"In my first State of the City speech four years ago, I quoted President Kennedy's famous advice that 'the time to fix the roof is when the sun is shining,' " Quinn said Thursday. "Well, right now the sun isn't shining. But that doesn't mean that if the rain is pouring in, you just sit around getting wet. We can't afford to wait for more sunny days to continue strengthening the foundations of our economy."

Following the example of the successful CONNECT program in San Diego, Quinn proposed New York City High Tech Connect, which she described as "a one stop shop for entrepreneurs, and a catalyst for the high-tech industry." The High-Tech Connect program is intended to pair start-ups with experienced entrepreneurs, help them write a business plan and connect them to funding and workspace.

A second new program, Municipal Entrepreneur Testing Service, is intended to help new clean-tech companies get their start here, said Quinn. The METS program will allow tech startup companies to test products like solar panels and energy efficient light bulbs in city-owned buildings before bringing the products to market.