Courtesy SEDC
By Tori Riley
Creating Saratoga County’s economic development future has been our mission for over 44 years of existence. Working with SEDC to create and maintain our economic vitality are many partners—Saratoga County and local governments, regional businesses large and small (across industry sectors), our Industrial development agencies (IDAs), CEG, universities, colleges, career/tech educators and our K-12 school districts—to name a few.
SEDC has been fortunate to have such solid partnerships that have made propelling business and responsibly growing our county’s vibrant and diverse economy. One of those partnerships has been with Dennis Brobston. He let us know a few months ago that he is looking to finally slow down a little.
We will miss Dennis immensely. As leader of our organization for the last 15 years and part of the SEDC team for over 25 years his dedication, expertise, wealth of knowledge, humor, relationships with peers and members and his endless recollection of projects and their history has been an instrumental asset in our success. True to his character, he has laid the foundation for our organization to continue successfully without interruption.
SEDC, with our partners and our stakeholders, continues to evaluate, qualify and launch projects. In 2022, our efforts delivered another $45.6 million in new investment that retained 35 jobs, created 217 new positions and added just over $13 million in new payroll. This is in addition to the previous two years, when we have supported $232 million of investment, creating over 629 jobs with over $38 million in new payroll while retaining 730 existing jobs.
Working with the county and local leaders, departments, utility companies and stakeholders a resiliency study was completed in 2022, via a grant supplied by the Capital District Regional Planning Commission. In 2023, SEDC will utilize this information as we work to create more product (pre-zoned sites and buildings) eyeing this type of growth.
You can expect more of these impressive results in 2023.
The Saratoga County Board Of Supervisors adopted a 2023 budget that provides a 5 percent reduction in the property tax rate. It cuts government spending by $3.2 million, with no reliance on reserve funds. This sound fiscal management of tax payer dollars elevates our message and position to compete for projects that otherwise were not being considered in New York state.
We will continue to promote Saratoga County across the state, throughout the nation and around the world as a place that knows and grows world class businesses.
We will spotlight our inventory, utilizing our global networks and spheres of influence, to attract complimentary industries to our thriving and diverse ecosystem.
For instance, on our YouTube station we have short videos on education, workforce, healthcare, history, recreation, industry and commercial sites available. Fresh, professional content is added regularly.
We will continue to retain existing business by helping them to confidently continue investing in their locations and continue employing (or adding more positions) our family, friends, neighbors and students with good paying jobs, and career pathways at companies they could potentially retire from.
Most companies know us before they need us or are referred by a partner or stakeholder. We are always available to share information or connect them to an organization or department that can. That’s what we are all about. Providing expertise with a wealth of knowledge of programs, processes and deliverables that can be relied upon.
And we will continue investing to grow our sites and building inventory and continue to provide invaluable resources to all industries and businesses in our county.
Growth doesn’t just happen. It happens by design, fortitude, patience, followup and more fortitude. The SEDC stakeholders play a vital role in supporting our efforts to expand and launch these businesses.
We understand the competitive aspect in site selection and we have the experience and deliverables needed for us to compete. It takes commitment to jump in and engage when we are hosting site selection tours and retention visits. SEDC stakeholders and partners are second to none in our program to serve the companies our county.
The year 2023 is positioned to be as prosperous as the last few years for Saratoga County. We will continue supporting developers as they design and prepare industrial parks and spec buildings, while also supporting the diverse green technology sectors, manufacturing, agriculture and supply chain projects.
We will work with our community leaders to provide solutions addressing the affordable housing issue. We will continually stress how we can help businesses already operating here and those that wish to locate here. As we always have, you can count on SEDC to operate inclusively with positivity and purpose.