With all due respect, recent news reports on the effort to lure New York businesses to other states are, as we like to say in Texas, "full of more broth than beans."
The reality is that corporations are moving to New York with increasing regularity. And, with the high-tech investments made by Gov. Andrew Cuomo, combined with his business-friendly policies, New York's improved economic climate is making it a sought-after location for businesses from around the world, including Texas.
My company, Presidian Hotels & Resorts of San Antonio, is a prime example. While we have worked both nationally and internationally for more than two decades, we are currently involved in our first project in New York: restoration of the historic Rip Van Dam hotel, a pre-Civil War structure that is an iconic piece of Saratoga Springs' history. We also are exploring additional locations ripe for high-end, four-star development befitting the Capital Region and upstate New York.
We used to view this region as a four-month market. Now, with the continued growth at the College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering in Albany, the arrival of GlobalFoundries in Malta, and the development of the high-tech industry statewide, we see this as a 12-month market with great potential for explosive future growth.
Add to that Gov. Cuomo's brilliant Tax-Free NY proposal tweaked by the Legislature to be Start-Up NY, which gives companies a most compelling reason to take another look at New York, and you have an innovative recipe for success in our 21st century economy.
And, I suspect, one that will have more businesses doing the "Texas Two-Step" to New York.
H. Drake Leddy
Chairman and CEO, Presidian Hotels & Resorts, San Antonio, Texas