That's the situation in which Rensselaer County finds itself. State and federal mandates for such things as Medicaid account for 84% of the county's spending.
County Executive Kathy Jimino has been able to propose budgets that have kept big tax increases at bay for quite a while, the last seven of them relying on a fund balance to get through. But, that balance is getting low even while the costs of doing business keep going up, and there is no sign of significant reductions in mandates.
Absent some sort of financial windfall or very large business developments, the usual suspects -- you and I -- will be footing a bigger county tax bill than ever one of these days. Where does the county go from here for money? A new report from its Economic Development and Planning office, titled "Untapped Retail Opportunity in Rensselaer County," tells us where Jimino's head is at.
Retail is seen as the potential cure all for economic woes in most parts of the Capital Region. At first glance, that would seem to be a legitimate mind-set for Rensselaer County. Although largely rural in nature -- which often means a lower average income, it has seen a phenomenal 78% increase in average household income in the past 15 years, according to that report.
That might seem a questionable statistic in view of the fact that population has slightly declined in that same period, but it could mean some people of higher income are moving here while a greater number of those of lesser means are leaving or expiring.
According to the same report, 43 cents of every retail dollar spent by county residents is spent outside the county. To counter that, the Jimino administration has reduced the county sales tax on clothing and shoes (tax-free up to $110 per item) to provide one attractant to businesses looking to stay in or move to Rensselaer County. But, that's a bit of a gamble.
"We look at it as a short-term loss of tax revenue that eventually will be made up by more retail business being conducted here," Jimino said. If the county can't lure enough high-end retail stores, the gambit will have to be changed.
Recapturing some of the "estimated sales leakage," as the Economic Development and Planning report calls it, is a worthy goal. It estimates nearly $264 million of county residents' dollars is pouring into retailers' coffers in nearby counties, primarily Albany and Saratoga, and across state lines into the upscale retail groupings in Vermont (think Manchester) and Massachusetts (think Lee).
The financial need is complemented by consumer demand. A 2005 survey of county residents by Research & Marketing Strategies cited the desire for department stores (57.5%) and clothing and accessories stores (42.5%) light-years ahead of the demand for general merchandise stores which, unfortunately, is what the bulk of retail development has been so far.
Rensselaer County, however, needs to do more than simply hope retailers will come here. It needs to do much more in the way of exploiting resources it already has, such as improving tourism.
The county often is viewed by outsiders as a place to quickly drive through on Route 7 to get to Vermont or on I-90 to get to the Berkshires and beyond to see precisely the same things this county has in abundance -- picturesque farms, quaint small towns, topographic beauty.
In the fall of 2004, Troy native Bill Larkin, the Republican state senator from Cornwall on Hudson, shepherded a bill into law to legitimize "farm trails." The idea was to take a lesson from the booming wine trails that dot the state and help localities get serious about showing off their wares for fun and profit.
As Larkin explained at the time, the idea was to create a network of farm trails -- including apple trails and gourmet trails -- to take advantage of local food and beverage producers who could be the drawing cards for tourists.
Given Rensselaer County's success with four different farmers' markets and its large number of artisanal agricultural enterprises -- cheesemaking, organic produce, dairy, orchards, honey producers -- as well as B&Bs, restaurants and parkland, it seems ideally suited for a farm trail that leads visitors to more than a single destination. The trails would be identified by a series of roadside signs, with visitors on self-guided tours using them along with handout literature and Web downloads to experience what various localities have to offer, spending money as they do so.
We've got it, now we need to flaunt it.
Put another way, if you promote it, they will come.
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