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Herkimer IDA says Russell Farm awarded nearly $8 million for power and gas upgrades
Summary
IDA staff reported the agency was preliminarily awarded almost $8 million to upgrade electric and gas service at the Russell Farm site and said a virtual meeting with VAST New York is scheduled for Nov. 7. Empire State Development and state partners have been involved; staff called the award a positive step toward attracting industrial users.
Herkimer County IDA staff told the board the Russell Farm site has been preliminarily awarded nearly $8 million to upgrade electric and gas service.
"We submitted a VAST New York application to the Russell Farm to bring over additional power and gas…and were preliminarily awarded almost $8,000,000 for that," said John (IDA staff), who said a virtual meeting with VAST New York is scheduled for Nov. 7 to review next steps.
Staff said they have coordinated with Empire State Development and will work with Aaron Marcus (the property option holder) and other partners as the agency completes project milestones and draws down funds as work is completed. The agency reported the site already has sewer and water service in place, which staff said strengthens the site's readiness for industrial users.
John said the expected funding should cover upgrades sized for the site's market: staff estimated the site will likely need seven to 10 megawatts of capacity for the types of users under consideration and that larger statewide ‘‘power up’’ programs target substantially larger needs.
Board members had no formal action on the award at the meeting; staff said it will provide a fuller update at the next meeting after the Nov. 7 review.
