The Rockland Business Association said today it is seeking nominations for its 2008 Pinnacle Awards, which recognize RBA members and their businesses for achievement in four categories.

Winners will be presented their awards during an ceremony next April at the Park Ridge Marriott.

The deadline for nominations is Feb. 1.

Nomination forms are available at the chamber’s Web site (www.rocklandbusiness.org).

As the Rockland Jewish Community Center Corp. prepares for the grand opening of its new operation in West Nyack, the county Industrial Development Agency will hold a public hearing this month on long-term bonding for the project.

The agency proposes to issue $16 million in tax-free bonds. The bonds will be bought by Wachovia Bank, said Allan Eisenkraft, the community center’s corporate secretary and one of its founders.

The bonding will replace existing funding for the construction and land acquisition costs.

The center employs 166 full- and part-time staff, and expects to add 94 over seven years.

The hearing is Monday, Nov. 26 at 9:30 a.m. at Clarkstown Town Hall.

Construction on the new 135,000-square-foot center at 450 W. Nyack Road has been going on for about a year and a half, Executive Director David Kirschtel said. The land, 15.5 acres, is the site of the former Champion Paper and has room to grow.

The center will need it. Next year it plans to add 20,000 square feet to build three pools and a water park at a cost of about $6 million, Eisenkraft said.

About 1,000 teen-agers and 850 senior citizens use the center. The West Nyack center is the third since its founding in 1976. The corporation has sold its present site on North Route 45 in New City, Eisenkraft said.

“We are growing beautifully,� said Eisenkraft, a real estate businessman and member of the board of directors of the Yonkers Chamber of Commerce. He expects thousands at the grand opening on Sunday, Dec. 2.

The Ritz-Carlton Westchester in White Plains will hold a jobs fair at the hotel on Monday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. to fill 100 positions at its BLT Steak restaurant.

The following full- and part-time positions are open: maitre d’/supervisor of restaurant operations, restaurant servers, server attendants, host/hostess, cooks of all levels, and steward/kitchen help.

Applicants are “strongly� advised to file for openings online at careers.ritzcarlton.com, a Ritz-Carlton statement said.

Use the drop-down box labeled “select a location� to find Westchester (Opening 2007) at the bottom of the list. On the next page, leave all fields blank and search by location, again selecting The Ritz-Carlton Westchester. This will open up all available positions at the new hotel.

The hotel will hold a grand opening program on Dec. 19 and is accepting reservations for Dec. 20 and after.

Business Council of Westchester President and Chief Executive Officer Marsha Gordon will speak at “Avoiding the Next Berger Commission: The Role of Community Health Planning In New York State,� a conference in Albany on Nov. 27.

The event is presented by the Center for Governmental Research. Gordon will speak on the topic, “Role of Planning in Cost Control.�

A free seminar Thursday will focus on career opportunities in the field of aging. The workshops are from 9:30 a.m. to noon in the Kessel Campus Center of Pace University’s Pleasantville campus, 861 Bedford Road.

The event, called “Where Are the Jobs? Where’s the Money?: Strictly Business in the Age of Aging,� is aimed at young people in search of a career and adults thinking about changing careers. It will feature workshops hosted by professionals in the rapidly growing “silver industries,� which include positions in public policy, social work, nursing, architecture, medicine, health care, elder law, marketing, management, adult education, physical therapy, technology and communications. The professionals will be available to talk to participants, but there will be no job interviews.

Sponsors include the Westchester Alliance of Academic Institutions for Aging Related Studies and Workforce Development, the Westchester County Department of Senior Programs and Services, the Westchester Read more of this entry »

Westchester County and the Beijing Investment Promotion Bureau will be holding a conference on technology trade and cooperation Tuesday at the Hilton Rye Town in Rye Brook.

The event is an opportunity for local businesses to meet potential Chinese partners and learn about doing technology in both China and the United States.

Registration begins at 8:30 and the program starts at 9 a.m. For more information, go to www.westchestergov.com/globalbusiness or call 914-995-3078.

The Greater New York Chamber of Commerce is based in Manhattan, but its focus will be on the Lower Hudson Valley on Thursday.

The chamber is joining with other business groups, including the Westchester Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, to sponsor its seventh Business Expo at the Westchester County Center in White Plains from 1-7 p.m.

“We’re very big on networking,â€? chamber President Mark S. Jaffe said. “We feel this bridge between business in Manhattan and Westchester … is a very important bridge to cross.â€?

It’s the second expo the chamber has sponsored in Westchester. Last year’s expo drew 80 vendors and about 1,000 visitors, Jaffe said.

The chamber has lined up panel discussions on topics of interest to entrepreneurs.

Chris Glassner, a regional advocate for the U.S. Small Business Administration, will moderate a program on taking advantage of global markets. Rich Torres of the Internal Revenue Service will lead a talk on tax credits and compliance.

Publicist Wayne Schaffel will head a discussion on professional development. Bruce Mason, senior vice president at Union State Bank, will head a discussion on accessing capital and credit.

Thursday’s activities also include a networking reception, the unveiling of a new postage stamp recognizing Hispanic heritage, and a luncheon at which New York state Assemblyman Adam Bradley will speak.

To learn more, contact the chamber at 212-686-7220 or e-mail questions to info@ chamber.com.

Tomorrow’s Workplace will host a free event for businesses on Sept. 27, with a networking breakfast and a panel discussion on tax breaks for employers. The event will be from 8:30 to 10:30 a.m. in the Student Union of Rockland Community College in Suffern. To register, call Tomorrow’s Workplace, based in Spring Valley, at 845-356-5100, ext. 196.

The panel discussion will focus on federal and state tax incentive programs, the Work Opportunity Tax Credit, the Workers with Disability Employment Tax Credit, the state’s economic development program, Empire Zone and resources to support the employment of people with disabilities or those who were once incarcerated. Panelists include Hy Dubowsky, director of the Economic Development Services Unit of the state Department of Labor; Brian Hauser, disability program navigator for the Rockland Independent Living Center; John Nelson, a labor market analyst for the state Labor Department’s Division of Research and Statistics; Steven Porath, director of economic development for the Rockland Economic Development Corp., and Ebony Thompson, program director for New Beginnings Dignity Services.

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration is co-sponsoring the Hudson Valley Family Health and Safety Fair Sunday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.  at the Westchester County Center in White Plains.

The free event will provide information to guard against health-and-safety hazards on the job, at home and on the road. It will feature workshops, health information and screenings, demonstrations, prizes and activities for children.

OSHA is co-sponsoring the event with the Rochester Institute of Technology, OSHA Education Center and the Voluntary Protection Programs Participants-OSHA Alliance.

Highlights include:

• Safety and health workshops in English and Spanish on chemical and electrical hazards, scaffolding, falls, trenching, machine guarding, traffic, landscaping, fire and tool safety and personal protective equipment.

• Workshops for young employees focusing on permitted and prohibited jobs and work hours, employee rights, and safe work in restaurants, retail and supermarkets.

• Health screenings for blood pressure, diabetes, cholesterol, weight, eyesight and mental health, as well as health and wellness information from area health and human service organizations.

• Information booths and demonstrations by public safety agencies on fire hazards, seat belt use and bike safety, including free car seat exchanges and bike helmets.

• Booths staffed by federal, state, county and local agencies to provide information about workplace regulations and laws.

A subsidiary of Rye-based consumer products company Jarden Corp. wants people to play cards and play politics at the same time.

The United States Playing Card Co., which makes Bicycle playing cards, plans to sell three decks of cards that focus on politics. Each Democrat, Republican or Independent deck the company sells will count as a vote for that ticket in a nationwide poll.

The company will track and post results at www.BicycleCards.com starting next February.

The back of the cards in the Democratic deck will feature a donkey while the Republic cards will show an elephant. The Independent cards will have an eagle.

Cards will also have images of George Washington, Abraham Lincoln and Betsy Ross.

A workshop on the 2007 Middle Class STAR Rebate program will take place tomorrow at 10 a.m. at the Yonkers Riverfront Public Library’s second floor community room at 1 Larkin Plaza. The tax program, passed by the state legislature earlier this year, is a $1.3 billion tax cut targeted to middle class homeowners. The New York State Department of Taxation and Finance is hosting the workshop. The department mailed letters last week to homeowners in Yonkers providing them with information on how to apply for their 2007 rebate check and receive the full benefit. The workshop is designed to help residents understand how to complete the rebate application and answer questions about the program. The tax department has included information about the program on its website, www.nystax.gov, and created a special hotline at 1-877-678-2769 for STAR calls.

The Rockland Economic Development Council is sponsoring Haverstraw Business Day Aug. 9. The open house will take place from 3 to 7 p.m. at Haverstraw Center, 50 W. Broad St.

Representatives from local and state agencies will be on hand to speak about their programs and services. Participants can learn about business planning, grants, loans, government contracts, access to capital and programs for women- and minority-owned businesses. The event is open to all Rockland businesses, but it’s tailored for the local Haverstraw-Stony Point business community, said Liz Cranston, director of marketing and communications for REDC. Because those towns have a large Hispanic community, someone will be on hand to translate to Spanish, she said.
For more info, call the REDC at 845-735-7040.

Would-be restaurateurs yearning for a place of their own will get a lift from the city of Yonkers Wednesday.

Looking to attract more dining spots and food stores in the downtown waterfront area, the city will hold a forum outlining the opportunities and tax breaks the city is willing to offer.

The event starts at 2 p.m. at Zuppa Restaurant, which opened at 59 Main St. in 2003. Mayor Philip Amicone will be on hand, along with Zuppa co-owner Robert Leggio, X2O Xaviers owner Peter Kelly, Struever Fidelco Cappelli project manager Peter Klein, and Steve Sansone, executive director of the downtown/waterfront Business Improvement District.

The program is driven chiefly by more than 3,000 apartment units that are either proposed for construction in the waterfront area or have already been built. Two projects already are under construction: the second phase of Hudson Park with 294 rental apartments, and the Main Street Lofts with 170 units.

To reserve a space at the forum, contact the Yonkers BID office at 914-969-6660 or e-mail Jessica Ardrey at jardrey@yonkersdowntown.com.

Rockland Economic Development Corp. is hosting a free seminar on doing business with county government on Thursday at the Rockland County Fire Training Center in Pomona. Members of the Hudson Valley Municipal Purchasing Group will explain how businesses can sell their products or services to Rockland County. Registration begins at 9 a.m. at 35 Firemen’s Memorial Drive. For more information, contact REDC at info@redc.org or 845-735-7040.

The Palisades Center will host a mall-wide job fair Friday from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. to help people find part-time and full-time positions at many of the shopping center’s 300 retailers. The spring event, the first of a series of quarterly job fairs, is hosted by Tomorrow’s Workplace, an employment-services provider in Spring Valley. For more information call Jennis Brandon-Watson at 845-356-5100.

The implications of the region’s aging population will be the topic at what is being billed as the Hudson Valley’s first eldercare summit Friday at the Tappan Hill Mansion in Tarrytown.

Provident Bank, Elant Inc. and other sponsors will bring together speakers to examine the impact the graying of the baby boomers population has on the health-care system, housing and economy. Donna McAleer, the chief executive of Elant Inc., which will host the event, said the region’s population of people more than 60 years old is nearly twice as large as the national average.

Speakers will include county executives from across the region, including Andrew J. Spano of Westchester. Others at the event will include Larry Minnix, president of the American Association of Housing and Services for the Aging, and Mae Carpenter, the commissioner of the Westchester Department of Senior Programs and Services and the founder of the New York Southern Area Aging Network.

Tickets are $100 each. Registration and breakfast begin at 7:45 a.m. followed by presentations and a luncheon. For reservations or information on sponsorship opportunities, contact the Elant Foundation at 845-291-3836.

A free workshop offered by the Rockland Economic Development Corp.-Procurement Technical Assistance Center next Thursday will feature presentations by the state Department of Labor and information on immigration law.

The Labor Department will talk about labor markets, the economic outlook, prevailing wage, growing business sectors, tax credits and more. A presentation on immigration law will focus on employers’ responsibilities in hiring and maintaining records on workers, and workers’ basic rights. In addition, Tomorrow’s Workplace, which provides training and employment resources for employers and job seekers, will present its business services.

The workshop is from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Haverstraw Town Hall, One Rosman Road, Garnerville. For more information, contact REDC at 845-735-7040Z or info@redc.org.

The Westchester/Putnam Central Labor Body, AFL-CIO, will hold a Workers Memorial Day service tomorrow at 4:45 p.m. at Kensico Dam Plaza in Valhalla to remember workers who died or were injured on the job this year, and to demand new workplace safety rules. The Sword of Light Pipe Band of International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local No. 3 will play.

The WEBS Career & Educational Counseling Service, a program of the Westchester Library System, will offer two free six-week courses starting this week:

• The Career Development Seminar will be held at the White Plains Public Library on Wednesday evenings from 7 to 9 p.m. It will help adults assess their themselves, attain career and educational information, use online resources, explore career options and market themselves.

• Take Charge! Career/Life Planning after 50 will be held at the Ossining Public Library on Thursdays from 3 to 5 p.m. It will help participants plan for the next stage of their life, including full- and part-time work, volunteerism, entrepreneurial ventures and learning and leisure opportunities.
Pre-registration is required. Call 914-674-3612.

Yonkers officials were busy yesterday putting the final touches on the city’s annual Yonkers Business Week that starts Monday with a kickoff breakfast at the Roosevelt Room in the Philipsburgh Building on Hudson Street.

“We’re just basically finalizing all the logistics because we do have a very exciting, full week in front of us,� said Helen Tvedt, head of the Yonkers Office of Economic Development.

Monday’s events also include the ceremonial launch of New York Water Taxi service from the Yonkers Pier at 99 Main Street to lower Manhattan, providing commuters with direct transportation downtown. The ferry service officially starts Tuesday.

Among other events planned for the week are: a forum on accessing capital on Tuesday; a Yonkers business expo on Wednesday; Thursday’s awards dinner, which will recognize Yonkers businesses; and a golf outing Friday morning.

For a complete schedule of events or for registration information, go to www.yonkersbusinessweek.com on the Web.