Greetings from Long Island, NY
W hile Long Island, NY generally refers to Nassau County and Suffolk County, it also geographically includes the two New York City boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens. Long Island is home to several well-known vacation spots of the rich and famous, such as the Hamptons, Jones Beach, and Fire Island, as well as several Atlantic Ocean beaches. Although tourism makes up a substantial part of Long Island’s economy in certain regions, the area supports a wide-ranging economy.
Long Island has a diversified economy that currently supports more than 1.2 million jobs. The services sectors—including educational and health, leisure and hospitably, and professional firms—account for more than 40% of non-farm employment.
Some of the corporations that have taken up residence on Long Island include:
Computer Associates
Arrow Electronics
Henry Schein
Pall Corporation
OSI Pharmaceuticals
1-800-Flowers
FESTO Corp.
Forest Laboratories
Canon
EDO Corp.
Estee Lauder
Beverage Company Giant Invests in Long Island
AriZona Beverage Company, one of the largest beverage companies in the United States, announced in late 2007 that it will invest $35 million to build a new facility for its corporate headquarters in Woodbury (Nassau County), NY. The company will retain 235 jobs at its two existing facilities in Nassau and Kings counties, and intends to add 50 new jobs over the next five years.
After negotiations with Empire State Development (New York State’s primary economic development agency) and Nassau County, AriZona Beverage decided to build a new state-of-the-art facility in Woodbury. Empire State Development and AriZona Beverage have agreed to a series of project milestones that will enable the company to apply for a $250,000 capital grant to offset construction costs. Under the agreement, AriZona Beverage will receive the full amount upon reaching project targets set by Empire State Development. The company has also reached an agreement with the Nassau County Industrial Development Agency for up to $3.79 million in state and local tax abatements.
“The state and county were extremely collaborative and proactive in working with us to address all of our site location needs throughout the course of this two-year project,” says John Posillico, chief technical officer for AriZona Beverage Company. “They were our partners from start to finish and were instrumental in helping our new home become a reality.”
Long Island Workforce Data
Labor force: 1,485,800
Households: 916,686
Total Personal Income: $115.6 billion
Per capita income: $41,558
Long Island has the 17th largest metropolitan area economy in the nation. More than 120,000 businesses in both Nassau and Suffolk counties generate $134 billion in economic activity annually.
Long Island is home to the East Coast’s largest industrial park, the Hauppauge Industrial Park. The park has over 1,300 companies, and employs over 55,000 Long Islanders.
