SYRACUSE  — Syracuse Behavioral Healthcare (SBH) has acquired the Learbury Centre at 329 N. Salina St. in a deal that closed March 21.

The purchase gives SBH, which provides treatment and rehabilitation services for people with drug and alcohol addictions, a new home for its Syracuse outpatient clinic. And in 2013 the nonprofit organization plans to relocate its administrative headquarters to the newly acquired building.

“This anchors SBH in downtown Syracuse,” says Jeremy Klemanski, the organization’s president and CEO. “It’s only two blocks from [St. Joseph’s Hospital Health Center], which is a great partner in behavioral health services.”

SBH paid $2.83 million to acquire the 55,000-square-foot Learbury Centre from Pietrafesa LLC. It also plans about $1.2 million in renovations that will turn part of the building into an integrated substance-use disorder and mental-health clinic for outpatients. 

The organization is funding 20 percent of the purchase and renovation costs with its own cash. Alliance Bank, N.A. is financing the remaining 80 percent of the costs. 

Syracuse–based Hueber-Breuer Con-struction Co., Inc. will be the contractor for the renovations, which include new roofing, new windows, and a renovated interior for SBH’s relocated clinic. Associated Architects of Syracuse is the architect. 

The work is slated to start in late spring or early summer and will transform 17,000 square feet of space in the Learbury Centre into the outpatient clinic. Renovations on the space, which is the former home of Jacobsen Rugs, should be complete in time for the clinic to move in by the fall of 2012, Klemanski says.

Patients will enter and exit the clinic through an entrance that is separate from the rest of the Learbury Centre, according to Klemanski. Parking for patients will be in the back of the building, he adds.

“The front of this building’s operation will remain for tenants,” Klemanski says.

SBH plans to continue to lease out the Learbury Centre’s third and fourth floors. It will also continue to lease 16,000 square feet on the building’s first and second floors to Empower Federal Credit Union until 2013.

Empower plans to leave the building in 2013, according to Klemanski. In the summer or fall of that year, after the credit union moves out, SBH will relocate its administrative offices and residential-services offices into the vacated space.

Those offices currently take up 10,500 square feet in the Regency Tower at 770 James St. The offices are scattered throughout the tower, while the Learbury Centre offers contiguous space, according to Klemanski.

“We currently occupy several suites,” he says. “While the Regency Tower has been good about trying to accommodate us, having people spread all over the place is just not efficient.”

SBH currently employs 215 people, and the organization says it has doubled in size in the last five years. It projects 2012 revenue of $12.82 million, up from budgeted revenue of $12.21 million in 2011. 

The organization, which operates in Rochester as well as Syracuse, served 5,423 people last year. SBH is growing as more people seek help for substance-abuse problems, according to Klemanski.

“The biggest driver we’re seeing is it’s becoming more socially acceptable to reach out for help,” he says.

Martin McDermott, senior vice president of Syracuse–based JF Real Estate, brokered the Learbury Centre sale. Two brothers, Robert and Richard Pietrafesa, owned the building through the holding company Pietrafesa LLC until Robert passed away last year, McDermott says.

However, the building was up for sale when Robert Pietrafesa was still alive, according to McDermott.

“It was time for them to sell,” McDermott says.

Scott Lickstein from Newman & Lickstein Attorneys at Law represented SBH in the sale. Francis Stinziano from Gilberti Stinziano Heintz & Smith, P.C. represented Pietrafesa LLC, and F. Paul Vellano Jr. from the law firm Menter, Rudin & Trivelpiece, P.C. represented Alliance Bank, according to SBH.

Other SBH moves

Opening the outpatient clinic in the Learbury Centre sets up a chain of SBH moves scheduled to play out over the year. The first of those moves is the expansion of the clinic itself. 

SBH is relocating its outpatient operations from a building it owns at 847 James St. The clinic currently has 10,500 square feet in that building, meaning it will gain about 6,500 square feet with the relocation to the Learbury Centre.

That gives SBH enough space to hire more mental-health counselors, Klemanski says. The organization plans to hire 11 new staff members to work with patients as well as three to five clerical workers. That is on top of the 45 workers who currently work at the clinic — although Klemanski says only about 30 of those employees are at the clinic at one time.

The new mental-health counselors will be important because about 68 percent of SBH’s outpatient population needs treatment for both mental-health and substance-abuse issues, Klemanski says. The clinic will save patients from having to coordinate with different care managers in different locations because it will be able to address both sets of needs, he adds.

“To be able to do it in one setting is really where the future of behavioral health care is going,” Klemanski says.

The larger space will also give SBH the ability to see more outpatients, according to Klemanski. It currently has about 400 outpatients, and that number could increase slowly to 500. Between 10 percent and 25 percent of outpatients it sees come to the clinic every day, Klemanski estimates.

After moving outpatient operations from 847 James St., SBH will be able to consolidate its Syracuse inpatient operations in that building, which is 27,400 square feet. The building already holds the 40-bed Willows Inpatient Rehabilitation center. 

The Willows will be joined at 847 James St. by a detoxification center. The detoxification center is moving from 714 Hickory St. and will expand from 18 beds to 25 beds with that relocation. It will also likely add four or five staff members, although the number of new hires has not been finalized, according to Klemanski.

“The detoxification and stabilization beds will be in the same site as the inpatient rehabilitation beds,” he says. “All of the inpatient medical staff — doctors, nurses, food-service staff — will no longer have to travel between buildings.”

Some renovations will be needed to prepare the building at 847 James St. for detoxification beds. Showers will be added to bathrooms in the building, and counseling offices will be converted to bedrooms. Other work includes changing a child-care area to a physical-fitness space and converting a waiting area into a family visitation space.

SBH has not selected a contractor for that work or established cost estimates. Associated Architects of Syracuse is the architect for the project, Klemanski says.

All work will be complete at 847 James St. and the detoxification center will move in by mid fall, Klemanski says. 

“Renovations are relatively minor in that building,” he says. “They’re mostly aesthetic, with the exception of adding the bathrooms.”

Finally, SBH will convert the space at 714 Hickory St. vacated by the detoxification center to four supportive-living apartments. The apartments will be for people who were homeless or had experienced substance-abuse or mental-health issues in the past, according to Klemanski. 

The four new apartments will give SBH a total of 13 units in a block it operates between 714 and 720 Hickory St.

“It returns back to more of its neighborhood setting,” Klemanski says. “You walk down the block, that’s a residential neighborhood, Hickory Street.”

The apartment conversions should be complete by January 2013, according to Klemanski.

“Our plan is that by Jan.1, everybody is in their new home and up and fully running,” he says.

First Niagara Financial Group (NASDAQ: FNFG) is planning a new focus on small-business banking.

“It’s an untapped market for us,” First Niagara Retail Banking Director Scott Fisher says. “We were missing a slice of the market.”

The Buffalo–based banking company added a new team of 40 bankers throughout its footprint who will focus on small business. For First Niagara, that means companies with up to $2 million in annual sales.

The bank did serve those customers before, but it was largely through branch managers and was not a distinct business area, Fisher says. Compared to the industry as a whole and its competitors, First Niagara wasn’t tapping the small-business market as much as it could have been, he adds.

The banking company is planning to close an acquisition of 195 HSBC Bank branches in May. Adding the locations in upstate New York, Westchester County, and Connecticut will make First Niagara a major force in the Syracuse, Utica, and Binghamton markets.

When the HSBC acquisition is completed, First Niagara will have nearly 430 branches, $30 billion in deposits, $38 billion in assets, and more than 6,000 employees in New York, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, and Massachusetts.

The deal will virtually double First Niagara’s New York branch network to more than 200 locations and add more than 1,200 employees to its work force.

The deal will also bring First Niagara some business-banking accounts.

The new group of small-business bankers, which includes some former HSBC staff, began work in February. Over time, that group should account for about half of First Niagara’s small-business activity, Fisher says.

He declined to share specific targets on loan volume, but says the bank expects to double its lending from 2011. So far, customer response has been positive and First Niagara’s small-business loan pipeline is expanding, Fisher says.

Bankers have been reporting an increased demand for credit among small businesses, he adds, indicating an improving economy.

The bankers who started in February have plenty of small-business experience, Fisher says. They know the space and the companies in it.

First Niagara will also seek to separate itself from competitors through an updated set of small-business banking products and with quick decisions.

“They want it yesterday,” Fisher says of small-business people. “They’re busy. They wear multiple hats at their company.”

The new group will focus on acquiring new customers and expanding the bank’s relationship with existing clients.

Widening First Niagara’s presence in the small-business space will benefit its branch network, says David Kavney, Central New York market executive for First Niagara. Two of the new small-business bankers are in the Central New York market.

“These companies are tied in closely with their owners,” he says. “This small- business banker position is going to line up well with our branch system. We see this as a great opportunity.”

During the fourth quarter of 2011, First Niagara took $17 million in charges related to branch closures and severance costs. The staff reductions were aimed at enhancing the bank’s capabilities in both small-business banking and wealth management by adding new staff in those areas, CFO Gregory Norwood said during a conference call in January.

Rising prices are a concern though

The Empire State Manufacturing Survey’s general business conditions index rose for the fifth straight month in March, ticking up 0.7 points to 20.2. The index has been positive since November 2011.

March’s survey results indicate a “continued moderate pace of growth in business activity,” according to the New York Fed. Among manufacturers responding to the survey, 33.3 percent said business conditions improved in March. An additional 13.1 percent said conditions worsened, while 53.5 percent indicated conditions remained the same as in February.

New orders continued to grow, but not as quickly as in February. The new-orders index registered 6.8 in March, down 2.9 points from the prior month.

The story was much the same for shipments, which also grew at a slower pace than February. The shipments index fell 4.6 points to remain positive at 18.2.

The unfilled-orders index remained negative at -1.2, although it rose 5.8 points from the previous month. Delivery times increased, with the delivery-time index spiking 6.2 points to 7.4. 

Prices ballooned in March, as the prices-paid index shot up 24.7 points to 50.6. That could be cause for concern if manufacturers continue to pay high prices in coming months, according to Randall Wolken, the president of the Manufacturers Association of Central New York (MACNY).

“One input that’s gone up for some manufacturers is the cost of gas,” Wolken says. “The reality is that we are seeing some price pressures, and we’ll need to watch it over the next couple of months to see if it continues.”

However, manufacturers also received higher prices in March. The prices-received index notched 13.6, a slight dip of 1.7 points from February, but still indicating rising prices.

Employment was a bright spot in the survey, as manufacturers indicated they hired employees and expanded their employees’ workweeks. The number-of-employees index climbed 1.8 points to 13.6, while the average employee-workweek index jumped 11.5 points to 18.5. 

Future expectations

Manufacturers in New York remained upbeat about the future, according to the survey’s forward-looking indicators. Those indicators measure expectations for a time six months in the future.

The future general business conditions index slid 2.9 points to 47.5. Still, the majority of manufacturers expect business conditions to be better in six months than they are now. Among survey respondents, 54.3 percent believe business conditions will be better in six months, 6.8 percent believe they will be worse, and 38.9 percent believe they will remain the same.

The future new orders index dipped 2.7 points to 42. The future shipments index dropped 6.2 points to 43.2.

Despite the downward turns in those indicators, they remained in positive territory. That means more survey respondents were positive about future new orders and shipments than were negative.

“The outlook continues to remain optimistic, which means manufacturers will continue to make investments,” Wolken says. 

Survey results nudged the future capital-expenditures index up by 0.3 points. It posted 32.1 in March.

“I always see that as one of the most important indicators,” Wolken says. “Capital investment usually signals a longer-term need.”

Technology spending could also be on the rise, as the future technology-spending index climbed. It gained 5.9 points to 24.7.
And, manufacturers took an optimistic view about future employment, driving the future number-of-employees index up 2.7 points to 32.1 and swelling the future average employee-workweek index by 2.2 points to 21.

Manufacturers predicted more unfilled orders in six months, as the future unfilled-orders index climbed 3.9 points to 8.6. Meanwhile, the future inventories index skidded 5.7 points to 4.9, and the future delivery-time index rose 2.6 points to 4.9.

Survey respondents expect to pay and receive higher prices in the future. The future prices-paid index increased 4.3 points to 66.7, while the future prices-received index fell 2 points to 32.1.

The New York Fed polls a set pool of about 200 New York manufacturing executives for the monthly survey. About 100 executives typically respond, and the Fed seasonally adjusts data.                         

SYRACUSE — The 10 semi-finalists for this year’s Creative Core Emerging Business Competition include startups working on everything from biorefinery technology to biometrics.

The Central Upstate Regional Alliance announced the semi-finalists March 21. The competition seeks to honor the most innovative, growth-oriented company in the region.

The winner of the contest’s $200,000 grant prize will be announced April 4 at the CenterState CEO annual meeting. The competition also includes a $15,000 prize for innovations in agribusiness and a $5,000 prize for the best student business idea.

M&T Bank and the New York Business Development Corp. are the contest’s title sponsors.

“This year’s semi-finalists exhibit the strength and depth of entrepreneurial spirit that is defining innovation in our region,” M&T Syracuse Division Regional President Allen Naples said in a news release. “The judges next face the difficult task of choosing one winner from this impressive field of candidates.”

The top 10 companies were chosen from a field of 96 candidates. Finalists will pitch their companies to a panel of judges March 26.

Two of this year’s semi-finalist companies previously competed for the competition’s top prize, including MicroGen, which has been a finalist in two previous years of the competition.

This year’s semi-finalists are:

• Applied Biorefinery Sciences, which is developing biorefinery technologies to turn plant biomass into carbon-neutral, biodegradable products and fuels.

• Cortland Research, which has developed technology that allows consumers to see how much power their appliances are using in real time and control them when they’re not being used efficiently.

• Georeader, which offers a smartphone app that plays short audio messages about historical markers as users drive by.

• ImproviSoft provides software products and services to the mobile device industry. The company is working to establish an advertising business around its AdStreamer Software Development Kit.

• MyMuzik, which is launching a digital-music stand designed to eliminate sheet music for groups and individual performers.

• MicroGen’s technology harvests the energy created by vibrations for use in a variety of applications. The company is developing a line of micro-power sources to extend rechargeable battery lifetimes.

• NexID develops and licenses software to allow fingerprint-scanning technologies to more accurately authenticate scanned images.

• NOHMS is a supplier of advanced lithium-ion battery materials and components. The products allow for improved battery performance at a lower cost.

• Seraph Robotics uses a robotic arm to create instant models or prototypes.

• Technology Life Cycle Solutions provides Web-based lease management software that allows companies to manage their entire portfolio and access information anywhere through a secure Internet connection.

Past winners of the competition include Sound Reading Solutions, Widetronix, e2e Materials, and Mezmeriz, all based in Ithaca.

The winner of the 2011 competition, BrandYourself.com of Syracuse, is a sponsor for 2012. The firm provides a Web-based tool that allows users to manage their search results.

SALINA  —  Sustainable Office Solutions, LLC has moved under a bigger roof. A bigger, bright-green roof.

In October, the furniture company moved its headquarters to suite 30 at 900 Old Liverpool Road in the town of Salina. The new location gives it 1,400 square feet of office space along with 16,000 square feet of warehouse space. 

And, company owner and President Andrew Picco saw to it that the new location has an exterior that stands out.

“I invested the money to paint the roof green and pay for the cedar shanks so that you can see it from the moon,” Picco says. “You can’t see it from [Old Liverpool Road], but you can see it from the moon.”

Sustainable Office Solutions’ new home isn’t visible from the street because it is tucked toward the back of a complex at 900 Old Liverpool Road. Still, the location met a need the company had for more space as it expanded, according to Picco.

The office-furniture firm, which specializes in selling pre-owned and repurposed furniture, had been located at 1815 Lemoyne Ave. in Salina since shortly after Picco founded it in 2009. Sustainable Office Solutions leased about 5,000 square feet of combined warehouse and office space there.

Beginning in the middle of 2010, the company also started leasing about 4,000 square feet of warehouse space at 900 Old Liverpool Road from Water Street Associates LLC. Sustainable Office Solutions’ stock of pre-owned and repurposed furniture was growing, and its Lemoyne Avenue location didn’t have enough space for it all.

The furniture company slowly increased the amount of space it leased at Old Liverpool Road until May 2011, when it had 8,000 square feet there. Then Picco decided he needed to consolidate to one location.

“It was driving me crazy when I was meeting customers,” he says. “What location are we meeting at? Well, I’ll show you something here, but then we’ve got to go over there. Logistically it was a nightmare.”

Picco invested about $15,000 in renovations to the warehouse and office at Old Liverpool Road before finally moving all company operations there in October. He self-financed the renovations, along with credit from Solvay Bank, he says.

Improvements included leveling the floor in the company’s office and installing new carpeting, new windows, new warehouse lighting, and the green roof. Company employees performed the renovations, Picco says.

Sustainable Office Solutions needed the new space because it grew rapidly in 2011, with revenue increasing 288 percent that year, according to Picco. The pre-owned furniture specialist saw major growth from  two lines of new furniture.

“If I didn’t have that new furniture, and I only sold pre-owned, we wouldn’t have seen the growth,” Picco says. “It’s because we’re multifaceted.”

The new furniture lines are from Trendway Corp. and Affordable Interior Systems, LLC (AIS). Both Trendway and AIS are certified “carbon neutral” by the CarbonNeutral Co., meaning they pay for projects to offset the carbon emissions caused by their manufacturing.

Binghamton–area businesses were another driving factor behind Sustainable Office Solutions’ growth. Flooding from Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee left many Southern Tier companies in need of new furniture, Picco says.

Growth at Sustainable Office Solutions won’t be receding with the Broome County floodwaters, if Picco’s predictions are accurate. The company projects 30 percent revenue growth to $700,000 in 2012, up from about $538,000 in 2011. But, Picco believes revenue will actually top $1 million.

“Mark my words, we will absolutely blow away 30 percent growth,” he says.

Picco plans to expand rapidly by building connections outside of Central New York. He wants to supply pre-owned furniture to dealers in other areas of the state like Rochester, Buffalo, and Albany. 

Many dealers in those areas would like to offer pre-owned furniture for their customers but do not have supply chains, Picco says.

He is also exploring the prospect of exporting pre-owned furniture to companies overseas.

“Send it to India and Brazil and everywhere else,” he says. “They’re just dying for this product. And it’s sustainable because [the furniture] isn’t going to the dump.”

Sustainable Office Solutions is currently in the process of hiring one full-time sales representative, Picco says. That’s after it added a full-time employee last year. The company currently employs four full-time workers and three part-time employees.

If the company grows as fast as Picco hopes, it will be doing more hiring, he says.

“If that happens, we have to hire more people,” he says. “I would need a full-time warehouse person alone.”

Picco is making sure he maintains a focus on sustainable business as his furniture company grows, he says. 

Selling repurposed furniture keeps that furniture from ending up in landfills, he says. And, Picco isn’t afraid to tell customers
about the value of repurposed furniture, he adds.

“I’ll challenge them and say, ‘Listen, I know you want to buy all new,’ ” he says. “‘But in the backroom and the cafeteria where nobody’s going to see, do we really have to buy all new? These chairs we’re sitting on are used. They sell for $480 new. I sell them repurposed for $195. Do you want to save some money, or do you have too much money?’ ”