Tag: economic development

Dec 1

2022

Erie IDA eyes largest subsidy package in years

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Updated: 2:50 p.m. The Erie County Industrial Development Agency is entertaining a request for the largest package of tax breaks it has awarded in the past five years.  The $11.8 million in tax breaks for Sonwil Distribution work out to $621,000 per new job. In addition to hiring 19 new workers, the company would relocate 22 of its current employees.   But Erie County Executive Mark Poloncarz, a member of the IDA board of directors, has raised “serious concerns” about the size of the subsidy package, according to a spokesperson. “There is no way I am in favor of $11 million[...]

Posted 2 years ago

Nov 29

2022

More subsidies for high-end apartments

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Industrial development agencies were initially in the business of creating or retaining jobs. Their mission these days includes finding new uses for old buildings. The Amherst IDA last month approved $1.88 million in tax breaks for a project that does neither. The planned construction of apartments and retail space at 5877 Main Street in Williamsville will create only two permanent jobs. And the older building that was located on the site — Milos Restaurant — is slated for demolition. A four-story building will go up in its place. The first floor will include Excuria Salon and Spa and retail space.[...]

Posted 2 years ago

Nov 17

2022

Thanks to WNY, Amazon subsidies hit $5 billion

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A $124 million subsidy package given to Amazon by the Niagara County Industrial Development agency this summer helped the e-commerce giant reach a milestone: $5 billion in total government subsidies. That total came from 309 subsidies in 38 states since 2000, according to data compiled by Good Jobs First, a nonprofit that tracks corporate tax breaks. Washington, the state where Amazon is headquartered, gave the company the most subsidies, a total of $824 million. Illinois ranked second with $732 million, followed by New York at $671 million. Those subsidies went towards facilities ranging from warehouses to offices to film and[...]

Posted 2 years ago

Oct 3

2022

How Amazon plays the leverage game

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Cathy Rayhill was floored when she heard Amazon wanted to build a three-million-square-foot warehouse on Grand Island. “It was completely inappropriate for our community, that was my first thought,” she said. Rayhill envisioned Amazon’s trucks wearing down the island’s two sets of bridges to the point where the town would have to close them and raise taxes to fix them. Not only could the warehouse operation put the island’s infrastructure at risk, it could harm the environment — all for 1,000 jobs that would not pay much above the minimum wage.  Rayhill and her neighbors were outraged and began organizing[...]

Posted 3 years ago

Sep 15

2022

Big subsidies for luxury apartments

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State and local governments eagerly offering tax subsidies to a luxury, waterfront apartment project sounds like something out of a developer’s fantasy. But that’s exactly what’s happening in North Tonawanda. The Niagara County Industrial Development Agency on Wednesday unanimously approved — without debate — a $7.2 million subsidy package for a developer building 110 apartments along the Niagara River marketed as “luxurious living in elegant surroundings.” The project is a third phase of developer VisoneCo’s aims for the section of River Road just north of Tonawanda Island. The first, which is finished, features apartments, townhomes and commercial space. The second,[...]

Posted 3 years ago

Sep 12

2022

Harborcenter fails to meet its jobs goal

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When state and county officials agreed nearly a decade ago to give the Buffalo Sabres and the Pegula family $57 million in tax breaks for downtown’s Harborcenter, the money came with a promise. Jobs. In its application for public assistance, a subsidiary of Pegula Sports and Entertainment promised 205 full-time and 160 part-time jobs. In a subsequent press release, the Sabres upped the ante to 350 full-time positions. Those jobs were supposed to be in exchange for $37 million in tax breaks from the Erie County Industrial Development Agency and $20 million from the state to remediate the brownfield the[...]

Posted 3 years ago

Sep 6

2022

Podcast: Reporting the Amazon story

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On Tuesday, Investigative Post reported on the huge subsidy package Amazon is receiving to build a warehouse in Niagara County. Amazon will receive $124 million in tax breaks from the Niagara County Industrial Development Agency, plus state tax credits of at least $2 million. In exchange, Amazon will employ 1,000 people, most earning $15 an hour. Reporter Dale Shoemaker sat down with Garrett Looker, host of our podcast series, to discuss the reporting. You can watch the interview via our YouTube channel or listen to it as a podcast. Our intent is to publish a podcast a week. Coming up[...]

Posted 3 years ago

Sep 2

2022

Inside Amazon’s massive subsidy in Niagara

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Robert Taylor, a lifelong Niagara County resident, is thinking about moving south. Probably Florida. But Taylor isn’t chasing the warm weather and low property taxes that have drawn tens of thousands of other Northerners to the South. Rather, he’s running away from something.  Amazon.  The online retail giant plans to open a 3-million-square-foot warehouse less than a mile from his Packard Road home in the Town of Niagara. Amazon plans to employ 1,000 people at the warehouse and hundreds of cars and trucks will travel to and from the facility daily. The warehouse will be a “first mile” distribution center[...]

Posted 3 years ago
Investigative Post