Issuu

SBJ P.O. Box 766 Saratoga Springs, NY 12866

SARATOGA BUSINESS JOURNAL Saratoga

VOL. 25 NO. 09

HH The Business Newspaper of Saratoga County HH

PRSRT STD U.S. POSTAGE

PAID

GLENS FALLS, NY 12801 PERMIT #600

NOVEMBEER 2020

www.saratogabusinessjournal.com

New Mohawk Chevy Facility Could Be Done Co-Op Owned Malta Farm And Garden Store By June; More Employees Will Be Added Sells Grain, Garden, Pet Supplies And More

This new Mohawk Chevrolet facility will be located on Route 67, just off of Northway Exit 12. It is projected to be completed in June, according to company officials. BY CHRISTINE GRAF Construction on Mohawk Chevrolet’s 65,000-square-foot facility in Malta is projected to be completed in June, according to company officials. BBL Construction of Albany was hired to build the new dealership, which will replace Mohawk Chevrolet’s Clifton Park location. Mohawk Auto, the owner of Mohawk Honda in Glenville as well as the local Mohawk Chevrolet, purchased the Clifton Park dealership from Northstar Chevrolet in November 2019. The new Mohawk Chevrolet will be located on Route 67, just off of Northway Exit 12. The property was purchased several

years ago by Mohawk Auto president and third generation owner Jeff Haraden. It was originally slated to become home to the 80,000-square-foot Adirondack Aquatic Center. Ultimately, Mohawk Harbor in Schenectady was selected as the location for the $35 million aquatic center. Mohawk Auto general manager Andrew Guelcher described the aquatic center’s decision to move to Schenectady as serendipitous. When Mohawk purchased Northstar Chevrolet, it was with the intention of relocating it to Malta. “We did a lot of due diligence for the location. It is really the epicenter of the Continued On Page 18

Malta Farm and Garden, at the intersection at Route 9 and East High Street, is a new construction of 20,000 square feet. It is the latest of five stores owned by the Millerton Co-op. BY SUSAN ELISE CAMPBELL Malta Farm and Garden, at 2712 Route 9, is now open to shop for farm, garden and pet supplies. It is the latest of five stores owned by the Millerton Co-op, a group of farmers who have been supporting each other as an enterprise since the 1940s, according to the store’s general manager Paul O’Neil. The Malta store is the co-op’s northernmost location, O’Neil said. It opened in early October. “We were bringing four boxloads a week up from the Chatham store an hour away and getting many referrals,” he said. “So we wanted to plant our flag up here and build a retail store to better serve our customers.” There are five full-time staff working in the

warehouse and showroom, plus four part-timers. O’Neil said Malta “is a great growing town with plenty of room” and the intersection at Route 9 and East High Street was just right for 20,000 square feet of new construction. O’Neil and his wife Patti live in Saratoga Springs and their son Christopher lives in Luther Forest. All three work at the Malta location, while Paul has oversight for all five stores. He has been in the animal feed and supply business since the 1980s. “I was working in the Agway store in Kinderhook part-time while in college and caught someone’s eye in management,” said O’Neil. “They liked the way I worked and offered me a Continued On Page 16

Former Owner Of Crafters Gallery In Center For Economic Growth Names New Saratoga Opens Motorcycle Shop In Wilton Chief Economic Development Officer BY JILL NAGY “The end of the riding season is not the most appropriate time to open a motorcycle shop,” said Roger Goldsmith, who opened the Saratoga Motorcycle Center at 4284 Route 50 in Wilton in September. Like so many other businesses, the opening of this one was delayed by the pandemicrelated shutdown. It was to open in the spring, but Goldsmith moved ahead even as autumn approached. Goldsmith owned the Crafters Gallery in downtown Saratoga Springs for 24 years, selling it in 2017. “I’ve always been a motorcycle enthusiastic and wanted to do something like this,” he said. He purchased a vacant lot and had a 5.000-square-foot building designed and built by JAG Construction, specifically for his purpose. The motorcycle shop occupies 3,000 square feet and the rest is available for lease. The shop services motorcycles, all-terrain vehicles, and related recreational vehicles. They sell parts, accessories, and related merchandise and clothing. Goldsmith is not a motorcycle dealer, but his shop services all brands. Winter storage is also available and Goldsmith has found “a lot of interest in it.” Goldsmith grew up in South Glens Falls but has lived in Saratoga Springs for 41 years. The shop is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Tuesday through Friday. He has no website yet but has registered a URL and Goldsmith has creation of the website on his to-do list. The business is on Facebook and can be reached by telephone at 518-886-8319.

The Center for Economic Growth (CEG) announced that Katie Newcombe was named its new chief economic development officer. She comes to CEG with more than a decade of experience in economic development, spanning multiple states and public, private and nonprofit sectors. Since 2014, Newcombe has led economic development for National Grid in the Capital Region. “Katie’s depth and breadth of economic development experience makes her an ideal fit for this newly created position. She will lead CEG’s business attraction and expansions activities, direct and implement strategies for innovation, entrepreneurship, business growth, workforce and talent,” said Mark Eagan, CEG president and CEO. “Katie has a strong history of collaborating with stakeholders to move high-impact projects forward and we are excited to welcome her to our organization.” Newcombe’s selection marks one of the first major steps for CEG under its new affiliation with the Capital Region Chamber. CEG investors approved the affiliation on Oct. 6. Newcombe begins her new job on Nov. 16. “I am thrilled to join the CEG team and excited to work with investors and community stakeholders to move the Capital Region forward,” said Newcombe. “A global pandemic is not something any of us would have predicted a year ago, but as a region, we can come together and chart a path to grow back stronger and more resilient.

Katie Newcombe is the new CEG economic development officer.

chief Courtesy CEG

“With great change comes immense opportunity. The recent affiliation between CEG and the Capital Region Chamber brings together two dynamic organizations whose missions are to drive growth Continued On Page 6