Projects, Communities, + People in the News

Rochester developer Park Grove Realty is reviving a dormant plan to bring apartments to a historic building in Larkinville. The company is seeking tax breaks from the Erie County Industrial Development Agency for the $30.2 million project, which would convert the former Iroquois Door building at 619 Exchange St. into a 64-unit apartment community. Most of the units would be market rate, with 10 reserved for residents making no more than 80% of the area median income, according to the developer's application to the ECIDA. | Read about the project here.

An architecture and design firm based in Rochester has opened a Buffalo office after leasing space downtown. SWBR, which employs 130 at offices in Rochester, Syracuse and Troy, opened at 500 Pearl St. “We see a lot happening in the Buffalo economy,” firm president and CEO Tom Gears said. | Buffalo Business First has more.

Kinsley Group Inc. is moving to a larger facility in Clifton Park that has more room for outdoor storage and can accommodate anticipated growth. The investment in Clifton Park received financial assistance from the town's industrial development agency. Twenty-four employees will be on staff in the second year with average salaries ranging from $75,000 for production workers to $180,000 for management, according to the IDA application. | See the story at the Albany Business Review.

The North Country Chamber of Commerce says visitation from Canada is down as the North Country feels the effects of an ongoing trade war. In a social media post on Wednesday, the chamber said Northern New York saw a 16% drop in visitation last month. They also said that more than 40% of tour groups have been cancelled. | Read more on NBC 5 here.

The transformation of Sullivan County International Airport into a modern gateway for the Catskill Region is nearing completion, with the project set to finish this spring. The project is expected to create approximately 260 jobs and includes improvements such as upgraded restrooms, solar panel installations, and new electric vehicle charging stations. | CBS 6 News Albany has more on the project.

New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA) and Empire State Development (ESD) today announced the groundbreaking for the nearly $26 million renovation and expansion of Shaker Museum in Chatham, Columbia County. The 30,000 square foot project will create a year-round destination for visitors and a space that reflects the Shaker values of purposeful design and communal living with a 7,500 square foot space for permanent and rotating exhibitions. | Learn more here.

The Port of Albany issued a "request for expressions of interest" in the Beacon Island expansion site, acknowledging that the wind tower initiative — once thought to hold great promise for the region — "has been halted" amid industry turbulence. "The Port is looking for ideas which will realize Beacon Island’s highest and best potential,” Port of Albany CEO Richard Hendrick said in a statement, citing the need to respond to evolving government and maritime industry priorities. | The story is on Albany Business Review here.

The New York City Economic Development Corp., known as NYCEDC, completed a $148 million renovation of 13 42nd Street at the MADE Bush Terminal campus in the Sunset Park neighborhood in western Brooklyn. The projects are part of a wider program led by New York City’s government to recreate an industrial district along Brooklyn’s New York Harbor shoreline and improve public access to the waterfront. | Read the story at CoStar News.

In an In Focus segment on upstate economic development, JoDee Kennedy sits down with Honora Spillane of CenterState among others. CenterState facilitates activity across its 12-county footprint, making sure businesses have the resources they need. | Listen to the segment on Spectrum News 1.

The former Sears Building has been selected as the future home of New York State’s first ON-RAMP Workforce Innovation Hub. The flagship Hub will anchor a broader revitalization of the site, which is being led by the City of Syracuse and CenterState CEO. The Central New York location will serve as a critical gateway for both job seekers and manufacturing and construction firms, supporting the region’s growing demand for skilled workers. | CNYCentral has the story here.

Green Island-based startup Ecovative has closed another multimillion-dollar raise to keep its spin-off company, MyForest Foods growing. The new capital was secured through an internal funding round alongside an Albany County award of $1.68 million in combined grant and loan funding from the Advance Albany County Alliance. | Read more at the Albany Business Review.