By Adina Genn
A new task force at HIA-LI is set to implement an action plan to optimize the long-term economic impact of the 1,400-acre Long Island Innovation Park at Hauppauge (up until recently was called the Hauppauge Industrial Park).
The action plan is based on the recommendations of the 160-page opportunity analysis by the Suffolk County IDA and Regional Plan Association that was released earlier this year. Leading the analysis was James Lima of James Lima Planning + Development, a New York City-based planning firm whose client list includes Facebook, several agencies for the City of New York, the University of Tennessee and other villages, cities and foundations.
A 41-year-old organization, the HIA-LI serves as the voice of the industrial park, where 55,000 people are employed. The park delivers $13 billion in annual output, according to the HIA-LI.
The report’s findings show that the park is the “undisputed anchor of Long Island’s ’tradable’ economy,’” which brings “new dollars and commerce into the region,” according to a press release about the new task force.
“These findings confirmed and expanded all of our conclusions and suspicions about the Long Island Innovation Park,” Joe Campolo said in a statement about plans to move forward with implementing key recommendations. Campolo is the managing partner of Campolo, Middleton & McCormick, a law firm in Ronkonkoma, who serves as chairman of the HIA-LI board of directors,
According to the analysis, there is room for growth at the park. The report found that this is especially so in tradable industries. These industries in the region make up 23 percent of Long Island’s economy, while the national average is 36 percent. The study also found that “58 percent of the park’s workforce represents jobs in tradable industries, a figure two-and-a-half times greater than that of Long Island as a whole.”
Now, the task force is focusing on five strategic areas to realize growth. These areas include facilitating business growth, attracting and retaining key knowledge workers, strengthening training and workforce development, promoting innovation, and strengthening connections with businesses, government, and institutions.
“Our mission now is to accelerate this growth by relentlessly spreading the word about the park as the region’s premier hub for growing businesses, and to continue building bridges between the public and private sectors to truly make an enormous impact,” Campolo said.
“We’re working on a specific and strategic plan to truly maximize the park’s long-term potential,” Terri Alessi-Miceli, HIA-LI’s president and CEO, said in a statement. “The members of this task force have the expertise to transform its vision into a reality.”
Members of the Innovation Park Task Force also include Carol Allen, president and CEO of People’s Alliance Federal Credit Union; Anthony Manetta of HB Solutions; Rich Humann, president and CEO of H2M Architects + Engineers; Jim Coughlan, principal of TRITEC Real Estate; Bob Quarte, managing partner of AVZ Certified Public Accountants; Jack Kulka of the Kulka Group; and Kevin O’Connor, president and CEO of BNB Bank.