Economic
Development Newsletter
January/February 2003:
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Felix Schoeller
Technical Papers Announces Pulaski Plant Expansion; 25 New Jobs
& A Bright Future
The sun was shining on Pulaski in January
with the announcement by Felix Schoeller Technical Papers, Inc.,
(FSTP) of a $6 million expansion project that will add 25 new jobs
and enable the company to expand its digital imaging specialty papers
manufacturing capabilities in the United States. Both company officials
and Operation Oswego County (OOC) are viewing the project as a renewed
commitment to the plant’s economic future.
The total investment in the improvements
for the "Small Format Converting Project" at the plant
will be $6 million over the next two years, with a package of state
and local incentives amounting to over $1 million, including an
Empire State Development (ESD) grant of $250,000, a NYS Legislative
Initiative grant of $100,000 from State Senator James W. Wright
(46th District), and a $50,000 grant by OOC from the Economic Development
Initiative Fund through the Oswego County Legislature, and a $250,000
low interest loan from the County of Oswego Industrial Development
Agency (IDA).
The Pulaski plant was in competition for
the expansion with another Felix Schoeller plant in Quebec, Canada.
According to Richard Patterson-Jones, chief
executive officer of Felix Schoeller North America, the expansion
project is part of a strategic vision for FSTP as a value-added
manufacturing operation, increasingly focused on digital imaging/ink
jet papers. The product will be manufactured under private labels
and distributed through major retail office outlets and chain stores.
"Felix Schoeller has successfully introduced
new products into the North American digital imaging market and
we have experienced significant volume growth in this sector,"
said Patterson-Jones.
"This market is where the future lies
for this plant to help ensure its success and the success of our
employees."
The project will be completed in two phases,
with installation of sheeter and manual packaging equipment this
year and an automated packaging line next year.
The expansion project comes to the Pulaski
FSTP plant as a result of teamwork between Senator James Wright,
OOC, ESD, the IDA, and other state and local agencies.
The total incentive package also included
training grants from the Oswego County Workforce Development Board
and the Metropolitan Development Association.
The Felix Schoeller Group is one of the leading
international manufacturers of high-end specialty papers. At seven
plant sites around the world, the company produces photographic
base paper, digital imaging papers— particularly ink jet papers
— and decor papers for the woodworking industry.
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Operation Turnaround
Markets Nestle Plant Internationally
The ongoing marketing and redevelopment strategy
for the Nestle facility in Fulton took a major step early this year
when Operation Oswego County (OOC) contacted more than 800 chocolate
manufacturers to investigate any interest that an existing firm
may have to acquire the oldest milk chocolate plant in North America.
In addition to the United States, a Nestle
site specification brochure was mailed to manufacturers in 81 countries
including England, Germany, France, Poland, Mexico, Russia, Switzerland,
Spain, Canada and Belgium.
Marketing the facility for reuse is a key
focus of Operation Turnaround, a task force of business, community
and economic development representatives which was assembled to
help mitigate the economic damage of the Nestle plant closure in
May 2003. The Nestle property includes 31 acres and over one million
square feet in multiple facilities in Fulton as well as the 69-
acre Nestle Park in the Town of Volney.
"This is the first stage of an aggressive
marketing plan for the facility. We are working closely with Nestle’s
corporate real estate broker and officials to market the plant and
perhaps some of the equipment as well," said L. Michael Treadwell,
CEcD, executive director of OOC, at an Operation Turnaround meeting
held in late January.
In order to help advance Operation Turnaround
toward the goal of reuse for the Nestle facility, State Senator
James Wright secured a $250,000 grant that is available through
OOC. Members of Operation Turnaround determined that the next step
of the marketing and development strategy will be to identify and
contact over 250 site location consultants to directly target the
facility.
Operation Turnaround members include OOC,
the City of Fulton, the Fulton Community Development Agency, the
Greater Fulton Chamber of Commerce, Niagara Mohawk, Empire State
Development, Senator Wright, Assemblyman Will Barclay, the Workforce
Development Board of Oswego County, the Oswego County Legislature,
the Fulton City School District, the County of Oswego Industrial
Development Agency and local businesses. Also actively involved
and lending support to the task force are federal representatives
Sens. Charles Schumer and Hillary Rodham Clinton and Rep. John McHugh.
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OOC Co-Sponsors
Job and Career Fair
Operation Oswego County was a title sponsor
and booth participant for the 2003 Oswego County Job and Career
Fair held January 15-16 at the Polish Home on state Route 48 in
Fulton.
Fulton/Oswego Daily News, organizers of the
event, estimated that 900-1,000 job seekers attended the fair. Due
to a positive response by attendees, the event was held over to
the following day. OOC, together with the SUNY Oswego Small Business
Development Center, hosted a seminar targeted to Nestle employees
who have an interest in starting and/or acquiring a small business.
"We were proud to be a major sponsor
of the Oswego County Job and Career Fair as it was a positive step
toward Operation Turnaround’s goal of helping the community
and its citizens overcome the Nestle closing and to make Fulton
a stronger and more diversified community for the future,"
said L. Michael Treadwell, CEcD, executive director of OOC. "Our
thanks to Fulton/Oswego Daily News for taking the initiative to
host this community-minded event."
In addition to OOC, other sponsors included
DestiNY USA, Area Jobs Guide.com, and Career Connection. Admission
was free.
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Ni-Mo Provides
Top "Boost" For OOC Annual Fund Drive
Niagara Mohawk was the top economic development
"booster" in Operation Oswego County’s (OOC) annual
fund drive, with a contribution of $2,500, according to a report
issued by OOC Executive Director L. Michael Treadwell, CEcD, on
behalf of the board of directors.
Topping the next category of Corporate Boosters
are: AgrilinkFoods, Constellation Nuclear, Entergy Nuclear Northeast,
Fulton Savings Bank, Hiscock & Barclay LLC, Oswego County Savings
Bank, Pathfinder Bank, and Sithe Energies, Inc., each contributing
from $1,000 to $1,500.
"The OOC board thanks all those who
responded to our campaign,” said Treadwell.
“Their participation is very important
to us because every dollar contributed by these organizations and
individuals will directly impact economic growth in Oswego County."
He explained that these contributions are applied directly to offset
expenses related to the promotion and marketing of Oswego County
to prospective businesses and industry.
Treadwell and OOC Board President Dee C.
Heckethorn, applauded the efforts of the annual fund drive’s
co-chairs, Michael J. Pollock, President and CEO of Fulton Savings
Bank, and George Joyce, President of Laser Transit of Lacona. They
serve as chair and vice chair respectively of OOC’s Marketing
and Development Committee.
Other supporters of the annual fund drive
are:
Business Boosters contributing between $500
and $999 are: Alltel New York, Inc.; Eastern Shore Associates; Huhtamaki
Packaging, Inc.; Northern Ready Mix, Inc.; Oswego Wire, Inc.; Paul
A. Castaldo, Inc.; Peppercorns, Inc.; and Port of Oswego Authority.
Associate Boosters contributing between $100
and $499 include: Jack Alter, CPA; Thomas Arctander Architects;
Caswell & Associates, CPA; Clough, Harbour & Associates,
LLP; Community Bank, N.A.; F. Hosmer Culkin, Esq.; D-K Manufacturing,
DKR Investments LLC; Eagle Beverage Co., Inc.; G&S Broadwell,
Inc.; Geo Hotel Co., Inc.; Hadwen C. Fuller. Healthway Products
Co., Inc.; Dee C. Heckethorn; McIntosh Box & Pallet Co., Inc.;
Doren P. Norfleet, Esq.; Oneida Lake Petroleum; Oswego County Business
Magazine; Oswego Valley Insurance Agencies; Shirley G. Pasco; Charles
W. Rock; Carolyn A. Rush; Carol A. Rutledge; Paul W. Schneible,
CPA; Seiter Law Firm; Snyder Realty, Inc.; Corte J. Spencer; The
Ultimate Edge; Ed Vayner & Associates; Leon Vickery, Inc. and
Wiltsie Construction Co., Inc.
Other contributors are: Joseph and Muriel
Allerton; George Cuppernull; Giovanni Food Co., Inc.; Majestic Mold
& Tool; Mike’s Custom Cabinets; Mirabito Development,
Inc.; Louis R. Pettinelli; and Samuel J. Sugar, Esq.
The annual appeal to professional people,
business and industry supporters and others throughout the county
for financial support has provided OOC with supplemental promotional
funding in recent years. Since the not-for-profit agency is the
county’s designated economic and job development agency, primary
support for its activities comes through the Oswego County Legislature,
the cities of Fulton and Oswego, and private economic development
allies.
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Pathfinder
Courts Renovation
Nearly $8 million in renovations, including
roofs, bathrooms, kitchens, and electrical systems, will be made
to 136 units in the Pathfinder Courts affordable housing complex
in the City of Fulton. Funding for the project is provided by the
County of Oswego Industrial Development Agency (IDA).
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Commercial
Property Showcased Online
In an effort to expand the promotion of existing
available commercial property throughout Oswego County, OOC is participating
in two new internet marketing programs.
www.FastFacility.com is an easy to- use,
free website that features a database of thousands of buildings
and sites worldwide which allows prospects to quickly and efficiently
find a building or site. It is supported by an aggressive advertising
and direct marketing program targeting more than 150,000 corporate
decision makers. For additional details and/or pricing of a specific
building or site, prospects must contact the developer listed via
direct e-mail link.
www.BusinessFacilities.com is the online
version of Business Facilities magazine which targets more than
40,000 corporate executives responsible for expansion or relocation
of their companies. As an advertiser,OOC is entitled to list several
available properties on the website’s "available real
estate" section, and immediate access to OOC is provided through
a direct e-mail link.
OOC will also continue marketing available
property through its membership in National Association of Manufacturers
(NAM) Site Selection Network which provides members with a direct
e-mail link to OOC where they can evaluate sites and facilities
which meet their immediate expansion needs, NYSiteFinder, a free
database of available buildings and sites in New York, as well as
through its own website at www.oswegocounty.org. Direct e-mail links
are also listed on the websites of several other trade publications,
including Site Selection, Expansion Management, Area Development,
and National Association of Industrial and Office Properties.
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Entergy Nuclear’s
FitzPatrick Plant Marks 2002 Success
In 2002, Entergy Nuclear, the fastest growing
and second largest nuclear company in the United States, concentrated
its efforts on safety, security, and operational performance.
Entergy operates ten reactors at various
sites in the Northeast and South, including the 825 megawatt James
A. FitzPatrick Nuclear Power Plant in Scriba which it acquired in
November, 2000.
According to Ted Sullivan, vice president
of operations at FitzPatrick, "We had a lot to accomplish,
and the FitzPatrick team pulled together to successfully and safely
complete everything we needed to do and more."
In 2002, FitzPatrick employees exceeded 6.5
million labor-hours without a lost-time occurrence—a best-ever
for the site, Sullivan said, noting that FitzPatrick employees accomplished
a safe completion of its refueling outage in another best-ever time
of just 24 days.
"Entergy is a company that prides itself
on its safety record, and at FitzPatrick, our employees take safety
very seriously and continue to demonstrate their dedication to providing
a safe work environment for all employees," Sullivan said.
"Since September 11, security has taken
on a much higher level of importance in all aspects of our lives,"
said Sullivan, noting that Entergy continues to enhance site security
at each of its nuclear facilities. "We continue to work closely
with local, state, and federal officials as an active partner in
ensuring the health and safety of the public."
Sullivan also noted that in 2002 Entergy
provided a new state-of-the-art security system for the Oswego County
Airport.
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International Business
Exchange Set for May
OOC is cooperating with the Onondaga County
Economic Development Office to present an International Business
Exchange (IBE) between Central New York companies and those from
Cities in Europe and South America to foster international trade
and business opportunities, along with an exchange of business management
experience.
Mayors, economic development officials, and
business representatives from each city are expected to attend,
and a comprehensive series of pre-arranged meetings, how-to seminars,
and networking opportunities are planned. An exhibit hall featuring
displays from each city will give participants a change to meet
informally.
Invitees include businesses from Coronel,
Chile; Badalona, Spain; Coimbra, Portugal; Korolev, Russia;
Gottingen, Germany; Lafayette, Louisiana, U. S.; Longueuil, P. Q.,
and Moncton, N. B., Canada; Namur, Belgium; Northampton, U. K.;
Queretaro, Mexico; Parma, Italy; Poitiers, France; Siracusa, Italy;
Vaasa, Finland; and Zhengzhou, China.
This year’s event, to take place May
18-22, will focus on bio-technology/medical, electronic components,
environmental systems, handcrafted manufacturing, and chamber of
commerce/tourism development.
The IBE is open to any business, and registration
is $50, which includes up to12 pre-arranged business meetings, access
to the exhibit hall, discounted parking, networking events during
the day, and lunch on Monday and Tuesday. For more information or
to register online, visit www.SyracuseCentral.com/ibe.
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Retail Revitalization
Seminar
A free seminar designed to help retailers
and other entrepreneurs interested in downtown revitalization will
be held Thursday, April 10, from 6 to 9 p.m. at the Best Western
Carriage House, 300 Washington Street, Watertown.
Participants will learn about retail trade
areas, in-store diversification, promotion strategies, developing
and growing a loyal customer base, adaptive reuse of vacant properties,
and partnering or "clustering." The presenter is HyettPalma
Inc., a national consulting firm specializing in economic enhancement
of downtowns and older business districts.
To register, call 782-9262.
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