NCPR is Launching Program on Arts and Artists who Live and Work in Region

Name that show! In response to input from listeners, NCPR is launching a new monthly one-hour program, focusing on arts and artists who live and work in our region. We're hoping to involve artists and arts supporters in the planning and creation of the program. We hope to have the first program on the air in a few months--stay tuned for details. You can help us: Our new show needs a name! Please send your suggestions to NCPR's Todd Moe.
NCPR Listening Post 4.49, Friday, February 24, 2006

Capital Region Survey Shows Actual Business Growth is Less than Expected Business Growth

800 businesses were surveyed for the 20th annual Business Climate Survey conducted by Marvin @ Co. P.C. and the University at Albany in cooperation with area chambers of commerce. ... For 2005, 64 percent of respondents had expected business to increase, but the follow-up found business rose at only 60 percent of the companies. The gaps over the past four years have been fairly narrow, with actual results only a few percentage points behind expectations.
Members of the Adirondack, Albany-Colonie, Colonie, Montgomery, Rensselaer County, Saratoga County, Schenectady County, Schoharie County and Southern Saratoga Chambers were surveyed. Health care and energy costs are the top concerns businesses say they are facing.
Opinions on how well the economy is doing vary by location. Three-quarters of respondents who belong to The Chamber of Southern Saratoga County said their county was prospering. In Montgomery County, meanwhile, 60 percent of the chamber's members described their economy as stagnant, and none said it was prospering. Times Union, Friday, Feb. 17, 2006, Business section, p.1.

Beth Smith, Adirondack Glass Smith, is Featured Artist

The North Country Cultural Center, Plattsburgh, is featuring Beth Smith's fused and dichroic glass pieces in their February Newsletter. 518.359.9331.

Photos from the ANCA Group Booth at the Western New York Gift Show


Orchard Park Music
Underwood Herbs
Nostalgic Impressions


Adirondack Food Specialities was also represented. Thanks to Scott Adams, www.orchardbeat.com for emailing these photos.

Though all took in orders at the show Feb. 5 to 8, this year showed a decrease in order writing from last year which had shown a slight decrease from the year before. Three out of the four took in enough orders to make 2 to 3 times the expenses of the show. It is quite likely that these vendors will not attend the WNY Winter Gift Show next year because of the continued decrease in traffic and order writing the last two years.

They are all planning on attending the wholesale show being organized by the owners of North Country Books and Up North Trading and one other partner scheduled for July 17-19 at the Turning Point Casino in Verona, NY. Vendors who have attended Buyer Days the last two years will be receiving Turning Point Casino Show applications in the mail shortly. Those interested in the ANCA sponsored group booth at the July 17-19 show, contact Nadia at korths@northnet.org or 518.891.1632.

Tourist Oriented Directional (TOD) Signs - NYS Scenic Byways Sign Manual Now Online

If you are the following type of business and within 5 miles of a primary highway, for an annual fee of $50 you may use the following signage to draw customers to your business.

"TODS may also include advertising of services, activities, arts, crafts or products that are commonly accepted to be of specific regional interest to travelers." Section 3.13/p. 26 of the online pdf of the NYS Scenic Byways Sign Manual at http://www.dot.state.ny.us/pubs/publist.html

Mary Vanouse, Assistant Director, City of Oswego Community Development, after questions regarding TOD signage came up during Nadia's Oswego Best Practices workshop, asked Steve Roof from NYS DOT the following question. "I am looking for information on the blue & white (outside the Adirondack and Catskill Park they are blue and white and inside the Parks they are brown and white) tourism commercial signs located on state highways. Please send me information or a web link so that members of our ONE Network can learn how to develop signage for their businesses. Thanks!"

Here is Steve's reply:

"The blue & white signs you refer to are the TOD (Tourist Oriented Directional) signs. Eligibility for the program is limited to business which can reasonably be said to cater to the tourist or traveling public. Restaurants, motels, tourist attractions, etc. The program is further limited to businesses which are not on a "primary" highway. Primary highways are state roads which are identified as part of the National Highway System. Not all state roads qualify for TOD signing.

Scenic byways such as the Seaway Trail (portions of Route 104, 104B and Route 3 in Oswego) and Route 13 are very restrictive for signing purposes but TOD signs are available to eligible businesses.

Businsses which are already located on a primary route are not eligible for TOD signing.

Primary Routes in Oswego County include: Route 104, Route 3, Route 49, Route 48 (south of Fulton) and Route 13 (in Williamstown only). I will send you a map showing the eligible routes in the mail.

TOD signs cannot be placed within urban areas; http://www.dot.state.ny.us/ttss/uab/index.html

The initial sign can be no more than 5 miles from the business. As part of the TOD permit the business must provide followup signing (trailblazers) at each subsequent intersection (with permission from the appropriate local government entity), off the primary system, where the traveler is required to make a turn.

The current annual fee is $50, which is limited to the initial sign (in each direction). If a business has a sign facing both directions the maximum fee is $100 annually no matter how many followup (trailblazer) signs are required.

The applicant is responsible for all costs associated with manufacture and installation of the signs, and the signs must be made according to the specification sheets (attached). If the primary road is more than two lanes a larger sign format may be available. Any required maintenance or repair whether required as a result of natural causes, accident or vandalism is the responsibility of the permittee. Any illegal signs the applicant may have must be removed as a condition of the permit approval.

Location of the signs, for new installations, must be approved by 4 separate DOT departments: Real Estate, Traffic & Safety, Maintenance and the Regional Resident Engineer. This process can take up to two months from the time the application is received by our office.

The business is limited to two lines of white text on a blue background, unless they have a federally registered trademark (ie., McDonalds).

If the business is seasonal the sign(s) must be covered within 3 business days of the closing.

For additional information you may go to http://www.dot.state.ny.us/red/sign_program.html." Includes link to NYSDOT regional real estate offices where applications for TODs should be made. Thanks to Mary and Steve for taking the time to provide this information. Steve had also attached to the email a copy of the standard TOD sign application.

The NYS Scenic Byways Sign Manual is posted at http://www.dot.state.ny.us/pubs/publist.html. Includes sign specifications for TOD signage on page 26/section 3.13. ANCA press release, Adirondack Daily Enterprise, Feb. 8, 2006. p.3

Flames destroy Hurricane Mtn. pottery studio

A fire ripped through an art studio in Keene on Sunday morning, leaving one building destroyed and two buildings damaged. There were no injuries, according to Essex County Emergency Services Deputy Director Donald Jaquish, who said that his office is continuing to investigate the cause of the blaze at the studio, called Hurricane Mountain A Center for Earth Arts.

“It’s accidental in nature,” said Jaquish. The fire began in the pottery kiln building, Jaquish said, which houses a wood-fired kiln, two electric kilns and a propane-fueled kiln. An artist went into the downstairs area of the building shortly after 5 a.m., only to find that one of the kilns, normally located on the second story, had fallen through the floor. She then called the 911 dispatch in Elizabethtown after seeing flames downstairs and smoke on the second floor.
“When the fire department got there, it was completely involved,” Jaquish said. The art studio, co-owned by Paul Nowicki and Barbar Tam, is insured, Jaquish said.

Six regional fire departments responded to the scene, including Keene Valley, Keene, Upper Jay, Wilmington, Jay and Lake Placid. The fire rekindled later in the day, though only the Keene and Keene Valley departments responded.

—online posting by Geoff Hayward, Adirondack Daily Enterprise, February 13

Found Object Sculpture Studio & Gallery Tour
Saturday, February 11, 2006 1 p.m. - 3 p.m.
Clayton, NY

Nancy Murphy Greetings!
Please be our guest...We have a few spots open to come and enjoy a day or evening of fun and inspiration visiting the beautiful creative gallery and studio of Clayton artisit Nancy Murphy. Nancy will discuss joining castoffs with objects of nature to make beautiful and original art pieces. Nancy's gallery and workshop are inspiring and there is a tag on each piece to tell more about the object's creation. The text is always interesting, and frequently humorous or inspirational. Cabin Fever participants in the Studio & Gallery Tour will also receive a $5.00 gift certificate (usable for that day only) for the gallery. A break will be taken to sample Nancy's Irish brown bread and your choice of coffee or tea.

Sincerely,
Kim Gilhuly,
The Handweaving Museum and Art Center
314 John Street
Clayton, New York 13624
beth@hm-ac.org
http://www.hm-ac.org

Corner Stone Gift Shop, Wilmington, moves two doors down

Marjorie Swift (MA Swift Originals, aka The Bug Bonnet Woman) is delighted to have found a new home, two doors down from its previous location at the main intersection next to the Candy Man, for the Corner Stone Gift Shop at the Mountain Brook Lodge, 5712 Rte. 86 in Wilmington. The new lodge owners, Alicia and Al Armstrong, wished to keep the lodge gift shop open so when Majorie walked in a few weeks ago and they started talking about the Corner Stone needing a new location, well, things happened. Alicia and Marjorie are now co-managing the shop with some of the original Corner Stone guild members also staffing the shop periodically. The gift shop includes a sitting area large enough to host booksigning and music events. Stop by to meet the new owners and visit the shop.

With the new location of the Corner Stone Gift Shop at the Mountain Brook Lodge where the owners are easily able to staff the shop, Marjorie looks forward to getting back into full swing production because, in addition to her already established wholesale accounts, Adirondack Life has recently contracted with Marjorie to sell her bug bonnets with their logo embroidered on them. Marjorie is appreciative of Adirondack Life's earlier role in growing MA Swift Originals when in 1992 they wrote an article about her bug bonnet business. Orders came in year after year from that one article.

Marjorie also hopes to reactivate the Wilmington Farmers Market this summer. The new location on the river in Heritage Park next to the Methodist Church is protected and scenic. Contact Marjorie at 518.946.7642, mas7642@yahoo.com or at POB 555, Wilmington NY 12997 for more information.

The Whistle Stop, SL, looking for new members

I spoke with Jessica Mulvey, Winona Jewelry, yesterday. She is one of 3 active members of the Whistle Stop Cooperative located at the Train Depot in Saranac Lake which is now 6 years old and open 2 and a half months of the year, 5 days a week. They are looking for 3 new members. Contact Jessica Mulvey at 518.946.2401 for particulars. Their next meeting is on Feb. 15.

For sale (Point of Sales) POS Quickbooks

I saw Quickbooks' POS software program on sale at Sam's Club in Plattsburgh for $1185. Could those of you using this program leave a comment here on what's good and what's not?

Bruce Baker has sold his Middlebury Jewelry shop

I spoke with the new owner last week as I was getting a gallery fix in downtown Middlebury. The Frog Hollow Gallery is quite lovely, both location wise, perched over the rushing river rapids, and product wise - lovely works. They continue to profit by showcasing artists based in Vermont. They are looking for a new shop location in Manchester, one of their three shop locations.

Observed recently on the Sentinel Road in Lake Placid that the Adirondack Trading Post is no longer (storefront available for lease) and that the Budzembloom Fine Flowers and Gifts is now called the Lake Placid Fine Flowers and Gift Shop.

Susan Cassevaugh, Near North, www.nearnorthart.com and Ken Gadway, Adirondack Wood Turner, will be showcased at the new Lake Placid Library Gallery for the week of Feb. 13 - 19. Ken had a lovely white and black piece accepted in the January juried show at the Lake Placid Center for the Arts.

Susan, a regular exhibitor at Buyer Days, is already signed up for this year's trade show dates of April 6-7.

Birdhouses made by Artisans to be Juried on March 19

Michael Bird, architect; Gary Casagrain, artist; and Nadia Korths, craft marketing coordinator/ANCA, will be jurying the 40 birdhouses submitted to the Tri-Lakes Habitat for Humanity by artists who donated them for fundraising. About 20 of the donations came as a result of an ANCA announcement emailed out to the regional crafts community in the fall. Thank you.
I, Nadia, believe the birdhouses will be auctioned off on the same day. I'm certainly looking forward to seeing these creations.

WORKSHOP: WRITING YOUR ARTIST STATEMENT - LARAC, Glens Falls, Feb. 25.

Renee O'Brien, an artist-educator, who exhibits her photographs regionally and nationally will provide a hands-on workshop. The workshop will assist artists in all disciplines in developing well-written, focused statements about their work and to provide insight into how their art functions in contemporary culture, both locally and globally. Those attending are asked to bring a sample of their current artist statements, as well as some samples of their work. The workshop will include instruction, writing exercise, and actual development of a new statement.February 25, 9 am-noon, $20 non-members/$15 LARAC members; pre-registration recommended. LARAC, 7 Lapham Place, Glens Falls, 12801518-798-1144, ext. 4, Fax: 518-798-9122 www.LARAC.org your resource for arts and cultural information in the lower Adirondack region.