Maple Ave. eyed as tech training center

The fate of the Maple Avenue school building came before the Orange County Legislature’s Physical Services and Ways and Means committees this week. Committee members were tasked with voting on whether to purchase the building for the county from the Chester Union Free School District for a price of $1.

The move came after the residents of the Chester school district voted in favor of a referendum to transfer ownership to the county. The referendum allows the school district to transfer only the 1935 and 1965 portions of the building to Orange County. However, the Legislature must first agree to take over the building.

Paul Wiley, the director of the county’s Real Property Tax Services Department, gave the pitch for the county to purchase the building at both Committee meetings, alongside County Executive Steve Neuhaus (who attended only the Ways and Means meeting) and county attorney Rick Golden. According to Wiley, the building could be used as a training center for the state’s growing tech industry. Wiley noted the state’s recent investment up in Onondaga County thanks to a partnership with the technology company Micron, which plans to invest as much as $100 billion over the next 20 years to build a semiconductor manufacturing campus. He said such facilities will need trained workers, and to stay ahead of the curve, the county should establish such a training facility in a centrally located area, like the Maple Ave. building, which has close access to Route 17 and is not too far from Manhattan.

Pending issues

One of the first issues brought up during both meetings was the fact that the school district has not yet subdivided the property. Before ownership can transfer, the school must fully untether the building’s three acres from the rest of school property through the Village of Chester. Committee members also raised questions about separating utilities, and who would foot the bill. The consensus was that the school district would absorb the cost of any disconnections needed, though the county and school district could also enter into an easement agreement as well.

Another cause for concern was the state of the facility, and the unknown upgrade costs needed to establish it as a high-tech training center. Wiley said about a third of the building had been recently updated, including asbestos mitigation. But the older parts of the building, which would not necessarily need to be used, still have asbestos, and potentially other issues.

During the Physical Services meeting, County Legislator Laurie Tautel (D-14) said, “We’ve been burnt before,” noting the extra costs the county took on for the former homeless men’s facility known as Camp LaGuardia, which is also partially in Chester, and other buildings in Newburgh.

“I’m hesitant without an agreement in place from a tech company,” she said. “I don’t want us to get stuck with another white elephant.”

Legislator Joe Minuta (R-15) noted that the county could sell the property down the road if the building turned out to not be useable for its purposes.

Regarding equipment needs, Wiley explained that the county would most likely partner with a company that would then provide the equipment needed for training at no cost. But currently there is no such agreement in place.

Industry interest

During the Ways and Means meeting, Neuhaus did note interest from private industries he’s spoken with. “We got approached from a couple Council of Industry customers – the high-tech manufacturing employers of the Hudson Valley who say, ‘hey, if you provide us with some sort of educational space, we will fill that space with advanced robotics [etc.],’” said Neuhaus.

He also pointed to a training facility in Rensselaer County that partnered with three major manufacturers. Neuhaus explained that students attend the training for two to three months, and as long as they pass their classes, they then get hired by the partnering manufacturers who then also pick up the tuition tabs. Neuhaus described it as “a great marriage with the local industry.”

Neuhaus also suggested that the building trade may be interested in using the facility to train new recruits as part of the renovation process.

Votes and next steps

The eight-member Physical Services Committee voted 4 to 3 in favor of purchasing the building; however, it needed five votes to pass for a majority, and the committee was down one member during the vote, so it failed to pass.

The nine-member Ways and Means Committee unanimously passed the resolution to purchase the building for $1. The fate of Maple Ave. will now go before the full County Legislature on July 2, where the county will decide whether to officially purchase the building.