County economic development officials outline 2024 wins, ARPA-funded site work and business assistance; legislators press for labor‑force analysis

Chautauqua County Industrial Development Agency (CCIDA) leaders presented a summary of 2024 activity to the Planning and Economic Development Committee on March 19, listing deals, grant wins and ARPA‑funded infrastructure work intended to make county sites “shovel ready.” County officials and IDA staff framed the presentation as an update on grant leverage, site preparation and programs to help local businesses modernize marketing and expand.

“...In 2024, the CCIDA board approved or assisted 18 projects,” Mark Geiss, deputy county executive for economic development and CEO of the IDA, told the committee, citing a cumulative investment figure the agency estimated at more than $311 million if all projects are realized and a combined total of about 1,500 jobs created or retained. Geiss said the IDA and its partner, the nonprofit Partnership for Economic Growth, together pursue projects, grants and marketing to attract investment.

Key ARPA‑backed projects and numbers reported - Ripley shovel‑ready site: Geiss said the county allocated $4.8 million in ARPA funds plus roughly $1.13 million in county capital for site acquisition and preparation; the IDA added about $1 million and secured roughly $8.3 million in FAST NY and ARC grants, producing an estimated project budget in the $15.2 million range. The work includes environmental due diligence, utility extensions (including a roughly two‑mile electric extension whose engineering contract with National Grid is close to $500,000), road and turn‑lane construction and permitting. The stated design and permitting schedule shows field work April–June 2025, design and permitting through December 2025, bidding and contract awards in late 2025/early 2026 and construction targeted March–October 2026. - Mason Industrial Park: Phase 1 environmental due diligence cost was about $139,000 split between IDA and county; phase 2 infrastructure stub‑in was budgeted at $499,500 of ARPA funding for water, gravity sewer, 100 linear feet of asphalt road, gas and utilities and associated stormwater and erosion controls. - County Business Assistance Program: The IDA and partners used about $4.71 million in ARPA funds, matched with $258,000 from the Ralph C. Wilson Jr. Foundation and other sources, to award marketing and capacity grants (up to $10,000) to 84 businesses and nonprofit organizations; average award cited at about $7,775. - Broadband: The county allocated $1,000,000 of ARPA funding for broadband mapping and to support selected builds; staff reported that much of the remaining rural broadband gap will be addressed by the state ConnectAll program and other large grant opportunities.

Geiss said the IDA and Partnership try to leverage county investment: “The county in terms of its return on investment is just, you know, it's phenomenal,” he told the committee when a legislator noted that county contributions were a small share of total grant draws.

IDA structure, funding and marketing activity Millen Tyler, outside counsel for the IDA, described the agency’s state statutory structure and emphasized the IDA’s independence under state law, while Mark Geiss and Jason Sample, the IDA’s marketing coordinator, described the IDA’s annual county funding (about $240,000 historically) and the way those funds are used for business development assistance, marketing (including the Live and Choose CHQ talent campaign), and partnerships with regional organizations. Sample reported the Live CHQ site, launched in April 2024, had roughly 75,000 visits with 90 percent coming from outside the county.

Questions from legislators Several legislators pressed the IDA and planning staff about priorities and labor‑force trends. Former legislator Fred Leifer and others urged a county planning study to analyze the long‑term population and workforce decline the county has experienced, arguing that many local employers’ difficulty hiring reflects a long‑term shrinkage of the labor pool rather than short‑term recruitment challenges. Geiss and other presenters acknowledged the hiring challenges facing manufacturers and employers and said talent attraction, placemaking, housing and workforce readiness are central to the Partnership’s work.

Why it matters: Committee members and IDA leaders framed the work as a mix of site readiness, targeted grant chasing and small‑business assistance intended to help retain local employers and attract new investments. The Ripley and Mason projects are intended to expand the county’s supply of developable industrial acreage, and the business assistance grants and marketing campaign aim to help existing firms survive and grow.

Ending: Committee members did not vote on the IDA presentation itself; several members thanked IDA staff for the briefing and requested follow‑up materials such as the full presentation and project timelines. A legislator asked that the Ripley funding not be released until bond/collateral documentation (a lien or bond document securing county investment in site property and improvements) is in place; IDA staff said bond documents and collateral language will be prepared and funding disbursements will follow agreed conditions.