Speaking at the Westchester County Association”™s annual breakfast in Tarrytown on Thursday morning, Westchester County Executive Robert P. Astorino announced five initiatives the county will launch this year as part of a long-term effort to spur economic growth.
The new initiatives are included in “Westchester Smart,” a report on ideas and initiatives to shape the county”™s economic development agenda that was released today by Astorino”™s office. The report was drawn from a series of roundtable talks the county executive held over seven months last year with leaders from municipal government, business, nonprofits, health care, higher education and young professionals in Westchester.
Astorino said Westchester will lead a seven-county training program for the mid-Hudson region to prepare individuals for high-demand jobs in the health care field. Funded by a $10 million grant from the U.S. Department of Labor, the “A Job”™s Waiting for You” program aims to train and place 500 people in jobs in four years, matching training with actual jobs for which companies are hiring in the region.
The program, which includes Putnam, Rockland, Orange, Dutchess, Ulster and Sullivan counties, is scheduled to roll out in the first quarter.
“I think we can do better than 500 jobs” in Westchester, Astorino told his WCA audience. He suggested the county set a goal to train and place workers in 1,000 jobs.
Partnering with Pace University”™s Seidenberg School of Computer Science and Information Systems, the county this quarter will kick off the Mobile App Development Bowl, an app design competition for students in area colleges and high schools. County officials said prizes will include cash awards and paid internships with the county.
The county also plans a first-quarter rollout of its redesigned, mobile-friendly website at westchestergov.com. Astorino said the county site gets 1.4 million views per month, but only 10 percent of those are from mobile devices.
Astorino”™s administration also plans a “navigating Westchester” initiative this year to streamline and speed the municipal review and application process that has long been an obstacle to real estate development in the county. Astorino said the initiative will bring together real estate developers, municipal officials, planning experts and neighborhood association leaders to discuss strategies to improve the development process.
Finally, the county this year will host a summit for leaders of for-profit businesses and nonprofits to discuss their respective roles in the community, opportunities for more collaboration, funding and shared concerns such as housing, transportation and day care.
The defeated Republican gubernatorial candidate extended a backhanded compliment to the current occupant of City Hall in Manhattan for his contributions to Westchester”™s “open-for-business” efforts.
“We are fortunate,” Astorino told his audience at the Westchester Marriott, “to have a not-so-secret weapon in economic development: Bill de Blasio.”
