Pascarella Aims to Build Business Environment as New Alliance President

Pascarella

By Matthew Avitabile

DELHI — The Delaware County Business Alliance named former Fleischmanns Mayor Todd Pascarella as its new president, replacing longtime president Ray Pucci.

Things have changed at the organization, said the new president. This includes the recent name change from the Delaware County Chamber of Commerce, allowing the group to be “leaner and meaner.”

This also includes the end to the Chamber’s longtime role as the defining agency to promote local tourism. Delaware County shifted away from funding the Alliance with this role. Despite this, the Alliance will be involved with helping the businesses that promote and rely on tourism, Pascarella said. He added that the Alliance hopes to work with Delaware County Economic Development/

Pascarella said that he is adjusting to the role and hopes to “build as many bridges” and maintain as many relationships as possible.

Pascarella entered the role at the beginning of Sept. 1. He will be switching to a part-time role at the Catskills Revitalization Council (CRC). This would allow him to better adjust and allow both organizations to coordinate and assist the county’s businesses.

In replacing a longtime leader, Pascarella said that Pucci had done a “tremendous” amount of work during his tenure. The new president worked closely with the outgoing president for years, and “had a sense of all of what he did.”
“Entering his shoes is another level,” Pascarella said. He added that he aimed to be “realistic” in the scope of the Alliance and ability to move things forward.

“It’s pretty humbling,” he said.

Pascarella is optimistic about the future of business in the county, calling his new role a “worthwhile endeavor.”

He hopes to continue initiatives started by Pucci, including possibly continuing his show on WIOX Roxbury.

This includes outreach to the public and businesses. In particular, Pascarella hopes to add a number of new members to the Alliance and hopes to “be present and be local” adding both value and new members to the business group. There are 360 current members, Pascarella said.

The business leader also said that cooperation with Delaware County’s government is “important” and brings in his perspective as a former public official. The alliance can also advocate on behalf of the business community as a whole. It can leverage a “collective voice” that are “critical for businesses and people who are stakeholders in our economy.” Part of the way to “move toward solutions” is through public input.