Phase 3 — We Made It!

We hosted our second Virtual Town Hall this past week to give Phase 3 businesses an opportunity to air their needs and concerns about reopening. Twenty-eight businesses and community leaders joined the event to share their input with the PCBC Reopen Putnam Safely Task Force.
p
The vibe “in the room” was calm and productive, compared to our first Town Hall, where stress was high and confidence was low. We take this as a positive sign that the business community is settling into Reopening Putnam County Safely.
p
Questions regarding guidelines for fitness centers, social distancing, not for profits, as well as success stories, peppered the conversations. We hope you will take time to view the replay of the Town Hall below.
p
We are looking forward to supporting your continued resiliency and recovery as we move successfully from Phase 3 to Phase 4.

Message From the Chairwoman – A Business Viewpoint

Moving Forward — How the Putnam IDA has been Quietly Building the County’s Tax Base

With Phase 3 around the corner and the COVID news cycle slowing down a bit (for the moment), I thought I would switch gears. I reached out to Bill Nulk who serves on the Putnam County Industrial Development Agency Board to give us an update on the IDA. I received the whole history, which I found very interesting.

p
In 1987 the Putnam County Board of Supervisors requested the NY State Legislature authorize an Industrial Development Agency for Putnam County. It was authorized in July 1987. Then, in 1996, the Putnam County Industrial Development Agency (PCIDA) passed a resolution authorizing a Universal Tax Exempt Policy (UTEP), which continues to be in effect today. This UTEP, approved by the 28 taxing authorities in Putnam County, allows the various tax abatements and exemptions authorized under NYS General Municipal Law, Article 18-A
p
The Putnam IDA has had several successes helping to bring good, valuable businesses to Putnam County over the years. In January 2016, however, after several years of national economic difficulty, the PCIDA Board resigned due to lack of funding. In May of 2016, the Putnam Legislature, with the support of the County Executive, appointed a new Board for the IDA and they were able to return to agency compliance by September of 2017.
p
The current PCIDA Board consists of Chairman Bill Nulk, Steve Baranowski, Joe Downey, Serena Tamagna Hawes, Michael Karlsson and Ed Cooke.
p
The PCIDA “inherited” several projects from the preceding Board that needed to be completed before they could focus on new development. These projects included Ace Endico, which moved from Elmsford to Putnam; redevelopment of the Butterfield Hospital in Cold Spring; Fox Ridge Hotel in Southeast; Fryer Systems in Patterson; Materion-Broad Reach in Patterson; and Seven Sutton Place in Southeast.
p
In addition to the Putnam County Legislature and the County Executive, Law Department and the County run Department of Economic Development, since the return to full compliance in 2017, the PCIDA has established strong working relationships with the Putnam County Economic Development Corp., Putnam County Tourism, and the Putnam County Business Council to achieve success on the following recent projects.
p

ace endicoExpansion of Ace Endico in Southeast.

In September 2017, PCIDA extended additional benefits for a 75,000 sq. ft. expansion to its existing 125,000 sq. ft. facility. The project retained the existing 310 jobs and promised an additional 75. Today, Ace Endico employs almost 500 people. It has also continued to prove itself as a wonderful community neighbor by increasing its food sales at the retail level and its support of local food banks during the COVID-19 crisis.

Conversion of the Fox Ridge Hotel to the Comfort Inn Hotel (in Southeast)

This project took over the failed Fox Ridge Hotel project, saving it from foreclosure. With PCIDA benefits it was able to revise the proposed project into a national franchise Comfort Inn Hotel. Unfortunately, it received its Certificate of Occupancy just five days before it had to close down in compliance with the COVID-19 PAUSE. However, they immediately offered their hospitality services to the County Health Department and the Bureau of Emergency Services to accommodate essential workers who were working around the clock. They look forward to hosting tourists and the many families that have been looking for accommodations for visiting relatives and friends.

The Gleneida Distillery (in Carmel)

The PC IDA benefits are an integral part of the $44 million project that will bring an international distiller to a long underutilized property in Carmel. It will also offer an additional benefit as tourism stops along the County Bike Path.

In the following weeks, I will be featuring the role and contributions of the Economic Development Corporation and Putnam County Tourism.
p
Be safe, be kind, be productive.
Jennifer Maher
Chairwoman
Putnam County Business Council

REGISTER for the next Putnam Countywide Virtual Networking Event

DATE: Thursday July, 2nd
TIME:  7 PM
As we continue to Re-Open our goal is to keep your business going and keep you engaged with fellow business professionals, exchange ideas and promote your brand without leaving the comfort of your home or office!
p
Meet new contacts and connect at this virtual networking reception!
p
REGISTRATION IS REQUIRED — Register BELOW before we reach capacity!
REGISTER

PPP EZ Application – Step-by-Step Instructions for Maximizing PPP Loan Forgiveness REGISTER for the webinar replay

The SBA has released the new PPP Loan Forgiveness Application Form 3508EZ, which is designed to streamline PPP forgiveness for certain businesses. While applying for forgiveness may still seem overwhelming – even with this simper form – the EZ form requires fewer calculations and less documentation. Join NFIB’s weekly webinar with Beth Milito and Holly Wade as they walk through the EZ form together and answer frequently asked questions.
p
The new PPP loan forgiveness applications reflect changes to the PPP made by the Paycheck Protection Flexibility Act of 2020, P.L. 116-142, which became law June 5. The applications and instructions are available in the links below:
p
p
Register Now and we’ll email you an on-demand version!
REGISTER