Utica’s Big Bounce Back
-- The resurgence of the Mohawk Valley area through Nanotechnology and quality of life.
By Rob Thrasher
Will this year, 2013, be referred to as the year Utica bounced back from our post-industrial malaise? The Utica-Rome area has endured a continual flow of negative news. The U.S. Department of Defense Base Realignment and Closure Commission in 1993 dealt a big blow to the area and Utica-Rome never seemed to bounce back. Unfortunately, this kind of constant negative feedback starts to breed an overall sense of negativity and citizens of the area needed a break. Well, there have been a series of unprecedented positive news events recently, indicating that Utica might be experiencing a resurgence.
Governor Andrew M. Cuomo announced on October 10th, 2013 that six leading global technology companies will invest $1.5 billion to create ‘Nano Utica,’ the state’s second major hub of nanotechnology research and development. The consortium, according to the October 10th announcement, of leading global technology companies that will create Nano Utica are led by Advanced Nanotechnology Solutions Incorporated (ANSI), SEMATECH, Atotech, and SEMATECH and CNSE partner companies, including IBM, Lam Research and Tokyo Electron. The consortium will be headquartered at the CNSE-SUNYIT Computer Chip Commercialization Center.
Good news about businesses opening, Nano Utica, a new entrepreneurial incubator called thINCubator, which I reported last month, and what seems to be a new sense of team-work in the area seem to indicate a bounce-back. According to New York State Assemblyman Anthony J. Brindisi, from the 119th district, the Nano Utica project was, “...a bipartisan team effort...” It is refreshing to see politicians come together for the betterment of our area. Assemblyman Brindisi also commented, “We were in contact with the Governor and his office throughout this process. I honestly don’t think we would have this success without the Governor’s leadership and vision.” The thINCubator should open this month in downtown Utica, at Bagg’s Square, and we will have some pictures to post on the FaceBook page very soon. Assemblyman Brindisi commented about the new incubator, “I think it is a great idea. Any time we can put entrepreneurs together and give them the resources and space to help them innovate and create the next generation of jobs, we are heading in the right direction.”
What type of jobs and how soon they would become available? Assemblyman Brindisi explained that some of the jobs are “available immediately” through construction at the site. Over the coming months the public will be made aware of jobs as they begin to ramp up the project. One key feature of these jobs is the fact that they span across many job categories. They include, as mentioned, construction, but also include executive, management, technical, custodial and more.
Governor Cuomo was quoted as saying in a press release at this official website, “With this announcement, New York is replicating the tremendous success of Albany’s College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering right here in Utica and paving the way for more than a billion dollars in private investment and the creation of more than 1,000 new jobs. The new Nano Utica facility will serve as a clean room and research hub for Nano Utica whose members can tap into the training here at SUNYIT and local workforce, putting the Mohawk Valley on the map as an international location for nanotechnology research and development. This partnership demonstrates how new New York is making targeted investments to transition our state’s economy to the 21st century and take advantage of the strengths of our world class universities and highly trained workforce,”
Assemblymember Brindisi remarked via an email interview, "I believe that we have to strike while the iron is hot to begin linking potential companies and industries with our SUNY asset here in the Mohawk Valley." Assemblymember Brindisi recently attended START-UP NY to inform hundreds of leaders and CEO’s from all over the world about Nano Utica. Governor Cuomo deemed the meeting as, “...the most ambitious economic development program in New York State’s recent history.”
Adding to the quality of life in the Utica-Rome area, the Comets have come to town. The Utica Comets is the AHL Affiliate of the Vancouver Canucks. The upgrades to the Utica Auditorium and the surrounding area in addition to booming numbers for the Utica College hockey team are quality of life improvements that are immediate, but a renewed sense of pride in local sports teams is another indicator of a big bounce back. Comets chairman, area entrepreneur, sports enthusiast and Mohawk Valley Community College Executive Director of Instructional Advancement Frank Duross Sr. said about the record-breaking ticket sales via news release at the Comets website, “The fan response has been extraordinary.” Comets President Robert Esche was quoted in that same press release: “The Utica Comets hockey fans have totally just blown us away. One thousand season tickets sold, with our box office being open for under thirty hours...” Finally, via a document sent to me via email that was co-authored by Mr. Duross and Mr. Esche they commented, “The return of hockey to Utica helps many community projects move forward. Suddenly, with 30-some players coming to Utica making hefty salaries and wanting places to stay during the season, the market for loft apartments in the city, only a few blocks from practice, has never looked better.”
During the course of writing this article F.X. Matt announced their expansion. It seems increasingly likely that future generations of Utica-Rome area residents will look back at 2013 as a turning point at which Utica-Rome turned the corner and marched directly into the information age. There will be a post on the FaceBook page where we ask if you think this really might be a turning point, or if you doubt it is. Agree or disagree, please join us to share your opinion!
A quote from the release can be found here: http://assembly.state.ny.us/mem/Anthony-J-Brindisi/story/54552/
Can you tell me what type of jobs and how soon they will be available. Construction is ongoing, so right now construction jobs are being created at the site. Over the coming months, we will make sure that the public will be aware of job openings. The great news about the size and scope of a project like this is that all kinds of jobs are being created: executive management jobs all the way to custodial jobs.
How were you, and others, instrumental in making the Nano Utica a real thing?
It truly was a bipartisan team effort to put a project like this together. These public-private partnerships rely on business and government coming together to have a vision for the future. I’m extremely proud to be part of the team that helped take Nano Utica from an idea to a reality for our region.
Is there a website yet? If not, will there be? If yes, when? Not as of yet.
Do you know about the "thINCubator" opening in Baggs Square? Can you comment on that? I do know about the ‘thINCubator’ in Baggs Square and I think it is a great idea. Any time we can put entrepreneurs together and give them the resources and space to help them innovate and create the next generation of jobs, we are heading in the right direction.
Do you think we will have a resurgence of the "Good Old Days" in the Utica-Rome area as a result of, or the cause of, Nano tech? Our region has a lot of simultaneous projects so it’s hard to say what will be the ‘one’ thing that truly puts us back on the right track. I think there is a lot of work ahead of us, but clearly Nanotech demonstrates that our collective future is bright.
How hard is it to get over $200 million committed to a large-scale project like Nano Utica? How long have you, and the others, been working on this? In other words, how long did you have to keep such a great secret? It’s obviously not an easy task to coordinate a project like this and have everything fall into place, and it truly was a team effort from the Governor on down. Negotiations had been ongoing for months, working on the details of the project. At its core, the project is moving forward because our community has a lot to offer the high-tech industry and it took vision and action by those of us in government to get this project over the goal line.
How much interaction did you, or others, have with the Governor on this project? How was he to interact with? We were in contact with the Governor and his office throughout this process. I honestly don’t think we would have this success without the Governor’s leadership and vision.
Who, or what entity, do people interested in the Nano-jobs contact? Go straight to the businesses, colleges, David Mathis at Working Solutions. Right now, all I would say is that for people who are interested in jobs in this industry should make sure that they have the proper training and background for this type of work. Our local community colleges are great avenues for people to gain the necessary skills and knowledge to succeed in this industry, so people should really start with a solid education at one of our local Community Colleges.
Notes, Contacts, etc.
John Keefe had no idea what the future would hold when the factory where he’d worked for 23 years announced it would be closing about five years ago. “I only have a high school degree and I had never even made a resume,” the 52-year-old Albany area resident said. “When they said they would be closing down, I was wondering if I’d be able to find anything.”
Oneida County’s Director of Workforce Development David Mathis said he is drawing up plans now to help people looking to transition into the new jobs. The Computer Chip Commercialization Center, known as the Quad-C, is under construction now at SUNYIT and is set to open in late 2014.
Steve Janack, a spokesman for the College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering. “There will be a complement of jobs filled even before the facility is officially opened,” he said in an email. “The growth of jobs will come in waves as tools and equipment and programs come on line.”
Rebecca LaForest, 29, is also a work station operator in Albany and, like Keefe, stepped into the job without any specific training.
At the same time, SUNYIT is also ramping up its programs to help fill the expected higher level positions as well, Geer said.
Company Chairman Hector Ruiz said he happy to bring such jobs back to the U.S., and to the Mohawk Valley in particular. “We believe manufacturing in Utica will be world-class, cost competitive and allow is to offer faster innovation, supply chain benefits and added security of manufacturing,” he said in an emailed statement.
Jenna Turman, 28, moved to the Mohawk Valley nine weeks ago from Michigan. “It was really quick,” she said. “I had to find a place pretty much sight unseen. Michigan was the same way, so many people leave because of the job opportunities but I’m living proof that there are jobs here. My position is employer relations coordinator so it’s part of my job to be in the community.”
Richard Florida, a business and creativity professor at the University of Toronto and a global research professor at New York University,
Florida believes that if cities develop what he calls the “three T’s” -- tolerance, technology and talent -- entrepreneurs will find those cities attractive places to live.
encourage that entrepreneurial spirit, said Peggy O'Shea, president and CEO of the Community Foundation of Herkimer and Oneida Counties, which sponsored Florida’s talk.
O'Shea pointed to the revitalization of Bagg’s Square in Utica and the area's first TEDx talk taking place later this month as signs that the push for more young professionals was happening.
“That in itself is amazing,” she said of the TEDx talk.
Pamela Matt, the chamber’s executive director. To help combat that, she recruited 15 area young professionals to form Catalyst.
Many upstate businesses want to stay but struggle to recruit and retain talented workers, said Robin Blakely-Armitage, a sociology professor and senior extension associate at Cornell University's Community and Regional Development Institute.
“I think more regional businesses are turning to universities and saying, ‘What can you do to help us?’” she said.
The state does see young professionals leave the area but a lot of them return, she said.
“Incentives to come down and live here would be wonderful,” she said. “Anyone who says there isn’t anything going on has their head in the sand.”
Follow @OD_Hughes on Twitter or call him at 792-5063.
VIDEO: Ben Crossley (part 2)
Oct 13, 2013 @ 05:01 AM
M&T Branch Manager and Utica native Benjamin Crossley explains what the area has to offer young professionals.