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By
Kathy Kahn
Mar-25-10, 08:59 AM
Lawmakers’ dysfunctional ways killing business, says EDC chief.
Challenging times are becoming more challenging, said Michael Oates,
president and CEO of the Hudson Valley Economic Development Corp. and
the headlines out of Albany are not helping.
At a luncheon held by the Rockland Business Association at Nyack Seaport
recently, Oates told business leaders and nonprofits representatives
that Albany’s “clutter of dysfunction – between the coups and
counter-coups in the Senate – has been so creative that it has made
doing business in New York even more difficult than before.”
Some of what Oates coined as “Albany’s creativity” includes the MTA
payroll tax, the proposed soda tax and the uncertainty swirling around
the end of the Empire Zone program.
“There are over 1,000 state agencies here – what do they do? Does anyone
know? This is just one area where we can simplify the process. New York
is at a tipping point – putting time and energy into changing
prospective businesses perception of New York is needed to tip the
scales in the right direction.”
It seems every maneuver Albany has made has only helped to sow seeds of
discontent, said Oates. “When Pfizer merged with Wyeth, that $68 billion
deal created a lot of synergy. There will be corrections on a worldwide
level. We should be putting our hands out to this company. Instead, Gov.
Paterson wants to ban ‘swag’ at pharmaceutical conventions.”
The result is corporations like Pfizer and other pharmaceutical
companies will look outside the state to hold their meetings, hurting
tourism and local business with a stinging blow, he said.
Oates, who lives in northern Westchester, says that county’s coming loss
of Starwood Hotels and Resorts, taking nearly 1,000 jobs with it,
along with Pfizer’s downsizing of its current work force, is “putting
New York behind the eight ball.”
He also railed at the proposed tax on soda and other beverages
containing sugar, saying its passage may push Pepsi Bottling out of the
region. “They are in the final stages of preparing to relocate their
headquarters,” he said. “If this soda tax passes, we will likely see
them move out of the state, taking 2,000 jobs with it in the process.”
Oates praised the recent town of Clarkstown’s business forum, saying
municipalities need to streamline their processes to become much
friendlier to commercial developers. “That’s the kind of partnership we
should be looking for – a solid working relationship between the public
and privately held companies.”
Shovel-ready and “green” tech locations are being sought by site
selectors, said Oates. While attracting companies like Spectrawatt to
Fishkill and Solar Tech Renewables, which is moving to Kingston, New
York needs to do more to attract what are quickly becoming the region’s
major clusters: solar/renewable energy and biotech.
“We attracted OSI Pharmaceuticals from Long Island; instead of moving
out of state, they are bringing their $95 million investment and 600
jobs slated to be created to the Hudson Valley,” Oates said. “We don’t
want to see them leave us in 10 years; we want to continue to work on
growing clusters by making New York a business-friendly state to do
business in.”
Oates has concerns about U.S. Rep Maurice Hinchey’s efforts to have the
Hudson Valley become designated as part of the National Parks system.
“This could jeopardize economic development. When companies hear
‘national park,’ it immediately conjures up the perception of being a
problem.”
Al Samuels, president of the RBA agreed, saying that a mention in HV Biz
about Hinchey’s national park proposal brought him several calls – two
from Washington – “is a cause for business to be concerned. Why is a
small mention getting so much attention?” (The region is already
designated as a National Heritage Area.)
Oates urged businesses and colleagues to continue working to change the
state’s current business culture “so we’re not on the wrong side of the
tipping point. We need to get the word out to our elected officials that
what’s going on is not working for us. And if we don’t get through to
them, take it to the voters.”
The Hudson Valley Economic Development Corp. works to attract business
to Dutchess, Orange, Putnam, Rockland, Sullivan, Ulster and Westchester
counties in tandem with those counties’ local economic development
corporations.
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