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In the Heart of Cohoes: Harmony CoWorks

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By: Lauren Halligan

The Neighborhood

Set at the edge of the downtown Cohoes Historic District, an area that’s experiencing a remarkable revitalization, Harmony CoWorks is a brand new coworking facility. Situated within walking distance of the majestic Cohoes Falls and nearby trails as well as the shops and restaurants of downtown Cohoes, “It’s a great, walkable area,” said Dion, who recommends checking out the new Cafe Monocle or local favorite sandwich shop Subs-ta-toot.

Additionally, just a few steps away is Cohoes Music Hall, one of the oldest still-operating music halls in the nation and a cultural treasure among the region. Entertainment is also right outside the door when the City of Cohoes hosts its Rock the Block free summer concert series. 

The Space 

The 3,500-square-foot coworking space is set in a former bank building that’s been fully renovated. iTech Valley Office Interiors has fully outfitted the place with on-trend, top quality furnishings that are both aesthetically pleasing and ergonomically designed. (Harmony CoWorks and Tech Valley Office Interiors are both owned by local native Rod Dion, and co-located at the Mohawk Street address.)

Harmony CoWorks offers inexpensive daily and monthly passes, along with dedicated desks and private offices. A kitchen space, meeting room and conference room are available for use as well. Amenities include high speed wifi, 24-hour access, card door entry, mail and address service, printer service, secure storage and a private, well-lit 50-car parking lot with security cameras. 

Vibe & Community

The vibe at Harmony CoWorks is good for getting work done – which is one of the most important factors when choosing a coworking spot. With far fewer distractions than home and the motivation of being in a beautifully designed professional setting, this space is conducive to productivity. Whether you want to hunker down in solitude, have a constructive meeting, or be social with others, there’s a comfortable place for that at Harmony CoWorks.

In the future, Dion and the Harmony CoWorks team hope to host social events that will help establish and build a sense of community at this new small city coworking space. 

The Location

Harmony CoWorks is conveniently located off of I-787 at 50 Mohawk St. in Cohoes, and a short walk to The Lofts at Harmony Mills, a residential community in the historic former Harmony Mills cotton mill complex. More information about Harmony CoWorks is available online at harmonycoworks.com or by calling (518) 874-1017. Connect with them on Facebook.

Check out last week’s coworking spotlight: Urban Co-Works in downtown Schenectady!

CapNY History Day Trip: Visiting Olana with Kids

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I’ve been visiting the Catskills since I was a kid, and the best part of the drive was always looking up at Olana from the Rip Van Winkle Bridge over the Hudson River. The views from its hilltop perch are even more breathtaking than those from below. It seemed like a dreamy place to explore with my family.

What is Olana?

Olana is a towering castle-like villa atop a leafy hill overlooking the Hudson River. Among the most iconic views in the Hudson Valley, Olana was home to painter Frederic Church in the 1800s.

Even in the weird times of 2020, it’s the perfect place for a day trip. Due to COVID concerns, you can’t go inside the Olana State Historic Site at the moment. The villa is still beautiful from the outside, and the real magic of the place — especially for kids and kids at heart — is in the 250 acres surrounding this historic home.

Olana Family Tours

Carolyn Keogh, the Olana Partnership’s Director of Education and Public Programs, said, “While our outdoor tours are open to all ages, this year we began a new tour format specifically for families, our Family Explorer Tours. These offerings provide more interactive opportunities for families to learn together by participating in activities like drawing and other kid-friendly conversation prompts.”

When you’re traveling with kids, my advice is to book an outdoor family tour of Olana or if your kids are too little for that, you can explore the vast, beautiful grounds on your own. Explore the trails and soak up the greenery that inspired the artists who walked these hills before us.

If you want to take a guided tour, you’ll want to book in advance, as they do fill up. It’s also worth noting that Electric Carriage Tours are available, for anyone who’d prefer to be driven around the 250 acres of landscape design. At present these 60-minute tours cost $150 are limited to up to 4 passengers from the same household.

Outdoors at Olana

Olana is a 4-season destination, welcoming snowshoeing and cross-country skiing as well as walking in the wintertime. In the spring, the Mingled Garden bursts into pastel-colored bloom, with the show of flowers turning into deeper reds and oranges, to attract hummingbirds in the height of summer. In the autumn, it’s common to spot a painter behind an easel, capturing the awe-inspiring fall foliage on display. Small children don’t always have the deepest appreciation for scenic lookouts, but my kids love matching up Olana’s view of the Catskills with the mountains pictured and labeled on the park map.

Website
Address: 5720 State Route 9G, Hudson, NY 12534
Phone number: 518-828-1872
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Where to Eat With Kids in Hudson

The village of Hudson is located just 10 minutes north of Olana. There you’ll find a wealth of dining options. Casa Latina Pupusas Y Mas, a mom-and-pop counter-service spot serving traditional fare from El Salvador and Mexico, is our family favorite. Located away from the hustle and bustle of Warren Street, they’ve got ample parking, umbrella tables, and crave-worthy pupusas – corn masa flatbreads that are stuffed with tasty fillings like cheese, beans, or chicharron (fried pork belly). They also serve nachos, tacos, quesadillas, a kid’s menu, and a must-try juice of the day. My daughter lives for their watermelon agua fresca.

If your crew is more in the mood for burgers, hot dogs, grilled cheese, and fries, Grazin’ Diner promises a hearty meal that you can feel good about. All of their meat is sourced from their nearby farm, all their produce is organic, and almost every ingredient they serve is local. For instance, on their incredibly juicy Unburdened Burger with baby Swiss, the bourbon used to sauté their mushroom and make their steak sauce is sourced from Ghent’s Unburdened Distillery. And the sweetest way to end a day after a long stroll around Olana’s carriage roads is a Grazin’ milkshake paired with their house-made brownies, cookies, and pies.

Casa Latina Pupusas Y Mas
Website
Address: 78 Green Street, Hudson, NY 12534
Phone number: 518-653-1334​
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Grazin’ Diner
Website
Address: 717 Warren Street, Hudson, NY 12534
Phone number: 518-822-9323
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Written by: Kara Zuaro, Brooklyn Doublewide, Exploring the less traveled (and less expensive!) Catskills, in and around Greene County. Farms, drive-in movies, kids, food, beer, shopping, home design, and real estate.

CapNY Coworking Spaces: Urban Co-Works, Schenectady

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Since popping up as one of CapNY’s first coworking spaces, Urban Co-Works has become a second home for lots of local professionals who choose to make this downtown office the hub for their hustle. 

The Neighborhood

Set in the heart of Schenectady – at the corner of quaint, little Jay Street and the city’s main corridor State Street – this fourth-floor space features grand views of the downtown district, including a large conference room overlooking the historic Proctors Theatre marquee. This spacious, open office has character, namely a friendly life-size skeleton called Skully that greets visitors upon arrival.  

The Space

Inside, there are chances to meet real live humans as well. “We love the open concept and the ability for people to mingle, get to know each other, do business with each other,” Urban Co-Works CEO Jeff Goronkin said. 

Depending on their desired level of social interaction, members have many options for where to work: solo desks, large community-style tables, cozy lounge chairs or soundproof phone booths for privacy. Private offices, like the one with a giant reminder to “Be Awesome Today,” are available, too.  

Vibe / Community

Throughout all of Urban Co-Works, the atmosphere is calm, clean and super quiet – except when there’s a lively networking opportunity happening at the on-site event space.  Urban Co-Works is also a place for play. Schenectady-based gaming company, Gaming Insomniacs, hosts its eSports league here on a regular basis for some serious gaming fun. 

Membership is diverse and eclectic; include professionals and business in tech, banking, health care, medical innovation, mental health services, sustainability consultants, affordable energy developers, business and product innovators, and Guatemalan chocolate.

The Basics

Membership in coworking spaces generally includes a wide range of perks.

Says community manager Kristen Guastella, “We try to provide as much as we can to members, of course, other than just the Wi-Fi and the comfortable chairs.”

At Urban Co-working all members access 24/7 key card entry, high speed (FIOS) internet, printing, lockable storage, indoor bike storage, restrooms, a kitchenette and complimentary coffee, tea and water. 

Memberships are scaled to professional needs: from a one day pass, 5 or 10 days per month flex memberships or private offices all have access to use of a conference room with Bluetooth, television and video accessories. For those in need of private space, Urban Co-working offers affordable fully furnished offices by the month, suitable for up to 5 teammates, a business address, and on-site office support plus all the basic benefits.

Ambition Coffee and Eatery

For the coworking foodie, Urban Co-Works has plenty of nearby eateries to explore, for take out or delivery all within walking distance. Breakfast or lunch at quirky coffee shop Ambition, tea time at the Whistling Kettle or a hearty Italian meal at Johnny’s are just a few spots on this adorable, pedestrian-only section of Jay Street.

What’s YOUR favorite coworking space? Send us a DM on social media! @upstatecreative

Connect with Urban Co-Works

Address: 433 State Street, in downtown Schenectady.
Website
Phone: (518) 290-7203
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#CapNYRedAlert: Sarah Craig, Caffe Lena

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Caffe Lena’s Sarah Craig, courtesy the Daily Gazette

Caffe Lena is widely recognized as the oldest continuously-operating folk-music venue in the United States. Over 60 years of operation in the heart of Saratoga Springs, its stage has hosted luminaries including Bob Dylan in 1961 and Sawyer Fredericks in 2014. We checked in with Executive Director Sarah Craig to find out how this gutsy little venue is faring during the Covid challenges, and were not surprised to find them bravely weathering these unprecendented ups and downs.

Hot Club of Saratoga, courtesy of Sarah Dobies

The Pivot From Mainly-Live to Totally-Online Performances

Right now, Caffe Lena is not a “live performance venue;” technically, we’re a “broadcast studio.” Therefore, we’re an essential business. We were able to qualify for that designation because we’ve been live streaming every performance for over six years now. So we went into the shutdown in a much different position than many performing arts venues. Even though we’re very small and very DIY, we had the infrastructure to be a virtual venue the day the shutdown started. That’s meant that we’ve been able to hang onto our staff, and have given work to dozens of regional artists by producing live shows on our stage almost every night since mid-March. Also, the launch of the Caffe Lena School of Music coincided with the start of the pandemic. We pivoted to virtual group lessons for kids and adults, and the school is growing and growing.

A live studio audience at Caffe Lena, courtesy Sarah Dobies

Has Caffe Lena had any attendees at these performances?

As a broadcast studio, we’re allowed to have a live studio audience. This is very different than having a show — there’s a very small, prescreened audience that arrives with their masks on, and they’re taken to their seats. They’re there to applaud and lend atmosphere to a performance. It’s been WONDERFUL for the performers to get that immediate feedback for their performance. But last week we decided to dial it back to essential-personnel-only in light of the Covid numbers creeping up. We’re all frustrated about having to pause–not just the music world, but all industries–but nobody wants to risk going through this again so we’re playing it super safe.

This is a tough question, but what is the financial picture like?

We have virtually no earned income right now. We have not sold a ticket since March 13. But the generosity of the public has been astounding. People have made it clear that they really want us to continue creating work for musicians, and keep the Caffe Lena legacy intact. Our only earned revenue is tuition from the Caffe Lena School of Music – it’s a mission project, to teach the next generation the culture of folk music.

Our live streams feature a prominent virtual tip jar. It really works, because everybody wants to keep the music alive! They’ve been generous with the tip jar, which we split evenly with the performer. Most times they cover our direct production costs, sometimes not. The tip jar isn’t enough to pay all the bills, but because of a couple of very successful fundraising endeavors we’re definitely hanging on and we have no plans to stop streaming live shows. In fact, we’re looking at ways to add even more programming.

How are you, the staff, the board and the performers faring through these challenges?

This is our 60th anniversary year – what a great year for an anniversary!

A pre-Covid performance by Steel Wheels

For the venue’s first 57 or 58 years, it was an organization that just got by. Living close to the bone was a source of pride. It wasn’t until our board of directors said that this organization is incredibly vulnerable that we hatched a plan to stabilize finances and create an organization that could weather hard times. Thank heavens we turned things around before Covid hit!

But the bottom line is that we are all in this for the love of music and a deep commitment to serving the community in keeping with folk music values and traditions. We are fine living close to the bone again until this crisis passes, and there’s no sense that “we might not make it.” In fact, although we miss our audience and so many of our out-of-state bands with all our hearts, we’re mostly feeling blessed that we can still be a full-time music producer at a time when so much of the live music industry is shutdown.

As long as we can just keep putting on shows, we are satisfied.

For more on Caffe Lena, go to CaffeLena.org. Address: 47 Phila St, Saratoga Springs, NY 12866. (518) 583-0022.

3 CapNY Thrift Shops for the Socially & Economically Conscious Consumer

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A Newfound Appreciation for Thrift Shops

Growing up, I was not much of a thrift store person. We were a Kohl’s Cash, JCPenney’s clearance sales, and Old Navy Super Cash household with the mentality that we wore clothes until they wore out. Style wasn’t much of a priority. But as I got older and needed to both build up my personal fashion sense and pay for those clothes myself, I looked to thrift shops. I found that buying secondhand items online is a good way to save money on fashion too. eBay is a popular site for this and savvy shoppers will be flocking their as soon as they hear about the additional savings they can make by using discounts and promo codes from sites like Raise – discover more here so that you too can purchase quality items at lower prices.

It’s very easy to become enthralled with glitzy Instagram accounts and unboxing videos from fashion influencers, but fast fashion is unsustainable both environmentally and ethically. So, I developed two criteria for seeking out these thrift shops:

  1. Finding local thrift shops that directly benefit the community
  2. Choosing thrift shops that catered to my budget

Just like anything else, where you buy things and where that money goes matters. To that end, here are 3 thrift shops located in CapNY that fit the bill.

My Top Pick

  1. Style Encore
    (22 Clifton Park Rd. #78, Located in Clifton Park Center)
    M-S 10:00AM-8:00pm, Sun 11:00AM-5:00PM
    518-630-5730

Style Encore is a locally owned and operated franchise that also encompasses other second hand shops in the area, including Plato’s Closet, catering more to brand name clothes for teens and young adults and Once Upon a Child, which carries kids clothing. Earlier when I said to choose thrift shops that fit your economic need, a place like Style Encore is what I mean.

With the boutique-ification of thrifting, some stratifications of access have emerged to appeal to different markets. When you begin to think about your fashion philosophy, be honest with yourself. Consider your impact. If you’re buying second hand and used clothes, not because you need to but because you want new looks and would like to cut costs and move away from fast fashion, Style Encore fits the bill.

What brought me to Style Encore was the fact my post-university job at a nonprofit paid about $36k after taxes. At about $20/hour and around $1100 biweekly, that first check pretty much got eaten up by rent, utilities, car insurance, and my health insurance premium. A good portion of the second check was taken up by consumables and fun stuff with the barest trickle going to savings. I lived in a relatively low-cost area and did not have student loan or major credit card debt.

I am listing the financial factors that were a part of my fashion philosophy, not saying this to tell you how you should budget your money.  Everyone’s cost-benefit calculation is a personal judgment. Transparency in financial decisions can de-stigmatize the perception of wealth and can empower other people to make more informed purchasing decisions for themselves.

Style Encore fit my economic needs because:

  1. Most pieces I was attracted to were priced between $5.00-$25.00, around what I was willing to purchase for new, except with the added benefit of lowering my environmental impact. 
  2. Some brands that would otherwise not be accessible to me new, I could find there used and in a perfectly serviceable condition.     
  3. While the majority of my wardrobe is practical and utilitarian, I like owning a fresh statement piece each year for specific events, to be retired usually after being photographed wearing them a couple times. 

Here’s what I left the shop with:

For a complete summer outfit that really popped, I found these shorts that actually fit my waist and butt at $8, plus a racerback style top in a beautifully vibrant, boho print that held at my neck with a mandarin-style collar for $12. It was floaty and light, perfect for a warm day throwing axes.

The real prize was a Calvin Klein bodycon black dress for $25. I absolutely slay in this outfit. I have now worn it to a big birthday bash and a Valentines dinner. It is the outfit I use to convince my often fawning audience that thrifting is both a desirable and more sustainable styling option.   

Need some caffeine after slaking your thirst for the hunt?

Located in the same shopping center, Uncommon Grounds is a local institution with specially sourced and freshly roasted coffee, accompanied by the best bagels you will get north of NYC.

Other Socially-Conscious Thrifting Spots

2. For Pete Sake-A Thrifty Place
583 New Scotland Ave, Albany 12208
M 11:00AM-3:00PM, W-F 10:00AM-3:00PM, S 10:00AM-2:00PM
518-525-1107

For Pete’s Sake is operated by St. Peter’s Hospital right across the street. It actually used to be in its basement like an underground Macy’s with everything from prom dresses to home goods.

I got these small yellow baking dishes for a dollar each and got both these clear tea cups for a dollar.

Shortly after moving to Albany from California for grad school, I was looking for things to set up my new home. My roommate was from Georgia and didn’t even have a good coat for the impending wet and windy autumn. We washed up at Pete’s Sake like lost souls in need of supplies and boy did it deliver.

3. Second Chance Thrift Shop
1229 Central Ave., Albany 12005
T 10am-2pm, S 10am-2pm

This thrift shop is a fundraising venue for The American Italian Heritage. Museum & Cultural Center in Albany. They have a steep collection of clothing of all kinds – including a boutique room with higher end items. In the back room, they have endless jeans, all for $4 each. As one person who wrote a review said, “You have to see it to believe it.”

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