Leading a partnership to synergize the strengths and resources of government, higher education and business are (from left) Oswego Mayor William J. Barlow Jr., SUNY Oswego President Deborah F. Stanley and Pathfinder Bank President Thomas W. Schneider, in front of the college’s new Business Resource Center near the east side’s main intersection—about two blocks south of the busy Port of Oswego.
SUNY Oswego partnered with Pathfinder Bank to create a new Business Resource Center in downtown Oswego to bring resources and services closer to the businesses that need them.
The new facility at 121 E. First St. opened in the fall and houses the Small Business Development Center, the Workforce Development Board of Oswego County, and the offices of the director and several other key staff of SUNY Oswego’s Office of Business and Community Relations (OBCR). The Greater Oswego-Fulton Chamber of Commerce expects to maintain a presence at the location as well.
Pathfinder also provided a renovated space at 34 E. Bridge St., in the Pathfinder Bank Building for OBCR’s Leadership Oswego County program and the Retired and Senior Volunteer Program. Some administrative staff of the Oswego Bookmobile also work at the Bridge Street location.
OBCR’s move was prompted by the desire to create a stronger connection between the college and the community as outlined in the college’s strategic plan, Tomorrow, and the need for more space in Rich Hall for the School of Business
With adjacent offices and a shared drive to boost local businesses and create private-public synergies, Katie Toomey (left), executive director of the Greater Oswego-Fulton Chamber of Commerce, and Chena Tucker, director of the SUNY Oswego Office of Business and Community Relations, confer in Toomey’s office in the new Business Resource Center.