- 5/30/2025
On Friday, Gov. Kathy Hochul (D-NY) made an economic development announcement in Yonkers, New York.
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00:00What a fabulous day here in the great city of Yonkers. I will take note the
00:05hometown of our great leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins who has done an
00:09extraordinary job. First woman, first woman of color to lead a body of our
00:18legislature and she's done a miraculous job with the challenges she faces. I want
00:23to especially acknowledge her as we're here today. Also acknowledge our
00:27congressman, George Latimer, who knows this county better than anyone. So
00:35grateful to have his voice of reason in Washington. More critical now than ever
00:42so I appreciate your partnership and how you're fighting so hard not just your
00:45district but the entire state of New York. Ladies and gentlemen, George Latimer.
00:53Our Mayor Mike Spano who's presides over all this great development and many
00:58wonderful things that have happened over the years that he's served and I want
01:01to thank him for having the vision to bring projects you know like Lionsgate and
01:06how excited this is to have here. So let's give a round of applause to our Mayor Mike Spano.
01:12Our Senators are in the House. Senator Shelley Mayer has joined us, Shelley. Senator Nathalia
01:20Fernandez has joined us. Assemblymember Mary Jane Shimsky as well. Let's give a round of applause to
01:26them. And from my administration, Hope Knight, who is behind all the great projects that we love to talk about from every corner of the state, our CEO and President of Empire State Development, Hope Knight.
01:39You know, from my point of view, the Mid-Hudson area has been stealing the hearts of people for generations. It has breathtaking views, charming towns, a historic river that is just part of the narrative about New York, what makes us so great.
02:02This rich history also attracts the smartest people, the most engaged people. I mean, the home of FDR is in this region and it's something that we treasure, we're proud of.
02:14But it's also, despite its great past, it also has an incredible present and future. I mean, we are right now a hotbed of growth and innovation.
02:24And right here at I Park Hudson, we're seeing it firsthand. And this is built by our friend Joe Cotter. And we miss him. We miss Joe. It's campus, other campuses. We're here for many of the events. But what an imprint that man had on this community and beyond.
02:42So, but also just the idea of transforming long vacant sites and turning them into cutting edge technology centers and engines for economic growth.
02:51So Joe's passing was a great loss for us. But, you know, his business partner, Lynn, is with us here. I want to thank her for all she has done to carry on.
03:02Let's give a round of applause for Liz. It would be honored, Joe. And also, just think about what's happening. Nowhere else in the country you're seeing this explosive growth.
03:12IBM investing $20 billion. Now, that's a headline any day of the week in the mid-Hudson region to deepen its quantum computing and semiconductor projects.
03:22And Regeneron in the middle of a $2 billion expansion up in Tarrytown. It's all happening in this one region.
03:29And I want to always say thank you to those companies who could be elsewhere. And they make this place their home, but not just their home, but they're expanding and attracting talent from around the country.
03:39And as a result of all these great things happening and people discovering the charm and the wonderful quality of life here, we've seen a great growth in population in this area.
03:51That's a good dynamic. I like it. But in this area, the population has grown over 30,000 in just a few years.
03:59And a lot of it happened since the pandemic. People left the city. They discovered not too far away was this beautiful place they could make their home.
04:09But it also comes with growing pains, right? The infrastructure is feeling the pressure. And as we attract more industries, that means more workers.
04:19It also means we need more housing. You've heard me talk about this for three and a half years now.
04:25And like I said back in my stay of the state in January, my mission as governor is to assure that every New Yorker can live and work and thrive in the community they want to call home.
04:37But they have to have a home. And there's too many that just feels so far out of reach, whether it's that person starting out trying to find that affordable apartment or a couple wants to downsize, find a place to live, a townhouse or apartment, a condo.
04:54Or anyone who wants to move up the chain. I always knew that you could judge person's success by where they're living.
05:01My parents used to live in a trailer park, then a little tiny two bedroom flat next to the steel plant where I was born, my one year old brother.
05:10And then they got a little Cape Cod and then they got a little bigger space. And I lived in the attic with two brothers and not here air conditioning, but we got very close.
05:20At least we had an attic, right? It's progress. And over time, as my father became more successful building on a college degree, he was able to acquire their homes got bigger.
05:30And I still believe that that is part of the American dream that people have. You start out small, you struggle and you end up in a place that you can live comfortably.
05:41But housing is now the number one source of stress for our families and individuals.
05:46So what we have to do is show momentum. And that's why two years ago, I launched the Mid Hudson Momentum Fund, $150 million dedicated to simply this region to help you meet that demand and build more housing and have the supportive infrastructure that is essential.
06:07And provide homeless for people of all income levels, all, make sure we do what is necessary.
06:14And last year, we announced the first round of awards. Proud to say, because I'm always saying, how are they going? Are they moving along?
06:21Three are already underway. And we're going to keep the momentum moving ahead. The Golden Hill mixed use development in Kingston, 164 units of affordable housing, plus a daycare center, very important to me, is on track to be completed this fall.
06:39That's great progress. The foundations have been laid for the barrel factory apartments, 100 unit mixed use development also in Kingston.
06:46And we broke ground on the Opal 115 of development that will create over 315 units in Mount Vernon.
06:53The Mid Hudson Fund is also a key part of our $750 million. And thank you to the legislators and our leader for adding more money to this.
07:02This is our pro housing communities fund, an essential, essential component of our landmark housing legislation from last year.
07:10And if you've not heard about it, I'm going to tell you about it. Municipalities that earn the designation of being a pro housing community, and it's not that hard to do, you pass a resolution in your city council or legislature and commit to growth targets.
07:25And we'll help you get there, we'll help you navigate. And to qualify, you apply, you're certified, we have over 300 communities that are doing it right now.
07:34It's funny, we started out with 20, and I made the observation that, boy, $650 million is a lot of money to spend in 20 communities. They're going to do just fine.
07:44Word get out. Now we have 300 and even more. But there's only 14 right here in Westchester. I think we can do better. Come on. It's not that hard. You want to be part of all the carrots that we put on the table.
07:59It's now $750 million. And if you're willing to say yes to housing and yes to a better future, you know, the money's available.
08:06This is money for downtown revitalization and Main Street programs, Restore New York, infrastructure programs that we're now setting aside.
08:14So I understand the challenges that localities have. I understand sewers and potholes more than most since I spent 14 years in local government.
08:23And for someone when I was in local government to say you could have $10 million for your sewer system or to build housing or to work on a downtown, I would have died and went to heaven.
08:33I mean, that never happened with Albany, my 14 years in local government.
08:38But having come to this position with that perspective of the power that we can have to help be a catalyst for development in our communities,
08:46I knew what Albany could do and we could do more. And we are. So I know how transformative these grants can be.
08:52That's why we have more grants. And today I'm proud to announce 10 visionary projects that were selected to receive $60 million.
09:00The second round of a mid Hudson momentum fund, including leader $11 million worth of projects for two projects right here in Yonkers.
09:11All told, this is a number you're going to want to repeat over and over and over.
09:15It'll unlock 8,000 units of housing with 2,000 of them being affordable. 8,000 new homes for people right here in this region.
09:28And it'll leverage $627 million of public and private investment and help us shore up the critical infrastructure that our communities depend upon.
09:40So I will turn it over to Hope Knight to continue through the projects. But I do want to say this. This is an opportunity that we have to seize,
09:51whether it's providing the sewer grants to some of our great communities across the river, whether it's helping be a starting point for these houses.
10:02I want people to not be afraid of building houses. I want you to break down that fear because there's one reason why people leave our state.
10:11I mean, I'll be honest, two reasons. Some go to Texas and Florida. I don't know. Maybe they like their governors better. I have no idea why.
10:19But when you look at the top five destinations where New Yorkers who do leave our state go, three of them are our neighbors.
10:28Connecticut, Pennsylvania, New Jersey. They had the same weather, same taxes, nice governors, but it's not New York.
10:39They're going there because they had the ambition and the guts to build more housing. I see it all the time. We have held ourselves back living in the past,
10:51holding tightly close to what we have and not opening it up to others. A fear of multifamily housing. Oh, my gosh, what are you afraid of?
11:00Everybody deserves a good home. And we have the capacity, the space, the investments to make it happen.
11:09We just have to get people to change their mind about the value of this. So young couples starting out can raise their kids next to grandma and grandpa.
11:19Babysitters can be free if you do it right. Right? That's why I moved home from Washington. My parents are free babysitters.
11:27I know what I'm talking about. So I just want to encourage everybody to not miss this moment. I will support it.
11:34I will continue putting money behind it. But I need people to be open minded, break down the fear, break down the barriers and do it as necessary.
11:44So the other area where we're being smart is building housing around transit hubs. This is so genius in its simplicity.
11:55I just came in from the city. Took 40 minutes. Metro north. Very nice. Make a lot of friends. Not everybody likes to talk in the morning, but that's okay. I do.
12:07But we are so blessed to have this. Other parts of our state and the country are envious of how accessible a great city with tens of thousands of jobs.
12:19Where people from the city want to come up here and take the jobs here. We have this available. Why aren't we building housing right where those stations are?
12:28Have a little place to have your coffee in the morning. Upstairs you have the housing. A mixed. It's all affordable, but also market rate all mixed together.
12:37You can't tell the difference. Throw a swimming pool on the top if you want. I've been to facilities like this.
12:41So I'm talking about building a whole new quality of life. But communities have to be open to this. So I want to make sure that, you know, we continue focusing on our infrastructure, focusing on, I'm working on making the trips to the city even shorter.
12:59But also charting a path forward. Allowing the transformation that is desperately wanting to occur. Let it happen.
13:07And I'll give you a sample of some of those ten great projects. I'll have Hope Knight come up and then we'll be willing to and happy to introduce our next speaker.
13:16The leader of the New York State Senate, Henri Stewart-Cousins. But Hope Knight, come on up.
13:21So I have the privilege of taking you through the projects that have been awarded. And here in Yonkers, a seven point five million dollar grant will transform vacant industrial land into Bridgewater North.
13:45Two hundred and eight new apartments and one thousand two hundred and seventy square feet of retail space, all within walking distance of Metro North Ludlow Station.
14:02And we're awarding three point seven five million dollars to Abbey on Park project and innovative transit oriented mixed income housing development.
14:14In addition to providing 81 new affordable units, this project includes essential infrastructure improvements for the city.
14:27Like drainage, road repairs, restoration of a city owned garage.
14:33And for the rest of Westchester County, we've got some good notes for you, too.
14:42We're awarding ten million dollars to support critical infrastructure improvements to the former United Hospital site in Portchester.
14:49This will include a new sewer system, stormwater management and new roads and sidewalks.
15:01This will support a mixed use housing development on the site with nearly one thousand new units.
15:12In Mount Vernon, we've allocated five million dollars to redevelop abandoned buildings at the gateway to the city.
15:22The new two building complex will feature three thousand square feet of commercial space and a green roof.
15:29And in New Rochelle, it is receiving five million dollars to build 455 Maine, a seventeen story, one hundred percent affordable condo with one hundred and twenty six affordable units.
15:49This is alongside retail space that will be occupied by Open Door, a nationally recognized health center.
15:56And in Orange County, we have two incredibly exciting projects in the pipeline.
16:08First, in Newburgh, we've awarded four point two million dollars to transform a historic warehouse into sixty thousand square feet of vibrant residential and commercial space,
16:21including fifty three new apartments, a commercial gym and artist studios to attract and sustain Newburgh's surging population of young professionals.
16:34And the village of Curio is receiving ten million dollars to construct a critical water treatment facility, unlocking housing development that's long been on hold due to infrastructure constraints.
16:55And in Rockland County, Northeastern Apropos is also receiving ten million dollars for water, sewer and transit upgrades, enabling the development of over seven hundred thousand square feet of commercial and office space and nearly twelve hundred new homes.
17:17And in Sutherland County, we're awarding two point five million dollars to build seventy six new affordable homes in Monticello.
17:30And last but not least, in Kingston, we've awarded two point five million dollars to transform an abandoned quality in into eighty three units of affordable housing,
17:46affordable housing for residents at risk of homelessness.
17:53Each of these projects represents a smart, sustainable approach to building community, one that builds people with leading with people first.
18:07By concentrating growth around transit hubs like Ludlow Station here in Yonkers or the New Rochelle Metro North Station,
18:15we're transforming people's quality of life.
18:20Residents can step out the front door and be just minutes away from a train that can whisk them to jobs in New York City or elsewhere.
18:29It cuts carbon emissions, it reduces traffic and it gives people something priceless.
18:35More time back in their day.
18:38To get an extra hour sleep to play or work with their kids or enjoy a home cooked meal with their family.
18:45So the Hudson, the mid Hudson Momentum Fund isn't just about housing.
18:51It's about creating a livable, walkable, vibrant community.
18:56It's about attracting young professionals and retaining our talented workforce and are allowing our families to thrive.
19:05It's about capitalizing on this region's incredible growth, charting a sustainable path forward and giving longtime residents and newcomers alike the chance to make a life here.
19:16So along with the governor, we're incredibly excited to see the transformation that will happen here thanks to these landmark investments.
19:26And we can't wait to come back and see all the progress on these projects in the months to come.
19:33So thank you.
19:35And I'd like to have the opportunity to invite the majority leader, Andrea Stewart-Cousins, to the podium.
19:45So good morning, everyone.
19:54It is really just such a wonderful day.
19:58It started out a little gray.
20:00But, Governor, your presence, your investment has made it brighter for each and every one of us.
20:08Thank you so much.
20:13And I do want to thank my colleagues in the Senate and in the Assembly.
20:18You've heard them.
20:19I see I've got county legislators here, including the board chair, Bedad.
20:25I see the local county legislator, Shanae Williams.
20:32Oh, my goodness.
20:33I'm in trouble.
20:35I see Ben Boykin.
20:38And I see Judah.
20:42Anybody else I'm supposed to say?
20:44John Rubo.
20:45Okay.
20:46Please, stand up.
20:48Let people know.
20:50You know why I want you to know my elected officials?
20:53Because.
20:57LaKeisha Collins Bellamy.
20:59The city council president.
21:01The majority leader.
21:03Okay.
21:04Judah Holstein.
21:05Okay.
21:06Why did I do this?
21:07Because the governor is here.
21:12She's invested in our community.
21:16She's invested in the entire state.
21:21And she's doing it because she has partners.
21:27I've been in Westchester County a long time.
21:32I've been in county government and city government a long time.
21:37housing and finding ways to build housing has been probably the Achilles heel, quite honestly,
21:48in terms of what happens in this county and beyond this county.
21:55I've been on committees in the county that were about housing, but you couldn't say the word
22:05housing.
22:06It would be community development.
22:08Lois Bronze, the late Lois Bronze used to say, community development and housing.
22:16Because the leadership at that time did not want to hear it.
22:24And when the government, when the governor came to us in the legislature three years ago
22:31with the, I'm tired of this.
22:36You heard her.
22:37She's not happy.
22:38People going other places.
22:40We got to make them do it.
22:41And let's, you know, do it like this and overrun this.
22:45And she'll tell you that's, you know, she gets in those moods.
22:49But we played this game a long time here.
22:56It's not rational all the time.
22:59Certainly doesn't help us do the things that we all want, have economic development, have
23:08jobs, hang out with our kids, grandkids, other than having them live in our basements.
23:14You want them to be able to afford to live close.
23:19You want to be able to age in place and not have to leave.
23:25We wanted all those things.
23:27But we already have had those fights.
23:31And you spend years resisting people and lawsuits and blah, blah, blah.
23:36And so we, in the legislature, wasn't that we didn't like her plan or we didn't want housing.
23:44But we asked her to work collaboratively with us to develop carrots and sticks, eventually.
23:58But carrots first.
24:01We're looking at carrots.
24:04And we're looking at carrots that are transformative, not only to this community, but every community.
24:14But the real carrot, and what she's trying to explain, and what we all know, is being able to have housing.
24:23Those are the real carrots.
24:26Because once you can house your community, no matter what their economic level is, then there's less room and less need for sticks.
24:44And in this time, in particular, it's important because the governor talked about living in a trailer park.
24:52And I, many of you might know, I lived in public housing.
24:55I grew up in public housing.
24:57My father, who returned from the war, not being eligible for the GI Bill as a black man, despite his service.
25:07The federal government built public housing for people like my dad.
25:16And the Jewish community as well.
25:18They weren't part of that either.
25:23However, it was the federal government's investment in making sure there was a roof over your head.
25:31And the commitment to the federal government was that because of my dad's service,
25:36no matter where he would be able to have public housing.
25:43That federal commitment, unfortunately, does not exist right now.
25:49The federal investment in making sure people have housing does not exist.
25:55It's left to us.
25:58It's left to each and every one of us to use what we have in our arsenal
26:04to create the ongoing and lasting and permanent and meaningful commitment to housing all of our people.
26:14So I am really happy, Governor, to stand with you and legislative colleagues and continue to build momentum.
26:25Build housing, certainly affordable housing, to make sure that New York really represents what we know community is made of.
26:37And I want to thank Hope for heading up ESD as well, because, again, we need partners on every level of government.
26:46And we need partners within our agencies to make sure that these developments happen and they reflect our highest values.
26:56Talking about somebody who reflects our highest values, I get an opportunity to introduce a friend, a former colleague,
27:07another one of those great partners in government who knows me from the county board where all those things are true,
27:16who did his fair share of trying to, again, build, create, remove barriers and uplift the image of Westchester for everyone all the time.
27:32And he wasn't done yet serving.
27:35He decided to take his goodwill, his expertise and his competency to Washington, D.C.
27:44Fortunately, even though you don't have great friends necessarily there, you have right here your friends who support you.
27:56You have a great mayor and you've got certainly your legislative friends and community and a governor.
28:03So we have your back.
28:05Let's give it up for Congressman George Latimer.
28:07Thank you, Andrea, State Senate Majority Leader and also Governor Hochul.
28:22Let me extend greetings to a person who has done a great job at the county level of government.
28:31He isn't with us here to speak today, but he is your county executive partner of mine for my seven years.
28:37The great Ken Jenkins, also president of Yonkers.
28:43And members of Ken's executive team are here and along with the board of legislators that have been recognized.
28:48I'd like Joan McDonald, Emily Saltzman, Blanca Lopez.
28:52I see Len Grunfeld, those people that are on Ken's team as the county to be that partner with the state to put money behind these projects from the county level.
29:02Please, Joan, Emily, your team, please stand up for recognition.
29:05James Taylor had a song called Fire and Rain that I remember when I was a freshman in college.
29:19It tells you how old I am.
29:20I've seen fire and I've seen rain.
29:22I've seen sunny days I thought would never end.
29:25I'd seen lonely times when I could not find a friend.
29:28That would be now in Washington.
29:30I come home to Westchester every weekend and I'm encouraged when I sit here and I see the governor of my state,
29:39the leader of one of the legislative bodies of that state and members of both houses,
29:44the leadership of this county and the leadership of this city leading in a way that those that I see in Washington have abdicated.
29:53They have lost their way thinking about ideology rather than practicality.
29:59Look at this list of second round contributions of this state under this governor and the resources that will remake Portchester, New Rochelle, Mount Vernon.
30:12I know I sound like a Metro North conductor here.
30:14Yonkers.
30:15And then from the prior cycle, Peekskill, Ossining.
30:18They're not part of my CD, but they're part of my heart.
30:21And the work that's been done.
30:23This is what government should be doing.
30:26This is what leadership is.
30:32Leadership isn't a slogan or on a hat that you wear when you shouldn't be wearing it.
30:38Leadership is putting money behind principles.
30:42That's what Governor Hochul has done today.
30:45And she has the support of a state legislature led by Andrea Stewart-Cousins, Carl Hastie and the people that are here that put muscle behind that in the legislative body.
30:55And it's complemented by a county government that has made a similar commitment for housing.
31:01I was part of that, and now Ken Jenkins is advancing that.
31:06And in a second, when the mayor of this city stands up, the city stands behind it.
31:11And it's not just housing, it's all the things that go around that.
31:14The wraparound services within social services, community mental health, that are helpful as well with the things that are needed for this type of development.
31:24Mike Spano is working on a county park that will sit opposite the Ludlow project that's being announced here.
31:31That park has some county money in behind it, and it's a vision of opening up waterfront property that's been used for buses to sit on a piece of land.
31:40And the vision of the city, with the help of the county, in concert with the state, is creating a better southwest end corner of Yonkers.
31:51This is what government is, and this is why we go into government.
31:55When I go to events over the course of a weekend, and I see Andre, and I see Mary Jane, and I see my friends at different levels, and Vedad and Ben Boykin, who we honored yesterday, we don't do it for that.
32:06We don't do it to get recognition and applause.
32:08We don't do it to get your name on a building.
32:10You don't do it so you can have a stable coin in your name and have people give money to the stable coin.
32:17Is that what government is? No.
32:19What government is is what's on this list.
32:22These allocation of funds from this governor's vision, backed by this state legislator's vision, backed by a supportive county.
32:30And I would argue this county is as supportive or more so than any other county in the state for these things.
32:37Backed by local government.
32:40I go back to Washington and I tell them about how good it is here, not how good it is they think they're making it right now.
32:48I want to bring up the mayor of this city.
32:50He's been mayor for 14 years.
32:52There was a time when he and I sat together as county legislators, and there was a time when he and I sat together in the state assembly.
32:58We talked a lot about what we might do in the future.
33:01I've had some opportunities, but he's had an opportunity to take the third largest city in the state, the most complicated local government in this region of the state outside of New York City, and run it on all different levels well.
33:14Basic services, police, fire, sanitation, this is a hard city to run day to day.
33:19And to do those things well, and then still to advance affordable housing, advance economic development, and to do it day after day with the same level of enthusiasm that you did it the day before, that too is leadership.
33:32So we're lucky to have the leadership of this governor, this state legislature, this county legislature, and the mayor of the city of Yonkers, the honorable, my friend, Mike Spano.
33:42Thanks, George, and it's great that I get to follow the governor, Senator Stewart-Cousins, and, of course, our congressman.
34:00And it's so good to see all of you here in our wonderful city of Yonkers.
34:04And, you know, Governor, I'll say straight up, you know, as a mayor, we're a little afraid about what's happening out there.
34:13There's a lot of static out there.
34:14There's a lot of uncertainty.
34:16But there is one thing that's not uncertain.
34:19It's your steadfast leadership here in New York State providing stability for local governments, for us to be able to do the things that we need to do.
34:28And that's what we can look for.
34:31We need leadership that's going to show stability.
34:34Because, you know, the mayors are basically your generals, right?
34:40And the wars that are all happening all across our country.
34:44We're the ones that are educating your kids.
34:46We're the ones that are providing for a safer neighborhood.
34:49Police, fire, sanitation, quality of life, our parks, and all that stuff.
34:54You know, when Washington's got issues and it trickles down to New York and potentially onto the county, onto the cities, you know, I don't really have anybody to look down to.
35:05I either have to make very, very difficult decisions in terms of cuts or we have to raise taxes.
35:12And that's really what it boils down to.
35:14But I didn't have to do that this year.
35:16Why?
35:17Because of our governor.
35:19Why?
35:20Because we have, in leadership, our great state senator and majority leader, Andrea Stewart-Cousins.
35:26And thank you for putting forth that change to the school formula with Shelly Mayer that really helped us out.
35:32Let's give it up for our state delegation.
35:35And, Governor, for signing that as well.
35:38To our county, of course, to George for your steadfast leadership at the federal level.
35:45We need people who are sensible and who understand, like I said, it's really about what we all agree with.
35:54And what do we agree with?
35:55We want to educate our kids.
35:56We want them to grow up in a safe community.
35:58We want them to be able to get a good paying job.
36:01You know what?
36:02And we want them to be able to afford to live here.
36:05Because when people talk about affordable housing, we're not talking about, we're not necessarily
36:10talking about people moving in.
36:12We're talking about our kids not having to move out.
36:16And that's something we should never forget.
36:18Yonkers has been a leader in building housing.
36:24Over 12,000 units of housing have been built in this city in the past decade.
36:29And why?
36:30Well, not just because of us.
36:32We've had good working relationships with the developers.
36:35We've had solid investments from New York State that has given us that ability to build 12,000 units.
36:43Now, remember, we have a 10% affordable housing ordinance in this city.
36:47But working with our team, with the city council that are here today, we were able to take that number.
36:53And that number is 22%.
36:55So out of the 12,000 units, we built 22% affordable, even though our ordinance says we have to do 10.
37:02And that happens, again, because we have good, solid leadership that provides us what we need so that we can get the job done.
37:11Governor, thank you.
37:12I love when you come to Yonkers.
37:14It's great to see all of you.
37:15And I want to say to each and every one of you, especially to Lynn, and for opening up this facility here at Great Point Studios.
37:25Thank you for coming today.
37:26And let's keep the progress moving forward.
37:28Good to see you.
37:29Good to see you.