GOSHEN – A letter to the Orange County Industrial Development Agency from several elected local, county and state officials was a “political maneuver,” the executive director says.
The letter sent to the IDA on Wednesday said the local officials insist on having a seat at the table to provide their input before financial incentives are granted to commercial projects.
But, Bill Fioravanti, the Orange IDA executive director, challenged the tone of the letter.
“To start, I have already heard from a nearly a dozen local leaders who said that what they signed on to was entirely different than the letter which was published,” he said. “I think everyone can guess who orchestrated this and it is simply an effort to fabricate ‘outrage’ over our agency. It’s frustrating at the least.”
Fioravanti said, “Local supervisors and mayors and such – they already have a voice in our process. In just the short time I’ve been here as director, I’ve had numerous, lengthy dialogue with each local official for any of the municipalities that we’re getting applications for,” he said. “We certainly don’t ignore the local supervisors. We have those discussions. They don’t vote on the project but their input is, of course, heavily weighed by our board and by myself.”
Fioravanti views the letter as “an effort to discredit the IDA.”
