Written by Erin Hynes and reprinted by permission from the May 2011 issue of Strictly Business magazine. The thought of turning 50 might conjure up images of black balloons or co-workers making jokes about being over the hill. However, for The Development Corporation (TDC), located at 190 Banker Road, Suite 500 in Plattsburgh, New York, turning 50 is an occasion to be embraced and celebrated. For nearly half of a century, TDC has been at the forefront of industrial real estate development and business attraction in Clinton County. The company, which was known until 1996 as the Clinton County Area Development Corporation (CCADC), has evolved from a one-room outfit operating out of donated office space in the old County Court House, to a full-fledged one-stop-shop economic development agency with a professional staff of seven. I had the pleasure of sitting down with Adoré Flynn Kurtz, President of TDC and Don Duley, Chairperson of the Board of Directors, to discuss the history of TDC, its growth as both a real estate and economic developer, and how the ever changing needs of industry have shaped what the organization is today. By way of background, Kurtz, who is a Certified Economic Developer (CEcD), and Certified City and Regional Planner (AICP), has been President of TDC since 1996 and employed with the organization since 1995. There have only been three corporation presidents in the history of the company — an impressive testament to the commitment of loyal leadership and community trust. Her extensive planning background provides TDC with an institutional foundation that is unique to the company. Duley, owner of Duley and Associates located in Plattsburgh, possesses over 30 years of experience in the real estate field, 25 of which has been spent managing his own small businesses. He has served on TDC's Board of Directors for eight years and during his tenure has been an active member of the Executive and Marketing Committees. The Beginning Incorporated in 1961 as a not-forprofit 501(c) (4), TDC has become a focal point for industry in the region. The company owns and operates three industrial parks, two of which are located in Plattsburgh, the other in Champlain. Additionally, TDC serves as the administrator for both the County of Clinton and Town of Champlain Industrial Development Agencies (IDAs) as well as Foreign Trade Zone (FTZ) #54. The company is guided by an all volunteer Board of Directors comprised of 42 members from the community who are truly dedicated to bringing jobs and prosperity to the North County. What makes TDC different than most of its economic development counterparts around the nation is that the corporation was founded and managed by private business owners, not a governmental body. Kurtz explained, “In 1961, there had been talk on how best to market the area as a place to do business. Clinton County legislators made the decision not to be the lead economic development agency and proposed that a private entity, able to operate without the constraints of partisan politics, would be a better option for what the community was trying to accomplish." Enter Gus Lapham. Lapham's economic development model was based on a financially self-sustaining, private not-for-profit organization that would be tasked with attracting new business to Clinton County. Government would be considered a community partner but would not be directly involved with or financially support the daily operations of the corporation. Kurtz continued, “After working for several years to attract companies to the county, it became clear to Lapham and others that the organization needed to become more involved in real estate development. They surmised this added value would enable them to provide the businesses they attracted with options. Moreover, leasing and/or selling buildings the corporation owned would create a revenue-stream, thereby providing TDC with the ability to be self-sustaining and to reinvest in the community." This action enabled TDC to attract local bankers and leaders to the Board of Directors, driven by the prospect of increased investment in the business community. Banks provided seed money for the purchase of land and subsequent construction of facilities, which allowed TDC to begin growing its industrial property base. Growth and Development According to Duley, TDC purchased its first property just off Route 9 in Peru, New York for Montreal-based manufacturer Caristrap. During the 1970s, the organization purchased land from Clinton County (adjacent to the former airport) and established its first, and perhaps most visible park, Air Industrial (AIP), now an impressive 126 acre site. Kurtz's noted that the county structured its purchasemethod so that TDC could buy property at market rate as needed. This allowed for the managed and sustained growth of the organization's real estate holdings over time and created a revenue stream for the county. The company's first industrial building was completed in 1975 and is located on the corner of Military Turnpike and Industrial Boulevard. Almost twenty years after the purchase of the AIP, TDC purchased 200 acres from the Champlain Development Corporation and established what is now known as Champlain Industrial Park. Then in 1998, it purchased additional land in the Town of Plattsburgh, which is now the site of the Banker Road Industrial Park. Today, TDC's three parks are home to over 35 domestic and international businesses including Schonbek Worldwide Lighting, World Warehouse, SpencerARL, Nova Bus, Global Sugar Art, UPS, APG Neuros and Fujitsu, just to name a few. The company itself owns and manages 15 industrial buildings within the parks as well as numerous build-tosuit parcels. Duley related, "One thing TDC has learned over time, and in my opinion is one of our greatest assets, is how to manage land development." He continued, "This may appear easy to an outside observer but it is a very complex process when you consider the variables of how to infrastructure a parcel with utilities, site drainage, parking, etc., in order to support the proposed industrial activities. We owe a lot of our early success to Joe Martina (TDC's long-time consulting engineer and land surveyor) for his design and vision,which laid the groundwork for the strategies we employ today. I truly believe this to be one of the major reasons why businesses find our parks so attractive. Moreover, TDC takes excellent care of it facilities and has a staff person dedicated to managing the properties and working closely with the tenants to make sure all of their needs are met." "Our company continues to build sound infrastructure and competitively designed buildings that present prospects with a real advantage. All of our park's businesses provide quality jobs to local residents. Job creation is TDC's number one goal and the real estate helps us to achieve it," emphasized Kurtz. Diversity and Flexibility are Key Much of TDC's success over the past five decades can be attributed to the strategic diversification of industries in its parks. With the closure of Plattsburgh AFB and major plant closings like Wyeth/Pfizer this diversity has been a stabilizingnforce in the region's economy. "As I see it, there are two schools of thought in economic development today," explained Kurtz. "I think there are those who want to capitalize on industry clusters that have similar needs in terms of workers and resources. Conversely, there are those who think the best kind of economy is one that is diversified. We are a small community and, from my perspective, we must strive to balance industries so that there is enough built-in diversity that if one segment or cluster has a significant change, its impact does not totally throw our community in disarray." Duley dovetailed, "I don't think we would want our industrial base to be completely tied to one big company or a single industry. Diversity allows a community to be able to shift resources, and through partners like the colleges and technical schools, retrain the workforce to augment new business needs." Kurtz pointed out that in addition to diversity, flexibility is also important to long-term success. As an example, "Over the past few years there has been less need for very large warehouse-distribution type buildings. Facilities that cannot easily be adapted to handle multiple tenants tend to languish on the market. In light of this change, TDC has made sure that its large buildings can be easily modified to serve several tenants. Furthermore, this flexibility allows companies to grow in the space as needed and attain their highest levels of economic prosperity." Duley pointed to the corporation's ability to connect businesses with the appropriate local stakeholders and government agencies. "TDC has been a conduit and consummate partner for companies that want to do business in our community. There are a lot of connections--workforce, training, incentives, schools, etc. - that need to be made when a business is considering investing in a facility and we act as their prime resource." "TDC has grown so much over the past 50 years, even to the point, where last year we had to move our offices to a larger space," expressed Kurtz. "We've expanded our parks, built our own buildings, managed the IDA and FTZ on behalf of Clinton County, administered grants, supported workforce training and acted as a liaison between business and government. All of this measured growth and shared vision has enabled us to become a fully-focused economic development group that has withstood the test of time."
