Executive Summary
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July 2007 Greene County Comprehensive Economic Development Plan Executive Summary A Roadmap for Our Future Warren Hart, Director, AICP Greene County Planning and Economic Development 411 Main Street Catskill, NY 12414 (518) 719-3290 www.greeneeconomicdevelopment.com Acknowledgements Greene County Legislature Kate Farrell, Superintendent, Catskill CSD County Administrator Rob Megnin, Director of Sales & Marketing, Douglas J. Brewer Hunter Mountain Ski Bowl Chairman Daniel Frank, Chairman, Greene County Wayne C. Speenburgh, Legislator, District #2 Industrial Development Agency Forest Cotten, Legislator, District #1 Tom Fucito, Greene County Chamber Karen Deyo, Legislator, District #1 of Commerce Dorothy Prest, Legislator, District #1 William Lawrence, Greene County Legislator Keith W. Valentine, Majority Leader, Keith Valentine, Greene County Legislator Legislator, District #1 James Van Slyke, Greene County Legislator Charles A. Martinez, Legislator, District #2 Karen Deyo, Greene County Legislator Ray C. Brooks, Legislator, District # 3 Kenneth E. Dudley, Legislator, District #4 James E. VanSlyke, Legislator, District #5 Tourism Subcommittee James Hitchcock, Legislator, District # 6 Walter Birmann, Rainbow Golf Club Larry Gardner, Minority Leader, Brian Christman, Christman’s Windham Legislator, District #7 House Harry Lennon, Legislator, District #8 Eugene McGrath, Greene County William Lawrence, Legislator, District #8 Golf Association Sean Frey, Legislator, District #9 Elizabeth Jacks, Director, Thomas Cole House Robert Megnin, Hunter Mountain Ski Bowl Steering Committee Edward Kerrigan, Zoom Flume Water Park Charles Tomajko, Hunter Mountain Bed & Sean Byrne, Co-Chairman, Breakfast Association Hunter Foundation Suzanne Oldakowski, Bavarian Manor Richard Gangi, President, Cidega Corp DBA Kirt Zimmer, Windham Mountain American Trim Manufacturing Bernadette Gavin, Gavin’s Golden Hill Resort Ted Hilscher, Esq., Hilscher & Hilscher Daniela Marino, Director, Greene County David Louis, Supervisor, Tourism and Promotion Town of New Baltimore Lawrence Gardner, Greene County Legislator James Campion, President, Wayne Speenburgh, Chairman, Greene Columbia Greene Community College County Legislature M.A. Tarpinian, Adminstrator, Karen Deyo, Greene County Legislator Cairo Chamber of Commerce Don Gibson, Sr. Vice President of Marketing, The Bank of Greene County Planning and Infrastructure Dr. Steven Hassett, Principal, EmUrgentCare Subcommittee Tom Poelker, Community of Windham Foundation Wayne Deyo, Chairman, Patricia Stockman, President, Greene County Planning Board Executive Connection Jerry Cunningham, Chairman, Greene County Farmland Protection Board Greene County Economic Development Plan Executive Summary 2 Acknowledgements continued Planning and Infrastructure The Greene County Legislature would like Subcommittee (continued) to thank the countless people who participated Rene Van Schaack, Executive Director, in the development of Greene County Soil & Water the Comprehensive Conservation District Economic Development Andy Turner, Executive Director, Plan. We would especially like to acknowledge Cooperative Extension of Greene County the hard work and dedication of the Steer- Helen Budrock, Assistant Director, Catskill ing Committee, Tourism Subcommittee and Center for Conservation & Development Planning and Infrastructure Subcommittee, the Mark Evans, Executive Vice President, GreeneBusiness Partnership, Greene County State Telephone Tourism Promotion, the Greene County Soil Guenther Ohm, Greene County Legislator and Water Conservation District and Coopera- tive Extension. This plan was funded by the Raymond Brooks, Greene County Legislator Greene Country Legislature with contributions Kenneth Dudley, Greene County Legislator from the Hudson River Valley Greenway and the Greene County Industrial Development Agency. Additionally, we would like to thank New York State Senator James L. Seward and Empire State Development Corporation for the legislative initiative that also made this plan possible. Sandy Mathes, Executive Director Tracy McNally, Executive Director Warren Hart, AICP, Director Greene County Economic Development Plan Executive Summary 3 In today’s economic climate, communities around the world are looking to create a competitive environment that offers an ideal quality of life. Contributing to a high quality of life is a region’s ability to offer residents meaningful and stable employment, a safe environment for their children, access to recreation, cultural and entertainment venues, competitively priced housing with the likelihood of appreciation, and reasonable tax rates. Municipal and economic development officials understand Why the Greene County that a region’s ability to create an attractive living environ- ment is dependent on its ability to create and sustain a Legislature Prepared healthy economy that provides opportunities for personal income and a tax base that supports a desired level of public an Economic services. Across the globe, national, regional and local govern- ments are competing to retain and attract that key ingredient Development Plan so vital to their success. That ingredient is private enterprise. Healthy and growing businesses are needed to provide jobs that offer a salary that sustains a healthy family, and commer- cial tax revenues that support public services, infrastructure and quality schools that educate our children. Communities that believe government should not play a role in building a foundation for supporting a quality living environment only need to reflect on American history. In most cases, healthy cities and regions were the result of a preceding public investment in ports, railroads, canals, highways, airports, space exploration, communication networks, or in recent decades, technology led research and development. Today, organized efforts by public and private leaders to develop a shared vision, followed by invest- ments in water, sewer and telecommunications infrastructure, as well as workforce training, education, and partnerships between universities and the private sector, are driving private invest- ment and business development. More than ever, communities are embarking on an economic development planning process that will allow them to identify investments that will address their weaknesses and capitalize on opportunities. As a result, it has become critical for each and every community to consider how it can maintain or even improve its standing among other places to live and conduct business. Greene County Economic Development Plan Executive Summary 4 In short, the objective of the Greene County Economic Development Planning Objectives Plan is to improve the quality of life for County residents. In the end, stakeholders agreed that the quality of life for residents would be improved through the implementation of a strategy that fosters and guides growth while balancing tax rates and the desire to preserve the environmental and community characteristics residents cherish. More specifically; County leaders wanted a plan that would: n Determine the mix of commercial, industrial, residential and open space land use that would create a long-term stable tax base; n Expand recreational opportunities and facilities to serve residents and their children; n Develop programs that could better help existing businesses grow; n Identify industries in which Greene County had a competitive advantage in attracting new businesses; n Broaden and enhance programs that would support a tourism industry renaissance; n Identify appropriate sites for future commercial and industrial development; n Support telecommunication infrastructure investments necessary to support the needs of County businesses; n Identify projects and programs that warrant federal, state and local investment that would lead to better employment opportunities, especially for young people; Recognizing the need to develop a long-term vision and plan for the County, Greene County’s the Greene County Legislature embarked on a 2-year Comprehensive Economic Development Planning process. The Greene County Department of Planning & Planning Process Economic Development spearheaded creation of the plan with the support of its GreeneBusiness partners. Understanding the importance of community consensus in the implementation phase, the County process was designed to engage residents, business owners, municipal leaders and other stakeholders in a discussion of the County’s current economic condition, problems that needed to be addressed, realistic opportunities for economic growth, development of a clear vision for a preferredAn future Open andProcess goals for and Community actions that Pa rticipationwould lead to its achievement. Project Team C G o r Planning & e m Steering Tourism e Infrastructure n Committee Subcommittee p e Subcommittee r e C h Surveys o e n u s n i t Residents Businesses Visitors v y e E c Public Input & Interviews o n Regional Economic o Property Chambers Tourism m Businesses Development Owners of Commerce Operators i Organizations c D Regional Workshops e v e l Mountaintop Valley Towns Historic o River Towns p m e Communications & Outreach nt Municipal Key Stakeholder P Web Site Media Releases l a Workshops Presentations n Greene County Economic Development Plan Executive Summary 5 The planning process included an assessment of existing resources, data gathering Greene County’s and interpretation, stakeholder input, the development of strategies and finally a Planning Process vision that illustrated