Clay, N.Y. — A county-owned site in Clay was a finalist last year for a big high-tech manufacturing project that would have employed thousands, Onondaga County Executive Ryan McMahon revealed to residents who live near the site.
“We were a finalist for a project,” McMahon said during a meeting Thursday evening at Clay Town Hall with 30 residents of Burnet Road, a short distance east of the county’s White Pine Commerce Park. “This type of project would have been an amazing project, thousands of jobs, construction jobs, years of work for the trades, thousands of permanent jobs.”
Later in the meeting, McMahon let slip that the company was “TSM.” Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., also known as TSMC, is one of the world’s top semiconductor manufacturers. It announced in May that it had chosen a site in Arizona for a $12 billion chip plant that will employ more than 1,600 people and begin production in 2024.
After the meeting, McMahon said the county was not told why it did not land the project. However, it did realize during the review process that it needed more land for the commerce park and has since bought some, he said.
And though it did not get the project, the fact that the site was a finalist has generated interest among other companies searching for sites for big projects, he said.
“We’re on the map,” he said.
The Onondaga County Industrial Development Agency has been buying up land on the north side of Route 31, between Caughdenoy Road on the west and Burnet Road to the east, since the 1990s in hopes of attracting a high-value manufacturer. The site now consists of 700 acres, including 106 acres purchased off Burnet Road for $900,000 in May.
Onondaga County is seeking a high-tech manufacturer for its White Pine Commerce Park in Clay. Rick Moriarty | rmoriarty@syracuse.com
Residents of Burnet Road sought the briefing from McMahon after a real estate agent working for the industrial development agency recently approached them about purchasing their homes.
McMahon said the site has the advantage of being next to a major National Grid substation that could meet the power needs of a major high-tech manufacturer.
“We can get the big one because we have the power there,” he said.
Burnet Road residents expressed worries about the impact of a major development on their lives. Some said they do not want to move because their families have lived on the road for more than 100 years, while others said they were concerned the county will not pay them enough for their homes to enable them to buy comparable homes elsewhere.
“I want it to be fair,” said Liz Biwer. “If we’re going to have to move, it’s got to be fair.”
McMahon said the county is willing to pay more than the appraised value of any properties it buys on the road to compensate homeowners for the inconvenience of having to move.
“Nobody is going to be stuck,” he said.
Rick Moriarty covers business news and consumer issues. Got a tip, comment or story idea? Contact him anytime: Email | Twitter | Facebook | 315-470-3148
