Buried in the 12/26/12 Co-Leg communications packet was this letter from EDGE, proposing to purchase almost 83 acres from Oneida County at a "minimum" $10K/acre for use as a Business Park Extension at the old County Airport site in Whitestown. EDGE proposes to subdivide and resell the property, remit on resale an additional $5K/acre to the County (less sales expenses), and keep any difference in price (i.e., between the resale price and the $15K/acre total paid to the County) for use in building roads and other infrastructure needed at the Business Park extension. The letter indicates that EDGE has a prospective buyer for a portion of the property.
I'm not sure how "good" a deal this is for the County, but I am troubled that publicly owned property is being sold by an entity (EDGE) that is controlled by its "members" rather than the government itself.
More troubling is the statement that "additional economic development funding is required to meet the requirements for extension of water and sewer lines, construction of an access road and, because of the Consent Order, the purchase of sewer credits to enable the company to locate here."
Sounds to me like the taxpayers (or water and sewer ratepayers) are going to be soaked again to finance more sprawl.
What's your take?
24 comments:
Under the control of EDGE, the former county airport's development as a business park has all of the prospects of becoming a bottomless pit of taxpayer's money just like Griffiss. Spending public money to supposedly attract private sector jobs has become a failed model for economic development. "Build it and they will come" has evolved into "pay them and they will come."
Oneida County needs its own Pied Piper to drive the "rats" out to sea to be "drowned!"
Honest, hard-working taxpayers are being raped, pillaged and plundered by a select few bureaucrats who believe..."it is theirs to take..."
I say b/s to these individuals. We need an elected form of government that will serve the many not the chosen few.
The only reason EDGE is needed in the deal at all is to assure that it will not be fully known by the public and to maximize subsidy. Why not sell the land under normal county land sale processes and have the taxpayer keep all of the money? PLus, who is the client? Is it an insider deal?
Interestingly, it is contained in the County Charter that public land will be exclusively sold to EDGE. However, it is my understanding that the money to make the purchase is being provided to EDGE by the GLDC. All of this and much more behind closed doors.
Is this some big secret? How come nobody has reported on this on the TV or newspaper?
If the GLDC is involved you can bet your last bottom dollar paid in taxes to the county & the good 'ol boys club that it's an insider deal.
Interesting how Picente was on WKTV the other nite slapping himself on the back over what a great job he's doing but no mention was made of this deal.
The local news media reports what it wants to. Most reporter's are no enamored with local bigwigs that they can't see past the end of their own noses & are willing to swallow whole the b.s. being fed to them. It's pathetic & outright nauseating.
How do we know that the County is receiving the fair market value for this sale of publicly owned property? There should be a requirement that an independent appraisal be conducted before approval by the Board, instead of the ribber stamp procedure now in place.
County Executive is a board member of GLDC. EDGE receives money from GLDC and manages all personnel through contracts with GLDC.
County Executive (Board member of GLDC) received am letter from EDGE seeking to develop the land. Proceeds from the sale will be used to purchase sewer credits and build infrastructure (water, sewer, electric).
Chairman of GLDC is also Chairman of Water Authority.
So EDGE purchases county land with GLDC funds, proceeds from land sale go back to EDGE. EDGE pays for site improvements....Water infrastructure$$ to Water Authority.
FOLKS, this is so corrupt and an incestual shell game of transfer of funds it is sickening.
You have a developer? How about the former Orion Bus factory that was just vacated? COUNTY OWNED PROPERTY TOO!
This is nothing more than another "build it and they will come" false promise. Only people making money here are EDGE, GLDC, emgineering firms, and employees of government funded programs. All in the nameof "Economic Development"
How many time will we as a community fall for this "economic development" of sites without a developer? This is simply the same groups (Governement)doing over and over again the same things that they have done for the past 30 years.
GLDC Board members - NOT UPDATED
http://www.griffissldc.org/board_members.asp
Picente is on the GLDC Board. GLDC funds EDGE. Oneida County funds EDGE.
How is it not a conflict of interest that EDGE writes to the County Executive (GLDC Board member) looking for approval....OBVIOUSLY this is a DONE DEAL
WOW, Anonymous 4:51!!! Thanks for the info.
Is anyone interested in doing a flow-chart of all the incestuous connections? Perhaps then we will figure out who is REALLY pulling the strings around here.
Griffiss Local Development Corporation (GLDC)
Oneida County Industrial Development Agency (OCIDA)
Economic Development Growth Enterprises Corporation (EDGE
394 Hangar Road Corporation (394HRC)
Griffiss Utility Services Corporation (GUSC)
There is a very intricate inter-relationship between these organizations. For example, the chairman of the GLDC is also the chairman of the GUSC. The authorized representative of the GLDC is also the president of EDGE. A senior vice president of EDGE is also the chief executive officer of the 394HRC and the executive director of the OCIDA. The Oneida County Executive is a GLDC Board Member.
Who is pulling the strings? It all leads back to the GLDC.
Can someone please tell me who the attorneys are that "work" for these publicly funded organizations?
I have my suspicions, however, would like to have this known for public comment...
Jeff Saunders is the lawyer for these groups. Interestingly, I understand that the new County Attorney, Gregory Amoroso, came from Saunder's law firm.
Jeff is the lawyer who represents AND also SITS on these boards....AND who gets PAID for his services!
TOTAL CONFLICT OF INTEREST! YES, he "volonteers" his time to sit on the board and get PAID for services. Shell game through an EDGE run organization.
CONFLICT OF INTEREST - Check the Utica Industrial Development Corporation payments to Saunders.
What will be done?...nothing
Also interesting that in 2011 the GLDC changed its By-Laws to reduce its board members and to also supposedly make itself exempt from FOIL requests. As reported in the OD, despite losing court challenges the GLDC continues to refuse to make public disclosures.
There is something else odd about this land deal. With all of the land available in the business park why is it necessary to "extend" the business park to include the land across the road from the PW Building? Why couldn't the prospective business be accommodated within the existing business park?
It isn't clear to me that anyone is both sitting on a board and doing work for a board. Minutes of various boards can be somewhat confusing as it is not unusual for a person to be listed as present but not be a board member.
It is interesting however how some of the same names keep popping up. That's why we need a flowchart. (Or alternatively start collapsing these entities into municipalities, and start merging municipalities, to make it easier for the voters and the media to track what is being done.)
The GLDC was created for the purpose of transitioning the former USAF Base to civilian use. That started in 1995 and appears to be completed. At such time as the USAF completes the transfers of land to the OCIDA, the need for the GLDC should also end. Such is the case with the PARC at Plattsburgh. The technology/business park should then be placed under the authority of the City of Rome.
To my knowledge, Jeff Saunders is the attorney for the GLDC, et. al., but is not a member of the Board.
In answer to a previous post, no land or lease deal done by the EDGE or related groups is based on fair market prices or actual tax formulas. All projects are subsidized in some form or another. So, we have taxpayer sunsidized developments structured and dispensed in private by those not subject to taxpayer control. Along with this we have contracts, legal fees, studies, engineering fees, you name it all, ineffect subsidized, being given in private as well. And, you wonder how the insider game is played including how incumbants raise money?
2 weeks later this makes the Observer Dispatch. SHOCKING!
All projects involving taxpayer funding are inside deals around here. The money and tax breaks get spread around to the same people. That is the whole point of political control. Follow the money.But, who are the biggest fools? The voters.
A Jan 11,2013 story in the Utica OD tells of a food processing company looking at the business park, would this be the same company that bought the old Birds Eye plant in Fulton on Jan 10,2013? Just sayin'.
http://www.syracuse.com/news/index.ssf/2013/01/company_buys_closed_birds_eye.html
You would nor expect the OD to follow up or the EDGE to keep us poor taxpayers posted, would you? How silly to expect that.
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