Transformative Deal is in Place For Former IBM Site

KINGSTON – Ulster County Executive Pat Ryan announced last Wednesday that Ulster County Court Judge Bryan Rounds has signed off on a negotiated settlement deal between Ulster County and Alan Ginsberg, owner of the remaining properties that comprise TechCity on the former IBM campus in the Town of Ulster. The deal allows for the ultimate sale of TechCity to National Resources, a nationally-recognized developer known for revitalizing former industrial sites, for a combined amount of $12 million, which is roughly the amount currently owed in back taxes.

The purchase is expected to include $5 million in cash payments over a five year period, plus at least $7 million in financial commitments for substantial remediation work required on the property. Based on recent actions by the EPA, any new owner will be required to quickly commence environmental cleanup and costs in a manner that is acceptable to both the EPA and New York State DEC. The sale of the property would allow for taxes to once again be collected on the parcels and would finally and fully wrest control of the campus from Alan Ginsberg, who has owned the former IBM site since 1998.

“Today’s announcement regarding TechCity is momentous, and represents one of the biggest economic wins for Ulster County in decades,” County Executive Pat Ryan said. “For far too long, TechCity has been a shell of past economic success. Now we have finally reached an exciting and transformative moment, one where we can revitalize this site and remake it as a thriving beacon of new opportunity for our County.”

“Today’s announcement is a major step forward in cleaning up the asbestos-ridden TechCity site that will boost jobs, promote economic development, and protect the public health. I look forward to continuing to work with the EPA, Ulster County Executive Pat Ryan, State Senator Hinchey, Assemblyman Cahill, the Town of Ulster, HVEDC, and the sites new owner, Natural Resources, to clean up and revitalize the former IBM-site, unlocking its full potential to create thousands of good-paying local jobs,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said. “As Majority Leader, I am proud to have delivered hundreds of thousands of dollars for EPA to help cleanup this site, on top of historic funding for both Ulster County and the Town of Ulster through the American Rescue Plan for development opportunities, and billions in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Investment & Jobs Act to supercharge cleanup efforts at superfund sites like this across New York. TechCity has the power to serve as a national model for cleaning up and repurposing contaminated sites nationwide and I will continue working tooth and nail until this site is brought back to its full potential as a beacon of economic growth in the Hudson Valley.”

“This is a moment many of us here in Ulster County have been waiting decades for,” Ulster County Legislator Brian Cahill said. “I’m grateful to County Executive Ryan for his instrumental leadership in making this happen and the cooperation of my fellow Legislators for supporting the plan. I would also like to acknowledge the diligence and hard work of the Director of Ulster County Economic Development, Tim Weidemann. I look forward to continuing to work together with the Executive’s team and members of the i.Park 87 development team to accomplish the full redevelopment of this critical economic asset.”

“An experienced partner like National Resources will help us unlock the potential of the former IBM campus,” said Sarah Haley, Chair of the Board of Directors of the Ulster County Economic Development Alliance and a member of the County’s Enterprise West Advisory Committee. “With their financial resources, bench of potential flagship tenants, and deep experience remediating complex environmental issues, they are the ideal partner to return this blighted property to the economic engine Ulster County has long desired and deserved.”

“This announcement represents an exciting moment in the long history of the former IBM site, which remains a sore spot for many residents of the Town of Ulster,” said Laura Hartmann, one of the founding members and leaders of TownOfUlsterCitizens.com, and a member of the County’s Enterprise West Advisory Committee. “An outcome that results in the clean-up of environmental issues on the site, repayment of some portion of the back taxes, and a path toward revitalization is a categorial win.”

Ulster County Executive Pat Ryan, members of the Ulster County Legislature, National Resources and other partners will hold an event in the coming days to lay out additional details on the future vision for the location.

National Resources, a nationally-recognized developer known for revitalizing former industrial sites, currently is working to redevelop the former IBM site in Fishkill. Their Fishkill location, known as iPark 84, features over 2 million square feet of commercial space and currently is slated to have GlobalFoundries, eMagin, and a film studio as tenants. In addition, National Resources is developing a film production facility in Yonkers for Lionsgate Entertainment. Over the past 15-years, National Resources has developed over 5 million square feet of space in eight different locations while creating more than 20,000 new jobs in these formerly vacant spaces.

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