BINGHAMTON — Now that he’s had three months to get his feet wet, the Broome County Industrial Development Agency’s (BCIDA) new executive director, Kevin I. McLaughlin, is fast attacking a list of goals he’s set out for the organization. First on the agenda is the development of a strategic plan for BCIDA, outlining its purpose […]
BINGHAMTON — Now that he’s had three months to get his feet wet, the Broome County Industrial Development Agency’s (BCIDA) new executive director, Kevin I. McLaughlin, is fast attacking a list of goals he’s set out for the organization.
First on the agenda is the development of a strategic plan for BCIDA, outlining its purpose and goals for the next one, three, and five years, McLaughlin says. “We’re in that process now,” he notes and adds that he hopes to have the plan completed within the next two to three months. “I think the board is really looking forward to putting this together,” he says.
The plan will serve as BCIDA’s blueprint over the coming years, keeping people on task and working toward the agency’s mission to generate economic development across the county, McLaughlin says.
Second on McLaughlin’s list was to reconvene BCIDA’s loan committee and loan programs, which have about $450,000 to lend. BCIDA administers two loan programs. Southern Tier East Economic Development (STEED) is a revolving-loan program that serves Broome, Chenango, Cortland, Delaware, Otsego, Tompkins, Tioga, and Schoharie counties. The Title IX Economic Adjustment Revolving Loan program works with small businesses in Broome County.
The goal, McLaughlin says, is to make as many good loans in Broome County, as well as the other counties the funds serve, as the agency can. “We don’t want it to sit around,” he says of the loan funding. “We want it to be active.”
To help drum up interest in BCIDA’s loans, McLaughlin, who started in his new position on Aug. 5, plans to get out and mingle throughout the region.
“I think it’s important that businesses and communities know we are out there to assist them,” he says.
Along with setting his list of goals, McLaughlin has been busy getting to know the agency’s board of directors, and together they recently secured $2.5 million in funding from Empire State Development to offer the winning bidder for the bankrupt Endicott Interconnect Technologies as an incentive to keep the business going and keep jobs in the area.
BCIDA (www.bcida.com) is a not-for-profit public-benefit corporation — chartered by the state and overseen by a nine-member board appointed by the Broome County Legislature — that promotes economic development in the greater Binghamton region. The agency owns and manages the 600-acre Broome Corporate Park in Conklin and more than 1.2 million square feet of real estate. That includes 265 Industrial Park Drive, a 435,000-square-foot multi-tenant facility in Kirkwood, and 600 Main St., the former BAE Greater Binghamton headquarters in Johnson City. BCIDA’s 2013 budget totals more than $820,500 in revenue, according to its website.
McLaughlin’s background
Prior to joining BCIDA, McLaughlin served as regional director for Empire State Development and president of the Empire State New Market Corporation.
In his role as regional director, McLaughlin helped secure more than $140 million for the Southern Tier Economic Development Council to support community and economic-development projects across an eight-county region. At Empire State New Market Corporation, he led the management and implementation of the $30 million New Market Tax Credit allocation made in May 2009.
“Kevin is an experienced economic development professional who brings a lot to the table in his new leadership role at the IDA. I look forward to working with him to continue our focus on job creation and economic development,” Broome County Executive Debbie Preston, said in a BCIDA news release issued in July, when McLaughlin’s appointment was announced.
McLaughlin also served as a director of the National Development Council, where he worked with state agencies, municipalities, and industrial-development agencies to identify development opportunities and create loan programs.
McLaughlin replaced Richard D’Attilio, who retired after 18 years as head of BCIDA. McLaughlin’s annual salary is $135,000, according to BCIDA.
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