Press Releases

EMPIRE STATE DEVELOPMENT
CHARLES A. GARGANO, CHAIRMAN
Press Office
212-803-3740
www.nylovesbiz.com

GOVERNOR’S OFFICE OF REGULATORY REFORM
EILEEN M. NATOLI, DIRECTOR
Press Office
518-486-3292
www.gorr.state.ny.us

FIRST COLUMBIA
CHRIS BETTE, VICE PRESIDENT
518-213-1000
www.firstcolumbia.com

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
December 14, 2006

NEW YORK INTERNATIONAL PLAZA GAINS SHOVEL READY CERTIFICATION
New York State Program Helps Make Site Ready for Business

Charles A. Gargano, Chairman of Empire State Development, and Eileen M. Natoli, Director of the Governor’s Office of Regulatory Reform, today certified New York International Plaza as Shovel Ready. First Columbia, a Real Estate Development Company based in Latham, NY and part of the Bette Family of Companies, is redeveloping the former Stewart Army Subpost located at Stewart International Airport in the Town of New Windsor, Orange County. The future commercial business campus features over 260 acres and a proposed two million square feet of commercial space.

A site granted New York State Shovel Ready Certification means sponsors have worked cooperatively with State and local officials to obtain the necessary permits and approvals for the site to be developed. Business leaders and site location consultants nationwide recognize the Shovel Ready designation as a mark of excellence. It is widely understood these pre-permitted sites reduce development delays and construction costs, saving companies interested in relocating to New York State time and money. New York International Plaza is one of only 26 sites statewide that have been certified as Shovel Ready.

“Shovel Ready Certification is another example of one of Governor Pataki’s pro-job, pro-growth tools,” Chairman Gargano said. “This program helps create opportunities for hard working New Yorkers and strengthens New York State’s economy by making it easier for businesses to locate and grow in the Empire State.”

Director Natoli said, “Governor Pataki’s policies of cutting governmental red tape and pre-permitting economic development sites have already helped fuel New York State’s economic revitalization.

Shovel Ready Certification is another business-friendly, common-sense, job-creating tool that will continue to ensure New York State retains its competitive edge in the global marketplace.”

“We’ve set the table by completing the environmental process, so businesses only have to focus on what they need to do for their new or the expansion of their business.” said First Columbia Vice President Chris Bette. “It is important to us to be able deliver a site or a building within a businesses’ budgeted time frame. Most businesses do not think about a new facility or an expansion three-years out. At New York International Plaza, we strive to have the business up and running in less than twelve months.”

In business, time is money and more and more companies are looking for sites where they can have a shovel in the ground as quickly as possible,” said Orange County Executive Edward A. Diana. “The Shovel Ready Site Certification Program provides Orange County an advantage over other markets when it comes to promoting economic development and job creation. I congratulate First Columbia for their efforts in receiving the Shovel Ready Site Certification to expand Orange County’s New York International Plaza.”

“We have all worked hard to make New York International Plaza one of the 26 Certified Shovel Ready sites in the state. With the Town owned road ways, and municipal sewer and water infrastructure already installed and set to go, it means businesses wanting to locate here can literally be under construction in weeks, not months or years,” said Town of New Windsor Supervisor George Green. “With the added tax base and new, well paying jobs this campus will bring to our Town, having it certified Shovel Ready by New York State is as important to us as it is to the businesses.”

The Shovel Ready designation is New York’s Shovel Ready Site Certification program is administered jointly by Empire State Development (ESD) and the Governor’s Office of Regulatory Reform (GORR). Participating permitting agencies include New York State’s Department of Environmental Conservation, and Department of Transportation; the State Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation; and the United States Army Corps of Engineers.

Information on Build Now-NY’s Shovel Ready Site Certification component can be found at www.ShovelReady-NY.com and www.nylovesbiz.com.









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New York International Plaza
First Columbia, LLC
22 Century Hill Drive
Suite 301
Latham, New York, 12110

Email: info@nyintplaza.com