Business group opposes ESD changes

Unshackle Upstate is voicing concerns over reports that Gov. David Paterson plans to change the co-chairmanship structure of Empire State Development Corp.

The lobbying group is objecting to plans by Gov. David Paterson to end the practice of having Upstate and Downstate chairman overseeing the state's lead economic development agency. Paterson has said he would like one person to be in charge of ESD, ending the two-headed approach started by former Gov. Eliot Spitzer.

After Paterson replaced Spitzer, the man in charge of the Downstate office, Patrick Foye, resigned. Daniel Gunderson remains as the head official Upstate, working out of an office in Buffalo.

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Unshackle Upstate leaders said Friday they feel strongly that the Upstate region has been much better serviced by the co-chaired structure than it was in the days of the single, Manhattan-centric approach, which controlled economic development initiatives for decades.

"The current structure provides the Upstate region with a government official with the power to hire and fire staff, approve projects and allocate resources - the powers necessary to effectively move the Upstate economy forward," said Sandy Parker, president and CEO of the Rochester Business Alliance. "To dilute those powers in any way would be a huge step backwards in terms of Gov. Paterson's commitment to Upstate business owners struggling to stay afloat and the people they employ. How can we have a revitalized economy if Empire State Development packs up its bags and heads home to mid-town Manhattan again?"

Unshackle Upstate released a list of 20 projects tended to by ESD since the Upstate office was put in place in fall 2006.

Andrew Rudnick, president and CEO of the Buffalo Niagara Partnership, expressed a lack of confidence that the region, which has suffered economically for many years, will receive the attention it needs if the state agency reverts to previous operations.

"It's not about titles, it's about having the authority to make the deals and decisions necessary to move the economic needle in our fragile region," he said.

Paterson recently toured Upstate cities, including ESD's new office in downtown Buffalo.

Unshackle Upstate leaders are reaching out to the state legislators who represent the region asking them to push Paterson to reconsider.