Budget Cuts Imperil Industry in North Brooklyn

DNAinfo reports that the City is looking to take away funding for Industrial Business Zones in its proposed budget cuts, which would mean many North Brooklyn businesses located in the zone might have to close up shop or move. The cuts would also take away funding from the East Williamsburg Valley Industrial Corporation, an organization that supports more than 300 industrial businesses in North Brooklyn. (Read our interview with the executive director here.) Filco, a refuse company in the neighborhood, is moving to New Jersey after losing some tax incentives with the city. They, along with other local businesses and Community Board One, have written a letter protesting the cuts to the East Williamsburg Valley Industrial Corporation. A rep from the Mayor’s Office for Small Business Services told DNAinfo that the Economic Development Corporation will offer other incentives to industrial businesses, and that the city may still consider scaling back the proposed cuts. About 40 percent of the area’s industrial workforce lives nearby. “Our community needs these jobs,” said an exec with the East Williamsburg Industrial Corp.
Budget Cuts Threaten Future of Industrial Businesses in North Brooklyn [DNAinfo]
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