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Southern Tier Region

Location

The nine-county Southern Tier Region includes two metropolitan areas, a number of smaller cities, and extensive rural areas on New York State's south-central border with Pennsylvania.

Weather

Mean Daily Temperature:
  January 22.0° F
  July 69.1° F

Workforce

Business and Industry

The Southern Tier's economy benefits from high-technology manufacturing, exemplified by the presence of IBM, Lockheed Martin, Raymond Corporation, Universal Instruments and others. The region also supports a strong non-manufacturing sector, particularly in trade and services. A diverse manufacturing sector in Elmira produces glass, metal and transportation products, and is home to Toshiba, Schwiezer, Aircraft and Artistic Greetings. The region is part of the State's "Ceramics Corridor." The Binghamton area has many high-tech companies specializing in the manufacture of high-performance electronics packaging. The Southern Tier has recently become a mecca for distribution warehouse operations.

Agriculture is an important regional industry, with between one-quarter and one-half of the land area in each of the region's nine counties devoted to farmland. The sloping, fertile land around the Finger Lakes supports a substantial wine industry. The sparsely settled uplands support a large dairy industry. Tourism is also a rapidly growing industry for the region.

Transportation

Highways: Easy north-south access is provided by I-81, which connects the Southern Tier with Canada to the north and the Mid-Atlantic and southern states to the south. Buffalo and New York City metropolitan areas are accessed via Route 17, the Southern Tier Expressway. I-88 provides quick and easy access to Albany and New England.

Air Service: Three regional airports at Binghamton, Elmira and Ithaca provide passenger service through US Air and a number of commuter airlines connecting the Southern Tier to national and international destinations. The region also has six general aviation airports.

Bus Service: Extensive public and private bus transportation is provided throughout the region by Greyhound, Short Line and Capitol Trailways.

Higher Education Institutions

The Southern Tier has more than a dozen colleges and universities. Cornell University is one of the nation's four supercomputing centers and is one of the top research universities in the world. Major colleges and universities are listed below, all of which offer teacher preparation programs.

Cornell University
Elmira College
Hartwick College
SUNY College at Oneonta
Ithaca College
SUNY at Binghamton

Health Care-major hospitals

Mary Imogene Bassett Hospital, Cooperstown
Our Lady of Lourdes Memorial Hospital, Binghamton
Arnot Ogden Medical Center, Elmira
St. Joseph's Hospital, Elmira
United Health Services,Binghamton

Quality of Life

The Southern Tier offers affordable housing and one of the lowest costs of living in the country. It boasts a variety of museums and attractions, including the Kopernik Observatory, the National Soaring Museum, the home of Mark Twain, the Rockwell Museum, the Corning Glass Museum and national halls of fame for baseball and soccer. The region supports two opera companies, a symphony and a number of theater and dance troupes. Visitors are drawn to the area's fine antiquing, winery tours and tastings, festivals and fairs. Sports fans come to watch PGA and LPGA tournaments, the Watkins Glen Grand Prix, three minor league baseball franchise teams and an American League hockey team.

Information obtained from numerous New York State sources.