Schumer has no regrets when downtown projects fail

Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., is no stranger to being a booster for Rochester projects that haven’t gone as planned.

When Renaissance Square was being negotiated, Schumer was pushing the sides to reach an agreement, because federal funds hung in the balance.
When the fast ferry was being developed, Schumer was there, chasing federal grants to help make it a reality.

And less than three months ago, as Midtown prepared to welcome PAETEC and before the company was sold to Arkansas-based Windstream, Schumer was there, to say he was pressing for $2 million in federal grants to help with infrastructure improvements there.
“A strong downtown helps a whole metropolitan area,” Schumer said, reflecting on those projects during a meeting Tuesday with the Democrat and Chronicle editorial board. “You can live in Gates and downtown still matters to you.”
Too often the government turns away potential economic development opportunities, Schumer said, adding that he doesn’t regret his involvement in local projects, even though the outcome hasn’t always been what was originally intended.
“I believe we always say no, when we should say yes,” he said. “And I know that the chance of success is not 100 percent in any of these, but I work real hard to do them and some of them will succeed.”
He pointed to General Motors’ planned investment of $100 million into its plant on Lexington Avenue as one of those successes.

Schumer, a Democrat from Brooklyn who is known for traveling the state widely and for being willing to share his opinions on most any issue making headlines, was in Rochester for several events on Tuesday. In addition to the editorial board meeting, he held a media event at the Port of Rochester and a fundraiser for Democratic county executive candidate Sandy Frankel.
Schumer said he has spoken to the chief executive officer of Windstream several times, and while initially the company did not seem excited about moving PAETEC employees downtown, as PAETEC had said it would do, Schumer has made it clear that the move is a priority for him.