Troy Industrial Development Authority - Regular Meeting

So, we're going to call to order the Troy Industrial Development Authority uh board meeting. It is not November 21st. It is December 19th, 2025. Uh we have just two absences today. We have Alex and Sue not available, but everyone else is here. We're going to start with approval of the November 21st uh minutes. We have to skip over the 26, September, and October. Do we have any uh questions or comments on the minutes or do we have a motion to approve? Motion second. All in favor?

I just have [clears throat] Alex and Sue as um on to new business. We have an initial project resolution. Um the application for First Columbia 433 River Street LLC project 2025. We have um members here that are available for uh presentation or discussion and I will leave it in Justin and their hands uh for putting it on the table.

Yeah. Yeah. Just as a reintroduction, uh the folks that were present last month, uh remember that we had [clears throat] kind of a pre-application discussion and a tableabling of an initial resolution uh pending the submission of a full application and having the applicant here to talk about the project, the building we're sitting in. Um, and also we have uh deputy mayor uh Sheamus Donnelly here to answer any questions on the city's role and impacts here and the exit from from this building to the new Proctors which congratulations to the LDC and and and the city. They they acquired Proctor's Theater yesterday. Um and that's going to be under construction immediately and and delivered um hopefully in the middle of October next year. Uh in that context, we have uh Kevin Fronty from uh First Colombia here uh to answer any questions, talk about the application um and the initial resolution. And I recall that certainly Albert and and others uh had questions and u and if the application didn't answer those, uh we had the applicant here to talk. I'll get out of the way.

I still haven't seen the financials. Okay. Um I think those are ready to be delivered. I think that I kind of get out of the way. We we're preparing the audited financials for for our for your guys's Okay. Um but as you can tell the application does have a lot of financial figures in there. Well, that's not enough for me. I used to do commercial landing, so that's I need more than that. Plus that um the uh I'd like to see more information on the um rent roll too.

Yep. These are all documents that we can get over to you for for your further review. Um I think from from last meeting I think there was a lot of questions just overall about the uh [cough] the application and the building as well. There's questions on which sensor downsizing what's happened. You know overall this building um it's an economic driver. We've had at its peak over a thousand jobs in this building which are feeding apartments. They're feeding um retail. It's commerce into the city. What's happened obviously is no surprise to anyone. The urban urban office market is is not what it was back in 2015. Um this building has had hiccups previously. When the students left um over 10 years ago, the occupancy was 49%. um because of the IDA's um pilot that we implemented from 2014 to 2018, we then added 300 jobs and then we also climbed back up to a 98% option in 20 2021. Um all that is in in partnership with the IDA from the 2016 pilot amendment. Um because as you know tracking down [clears throat] and also a struggling urban office market, one of the biggest things is certainty for taxes. [clears throat] Um you know [snorts] our biggest competition right now is right next door in the town of Colony where parking's not a problem. Taxes aren't a problem. So that's what we're that's where our competition is. Um and also the competition is Albany who just got subsidized $200 million to attract new business and development. So, we want to be we want [clears throat] to be bringing new tenants into this building, which I think everyone's seen that First Company has the ability to do. Um, if you look at the last pilot in 2018, we brought in Deep Blue Communications, which at its peak had over 80 jobs in the building. Um, they were so successful from their time in Troy, they were bought out by company, Comcast. And

unfortunately, Comcast, when the world changed in 2020, they completely changed what their work structure is. They went from, you know, having the whole fourth floor to saying, you know, we only need a few people in the office and gave back that entire floor. Um, we're working on retending that, but in order to resend that, um, tenants need assistance and help with that. So, I think First Columbia's ability to attract tenants with our fit up is is no surprise to anyone. We've been able to do so um, in the last eight years. Um but for for a lot of these tenants the main thing is economics and and taxes certainty for taxes is the main thing here. Um the current meeting [clears throat and cough] for the the next meeting is going to be January 16th just because the first falls on a Thursday this year so it's it creeps up pretty quick in January. The finance subcommittee is Stephanie Albert and myself. Okay. um if we were to meet if you get that information that's being requested to us is it possible to get that I mean that's that's you know

a major effort. Yeah. So is that but that's is that enough time? Are you going to be able is that something you can get to us by the week of the 5th? Yep. Especially for your end financial.

Great. Um that's when I would propose that we pending the application uh resolution passes. That's what I would hope that we could do because it gives enough time. If we could meet earlier in that week remotely would be fine. Three of us and Justin and then um if there's a volley back for further questions, there's enough time to address that. I just that's it's a that first meeting is really quick next year. Yeah, we can definitely um but this is the [clears throat] first I think memory serves this is the first like non nonprofit pilot that we've had to do a subcommittee meeting since I mean it's been almost 8 months I think. So uh we should plan [clears throat] to do that and have a chance to address that before a public hearing and meeting

and then again if there's more questions on the table we can get that information. That's what [clears throat] I I want I want to see that. Um, when was the last time it was this building was appraised? Uh, 2016. I think that's the last time the MT debt was was touched. We have to ref. Are you refinancing the current mortgage? We not. We are not. What's the current occupancy percentage? you you've talked about past years, but um right now before the city we're going to be right now we're we're um including the city including city once they leave or no just what is it 2025

um we are right under 88% right now

um but this is as you know commercial leases do take a little bit of lag so we have gotten um quite a few notices obviously one being the city um and there's a few other tenants um you know express is on the eighth floor still so that number does include them. They are going from 25,000 ft just down 4,000 square feet. So that number does not reflect that downside. Um and it does not reflect two other downside notices that we've received in the last two months. So it unfortunate that you know the the work from home and everything has changed it completely, but it's the landlord's job to figure it out and find new tenants and bring new businesses to Troy. And uh I think British Columbia has um clearly demonstrated that they can do that given the business they've brought in the last 15 years.

Do you have potential tenants for the fifth floor? Not for the fifth floor. No, we have uh quite a bit of vacancy to fill up before the fifth floor. Um we are working on tackling the fourth floor right now. The space that Comcast gave back, that was a whole floor um over 32,000 square feet. So we're still working on that vacancy. And then we will also then be shifting our focus to the A4 which is 25,000. And then what is the projected um occupancy after city hall moves? After they move out will be below 70% at that point. That's that's a year from now. Uh next member [clears throat]

are you below 50% with the other that you said the other uh so all at the same time we would be probably right above. Got it. The first floor is bringing how many jobs with the with slide and dirty? Uh his exact account I I don't have a number from him right now. I think he has five, but his business increases. Sure, that will increase and we'll be submitting that obviously with our our current pilot job numbers as they come in. But he's been a great ad. He he just opened actually last week. Um and it's been a good reaction so far. So, we're open in commerce into the long lease for

uh he did a three-year to begin with renewal options. It's a big space down there. Again, that was the whole floor. [clears throat] The whole fork fix the uh south side everything on the other side of the cafe. Again,

when we talk about some challenges, you know, 2020, the first event for the 9th floor was February of 2020 before the world ended. Um, you know, luckily, you know, we have a worldass operator up there. They've been able to bring events and and do things, but the food hall was never a able to kind of recover that because they were relying on all the jobs in the building. Fourth floor wasn't back. Eighth floor wasn't back. So, the all vendors, they did struggle. Um, so obviously you guys, you know, walk in for meetings, probably notice that it was shut down for a little bit. Um, and we luckily, you know, Tim has a very loyal following in Troy [clears throat] and we're able to bring him in. It's a it's a large restaurant space. So, he's his his niche is kind of music. He's going to use back space for music after hours and stuff. So, it's just there. So does he do people that go there once [clears throat] do they park in the lot across the street?

Correct. Okay. I So people Yes. know to go there and not be worried about getting ticketed. Yep. And Joe's our general manager. So he runs parking all the operations for the building. So he's been working hand in hand with him on where his customers and patrons should be parking. [cough and clears throat]

Thank you. by the way. [clears throat] Just thank you for attending and for having a full application in front of us this time. I do appreciate that.

There's some some exhibits there. I hope it, you know, shows what's going on in the building. You know, we are very open. We like I said, our our biggest competitor competitor is Colony next door and, you know, taxes are a different situation there and, you know, parking is different situation, but there's [clears throat] certain firms that belong in the city of Troy. you know, the tenant that we just put on the sixth floor, um, you know, it's a respiratory company, tech firm, they belong to Troy. They don't belong in the subject. So, we've had situations where architects and engineers have looked at, you know, Lejet Lane or Century Hill and we shifted them here down Troy because they belong here for their No, this is H2M [clears throat] on the eth floor. Um, they came in in 2022. They've grown, you know, since then. The first question they had was, "Do you guys have a bike rack?" They have four people who, you know, bike and walk to work. So these are the tenants that we want in Troy. Architects, engineers, tech firms, the ones that belong down here. Those are the ones that we're going to be targeting and think we can benefit. We hope with your guys support and economic development that we can all uh make that happen because it's a growing Troy. It's a good Troy for everyone. Do you have any other representatives here that want to make a statement or anyone? No, no one's called in. Okay. Uh anything like that? Otherwise, uh we go with questions from the board if there's any to address. or do we have a motion? I mean, the application's in order. I think we're going to be just to be frank, I think it's going to be an interesting public hearing. It could be for you, but um if we get to that, but I think in terms of application, um it's in order this time. We're here uh we have it in front of us. So, if there's a motion for the uh for this initial resolution um if someone wants to bring that forward or again any other questions before we get into that.

Make the motion. We have a second. I'll second. All in favor? I

I know. We have four eyes with one five eyes with one post that is uh passes. We just also to note for the minutes we have Alex and Sue absent today. Uh so the motion for the resolution of the TOR industrial welding authority accepting supplemental application from first Columbia 430 to River Street LLC and connecting with a certain project [clears throat] authorizing the scheduling notice in conduct of a public hearing with respect to the project and describing the forms of financial assistance being contemplated by the authority with respect to the project passes. uh we will look forward to getting more information from you and for the subcommittee and please try to get that you [clears throat] know as quick as possible and we'll be uh discussing offline with with some dates that work the week of the 5th for the subcommittee and um again other board members and back to Alex and Sue if there's further questions to ask that you want to send to the subcommittee please let us know and we'll uh that'll give us some time to get more answers if we need to Um, on to the next item of new business. We have a item for city staffing fee.

Uh, yeah, I I can speak to it quickly. Uh, as most of the the boards familiar, each year the the IDA through its fund balance uh has historically paid uh uh you know a staffing fee to the city uh in exchange for the services u that the DA historically Randy uh and others have provided uh to maintain the IDA's operations. Uh last year I think was 125,000 and the proposal I think is to keep that stable for now. Um each year the the board uh endorses that so the payment can be processed by Matt over to the city. Uh so that's on uh for today and if the board's comfortable with that we'll just uh or if you have any questions certainly but uh we'd like to get that approval today so that can be closed out before the end of the year.

Is it a change from anything in the budget or just No, it's I think the the proposition here is to keep it stable. That may change once we move into proctors in city hall. Be a different footprint, different kind of presence. So that may be revisited uh at the end of next year. Do we have a motion to approve? Make a motion. I'll second. All in favor? I

I just have the two absences. No opposed. uh on to request for funds for attendance at the economic development conference in February and opening to board members who'd be interested in attending as well. I mean, right now D attended last year. D and I attended the year before that. Um February is a big conference month for me, but if I can if I can make it, I'd like to. So, there's two people interested in attending. Would anybody else on the board be interested in attending the EDC conference? or we can approve funds and if you don't attend, we don't spend it.

Yeah, I was just trying to get it out ahead of time because we're usually scrambling and bringing the check with us when we show up. So, I figure let's do let's see if there's interest. They could send us invoice. We can cut the check and like mail it to them. We're supposed to Justin's table gives you free pens. That's about That's about the best it gets. It's a really good conference and I know you got a lot out of it when you went. I usually get a lot out of it and it's [clears throat] nice to have a little, you know, it's a side in New York. It's in Albany at the Capitol Center. Oh, okay.

They do other events throughout the year, but this is the big one. And I mean, I just, it's fascinating like how like the mechanations behind the scenes of like seeing what these what was going on in other uh municipalities. There's there's pretty much zero board member participation in this. So, it's I think it's it it just reflects good on us and it's also just interesting. And if you continue to want to serve on public boards that are related to economic development in New York State, you might meet some interesting contacts and but it's it is a commitment away from work and other things. But if you're interested, it's a small ticket price. So we would just need to get an idea of number of tickets to approve. Do any of you know what it is each?

I don't know yet. They get back to me. It's usually like 200 um the beginning of February. Okay. It's good for best [clears throat] practices for staff in terms of you know corporate hygiene. There's breakout sessions on IDA pilots. There's breakout sessions on Paris and yeah, how to deal with certain kinds of things like renewable energy or different housing projects. If you don't plan on on participating in boards ever again, I would say it's not for you. But but it it is interesting for that purpose. But Albert Express interests I have. Is anybody else potentially? So we Yeah, just let me know. And what I can do is once I find out how much it actually will be for a person next month, I can come back with the the invoice or whatever. Okay. I just wanted to gauge interest ahead of time. I just

Great. I don't know what it's going to be like. So, hold it for four for now. And if Yeah. And we'll see. Well, nothing to vote on yet, but just if you're if you get the pricing for that. Um, it's worth bringing up that thought on the outside just as a potential to look into. So we're Dylan used to go to like geo stuff which I think is kind of long down but um in terms of EC conferences there's one in May as well that um is in Coopertown. Oh I meant um what uh outside pilot assessment in the future. [clears throat] Oh. Oh that's right. I'm sorry. Uh yeah and we had had a discussion.

This isn't on the agenda. I I meant to get in front of Justin for this earlier and I just couldn't. So, I apologize, but it's a new business, not [clears throat] anything to vote on, but something that we want to research into the new year because we don't have a position like a Randy, a Dylan. Um, here it is common practice for other IDAs, some of them Justin's clients, if you go to Green Island, I don't know if they do this in Cahose or Renier, but for a Justin will describe this better. I'm going to summarize and say a third-party pilot, let's say review, financial review. It's typically it's a feebased thing per pilot. So, it costs money. There's money for this, but it's a I mean, it happens as well as there is an executive director in place, but um it just provides oversight that is then passed on to the board as a summary of like I'll let Justin take it from there.

Yeah, sure. Yeah. many IDAs that that have, you know, a more active deal flow or a bigger pipeline, they'll engage a panel or one financial analyst to help them with weighing a pilot proposal and what the company might be asking for. Uh so as part of their scope of work they'll take in not only the application but appraisals uh the proformas the the debt all that stuff that the questions that Albert is always drilling into and and rightfully what what they do is they generate a report to the IDA board as part of or prior to the public hearing that says yes it passes a but for test without this assistance they can't make their their business work or it's a reasonable amount of of of subsidy to to help the business work within in your municipality. Practically speaking, what what it does and what the board would do is, you know, you you ask for proposals. Kimone and Associates are active in the space. Victoria Stores and Associates, she's based right in Bethlehem. She's the chair of the Bethlehem IDA and also services a bunch of clients and her private business uh in this in this space. And there's a few others, National Development Council, which is a nonforprofit. They do it um typically they'll do it on a project by project basis and something like5 to$10,000 is charged but the applicant picks that up. Uh it's really not on your balance sheet but you're facilitating it and you'll get a report at your public hearing that does a lot of the you know elbow grease that you're looking for as an underwriter or as a former banker. It it looks at things. Yeah.

Will we have will we keep that information that they they supplied with? Okay. Yeah. It's a report to you as the IDA the information that they build the report on. Do we keep that like appraisals all that? Yeah. All that stuff is presented to you as work product. A lot of it can be confidential and yeah. Yeah. Uh but it it's a tool that helps you get into a situation

and avoids and we you know we call our uniform tax exemption policy a uniform tax exemption policy but we tend to bounce around a little bit. uh that that report and analysis can help you be more consistent [clears throat] project over project over project so your pilots kind of look the same as opposed to having some outliers. So it's a concept that uh Jeff brought up uh and a need especially if you have an executive director uh opening that hasn't been filled yet. There's kind of some bandwidth that isn't being picked up puts some pressure on me as council puts pressure on Jeff as a volunteer chair. Sheamus has been helpful today is doing more administrative day-to-day not really negotiating pilots. So having that extra set of eyes and analysis I think makes sense. Um so the the thought was to solicit some proposals um to take a look at in January or February and as our next rounds of applications come in. We don't have any active pilot applications but we think some are coming.

Uh that'll help you have a team ready to respond to it in a little bit more in-depth way. So that's that's the big concept. Um, so and hopefully we'll have a planner step in and be the new Randy soon that'll help kind of manage that process. I don't expect us to have those proposals from those firms by the 15th or whatever. I said, the first meeting in January. Yeah. But, um, you know, we're going to I'm going to work with D and Justin to get those and bring them in front of you guys. No, no action at this meeting, but I think it's um after picking Justin's brain on it, I think it makes a lot of sense to do. And um but this is going to change the application process.

Yeah. Yeah. Then usually what happens is in in those environments, other clients, Portchester's really good at it. Uh they have a panel of two or three of these financial analysts and they try to be fair, rotate on the panel. They'll get an application in, make sure it's complete like today, and they hand it off and say, "Listen, you know, Victoria is going to be calling you applicant, and she's going to be asking you for a bunch of due diligence items, and it takes about 30 days." So instead of having a one month next month process, it might take you know two cycles and and and in that interceding period she generates this report and works with the chair and the executive director or whoever maybe a committee to take a look at her findings and she'll come up with a reasonableness test. If someone's asking for a very aggressive pilot and there isn't a proven need there based on proforma, she'll help you balance it and help you kind of tailor it in a way that that makes more sense.

So where does it happen in the process? like would it like today we just did the preliminary part for this pilot. So after today you would we we'd call Victoria or call whatever firm that we we select and say listen we've got an application here it is um and you know we you're empowered now under your engagement to go work with the applicant directly to get all of the information all of the the tax returns all of the the audited financials and the project perform the debt all of that stuff and blend it in a way so you kind of better understand I think it sounds like a great idea and then that helps you get to the hearing. Yeah,

it a lot. And I met Victoria at that EDC conference. She introduced herself to me. I didn't know that she did this on the side, but like it's in it's interesting if you start looking at IDAs across the state and I encourage you guys to do that. Like a lot of them do this and um it's not uncommon even if there is a executive director position. It's just another level of oversight. Um, I would welcome it and I think, uh, like I said, we'll get proposals back and it could, to Justin's point, it could make, if that goes forward, depending on like what the results are that finding, it could mean you're not going uh, from this meeting to public hearing meeting within a month. It might be, like you said, it might be a little bit longer. Could be, but might but we'll see. And um we don't we didn't handle a lot of pilots this past year, but you could [clears throat] imagine if you're doing a lot of these, it could really be helpful to have this. But um we'll search we'll get proposals and we'll bring them in. We'll get either their proposals in writing or we'll have we'll ask them to come present to us, you know, as soon as the next meeting or in February, then we can make a decision on it. Well, could it also be an option to have more than one firm

because, you know, if you know, yeah, one is not available or, you know, backlogged or whatever. So, I know we do that here at the city with multiple, you know, engineers or what have you, but or even like rotate. Yeah. Yeah. I like I I get it. We'll um we'll go for three and we'll it's like a RFQ or something. Yeah. Yeah. More than one

if it's too I mean, there just might not be time. There's not a person to do this. So, if Justin and D don't have time to help run this, then it might be even later than that, but we'll start on it, start the process. Um, there that's all new business. [cough and clears throat] Excuse me. Sorry. There is no old business today. It will go into the financial statements of that. Our report is November 30th. We had total liabilities or sorry total assets of1,319,381 with $1,182,818 that in cash total liability of $55,32 which left us with a fund balance of $1,264,349. There's no significant changes to the state of the month of November. And lastly, we have the state of activity for the month of November. We ran a surplus of $425. Our [clears throat] main source of revenue was our monthly interest earning and our largest expenses within our professional services. Matt, going forward, can you do when you do the balance sheet or the statement of financial positions do the prior year comparison column as well?

Thank you. Any other questions from that? We have what's going on? Uh, so that was pay.

Okay. Dinosaur pages. I'm assuming this $1,700 is a is a fee penalties and interest. Late fee, right? They paid that, too. Dinosaur feed their pilot and their first fee and then there was a second late fee that was assessed were okay. So they're both they're both clear.

So is this a a late fee or a penalty for the 91 days and over on R&M holdings? Chasing that as well. 43 bucks. It was from Yeah, that one was confusing. It was from a first payment, right? Um I don't remember what happened. What's that? [clears throat] 91 and over. So it must have been from the February cycle.

Yeah, it was those were all build kind of late, but then I thought there was what didn't come in too late. April was [clears throat] tricky, but um apparently there was still a late fee applied. So I asked them if they could pay it and I don't know if they knew about it. So they don't know some easily overwatch. Yeah, it just didn't make it off.

Any other questions? Do we have a motion to approve? Motion. Second. All in favor? I I We just have the absences. No opposed. Uh do we have a motion to adjurnn? Motion. Second. All in favor? I meeting adjourned and no CRC meeting throughout the year,