City hosts first-ever developers forum

Press release:

The City of Batavia hosted its first-ever Real Estate Developers' Forum on Tuesday Oct. 1, showcasing redevelopment opportunities in the Batavia’s Opportunity Area (BOA). The Forum was well attended, with more than 60 guests from across Western New York interested in learning more about the City of Batavia and surrounding areas. Potential investors and developers were invited to look at infill and redevelopment sites that have proven to be lucrative development projects statewide.

“The response we received from this Forum has been very encouraging” said Jason Molino, city manager. “Not only was there excitement and interest from what the City has been working on in recent years, but there was an overwhelming reception to the positive activity within Genesee County overall. Investors throughout Western New York are realizing Batavia has a vibrant future ahead.”

Included in the Forum were stats and figures related to the continued growth projected for the area along with presentations demonstrating successful redevelopment projects in Batavia, Genesee County and Buffalo suburbs. The speakers highlighted numerous incentive programs and creative financing measures to demonstrate how underutilized properties can be transformed or restored into high-value real estate for the community. The half-day Forum concluded with a bus tour of the City of Batavia’s Downtown, BOA priority redevelopment sites and the Genesee Valley Agri-Business Park.

“This event was intended to put Batavia on the radar for investment, we believe it worked,” said Julie Pacatte, Batavia Development Corporation. “Everyone left knowing we are getting ready for growth in the next 10 years.”

Pacatte made reference to Moody’s analytics economy.com projections that Genesee County will outpace the employment growth projected for the Finger Lakes Region in the next 10 years. Using Moody’s growth rates by industry and New York State’s 2012 employment by industry data, this translates into approximately 2,600 new jobs by 2022.

“We need to be sure the City is ready to capitalize on this anticipated growth,” she emphasized.

"The Developers' Forum related to inner-connectivity about redevelopment, re-utilization and infill projects in the City of Batavia. It was another example of the collaboration between the City, Genesee County, various economic development entities and the private sector needed to grow our economy," said Steve Hyde, president and CEO of the Genesee County Economic Development Center.

We are excited to see the continuation of adaptive reuse and redevelopment projects in the City and we are confident that this will compel developers to explore additional opportunities for investment now and in the future."

Vincent Esposito, Empire State Development, regional director for the Finger Lakes Region and presenter at the program commented, “Today’s Developer Forum was a terrific chance to learn about the Batavia Opportunity Area. The strategic and coordinated efforts of the BOA will greatly enhance the continued redevelopment prospects of Batavia’s historical and economic assets.”

About the Batavia Opportunity Area (BOA) Program: In 2011, the City of Batavia was awarded $266,508 from the NYS Department of State to determine the best opportunities for redevelopment within a 350-acre area downtown. The objectives of the program include redevelopment of underutilized, vacant and Brownfield properties, clean-up of select contaminated sites, continue revitalization of downtown and advance neighborhood stabilization.

Over the past 12 months the steering committee has developed priority reinvestment opportunities with conceptual renderings, preliminary engineering, solid market data and outlined incentive packages for motivating owners and developers to begin new projects within the City. This information was shared with the public at a July 29th meeting.

The Developers' Forum was intended to connect with developers interested in future investment within the City. For more information see HYPERLINK "http://www.bataviaopportunity.com" www.bataviaopportunity.com.