Industrial Desk

The Industrial Desk, housed in NYCEDC's Center for Economic Transformation (CET), was created in June 2011 to oversee the implementation of New York City's 22 initiatives to support the industrial sector, and to evaluate and coordinate City-wide industrial policy as delineated by the Bloomberg administration's 2005 Industrial Policy paper.

New York City's Industrial Policy (2005)

The New Industrial NYC

The City’s industrial sector is an integral part of the City’s economy that has faced serious challenges in recent decades, but now offers real opportunities for growth and development. New York City in particular offers unique location-based advantages for industrial activity, including a population of about 8.4 million, access to a large workforce and highly-skilled labor, and one of the nation’s busiest ports based on import volume. The City is committed to aggressively leverage these natural assets to promote innovation and entrepreneurialism to position the sector as a vital part of the 21st century economy.

Through discussions with the businesses and stakeholders and careful analysis, we have identified challenges facing the industry and developed innovative solutions to meet these challenges.

The resulting suite of 22 initiatives aim to reignite the sector and keep it a vital force in the City’s economy. The initiatives will result in:

• Activating, modernizing and/or preserving up to 9 million square feet of industrial space
• Creating and/or retaining up to 30,000 direct and indirect, industrial or industrial-driven jobs (on-going and construction) over the next 20 years
• Generating over $150 million in gross, direct fiscal revenues for the City by 2021

Read the press release announcing the 2011 industrial sector initiatives.

Industrial Space

The City will help correct the shortage of suitable industrial real estate by creating, modernizing and preserving industrial spaces. The dynamics of industrial real estate have changed dramatically in the last 50 years. Whereas 20th century industrial businesses, for which most of our industrial real estate was built, required large footprint buildings, today's businesses are more nimble and are focused on accessing smaller, updated spaces. In addition to this shift in demand, the shortage of desirable industrial space is also aggravated by continued conversion of industrial space to higher revenue uses.

Initiatives for creating more suitable spaces for industrial businesses include:

• Brooklyn Army Terminal (BAT) Low-Cost Space RFP
• BAT Space Renovation Pilot Program
• City Council/Admin. Industrial Space Modernization RFP
• La Marqueta Food Manufacturing Step-up Space
• Federal Building Redevelopment
• Hunts Point Halleck Industrial Site Development RFP
• Hunts Point Produce Market Redevelopment Commitment
• Prioritizing Industrial Use in other City-Owned Site RFPs

Financing Resources

The City is committed to tailoring financing resources to the needs of today's industrial businesses by creating new financing tools and increasing access to existing funding programs. Initiatives for improving access to financing include:

• NYCEDC Industrial Development Program (IDP)
• Goldman Sachs NYC Food Manufacturing Fund
• Industrial Development Authority (NYCIDA) Program Expansion
• NYC SBS Incentives Consultation Practice
• NYC Industrial Business Advisory Council
• NYC Industrial Business Improvement Districts (IBIDs)

Entrepreneurial Support

As our industrial businesses evolve, so must the City resources serving them. Initiatives aimed at to better aligning City resources with the needs of industrial businesses include:

• NYCEDC Industrial Desk
• Interagency Industrial Steering Committee
• Industrial Business Advisory Council
• Pilot Industrial/Manufacturing Innovation Competition
• Business-to-Business-to-Agency Events
• Manufacturing & Workforce Development Training
• La Marqueta and The Entrepreneur's Space kitchen incubators
• Industrial Business Zone Expansion
• Rapid Prototyping and Fabrication Development

For more in-depth information on these programs, please view the PDFs on the sidebar of this page.

Industrial Business Zones

In 2005, the Bloomberg Administration designated the Industrial Business Zones (IBZs) to stabilize primarily industrial areas in the Bronx, Brooklyn, and Queens. Other areas, including in Staten Island, Manhattan and the Bronx, were designated Industrial Ombudsmen Areas. Both designations foster high-performing business districts by creating competitive advantages over locating in areas outside of New York City. The IBZs are supported by tax credits for relocating within them, zone-specific planning efforts, and direct business assistance from Industrial Providers of NYC Business Solutions Industrial and Transportation. In view of the purposes of IBZs, to foster industrial sector growth by creating real estate certainty, the Administration has stated that it will not support the rezoning of these areas for residential use. Please click the links below to view the boundaries of Industrial Business Zones and Industrial Ombudsman Areas (combined with tax blocks and lots, when applicable).

• Bathgate Map Blocks Lots (204 KB)
• Brooklyn Navy Yards Map Block Lots (136 KB)
• East New York Map Block Lots (336 KB)
• Eastchester Map Block Lots (213 KB)
• Flatlands-Fairfield Map Block Lots (288 KB)
• Garment Center Map (191 KB)
• Greenpoint-Williamsburg Map Block Lots (250 KB)
• Hunts Point Map Block Lots (354 KB)
• Jamaica Map Map Block Lots (275 KB)
• JFK Map Block Lots (197 KB)
• Long Island City Map Block Lots (338 KB)
• Maspeth Map Block Lots (250 KB)
• North Brooklyn Map Block Lots (332 KB)
• Port Morris Map Block Lots (284 KB)
• Southwest Brooklyn Map Block Lots (283 KB)
• Staten Island North Shore Map (175 KB)
• Steinway Map Block Lots (190 KB)
• Zerega Map Block Lots (216 KB)

Industrial Providers

NYC Business Solutions Industrial & Transportation is a set of services offered by the Department of Small Business Services to help manufacturing, construction, transportation and wholesale businesses operate and expand in New York City. In order to provide the most tailored support, each IBZ has a specific service provider assigned to cover it.

Whether you’re a small business owner who needs a loan to purchase new equipment, a manufacturer looking for quality production or supervisory staff, or a growing company that needs licensed drivers, NYC Business Solutions Industrial & Transportation can work for you—for free. Their services include: Financing assistance, Recruitment, Incentives Assistance in navigating government, Training, M/WBE certification, Business courses, Legal assistance, Selling to government, and Reaching new customers.

Their teams are located across all five Boroughs and has the industry experience and resources to address the challenges you face. To learn which Industrial Provider serves your geographic location, please visit NYC Business Solutions Industrial & Transportation.

City-Administered Industrial Business Incentives

New York City industrial firms may be eligible for a variety of tax incentives, financing tools and workforce development programs. These incentives range from energy savings and real estate to job creation and business relocation.

To see which financing and incentives opportunities are appropriate for your business, please visit NYCEDC's Financing and Incentives page. For an overview of the many incentives for all of New York City's small businesses, please visit NYC Business Solutions Incentives overview.