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MVHS lab services and pharmacy open in new medical office building

Health Care, Construction, Design & Real Estate, Mohawk Valley, New York News, Nonprofits, Subscriber Only

UTICA, N.Y. — Mohawk Valley Health System (MVHS) recently opened laboratory services and a pharmacy in the new MVHS Medical Office Building at 601 State St., next to the Wynn Hospital. The openings come 10 months after the hospital opened in October 2023. The lab offers both clinical and pathology services, with most testing taking

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Destiny USA to host latest job fair on Wednesday

Small Business, Education & Training, Employee Benefits & Human Resources, Featured, Health Care, Nonprofits, Sports, Entertainment & Tourism

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Destiny USA says it will host another in-person job fair on Wednesday, Aug. 7 from 2-6 p.m. in the Canyon area. Dubbed

Syracuse airport to hold live-fire training and emergency exercise this week

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SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Syracuse Hancock International Airport (SYR) says it will conduct live-fire training and its triennial full-scale emergency exercise this week. The federally mandated training will begin with daily and nightly live-fire training on Wednesday. It will culminate with the full-scale, emergency-response exercise on Saturday, the Syracuse Regional Airport Authority (SRAA) said Monday. During

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Le Moyne working with NYC firm to raise $40 million for athletics, wellness

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SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Le Moyne College has entered into a five-year agreement with the firm Legends to raise $40 million to support the upcoming renovation of the Thomas J. Niland Jr. Athletic Complex. “This partnership will benefit the entire campus community,” Le Moyne President Linda LeMura said in the school’s announcement. “The planned renovations to

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SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Le Moyne College has entered into a five-year agreement with the firm Legends to raise $40 million to support the upcoming renovation of the Thomas J. Niland Jr. Athletic Complex.

“This partnership will benefit the entire campus community,” Le Moyne President Linda LeMura said in the school’s announcement. “The planned renovations to the Niland complex will add to and upgrade our fields, fitness and wellness facilities used by students, faculty and staff, as well as those living in the neighborhoods surrounding campus. Working with Legends will allow our advancement and innovation team to continue to focus on academics and other key areas of fundraising.”

Mike Behan, who graduated from Le Moyne in 2005, is the president of Legends’ college division, the school noted.

Founded in 2008, New York City–based Legends describes itself as a “premium experiences company” with six divisions that include global planning, global sales, hospitality, global partnerships, global merchandise, and Legends IQ.

Legends launched its philanthropy practice in 2017 and has built a “successful fundraising track record,” Le Moyne said.

The firm has worked with the University of Notre Dame, the University of Oklahoma, the University of Southern California, Villanova University, and the Rose Bowl. All told, the company has assisted in maximizing revenue associated with more than $2 billion in new and renovated facility projects.

The company’s IQ division provides the “business intelligence driving and informing its work.”

“I’m excited that we are bringing in a global leader to help us achieve our goals in the athletics, fitness and wellness areas,” Jim Joseph, VP for advancement and innovation and dean of the Madden College of Business and Economics, said in the school’s announcement. “Working seamlessly as one team, advancement and innovation and Legends will also procure resources for athletic scholarships and other athletic-focused endowment funds.”

In addition to working on donations to fund the immediate athletics needs, the Legends approach is to develop a “sustainable fundraising model” to provide for annual gifts going forward, “building a culture of athletic philanthropy that will develop a pipeline” for major gifts in the future.

“It brings me great pride that Legends has the privilege to partner with Le Moyne, my alma mater,” Behan said. “This is a transformative time for Le Moyne given its recent move to Division I. We look forward to supporting the College in reaching new heights!”

Excellus opens new Utica regional office

Construction, Design & Real Estate, Employee Benefits & Human Resources, Featured, Health Care, Insurance & Financial Services, Mohawk Valley, New York News, Nonprofits, Subscriber Only

UTICA, N.Y. — Excellus BlueCross BlueShield celebrated the opening of its new Utica regional employee office with a ribbon-cutting event with the Greater Utica Chamber of Commerce on July 31. The new space, located at 301 Wood Park Drive in Clinton, serves the health insurer’s more than 500 regional employees. “During the pandemic, the world

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OnaJava Coffee & Soul Café holds soft opening in long-vacant South Salina Street building

Small Business, Construction, Design & Real Estate, Nonprofits, Sports, Entertainment & Tourism, Subscriber Only

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — OnaJava Coffee & Soul Café held a soft-opening event on Friday in the redeveloped former Sumner Hunt building at 1555 S. Salina St. in Syracuse at the intersection with East Kennedy Street. The event represented a “revival” of the original OnaJava on the city’s South side 20 years ago. It “will be

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The event represented a “revival” of the original OnaJava on the city’s South side 20 years ago. It “will be a space focused on building community through food, coffee, music, poetry, and art,” the City of Syracuse said in its advisory about the Friday event.

The coffee house will begin operations serving breakfast, lunch, and coffee in mid-August, per a Home HeadQuarters Inc. announcement about the OnaJava project.

Home HeadQuarters developed the mixed-use property into new affordable apartments on the upper level. It also selected owner and neighborhood resident Reggie Pickard to occupy the updated commercial space on the main level with OnaJava.

“We were so captivated by his vision for this building,” Kerry Quaglia, founder and CEO of Home HeadQuarters, said in his remarks at Friday’s event.

The OnaJava coffee house is part of Home HeadQuarters’ effort in redeveloping the 1,600-square-foot property that also includes two 3-bedroom apartments on the second level. The City of Syracuse, Empire State Development, and the Allyn Family Foundation provided funding for the project.

The coffee-house project has a total value of more than $225,000, per the City of Syracuse website. The city also awarded the initiative $50,000 in funding from the American Rescue Plan Act.

Pickard grew up around coffee, food service, and entertainment. His mother owned a restaurant in Syracuse in the early 1990s. Before that, his family managed entertainment at the Pan American Village at the New York State Fair. He also operated the original OnaJava Coffee & Soul Café on the city’s Southwest side 20 years ago, per the Home HeadQuarters announcement about OnaJava.

“My heart goes out to everyone that’s here today. The spirit is great. I just love it,” Pickard said in addressing the gathering at the Friday soft opening.

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Trail and boardwalk project complete in the Nelson Swamp Unique Area in Madison County

Construction, Design & Real Estate, Energy, Environment & Sustainability, Mohawk Valley, New York News, Nonprofits, Sports, Entertainment & Tourism, Subscriber Only

NELSON, N.Y. — Crews have completed work on the half-mile Chittenango Creek boardwalk accessible-trail project through Nelson Swamp Unique Area in Madison County. The trail and boardwalk “meander through a mosaic of low-lying wet meadows, deciduous woods, dark groves of cedar and pine,” and the upper portion of Chittenango Creek as it winds toward Lake

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NELSON, N.Y. — Crews have completed work on the half-mile Chittenango Creek boardwalk accessible-trail project through Nelson Swamp Unique Area in Madison County.

The trail and boardwalk “meander through a mosaic of low-lying wet meadows, deciduous woods, dark groves of cedar and pine,” and the upper portion of Chittenango Creek as it winds toward Lake Ontario, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) said in its announcement.

The $760,600 boardwalk project was funded through the state’s Environmental Protection Fund (EPF).

“DEC is thrilled to join our town of Nelson partners to dedicate the accessible, collaboratively designed Chittenango Creek Boardwalk that will provide convenient recreational opportunities at the remarkable Nelson Swamp Unique Area in Madison County,” Dereth Glance, director of DEC region 7, said in the announcement. “The boardwalk project connects people of all ages and abilities to the Nelson hamlet area and boasts scenic overlooks of the creek and bench seating to soak in the wonderous sights and sounds of this lush wetland.”

The 979-acre Nelson Swamp Unique Area is about 20 miles southeast of Syracuse featuring more than 400 cataloged species of plants, including several species of orchid. The area is also known to support a diverse population of breeding birds as well.

The DEC recently added 7.5 acres to the unique area following a donation by the Town of Nelson government that included a 0.2-mile section of trail and boardwalk completed by the town in 2021.

The full 0.5-miles of accessible trail is now part of a 1.3-mile pedestrian walkway loop connecting local businesses, town offices, natural resources, and town parkland. The DEC worked with the Town of Nelson, Nelson Swamp Trail Committee, and Nelson Streetscape committee to design the new trail and boardwalk to support the community’s connectivity vision, the department said.

“Through our partnership with DEC, the Chittenango Creek Boardwalk trail provides the public with access to the ‘uniqueness’ of Nelson Swamp Unique Area and our community with connectivity throughout the hamlet,” Nelson Town Councilor Jennifer Marti said. “The project places Nelson on the map for the beauty of our outdoors and the potential that our location offers for smart growth into the future.”

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