Sam Williams

This facility was rededicated the "Samuel W. Williams, Jr. Business Center" on July 24, 1991, in recognition of Sam's steadfast devotion to the development of business and new jobs for our community.

Samuel W. Williams, Jr. worked for the Greater Syracuse Chamber of Commerce for the decade from 1981 to 1991. Under his early leadership and guidance, the business community lent it support to Chamber efforts to implement the Greater Syracuse Program, an economic development campaign designed to raise the awareness of Syracuse as a business location among key national corporate decision-makers. The program was successful in increasing the ability of the economic development community to attract new business investment to Greater Syracuse.

Recognizing that Syracuse and Onondaga County's greater economic potential lies with home-grown, entrepreneurial ventures, the Chamber advanced the concept of a "business incubator facility" for Greater Syracuse. Sam's enthusiasm for and belief in the need for this business center garnered community support and financial participation from both the public and private sectors, allowing construction to begin in 1985.

The Greater Syracuse Business Center opened its doors in 1986 and through Sam's diligence, reached full occupancy within three years. His continued commitment to the Center resulted in an expansion that was completed in 1990, creating more opportunities for start-up businesses to benefit from the advantages to be gained in a facility such as this.

Sam shared his knowledge and experience freely with the tenants of the Business Center, providing needed assistance and guidance that helped many of these businesses to prosper. Hundreds of jobs have been created in our community as a result of this nurturing environment and Sam's selfless dedication to seeing businesses succeed.