Upstate Medical University to acquire Crouse Health in combination of two big Syracuse hospitals

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SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Upstate Medical University on Thursday announced plans to acquire the operations of Crouse Health, which would become part of the Upstate Medical

Office building on Kirkville Road in DeWitt sells for $4.4 million

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DeWITT, N.Y. — The 44,500-square-foot office building at 6601 Kirkville Road in DeWitt was recently sold. DeStefano Development, LLC purchased the property — which includes the two-story office building located on nearly four acres — from Galson Realty, LLC for $4.4 million, according to a CBRE/Syracuse news release. Ed Kiesa, of CBRE/Syracuse, represented Galson Realty

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DeWitt property that was former home of auto-repair business was sold for $540,000

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DeWITT, N.Y. — The 4.68-acre property, with four buildings on it, at 6485 Collamer Road in DeWitt was recently sold for $540,000. Tartan Mechanical, an auto-repair business used to occupy the space, but relocated to 7973 Brownell Road in the town of Sullivan in Madison County, according to a release from CBRE/Syracuse. Ed Kiesa, of

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New York milk producer prices jump in latest monthly report from USDA

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Milk prices at the producer level rose sharply in New York state in the latest month for which data is available. New York dairy farms in January were paid an average of $24.70 per hundredweight of milk, up $2.70, or more than 12 percent, from $22 in December. Milk prices received were up $7.60, or

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Oneida County’s hotel occupancy jumps in February

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UTICA, N.Y. — Oneida County’s hotels saw an influx of guests in February compared to a year ago as they continue to bounce back from the pandemic. The county’s hotel-occupancy rate (rooms sold as a percentage of rooms available) increased 23.4 percent to 52.6 percent in February from the year-prior month. That’s according to a

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Jefferson County hotels were fuller in February

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WATERTOWN, N.Y. — Jefferson County hotels attracted more overnight guests in February compared to the year-prior month, as the hospitality industry continued to come back from the pandemic’s effects, according to a recent report. The hotel-occupancy rate (rooms sold as a percentage of rooms available) in the county jumped 22.9 percent to 43.5 percent in

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Baltimore Woods’ land buy is phase 1 of expansion campaign

Construction, Design & Real Estate, Energy, Environment & Sustainability, Sports, Entertainment & Tourism, Subscriber Only

MARCELLUS, N.Y. — Baltimore Woods Nature Center is looking ahead to the next phases of its multi-year expansion campaign after its purchase of 90 additional acres of land adjacent to the existing preserve, expanding to 272 acres. Baltimore Woods three years ago launched the multi-year, $1 million “Expanding Boundaries Campaign,” which is focused on creating

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Baltimore Woods three years ago launched the multi-year, $1 million “Expanding Boundaries Campaign,” which is focused on creating new opportunities for outdoor recreation, environmental education, and research for the Central New York region.

The acquisition of the additional land represents the “first milestone,” or phase one in the campaign, “serving as a foundation for continued growth of the organization as well as the opportunities for people of all ages to connect to nature in every season.”

Baltimore Woods Nature Center bought the additional land from Bishop Hill Ventures in a deal that closed on March 30, Stacy Drake, marketing coordinator at Baltimore Woods, tells CNYBJ in an email. The nonprofit declined to disclose how much it paid for the additional land.

The 90 added acres aren’t yet open to the public, but the nature center expects to unveil the first hiking trail on the new land sometime in June, Baltimore Woods said in its April 4 announcement.

The deal means the extension of more than six miles of trails that are open to the community year-round and “increases the diversity of conserved ecosystems and habitats” including forests, fields, streams, ponds, and wetlands, Baltimore Woods contends.

The second phase of the ongoing campaign includes establishment of an endowment for stewardship of this new property, an expansion of the John A. Weeks Interpretive Center at Baltimore Woods, and development of new trails and amenities on the expanded acreage.

“One of the most amazing things about this acquisition process has been getting to partner with so many organizations and individuals who believed in this project,” Whitney Lash-Marshall, executive director of Baltimore Woods, said in a statement. “We have heard stories from people who have been a part of Baltimore Woods since it began and have shared the preserve with multiple generations of family members and friends. As we integrate this new land into the current preserve, we hope that long into the future it will continue to serve as a special place for everyone to experience the many benefits of time spent out in nature.”

Baltimore Woods Nature Center, founded in 1966, is located at 4007 Bishop Hill Road in Marcellus. The organization’s mission is to foster lasting stewardship of the natural world by offering immersive programs and a place in Central New York for everyone to cultivate appreciation and personal connections to nature through environmental education, recreation, play, and research.

Cheese cave, milk and cookies bar planned at Utica bakery

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UTICA, N.Y. — Changes including a milk and cookies “bar” and an artisanal cheese cave are coming to the historic Hemstrought’s Bakery under its current owner. Dan Dowe, who is also executive chairman of Artisanal Premium Cheese, purchased Hemstrought’s in 2019. His plans will combine both businesses into the Utica location, which he also seeks

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UTICA, N.Y. — Changes including a milk and cookies “bar” and an artisanal cheese cave are coming to the historic Hemstrought’s Bakery under its current owner.

Dan Dowe, who is also executive chairman of Artisanal Premium Cheese, purchased Hemstrought’s in 2019. His plans will combine both businesses into the Utica location, which he also seeks to transform into a regional shipping hub for online sales.

“It’s going to be fun and exciting here,” Dowe says. Along with the location serving as a shipping hub and the addition the milk and cookies bar, the big piece of Dowe’s planned remodel of the 900 Oswego St. facility is the additional of a cheese cave.

Dowe has owned Artisanal, founded in New York City, since 2007. When the Hemstrought’s Bakery became available, the Utica native purchased it and decided the building was an ideal home base for both businesses.

The idea for the cheese cave came about after he filled a case at the bakery with some of Artisanal Cheese’s offerings.

“When I put the cheeses out front, it got a little buzz,” with local customers, he says. Artisanal already does a steady online business that he expects will only grow with the cheese cave.

Currently, Dowe has a walk-in cooler that he uses for the cheese-aging process that is integral to his business. Affinage, the French term that refers to caring for cheese as it ages, requires precise temperature and humidity controls. The current cooler gives Artisanal enough room to age about 100 distinct types of cheese, but only harder types of cheese can be aged in the cooler.

The cave will double the variety of cheeses Artisanal can age and allow the company to add softer cheeses. “This is going to allow us to get into more decadent cheese,” Dowe quips.

On the bakery side, Hemstrought’s purchased a used Bongard deck oven that will allow it to expand its line of bread products to include old world European breads including pumpernickel and rye, Dowe says. He also plans to launch an online business for par-baked loaves that customers can finish baking at home.

Dowe hopes to break ground by summer on the project, which he expects to cost between $500,000 and $600,000. Work will include reconfiguring the current retail area of the store to create one central entrance that leads to both a bakery retail space, the cheese cave, and a curated wine and spirits section.

To help fund the project, Dowe is offering an early ownership opportunity via a crowdfunding campaign on Mainvest.com. With prices starting at $500, investors can purchase ownership units in the company and will receive some treats like the bakery’s iconic Halfmoon cookies and a selection of cheeses. A $500 investment would provide 1/50th of a unit of ownership.

Dowe is hoping the campaign will generate about $1.5 million for the company, which he plans to take public. When the business goes public, those who invested via Mainvest will receive shares in the company.

He’s hoping the work will wrap up by Labor Day, in time for fall tourism and parent’s weekends at local colleges.

Currently, Dowe employs 29 people. With the new retail spaces, he expects to add about 10 more jobs. Once the fulfillment center is up and running, he expects total employment to be about 45.

He’s working on several partnerships he believes will boost sales for Artisanal, including Omaha Steaks, Wine.com, and Saranac to pair cheeses with their products in curated offerings. Dowe expects sales to increase from last year’s $2 million to about $6 million.

Chef Terrance Brennan founded Artisanal Premium Cheese (www.artisanalcheese.com) in the wine room of New York City restaurant Picholine.

Hemstrought’s was formed in 1920 by Harry B. Hemstrought who sold his half-moon cookies from a bakery on Genesee Street in Utica.

Upstate, statewide consumer sentiment decline in Q1

Employee Benefits & Human Resources, Health Care, New York News, Nonprofits, Regional News, Small Business, Subscriber Only

Consumer sentiment in upstate New York fell 3.4 points to 60.6 in the first quarter of this year from the last measure of 64.0 in the final quarter of 2021. That’s according to the latest quarterly survey of upstate and statewide consumer sentiment that the Siena College Research Institute (SRI) released April 7. Upstate’s overall

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Consumer sentiment in upstate New York fell 3.4 points to 60.6 in the first quarter of this year from the last measure of 64.0 in the final quarter of 2021.

That’s according to the latest quarterly survey of upstate and statewide consumer sentiment that the Siena College Research Institute (SRI) released April 7.

Upstate’s overall sentiment of 60.6 in the first quarter was 7.4 points below the statewide consumer-sentiment level of 68.0, which fell 5.1 points from the fourth quarter.

The statewide reading was 8.6 points higher than the first-quarter figure of 59.4 for the entire nation, as measured by the University of Michigan’s consumer-sentiment index.

Both the current and future indexes fell about 5 points resulting in New York’s decline from 73.1 last quarter to 68.0 today. The national indexes all decreased between six and nine points in the last quarter, per SRI. Overall confidence is higher in New York than nationally with future confidence in New York below the breakeven point of optimism and pessimism but 17.5 points higher than a national low of future confidence not seen since October 2011.

Inflation plus war equals uncertainty for consumers, Don Levy, director of SRI, said.

“The index has fallen to where it briefly stood when the coronavirus first slammed our economy. New York’s overall and future numbers are much higher than the national outlook owing to a partisan economic sentiment divide in which Democrats — a better than 2-1 advantage in New York — remain upbeat about the future while Republicans in this survey recorded the lowest consumer sentiment score ever recorded in a Siena survey,” Levy said. “Gas prices and their impact is taking our collective breath away hitting Republicans, Upstaters, and women the hardest. While buying plans remained strong, increasing for cars, major home improvements are nearly seven points under last year’s forecast.”

In the first quarter of 2022, buying plans in New York rose 2.8 percentage points from the fourth quarter of 2021 measurement to 20.6 percent for cars/trucks, and inched up 1.1 points to 11.1 percent for homes. Buying plans were down 6.4 points to 40.7 percent for consumer electronics, declined 4.9 points to 27.1 percent for furniture, and fell 6.7 percent to 24.4 percent for major home improvements, SRI said.

Gas and food prices

In SRI’s quarterly analysis of gas and food prices, 73 percent of upstate New York respondents said the price of gas was having a serious impact on their monthly budgets, up from 70 percent in the final quarter of 2021 and 58 percent in the third quarter of last year.

In addition, 66 percent of statewide respondents said the price of gas was having a serious impact on their monthly spending plans, up from 61 percent in the fourth quarter of last year and 54 percent in both the third and second quarters of 2021.

When asked about food prices, 69 percent of upstate respondents indicated the price of groceries was having a serious impact on their finances, down from 75 percent in the fourth quarter of 2021 but up from 65 percent in the third quarter of last year.

At the same time, 72 percent of statewide respondents indicated the price of food was having a serious impact on their monthly finances, which is the same as the fourth quarter of 2021 but up from 66 percent in the third quarter of last year.

SRI conducted its survey of consumer sentiment from March 14-17 by random telephone calls to 401 New York adults via landline and cell phone. It has an overall margin of error of plus or minus 3.7 percentage points, according to SRI.

Rock City Centre offers co-working space in Little Falls

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LITTLE FALLS, N.Y. — Rock City Centre opened its doors in Little Falls last November, providing co-working space to individuals, businesses, and entrepreneurs looking to utilize shared office space. “The whole concept is to get different companies in here together, sharing that co-working space, bouncing ideas off each other,” says building manager Dean Gaylord. The

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“The whole concept is to get different companies in here together, sharing that co-working space, bouncing ideas off each other,” says building manager Dean Gaylord.

The building, owned by entrepreneur and Little Falls native Martin Babinec, features a variety of workspaces located on its two floors. They range from simple seating areas to co-working stations to private offices, depending on what members need.

Rather than lock clients into long-term leases for space, Rock City Centre offers membership packages of varying levels. For less than $100 a month, members can get 96 hours for one person to use in the building’s business-lounge spaces. For $700 per month, members can utilize 80 hours of private office time for up to five people plus unlimited use of the business lounge and co-working areas. Membership packages in between offer different options, making it easy for anyone to find a package that works for their needs, Gaylord contends.

Included in those packages are access to the building’s kitchenette including coffee and espresso, lockers to keep personal belongings secure, and all the utilities and technology services needed to keep a business running.

“It’s really very affordable to get into a space like this,” Gaylord says. The building is available to members 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Rock City Centre uses Proximity Mobile to control the space, with members using an app on their phone to book their time in the building and open the doors.

In addition to the workspaces, Rock City Centre (RCC) also has a multipurpose room and a board room, both complete with audio/visual equipment. The board room is currently being fitted with a video-conferencing system making it perfect for remote meetings, Gaylord says.

There is also a glass-walled meeting pod on the first floor that members can use when they are conducting confidential business but don’t have access to one of the offices.

Among the building’s more unique features are the living walls it has on both floors. The walls hold an array of plants from floor to ceiling that not only add visual appeal, but help improve the quality of the air inside, Gaylord notes.

The space has been well received since opening with 30 members already, Gaylord says. Most of the growth to date has come from word-of-mouth advertising as existing members spread the word, but RCC will soon be developing a more comprehensive plan to reach out to more potential members.

One of the center’s newest tenants is Strategic Financial Services of Utica.

“Rock City Centre offered us an opportunity to build on a community of like-minded businesses focused on growth, serving a larger purpose,” Strategic’s CEO Alan Leist III says. “There is great power in the RCC model, and we are thrilled to be a part of it all.”

Gaylord hopes the building will be popular with larger companies that have offices along the Thruway corridor. Little Falls is located about halfway between Syracuse and Albany, making it a convenient location for companies that have facilities in both of those cities, he notes.

“This is going to be a hub for a lot of those companies,” he predicts.

On top of the office space, Rock City Centre also has a rooftop event space available for rental. That venue currently has capacity for 70 guests but can hold between 80 and 100 if needed.

“This is going to be a great space for companies to hold private functions,” Gaylord contends. The building has a commercial kitchen on the second floor for caterers to use for events and is obtaining its liquor license so it can offer bar packages for events. RCC plans to hold several ticketed community events in the space this summer.

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