Schoharie County has a diamond in the rough located right in the Village of Cobleskill, county leaders were told Friday afternoon.
The long vacant Guilford Mills complex, now owned by the county, is being marketed by Coldwell Banker Commercial Prime Properties of Albany.
Coldwell Banker’s Jack Kelley gave supervisors a glowing review of the building and its potential.
“You have a nice little gem in the rough and we just need to shine it up a bit,” he said.
“This is a wonderful building” and, despite some needed roof work, is “in fantastic condition.” Most of the building has been vacant over eight years.
The location of the building will play a big part in marketing the complex, Mr. Kelley said.
The proximity of the college, I-88, a railroad, a ready workforce and the Capital Region make the shovel-ready, 460,000-square-foot building even more attractive, he said.
“You are sitting in a good position,” he said. Other areas may have vacant facilities but “they don’t have all the ingredients that you have.”
Having a shovel-ready facility is the way to go in the present and the future, Mr. Kelley said.
The days of having a site selector pick out an empty field for a new complex “doesn’t cut it anymore.” With those plans, “you end up in last place,” he said.
“From what I’ve seen, you’re on your way to being successful.”
Schoharie County also has the intangibles to attract an investor, Mr. Kelley said.
The county has an excellent quality of life, housing, four-season recreation, a good location and a low crime rate, he said.
Having a college in the village and the proximity of Tech Valley, in which $13 billion has been invested, will help.
“There’s no reason why you won’t profit from that,” he said, adding that “the overflow will come down the pike” from Tech Valley.
“I see Schoharie County as where Saratoga County was 35 years ago…
“You have a lot of potential here. Your time has come. The torch has been passed to you. This is a real great place to live.”
Mr. Kelley said that the first priority would be to sell the facility to one company that would provide jobs and put the complex back on the tax rolls. The second option would be to lease or sell parts of the complex to different companies and third would be to sell to an investor who would then lease the facility to other companies.
County officials said that the state’s Empire Zone plan expires in July but may be replaced with a new program which would aid light industry, technology or energy-related projects that provide 50 or more jobs. The former Guilford Mills complex is in the current Empire Zone.
County officials said finding a buyer or tenant for the complex was a priority.
Cobleskill Mayor Mark Nadeau spoke at the board meeting and said the village will do whatever it can to bring the plans to fruition.
“We can’t afford to wait on this project for two, three years,” County Attorney Michael West said.
For this county to succeed, Middleburgh Supervisor Dennis Richards said, “this is one of the priorities…
“We all want success on this effort.”