If the state”™s new Excelsior Jobs economic development program were a Broadway show, it might have closed already due to awful reviews. But instead, Hudson Valley economic development officials say they will try to work with the state”™s main program to attract and retain businesses, which they say is too small and too poorly focused to benefit this region and may represent a missed opportunity to bring biotech firms here.
“Woefully inadequate,” said Larry Gottlieb, director of economic development for Westchester County, in describing the Excelsior Jobs program, which state legislators quietly agreed to enact late in the contentious session that focused on budget wrangling to close a $9 billion shortfall.
Excelsior was signed by Gov. David Paterson June 22 to replace the Empire Zone program, which had annually created about $550 million in tax incentives and other lures to business. Excelsior Jobs program is capped at $50 million annually for five years at which point overall spending is capped at $250 million annually for the program.
Gottlieb noted that in Connecticut the governor is conducting tours of potential business sites and in New Jersey, the governor is calling would-be corporate residents and the state Legislature there passed its budget two days before their deadline. “We are in a far more competitive environment than ever before and now is not the time to cut back economic development programs,” said Gottlieb.
He noted that Connecticut promised Starwood  Hotels and resorts about $100 million worth of incentives to relocated its headquarters from White Plains to Stamford, Conn., “And that is just one company,” said Gottlieb.
The lower Hudson Valley and Westchester in particular “are on the runway for takeoff” in developing a burgeoning biotech corridor, he said, but it will not happen in a vacuum.
“We need dollars and resources to pump into these companies, because that is the model other states have used for biotech development,” Gottlieb said. And given the potentially exponential growth of the industry, he asked, “What other horse would you like to put your money on right now?”
Excelsior looks no better at the other end of the Hudson Valley. “Excelsior is just too small,” said John MacEnroe, president and CEO of the Dutchess County Development Corp. “I applaud the governor for doing something. Something is better than nothing, but boy it”™s tiny.”
Besides its modest size, MacEnroe said the Excelsior Jobs program is geared toward urban areas with research universities, such as Syracuse, Buffalo and Albany. “I don”™t think it”™s going to help Kingston and I don”™t think it”™s going to help Millerton,” he said.
Ronald Hicks, president and CEO of the Rockland County Development Corp. agreed that the program is not geared toward the sorts of business likely to come to the Hudson Valley. “I”™m disappointed; I don”™t see something for the small businesses that saw a lot of growth in Rockland County,” said Hicks
Hicks said all the Excelsior incentives are geared to projects with 25 or more jobs. He said there is “nothing” for small companies starting up or considering relocation with 10 or 20 jobs.
Hicks said that overall New York is dropping the ball on economic development while other states are playing hard ball. He cited the case of the Dress Barn, which has corporate headquarters in Rockland, and was working to keep its warehouse distribution center with the headquarters. Instead, incentives from Ohio drew the warehouse business to that state, and while so far, Dress Barn headquarters are still located in Rockland, Hicks fears executives will move a bit south to New Jersey. Excelsior and New York state “are doing nothing to help us retain Dress Barn,” Hicks said.
