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  FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 31, 2002
PR-209-02
www.nyc.gov


MAYOR MICHAEL R. BLOOMBERG AND GOVERNOR GEORGE E. PATAKI ANNOUNCE OVER 40,000 JOBS RETAINED BY WTC GRANT PROGRAM


Job Creation and Retention Program Retains Jobs, Revenue for Lower Manhattan

Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg and Governor George E. Pataki today announced that, to date, through the Job Creation and Retention Grant Program (JCRP), 40 companies have made long-term commitments to remain in Lower Manhattan, retaining more than 40,000 jobs in New York City. Of this total, approximately 34,000 jobs will be staying in Lower Manhattan.

"The long-term commitment of these 40 companies demonstrates the confidence that businesses have in Lower Manhattan," said Mayor Bloomberg. "The City and the State have worked together to make sure that businesses both large and small can rebuild and thrive in downtown. I thank these companies for showing good corporate citizenship by keeping their employees in Lower Manhattan and helping us to rebuild our City."

"In partnership with the City, we've launched innovative and effective programs to help our businesses remain, recover and grow right here in New York, and these programs are clearly working," said Governor Pataki. "By working together, we've helped retain more than 40,000 jobs here in New York City and the future is growing brighter every day. I applaud these companies for their faith and confidence in New York and look forward to partnering with them and other businesses as we continue to rebuild and revitalize this great City."

The long-term commitment of these 40 companies (for complete list, see last paragraph) to Lower Manhattan will have a substantial economic impact on the downtown area and New York City by stabilizing jobs and retaining tax revenue. These companies represent a present value of over $7.6 billion in direct and indirect City and State tax revenue over the length of their commitment. On average these companies have extended their commitments beyond the required minimum 7-year stay, pledging to remain for nearly nine years. The grants administered to the companies amount to a total of nearly $131 million.

"The City's Economic Development Corporation together with the Empire State Development Corporation have implemented programs to help companies recover and grow their business," said Daniel L. Doctoroff, Deputy Mayor for Economic Development and Rebuilding. "I commend these corporate leaders for their dedication to helping restore the economic vibrancy of Lower Manhattan. Their commitment will help stabilize jobs in downtown and support small businesses by providing needed foot traffic."

"Under the leadership of Governor Pataki and Mayor Bloomberg, New York has seen a remarkable commitment from the business community," said Charles A. Gargano, Chairman of Empire State Development. "Through these grants and business commitments, we have begun to see a cycle of renewed confidence and determination vital for Lower Manhattan's and the entire State's economic well-being. The JCRP program will continue to offer vital funding to businesses and I am sure we will see thousands of more jobs staying in Lower Manhattan and throughout New York."

"I want to thank these 40 companies for demonstrating their long-term commitment to New York City through the rebuilding period," said Andrew M. Alper, President of the Economic Development Corporation. "These companies represent both foreign and domestic-based firms as well as a range of industries from finance and law to media and hotels - proving that Lower Manhattan's business community will be strong with a mix of industries."

The Job Creation and Retention Program is a World Trade Center federally-funded assistance program targeting the approximately 140 companies south of Canal Street with over 200 employees. The program is jointly administered by the Empire State Development Corporation (ESDC) and the New York City Economic Development Corporation (EDC), and is designed to stabilize the job base in Lower Manhattan, restore the vibrancy of the downtown community, encourage the creation of new jobs, attract new businesses and diversify the downtown economy. Because large companies employ more than half of the private jobs in Lower Manhattan, the stabilization of these corporations is essential to the health of the downtown economy.

The grant terms of the program are discretionary, but require the commitment of the companies to a minimum seven-year stay in Lower Manhattan. The grant determination is based on criteria such as proximity to the World Trade Center site, economic and fiscal impact, early commitment, number of jobs retained, number of jobs created, and risk of relocation. Companies must adhere to their long-term commitment to downtown or face recapture of two times the value of their grant.

The 40 companies committed to date are: Ambac; American Express; American Stock Exchange; Aon; Bank of Nova Scotia; Bank of New York; Brown Brothers Harriman; Cahill Gordon & Reindel; Carter, Ledyard & Milburn; Century 21; Cleary Gottlieb; Daiwa America Corporation; Deloitte & Touche; Deloitte Consulting; Dow Jones & Co.; Fried Frank Harris Shriver& Jacobson; Georgeson Shareholder; HF Management Services LLC; Holland & Knight; Hughes Hubbard and Reed; Marriott Financial Center Hotel; McGraw-Hill; Media Planning Group; Milbank Tweed Hadley & Mcloy; Moneyline; Multex; Nomura Holding America; NYU Downtown Hospital; Pace University; RBC Capital Markets; Refco Group; Regent Wall Street; Ritz Carlton; Skidmore, Owings & Merrill; Standard Chartered; Stroock & Stroock & Lavan; Sullivan & Cromwell; Tradition (North America) Inc.; Weitz & Luxenberg; and Wildcat Service Corp.

www.nyc.gov

Contact: Ed Skyler/ Jennifer Falk
(212) 788-2958
Michael McKeon/Joe Conway (Governor)
(518) 474-8418
  Lynn Rasic (EDC)
(212) 312-3523
  Michael Marr (ESDC)
(212) 803-3740