Niagara County residents speak out on Amazon tax break deal

Amazon is planning to build a 3-million-square-foot facility that company officials say would employ 1,000 jobs, 950 of which would be warehouse and logistics workers with an average wage of $15 per hour.

Company officials requested $123 million in tax incentives from the IDA over the first 15 years of the facility’s life, which includes $94 million in property tax abatements, $26 million in sales tax breaks, and $3.55 million in a mortgage recording tax exemption. Amazon would make in-lieu of tax payments of $49 million for the first 15 years, with that amount increasing to $9.5 million a year after that.

Niagara County Department of Economic Development Commissioner Michael Casale argued in favor of giving Amazon tax breaks for the facility, saying the project represents one of the company's largest and most sophisticated facilities and that the employees would get a variety of benefits. The 1,000 employees and their total salary of $35 million are conservative estimates, he said. Building the facility would require hundreds of construction workers to be on the job for more than two years, he added.

“It's important to note that provide jobs and opportunities to those that don’t process specific work skills,” Casale said. “Those new to the workforce will have the opportunity to learn new skills on the job. Skills that will be transferable for advancement.”

Matthew Hubacher, the research manager of Invest Buffalo Niagara, echoed some of Casale’s sentiments, claiming the facility will provide job training to those who are unemployed and looking for advancement. He argued that adding Amazon would be a boost to the transportation and warehouse sectors of the region's economy. 

Residents spoke about how Amazon would create more traffic in the neighborhoods around the facility. Some said the roads expected to carry Amazon's trucks are not wide enough and that giving out tax incentives to the project was misguided. 

Former State Senator George Maziarz pointed out how that only two members of the IDA board were in attendance during Wednesday's hearing and that none of the county legislators, who appoint the IDA members, were there. He was one of several speakers who wanted another public hearing to be held at night when it is more convenient for people to attend rather than a Wednesday afternoon.

“I’ve been in public hearings for 40 years,” Maziarz said. “When you start a hearing by saying you’re not going to answer questions, I think it’s insulting.”

Maziarz added that Amazon wants to be in the area due to its location near the Niagara Falls International Airport and the Canadian border and wondered where Amazon was going to hire people at $15 an hour when he see school bus drivers are being hired at $23.50 an hour.

Donna Amos, a member of OPEIU Local 153, a union that represents 13,000 workers in various industries in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Connecticut, said Amazon should consider offering union jobs. 

“Raising a family on $15 an hour is impossible,” she said. “If you’re paid a wage you can live on, you can have better business and people can stay here.”

OPEIU Member Mark Jurenovich urged IDA representatives to consider what he described as Amazon’s reprehensible behavior when employees voted to start unions at facilities in other parts of the country. 

“We don’t want that kind of behavior here,” Jurenovich said. “We think we’re better. I strongly urge the board to give this more thought.”

Members of the local insulators union and electricians union spoke about how they favor the project because it would mean construction jobs for their members.

John Scherrer, the business manager for IBEW 237 said Amazon projects in Syracuse and Rochester were both good for the IBEW chapters there and he is confident that local union members would benefit from the Town of Niagara project. 

The IDA board is scheduled to consider Amazon tax break application for a vote during its next meeting at 9 a.m., Aug. 10 at 6311 Inducon Corporate Drive, Sanborn.

The distribution center project has already been approved by the Town of Niagara board, the town's zoning board and the town and county planning boards.