Westchester County Business News, May 18, 2016

City of Yonkers Approves Rezoning In Carpet Mills Arts District

On Tuesday, May 10, 2016, zoning was officially approved and signed off on by the City of Yonkers to allow the first floor of the Carpet Mills Arts District (CMAD), in Yonkers, to build out the current vacant, commercialized warehouses that occupied the area into retail store fronts. The approved zoning will help allow the historic area to potentially become a retail and tourist destination for the city. (CMAD stretches from Lake Avenue on the north to Ashburton Avenue on the south and Nepperhan Avenue on the west to Saw Mill River Road on the east.) The open storefronts will give space to potential business owners and entrepreneurs to open shops, restaurants, amusements, sports, boutiques, dry cleaners, event space, retail home furnishing stores, and art galleries. Additionally, the rezoning project of CMAD will bring in new types of tenants, which could mean a boost in jobs, sales taxes, and upgrades in the area. “Yonkers is establishing itself as a destination city for artists to live, work and exhibit, and people are taking notice,” said Yonkers Mayor, Mike Spano. “Yonkers has become home to an emerging arts scene, and creating an arts district at the once thriving Carpet Mills site is the next step in telling our story.” The City of Yonkers, he added, hopes to follow in the footsteps of areas that are now flourishing with art galleries and retail spaces, such as SOHO, Williamsburg, Hoboken, Beacon, and Hudson.

 

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IBM Says Goodbye to Somers

IBM announced earlier this week that it will close its Somers office—home to approximately 2,000 employees—in order to consolidate to its Armonk campus by March 2017. It appears that the technology giant will sell the Somers location and renovate the Armonk office. The move will mark the second large corporation to vacate office space in Somers in recent years; PepsiCo moved its employees out of Somers, and sold the previous space last year to Mexican businessman Carlos Slim. IBM has not yet released a statement about the move, so it is unclear whether there will also be layoffs associated with this move.

 

Million Air Gets Go-Ahead For Airport Expansion Project

Private aviation company Million Air recently received unanimous approval from the County Board of Legislators for a major project that includes a new terminal, expanded hangar and ramp facility upgrades at Westchester County Airport. The company has signed a 30-year lease with the Board of Legislators allowing it to expand there. In the new deal, the Texas-based company—the airport’s third fixed-base operator—will invest roughly $70 million. It expects to generate new jobs and create a world-class facility that, it hopes, will attract more corporations to use Westchester Airport.

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Atlas Air Flying High Thanks To Amazon Deal

Purchase-based Atlas Air Worldwide Holdings, Inc. recently announced today that it will provide air cargo services to support Amazon’s package deliveries to its customers. The agreement includes Amazon leasing 20 Boeing 767s from Atlas, starting in the second half of 2016 and ramping up to full service through 2018.

“We are excited to begin a strategic long-term relationship with Amazon to support the continuing expansion of its e-commerce business and to enhance its customer delivery capabilities,” said Atlas Air President and CEO William J. Flynn. “We appreciate Amazon’s confidence in our capabilities, global scale and operating excellence.” As part of the deal, Atlas granted Amazon warrants to acquire up to 20 percent (after the issuance) of Atlas’ common shares at a price of $37.50 per share over a period of five years. The agreements also provide for future growth of the relationship as Amazon may increase its business with Atlas. The news sent Atlas’ stock price soaring 27 percent to $48.65 on May 5, when the deal was announced.

 

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Sen. Andrea Stewart-Cousins Inducted Into Westchester Women’s Hall of Fame

Democratic Conference Leader and State Senator Andrea Stewart-Cousins (D-Yonkers) was inducted into the Westchester Women’s Hall of Fame during a ceremony at the Westchester Marriott in Tarrytown on May. Senator Stewart-Cousins is the 32nd woman to be recognized for her outstanding contributions to Westchester County. “I’m honored to follow in the footsteps of so many great Westchester women inducted into this Hall of Fame,”she said. Senator Stewart-Cousins began her career in public service in 1992 when she became the first African American to serve as Director of Community Affairs for the City of Yonkers. She went on to serve in the Westchester County Legislature where authored Westchester’s Human Rights Law and became Vice-Chair of the Board of Legislators. Senator Stewart-Cousins was first elected to the State Senate in 2006 and currently represents part of White Plains, New Rochelle, and Yonkers, Greenburgh and Scarsdale. She was elected by her colleagues to serve as Leader of the Senate Democratic Conference in 2012, becoming the first female leader of a legislative conference in New York State history.

For more on Stewart-Cousins, check out her profile in 914INC.’s 2015 Women In Business article.

 

Pace Law School Receives Largest Donation In Its History

The kickoff of the newly renamed Elisabeth Haub School of Law was attended by many, including (from left to right): Pace University President Stephen J. Friedman; Environmental Law professor Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.; Liliane Haub; Christian Haub, grandson of Elisabeth Haub and David Yassky, Dean of the Elisabeth Haub School of Law.

Pace University announced today that its law school has been renamed the Elisabeth Haub School of Law in recognition of its long-standing partnership with the family of the late Elisabeth Haub, a tireless environmental advocate and philanthropist, and a generous donation from the Haub family. The gift, the largest that Pace University has received in its history, will establish an endowment for the Law School, strengthen the school’s renowned environmental law program and fund innovative teaching initiatives. “Pace University is thrilled to deepen and broaden its partnership with the Haub family, bolster our environmental curriculum, and continue leading the progress of environmental law and regulation,” said University President Stephen J. Friedman. In addition to providing an endowment, the gift will fund specific initiatives in the school’s Environmental Law program, including the Haub Scholars program, which will provide reduced tuition to a select group of the most highly-qualified and promising environmental law students. The gift also endows a Chair in Environmental Law, a Chair in Public International Law, and an annual Visiting Scholar in a related field, as well as funding for innovative teaching initiatives such as online courses and apprenticeships with law firms and nonprofits.

 

ColumbiaDoctors Opens In Tarrytown

In a major expansion of its presence in Westchester, ColumbiaDoctors unveiled a state-of-the-art medical facility in Tarrytown recently. The custom-designed space is now home to the doctors and providers of ColumbiaDoctors, the faculty practice of NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia University Medical Center. More than 50 cardiologists, neurologists, neurological surgeons, psychiatrists, general, and orthopedic surgeons and experts in rehabilitation and regenerative medicine will now bring their services to Tarrytown. The sleek new space at 155 White Plains Road is located directly across from the westbound entrance/exit of I-287. A ribbon cutting to celebrate the opening was attended by more than 75 people, including leadership at NewYork-Presbyterian and Columbia University Medical Center, as well as local dignitaries including State Senator Andrea Stewart Cousins, Westchester’ s Deputy County Executive Kevin Plunkett and Greenburgh Town Supervisor Paul Feiner.

 

BCW Panel Explores The Business of Politics

From left, Laurence Gottlieb, President and CEO of Hudson Valley Economic Development Corp; BCW President and CEO Marsha Gordon; Evan Stavisky of  The Parkside Group; Bill O’Reilly of The November Team; former U.S. Congressman Tim Bishop;  BCW Executive Vice President and COO John Ravitz and Pace University Senior Vice President and COO William McGrath.

Political campaigns are a big business, generating billions annually for everything from advertising to direct mail to polling. That was the focus of a recent program presented on May 5 at Pace University in Pleasantville by The Business Council of Westchester in partnership with Hudson Valley Economic Development Corp. (HVEDC) that explored the business side of politics. Called “The Business of Politics,” the program featured an impressive panel of political campaign experts that included Evan Stavisky of The Parkside Group; Bill O’Reilly of The November Team; and former U.S. Congressman Tim Bishop. Co-moderators were BCW Executive Vice President and COO John Ravitz and Laurence Gottlieb, President and CEO of HVEDC. 

 

Friedland Realty Advisors Rebrands as RM Friedland

Harrison-based commercial real estate services company Friedland Realty Advisors has announced a rebranding: The company is now known as RM Friedland. Effective immediately, the company is debuting the new name, logo and marketing materials as part of its new brand identity. RM Friedland aligns Friedland Realty with Robert Martin Company, a real-estate investment, development, and management firm, which has had an ownership stake in the business since November 2015 and recently announced a majority stake in the company. The company also announced some leadership changes: William Anson has been named managing director of the company’s industrial division, and Colleen T. Quinn has been named managing director of the retail division. In addition, Sarah Jones-Maturo, who previously served as president is now president and CEO of RM Friedland. Two new hires are Beth White, who will build and enhance the RMF Retail Services Landlord Representation Division, and Joshua Ezman, who joins the company as its marketing director.

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