Pepsi Bottling Group Mulls HQ Options

"The Pepsi Bottling Group and the Town of Somers have been a match made in heaven, providing the Westchester area with good-paying jobs while allowing Pepsi to take advantage of its highly skilled work force and close proximity to New York City," Schumer stated. "In my phone call with the CEO, I pressed him to keep the Pepsi Bottling Group in the Town of Somers and offered any assistance to make sure this happens." Schumer added that Pepsi's Foss said that he would continue to work with local and state officials "and was open to staying at its current home in the Town of Somers." Pepsi Bottling Group's lease at the nearly 550,000-sf One Pepsi Way property with building owner Murray Hill Properties expires in 2010.

Mary Win Settino, VP of Investor and Public Relations for Pepsi Bottling Group, had no comment on the tax certiorari proceeding. In regards to the company's headquarters search, she released a statement saying, "the situation is very fluid. While there is no formal time line for a decision, we are taking the time to consider everything and will make the decision that's best for the long-term health of our business. We will be happy to discuss that decision once it is made."

Salvatore Carrera, director of the office of economic development for Westchester County, tells GlobeSt.com, "my office and the IDA, in conjunction with Empire State Development Corp., have been in close contact with Pepsi and are working with them to come up with an incentive package that will meet their needs. We have been working feverishly on this for months and it is at a very sensitive juncture. We have not taken this lightly and are doing everything that is legally possible."

Pepsi Bottling, which is the world's largest manufacturer, seller and distributor of Pepsi-Cola beverages, employs approximately 1,100 workers in Somers. The firm, which has a worldwide workforce of more than 70,000, posts annual sales of nearly $14 billion.