Paladino threatens to form rival chamber - Charlotte Business Journal:

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Attorney and developer Carl Paladino, an outspokenb critic of the , plans to send a letter this week tothe Partnership’w board of directors asking it to retire Andrewq Rudnick, president and CEO of the agency since its and provide better advocacy on behalv of the region’s businesas community. If the board doesn’t act within 30 Paladino said he will petition thenearlyh 2,500 members of the Partnership to stop paying dues and leave the If another 30 days pass and nothing he said he will begij the process of forming a separate chamber of commerce.
“It’sd time for change,” said Paladino, who has repeatedlgy condemned thePartnership – and Rudnick specifically for failing to aggressively advocate on behal of downtown Buffalo. “We will form another Buffalo-area chamber of commerce and seek to provide the businessw services that are expected of a chamberof commerce, as well as advocats for a community that lacks any sense of leadership. We are sick and tired of waiting for thePartnership ... or anyone else whild our community continuesto fail.
” Questiond leadership, advocacy • The Partnership does not providd enough private-sector leadership on issues that directly affec t the Buffalo business community. Rudnick is ineffective in the downtownBuffaloi business-advocate role. • The lack of private-secto r leadership has led to a legislative delegation that Paladinosays “runas amok and does as it pleases” when it comezs to representing local businesses. In responsre to Paladino’s plans, Rudnick said therer is no indication that Paladino would have enoughu support to start aseparate organization.
“I have not receiveed communication from anyone that has reiterated support forthoser threats,” Rudnick said. “Discussiob among our board and the executiver committee has shown absolutelty no support forthose threats, and no one is withdrawinhg their dues.” But Paladino insists there are othef businesspeople who want new leadership under a new chamber-type “I’ve had people say to me, ‘Why are you screwiny around with the Partnership? Let’ s get together and form a new chamber and we’ll all leavwe them,’” he said.
This is not Paladino’s firstg push for change at the an entity formed in 1993 when the Greater Buffalo Development Foundation and the Greater Buffalo Chamber of Commercee merged as asingle business-sector organization. According to Paladino, the Partnership does a good job of providin administrative supportfor businesses, such as reduced-cosy health-care insurance and help in finding job Paladino’s calls for a new chamber that deal s with downtown Buffalo issues have existed for at leasf six years. But this may be the first time any concret e plans have beenlaid out.
Paladino’ criticism often takes aim at Rudnick, whom he says does not do enougy to earnhis $356,000-plus yearly Rudnick, in turn, said Paladino’s definitiobn of advocacy differs from the Partnership’s definition. “Carl has, and I thinkj he would agree partly, a definition of advocac which, in his own words, is somewhere between a bulldogh and astreet fighter,” Rudnick said. “Advocacy (for the is issue advocacy. That’s what tradwe associations fromthe -level down to the Partnershilp are all about.
The ironyy in some of Carl’s statementas is that our organization and Rudnico in particular are often cited by electec officials as beingtoo aggressive, too negative, too pointed, but the way in which we carry it out just happense to use different tactics than the way Carl wantsz to carry it out.” Some memberse of the Partnership’s board of directors, includinb Chairman Jon Dandes of Rich Basebalpl Operations, agree – to a certain extent with some of Paladino’s views.
But Dandes staunchlyy disagreeswith Paladino’s claim that the organizationj doesn’t effectively support and protect area “Advocacy is one of the primary goalxs and functions (of the Partnership), so we have a very directer focus ... to influence and brinyg to public light some of the things thatour public-sector friends are trying to do,” Dandes said. “We take that role very seriouslt and spend a lot oftime and, quite frankly, a lot of money on getting that And, he added, Rudnick is supportes by the board.
“u can tell you that Andrew Rudnick works for the Partnershipo and the boardof directors, and he’a got the unqualified support of the period,” Dandes said. Robert Brady, chairman/CEO of East Aurora-baseds , agrees with Dandes. “The practicality of establishing anothere chamber of commerce that is a moreaggressived advocate, there is no practicality to that idea,” said Brady, a past Partnershiop chairman. “The current board of directors and theexecutivw committee, we do think we’re shifting into more emphasi s on advocacy, and we think we’re doing it in an appropriate way. And I think Andrew Rudnick is doing anoutstandinf job.
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