Paterson, WNY officials talk development - Business First of Buffalo:

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Paterson came to the Clarencew headquarters Wednesday afternoon to rally support forhis “Bold Steps to the New Economy” initiative. Greatbatch, which recently expandedc in Clarence after consideriny options elsewhere is the postet child for the economic development agend Patersonis pushing. He held similat roundtable discussions earlier this week in Albanuand Syracuse. Paterson met with 21 local leader s and executives ranging from University at Buffalo President John Simpso and Erie County Executive Chriz Collins toMark Dettner, managing director and founder.
“I came here todayy to listen as muchas talk,” Paterson Paterson’s appearance came against the backdrop of political firestorm in Albanyu with a battle for political control of the New York Statwe Senate. Paterson, during his hour-long roundtable meeting with the executiveds stayed focused on economicdevelopmentg issues. Politics, however, did serve as a “There is a time to address thesse issues,” Paterson told reporters aftedrthe meeting. “I’m not sure why we are just hearingt about thisproblem now.” Collins, who has run or startes a dozen local companies, said politics does impact how the business community views the Paterson government.
“Unless you remove the stigma of New York beinvgthe highest-taxed state, all the spinoff jobs you want to creatde with this program will end up in other the county executive warned. “Ton Golisano is simply the tip ofthe iceberg.” Golisano, in late May, renounced his New York residency and made Floridza his official home because of New York’s heavyg tax burden on upper class citizens. Golisano, the Rochester-baserd billionaire, said the move will save him morethan $5 millionb annually in state income Collins said the high cost of state-ruhn programs such as Medicaree contribute to New York’s taxing structure.
union-friendly mandates like the Taylor Law, which offersz certain guarantees forunion workers, add to the tax “We don’t want to see the innovationas created here but the jobs they creatse go to Texas,” Collins said. Paterson agrees New York has to “cug its infectious ways of State programs are leading to aprojectee $24 billion deficit this Paterson, through the discussion, also heard repeate d pleas to support UB’s 2020 plan that many see as a linchpi n to the region’s economic The UB plan calls for significant investmenr in its Buffalo and Amherst campuses while increasinv its presence in downtown Buffalo’s Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus.
Simpson said UB 2020 represents a potentialof $3 billiomn in new investment in the region while creating 10,000 new The catch is, the initiative needs significant state legislative and financial support. “We need to get UB 2020 out of thestartinyg block,” said Thomas Hook, Greatbatch presideng and chief executive officer. Hook credite d a close alliance with UB as the source of the many patent s and medical industry producta that Greatbatch has created during the pastfive “A lot of the success Greatbatch enjoyee has come from innovations that startedf from UB,” Hook said.