Back to work for county executive
Republican Rob Astorino shrugged off a nearly 2-to-1 voter registration disadvantage and won a second term as Westchester County executive, beating Democratic challenger Noam Bramson in the Nov. 5 election.
Now all he has to do is be the savior of the Westchester business community.
No pressure.
When Astorino was first elected in 2009, 10,000 private-sector jobs had fled the county, according to the administration. It was part of an ongoing exodus of corporations hightailing it out of Westchester, leaving behind the Golden Apple”™s high cost of doing business and its weighty and seemingly ever-increasing property taxes.
William Mooney Jr., president of the business advocacy group the Westchester County Association, said the negative perception of Westchester has been changing.
“It is clearly being changed and the reason I say that is the voters just said that,” he said. Although property taxes are still “Looney Tunes,” according to Mooney, there is a perception that something is being done to improve the climate. “Someone has to dismantle yesterday and create tomorrow and we”™ve got to do it together,” he said.
Mooney said he”™d like to see the county put together a master plan that brings together municipal and business leaders with nonprofits to outline a unified vision for the county that would transcend the borders of local municipalities. That would mean a leadership role by the county in local zoning and a comprehensive and collaborative mission statement focusing on repurposing the 6 million square feet of vacant office space in the county.
Part of the issue, Mooney said, is the bureaucratic hoops potential developers and businesses face when wanting to set up shop in the county. “Right now, we”™re not on anyone”™s radar screens because it takes so long to get through the process,” he said, noting several repurposing and mixed-use proposals have dragged on for as long as three years. “What classical investor wants to spend that kind of time when you can go elsewhere in the country or in the state?”
Mooney said Astorino was off to a good start in his first term by curbing county tax increases and working with business and nonprofit groups to build a new reputation for the county as a business destination.
Marsha Gordon, the president and CEO of the Business Council of Westchester, said a lot of progress has already been made. Although the council doesn”™t endorse political candidates, Gordon said Astorino”™s record speaks for itself. A survey of county residents conducted by the council in coordination with Marist Poll showed that 64 percent of those polled felt the county economy was on the right track. Reining in taxes and steadying the economy will lead to a better retention of not only businesses, but a young and talented workforce, she said.
“Rob”™s leadership in branding Westchester County as the intellectual capital of New York state has been brilliant,” she said.
His second term will see a more positive cycle for businesses and opportunities to focus on growing industry sectors such as health care, biotechnology and professional services. Gordon also said the county executive had stepped up for small businesses, including minority and women-owned businesses. Overall, she said a continued collaborative approach is needed. “We”™ve been a strong partner and we plan to continue to work with the county executive to create jobs, retain and attract businesses, and continue to have a healthy business environment,” she said.
In an election night interview at White Plains”™ Crowne Plaza, Astorino said his future success depends on his relationship with the business groups. “Part of the reason we won is we are in lockstep with the business community,” he said.
He is now looking to court some corporations that are leaving New York City to convince them to come to Westchester. He said there are positive signs of the turnaround, including the expansion of Regeneron and a move away from one-tenant office complexes. He said 27,000 private-sector jobs were added in his first term, an item he campaigned on.
Still, it was his tax record that resonated most with voters, he said.
There are more than 100,000 registered Democrats than Republicans in Westchester, an increasingly left-leaning county, where a victory might be elusive even for a well-financed incumbent Republican.
“I was confident in my record,” he said. Astorino said he had reduced the county tax levy by 2 percent since elected. He”™s pledged to unveil a 0 percent tax increase again for 2014. “I made promises and I”™ve kept them.”
Astorino took home 55 percent of the total vote, according to unofficial tallies. He is already rumored to be in the running for the state GOP”™s endorsement in the 2014 gubernatorial race, but in the short term said he is focused solely on his county duties. “Tomorrow we go back to work,” he said after giving his victory speech.
Bramson will return to work as mayor of the city of New Rochelle, a post he has held since 2006.