2012 Community Leadership Award Nominee

1. Newburgh Campus Cornwall Campus
70 Dubois Street 19 Laurel Avenue
Newburgh, NY 12550 Cornwall, NY 12518
Tel (845) 561-4400
May 18, 2012
Mr. David Burda, Editor
Modern Healthcare
Attn: Community Leadership Award Nomination
Dear Mr. Burda:
We are pleased to nominate Allan E. Atzrott, President and CEO of
St. Luke’s Cornwall Hospital (SLCH) for the Modern Healthcare
Community Leadership award.
Allan E. Atzrott has served as President and CEO since 2000. He has
more than 30 years of health care experience and brings to his role
an unwavering commitment to quality patient care. Under his
leadership, St. Luke’s Hospital in Newburgh, New York and The
Cornwall Hospital in Cornwall, New York merged in January 2002 to
create an integrated health care delivery system. The merger has
brought new technology and significant enhancements to both
“Community Leadership is
hospitals. not a spectator sport!”
Atzrott’s extensive knowledge of health care management issues, Allan E. Atzrott
careful stewardship of organizational dollars and prudent investments President and CEO,
SLCH Chairman, GNP
in services needed to best serve the community have positioned St.
Luke’s Cornwall Hospital for today’s challenging health care
environment. Atzrott’s management philosophy encourages open communication
among departments and challenges staff to always work toward excellence.
Throughout his tenure at St. Luke’s Cornwall Hospital, Atzrott has sought to differentiate
the care and services offered by the organization and worked to enhance patient
satisfaction and showcase hospital strengths. In 2007, he led SLCH to a clinical
affiliation with The Mount Sinai Hospital, bringing the resources of an internationally
acclaimed medical center to our region.
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2. He also has been at the forefront of a $125 million Master Facility Plan to bring new
services and facilities to the community. This plan was completed in less than ten years.
Major accomplishments include the establishment of a progressive Center for Joint
Replacement, $11 million renovation of the Emergency Department, and opening of a
cardiac catheterization lab, interventional radiology suite and medical pavilion with
same-day surgery center. In 2006 the comprehensive Littman Cancer Center was
unveiled. In July 2007, SLCH became the first hospital between Westchester and
Albany to offer da Vinci robotic surgery for minimally invasive urologic and gynecologic
surgery. In addition, Atzrott has led renovated and expanded services including a new
cutting-edge pharmacy, laboratory, ambulatory surgery and endoscopy suite.
Mr. Atzrott earned a Masters of Hospital Administration from George Washington
University in Washington, D.C. He has more than 32 years of management experience,
including 19 years as a chief executive officer. He is the first Orange County hospital
executive to be named to the Board of Governors of the Greater New York Hospital
Association (GNYHA) where he currently serves as Treasurer, is past Chairman of the
Board of Directors of the Northern Metropolitan Hospital Association (NorMet), a
member of the AHA Regional Advisory Board member, and a Fellow in the American
College of Healthcare Executives.
Community Leadership…. Not a Spectator Sport
The City of Newburgh. Nestled on the shores of the Hudson River, just north of historic
West Point Military Academy, is the City of Newburgh. Once the strategic center of the
Revolutionary War, with George Washington’s headquarters, today Newburgh is a city
in decay and has been referred to in the press as the murder capital of New York State.
Relatively small in size, with a population of 25,000, the issues impacting the city are
legendary. Newburgh is littered with abandoned and dilapidated buildings. Gang
violence is a common way of life. Taxpayers have endured double digit tax increases,
and a third of all Newburgh residents live below the poverty line. To compound these
problems, the city has experienced substantial fiscal shortfalls and teeters on the verge
of bankruptcy. This has resulted in a reduction in the public workforce including a
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3. dramatic reduction in the police force. Newburgh has also had seven different City
Managers in the past 10 years.
While many have claimed that Newburgh is a “dead” city, Atzrott decided to put his
“money where his mouth was” in leading change. Looking beyond the walls of the
hospital, Atzrott used his leadership skills, business acumen and all-around energy to
make a difference. Rather than sit idly by and watch the city continue to plummet,
Atzrott, along with private sector partners, formed The Greater Newburgh Partnership
(GNP). Allan’s vision for The GNP is to bring hope and prosperity back to the city and
transform the quality of life for its residents and businesses. This is being accomplished
by providing independent leadership and working in conjunction and partnership with
local government to achieve mutual goals for the revitalization of the city.
The focus of the GNP is to make Newburgh safe and secure, return it to a vibrant
economic center and create diverse jobs for the local workforce. Allan’s mantra for the
group is to focus initially on codes, cops and cleanliness. By making the city a safer and
more inviting place, it can entice the kind of investment and redevelopment that has
eluded Newburgh for decades.
Atzrott serves as Chairman of the not-for-profit organization, and is the inspiration
behind its creation. GNP membership includes Newburgh's most influential institutions
including Mount Saint Mary College, SUNY Orange and Central Hudson, among others.
The initial plan involves implementing change in three distinctive phases.
The first phase for getting Newburgh to a secure future is to invest in security cameras
and monitoring throughout the city to increase the safety of residents and visitors. The
next phase in creating a Newburgh with a bright future is to illuminate the city through
enhanced lighting. Working with Central Hudson, The GNP is adding hundreds of lights
throughout the city. The third phase of the plan is to provide additional eyes and ears on
the streets of Newburgh. Private security will be provided to enhance the sense of
security and allow the police to focus on the tough areas of crime so it can’t continue to
flourish.
Community Impact
The organization, which was incorporated in October of
2011, held its first public meetings on November 1st
and 3rd to announce their ambitious plans. During
these informal sessions, Allan invited local businesses
and residents to join him in his mission. It wasn’t long
before Allan delivered on his promise for swift change
facilitated by The GNP.
Lot greening is a symbol of good things to come.
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4. On November 27, 2011, The GNP leadership, city administration and community
residents gathered in the city of Newburgh to celebrate the completion of the “greening”
of a high profile vacant lot that was perpetually overgrown, fenced and littered. The
highly symbolic project represented the first victory for The GNP which promised to
deliver change and work with residents and others to restore the city of Newburgh to its
former glory. As a fence surrounding the lot was ceremoniously toppled over, holiday
lights on fifteen donated evergreens were turned on. The GNP worked with the city’s
Department of Public Works to remove a chain link fence around the lot.
Through the efforts of The GNP, a second lot
was targeted for “cleaning and greening.” On
April 28, 2012, a local landscaping company,
Laborers International Union of North America
Local Union 17 and volunteers donated their
time and resources to clear the lot and remove
all debris. The lot was adopted by the students
of San Miguel Academy of Newburgh who will
help maintain the lot in the future. This is another
San Miguel Academy students adopt lot greened and
example of how Atzrott and The GNP are
cleaned by The Greater Newburgh Partnership
bringing the community together to improve the
city of Newburgh. There are three additional greening projects scheduled to be
completed by year’s end.
Lighting
Through GNP’s efforts, lighting within the College Heights section was audited to
determine if additional lights were needed to complement the GNP’s efforts of renewal
and revitalization of the city. The GNP discovered that 65 street lights had gone dark in
that region. Central Hudson, the local utility and partner, responded immediately
repairing 59 of the 65 street lights in less than one month. Residents in the city were
amazed at the immediate response.
College Heights is a geographical point of emphasis for GNP as it works to add lights
and security cameras throughout the span. GNP sees College Heights as a potential
thriving walking district for city residents and visitors. College Heights is anchored by St.
Luke’s Cornwall Hospital, Mount Saint Mary College, and SUNY Orange, all partners in
GNP.
The Newburgh Community Land Bank
Atzrott has also been instrumental in working with the City of Newburgh Council and the
Land Use Law Center at Pace Law School to create the Newburgh Community Land
Bank (NCLB). In May 2012, the Empire State Development Agency selected Newburgh
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5. as one of five inaugural applicants in NY State. The Land Bank is legally authorized to
take title to city-owned parcels. They can choose to hold, maintain, rehabilitate or
dispose of any residential buildings on these parcels in order to revitalize Newburgh's
neighborhoods and return city-owned property to the tax rolls. As a member of the
NCLB, Atzrott volunteers his time and facility development experience to assist in the
renewal.
Atzrott has volunteered his time as a member of the board of directors of the Land Bank
which will work closely with The GNP and their anchor institutions to develop productive
relationships.
Summation
Atzrott’s efforts to revitalize and rehabilitate the City of Newburgh have been nothing
short of inspirational. Although The GNP has been able to achieve dramatic results in a
short period of time, it was Atzrott himself who spent the past two years reaching out to
business leaders, large employers and other committed organizations to gain their
support and involvement. It was through his personal effort that The GNP was formed
and now includes some of the finest business minds in the community. Atzrott and
other GNP leadership invested their time to travel to Camden, New Jersey to learn
about the experiences of the Greater Camden Partnership. Camden is a city which
experienced similar problems to those in Newburgh. It was through this investigation
that the foundation for The Greater Newburgh Partnership was formed. The GNP relies
on the financial support and personal effort of its member organizations to perpetuate its
cause. Atzrott continues to champion those efforts and rally businesses and the
community together so that dramatic improvements can continue to be made.
Atzrott creates opportunities for access to cutting edge health care and he takes his
commitment outside the walls of the hospital. He is creating, through his leadership, a
healthy, vibrant and dynamic diverse community, which is the essence of what the
Community Leadership Award represents.
As a result, we ask you to give careful consideration to his nomination.
To learn more about the vast impact Greater Newburgh Partnership is having on the
residents of the city of Newburgh, please visit the GNP website at
www.greaternewburghpartnership.org.
Specifically, check out: Greening of Newburgh Video Link:
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6. http://greaternewburghpartnership.org/greening-of-broadway.php
Thank you for your consideration of the nomination, and if you have additional
questions, please do not hesitate to contact us.
Sincerely,
Sue Sullivan Karen Mejia
Vice President Director, Community Partnerships
St. Luke’s Cornwall Hospital Greater Newburgh Partnership
845-568-2580 845-568-2558
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