POUGHKEEPSIE – Despite the tough economic conditions in New York State, Dutchess County Economic Development Corporation President John MacEnroe does not plan on taking a passive role in combating the recession.

He urged business leaders to maintain awareness of what happens in Albany at the annual DCEDC breakfast held Thursday morning in Poughkeepsie.

“We have an imperative as business leaders in the Hudson Valley to say on top of what’s happening in Albany and to communicate with our legislators expressing our frustration about the increasingly negative business climate and to demand pro business and pro economic development policies to be considered,” he said.

MacEnroe said Dutchess is “probably among the strongest, if not the strongest” county in the state.

This year’s DCEDC breakfast theme was “Sky’s the Limit” as County Executive William Steinhaus shined a spotlight on key factors keeping Dutchess County ahead of the curve when it comes to beating the recession in New York State.

According to Steinhaus, even though Dutchess is facing similar financial frustrations and economic challenges as the rest of the state and nation, it has maintained its core foundation of businesses.

Steinhaus said there are currently a number of high value community development projects soon to benefit the region.

“There are many different projects and opportunities in our pipeline and combined these projects actually have an estimated combined investment impact in our community of over $2 billion.”

Steinhaus said the county’s strategy of diversification with a multi-dimensional approach to business development has been serving the county “pretty well.”

During Thursday morning’s program, a number of businesses in fields varying from tourism to aviation and nanotechnology were highlighted for their success in keeping the economic engine running.

This snapshot of Dutchess’ current economic state is what Steinhaus said gives him confidence in the county’s financial future.