New York ranked number 7 in organic sales in 2016

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The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) recently released the results of its 2016 Certified Organic Survey. The results show that 14,217 certified organic farms in the U.S. sold a total of $7.6 billion in organic products last year, up 23 percent from $6.2 billion in 2015, according to a NASS news release. […]

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Boilermaker Road Race seeks new president following Reed’s resignation

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UTICA — Tim Reed recently announced that he is stepping down as president of Boilermaker Road Race Inc., after 10 years at the helm of the nonprofit. “It feels like it’s a great time for me to give someone else a chance to lead this fantastic organization,” Reed said in a news release issued by Boilermaker

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Nascentia Health, the former VNA Homecare, plans to move into new headquarters early in 2018

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SYRACUSE — The building at 1050 W. Genesee St., which houses the entities that are now part of Nascentia Health, has a “lot of structural issues.” The organization has spent more than $200,000 to stabilize the structure, says Kate Rolf, president and CEO of Nascentia Health. It also sought total repair estimates. “It will cost

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SYRACUSE — The building at 1050 W. Genesee St., which houses the entities that are now part of Nascentia Health, has a “lot of structural issues.”

The organization has spent more than $200,000 to stabilize the structure, says Kate Rolf, president and CEO of Nascentia Health. It also sought total repair estimates.

“It will cost just as much to fix this building [as it would] to get a new one and tear this one down,” says Rolf.

VNA Homecare, VNA Homecare Options, Home Aides of Central New York, and all their respective affiliated organizations and foundations currently operate in the existing 32,000-square-foot structure.

They’ll eventually move into a new 47,000-square-foot, $13 million facility that’s currently under construction at the same address.

Once Nascentia Health moves into its new building, crews will demolish the existing structure and replace it with a courtyard and a new parking area, says Rolf.

Crews are constructing the new building on property that previously functioned as the parking lot for VNA Homecare.

“We did purchase two adjacent properties that had a couple of run-down houses that we acquired and had those taken down,” she added.

Nascentia Health is financing the project through fundraising, grants, and organizational assets, and a $7.5 million loan through KeyBank (NYSE: KEY), says Rolf.

The Hayner Hoyt Corporation has been working on the new facility since the start of the year. King + King Architects LLP designed the structure, which should be finished in early 2018, Emily Dillon, communications specialist at Nascentia Health, said in a Sept. 27 email response to a CNYBJ inquiry.

Rebranding

Besides the larger headquarters, the nonprofit figured it would be a good time to combine all its organizations under one parent company in a rebrand.

Rolf noted that the organization operates a managed long-term care Medicaid plan that covers 48 counties, and New York has “many” VNA (Visiting Nurse Association) organizations.

“So if patients were asking for us, they may have been given a different VNA,” says Rolf.

She went on to explain why the organization chose the name Nascentia.

The word Nascentia came from the word nascent, Rolf says. The website for Merriam-Webster dictionary says nascent is an adjective that means “beginning to come into existence.”

The organization saw the word as a “great way” to describe it.

“Because not only are we coming up together and growing, but we’re always evolving and changing ourselves to meet the needs of the community,” says Rolf.

The organization has a total of more than 600 employees, and Rolf is projecting it’ll generate revenue of about $260 million in 2017.

About Nascentia Health

As a health-care system “without walls,” Nascentia Health will take a “holistic” approach to patient care, the organization said.

It’ll address immediate needs; support “positive,” long-term medical and lifestyle choices; and leverage “leading-edge,” in-home care approaches and technologies to “improve outcomes and quality of life.”

Specialties will include in-home nursing and medical services; home health aides and elder care; cross-continuum care management; community health and wellness programs; transportation, equipment and “innovative” care technologies; chronic-disease management; and managed long-term care.

“Improving the outcomes and quality of life” for the 48 counties in Nascentia Health’s coverage area will also require a “commitment” to community programs, long-term health education, and social-daycare programs.

Cortland wins $10M in state funding in downtown revitalization initiative

Construction, Design & Real Estate, Employee Benefits & Human Resources, New York News, Small Business

Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Friday visited Cortland Repertory Theatre to announce the award. It now joins the City of Oswego as a DRI award winner

R.E. Dietz lantern factory renovated into apartments and commercial space

Banks & Credit Unions, Construction, Design & Real Estate, Energy, Environment & Sustainability, Small Business

About two-thirds of the apartments have already been leased, ESD added. The project complements the CNY Rising economic-development plan, which “supports ongoing revitalization efforts in

Turner joins Oswego Health and Oswego County OB-GYN, P.C.

Employee Benefits & Human Resources, Health Care, Nonprofits

OSWEGO, N.Y. — Dr. Ayesha Turner, an obstetrician/gynecologist, has joined Oswego County OB-GYN, P.C. and Oswego Health. Turner will provide a range of women’s services,

SUNY Oswego professor wins nearly $119K grant to support Alzheimer’s research

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OSWEGO, N.Y. — Dr. Sungeun Kim, a faculty member of SUNY Oswego’s electrical and computer engineering department, recently received a grant award of almost $119,000 to use big-data techniques to support “earlier and more accurate diagnosis” of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s. The grant, from the National Library of Medicine of the National Institutes of

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The grant, from the National Library of Medicine of the National Institutes of Health, will assist a project — entitled “Integrating Neuroimaging, Multi-omics, and Clinical Data in Complex Disease” — that Kim is working on with two other researchers, according to a SUNY Oswego news release.

An assistant professor at SUNY Oswego since 2016, Kim also is an adjunct assistant research professor at the Indiana University School of Medicine, where he has worked for years on projects related to Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and other diseases exhibiting progressive dementia.

Kim, whose research interests include such disciplines as bioinformatics, bioinstrumentation, neuroscience, and genetics, joins Indiana University colleague Kwangsik Nho and Geisinger Health System faculty member Dokyoon Kim as principal investigators on the project.

Kim said the importance of his work is in “combining layers of massive datasets from disparate sources, then testing and validating it, to analyze genes, biomarkers, and patient data for better predicting the onset of such neurodegenerative diseases as Alzheimer’s and paving the way for earlier treatment and the development of more effective drugs.” The results would then contribute to software to be made available to other researchers in the field, per the release.

“If we can develop a toolkit to more accurately identify people at risk years earlier, we have more chance to intervene in the progression of the disease,” Kim said.

Kim currently has two other grant projects underway, both involving colleagues from Indiana University School of Medicine and its Indiana Alzheimer’s Disease Center. Indiana University also is home to the “Big Red II” supercomputer and advanced storage devices, to which Kim has access, if needed, in his research. He also plans to hire one or more SUNY Oswego students to help out on the project.

In addition to his research, Kim teaches electromagnetics and a seminar in electrical and computer engineering this fall at SUNY Oswego, and he is developing a bioinstrumentation course.

Contact the Business Journal News Network at news@cnybj.com

NYS Association of Health Care Providers hires Salvi as director for government affairs

Health Care, Subscriber Only

Kristin M. Salvi has joined the New York State Association of HealthCare Providers Inc. (HCP) as director for government affairs. She will play a key role in HCP’s legislative and regulatory advocacy, strategy development, grassroots campaigns, and other related policy initiatives in support of New York’s home-care industry, the association said in a news release.

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Hoehl Foundation’s $50K gift helps expand equine-assisted therapy programs at FTGU at new farm in Tully

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TULLY — The Hoehl Family Foundation recently donated $50,000 to From The Ground Up Therapeutic Horsemanship, Inc. (FTGU) to help the organization to buy a new, larger facility and expand its programs, according to a news release from FTGU. FTGU says it is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation, started in 2002, that provides equine-assisted activities and

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Offering Youth Firsthand Experience in Government Empowers Future Leaders

Opinion, Subscriber Only

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I’m often invited to speak to school-aged kids and during these visits a common question kids have for me is: What does it means to be a good citizen? The question itself is inspiring because it means they are searching for ways to be good citizens. What is even more encouraging is that without realizing it, many kids already know the answer and work to make an impact on our communities each day. Citizenship can take many forms and an individual does not need to be an adult to be a good citizen. Whether it is being respectful to others, volunteering with an organization, or heading up an Eagle Scout project, youth are involved in ways to help improve our communities and show good citizenship.

One way to encourage good citizenship and civic engagement is to provide our youth with firsthand opportunities to learn about how our government works. By encouraging youth to be involved, it enables them to have a deeper understanding of their communities, their government, and their world. It also helps students understand the freedoms and rights we have in this country while empowering them with the knowledge they need to become a part of tomorrow’s solutions.

There are many opportunities offered at various levels of government that give students a firsthand experience. New York State has done a great job in trying to encourage youth involvement through state internships. These internships allow college students a chance to work side-by-side with state representatives or in state agencies. Students can apply to intern in the Assembly, the Senate, the Unified Court System, the Attorney General’s office, or at any number of state agencies.

The New York State Assembly session internship allows college students to work with state Assembly representatives to gain firsthand knowledge of the legislative process. Each year, 150 interns are selected to work in Albany during session. Each intern is assigned to a representative and helps with constituent concerns, assists with correspondence, and learns how a session is run on the Assembly floor. In the six-month period, interns become familiar with the Assembly rules, learn how bills travel through or get stopped in committees, and learn the various steps that are necessary for some to become laws. During this time, each of them helps with the daily tasks in the Assembly offices and also learns about the political process and ideas that shape policy.

I have had the pleasure of working with bright and ambitious students who aspire to make an impact on shaping policy. They are optimistic and dedicated to their futures and feel a responsibility to improve the world. They are our next generation of leaders and welcoming them to learn firsthand strengthens our state and the communities in which they live.

To learn more or to download an application, visit http://nyassembly.gov/intership/. This is a paid internship program that allows graduates of any major the opportunity to learn firsthand about state government. Both undergraduate and graduate internships are available. Applications are due this year on Nov. 1. To learn about other state internships, visit the “New New York Leaders Initiative” at https://nysinternships.cs.ny.gov/nnyl/more.cfm. The site contains internship listings available in a particular area within an executive branch agency or department.

William (Will) A. Barclay is the Republican representative of the 120th New York Assembly District, which encompasses most of Oswego County, including the cities of Oswego and Fulton, as well as the town of Lysander in Onondaga County and town of Ellisburg in Jefferson County. Contact him at barclaw@assembly.state.ny.us, or (315) 598-5185.

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