I traveled to Albany this week for the New York State Regional Economic Development Council funding awards and was thrilled when Governor Cuomo and legislative leaders started the ceremony by announcing that our WNY plan was one of four "best plans" statewide.  As a result, 96 projects will be receiving $100.3 million in state economic development assistance.  Projects being funded range from expansion and capital investment initiatives to a wide range of workforce development and training programs and a number of community development related projects.  I was particularly pleased that seven companies that the BNE has worked with were awarded over $5.1 million in state assistance. 

The quality of the comprehensive plan submitted by our WNY Council can be seen by the fact that every county in our region had projects that were awarded funding.  Yesterday's announcement was a great testament to the hard work and outstanding cooperation on the part of the members of the WNY Regional Council and the many volunteers that participated in our regional council work groups.  Congratulations and thank you to WNY Regional Council Co-Chairs Howard Zemsky and Dr. Satish Tripathi, ESDC Regional Director Christina Orsi and to everyone who contributed to our success in this very competitive statewide process. 

Business Technology & Resource Group (BTRG), a 2010-2011 BNE project win, officially opened their new U.S. headquarters this week with a grand opening ceremony in the Electric Tower in downtown Buffalo.  Mayor Byron Brown joined BTRG President Jeff Goddard, Shared Services Director Rob Kopf, Iskalo Development President Paul Iskalo and yours truly at the ribbon cutting, and welcomed the company to our community. 

Headquartered in Mississauga, Ontario, BTRG provides Oracle, IBM and Workday consulting services to Fortune 1000 customers across North America.  A 2010-2011 Buffalo Niagara Enterprise project win, BTRG invested in excess of $450,000 and will hire seven new people at the start to support their expansion.  Dynamic and affordable space, quality workforce, affordable transportation alternatives and proximity to their Canadian headquarters were all factors BTRG cited in selecting the Buffalo Niagara region.  Congratulations to Jeff Goddard, Rob Kopf and the entire BTRG team.

Our partners and colleagues at the Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority (NFTA) and the Niagara County Department of Economic Development joined with representatives from Allegiant to announce new, nonstop jet service to Orlando from the Niagara Falls International Airport.  The new flights will operate four times weekly between Niagara Falls and the Orlando Sanford International Airport beginning February 15, 2012.  The expanded service offering is a tribute to the viability and efficiency of operations at the NFIA, which continues to attract more usage since the unveiling of its beautiful brand new terminal in 2009.

Left - right: NFTA Director of Aviation, William Vanacek; Allegiant Representative, Kristine Shattuck-Cooper; NFTA Executive Director, Kimberley A. Minkel; NFTA Chairman, Henry M. Sloma and Aviation Committee Chair, Carmen Granto.    

Thomas A. Kucharski

President & CEO

takucharski@buffaloniagara.org

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