A business issue just erupted and it”™s bad for business. Two weeks ago The Business Council of Westchester and the Westchester County Association (WCA) announced at relatively the same time that they were both creating economic development groups to work on the county”™s problems in this area. The announcements came into the office of the Business Journal within hours of each other.
A story on our front page in this issue explains the mess. The Business Council is calling its group a coalition. The WCA is calling theirs a task force. Both held their first meeting within a day or two of each other.
The coincidence is startling ”“ if you”™re naive. Two distinctly separate groups of adults coming up with the idea to form a committee on the same topic, rounding up members and having their first meeting in the same week. It is an incredible happenstance.
But, admittedly, economic development in Westchester is a primary concern so maybe it was fortuitous timing.
The details aren”™t the issue
But, none of these details really matter. We don”™t care who came up with the idea first and who came up with the idea second. Our purpose here is not to ferret out which members of which organization said what to which members of the other organization. It is not to expose the espionage that may be occurring between the groups to undermine each other.
We suppose Westchester County businesses should be grateful that so many people are paying so much attention to one of our most pressing needs. But, in reality, this situation creates a waste of time, effort and expense and is a cause of public embarrassment.
More importantly, what we have is another example of the fracturing focus in the Westchester business community because the Westchester County Association and The Business Council of Westchester are two disparate voices. The business community needs one voice to prioritize economic development issues and address them in a systematic way with local, county and state governmental leaders. It doesn”™t need three voices from three committees. Yes, there is also a third voice. That third group is the Westchester County Office of Economic Development. This one we are not so concerned about, however, because most counties have such an office that acts as a liaison with the business community and the organization that represents it.
Knowing where to go
Businesses need one voice to talk to when considering moving to this area. Think about a business that is considering relocating in Westchester. Which organization does that business approach? The Business Council of Westchester? The Westchester County Association? And, with competing economic development coalitions and task forces, what kind of message are we sending to those outside our county line? We might be saying we are more about our individual organizations and not the county”™s best interest.
Most anyone who runs an efficient business knows that business and opportunity can be lost in an inefficient or ineffective committee. So, here we are in Westchester ”“”“ the highest-taxed county in the nation with businesses that have fled or are in the process of fleeing and still others that wish they could ”“”“ with three economic development committees. Not only is this a redundancy, it”™s a path to excuses and inaction as well as a muddied plan to restore the county”™s economic stability.
Take a look at other groups
Members of both organizations that pay their annual fees should take a peek at efficient economic development groups in Long Island to the south and the Hudson Valley Partnership, a collection of development officers under one umbrella, to the north. Investigate. Talk with your business group”™s leaders.
So, now that this issue has been made embarrassingly public, what should be done about it? Do we ignore it or do we look at this as an opportunity for improvement?
It has been a long-time position of this newspaper that the Westchester County Association and The Business Council of Westchester need to put aside their differences and merge for the greater good of all businesses in the county. This creation of competing economic development groups is just the latest example in the lengthy melee. These organizations need to take their embarrassing actions as an awakening, and do something positive ”“ create one voice. Create one, unified economic development group. If that is successful, then discuss building one, unified business organization where all businesses in Westchester can be heard.
