BUFFALO, NY — The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) recently announced the opening of its first-ever regional office in Western New York. Joining NYSERDA president William M. Flynn were Erie County Executive Joel Giambra, Buffalo Mayor Anthony Masiello, Erie County Comptroller Nancy Naples, and several other state and local elected officials.

"We are here today because we want to make it even easier for Western New York businesses and residents to take advantage of NYSERDA's programs," said Flynn. "Governor Pataki has made economic development in Western New York a priority, and opening our first-ever regional office here will certainly help in that effort," he added.

"Since the inception of the New York Energy Smart program in 1998, we have seen significant growth in the number of programs and projects we are doing throughout the state, especially here in Western New York. That's why we felt establishing a regional office in the area was important. During that time, we have been fortunate to form some outstanding partnerships in the region that have lead to hundreds of projects being done with businesses, municipalities, schools, and residential homeowners, and we want to build on that success."

In the Western New York counties of Erie, Niagara, Chautauqua, Cattaraugus, Allegany, Wyoming, Genesee, and Orleans, there have been 630 projects since 1998 with a funding total of $111 million (NYSERDA funding and co-funding combined).

Working with local economic development officials and business organizations, NYSERDA has provided funding for well-known companies such as Tops Markets, Moog, Motorola, Quebecor Printing, Buffalo China, CALSPAN, and Clean Air Technologies to assist them with both their energy needs and research and development. Funding has also been provided to assist more than 20 local schools and colleges with improving their energy efficiency, along with 11 healthcare-related facilities. Several projects have also been done for Erie County and surrounding municipalities like the Town of Amherst.

Publication date: 03/25/2002