New York honey prices, production rise in 2014

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ALBANY, N.Y. — Honey prices in New York state increased 28 percent last year to 272 cents per pound from 212 cents a pound in 2013, according to

Excellus BCBS awards health grants to seven CNY nonprofits

Health Care, Insurance & Financial Services, Nonprofits

DeWITT, N.Y. — Excellus BlueCross BlueShield (BCBS) has awarded community-health grants to seven Central New York nonprofits. Excellus, the region’s largest health insurer, chose the

Schumer to TSA: open a pre-check enrollment center at Hancock Airport

Sports, Entertainment & Tourism

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Syracuse Hancock International Airport should have a Transportation Security Administration (TSA) pre-check enrollment center. That’s according to U.S. Senator Charles Schumer (D–N.Y.),

People news: POMCO hires Bandera to supervise operations services

Insurance & Financial Services, People on the Move, Small Business

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — POMCO has hired Loretta Bandera in the role of supervisor of operations services. Bandera will lead a team of claims-service specialists to

New York milk production rises more than 2 percent in February

Manufacturing & Engineering

ALBANY, N.Y. — New York farms produced 1.06 billion pounds of milk in February, up 2.3 percent from the year-ago month, according to the USDA’s

New York home sales rise in February; CNY numbers mixed

Construction, Design & Real Estate, Nonprofits

ALBANY, N.Y. — New York realtors completed the sale of more than 5,900 previously owned homes in February, up more than 2 percent from the

People news: Crouse Hospital appoints Abrams as director of communications and digital media

Health Care, People on the Move

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Cheryl Abrams has been appointed director of communications and digital media at Crouse Hospital. She has been at Crouse since 2006, the

Binghamton University to host 9th annual Health Fair Wednesday

Health Care, Regional News

VESTAL, N.Y. — Binghamton University is hosting its ninth annual Health Fair this Wednesday. The event, organized by the university’s Dining Services by Sodexo unit

Upstate Venture Connect launches entrepreneurial-leadership network

Small Business, Subscriber Only, Technology

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Syracuse–based Upstate Venture Connect (UVC) has launched UNY50, which it describes as an “ambitious entrepreneurial-leadership program.” UVC announced the program in a news release distributed on Thursday. So far, 27 business leaders have joined the “invitation-only” network, UVC said in the news release. They represent fields such as software

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SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Syracuse–based Upstate Venture Connect (UVC) has launched UNY50, which it describes as an “ambitious entrepreneurial-leadership program.”

UVC announced the program in a news release distributed on Thursday.

So far, 27 business leaders have joined the “invitation-only” network, UVC said in the news release.

They represent fields such as software development, advanced manufacturing, and medical technology.

The business leaders include Nasir Ali, co-founder and CEO of Upstate Venture Connect; Chuck Stormon, CEO of RushTera, a media file-sharing company, and managing director of Syracuse–based StartFast Venture Accelerator, a mentorship-driven startup accelerator; and Frank DuRoss, co-founder of the Utica Comets minor-league hockey team and executive director of institutional advancement at Mohawk Valley Community College, according to his LinkedIn page.

In addition to mentoring, UNY50 network creates collaboration opportunities, potential investment deal flow and exposure to high growth entrepreneurs across Upstate NY.

UNY50 members “engage in peer-to-peer collaboration, gain access to curated deals and mentoring opportunities, and enjoy visibility across our regions entrepreneurial community,” according to the UVC news release.

A member-selected steering committee leads UNY50, which Upstate Venture Connect supports.

“The goal of this leadership network is to recruit 50 influential business leaders across Upstate who will empower entrepreneurs with mentorship and provide guidance on how they can access the abundant resources available to them,” David Dussault, chair of the UNY50 steering committee, said in the news release. “Our region has emerged as an attractive location for startups to drop their anchor, and as successful entrepreneurs ourselves, we want to pay it forward.”

Dussault is the managing and founding partner of the Albany–based Dussault Group, an “investment partnership that makes hands-on, active investments into industrial operating companies, high tech and non-high tech start-ups and real estate,” according to Dussault’s LinkedIn page.

The nonprofit Upstate Venture Connect works to create “high tech, high growth, private-capital backed” companies in upstate New York.

UVC has “experienced” entrepreneurs who provide mentoring, angel investing and other leadership roles that “help grow new economy companies” in the Upstate region, according to its news release.

Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com

RealtyUSA acquires Exit Team Advantage Realty in Oneonta

Construction, Design & Real Estate, Subscriber Only

ONEONTA, N.Y. — RealtyUSA has acquired Oneonta–based Exit Team Advantage Realty and will merge it with RealtyUSA’s Oneonta office, located at 75 Market St. Exit Team Advantage Realty is located at 5366 Main St. in Oneonta. RealtyUSA announced the deal in a news release distributed on March 16. The company didn’t release any

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ONEONTA, N.Y. — RealtyUSA has acquired Oneonta–based Exit Team Advantage Realty and will merge it with RealtyUSA’s Oneonta office, located at 75 Market St.

Exit Team Advantage Realty is located at 5366 Main St. in Oneonta.

RealtyUSA announced the deal in a news release distributed on March 16. The company didn’t release any terms of the acquisition.

RealtyUSA acquired all of Exit Team Advantage’s assets in the deal, says Thad DeMulder, a RealtyUSA vice president and general manager working in its Southern Tier and Western New York regions.

The assets include Exit Team’s 11 agents and its one administrative employee, the agents’ real-estate listings, and its client base, says DeMulder.

Exit Team’s former owner, Tom Tillapaugh, will stay on as a member of the sales team, DeMulder adds.

DeMulder told CNYBJ that he spoke with Tillapaugh on March 18 during a welcome party for the newest RealtyUSA employees, noting that Tillapaugh was “excited” about the deal.

Exit Team Advantage Realty expressed “with deep gratitude” its appreciation to the customer that made the business a “success” over the last 10 years, Tillapaugh said in the RealtyUSA news release.

“Our partnership with RealtyUSA makes it possible to offer even more valuable products and services to them in the future. We are pleased to become part of such a successful and professional organization,” Tillapaugh said.

Realty USA hopes its new agents will choose to stay, said Paul DeStefano, RealtyUSA’s vice president of public relations and communications.

Independent agents usually follow the lead of the owner, DeStefano noted. And after spending several months in their new surroundings, he added, 99 percent of them decide to stay.

DeMulder says the new agents are not required to move into the RealtyUSA Oneonta office. The company has four offices in the area with enough space for the agents to choose which office is most convenient for them, DeMulder said.

Tom Spychalski, the current sales manager in RealtyUSA Oneonta office, will retain his position, the company said.

RealtyUSA has more than 60 offices and about 2,600 agents and employees in upstate New York, making it the largest independent real estate company in the region, according the news release.

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

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