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First Niagara plans push on small-business banking
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 […]
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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.
NY manufacturers report moderate growth in March
Rising prices are a concern though Recent business-activity growth continued for New York manufacturers in March, according to a survey released March 15 by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. But increased input prices, driven by higher gas prices, emerged as a trouble spot. The Empire State Manufacturing Survey’s general business conditions index
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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.
Central Upstate Alliance names 10 semi-finalists in $200K business contest
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
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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.
Sustainable Office Solutions grows into larger space
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
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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?’ ”
NYS Green Building Conference offers more education this year
SYRACUSE — The organizers of the New York State Green Building Conference decided to build out the event’s educational offerings this year. “We’ve expanded the scope to now include two days of education regarding all different aspects of green building,” says Tracie Hall, executive director of the U.S. Green Building Council New York Upstate Chapter.
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SYRACUSE — The organizers of the New York State Green Building Conference decided to build out the event’s educational offerings this year.
“We’ve expanded the scope to now include two days of education regarding all different aspects of green building,” says Tracie Hall, executive director of the U.S. Green Building Council New York Upstate Chapter. “We have three tracks [on each day] this year to appeal to the ever-growing audience that is interested in learning about green buildings.”
This is the 10th year for the Green Building Conference, which will be held this year on March 29 and March 30 at the Oncenter in downtown Syracuse. The conference, which is co-hosted by the Green Building Council’s Upstate New York Chapter and the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry, has a mission to promote, educate, and support green-building design, construction, and processes.
Concurrent tracks on the first day of this year’s conference include case studies on higher-educational institutions’ green buildings, green building for commercial construction, and green building for residential construction. On the conference’s second day, they include deconstruction, commercial construction, and biomimicry, which uses the study of nature to inspire innovations.
Green Building Conference attendees will be able to choose which of the concurrent sessions they wish to attend. In the past, sessions on commercial construction have been popular, Hall says.
“There are so many developers and contractors and engineers trying to better understand what a green building is and how it can be accomplished in a commercial setting,” she says.
The conference has not had concurrent sessions on both conference days in the past, according to Hall.
“We have either conducted a [Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design] workshop, or for a couple of years we also had a deconstruction summit on day one,” she says. “Now, in an effort to respond to all the desire for education, as well as provide continuing-education hours for professionals, we’ve expanded it to two days of complete sessions.”
The keynote speaker for this year’s conference is Paul Anastas, who will speak on green chemistry at 8:15 a.m. on the first day. Anastas is a synthetic organic chemist who earned his Ph.D. in chemistry from Brandeis University in Massachusetts and is now the director for Yale University’s Center for Green Chemistry and Green Engineering. He has also been appointed to serve as the assistant administrator for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Office of Research and Development and as a science adviser to the EPA.
An understanding of green chemistry can be important to building, according to Hall.
“Buildings are comprised of components that are comprised of chemicals,” she says. “It’s best if we understand the chemistry of a building and how it can impact human health, human productivity — even building performance when it comes to energy and indoor environmental quality.”
More than 40 exhibitors are scheduled for the conference, Hall says. Exhibitor booths and tables are now sold out, she adds.
Hall expects this year’s conference to draw more people than last year’s confab, which had about 310 attendees. She believes attendance could grow by 10 percent.
“I would not be surprised if we did achieve that,” she says. “I have seen the growth in green building and high-performance technologies in the upstate area.”
The cost to attend the Green Building Conference differs for professionals and students. The registration fee for professionals who attend for one day is $195, while the two-day fee for professionals is $310. Students who attend for one day pay $35, and students who attend for two days pay $65.
Check-in starts at 7:15 a.m. on March 29, and the conference is scheduled to start at 8 a.m. that day. Its first day is slated to conclude with a networking session from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.
The second day of the conference on March 30 will start check-ins at 7:15 a.m. and open with a plenary session at 8:15 a.m. It is set to conclude at 3 p.m.
Grant to help Synex promote capabilities
PULASKI — A new division of the Fulton Cos. is focusing on control systems for building energy systems. Synex Controls was originally developing electronic-control systems meant to ensure that condensing boilers run efficiently and maintain comfortable indoor environments. Fulton, a manufacturer of boilers, started the division in January 2011. Soon after Synex began, customers
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PULASKI — A new division of the Fulton Cos. is focusing on control systems for building energy systems.
Synex Controls was originally developing electronic-control systems meant to ensure that condensing boilers run efficiently and maintain comfortable indoor environments. Fulton, a manufacturer of boilers, started the division in January 2011.
Soon after Synex began, customers and the firm’s sales reps began asking if the systems could also run other equipment in buildings like chillers or air handlers, says Joel Southwell, Synex business manager. So the division began to broaden its scope.
Synex is now focusing on systems to control buildings’ complete energy systems including heating, cooling, fresh air, humidification, and lighting, according to the company. Synex won $50,000 in the latest round of Commercialization Assistance Program grants from the Syracuse Center of Excellence.
The center announced the awards in January. Synex will use the grant to help promote its capabilities and get more people looking at its technology.
The sales process for the division is different, Southwell notes. Synex doesn’t have an off-the-shelf set of products.
Rather, the division treats each building as a distinct project and applies its technology differently depending on a structure’s needs, Southwell explains.
“Each project is a customized solution,” he says.
Beginning as part of a company that manufactures boilers has been a help for Synex, Southwell adds. It allowed Synex to have a better understanding of some of the actual equipment used in buildings.
Other control companies don’t have that kind of insight, he notes. The Fulton Cos. is also providing financing for Synex and sharing resources like accounting and other back-office functions.
The Synex division has nine employees of its own. The focus for the division now is on sales and promotion, Southwell says.
The firm is focusing initially on smaller commercial buildings, he adds. A building-control system for a larger structure can be a costly undertaking and so Synex is looking to take on some smaller-scale, less-costly projects at first.
Fear of costs often causes building owners to neglect some basic steps that could provide solid energy savings, Southwell says.
“We really do think this is going to be a growing business opportunity,” he says. “The industry need is there.”
Synex is concentrating its efforts in upstate New York at the moment. Initially, the company wants to focus on a few smaller projects it can use to build momentum, Southwell says.
The Commercialization Assistance Program has contributed more than $1.3 million to 26 upstate New York companies over six rounds. Other winners in the most recent round include Synairco of Ithaca, Ephesus Technologies of Syracuse, GreenView Energy Management Systems of Syracuse, and Rapid Cure Technologies of Syracuse.
Taking Advantage of Green-Building Incentives
Business owners considering the construction of a new building or the substantial renovation of an existing structure should consider using green-building practices to capitalize on the economic incentives available. While these incentive programs are not always well known or publicized, they can lead to substantial savings, both initially and throughout the life of the building.
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Business owners considering the construction of a new building or the substantial renovation of an existing structure should consider using green-building practices to capitalize on the economic incentives available.
While these incentive programs are not always well known or publicized, they can lead to substantial savings, both initially and throughout the life of the building.
These hard and fast savings, when combined with the other benefits of green building — energy savings, increased foot traffic, higher rents, positive public relations, increased employee morale, productivity, and reduced sick days, among others — make the use of green-building practices beneficial.
Federal green-building incentives
On the federal level, Internal Revenue Code Section 179D provides a deduction based on new energy-efficient construction or improvements in lighting, HVAC, and the building envelope.
Each of the three areas can qualify for a minimum deduction of $0.30 per square foot and a maximum of $0.60 per square foot, for an overall combined maximum deduction of $1.80 per square foot. Partial deductions are also allowed and the deduction can be transferred if desired to certain third parties, such as architects or engineering firms.
In order to receive any deduction, a consultant is needed to measure the energy-efficiency savings as compared to the baseline requirement in ASHRAE Standard 90.1-2001.
The federal deduction is only available until Dec. 31, 2013. However, according to President Obama’s latest budget proposal as part of his Better Buildings Initiative, this deduction would be converted into a credit and be more widely available.
Incentives available through NYSERDA
The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) has myriad programs available to assist commercial-building owners and developers. Through a power-bill surcharge, known as the system-benefits charge, NYSERDA has a substantial amount of money available for owners to increase the energy efficiency of their buildings, build new energy-efficient structures, and implement renewable-energy sources — notably solar and wind, among others.
NYSERDA’s “New Construction Program” is the most conducive for green-building projects. NYSERDA is currently accepting applications for this program through the end of 2015 or until funding is depleted. The new construction program is available for the renovation of an existing building or the construction of a new facility without building-size minimums or maximums.
A building owner, or lessee with more than five years on a lease and the right to make improvements, is eligible for the program if he/she is or will be an electric or gas distribution customer of a participating utility, and currently pay or will pay into the system-benefits charge.
Through the new construction program, NYSERDA provides outreach-project consultants and offers financial and professional assistance regarding capital-cost incentives, green-building incentives, design incentives, and building-commissioning incentives.
In certain instances, NYSERDA can provide financial assistance to cover up to one-half of the program participant’s energy-audit expenses and costs of any third-party green-building consultant, up to certain maximums.
New York’s green-building tax credit
In 2009, New York State was one of the first states to pass a green-building tax credit and set aside $25 million in funds for such credits. Those funds were quickly depleted that year, and were meant to be replenished each subsequent year.
Unfortunately, due to the ongoing recession, the legislature has yet to reallocate any additional funding for the pool. If it does so in the future, the credits would be available for owners of buildings that meet the state’s green-building regulations (which differ from LEED), as certified by an architect.
Other state financial benefits
There are various other state financial benefits available for building owners seeking to make energy-efficient upgrades, including “on bill” financing and unsecured loans through the Power NY Act of 2011 and the Green Jobs/Green New York Act.
A number of proposed legislative bills would also benefit green building, including a proposal to allow municipalities to grant tax exemptions for real property meeting LEED standards on a sliding scale, based on the level of certification achieved.
Local-government opportunities
On the county level, the Onondaga County Industrial Development Agency (OCIDA) has a green pilot program available for new construction. It works similar to a regular PILOT program, where a building owner deeds its property to OCIDA, a tax-exempt entity, and the owner thereafter makes payments in lieu of taxes to OCIDA. The Green PILOT program grants an enhanced PILOT schedule based on the level of LEED certification obtained.
While green-building accreditation may appear to be a complicated and expensive proposition at first, the many benefits, including the financial incentives, make it worthwhile in the majority of cases.
Michael T. Stanczyk is a construction, real estate and business attorney at Mackenzie Hughes LLP, and a LEED green associate, accredited by the Green Building Certification Institute of the U.S. Green Building Council. Contact Stanczyk at (315) 233-8262 or email: mstanczyk@mackenziehughes.com
NYSERDA recognizes home builders and energy raters in New York Energy Star Homes program
The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) has recognized three home builders and three energy raters with awards for excellence in building New York Energy Star Homes during 2010 and 2011. New York Energy Star Homes are new homes designed to consume less energy than the typical house built to New York
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The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) has recognized three home builders and three energy raters with awards for excellence in building New York Energy Star Homes during 2010 and 2011.
New York Energy Star Homes are new homes designed to consume less energy than the typical house built to New York State Energy Conservation Construction Code while keeping temperatures consistent, NYSERDA says.
NYSERDA explains that the New York Energy Star Homes program is part of a strategy to transform markets in many sectors of the economy to decrease energy consumption. The program includes builders who construct homes to meet energy-efficiency requirements and independent home-energy rating companies that evaluate the plans and the completed homes through computer-based, energy-analysis inspection, certification, and testing. The homes can be either market-rate or low- to moderate-income housing.
Statewide, New York Energy Star Homes awards were made to the following contractors at the recent Affordable Comfort Inc. (ACI) conference in Saratoga Springs.
Ryan Homes, of Pittsford, Buffalo, and Syracuse, and MIG Building Systems, of East Rochester, won the “Outstanding Market-Rate Housing Builder/Rater Collaboration” award for building and rating 934 market-rate homes in 2010 and 2011, the highest number of New York Energy Star homes constructed during that timeframe by any builder/rater team.
Housing Visions Consultants Inc. and EnTech, both of Syracuse, won the “Outstanding Affordable Housing Builder/Rater Collaboration” award for delivering quality low- to moderate-income housing and for striving to find new ways to improve each project in 2010 and 2011, NYSERDA says. During that two-year timeframe, this team built and rated 307 New York Energy Star homes for income-qualified New York households.
Maranno Marc Equity Corporation, of West Seneca, and Northwind Insulation, of Orchard Park, won the “Excellence in Energy Performance Builder/Rater Collaboration” award for demonstrating both high production and, based on the Home Energy Rating System (HERS) scores of their homes, outstanding commitment to quality in 2010 and 2011. This team built 122 New York Energy Star homes during that two-year timeframe.
NYSERDA, a public-benefit corporation, says it offers information and analysis, programs, technical expertise, and funding to help increase energy efficiency, save money, use renewable energy, and reduce reliance on fossil fuels.
ACI is a nonprofit organization, providing information, education, and best practices in residential-building construction known as home performance and weatherization.
Obamacare turns two, costs still rising as point of no return nears
It has been two years since Obamacare has signed into law, and the costs keep climbing. Through 2022, taxpayers are on the hook for gross costs of $1.75 trillion, a 10-year figure that will only continue to rise as we near the law’s full implementation years. It has already resulted in more than 2,000 pages
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It has been two years since Obamacare has signed into law, and the costs keep climbing. Through 2022, taxpayers are on the hook for gross costs of $1.75 trillion, a 10-year figure that will only continue to rise as we near the law’s full implementation years. It has already resulted in more than 2,000 pages of new regulations — more than 2.13 million words — five times longer than the statute itself.
In 2014, the individual mandate — barring a Supreme Court ruling this summer — is still set to go into effect. That is the point of no return. As millions of Americans change their professions, they will lose their current health-care plans, and because of the mandate, be forced into government-run, taxpayer-subsidized insurance exchanges. As a result, they will be driven off privately run plans into a labyrinthine bureaucracy of red tape and rationing.
Irrevocably, this law will interfere with life-and-death decisions best left to doctors and patients, and as the government runs out of money, will reduce benefits and increase costs. The American people were better off with a system with real choices that they fund themselves, instead of this government-run nightmare.
Bill Wilson is president of Americans for Limited Government (ALG), which describes itself as a non-partisan, nationwide network committed to advancing free-market reforms, private property rights, and core American liberties. This editorial is drawn from a news release ALG issued March 19.
America Trusts Small Business as Key to Economic Recovery
The solution to America’s biggest challenge is small. Small business, that is. Most Americans know and understand that the only way to put the nation’s economy back on its feet is to put people back to work. However, that simple message has become muddled in the pandemonium that has engulfed candidates of both parties in
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The solution to America’s biggest challenge is small. Small business, that is.
Most Americans know and understand that the only way to put the nation’s economy back on its feet is to put people back to work. However, that simple message has become muddled in the pandemonium that has engulfed candidates of both parties in their race for the White House.
And, most Americans know and understand that the only way to put people back to work is to trust small-business owners to do what they do best: create jobs. Those who own and operate Main Street’s small firms can only create jobs if the federal government learns to trust small business as most citizens do and stop putting obstacles in the way.
It all comes down to trust. That’s where small-business owners stand tall in the minds and hearts of people across this country. “Americans put the most trust in the ideas and opinions of small-business owners and local business leaders on how best to create jobs,” the Gallup polling organization reported recently.
By a wide margin — 79 percent — those who responded to pollsters put small-business owners at the top of their list of leaders whose ideas and opinions they trust to create jobs in the United States. Far down the list at 45 percent were executives of major corporations and below them ranked members of Congress.
Gallup noted that the high level of trust placed in small business is not anything new. When researchers studied Americans’ confidence in national institutions, they found greater reliance in small business than any institution other than the armed forces.
Far on the other side of the scale was big business, which earns only low levels of confidence. Even a decade ago, a Gallup poll conducted for American Express determined that CEOs of large corporations were trusted by less than one-fourth of those asked, while people who run small businesses held a 75 percent level of trust.
Yet on the campaign trail, the candidates are allowing themselves to be whipsawed by special-interest groups pushing agendas that have nothing to do with restoring the economy. That’s not to say that many of those issues aren’t important, but none even come close to the urgent challenges of steering the economy away from another recession.
Most Americans know and understand that. A February CBS/New York Times poll revealed that 66 percent responding felt that economic issues were far more important than social issues — 22 percent — in making their decisions about which candidate to support.
The solution to America’s biggest challenge is obvious. Those running for president would be well advised to put some of the non-urgent issues on the back burner and instill confidence in voters by assuring them that if elected, they’ll get right to work clearing the government obstacles and helping small business do what it does best — create jobs.
And, how can the next president of the United States do that? By listening to the people most Americans trust — small-business owners. They’re eager and ready to suggest real solutions. Trust them.
Dan Danner is president and CEO of the NFIB, which represents 350,000 small-business owners in Washington, D.C. and every state capital.
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