Brooklyn business leaders bask in spotlight of statewide praise

2018 centennial promises new focus, message for Amazon

October 20, 2017 By Andy Katz Special to the Brooklyn Daily Eagle

From left: Alec Teytel, Joe Pelligrino of TD Bank and Kevin O’Leary, senior vice president of NY Business Development Corporation. Eagle photos by Andy Katz

Share this:

“When I’m traveling around the state, talking about economic recovery, people ask me two questions: ‘What’s going on in Brooklyn’ and ‘How do they do it?’” declared New York Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul. “I want to compliment everyone here on being able to keep the integrity and character of Brooklyn intact while at the same time opening your hearts to the 21st century, and being a place where people are involved in innovation and technology!”

Applause erupted in response to Hochul’s remarks. The Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce’s Annual Membership Meeting & Business Trade Show on Wednesday encouraged looking in the both directions — a review of the Chamber’s first century but also a firm grip on the future.

“Brooklyn is the place to be!” declared state Sen. Marty Golden. “This is the place that can handle the work — take a look at the waterfront, take a look at the Army Terminal, take a look from 55th Street all the way to the Brooklyn Navy Yard. Industry City is on fire because of the people in this room!”

Golden presented Chamber President Andrew Hoan and executive board member and keynote speaker for the evening Joseph Lhota a proclamation fresh from Albany congratulating the Chamber for a century of promoting Kings County businesses. Similar proclamations were forthcoming from Hochul and state Assemblymember Joe Lentol.

The year 2017 is the 99th anniversary of the Chamber’s founding. Plans are already underway for a Centennial Ball at the New York Marriott at the Brooklyn Bridge on Feb. 10. Afterward, the Brooklyn Historical Society will feature exhibitions from a vast array of 20th-century Brooklyn business and industry.

“We’re going to have serious conversations about the ways in which we can stay relevant,” Hoan explained. “We’ve done a good job this far, I believe, but neither can we rest on our laurels.”

Peter Meyer, TD Bank president for NYC Market and chairman of the Centennial Committee, declared: “Our Feb. 10 gala will absolutely be the event of the century. It will kick off a full year of centennial celebrations highlighting Brooklyn’s neighborhoods and its economy — past, present and future.”

Certainly one target in the borough’s sights is the capture of Amazon’s proposed second North American headquarters. The campus, or HQ2 as it’s known, would be equal in size to the firm’s Seattle headquarters, employ more than 50,000 personnel, entail a $5 billion dollar investment from Amazon and require some 8 million square feet of industrial space. The announcement came early last month from Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, and, like an emperor casually tossing gold coins onto the streets, it ignited a scramble from coast to coast.

In addition to Brooklyn, Queens and the Bronx have also thrown their caps into the ring. Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams met with Hoan to draft an open letter to Amazon making the borough’s case, and forming a campaign, Brooklyn Prime, to bring HQ2 home.

“Brooklyn has been waiting for something like Amazon forever,” Hoan told WPIX early in October.

“Space is an issue,” Lentol admitted when asked about Brooklyn’s chances of landing Amazon. “But then, Amazon already has offices near Industry City,” he continued. “And Brooklyn does have the technical talent.”

Indeed. Although Boston was seen by some as an early frontrunner, Brooklyn would appear to have a leg up in some of Amazon’s key requirements, including high population density, available industrial space, a young workforce, a tech-savvy culture and a well established public transit system.

In a nod to the last of these, keynote speaker for the evening was MTA Chairman and Chamber of Commerce executive board member Joe Lhota.

Said Lhota: “It is now the bottom of the fifth inning, Yankees 2, Houston nothing!” prompting applause all around, in spite of the irony that the still beloved and greatly missed Dodgers were also winning their way to a 2017 pennant. The result of which, should both teams prevail, not be a subway series, but a coast-to-coast one.

“Losing the Dodgers and Brooklyn Navy Yard nearly did this borough in,” Lhota reminded the audience. “But today we’re back, bigger and better than ever.”