Thank you Planner for the update.

So LFTCEDC wants another $17M to finish the work, and the state is saying no. If the state takes over control, don't they still need to pony up the money? I still think there is much more to this that is happening behind the scenes.

quote:

Originally posted by 12noon@malta:
I would like people who are against eduction from a library or physical fitness from a gym in the community complex, to know , that I have used it and a few friends and relitives of mine use it. If your not using it, it is your loss.
Now that the weather is changing it will probably be used more. As far as the 1/8 filled with books perhaps we should get those new store owners, apartment dwellers, condo owners in the Ellsworth Common to donate some cash for books.
The GF wont't be stopped, they made 2.4 billion in 2009, in profit, just in the USA.
They have over 150 customers world wide..If there is a mess it will because businesses and homes built here for the sole purpose of the GF employees and they buy and live in another area.
Which I expect most of them will.
I am making a plea, if you have books in your home, not being used, take them to the library.
If you are looking for a book they do not have, they can get it out of the NYS/Albany library for you.

Noon,
Unfortunately they don't want our books unless they're in perfect "like new" condition--or so I was told by a librarian.

quote:

Originally posted by Miriam:

quote:

Originally posted by 12noon@malta:
I would like people who are against eduction from a library or physical fitness from a gym in the community complex, to know , that I have used it and a few friends and relitives of mine use it. If your not using it, it is your loss.
Now that the weather is changing it will probably be used more. As far as the 1/8 filled with books perhaps we should get those new store owners, apartment dwellers, condo owners in the Ellsworth Common to donate some cash for books.
The GF wont't be stopped, they made 2.4 billion in 2009, in profit, just in the USA.
They have over 150 customers world wide..If there is a mess it will because businesses and homes built here for the sole purpose of the GF employees and they buy and live in another area.
Which I expect most of them will.
I am making a plea, if you have books in your home, not being used, take them to the library.
If you are looking for a book they do not have, they can get it out of the NYS/Albany library for you.

Noon,
Unfortunately they don't want our books unless they're in perfect "like new" condition--or so I was told by a librarian.

Remember when they sold us on the library idea, they told us the library would be "self check-out" and that there would be no staff required. Go in there today, you'll find two staffers in the library, no signs of any "self check-out".

Massive future development at the GlobalFoundries Inc. site in Malta hangs in the balance amid the states power play to take over the Luther Forest Technology Campus.

The state has started to foreclose on the nonprofit in charge of preparing and managing the 1,440-acre sitean entity the state now views as a pointless middleman with ineffective board members.

The state wants to force out board members of the Luther Forest Technology Campus Economic Development Corp. The five-person board has resisted the demands and disputes the states accusations.

The jarring move occurs as GlobalFoundries top executive says hes nervous about apparent delays in key road, water, sewer and power work. The impacts could reach well beyond just the $4.6 billion computer-chip plant GlobalFoundries is now building, which will employ 1,400 people.

The delays threaten to throw construction and production off track as soon as December, and no later than the second quarter of next year.

The delays also jeopardize GlobalFoundries plans to start a second chip factory next door sooner than expectedbuilding upon whats already the largest public-private project in state history.

Weve already done quite a bit of work looking into it. Its one of the ways you can keep production costs down, said Norm Armour, vice president and general manager of the chip plant, referring to preliminary design and cost analyses.

But, we want to impress upon the state the need to keep the playing field level between here and other lower-cost regions of the world, Armour said.

GlobalFoundries has not publicly committed to any new construction yet. But potential for a second chip plant in Malta arises as its competitors unveil plans to spend billions of dollars on their own factories.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. announced what one analyst called a substantial expansion this year. And Intel Corp.s announcement this month that it will spend at least $6 billion on its U.S. chip plants remains fresh in the minds of industry watchers.

Its an ever-escalating push to gain market share, analysts said.

Everyones following that mantra, said James McGregor, chief technology analyst with In-Stat, a California firm tracking semiconductor companies. The industry ran into capacity constraints a lot quicker than anybody expected.

Demand for electronics keeps rising despite depressed consumer spending. Analysts said the semiconductor sector could hit record sales of $300 billion.

Given that backdrop, the conflict over infrastructure at the GlobalFoundries site stokes fears the company will lose the appetite for more development in Malta and instead expand operations in Germany or Singapore.

The battle is between Empire State Development Corp., the states economic development agency, and the board and executives of Luther Forest.

I think theyre recoverable, Doug Grose, CEO of GlobalFoundries, said of infrastructure issues. Those were not hitting the schedule, and were nervous. Obviously, we needed somebody to give this focus, and ESDC is doing that for us.

Added Armour: I think theyll do the diving catch in the end zone for us.

The Luther Forest entity was created in 2002 to acquire and manage land in the hopes of attracting major development.

The entity used a mortgage with the state to buy the land. The state said two notes with roughly $1.8 million of principal are in default prompting it to start the foreclosure process on Oct. 22.

Luther Forest has relied almost entirely on state funds for its existence.

To date, the executive and legislative branches have approved $92 million in funds directly for Luther Forest, and government agencies have poured another $70 million into related work.

This begs the question, why do we have this intermediary? Why do we need this? asked Dennis Mullen, chairman and CEO of Empire State Development.

To be clear, if everything was on time, we would not take this action. Were very willing to have them continue, as long as they can meet the needs of the customer, Mullen added.

State control of the Luther Forest campus would put it in charge of recruiting new tenants and all procurement and development on every part of the site except the 223 acres owned by GlobalFoundries.

Town officials worry that state control of the campus will erase valuable tax revenue and supersede their oversight powers. They openly question the states abilities, pointing to attempts to overhaul the Harriman office campus in Albany that floundered for a decade.

Our record of fiscal responsibility is certainly better than theirs, said William Peck, chairman of the Saratoga County Board of Supervisors.

Mullen blasted Luther Forest board members for arbitrary delays of multiple infrastructure projects, claims that Luther Forest executives have rejected as inaccurate.

The fact is, the state will not be held hostage by this board as we move forward, Mullen said. They have impeded progress. Period.

My hope is that cooler heads will prevail, well get this done on time and well regain the confidence of GlobalFoundries to invest again there or somewhere else in the state, Mullen added.

Luther Forest officials said the state owes them money and is not negotiating.

You have to have two parties to negotiate, said Michael Relyea, president of Luther Forest. To Dennis [Mullen], its very clear. To me and our partners here, its not so clear.

Infrastructure is not off schedule, Relyea said. Certain pieces require funding from the state, and if they fund it, as in the past, well play our role to assist and oversee development. But if they dont fund it, we cant build it.

Board members repeatedly referred all requests for comment to Relyea.

A planned access road illustrates the dispute.

According to project agreements, the road must be built before GlobalFoundries can obtain certificates of occupancy from the town of Stillwater.

The certificates are a prerequisite before GlobalFoundries can legally move 300 front-office staff and its first machines into the plant.

A banner outside the plant proclaims it ready for equipment in mid-July 2011. As of now, construction is on budget and a bit ahead of schedule, said spokesman Travis Bullard.

Our customers are bringing their products online to hit a very specific window with us. I would hate to think of a customer missing a Christmas buying season or a back-to-school buying season, Bullard said. Theres hundreds of millions of dollars of business on the line.

State funds have been awarded for the roadwork, but Luther Forest refused to sign necessary paperwork to start the roadwork, according to a letter GlobalFoundries sent to the state.

The delay caused bids to expire, meaning the work must be rebidwith the time for doing roadwork fading fast as winter approaches.

Mullen said Luther Forest is sitting on at least $3.5 million that could be used to jump-start the access road, part of the proceeds from selling 200 acres to GlobalFoundries in mid-2009.

Instead, Luther Forest used the money to pay for operating costs, Mullen said.

There is an example, again, of them thinking of their own needs, their own operating costs, their own survival, as a priority over the project, Mullen said.

Armour, of GlobalFoundries, said the company has no preference what route the state pursues.

The bottom line, Armour said, is that we just want the infrastructure when we need it.

[URL=http://www.bizjournals.com/albany/print-edition/2010/10/29/showdown-in-malta.html?ana=e_ph ]http://www.bizjournals.com/albany/print-edition/2010/10/29/showdown-in-malta.html?ana=e_ph [/URL]