Cuomo touts ReCharge NY program at Harden Furniture

McCONNELLSVILLE — New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo last week announced that his ReCharge New York (RNY) is benefiting Harden Furniture, a 170-year-old furniture maker in McConnellsville in Oneida County.

The program awarded the firm 1.38 megawatts (MWs) of power, allowing the company to retain and create 262 jobs and invest up to $4 million for capital improvements, the governor’s office said in a news release.

The New York Power Authority administers ReCharge New York, a low-cost power program.

Harden Furniture, the nation’s oldest furniture builder, designs and builds “high-quality, functional, and environmentally responsible home furnishings,” according to the news release.

Harden Furniture was “hard hit” by the national economic downturn in 2008, Greg Harden, president of Harden Furniture, said in the governor’s news release.

“We recognized that we had to restructure our business model if we were to survive and continue to provide over 200 families with good paying jobs. But we couldn’t do it without state-government partners that understood the challenges faced by the business community,” Harden said.

A total of 60 businesses in the Mohawk Valley region and three nonprofit enterprises are benefiting from RNY allocations in return for their retention and creation of nearly 14,000 jobs, Cuomo’s office said.

Cuomo in 2011 signed legislation to launch ReCharge New York and help businesses and other enterprises lower their operating costs and spur economic development, the governor’s office said.

The program offers contracts lasting up to seven years for lower-cost power and reserves at least 350 MWs for upstate businesses and institutions, 200 MWs for business attraction and expansion, as well as up to 100 MWs for nonprofit organizations.

For reference, one MW is enough electricity to meet the needs of up to 1,000 typical homes, according to the governor’s office.

Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com