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SUNY Poly joins Innovare Alliance
ROME, N.Y. — The Griffiss Institute and SUNY Polytechnic University have signed a memorandum of understanding that marks the college as the 11th member to join the Innovare Alliance. The alliance leverages collaborations among academic, industrial, and defense sectors in the upstate region to advance technical and professional-development disciplines, the Griffiss Institute announced in a […]
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ROME, N.Y. — The Griffiss Institute and SUNY Polytechnic University have signed a memorandum of understanding that marks the college as the 11th member to join the Innovare Alliance.
The alliance leverages collaborations among academic, industrial, and defense sectors in the upstate region to advance technical and professional-development disciplines, the Griffiss Institute announced in a press release.
The collaboration between Griffiss Institute and SUNY Poly will pave the way for new, collaborative programs aimed at growing the pool of skilled individuals prepared to work in engineering, computer, and mathematical occupations in upstate New York. Additionally, the organizations say, the partnership will provide an environment conducive to the creation of innovative ideas, supported by state-of-the-art facilities and mentorship to accelerate their development into commercially viable technologies.
“SUNY Poly is incredibly excited to join the Innovare Alliance,” SUNY Poly President Dr. Winston Soboyejo said in the release. “As a public polytechnic, our university is committed to leveraging the expertise of our students, faculty, and staff to advance societal and humanistic goals and uplift all people. These ideals align perfectly with the alliance’s efforts to expand access to high-quality educational, training, research, and entrepreneurial opportunities in upstate New York and beyond. This is critical as we continue to tackle new challenges in artificial intelligence, machine learning, cybersecurity, quantum computing, and unmanned aerial systems.”
Griffiss Institute CEO Heather Hage concurred that it’s an important partnership that will make a difference.
“The significance of collaboration cannot be overstated; every member of the Innovare Alliance contributes uniquely to shaping the future of innovation. Together, we are poised to reach unprecedented heights and leaving a lasting imprint on our world,” Hage said.
The synergy with SUNY Poly will introduce a renewed focus on entrepreneurship within the alliance, Griffiss Institute COO Seth Mulligan noted.
“Our collaboration with SUNY Poly opens new avenues for entrepreneurial ventures, reinforcing our commitment to fostering innovation and driving economic growth in upstate New York,” Mulligan said.
The Innovare Alliance includes the Air Force Research Laboratory Information Directorate, Griffiss Institute, Oneida County, Rome, NYSTEC, Central New York Defense Alliance, State University of New York, Rochester Institute of Technology, Binghamton University, Le Moyne College, and SUNY Poly. The alliance focuses on accelerating the development and deployment of emerging technologies for national defense and commercial markets.
People news: Barclay Damon adds new associate in Syracuse office
SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Barclay Damon announced it has added Keyashia Willis as an associate in its restructuring, bankruptcy and creditors’ rights, and commercial-litigation practice areas with a primary office in Syracuse. In this role, Willis assists attorneys in those practice areas in a wide range of matters. Prior to joining Barclay Damon, Willis served as
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SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Barclay Damon announced it has added Keyashia Willis as an associate in its restructuring, bankruptcy and creditors’ rights, and commercial-litigation practice areas with a primary office in Syracuse.
In this role, Willis assists attorneys in those practice areas in a wide range of matters.
Prior to joining Barclay Damon, Willis served as a judicial law clerk to Judge Wendy A. Kinsella in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of New York. She also served as a law clerk with a firm in Syracuse, as a judicial law clerk for Judge LaShonda A. Hunt in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Illinois, and as a Barclay Damon summer associate. According to her LinkedIn profile, Willis also served as a staff attorney with Legal Services of Central New York, Inc., in Syracuse.
Barclay Damon is a regional law firm that has nearly 300 total attorneys and has offices in Syracuse, Rochester, Albany, New York City, and Buffalo — as well as locations in Washington, D.C.; Boston, Massachusetts; New Haven, Connecticut; and Toronto, Canada.
ConnextCare begins offering dental services to students in two Oswego schools
OSWEGO, N.Y. — ConnextCare says it’s now offering dental services at the school-based health center (SBHC) at the Frederick Leighton Elementary School in Oswego. Holly
DiNapoli audit finds poor financial management by CNY Regional Market Authority board
SYRACUSE, N.Y. — The Central New York Regional Market Authority’s financial position has “deteriorated,” and the cash available to pay operating costs “declined”‘from fiscal year (FY) 2020-21 to FY 2022-23. That’s according to an audit that New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapolireleased on Tuesday. The Central New York Regional Market operates at 2100 Park St.
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SYRACUSE, N.Y. — The Central New York Regional Market Authority’s financial position has “deteriorated,” and the cash available to pay operating costs “declined”‘from fiscal year (FY) 2020-21 to FY 2022-23.
That’s according to an audit that New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapolireleased on Tuesday.
The Central New York Regional Market operates at 2100 Park St. in Syracuse, near Destiny USA.
If authority officials do not take measures to increase revenues, reduce expenses, or both, the authority will continue to have annual net losses and “will not have sufficient funds for its operations,” DiNapoli’s office said.
The audit faulted the board for not properly managing the authority’s financial condition, including not developing realistic budgets, not monitoring operations and expenses, and not doing a thorough analysis before spending more than $2 million on a warehouse that needs extensive renovations and has been a drain on the authority’s budget.
“The Central New York Regional Market Authority board and officials need to turn its financial operations around before its fiscal situation gets worse. I am glad they took our findings and recommendations seriously and are working on a corrective action plan,”DiNapoli said in Tuesday’s announcement.
Auditors made 14 recommendations to the authority to improve its financial condition. Key recommendations for the board include taking immediate measures to reduce spending, increase revenues, or both; adopt realistic budgets, monitor actual results, and address shortfalls; and prioritize critical needs and fill rental space.
In response to the audit, Anthony Emmi, president of the CNY Regional Market Authority board, said the “authority agreed with the financial findings of the audit and is acting on the recommendations,” per DiNapoli’s office.
The audit report included the letter from Emmi to Rebecca Wilcox, chief of municipal audits for DiNapoli’s office. In it, Emmi wrote, “The Authority’s Board of Directors (Board) and Management team have already begun the process of performing several of the corrective actions that align recommendations contained within the report, and the Board has scheduled a meeting for later this month to outline and resolve a full corrective action plan based on the recommendations and resources provided in this audit.”
The Syracuse–based public authority operates a farmers’ market and flea market to help vendors sell their products to the public and has programs and services to promote agriculture in Central New York, as described in the DiNapoli announcement.
It is overseen by a 13-member board, consisting of appointees from Onondaga, Oswego, Cayuga, Madison, Cortland, Oneida, and Wayne counties, as well as the commissioner of the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets.
Under state law, board members monitor and oversee fiscal and management operations, and have a “fiduciary duty to act in the best interest of the authority, its mission and the public,” DiNapoli’s office said.
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Bassett receives $6 million grant to help open employee childcare center
COOPERSTOWN — The Clark Foundation has awarded a $6 million grant to underwrite the creation of a new daycare facility on the Bassett Medical Center campus in Cooperstown. “The foundation’s board of trustees and I are very pleased to be providing the funding needed to build a state-of-the-art daycare center,” Jane Forbes Clark, foundation president,
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COOPERSTOWN — The Clark Foundation has awarded a $6 million grant to underwrite the creation of a new daycare facility on the Bassett Medical Center campus in Cooperstown.
“The foundation’s board of trustees and I are very pleased to be providing the funding needed to build a state-of-the-art daycare center,” Jane Forbes Clark, foundation president, said in a news release. “Providing excellent daycare for the children of Bassett Healthcare Network employees that is literally next door with flexible hours to match their schedules will help to attract and retain the best caregivers that our communities need and depend upon.”
Bassett will transform the historic Harrison House at 1 Beaver St. into a center that will provide care for infants, toddlers, and pre-school children during clinical work hours. A 3,000-square-foot addition will house classrooms, common and service areas, offices, and an enclosed playground.
The center will also have space dedicated to sick care, ensuring that employees’ children have appropriate care when necessary and employees won’t have to miss work.
Bassett Healthcare Network expects the center will accommodate 70 children and employ 18 people when it opens in 2025.
“This extraordinary support from The Clark Foundation will be a game changer for our employees and their children,” Bassett Healthcare Network President/CEO Staci Thompson said in the release. “To have access to an on-site daycare center will enable our employees to achieve a proper work-life balance and take great comfort that their children are safe and being well taken care of.”
Bassett Healthcare Network includes five corporately affiliated hospitals, more than two dozen community-based health centers, 22 school-based clinics, and two skilled-nursing facilities.
Pathfinder Bancorp’s profit falls 18 percent in Q1 amid difficult conditions for banks
OSWEGO — Pathfinder Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ: PBHC), the holding company for Pathfinder Bank, reported that its net income declined more than 18 percent to $2.12 million, or 34 cents a share, in this year’s first quarter from $2.6 million, or 43 cents, in the first quarter of 2023. The banking company’s total revenue (net interest
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OSWEGO — Pathfinder Bancorp, Inc. (NASDAQ: PBHC), the holding company for Pathfinder Bank, reported that its net income declined more than 18 percent to $2.12 million, or 34 cents a share, in this year’s first quarter from $2.6 million, or 43 cents, in the first quarter of 2023.
The banking company’s total revenue (net interest income, before provision for credit losses, and total noninterest income) in the first quarter of 2024 totaled $11.1 million. That was down by $423,000, or 3.7 percent, compared to the same quarter in 2023, according to Pathfinder’s April 29 earnings report.
Net interest income before the provision for credit losses fell by 5.7 percent to
$9.4 million in the latest quarter from
$10 million in the year-earlier period. The decrease in net interest income mostly resulted from an 81.5 percent increase in the bank’s interest expenses. Partially offsetting that increase in interest expenses was its nearly 24 percent growth in interest and dividend income, due in large part to Pathfinder’s diversified and performing portfolio of loans and securities.
The banking company contends that during the first quarter it “adeptly navigated” the challenges of “a financial landscape marked by elevated interest rates and frequent shifts in economic forecasts.”
James A. Dowd, president and CEO of Pathfinder Bancorp, said, “Leveraging proactive financial management and strategic foresight, we successfully navigated the complexities of this quarter, affirming our path toward continued progress.”
He noted that the Treasury yield curve remained inverted (short term interest rates higher than long term interest rates) for the entire first quarter of 2024, as it was in all of 2023. That business environment pressured most commercial banks.
“Looking ahead, the Bank’s management and Board of Directors maintain a positive outlook, bolstered by recent strategic successes like the pending East Syracuse branch acquisition and an increasingly robust presence in the swiftly evolving Central New York economic landscape,” Dowd said. “The Bank’s leadership remains committed to navigating the ongoing economic challenges while seizing the opportunities for growth and profitability that will undoubtedly arise. With careful management of assets, liabilities, and a steady approach to cost control, Pathfinder Bancorp, Inc. is poised to continue its trajectory of responsible growth and shareholder value enhancement.”
Pathfinder Bank is a New York State chartered commercial bank headquartered in Oswego that has 11 full-service offices located in its market areas consisting of Oswego and Onondaga Counties, and one limited purpose office in Oneida County.
SRC awarded $60M Air Force contract
CICERO — SRC Inc. recently won a $60 million U.S. Air Force contract for research and development. This indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract provides for exploring new and emerging concepts related to development, integration, assessment, evaluation, and demonstration of cybersecurity, open-system architecture, novel avionics and sensor technologies, and multi-domain technologies focusing on the electric-warfare piece of avionics. That’s
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CICERO — SRC Inc. recently won a $60 million U.S. Air Force contract for research and development.
This indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract provides for exploring new and emerging concepts related to development, integration, assessment, evaluation, and demonstration of cybersecurity, open-system architecture, novel avionics and sensor technologies, and multi-domain technologies focusing on the electric-warfare piece of avionics. That’s according to an April 17 contract announcement from the U.S. Department of Defense.
Work will be performed in New York, Virginia, Ohio, and Texas, and is expected to be completed by April 1, 2031. This contract was a competitive acquisition, with five offers received, per the contract announcement.
Fiscal 2024 research, development, test, and evaluation funds of $150,000 are being obligated at time of award. The Air Force Research Laboratory at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio is the contracting authority.
SRC is a not-for-profit research and development company that says it combines information, science, technology, and ingenuity to solve problems in the areas of defense, environment, and intelligence. It employs nearly 1,400 people.
Tompkins Financial boosts quarterly dividend to 61 cents a share
ITHACA — Tompkins Financial Corp. (NYSE: TMP) recently announced that its board of directors has authorized payment of a regular quarterly cash dividend of 61 cents per share for the second quarter of this year. The dividend amount is up 1 cent per share, or 1.6 percent, from the dividend of 60 cents a share
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ITHACA — Tompkins Financial Corp. (NYSE: TMP) recently announced that its board of directors has authorized payment of a regular quarterly cash dividend of 61 cents per share for the second quarter of this year.
The dividend amount is up 1 cent per share, or 1.6 percent, from the dividend of 60 cents a share that Tompkins Financial paid in the second quarter of 2023.
The new dividend is payable on May 17, to common shareholders of record on May 10.
At Tompkins Financial’s current stock price, the payment yields about 5.3 percent on an annual basis.
Tompkins Financial is a banking and financial-services company serving the Central, Western, and Hudson Valley regions of New York and the Southeastern region of Pennsylvania. Headquartered in Ithaca, Tompkins Financial is parent to Tompkins Community Bank and Tompkins Insurance Agencies, Inc., and offers wealth-management services through Tompkins Financial Advisors.
Stay up-to-date on the companies, people and issues that impact businesses in Syracuse, Central New York and beyond.