STAI: Revitalizing Industry in New York's Rust Belt

An introductory look at the Southern Tier Aviation Initiative

One of the more enduring issues in American politics is the fallout from our move to global trade in rural regions that formerly focused on manufacturing and industrial processing. The up-and-coming Southern Tier Aviation Initiative ^[1] (STAI) offers a potential answer to communities facing this industrial deterioration. The scope of STAI’s project encompasses New York’s Southern Tier region, a largely rural portion of the state running along its southern border. The area’s industrial degradation can be exemplified by looking at one of the largest cities in the region, Binghamton, where manufacturing made up roughly 45% of private sector employment entering the 1970s; by 2015, that number barely broke 10%^[2]. STAI aims to utilize the existing infrastructure that formerly supported the Southern Tier's manufacturing base to bolster an industry currently underappreciated in the region: aerospace engineering. The idea is that by focusing on this high-demand industry in the territory, the increase in the working-age population and corporate interest will economically revitalize the Southern Tier and bolster innovation in the field long-term.

Existing Infrastructure

Assuming positive feasibility study results, one of the top contenders for STAI’s ground zero is the O’Neil Road facility in Sidney, New York, that formerly manufactured ACCO office supplies. The campus is equipped with its own electrical substation and sits right across the street from the Sidney Municipal Airport, making it ideal for the flight training and airport management courses proposed to launch the program. Its position just off Interstate 88 also makes the property appealing from a commuter standpoint ^[3]. In addition to the small-scale convenience of the location, the Southern Tier is already familiar with aerospace and defense companies operating in the region. The existing footprint of large companies like Lockheed Martin, Amphenol Aerospace, and BAE Systems in the Southern Tier provides the materials to become an aerospace engineering hub. Still, without an interfacing system like the one STAI proposes, cooperative development hasn’t been optimized. Because of the region's economic and workforce stagnation, enticing qualified employees becomes more expensive, making further investment unappealing ^[4]. Expanding local training programs will expand the workforce and make the region more attractive to industrial expansion and new investment.

Housing and Energy

Increasing population and industry isn't free, and bolstering them raises the question of whether the existing infrastructure is sufficient to supply the basic amenities necessary, namely: housing and electricity. As things stand, it's clear the area couldn't support a project of this scale without improvements; to address this, the STAI team has a number of proposals that could ease the stress on the power grid and bolster residential development. Addressing the housing concerns will be fairly straightforward, though not necessarily easy. The basic plan is to contract an existing construction company and erect apartment buildings, ideally using largely locally sourced materials where available. STAI’s leadership has already been in contact with an architect who is advising them on this element of the project.  A strong choice to address the power issue is to utilize the Southern Tier’s Superfund sites to build renewable energy plants like solar or wind farms. Superfund sites are areas identified by the EPA as hazardous due to chemical contamination, often caused by reckless mining or industrial development ^[5].  Informally known as Superfund, the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act, passed in 1980, offers grants to organizations to conduct cleanup efforts, with costs ultimately recovered from those responsible for the contamination when possible. Additionally, by using the sites for renewable energy, STAI can apply for benefits like streamlined zoning, tax incentives, and reduced land costs through the EPA’s RE-Powering America’s Land initiative ^[6].

Regional School and Corporate Involvement

Once the planning and feasibility studies are complete, the first stage of STAI’s project focuses on expanding the availability of education in aerospace-related fields. This will be the primary purpose of the former ACCO campus in Sidney. Given its proximity to the Sidney Municipal Airport, the initial courses proposed are pilot training and airport management. The secondary benefit of starting with these subjects is their decreased reliance on expensive hardware relative to other aerospace-related courses. In theory, this program would be overseen by an established, accredited school that would monitor things like curriculum quality and staff vetting. Currently, representatives from the State University of New York at Delhi and Vaughn College of Aeronautics and Technology have expressed interest in the program and are keeping up with the project, but have refrained from making any firm commitments until the completion of a feasibility study. The corporate involvement side has a longer-term horizon, but there are some regional elements that show promise should STAI’s infancy prove successful. While the local company Amphenol Aerospace has no formal involvement in the project, a representative of the company is acting as an industry expert on STAI’s advisory board. Additionally, BAE Systems, in collaboration with GE Aerospace and other industry partners, recently unveiled a flight test of a modified aircraft featuring hybrid-electric propulsion technology  ^[7]. The significance of this event is that it displays industry interest in one of the expressed STAI’s long-term goals: expediting the arrival of sustainable, electric-powered aircraft for commercial adoption.

Political Buy-in

For projects of this scale, one thing that can get you significant bang for your buck is drawing the interest of local politicians. Interfacing with local and federal governmental bodies is a necessary aspect of broad-scope programs like this, as seen previously with EPA Superfund sites. Having the backing of legislators and local officials can help to expedite some of these processes. To that end, STAI has been proactive with its outreach, working to draw political attention to the program. The mayor of the Village of Sidney, Ray Baker, where the former ACCO building is, and councilman Kevin Green from the Town of Sidney are acting as members of STAI’s advisory board to give insight on the local area’s inner workings as the likely genesis point of the initiative. A number of state legislators have also expressed support privately and are watching the progress in these early stages closely. Maybe most notably, STAI leadership has had the opportunity to discuss its project with Senator Chuck Schumer and Representative Josh Riley, who both responded favorably and indicated their interest in STAI’s work going forward. Highlighting the bipartisan interest here, State Representative Joe Angelino and State Senator Peter Oberacker, who is challenging Representative Riley’s seat in New York’s 19th District, have been supportive of the project as well. In many cases, concrete commitments cannot be assured until completion of the feasibility study, but drawing attention ahead of time will help bolster STAI’s credibility as a committed and trustworthy group when more solid asks need to be made down the line.

Where is STAI now?

To round out our coverage, I sat down for a chat with the founder of the Southern Tier Aviation Initiative, Darius Palmer, to get his take on the current progress of the project. “If everything were to go perfectly [in the next two months], I would like to see the feasibility study commissioned” Palmer mused. He referenced two major roadblocks standing in the way of that: the rigorous process of applying for funding grants and identifying unbiased companies to conduct the study itself. The primary grant being considered would come from the U.S. Economic Development Administration, or EDA, which offers several grants localized to New York’s Southern Tier, given the region’s notable industrial deterioration. As with most federal grants, the auditing and processing of applicants can be rather stringent; as such, getting approval has been a slow process, but Palmer remains confident based on his experience so far. He stressed that the more difficult part will be finding the groups that will conduct the study itself: “The number of moving parts is the issue … they have to look at how many students in the region would be interested or would be able to attend [the college] and even those from outside the region … what effects would it have on the local economy?” Palmer also noted that, given the technical nature of STAI’s goals, they would need to find two separate companies to perform the study: one generalist company and one company with industry specialization. Regarding his hopes for this article, Palmer expressed how important it can be to have eyes on a project like this: “Having people reaching out and asking questions can be the difference between whether a project lives or dies.” He recalled his experiences meeting with politicians and local industry leaders: “[Networking and public sector interfacing] is outside my area of expertise, so I try to be humble and honestly ask questions about things … I’ve found that they're generally excited and very willing to help.” The founder’s optimism remains firm because of the circling of industry, institutions, and the municipality itself that he’s seen as his vision has solidified into an actionable plan.