The Peru Gazette

From the Office of Congressman Bill Owens

Today U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer and Congressman Bill Owens announced that the North Country Chamber of Commerce’s application to create the North Country EB-5 Regional Center has been accepted by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. The EB-5 program allows qualified immigrant investors to receive temporary green cards for their immediate family, in exchange for a $500,000 investment in rural areas, once cleared by thorough background and financial investigations by immigration services. The Plattsburgh-North Country Chamber of Commerce applied for this program in August 2010. The program will provide a major investment and create jobs in the North Country. Investment projects and enterprises organized through the North Country EB-5 Regional Center will be intended to create permanent jobs within the boundaries of the Regional Center and promote business development within the region as a whole.

“The approval of the regional center in Plattsburgh is welcome news and will provide much-needed investment and job creation in the North Country,” said Senator Schumer. “I am thrilled to have helped guide the regional center in presenting an application that would be met with approval from the immigration service. The fact that CanAm Enterprises and North Country Chamber of Commerce put together a successful application only reinforces what we already knew—that Plattsburgh and the North Country have incredible economic potential, and a world-class workforce worthy of significant financial investments.”

“This is an important economic development tool that the North Country Chamber, Sen. Schumer, and myself have worked extremely hard to make a reality,” said Owens. “I am pleased that I was able to play a part in contacting USCIS to ensure a fair and expedited review process.  I congratulate Garry Douglas for his hard work on this project, and I believe this is going to set the North Country apart as an area of economic investment.  The counties covered by this program are now more attractive to international investors who want to expand and create local jobs, which is my top priority.”

“This brings an important new economic development tool to the North Country, and should help us leverage valuable foreign investment for job creating projects in the future,” states Garry Douglas, President of the North Country Chamber of Commerce. “Foreign Direct Investment magazine recently recognized Plattsburgh as one of the top three micropolitan cities in all of north and south America for economic potential. This funding alternative for projects keys right into our record of attracting foreign investment and should help us achieve that potential. Senator Schumer has been a real champion for us on this as he has been on so many other projects in the North Country. And we want to thank Senator Kirsten Gillibrand and Congressman Bill Owens for their support as well,” states Douglas.

“CanAm Enterprises is very pleased to be partnering with the North Country Chamber of Commerce on the North Country EB-5 Regional Center,” said Tom Rosenfeld, President of CanAm Enterprises. “Having raised over $1 billion in EB-5 investor funds to date, we look forward to putting our experience and resources to work to facilitate new job creation and economic development in New York State’s North Country region.”
The North Country EB-5 Regional Center is proposed as a vehicle to facilitate economic development of the North Country Region in the State of New York, by providing business and investment opportunities that may address issues of unemployment in the region. Investment projects and enterprises organized through the North Country EB-5 Regional Center will be intended to create permanent jobs within the boundaries of the Regional Center and promote business development within the region as a whole.  The North Country Chamber of Commerce partnered with Can-Am Enterprises in New York City to operate the EB-5 center. Can-Am is one of the leading EB-5 consulting firms in the country, and currently operates EB-5 Regional Centers for the State of Pennsylvania, the State of Hawaii, and the cities of Philadelphia and Los Angeles.
The North Country Chamber of Commerce is a regional chamber serving Clinton, Essex, Franklin and northern Warren Counties in New York State and southern Quebec. With more than 3,200 members, it is the largest business and economic development alliance in northern New York and one of the five largest chambers in the state.  It is a local organization of businesses whose goal is to support and encourage the economic and business development of the area. It is comprised of businesses of all sizes and provides networking and learning opportunities for the business community in and around Plattsburgh.
New investments in the North Country EB-5 Regional Center will be made through separate limited partnerships, each formed solely for the purpose of making one or more loans to or equity investments in job-creating businesses located within the geographical boundaries of the North Country EB-5 Regional Center. Each partnership will operate as a new commercial enterprise, which provides for an employment-based preference immigrant visa category for immigrants seeking to enter the United States to engage or invest in a commercial enterprise that will benefit the U.S. economy and create at least ten full-time jobs. Each limited partnership will be comprised of immigrant investors, each investing $500,000 in capital from legally-sourced funds.

The EB-5 program allows qualified foreign investors to receive residency in exchange for a $1 million investment or $500,000 in rural areas, after thorough background and financial investigation by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. The North Country center will then consider investment opportunities in several different sectors, including transportation and aerospace, real estate development, manufacturing and trade, and technology. Each individual investment will be responsible for the creation of 10 new jobs.

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