Orange County Partnership Touts $222 Million Capital Investments in 2023

Orange County Partnership President Maureen Halahan gives a speech at the annual event at the Barn at Villa Venezia in Middletown, N.Y., on Dec. 5, 2023. Cara Ding/The Epoch Times

Orange County’s frontline economic development agency leadership touted $222 million in capital investments pouring into the county in 2023.

Those investments created facilities totaling 2.2 million square feet and 772 new jobs.

“This is the culmination of our collective success, a success that continues to grow year after year with new projects and sites coming into the market,” Orange County Partnership President Maureen Halahan said at the agency’s 37th annual event on Dec. 5.

Ms. Halahan attributed the growth to the partnership among core county economic development groups and the support of elected officials, including county and municipal leaders.

Among the 20-plus companies that set foot in the county this year, the Tesla distribution facility in Newburgh, a Home Depot warehouse in Slate Hill, and the high-tech firm Gan Jing World in Middletown are the highlights, according to Ms. Halanhan.

The county also saw a historical number of sites being approved this year, according to Conor Eckert, vice president of Business Attraction for the Orange County Partnership.

Most approved sites are located along Interstate Highway 84 and near major intersections.

Orange County Partnership's annual event at the Barn at Villa Venezia in Middletown, N.Y., on Dec. 5, 2023. Cara Ding/The Epoch Times

“It is a blank canvas for economic development, and this is truly the year of the foundation and of dedicating our time to securing and advocating for sites and approvals over time,” Mr. Eckert said.

The agency’s main goal next year is to pursue companies in advanced manufacturing, life sciences, and food and beverage manufacturing.

Orange County Executive Steve Neuhaus—who has made economic development a key pillar of his platform since day one—commended the work by Orange County Partnership.

“You are part of a team that is not sitting there waiting for someone else to make a decision or do something—you are the doers,” Mr. Neuhaus said at the event.

Orange County Executive Steve Neuhaus spoke at the Orange County Partnership's annual event at the Barn at Villa Venezia in Middletown, N.Y., on Dec. 5, 2023. Cara Ding/The Epoch Times

At the event, Jonah Mandelbaum and Donna Applegate were given the Quality of Life Award for building 3,000 units of affordable housing in Orange County for over 30 years.

Mid-Hudson News chief editor and longtime Hudson Valley media personality Hank Gross was given the Spirit of Innovation Award for his 50 years of diligent coverage of local affairs.

The Matrix Development Group was honored with the Golden Shovel Award for strategically developing sites to attract investors, including the Newburgh facility that now houses the Tesla distribution center.