Hueber-Breuer supports ESF’s capital campaign with $250K donation

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SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Hueber-Breuer Construction Co., Inc. of Syracuse has pledged $250,000 to the Campaign for ESF, the largest fundraising initiative in the history of

BCA establishes charitable partnership with NNY Community Foundation

Construction, Design & Real Estate, North Country, Subscriber Only

WATERTOWN — The 15 Public Square Foundation is a new charitable foundation that Watertown–based BCA Architects & Engineers started a few months ago in partnership with Northern New York (NNY) Community Foundation. The effort “solidifies the firm’s dedication to the people and places it serves,” the NNY Community Foundation said in its March 21 announcement

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The effort “solidifies the firm’s dedication to the people and places it serves,” the NNY Community Foundation said in its March 21 announcement about the partnership.

BCA Architects & Engineers provides architectural and engineering services with a staff of more than 100 and offices in Watertown, Ithaca, Rochester, Binghamton, Troy, Saratoga Springs, and Syracuse, per its LinkedIn profile.

The 15 Public Square Foundation will “amplify BCA’s impact, supporting initiatives that make a real difference across the state,” the NNY Community Foundation said.

“We are grateful for the trust that BCA Architects & Engineers has put in the Community Foundation with the creation of this charitable fund,” Max DelSignore, VP of the Northern New York Community Foundation, said. “The firm has been deeply invested in its communities for decades. We look forward to having a lasting relationship with BCA, while providing guidance and responsible stewardship to accomplish its charitable endeavors.”

Why the name 15 Public Square? Travis Overton, CEO of BCA Architects & Engineers, explained that it’s “more than an address — it’s the heart of the city” where the firm’s story began.

“Since our founding in 1970 as a small civil engineering and surveying firm, BCA has grown into a 120-person, full-service architecture and engineering firm with seven offices across New York,” Overton said in the NNY Community Foundation announcement. “As we’ve expanded, so has our passion for giving back. This foundation represents a long-term vision for our philanthropy, reinforcing our belief that the work we do isn’t just about buildings and infrastructure — it’s about strengthening communities.”

Overton went on to say, “The 15 Public Square Foundation gives us a platform to expand our philanthropic reach statewide, ensuring that our support extends beyond our projects and into the fabric of the communities we help shape.”

With this initiative, BCA is “deepening its commitment to making meaningful, lasting” contributions to the communities that have supported the firm for more than half a century.

“We are honored to partner with the Northern New York Community Foundation to ensure this legacy of giving continues to grow,” Overton said. “Together, we’re building a stronger, more connected New York.”

Onondaga Grown campaign begins 11th year

Energy, Environment & Sustainability, Featured, Law, Accounting & Taxes, New York News, Nonprofits, Small Business, Sports, Entertainment & Tourism

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — The 11th year of the “Buy Local. Buy Onondaga Grown.” campaign is now underway. The Onondaga County Agriculture Council launched the campaign

Le Moyne College selects Salt City Coffee to operate eatery in McNeil Firehouse

Subscriber Only, Construction, Design & Real Estate, Education & Training, New York News, Nonprofits, Small Business, Sports, Entertainment & Tourism

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Le Moyne College says it has selected Salt City Coffee to operate Barb’s Bistro that will open in the McNeil Firehouse at 1150 Salt Spring Road in Syracuse late this summer. Salt City Coffee is the anchor tenant of the Salt City Market on South Salina Street in Syracuse and has four

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Community Memorial Hospital receives Excellus award in support of biopsy program

Employee Benefits & Human Resources, Health Care, Insurance & Financial Services, Mohawk Valley, New York News, Nonprofits, Southern Tier

HAMILTON, N.Y. — The Community Memorial Hospital (CMH) Center for Surgical Services has received a 2025 Health and Wellness Award from Excellus BlueCross BlueShield to

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Cayuga Milk Ingredients’ expanded plant near Auburn is now open

Construction, Design & Real Estate, Energy, Environment & Sustainability, Manufacturing & Engineering, Subscriber Only

AURELIUS — Cayuga Milk Ingredients (CMI) is now operating in a $270 million expanded plant in the Cayuga County town of Aurelius, near Auburn. The new facility will allow the company to more than double its workforce, adding up to 150 new jobs to the existing workforce of 100 employees, the office of Gov. Kathy

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AURELIUS — Cayuga Milk Ingredients (CMI) is now operating in a $270 million expanded plant in the Cayuga County town of Aurelius, near Auburn.

The new facility will allow the company to more than double its workforce, adding up to 150 new jobs to the existing workforce of 100 employees, the office of Gov. Kathy Hochul announced June 18.

The addition will also allow the company to better serve its clients and “create opportunities” for New York dairy farmers as well.

The company formally opened the expansion in a ceremony held June 18.

CMI announced the grand opening in collaboration with Tetra Pak, a food-processing and packaging-solutions company, per a separate company statement. The U.S. and Canadian operations of Tetra Pak are headquartered in Denton, Texas, a company spokesperson tells CNYBJ in an email.

“Tetra Pak started working with Cayuga in early 2023 on the processing scope for their new aseptic plant,” the spokesperson says. “Cayuga wanted to have a partner that not only supplies equipment but also supports the technological and product development aspects of the project on this new journey for them. They soon realized that it’s not just about the UHT [ultra-high temperature] process, but all of the processes around it which create a superior product, and which we are able to provide.”

New York State is supporting the project through a $4 million capital grant and up to $4 million made available through the performance-based, Excelsior Jobs tax-credit program in exchange for job-creation commitments.

Cayuga Milk Ingredients says it is a farmer-owned dairy processor, producing premium milk and dairy ingredients for customers across the globe. The announcement comes as the state acknowledges Dairy Month this June, Hochul’s office noted.

“Cayuga Milk Ingredients is proud to be a key player in New York’s dairy industry, with the investment in our new aseptic and extended shelf-life fluid dairy production facility driving long term growth in our community with more than 150 new permanent jobs, as well as another [350-plus] jobs during facility construction,” Brian Linney, Cayuga Milk Ingredients and Cayuga Marketing CEO, said in the state’s announcement. “We are grateful for the support of Governor Hochul in this project expansion as we work to ensure the continued success and longevity of the agricultural industry in New York State.”

The first phase of the expansion at the Eagle Drive facility included the purchase and installation of a UHT/aseptic low acid packaging system and a new reverse osmosis filtration system. The second phase included the addition of machinery and equipment, and the expansion of the facility’s wastewater-treatment plant.

In its facility, CMI monitors all aspects of product integrity, offering a “high level” of traceability and sustainability, combining innovative manufacturing technology with a focus on reducing their environmental impact, Hochul’s office said.

CMI processes more than 1.5 billion pounds of milk from 22 family-owned dairy farms within the region. The farmer-owners are “recognized globally for their higher level of commitment” in animal welfare, environmental sustainability, and worker wellness “all based around a culture of continuous improvement,” the governor’s office noted.

Natural foods co-op opens in village of Clinton

Construction, Design & Real Estate, Mohawk Valley, Small Business, Subscriber Only

CLINTON, N.Y. — When Tom’s Natural Foods closed in 2021, the village of Clinton wasn’t just left without a beloved store. It lost a hub where people would gather not just to purchase local vegetables, meats, and more, but also to say hi to a friend. Now, through a literal cooperative effort, the village has

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Now, through a literal cooperative effort, the village has such a place again with the opening of Tom’s Natural Foods Co-op.

“Tom’s really was a community institution,” says Jim Frederick, one of the co-op’s board members. It was a place where people felt at home, and the community really stepped up to support opening a co-op, he adds.

The co-op effort began about a month before the original Tom’s, which was under new ownership, closed in April 2021. However, the group wasn’t organized enough to start operations before the store closed. So, the group took its time to craft by-laws, build its membership, and line up financing to open a co-op. Naming it after Tom’s just felt right, he says.

The co-op first opened in December 2024, starting with just Saturdays. Located at 3 Fountain St., the store has about 900 square feet of retail space. Now, the store is open four days a week (Wednesday through Saturday) staffed by volunteers. The co-op offers local, minimally processed, and responsibly packaged foods including spices, herbs, flour, meat, dairy, vegetables, eggs, dried fruits, nuts, coffee, chocolates, and more.

“We wanted to be local,” Frederick says. “We wanted to be fresh. We wanted to be bulk. We wanted to be minimally processed or packaged.”

The spices, in particular, have been a bit hit, Frederick says. In homage to the original store, the co-op has tried to recreate the same type of spice display and offerings with bulk containers that allow people to take as much or as little of whatever spice they choose.

Shoppers can bring in their own bags, bottles, or jars to fill with items, whether they are spices or other offerings such as flour, oats, or rice. In fact, the co-op encourages people to bring reusable containers to help eliminate waste.

The process has been a learning one, Frederick notes, but the co-op is getting up to speed. “None of us has experience in retail grocery,” he says. “We’re just feeling our way.” That includes everything from what to stock to how to display it. Overall, Frederick says the co-op board is pleased with the selection the co-op has to offer.

He is also happy with the progress the co-op has made toward its goals, the first of which was to rebuild that sense of community the original Tom’s store provided. “I think we’ve been fairly successful in doing that,” Frederick says.

The co-op has also been successful in supporting local producers. It sources chicken and cheese from Jones Family Farm and eggs from Oliver’s Organic Eggs, both in Herkimer County, and beef from Blue Sky Ranch in Waterville.

Finally, the co-op is working to have an impact on the nutrition and dietary needs of the community by providing those fresh, local foods.

“It was important to me to make those things available to the community,” Frederick, a retired doctor, says.

The co-op is open Wednesday from 11 a.m.-6 p.m., Thursday from 11 a.m.-4 p.m., Friday from 11 a.m.-2:30 p.m., and Saturday from 10 a.m.-4 p.m.

New York home sales drop nearly 11 percent in May

Construction, Design & Real Estate, Subscriber Only

ALBANY — New York realtors closed on the sale of 7,846 previously owned homes in May, down 10.9 percent from the 8,807 homes they sold in May 2024. At the same time, pending sales fell slightly in May, perhaps foreshadowing further declines in closed home sales in the next couple months. That is according to

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ALBANY — New York realtors closed on the sale of 7,846 previously owned homes in May, down 10.9 percent from the 8,807 homes they sold in May 2024.

At the same time, pending sales fell slightly in May, perhaps foreshadowing further declines in closed home sales in the next couple months. That is according to the New York State Association of Realtors (NYSAR) May housing report issued on June 23.

“Home sales dropped across New York State in May as mortgage rates continued to remain above seven percent,” NYSAR said to open its housing report. NYSAR cites Freddie Mac as indicating mortgage rates hit as high as 7.22 percent in May and settled at an average monthly rate on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage of 7.06 percent. A year ago, at this time, the interest rate stood at 6.43 percent. Freddie Mac is the more common way of referring to the Virginia–based Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation.

New York sales data

Pending home sales totaled 10,279 in May in New York, a drop of 1.4 percent from 10,421 pending sales in the same month in 2024, according to the NYSAR data.

The housing supply in the state rose modestly in the latest month after a prolonged period of tight supply. The inventory of homes for sale totaled 28,810 in May, up 3.6 percent from the May 2024 figure of 27,806. The months’ supply of homes for sale at the end of May stood at 3.3 months’ supply, up from 3.1 months at the end of May 2024, per NYSAR. A 6 month to 6.5-month supply is considered a balanced market. New listings of homes in the state increased 3 percent to 15,745 this May from 15,279 in the year-prior period.

The May 2025 statewide median sales price was $436,000, up 3.8 percent from the May 2024 median sales price of $420,000.

Central New York data

Realtors in Onondaga County sold 255 previously owned homes in May, down 25 percent from the 340 homes sold in the same month in 2024. The median sales price increased about 5 percent to more than $252,000, up from $240,000 a year ago, NYSAR said.

The association also reports that realtors sold 94 homes in Oneida County in May, down about 31 percent from the 136 sold during May 2024. The median sales price increased 18 percent to nearly $236,000 from $200,000 a year ago.

In Broome County, realtors sold 111 existing homes in May, down nearly 7 percent from the 119 sold a year prior, according to the NYSAR report. The median sales price of nearly $206,000 was up almost 23 percent from $168,000 a year earlier.

Realtors in Jefferson County closed on the sale of 89 homes in May, down nearly 9 percent from the 98 homes sold a year ago, and the median sales price of $248,000 was up more than 15 percent from nearly $215,000 a year before, according to the NYSAR data.

All home-sales data is compiled from multiple-listing services in New York, and it includes townhomes and condominiums in addition to existing single-family homes, according to NYSAR.

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