The New York State Thruway Authority (NYSTA) and the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT)  hosted an Informational Summit on Friday, April 20 to introduce local and regional Disadvantaged Business Enterprises (DBEs), Minority-Owned Business Enterprises (MBEs), Women Owned Business Enterprises (WBEs), and Small Business Enterprises (SBEs) to potential contracting and consulting opportunities for the design and construction of a new Tappan Zee Bridge, which links Westchester and Rockland counties in New York State.

Statement by Dr. Marsha Gordon, President/CEO of the Business Council of Westchester, Inc. and President of BuildTheBridgeNowNY.org

TARRYTOWN, N.Y. (April 20, 2012) — A coalition formed to boost awareness and enhance understanding of the need to replace the Tappan Zee Bridge with a new Hudson River crossing commended the team of public agencies that presented a summit meeting on Fri., April 20, for disadvantaged, minority and women-owned businesses in Tarrytown.

Included in the Request for Proposal, which was published last month by the New York State Thruway Authority that seeks design and construction plans for a new Hudson crossing, is a goal to award some 10 percent of the $5 billion construction project that can be specifically performed by disadvantaged, minority, or women-owned small businesses. The daylong meeting today explained to company owners and managers about the many ways to potentially gain contracting and consulting work on the bridge project.

“I commend Thruway Authority Executive Director Thomas Madison, Jr., and his team for their efforts to open the door and give these firms the chance to share in the economic opportunities that will come when we build a new bridge,” said Business Council of Westchester’s President and CEO Dr. Marsha Gordon. Also serving as president of BuildTheBridgeNowNY.org, Dr. Gordon said the bridge will provide an enormous boost to the economy, across virtually all sectors and now especially for companies that can qualify to compete for that portion of the work for disadvantaged firms.

“The large number of attendees from as many as 18 states today is a telling barometer of the widespread interest in the project,” Dr. Gordon added. “Companies throughout the Northeast hope to secure contract work, gain experience and prosper as participants in this vitally needed infrastructure project. This bridge project will not only create immediate jobs, it will help build the future for many of these companies that are now poised to take the next step up the ladder of the American Dream.”

The state authority announced that four design and construction groups have been pre-selected to submit proposals and costs to build a new bridge and among the requirements will be to hire roughly 10 percent of their subcontractors in these categories.

With pre-construction work now underway as part of a $17 million contract, extensive pile driving is being performed along the pathway of the proposed new bridge, only a few hundred feet north of the existing span in the Hudson River. Actual construction of the new bridge could begin as early as this fall, a spokesman for the Thruway Authority said.

BuildTheBridgeNowNY.org has garnered support from thousands of local and regional businesses, as well as residents and taxpayers who depend on the Tappan Zee Bridge daily for safe, efficient commuting, freight deliveries, and leisure travel, as well as those companies and professionals who provide dependable and expeditious emergency services.

For more information visit http://buildthebridgenowny.org, or contact George Drapeau at 914-631-6070 or cicwhv@aol.com.