ROME, N.Y. — Mohawk Valley EDGE President Steve DiMeo, who passed away earlier this year, was honored with the unveiling of a new sign marking the new name of the business park he helped create.
The Griffis Business and Technology Park at the Steven J. DiMeo Campus is the new name of the park which serves as home to Mohawk Valley EDGE and nearly 100 other businesses.
Oneida County Executive Anthony J. Picente Jr.; Elis DeLia, chairman of the Griffiss Local Development Corporation; and Facility Manager Frank Sanzone led the effort to rename the park in honor of DiMeo, who led the effort to redevelop the former Griffiss Air Force Base after its closure in 1995.
“What the Griffiss Business and Technology Park has grown into since 1995 is a shining example of Steve’s mind and how it worked,” Picente said in a press release. “He could see what it would become, but he also knew how to make it a reality. That’s why I joined in having the park renamed in his honor, and I am pleased that his legacy will live on through the Steven J. DiMeo Campus.”
The sign was officially unveiled on Sept. 13 at the Griffiss exit at Route 49, near the entrance for the Orgill Distribution Center, another project led by DiMeo and EDGE’s economic-development partners.
“Steve was the lynchpin of everything that happened here,” DeLia said. “I saw a vast wasteland that turned into a dynamic business park. We are knocking on the door of $1 billion in public-private investment. Without Steve, none of this would be possible.”
The DiMeo family was present for the official unveiling along with local officials and members of the Griffiss Local Development Corporation and EDGE staff.
Today, the business park is home to 90 businesses with more than 7,800 employees. Those businesses represent an array of industries including high tech, manufacturing, cybersecurity, STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics), hospitality, and more.