Partnership presents vision for change

BRIDGEVILLE, NY — At its 11th annual meeting on Thursday, October 6, the Sullivan County Partnership for Economic Development will present an executive summary of its “Strategic Vision for Change.” Following are highlights of the summary, which the partnership provided for publication in The River Reporter.

• Ongoing corporate attraction: Endeavoring to position Sullivan County for regional and national corporate development, the partnership has welcomed investments from Wal-Mart, Kohl’s, Home Depot, Ideal Snacks, Crystal Run Health Care, Mamma Sez, YMMCA and Formaggio Cheese.

In the coming year, the partnership will look to identify and assist businesses attracted by the development of the Bethel Woods Center for the Arts, which is scheduled for completion by summer 2006. The partnership will also continue to work closely with businesses within the region to exploit comparative advantages in making the case for external investment.

• Shovel-ready sites: As land becomes increasingly more important, the ability to identify and prepare suitable sites for development is critical to the development of ratables and a spectrum of job opportunities. Sullivan County’s first successful effort at the creation of a corporation park, the Emerald Corporate Center, will receive its second tenant in 2006.

The Liberty Light Industry/Agricultural Park has received site approval. The Glen Wild Industrial Park has also finished its permitting process. Combined, these shovel-ready commerce parks will be responsible for hundreds of new jobs.

The partnership has aided developers in exploring sites at Sullivan County Community College, and an additional location along Old Route 17 in Liberty has begun to take shape.

• Business expansion: This initiative has been historically conducted on a small scale in Sullivan County. Now, with the support of the county Legislature, the partnership will focus on expansion opportunities for all sizes of businesses. The partnership will continue offering core analysis, financial procurement, technical assistance and premium consulting services to existing businesses with the goal of examining their expansion capacity.

• Marketing Main Street: To assist in the redevelopment and resurgence of Sullivan County’s main streets, the partnership has developed a creative strategy for a joint marketing effort. This summer the partnership hosted the first Main Street Day at the Lodge in Rock Hill, NY. The concept was to provide a single venue for potential businesses to explore the strengths of the county’s main streets. A coalition of main street groups will now take ownership and work to enhance the marketing effort.

As a key funding partner, the partnership will continue a facilitative role by assisting in the funding of the Main Street Day event and help the Main Street Merchants Committee grow to become a self fulfilling and stable main street marketing group.

• Entrepreneurial development: Opportunities for entrepreneurial development come with a growing economy. Through the Sullivan Investments Revolving Loan Program and the Incubator Without Walls Revolving Loan Program, the partnership has provided financing along with technical assistance to many businesses that have remained viable over the years. The partnership will be creating a New Entrepreneur Program, which will be geared to better ensure long-term preparedness by offering hands-on assistance beyond the traditional models used today.

• Cluster development in health and other emerging industries: An examination of job growth in the last five years shows a surge in development in identifiable clusters. Health care holds the most promise with nearly 4,000 employees and over $200 million in capital investment. An effort has begun to create a roundtable of health care executives with the goal to identifying opportunities for ancillary development in the industry.

Specialty food processing has also shown much potential as national food corporations such as Kellogg’s, Quaker and Frito Lay have entered into long-term contractual relationships with the county’s local food processors

• Membership education: The partnership views its role as a source of information on trends and programs, which might impact members’ investment decisions, as one of increasing importance.

The meeting will begin at 5:30 p.m. at The Lodge at Rock Hill. The partnership will honor Hal Teitelbaum with the Walter A. Rhulen Award and Patricia Allison with the Distinguished Service Award.