If you are planning an expansion or relocation in the coming months, I invite you to consider Greater Binghamton. We have the sixth largest economy in Upstate New York and are located within easy reach of 60% of the North American population. In less than four hours from Greater Binghamton you can reach clients and customers in two of the most strategic metroplexes in the world: Boston-Washington in the U.S. and Toronto-Montreal in Canada. In Greater Binghamton you will find one of the most innovative economies in North America. The Milken Institute's Best Performing Cities ranks us in the top 5 nationally for our clusters of high technology industries. Our patents per capita, workforce quality, and research capacity put us in the same league as Cambridge, Austin, and San Jose. WIRED, a leading magazine for creatives, describes Binghamton as an "emerging epicenter" for high tech growth. Our region features strong clusters in aerospace, healthcare, software, advanced manufacturing, communications, simulation, food production and distribution. In Binghamton, your company will join a variety of household names including Lockheed Martin, Gannett, IBM, Frito Lay, L-3 Communications, Rockwell Collins, and BAE Systems. Businesses that choose Binghamton get the advantage of working with Binghamton University ranked in the top 100 national universities and top 40 public universities in the U.S. Earlier this fall, governor Cuomo and local leaders announced Binghamton University's $60 million School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences will be located in Johnson City, near UHS Wilson Medical Center and on the site of the original Endicott Johnson shoe company. The 70,000 s/f building will include nine state-of-the-art research labs and offices for 31 faculty and staff. The Pharmacy School will house 380 students when fully enrolled after four years. Groundbreaking for this exciting new facility is expected in the spring of 2016. A few weeks ago we broke ground on our $19 million, 35,000 s/f High Technology Incubator in downtown Binghamton. This unique space will offer developing companies state-of-the-art laboratories, connections to industry, and access to technology transfer and commercialization expertise at Binghamton University. It is the result of a partnership between Binghamton University, the U.S. Economic Development Administration, New York State, SUNY Broome Community College, Broome County, the city of Binghamton and the Broome County IDA. Construction has begun on a $70 million state-of-the-art energy research and development facility for solar energy and fuel cell technologies, and improved efficiencies in computer and electronic systems. Binghamton University is well on its way to becoming a leading global center for research in energy and energy storage. We'd love to show you the Charles St. Business Park in Binghamton. Charles St. is a 32 acre state-of-the-art urban industrial park on the city's west side. This former industrial site has been readapted into one of the premier technology business parks in the northeast. The site is anchored by Emerson Network Power's 40,000 s/f Binghamton headquarters. Charles St. is in a Federal HUBZone creating many potential advantages for businesses that locate there. Another great location, the Airport Corporate Center, offers more than 175,000 s/f of available space for warehouse, manufacturing, and office. The center is located just minutes from Rt-17/I-86 providing easy access to points in all directions. And the Huron Campus in Endicott features more than 250,000 s/f of high-quality office space as well as 100,000 s/f for manufacturing and 60,000 s/f for warehouse. In Binghamton, the people who work for you will have access to excellent schools, an opera and a symphony, strong minor league baseball and hockey, Division I athletics, and a robust arts scene. We have more family-owned, authentic restaurants per capita in Binghamton than most communities in the U.S. Binghamton's superb transportation system makes it possible to get to the Adirondacks, the Poconos, and amazing fly-fishing along the Delaware River in a matter of hours. And if you like winery tours and tastings we are a short distance from the Finger Lakes, producers of some of the great Rieslings in the world. Binghamton's location, technology and quality of life make more sense than ever. For more on business in our region, visit the BCIDA's website, www.bcida.com which includes a database of available properties, an interactive profile of the area, and links to our incentives and programs. Kevin McLaughlin is the executive director of the Broome County IDA, Binghamton, N.Y.