Things are tough all over, but are still looking up in Dutchess County.
That was the message emerging form the annual breakfast of the Dutchess County Development Corp. June 10at the Poughkeepsie Grand Hotel, where business and political leaders met to celebrate high-flying ”“ literally ”“ Dutchess County, with a montage of short films celebrating helicopters, vintage aircraft and hot air balloons.
Associated Aircraft Group, headquartered at Dutchess Airport in Wappingers Falls, the Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome that features World War One vintage aircraft for ground viewing and mock dogfights, and the Balloon Festival were all featured in colorful short films produced by Roger Rosenbaum at The Sky”™s the Limit breakfast.
The Aerodrome will continue flying above Rhinebeck, bringing about 30,000 visitors annually to its shows, and is exploring plans to build a museum in a more visible location along Route 9 near the Dutchess County Fairgrounds that would be open year-round and draw more visitors. The flight portion of Aerodome operations would remain in its current location.
Dutchess County Executive William Steinhaus cited a cluster of solar-related businesses officials hope will emerge as employment opportunities at the IBM campus in the town of East Fishkill. Silicon solar cell manufacturing company Spectrawatt located there in 2009. Also on the campus is Globalfoundries, a Silicon Valley, Calif.-based semiconductor foundry
Capital projects are also seen as a source of economic stimulus, such as the construction of a $35 million classroom building at Marist College called the Hancock Center, expected to be complete in December, and a $66 million expansion of Vassar Brothers Medical Center in the city of Poughkeepsie.
But DCDC President John MacEnroe warned that failure by state officials to produce a state budget and renew key economic stimulus and development programs pose an ongoing threat to Dutchess”™ prosperity. While remarking that business people are often too involved in their work to play politics, he urged attendees to contact state officials about passing the budget and get about reviving economic stimulus programs such as the Empire Zone program, which expires at the end of this month.
