The Town of Malta will be putting completion of the final development agreement with chipmaker Advanced Micro Devices on hold, following discussion at a Monday, Dec. 1, Town Board meeting.
Matt Jones, an attorney representing AMD locally, raised issues with the formatting of the agreement and said that AMD won’t legally be able to sign off on anything until January, prompting the Town Board to take more time to revise the document.
My preference is to get the language right that’s agreeable to both sides, before submitting the document to AMD, said Jones.
The $4.6 billion facility is expected to create 1,465 jobs, mostly in technical fields.
The development agreement will call for the creation of a town manager position to work with AFT (the subsidiary of AMD that will build and operate the facility) and ensure the existing legislation is properly adhered to.
Money that AMD is donating to the town as a host community benefit will be put into a trust fund under the agreement, where it would be allowed to accumulate interest and be handled by a board of trustees. AMD has promised the Towns of Malta and Stillwater $5 million in total, with $1 million to be devoted to the construction of ballfields at the Luther Forest
Technology Campus; $1 million to go to Stillwater, and the remaining $3 million to be given to Malta as the project progresses. About $750,000 of the gift is due at groundbreaking, anticipated in 2009.
The trustees would be free to spend just 4 percent of the fund’s revenues on community projects under the guidelines the town discussed Monday.
`The less we spend up front, the more money we have growing forever,` remarked Councilman Peter Klotz.
AMD cleared other hurdles that same day, as the Empire State Development Corp. approved the $1.2 billion state incentive package for the project, which includes $650 million in cash. The benefits are instrumental to AMD’s plans to locate in Saratoga County.
The package had to be handed off to the Foundry Company, a joint venture between AMD and the Abu Dhabi Advanced Technology Investment Company.
A public hearing on the transfer is scheduled for Wednesday, Dec. 10, at 1 p.m. at the Luther Forest Campus Center on Hermes Road. The Public Authorities Control Board must also approve the deal.
Two public hearings involving $27.8 million in county sales tax breaks for construction costs are scheduled for Monday, Dec. 8, at 8 a.m. at Stillwater Town Hall and 10:30 a.m. at Malta Town Hall. A decision by the county’s Industrial Development Agency is expected to follow.
Other items at Monday’s meeting
The public had a chance to comment on a possible sale of a historic landmark, the Collamer House, in order to avoid expensive repairs.
Built in 1835, the house was donated to the town in the 1970s, and the property is now also home to a small park. If sold, the house could be either lived in or turned into a business, as the area is zoned commercial.
The town has not made a decision on what to do with the house or property yet, but a number of residents stood to denounce any action that would put the building at risk.
Stephen Rutkey, chairman of the town’s Historic Preservation Review Committee, noted that of the 30 historical landmarks in town, the Collamer house is the only structure on the National Register of Historic Places.
`It is not a huge collection, so we consider each one to be vital,` he said of the town’s historic landmarks.
He also echoed the thoughts of Town Historian Paul Perreault, who wants the building protected no matter who the owner is.
`Whatever decision you make concerning the ownership, please take the steps to preserve the resource,` said Perreault.
Since the property is designated as a park, the state legislature and parks department would have to approve the sale.
NYSERDA’s Kevin Hunt informed the public of vandalism at the Saratoga Technology and Energy Park (STEP), near Luther Forest. He said that while seeing the results of cars doing doughnuts on the lawns of STEP is not unusual, recent vandalism has been more extreme and will cost thousands to repair. He asked residents to report any observed vandalism to police.
There will be a test of the town’s emergency warning sirens on Monday, Dec. 15, at 4 p.m. The three sirens are located at the Malta Community Park on Plains Road, the Shenentaha Creek Park on East Line Road and at the Town Complex on Route 9.
Representatives of the Malta Ridge and Round Lake Fire Departments approached the town with preliminary groundwork for a coordinated fire response plan. The two companies protect the Town of Malta together with roughly 55 volunteers each.
Both departments said that with steadily increasing alarms and the possibility of growth in the area, the town’s fire protection must be examined to ensure life and property is safe in the future.
`Things are in the process of changing, and changing rapidly for us,` said Round Lake Fire Department President Fred Sievers, referring in part to the arrival of AMD’s manufacturing facility.
Though it is unlikely the town’s fire departments will have to deal with the facility directly, the fabrication plant’s presence will likely make the town a much busier place, and potentially increase alarms for both companies.
Sievers said that volunteer ranks means the proper personnel are not always available in the daytime.
`There are times that, collectively, we have trouble putting a good crew together,` he said.
He also expressed concern about bigger buildings going up in the town’s downtown area and firefighter’s ability to protect them with current services.
Malta Ridge Fire Chief Peter Shaw noted that Malta’s Generic Environmental Impact Statement estimates an annual 12.5 percent increase in calls for the future.
`To assess our customers’ future fire protection needs, we recommend a fire defense study is undertaken,` said Shaw.
The cost of such a study was estimated at $40,000, though that depends on the consultant used and the scope undertaken. There was discussion on pursuing grants to help with the cost.“