Archive: Around Town

Senator Mike Nozzolio praised the selection of the Finger Lakes by Yahoo! Travel as a top lakeside destination.  Yahoo! recognized the tremendous natural beauty of our region, as well as the job-producing Finger Lakes wine and tourism industry.

“As State Senator, I have worked aggressively with local entrepreneurs, farmers, educators and businesses to create jobs here in our region and to promote the continued development of the Finger Lakes wine and tourism sector.  We can take great pride in the fact the Finger Lakes-Lake Ontario region is now the center of New York’s booming wine industry and I am pleased that our collective efforts to support and grow this job-producing industry have been recognized by Yahoo!.  Undoubtedly, this important recognition will spur continued tourism, investment and job creation in our area, ” said Nozzolio.

The Finger Lakes wine and tourism industry has become a driving force in our local economy.  According to a study by Oxford Economics, in addition to creating over 50,000 jobs in the Finger Lakes, the industry has a $ 2.7 billion dollar economic impact on our region. Our local wine industry was recently recognized by the "Wine Spectator"  magazine, which awarded top marks to a number of local wineries and noted that the Finger Lakes is “quickly becoming an excellent source for quality and value."

Nozzolio has been an aggressive supporter of the Finger Lakes wine and tourism industry and led the effort to secure $8 million in New York State funding for a reconstruction of research facilities at the New York State Experiment Station and the construction of the Finger Lakes Viticulture Center, which is scheduled to begin this summer. This new, state-of-the-art Viticulture Center will serve as a permanent location for Finger Lakes Community College’s new Viticulture and Wine Technology program - the only program of its kind in the Northeast.

“The new Finger Lakes Viticulture Center will enable our State’s future winemakers, grape growers, vineyard workers, winery managers and all associated with the wine industry to study at the same location where some of the most innovative agricultural research in the world is taking place,” said Nozzolio. “This important project will support our continued efforts to expand our local wine and tourism industry and create well paying jobs here in the Finger Lakes.”

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