in shlee's shoes

2008-11-20T17:42:00.001-08:00

Firms start to reap green benefits

2008-11-20T13:37:00.000-08:00

Manufacturers save on energy and cut waste

By: Ashley Schofield

09/19/08 03:26 PM

SYRACUSE - Interviews with about a dozen Central New York manufacturers show that they are making substantial investments in "green" initiatives, such as cutting energy usage and waste, and are beginning to obtain tangible business benefits from these efforts.

"Our sales have doubled in the last five years, but our power costs have stayed the same," says Roland Beck, president of Tessy Plastics Corp., a custom-injection molding company based in Elbridge. "That says something" about the success of the company's green initiatives, he adds.

The cost of energy is driving people to look for alternatives, and the payback time is much shorter for such green technologies, says Randall Wolken, president of the Manufacturers Association of Central New York (MACNY), which represents 325 members in 19 counties across upstate New York. MACNY helps individual companies develop more energy-efficient manufacturing processes and gets employees involved in green efforts through projects like recycling reward programs.

It is not rare for a manufacturer to see 50 percent savings on a project, we're talking about significant savings, Wolken says.

The Anheuser-Busch brewery in Lysander invested a total of $4.3 million in conservation improvements from 2006 to 2008 and is seeing substantial savings and benefits, Steve McCormick, plant manager, says in an e-mail.

Making internal processes energy-efficient

Most manufacturers begin implementing eco-friendly initiatives by reducing electricity costs.

Tessy Plastics installed energy-efficient lighting to replace regular light bulbs, in good working condition, at its main manufacturing site. The project cost about $80,000.

"It's hard to say here's $80,000 for lights, but we do it for the monthly savings," Beck says. He couldn't quantify the exact monthly savings.

Beck does not think energy-efficient bulbs are much more expensive than regular lights, but he says energy-efficient molding machines cost about 40 percent more than regular equipment. The company installed 100 such molding machines at a total cost of $15 million.

"It's a big cost up-front, but over the years it certainly pays for itself," he says.

Tessy Plastics has reduced its operating costs by 3 percent between material and electrical savings by installing the energy-efficient lighting and machines, Beck says.

Currier Plastics, an Auburn-based custom-injection and blow-molding manufacturer, also uses energy-efficient molding machines and sees large savings.

"The electric energy savings are [50 to 75] percent over conventional molding machines," says John F. Currier, president of Currier Plastics.

Conventional machines use electricity continuously, even while not manufacturing, while energy-efficient molding machines utilize electric power only when working.

The Lysander Anheuser-Busch brewery also replaced its conventional machines by purchasing ones that capture heat wasted in manufacturing processes and use it to heat water tanks, says McCormick.

"Our brewery has saved more than $400,000 by replacing a less efficient condenser unit," McCormick says. "[That's] enough to pay for the new equipment in justÂ four years."

Fiber Instrument Sales, Inc., an Oriskany-based provider of fiber-optic and copper-wire telecommunications equipment and security systems, reduced its air-conditioning costs through more efficient machines utilizing fiber technology. By using fiber connections, instead of copper wire, it needs fewer air-conditioning machines to cool a building.

Most office buildings have an equipment closet on each floor, which need to be air-conditioned, but with fiber technology you can have one closet for the whole building, says Charles Carino, director of corporate communications for Fiber Instrument Sales.

"If it costs $5,000 to air-condition equipment closets over the course of a year and you only have one, it only costs $1,000 and you are saving $4,000," Carino says.

Welch Allyn, Inc., a Skaneateles Falls-based medical-equipment manufacturer, is looking to reduce its air conditioning and heating costs as well.

In its 125,000-square-foot expansion, Welch Allyn plans to use natural gas for cooling, and heating control systems from CHP Technologies to improve energy efficiency, says Scott Spanfelner, the director of operations at Welch Allyn's Skaneateles Falls manufacturing site.

Welch Allyn hopes to obtain LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification from the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) for its expansion project. Spanfelner says that if it achieves certification, it will be the first LEED manufacturing site in upstate New York, according to Tracie Hall, the executive director of the USGBC New York upstate chapter.

Reusing waste

Instead of manufacturing products from scratch, reusing and recycling waste is a popular green manufacturing initiative.

The Anheuser-Busch brewery recycles and reuses 99.96 percent of all waste, McCormick says.

"Only 64 tons of waste was sent to the landfill in 2007," McCormick says. "This is a 9 percent reduction compared to 2006, and an 88 percent reduction over the last 10 years."

The brewery accomplishes this through improved packaging and line efficiencies, McCormick says.

Tessy Plastics started regrinding material - which reprocesses waste into new components - when the company realized nearly all raw materials could be saved, Beck says.

"About five years ago, we threw about 30,000 pounds of raw material away, now it's next to nothing," he says.

Currier Plastics began implementing green techniques through recycling and then built up its green initiatives over the past two years, really accelerating its efforts in the past eight to 12 months.

"Our understanding of sustainability has grown as the market changes," Currier says. "We're kind of in unchartered waters here."

After its initial recycling stage, Currier started using biodegradable products and evaluating its carbon footprint; now the company follows a holistic approach of looking to integrate sustainability in every manufacturing process, he says.

Currier says the manufacturers look at production at every level from re-designing products to decreasing its shipping deliveries.

The manufacturers researched how to reduce the material and weight of plastic bottles, Currier says. The bottle could not just be made lighter; it had to be re-engineered to keep its strength, he says. After redesigning the product, it was not only more sustainable, but its structure also improved.

"We try to take it to the extreme as much as we can," he says.

The company improved its shipping methods by initially reusing shipping boxes and then replacing the corrugated packages it used with lighter, eco-friendly material, Currier says. The decreased weight of both the bottle and boxes allowed more shipments to fit on one truckload, he says.

Customers going green

Clients like knowing companies are becoming more green, Carino says.

"Today's consumer is increasingly more aware of their family's impact on the environment and many of them choose to support products and invest in companies that are also environmentally conscious," McCormick of Anheuser-Busch says.

Tessy's eco-initiatives allow the company to be more competitive, increasing the amount of work it gets, Beck says.

"I am able to run more efficiently, offer more attractive pricing and grow my business like that," he says.

Most manufacturers see customers more frequently asking for green products to increase their business.

"There is an awful lot of pressure to deliver green products," Currier says. "Customers are graded not only by pricing and quality of a product, but [also] how green it is. Customers have the advantage if they demonstrate better sustainability than their competitor."

The amenities market - including hotels and shampoo and mouthwash makers - is a big client of Currier Plastics interested in green products, he says.

Currier says his firm is developing some unique green alternatives for this market, but would not provide further details.

"Each customer has different yardsticks for sustainability depending on what their customer is looking for," Currier says. "In some instances, some are switching from one material to another because people are looking for that material."

But overall, everyone seems to be hopping on the green train.

"I don't think there is any company not looking to become greener," Wolken of MACNY says.

Contact The Business Journal at news@cnybj.com

Promoting green, LEED-certified homebuilding

2008-11-20T13:36:00.001-08:00

By: Ashley Schofield

10/24/08 01:47 PM

Carmen Mufale, Onondaga County project manager for Summerset Homes, outside one of the company's model homes. The residential construction firm says it designs and builds homes to waste as little material in the building process as possible.

SYRACUSE - Carmen Mufale designs homes to waste as little material in the building process as possible.

Lumber generally comes in 14 foot and 16 foot lengths, so Mufale, an Onondaga County project manager for Summerset Homes, constructs rooms to those lengths.

"We don't make a 13-foot wall because what we would we do with the waste?" he says.

Homes have been efficiently constructed for years, but only recently has it been coined "green," says Mufale, a third-generation builder. Summerset Homes' new-home developments include projects in Salina, Clay, and Cicero.

"Green or economically sound is tough because now it's a certifiable thing," says Mufale, who has been in the business for 11 years. "We have built to a respect for 30 years, now all of sudden all these products come out."

The city of Syracuse recently passed a law incorporating LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) standards in a plan that provides tax breaks on new and renovated vacant property.

Newly constructed LEED-certified one-and two-family homes built on vacant lots get a one-year to three-year extension - depending on which LEED level the home achieves - on a 100 percent tax exemption from city and school taxes, coupled with a 5 percent decrease in the rate at which taxes phase in, says David Clifford, the first deputy commissioner of assessment in the city's Department of Assessment.

LEED certification is the national benchmark for implementing "rigorous green technical requirements for energy and water efficiency, indoor air quality, non-toxic materials and environmental performance" in every aspect of a building, according to the U.S. Green Building Council Web site. The USGBC is a nonprofit organization, promoting environmentally responsible building practices, which certifies LEED status.

Homes built to silver LEED certification get taxed at 20 percent after eight years of owning the property - one year later than the standard tax break. Taxes phase in after nine years for gold LEED standards and 11 years for platinum LEED certification. The LEED exemption applies for a maximum of 14 years. The standard tax break lasts 10 years.

A vacant lot originally assessed at $10,000 with an increased assessment of $110,000 after construction would receive a $100,000 city and school tax exemption for eight years, according to an informational packet the City of Syracuse Assessment Department distributed about the new property tax exemptions.

Syracuse has 1,573 available vacant lots, of which 454 are city-owned, according to a city list of available vacant lots as of Sept. 24. This list contains just those that are city owned and/or tax delinquent, says Sheldon Ashkin, the first deputy commissioner in the City of Syracuse Department of Assessment in an e-mail.

The city has 2,992 total vacant lots in the city, says Jim McCarthy, the community development city clerk in the city's Code of Enforcements.

Builders constructed 885 new homes in Onondaga County ? 696 single family homes and 189 multi-family homes - in 2007, according to a study released on May 15, 2008, by the National Association of Home Builders, a trade association representing residential construction firms.

"I'm doubtful that an increase in building starts," Clifford says.

People are inquiring about the initiative though. About 50 people called during the first couple weeks about it, Clifford says.

"It just makes sense," he says. "Energy costs go up and up, and are not going back down."

LEED focuses on energy efficiency. People can expect to save 30 percent to 60 percent on annual utility costs with LEED homes, according to the USGBC Web site.

"Savings in energy at a minimum of 30 percent and water efficiency at a minimum of 10 percent are tremendous from both a monetary and environmental standpoint," Tracie Hall, executive director of the Upstate New York chapter of USGBC, says in an e-mail. "These are very conservative - with only three [LEED] houses in the region, we are still collecting data."

The upstate chapter has three gold LEED-certified homes. The first gold LEED-certified home in New York passed certification in Skaneateles, Hall says. The first state LEED-certified housing project passed certification on Oct. 1, 2007 in the Bronx, according to the USGBC Web site.

The State of New York has 17 LEED-certified homes. There are 1,038 certified units and 475 projects in the United States and Canada - six projects are in Canada, according to a LEED for Homes Certified Projects list dated Oct. 7, 2008.

More than 330,000 homes with green features have been built in the United States in the last three years, and an estimated 60,000 of those were certified by LEED or another local green building program such as the Green Home Program in New York City, GreenHOME Inc. in Washington, D.C., and New Jersey Green Homes in Trenton, according to the USGBC Web site.

The first LEED home was certified in Maine in May 2006, according to the LEED certified projects list.

"This isn't a � fad; this is a cultural change in the way we are living in the future," says Mary Thompson, the executive officer of the Home Builders and Remodelers of Central New York an Association of Professionals committed to affordable, quality, and environmentally friendly housing.

In order to be LEED certified, a USGBC inspector must rate the project.

"The hallmark of LEED is � the third party verification," Hall says. "That is why it costs money."

It costs $525 for LEED registration and certification.

LEED originally applied to only commercial buildings, not residential properties. The city adopted LEED silver standards for commercial buildings in September of last year, says David Ashley, director of environmental design in the Syracuse office of Ashley McGraw Architects, LEED-accredited official architect.

"It's hard when a municipality specifically talks to just one program," Thompson says. "It can be expensive, not only when reaching the standards - [LEED] is really stringent on standards."

Thompson believes the city needs to focus on energy-efficient renovations.

"Incentives in this particular geographic region need to focus on preserving existing building stock that is still usable and just needs to be renovated," Thompson says.

In terms of going green, the potential of renovating vacant homes needs to be looked at instead of building more, says Mark Naef, president of Greening USA, a Syracuse-based coalition of related industry professionals that promote green design in communities.

The city tried to increase the tax exemption for LEED-certified renovations as well, but the state did not pass it, Clifford says.

LEED for homes was not designed to assess a portion of renovations; it was only designed to label newly constructed buildings, according to the USGBC Web site.

"LEED for homes is meant to be a guide for construction," Hall says.

The original intention of

LEED was only for commercial buildings, not residences, Hall says.

LEED certification for homes is still in its beginning stages, Hall says.

Certification for LEED homes came out within the past couple years, but the idea has been around forever, Mufale says. Many homes are built to Energy Star standards, which is a more feasible rating to achieve, he says.

Energy Star is a joint program of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy that stresses energy efficient products and practices. Qualifications for Energy Star rating for green building include insulation, properly installed to reduce energy; high-performance windows, to help heating and cooling processes; tightly sealed construction and ducts - to reduce home utility and maintenance costs; energy-efficient heating and cooling systems; energy-efficient products such as lighting appliances; and third-party verification, according to its Web site.

That makes six green standards that homes have to meet for Energy Star certification.

The LEED certification for homes checklist has nine areas - each section also has detailed sub-requirements - to pass certification in each certifiable green category.

LEED embodies Energy Star standards and expands on them. LEED certification also requires an innovative design process - which includes project planning, a sustainable site selection, education of the homeowner or manager tenant, and indoor environmental control - including contaminant and pollution protection, according to the USGBC Web site.

LEED certification and Energy Star rating are complementary to each other, according to green-buildings.com, a USGBC member that answers sustainable questions for commercial builders over the Internet.

"We're building to standards, regardless if it's getting inspected," he says. "We're not just throwing up houses."

Contact The Business Journal at news@cnybj.com
http://www.cnybj.com/index.php?id=396&tx_ttnews[backPid]=1&tx_ttnews[pointer]=4&tx_ttnews[tt_news]=9116&cHash=58d91ebdd3

Retailers adjust to sluggish sales scene

2008-11-20T13:33:00.000-08:00

Buying local a boon for some

By: Ashley Schofield

08/22/08 02:09 PM

Local retailers, such as Elsbeth Rose in Armory Square, are trying to weather the storm of high gas and food prices and a weakening economy crimping consumers' spending habits.

SYRACUSE - Local retailers are hoping for better results in the key back-to-school shopping season after seeing sluggish sales in July.

"In July we hit a brick wall," says Tom Cunningham, co-owner of Eureka Crafts, a jewelry and accessory store in Syracuse's Armory Square. "Our sales are 12 percent below last summer."

Sales at nearby Way Off the Beaten Path, which sells handmade jewelry and stones and accessories like scarves, are down by about 25 percent from last summer, says Angelique Mango, owner.

Maria Laface, owner of women's specialty boutique Oleander, located at 270 W. Jefferson St., says her numbers were down a little from last summer, but not drastically.

"It's just a bump in the road," Laface says.

Down the street, Jan Minney, owner of accessory and handbag store Jan's Addiction, says simply, "July is hard."

However, some area retailers are enjoying success this summer.

The Forever21 store in Carousel Center, which sells low-priced clothing for teens and young adults, generated a sales increase of 20 percent to 30 percent in July and 34 percent so far this summer, says Randy Dritz, co-manager of the local store.

Dritz attributes Forever21's success to low prices and Canadian customers who keep business booming on the weekends. He expects sales to continue growing in August.

"August is the biggest month," Dritz says. "Back-to-school shopping is bigger than Christmas."

Nationally, retail sales fell 0.1 percent in July, the U.S. Commerce Department reported Aug. 13. Excluding auto sales, which fell sharply, U.S. retail sales rose 0.4 percent in July.

Changing trends

Late August starts the big shopping season, says Marilyn Ringwood, owner of women's shop Elsbeth Rose in Armory Square.

Year to date, the store's sales have increased 10 percent over last year's total, Ringwood says. She attributes her shop's success to people shopping locally to treat themselves instead of traveling amid high gas prices.

Scott Owsiany, store manager at the Sports Authority store in Carousel Center, concurs that sticker shock at the gas pump has changed consumer shopping patterns.

"Now people are going for a one-shot deal, as opposed to making several trips to the mall," he says. "People are still buying."

Consumers are more discretionary customers, adds John Massara, manager of Mr. Shop, a men's designer-clothing store on West Fayette Street in Syracuse.

"Customers may buy three things instead of four," he says.

Mr. Shop is selling fewer units, but the store's average price point is still higher than expected, Massara says. Since Mr. Shop carries European designers, its prices increased when the American dollar declined against the Euro. With higher retail tags, sales have remained consistent despite customers purchasing fewer pieces.

Consumers are trying to go as easy on their pocketbooks as they can.

"People are spending in the $25-$100 range, not above $100," Mango of Way Off the Beaten Path says.

They are in an "I can't spend money" mindset, adds Yasha Deregis, an employee for The Edge, a discount designer clothing shop in Armory Square.

"People are shopping practically," she says. "They are not buying trendy pieces, but things that can last for a while."

Retailers adapt

As customers are thinking more about their spending habits, retailers are adjusting by reducing their inventory.

Oleander's Laface says she scaled back her inventory around December or January, but is slowly starting to increase it as customers return to regular spending habits.

"People are realizing this is life," Laface says. "They are regaining their confidence to shop."

Mango says wholesale price increases have caused her to reduce her inventory of gold she uses to make jewelry. She also cut prices by holding a sale for the first time in her shop's existence to try to attract more customers.

Other retailers are considering raising prices to cover higher wholesale costs.

"Wholesale prices have inched up, which I have tried to protect my customers from," Ringwood of Elsbeth Rose says. "But in [the] fall, prices will rise a teeny bit."

Another way to boost sales is to hold a going-out-of-business sale.

Jessica Palladino, the assistant manager of the Urban Behavior teen clothing store in Carousel Center, says the store's sales jumped this summer during its going-out-of-business blowout sale. The store will close around October. Connecticut-based CMT America Corp., the parent company of the Urban Behavior chain of clothing stores, filed for bankruptcy protection July 13, citing the slowing economy.

http://www.cnybj.com/index.php?id=95

Deconstructing the Near West Side - news blog for class

2008-10-08T04:03:00.000-07:00

Recycling – one of the main green mantras – could be Syracuse’s answer for what to do with its many dilapidated homes.

Starting this month, some projects in the Near West Side will be renovated using as much of the existing neighborhood that can be, said Mark Naef, president of Greening USA, a Syracuse-based coalition of related industry professionals that promote and educate communities about green design.

Greening USA plans to renovate a two-story house ridden with water asbestos with the use of deconstruction, which is an increasingly popular way to tear down houses in an eco-friendly manner, Naef said. By building on what is leftover, deconstruction wastes less than traditional renovations, according to Re-Use Consulting’s Web site. Re-Use Consulting is a company that re-sells materials from demolitions.

The city of Buffalo, which started using deconstruction for revitalization purposes in 2006, is exemplary of what Syracuse should be doing with its vacancies, Naef said.

From deconstructing 10 houses, the city accumulated more than 10 tons of lumber and opened a retail store to sell reused building materials, according to the Buffalo ReUse Web site.

Syracuse’s Near West Side has been a focus for revitalization through the Near West Side Initiative, a community neighborhood restoration project, which Greening USA is involved in.

The Syracuse Center of Excellence, another NWSI participant seeking to create environmental and energy efficient urban communities, is also launching a green deconstruction project in the Near West Side area this month.

The group plans to renovate the four-story Lincoln Redevelopment Building to have “green infrastructure,” focusing on wastewater developments, according to the Syracuse COE’s Web site.

An informational meeting and site visit will be held Friday for engineering firms interested in bidding on the renovation’s design.

Slow summer for cab drivers - enterprise story for class

2008-10-07T14:15:00.000-07:00

Don Corey is the last driver left in his taxi fleet.

Corey, a 29-year-old former truck driver, went into the taxi business about a year ago, but his taxi service is not making enough money to pay his bills and fill up his tank.

With climbing gas prices, Corey is changing careers again. He opened Corey’s Slotshot, a new and used electronics shop, on Belmont Avenue two months ago because he thinks a second-hand store may be a lucrative answer to his financial woes.

“The gas prices have cut way into the profit margin,” Corey said.

Corey hopes people will start looking for cheaper prices with the economy, and plans to shut down his cab service once his new business becomes profitable.

Increased gas prices and fewer customers are taking a toll on cab companies. In January, gas prices hit $3.40 per gallon and in July fuel peaked around $4.80 a gallon on the East Coast, according to the Energy Information Administration.

Corey makes a 15 percent profit after taxes, he said. Before gas prices increased, he was earning a 20 to 25 percent profit.

The 150 licensed taxi drivers in Syracuse have boosted their fares to match the jumping gas prices, said Lt. Joe Cecile, supervisor of the Community Policing Division and the Ordinance Enforcement Files. In April, fares went up $1.20 a mile, Cecile said. Cab meter’s starting rate went up 40 cents from $2.80 to $3.20, taxi companies said.

Every two years cab companies can petition the city’s Common Council to raise a taxi’s meter charge per mile. In certain circumstances – like the skyrocketing gas prices –taxi services can petition to raise cab fares citywide to help their business before the two years is up, Cecile said.

“The cost hurts. That’s the bottom line,” said Bill Patton, supervisor of Lanpher Taxi. “With the rate increase, we have been close to breaking even.”

While the higher fares help taxi drivers survive gas costs, they steer customers away.

“When I mention the price of a cab ride, people say they are going to shop around,” said John Young, a dispatcher for Blue Star Taxi. “They try to negotiate.”

People have called Blue Star back for a ride when they find that rates are the same across the city, Young said.

Since more money is spent on fares, tips have become less generous.

“I used to make between $200 to $400 a night on Friday and Saturday nights,” Corey said. “Now I am lucky if I make $70 for the two nights.”

Tips during the day are even worse because people are not going out to spend money, Corey said.

“I think you are going to find business usage declines a little bit and private usage probably declines significantly,” said Bill McClellan, manager of Century Transportation, the primary cab service for Syracuse Hancock International Airport.

Sonny Singh, owner of Blue Star Taxi, thinks locals have to be careful with their money because they cannot afford the extras they used to be able to spend on.

“Business has slowed down,” Singh said. “It’s the economy itself, not just the gas prices. People are not spending as much money.”

Singh, who does not pay for his driver’s fuel to ensure company gas is not used for personal errands, fears his drivers will quit because they are not getting the tips they need for extra spending.

“The gas doesn’t stress me out,” Singh said. “The drivers do. They are complaining about gas. The drivers are going home with $60 or $80, instead of $100.”

He had one driver quit about four weeks ago and return to his old job because he was not making enough money. Singh currently has six drivers, but will need 12 to 15 in August when Syracuse University students come back for school.

Summer is an off-season for the taxi business since the students are gone.

“It’s a seasonal business,” Singh said. “The students make most of the business.”

August to May make up for the slow summer months, Singh said. This summer is far slower than the past two or three summers though, McClellan said.

“In a service industry it’s kind of hard to service people when there is no one to service,” Corey said. “I’m stuck between a rock and a hard place.”

Medicaid transportation to doctor’s office and regular customers who do not have cars or cannot drive are what get cab companies through the summer.

“Medical transportation is what keeps me going,” Corey said. “I personally would be out of business.”

Patton’s regulars keep him in business, so he helps them out.

James Robertson, one of Patton’s regulars, uses taxi services 10 times a week to go to and from work. Patton gives Robertson a break by charging him a flat $10 for a cab ride since he is a six-year customer, Robertson said.

“A cab fare used to run $12.50 before gas prices went up, now it runs $14 to $16 one way,” Robertson said.

Robertson does not own a car because he never liked driving, but he tore his ACL nine months ago and cannot walk the three or so miles to his pizza job at Nick’s Tomato Pie in Armory Square. He said the nearest bus stop was too far to walk from home.

“I can’t really afford it,” Robertson said. “Everything is going up. Some times it just kills a blue collar worker.”

Many cab drivers do not fear that gas increases will hurt their livelihood in the long run.

“I compare a cab to food,” said Doug Parish, a Blue Star Taxi driver. “Sooner or later you are gonna need it, whether you like it or not.”

Syracuse's hidden jewel

2008-10-07T14:13:00.000-07:00

Strings of stones and buckets of beads line the walls in the suppliers’ shops where Noelle VanHee purchases the basics for making her one of a kind jewelry pieces.

VanHee, a 36-year-old independent jewelry designer, runs her fingers over smooth stones and glazes her eyes over sparkly gems. Black Onyx, Freshwater Pearl, Crazy Lace Agate - which stone should she pick up today?

VanHee waits for something to catch her eye.

“I go for things that look different,” she said. “Sometimes I’m not sure what I’m gonna do with it, but I’m gonna buy it. As long as it’s a good quality stone, I’m open to it.”

She occasionally sketches, but she uses her eyes to guide her to inspiration.

“My eyes are open to everything artistic and fashion related,” VanHee said. “I’m always thinking about what to do for next season.”

VanHee designs statement pieces to accessorize anything from a black tie affair, a wedding dress or jeans and a t-shirt. She creates only high quality jewelry made of the finest materials and semiprecious stones.

She got her start by making her own jewelry when she could never find the perfect piece to compliment her outfit. She took her first class at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City, where she finally achieved her second degree in fashion.

After high school VanHee - native to Syracuse and only 17 at the time - wanted to go to FIT, but was told by her parents that she was too young to venture into the big apple. VanHee went to ___ for her bachelor’s degree in communications. After undergraduate schooling, she landed a job in educational systems programming, but it just was not her.

She stuck with the job until her husband Dana finished law school in Massachusetts and then the two moved to NYC so she could pursue something creative.

“Jewelry design was actually an accident,” VanHee said. “I knew I wanted to do something creative, but I didn’t know what it was.”

VanHee originally thought she would do something on the business side of fashion. She has been stylish ever since she was a little girl.

“She looked like the perfect little child you would see in a magazine,” Sandi Schneider, her aunt and big customer of hers. “She was not trendy, just classic.”

And she still insists on things that last a lifetime.

“I make jewelry that is fashionable and current, but at the same time won’t look dated and be able to be worn for years to come,” VanHee said.
Not only does it last, but VanHee also designs jewelry that is versatile. She believes a piece should be worn many different ways if it costs a lot.

“That’s how I design. It’s how I dress,” she said. “You know it’s my style.”

Despite her own taste, VanHee creates designs to appeal to a variety of customers.

A majority of her work is through custom work, where she adapts her style to tailor her buyer’s needs. She gets to know everything about them, everything from who they are to their neck size.

“She always wants people to feel comfortable,” said Jaime Venditti, a customer and long-time friend.

Venditti never thought jewelry was comfortable until she started wearing VanHee’s pieces.

“The Tiger Eye and green stone feel wonderful,” Venditti said. “I know that sounds weird, but it is smooth and soft to touch.”

She is almost obsessive when it comes to checking in with her customers throughout the design process to ensure that the piece is coming exactly how they wanted, VanHee said.

“She is very detail oriented,” Venditti said. “She makes sure it is the right piece for someone. I have never seen her sell anything that isn’t beautiful for them.”

Only once did she have an unsatisfied customer - “a total bridezilla,” VanHee said.

“At the end she said this isn’t what I thought it would be,” VanHee said. “I have never had any other problems, but it was a learning process. I make sure to cross all my ‘t’s and dot all my ‘i’s to make sure I’m really careful because I don’t want that to happen again.”

Another major part of her work is through private and public jewelry shows. During this period, VanHee works intensely slaving away hours and hours in her home’s studio to prepare her collections by herself and by hand.

“Shows are crunch time,” VanHee said. “Weeks before the show my mom will have the kids everyday. I honestly couldn’t do it without my family.”

Most of her family is only a five minute drive away, and as an Italian family they are together a lot. Her family are her number one fans, and understand what it takes to own a business.

VanHee comes from a long line of relatives who own their own companies.
“I think it is inherited in the genes, it’s in the DNA,” said her mother Jacki Abbot. “Her father, his father, my brother, always worked for themselves.”

Abbot also started her own travel company for seniors, so she could work for home. She hated the 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. workday, and loves the freedom of owning her business.

That is why VanHee prefers being her own boss as well.

The reason she started her business in Syracuse was so she could raise kids in a better environment than the city and have flexible hours.Her two girls Alyce, 4, and newborn Blair, 6 months, are her priority.

Last September she had to cancel her entire fall and winter season - which are busiest times - because she was bed rested during her pregnancy.

“It was hard because it’s me. It’s my business, my reputation on the line,” VanHee said.
“I had some people place orders in September, and I wasn’t able to finish until after the baby was born.”

Blair is still getting over health problems, so VanHee is just easing back into work from maternity leave.

The 5-foot-8-inch toned vegetarian believes there is nothing more important than health and she strives to teach her girls how to lead a balanced life.

Her four year old is probably one of the only kids that eats tofu, she said.

“My most favorite thing besides my children and my husband and most important is my yoga,” VanHee said. “I’m so passionate about it, I just swear by it. I love it.”

After intense design periods, her fingers hurt and yoga helps relieve the aching and stress, she said. She got her husband and kids into the practice as well.

Although her husband started practicing yoga, he has not started wearing any of her pieces.

“I’m not a big jewelry guy,” Dana VanHee said. “I pretty much wear just a watch and wedding ring.”

Extreme Home Makeover: Jewish Edition - story for news class

2008-10-07T14:07:00.000-07:00

There is plenty of work to do, but before Nettie Goeler rolls up her sleeves to dig in she grabs a quick pick me up.

She plops a glazed donut-hole into her mouth and grabs a bottle of water to wash it down.

“I need to eat something because I didn’t eat enough for breakfast,” she said. “It’s been a long morning after Sunday school.”

It is Sunday, but it will not be a day of rest.

“Time to get to work,” she said.

Her husband grunts, “Good, because it’s almost time to go home,” as he works through his second hour of planting groundcover in the front yard, and it is not even his own home.

Goeler picks out the cleanest pair of gardening gloves from a bucket and joins the Congregation Beth Sholom-Chevra Shas’ kickoff of Extreme Home Makeover: Jewish Edition. The project: to enhance the curb appeal of a 2,560 square-foot vacated residence located at1408 Madison St. in Syracuse’s East Side.

About 15 synagogue members volunteered to begin the renovation process of the vacated home on Sept. 14. The group volunteered through Home HeadQuarters, a non-profit organization that rebuilds and resells local vacancies at market value.

“The idea is that before we renovate our own home, we renovate someone else’s,” said Erica Bern, director of youth and family programs who planned the event.

Volunteering to fix the vacant home is the beginning of a religious study program that will renovate the participating synagogue member’s spiritual selves.

“It’s a spiritual renovation,” said Marc Beckman, one of the volunteers and a synagogue member. “Physical labor helps the spiritual soul.”

And the vacated house will require a lot of physical labor to fix it up.

From the street view, the home stands dilapidated. Boards cover broken windows, overgrown grass needs a mowing and only paled remnants of the exterior’s yellow paint remain.

“It’s been vacated for quite a while, but it may not be as long as you think,” said Karen Schroeder, the marketing and resource development manager for Home HeadQuarters who coordinated the volunteer opportunity with Bern.

The city took this residence because the owner owed back taxes, Schroeder said. Common reasons for vacancies are foreclosures, employment losses, health issues or divorces, she added.

The owner could not afford to pay them after going through a divorce, said Shanah Williams, a neighbor who lives around the corner at 107 Bassett St.

“I’ve always wanted this home,” Williams said. “I’ve never been in it before, but I could see the potential.”

Home HeadQuarters, which owns over 200 properties in the city, saw potential in 1408 Madison St. as well and purchased the home for $1, Schroeder said. The city developed a program that allows non-profits to buy vacant homes for $1 last year, according to an article in The Post-Standard. There are around 1,000 vacant properties in the city, according to The Post-Standard.

“This neighborhood is on the upswing. It’s getting better,” said Brent Bleier, a volunteer and local for 30 years. “This neighborhood has gone through a few cycles.”

With Maple Heights, a townhouse project located on the other side of Madison, Bleier hopes the East Side gets good tenants to move in.

“One’s neighbors have an impact on the quality of your life,” he said.

When the non-profit completes a renovation, it looks for homeowners who can build up equity, Schroeder said.

“We don’t want someone who doesn’t do anything for 15 years,” she said.

Home HeadQuarters enrolls new owners in a 10-week homebuyer education course to make sure they know what it takes to keep up a home.

The non-profit receives renovation funds from local, state and federal government agencies and looks for donations from anywhere that might give, Schroeder said.

At the beginning of renovation processes, Home HeadQuarters occasionally offers volunteer opportunities to do simple chores like yard work, so it appears like the houses are occupied.

“It gives the façade of some one living here. Nothing good happens when there are break-ins,” said Alison Jackson, the marketing and resource development administrator for Home HeadQuarters.

The continuous break-ins at the vacant Madison property make Williams uncomfortable as a nearby resident.

When a street has a vacant home on it, the neighborhood’s value and morale go down with it, Schroeder said.

Often there are instances when vacancies go untended for too long and cannot be salvaged.
“Some are just too far gone and we demo them,” Schroeder said.

A demolition could cost anywhere from $12,000 to $36,000 depending on what condition the home is in, she said.

“It’s a waste for [a home] to be torn down for back taxes,” Williams said.

The Madison Street house, although salvageable, is going to be completely gutted. A roof leak caused the interior’s walls to rot, floor planks to lift out of place and the second floor’s ceiling to sink in. It will cost $130,000 to fix, Schroeder said.

“You wonder whether it’s better just to burn it down,” Beckman said.

Interior problems such as mold and asbestos sometimes prevent volunteers from being able to help with renovations. Home HeadQuarters ensures the site is safe enough for untrained people to work on it, which sometimes costs more than contractors just doing the whole job, Schroeder said.

“It is usually time-effective for volunteers to do the yard work,” she said.

The Extreme Home Makeover volunteers put in a new layer of groundcover, removed rotting trees and planted daffodil bulbs.

Young girls from the synagogue begged their mom to plant the daffodils.

“Volunteering is one way to let people be included in the beautification aesthetics before the contractors dive in and do the renovation,” Jackson said.

The volunteers picking up trash did one of the day’s dirtiest jobs. Soda cans, broken cassette tapes, soggy cereal boxes and fallen tree branches littered the back yard before the volunteers arrived.

“It looks like a dumping ground,” Bleier said. “You know what the say: out of sight, out of mind.”

Bleier organized the trash piles properly for city pick-up and sorted recyclables from the yard’s debree.

Around late afternoon disposals piled high on the property’s front curb and Goeler was hungry again.

This time though the whole crew took a break together and huddled around Bern’s Volkswagen bug, which doubled as a picnic table. A spread of peanut butter and jelly, bagels, cream cheese and hummus lined her trunk.

After all the work done, trying to wash up before eating proved to be the day’s biggest project.

“I forgot the Purell,” Bern said.

Children's center upgrading facilities - BLOG post for news class

2008-10-06T20:36:00.001-07:00

“Don’t leave your vehicles running or your keys in the car. Thank you,” reads the welcome sign on the door of a grey, grim-looking administration building.

Once inside, a crowded waiting room resides on the left. A mother sits nervously waiting for her son, three troubled-looking adolescent boys squirm in their seats and the receptionist’s voice echoes, cutting the stiff silence.

A facilitator paces through the room with a clipboard in hand and a walkie-talkie belted to his waist.

This is the operation of Elmcrest Children’s Center, a multi-service treatment center for children with developmental disabilities and serious medical conditions, along with emotional, behavioral and psychiatric disturbances.

With an increasing demand for services, the center needs more space, according to Joe Geglia, the assistant to the center’s executive director.

A 9,000 square-foot family support center is expected to break ground within the next 30 days, which will replace the existing 3,900 immediate crisis facility.

A family support center is a 14-day program where a quick plan is developed to treat families with problems such as alcohol, drug and sexual abuse. In this program, siblings are kept together to reduce separation trauma and the family is more likely to be re-unified sooner.

The Syracuse-based center treats around 1,500 children and families a year through long-term residential treatment, critical care and pediatric respite programs, according to its Web site.

With a larger, more efficient facility millions of dollars could be saved, Geglia said.

The project’s estimated cost is $1.5 million. The project is a part of a five-year campaign to renovate the facility originally built in the 1920s.

It is being financed by the county and has received donations from many, including COR Companies, which is building the new facility at cost.

“[The project] tugged at their heartstrings,” Geglia said.

Parade homes go green, attendees uninterested - BLOG for news class

2008-10-06T20:34:00.000-07:00

The 2008 Parade of Homes – a single site open house that showcases the latest in landscape and interior design – went green this year by exhibiting 10 eco-friendly model residences in Clay’s Country Meadow neighborhood.

However, attendees were not interested in the energy-efficient alternatives.

“What we hear from builders when we offer to make a quote about going with a green alternative … is that people still go for the aesthetically pleasing product,” said Mary Thompson, the executive officer of the Home Builders and Remodelers of Central New York an Association of Professionals that puts on the annual event.

More people go to get landscaping and interior decorating ideas, the tough part is getting them interested in the green options, Thompson said.

In the end, the builders build for the customers, she added.

The initial higher cost of going green is to blame, said Carmen Mufale, project manager for Summerset Homes, which built one of the models. He does not think customers have the extra money to spend right now with the economy.

There is a countertop product made out of recycled bottles that looks just like granite, but since it’s more money people won’t buy it, Mufale said.

“It’s ridiculous,” he said. “Customers would rather buy the last piece of granite on earth, than that piece made of recycled bottles.”

Not all of the green improvements were superficial. The builders made the homes with features including energy-efficient furnaces and insulated walls, Thompson said.

Builders are just catching up with the green trend, so customers are slowly following, she said.

About 20,000 people came to see the fully decorated and landscaped models from Sept. 6 to 21, according to Thompson.

What's good?

2008-10-05T13:15:00.001-07:00

What's good? What's bad?

... How do we know?

It seems like the world is based off bad and good - the black and white of society.
The gray area in between is color that allows for a mix of both.

The media has to portray both good and bad without setting an agenda, but does it really do that?

The media tell good stories - the human-interest type that are flowery and uplifting - and the bad - the ones like the current Wall Street crisis that make you jittery and anxious.

But what about the good in the Wall Street crisis?

People have touched on the fact that it may clean up the American credit system, but I haven't seen a lot of media coverage about it. Isn't it good that Americans could realize their irresponsibility and turn it around?

Why isn't that angle being played up?

No matter how terrible of a story, shouldn't both sides be portrayed - good and bad?

Good and bad need to be in each story to make a piece well-rounded and not one-sided. I feel like that happens less and less.

The more and more I read, the more I get depressed.

The news has definitely instilled fear into the media consumer in me. And I don't think that is going to help the industry's revenue jump up, which needs to happen.

The bad is overtaking the good.

The media might say that's just what's out there today, but I don't believe that it's all bad even with the economic state the country is in right now.

Truth should remain the main objective of reporting, but isn't there a way to dig for the good and get both sides of the story?

OK I'm actually attempting to commit to blogging

2008-09-24T09:52:00.000-07:00

There never seems to be enough time in the day, and as a result I have put off religiously blogging for over a year now.

As graduate student, I really have no room to claim that I am "busy" - the common excuse most use for not doing things - but I just don't know where time in the day goes.

You know how it goes, get up in the morning and go, go, go until bedtime - half the time not even turning your thoughts off in your sleep - but as the to-do list for tomorrow augments, I constantly wonder what did I accomplish today?

From now on, hopefully I can say at least one blog.

So to kick off my personal blog, a little bit about me.

A native San Diegan, I moved out-of-state for the first time three months ago. I currently live in New York to study journalism - and not to the city, but the lovely upstate region which should just be detached from NYC.

I live, breathe and sleep journalism.

Whether I studying it in class, interning at the CNY Business Journal or reading the New York Times, Poynter.org or Vogue, journalism consumes my life.

Aspiring to break into the online profession, I crave the answer to new media complex and solving the industry's mounting problem of how to make revenue. The availabilities of entering this profession in less than year scares me, and adding to my fears is the economic trouble the nation is in.

When not thinking about the above, I dance, practice yoga, run and try to find time to relax. I miss the beach - a San Diego solace - and my loved ones back home.

I'm a pretty simple girl with some complex thoughts. I am random, off-the-wall and strive to be out of the ordinary, but thus far I've walked through life on the straight and narrow.

I am waiting for adventure, which I pray is just around the corner. To travel, to do the unexpected and to take risks. Oh, to make time for excitement.

Time. That's what life all comes down to.

Finding time, having time - opportunity lies within the perfect timing. All I hope is that I make time for my dreams, and that they come in ideal timing.

For now though, I have time for my blog.

Graphics project - Poster for non-profit project

2008-08-22T16:04:00.001-07:00

Habitat for Humanity's Mekong project along the underdeveloped river in Asia.

read more | digg story

Graphics project - Logo

2008-08-22T16:02:00.001-07:00

Assignment was to design a logo that represented you, and make it work on a system consisting of a business card, envelope and letterhead.

read more | digg story

Graphics project - Magazine spread

2008-08-22T15:59:00.001-07:00

Story was about the under arm overhang woman incessantly obsess about.

read more | digg story

Graphics project - Interface Design for non-profit

2008-08-22T15:57:00.001-07:00

A beginner's videography

2008-08-22T15:51:00.001-07:00

Documented my undergrad's undie run that doubled as a clothing drive. Strip for those in need.

read more | digg story

The life, the legend

2008-08-22T15:46:00.001-07:00

One of my best story ideas. Won a few awards for it.

read more | digg story

Past column I wrote as editor of my campus paper

2008-08-22T15:44:00.001-07:00

Final episode.

read more | digg story

Student seeks name and gender change in university

2008-08-22T15:40:00.001-07:00

Student denied request and entered lawsuit.

read more | digg story

Community Bank quarterly dividend rises August 22

2008-08-22T15:21:00.001-07:00

Media alert

read more | digg story