Empire State Development Regional President Sam Hoyt, Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz and City of Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown have announced the Erie County Industrial Development Agency and the Buffalo Urban Development Corp. have centralized their offices at the vacant space at 95 Perry St., in Buffalo, where Empire State Development's Western New York regional office is currently located. The move allows the state, county and city to have all their economic development entities located in one building, achieving long-term savings for New York taxpayers and the "one-stop shopping" goal the economic development community has supported for years.

New York state spending declined for the second straight year in fiscal year 2012-13 while debt reached an all-time high of $63.5 billion, according to the annual report on the financial condition of New York state released by Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli.

"State policy decisions in the past three years have helped New York better align state spending with revenue, but difficulties remain," DiNapoli said.

In downtown Buffalo Tuesday, the University at Buffalo broke ground on a milestone project in the university's history and in the city's efforts to reinvent itself as a destination for world-class health care.

Tops Friendly Markets, a leading full-service grocery retailer in upstate New York, northern Pennsylvania and western Vermont, has announced the company's produce director, Steven Wright has won 2013 Retailer of the Year from Produce Retailer magazine. The award celebrates Wright as well as Tops' entire produce team as leaders in the produce field and within the grocery industry.

Nominations for this distinction are submitted largely by the produce vendor community and are based on criteria such as: innovative programs, creative merchandising, environmental stewardship, supplier relationship, leadership effectiveness, and divisional culture.

"This truly is a historic day at Niagara University, one that will forever change the scientific research and teaching that happens on our campus."

Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo announced Thursday the state and the City of Niagara Falls will partner to launch the Downtown Niagara Falls Development Challenge, a major competition to select a team of world-class designers, developers and operators to envision and develop signature projects in the downtown area that will attract significant private sector investment and accelerate the revitalization of Niagara Falls. The goal of the competition is to transform downtown Niagara Falls into the ultimate tourist destination to attract and retain visitors from around the world, by building and enhancing the amenities and attractions available in the area.

During the first half of 2013, New York credit unions continued to outpace national averages in asset growth, share growth, membership growth and loan growth. These trends are highlighted in the second quarter 2013 New York Credit Union Performance & Trends Report, which was recently published by the Credit Union Association of New York in partnership with Callahan & Associates Inc.

The Town of Niagara Town Board on Tuesday jubilantly gave final approval for the expansion of Fashion Outlets of Niagara.

New York State Sen. Mark Grisanti, R-I-Buffalo, and State Assemblyman Sean Ryan, D-WF-Buffalo, announced legislation they sponsored in the Senate and Assembly to improve Erie County's land bank has been signed into law by Gov. Andrew Cuomo. The legislation (S5167, A7245) makes corrections to the statewide land bank legislation that was passed in 2011.

To combat the continuing problem of vacant homes, New York state passed the land bank legislation, which empowered counties and municipalities to create land banks to purchase vacant and abandoned properties.

State Sen. George Maziarz, R-C-Newfane, has announced the introduction of bills S5935 and S5936, which aim to help control the cost of the state pension system. Under current law, officers and employees of private organizations such as the state Association of Counties, the state School Boards Association and the Association of Towns are all eligible to participate in New York's retirement system.

The New York Power Authority board of trustees on Tuesday awarded a low-cost hydropower allocation of four megawatts to Alita USA Holdings, a steel manufacturer planning to build a 340,000-square-foot pipe mill in Buffalo. The $102 million project would create 157 jobs at the company's Western New York facility and another 15 jobs at a new corporate administrative office to be based in New York.

"Alita USA Holdings would be a welcome addition to Buffalo," said John R. Koelmel, NYPA chairman and an East Amherst resident.

Tax revenues for the first five months of the state fiscal year were $69.8 million more than updated budget projections, according to the August cash report released by New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli. Year-to-date tax collections are up 10.3 percent from the same period last year, largely due to strong personal income tax collections in April. August state tax collections fell 5.1 percent from 2012, primarily because of fewer collection days than last August.

In an effort to increase partnerships between women, veteran, minority and local businesses within Western New York, Catholic Health and Roswell Park Cancer Institute will host a vendor fair on Wednesday, Oct. 9, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Millennium Hotel, located at 2040 Walden Ave., Cheektowaga.

Empire State Development's board of directors met this week in New York City and approved $16.6 million in funding for projects that will create more than 75 new jobs and retain nearly 700 jobs throughout the Empire State. This funding will leverage more than $180 million in additional investments to support business growth and lay the groundwork for future economic growth and job creation.

Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo visited Niagara Falls Thursday to announce an agreement on the $25.3 million, mixed-use project proposed by Hamister Development Inc., and to thank the City Council for its support. The City Council recently voted in favor of the project, which is located at a city-owned site at 310 Rainbow Blvd., in downtown Niagara Falls.

"With the approval of the Hamister project, the City of Niagara Falls is taking a major step forward in our ongoing work to revive the local tourism industry and economy," Cuomo said.

The New York State Builders Association 2013 fall board meetings will be held Thursday, Sept. 19, and Friday, Sept. 20, at the Conference & Events Center Niagara Falls. The Niagara County Builders Association looks forward to hosting the event and its participants.

A highlight of the event is a speech Thursday by Elliot Eisenberg, Ph.D., a nationally acclaimed economist and public speaker. He will address the group during an 11:45 a.m. luncheon.

Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman announced this week that his office reached a settlement with Sears, Roebuck and Co. over a refund policy the retailer applied to consumers who participated in its "Come Back Cash" promotion. In the promotion, a consumer who purchased merchandise above a "qualifying threshold" amount was given a $10 or $20 promotional award card. However, if the consumer later returned some of the merchandise, Sears reduced the refund by a pro-rated amount of the value of the award card, even if the cost of the unreturned merchandise remained above the qualifying threshold and/or if the customer did not cash in the award.

On Thursday, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo presented his plan for a dramatic transformation of Buffalo's waterfront. The first component of the plan calls for the transfer of up to 400 acres of land on the Outer Harbor from the Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority to the state, bringing the community's goal of increasing future recreational opportunities and fostering redevelopment on Buffalo's waterfront closer to reality.

Under the proposal, the Erie Canal Harbor Development Corp. will acquire the land from NFTA to plan for future development and use, and New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation will operate half of the property, encompassing the small boat harbor and Gallagher Beach, as a new state park.

"Each year nearly 10,000 pens 'walk-out the doors' of our Auto Bureaus, costing taxpayers thousands of dollars," said Erie County Clerk Chris Jacobs. "I found it frustrating to spend so much taxpayer money for pens, so we looked for a creative solution to offset the cost."

Jacobs' creative solution is to partner with local businesses who frequently advertise through having pens with their logos on them. "These businesses actually want folks to take their pens so we thought it was a perfect marriage," he said.

Anthony L. Picone, M.D., Ph.D., MBA, cardiothoracic surgeon in the department of thoracic surgery, has been named medical director of Roswell Park Cancer Institute.

Picone has been employed at Roswell Park since April of 2009, and for the past six months has served as RPCI's interim medical director.

State Sen. Maziarz has announced that, starting today, residents of Niagara Falls will be able to track how the city is spending the casino revenue funds online. Expenditure information will be available on the senator's website.

"One of the main concerns I heard about the casino revenue from constituents was that they had no idea how it was being spent," Maziarz said.

For the first time in six years, national job growth rates have exceeded those in New York state, according to a new report on economic trends released by New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli.

"The good news is that New York's job count has increased above its pre-recession levels," DiNapoli said. "The bad news is that, over the past year, we have fallen short of the national growth rate in several major employment sectors. New York, like much of the nation, is still struggling to generate the well-paying, secure jobs that workers at various skill levels and experience need and deserve."

An Island mon's frustration with her third-grader's math homework was the inspiration for a new product.

The Western New York Regional Economic Development Council met Tuesday and was presented with a shortlist of pre-qualified developers for the adaptive reuse and redevelopment of the remaining 200,000 square feet in the former Rainbow Centre Mall in downtown Niagara Falls.

Intertrust Development Inc., one of the largest hospitality business owners and developers in Western New York and Niagara Falls, Ontario, and Uniland Development Co., a leading builder, developer and manager of commercial real estate in Western New York, will now be invited to respond to a detailed request for proposals.

The Western New York Regional Economic Development Council today announced three new members will join the council: Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus Inc. President and CEO Matthew K. Enstice, Buffalo Niagara Partnership President and CEO Dottie Gallagher-Cohen, and Blackstone Business Enterprises Inc. President Michael Metzger.

The new members fill vacant seats due to resignations on the council.

Members of the public have received their first look at the proposed Ellicott Development project eyed for Center Street. At Monday's Village of Lewiston Planning Board meeting, David M. Hall, planning and development coordinator for the Buffalo-based property management firm, informed attendees - including four members of the Village Board of Trustees - of his company's intention to build the village's first north-side plaza.

The development would begin on Center Street and lead down to Onondaga Street. Potential tenants include a fast food restaurant, a bank and a drugstore.

The Niagara County Industrial Development Agency board of directors today approved applications for assistance received at its June meeting from Niagara Jet Adventures LLC for a new tourism jetboat tour company in Youngstown, and from 452 Third Street LLC for a conversion of an abandoned building in Niagara Falls into an 11-room hotel.

Congressman Chris Collins, NY-27, has introduced legislation in Congress to help scientists commercialize their ideas. The idea has the backing of local research universities.

As a member of the science, space and technology committee, Collins is the sponsor of the TRANSFER Act of 2013 (H.R. 2981). This bill builds upon a current program and specifically awards grants to innovative technology transfer programs at universities, research institutes and national laboratories.

The First Niagara Foundation and Niagara Falls Neighborhood Housing Services Inc. are partnering to provide educational support for first-time homebuyers in Niagara Falls.

A longtime business expansion plan has finally come to fruition in the Village of Lewiston. Angel to Apple has opened its own shoe department within its current location at 451 Center St.

Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo was joined Wednesday by Seneca Nation President Barry E. Snyder Sr. to present a check for $89 million to the City of Niagara Falls, delivering the first payment as part of the landmark agreement reached in June that resolved a multi-year dispute between the state and the nation.

"By working together and both sides coming to the table in the spirit of collaboration and respect, the state and Seneca Nation of Indians were able to end years of dispute and reach an agreement that is a major victory for all parties involved," Cuomo said.

Over the past decade, tourism has experienced continued growth to become one of the fastest growing economic sectors in Niagara County, turning tourism into a key driver for progress.

HARBORcenter Development has announced an agreement was reached with Marriott International and Shaner Hotels to develop and operate the hotel facility at HARBORcenter in downtown Buffalo. The hotel property, which has been awarded a full-service Marriott franchise to be operated by Shaner Hotels, will be part of a $170 million multi-use hockey and entertainment complex in the Canalside District.

The Village of Lewiston complex once known as Fairchild Manor has been sold and is slated to become a 24-unit condominium complex. Brooklyn-based Goldin Management purchased the former nursing home.

Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman has announced financial information giant Thomson Reuters agreed to immediately discontinue the practice of providing high-frequency traders with certain market-moving consumer survey results prior to the release of that information to its other subscribers, a move prompted by a current investigation by the attorney general's office into this matter.

Dunkin' Donuts today announced that Buffalo franchisee Tim Cloe has signed agreements to build four new Dunkin' Donuts locations this year with Amherst-based Bevilacqua Development.

The new locations are slated to open in 2013 in Lockport, Hanover and Amherst (near UB North and on Transit Road) and will all feature the new modern Dunkin' Donuts look introduced this year.

The Niagara River Region Chamber of Commerce and The Village Goldsmith celebrated a ribbon-cutting on Tuesday with master jeweler and owner Rob Young. His operation is located at 744 Center St., in the Village of Lewiston.

The Niagara County Industrial Development Agency board of directors has approved applications for assistance received at its May meeting from AMDOR Inc. LLC for the proposed construction of a new manufacturing facility in Sanborn and from Bridgewater Estates LLC for a new senior housing complex in Lewiston. In addition, the board approved a revised application for assistance from KI PO Automotive for a $1.54 million expansion project to its operations in Ransomville.

Joseph P. Lojacono, president of Valmark Associates, has been elected president of Buffalo Niagara Sales & Marketing Executives. He succeeds Patricia L. Herberger of LegalShield/ID Theft Shield, who remains on the board of directors as immediate past president. Tim Kwiatkowski of Five Star Bank, executive vice president, will again chair the group's Executive of the Year Awards Gala.

The New York State Destination Marketing Organizations (formerly the New York State Association of Conventions and Visitors Bureaus), recently announced the appointment of John Percy as president. Percy serves as president and CEO of the Niagara Tourism & Convention Corp.