Hot Topics

First Quarter, January 2000

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Hunt Engineers Moves to ACP

Hunt Engineers, Architects and Land Surveyors, P.C.—a firm that played a major role in the design of the Airport Corporate Park (ACP)—will soon call the site home.Hunt was a major “architect” of the ACP, designing traffic flow and drainage, and helping set the stage for the development that has taken place. Now, after an exhaustive search for existing facilities in the Twin Tiers, Hunt has decided to construct a new 21,697-square-foot headquarters at the ACP. Hunt’s $2.1 million facility will consolidate all four of the firm’s current offices into one building. Hunt will bring 80 professional employees to the ACP site with plans to grow to 100 employees within three years. The Chemung County IDA has entered into a purchase agreement while the Town of Big Flats finalizes site plan approval. Construction of the state-of-the-art facility is expected to be complete by July 2000. A Hunt spokesperson cited tax incentives for the decision to relocate to Big Flats.

Latta Brook Expands and Fills Vacancies

Available space is going fast at the Latta Brook Industrial Park. The park, which is owned by the Chemung County Industrial Development Agency, is home to companies such as Coca Cola Bottling, Forney Industries, and The Glass Company. Now, three more companies will make their home at the park filling one vacant building and constructing buildings on two of the remaining three lots.
In October, Advantage Machine and Coating Works announced their plans to occupy the former RERO building left vacant when the company expanded to Trinity Industrial Park. Advantage Machine and Coating Works is a start-up company, which will employ at least 10 people in its first three years of operation. A 4,200-square-foot expansion was added to the 7,000-square-foot facility for the company’s powder coating operations. Foster Limited, a Georgia-based company, also announced their plans in October to set up a manufacturing facility at Latta Brook and create 40 jobs. The company purchased a four-acre parcel and is constructing a 10,000-square-foot building to manufacture exterior wall panels made from concrete and recycled carpet fibers. The Fibrocrete panels used in housing and commercial construction are a less expensive alternative to wood. New York State Empire State Development assisted in the financing of the project.
The Windheim Tool Company also recently announced their plans to move to the Latta Brook Park to make way at their current site for road improvements at exit 51 near the Arnot Mall. The new 5,000-square-foot facility will house the entire operations and help retain eight jobs.

in.to.it Label Company

Formerly known as “Empire Label Inc.,” in.to.it Label Company began as a start-up in 1995 with the assistance of the City of Elmira Loan Program and REDEC. Initially, the company’s primary customer was the former Artistic Greetings Company. Over the course of the past five years, business has grown significantly, creating a diverse customer base.
Starting with only three employees, the company now employs 45. in.to.it is a label and film converting company that markets and sells products for a variety of customers, including the Easter Seals and more recently USA Today and Xerox. More business is on its way, and 30 additional jobs are expected to be added within three years. In preparation for this growth, a 12,000-square-foot expansion is being added to the company’s Sullivan Street facility.
In addition to the building, in.to.it has also purchased two new presses that will expand their production capacity and allow them to compete for larger national contracts.
To help facilitate the expansion, the City of Elmira and REDEC have again stepped forward to assist with a low-interest financing package. By having both these programs available, STEG was able to assist in the growth of the company and promote job creation in Chemung County.

Spec Space at Trinity Nearly Full

The economic development pump is primed at the Trinity Industrial Park. Since RERO Distribution’s announcement last spring to relocate at Trinity, the interest level at the College and Woodlawn Avenue location has been staggering.
The initial plan for the site was to build a 50,000-square-foot building, with RERO occupying approximately 20,000 square feet, leaving the remainder available as spec space for future projects. However, once construction began, three more businesses announced moves to Trinity.
In October, the Fastenal Company announced that they would construct a 6,000-square-foot facility at the site to increase their visibility. Fastenal is a wholesale distributor of industrial supplies, which has leased space in and around the Elmira area over the last decade. Their new facility at Trinity is Fastenal’s first company-owned store, proving their belief in the economic viability of the location.
Just days after Fastenal’s announcement, BOMAC Inc. announced their plans to expand into approximately 16,000 square feet of the new spec space being constructed. BOMAC, which manufactures and designs electric circuit boards, will be retaining 20 jobs at the site and creating 10 more in their first year. The move will allow BOMAC to include assembly in their current operations in Elmira.
In November, Progressive Auto Insurance moved into 3,000 square feet of the remaining spec space, leaving only 7,000 square feet available. The remaining space is under negotiation and is expected to be occupied soon.
The success of the spec space at Trinity has led developers and local leaders to consider constructing a second building at the location. The short time it took to fill the space is proof of the demand for this type of space in Chemung County and has local economic development officials confident that additional development is not far away.

Chemung County and Elmira
Keep Tax Rate Stable

A stable economy and increased sales tax revenues have helped Chemung County and the City of Elmira hold the line on taxes in 2000.
Although expenditures increased and state aid went down, county officials have been able to keep taxes stable for eight consecutive years. Chemung County is the only county in
New York that has been able to maintain a stable tax rate for eight years and not raise the sales tax. All of this has been accomplished while remaining the lowest taxed county in the Southern Tier region.
Likewise, for the sixth consecutive year, the City of Elmira has held taxes steady. The plan calls for increased spending on the city’s public infrastructure while continuing a number of community improvement programs.
Both announcements are good news for economic development officials in Chemung County. When an annual inflation rate of approximately 3 percent is factored in, local businesses actually experienced a decrease in their tax liability over this extended period of time. By holding the line on taxes, local officials have helped decrease the cost of doing business in the Chemung County area.

STEG Board Members Elected December 21, 1999

Officers
Nelson Mooers van den Blink, chair
John V. Moore, co-vice chairman
Richard W. Swan, co-vice chairman
J. D. Young, secretary
J. Michael Ervin, treasurer
John C. Brugler, assistant treasurer
Donald G. Quick, Jr., immediate past chairman

New Board Members
Patrick Bonnell, Kimble, Inc.
Daniel Dimon, Jr., Dimon & Sons
James Hoag, Weyerhaeuser
Thomas O’Mara, Davidson & O’Mara
Donald Peterson, Fairway Spring Company
Mary Swan, Travelers Property Casualty Corporation
Monte Trammer, Star Gazette
Gary Vergason, Vergason Technology Inc.
Thomas Walton, Kennedy Valve
J. D. Young, Sayles, Evans, Brayton, Palmer & Tifft
Re-elected Board Members
Robert Chapman, Town of Horseheads
Michael Chevalier, Thomas & Betts
Stephen Hughes, City of Elmira
Samuel Iraci, City of Elmira
Howard Lapple, Town of Elmira
Merrill Lynn, Town of Big Flats
Joseph Manning, Chemung Canal Trust Company
Robert McKinnon, Elm Chevrolet
Thomas Meier, Elmira College
Robert Reidy, SCT BOCES
Stuart Schweizer, Schweizer Aircraft Corporation
Michael Sopp, Anchor Glass Container Corporation
Douglas Tifft, Hardinge, Inc.
G. P. Zurenda, Jr., Elmira Stamping & Manufacturing