Press Release:

By Julia Garver, LG Class of 2010

What is “leadership”? The Leadership Genesee class of 2024 was able to get insight into this question from many community leaders in its first-day session, “Our Business & Economics” on Feb. 28. Responses included communication skills, engaging and motivating your team, leading by example, listening to your team and building trust and connection. 

One design team member put it this way: “Leadership embodies the art of inspiring others to achieve collective goals through vision, empathy, and decisive action. It's about guiding and empowering individuals to realize their potential, fostering collaboration, and navigating through challenges with integrity and resilience.”

The day started at Liberty Pumps with Robyn Brookhart LG ’02, President & CEO and
Dennis Burke LG ‘01, CFO sharing what makes LP so successful. First and foremost is the workplace culture, one that is collaborative, respectful, engaging, trustful, and has an element of fun. 

The business model of an ESOP, which LP has embraced, makes all employees (members) owners of the company so they have a stake in the efforts of their labors. That motivates members and encourages them to contribute their ideas for improvement to company operations. Also, the key to success is customer service, as mentioned by both Robyn and Dennis, a theme that reappeared several times during the day.

A presentation about how much of our expendable income is spent in Genesee County raised awareness about the impact of spending locally. Supporting local businesses ensures the vitality of the local economy and job creation with more than 55 cents of every dollar spent locally remaining in the community. The message was that “what is spent local, stays local.”

Visits were made by class members to more than 25 local businesses. The passion and forward-thinking of these entrepreneurs were impactful. Answering hard questions like ‘Should we expand? How much will it cost? Can my son/daughter take it over? and How can I compete with “big box” stores?’ is something that all small business owners face.

Rob Credi of Pub Coffee Pub revealed that what drives him includes the color scheme of his business which he chose to memorialize his sister, and his love of the show “Friends” which he uses to name some menu items. His vision led him to start the Crapshoot Kitchen & Commissary which provides opportunities for starter businesses to explore their space in the culinary field for take-out meals and food items. 

Other issues encountered by local business owners were competing products and keeping up with market trends. 

Guy Pellegrino, the owner of Pellegrino Auto Sales, an independent used car dealer, positioned his business to be a “new car store experience with no new cars”. To date, his business is the #1 rated used car business in Genesee County. He spends time and money on Internet access to apps and sites that let him stay ahead of price changes.

Tina Lambert, of Lambert’s Jeweler’s, mentioned that the current trends of lab-grown diamonds and fewer marriages have impacted their business. 

Lee Winters, owner of Genesee Feeds, said his biggest competition now is the internet. Loyal customers, a tribute to great customer service, have kept both their businesses successful.

The day ended at the David McCarthy Memorial Ice Arena where Matt Gray LG ’11 spoke about how his experience in LG sparked the idea of the Eli Fish Brewing Company in which he is a part owner. Matt is also the owner of Alex’s and in 2022 he stepped up to take over the management of the ice arena. 

The economic impact of this venture is apparent when there are 5 to 15 teams from outside of the area coming to Batavia to play each week. The players and their families and supporters stay in hotels, eat in restaurants, and shop here in Genesee County which helps everyone.

February’s session was hosted by Liberty Pumps and the David McCarthy Memorial Ice Arena. Meals were sponsored by Lawley and Gavin M. Townsend, Lic. RE Salesperson at HUNT ERA Batavia.

The Matsiko Orphan Choir performed a series of shows Wednesday for employees throughout the plant of Liberty Pumps in Bergen.

The choir is a group of children from Africa who tour the nation to encourage people to become sponsors of the program, which provides educational opportunities for the children.

"The main goal of us performing at so many places around the United States is trying to find sponsorship for these kids and kids just like them back home," said Sam Windham, one of the group's directors. "What the sponsorship is, is people who step into their lives, they give $40 a month, and that $40 takes these kids all the way through university, takes them through elementary school, high school university, so when they graduate, they'll be able to accomplish any of their dreams. They have grown up to become doctors, lawyers, teachers, and anything they've ever dreamed of. And hopefully, when they graduate, they'll be able to change their country from the inside and stop the cycle of poverty that's been going on from generation to generation and the next generation of kids."

To learn more about becoming a sponsor, click here.

An open house and special celebration at Liberty Pumps Thursday meant as much to employee Dylan Mackey as it did for any of the top brass speaking on stage in the newly debuted Link Building.

Mackey, 27, has been with the company since 2013, going from part-time in fabrication, earning his degree at Genesee Community College and eventually moving into a full-time information technology position as supervisor.

The announcement of another expansion — an 80,000-square-foot warehouse and 30,000-square-foot Link Building — was good news for everyone, Mackey said.

“Working at Liberty Pumps is wonderful. Everybody is very kind. There's no arguments in the workplace. Everybody knows we're all on the same team. We're all doing the same thing,” he said. “Tonight … it’s definitely a celebration for sure.”

Employees watched a video about the company’s growth along with an audience of several hundred visitors and local officials. Mackey said that not everything goes smoothly with each attempt, but seeing this expansion “and seeing the changes made to it and seeing the new parts of the company added into that, it’s a sense of pride, right?”

“It's a hey, I'm part of that, there's a ton of us that are a part of that,” he said. “That's really what it is.”

This is the third expansion for Liberty, located at 7000 Apple Tree Ave., Bergen. The last one was in 2016, when it “literally felt like we had a sea of space that was going to meet our needs for a very long time,” President and CEO Robyn Brookhart said.

“But as we introduced new products and expanded existing lines, and have been ultra fortunate to experience steady and solid growth, our building was busting at the seams,” she said. “So the building expansion team was assembled, and the planning began. And here we are 18 months later in this beautiful and seemingly enormous new space.”

The cavernous Link Building temporarily featured tables and chairs for guests, a photo booth, serving stations for beverages and hors d’oeuvres and a stage for the speakers and musical entertainment. Other open house activities included a self-guided tour with a map and QR codes to learn more about several areas, such as accounting, the cafeteria, customer support, product engineering, a fitness center, machine shop, purchasing, sales and marketing, shipping and technical customer support.

A few guests were late to the special presentation, and staff member Jenna graciously seated them in a golf cart to zip them through the spacious plant, zig-zagging left and right down lanes, to party central — the Link Building.

Genesee County Economic Development Center was given a nod for having been involved in the early inception days of Liberty Pumps, and CEO Steve Hyde asked, “where would you rather be but right here right now, celebrating your guys' collective success?”

“This has just been a great story. I’ve been working with (Board Chairman Charlie Cook) now, and our paths have connected in so many ways. He was the chairman of the GCEDC board for a few years and did a great job. I worked with him on the Regional Economic Development Councils, and we’re nothing but thrilled to be a small part of participating in their ongoing growth,” Hyde said. “And you see a company like Liberty Pumps just growing like they have. I’ve been in this position 20 years now, and I’ve been here for three of those major expansions. When I got the role Charlie, you just finished your first 60,000 square feet. And now look at it today. You’re five times bigger … six times larger employment than back in 2003.”

When the company broke ground for the project, the employee total was at 300, with an expected 30 more to be added. At that time, Cook said it will “relieve congestion in our current structure and free up much-needed manufacturing space for large pump systems. That’s become a significant part of our business, and we’re pleased to better support our customers with this addition.”

Since opening in 1965, Liberty Pumps has become a leading manufacturer of sump, effluent, and sewage pumps and systems for residential, commercial, municipal, and industrial applications.

The 185-acre business park developed by the GCEDC has approximately 350,000 square feet of facilities at Apple Tree Acres.

“Your success is going to continue to roll, and we look forward to being there for you the next time you're ready to expand,” Hyde said. “Thank you, Robyn. Thank you, Charlie. Thank you, team. We're thrilled to be here tonight.”

Genesee County Legislators Christian Yunker, Shelley Stein and Gregg Torrey attended the event. Torrey took a tour of the massive facility and saw nothing but positives everywhere.

“It just means a tremendous amount for just the jobs it creates. It’s a homegrown company that’s created 350, 330 jobs. It's amazing. And I see all these employees here at this event, and it’s like 600 people here for this cutting edge facility, and they’re on a continual path to increase the square foot and growing the company, it’s just a great local story for Genesee County,” he said. “It’s really impressive. Everything is state of the art. It’s probably the cleanest manufacturing facility I’ve ever seen, it’s just beautiful.”

Top Photo: President and CEO Robyn Brookhart welcomes guests and announces the expansion project during an open house at Liberty PumpsThursday evening; guests tour the facility in Bergen, watch demonstrations, and enjoy refreshments, and live musical entertainment. Photos by Howard Owens.

Bergen-based Liberty Pumps -- well, at least a binder with the company's logo on it -- had a cameo appearance in the final season of one of television's most highly regarded series in history -- "Better Call Saul." 

In the penultimate episode, the camera briefly captures a set of binders on a bookshelf with a framed copy of lizards and the word "friends" on the frame.

Everything in Better Call Saul, as with "Breaking Bad" before it, that appears on the screen, or is heard in the soundtrack, is symbolic. We will let regular viewers work out for themselves what this frame means in the context of the story.  No spoilers here except to say the scene involves a recurring character who has taken a job with a company that makes sprinkler heads in Florida.  The binder and lizards appear at a crucial turning point in the story.

Liberty Pumps CEO Robyn Brookhart said the binder scene hadn't gone unnoticed at the company. 

It was cool, she said. 

"What is really fantastic is the buzz and energy it created when we emailed the screenshot around to the entire company!  Totally unexpected, and a really fun surprise," she said.

Press release and submitted photo:

Liberty’s new Material Handling Center is under construction and on track to be completed by the end of 2022.  The 107,000 square foot expansion will house component inventory – both raw and finished; and allow for more efficient tracking and flow of components to the manufacturing areas. The expansion will also allow for additional manufacturing space in the current building as material storage is moved over to the new facility.

Press release:

The Genesee County Economic Development Center (GCEDC) joined state and local partners in celebrating the latest expansion by Liberty Pumps at a groundbreaking event today.

Liberty Pumps hosted the celebration at the site of their upcoming Materials Center. The 107,00 square-foot expansion is anticipated to support 30 additional jobs at the family- and employee-owned manufacturer.

“We’re excited to begin another project that will benefit our approximately 300 employees, and add to our presence in Genesee County,” said Charlie Cook, CEO and Chairman of Liberty Pumps. “This project will relieve congestion in our current structure and free up much-needed manufacturing space for large pump systems. That’s become a significant part of our business, and we’re pleased to better support our customers with this addition.”

The addition to Liberty Pumps’ facilities, 7000 Apple Tree Avenue, continues the company’s growth in Genesee County. Since opening in 1965, Liberty Pumps has become a leading manufacturer of sump, effluent, and sewage pumps and systems for residential, commercial, municipal, and industrial applications.

The project breaking ground will be the third expansion by Liberty Pumps since 2000 at Apple Tree Acres, a 185-acre business park developed by the GCEDC.

Upon completion, Liberty Pumps will have approximately 350,000 square feet of facilities at Apple Tree Acres.

"With each expansion and investment, Liberty Pumps has shown a path to grow our economy, reward our talented workforce, and support our community," said GCEDC President & CEO Steve Hyde. "We're excited that another milestone is fast approaching. This groundbreaking celebration is just the start of more great activity in Bergen and at Apple Tree Acres. We thank Liberty Pumps for leading the way."

Photos by Howard Owens

Assemblyman Steve Hawley.

Shelly Stein, chair of the Genesee County Legislature with Charlie Cook, CEO of Liberty Pumps.

Town of Bergen Supervisor Ernie Haywood

The Genesee County Economic Development Center (GCEDC) Board of Directors approved a final resolution for incentives supporting Liberty Pumps for a $13.7 million expansion at the company’s operations in the Town of Bergen the board’s September 9, 2021 board meeting.

Liberty Pumps will invest approximately $13.7 million to build a 107,138 sq. ft. materials facility in the Apple Tree Acres business park. The proposed facility is anticipated to contribute to the continuing growth of the company and will create 30 new full-time jobs with an average salary of $52,000 annually plus benefits. It is estimated that the project will generate $29 of investment into the local economy for every $1 of approved incentives. The project will receive sales and property tax exemptions of approximately $1.5 million.    

The GCEDC Board of Directors also accepted an initial application for a $4.5 million project proposed by Valiant Real Estate USA, Inc. (New York Bus Company). The company plans to build a new 20,000 square-foot facility at the corner of Saile Drive and Call Parkway in the Town of Batavia.

The project would create 24 full-time employee positions with an average salary range of $30,000 - $75,000 annually plus benefits. The project is requesting approximately $430,000 in sales, mortgage, and property tax exemptions. The project is estimated to generate $50 into the Genesee County economy for every $1 of requested incentives.

Finally, the Board accepted an initial application for incentives from J&R Fancher Property Holdings LLC.  The company is proposing a $1.7 million capital investment for a 14,000 square foot building located at Buffalo East Technology Park in Pembroke, NY.

J&R Fancher Property Holdings LLC plans to build six market-rate one-and two-bedroom apartments along with a 7,000 square foot commercial space.. The project is requesting approximately $254,000 in sales, mortgage and property tax exemptions.

As both projects are requesting incentives of over $100,000, public hearings will be scheduled prior to final consideration of incentives.