TOWN OF FLORIDA – Congressman Paul Tonko this morning joined Hill & Markes Chief Operating Office Neal Packer, VP of Marketing Andrea Packer, and company employees on a tour of wholesale distributor’s brand new, energy efficient headquarters and warehouse in the Town of Florida. The 130,000 square foot warehouse tripled the capacity of the old facility and includes many cutting edge and innovative technologies that will help Hill & Markes expand and meet future demand.

Hill & Markes is a 105-year old family-based wholesale distributor of food service disposables, industrial packaging, janitorial produces, and office supplies. The company has been growing steadily and has nearly doubled the size of its workforce in the past six years, and now employs nearly 180 people. The company serves customers throughout upstate New York and Vermont.

“I want to congratulate the company and the employees here for the thought and care that went into this new facility, especially from the standpoint of energy efficiency,” said Congressman Paul Tonko. “The technology and innovations implemented by Hill and Markes reduces costs and positions the company for future growth. I am proud of the example they are setting for the community and the nation.”

“Congressman Tonko has long been a leader on energy issues and we are pleased to share with him what we have implemented in our new facility,” said Andrea Packer, VP of Marketing. “We have expanded while decreasing our energy usage, and created an environment that allows us to better serve our customers and is more comfortable for those who work here.”

During the tour, Congressman Tonko expressed his disappointment over jobs legislation that has failed to move through Congress because of political opposition. Just last week, Republicans in the U.S. Senate  blocked a $60 billion infrastructure improvement bill that would have put thousands of people to work and would have made badly needed repairs to roads, bridges, and sewer systems.

“Congress cannot continue to stand idly by while millions remain unemployed,” said Congressman Tonko. “And we cannot ignore the needs of our nation’s small businesses – safe roads and bridges are critical to a company like Hill and Markes. If we’re going to ask our job creators to make investments in our communities, then we need to provide the services and infrastructure that will help them expand and hire in the future.”

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