Add a Johnson City stone fabrication company to the roster of Start-Up NY companies collaborating with Binghamton University.
Oasis Stone Scapes is the newest entrant in a state program designed to assist fledgling businesses with a series of tax breaks and assistance from the local academic community, paving the way for growth into a thriving enterprise.
“We’re just getting on the roller coaster and seeing where it goes,” said John Sacco, a Oasis Stone Scapes principal.
The business is an offshoot of his current business, Great Choice Lawn Care and Landscaping. Oasis, started this spring, produces glass fiber reinforced masonry panels for custom installations.
“innovation, job creation and opportunities for collaboration are several of our highest priorities when making the decision to partner with private industry,” said Per Stromhaug, assistant vice president for Innovation and Economic Development at Binghamton University.
Oasis is building new quarters at 100 Oakdale Road in Johnson City and expects to hire six employees, in addition to the two it currently employs, to expand business opportunities beyond the local market. According to the state, the company expects to invest more than $1 million in the new new enterprise.
“We already have a product that’s already successful,” Sacco said.
This is the eighth company joining the Start-Up program at Binghamton University, based on the latest numbers from Empire State Development, New York’s Economic Development arm.
The program has come under fire from critics for failing live up to initial expectations. The companies associated with Binghamton University’s Start-Up initiative expect to create about 125 new jobs.
“Oasis Stone Scapes’ decision to do business in Broome County is further proof that Start-Up NY and Southern Tier Soaring strategies are attracting private investment and generating economic development in the region,” said Howard Zemsky, ESD chief executive, in a prepared statement.
