Brooklyn Borough President

BOROUGH PRESIDENT MARKOWITZ ACCEPTS $275,000 GRANT FROM FEDERAL GOVERNMENT TO BOOST BROOKLYN'S ECONOMY

Photograph by Amelia D'Entrone
	In photo: Prof. Michael Porter, Dr. David Sampson, MM, Commissioner Robert Walsh, BEDC President Joan Bartolomeo

Initiative for a Competitive Brooklyn will make Brooklyn the place for business!

Borough President Marty Markowitz received a $275,000 check for the Initiative for a Competitive Brooklyn today at the Inner City Economic Forum from Dr. David Sampson, Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Economic Development. Joining Borough President Markowitz was NYC Small Business Services Commissioner Robert Walsh and Harvard Professor Michael Porter, founder of the Initiative for a Competitive Inner City (ICIC).

“I am thrilled to be a part of the Initiative for a Competitive Brooklyn,” Borough President Markowitz said. “Everyone knows Brooklyn is the place for arts, culture, ideas and people. But with the help of ICIC, we will show the world that Brooklyn is also the place to do business. By analyzing our strengths and focusing our efforts on them, we will create more jobs for Brooklynites and make more money for investors smart enough to put their money in Brooklyn.”

The Initiative for a Competitive Brooklyn (ICB) is an exceptional economic development effort designed to take a comprehensive look at Brooklyn’s economy and produce a strategic economic plan that capitalizes on Brooklyn’s strengths. ICB will be chaired by Borough President Markowitz; its President will be Stanley Brezenoff, President and CEO of Continuum Health Partners, Inc. The project will be conducted by the Brooklyn Economic Development Corporation (BEDC) and the Initiative for a Competitive Inner City (ICIC), the national non-profit organization founded by Professor Porter.

"The Initiative for a Competitive Brooklyn will provide an in-depth analysis of market and labor force trends in the borough and of the regional, national, and international forces that drive them," said Joan Bartolomeo, President of BEDC. "The goal of this project is to create a plan for the future that identifies ways to increase the productivity and competitiveness of the Brooklyn business base so that firms in the borough can offer better, higher paying jobs."

The project has received contributions or pledges to match the Economic Development Administration grant from Fleet Bank, JP Morgan Chase, Deutsche Bank, Independence Community Foundation, Citibank, the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, Local Initiative Support Corporation (LISC), and HSBC Bank.

After attending the Inner City Economic Forum, held at the New York Palace Hotel, Dr. Sampson went on a tour of Brooklyn and talked about ICB to other elected officials from Brooklyn and representatives from economic development organizations at a reception at the SUNY Downstate Advanced Biotechnology Incubator.

ICIC's mission is to spark new thinking about the business potential of inner cities, thereby creating jobs and wealth for inner-city residents. ICIC believes that a sustainable inner city economic base will depend on private, for-profit business development and investments based on economic self-interest and genuine competitive advantage. More information about ICIC is available at www.icic.org.

BEDC, a private, nonprofit organization, was established in 1979 to stimulate Brooklyn's economy and create job opportunities for the borough and its residents. BEDC has evolved into a multi-service, business-consulting agency, serving more than 1,000 clients annually and offering comprehensive economic development services. More information is available at www.bedc.org.