D'Addario, Supervisor Bellone Talk Local Business

Town of Babylon Supervisor Steve Bellone recently visited the Farmingdale-based business . as part of his Listening Tour, an initiative aimed to find out what is going on in communities across Long Island.

The tour is designed for Bellone to gain insight into the local economy and what needs to be done for improvement, his office said.

Bellone sat down with Jim D'Addario, president of the the string-making company, to learn about their new Make It Here program, which is designed to keep jobs in the country and on Long Island.

"Over the next few years, we will be working aggressively to identify products that we can manufacture or assemble in our U.S. factories," D'Addario said. "We hope to create job opportunities while developing the long-term, internal and external domestic resources to produce or assemble music accessory products in the U.S.A."

Bellone shared with D'Addario some of his accomplishments in Babylon for local business.

"We've been able to deliver a five percent tax cut, streamline government and cut our debt," he said. "We've also given incentives to businesses that have helped create new jobs, and launched a wonderful clean energy program that is helping our homeowners save."  

While at D'Addario, Bellone took a guided tour of the companies manufacturing facility, and met with company leaders and workers.  

“Without the leadership of Steve Bellone and his commitment to lower taxes and a business-friendly environment, our company would have been forced to leave Suffolk County,” D’Addario said.  “We are so pleased that we were able to work with a leader like Steve Bellone to keep and expand our base of 700 jobs right here in Babylon.”

D'Addario also hosted Sen. Schumer this winter, who is helping the company fight a

Continuing his tour, Bellone has met with community leaders in Central Islip to discuss community revitalization and he has also toured the East Patchogue Boys and Girls Club in Brookhaven to discuss the town's Quality of Life Task Force, which has been modeled after a program Bellone devised in Babylon. He traveled to Riverhead to discuss the issue of homeless sex offenders, an issue that came up in Farmingdale