and Dec. 7, 2020, among

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Four in 10 U.S. hiring decision-makers report that employees have left their company during the COVID-19 pandemic to care for children or other family members.

That finding is from a survey conducted by the Harris Poll and commissioned by Express Employment Professionals. Data for the survey was collected between Nov. 16 and Dec. 7, 2020, among 1,002 U.S. hiring decision-makers.

Of those who left companies for caregiving responsibilities, 27 percent said it was for children, and 25 percent departed to care for other family members.

Over one-third (37 percent) of respondents say employees have changed their work schedule and 32 percent report workers have reduced their hours due to family obligations.

Some additional findings from the survey include the following:

• A substantial majority (79 percent) of employment decision-makers believe their company is doing “just the right amount” to help employees balance work with caregiving responsibilities.

• More than two-thirds (68 percent) say employees have expressed an interest in having services offered to help them balance responsibilities.

• Only 32 percent of respondents say one of their company’s most important priorities is continually updating programs to accommodate employees who are caregivers.

• One-third (33 percent) say that a permanent effect of the COVID-19 pandemic will be leadership being more flexible in accommodating employees’ schedules and needs.

• Almost eight in 10 (78 percent) of respondents agree it is important to their company to “nurture and grow” working-parent leaders within their organization, but only 38 percent say their company offers programs to help employees who are parents stay in the workplace.

“Those companies that figured out how to accommodate this workforce segment… helped continue to put food on the table for families and staff essential businesses to keep the economy going,” said Bill Stoller, CEO of Express Employment Professionals. “Support should continue well beyond the pandemic for caregivers to get the labor force back to full strength and health.”

The Harris Poll, headquartered in Chicago, is a market-research and analytics company that has been measuring public opinion since 1963.

Express Employment Professionals is an international staffing firm based in Oklahoma City. The firm employs over 526,000 people across more than 830 franchise locations worldwide.

Tri-City Hearing preps for formal opening of new office space in Vestal

Construction, Design & Real Estate, Regional News, Small Business, Subscriber Only

VESTAL, N.Y. — Tri-City Hearing is preparing for a formal-opening event for its new, expanded office space inside the 200 Plaza Drive building in Vestal. The business has been operating in its new space since Sept. 22 of last year, Amanda VanFossen, a licensed hearing-aid dispenser, tells CNYBJ in an email. Tri-City Hearing is coordinating

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VESTAL, N.Y. — Tri-City Hearing is preparing for a formal-opening event for its new, expanded office space inside the 200 Plaza Drive building in Vestal.

The business has been operating in its new space since Sept. 22 of last year, Amanda VanFossen, a licensed hearing-aid dispenser, tells CNYBJ in an email.

Tri-City Hearing is coordinating with the Greater Binghamton Chamber of Commerce for a ribbon-cutting ceremony that is set for 12 p.m. on May 26, per a company news release.

Tri-City Hearing has increased its operating space by 50 percent, having moved from an 800-square-foot office to one that encompasses 1,200 square feet, Clifford Carey, director of operations, tells CNYBJ. The company has operated in the 200 Plaza Drive building since its founding in 2017.

The move was necessary because of an increased need for audiology services, VanFossen adds.

“We now have a team of three hearing professionals and administrative professionals to meet the needs of our patients.” Dr. Suzette Pace, owner and audiologist, said in the release.

Pace indicated that the pandemic has brought the issue of hearing loss to the forefront.

“The fact is that many of us have been isolated and communicating more frequently with our loved ones. As such, we can observe their hearing loss and compensatory behaviors and, for some, the degree of impact of that hearing loss can be alarming. That’s when they call us,” she added.

Tri-City Hearing is part of a three-location practice that also includes Cortland Hearing Aids & Audiology in Cortland and Southern Tier Audiology in Elmira. Southern Tier Audiology recently moved to a new location in Elmira.

The practices currently employ 12 people between the three locations, according to Carey.

“There are really exciting things happening right now in both audiology and hearing aid technology,” Pace said. “and I wanted to make sure that the benefits of both were accessible and available because we all have the desire to live our best life, free of the stress, frustration, and the limitations common to many of us as we age.”

The 200 Plaza Drive building in Vestal was built in 1990 and encompasses 19,200 total square feet in one story, according to Broome County’s online property records. REWJ Associates is the owner of the building, which has a total assessment and full market value of $1.35 million.

Launch NY to use federal grant funding for virtual incubator program

Small Business, Subscriber Only, Technology

Regional startups in Central and Western New York will now have “100 percent virtual access” to resources that can help them succeed. Buffalo–based Launch NY will use a federal grant of $750,000 toward its Rebound and Innovate program, which also involves Cornell University’s Center for Regional Economic Advancement. The U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) awarded the funding.

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Regional startups in Central and Western New York will now have “100 percent virtual access” to resources that can help them succeed.

Buffalo–based Launch NY will use a federal grant of $750,000 toward its Rebound and Innovate program, which also involves Cornell University’s Center for Regional Economic Advancement.

The U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) awarded the funding.

Launch NY describes itself as the “first and only” nonprofit venture-development organization that provides the 27 westernmost counties in New York with pro-bono mentoring and access to seed capital, per its May 18 news release.

The funding will help pay for Launch NY’s Rebound and Innovate program. It includes Cornell University’s distance-learning curriculum, which seeks to “to solve challenges to accessing entrepreneurship support and capital caused by coronavirus through a full transition to virtual mentorship and novel financing programs for technology-based startup companies, driving economic recovery and ensuring long term resilience in responding to similar threats,” as outlined on the U.S. EDA website.

Rebound and Innovate will support 200 companies with up to 50 mentors and staff. It will also bring together up to 250 investors, while also ensuring ongoing accessibility through a new Founders Go Big (FGB) Resource Center, for which Launch NY will reveal the details “soon.”

It will build on the award-winning FGB program, which seeks to “enhance the engagement” of underrepresented, disadvantaged founders by creating high-growth potential businesses.

Among more than 250 active client companies, Launch NY has invested in 70, including 33 percent that are women-owned and 27 percent which are minority-led. These companies — along with businesses expected to participate in Rebound and Innovate’s new, long-term virtual programming — anticipate raising $25 million in new capital, generating $14 million in annual company revenues, and retaining and creating 600 jobs, per the release.

“If the pandemic has taught us anything, it’s to expect the unexpected,” Marnie LaVigne, president and CEO of Launch NY, said. “Startups across Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse, and the Southern Tier will have access to all the tools they need in one virtual location — meeting space, virtual office hours, peer networking, and our powerful investor network that is already providing as much as six figures in seed capital to our most promising local entrepreneurs. Being prepared to support the progress of new ventures creating new jobs and wealth in our community, especially in neighborhoods that need it most, is essential to building an economy that can function in a variety of conditions.”

The EDA grant is part of a $29 million Scaling Pandemic Resilience through Innovation and Technology (SPRINT) challenge, which uses entrepreneurship and innovation to address economic, health and safety risks caused by the pandemic. Launch NY is among 44 awardees nationwide, and one of only three in New York state.

“We are eager to get our startup educational tools into as many hands as possible to help grow businesses and create more jobs in upstate New York,” Tom Schryver, executive director of the Center for Regional Economic Advancement at Cornell University, said. “By continuing our long-standing partnership with Launch NY and offering this multi-pronged program, startups will have a competitive advantage to set down roots in our region and a bounty of support resources at their fingertips — accessible any time they need them.”

Besides its headquarters in Buffalo, Launch NY also has co-locations with partner organizations in Syracuse, Binghamton, Ithaca, and Rochester. Since 2012, it has served more than 1,199 companies, has more than two dozen experienced local entrepreneurs-in-residence and its National Mentor Network of 2,000 industry, business and investment experts, per its release.

Downtown Ithaca Alliance announces six board members

Employee Benefits & Human Resources, Nonprofits, Regional News, Small Business, Sports, Entertainment & Tourism, Subscriber Only

ITHACA, N.Y. — The Downtown Ithaca Alliance recently announced that six individuals — four downtown Ithaca property owners and two commercial tenants — were elected to its board of directors. Downtown property owners re-elected Teri Tarshus and elected Elsa Hyde, Bryan Warren, and Emily Petrina. Tarshus serves as a representative for the Seneca Place Building

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Fulton, Seneca Falls to spend their $10M DRI funding on specific community projects

Small Business, Subscriber Only

Fulton will target 16 projects and Seneca Falls has focused on 13 projects as the communities move forward with their $10 million awards in the Downtown Revitalization Initiative (DRI). The projects will enhance waterfront amenities, repurpose existing buildings to develop new residential and retail spaces, and support small businesses and industry, the office of Gov.

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Fulton will target 16 projects and Seneca Falls has focused on 13 projects as the communities move forward with their $10 million awards in the Downtown Revitalization Initiative (DRI).

The projects will enhance waterfront amenities, repurpose existing buildings to develop new residential and retail spaces, and support small businesses and industry, the office of Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced May 14.

Fulton was named a Round 4 winner in August 2019. Seneca Falls was named a Round 4 winner in November 2019.

Some Fulton projects

The City of Fulton will use $1.5 million to renovate and re-purpose an abandoned building on the old Nestlé site into a mixed-use development. Proposed uses include 55 to 65 residential units, office space, restaurant, and a Nestlé museum.

In addition, Fulton will use $860,000 to build a new facility on the former Nestlé site to attract and expand advanced startup manufacturing businesses.

Another $2 million of Fulton’s DRI award will bring additional medical services to the community through the expansion of Oswego Health’s Fulton campus.

The projects also include using $750,000 to establish a grant fund to help local businesses with building upgrades, permanent equipment purchases, and technical assistance.

The Huhtamaki manufacturing campus will use $420,000 in facility and infrastructure upgrades to maintain jobs, enhance streetscapes, and improve pedestrian safety.

Some Seneca Falls projects

Seneca Falls will use nearly $3.7 million for north canalside improvements, including People’s Park upgrades, such as new pathways and decks overlooking the canal; burying utility lines; and providing “better access” to the canal from downtown.

The community will also use $1 million of its award to establish the National Women’s Hall of Fame as a “destination.” The work will involve renovation of the iconic smokestack; installation of new permanent exhibits; construction of a code-compliant elevator and external stairwell for access and expansion to the second, third, and fourth floors for additional museum space.

In addition, Seneca Falls will use $912,000 for work at It’s A Wonderful Life Museum. The museum expansion will include structural stabilization of the building, façade renovation to reflect its historic appearance, “enhanced” accessibility, and improved signage. Expansion is the first phase of expected multi-phased improvement, per Cuomo’s office.

Another $600,000 will help establish a building-improvement fund to provide grant funding for downtown building owners to support interior and exterior building improvements.

The projects also include a renovation of the Gould Hotel’s first floor. The work will include lobby upgrades, conversion of the restaurant into a dual-purposed café & gastro-cocktail lounge, and relocation of the bar. The hotel will use $405,000 of the DRI award for the project.

Leaders incentivize businesses to hire youth this summer

Small Business, Subscriber Only

SYRACUSE — If area businesses and nonprofits can provide teenagers and young adults with jobs and experience this summer, Syracuse Mayor Ben Walsh and Onondaga County Executive Ryan McMahon are offering funding and resources. Walsh and McMahon have asked area employers to help young people find work this summer through the City-County Summer Youth Employment

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Walsh and McMahon have asked area employers to help young people find work this summer through the City-County Summer Youth Employment program.

Employment sites can hire young people between the ages of 16 and 20 to work on-site, remotely, or a combination of both. Employer costs to hire young adults for these summer-work experiences can be fully funded through this city and county partnership. CNY Works will manage all payroll and related costs — including employment preparation requirements for these short-term, temporary paid-work assignments. Participants must live in Syracuse or elsewhere in Onondaga County and must meet income-eligibility requirements.

Prior to the pandemic, Onondaga County and the City of Syracuse had grown the number of young people participating in the City-County Summer Youth Employment program to more than 1,200. Concerns over COVID-19 last summer put most youth hiring on hold.

The county and the city want to get the program “back on track,” but currently face a “shortfall” of worksites and hundreds of jobs.

“COVID restrictions have had a devastating impact on our youth. They need our help this summer,” Walsh said. “We’re asking employers in the public and private sector to join the Summer Youth Employment program now and provide working experience and opportunities to our teenagers and young adults this summer. A summer job can change the trajectory of a young person’s life and set them on a path to success.”

McMahon added, “It’s a win-win for employers and the community. Through the assistance of New York State, we have funding available to help employers pay for these positions, and our youth gain invaluable skills. All of us have been worried about the short and long-term impact of the pandemic on our young people. This is a way to help them have a more productive summer and prepare for a successful future.”

For more employer information or to participate in the program, those interested can contact Amy Stage, workforce manager at CNY Works, at (315) 477-6937 or email: astage@cnyworks.com.

Salina firm receives NYS service-disabled veteran-owned business certification

Small Business, Subscriber Only

New York Office of General Services (OGS) Commissioner JoAnn Destito recently announced that a Salina landscaping and restoration business has been certified as a service-disabled veteran-owned business (SDVOB). The New York OGS Division of Service-Disabled Veterans’ Business Development (DSDVBD) issued the certification to Elite Property Management & Restoration, which is located on Corkins Lane in the town

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Oneida Indian Nation announces plans for the Cove at Sylvan Beach

Construction, Design & Real Estate, New York News, Regional News, Sports, Entertainment & Tourism

SYLVAN BEACH, N.Y. — The Oneida Indian Nation on Thursday announced its plans to open the Cove at Sylvan Beach, described as an “all-new, one-of-a-kind

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