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Mid-Hudson

One of the most significant new developments in the Mid-Hudson region is the emergence of Dutchess County as a major distribution center location. Gap put Dutchess on the distribution map, selecting it for a facility that will cover, at full build-out, some 2.5 million sq. ft. (232,250 sq. m.).

"We've always had a significant distribution presence in Orange County, which is on the west side of the Hudson, but the Gap is the first major one in Dutchess County," explains Bill Cotting, Poughkeepsie-based director of economic development for Central Hudson Gas & Electric Corp. "We also work very closely with Greene County, which is to the north, and they have some excellent sites there. What's happening is that for years people have looked around northern Jersey, Pennsylvania and New York City, but now those areas are getting filled up and becoming costly. So they're starting to look farther north, and that's been to our advantage. We've been working with various counties on some other fairly large distribution projects, and it looks good for one or two to come into our service area."

Gap joins several other major companies that have recently decided to invest in Dutchess County (see top groups feature on pg. 412 for more details). Clearly, Dutchess County and the Mid-Hudson region have a lot to offer expanding firms.

"We're part of the greater tri-state region of New York, New Jersey and Connecticut -- a $500 billion economy," says Kathleen Sullivan Norat, president of the Dutchess County Economic Development Corp. "That's larger than a lot of countries! But Dutchess County's advantage is that we are the low-cost alternative within that tri-state marketplace. We are 60 miles (96 km.) north of New York City. We're very easy to get to, but our costs -- real estate, taxes, housing and so on -- are a fraction of the closer-in metro areas."

Companies are making big real estate and facilities moves in other parts of the Mid-Hudson as well. Superior Bank is moving its regional headquarters to Orangeburg from New Jersey, relocating 466 jobs and creating 500 more. And Mechtronics, a manufacturer of point-of-purchase displays, is carrying out an expansion at its Beacon facility that will create 125 jobs.

Grabbing big headlines last fall was Gov. Pataki's announcement that the state had cleared a major hurdle in the nation's first airport privatization by signing a lease agreement with National Express Group PLC to operate Stewart Airport -- a former U.S. Air Force Base located in the heart of the Hudson Valley. National Express Group is a leading mass-passenger transportation company with a proven track record as an airport operator at East Midlands and Bournemouth airports in Great Britain.

The business-location angle? Thousands of acres of property surrounding Stewart now will be redeveloped. Albany, N.Y.-based First Columbia, LLC, an international development services firm, has been selected to develop 260 acres (105 hectares) across from the terminal.

"We were very interested in being involved in this project because our market analysis shows that this is really a growth area in the Northeast and strategically located for the kind of development we want," says First Columbia CEO Kevin Bette. "We also felt that the airport had tremendous potential to grow and expand. We are just finishing up our master plan, and we are trying to lay out the development for the future business environment we'll have." The site is eligible for Economic Development Zone incentives and Foreign-Trade Zone tax treatment, he adds.

"The location of the airport and this whole redevelopment program sits just north of New York City," says First Columbia President John Gunderson. "It's closer to New York City than to Albany. It sits at the intersection of the two main highways that connect Pennsylvania, Connecticut, the Eastern Seaboard, Montreal and New York City. Everybody draws rings around their location, but within a 2 to 2 1/2 hour radius of our property is a good 25 percent of the U.S. population."

Significantly, state officials are providing a lot of help with the redevelopment program. "The state DOT is spending millions of dollars to provide a brand-new entry into the airport," Gunderson says. "Fiber optics are being run past our front door, in anticipation of high-tech development."

Bottled water producer and distributor Crystal Springs is among the firms investing in the Mohawk Valley. The firm, which began operations in Little Falls last year, has announced plans to spend $1.4 million constructing three new buildings there, creating 80 more jobs.

"Crystal Springs has the potential to be a tremendous success story for the Mohawk Valley," says Assemblyman Marc W. Butler. "It's a great mix between one of our region's great natural resources, old-fashioned enterprise and, thanks to the efforts of Gov. Pataki and the Regional Empire State Development office, a re-invigorated business climate here in upstate New York."

In Sangerfield, manufactured homes maker Titan Homes recently began operating in its $7 million, state-of-the-art plant, just seven months after an early-morning blaze destroyed its previous facility. "The research and planning that went into our new facility makes it arguably the best manufactured housing plant in the world -- right here in Sangerfield, N.Y.," says General Manager Jack Ireton-Hewitt. Total employment now stands at 200.

Other recent moves include PAR Technology's renovation of its New Hartford headquarters and manufacturing facility, creating 64 jobs, and Union Tools' consolidation of its manufacturing operations in Frankfort, creating 96 jobs. And Harden Furniture's $5 million expansion and retooling in McConnellsville, creating 70 jobs, is particularly significant in that it represents the transfer of new furniture manufacturing activity to New York from the South.

Business continues to lift off at Griffiss Business and Technology Park, where the return of Lockheed L-1011s and wide-body aircraft to the former air base has spurred the creation of 455 jobs at Global Aviation, an aviation maintenance, repair and overhaul concern that is leasing a massive 470,000-sq.-ft. (43,663-sq.-m.) complex. Griffiss features an 11,800-ft. (3,600-m.) runway, uncongested air space and proximity to major airports in the Northeastern United States.