Business leaders want photonics HQ in tower

ALBANY – Top Rochester-area business leaders said Wednesday that the business headquarters for a $600 million photonics center should be located at the former Bausch & Lomb building in downtown Rochester.

The announcement, set to be made official Thursday, comes after some local leaders, particularly University of Rochester president Joel Seligman, urged that the headquarters be located at the nearby Sibley's building.

The business leaders, including the heads of Wegmans, Eastman Kodak and Paychex, wrote in a lengthy statement that the iconic former home to Bausch & Lomb, now called the Legacy Tower, should be the place for the photonics center's business operations.

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The group, called the Rochester Business Leaders Photonics Working Group, said the goal is to have the headquarters in downtown Rochester.

"The former Bausch and Lomb building is a turnkey facility that would require almost no infrastructure upgrades, allowing the public's investment to go toward its intended scientific and job creation purposes," the statement, obtained by Gannett's Albany Bureau, said.

"Placement of the headquarters at Legacy Tower will also benefit other downtown buildings as new companies and facilities come to Rochester looking for space."

Robert Duffy, the president of the Rochester Business Alliance and the former lieutenant governor, said the business leaders viewed the Bausch & Lomb building as the best option for downtown Rochester.

He said the leaders of the project hope to have operations in Rochester by year's end.

"This headquarters, if all goes well, they want to be up and running by the end of 2015," Duffy told Gannett. "So they want to be moving quickly on this, and Sibley's is going to be a work in progress."

The business group urged the SUNY Polytechnic Institute, based in Albany, and "the photonics award decision makers" to put the headquarters at the Bausch & Lomb building.

The business headquarters is expected to be among the locations in the Rochester area where the work of the photonics center will take place. SUNY Poly already has operations in Canal Ponds in Greece and the nearby Eastman Business Park, as well as in Canandaigua, Ontario County.

After Bausch & Lomb was sold in 2013, the building was bought by Buckingham Properties and renamed the Legacy Tower. Larry Glazer, founder of Buckingham Properties, and his wife died in a plane crash last September.

The company, along with Pittsford's Morgan Management, jointly own the tower. Built at a cost of $70 million in 1995, the local companies bought it for $15 million.

The state, led by SUNY Poly, is investing $250 million into the photonics center after the federal Department of Defense picked Rochester and Albany for the Integrated Photonics Institute for Manufacturing Innovation.

Vice President Joe Biden announced the deal in Rochester on July 27; it includes $110 million in federal aid, as well as pledges of private investments.

In a statement, SUNY Poly praised the business leaders' announcement and said officials from the college expect to tour the Bausch & Lomb building by week's end, saying it is "committed to maintaining a productive relationship and open dialogue with business stakeholders."

"SUNY Poly commends and thanks Rochester's business leaders for their proactive engagement on the location of the photonics institute's business headquarters," the college said. "Clearly their voice carries tremendous weight, and we look forward to meeting with them and touring this facility before the end of the week to assess its exciting potential."

Seligman has been bullish on the Sibley's building as the business headquarters. UR and the Rochester Institute of Technology are among the partners in the project.

"There's a high likelihood that the business headquarters will be located in Sibley," Seligman told the Democrat and Chronicle editorial board last month. "They've got the space, and if we're going to revitalize Rochester, it starts on Main Street. Literally, it starts with the Sibley Building."

In a statement, Seligman said: "The most important point is that AIM Photonics be located in downtown Rochester. I look forward to an orderly process to determine the most appropriate location in Rochester."

There has been growing concern about the viability of the Sibley's Building for the business headquarters because major renovations might be needed.

Duffy said he expects Seligman would be on board with the business leaders' recommendation, saying all of downtown would benefit from the project.

"Joel has been a champion of having it downtown, and my sense is if that were picked, we'd have unanimous support," Duffy said. "I think all the buildings would benefit."

The working group includes: Wegmans Food Markets CEO Danny Wegman; Eastman Kodak CEO Jeff Clarke; Paychex CEO Marty Mucci; Home Properties CEO Ed Pettinella; and The Pike Companies Chairman Thomas Judson, Jr.

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STATEMENT FROM ROCHESTER BUSINESS LEADERS PHOTONICS WORKING GROUP

The entire Rochester region is excited and rallying around our combined photonics future. As business and community leaders and highly interested parties in this transformative endeavor, we pledge our collective support, expertise, and voice as the process of launching the institute moves forward in earnest.

Rochester offers many assets, including a highly skilled workforce, a supportive business community, and top tier academic institutions including the University of Rochester, Rochester Institute of Technology, and SUNY Polytechnic Institute.

Appropriate and proactive business support of this public investment is critical to maximizing economic growth and job creation.

To that end, we believe there is a clear choice for the photonics institute's business headquarters and incubator facilities. One that meets its needs, goals, and mission in the most cost-effective manner while maintaining our commitment to downtown Rochester.

Therefore, we are calling on the leadership of SUNY Polytechnic Institute and the photonics award decision makers to pursue its business headquarters at Rochester's Legacy Tower. The former Bausch and Lomb building is a turnkey facility that would require almost no infrastructure upgrades, allowing the public's investment to go toward its intended scientific and job creation purposes. Placement of the headquarters at Legacy Tower will also benefit other downtown buildings as new companies and facilities come to Rochester looking for space.

Now is the time to roll up our sleeves, make the smart decisions, and show the country and the world what we already know – that Rochester is up to any challenge and is ready to participate in making this award a resounding success.

The working group consists of leaders interested in the future impact of the photonics institute on Rochester and the Finger Lakes region. Members include Wegmans Food Markets CEO Danny Wegman, Eastman Kodak CEO Jeff Clarke, Paychex CEO Marty Mucci, Home Properties CEO Ed Pettinella, The Pike Companies Chairman Thomas Judson, Jr., and Rochester Business Alliance President and CEO Bob Duffy.