Growing Newburgh: Part One
Posted in Cottage Industry, Live-work | Last Updated February 1, 2018
GROWING NEWBURGH PART ONE: A look at The Orange County Industrial Development Agency, The Accelerator, and TSEC
Three agencies, one goal: growth in the Hudson Valley
These three agencies coordinate to offer a variety of resources to businesses, start-ups and entrepreneurs, in The Hudson Valley, and specifically in Newburgh with a special focus on: small sewing production; bottling of drinks, etc.,; artisanal manufacturers; and artisanal food makers.
Two of the agencies, The Accelerator and the Orange County Industrial Development Agency (The OCNYIDA), oversee a physical plant that is in close proximity to Newburgh and which offer “pods” to startups and entrepreneurs.
The third agency, TSEC, funds and oversees the A River of Opportunities’ Campaign and this website, and works in a variety of capacities to encourage industry and job growth in the Hudson Valley region, by funding capital intensive equipment.
Specifically, as it pertains to A River of Opportunities Campaign, TSEC has a focus on supporting the Campaign’s goals as well as re-establishing the once-bustling manufacturing industry in the City of Newburgh.
The Opportunity in Newburgh’s New Zoning Regulations
TSEC targets cottage industry entrepreneurs and garment manufacturers (the creative class of makers) considering start-up or expansion in the Hudson Valley, or re-shoring to the U.S., specifically in Newburgh.
Because the Planning Board of the City of Newburgh and its city partners made the strategic decision to revise the city’s zoning laws, it’s much easier for small scale makers and manufacturers to do business in the city.
TSEC encourages this by promoting the re-use of vacant manufacturing buildings via online marketing, promoting various commercial use, including the newly designated live-work neighborhoods within the city, and spot-lighting successful businesses in Newburgh.
Ultimately, by raising awareness about new economic activity, TSEC believes jobs and opportunity will be created for unemployed or underemployed city residents.
This website, and its associated digital properties such as our Facebook page, our Instagram and Twitter accounts, and our email marketing newsletter, all work in support of economic growth.
But it goes further.
Customized Training Programs
TSEC believes that in order to support and enhance the marketing campaign, it must offer customized training programs to meet the specified needs of manufacturers or entrepreneurs, who are considering locating their manufacturing operations in Newburgh.
These training programs are offered free of charge because they are supported by federal and NYS business attraction grants. Training programs can be provided at the manufacturer’s place of business, or they can be provided by TSEC’s partner organization, the Orange County Accelerator on campus or through the Accelerator Without Walls program, featured here.
TSEC will work with the manufacturer or entrepreneur to develop training modules to precisely mimic the craft skills that individuals will need to perform specified tasks.
To date, TSEC has provided training to entry-level assembly employees for an LED lighting firm, along with training in advanced sewing machine operation and garment tailoring for several start-up companies. TSEC is also preparing to conduct welding and HVAC training classes, which have been requested by local manufacturers.
As an added incentive to attract manufacturers and entrepreneurs to locate their operations in Newburgh, TSEC has access to several million dollars in capital funding from NYS Empire State Development.
This funding is used by TSEC to purchase equipment to support its training programs., thus enabling TSEC to offer the training free of charge. Again, this training equipment can be located either in the manufacturer’s place of business or in TSEC’s training facilities, or through partner facilities.
This funding is also used by TSEC to purchase specialized test/characterization equipment or pilot line manufacturing equipment, which can be located in the manufacturer’s place of business and can be used, for example, to develop and test new products, improve existing products or to enhance manufacturing processes.
A partner relationship with the Orange County Business Accelerator, powered by the IDA.
According to the IDA, the Orange County Business Accelerator recognized a “need for a space where young businesses could begin and grow.”
The IDA launched the Accelerator in 2009 by opening its doors to a number of start-up businesses seeking guidance.
The Accelerator in its own words is “a business incubator program offering affordable, fully-equipped high-tech office space to new businesses, and aims to guide these businesses through their first steps on the way to success.” They do so separate and apart from TSEC, though they also work together, as mentioned.
By providing assistance in marketing and business plan creation, the Business Accelerator is designed to attract new entrepreneurial investment.
The IDA, under which the Accelerator is governed, is an agency that according to its website, “promotes economic growth through a program of incentives-based allocations that assist in the construction, equipping and maintenance of specific types of projects and facilities. The IDA works to advance the health, prosperity and economic welfare of our County’s citizens by retaining and creating jobs and attracting new businesses.”
A Focus on Four Business Categories
There are four identifiable categories of business which the IDA through the ACCELERATOR are intensely and specifically focused on and it is also important to note the Accelerator is the only state certified accelerator in the Hudson Valley.
The focus is actually centered around “pods,” which the Accelerator deems concentrated incubators.
The pods are:
A Sewing Center: The Sewing Center provides makers with the resources they need to help their businesses succeed. It has all the tools needed for craftsmanship, creative collaboration and small-run sewing production.
Bottling: Bottling is one of the fastest-growing manufacturing industries in the Hudson Valley. From drinks to scents and soap, the product possibilities are unlimited. The Accelerator offers help and guidance to entrepreneurs looking produce their unique products at The Accelerator.
Artisan Manufacturing: Artisan Manufacturing covers a wide range of product development (such as jewelry, mold making, home organizational products, etc.), and is a blossoming cottage industry and a critical key to the “maker movement” taking place in New York.
Artisan Food Manufacturing: The Accelerator takes great pride in supporting the food cluster and what it means to enhance this thriving market. We provide the means so your business can expand beyond your kitchen and into a space equipped with today’s modern food processing needs.
Over time, we will be taking a deeper dive into exploring these four categories and the way that Newburgh is poised to benefit from the agencies that coordinate these offerings.