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Joe Campolo, Chairman of the Innovation Park Task Force, delivered these remarks at the HIA-LI “Tradable Sectors & How They Impact the Economy” conference on February 10, 2021. Joe addressed the importance of tradable industries in the LI Innovation Park at Hauppauge, HIA-LI’s relentless efforts to grow these business clusters, and the momentous accomplishments the Task Force has achieved thus far. The panel included Matthew Brown, Vice President of Network Solutions & Technology, John Finn, Director of Leasing & Acquisitions at Damianos Realty Group, LLC, Devin Kulka, CEO of The Kulka Group, Anne Shybunko-Moore, CEO & Owner of GSE Dynamics, Inc, and Marc Blitstein, President & CEO of American Diagnostic Corp.

Good morning. Today we are here to discuss the tradable sectors that anchor the Long Island Innovation Park at Hauppauge, which in turn anchors the Long Island and regional economies.

Contained within the Park’s 11 square miles are about 1,400 companies run by some of the most innovative minds in the country – several of whom we are fortunate to have on our panel today.

Thanks to the HIA-LI’s tireless efforts, including those of the Innovation Park Task Force which I proudly chair, the economic output of the Park has been well documented over the past few years. So has the fact that it is the second largest industrial park in the country, the first being Silicon Valley. These facts attracted the interest of our friends at the Suffolk IDA who, along with the RPA, commissioned an Opportunity Analysis to do a deeper dive into the businesses that reside in the Park and come up with initiatives to further anchor the Park to Long Island’s revitalized economy.

Nearly two years ago, the IDA released the more than 160-page report, and the conclusions were staggering – in addition to verifying the prior economic analysis that had been conducted, this report also found that the Park has the largest concentration of tradable businesses not only on Long Island, but also is a full 20% above the national average for tradable business clusters. 

Why is this so monumental? Well, to a region’s economy, tradable industries are a very big deal. Every ecosystem must include non-tradable businesses – the things that directly support the personal needs of the neighborhood. Thus, every community will have barbers, gas stations, delis, laundromats, 7-11s, and so on. And while these businesses play an important role, they typically employ local people who don’t require enhanced skills and who on average receive lower wages. These businesses are also fully dependent on the immediate residents of that location to consume their goods or services; there is simply not a synergy of either workers or customers who are going to commute a great deal for them. Therefore, dollars from non-tradable industries are non-growth dollars – they are simply being circulated around an area, without new dollars coming in.

High performing ecosystems, however, will also include tradable businesses, which are the businesses that aren’t dependent on customers from their immediate neighborhoods to thrive – these industries include aerospace, biopharma, manufacturing, IT, and others who have chosen to be there for reasons other than direct access to customers. These businesses enhance any community they are in because they vastly increase the local tax base by paying higher wages – all of which greatly stimulates the local economy. Tradable industries also attract skilled workers to relocate here from other states and cities, which also greatly helps grow our tax base without having to continue to raise taxes. An ecosystem with too few tradable businesses suffers greatly because it finds itself simply recirculating dollars rather than growing the pie.

The Opportunity Analysis has shown that while the national average for tradable business clusters is 38%, that percentage is much higher – 58% – in the Park.  Having realized this staggering disparity, a large part of the investigation into the report focused on the “why” – why is this little 11-square-mile tract of land in the middle of Long Island such a hotbed for tradable industries, and the answer, almost uniformly, was this area’s access to a highly skilled workforce.

The excitement we all felt when the report was released two years ago seems more like two decades ago now that COVID dominates our daily lives. But the economic devastation of the past year only makes even more apparent just how critical these tradable businesses are to Long Island’s long-term sustainability. An economy with no tradable businesses will eventually collapse.

Thus, the Opportunity Analysis set forth a very detailed action plan of ways for all stakeholders – private business, government, education, and the HIA-LI – to partner and make sure that we keep this vitality alive in our Park and on Long Island.

I am proud to report that immediately following the Opportunity Analysis, our Task Force rolled up our sleeves and got to work. Already, we have presented the possibility of a workforce development center in the Park to the Long Island Regional Planning Council, which declared this project one of regional significance and issued a grant to further develop the initiative. We have achieved a renewable energy milestone in the Park with the installation of solar panels on the 35,000-square-foot roof of Long Island Cares. We have also worked with the Town of Smithtown to reclassify zoning in part of the Park, allowing developers to apply for exemptions to construct apartment buildings with ground-level retail space.

Just yesterday, our Task Force met to outline our plans for 2021. This is a group made up of leaders in business, education, and government who are dedicated to collaboration and finding points of engagement to move the needle and make an impact. I look forward to sharing the progress of the Task Force with the HIA-LI community.

During this process I have learned that not only is Long Island a national treasure, but we are a national model for how business and government should partner, and how bipartisan cooperation and support, rather than insults, is how we on Long Island operate and get things done.

Achieving an excellent result for a client is always rewarding, but it’s particularly gratifying when that excellent result helps a client hit hard by COVID keep their business afloat.

CMM represents a fence installation company that was sued for various wage claims, including non-payment of overtime, by two individuals claiming to be former employees. Our client steadfastly denied that the plaintiffs were employees, explaining that they worked instead for a subcontractor. The plaintiffs’ attorney argued that our client and the subcontractor were “joint employers” and thus both subject to liability for unpaid wages.

These cases are often uphill battles for employers, but after discovery and depositions, it was clear that our client had not employed the plaintiffs. CMM’s litigation team, including Jeffrey Basso and Richard DeMaio, moved for summary judgment (essentially, asking the Court to find that there are no facts in dispute and to rule in our favor). In the motion, CMM argued that there was no evidence to support the “joint employer” theory.

This month, the Court agreed, issuing a decision that dismissed all claims. The Court wrote a detailed analysis of the factors of the various “joint employer” tests and found that CMM had clearly shown the absence of any triable issues of fact as to the plaintiffs’ employment. In granting our motion, the Court relied on much of what CMM argued and the cases we cited.

This outcome is a huge win for a client whose business was severely impacted by the pandemic. Had the case proceeded to trial, the client would have had an extraordinarily difficult time moving forward with their business. Thanks to CMM’s efforts, liability for the payment of wages to the plaintiffs is with the subcontractor, where it belongs, and our client’s business can continue on.

On January 22, 2021, CMM Managing Partner and HIA-LI‘s Immediate Past Board Chairman Joe Campolo moderated the 43^rd HIA-LI Annual Meeting and Legislative Breakfast, attended by over 150 members of the business community. Joe reported on Long Island’s relentless push for recovery and hope in 2021. He then led a discussion with elected officials about the issues most affecting the business community. Panelists included U.S. Congressman Lee Zeldin, Nassau County Executive Laura Curran, New York State Assemblyman Mike Fitzpatrick, and New York State Senator Mario Mattera, with additional remarks by NYS Lieutenant Governor Kathy Hochul and Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone. Read Joe’s full remarks below.

Good morning everyone. I’m Joe Campolo and I’d like to welcome everyone to our Annual Meeting and Legislative Program.

For the past three years, I have had the privilege of serving the HIA-LI and the Long Island business community as the Chair of the Board and it has been the honor of a lifetime. As my term as Chair now ends, and as we embark on a new and hopefully more prosperous year, I’m proud to continue to serve on the HIA-LI Board and as chair of the Long Island Innovation Park at Hauppauge task force. This task force is comprised of stakeholders and decision-makers from both the public and private sectors who will work together to help ensure the park is being utilized in the most productive way to help boost Long Island and the entire region’s economy. Unlike many other task forces, this one will be rolling its sleeves up and getting things done.

2020 tested all of us, to say the least – and things didn’t magically go “back to normal” when the calendar turned to 2021. Fortunately, Long Island has proven that we are a community of leaders. The way the business community adapted to the realities of the pandemic, took a deep breath, and kept moving forward – rather than be paralyzed by fear – is a testament to the strength of the human spirit. The dedication of our colleagues and neighbors is an example to our country and to the world. And while the national news would have us believe that humanity has turned on its head, we Long Islanders are more united than ever. We may have our disagreements, but in the end, we all have stuck together and helped each other through what will likely be the toughest year of our lives, and gave new meaning to the hashtag #LongIslandStrong.

Through it all, we have also seen that Long Island is a national model for how business and government should partner and that bipartisan cooperation with our elected officials is how we on Long Island operate and get things done. Terri [Alessi-Miceli] and I spent a good part of this past year interacting with many elected officials and agencies to advocate for the business community and never once did politics get in the way – there was only a true desire from all to want to help make our economy as robust as possible while keeping our families safe. Again, notwithstanding what the national news would have you believe, here on Long Island there were no Republicans and Democrats, only people helping other people, and families helping other families. In today’s world, this is a huge accomplishment and something we as Long Islanders should all be aware of and proud of.

So while our recovery continues to be a long and daunting road, our belief in our country and our democracy must remain strong, and we must continue to oppose injustice at every turn but also oppose hypocrisy with the same passions. Our resolve must remain fierce and our efforts must be relentless to move our economy and our initiatives forward. To help guide those efforts, we at HIA-LI are lucky to have my good friend Rich Humann, President and CEO of H2M Architects and Engineers, as our next Board Chair. Rich is a smart and well-respected leader, and, most importantly for this position, has been a tireless advocate for the Long Island and regional economy. His deep knowledge of Long Island and its infrastructure will be invaluable as we rebuild our way past COVID. And so, in our own version of a peaceful transfer of power, I’d like to introduce my friend and HIA-LI Board Chair Rich Humann.