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ECIDA Helped 67 Projects in 2011

By David Robinson

February 10, 2011

 The Erie County Industrial Development Agency last year provided more than $230 million in incentives to 67 projects that are expected to create more than 1,000 local jobs over the next two years, the economic development organization said today.

"The economic development picture was rather bleak last January, but it turned out to be an extremely productive year for all of our programs," said IDA Chairman Philip C. Ackerman as the agency released its annual report.

Ackerman said he expects the momentum to spill over into this year. "We start 2011 with a solid number of projects in the pipeline and feel very positive about what we'll be able to accomplish," he said in a statement.

The IDA provided sales, mortgage and property tax breaks to 25 different projects with a total value of $143.2 million. More than half of those projects involved the "adaptive reuse" of vacant or underused for at least three years.

In all, the IDA provided incentives for adaptive reuse projects that will revitalize 13 buildings across Erie County. The policy encourages developers to renovate old, empty buildings, even for such uses as housing that normally are not eligible for the agency's tax breaks. The IDA has provided incentives for 22 adaptive reuse projects since it adopted the policy during 2009.

The Buffalo & Erie County Industrial Land Development Corp., an IDA affiliate that has been revived to provide tax-exempt funding for projects by non-profit organizations that no longer qualify for IDA aid, approved funding for six projects valued at $81.8 million.

Those projects include a new dormitory at Buffalo State College and expansion projects at Canisius College and Medaille College, along with a new parking ramp at the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus.

The IDA, working mainly through its Regional Development Corp. affiliate, also provided 32 small companies with $3.2 million in loans, ranging from $5,000 to $600,000.

The agency's Minority Entrepreneurs Grant and Loan program picked six fledgling firms to share $139,000 in aid during its second round of funding.

drobinson@buffnews.com