As projects line up for I-88 Exit 23 in the Town of Schoharie, developers, the Planning Board, and even Schoharie County are going to be tasked with balancing neighbors’ concerns with economic development.
A 24-hour Travel Plaza with two fast food restaurants, a convenience store, dog park and picnic area, along with fuel and parking for 94 trucks and 39 cars at the corner of Routes 7 and 30A, is the latest project proposed for just-off I-88.
Farther along are plans by Highbridge Development to build a 453,600 square-foot warehouse and office facility across Route 30 from Dunkin Donuts and the Park and Ride, a project that would mean as many as 600 distribution center jobs.
What will eventually happen with the already-permitted American Manufacturing Recycling site on the north side of Route 7 and Zicha Road is unclear; changes in the industry scuttled developers’ original plans and they’re now waiting on delivery of materials for a 40,000 square-foot warehouse that could be ready for tenants in the spring.
And though it’s a substantially smaller project, Capital Region BOCES has gotten Planning Board approval for a six-bay garage at its Route 30A campus—something that has neighbors unhappy over traffic and lighting.
All are permitted uses in the zone.
But that doesn’t necessarily mean they’re always desirable, Planning Board Dawn Johnson said after a first look at the Travel Plaza, pointing to Schoharie’s vision for itself in its Joint Comprehensive Plan, first written in 1997, updated in 2014, and in the process of being reviewed again.
“What is the town’s responsibility to the businesses already here, a mile away, who’ve already made a commitment to Schoharie?” she asked.
“Is there something else that could go in there that wouldn’t be competition?”
The Comprehensive Plan does call for development at the I-88 interchange, pointed out SEEC Executive Director Julie Pacatte; developers for all of the proposed projects are looking at significant investments, she said, and would be contributing substantially to the tax rolls.
A survey done by consultants Barton & Loguidice for the 2014 Comprehensive Plan update ranked housing rehabilitation, business development, and aesthetic improvements to Main Street evenly as Schoharie’s top three needs.
The consultants also point to the 1997 updates, which “notes that most people would prefer commercial development primarily in the central business district…or at the I-88/Route 30 intersection, [and] to North Main Street, instead of South Main Street, and on Route in Central Bridge rather than Main Street in Central Bridge.”
In a December 2021 report, consultants for Schoharie County, the MRB Group, evaluated nearly 50 sites for possible development.
The Schoharie sites were listed as “generally meets criteria,” but didn’t score high because they lack infrastructure, Ms. Pacatte said—something the county is already working to rectify with ARPA funding.
When the state sends out a call for possible sites for potential projects, she told supervisors’ Economic Development Committee Thursday, they’re looking for something that’s shovel-ready.
Cobleskill Supervisor Werner Hampel said it’s critical to be ready.
“If they can’t come in and see it’s done…Time is money,” he said, and despite concerns over the national economy, “Businesses are seeing opportunities. They’re looking ahead to where they go next.”