It has long been said that AMD’s arrival in Malta would bring not only an economic jolt to the area, but also more direct incentives to the locality. Along with the announcement AMD will spin off a manufacturing company know as the Foundry Company came news that $5 million will be given right to the towns of Malta and Stillwater.
The first million, to be paid upon groundbreaking, will supposedly be used to build ballfields on land at the Luther Forest Technology Campus, where Foundry will be building the chip fab. LFTC donated a 34-acre pod of land there to the town during its zoning process, and town officials have said it is the most suitable location for a large recreational space.
According to Malta Supervisor Paul Sausville, AMD has proposed that the remaining $4 million be divided between the towns of Stillwater and Malta, 25 percent to 75 percent, the same way the fab will pay school taxes. Though the Town Board has yet to vote on what Sausville called AMD’s gift, he said he thinks it will be met with support.
`AMD has made the gift to us, and it’s generous, and we agree in concept,` he said of the $5 million. He said the best plan would be to place the money into a foundation or trust that would accrue interest. Assuming a 4 percent interest rate, the town would take in $120,000 annually.
`That foundation would be a gift that would keep on giving,` said Sausville.
The $5 million in grants to the towns come at the end of a long process that has seen government at the local, county and state levels going to lengths to make Saratoga County more attractive to the chipmaker.
Local officials in Malta attended more than 100 meetings in order to write the zoning legislation for the Luther Forest Technology Campus.
Then there is, of course, the matter of $1.2 billion in state incentives that will be paid out over time. About half of that sum would be in Empire Zone tax incentives, which means the factory will have to meet certain qualifications before getting a break. The other half, however, would be in cash.
The state will also ultimately pay $22.5 million for the construction of the Round Lake Bypass, 1.6 miles of road that will divert traffic coming off of the Northway’s Exit 11 around the village. Though a marked increase in traffic is expected to coincide with the construction and opening of the chip fab, Department of Transportation representatives say AMD wasn’t the only reason for the project.
`For many years, the Village of Round Lake wanted to lessen the amount of traffic that went through the historic village,` said DOT spokesman Peter Van Keuren. `The fact it appears over the next few years that traffic is going to increase in that area makes a bypass even more appropriate.`
Van Keuren said the project is now about 65 percent complete, and that work should be finished come next summer. At that point, it will become a state route, and the state will also be responsible for its upkeep.
As of now, the state will not be taking care of the 5.5 miles of interior roads currently under construction at LFTC. Sausville said that the town has been pursuing special improvement district legislation in the state legislature to have the state assume the estimated $300,000 in annual upkeep of those roads, a figure that includes a replacement in 15 years. So far, the efforts have not been successful.
`The best solution is the special improvement district legislation,` said Sausville. `We haven’t given up on it, but we’re disappointed it hasn’t passed yet.`
The backup plan would be to form a pseudo homeowner’s association among the tenants of the LFTC, splitting up the maintenance costs in that way.
But the most expensive step that brought AMD to Malta is the construction of the Saratoga County Waterline. The $67 million project is scheduled to be up and running by fall of 2009, and the Foundry factory will be its biggest customer.
According to John Lawler, chair of the Water Authority, AMD will be demanding 3 million gallons of water daily when the chip fab goes online, with a future demand reaching 12 million gallons should the facility expand.
Lawler said the cost of the waterline will eventually be recuperated by the selling of county water, which is to start at $2.05 per 1,000 gallons.
`This has been a hotly debated issue, but the announcement from AMD put to rest the fear that the taxpayers in Saratoga County would have to pay for this water system,` said Lawler.“