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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: November 19, 2010

AT SCHUMER'S URGING, US FISH AND WILDLIFE TO EXPEDITE SITE REVIEW IN ORANGE COUNTY THAT WOULD PAVE WAY FOR $190 MILLION DISTRIBUTION CENTER AND 2,000 JOBS IN THE AREA - USFW TO MEET WITH SITE CONTRACTOR TODAY


Orange County Competing with West Virginia to Become Home of Large Distribution Center that Would Boost the Region's Economy, Create Jobs - Time is Of the Essence if OC is to Win

After Schumer's Personal Call to Top Fed Official, Fish and Wildlife To Meet with Site Contractor Today to Go Over Any Necessary Changes - Without Schumer's Advocacy, Meeting Could Have Been Weeks Away

Today, U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer announced that, after he personally called Daniel M. Ashe, Director of Policy for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) urging him to expedite review of the locations ‘site plan’ that would clear the way for a $190 million distribution center in Orange County, USFWS has agreed to expedite their review.  USFWS began reviewing documents yesterday and even more importantly, today will meet with contractors to go over any potential changes that need to be made to the site plan.  Without Schumer’s intervention, this review could have been delayed for weeks, putting the project in danger.  A site plan, which details the layout of buildings, overall architecture of the project and the impact that the project may have on the environment, has been submitted but is still awaiting approval from USFWS. Right now, Orange County is competing with other another site in West Virginia for the distribution center and the approval of the site plan by USFWS remains the most significant hurdle.

 

Schumer first spoke with Ashe two nights ago and urged him to begin reviewing the necessary documents immediately.  Ashe called Schumer back yesterday morning and said that the review document review would begin immediately.  Ashe called Schumer again late last night to say that meetings with contractors would being today.

 

“This review has started to pick up speed and that greatly increases our chances of winning this distribution center and the thousands of jobs and hundreds of millions of dollars in investments that it would bring,” Schumer said. “I will continue to watch this process like a hawk and do everything in my power to clear any remaining hurdles and bring this project to the Hudson Valley, where it belongs.  I appreciate Fish and Wildlife kicking their review into high gear.”

 

Currently, an unnamed company is looking at sites in Orange County and West Virginia to locate a $190 million distribution center with the potential to create 2,000 jobs. The proposed site in Orange County is a 138  acre parcel of land on Neelytown Road in the Town of Hamptonburgh called  Hudson Valley Crossings. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) is ready to approve the site plan but still needs final approval on the site plan from USFWS because the proposed site includes the habitat of an endangered species, the Indiana Bat. The potential project’s developers have submitted the site plan which outlines how the distribution center would be built and details potential impacts on the environment and the developers plans to protect the regulated landscape and wildlife, yet the plan is still awaiting approval from USFWS as the competition for the distribution center enters its final days. Two nights ago, Schumer called on the USFWS to approve the site plan quickly so that Orange County will remain competitive as the final location is selected.  USFWS has responded to Schumer’s requests and has kicked the review into high gear.

 

If Orange County is chosen, the $150 million site would break ground sometime in 2011 with a targeted completion date of 2012. Already, the state and Orange County have offered a package of incentives, but the lack of approval of a site plan by USFWS remains a major stumbling block. If the site plan is approved quickly by USFWS then Orange County will have a strong chance to land the distribution center.

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