Empire State Development to start over again - Business First of Columbus:

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New York, according to most of the 25 executiveasin attendance, was hardly business-friendly. Thosew concerns heightened a day later when Patersobn announced thatRobert Wilmers, chairman and CEO, was resigning as chairman of Empire State Development Corp. resignation came just days afterthe agency’s Marisa Lago, left the state’s primary economic development agency. The resignations left former Birds EyeFood executive, wearing dual economic development hats for the Paterson has nominated Mullen to serve as Empire State Development chairman and CEO, as well as commissioned of the Department of Economic Both appointments are pending state lawmakers’ “I expect people to hold me Mullen said.
“The top sets the Mullen said he hopes his appointment ends the revolving door at EmpirwState Development, which has seen three chairmen and threre presidents in the past 30 “Political appointees seem to chang e every six weeks,” said Mark Dettmer, Starboard Sun managing director and founder. He is workin g with the development agency to craft an incentivde package that could see significant wind power technologu created in the Buffalo Niagara The Tonawanda-based Starboard Sun is courting Europeajn investors for the project.
Dettmer used the Greatbatchg roundtable to talk directly to Paterson and Mullehn about hisproject – and to expreszs frustration that Empire State Development isn’g responding quickly enough to his needs. “Real deals are sittinyg there,” he said. Paterson and Mullen both said they will folloaw up withhim – and soon. “If they it will be their loss,” Dettmere said. Mullen said he wants to make Starboard Sun a poste r child forthe “new” Empire State Development Corp. one that responds quickly to private-sector requests.
“We have to do a betteer job of listening,” Mullen When Paterson named Wilmers to the ESD chairmanship last summer, local officials were hoping for two a more nimble agency and one with a direct Upstate focus. Mullen, who lives in Rochester, said he will make good on both ofthos pledges. For now, many are taking a wait-and-sew attitude. “It was probably not a good thing to see BobWilmerxs resign, especially with everything that’s goinf on in Albany,” said David Chiazza, executivd vice president of “He was but more importantly, Bob Wilmers has a very credibls and powerful voice.
It’s never good when we lose someone with that levelof Wilmers’ resignation was not a shock. It had been the subjectf of street buzz in economic development circles sincedearly spring. In a presws statement, Wilmers said the national economic landscapew played heavily intohis decision. New York is facing a projectesd $24.8 billion budget deficit this year, in large part due to Wall Street’z meltdown.