Ryan announces economic strategy

Posted 9/30/20

Ulster County Executive Pat Ryan announced Monday that Ulster 2040, a twelve-member group of business and community leaders from across the County, released their report. The findings, delivered a …

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Ryan announces economic strategy

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Ulster County Executive Pat Ryan announced Monday that Ulster 2040, a twelve-member group of business and community leaders from across the County, released their report. The findings, delivered a year after County Executive Ryan established the group, is intended to guide and focus economic development investments by the County and its partner agencies. The report comes in advance of the County Executive’s 2021 Executive Budget proposal on Thursday.

“Our Ulster 2040 report paints a vivid picture of the enormous potential we can achieve if we really do the work to put people back at the center of our local economy,” Ryan said.

The report identifies four primary industry clusters that are seen as promising targets for growth in Ulster County, based on historical and regional successes, and are also in alignment with the community’s values.

The “Makers and Creators” cluster covers a wide range of businesses that share a common bond in their passion for creating things, including artists, musicians, designers, manufacturers, digital media producers, and software developers.

The “Agriculture, Food and Beverage” cluster encompasses all the local businesses engaged in putting food and beverages on our tables, including growers, food and beverage processors, distributors, wholesalers and retailers.

The “Healthcare and Wellness” sector covers hospitals and other medical providers, but also includes childcare, senior care and holistic wellness businesses.

Finally, the “Clean Energy and Environmental Protection” cluster leverages our tradition of protecting our natural resources by prioritizing the growth of businesses in the emerging green economy, including energy installers, specialized manufacturers, building efficiency retrofitters, green tech companies, and research and development in environmental science and clean energy.

In addition to recommended investments across these four sectors, the report also highlights the importance of overall community

development to help ensure Ulster County’s economy can remain competitive. It calls for broad investments in new, 21st-century infrastructure including housing, education and training, transportation, broadband access and other community development projects.

These investments are not only important for improving our quality of life, but also for the ways in which they contribute to the success of our economy by improving opportunity and prosperity for all residents.