The Greene County Economic Development Corporation is the landing zone for business assistance in the county.
For James Hannahs, the organization’s executive director, that means helping businesses large and small with getting up and running.
“We try to market ourselves as the lead agency to assist them and provide guidance and support to ensure they’re taking the right steps,” he said. “In either getting capital that they need or developing a really strong business plan that they need.”
To do that, the Greene County Economic Development Corporation leans heavily on its marketing programs such as “Buy In Greene” and “Invest In Greene,” which encourage businesses to locate themselves or expand in Greene County, as well as to bring in consumers to purchase products from those businesses locally.
“We have a lot of ability to reach those audiences and they’re broad,” Hannahs said. “I mean, there’s a first-time entrepreneur wanting to start a flower shop, and then there’s also international multibillion-dollar organizations that either exist here or folks that we’re trying to attract. We cover it all.”
Looking to 2025, the organization plans to continue expanding programs to support businesses in the county such as its microenterprise grant program MULTI, which was “extremely successful” in 2024, providing funding to 12 small businesses throughout Greene County, Hannahs said.
“We have a pipeline of really excited and qualified businesses that are chomping at the bit to be part of this program,” he said. “ We kind of did the first round as a pilot to see how popular it would be and we, I think, drastically underestimated how much attention and attraction it would get from from Greene County businesses. And we’re proud of that, because it has proved to be a really valuable resource that people needed.”
The organization is also looking at working more closely with its colleagues across the river in Columbia County to help build the workforce in the area through the Columbia-Greene Workforce Development Board.
“ We’re going after certain companies and making it more of a priority this year to establish and strengthen programs, so that the existing workforce and prospective workforce can be trained and prepared for the jobs that we’re trying to attract to the community,” Hannahs said.
Hannahs started at the organization in August 2022 after working in economic development in his hometown of Gloversville. Since then, the county has seen increases in both economic development and business growth, he said.
“We’re definitely seeing folks see Greene County for the benefits that it has,” Hannahs said. “That it’s a business-friendly and welcoming environment, which is hard to find many times in upstate New York.”
Private investment into larger-scale projects — such as the revitalization of the Camptown resort in Leeds or the proposed Blackhead Mountain Lodge Resort in Round Top — has also grown.
“People are seeing Greene County for what the county’s economy was historically built on. I think there’s a lot to say about that,” Hannahs said. “I think that it also opens up another opportunity for us to dig further and do more development opportunities to help diversify the employer base, too.”
Public investment, such as the county’s $30 million Justice Center project that broke ground last year and the Greene County Tourism Center that has also started construction, has also seen an increase.
“Not only are we seeing private investment take hold but the public is also investing in infrastructure and amenities as well,” Hannahs said.
However, even with the increase in private investment and development in the county, there are still challenges, including keeping up with the constantly changing regulations at the state and federal levels.
“We’re always on the hunt for resources and grant opportunities to help make projects happen,” Hannahs said. “There have recently been regulations concerning wetlands and the DEC [state Department of Environmental Conservation]. As we’re looking to keep Greene County competitive from a site-selection process, it’s a difficult thing to keep up with. It’s a very difficult thing to market.”
Despite that, Hannahs still enjoys coming up with strategies to help businesses navigate regulations.
“Another thing I love doing is wrapping my head around finding a silver lining and being able to bake that into a redevelopment strategy rather than seeing it as a hindrance,” he said.
With all the work Hannahs does at the Greene County Economic Development Corporation, his favorite part is engaging with community members working on their projects.
“ I love being able to work with communities and people who want to do better, and want to invest back in the communities, create job opportunities and uplift themselves,” he said. “It’s very difficult to work in other places where they’re just sort of satisfied with the way things are. They’re not really willing to change. I don’t see that in Greene County. I think that there’s a lot of desire, there’s a lot of hunger, and that creates countless opportunities for us to put it back on the map.”
