Council Chief Exec set for keynote trip to New York State to ‘build economic and cultural links’

The city of Wrexham could soon have stronger links with Syracuse in New York State thanks to a forthcoming trip by the council’s Chief Executive Ian Bancroft.

Mr Bancroft has been announced as a keynote speaker at an ‘Economic Champions’ luncheon event in the city.

“CenterState CEO” which describe themselves as “Central New York’s premier business leadership and economic development organisation” said yesterday that Mr Bancroft will “Share How the Welsh City is Leveraging Investment in its Storied Football Club for the Benefit of the Entire Community” at the $125 a ticket headline event.

Wrexham.com had asked the council about what was a rumoured North American trip, what it would entail and what the aims are.

A spokesperson for Wrexham Council said: “Syracuse in New York State has expressed an interest in building economic and cultural links with Wrexham, and has personally invited the council’s Chief Executive Ian Bancroft to speak at a major economic development forum and to spend time meeting a range of organisations in Syracuse in November.

“As a result, the Chief Executive has accepted this invitation to speak and spend time meeting these organisations, but will do this by taking time off and therefore it is at no cost to the authority.

“This is an excellent opportunity to build on Wrexham’s global profile for the benefit of our local economy, but the current financial climate in local government is very difficult and this is why Ian will attend using time off and not asking for any expenses to be paid by the authority.

“There will be no cost to the public purse in Wrexham.

“Ian did speak with a range of council officials and partners about the visit and all expressed their view that it is worthwhile and a potential significant benefit to Wrexham.

“Ian will continue to work with these individuals and partners to maximise the benefit of the visit.

“Ian also thought long and hard about the air travel and whether this can be justified in the current climate emergency.

“Having only travelled by air once in the last four years and understanding the unique links that can be made face-to-face with connections between businesses, tourism and educational institutes across the two areas, Ian decided that a face-to-face personal visit was the best way to try and develop this relationship for the benefit of Wrexham.”

Having just written about comments at the Executive Board on the council’s climate emergency and move to remote attendance at meetings rather than travelling out of county or even to exotic destinations such as Cardiff, we asked the Council Leader and Deputy Leader for comment on the trip.

Using the Myclimate.org guesstimator a round trip from Manchester airport to Syracuse could create 1.7t of CO2 – the site explains the average person in the EU generates 7.2t of CO2 a year.

Cllr Mark Pritchard Leader of the Council and Deputy Leader David A Bithell told us: “We know nothing about the trip to Syracuse in New York or a discussion on forming cultural and economic links with Wrexham Council”.

The full CenterState CEO release can be found below:

CenterState CEO announces Ian Bancroft will be the keynote speaker for its 2023 Economic Champions Luncheon event, Nov. 16, 2023. Bancroft serves as the chief executive of Wrexham County Borough Council, which oversees economic and community development for the Welsh city made recently famous when two Hollywood stars purchased the community’s storied football club. Bancroft, acting as Head of Paid Service for the Council, is committed to maximizing the investment that has come from Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElheney’s purchase of the club to ensure the impact reaches the entire community.

Bancroft took up his post as Chief Executive of Wrexham Council in August 2018. Prior to that, he spent the previous 14 years working at a senior leadership level within large public service organizations in Greater Manchester, Merseyside and North East Wales. In his role, Bancroft is committed to public service delivery and aims to work with partners, local communities and residents to build and deliver a clear vision that achieves outstanding results. As a Wrexham resident for the last 20 years, Bancroft is passionate about the current positive opportunities Wrexham and Wales provides and the potential for the future. Bancroft’s message at the Economic Champions Luncheon will highlight how the Wrexham community is leveraging and embracing this period of growth and strategic investment, much like Syracuse, to drive continuous community progress.

The cities’ stories mirror one another as both are experiencing an exceptional period of investment, growth and global recognition after a time of economic challenge. Both cities’ economies were once anchored by industry: where Syracuse had manufacturing, Wrexham had coal mines and steel mills in the early 20th century. Despite the years of economic challenge, leaders in both cities recognized the need to develop and advance community-led strategies. By leaning into their own histories and stacking up strategic wins, they created the essential building blocks to land once in a generation investment. For Syracuse, that came from Micron Technology choosing to locate its newest megafab facility in Central New York. For Wrexham, it’s the global recognition and increased tourism that came with their soccer team being purchased by Hollywood’s Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElheney in 2021.

Bancroft will join CenterState CEO President Rob Simpson at the Economic Champions Luncheon Nov. 16 at the Oncenter. With a focus on this year’s theme, Celebrate Every Win, the annual event recognizes the momentum and moments of progress across the business community, large and small, that lead to bigger cumulative successes. Bancroft’s visit also aims to foster economic, cultural and community connections between Syracuse and Wrexham that will benefit both local economies.

During the event, CenterState CEO will recognize hundreds of regional businesses for driving the region’s economy forward through job creation, business expansions, investments in operations, new business openings, commitments to diversity, equity and inclusion, and more.

CenterState CEO will also present its Community Visionary Award, sponsored by Wegmans Food Markets, to National Grid. The award is presented to an organization that embodies a vision of economic opportunity and is creating a significant impact on community prosperity.