B
Y usIness
// INTERVIEW: BASSMASTERS ELITE EVENT
COORDINATOR BOB GIORDANO P. 28
JUNE 2015 Volume 5 No. 7
nnybizmag.com
tourism’s ebb & f low optimism high, Despite a dip in canadian visits to region $2.95
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// Northern New York’s Premier Business Monthly //
2 | NNY Business | June 2015
June 2015 | NNY Business
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Inside JUNE 2015 20
14 44
26 |
COVER |
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SMALL BIZ STARTUP |
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14 marketing NNY Despite some new challenges, regional tourism businesses look ahead with optimism. |
13 North country tech A Lewis County native has taken mobile to new heights with his new tech business. |
FEATURES |
20 COMFORT ON WHEELS For one military mom, a love of good food has her hitting the road in a new food truck.
SMALL BUSINESS |
22 putting local first WatertownFirst is a new nonprofit that hopes to bolster local businesses. REAL ESTATE |
26 An industry educator Meet a woman who teaches local real estate professionals. |
TOP TRANSACTIONS |
27 JEFFERSON COUNTY The top 10 property sales in the Jefferson and St. Lawrence counties topped more than $10m in April.
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BUSINESS SCENE |
40 NETWORKING, NNY STYLE From Jefferson to Lewis counties, businessmen and women connect for success. |
BUSINESS HISTORY |
44 a legacy stands tall Potsdam’s Cox Building was nearly razed after a major fire gutted it in the 1980s. |
ONLINE |
NNYBIZMAG.COM Connect with us online for daily updates, more photos and exclusive Web content.
June 2015 | NNY Business
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BusIness
C o n tr i b u t o r s
www.nnybizmag.com
Chairman of the Board John B. Johnson Jr.
Gary S. DeYoung is the director of the 1000 Islands International Tourism Council. He writes about efforts to develop local tourism products. (p. 19)
Lance M. Evans is executive officer for the Jefferson-Lewis and St. Lawrence County Board of Realtors. He writes about industry lobbying efforts in D.C. (p. 25)
Bill Murray is an executive with CITEC, a nonprofit consulting organization in Potsdam. He and Reg Carter write about managing change in businesses. (p. 31)
Tracy Leonard is deputy director of the Fort Drum Regional Health Planning Organization. She writes about change as a new opportunity to successfully grow. (p. 32)
Publishers
John B. Johnson Harold B. Johnson II
VP News Operations Timothy J. Farkas
Magazine Editor
Kenneth J. Eysaman
Staff Writer / Editorial Assistant Lorna Oppedisano
Photography
Larry Covell is a professor of business at Jefferson Community College. In part one in a three-part series, he explains the eviction process. (p. 33)
Lynn Pietroski is president and CEO of the Greater Watertown-North Country Chamber of Commerce. She writes about leading through change. (p. 34)
Jay Matteson is the agricultural coordinator for the Jefferson County Industrial Development Corp. He writes about the impact of manure storage systems. (p. 35)
Jill Van Hoesen is chief information officer for Johnson Newspapers and a 28-year IT veteran. She writes about the latest in mobile network systems — 4G LTE. (p. 36)
Norm Johnston, Justin Sorensen, Jason Hunter, Melanie Kimbler-Lago, Amanda Morrison
Director of Advertising Michelle Bowers
Magazine Advertising Manager Beth Hornbarger
Advertising Graphics
Brian Mitchell, Rick Gaskin, Heather O’Driscoll, Scott Smith, Todd Soules
Circulation Director Mary Sawyer
Jennifer McCluskey is an advisor for the state Small Business Development Center at SUNY Canton. She explains Facebook marketing. (p. 37)
Norah Machia is a freelance writer and veteran Watertown Daily Times reporter. In this month’s cover story, she writes about the region’s tourism industry. (p. 14)
Lorna Oppedisano is a an editorial assistant and writer for NNY Magazines. In Startup, she writes about North Country Tech. in History, she features the Cox Building (pgs. 13, 44)
Gabrielle Hovendon is a former Watertown Daily Times reporter and freelancer. She writes about a new Food Truck business and a Real Estate educator. (p. 20, 26)
MARKETPLACE Antique Boat Museum .............. 3 Artfest Kingston ........................ 12 Bach & Company ...................... 8 Boldt Castle ................................ 7 Bond Schoeneck & King ........... 4 Bonnie Castle Resort ............... 18 Bradley’s Trophy & Promotion .... 23 C-Way Golf Club ....................... 7 Cantwell & Associates .............. 4 Caskinette’s Ford ..................... 38 Center for Sight ........................ 37 CFS Medispa ............................ 32 Cheney Tire .............................. 46 Clayton Chamber of Commerce ............................ 3 Clayton Dental Office ............. 43 Clipper Inn ................................ 24 Coleman’s Corner ................... 43 CREG Systems Corp. ................. 8
6 | NNY Business | June 2015
D.L. Calarco Funeral Home .... 41 Dr. Guitar .................................. 43 Edd Burns Home Improvement ............................. 8 Fairground Inn........................... 43 Foy Agency ................................4 Fuller Insurance .........................4 Garlock & Son .......................... 21 H.D. Goodale ............................. 4 High Tower Advisors ................ 30 Hospice of Jefferson County .... 45 Immaculate Heart Central ..... 48 Jefferson Economic Development ........................... 45 Ken Piarulli / Ameriprise Financial ................................... 21 Krafft Cleaning Services .......... 42 Lake Ontario Gift Shop ............ 43 Macar’s ..................................... 25
Made In New York Festival ..... 24 NNY Community Foundation .... 27 Northwestern Mutual ................. 9 Nortz & Virkler Ford .................. 43 O’Brien’s Restaurant & Bar ...... 19 Rainbow International ............. 18 River Golf Adventures ............. 23 SeaComm Credit Union .......... 34 Shred Con ................................ 36 Slack Chemical Co. ................ 35 T.F. Wright & Sons ..................... 31 Tunes 92.5 FM Radio ................ 39 Waite Motorsports .................... 40 Waite Toyota ............................ 33 Watertown Savings Bank .......... 2 Wood Boat Brewery ................. 23 WPBS TV ...................................... 9 Ziebart Tidycar ......................... 43
NNY Business (ISSN 2159-6115), is published monthly by Northern New York Newspaper Corp., 260 Washington St., Watertown, NY 13601, a Johnson Newspaper Corp. company. © 2010-2015. All material submitted to NNY Business becomes property of Northern New York Newspaper Corp., publishers of the Watertown Daily Times, and will not be returned.
Subscription Rates 12 issues are $15 a year and 24 issues are $25 for two years. Call 315-782-1000 to subscribe. Submissions Send all editorial correspondence to keysaman@wdt.net Advertising For advertising rates and information in Jefferson and Lewis counties, email bhornbarger@wdt.net, or call 315-661-2325 In St. Lawrence County, e-mail blabrake@ogd.com, or call 315-661-2507 Printed with pride in U.S.A. at Vanguard Printing LLC, Ithaca, N.Y., a Forest Stewardship Certified facility. Please recycle this magazine.
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INTERVIEW
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ON THE COVER
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28 marketing our resources For Robert J. Giordano, the St. Lawrence River is an asset for the tourism industry. For the second time in three years, the river will host a national fishing tournament with a $3 million impact. |
COLUMNS
31 32 33 34 |
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EXECUTIVE CORNER ECONOMICALLY SPEAKING BUSINESS LAW COMMERCE CORNER
DEPARTMENTS
8 9 10 12 13
35 AGRI-BUSINESS 36 BUSINESS TECH BYTES 37 SMALL BUSINESS SUCCESS
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EDITOR’S NOTE PEOPLE ON THE MOVE ECONOMIC SNAPSHOT BUSINESS BRIEFCASE SMALL BIZ STARTUP
25 38 40 44 46
real estate roundup CALENDAR BUSINESS SCENE BUSINESS HISTORY WHAT’S HAPPENING HERE?
For this month’s cover shot, photographer Justin Sorensen captured Horne’s Ferry owner and Capt. George Horne after his Wolfe Island ferry docked in Cape Vincent. Mr. Horne and his fgamily have owned and operated the seasonal car transport from Cape Vincent to Ontario’s Wolfe Island for more than 60 years. Our cover story about Northern New York’s tourism industry by veteran writer Norah Machia begins on page 14.
June 2015 | NNY Business
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hile sales tax collections in Jefferson and St. Lawrence counties take a hit due in part to fewer cross-border visits from Canadians, the region’s tourism industry continues to develop new local products to attract visitors. With more wineries, breweries and distilleries opened in the past five years, the north country has more to market than ever before. But one Ken Eysaman thing remains constant: Northern New York is a mecca of natural resources that beckons the call of the traveler. Many who depend on tourism get it. The area does not lack for bounty and beauty when it comes to the outdoors. That could explain why natural resource marketing has helped to put heads on pillows in our hotels and bellies our bars. Veteran writer Norah Machia examines the challenges and opportunities facing the industry in a time of new pressures to see people spend time and money in the place we call home.
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20 QUESTIONS — This month we sit down with Robert Giordano, event coordinator for the 2015 Bassmaster Elite Series Event in Waddington, set for July 30 to Aug. 2 on the St. Lawrence River. Bob is a retired Senior Master Sergeant from the U.S. Air Force and an outdoor enthusiast who fell in love with the north country years ago while visiting on leave. This year’s tournament is the second time in just three years that
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Waddington, a town of just 2,266 permanent residents, has played host to a major national competitive fishing tournament. After a successful tournament stop in 2013, a Clarkson University study tallied the economic impact of the Bassmaster event on the region at $3 million. So impressed with the St. Lawrence River and the north country were tournament organizers that they requested Waddington be a stop on the tour this year. So what does it take to put on such an event in a small town? Our conversation with Bob begins on page 28.
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As always, if you have any questions, comments or general feedback, please contact me at keysaman@wdt.net or 661-2399. Yours in business,
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BUSINESS SCENE — This month’s Scene section, which begins on page 40, features nearly three-dozen faces from more than two-dozen businesses and organizations from across the north country. On April 28, Carthage staffer Elaine Avallone joined the Carthage Chamber of Commerce at the Elk’s Lodge for the 2014 Citizen of the Year Dinner. On May 20, we hopped aboard an Uncle Sam Tour boat in Alexandria Bay for the Greater Watertown-North Country Chamber of Commerce Business After Hours at historic Boldt Castle. On May 21, we traveled to Canton for the St. Lawrence County Chamber of Commerce Business Spotlight at Traditional Arts in Upstate New York’s Main Street TAUNY Center.
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PEOPLE O N T H E MO V E
North country native named general manager
Maryann Balbo, a Northern New York native and General Brown High School graduate, was recently named general manager of WHDF- TV in Huntsville, Ala. Most recently, Ms. Balbo was the director of marketing and digital at WTVD-ABC11 in Balbo Raleigh, North Carolina. She has also held positions at the Tampa Bay Times, WNCN-NBC 17, and Time Warner Cable/AOL News 14 Carolina. Her first job in television was at Watertown’s WWTI-TV 50 as a master control operator. Ms. Balbo is the daughter of Earl and Frances Mosher. Mrs. Mosher still resides in Watertown.
Artic Cat names Potsdam native sales director
Mike Webster, graduate of Potsdam Central Schools and Clarkson University, was recently appointed as director of North American sales for Arctic Cat Inc. Mr. Webster and his family will relocate to the Minneapolis area where the company’s corporate offices are located in the coming months.
Artist recognized
Amy Flack, Norwood, recently received a citation from Assemblywoman Addie J. Russell, D-Theresa, and a certificate of recognition from Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo. These accolades congratulated Flack Flack on her recent Arts Recognition Award from the St. Lawrence County Arts Council, which she received for dedicated service to the arts.
NNY woman appointed to California ed council
Chaumont native Christine Hochmuth
Got business milestones? n Share your business milestones with NNY Business. Email news releases and photos (.jpg/300 dpi) to editor Ken Eysaman at keysaman@wdt.net. The deadline for submissions is the 10th of the month for the following month’s issue. Photos that don’t appear in print may be posted on our Facebook page. has been selected as a policy fellow by the California Council on Science and Technology. The council aims to provide advice to state policymakers, ensuring California policy is informed by sound scientific knowledge. Ms. Hochmuth has been appointed to serve on the California State Senate Committee on Transportation and Housing. She is a cell and molecular biologist who has completed a threeyear-post-doctoral fellowship at UC San Diego studying blood stem cells. She has taught at both UCSD and the University of San Diego. She holds a doctorate in biology from the University of Rochester, bachelor’s and master’s degrees from SUNY Brockport and is a 2000 graduate of Lyme Central School. Christine is the daughter of Ron and Sue Hochmuth, Chaumont.
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CHJC staffer wins youth services award
The Jefferson County Youth Bureau recently named Riley Keenan recipient of its 2015 Promising Ability in Youth Services award. Mr. Keenan received his award at the bureau’s annual Youth Recognition Awards Luncheon at the Watertown Elks Club. He was one of five individuals honored for showing outstanding ability and demonstrating a commitment to a career working with young people. Mr. Keenan has been with CHJC for more than three years. He began his employment as a direct care staff providing direct supervision and the monitoring of youth in the Residential Program. In 2012, he was promoted to a full-time foster care caseworker, working to get children safely back home with their families. In 2014, Mr. Keenan transitioned to CHJC’s article 10 caseworker position, allowing him to work with families to prevent out-of-home placement and keep children and parents together in a safe home environment.
June 2015 | NNY Business
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Average per-gallon milk price paid to N.Y. dairy farmers April 2015 $1.53 March 2015 $1.54 April 2014 $2.23
31.4%
Source: NYS Department of Agriculture
397,410 in April 2015 366,729 in March 2015 405,382 in April 2014
Average NNY price for gallon of regular unleaded gas
Source: T.I. Bridge Authority, Ogdensburg Bridge & Port Authority, Seaway International Bridge Corp.
April 2015 $2.57 March 2015 $2.55 April 2014 $3.94
U.S.-Canadian dollar exchange rate (Canadian dollars per U.S. dollar)
32.0%
25.1%
10.0%
Source: Federal Reserve Bank of N.Y.
Average NNY price for gallon of residential propane
Nonagriculture jobs in the Jefferson-Lewis-St. Lawrence counties area, not including military positions
April 2015 $2.81 March 2015 $2.95 April 2014 $3.52
90,200 in April 2015 89,300 in March 2015 89,500 in April 2014
20.2%
0.8%
Source: NYS Energy Research and Development Authority
Source: NYS Department of Labor
Jefferson-Lewis Board of Realtors single-family home sales
St. Lawrence Board of Realtors single-family home sales
69, median price $110,000 in April 2015 78, median price $120,000 in March 2015 67, median price $132,600 in April 2014
40, median price $73,000 in April 2015 35, median price $80,000 in March 2015 34, median price $66,500 in April 2014
3.0% Sales
17.0%
17.6%
Price
9.8%
Sales
Source: Jefferson-Lewis Board of Realtors Inc.
Price
Source: St. Lawrence Board of Realtors Inc.
NNY unemployment rates
5.4
5.5
6.2
March 2015
April 2014
United States
April 2015
6.5
5.7 March 2015
April 2014
5.7
8.7 April 2014
7.5 April 2015
8.9
7.7 April 2014
New York State
March 2015
7.5
Lewis County
March 2015
7.1
8.2 April 2014
St. Lawrence County
April 2015
8.1 March 2015
7.2
Jefferson County
April 2015
ECON SNAPSHOT
April 2015 $2.95 March 2015 $3.13 April 2014 $3.94
2.0%
$1.21 on April 30, 2015 $1.27 on March 31, 2015 $1.10 on April 30, 2014
Average NNY price for gallon of home heating oil
10 | NNY Business | June 2015
(Percent gains and losses are over 12 months)
Vehicles crossing the Thousand Islands, OgdensburgPrescott and Seaway International (Massena) bridges
April 2015
NNY
Economic indicators
Source: U.S. Department of Labor and New York State Department of Labor (Not seasonally adjusted. Latest available data reported.) Note: Due to updates in some “Econ. Snapshot� categories, numbers may differ from previously published prior month and year figures.
Economic indicators New automobiles (cars and trucks) registered in Jefferson County Cars 527 in April 2015 447 in March 2015 523 in April 2014
0.8%
Trucks 115 in April 2015 104 in March 2015 111 in April 2014
NNY
3.6%
Source: Jefferson County Clerk’s Office
No airport data
n April passenger totals for Watertown International Airport were unavailable at press time because of a delayed data release by American Airlines officials.
Open welfare cases in Jefferson, Lewis and St. Lawrence counties 2,366 in April 2015 2,326 in March 2015 2,241 in April 2014
3.6% Source: Social Service Depts. of Jefferson, Lewis and St. Lawrence counties
DBA (doing business under an assumed name) certificates filed at the Jefferson County Clerk’s office April 30 to May 28, 2015. For a complete list of DBAs filed in past months, visit www.nnybizmag.com.
May 28: Mon Ami Barber Shop, 32729 state Route 3, Carthage, Young Cha Landreth, 26306 Gould Corner Road, Evans Mills. n Redwood Pottery, 46201 state Route 37, Redwood, John Otis Donovan III, 46201 state Route 37, P.O. Box 636, Redwood. n Natasha’s Tots, 6243 state Route 12E, Three Mile Bay, Natasha Bevens, 6243 state Route 12E, Three Mile Bay. n Carson’s Pizzeriz & Bar, 11613 U.S. Route 11, Adams Center, Travis W. Richmond, 12736 county Route 155, Adams Center. May 27: Nice Nails & Spa, 103 N. Massey St. Suite 200, Watertown, Ngoc Q. T. Vu, 105 Becker St., Syracuse. May 26: Winded Chicken Farms, 14662 Fuller Road, Adams Center, Brenna R. Ginger, 14662 Fuller Road, Adams Center. n Cleaning and More, 1019 State St. Apt. 1, Watertown, Ethan Sargent, 1019 State St. Apt. 1, Watertown. n 2000 Chinese Restaurant, 22070 U.S. Route 11, Watertown, Xiang Wu Jiang and Li Ping Lin, both of 23232 U.S. Route 11, Watertown. n P and P Construction, 11301 Circle Drive, Chaumont, Roy Edwin Kingery III, 11301 Circle Drive, Chaumont. n Anne Sanford, 14864 Aspen Lane Unit E., Watertown, Anne Sanford, 14864 Aspen Lane Unit E., Watertown. May 22: Window & Screen Repair, 161 Smith St., Watertown, Glenn Willian Gallaher, 161 Smith St., Watertown. n All Around Window Tinting, 6741 state Route 3, Henderson, Kenneth Ryan Browing, 6741 state Route 3, Henderson. May 21: Taco’s for Real, 29 Market St., Alexandria Bay, David R. Johnson, 20714 Saint Lawrence Park, Alexandria Bay. n Jenelle Stine, 27591 #6 Road, Redwood, Jenelle Sue Stine, 27591 #6 Road, Redwood. n St. Lawrence River Pro Services, 47005 Carnegie Bay Road, Alexandria Bay, Joseph Cianchetti, 47005 Carnegie Bay Road, Alexandria Bay. n Crestani Construction, 23892 Valley View Drive, Calcium, Isaac G. Crestani, 23892 Valley View Drive, Calcium. n Travers Interior & Drywall, 6544 River Road, Lowville, Michael B. Travers, 6544 River Road, Lowville. n Busted Nuckel Auto Repair and Finish, 36117 Thompson Quarry Road, LaFargeville, Dale James Seymour, 36117 Thompson Quarry Road, P.O. Box 82, LaFargeville.
34686 Clayton Center Road, Clayton. n Breeze Transport, 623 James St., Clayton, John Taylor Larue, 623 James St., Clayton. n Bobbi’s Bottle and Can Return, 306 S. Main St., Mannsville, Roberta Jo White, 2596 county Route 2, Richland. n Brian Burns Landscaping, 42891 Headland Ave., T.I. Park, Brian William Burns, 612 Lake Road, Webster. May 12: Scarrob Farm Blue Cow Enterprises, 34245 Countryman Road, Theresa, Rachel A. Roberts, 34245 Countryman Road, P.O. Box 146, Theresa. n AGP Roofing, 27649 state Route 126, Watertown, Travis Michael Pashow, 27649 state Route 126, Watertown. n Afterglow Cleaning, 7 Potter St. Apt. 2, Carthage, Kristina M. Snyder, 7 Potter St. Apt. 2, Carthage. n Novatech Computers, 28487 Elm St., Redwood, Robert John Mundt, 79 Parker St., Gouverneur. May 11: Willow Brooke Lawn Care, 26711 state Route 12, Watertown, Ryan Taylor Willow, 26711 state Route 12, Watertown. n Mabel’s Designs, 35033 Eddy Road Lot 1A Box 103, Theresa, Mabel Anne Woodard, 35033 Eddy Road Lot 1A Box 103, Theresa. n Rob’s Lawn Care, 35279 county Route 30, Philadelphia, Robert Allen Pitts, 35279 county Route 30, Philadelphia. May 8: Tug Hill Custom Sawing, 21377 Brown Road, Rodman, Charles Louis Fish, 21377 Brown Road, Rodman. May 7: Success in Optics, 332 S. Hamilton St., Watertown, Jody A. Shule, 332 S. Hamilton St., Watertown. n Let It Shine Marine, 172 James St. Apt. 2, Cape Vincent, Alan Corey White, 172 James St. Apt. 2, Cape Vincent. May 6: Woodpile Pens, 114 Washington St., Brownville, Charles Brenon III, 114 Washington St., Brownville. n Cleaning Experts, 8727 Noble St., Evans Mills, Margarita Rosa Bossio Barrera, 152 Academy St. Apt. 202, Watertown. May 5: Bodhi Brewing Company, 20192 Burton Road, Sackets Harbor, Ryan Chaif, 20192 Burton Road, Sackets Harbor.
May 19: JBs Furniture Appliance and Consignment Shop, 262 State St., Carthage, Jessica M. Jones, Frederick A. Brotherton and Kelly M. Brotherton, all of 24719 county Route 47, Carthage. n Block Bros., 3042 county Route 15, Pulaski, Dave Dasno, 3042 county Route 15, Pulaski, Chad Johnson, 329 Broadway Ave W., Watertown.
May 4: Priority One Landscaping and Lawncare, 645 Burlington St., Watertown, Paul E. Carpenter, 1005 Superior St., Watertown, and Timothy J. Thomas, 645 Burlington St., Watertown. n Logan Services, 23361 state Route 37, Watertown, Thomas Logan, 23361 state Route 37, Watertown. n Michael Doxtater Contracting, 8691 Henry St., Evans Mills, Michael David Doxtater, 8691 Henry St., Evans Mills. n Hutter Court Reporting, 24480 county Route 32, Calcium, Erin M. Hutter, 24480 county Route 32, Calcium. n Elite Construction & Renovations, 17 Sand St., Philadelphia, Edward Lloyd Lawton II, 17 Sand St., Philadelphia.
May 15: Hadassah Wood, 720 Washington St., Watertown, Brittany Burt, 720 Washington St., Watertown. n M & M Painting, 114 Katherine St., Watertown, Jarrod and Alissa Randall, both of 114 Katherine St., Watertown.
May 1: Next Door, 23939 county Route 59, Dexter, Merry Jo Devine, 23939 county Route 59, Dexter. n NNY Home Pros, 24131 Lester Road, Felts Mills, Ralph T. Fuller Jr., 24131 Lester Road, Felts Mills.
May 14: Transitions Behavioral Health Services, 727 Washington St., Watertown, Deidre Bonarrigo, 26168 Red Tail Lane, Evans Mills. n Vice Versa Vapes, 216 Cedar St., Watertown, Samuel Patrick Wisner, 216 Cedar St., Watertown.
APRIL 30: Dreams and Drool Shop, 14049 county Route 75, Sackets Harbor, Jenelle K. Botts, 14049 county Route 75, Sackets Harbor. n 37 Provisions Company, 25640 state Route 37, Watertown, Russell D. and Jamie L. Pope, both of 237 Stuart Street, Watertown. n Fabulous Finds, 21097 state Route 12F, Watertown, Chasity Lynn Hall, 26727 Anable Ave., Evans Mills.
May 20: Clarke Lawncare, 35437 county Route 4, Clayton, Robert M. Clarke, 35437 county Route 4, Clayton.
May 13: Coynegen, 34686 Clayton Center Road, Clayton, Bruce Paul Coyne,
transactions
DBAs
June 2015 | NNY Business
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business briefcase TOURISM
Grant funds attraction
National Grid and the Thousand Islands Inn this spring announced a $100,000 Main Street Revitalization Program incentive to offset construction costs associated with the inn’s renovation. Investment in the property is expected to add more than 20 hospitality jobs that will contribute to economic development, job retention and growth in downtown Clayton. Brad Minnick, of Wellesley Island, and his business partner, Jamie Weinberg,
bought the hotel in December 2013. The building is slated to reopen as a boutique hotel with 12 guest rooms and a new restaurant. Renovations of the first floor, including its dining room and bar, are expected to be completed by early summer. The inn’s renovation includes the addition of a wraparound porch that was original to the building, and construction of a new lobby. Overhauls of major structural and mechanical systems throughout the building are under way, including upgrades to plumbing, electric and heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems.
Watertown sets record
After stringing together 10,552 feet of safety pins — approximately two miles — across downtown Watertown in early April, the city earned the unofficial Guinness World Records title for the longest chain of safety pins. Hundreds of community members, business and organizations participated. The record length was surveyed and measured by crews from GYMO. An estimated 170,000 to 175,000 safety pins were used. The current Guinness World Records title for the longest chain of safety pins stands at 3,582 feet. Watertown’s record attempt will be submitted to Guinness World Records in the coming week for official verification and certification. Pins Across Watertown served as one of the Watertown Downtown Business Association’s primary fundraising events for 2015, garnering money for several groups, including the United Way of Northern New York, Watertown Urban Mission, The Salvation Army, the Watertown Family YMCA and the Jefferson County Historical Society.
North country parks receive state funding
Three north country state parks are slated to receive state funding of nearly $1.2 million, including $850,000 for the Wellesley Island State Park. The Wellesley Island funding includes $500,000 to pave the park’s main entrance and $350,000 to improve the Minna Anthony Commons Nature Center. Other improvements announced include $250,000 in regional office energy efficiency projects at the Keewaydin State Park, Alexandria, and $80,000 to improve electric service in the camping area of Kring Point State Park, Redwood. The local projects were just some of the 88 projects statewide, totaling $71.7 million. The recent announcement coincided with Earth Week, the governor’s office said, and fit with the governor’s New York Parks 2020 plan to put hundreds of millions of dollars into the parks system by 2020. HEALTH CARE
CAH employees commit to health
Earlier this year, Carthage Area Hospital employees at had an opportunity to participate in a competitive, 12-week nutritional program “Commit to be fit.”
Please see BRIEFCASE, page 24 12 | NNY Business | June 2015
Small Business startup BUSINESS
North Country Tech THE INITIAL IDEA
“Grassroots technology” sounds like an oxymoron. In a world growing more corporate and virtual by the day, the space for grassroots efforts seems to be shrinking. North Country Tech is changing that. Two years ago, Lewis County native Josh M. Fitzgerald decided that after a decade working in retail sales and management for businesses like Verizon and Samsung — “two very large companies that really strive for perfection, but often fall short because of politics,” he said — it was time for change. “Over the years, you build up a clientele,” he said. “In the corporate world, that’s a conflict of interest, but in the small business world, that’s ideal.” Mr. Fitzgerald wanted to bring technology repair, troubleshooting, education and consultation to underserved areas of the north country. Now instead of trekking to Watertown, Utica or Syracuse, people can have North Country Tech’s on-the-go mobile service come to them. “That’s what this brand brings,” Mr. Fitzgerald said. “It’s sitting down having a cup of coffee. It’s ‘Let’s meet, show me what you have.’”
“A lot of what we do is empowerment. It’s education. There are no stupid questions. You’re not putting me out.” — Josh Fitzgerald, owner / operator, North Country Tech
TARGET CLIENTELE
North Country Tech aims to reach “everybody that uses technology,” Mr. Fitzgerald said. In this day and age, that encompasses a large group. “A lot of what we do is empowerment,” he said. “It’s education.” The company has served people from Booneville to Sackets Harbor, from struggling single parents to small businesses. Customers reach out via email, phone call, text message or through the website, and within 15 to 20 minutes, Mr. Fitzgerald or one of his three coworkers will reply with a personal response. Mr. Fitzgerald said that the relationship he has with his clients is similar to the relationship he has with his three kids. “There’s no stupid questions,” he explained. “You’re not putting me out.”
THE JOURNEY
When Mr. Fitzgerald started his company, he knew exactly what his business plan and mission would be: customers first, and profits later. He’s also never taken out a loan. “I’ve always kept a part- or full-time job as well,” he said. “At the core of it, I want to stay as grassroots as possible.” While working for big box stores, Mr. Fitzgerald became “infamous” for being transparent and honest with customers, he said. “I think because I was so well-rounded and very relatable to a lot of people, I was perfectly content with following directions and working hard until you advanced,” he said. He eventually realized that there was no balance between his work and life. Finally, when his youngest of three children was born, Mr. Fitzgerald knew it was time for a lifestyle change. When the business first opened, it handled the basics: resale of hardware and accessories. However,
Mr. Fitzgerald soon realized that his work was headed toward the services side of technology. He describes North Country Technology’s offerings as similar to those of Best Buy’s Geek Squad, but for a fraction of the price. Mr. Fitzgerald and his coworkers get paid per client, rather than per hour as they would in a corporate setting. There’s no storefront, so there’s no overhead. “Those savings to the business automatically get transferred down to the customer,” he said. Regardless of the savings, Mr. Fitzgerald said one of the biggest obstacles has been getting the word out so people’s first instinct is no longer to take broken tech directly to Best Buy. Without a storefront, he said people are more inclined to barter for services. While baked goods might not go as far as bills, Mr. Fitzgerald’s not entirely opposed to the system. “I accepted a lot of it to show that it’s about the community and those grassroots,” he said, “what used to make this country really great.” Besides work-of-mouth marketing, which has been successful in Lewis County, Mr. Fitzgerald has utilized the most obvious resource to reach customers: technology like Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. Along with providing tech support to the community, North Country Tech gives back with its Restart Program. “We started by donating a machine to someone in the community who gives back selflessly but has a need for a computer,” Mr. Fitzgerald said. Community members are encouraged to contact North Country Tech with nominations for recipients.
The past two years have been fun, but they’ve also been a struggle, Mr. Fitzgerald said; he stressed that being self-made isn’t always as grandiose as it’s made out to be. “It’s a lot of work,” he said. “A lot of sacrifice.”
IN FIVE YEARS
There’s no doubt technology will advance in the next five years, but Mr. Fitzgerald doesn’t have the same vision for North Country Tech. “I don’t see the business growing. In five years, I see the community growing,” he said. “This is a service that’s very integral to every other small business. My business is that cog for small business partnerships.” Mr. Fitzgerald said he might want to open a couple storefronts and add more employees in the future, but knows his limits. “There is a threshold where you start getting more political and more corporate,” he explained. He does see some growth in the near future though; North Country Tech will probably have a loaner program at some point soon, he said. The company would charge a deposit and have a number of machines customers can borrow. Looking ahead, Mr. Fitzgerald said that North Country Tech is always evolving. “That’s the most exciting part of it,” he said. “We’re never out of good ideas because the industry’s never out of good ideas.” — Lorna Oppedisano
WHERE Mobile company | FOUNDED March 2013 | WEB northcountrytech.net
June 2015 | NNY Business
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Creating new tourism
opportunities around natural resources BY Norah Machia | NNY Business
Despite a falling Canadian dollar and a dip in cross-border visits to Northern New York, officials are working to market the region’s strengths, including its hundreds of miles of lakes and rivers and seemingly infinite number of outdoor recreation activities 14 | NNY Business | June 2015
Kate Montgomery, Rome, won the grand prize in the 2014 Camping Photo Contest with her submission of a starry night at Keewaydin State Park outside Alexandria Bay. The contest, sponsored by the state Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation and the Department of Environmental Conservation, showcased New York’s scenic outdoors. Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation/ Department of Environmental Conservation
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G
George D. Horne knows what it’s like to handle a according to NYSAC. challenge. Closer to home, the first-quarter sales tax revenue results in For more than 60 years, his family has been operating a ferry Jefferson County showed the county experienced a nearly 5 perfrom Cape Vincent to Wolfe Island along the St. Lawrence River. cent drop in sales tax revenue, compared with the same quarter Mr. Horne’s 10-minute trip attracts approximately 50 percent last year. of its customers from Canada and the other 50 percent from The purchasing power of the Canadian dollar, which had throughout New York State. hovered around 80 cents U.S. since January, was identified as one “There are people who have camps on Wolfe Island,” and of the possible culprits. spend the weekends fishing or biking on the scenic Canadian But the director of the state park system’s Thousand Island island, Mr. Horne said. Region said he remains optimistic after reviewing the numbers of Some drive up from the Syracuse or Rochester areas, while Canadian visitors to the parks during that country’s Victoria Day others are local residents. Many people also take the ferry to holiday in May. spend just the day on Wolfe Island, often with their bikes or Despite the weakening of the Canadian dollar, the regional motorcycles, he added. park system did not see a significant decline in the number of Then there are the cross-border travelers seeking a more scenic visitors from Canada, Kevin A. Kieff said. route between the United States and Canada. After taking Horne’s “Visitation to our parks was still strong,” he said. Ferry to Wolfe Island, they drive seven miles across the island to There are a significant number of Canadian residents who visit catch a free provincial ferry that makes the crossing to downtown the state parks in the Thousand Islands Region each year, Mr. Kingston in about 20 to 30 minutes, depending on the day. Kieff said. On the other side of the border, many Canadians have taken “Canadian traffic is usually in the 30 percent range,” he said. the ferry excursions to reach the United States as well, Mr. “There seems to be many loyal campers who come to our parks.” Horne said. These include parks near the border of Canada, as well as some Mr. Horne is the sixth-generation ferryman who captains that are inland, he said. Wellesley Island State Park is one of the the William Darrell, which can accommodate up to 10 vehicles. most popular with Canadian visitors, along with Grass Point His season just started in early May, and it will run through State Park, Alexandria Bay. mid-October. In St. Lawrence County, some of the popular parks frequented But ridership on the ferry that docks off James Street in Cape by Canadians have been Robert Moses State Park in Massena, Vincent has been declining in recent years, Mr. Horne said. It which is near the bridge crossing, and even Higley Flow State started after stricter security measures were put in place followPark, Colton, which is more inland, Mr. Kieff said. ing the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. In past years, when the value of the Canadian dollar fluctu “People used to drive up with a car full of kids, and just show a ated within a “normal range,” it did not appear to have an driver’s license,” said Mr. Horne. “That changed, and everyone in impact, he said. the car needed to have identification. A driver’s license alone was “People still found a way to visit us,” Mr. Kieff said. not enough anymore.” But the current exchange rate of approximately 23 percent is Other seasons have been affected by the ups and downs of “substantial for the Canadian dollar,” he said. the economy, or the fluctuat“Most people have not seen ing price of gasoline, Mr. it this low,” Mr. Kieff said. Horne said. “It may be challenging for But this summer, Mr. the communities in terms of Horne will be facing the tourism-related spending.” challenge of the weakening The Thousand Islands ReCanadian dollar, known as gion is headquartered in Althe loonie. exandria Bay, in Keywayden “When the Canadian dollar State Park and includes 30 is down, the Canadians don’t state parks in Jefferson, Lewis, come across as often” to shop St. Lawrence, Franklin and and dine in the north country, Clinton counties. NORM JOHNSTON | NNY BUSINESS which means fewer dollars One reason for the large Beach visitors enjoy Wescott Beach State Park, Henderson, last summer. With spent here, he said. draw of Canadians is probits miles of lake shores and rivers, tourism officials say Northern New York is well ably due to significant investLike Mr. Horne, recreation and tourism officials through- positioned to attract tourists to the region for its wealth of natural resources. ments the state is making in out the region are continuing the park system, he said. their efforts to attract Canadian visitors this summer, despite the “Our facilities are truly beautiful,” Mr. Kieff said. drop in the value of the loonie. On May 22, one Canadian dollar The region’s park on Wellesley Island is one of the most was worth just 0.77 U.S. cents. popular with Canadian visitors, he said. Investments of close to That challenge comes at a time when sales tax collections are $2 million are being made at that park alone, with a new beach down across the state, according to the New York State Associabathhouse, pavilion, concession stand, store, lifeguard station tion of Counties. and video arcade under construction. A major upgrade was also There were 33 counties in which sales tax was down in the first recently completed at Grasse Point State Park, with a new beach quarter of 2015 compared with the first quarter of 2014. A total bathhouse and a playground going up in the near future. of 12 counties had their collections drop by more than 5 percent, “The work is continuing,” Mr. Kieff said “We have been
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AMANDA MORRISON | NNY BUSINESS
A new waterfront comfort station at Keewaydin State Park, Alexandria, was unveiled last summer. Home to nearly two-dozen state parks, investments in Northern New York’s tourism infrastructure are routine as steps to attract more seasonal guests to the region continue.
rehabilitating almost all our buildings in recent years.” The improvements have been taking place as part of Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo’s NY Parks 2020 initiative, which includes an investment of $900 million in both private and public funding for the creation of new campgrounds and the improvement of existing ones between 2011 and 2020. The investments have also helped to keep Fort Drum military families visiting the state parks, even during periods of deployments, Mr. Kieff said. At some point within the next 13 months, members of all of the division’s brigades and its headquarters are expected to deploy overseas, Maj. Gen. Jeffrey L. Bannister announced in April. Deployments for training and advising missions have been confirmed for approximately 1,250 soldiers from the division’s 1st Brigade to Iraq and approximately 1,600 soldiers from the division’s 2nd Brigade to Afghanistan. The state parks that experience the biggest impact in day use (swimming and picnicking) during deployments
are Westcott Beach State Park in Sackets Harbor, and Southwick Beach State Park in Henderson, Mr. Kieff said. “Those are the most popular parks with the military” because of their close proximity to Fort Drum, he said. However, “while we notice some difference, the families that are left behind, for the most part, will continue to take advantage of the parks, especially if they have kids,” Mr. Kieff said. Visit thenysparks.com to learn moree about the state park system. While it’s expected that fewer Canadian visitors will be crossing at the north country’s international bridges because of the exchange rate, that’s all the more reason to continue a strong marketing effort to attract them, said Gary S. DeYoung, executive director of the 1000 Islands International Tourism Council. “When the Canadian exchange has been off, we have seen a decline in the number of Canadians coming across the border,” he said. “But the numbers crossing last summer in July and August were actually strong.” “We believe that we can still continue
to attract many Canadian visitors this summer as well,” said Mr. DeYoung. For example, the Council has identified two different groups of frequent Canadian visitors who are interested in a specific recreational activity – boating or motorcycle touring, he said. The agency has been working to draw these groups across the border by promoting the many great bodies of water in the region, including the St. Lawrence River and Lake Ontario, Mr. DeYoung said. It has also worked to encourage motorcycle tourists to explore what the region has to offer, even if they are just traveling through on their way to another part of the state for an event, such as Thunder in Old Forge, an annual event in the Adirondacks, or the Americade Motorcycle Rally in Lake George. “There are a lot of people from Ontario and Quebec who enjoy cycle touring” throughout New York State, Mr. DeYoung said. In December, the agency launched a revised website promoting tourism on both sides of the border, Mr. DeYoung
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COV E R STORY said. The address isvisit1000islands.com. It offers information about recreational activities, tourist attractions, motels, resorts and campgrounds, along with a little history about each community. There is also a separate listing for specific events throughout the region. The communities featured on the website are Alexandria Bay, Cape Vincent, Clayton, Henderson Harbor, Sackets Harbor and Watertown. In addition, Brockville, Cornwall, Gananoque, Kingston, Prescott and the 1000 Islands Parkway in Ontario are also included. “We cover both sides of the border,” Mr.
DeYoung said. The agency’s future plans include “more online ads, YouTube and Facebook posts as well” to promote recreational and tourism opportunities, Mr. DeYoung added. The on-going deployments at Fort Drum present another challenge, although Mr. DeYoung called them a “double-edge sword.” When soldiers are scheduled to deploy, their families from outside the area often come to the north country to “say goodbye” before the soldiers depart for several months overseas, he said.
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“From all over the country, they have friends and family who are curious about where they are living, and they come to the area to see the soldiers off,” Mr. DeYoung said. That results in an increased demand for lodging, he said. But at the same time, it may also result in decreased retail spending once the soldiers depart the area. Deployments can have a mixed effect on the recreation and tourism business, said Karen M. Clark, director of the Fort Drum United Service Organization. “While there is a loss of business from those who are deployed, there is probably an increase by family members who stay behind,” she said. When a soldier is deployed, sometimes the family members may leave the area and return to their hometowns. But those spouses with children tend to remain in the north country, particularly if their children are in the middle of a school year, Mrs. Clark said. “Those spouses with children who stay are often looking for recreational activities that they can do without the soldiers,” she said. “This makes the soldiers happy as well, if they know their families are not putting their lives on hold.” The Army’s Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation programs offer a range of opportunities for both soldiers and family members to “get off Fort Drum” and see what the region has to offer, Mrs. Clark said. “They have low-cost rentals of a variety of equipment” such as downhill and crosscountry skis, snowmobiles, ice skates, canoes, kayaks, and camping gear, she said. This allows people to try out new recreational activities, because many soldiers and family members from regions of the country such as the South aren’t going to show up to Fort Drum with skis, she said. “The Army realizes people may have come here without a lot of recreational gear,” and they may not want to make an investment until they first try out the activity, Mrs. Clark said. Information is also provided to military families about a large number of tourist destinations in the region, along with special events, tours and even the sites of local farmers markets, Mrs. Clark said. “Once they have kids, there are ties to the community,” she said “We tell the families to make the most out of it.” Visit uso.org/fortdrum to learn more about the USO. n Norah Machia is a freelance writer who lives in Watertown. She is a 20-year veteran journalist and former Watertown Daily Times reporter. Contact her at norahmachia@gmail.com.
GUEST ESSAY
Developing local tourism products
A
s a destination marketing organization, the Thousand Islands International Tourism Council has to market the region as a visitor destination. The postcard scenery of the Thousand Islands, its historic character, its rural charm, its recreational opportunities are all attributes have long been used to draw visitors who spend money. In the end, money is what tourism about. It is not about simply drawing visitors, it is about drawing the money they spend while visiting. How do you monetize the St. Lawrence River? How do you cash in on history? How does fishing on Lake Ontario translate into local jobs? That is where what tourism professionals call “product” comes into the conversation. To have tourism play a worthwhile role in the local economy, you need salable product. That is how tourism attraction translates into economic impact. One of the challenges of any DMO is that it has little control over the local tourism product. It is a topic that draws much discussion at tourism conferences. Visitors want quality lodging, great dining, engaging attractions and unique shopping options. No matter how clever, marketing cannot overcome weaknesses in a destination’s product. Destinations with great attractions can drive away business because visitor services such as lodging and dining are lacking. Worse, destinations may successfully draw crowds, but fail to fully profit from them. Today, the process of destination development has become recognized as planning both marketing initiatives traditionally conducted by DMOs and instituting an investment strategy that keeps a destination’s product fresh and competitive. New York has some significant destination investments on the drawing board. They are a mix of visitor attractions and visitor services. A few examples: Staten Island is working on a giant wheel similar to those found in destinations like Las Vegas or London. With New York’s expansion of gambling, the Catskills and Finger Lakes have a billion dollars in casino construction in the works. The $150 million Wonder Fall Resort in Niagara was introduced as a key tourism development in the Buffalo Billion plan. All those projects have some sort of economic
development backing from the state. But, figuring out how to attract and incentivize tourism development in New York is a work in progress. Unlike manufacturing or agriculture, there is no state or regional staff assigned to the specific task of increasing tourism Gary DeYoung investment. The state’s tourism department and its DMOs are organized to market products, but don’t have the toolsets needed to attract product investment. Industrial developers, work to fit tourism into their mix, but don’t usually have specialized knowledge of the tourism industry. Still, many economic developers see tourism as a key component in moving the economy forward. As the issue has been looked at regionally, it has become clear that tourism development in Northern New York must be approached as a truly incremental process. Unlike urban areas, tourism development in the North Country is not likely to hinge on giant investments. The nature of sustainable, rural tourism development seldom involves projects north of $100 million. The process is more about respecting traditions, environment and culture, while making villages and small cities attractive places to visit and live. Introducing fresh “product” that monetizes tourism here is often a nitty-gritty process of small, local investors opening or upgrading restaurants, shops, inns and recreation services. If successful, this process can not only bolster tourism, but transform North Country communities into attractive places to live and invest in other enterprises. Looking at the last decade, there is evidence of success. Since 2006, over 800 new rooms have been constructed in Jefferson County. Watertown, Fort Drum, Carthage, Clayton, Sackets Harbor and Cape Vincent have all welcomed new lodging facilities. Many of those rooms are in franchise properties, others are small lodging. Notably, the lodging investors are mostly Upstate family enterprises, be they a hotel
group from Buffalo or Rochester or a local family expanding their own holdings. In the past 15 years, a cadre of wineries, distilleries and brew pubs have come on to the scene serving tourists and locals alike. Once again, these are locally grown enterprises. Local attractions such as Boldt Castle and the Antique Boat Museum have made large investments in their facilities utilizing their own earned income or private fund raising. Tourism marketing for the Thousand Islands is benefiting from being able to promote improved product, mostly created with local initiative. The clues to solving that tourism investment product puzzle are evident. Local and regional investors have proven they are willing, even excited, to be part of functioning communities and tourism destinations. A toolkit is needed to empower these investors. The list of top needs to inspire their investment is similar whenever a community or regional group asks the question. Like most other sectors, it includes access to utilities, transportation and broadband as well as streamlining government permitting and oversight. Tourism investors are also looking for assistance similar to other industries in accessing financing. The tourism industry’s specific needs include building more capacity to attract visitors outside the summer season, perhaps including entertainment venues, indoor recreation options, and expanded winter sports facilities. Tourism has been an important component of the winning North Country Regional Economic Development Council plans in recent years. As it competes for $500 million in revitalization funds, the region will likely again put forward a strategy to build tourism product investment that results in realizing a vision for sustainable tourism. It will need to demonstrate that the process may not necessarily result in a giant Ferris wheel, shiny casino or towering hotel complex, but can result in attractive downtowns, waterfronts, and country sides that draw both visitors and new businesses. And, it can result in even more great, income-producing product for the region’s DMOs to market. n GARY S. DeYOUNG is director of tourism for the 1000 Islands International Tourism Council. Contact him at gary@visit1000islands.com, 482-2520 or 1 (800) 847-5263.
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June 2015 | NNY Business
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FE AT UR E S Carol Rosenberg, Fort Drum, will take to the streets with her newly minted Military Moms food truck. Mrs. Rosenberg has been developing her business and the truck for about three years. Her journey includes an appearance on the popular Food Network series, “The Great Food Truck Race.” NORM JOHNSTON | NNY BUSINESS
Comfort food on wheels
After three years and a national food show, Military Moms hits the road By Gabrielle Hovendon
I
NNY Business
t’s been a long and bumpy road for Carol Rosenberg to develop her Military Moms Food Truck — much longer and bumpier than the ones she’ll be traveling when her new food truck hits the streets this month. Mrs. Rosenberg, a former private chef and graduate of Le Cordon Bleu North America Culinary School, has been planning the food truck for at least three years, although cooking has been in her life for much longer. In the 2000s, she worked as a private chef for former Anheuser-Busch executive August Busch III, flying back and forth to Germany for a few months at a time. Because her husband, Fort Drum Garrison Commander Col. Gary Rosenberg, was being deployed at the same time, she gave up this job in 2009 to spend more time with her children. But her love for cooking never quite went away. Several years ago, Mrs. Rosenberg watched an episode of the Food Network’s reality TV
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series The Great Food Truck Race, “and that was where I caught the bug,” she explained. After deciding that she wanted to run her own food truck, Mrs. Rosenberg spent about a year — 2011, her first at Fort Drum — planning and researching the enterprise. Food trucks have recently become very chic in large cities, partly because they’re more affordable than traditional restaurants and partly because their mobility makes it easy to attract loyal followings. “There are big benefits to food trucks,” Mrs. Rosenberg said, noting that they’re equally suited to small parks and large festivals — anywhere there’s a crowd. “It’s way less overhead to start with. If you go to any big city, chefs are winning so many awards out of trucks. It’s a way for chefs to do the kind of food they’re really passionate about.” In addition to the benefits, though, food trucks also carry a big price tag. Mrs. Rosenberg learned this when her event planner Michele Bajakian found the perfect truck on a trip to Washington, D.C. — perfect except for its $105,000 price tag. So the dream stayed on the back burner until the day Mrs. Rosenberg happened
across open applications for the latest season of the Great Food Truck Race and applied in secret. She was certain she wouldn’t be chosen, so much so that she Tweeted it, but then she received an email from the show’s casting department. They were interested. “It’s an incredibly lengthy process,” she said. “We had to teach ourselves so much stuff. We had to put together a ten-minute audition video, which meant downloading the iMovie app, and lots of Skype conversations. We learned how to build a website through JCC, designed a logo, everything.” Mrs. Rosenberg was chosen to be on the show’s fifth season, which offered the winner $50,000 and their own food truck. And although she didn’t walk away with the prize, it was on the show that she developed the Military Moms signature name and look: bright pink camouflage, plus the Food Network endorsement and logo. “If you see it,” she said, “we’re so bright that you can’t miss us. Besides all of the exposure, which is insane, I paid no money for any sort of marketing. We’ve been approached by event planners that found us through the show. Part of it is that it’s military spouse-
Military Moms food truck ONLINE: Locations, menus and more can be found at militarymomstruck.com.
owned, and that story has gotten out.” With the help of Mrs. Bajakian, who was also on the Great Food Truck Race and is the wife of an active duty soldier at Fort Drum, Mrs. Rosenberg has found a more affordable food truck, planned a menu and made a tentative summer schedule. The bright pink truck should be rolling up to events beginning this June, and she says there’s already been lots of chatter on social media — including more than 4,000 likes on her Facebook page. Mrs. Rosenberg’s menu will be very distinct from the standard junk food offerings that are sold from carnival food trucks. Instead, Military Moms will serve comfort food with gourmet twists and clever names, like Private Jelly, a grilled peanut butter and jelly sandwich with fresh roasted nuts and berries, or Sergeant Cheesy, a grilled cheese sandwich with habanero jam and bacon. “Sometimes you should eat those things you grew up with as a kid,” she said. “They’re just fun. We want to be a little sassy and sweet.” Mrs. Rosenberg is committed to following a “farm-to-table” model and sourcing as much of her food from the north country as she can. There are plans for smoked brisket chili and braised pork, for duck confit tacos and homemade barbecue sauces, rubs, crackers and coleslaw. “I want to work seasonally and provide seasonal salad on the sides of the sandwiches, local beef, things like that. I’d love to find local duck,” she said. “We live in an area that has lots of farms and I want to promote that. People are paying more attention to what they’re eating, so why not be local?” North country locals can expect to see the Military Moms Food Truck parked regularly at several locations: on Route 12 in Great Bend, near Fort Drum’s Mount Belvedere gate, and in various parking lots in and around Watertown. The truck also made appearances at Taste of Syracuse, June 5 and 6, and the Taste of Country Music Festival at Hunter Mountain, N.Y., as well as catering local events and hosting spontaneous “pop-up” dinners in north country fields. Despite all the hard work ahead, Mrs. Rosenberg says she’s more than ready to open for business. “I’m gonna work my guts out,” she said. “We’re gonna move all over. That’s the beautiful thing about food trucks.” n gabrielle hovendon is a north country native, former Watertown Daily Times reporter and gfreelance writer who lives in Athens, Ga. Contact her at ghovendon@gmail.com.
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SM A LL B US INES S
New nonprofit touts small biz WatertownFirst aims to build ‘shop local’ network
Cody J. Horbacz is the executive director of WatertownFirst, a newly launched nonprofit aiming to start a movement in the greater Watertown area that encourages people to shift their spending from big-box stores to locally owned businesses.
By TED BOOKER
W NNY Business
atertownFirst, a newly launched nonprofit, wants to ignite a movement in the greater Watertown area that encourages people to shift their spending from big-box stores to locally owned businesses. The organization — a member of the American Independent Business Alliance — will host a series of three group discussions at Savory Downtown, 300 Washington St., this month for business owners to explore the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats facing independent businesses in the community. The mission of WatertownFirst is to create a network of independent businesses and organizations that are dedicated to creating a “shop local” culture in the greater Watertown area, said Kraig J. Everard, marketing director for the organization, who also is the director of corporate support for WPBS-TV. Mr. Everard said he helped start the organization with Cody J. Horbacz, who is the executive director. Mr. Horbacz, 29, was a former Watertown City Council candidate who ran unsuccessfully for a seat in the November 2013 election. To join the organization, member businesses must be privately owned and cannot be franchises, Mr. Everard said. Owners of businesses must be their primary decision makers. “So many mom-and-pop shops don’t have a huge marketing budget for the year, and big businesses can come in with millions in advertising to buy spots up,” Mr. Everard said, adding that franchises have an edge over small businesses. “Their owners are not making autonomous decisions within the company and pay franchise fees that go back to a large company, and our goal is to keep our money local.” Mr. Everard said the organization wants to start building its membership base by drumming up interest during its June presentations. A yearly membership fee structure for businesses has been established from $100
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AMANDA MORRISON | NNY BUSINESS
to $1,000, along with a five-year package for $3,500. Among other things, member businesses will be promoted on the WatertownFirst website and be eligible for discounted advertising through its media partners, which now include WPBS-TV and Tunes 92.5. COMPETITION WITH CHAMBER?
WatertownFirst’s mission will be similar to the Greater Watertown-North Country Chamber of Commerce, which has 825 member businesses, most based in Jefferson County. The chamber — which also has members in Lewis, St. Lawrence, Oswego and Onondaga counties — has annual membership dues from about $150 to $1,000, according to Lynn M. Pietroski, CEO and president of the organization. Mrs. Pietroski, who announced her resignation earlier this month, will leave the chamber in July to become the chief operating officer at the Jefferson Rehabilitation Center. After meeting recently with leaders of WatertownFirst, Mrs. Pietroski said she believes the group’s narrow focus on independent businesses will be a boon for the shop-local movement in Watertown. “I think they can do more with some local, smaller mom-and-pops” than the chamber, Mrs. Pietroski said, adding that the chamber’s mission is broader. “They’re going to promote businesses like we do, but we also offer opportunities for business-to-business networking.” Mrs. Pietroski estimated that about 75 to 80 percent of the chamber’s members are small businesses with 50 or fewer employees. The chamber also serves corporate members, and it provides several services
that are outside of WatertownFirst’s scope, such as educational programs and assistance with government contracting. Mrs. Pietroski said that WatertownFirst, like the Watertown Downtown Business Association, will offer small businesses in Watertown with more promotional options to choose from. Some businesses may decide to be members of multiple organizations, she said, while others may stick with one. “There is a chance that we may lose some members,” she said. “But we’ll do our best to work in collaboration with WatertownFirst.” David A. Winters, president of the Watertown DBA, said he is concerned that WatertownFirst could “spread things too thin” by recruiting member businesses from the same pool as the DBA and chamber. Annual business memberships for the DBA are $50. “You don’t want to draw from another group just to get the same result,” Mr. Winters said. Mr. Horbacz, a service manager for Fuccillo Mitsubishi in Watertown, said he believes WatertownFirst can do more for small businesses than what the chamber offers. “Their job is to represent and promote all of their members — not just the mom-andpop shops,” he said. “They have small, independent business members, but they also have corporate members. And I personally believe they can’t put on a sustained buylocal campaign because they risk alienating some of their members.” WILL BUSINESSES OPT IN?
Matthew M. Northrup, manager at Watertown Appliance and TV Center on
SM A LL BUS INES S Factory Street, said the business will consider becoming a member of WatertownFirst. He said the business, which has 12 employees, isn’t a member of the chamber or the Watertown DBA. “Anything is good that helps create a consensus to shopping local, as opposed to running up to a big-box store because you’re under the impression you’re going to get the best buy. That’s not necessarily the case,” said Mr. Northrup, who is a friend of Mr. Horbacz. “People need to look at the overall value they’re getting.” David P. Bartlett, owner of Johnny D’s Restaurant in the Paddock Arcade, said the business did not renew its chamber membership this year but is not interested in joining WatertownFirst. The business, which has six employees, has been a member of the Watertown DBA for eight years. “I think there’s enough stuff in town already with the chamber and DBA, but I wish them luck,” he said of WatertownFirst. “I’m a realist, and I think they’re going to have a hard time finding people to help out.” April’s Cake Shop on Public Square, which has four employees, did not to renew its chamber membership this year “because it was too expensive,” and it joined the Watertown DBA, owner April L. Johnson said. She said the business, which has four employees, won’t join WatertownFirst. “From a small-business standpoint, there isn’t a whole lot of extra money to take a gamble on something like this,” she said after reviewing the group’s membership fees. “I support the DBA because they hold events downtown ... I would rather have my name associated with something well known versus something new.” WatertownFirst, meanwhile, hopes to convince small businesses that its mission is worth supporting, Mr. Everard said. According to a national study by the business alliance, he said, only $14 of every $100 spent by consumers at big-box stores remains in local economies. “But if you take that same $100 and spend it at a small business, $45 stays in the local economy,” he said. “That’s about three times as much.” Visit watertownfirst.net, or Facebook, facebook.com/watertownfirst, to learn more about the nonprofit. n TED BOOKER is a Johnson Newspapers staff writer. Contact him at tbooker@wdt.net or 661-2371.
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June 2015 | NNY Business
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business briefcase BRIEFCASE, from page 12 Previously known as the “Weigh of Life,” program, “Commit to be fit,” required weekly weigh-ins and offered weekly nutritional classes. Participants who lost the most in total inches and percent weight loss were awarded a cash prize. A total of 403.5 pounds were lost amongst participants. Some 46 employees signed up for the challenge with a total of 78 percent completing the entirety of the program. According to Director of Nutrition Carly Draper, the program’s ultimate goal was teaching participants how to live healthier lives. Ms. Draper said the program will be offered again, but with some changes to promote accountability. She said the ultimate goal is to expand the program into the community sometime next year. AUTOMOTIVE
Davidson acquires Fulton franchise
Davidson Automotive Group recently announced the acquisition of the Ford franchise in Fulton as the group’s second Ford delaership in New York state. The Davidson family of dealerships operates auto stores in Rome and Watertown, selling Ford, Nissan, Chevrolet, Cadillac, Buick, GMC and pre-owned vehicles. Located on state Route 3 in Fulton, the new store will serve the Oswego, Fulton and Syracuse areas. Plans to build a new facility are also in the works. MEDIA
Local station presented Communicator Awards
Local WPBS-DT has been awarded the Award of Excellence for the local production “The Great Cable Carry,” sponsored in part by the Daisy Marquis Jones Foundation, and the Award of Distinction for the local production “Building North Country Innovation.” Each documentary is available for viewing online at watch.wpbstv.org. With more than 6,000 entries received from around the world, the Communicator Awards is the largest and most competitive awards program honoring the creative excellence for communications professionals. The awards are judged and overseen by the Academy of Interactive and Visual Arts, an organization of leading professionals from various disciplines of the visual arts, including representatives from Condè Nast, Disney, Lockheed Martin, MTV and more. 24 | NNY Business | June 2015
RE AL E STAT E RO UND UP
Realtors lobby for industry in D.C.
F
rom May 11 to 16, the National Association of Realtors held its Realtor Legislative Meetings and Trade Expo in Washington, D.C. The annual conference continues a tradition that goes back in the national association’s 100-plus-year history. The approximately 8,500 attendees came from around the country and around the world to focus on legislative issues that affect the real estate industry. The week included about 200 meetings and events that covered many real estate topics and allowed NAR members to take an active role in advancing the real estate industry, public policy, and the association. Realtor members come from all political stripes and do not support a particular political party, but support legislators and issues that pertain to real estate and its effect on the consumers. From the Tri-County area, Linda Fields, Linda J. Fields, Broker, Janet Handschuh, Heart Homes Real Estate, Lisa L’Huillier, Hefferon Real Estate, Jennifer Stevenson, Blue Heron Realty, and I participated in the meetings. While attending, we met with U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer and Congresswoman Elise Stefanik, participated in NAR and Women’s Council of Realtors committee meetings, engaged in idea exchanges with other Realtors and staff, and listened to information and updates that will assist all of us in better serving the real estate consumer and market. One of the issues we brought to our elected representatives’ attention were actions that Congress needs to take to ensure that qualified borrowers have access to safe and affordable mortgage financing, that the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage
be preserved, and that federal mortgage programs providing American families nationwide a path to homeownership be safeguarded. Another area of concern is tax reform. While Lance Evans not likely to be enacted in 2015, it was important to educate lawmakers and their staffs about the vital role that real estate tax provisions play in the nation’s housing markets and economy. Congress should oppose proposals that would weaken or repeal these measures. Tax reform is important, but should first do no harm. In addition, the Mortgage Forgiveness Tax Relief Act, which provides assistance to homeowners who are still “under water,” expired on Dec. 31, 2014, and needs to be extended. Patent trolls and cybersecurity are two other issues that negatively affect the real estate industry, the business of real estate, and the consumers they serve every day. Patent trolls game the system to extract money from real estate firms and other small businesses. Congress also needs to address needed patent litigation reforms and enact data security legislation that does not create onerous burdens for small businesses. n
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The Tri-County Chapter of the Women’s Council of Realtors will hold its fifth annual golf tournament Friday, July 24,
at Highland Meadows Golf and Country Club just north of Watertown, 24201 state Route 342. Proceeds from the tournament will benefit the Fort Drum USO Chapter and local WCR chapter events. It is an 18-hole, four-person captain and crew golf tournament with men’s, co-ed and women’s divisions. The $75 per person entry fee includes golf, cart, lunch buffet and prizes. A “cash” skins game will also be available. For more information about entering a team, donating a prize or for sponsorship opportunities, contact event chairperson Debbie Staie, Stdeb3@aol.com or by calling (315) 783-4400. n
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The St. Lawrence County Board of Realtors held a two day strategic planning session in late April facilitated by Patrick Reilly of the New York State Association of Realtors. Preceding the session, Realtor members of the Association were surveyed about their thoughts on various matters. The survey results helped determine the areas of need and interest in the association. The participants, who varied in specialties, length of time as a member, and geography, were Lin Fields, Debbie Gilson, Rhonda Roethel, Korleen Spilman, Jennifer Stevenson, Rick Wood, and me. The Board of Directors accepted the plan at their May meeting. It will serve as the Association’s “road map” for the next two to four years. n LANCE M. EVANS is the executive officer of the Jefferson-Lewis Board of Realtors and the St. Lawrence County Board of Realtors. Contact him at levans@nnymls.com. His column appears monthly in NNY Business.
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June 2015 | NNY Business
| 25
RE A L E STATE
A professional education leader By Gabrielle Hovendon
D
NNY Business Magazine
o you know how to sell a house? How to manage a property or navigate license law? Do you know the difference between a real estate agent and a realtor? If not, Linda J. “Lin” Fields may be able to help. The main instructor and driving force behind Watertown’s Professional Institute for Real Estate Training, Ms. Fields is the woman who educates most of the north country’s real estate professionals today. “I’ve taught 90 percent of the licensed real estate professionals in Jefferson, Lewis, and St. Lawrence counties,” she said. “I’m the beginning person in the process, and for me to sit back and see people’s success and realize it started a long time ago when they sat in my class, is really a nice warm feeling. It’s refreshing to see the people I’ve taught doing so well in the business.” Ms. Fields began working in real estate in the 1980s. Her first teaching job was a part-time position in Rochester, but she already had an extensive educational background, including degrees in science, nursing, and paralegal work. She said she also considered a Ph.D. in biology and has more recently been looking into a master’s degree in real estate. Although the Rochester position ended when she moved north, Ms. Fields’ career was really just beginning. “When I moved to Watertown in 1986, anyone who wanted to take any kind of real estate education had to go to Syracuse,” she said, explaining that a fellow teacher in Waterloo, NY, encouraged her to begin teaching real estate courses in the north country through the Professional Education Association. She did so, and in 1991 she opened the licensed and accredited “PIRT” with her husband, owner Patrick F. Fields. Since, the institute has offered a variety of pre-licensing and continuing education courses. The requirements to become a New York state licensed real estate agent are more extensive than many homeowners would suspect — 75 hours of pre-licensing education and a pre-licensing exam for newcomers and more than 22 hours of continuing education every two years for established professionals — and PIRT offers classes that help meet these various requirements. Although Ms. Fields teaches all these classes herself, she draws on a wide array of local guest instructors to keep the classes interesting, and there are options to take some of the courses online. She also offers career nights and educational programs for local homebuyers. “We’re kind of like a one-stop shop,” she said with a laugh. “It’s fun, too. I wouldn’t be doing it if after 34 years if it wasn’t fun.” PIRT’s classes have titles that range from practical to downright chipper: “Realtor Property Resources,” “A.I.M. 4 Success,” “You Have to Own It – Attitude is Everything” and “Sales Qualifying Course” being a few recent offerings. In these courses, Ms. Fields covers everything from risk management, fair housing practices
26 | NNY Business | June 2015
NORM JOHNSTON | NNY BUSINESS
Linda J. “Lin” Fields is the primary instructor and driving force behind Watertown’s Professional Institute for Real Estate Training and business law to information on mortgages, leases, commercial real estate and advertising. She said she makes sure to prepare students for running day-to-day operations and handling problems that arise with buyers or sellers. “We have a lot of people who want to get into real estate because they’ve watched HGTV or they think that it is a great part-time job,” she said. “It is probably one of the hardest professions to be in, because you work 24 hours a day, seven days a week, if you are serious about being an active, licensed real estate professional.” Ms. Fields teaches the mandatory real estate pre-licensing course to around 30 or 35 students annually, a broker class to around a dozen students annually and continuing education classes to anywhere from 10 to 30 students monthly. She also teaches fair housing courses for local notfor-profit organizations and sees around 30 to 50 students every year for those classes. “For me, the most fun is the fair housing course because it’s something that is very near and dear to my heart,” she said. “For the students, I think the sales course is the most fun and I think it’s because they have no knowledge of what they’re getting into, but once they do, they realize, wow, it’s a lot more than I thought it would be. I think they’re sometimes overwhelmed, because there’s an incredible amount of knowledge, but at the end when they get their certificate they realize they had a good time.” One student who’s had not only a good time in Ms. Fields’ classes but also great success since then is Amanda Miller, owner of Lake Ontario Realty, LLC, and the top listing and selling agent in Jefferson County for the last three years running. Ms. Miller took the pre-licensing class as well as a broker’s class and various continuing education courses at PIRT, and she described Ms. Fields as an asset to the profession.
“She’s fantastic,” Ms. Miller said. “She’s such a character, and she’s got a great personality. She’s very good at using examples and getting the material clear to you through real life scenarios. She’s just a great teacher.” Ms. Miller said that Ms. Fields makes sure to prepare students honestly and accurately for what they’ll face in the real estate field, good and bad alike. The two have become close friends, and Ms. Miller has often consulted Ms. Fields with difficult questions and scenarios. “Because I do so much business, I’ve had a lot of unique situations, good and bad, and she’s always been willing to help me,” Ms. Miller said. “She’s been a wonderful mentor and a huge influence in my life. She really helped me get where I am. She always told me what I needed to hear and not what I wanted to hear.” Looking to the future, PIRT will continue to offer its classes to people joining or continuing in the real estate field. Ms. Fields has no plans of retiring yet, and she’s adding to her teaching load this fall as a certified instructor through the New York State Association of Realtors in Rochester, Binghamton, Canton and Kingston, NY. Meanwhile, she’ll continue to keep up with the evolving world of real estate, including its constantly changing technology and trends. “I remember when I would go into a listing presentation with a piece of paper and a pencil, and now I go in with a laptop or a tablet,” she said. “Technology has been an absolute blessing and sometimes an absolute curse. We have smarter buyers and we have smarter sellers, thank heavens.” n gabrielle hovendon is a north country native, former Watertown Daily Times reporter and gfreelance writer who lives in Athens, Ga. Contact her at ghoven don@gmail.com.
RE AL E STAT E / top transactions Top 10 property sales by price recorded in the Jefferson County Clerk’s Office in April 2015: $700,000: April 3, Town of Pamelia: 10 acres, state Route 12 (Bradley Street) at intersection of Interstate Route 81, MSP Realty Inc., Watertown, sold to W&C LLC, Watertown. $470,000: April 20, Village of Sackets Harbor: 0.17 acres, no address, George L. Swift and Kristina D. Swift, Sackets Harbor, sold to Robert R. Tyler Jr. and Katherine A. Tyler, Watertown. $380,000: April 8, Town of Brownville: Bull Rock Farm, Pillar Point, Castle Rock Properties Corp., Vienna, Va., sold to Wellington Financial Services LLC, Merrifield, Va. $375,000: April 10, Town of Clayton: 0.503 acres, no address, Bellacondo II LLC, Liverpool, sold to John H. Marra and Nancy A. Marra, Brownville. $319,000: April 16, Town of Watertown: 4.36 acres, Spring Valley Drive, Thomas M. Purzycki and Diana J. Purzycki, Watertown, sold to Marcia Chung, Carthage. $300,000: April 16, Village of Chaumont: 0.367 acres, County Road 125 (Stone Street), John W. Horr and Laurie A. Horr, Chaumont, sold to Cris P. Kahle, Adams Center. $295,000: April 20, Town of Alexandria: 0.87 acres, Wellesley Island, Ridge Avenue, Diane L. Brennan, Williamsville, Kris D. Marsala, Watertown, and Edith D. Marsala, Watertown, sold to Holker Enterprises LLC, Webster.
Dennis C. and Kelly Y. Forsyth, Gouverneur. $337,500: April 17, Town of Fowler: Parcel 1) 0.36 of an acre more or less, Parcel 2) 4.71 acres more or less, Parcel 3) 0.73 of an acre more or less, in Lot 42, bounded by River Drive, Mary M. Farley, Gouverneur, and Patti A. Farley-Spilman, Gouverneur, sold to David C. McClure, Gouverneur. $327,000: April 23, Village of Canton: Parcel 1) 0.32 of an acre more or less, Parcel 2) Unknown acres, Lot 59 in Section C, bounded by Woods Drive, Judy P. Johnson, Canton, sold to Benjamin R. and Emily H. Dixon, Canton. $225,000: April 15, Village of Waddington: 0.22 of an acre more or less, being Parcel 2797, bounded by St. Lawrence Avenue, James P. and Linda C. Fer-
riter, Waddington, sold to Thomas E. and Mona E. Miller, Massena. $183,000: April 14, Town of Stockholm: Unknown acres, bounded by Heath Road, Josh J. and Amanda N. Flint, Potsdam, sold to Bernard B. Adams III and Carla L. Adams, Potsdam. $182,000: April 6, Town of Hammond: Unknown acres, Lot 17 and Lot 18, bounded by Woodland Drive and Patrick Drive, James R. Franz, Hammond, sold to Gregory M. and Jaqueline J. Washburn, Hammond. $170,000: April 2, Town of Fowler: Parcel 1) 103 40/100 acres more or less, parcel 2) 34 65/100 more or less, Parcel 3) 59 acres more or less, Lot 13, Township 7, David J. and Teresa D. Martin, Gouverneur, sold to Geremy L. and Adrienne B. Cox, Gouverneur.
Your story is our story.
$282,500: April 1, Town of Rutland: No acreage, no address, Rhett R. Cox and Amy I. Cox, Black River, sold to Richard G. Fifield and Tracey L. Fifield, Black River. $279,800: April 6, Town of Pamelia: 2.007 acres, Route 12, Erik K. Martin, Watertown, and Kristin Kelher-Martin, Watertown, sold to Arron Brewer and Christina Brewer, Watertown. $270,000: April 2, Town of Brownville: 1.74 acres, state Route 12E, James M. Arthur and Angela N. Arthur, Dexter, sold to Jacquelyn L. Orvis, Chaumont. Top 10 property sales by price recorded in the St. Lawrence County Clerk’s Office in April 2015: $2,290,000: April 13, Town of Canton: Unknown acres, being a part of Lot 3, bounded by Walker Road, Guy W. Hart and, Mary Primo, East Syracuse, Mary Primo (executor), Estate of Robert Primo, no address given, Mary Primo, Steven J. Primo and David M. Primo (trustees), Last will and Testament of Robert Primo, sold to NFL KDS CANTON LLC., Morristown, N.J. $1,263,937.50: April 20, Town of Piercefield: 2 Parcels, unknown acres, Lot 1 of Block 1, in Section 183, Town of Hopkinton: 4 Parcels, unknown acres, Lot 4 and Lot 7 of Block 1, in Section 168, Town of Tupper Lake: (Franklin County), 2 Parcels, unknown acres, Lot 6 and Lot 9 of Block 1, in Section 438, Joel H. Treisman (executor), Estate of Dorothy C. Treisman, Briarcliff Manor, sold to Treisman Kildare LLC, West Port, Conn. $957,360: April 13, Town of Morristown: Parcel 1) 10 acres more or less, Parcel 2) 40 86/100 acres more or less, Parcel 3) 18 90/100 acres more or less, Parcel 4) 62 acres more or less, Parcel 5) Unknown acres, Parcel 6) 88 4/100 acres more or less, all bounded by English Settlement Road and Church Mills Road, Philippe and Barbara Bertrand, Ogdensburg, sold to Russ Farms LLC., Lisbon. $425,000: April 1, Town of Macomb: Parcel 1) 61 23/100 acres more or less, Parcel 2) 8 95/100 acres more or less, Parcel 3) 70 5/100 acres more or less, Parcel 4) 30 acres more or less, bounded by Mitchell Road, Kerry and Cara Bliss, Orangeville, Calif., sold to
“Supporting the Northern New York Community Foundation provided us a starting point for giving back to our local community. We invested in their reputation. The Community Foundation enhances the quality of life in the North Country by engaging the community to support local organizations. The lives of those impacted are enhanced, and those that give get to experience one of the most exhilarating feelings of helping others close to home.” -The Robare Family
Northern New York
Community Foundation 120 Washington Street, Suite 400, Watertown, NY 13601 (315) 782-7110 • info@nnycf.org • www.nnycf.org
June 2015 | NNY Business
| 27
20 questions
Leveraging natural resources
JASON HUNTER | NNY BUSINESS
R
obert J. Giordano Jr. is retired, technically. But anyone who knows him knows that not entirely true. His attention is deeply devoted to two passion: community and fishing. Mr. Giordano is a board member of FISHCAP and the New York State Fish Advisory Board, a fisherman himself and the event coordinator for the Bassmaster Elite series. He is also the president of Wounded Warrior Outdoor Adventures. This month, he sat down to give us the details of the upcoming Bassmaster Elite series and discuss its impact on veterans, children and the north country community.
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NNYB: This is a big deal that Waddington is going to host the Bassmaster Elite Tournament two times in four years, right? Giordano: It’s a huge deal. They brought like 20 national sponsors with them. They loved it here. The owner of Bass loved it here. The anglers loved it here. They requested to come back here. They’ve worked with us so that we could help sponsor the tournament again, because it’s very expensive.
2
NNYB: What determines the winners? Giordano: It’s the highest total weight of five bass. They can bring in their five biggest fish every day and at the end, it’s the highest total weight for the event that wins. Each day, you weigh in five, and then at the end, they total your weight and the person with the highest weight wins the $100,000.
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NNYB: How would you answer the critics who say this might not be the most exciting event? Giordano: You get to watch the top 112 bass anglers in the world, all their fancy boats, the sponsors. Then there’s the whole festival that’s set up around it; so while the anglers are out fishing, you may be bungee jumping. You have rides for kids. I think we have 13
28 | NNY Business | June 2015
Bassmaster Elite Series returns to Waddington, St. Lawrence River n
free bands. And we have four national bands coming to play music from Thursday all the way until Sunday. They’ll be over 100 vendors there selling food. They’ll be a lot there to keep you involved. You can have a lot of fun with it while you’re waiting for the anglers to come back in.
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NNYB: Talk a little bit about your experience as a FISHCAP board member. Giordano: Because I’m a volunteer and host so many other fishing events, I was working with Don Meisner, Mike Seymour, Mike Gagner and different board members, and they invited me to come on board. I thought it was a great program that highlighted the north country, and I wanted to be part of it. I definitely believed that tourism and highlighting our waters and fishing were key to our future in this area to bring some economic development.
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NNYB: Would you say that a region such as ours should focus on marketing what it has, since the days of big manufacturing jobs are probably behind us? Giordano: I agree with that. We have pristine water. We have beautiful forest. We’ve got great snowmobiling. We don’t have to go out and reinvent this. We just have to show the rest of the world, “Hey, come here. We have this to offer.” That was the main thing, even when I wasn’t from here. I didn’t know what the north country had. But I believe, like myself, if you come here, if you see it, if you meet the people, you’ll want to vacation here. You’ll want to stay here. Maybe you’ll even want to buy a house. It’s just a matter of introducing people to this little secret that we have up here.
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NNYB: What kind of support is Bassmaster Elite receiving in the community? Giordano: An event like this costs somewhere close to $200,000 to put on. And you’re talking about a tiny, tiny village. So we have to raise this money to host this event. And the legislators have come through for us every year. The [Waddington] mayor, Janet Otto-Cassada, she had to take the gamble on the first one. Here’s your host fee of $60,000, and then you have a $200,000 budget that you have to raise, and she really didn’t flinch. She just said, “We can do it. We’ll do a good job. We’ll get help from our sponsors.” We had great sponsors, all throughout the community: banks and businesses, and then of course the legislators and the RDRDA. All these people helped us do this. And at the end of the day, a Clarkson study said we put in up to $1 million into the economy from that one event.
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NNYB: From how far away are people coming to an event like this? Giordano: I’ve got calls right now from Michigan, Minnesota, Florida. To give you an example, Costa is a big sport sunglass fishing company, and they just called up and donated $5,000 to be part of the event. The first year’s event, most of our vendors came from the north country. That’s not the case now. Now we have vendors from North Carolina, New Jersey, Ohio. I believe that the first one, we had to prove we could do it. Even Bass was a little nervous with us being so small. And with the great team that we had, it ended up that we set records.
2 0 q uestions
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NNYB: To what do you attribute that initial success for the event? Giordano:Great weather, great fishing, a great team of volunteers that worked very hard and all the community support. If any one of those pieces were missing, we might not have did what we did.
9
NNYB: How many volunteers are involved in this effort? Giordano: Probably around 10 was the core group. And then of course when we get to the festival itself, we’ve got to use the firemen, the local police, the sheriffs, the state troopers, everyone. So that’s when our volunteers come in, and they help us make sure that everything’s safe and it’s run correctly, and traffic doesn’t get backed up. So you have a very small group that plans it and does the fundraising, and then you have a huge group that makes the event itself work.
10
NNYB: What’s the best time during the tournament for someone to come up and catch some good action? Giordano: It depends on what you’re looking for. The gates open 11 a.m. every morning. They close at 11 p.m. Your fishing boats take off at 6:15 in the morning. So if you want to watch the beautiful boats ripping out into the water with the sun coming up, that’s beautiful. And then during the day, you have music from 11 a.m. all the way until the evening. We have Keith Anderson coming in. We have Kristin Kelly, who just got named CMT’s up-and-coming female of the year. They’ll be playing on Friday night. We’ve got Chris Taylor coming. So on Friday night at 5 p.m., if you want to watch great music, that’s a great time to show up. You definitely want to watch the weigh-ins, to see the big fish that they caught. But you’ve got to give yourself time to see the shows, too.
11
NNYB: When young kids see things like this, has it inspired more people to get involved in the sport? Giordano: We just had a guest speaker who came to one of our meetings. He works with the Northern New York Junior Bassmasters Club, and he told us that after the Bassmaster Elite, their numbers went up. I believe that introducing kids to fishing at a young age is important for the rest of their lives. I think they do better in school when they do outdoor sports, and fishing is one of them. I see only positives from it. I’m also the president of Wounded Warrior Outdoor Adventures. That is our big event for the year with the Bassmaster Elite. And so the kids get to meet with Wounded Warriors. They get to see the sacrifices that people made for their country. The Bassmaster guys are very good to our Wounded Warriors. They recognize them. I think going to that event as a young boy or girl, you see a lot of cool things that might give you a different outlook.
JASON HUNTER | NNY BUSINESS
Robert J. Giordano Jr., Waddington Bassmasters Elite Series event coordinator talks about the tournament.
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NNYB: Does a fisherman have to qualify to participate in these events? Giordano: You’ve got to work your way up to the Elite, and there’s multiple ways you can do that. You can go from college divisions, national divisions. You have to qualify in each division that you fish in. And then you get into the Elite. And from the Elite, their biggest event of the year is the Classic. You have eight Elites, and one Classic. So whoever at the end of the year has enough points to qualify will go to the Classic.
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NNYB: Do the anglers keep the fish they catch during the tournament? Giordano: No. Bass is all about catch-andrelease. So if the fish dies, it doesn’t count. That fish has to be brought to the weigh-in alive. Fish care is very important. If it dies, they don’t weigh it. They even have specialty catchand release-boats. So they just don’t dump them in the water next to the dock. They put them back in the tanks and redistribute them all around the river each day.
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NNYB: What lessons did you learn the first year Waddington hosted the series? Giordano: The important part now is getting all the surrounding communities to see the benefit to it. You have to be able to look outside the box and say, “If we’re bringing these people to the area and they’re spending money, that helps us put money back in the coffers. That’s a great thing for us.” We can bring businesses here, too. We’ve invited every single town and village to come and say, “Hey, here’s what we have to do.” I think that’s the big thing. We have to embrace this. NNYB: Have you had any unpredictable chal-
The Robert J. Giordano Jr. file AGE: 52 CAREER: Retired senior master sergeant, U.S. Air Force, June 2008; community volunteer, event coordinator, Bassmaster Elite series FAMILY: sons, Robert J. III, 32, Virginia, and Steven C., 30, New Jersey HOMETOWN: Chase Mills EDUCATION: Bachelors of Science in management, Hamilton College, Iowa BEST BOOK YOU’VE READ AND WOULD RECOMMEND: “Gates of Fire” by Steven Presfield
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lenges in getting things off the ground? Giordano: The funding’s the biggest challenge. And then local businesses, we need more local businesses to get involved. And when I say local, I mean the north country. Whether you live in Massena or Ogdensburg, I think it’s crucial that we all have to work together as one. This was never meant to be a Waddington event; it was always meant to be a north country event. It just happened to be Waddington has the picture perfect place to host it. But the idea was always to make it beneficial to all our businesses. For example, we have businesses in Gouverneur that said they made the most money they made in an entire year at the last Bassmaster Elite. We have little hotdog salesmen that sold $5,000 worth of hotdogs.
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NNYB: What about the St. Lawrence River makes this an ideal place? Giordano: The water’s very clean. It’s got great habitat for food. I think it’s managed June 2015 | NNY Business
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20 questions well by our DEC. And we do have a lot of people that practice catch-and-release, so that all adds to having a very strong fishery. I think the people themselves do a great job of policing themselves. Take what you need to eat but don’t overfish it, and then try to protect the fish. Don’t try to fish for bass when they’re spawning. Leave the walleye alone when they’re spawning. And then all the sudden you start having these great years of fish, and you get to where Bassmaster listed the St. Lawrence River as one of the top 11 places in the world to fish. NNYB: Talk about the impact of fishing on the Wounded Warriors.
17
Giordano: One of the pro anglers coming here was blown up in Afghanistan. He lost an eye. He almost lost his hand. They reattached his thumb. He did lose his eye. They call him Cyclops on the Elite. But he said, “Listen, the good Lord knew I needed that thumb to fish. I didn’t need two eyes. I only needed one.” So I’m hoping he’ll have some time to spend with our Wounded Warriors when he comes up here. It’s great to see what you can do if you just try. I’ll tell you just a little separate story. We hosted a fishing tournament in Brasher, a musky challenge. We do it for the Wounded Warriors, and take them out. It was terrible weather. Boats
were getting blown all over the place. And at the end of it, I walked around and I said, “How was your day on the water? I hope you had a great time.” And I went up to a table, and there were four guys and one girl. And I said, “Did you have a good time?” And the guys were all going, “Yeah, Sarge, we had a good time.” And I looked at her and I said, “Did you have a good time?” And one of the guys said, “She hasn’t spoken in a year and a half since she came back from Iraq. She hasn’t communicated.” They just brought her out there that day. So I said, “I hope you had a great time.” She got a piece of paper and wrote down, “I had the best time today.” That was the first time she communicated in a year and a half since she came back. So that kind of tells you what fishing can do and what it can do for them and really why I do what I do. It makes you feel really good.
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NNYB: What keeps you motivated if you ever get frustrated with things? Giordano: I’ve got a great group of volunteers I work with. Every time we get a frustrating thing, we get a good thing. It’ll make you laugh. And I guess at the end of the day, I retired here, and this keeps me going. I like the way it’s linked to the veterans community. That really is important to me. So if I can help my veterans and my community at the same time, I’m pretty excited to do it.
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NNYB: After this event is done, and folks are on their way home, what happens next? Giordano: We’re already working on the next event, and we try to learn something from each event to improve it. So was there better music we can do? Is there a better way to control traffic? Are there more things that the people would like to see there that we can get? And this year we added bungee jumping and we added freefalling from towers. Big, high-visibility events that you probably wouldn’t normally see in Waddington, but because of the amount of people that came to the first one, now we can work with other people to bring these things here.
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NNYB: From a leadership perspective, how do you motivate others if you’re all volunteers? Giordano: Well, it is all volunteer, and they’re just great people. That’s all I can say about them. They do it for their community. And I can tell you that even in small communities you have people sitting on both sides of the fence. This group works long hours. They have day jobs. I’m retired. There might be one other retired guy. But the rest of them do their day jobs, they do what they do in their community and then they put the extra time in to make this happen. We want to have a great event. We want it to be good for our community, the north country community. And I think that keeps them all excited. — Interview by Ken Eysaman. Edited for length and clarity to fit this space.
30 | NNY Business | June 2015
e x ecutive corner
Common sense change management “It is change, continuing change, inevitable change that is the dominant factor in society today.” — Isaac Asimov
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hile mulling over what we might write about this month, we came across this quote from the writings of Isaac Asimov; a man who died more than 20 years ago. We think you would agree that his words are still relevant today, and even more challenging. The speed of change is accelerating exponentially due to the ever increasing rates of invention and innovation. We believe that most leaders view change as inevitable, and a dominant factor in every society. The challenge for leaders is to deal with change effectively and efficiently. Some changes, such as new competitors and new competitive products, are thrust upon us. Other changes, such as the application of new technologies, new processes, and new organizational structures are initiated from within, and the hope is always improved performance. Regardless of whether the change is driven by external or internal forces, the real question is whether your organization is prepared to deal with change successfully. People often fail to recognize the difference between project management and change management. In both cases the organization is moving from the current state, through a transition state, and into a future state. Project management deals with the technical side of change, whereas change management deals with the people side of change. Both elements must be managed in order for the change to be successful. We’ll save discussion of project management for another time. Today our focus will be on change management: the people side. The consequences of not managing the people side of change are many. Examples include lower productivity, passive and active resistance, turnover, and absenteeism. Even though the change may be technically sound, a high percentage of change efforts do not
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reach their full potential, or fail completely. This is because many organizations fail to recognize the importance of managing the change. The reasons why change initiatives fall short — or fail altogether — most Bill Murray often fall in one of these categories: n Leaders fail to understand the nature of resistance n Leaders underestimate how disruptive change can be n Leaders view organizations as mechanical systems and fail to facilitate change n Leaders don’t align the change efforts with their business strategy n Leaders don’t have a model for change We will now briefly explore each of these reasons in a little more detail, along with how they can be avoided. First, never underestimate the power of comfort with how things are being done in your organization today. Change is always disruptive, and the natural reaction is resistance. You should always expect resistance and plan for it, understanding it is very natural whenever you’re initiating any change. The key mitigation factors are early employee involvement and two-way communications. Sometimes leaders think that change is simply a matter of “adding to” or “taking from” the current state, and that the rationale and benefits, will be self-evident to everyone. Although the planned change may be technically correct in every way, having the right answer by itself is not enough. Effective change leaders recognize the importance of facilitating change. They take steps to insure everyone understands the business case for the change,
and provide a vision of what the new state will look like. Further, these leaders share action plans, continually communicate progress, and reinforce the change through their own behaviors and the recognition of others. All organizaReg Carter tions have a strategy. It may or may not be well defined and understood; it may be good or it may be bad. The idea is that some level of planning and direction exists in all organizations, and represents the strategy for achieving the organization’s goals. Lack of alignment with the business strategy occurs when it’s not clear how the change will help people better achieve their goals. This goes right back to the importance of facilitating change, i.e., insuring everyone understands the business case, providing a vision of what the new state will look like, sharing action plans, continually communicate progress, and reinforcing behaviors through example and the recognition of others. We have touched on the basic model associated with successful change implementation: leadership involvement and facilitation, two-way communications, early employee involvement, and strategic alignment. Developing plans around each of these elements will dramatically increase your chance for success with the implementation of any change — which is sure to come. n Reg CartER & Bill Murray are executives with CITEC Business Solutions, a Cantonbased nonprofit economic development consulting organization, with more than 60 years of business and management experience between them. Their column appears quarterly in NNY Business.
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June 2015 | NNY Business
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EC ON OMICALLY S PEAKIN G
Embrace change as an opportunity
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here is nothing more constant than change. It is happening all around us, every day, all of the time. Yet, why do so many people fear change? When things take us out of our comfort zone, we may feel uncomfortable or have difficulty adjusting. Our options are to embrace it as an opportunity or to resist it out of fear. Within our tri-county region, we have all experienced significant change as it relates to the genesis and growth of Fort Drum — a heartbeat of the north country. Businesses, schools and housing developers have grown to serve the needs of the military population. Health care entities, too, have been strengthened because of the expansion, and regional initiatives in recent years have made health care for military and civilian families more efficient. The network of hospitals, public health agencies and community-based organizations have enhanced their collaborations to improve offerings to meet the needs of soldiers, their families, and our civilian community who support them and are now moving to transformative change across all sectors of care. Rapid change requires winning the hearts and minds of your team in response to changing demands and strategies. How does one do this? We must encourage systems-based thinking by conceptualizing all the elements of the whole and asking ourselves how they fit together, what functions they perform and how the processes are orchestrated. Effective and strong leadership is the necessary substance to mobilize this type of systematic renewal within an organization. Leaders must work to maximize commitment, build capacity, align the culture and manage the change.
To minimize impacts or effects from having unintended negative outcomes, it is essential to have a change management plan in place. This plan must consist of adequate resources Tracy Leonard and understanding of change processes in order to execute the change efficiently and effectively. While the theory of organizational change is fairly straightforward, each organization’s approach to that change is unique. To begin the process of moving renewal efforts forward in a positive way, here are a few suggestions that have proven successful in our work:
1. Understand the shared bucket
We must work together to capitalize on our financial and human resources for the greatest good for all. 2. Design for behavior change When the system, beliefs or knowledge
that creates a behavior changes, the behavior changes.
3. Value community-based partners
Understand and leverage the expertise and assets of our partners. The sum is greater than its parts and minimizing the duplication of services only enhances productivity. 4. STAY informed
Utilize accurate, timely and reliable data to make informed decisions 5. Have confidence
We, and only we, know how to do this for us. Maintain the confidence that we either know how or can find the answer.
6. We have the power to engage
Align your priorities with the needs of your patients, customers, or clients and create a win-win for all. 7. Trust each other
We cannot and will not know all the answers — with change comes new territory. We have to trust and support one another and look ahead to minimize or mitigate risks. 8. Proceed as if success is inevitable
Miriam-Webster defines success as the correct or desired result of an attempt. 9. Articulate a clear, sensible vision for transformation
Set goals, develop strategies and ensure that as many people as possible buy into, understand and accept the vision. 10. Celebrate your successes big and small along the way
As author Robert Bellingham said “organizations that support and reward collaboration will meet the emerging challenges of change, taking advantage of the global economy, new technology and culture diversity to bring better quality products and services to ever demanding customers.” Wellarticulated strategies coupled with a shared purpose, passion and ideals can lead to an organization that makes intelligent decisions and accomplishes its purposes … the return on investment is high for your organization, the community and the people you serve. Are you ready to establish high performing teams to implement transformational changes within your company’s corporate culture? Remember, in the words of Jay Wilkinson: “culture is by design and any one of us can be the architect.” n Tracy leonard is deputy director of the Watertown-based Fort Drum Regional Health Planning Organization. Contact her at tleonard@fdrhpo.org.
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Small business law for landlords
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ne type of small business owner is a landlord who may have one or more residential units for rent. If a landlord has been in the residential rental business for any length of time, he or she will have had the unpleasant task of evicting a tenant. Evictions are governed by the Real Property Actions and Proceedings Law. It establishes the legal framework for when and how an eviction is to occur. The legal term for an eviction is called a summary proceeding and it is designed to grant the landlord possession of the rental unit, a money judgement for unpaid rent, and a warrant of eviction. Most summary proceedings are either a non-payment proceeding or holdover proceeding. The non-payment proceeding is self-explanatory in that the tenant has not paid the rent as agreed to. Holdover proceedings can be, for example, a monthto-month rental relationship has ceased or a provision in the lease agreement was violated by the tenant. If the landlord wishes to initiate a summary proceeding either for non-payment or a holdover, notice must be given to the tenant. This is called a “predicate notice.” If the predicate notice is not given, improperly served on the tenant, or has incorrect information in it, the summary proceeding can be dismissed by the court. This means that the landlord must go through the entire predicate notice process again and in the interim, the tenant is allowed to remain on the premises. If the landlord intends to initiate a non-payment proceeding, the residential lease agreement must be examined first to determine the method of serving a notice on the tenant. In absence of contract language, the landlord must follow the dictates of the RPAPL. The statute provides that the predicate notice is a
“demand for payment” and it may be given orally or in writing. If the landlord selects the oral notice method, then the landlord can simply speak with the tenant after the rent has become due. The Larry Covell oral demand for payment must be decisive, unequivocal and specify the time period and amount of rent due. The major problem with this method is that the landlord has the burden of proving at the summary proceeding that a proper demand for payment was made. If the landlord selects the written demand method, a “three-day demand notice” is given to the tenant. The three-day notice must state that tenant is obligated to pay the unpaid rent or move out of the premises, the time period for which the rent is owed, and any amount owed in arrears. The threeday notice cannot simply be mailed to the tenant, rather service of the notice must be personally served on the tenant, given to a person of suitable age and discretion who lives in the rental unit, or the notice can be left in a conspicuous location after reasonable attempts to personally give it to the tenant. If service of the three-day notice is performed by any method than other than personal service, a follow up mailing must be made or service is deemed incomplete. This means that the landlord must mail a three-day notice to tenant by certified or regular first class mail. As mentioned, if the action is for some-
thing other than rent owed, it is usually considered a holdover proceeding. A predicate notice is still required but it is different depending on the type of holdover proceeding. In a month-to-month tenancy there is one month or 30-day predicate notice. A monthto-month tenancy usually isn’t created by a written lease and the tenancy continues so long as the tenant pays the monthly rent and the landlord continues to accept the payment. If the landlord wishes to terminate the relationship, a thirty-day notice must be given before the legal proceeding can be initiated. The notice may be oral or written and if written, it is satisfied when the tenant is notified by certified or first class mail. The written notice must be timely served, unequivocal in its terms, and state that the landlord-tenant relationship terminates on the last day of the rental term. If the landlord wishes to initiate a summary proceeding because the tenant has violated a clause in the lease agreement, notice must be given to tenant as well. The notice must explain what acts the tenant committed which give rise to the notice, give the tenant a time period, usually 10 days, to “cure” the problem and if the tenant fails to do so, a summary proceeding will be started for eviction. Service of the notice on the tenant must conform to the requirements of the lease agreement and if the lease agreement has no such provision, the landlord can serve the notice via personal service or mail. In the August issue, I will continue with chronological legal steps in a summary proceeding. n LARRY COVELL is a professor of business at Jefferson Community College and an attorney. Contact him at lcovell@sunyjefferson.edu. His column appears bimonthly in NNY Business.
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June 2015 | NNY Business
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commerce corner
Be the change, make a difference
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s I reflect upon my career, it seems ever-apparent that leaders commonly face several major changes or transitions in their working lifetime. With each change, a new set of skills, behaviors, attitudes and way of thinking accompany this challenge, but not without reasons. One challenge most all of us will face in our lifetime is the transition to a leader in a new role or job. A 2001 article published in the Ivey Business Journal by Charan, Dotter, and Noel references six passages an individual will make while progressing in leadership roles: n A person will go from managing oneself to managing others n Managing other mangers n Functional management n Business leadership n Group leadership n To enterprise leadership Each step we take in our careers is a necessary step to ensure our skills are more refined and our competencies solidly developed. However, the skills that may have made us a successful leader in one position may not be sufficient for the next role. Therefore, many of us strive for excellence or desire to do more. True leaders are always looking to grow and develop in their role, ways to improve their performance and empower those they surround themselves with.
“You are only going to be as good as the people you surround yourself with, so be brave enough to let go those who keep weighing you down.” As a leader, it’s Lynn Pietroski imperative that you surround yourself with good people who have a similar vision and passion for the same common goal. Those who work against you only weigh down a person or group. Adapting to new culture and people is an enormous transition that many people face, and it often comes with uncertainties of a new supervisor or peer. However challenging it is to learn to interact productively with others, superior, peer and subordinate, it also is rewarding. Always remember that a person learns from every encounter they have with someone or a situation. A true leader can see and find the message in every situation-it may not be immediately, it may be down the road when encountering a difficult challenge and you’re reflecting on how to best handle a situation. However, each stage in our career sets the steps for the next one even if its years apart.
Surround Yourself with Good People
Being a leader is more about taking the initiative to tackle things some would choose to avoid, accepting the
One philosophy that carries so much truth was stated by Ziad K. Abdelnour:
34 | NNY Business | June 2015
Be a Teacher, Share Your Knowledge
challenge, and taking the risk. By doing so, those around you begin to take risk, step up to the plate and perform the unexpected without being asked but because they have witnessed it being done. With teamwork, facing challenges head on become less difficult, more attainable, and create an environment that supports collaboration, learning, and produces courageous ideas. Be an Agent of Change
The words “be an agent of change” have been buzz words that have been around for several years and seem to be lingering. In essence, leadership roles require individuals to adapt to change continually, to manage crisis and change, and always be prepared for the unexpected. Change is the new normal for leadership success and in order to be successful it has to be an accepted tool. But what does a change agent bring to the table of leadership value? They have a clear vision, they are patient yet persistent, they are the ones who ask the tough questions, they have knowledge and lead by example, and they possess strong relationships that are built on trust. Never let the grass grow under your feet, never let someone take something you worked hard for, and never let something pass you by because you did not think you could do it. Be the change and make a difference. n Lynn Pietroski is president and CEO of the Greater Watertown North Country Chamber of Commerce. Contact her at ceo@watertownny. com. Her column appears monthly.
agri - business
Manure lagoons: Fact or fiction?
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ith a strong dynamic agricultural industry based on livestock, one question always rises, how do farms manage the manure livestock produce? We are fortunate in Northern New York that we have a strong viable and successful agricultural industry that creates jobs and supports our schools and communities. About 200 dairy farms in Jefferson County provide more than 600 million pounds of milk a year to our dairy manufacturers, employ nearly 1,000 people and support our local schools and municipalities through the large amount of taxes they pay. The average farm in Jefferson County maintains about 130 cows. Farms range in size from 20 cows to 3,000 cows. While 3,000 cows is large compared with a 20cow farm, it’s very small compared with dairy farms out west where 20,000- to 30,000-dairy cows might live on a single farm. Many of our farms have become “free-stall” operations where the cow is kept in a climate-controlled facility where the side walls are raised and lowered according to weather conditions and temperature so the cows are kept as comfortable as possible. They roam free inside the facility where they can feed on high-quality forage and, when they want, drink clean, fresh water and lie down in their individual beds without having to find shade to stay cool. These are today’s “factory farms.” By the way, understand that every farm is a factory. A factory is a place where you take raw product, grass and corn in this case, run it through a machine, a biological one in the form of a dairy cow, and transform the raw product into a value-added product, milk, on a
dairy farm. So what happens with all the manure these cows produce? Dairy farms with more than 300 cows have to follow strict regulations passed down Jay Matteson from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. These size farms are called Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations or CAFOs, another term misused to scare people. CAFO-sized farms in New York are among the most highly regulated farms in the United States, according to the Second Circuit Court of Appeals several years ago. They are required by law to manage their manure stream in detail. They hire certified nutrient management planners who are highly trained at helping farms balance the flow of nutrients on the farm including in the animal waste. These planners develop recommendations on when and where manure can be spread on the farm using scientific methods to balance the needs of the crops, the capacity of the soil to provide nutrients to the crops and especially to minimize any risk to surrounding water bodies of having runoff enter the water. Frequently, the farm must install a manure storage lagoon, or storage structure, to hold manure until it is safe and appropriate to spread the manure on the land. In order for the farm to receive
any financial assistance, the lagoon must be designed by licensed engineers. The lagoon has to be built according to engineering specifications and trained technicians oversee the construction of the lagoon to ensure it will not leak or break. As a side note, a storage pond in Lowville that failed several years ago was not an engineered structure. The farm had dug the pond as a temporary structure while it was in the process of building a state-of-the-art engineered manure system. Unfortunately, the structure broke, spilling manure into the Black River causing a fish kill on a small portion of the Black River. The river quickly recovered and the farm had to pay a large fine and other penalties. There are presently two manure storage lagoons in the planning phase that have made it into the press. Both will be engineered structures that will meet strict standards and specifications. Both are “satellite lagoons to help the farm reduce their road traffic and, from what I have learned, both farms intend to use drag house spreading systems from the lagoon, which allows the manure to be incorporated into the soil faster and further reduces the chance for runoff into bodies of water while cutting the length of time odor is an issue from the spread manure. These serve as examples of dairy farms trying to do the right thing for the environment and their neighbors. n Jay M. Matteson is agricultural coordinator for the Jefferson County Local Development Corp. He is a lifelong Northern New York resident who lives in Lorraine. Contact him at coordinator@comefarmwithus.com. His column appears monthly in NNY Business.
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business tech bytes
4G LTE can help bolster efficiencies
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he brand 4G stands for fourthgeneration wireless technology. First-generation wireless was the standard analog voice service. Remember when your old analog cellphone would no longer work and “digital” was arriving on the scene? That was second generation, or 2G wireless, this included not only digital voice but data service. Unfortunately, the data download was still very slow and clunky on a cell phone and we were definitely not all toting around iPads and tablets since data speeds were roughly equivalent to dial-up. Finally came the third generation, or 3G wireless service, which multiplied download speeds to the 400 to 700 kilobits per second – roughly equivalent to a broadband connection available at the time. This was still not fast enough and 4G LTE, or Long-Term Evolution, wireless was introduced and quickly became the most widely adopted worldwide. It cranks up the speeds to five to 12 megabits per second download and two to five Mbps on the upload. It is about speed and providing a robust wireless data experience and being able to do more with that wireless connection. With 4G, you click on your device and get what you want almost instantly. The 4G LTE expansion into the north country means even more businesses and consumers can surf the Internet faster, send and receive larger email files quicker and view streaming videos without buffering. The business customer is finding that they can be more productive and get their work done in this mobile environment. If you have not already it is time to consider using a smartphone, a tablet, a laptop with built-in 4G LTE connectivity or modem, or wireless hotspot on your phone (I do it all the time) to do the kind of work you
would normally do with a wired connection. The service makes Facetime, Skype and videoconferencing all obvious possibilities. Businesses and consumers alike can benefit from the remote video Jill Van Hoesen security and health caremonitoring devices, LTE-powered vending machines and ATMs, wireless backup systems for point-of-sale terminals and utility-monitoring services. One such monitoring service is working quite well for the Village of Deferiet according to Janet Zando, village mayor. “Gone are the days of relying on a neighborhood watch of sorts when it comes to monitoring our wastewater treatment facility,” she said. “For a relatively low investment of approximately $300 and a $10 monthly fee, our DPW crew is now notified immediately, right to their cellphones, should something be awry. Before this installation of Monnit devices on the Verizon network we could have had a situation that could go undetected for minutes or even hours before someone realized that the “red lights” were flashing.” Not only convenient and economical, 4G LTE technology is scalable, making it something that not only large businesses or enterprise customers can use, but something small and medium-sized businesses, just like the Village of Deferiet can also benefit from. The technology isn’t really new anymore and Verizon has already begun to upgrade particularly crowded portions
of its 4G LTE network with an improved spectrum position. This has resulted in areas — there are more than 250, including Los Angeles, New York, Washington, D.C., and Boston — with marked improvement to speed and user experience. This new wireless service is being referred to as XLTE. In XLTE-equipped markets and XLTE-ready devices like the Apple iPhone 5S and C and the Samsung Galaxy S4 and S5, customers should experience “faster peak data speeds and a minimum of double the bandwidth to 4G LTE customers,” Verizon reports. “It’s where the wireless industry is heading and has become the standard for wireless device and application development,” said John O’Malley, Verizon’s public relations manager for the upstate New York region. “When we first launched our 4G LTE network in 2010, there were only a handful of 4G LTE-capable smartphones and modems available, today there are dozens of mobile devices and machine-to-machine devices available in 4G LTE and its continued growth will continue to drive the future of computing and media consumption.” Tablets are already outselling laptops and PCs, the bulk of media consumption today is happening on tablets. It’s 4G LTE that really makes it possible. Though XLTE is not in the north country yet, its ecosystem continues to grow and evolve. With more compatible devices and applications being developed, business and consumers will take advantage of this faster connectivity and all it offers. n Jill Van Hoesen is chief information officer for Johnson Newspapers and a 25-year IT veteran. Contact her at jvanhoesen@wdt.net. Her column appears monthly in NNY Business.
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small business success
Business networking with Facebook
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ne of the benefits of running a business in the North Country is being able to build strong face-to-face networking connections with others living in your small town. I often attend business networking groups, chamber of commerce events, shows, and the like where business owners interact together to build both their businesses and the communities. After one of these groups approached me recently to create a presentation about networking with each other through Facebook, I realized that this is an area that may be lacking in our business community. How can these businesses who have formed strong relationships with each other in-person continue to build on their networking with social media? The most basic of ways that business owners can help each other out is by liking, commenting, and sharing each other’s Facebook posts, retweeting their tweets, and sharing on other social media platforms. This can be especially useful for businesses who share a similar customer base but who have different products. For example, if an ice cream shop owner comments on a sandwich place’s post about how great their sandwiches are, people who visit the sandwich shop may see the post and decide to go to the ice cream place for dessert. This can be an even more powerful tool if businesses work together. Say the sandwich place and the ice cream place got together and offered discounts for each other’s products, then both posted about them. Each would then be seen by the fans of the other’s page and so reach a
wider audience. I see some of this kind of co-marketing happening in the real world with coupons, but less online in the world of social media. As I mentioned in my Jennifer McCluskey last column on this topic, it is getting tougher and tougher for businesses to get their posts seen by their full audience. Sometimes business owners may
than general business pages. One restriction is that you as a business owner would have to join a group from your personal page instead of the business’s page. Also, you can join multiple groups to connect with your customers and the local community. To find a good group to join, you can search for target keywords (“groups who like topic xyz”) in the search bar at the top left of your Facebook page, and you can also filter results by people who like your business page. Connecting with groups that your fans are a part of can help you connect with others in their community who have similar interests. Facebook groups can serve a dual purpose of helping business owners connect with each other and with their fans’ Facebook communities. If you want to start a Facebook group for your business community, be aware that it can take some work in monitoring the posts to ensure the group is staying on track and members aren’t only attempting to sell their products without actually communicating. You may also be the one to spearhead discussions if communications begin to fall off. I have focused on Facebook this month since most businesses have a Facebook page, but there are other options for networking through social media sites such as such as twitter, Instagram, and Google+. LinkedIn is also a great site for business networking, and is often used for this purpose.
Facebook groups can serve a dual purpose of helping business owners connect with each other and with their fans’ Facebook communities. have trouble seeing posts from another business if they do not interact often with that business’s page. Facebook groups can be one solution to this. For those who are unfamiliar with Facebook groups, they are usually groups of people on Facebook organized around a single topic or interest. People can post information on the group board to be seen by other members. Facebook groups can either be open, allowing anyone to join, or closed, only accessible for people given an invitation by the group’s owner. Any user who is active in a group will be notified about all new posts for the group. Facebook groups can offer a higher level of visibility and networking potential
n JENNIFER McCLUSKEY is a certified business advisor with the New York State Small Business Development Center at SUNY Canton. Contact her at mccluskeyj@canton.edu. Her column appears bi-monthly in NNY Business.
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COMMUNITY / BUSINESS CALENDAR
Black River Sunday, June 28
n Michael J. Cerroni Memorial 5K Run/ Walk, 7 a.m., 101 Public Works Drive. Benefits Michael J. Cerroni Memorial Scholarship. Post-race festivities include food, live music, raffles and awards. Race day registration and packet pickup slated for 7 to 8:30 a.m.; race start, 9 a.m.; awards ceremony, 10 a.m.; start of door prizes, 10:30 a.m. Cost: preregistered, $25; race day, $30. Information: racedirector@michaelcerroni5k.com or michaelcerroni5k.com.
Cape Vincent Sunday, July 19
n Tibbetts Point Run, 8 a.m., Cape Vincent Recreational Park, 602 James St. Includes 1K Kid’s Fun Run, 5K and 10K. Registration slated for 8 to 9:45 a.m.; fun run, 9:30; 5K and 10K, 10 a.m. Cost: pre-registration, $20; race day, $25. Register: runsignup. com. Information: Cape Vincent Chamber of Commerce, 654-2481 or capevincent.org/ tibbitspointrun.PDF.
Carthage Ongoing Wednesdays
n Cruise In Classic Auto Show, 6 to 8 p.m., Turning Point Park. Includes food, prizes, music and raffle. Proceeds to benefit Carthage American Legion Scholarship Fund. Slated to run through Aug. 26. Information: Richard Simmons, 493-2787.
Sunday, July 12
n Third annual Shootin’ Trap for Trips, 8 a.m., Carthage Rod and Gun Club, 4500 Cold Springs Park Road. Cash prizes in many classes. Proceeds benefit Volunteer Transportation Center. Ages 11 and younger prohibited from shooting. Cost: $25. Information: VTC, 376-3777 ext. 223; 804-2163.
Wednesday, June 17
n Business After Hours, 5 to 7 p.m., Roxie’s Road Ice Cream and Eagle Graphics, 320 and 322 State St. Includes food, drinks, raffle and door prizes. Cost: preregistered, $4; at the door, $5. Information: Carthage Area Chamber of Commerce, 493-3590 or carthageny.info.
Saturday, June 20
n Carthage Area Hospital 50th anniversary
38 | NNY Business | June 2015
community celebration, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., Carthage Park, State St. Family event features barbecue, games, balloon animals, petting zoo, photo booth, health fair and more. Free. Information: hospital, 493-1000 or carthagehospital.com.
Wednesday, July 22
n Business After Hours, 5 to 7 p.m., Little Sister’s Inn, 35802 state Route 3. Co-sponsored by Carthage Area Hospital. Includes food, cash bar, raffle and door prizes. Cost: preregistered, $4; at the door, $5. Information: Carthage Area Chamber of Commerce, 4933590 or carthageny.info.
Chaumont Wednesday, July 22
n Mac basics workshop, 3 to 5 p.m., Lyme Free Library, 12165 state Route 12E. Course aims to work hands-on with apps included on every Mac. Students should bring their own laptops. Instructor: Leonard Flack. Cost: $35. Information/ register: continuing education, 786-2438.
Clayton Ongoing second and fourth Mondays monthly
n Lion’s Club meeting, 6:30 to 8 p.m., Thousand Islands Emergency Rsc, 100 Union St. Information: Lion’s Club, 686-5268 or claytonlions@gmail.com.
Saturday, July 25
n Run for the River 5K/10K, 9 a.m., Frink Park, downtown. Registration at 7:30 a.m. Register online, by mail or in person. Awards for top male and female in each age category. Cost: 5K, by Tuesday, June 30, $25 (includes race shirt); 5K after June 30, $30; 10K, by Tuesday, June 30, $30 (includes race shirt); 10K after June 30, $35; members receive $5 discount. Information: Save the River, savetheriver.org, 686-2010 or info@ savetheriver.org.
Friday, July 31 through Sunday August 2
n Fifty-first annual antique boat show and auction, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday and Saturday; 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sunday, Antique Boat Museum, 750 Mary St. North America’s longest-running antique boat show. Includes hundreds of boats on display, marketplace flea market and activities. Cost: adult Friday or Saturday, $15; adult Sunday, $14; youth
(ages 7 to 17) Friday or Saturday, $10; youth Sunday, $8; ages 6 and younger or active/retired military, free; adult threeday pass, $30; youth three-day pass, $20; adult Saturday/Sunday pass, $25; youth Saturday/Sunday pass, $15. Information: Michael Folsom, michaelfolsom@abm.org; museum, 686-4104 or abm.org.
Fort Drum Monday, July 6 & Tuesday, July 7
n Boots 2 Business, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. each day, Clark Hall, Mount Belvedere Blvd. Course for soldiers transitioning out of service includes market research, licensing, funding and operating a business. DOL ACAP briefing required. Information: ACAP, 772-3434.
Thursday, July 9
n Build Your Own Business, 9:30 to 11:30 a.m., ACS Building. Course includes market research, licensing, funding and operating. Information: ACS, 772-9611.
Henderson Harbor Saturday, July 11
n Henderson Harbor Triathlon, 6:30 to 11:30 a.m., Henderson Harbor Boat Launch, county Route 178. Hosted by the Children’s Home of Jefferson County and Credo Community Center for the Treatment of Addictions. Olympic event distances: 1.5K swim, 40K bike ride and 10K run. Sprint event distances: .75K swim, 20K bike ride and 5K run. Registration scheduled 6:30 to 7:45 a.m.; Olympic event, 8:30 a.m.; sprint event, 9 a.m.; children’s race, 10:30 a.m.; lunch, 11 a.m.; awards ceremony, 11:30 a.m. Cost: by May 31: Olympic individual, $75; Olympic group, $100; sprint individual, $50; spring group, $75; after May 31: Olympic individual, $100; Olympic group, $150; sprint individual, $75; spring group, $125. Information: Kristin Stokwell, 777-9272 ext. 3011 or kstockwell@nnychildrenshome.com; hendersonharbortriathlon.com.
Lowville Tuesday, July 21 to Saturday, July 25
n Lewis County Fair, 10 a.m. to midnight
First Friday each month
n Toolkit Day with SCORE, by appointment, The Technology Garden, 235 Harrison St. Counselors provide mentoring to business owners. Information/register: Lynn Hughes, 579-2862 or Lynn@TheTechGarden.com.
Jefferson County BOCES- Charles H. Bohlen Technical Center Administration Building, Conference Room A, 20104 State Route 3. Meetings open to anyone interested in improving community and leadership skills. Information: watertown.toastmastersclubs.org.
Tuesdays, ongoing
Old Forge
Thursday, June 18
n Speed Networking, 8:00 to 10:00 a.m., CXtec, 5404 S. Bay Road. Continental breakfast provided by Cafe Kubal. Preregistration required. Cost: member, $10; nonmember, $25. Information: CenterState CEO, 470-1800, CEO@centerstateceo.com or centerstateceo.com.
Saturday, July 25 & Sunday, July 26
n Forty-first annual Old Forge antiques & vintage show & sale, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday, Hiltebrant Recreation Center, 225 North St. Over 60 dealers. Cost: $6, good for both days. Information: Antique Show Chairman Helene McAleese, 1(800) 365-5217 or mcaleeseh@aol.com.
Potsdam Friday, June 26
n St. Lawrence County Arts Council Member Show, 5 to 7 p.m., Gibson Gallery, SUNY Potsdam, 44 Pierrepont Ave. Show scheduled to run through Friday, July 31. Summer hours are 1 to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday or by appointment. Information: SLC Arts, 265-6860.
Sackets Harbor Saturday, July 4
n Fifth annual Made in New York festival, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., Madison Barracks, 85 Worth Road. Includes more than 100 farm- and home-based vendors, including wineries and breweries, and live music on two stages. Benefits Meals on Wheels. Information: Michael Campbell, mcampbell@madisonbarracks. com or 646-3374; madeinnny.com.
Syracuse First Wednesday each month
n Business Innovation Days meeting, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., The Technology Garden, 235 Harrison St. Opportunity for small businesses and entrepreneurs to meet one-on-one with SBDC counselor. Appointment required. Information/register: Onondaga Community College SBDC, 498-6070 or SBDC@sunyocc.edu.
Tuesday, June 23
n B2B Marketplace information session, 8:30 to 9:30 a.m., CenterState Corporation for Economic Opportunity, 115 W. Fayette St. Learn about second annual B2B Marketplace, planned for October 14 at the Oncenter. Marketplace aims to connect buyers and sellers. Info session is free. Information/register: CenterState CEO, 470-1800, CEO@centerstateceo.com or centerstateceo.com.
Thursday, June 25
n Financial and Business Executive Awards, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., SRC Arena, Onondaga Community College, 4585 W. Seneca Turnpike. Honorees recognized for outstanding performance as corporate, financial and business stewards. Open to the public. Cost: $55. Information: Joyl Clance, 579-3917 or jclance@bizeventz.com.
Utica Tuesday, June 16
n Impact 2015: Corporate Social Opportunity, 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., Mohawk Valley Community College, 1101 Sherman Drive. Full-day symposium aims to discuss untapped potential of the disenfranchised community in hiring. Registration slated to begin at 8:30 a.m. Cost: $99. Information/register: Human Technologies, htcorp.net; Danielle Padula, 755-5050 or events@htcorp.net.
Watertown First, third and fifth Monday each month
n Watertown Toastmasters Club, 7 p.m.,
n Watertown Evening Rotary meeting, 5:30 p.m., Paddock Club, 1 Public Square. Information: 786-6633 or watertowneve ningrotary.org. n BNI-NNY Partners for Success meeting, 7:30 p.m., Comfort Inn, 110 Commerce Park Drive. Networking group. Information: President Jessica Page, 786-5032; bniupstateny.com.
Thursday, June 18
n Business after hours, 5 to 7 p.m., Bonnie Castle Resort and Marina, 31 Holland St. Sponsored by Bonnie Castle. Ages 21 and older. Cost: registered member, $10; nonmember, $15; unregistered members at the door, $12. Information: Greater WatertownNorth Country Chamber of Commerce, 7884400 or events@watertownny.com.
Saturday, June 20
n Eleventh annual Mulligans for Kids golf tournament, Willowbrook Golf Club, 25075 state Route 37. Cosponsored by The Sackets Boathouse Restaurant & Bar. To benefit Youth Court of Jefferson County. Time to be determined. Cost: team of four, $260. Information: Resolution Center of Jefferson & Lewis Counties, 836-8502 or tmiller@resolution-center.net.
x, July 16
n July business after hours, 5 to 7 p.m., AmeriCU Credit Union, 871 Arsenal St. Sponsored by AmeriCU Credit Union. Ages 21 and older. Cost: pre-registered members, $10; non-members, $15. Information: Greater Watertown-North Country Chamber of Commerce, 788-4400 or events@ watertownny.com.
ď Ž GOT A BUSINESS EVENT or calendar item? Email nnybusiness@wdt.net. Deadline is the 10th of each month for the following month’s issue. Visit us on Facebook at www. facebook.com/NNYBusiness or www.nny bizmag.com for events calendar updates.
COMMUNITY / BUSINESS CALENDAR
each day, 5485 Bostwick St. Includes live music, performances, demolition derby, fireworks, antiques building and more. Cost: free admission; five-day parking pass, $15; daily parking, $5. Information: Bonnie Murphy, 831-4285, 709-1150 or bonniemurphy.lcf@frontiernet.net.
June 2015 | NNY Business
| 39
business scene Carthage Chamber of Commerce Citizen of the Year Dinner
Christopher A. Lorence, 2005, back, Joanne Sligar, 2000, front left, Mary Beth Renaud, middle, 2010, and Bradley Good, 2007.
Marilyn Hazen with husband, Bruce H., 2011.
ELAINE AVALLONE PHOTOS | NNY BUSINESS
ELAINE AVALLONE PHOTOS | NNY BUSINESS
The 2014 Carthage Chamber of Commerce Citizen of the Year Nancy Rome with husband Bryon C. “Ronnie” Rome. Several past Carthage Citizens of the Year, pictured on this page with the year awarded, attended the dinner to honor Mrs.Rome. The chamber held its 2014 Citizen of the Year Dinner on April 28 at the Elks Lodge.
From left, Darlene A. Jensen, 2013, and Teri L. Ellis, 2006.
18014 GOODNOUGH ST., ADAMS CENTER, NY • 315-583-5680 MON.-WED. 8-5, THURS. & FRI. 8-6, SAT. 8-2 40 | NNY Business | June 2015
business scene GWNC Chamber of Commerce Business After Hours at Boldt Castle
From left, Aimee Garlock, Garlock Realty, Alexandria Bay, and Patricia Aitcheson, Bernier, Carr & Associates, Watertown.
From left, Michelle Hughes, A Cut Above Salon, Pulaski, and Tina Heckman, General Brown High School and board member, Pulaski Chamber of Commerce.
KEN EYSAMAN PHOTOS | NNY BUSINESS
KEN EYSAMAN PHOTOS | NNY BUSINESS
From left, Laura Gardner and husband, Jerry, Jr Gardner, CPA, PC, Watertown, and Amy Grunner, Carthage Fiber Drum. Boldt Castle, Alexandria Bay, hosted the Greater Watertown-North Country Chamber of Commerce May Business After Hours on May 20. Uncle Sam Boat Tours, Alexandria Bay, provided transportation to Heart Island for the evening.
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From left, Matthew Hudson, executive chef, Jody Pettit, general manager, Ann Marie Angus, sales associate, and Shannon Fravel, sales associate, all of Hilton Garden Inn, Watertown / Thousand Islands.
(315) 782-4910 • 1-800-772-4201 • Fax: (315) 785-8248 www.dlcalarco.com • francee@dlcalarco.com
June 2015 | NNY Business
| 41
business scene St. Lawrence County Chamber of Commerce Business Spotlight at TAUNY
From left, Judy Bailey and Sara Ricalton, TAUNY, Canton.
Phil Martin, SeaComm Credit Union, and Laura Desmond, TAUNY, Canton.
KEN EYSAMAN PHOTOS | NNY BUSINESS
From left, Andrea Montgomery, St. Lawrence County Office for the Aging, and Michelle I. Quinell-Gayle, St. Lawrence NYSARC. Traditional Arts in Upstate New York, Canton, hosted the St. Lawrence County Chamber of Commerce May Business Spotlight at the TAUNY Center on Main Street.
KEN EYSAMAN PHOTOS | NNY BUSINESS
From left, Renee Azzopardi, Romancing Stones, Potsdam, and husband, Desmond.
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business history
Rising from the ashes Home to Maxfield’s, Potsdam Building was once nearly razed By Lorna Oppedisano
P
NNY Business
otsdam’s Cox Building is now a staple in the town’s business district, but its very existence was once on the brink of destruction. Charles Cox built the Cox Building, 5 to 7 Market St., in 1888. Mr. Cox, whose family settled in the area in 1814, used sandstone from his Potsdam quarry, according to an Aug. 8, 1980, Watertown Daily Times article. The building housed many businesses throughout the years. Before Mr. Cox’s construction, the space was occupied by a 1½-story wooden structure, which, according to records, housed a department store as far back as 1860. Specific details of early tenants are incomplete, but museum records show that department and mercantile stores were once located in the Cox Building. It is known that the businesses of Cox & Herrick and, shortly after, Cox and Maxfield called the building home in the late 1800s. In the early 1900s, the department store James A. Cox Dry Goods operated there. Starting in 1912, the Duffy-Rivers Co. was there for more than 20 years. In 1928, a new player came on the scene. Jerry McCarthy, a road contractor, Ford dealer and traveling salesman, who bought property at 39 Market St. In 1935, he purchased the Cox Building. Until this point, the first floor had been divided into two stores, but Mr. McCarthy remodeled and opened one store on that floor, the J. McCarthy Department Store, which remained in the space until the early 1940s. The building then changed hands again when it was sold to a Pennsylvania man. However, he died of a heart attack a few years later. At that time, local businessman Louis Greenblatt owned a store called Lewis Shops next door. He moved into the Cox Building in 1947, and bought the structure in 1950. “It was quite a structure,” he told the Times in 1980.
44 | NNY Business | June 2015
Watertown DAILY TIMES ARCHIVES
The ‘false facade’ of the historic, fire-gutted Cox building in Potsdam was ripped off the week of July 7, 1981, exposiong the first floor to passersby. Work crews, headed by Lawrence J. Hazen, owner, and Michael Walsh, began restoring the building, built in 1888. It housed the J. McCarthy Department Store, then the Lewis Shops and the Hi-Fi Shop before it was gutted by Fire in August of 1980.
Mr. Greenblatt owned the building until 1972, when he sold it to Leo Beaudet, who owned the Hi-Fi Shop, another business housed in the Market Street building. On Aug. 6, 1980, a new chapter for the Cox Building began with a devastating fire that burned for eight hours, destroying six businesses. According to a Times article from that day, it took up to 400 volunteer firefighters from 11 different departments and 22 trucks to extinguish the blaze. The businesses affected were Mr. Beaudet’s Hi-Fi Shop, along with Calipari’s Music Store Inc., Beneficial Finance, Fat Cats & Friends, Harod’s Mens Shop and Raquette River Print Shop. It was reported that no one was hurt in the fire. While one upstairs apartment resident was initially thought to be missing, he was eventually found intoxicated on a nearby sidewalk. The Times did not report the cause of the fire; Potsdam Fire Chief Robert J. Williams simply told
the paper that the fire appeared to have started in a rear, top-floor apartment in the Calipari Building. A few months later, in November 1980, plans for restoration began to unfold. While damaged components of neighboring buildings were being knocked down, Mr. Beaudet wouldn’t let that happen to the Cox Building. “We think this building has historic value, and we want to keep it that way,” he told the Times in November 1980. At that time, no insurance settlement had been reached, but Mr. Beaudet was working with the village to secure federal assistance to finance restoration. He planned to begin work in the spring of the following year. The next month, the Times reported that local businessman Lawrence J. Hazen planned to purchase the gutted building to construct a multi-shop called “Potsdam Commons.” Mr. Hazen promised to restore
business history
Watertown DAILY TIMES ARCHIVES
Mark Hazen, owner of the Cox Building, Potsdam, examines the interior of the structure which he is renovated in July 1981. At the trime, he hoped to retain as much of the tin ceilings, oak floors and sandstone structure as possible.
the façade, tin ceilings and wooden floors in the building to the original appearances, a vow that convinced Mr. Beaudet to sell. Mr. Hazen’s plan included shops and restaurants on the first and second floors, and offices, apartments and shops on the third floor. The project was reported to hinge on receiving of low-interest loans from villageadministered federal programs. These plans were very close to not coming to fruition. In December 1981, the Times reported that while neighboring buildings received funding through a federal Urban Development Action Grant, Mr. Hazen did not because he had no private financing. After being deemed “unsafe and not in compliance with village building codes,” the structure was in danger of being razed. In the end, this did not happen. Mr. Hazen eventually received a $1.5 million federal Small Cities grant, and also got plans for a restaurant-bar in the Cox Building approved. The Times reported on these plans on Aug. 14, 1982. A restaurant, Maxfield’s, opened in November of the same year as a 75-seat establishment employing 30 people. As he stated when initially planning the building’s restoration, the façade of the threestory structure was returned to its original appearance. Also, many of the original light fixtures and hardwood flooring was used in the construction of the restaurant. Mr. Hazen still owns and operates Maxfield’s today. n LORNA OPPEDISANO is staff writer and editorial assistant for NNY Magazines. Contact her at loppedisano@wdt.net or (315) 6612381. Business history is a monthly feature from the archives of the Watertown Daily Times. Visit www.watertowndailytimes.com to access digital archives since 1988, or stop by the Times, 260 Washington St., Watertown to research materials in our library that date back to the 1800s.
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June 2015 | NNY Business
| 45
W H AT ’ S H A P P E NIN G H E R E ? Crews work on the retaining wall at the front of the site for the LongHorn Steakhouse that will open this fall between Olive Garden and Red Lobster off Arsenal Street in Watertown. TED BOOKER | NNY BUSINESS
longhorn steakhouse WHAT: Full-service national franchise restaurant. LOCATION: Outer Arsenal Street, Watertown, between Olive Garden and Red Lobster.
BUILDER: Once shovel-ready, the property will be turned over to a contractor hired by Darden Restaurants. Orlando, Fla.-based Darden is the largest restaurant group in the country and owns LongHorn, Olive Garden and Red Lobster franchises.
SITE PREP & INFRASTRUCTURE: Widrick Construction, Adams Center.
SIZE: 5,500 square feet. The restaurant will share an entrance/exit with the Olive Garden off Salmon Run Mall Loop Road. The two restaurants will share the same parking lot, which will be expanded by 127 spaces for a combined total of 277 spaces.
DESIGN: GYMO Architecture, Engineering and Land Surveying, Watertown.
COMPLETION: October. “This area was identified as a great community with long-term growth
DEVELOPERS: Pyramid Cos., Syracuse, owner of Salmon Run Mall. Project cost estimated near $1m.
TURN TO THE ONE MACHINE THAT’S
potential,” said Heidi Schauer, a spokeswoman for LongHorn Steakhouse. LOCAL JOBS: Several dozen construction jobs. An unspecified number of service-related jobs once completed. FEATURES: Due to its low elevation, the site has been filled with 12 feet of gravel. An 11-foot-tall brick retaining wall surrounding Olive Garden is being extended by 138 feet to the west. A drainage pipe, 84 inches in diameter, was built to run from a ditch at northern end and underneath the parking lot to the ditch that borders Arsenal Street.
ALL BUSINESS I
N E X T MON T H
n July, our annual agriculture issue, we examine recent challenges and eevelopments in the dairy sector as milk prices and product demand continues to fall across the region.
Also coming next month:
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46 | NNY Business | June 2015
n A LEGACY of FAMILY: For decades, one family has forged a legacy of business and community stewardship in St. Lawrence County. We visit the Wrights of Ogdensburg Pepsi Bottlers. n SMALL BIZ STARTUP: A feature story about a recently opened north country small business in Jefferson County. n 20 QUESTIONS: An in-depth interview with a north countyry business leader. n PLUS: NNY Snapshot, Economically Speaking, Commerce Corner, Nonprofits Today, Business Tech Bytes, Small Business Success, Real Estate, Agri-Business, Business History and Business Scene. n VISIT US ONLINE at www.nnybizmag.com. Follow us on Twitter for daily updates at @NNYBusinessMag, like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/nnybusiness, and view eEditions at www.issuu.com/NNYBusiness.
June 2015 | NNY Business
| 47
BusIness
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