In late 2021 The New York State Economic Development Council (NYSEDC) in partnership with Camion Associates, published an in-depth analysis of the economic impacts that Industrial Development Agencies (IDAs) have on their local communities and New York State as whole. Industrial Development Agencies were first established in 1969, and naturally their scope of work has expanded exponentially as the needs of the economy have shifted over the years. The phrase “industrial development” populates for many ideas of promoting the growth of solely large commercial businesses, namely in the manufacturing sector. As an economic development organization (EDO), however, Industrial Development Agencies actually take a more comprehensive approach to economic development. The NYSEDC & Camion put it best in their recent report, “gone are the days when a project’s success could be measured simply by how many jobs were created on-site. Today, a much more holistic view must be taken to understand how financial assistance for a business will result in housing stability, reduced commuting time, more equitable distribution of opportunities, reduced greenhouse gasses, and much more.”
Because of this shift in economic development priorities, Industrial Development Agencies have adapted greatly over the years, enacting innovative new funding initiatives and embarking on exciting new types of projects. Especially as the COVID-19 pandemic has changed the way we conduct business over the last two years, IDA’s have continued to step up to the plate and go to bat for their communities, and the results have not gone unnoticed. Though projects are no longer evaluated by just their job numbers, those traditional metrics of economic are still just as critical today, and as of the 2018 Office of the State Comptroller’s report, IDAs have created 1.5 million jobs, and are responsible for supporting 4,289 projects which has resulted in a total payroll of $144 billion. Diving deeper into the indirect benefits of those projects in recent years, in 2020 and 2021, Industrial Development Agencies in New York State have championed 68 clean energy projects, generated 870 megawatts of energy, constructed 57 new housing projects (3,006 total new housing units, & 804 affordable housing units), issued 1,451 small business loans and grants during the pandemic, and witnessed an annual increase of $533 million in property tax base.
The Broome County Industrial Development Agency (The Agency) is proud to have contributed to the economic success of New York State IDAs as a whole. Currently, The Agency has 46 active economic development projects. According to the data collected by the NYSEDC, these projects have created an estimated 1,000 direct full-time jobs with an average salary of $59.9k, retained another 1,000 with an average salary of $122.9k, and have spurred over 1,000 construction jobs to bring these projects to life. Our total project investments of $791.3 million have resulted in nearly $12 million in new revenue for local governments, a major boost to our local economy. We have not only taken on traditional manufacturing projects, but have also broadened our horizons by pursuing new clean energy projects such as the Bluestone Wind farm and bolstered our economic development tools by strengthening our capacity to issue bond financing through the Local Development Corporation (LDC) branch of The Agency. At The Agency we also conduct in depth studies into our housing sectors and workforce to better understand the larger issues at play in our community and how pursuing a variety of public-private partnerships and funding different key projects can address certain gaps, such as providing more quality affordable housing units accomplished by our 2018 project Century Sunrise. The Agency is committed to providing the right steps on the path towards economic sustainability in Broome County, and we look forward to continuing to strengthen the roles and the economic impacts of IDAs in both New York State and our local communities.
The New York State Economic Development Council's IDA Impact Analysis prepared by Camion Associates can be found on the NYSEDC website. Those interested may also download their one page report summary as well as view their IDA Analysis Interactive Dashboard here: https://www.nysedc.org/ida_impact_analysis.php