By Paul Post
Economic development officials are quite optimistic looking ahead to 2027 as significant private and public investment remains strong throughout the region.
In Warren County, health care, tourism and the arts are extremely high priorities.
Hudson Headwaters Health Network and Glens Falls Hospital together employ almost 4,000 people.
“We’re supporting a number of efforts, but perhaps the most meaningful is one to support the 340B Drug Pricing Program, which is the funding mechanism that supports rural health care development not only Warren County, but throughout northern New York,” said Jim Siplon, Warren County Economic Development Corporation president.
A federal initiative created in 1992, 340B requires drug makers to sell outpatient medications, such as blood pressure pills, at reduced prices to health care organizations that quite often serve low-income, uninsured or vulnerable patients. The savings allow these medical providers to stretch tight budgets and provide more services in underserved areas.
“Most of Hudson Headwater’s 26 facilities were built on the back of 340B,” Siplon said. “So making sure it’s protected and sustained is a huge effort on our part.”
On another front, several multiyear funding efforts are having a transformational impact in various parts of Warren County.
Work is nearing completion on a major overhaul of South Street in Glens Falls, thanks largely to a state Downtown Revitalization Initiative grant the city received a decade ago. A separate DRI grant is having a major impact in Lake George, where a new high-tech performance space recently opened at Shepard Park.
The facility is hosting numerous events and concerts, highlighted by top-flight bands known throughout the region, attracting thousands of people to the village.
In North Creek, a new sewage treatment system is triggering significant business interest and investment. The town is traditionally a winter destination, thanks to Gore Mountain ski center.
But thousands of visitors also pursue fun, warm-weather activities such as tubing, rafting and Revolution Rail Bike rides. Plans are also in the works for a mountain zip coaster ride scheduled to open this fall or early next year.
“That will make North Creek even more of a summer destination,” Siplon said.
Siplon said EDC, in conjunction with Warren Washington Industrial Development Agency, is also pursuing an initiative called Mosaic to promote the local arts world, another key contributor to the local economy.
There are almost 100 arts entities in Warren and Washington counties. A study is currently being done to assess their economic impact, and what best practices can be employed to secure and grow that sector.
“We want to make sure they’re a sustainable part of our economy,” Siplon said.
He also noted EDC’s efforts to engage the area’s “hidden economy,” composed of independent enterprises such as a multimillion-dollar, home-based IT business that supports some of the biggest names in technology.
“We’re trying to see what their needs are, why they chose to locate here and how we can make the area more attractive to such firms,” Siplon said.
In Washington County, the greatest potential for economic development is Canalside Energy Park, the site of a former GE Hudson River PCB dewatering facility off Route 196 in Fort Edward.
Construction is under way on infrastructure improvements with a goal of attracting light manufacturing to the property.
Also, the county recently obtained $26 million from the state to upgrade its sewer district, which is expected to spur private investment including expansion plans at Irving Tissue in Fort Edward.
“That district, which serves Hudson Falls and Fort Edward, is at its capacity for regular waste treatment and stormwater runoff,” said Chuck Barton, Warren Washington Industrial Development Agency chief executive officer. “There are instances where the district wants to expand capacity, but can’t because DEC won’t allow them to because of negative overflow impacts when there’s a big storm. Additional sewer capacity opens the door for a wider audience of potential buyers. It’s all about the market, so we’ll have to see how it unfolds.”
In Saratoga County, a five-year (2020-25) study identified 54 approved projects representing $2.9 billion in private investment that created or retained more than 5,100 jobs.
Most recently, the city of Saratoga Springs granted Phase 1 site plan approval for Regeneron’s $2 billion project at Grande Industrial Park.
The Tarrytown-based firm, a global biotechnology leader, is converting the former Quad/Graphics plant at 56 Duplainville Road into a major drug manufacturing facility.
Primary contractors are Munter Enterprises of Middle Grove, building out the industrial park workspace; and Wainschaf Associates, a Rensselaer-based construction firm handling portions of the massive site overhaul.
The more than 1 million-square-foot facility is scheduled for completion in June 2033, creating 1,000 new full-time jobs in addition to employment for 500 design and construction workers.
The project will more than double Regeneron’s manufacturing capacity in the state and represents the latest in a series of major life sciences investments across New York, reinforcing the state’s position as a national leader in pharmaceutical innovation and manufacturing.
Elsewhere, GlobalFoundries recently named a new general manager for Fab 8, and new capital investment has been under way at the Malta-Stillwater site for the past 18 months. Also, $300 million under the federal Chips and Science Act will expand GlobalFoundries’ development of photonic semiconductor chips, critical to the future of AI and high-performance computing.
“We are also working daily under nondisclosure agreements with several companies and capital investors on projects contemplated in Saratoga County, all focused on our major economic development sectors,” said Greg Connors, Saratoga Economic Development Corporation president.
The study was prepared for SEDC by Camoin Associates and considered the direct, indirect and induced impacts of 54 projects approved by Saratoga County Industrial Development Agency, Clifton Park IDA and Mechanicville-Stillwater IDA.
Other 2025 highlights included county IDA approval of 146 Marketplace, a 20-acre mixed-use, neo-traditional project in Halfmoon featuring retail, office and restaurant space alongside 328 workforce-priced apartment units; and construction of a new 125,000-square-foot beverage distribution center in Halfmoon for the largest independent Coca-Cola bottler in the U.S.
Also, Clifton Park IDA approved 26 Woods Road DCG, composed of three speculative flex office-warehouse buildings totaling 57,360 square feet just east of Northway Exit 10. Buildings range from 7,200 to 26,400 square feet.