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Saturday,ÊF ebruaryÊ13,Ê2016
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In SPORTS | pg. 10
Eagles have memorable week Gay hits 100th; Martin returns to the court
www.SunCommunityNews.com
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In OPINION | pg. 6
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In ARTS | pg. 17
Frontier Town Broadway Boys again? Really? at the Strand County should give property to OSI
Male Broadway singers coming to Pburgh
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.
LoveÊ is inÊ theÊ air!
The minimum wage increase consists of three separate poliKovacs pays his employees minimum wage and above. cies. The overall wage of $8.75 was increased to $9 per hour; Larger businesses can control costs better, he said, includupstate fast food workers were bumped to $9.75, while tipped ing bulk purchasing through warehouses. service employees saw their base pay increase by as much as But smaller operations have to absorb the costs somewhere. 53 percent. At least one item on his menu has already gone up, he said. Local business owners say the policy will lead to a domino Minimum wage is not the issue, said Kovacs, but rather effect of increased prices and higher costs. housing. “For small business owners, it’s going to be terrible,” said Joe Kovacs said there needs to be a cost of living adjustment per Kovacs, owner of Smooth Moves, a cafe in downtown Platts- county: a base wage that can be adjusted. burgh. “Everybody has to compensate and it will end up hurtThe cafe owner also criticized Gov. Andrew Cuomo for side ing.” >> Story Continued | pg. 4 Wages are the biggest cost in any small business, he said.
Convicted killer may be released in Plattsburgh
Valentine’s Day brings jolt of economic activity in down season, say local business owners
ELIZABETHTOWN — While Cupid’s arrow is said to fill targets with uncontrollable desire, for local businesses, his quiver is also packed with economic vitality. LakeShore Candy is hustling to accommodate holiday crowds. The owners of the Pete Plattsburgh confectionery, Bob and Ann DeMola Sweeney, anticipate folks will start trickEditor ling in toward the end of the week. On deck are a number of chocolate molds, candies and other items, many of them handmade. The Sweeneys have been preparing for months for the three-day event. “We call it relationship maintenance,” Bob Sweeney joked. In Port Henry, desert designer Laura Baker is bustling to crank out holiday specials, including chocolate-covered strawberries, handpainted sugar cookies, truffles and customized cakes, for local lovebirds. The Baker-y opened last year right before the holiday. While walk-in traffic was brisk, Christmas and Thanksgiving — pie season — proved to be more stressful, Baker said. Florists, too, are preparing for an influx. Elizabethtown-based florist Tracy Sayre has boosted staff.
Tracy Sayre ordered 900 roses for Valentine’s Day. It’s among the busiest times of year, said the Elizabethtown-based florist. Photo by Pete DeMola
This weekend, she’ll be joined by a pair of clerks, two delivery guys and an extra arranger. A pair of coolers hold 900 roses. Last-minute walk-ins are welcome, Sayre said. For the florist, the holiday is about hunkering down. Sayre once drove two hours through a blizzard to make a delivery. Another time, she worked for 48 hours straight and went to sleep on the floor. “I got up and worked all over again,” Sayre said. >> Story Continued | pg. 2
Terry Losicco, who perpetrated a brutal attack in Westchester County, may very well be released in Plattsburgh next month after spending 35 years behind bars By Pete DeMola
pete@suncommunitynews.com
PLATTSBURGH — In the dark hours of May 25, 1980, two young men entered a well-manicured home in Somers, Westchester County. The pair, residents of a nearby reform school, received a tip that the homeowners, Eleanor and Norman Prouty, were wealthy.
Terry Losicco >> Story Continued | pg. 13