Typeset from the PDF of the official document (read by OCR) — headings, motions and recorded votes are detected automatically, so spacing may differ from the original. The official copy governs.
Onondaga County Industrial Development Agency Regular Meeting Minutes August 20, 2015 A special meeting of the Onondaga County Industrial Development Agency was held on Tuesday, August 20, 2015 at the 333 West Washington Street, Syracuse, New York in the large conference room on the first floor.
Chairperson Daniel Queri called the meeting to order at 8:00 am with the following:
PRESENT:
Daniel Queri Jessica Crawford Victor lanno Patrick Hogan Janice Herzog Steve Morgan Lisa Dell
ALSO PRESENT:
Julie Cerio, Executive Director Honora Spillane, OCIDA, Secretary & Treasurer Karen Doster, Recording Secretary Steven Coker, Office of Economic Development Tony Riviziggno, Gilberti Law Firm Kevin Morgan, Morgan Management Todd Morgan, Morgan Management Paul Reichel, Bond Schoeneck & King Frank Fava, CP850 LLC Patrick Basset, CP850 LLC Chris Montante, PEMCO Group Sara Wisniewski, Gilberti Law Firm APPROVAL OF REGULAR MEETING MINUTES — JULY 14, 2015 Upon a motion by Lisa Dell, seconded by Jessica Crawford, the OCIDA Board approved the regular meeting minutes of July 14, 2015. Motion was carried.
Honora Spillane gave a brief review of the Payment of Bills Schedule # 386.
Upon a motion by Lisa Dell, seconded by Victor Ianno, the OCIDA Board approved the Payment of Bills Schedule #386 for $7,464.45 for General Expenses and PILOT payments to Town of DeWitt for $10.98, Town of Onondaga for $2.24, Jamesville DeWitt Schools for $71.88, City of Syracuse for $1,114.45 and Onondaga County $716.56 for General Expenses. Motion was carried.
The Conflict of Interest Statement was circulated and there were no comments.
Tony Rivizzigno stated that the Agency authorized him to send a letter to the Bankruptcy Trustee advising them that we were considering eminent domain. He stated that several conversations have been held with the attempted purchaser in an effort to purchasing the property from the Trustee without going through the eminent domain process. He stated that we still need to do SEQRA on the property. He stated that he is asking the Board to authorize him to continue that process at an estimated cost of $100,000.
Steve Morgan asked if they have done SEQRA. Tony Rivizzigno stated that they don’t have to do SEQRA until they ask for the permit from the City.
Jessica Crawford asked where they are in the process. Tony Rivizzigno stated that a deposit was submitted to the Trustee in bankruptcy to purchase however they have not received a deed yet because they asked the Trustee to hold off until they can complete their brownfield application. Lisa Dell asked if we bought the property are we entitled to Brownfield credits as well. Tony Rivizzigno stated yes.
Upon a motion by Victor Ianno, seconded by Lisa Dell, the OCIDA Board approved a resolution authorizing Counsel to proceed with the environmental review of the property located at 800 Hiawatha Blvd. Motion was carried.
MORGAN B’VILLE APARTMENTS, LLC Kevin Morgan gave a brief update.
Daniel Queri asked how many units are in Phase 1. Kevin Morgan stated there are 234 along with all the amenities. He stated that they expect the first building to come online in about 9 months. Lisa Dell asked about the public hearing. Honora Spillane stated that there was concern about the potential PILOT from the School District and the Town but not so much the Village regarding length, amount and the tax cap formula to their budgets.
Daniel Queri asked Honora Spillane to explain why this project is entitled to the benefits they are asking of the Agency. Honora Spillane stated that one of the statutory authorities is commercial, the project is market rate units providing housing for a workforce and we are entitled to this under our General Municipal Law. She stated that the economic development benefits are compelling for encouraging the development of a previously abandoned blighted site.
Tony Rivizzigno stated that the project also provides a recreation portion.
Steve Morgan asked if there were any comments from the Village board. Honora Spillane stated that the Mayor was there but there were no comments.
Lisa Dell asked if they were against the project. Honora Spillane stated no but they had concerns about the PILOT.
Tony Rivizzigno stated that the concern is because we have a tax cap so they can’t raise their taxes over a percentage because taking in a new tenant means more taxes which and they could get penalized if they go over the tax cap.
Victor Janno stated that it appears that all the towns around have weighed in on this. Tony Rivizzigno stated that just Van Buren.
Upon a motion by Victor Ianno, seconded by Steve Morgan, the OCIDA Board approved a resolution for SEQRA purposes concerning the environmental significance of the Morgan B’ Ville Apartments project as an unlisted action. Motion was carried.
Upon a motion by Steve Morgan, seconded by Lisa Dell, the OCIDA Board approved an inducement resolution for a straight lease transaction for the Morgan B’Ville Apartments, LLC project consisting of the development of commercial space in the Village of Baldwinsville. Motion was carried.
Patrick Basset stated that they are before for the Board to request a PILOT. He stated that they are market rate apartments that they see a demand for in the Radisson community. He stated that they have another phase that includes another 180 units that is contiguous to this property. He stated that this PILOT program is greatly needed to take the edge off the cost of the project. Daniel Queri asked if the request today is 26 units or 206 units. Patrick Basset stated that the request today is for 26 units. He stated that they will come back for the next phase of 180 units because they don’t have enough SEQRA information yet for the Board to vote on.
Daniel Queri asked for background Center Point. Patrick Basset stated that about 12 years ago they bought land through the State of New York. He stated that they built apartments that had private entrances and have good tenancy. He stated that they have 121 units with a full clubhouse, workout facility, a party room and a pool. He stated that the average units are close to 1,300 square feet. Lisa Dell asked if they have garages. Patrick Basset stated that they have garages. He stated that the apartments are all one level with 1 and 2 bedroom units managed by CP 805, LLC. Daniel Queri asked if the group pays fees to use other public amenities. Patrick Basset stated that they belong to the Radisson Community and they pay around $40,000 per year and the new building will be contributing as well.
Steve Morgan asked how many current units they have. Patrick Basset stated 121 units. 4 Daniel Queri stated that it would go up on the new project and asked if it based on value. Lisa Dell stated that the homes are on square footage.
Janice Herzog asked they would go forward with the project without OCIDA support. Patrick Basset stated that he is not sure they could only because they are trying to maintain market rates and that would put them in a position of having to move the rents up.
Lisa Dell asked if they considered selling them. Patrick Basset stated that the apartment business is different than the condo business. He stated that the housing market is not good at this time. Steve Morgan asked if CP 850 own any other rental properties. Patrick Basset stated no. Jessica Crawford asked if there is really that big of a demand for apartments in this area. Patrick Basset stated that the demand is coming from the lack of energy from the youth to believe the American dream is to own a home. He stated that when you talk to the 25-30 crowd they don’t understand buying a house and they don’t want to be bothered with house upkeep.
Jessica Crawford stated that she knows this isn’t a blighted area and asked Honora Spillane how and why the Agency is able to provide support for housing. Honora Spillane stated that in the GML there is commercial authority to do market rate units. She stated that it is within the umbrella of things we can work on. Paul Riechel stated that commercial facilities is really anything that is considered for profit that the Agency thinks is appropriate to promote economic development, preserve jobs and prevent deterioration of the community. He stated that if the Agency is comfortable that this is going to prevent economic deterioration in the community it is considered commercial. He stated that as Pat Basset described it sounds like this is a niche that is appropriate for the community and would fill a need.
Upon a motion by Victor Janno, seconded by Lisa Dell, the OCIDA Board approved a resolution describing the proposed CP 850 LLC project and the financial assistance the Agency may provide and authorizing a public hearing for the project. Motion was carried.
Upon a motion by Lisa Dell, seconded by Steve Morgan, the OCIDA Board approved a resolution authorizing the execution of the Agency Agreement outlining the responsibilities of the Developer and Agency for the project. Motion was carried.
Chris Montante stated that they had two specialized firms, one for plank manufacturing and other was for the interior pool for the hotel. He stated that there isn’t another plank manufacturer in 10 counties and there is not much they can do. He stated that they have 3 bids for the pool, 2 from Buffalo and 1 from Rochester. He stated that they are not aware of any companies that have a professional engineer on staff locally that are approved and can get approvals through the County Health Department and through Marriott. He stated that there is a specialty nature of this pool, the health code and Marriott requirements led them to this firm and the experience using them. Daniel Queri stated that the locals were extended to bid and they declined. Chris Montante agreed and he can ask who was on the bid list and why they didn’t respond.
Daniel Queri asked where the planks are coming from. Chris Montante stated that he is not sure where they are coming from but it is outside the 10 county area and will find out. Janice Herzog asked what the total cost would be for the pool and the planks. Chris Mantante stated that the planks including the engineering were approximately $180,000 and the pool is probably about $30,000. He stated that he can follow up with actual budget numbers.
Upon a motion by Janice Herzog, seconded by Lisa Dell, the OCIDA Board approved a resolution waiving the Agency’s local access policy for the purchase and installation of precast hollow core plank systems. Motion was carried.
Upon a motion by Lisa Dell, seconded by Jessica Crawford, the OCIDA Board approved a resolution waiving the Agency’s local access policy for the installation of a specialized pool. Motion was carried.
Tony Rivizzigno stated that when the SEQRA was done it was a Type I and we had a 30 day notice where it had to go out. He stated that we received a waiver for the 30 days which allows us to adopt the SEQRA resolution for the addition to an existing building. He stated that for GA Braun to continue their work we need to adopt a negative declaration for SEQRA purposes.
Paul Reichel stated that the SEQRA process is a lengthy because of the size of the addition. He stated that with this they can go forward and they already have a term sheet from the bank. Upon a motion by Lisa Dell, seconded by Victor Ianno, the OCIDA Board approved a resolution to induce and adopt a negative declaration for SEQRA purposes for the GA Braun project. Motion was carried.
Upon a motion by Lisa Dell, seconded by Victor Ianno, the OCIDA Board adjourned the meeting at 8:34am. Motion was carried.
dD Honora Spillane, Secretary