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Saturday,ÊF ebruaryÊ13,Ê2016
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www.SunCommunityNews.com
In FEATURES | pg. 9
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4 Maples coming soon
In NEWS | pg. 4
Community talks TPP
Champlain winery set to open in 2017
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Most citizens seek to learn more on agreement
In CRIME | pg. 5
Convicted killer, meet Plattsburgh Terry Losicco may be released in Plattsburgh
Minimum wage hike taking bite out of restaurant biz Local restaurant owners say bump could force them to raise prices and lay off workers By Pete DeMola
pete@suncommunitynews.com
PLATTSBURGH — The increase in the state’s minimum wage has left local restaurants with a bad taste in their mouths. The hike, which went into effect on Jan. 1, has rattled Plattsburgh’s restaurant industry, who say the increase has resulted in slashed hours, higher costs and internal turmoil. The minimum wage increase consists of three separate policies. The overall wage of
$8.75 was increased to $9 per hour; upstate fast food workers were bumped to $9.75, while tipped service employees saw their base pay increase by as much as 53 percent. Local business owners say the policy will lead to a domino effect of increased prices and higher costs. “For small business owners, it’s going to be terrible,” said Joe Kovacs, owner of Smooth Moves, a cafe in downtown Plattsburgh. “Everybody has to compensate and it will end up hurting.” Wages are the biggest cost in any small business, he said. Kovacs pays his employees minimum wage and above. Larger businesses can control costs better,
he said, including bulk purchasing through warehouses. But smaller operations have to absorb the costs somewhere. At least one item on his menu has already gone up, he said. Minimum wage is not the issue, said Kovacs, but rather housing. Kovacs said there needs to be a cost of living adjustment per county: a base wage that can be adjusted. The cafe owner also criticized Gov. Andrew Cuomo for sidestepping the legislature — who originally balked at the proposal — by using executive authority to unilaterally convene a wage board.
AltonaÊ teen Sam “Bobsled” Beach, 16, to participate in Youth Olympic Games
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Clinton County Mental Health & Addiction Services to move
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ALTONA — Standing at the half-mile start point, Sam Beach pushed his sled down the bobsled track for the first time. He began with an immense amount of fear and finished with a new love of bobsledding. Teah “It’s nervewracking,” he said. “But I love Dowling Writer it.” What started as a hobby soon turned into an opportunity to join the United States’ Youth Olympic Team. The 16-year-old hopped a plane on Monday to the Youth Olympic Games in Norway. Sam’s bobsledding journey began three years ago in the Junior Bobsled Program in Lake Placid as an attempt to try something new. Sam’s mother, Rachelle, said she wasn’t nervous when he wanted to try the sport. “I’ve always wanted him to be happy,” she said. Under the director of his coach, Don Hass, Beach underwent hours of learning the basics, training and runs. “He’s a great kid,” Hass said. “He listens and performs with the mind set to improve.”
Last July, the three-member panel recommended a phased-in increase of the minimum wage to $15 per hour at fast food restaurants by 2018 in New York City, and by 2021 for the rest of the state. The state labor commissioner signed off in September, setting into motion a push for a $15 wage for all workers, a concept Cuomo is trying to get through the state legislature. According to the state department of labor, the tri-county area boasted 4,602 jobs in the food services and drinking places sector in 2014, with 55 percent of those in Clinton County. As the clock ticked down to Jan. 1, Cindy Snow, co-owner of the Blue Collar Bistro in
Clinton County purchases building on Arizona Avenue and awards bid for renovation By Teah Dowling
teah@suncommunitynews.com
Sam Beach, 16, hopped a plane on Monday to the Youth Olympic Games in Norway for bobsledding. Photo provided
PLATTSBURGH — Clinton County Mental Health and Addiction Services staff are ready to move into a larger building. Over two years, the clinic has incorporated six new positions and have outgrown their space. “This move is a reflection of the growing needs of the community,” said Peter Trout, director of the agency. Last month, the county awarded Murnane Construction the contract for the building renovation project on 130 Arizona Ave. The building, currently occupied by a few tenants including CrossFit, will house the clinic. The agency currently leases space behind Walmart. In addition to saving money on rent, the agency will now be allowed to expand. >> Story Continued | pg. 15