TOWN OF ALABAMA – The U.S. Fish and WIldlife Service has announced its decision to pull a permit that would have allowed construction of an industrial wastewater and sewage pipeline through the Iroquois National Wildlife Refuge. The Tonawanda Seneca Nation, which opposes the pipeline, commended USFWS on its decision.
“This industrial wastewater pipeline through our ancestral lands threatened harm to the Refuge, our people, and our way of life,” said Chief Roger Hill of the Nation. “We asked the Fish and Wildlife Service to terminate this permit nearly two years ago, and only went to court when our repeated requests were denied. The Service made the right decision to pull this permit and protect the land and waters.”
The Iroquois National Wildlife Refuge was established in 1958 to support migratory waterfowl, maintain the health of Oak Orchard Creek and its floodplain and wetlands, preserve habitat, and enhance outdoor opportunities for local communities.
The Tonawanda Seneca Nation first called on USFWS to pull the permit in September 2022, citing fatal flaws in its issuance that included failure to consult with the Nation. USFWS refused the Nation’s request and allowed pipeline construction to begin in July 2023. Construction was halted in September 2023 following multiple spills of hundreds of gallons of drilling fluids onto federally protected land and wetlands, and the Nation filed suit against USFWS in federal court in November 2023.
Cleanup of the spills has taken more than seven months and included removal of more than 73 tons of contaminated drilling mud from wetlands in the Refuge, with engineers and state regulators acknowledging that some drilling mud cannot be removed and will likely remain in the environment permanently. The Nation’s lawsuit argues that the pipeline permit approval and subsequent drilling violated the National Wildlife Refuge Improvement Act, the National Environmental Policy Act, and the National Historic Preservation Act.
In its decision, USFWS found that “construction of [the pipeline] cannot be completed as originally permitted and… the environmental impacts extend beyond the permitted Right-Of-Way (ROW).” USFWS noted that termination of the permit would be effective as of June 24, 2024, and clarified that any further proposed pipeline construction would require the developer to file a new permit application.
The decision represents a stinging blow to developer Genesee County Economic Development Center (GCEDC), which intended construction of the pipeline to draw industrial tenants to the proposed Western New York Science, Technology and Advanced Manufacturing Park (WNY STAMP).
While the agency has receivedc$100 million in state funding for WNY STAMP since 2005, including $56 million recently awarded by Governor Hochul, WNY STAMP remains unoccupied. Its sole tenant, Plug Power, has suspended construction of a facility there due to cash shortages and market conditions.
The Plug Power project has received state subsidies totalling $270 million, or $4 million per promised job. The project fails to meet baselines required by New York’s “Smart Growth” law, and both Plug Power and WNY STAMP were included in Western New York’s list of “Biggest Business Losers” by the Buffalo News in 2023.
According to a 2017 New York State Department of Environmental Conservation study, visitors coming to fish Oak Orchard Creek, Lake Ontario, and its tributaries in Orleans County bring $27 million to the region every year. Contamination caused by WNY STAMP would jeopardize these economic benefits.
The Tonawanda Seneca Nation, a federally recognized Indian Nation, has raised concerns about the WNY STAMP industrial mega site since its inception. The project poses an existential threat to the people and culture of the Nation, as well as threats to birds, fish, deer, water, and medicinal plants in the Big Woods that border WNY STAMP. Federal law requires robust consultation with the Nation on projects that affect it, and federal guidance directs agencies to aim for consensus with Indian Nations.
According to Chief Hill, “Protecting the land and water for future generations is one of our greatest responsibilities, and preventing this pipeline through the Refuge is an important step. But our Nation still faces a looming threat from the proposed STAMP industrial site and we hope to move forward collaboratively with the Fish and Wildlife Service and New York State to ensure potential impacts from heavy industry are fully analyzed and avoided before permits are issued. It shouldn’t take an environmental disaster for agencies to follow the law.”
Editor’s Note: The Genesee County Economic Development Center on April 25 announced it is working closely with the towns of Oakfield and Alabama, along with the village of Oakfield and regulatory agencies to construct a force main to accommodate the current projects at STAMP and a potential future project.
“As the Oakfield line cannot fully replace Orleans County line we will continue to pursue the force main to Oak Orchard Creek in the town of Shelby through a different construction method and we look forward to working with United States Department of Fish and Wildlife and the Tonawanda Seneca Nation as this process moves forward. The Oakfield plan alleviates the timing pressures for the build-out of the force main to Oak Orchard Creek.”
The GCEDC said it is in the process of submitting a new permit application to propose an open cut construction method which will avoid the types of incidents that resulted from the horizontal directional drilling.
Gov. Kathy Hochul on April 26 announced construction started for the Edwards Vacuum factory at STAMP. That $319 million facility will make technology that is a vital component to controlling the highly sensitive environment of semiconductor manufacturing processes, Hochul said.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 29 April 2024 at 10:49 am
ALBION – The Albion Village Board adopted a $8,194,333 village budget for 2024-25 on Thursday that raises the tax rate by $1.27 – from $19.13 to $20.40 per $1,000 of assessed property.
The tax levy, what the village will collect in property taxes, increased by 6.6 percent or by $194,340 – from $2,923,473 to $3,117,813.
This is the first time the village tax rate tops $20. Medina a year ago was the first village where the tax rate went over $20. Medina went through reassessments last year and the new assessments added $100 million to Medina’s tax base, allowing that village to drop the tax rate from $21.16 to $13.97 with its new budget for 2024-25.
Albion doesn’t have the new reassessments on the official rolls yet. That will likely happen next year.
For the 2024-25 budget. Albion’s tax base shrunk slightly by less than 0.1 percent or by $74,424 – from $152,867,932 to $152,793,508.
The preliminary numbers for 2025-26 show a growth in the village tax base by about 40 percent or $62 million to $214.8 million. But the Village Board has to wait until next year to have those numbers, which will be finalized after the grievance process if property owners challenge their new assessments.
The village budget for 2024-25 totals $8,194,333 with $4,701,848 in the general fund, $2,068,150 in the water fund, and $1,424,335 in the sewer fund.
UPDATE at 1:10 p.m.: Albion Mayor Angel Javier Jr. said he did not vote for the budget that exceeded the tax cap. He said the village is headed towards consolidation with the Town of Albion “as village taxes exceed the state-mandated cap.”
He said village taxpayers will continue to see more tax increases, and higher fees – including water, sewer and fire protection.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 29 April 2024 at 8:35 am
Rate drops from $21.16 to $13.97 after tax base grew by $100 million
MEDINA – The Village Board adopted a $7,678,256 budget for the general fund on Thursday that will increase the amount of taxes collected by 3.1 percent. However, the tax rate will plunge more than $7 – from $21.16 to $13.97 per $1,000 of assessed properties.
The towns of Shelby and Ridgeway, where the village is located, both completed town-wide reassessments in 2023 and those new values take effect in the 2024-25 village budget.
The tax base increased by $100.5 million, going from $178,984,667 to $279,494,874. That is a 56.2 percent increase.
The tax rate dropped 34.0 percent or by $7.19.
During a budget public hearing on April 8, the budget was at a 34.9 percent tax increase or up by $1,320,759. The Village Board and the department heads shaved $1.2 million from that to try to get to a “minimal amount,” said Medina Mayor Marguerite Sherman.
However, she said the board can only cut so much. The village will be looking for more revenues outside of the property tax. Medina has tried for years to get in increase in the local sales tax, but has been kept flat by the County Legislature since 2001.
“This board has had numerous discussions on the need to pursue additional funding sources while looking long-term on how to best to continue services while trying to keep the tax rate affordable,” Sherman said.
Overall spending in the general fund is at $7,678,256 – up $84,960 or by 1.1 percent. The water fund is up 4.1 percent or by $83,296 to $2,102,947. The sewer fund is down 3.1 percent or by $39,816 to $1,256,195.
Debbie Padoleski, retired village clerk and treasurer, was elected to the Village Board in March and started her term on April 1. She ran for the board partly due to the rising assessments in the village and potential for much higher tax bills.
Some residents will actually see lower tax bills with this village budget, depending on the percentage of increase in their reassessments, Padoleski said. But others will be paying more.
“While we were able to reduce the levy by $1.2 million from the proposed budget, our hands have been tied by several factors,” she said.
Union contracts push up labor costs, and Padoleski said the lack of an increase in the local sales tax strains the village budget. Medina gets $160,160 of the local sales tax total, which is expected to be near $25 million this year. That is less than 1 percent for Medina of the total in the county.
Padoleski also thinks the village isn’t properly treated by the towns of Shelby and Ridgeway with divvying up the tax burden at the town level. Village residents should be seeing more of a break in their town taxes, padoleski said.
Without some relief from the towns and county, Padoleski said the Village Board could face hard choices in the future about cutting some services.
“We are one step away from cutting services and while some of us are not yet ready to do that, I have been assured that we will continue to look for ways to cut costs, increase revenue and be open to different ways of doing business,” Padoleski said. “Our taxpayers need to be our main priority, always.”
Here are the village tax levies and tax rates in the past six budgets:
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 29 April 2024 at 7:09 am
The price for regular unleaded gas is up 7 cents in Orleans County in the past week, from $3.56 to $3.63 a gallon, AAA reported this morning. The price is now up 21 cents in the past three weeks in Orleans.
Nationally the average price is down 2 cents in the past week to $3.66, and in New York State the average increased 2 cents to $3.66.
Here are the average prices today for Western New York counties:
Orleans, $3.626
Genesee, $3.553
Wyoming, $3.620
Livingston, $3.622
Monroe, $3.648
Niagara, $3.539
Erie, $3.619
Chautauqua, $3.627
Cattaraugus, $3.557
Allegany, $3.643
AAA said gas demand fell slightly last week, meanwhile total domestic gasoline stocks also decreased slightly, according to new data from the Energy Information Administration.
“Lower demand and a drop in crude oil prices could push pump prices lower,” AAA said. “Domestic gasoline demand will pick back up as we get closer to Memorial Day weekend and the traditional start of summer driving season, which will likely come with an increase in prices at the pump.”
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 28 April 2024 at 8:58 pm
Company looks to add parking at site that used to be a doctor’s office
ALBION – The Orleans County Planning Board voted in favor of a request from Crosby’s to change the zoning of 210 South Main St. from residential-commercial to general commercial.
The Planning Board reviewed a referral from the Village of Albion during a meeting on Thursday, and the board recommended Albion approve the request from Crosby’s owner, Reid Petroleum of Lockport.
Crosby’s in early March had a house that used to be a doctor’s office knocked down at 210 South Main, next to the Crosby’s store at the southwest corner of routes 98 and 31. Crosby’s wants to add 10 more parking spaces to the now vacant land. The company also wants to have two new 20,000-gallon underground storage tanks, with those tanks partly on the lot next to Crosby’s.
The company could do the project under the current zoning but would prefer to have both sites be zoned general commercial.
John Pastore, director of Real Estate at Reid Petroleum, met with the Albion Village Board on April 10 and said the company also would like to eventually add four electric charging stations for vehicles in the future, and they would likely be the faster-charging level 3 units.
The plan for the now vacant land also includes an outdoor sitting area, expanded dumpster coral, 6-foot high fencing and landscaping.
Pastore said the land acquisition gives Crosby’s a chance for better traffic circulation at the Albion store, which he said is one of the company’s best-performing sites.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 28 April 2024 at 3:20 pm
Event was fundraiser for East Shelby Volunteer Fire Company
Photos by Tom Rivers
MEDINA – Cheech, one of the pro wrestlers who competed Saturday in the Medina High School gym, acknowledges the crowd after he won a five-man scramble.
It was one of the featured battles in the “Spring Smash,” a benefit for the East Shelby Volunteer Fire Company. Empire State Wrestling brought a group of pro wrestlers, including three with ties to Orleans County, for the event.
About 450 people attended the 2 ½-hour “Spring Smash” on Saturday. That matches the crowd from about a year ago, when ESW held its first event at Medina. ESW previously did an annual event at the Orleans County 4-H Fairgrounds, with crowds of 350 in 2018 and then 200 in 2019. The Covid-19 pandemic kept the wrestlers away starting in 2020 before last year’s return to Orleans County.
Cheech, one of the ESW’s more popular wrestlers, now faces the ESW champion Spencer Slade on May 18 during Brawlfest at Riverworks in Buffalo.
Colin Delaney, formerly of the WWE, screams when Spencer Slade twists Delaney’s leg. Slade, the ESW champion, kept his title.
Spencer Slade, an imposing physical specimen, acknowledges the crowd before his match. Slade is hearing-impaired and wears ear protection.
Kevin Blackwood, one of the most successful pro wrestlers from Orleans County, returned to battle Yoya. Blackwood has Yoya in a headlock.
Blackwood, 33, grew up in Albion as Kevin Lockwood. He lives in Los Angeles and wrestles all over the United States and Canada.
Erin Moody of Albion is Lockwood’s uncle. Moody remembers Lockwood as a little boy, jumping off the couch and pretending to be a wrestler.
“I’m really happy to see Kevin following his dream,” Moody said. “He is really doing it. Not many people get to live their dream.”
Maxx Cannon, “The Big Filthy,” makes his entrance into the gym. Jacob Miller of Medina wrestles as Maxx Cannon. Miller, 30, has been wrestling for about four years, but he took nearly a year off after the birth of his daughter. Saturday was his return to the ring.
He said he was thrilled to get a big response from the local crowd.
He battled Frankie Feathers, the former ESW champion.
“There is nothing like being in your hometown,” Miller said.
He has wrestled with ESW, Buffalo Championship Wrestling, Southern Tier Wrestling and Xcite Professional Wrestling.
Maxx Cannon gives a big facial reaction in his match against Frankie Feathers. Cannon had Feathers beat, but the referee missed the count after being knocked down.
Cannon enjoys interacting with the crowd and being on the microphone, talking some trash with his opponents.
During Saturday’s match, when he had the mic, he snuck in, “Let’s go Mustangs!” in a tribute to his alma mater.
Gavin Glass (right), a Medina native, is up high on the ropes with Darren Crowe. Glass used his “Glass Cutter” move to finish off Crowe.
Glass, 26, returned to the ring last month after taking about a year off when he became a father. Glass has been wrestling for almost a decade and travelled all over the country and Canada.
“I grew up wanting to do this since I was in fourth grade,” he said. “The dream has come true.”
Gavin Glass signs an autograph on a kid’s arm after Glass was victorious.
Adrianna Fury, right, has Haley Dylan down on the mat in the only match featuring women wrestlers. Dylan won the battle.
Zach Nystrom was among the wrestlers in a five-man scramble. Nystrom, a Texas native, now lives in Pittsburgh. He wrestles “up and down the East Coast,” often devoting Thursdays through Sundays to wrestling, and then returning to his regular job in logistics for a trucking company. He said the regular job “is much more boring than this.”
Nystrom, 26, played college football and was working as an iron worker when he decided to give wrestling a try. He loves the physicality of the sport, and some of the exaggerated showmanship.
He is a power wrestler. He doesn’t do fancy moves. His slogan: “Making the Basics Brutal.”
Nystrom typically is a “bad guy” in the matches. He enjoys connecting with the crowd.
“Wrestling is physical theater,” he said. “It’s somewhere between sport and show. For us, it’s our passion and we’re living out our dream.”
By Ginny Kropf, correspondent Posted 28 April 2024 at 8:18 am
Provided photo
MEDINA – Staff from the Head Start in Medina recently collected all kinds of food items, toiletries and more for the Hands for Hope ministry, led by Jack Burris of Albion.
Front row, from left, are Tabitha Miller, Cara Wachob, Nicole Struble and Jack Burris. Second row, from left, are Linda Scurry, Randi Watts, Christina DeBoard, Arika Grasskopf, Theresa Annecharico, Laura Fields, Sharon Wright and Margie Davies.
Each year the Medina staff from Community Action of Orleans and Genesee Head Start work together to collect and donate items for a local organization.
This year, they reached out to Burris and presented Hands for Hope with a collection of food items, as well as toiletries, such as shampoo, conditioners, lotions, razors and other items.
They met with Burris on March 26 to present him with their gifts for Hands for Hope.
By Ginny Kropf, correspondent Posted 28 April 2024 at 7:59 am
Provided photo: Participants in a mud run try to get through a pool of mud on the course. The event is back on Saturday at LynOaken Farms in Lyndonville.
LYNDONVILLE – Orleans County YMCA is announcing the return of its much-anticipated fundraiser, the “Bad Apple Mud Run,” scheduled from 10 a.m. to noon on Saturday at LynOaken Farms.
Participants will embark on an adventure through sprawling orchards, navigating a labyrinth of mud and obstacles that will test their fitness and determination, according to sponsors.
There were 108 runners who braved the course last year, raising much-needed funds for youth programming and scholarships at the YMCA. This year, the YMCA is hoping for 150 runners to challenge themselves, while supporting this important cause.
Registration will begin at 9 a.m. at LynOaken Farms, 11540 Platten Rd. Runners can secure their participation in advance by clicking here.
Every contribution, great or small, will play a pivotal role in supporting youth programs and scholarships at the local YMCA, according to director Jesse Cudzilo.
For more information or to register, participants can also contact Cudzilo at jcudzilo@glowymca.org or by calling (585) 798-2040.
Provided photo: The volunteers include from left: Lucy Rivers, Tim Archer, Sophie Markle, Gideon Pask, Emmaline Gailie, Cordelia Rivers and Tom Rivers.
The group thanks Ace Hardware for accepting the trash in the store’s dumpster.
Cordelia and Lucy Rivers found lots of litter in the brush between Platt and Main streets. They are joined in the garbage pickup by Sophie Markle and Emmaline Gailie.
In front of Dunkin’ Donuts was a small mattress and some clothes that had been out all winter.
There were two other waterlogged sleeping bags along the railroad tracks, and many empty cans of food.
The trash was weighed and the total will be sent into a database for the Great Lakes Watershed Cleanup.
By Ginny Kropf, correspondent Posted 27 April 2024 at 11:26 am
MEDINA – Fourth-graders from Oak Orchard Primary School learned about trees and helped plant a maple tree at Medina FFA’s model farm on high school grounds.
It has been a tradition for several years for Medina Lions to conduct an activity with fourth-graders every year on Arbor Day, said Lions president Jim Hancock.
In the past the Lions have visited the fourth-grade classes with speakers to talk about trees, planted trees with help from the students in various locations, and in one year they gave a sapling to each child.
This year, however, they decided to plant a maple tree in the pasture of the mini model farm maintained by the FFA at Medina High School.
Medina Lions president Jim Hancock, left, and Lion Tim Moriarty, right, talk with Medina FFA teacher Todd Eick at the FFA Model Farm on Medina High School grounds, as they wait for fourth-graders to arrive for a tree planting ceremony.
Children and their teachers, Karen Pane, Scott Gerdes, Alina Patterson, Maria Lemme and Alexis Jones from all five fourth-grade classes walked to the farm on the southwest corner of the high school, where they were greeted by FFA instructor Todd Eick and his class of FFA members.
Eick asked each teacher to choose one child from their class to help shovel dirt around the tree.
Eick explained they planted a tree in the middle of the pasture to provide shade for the animals kept there. This includes alpacas, Nigerian dwarf goats and several ducks. A maple tree was chosen, as Eick explained, so 40 years from now when he has retired and his successor is in place, the tree can be tapped for maple syrup, providing another element of farming for the students to learn.
Then he asked the children how old they thought the oldest maple in New York state was. He told them the oldest living maple was planted in 1590 in Syracuse.
Medina FFA instructor Todd Eick, center, talks to fourth-graders about the importance of trees prior to planting a maple tree at the FFA model farm on Arbor Day.
Eick urged the students this summer to bring their families out for a walk and see how the tree is growing. He explained a maple tree grows about a foot a year and half an inch in diameter.
Hancock told the children about the Lions Club and how they were founded in 1935.
“We do a lot of good things for the community,” Hancock said.
He also introduced Tom Robinson, incoming president and chair of the tree program, and Lions Tom Beach and Tim Moriarty.
Eick then shared that the FFA in Medina was founded in 1936.
Before the children left to go back to their school, Eick asked them to line up and sing happy birthday to his mother, Pat Eick, whose birthday was Monday. Eick’s son Mason, an FFA member, recorded the song to play for his grandmother.
Fourth graders from Oak Orchard Elementary School head back to class after participating in a tree planting ceremony at the FFA Model Farm at Medina High School.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 27 April 2024 at 7:27 am
Photos by Tom Rivers
MEDINA – Second graders at Oak Orchard School in Medina helped plant four trees Friday on North Avenue as part of an Arbor Day celebration in the village. These kids with shovels include Emma McGrath in blue sweater and Gabrielle Watts.
The four trees plants by the kids were “Northern Acclaim” varieties.
This group is in a second grade class taught by Jamie Brooks. Her students have helped with Arbor Day plantings for five years. They students look forward to it every year and it ties in with their science lessons.
“They are learning about the earth around them,” Brooks said. “It’s talking the classroom outside.”
Members of the second grade Glee Club at Oak Orchard Primary School sang three songs to help celebrate the tree planting on Earth Day. Here they are singing, “This Land Is Your Land.”
Andrea Busch, director of the Glee Club, leads them in singing from a stage on North Avenue, not far from the Lee-Whedon Memorial Library.
The group sang “This Land Is Your Land,” “Three Little Birds” by Bob Marley, and “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough.”
Medina is planting 69 trees this spring with 44 new trees on North Avenue, South Avenue, West Avenue, Park Avenue and State Street Park. The other 25 trees are going in Boxwood Cemetery.
Medina Mayor Marguerite Sherman reads an Arbor Day Proclamation and shares her enthusiasm for the community’s commitment to trees.
Arbor Day 2024 marks the 17th year Medina’s urban forestry program has been a participant in the Tree City USA program of the National Arbor Day Foundation. The annual Tree City award honors Medina’s commitment to community forestry.
Many of the trees were paid for with donations through ReLeaf Medina. Click here for more information.
Mary Lewis, the Medina Tree Board chairwoman, said the Tree Board welcomes corporate and community sponsors to the tree-planting program.
The Arbor Day celebration included 2nd and 3rd graders from Medina Central School. The kids in front are second-graders in Abbi Keppler’s class.
$319 million facility is second to build at STAMP, following Plug Power
These are renderings from the Governor’s Office show phase 1 of the new facility to be built for Edwards Vacuum.
Press Release, Governor Kathy Hochul’s Office
TOWN OF ALABAMA – Governor Kathy Hochul and U.S. Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer today announced the start of construction on the first phase of the $319 million Edwards Vacuum dry pump manufacturing facility, located in the Genesee County town of Alabama.
The British-based global leader in vacuum and abatement equipment for the semiconductor industry, part of the Atlas Copco Group, chose the Western New York Science & Technology Advanced Manufacturing Park in Genesee County as the location for its new U.S. dry pump manufacturing facility.
The technology produced at the new facility is a vital component to controlling the highly sensitive environment of semiconductor manufacturing processes. Edwards Vacuum’s decision to invest in New York State followed passage of the federal CHIPS and Science Act, New York’s Green CHIPS legislation, and the domestic semiconductor industry growth the complementary programs have spurred, including Micron’s unprecedented $100 billion commitment to Central New York, which is expected to create nearly 50,000 jobs.
“As a Western New York native, I experienced the years of decline from the exodus of manufacturing from Upstate New York,” Governor Hochul said. “Those days are over. The start of construction on the newest Edwards Vacuum facility signals the beginning of a new chapter for both Western New York and the Finger Lakes regions. Edwards’ choice to build in New York State brings hundreds of good paying jobs and millions of dollars in investment Upstate while helping strengthen our domestic semiconductor supply chain, shorten delivery times for suppliers like Micron, reduce carbon emissions, and bolster national security.”
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said, “Today is a great day for the Western New York and Finger Lakes region, with Edwards Vacuum breaking ground on its $300+ million manufacturing plant, which will create an estimated 600 good-paying jobs and boost New York’s already booming semiconductor supply chain. Thanks to my CHIPS & Science Act, which continues to deliver investment after investment for Upstate NY, we are adding another stop to our semiconductor superhighway along the booming I-90 corridor Tech Hub with Edwards Vacuum’s groundbreaking today. This is yet another example of my CHIPS & Science Law bringing manufacturing back to America, especially Upstate NY, and is only the beginning of the next chapter in Upstate NY’s manufacturing renaissance.”
Construction on the $127 million first phase of Edwards Vacuum’s 240,000 square-foot campus will include manufacturing, warehouse, and administration facilities, with a capacity to produce 10,000 dry pumps per year. The all-electric facility will strive for LEED certification, with a majority of the power generated via hydroelectricity.
Edwards’ commitment to build in the U.S. comes after significant investments by the Biden Administration to increase domestic chip manufacturing, and the passage of the federal CHIPS and Science Act and New York’s Green CHIPS legislation, as well as a growing need to support its customers in North America.
Edwards dry pumps are currently manufactured in Asia. By bringing manufacturing to New York, Edwards customers – including Micron and GlobalFoundries in New York, and Intel in Ohio – will experience shorter wait times, improved responsiveness and reduced CO2 emissions from an American-made product. Edwards estimates that when phase one is operational, it will reduce CO2 emissions by 13,000 tons per year.
Empire State Development has awarded Edwards Vacuum up to $21 million through a combination of performance-based Excelsior Jobs Tax Credits and Investment Tax Credits in exchange for 600 jobs, and an additional $1 million to support workforce development efforts and the training of a diverse and inclusive workforce. Additionally, the New York Power Authority is supporting the project though a 4.9-megawatt (MW) low-cost Niagara hydropower allocation and a 2.1 MW of High Load Factor power allocation that NYPA will procure for Edwards on the energy market. Low-cost Niagara hydropower is available for companies within a 30-mile radius of the Power Authority’s Niagara Power Project or businesses in Chautauqua County.
Empire State Development President, CEO and Commissioner Hope Knight said, “The start of construction for Edwards Vacuum’s new facility signals that hundreds of good jobs and millions of dollars in investments are headed to Upstate New York. We are well on our way to becoming a global hub for advanced manufacturing and building a strong semiconductor ecosystem in New York State.”
Semiconductors, and their supply chain partners, are vital to the nation’s economic strength, serving as the brains of modern electronics, and enabling technologies critical to U.S. economic growth, national security, and global competitiveness. The industry directly employs over 277,000 people in the U.S. and supports more than 1.8 million additional domestic jobs. Semiconductors are a top five U.S. export, and the industry is the number one contributor to labor productivity, supporting improvements to the effectiveness and efficiency of virtually every economic sector — from farming to manufacturing.
In the FY 2025 Enacted Budget, Governor Hochul doubled down on her commitment to establish New York as a global hub for semiconductor research and manufacturing, including:
$100 million in funding for additional rounds of the FAST NY program.
$500 million for NY CREATES’ Albany Nanotech Complex – with total State investment of $1 billion – to jumpstart a $10 billion partnership that will bring the future of advanced semiconductor research to New York’s Capital region by creating the nation’s first and only publicly owned High NA EUV Lithography Center.
$200 million to establish One Network for Regional Advanced Manufacturing Partnerships (ON-RAMP) – a network of four new workforce development centers to prepare New Yorkers for the jobs of the future created by companies like Micron and Edwards Vacuum.
Assemblymember Steven Hawley said, “I’m proud to see the announcement today that Edward’s Vacuum is starting construction at the STAMP mega-site. The 139th Assembly District has always been a hub of innovation and it’s only fitting that it will be at the center of New York’s emerging semiconductor industry. This project is another step in the right direction toward growing the local economy, creating good-paying jobs and making New York a leader in this sector.”
Town of Alabama Supervisor Rob Crossen said, “We congratulate Edwards Vacuum on the start of construction at the STAMP mega-site. This latest milestone in the development of STAMP continues the realization of our shared vision for investments that improve the economy, attract good paying jobs, and enhance our community.”
GCEDC President and CEO Steve Hyde said, “As we work to grow our economy and deliver family-sustaining careers at the STAMP mega-site, having partners like Edwards Vacuum, Senator Schumer, and Governor Hochul is gratifying. The start of construction for this critical semiconductor industry project demonstrates the impact that STAMP provides in our shared state and federal vision to grow semiconductor and related advanced manufacturing sectors.”
Provided photos: Medina students Alexander Balaban, Isabella Gray and Elaina Bitsas pitched their idea of Pets & Found.
Press Release, Medina Central School
BUFFALO – Medina Junior-Senior High School business students competed and won top honors at the first-ever 43North Students to Startups Finals! The event was held at Seneca One Tower in Buffalo, NY.
Medina students Alexander Balaban, Isabella Gray and Elaina Bitsas competed against nine other teams, most from larger districts, and came home with first place and $1,000 for their hard work and effort.
Their business idea – Pets & Found – was a subscription style app to help owners find their pets and partner with local veterinarians to develop a kind of animal patient portal to benefit both pet owners and veterinarians.
43North is an accelerator program for seed-stage startups and has given over $5 million annually into growing Buffalo’s startup ecosystem. 43North is excited to collaborate with educators to inspire entrepreneurship and innovation in their classrooms.
“We are so proud of these students,” says Jody Sargent, one of the school’s business teachers. “We want to congratulate them for their hard work and effort as well as Business/Computer teacher Mrs. Krista Lindke who worked extensively to prepare these students for their success.”
The students were featured on the news television stations in Buffalo last night.
From left include Mr. Jody Sargent, Isabella Gray, Elaina Bitsas, Alexander Balaban and Mrs. Krista Lindke at the 43North Students to Startups Finals.
