Mount Vernon, Yonkers see more TV, movie money
Mount Vernon and Yonkers saw their revenues from recording permits grow last year, fueled by productions like "Seven Seconds," "The Path" and "The Americans.
Hollywood showed Mount Vernon and Yonkers big love last year by sending them increasing numbers of film and television crews.
Both cities saw their revenues from recording permits grow last year, fueled by productions like "Seven Seconds," "The Path" and "The Americans." Mount Vernon's and Yonkers' location next to New York City and their streamlined permitting processes helped attract location scouts, city officials said.
"When the film industry comes to the city of Mount Vernon, they realize it's a one-stop service," said Mount Vernon City Clerk George Brown, whose office handles filming permit applications. "The fact that they don't have to wait three weeks for a decision makes us more marketable than our competitor communities."
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Mount Vernon's film revenue last year was $209,989, up 91 percent from the 2015 figure of about $110,000.
Yonkers also saw an increase in permit revenues, but not as dramatic as Mount Vernon's. Yonkers revenues from permits last year was $161,758, compared with 2015's figure of $151,275, a 7 percent increase.
Yonkers does not charge for a film permit thought the city does charge varying rates for location fees. Mount Vernon charges $1,500 for film permits.
"The growth in 2016 can be attributed to the name Yonkers is making for itself," city spokeswoman Christina Gilmartin wrote in an email. "Since taking office five years ago, Mayor (Mike) Spano’s administration has eliminated much of the red tape, including permit application fees, that previously existed when production companies wanted to film here."
Yonkers didn't just collect money for the permits. The city collected an additional $252,320 for services rendered to the film crews.
Additional services include police details and parking fees. For instance, Yonkers charges a $200 fee for reserved street parking, and if a street is closed, there are fees for traffic control by the city's police department that vary in cost.
Municipalities collect the most money for filming permits when the production crews shoot on public streets or on public property. Filming on private property also may require permits and fees, especially if the crews are parking on surrounding streets.
Haven Studios in Mount Vernon was fully booked in 2016 for the NBC Universal show "The Path," an original series on Hulu.com in its second season. "The Path" follows a family at the center of a controversial cult movement and it stars Aaron Paul, Michelle Monaghan and Hugh Dancy.
Nicole Zeller, co-owner of Haven Studios, said she's hoping season two goes well for "The Path."
"If they do have a good response, I think they'll be back for a third season," said Zeller, adding that the show has already made a tentative commitment to rent the whole nearly 68,000-square-foot studio at 65 Haven Ave. in 2017.
Zeller said the community still benefits if the production doesn't use public spaces.
"Before 'The Path' we had 'The Leftovers' and both said they wanted to spend their money in Mount Vernon. If they need paint or bagels, they buy it in Mount Vernon. It certainly helps the businesses they frequent," Zeller said.
White Plains also said its efforts to attract film and television revenues have been successful, according to Jill Iannetta, who handles film inquiries for White Plains. Disney, Warner Brothers, NBC, Showtime and HBO have filmed there, she said.
Iannetta said White Plains passed new film legislation in the fall of 2015 that streamlined the permitting process. In the first year since passing the film legislation, White Plains earned $165,000 in permit fees; the revenue for film permits was not tracked previously.
"We keep a database of film friendly residences here in White Plains. With our eclectic housing and building stock, we usually can help find scouts something to consider for their projects," Iannetta wrote in an email.
Film and television shoots happen throughout Westchester County. The county government has a web page specifically for production crews and location scouts posted on VisitWestchester.com.
The Westchester County Office of Tourism & Film said that the county collected more than $500,000 in fees for film and television in 2016.
"Those fees are only part of the story," said county tourism office director Natasha Caputo in an email. "Municipalities experience a boost in revenue as crews book hotels, hire caterers, visit local restaurants and watering holes, engage local vendors for services, and pay fees for services such as police presence and parking."
The county tourism office is working on a new economic impact study on film and television production in 2016 and 2015.
The most recent economic impact analysis revealed that that filming boosted the Westchester economy by $18 million in 2014, up from $13.8 million in 2013. Additionally, the survey showed that 90 percent of the county’s cities, towns and villages also received revenue from the film and television industry; 66 percent said film productions patronized local businesses; and 25 percent said they hired local vendors.
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