The long-vacant Guilford Mills factory in Cobleskill took a huge step towards getting a new owner Friday.
An enthusiastic Schoharie County Board of Supervisors approved the sale of the plant to Intelligent Fish for $2.5 million.
Intelligent Fish, a start-up fish-farming company, plans to employ 60 people and eventually raise five million pounds of Coho salmon per year.
The county took over the plant when the former owner didn’t pay taxes. The asking price was $3.6 million, but $2.5 million should cover the taxes lost, the closing cost and sales commission, according to county Treasurer Bill Cherry.
“We won’t make any money in the deal, but we won’t lose any money,” he said.
More importantly, Mr. Cherry added, the property will be back on the tax roll and create jobs. Also, the county will recoup lost taxes.
For all those reasons, supervisors were pleased at selling the factory that’s been vacant for more than nine years.
“This is a big win for Schoharie County,” said Middleburgh Supervisor Dennis Richards.
“We look forward to working with this company to provide jobs. This is a nice win for the home team.”
Getting the property back on the tax roll will help the Village and Town of Cobleskill as well as the county, said Cobleskill Supervisor Tom Murray.
Agriculture is the county top industry, and fish farming, an innovative technology, should be a natural fit, added Board of Supervisors Chairman Earl VanWormer.
Agnes Cleary, a spokesperson for Intelligent Fish, said Monday that a tentative date for the actual closing is February 14, “but it could be sooner.”
In the interim, the company will be taking soil samples at the site as required by the Environmental Protection Agency and the Food and Drug Administration, she said.
“Because there will be food processing, the FDA and EPA require a clean bill of health,” Ms. Cleary said. “The tests are pretty routine. . .We’re not expecting to find anything.”
Also, Intelligent Fish will be gauging water needs, she said. The company plans to use two wells dug by the former Interknitting plant and wants to make sure there’s enough water.
“The water quality is fine, and there’s no reason to expect there’s not enough water,” Ms. Cleary said.
Work on the plant itself won’t begin until after the closing.
Once Intelligent Fish gets all necessary permits in hand, production should start in 18 to 24 months.
The company doesn’t expect to use all of the two buildings and may rent space “to start-up businesses at a non-profit rate,” Ms. Cleary said.
She added that the company also plans to work closely with SUNY Cobleskill’s aquaculture program and may use some of the space for an exchange program with students.
Intelligent Fish signed a letter of intent to buy the plant just a month ago. Mr. VanWormer said he wasn’t surprised at the speed of the sale.
The location of the factory near major interstates and the proximity of SUNY Cobleskill made it attractive, he said. Also the work of local economic groups, including the Four Partners of the college, Chamber of Commerce, Farm Bureau and local government helped pull it together.