The legalization of marijuana use in New York, proliferation of health care services and increased demand for warehousing and distribution facilities were among those areas highlighted as offering growth opportunities in Westchester County during an online forum staged by the Fordham Real Estate Institute in conjunction with The Business Council of Westchester.
Participating in the “Reimagine Westchester” panel were: Matthew Claster of Clarapath in Hawthorne; Bridget Gibbons, the county”™s director of economic development; Guy Leibler of Simone Development Cos.; Connie Levene of CONRI Services in Hawthorne; Serge Reda of the Fordham Real Estate Institute; Justin Singer of the New York City-based law firm Feuerstein Kulick LLP; and Andrew S. Weisz, of the RPW Group in Rye Brook. The Business Council of Westchester President and CEO Marsha Gordon was the moderator.
Professor Reda, who also works in the development division of Cedar Realty Trust, a publicly traded REIT, said, “The rise of e-commerce, combined with Covid, has altered the retail and industrial real estate dynamic dramatically. Industrial real estate has been functioning a little more like retail real estate, and Covid is accelerating the retail and industrial sectors blurring together. This trend will require an adjustment to many current zoning regulations.”
Levene explained that her company, CONRI Services, shifted its initial business model from printing to warehousing and distribution.
“One of the great strengths of Westchester is its labor pool,” Levene said. “Westchester has a highly qualified skilled and hourly labor pool, which I attribute to the quality of the educational systems. That competency has allowed us to grow significantly and add to the complexity our systems and the way we manage our business.”
Leibler, who is in charge of health care real estate development for Simone, forecast, “Health care and life sciences will merg, and research from the bench needs to get to the bedside. Health care will remain a very important component of our economy in Westchester. We need to support that, bring in labor ”“ we”™ve seen a tremendous amount of nursing and physician burnout. That needs to recognized and rebuilt.”
Gibbons said that the county is working to help build the necessary workforce and business base for the renewable energy sector. She said the county”™s economic development strategy heading into 2021 had them focusing on biosciences, advanced manufacturing, clean energy and technology.
Singer said that people are watching what happens in New York as the state implements the Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act that legalized recreational cannabis in New York.
“This is poised to be a huge, multibillion-dollar market and there”™s a ton of opportunity within Westchester and a ton of interest from clients across the country who want to bring their brand and their operations to this area.”
Weisz underscored that the reimagining of office parks for commercial and residential uses has been embraced by local governments.
“We”™ve seen a great influx of new families, young families, and a lot of these folks are looking to work closer to home,” Weisz said.
“That”™s who companies are looking to hire ”“ to retain and hire good talent and also get employees back in the office. We”™re bullish about Westchester and where we”™re headed.”
