I am on my “second tour of duty” with regards to municipal economic development ”“ first with the Economic Development Corp. of New York City and now with the city of Stamford.
These positions give me a perspective from both sides of the state borders. Whether during my time in New York City or here in Stamford, I have never found that there is one reason why a company selects a location over another.
No fiscally sound company makes a choice based solely on incentives. Can incentives provide a “tipping point” in the decision process or allow a new company to reach profitability sooner? Yes, and those are the best uses for incentives.
Since I have been in Stamford we have seen major corporate moves with and without incentives, three from New York, three from Connecticut and one from California.
Starwood Hotels and Resorts moved from Westchester with a well-documented incentive package. Moving a corporate headquarters is not only a very expensive proposition but a serious move involving considerations of strategic initiatives, branding and future growth. Selecting Stamford allowed Starwood to retain the vast majority of its 850-plus employees while assuring all the necessary support services that a company as global as Starwood requires.
Chelsea Piers looked at multiple locations across the country before deciding on Stamford. Its substantial investment at the former Clairol site was done without incentives. Fairfield County offered a huge unmet market demand for the extensive, world-class facilities and programs that Chelsea Piers will begin offering this July.
Design Within Reach relocated from San Francisco to a unique converted factory space in the South End of Stamford for both its offices as well as a wonderful store for their contemporary furniture. New owners of the company wanted to be closer to the day-to-day management. DWR came to Stamford without financial incentives.
The latest move and another huge coup for Stamford was the recent announcement of the relocation of NBC Sports. As part of Gov. Dannel Malloy”™s First Five program, they received a $10 million, 1 percent, 10-year forgivable loan. The New York City-based group joined other NBC Sports divisions already in Stamford such as its Olympics Group. Their location at the same site as Chelsea Piers is a catalytic benefit that is impossible to value in dollars.
These out-of-state moves continue to further diversify Stamford”™s economy into key economic growth areas of hospitality, leisure, retail and media.
Within Connecticut in the last two years Nestle Waters North America, Affinion Group and Louis Dreyfus Highbridge moved to Stamford from Greenwich, Norwalk and Wilton, respectively.
Stamford/Connecticut has a total tax burden that is less than Westchester/New York, but Stamford will never be a low-cost alternative for a company. However the results above speak for themselves. At the end of the day, a city or county competes for investment through its unique value proposition.
I believe that Stamford”™s extraordinary quality of life, the fact it is the eighth safest city in America, fiscally strong revenue base and balance sheet, enormous range of leisure and cultural activities, transportation access, great schools, and yes, proximity to New York City provide companies the compelling reasons for selecting Stamford with or without incentives.
And perhaps most importantly in the 21st century, Stamford will compete on human capital. This “installed base” of a talented and diverse workforce continues to be the most important incentive Stamford offers and the one which I will go head-to-head with any location, anywhere, anytime.
Laure C. Aubuchon is director of economic development for the city of Stamford. She can be reached at laubuchon@ci.stamford.ct.us.
