Community News

Operation Oswego County (OOC) recognized three business organizations, a successful entrepreneur and a long-standing economic development advocate for their significant contributions to economic development and job creation in Oswego County at its 67th annual meeting at the Lake Ontario Event and Conference Center, in the City of Oswego, Friday, June 14th.

The Ally Award for 2019 was presented to Cayuga Community College – Fulton Campus in recognition and appreciation of the vision, commitment and leadership demonstrated to support and enhance workforce readiness skills for the betterment of Oswego County’s industries, businesses and citizens; for spearheading the Act Work Ready Community Initiative to make Oswego County the first Act Work Ready Community in New York State and in the northeast; for its role in assembling strategic partners from local government, schools, community organizations and businesses across Oswego County to implement the initiative; for efforts to carry out the Advanced Manufacturing Initiative to include an Advanced Manufacturing Laboratory in Fulton for specialized training; for the creation of the Oswego County Manufacturers Consortia involving 21 companies; and for being a vital and essential partner in workforce and economic development in Oswego County, NY.

The Business Excellence Award for 2019 was presented to United Wire Technologies in recognition and appreciation for demonstrating outstanding leadership, adaptation, commitment and perseverance in overcoming a devastating fire in 2012; for the dedication to keep the third generation company in Oswego County by acquiring and renovating a 14,400 sf building in the Town of Constantia; for expanding to 22,200 sf in 2017; for being a quality and specialized producer of copper alloy wire used in aviation to musical instruments; for being an employer of 14 and for doing business in Oswego County for over 80 years.

The 2019 Jobs Award was presented to EJ USA in recognition and appreciation of the significant contribution and impact of EJ USA’s new 71,300 sf state-of-the-art manufacturing facility and its northeastern distribution and logistics hub located in the Oswego County Industrial Park in the Town of Schroeppel; for its critical and essential role in fabricating products for infrastructure development; for employing over 100 workers; for investing $10 million; and for becoming an integral part of Oswego County’s and Central New York’s manufacturing community.

Anthony M. Pauldine received OOC’s 2019 Dee Heckethorn Entrepreneur Award in recognition and appreciation of exceptional entrepreneurial spirit, creativity, and dedication to revitalizing the City of Oswego’s downtown; for restoring the 191-year-old former fish market that is on the National Register of Historic Places, Cahill Landing, into 7 upscale apartments and being recognized by the Preservation League of New York State with a 2019 Excellence in Historic Preservation Award; for transforming the former YMCA building into a mixed-use development with 10 loft apartments and 5,500 sf of commercial space; for restoring the historic Buckhout-Jones building that is now home to the Children’s Museum of Oswego; for the development of the Canal Commons that offers shopping in the heart of downtown Oswego with over a dozen shops and The Lofts at Canal Commons that features 11 luxury apartments; and for operating a successful general contracting business for over 30 years.

David Dano was honored with the 2019 Martin Rose Economic Developer Merit Award in recognition and appreciation of his outstanding record of exhibiting leadership, support, expertise and cooperation in advancing economic and business development that have significantly enhanced the business climate, economic progress and the quality of life in Oswego County; for his commitment and dedication for serving on the Board of Directors of Operation Oswego County between 1985-1999 (15 years); serving as Vice President between 1987-1996 (10 years); serving as President between 1996-1999 (4 years); for providing financial consulting services between 2000-2002 (3 years); for serving as Operation Oswego County’s loan manager between 2003-2004 (2 years) and its Business Finance Director between 2005-2018 (14 years); for serving as Chief Financial Officer of the County of Oswego Industrial Development Agency between 2009-2018 (10 years) and for his extraordinary devotion to Oswego County businesses, non-profit organizations and citizens for over 35 years.