By DAN HEATH
Environmentally friendly industry, educational opportunities and Canadian businesses are seen as major forces in the future job market.
At the Third annual Adirondack Young Professionals Economic Development and Talent Retention Forum, government, education and economic-development figures provided their outlook on that future. The panel included Erin Hynes, an economic developer with The Development Corp.; City of Plattsburgh Mayor Donald Kasprzak; Susan Matton, vice president for economic development at the Plattsburgh-North Country Chamber of Commerce; and Janice Padula, a science professor at Clinton Community College.
Moderator Paul Sands, president and general manager of WPTZ and WNNE, first asked the panel what they thought are the emerging job opportunities in the North Country.
Hynes said green technology, such as wind power, solar power and alternative fuels continues to develop in the area.
"I think that's something making its way north," she said.
Padula said the Clinton wind technology program is up and running, built around the college's electrical technology program. She said that will help wind power companies see the opportunity for additional projects in the North Country, with graduating technicians who already live in this area.
"I say to the NIMBY's (not in my back yard) it's going to happen," Padula said. "It's already here."
She said the wind power companies need two technicians for every 10 wind towers. Those jobs start at about $50,000 a year, Padula said.
The college's curriculum committee recently approved two photo-voltaic courses, to develop technicians for the burgeoning solar-power industry.
Matton said it's important that a community or region define what are green jobs. The chamber has commissioned a study by CITEC and the Technical Assistance Center at Plattsburgh State to determine which green jobs are likely to develop locally and what sort of education will be needed to gain that employment.
Kasprzak said aerospace and mass transportation companies, and their satellite suppliers, will continue to have a large presence in this area.
"I think they will bring very good jobs, and they already have," he said.
Sands asked Kasprzak what the city is doing to try to create jobs in the growth industries. The mayor said the city has only a small amount of developable property, but one is Imperial Industrial Park, the former Imperial Wallcoverings Mill.
Satellite companies such as Cintube International, a Nova Bus supplier, have moved in there to take advantage of the city's lower municipal electric rates.
Hynes said The Development Corp. owns and operates three industrial parks in Clinton County. They are the Banker Road Industrial Park and Air Industrial Park in the Town of Plattsburgh and Champlain Industrial Park in the Town of Champlain.
"We have a lot of available and developable space," she said.
Nova Bus suppliers have moved into the parks, including SpencerARL New York and B3CG Interconnect.
Matton said the region will continue to benefit from being Montreal's U.S. suburb. Canadian-based companies will continue to locate in this region, as it gives them access to the American market.
APG-Neuros moved into the Banker Road Industrial Park late last year, Hynes said. It is a joint venture between Quebec-based Aviation and Power Group and South Korea-based Neuros.
The manufacturer of high-efficiency, environmentally friendly industrial turbo blowers created 14 jobs and expects to employ 35 within the next three to five years.
Hynes said one area to improve is getting companies to locate corporate headquarters, and the high-paying jobs they provide, in the North Country. Matton said there are probably more executive-type positions, such as those in human resources, quality assurance and lean manufacturing compliance, than people realize.
"These all require advanced degrees," she said.
Padula said the region is blessed with a number of educational institutions that allow people to gain the knowledge and skills they need. Some can follow a three-tiered approach by starting at CV-TEC and continuing through Clinton and then on to Plattsburgh State.
Clinton aggressively pushes to meet the region's workforce needs, Padula said, and is flexible enough to continue to do so.
"Our job as a community college is to serve the community," she said.
Matton said the region has some strong entrepreneurial programs, such as in the School of Business and Economics at Plattsburgh State. The school's North Country Small Business Development Center is another place for start-up businesses to find assistance.
"Those people (entrepreneurs) are the future. They risk it all to start their own business," she said.
Pre-employment programs, such as Solid Foundations and the National Work Readiness Certificate, are becoming more common and can help develop skills to land a job, Hynes said.
Sands asked how the region will be able to fill the gap created by the loss of more than 600 jobs as Pfizer closes three local facilities and cuts staff at the Rouses Point manufacturing plant.
Matton said in economic development, the trick is to always be looking at that next thing.
"We can't sit on our laurels," she said.
On the horizon are potential new contracts for Nova Bus and Bombardier, Matton said.
It's important to remember that economic development takes time, she said, noting it took years to launch Plattsburgh Aeronautical Institute and land Target.
Tourism continues to provide many jobs in the region, mainly thanks to the region's mountains and lakes. Matton said it is considered an export by the U.S. Department of Commerce, because it brings new money into a region.
"It is an economic driver here in the North Country," she said.
E-mail Dan Heath at: dheath@pressrepublican.com
