2020 7th Edition: June 8 - June 12
It's a Matter of Dollars and Sense


Dear Orange County Partnership Investors & Supporters,

The Partnership recently hosted a virtual Alliance for Balanced Growth (ABG) meeting which was well attended by our members and many guests.  The Alliance for Balanced Growth (ABG) is a standing committee of the Orange County Partnership with the mission to create a unified voice for responsible industrial and office development while respecting and preserving our quality of life in Orange County. We work with local, county and state government, as well as our business community to provide factual information on the value of projects, the taxes they generate and the multiplier-of-millions of dollars they contribute to the community. 

At this time Orange County has many quality development projects before various boards seeking final approvals and permits so they can start construction. Each project signifies a quantifiable dollar value that can be calculated and counted on. There are fees paid to various boards and permitting agencies in each municipality. When construction begins, hundreds of contractors, consultants and vendors are hired and working at the site. They spend money in the local community.  When the construction is complete and the project opens, companies begin to hire local people, and the multiplier grows with permanent employment. 

We started this year with confidence in a strong market, and just like that, everything stopped. Sound municipalities (like financially sound businesses) run their budgets just like we do in our own personal lives. We bring in money, we spend money and we keep some to protect and insure financial security. So, let’s take a look at municipal spending --

Municipalities spend on such things as:

  • Public safety
  • Parks and recreation
  • Infrastructure and utilities
  • Transportation
  • Education
  • Insurance / trust expenditures
  • And waste management just to name a few. 

A municipality’s money largely is generated through property and sales tax. During the COVID shut-down, stores closed and sales tax revenue dried up.  There is much uncertainty about how soon consumers will feel safe and financially able to shop again, therefore the sales tax generation cannot be counted on when compared to an average year. In addition, many municipalities have lost a percentage of small businesses that simply couldn’t hold on. 

But, we have hope. Orange County is a highly desirable location for certain industry clusters that will be the most active post-COVID-19. Advanced manufacturing, transportation and logistics, software & IT and Food/Beverage processing are among the top contenders to follow. Here’s where good economic development, site preparedness and corporate attraction efforts come in. 

We conducted a research study on several company attraction/ expansions that occurred in Orange County, NY over the past 5 years. The list of projects clearly reflected a strong economy and industry diversity.  The numbers posted are projected and reported as accurate. Here are some highlights:
We’ve only highlighted a few diverse projects here for illustration purposes. The fact is that if these companies did NOT come, one can only calculate an even larger deficit in municipal budgets. Municipalities need to take a hard look at what they have in the pipeline, and maximize their efforts to get those projects through approvals and start generating revenue for their town. 

It’s a matter of dollars and sense. 



My very best,

Maureen Halahan

President & CEO
Orange County Partnership
A Special Thanks to our Newsletter Sponsor:
Source: Cushman & Wakefield
The New Office Normal Will be A ‘Total Workplace Ecosystem
Global commercial brokerage firm Cushman & Wakefield recently tackled the complex issue of how offices will operate once the coronavirus pandemic is behind us and the challenges businesses will face in the coming months and years.

The firm’s workplace specialists analyzed more than 2.5 million data points from workers across the globe in the pre-COVID-19 era and a further 1.7 million data points from more than 40,000 respondents in the current work-from-home environment to develop a report entitled “The Future of Workplace.”

Developers Beginning to Recognize the Need for Family-Oriented Rental Housing
The Urban Land Institute Terwilliger Center for Housing and real estate advisory firm RCLCO collaborated on a report entitled “Family Renter Housing: A Response to the Changing Growth Dynamics of the Next Decade” that postulate that families will become a much more dominant demographic in the multifamily rental housing market in the next decade.

The number of Millennials with children households are expected to grow by eight million between
2020 to 2030.
Marsha Gordon, President and CEO of the Business Council of Westchester.
COVID-19 Case Study: Task Force Makes Recommendations to Fuel Economic Growth Post Pandemic
As Orange County and the Mid-Hudson region begins phase two of the reopening process for the economy, business, government agencies and economic development groups throughout the region are looking at best practices, safety precautions and workforce-related actions necessary to successfully relaunch operations as we continue to cope with COVID-19.

Freight Railroads Help Keep Our Shelves Stocked During Pandemic
During the pandemic, citizens rightfully have acknowledged the efforts and courage of health care, law enforcement and first responders. One sector that is often overlooked are those engaged in the critical task of maintaining the global supply chain that delivers on average 54 tons of goods per American each year. GoRail has penned an article entitled “5 Ways Freight Railroads Serve You During a Pandemic” detailing how this industry has answered the call of duty and served as a “Community Lifeline” for Orange County and the rest of the nation in this era of COVID-19. During this critical juncture, the OCP has worked with our partners at GoRail, sending a letter commemorating the 40th Anniversary of the Staggers Act.

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to wreak havoc, numerous companies & local leaders have stepped up to assist our community. We'd like to recognize and keep you apprised of private businesses that are creatively supporting our community during these challenging times.


The Orange County Partnership would like to thank Alan Seidman of the Construction Contractors Association   who graciously donated PPE to our team so we can work safely from our office during the Phase 2 re-opening.
 
In response to the dire need for childcare services  for essential personnel  during these unprecedented times, the  YMCA of Middletown   is providing  Emergency Childcare Service for children ages 5-12  at a few locations in Orange County.
 
Decked out in masks and gloves, a small group of Realtors from the  Hudson Gateway Realtor Foundation (HGRF)  recently volunteered their time to help pack groceries at the Food Bank of the Hudson Valley in Cornwall-on-Hudson.

From making well known retail displays to providing food packaging, Orange Packaging offers full retail solutions. Orange Packaging also seeks to help find a solution to the mask and face shields needed in the area. The company has been making face shields out of the plastic that they would usually be using for their packaging materials. Also, when they realized that other companies could not get access the plastic to make face shields as well, they donated their materials to them.

PRG is known for their dramatic set work, design, and entertainment. However, since the pandemic, they have been using their craftsmen skills for a different cause. PRG has been creating face shields to supply to those on the frontline.  

With their business growing, FPS Apparel needed to expand their operations and they chose to move to Chester in nearly double the space. Now, they are using this extra space to give back by making and donating over 8,400 masks for frontline workers.

The Orange County Association of Towns, Villages and Cities represents the 21 towns, 19 villages and three cities in Orange County. The organization realizes access to good, nutritious food is essential and understanding that supplies at many non-profits who typically provide food to those in need is down, The Executive Committee has approved sending a $1,000 check to each of the following organizations - RECAP, HONOR, Hudson Valley Food Bank, Community Foundation of Orange and Sullivan and TOUCH.

Between working remotely for her clients, Deborah Garry, President & CEO of BBG&G Full-Service Integrated Marketing Agency  decided she needed to help. So far she has made about six dozen face masks and distributed them to Crystal Run Healthcare, Hospice of Orange & Sullivan Counties as well as friends and family members. Her home “factory” consists of her sewing machine, an ironing board and a work table raised up on four bed risers left over from her sons’ college dorm days.
 
Walden Savings Bank  completed its 22 Days of Giving campaign and donated $11,000 in bank-matched employee donations to 32 community members and organizations helping those in need.
 
Clemson Bros. Brewery  set up a Small Business Relief Fund and donated $10,000 of their own money to the cause. They are also accepting donations from the community to go towards the fund to help small businesses throughout the Hudson Valley.
 
The Keller Williams –Chris Scibelli Team  is stepping up in a major way to help. As a team they have agreed to give back 5% of earnings (based on commissions earned from the sale or purchase of any home) from now until August 31, 2020. The money they will be giving back will be donated in their clients names to frontline workers in Orange County. Talk about a selfless act!

Milmar Food Group located in Goshen, donated 10,000 pounds of food to Orange County's Office for the Aging to benefit the county’s Senior Meals Program during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Servpro of North Orange County , a restoration facility located in Middletown, has been utilizing their services by helping our local first responders stay safe during the COVID-19 outbreak including disinfecting the City of Newburgh's patrol cars and sanitizing the Goodwill Fire House located in Newburgh at no cost. 

Moroney's Harley Davidson located in New Windsor, graciously donated head covers to local nurses, doctors and medical workers at Highland Rehab & Nursing Center in Middletown. 

Mount Saint Mary College in the City of Newburgh has donated more than 7,000 disposable gloves and hundreds of masks and gowns from its School of Nursing supplies to regional hospitals, retirement homes and even the temporary hospital at the Javits Center in Manhattan. The college sent about 5,000 gloves to Montefiore St. Luke’s Cornwall Hospital in Newburgh, 1,500 to Good Samaritan Hospital in Suffern in Rockland County, and 500 to Four Winds Hospital in Cross River in Westchester County.

Warwick Valley Winery & Distillery , in partnership with their sister business, Black Dirt Distillery have produced hand sanitizer for local hospitals and nursing homes throughout the region.

The Castle Fun Center , a popular family entertainment center in Chester, N.Y., is helping keep front-line healthcare workers safe by using its 3-D printer to manufacture components for face shields, a type of personal protection equipment in short supply. So far, more than 100 have been created; it will produce 500 to 1,000 or more, depending on the ongoing need.

From their home or classroom, local educators from Pine Bush Central School District , Minisink Valley Central School District and Goshen Central School Districts are creating face shields using 3-D printers as personal protective equipment for those on the front lines of the coronavirus pandemic. 

Aurochemicals: The internationally recognized manufacturer of natural aroma ingredients in the flavor and fragrance industry, based in Washingtonville, has provided tens of thousands of hard-to-find surgical masks to protect healthcare and first-responder teams in the community. The company recently supplied Orange County Government with 50,000 surgical masks and provided 42,000 masks to Orange Regional Medical Center. 

Bonura Hospitality Group:  The wildly successful company, which owns and operates restaurants, catering halls and a hotel, has had to lay off more than 400 of their 1,000 employees during the pandemic. The family-owned business is making meals out of an otherwise closed facility to care for not only their employees but their families, providing a hot meals every day for curbside pickup.  

Konica Minolta and Laborers’ Local 17 LECET/Hudson Valley Building & Construction Trades Council have donated a number of N-95 and N-99 masks to nursing homes and first responders throughout Orange County.

SUNY Orange: In response to requests from healthcare facilities in Orange County fighting COVID-19 on the front lines, the leaders of SUNY Orange Health Professions Programs recently delivered a donation of 4,505 Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) items to the Newburgh campus of Montefiore St. Luke’s Cornwall Hospital.

DNA Entertainment hosted a live stream dance party and raised more than $6,000 to supply meals for workers around Orange County’s medical centers, nursing homes and urgent care facilities.

Fidanza Family Properties: The property, food and beverage management group based in Middletown, announced a food donation program for businesses who want to help supply meals to essential employees while on the job. Business can make a donation by ordering food from one of their restaurants (Pizza E Birra and Planet Wings) and the company will match that donation, up to $1,500 worth of food. To date, $2,0000 worth of food has been donated to the staff at Orange Regional Medical Center. To participate email: franco@planetwings.com .

Construction Contractors Association , Danskammer , Boyce Excavating and Focus Media were all instrumental in securing and donating to the emergency need of N-95 masks to protect medical workers from the Coronavirus.

Medline Industries , the nation’s largest privately-held healthcare manufacturer and distributor, has worked tirelessly with local hospitals and healthcare facilities to supply personal protective equipment (PPE) and has donated an abundance of supplies to the Town of Montgomery and Orange County.

Orange County Distillery was creative in turning a 55-gallon barrel of extremely high-proof spirits into hand sanitizer, which they gave out to Orange County residents for FREE.

Please help us recognize private-business leaders who are creatively contributing to the health and well-being of our community. Please share stories by emailing our Marketing Director, Sarah Brosnan to be included in next week's newsletter:


We are all in this together, the best of people come out
in the worst of times.

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