How cities and public officials can build an innovation ecosystem that attracts new ideas, creative workers and change agents was the topic of highly informative BCW presentation on Wednesday by author and brand/cultural narrative strategist Paul Kalbfleisch. Kalbfleisch spoke at a BCW Board of Directors meeting as part of the Westchester Innovation Network’s effort to position innovation as the foundation for our county’s future economic growth. He explained that cities must become habitats for the human spirit, which means that a community must embrace and celebrate optimism, collaboration, experimentation, and resilience to successfully attract innovators. For example, he cited the […]

CLICK HERE to watch Tompkins Power Breakfast: The Changing Consumer – Today’s Spending Habits & What That Means for Businesses.

Congratulations to BCW Member EPOCH Senior Living which celebrated on Wednesday the Grand Opening of BCW Member Waterstone of Westchester, an elegant boutique hotel-style community for seniors featuring 62+ independent living residences with best-in-class amenities and services. Waterstone of Westchester is the company’s first independent senior living community in New York State. Attending the event with EPOCH Senior Living President and CEO Larry Gerber were White Plains Mayor Tom Roach, Westchester County Executive George Latimer, Westchester County Office of Economic Development Director Bridget Gibbons and County Legislator Ben Boykin. BCW Director of Membership Linda Tyler attended as well. “We are […]

Westchester County’s Element 46 Program is getting big boost. This week the County Office of Economic Development announced a partnership with leading accelerator group Cela Innovation to amplify and enhance the Element 46 incubator program. The new program will be known as the Element 46 Tech Accelerator Powered by Cela. The Element 46 Tech Accelerator Powered by Cela will curate a network of investors and successful entrepreneurs specifically committed to mentoring the startups accepted into the program. It will accept up to 10 startups based in Westchester per cohort for a 10-week program with curriculum, pitch events, press opportunities, and special technology […]

The BCW bids a fond farewell to Manhattanville College President Michael E. Geisler who has announced that he will retire effective June 30.  Geisler ushered the school into a new era and guided it successfully through the pandemic. “Dr. Geisler brought and instilled a vision to merge the traditional strengths of a liberal arts curriculum with the modern requirements of training a humane workforce for tomorrow’s market,” said Michael C. Dunn, an alumnus and Chair-elect of the Manhattanville College Board of Trustees, speaking on behalf of the Board. “Far more than an administrator, Dr. Geisler immersed himself in the culture […]

The Business Council of Westchester this week joined with a statewide coalition of regional chambers of commerce throughout New York led by the Buffalo Niagara Partnership and the Business Council of New York State calling on the federal government to reinstate a ban on assault weapons. The united stand by business organizations follows the racist mass shooting at a Tops supermarket in Buffalo on May 14th.  During the attack, the shooter used an AR-15 to kill 10 people and injure several others.  The same kind of weapon was used only weeks later in a Texas school shooting that left 19 […]