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n e w h a v e n b i z . c o m | M a r c h 2 0 2 0 | n e w h a v e n B I Z 47 White Key.com is a federally registered service mark of KeyCorp. ©2020 KeyCorp. KeyBank is Member FDIC. 190104-520977-1128540227 You inspire us to greater heights. KeyBank congratulates all the "Power 50" Leaders, including KeyBank Market President and Commercial Sales Leader James Barger for his commitment to our clients and community. Congratulations Jim! EMBRACING Providing person-centered, unique, and cost-effective human services for children and adults with and without disabilities throughout Connecticut since 1971. 6 LUNAR DRIVE WOODBRIDGE, CT 06525 p: (203)389-2970 f: (203)397-0658 www.marrakechinc.org www.facebook.com/MarrakechIncCT David Lehman Continued from Page 7 O N T H E R E C O R D | Q & A cities, that's what they've done. New York used to be a big, scary place as well. at's why this year we're introducing legislation that will in- centivize companies to create more high-paying jobs. The most important element of the Massachusetts 'playbook' is Boston. But we don't have a Boston, and New Haven is not going to become Boston. We need to run their playbook in the Connecticut way. We're not going to have Boston. But the value proposition is, can we deliver 80 percent of what Boston can deliver in terms of amenities at 50 percent of the cost — with 50 percent less traffic? To me, that's compelling. At some point could New Haven have 300,000 or 400,000 people? I realize that's very ambitious, given the headwinds to growth in the state. But we need to think like that. We need to attract that kind of devel- opment and density — then young people are going to come here. Even if we're not Boston, most people at this point accept that New Haven is leading the pack among the state's cities in terms of economic dynamism. What's the approach to bring the state's other cities along? Objectively, where you see most of the development and job growth right now is New Haven, and also Stamford. Each of the [remaining Connecticut] cities needs to look at their respective strengths and figure out where they want to define themselves as innovative areas. To look at Waterbury and Bridgeport, for example, you're starting to see some of that same [revitalizing] activity — cleaning up brownfields sites, conversion to residential, more densely populated down- towns...We want to be sure the state's doing everything it can to help those real-estate investments, with an emphasis on innovation. at's going to be critical in all our [cities] to compete for jobs. What would you tell a CEO of a company looking to expand or relocate why he should consider Connecticut? It depends on the industry. If you're in manufacturing, Connecti- cut has a density of manufacturing employers that's twice the nation[al median] — five times greater if you're in aerospace and defense. You have an unsurpassed quality of life, great health care, great education. From a fiscal standpoint the state is making significant improvement — and you've got the first businessman in 30 years in the Capitol. If you come to Connecticut you're going to get the state on the upswing. We don't want to try to compete on costs. at's not going to be to our advantage — except maybe versus New York. e [Connecticut] value proposition is the density of the ecosystem, coupled with all the oth- er benefits that Connecticut has. Workforce development: Everyone talks about it but no one seems able to move the ball. is starts at the K-12 level. We've always had great education, but making sure that our workforce con- tinues to be top quartile and evolves the changing needs of business is really critical. We need to do a better job retaining Connecticut residents. e whole Northeast is facing that demographic headwind. Population growth in the Northeast is much lower than in the rest of the country, and you have more outmigration. With manufacturing jobs, we need to do a better job of letting eighth-, ninth-graders know the appeal of these jobs. For 40 years you've seen manufacturing employment go down significantly, so the [educa- tion and training] infrastructure just wasn't there [any longer]. So a lot of what the focus is is making sure there's awareness and the right school and training programs to keep Connecticut residents here for those manufacturing jobs. [In manu- facturing] you don't need a bachelor's degree to succeed and make a good living. n

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