Atlantic Testing takes on property

CANTON — An environmental testing firm will take over responsibility for a $182,000 St. Lawrence County Industrial Development Agency property lien against a former tree service company.

Atlantic Testing Laboratories has agreed to buy the former Megan-Racine cogeneration plant at 80 Lincoln St. from Tamarack Tree Service, which operated an arborist school there until 2003.

The IDA and its Local Development Corp. hold mortgage liens on the building.

IDA board members voted unanimously Tuesday to assign Tamarack's debt and payment-in-lieu-of-taxes obligation to Atlantic Testing. Tamarack secured a 15-year PILOT in 2000 that locked in the property's assessment at $350,000.

Marijean B. Remington, Atlantic Testing's president and chief executive officer, declined to say whether the takeover of Tamarack's debt represents the total amount of the property transaction.

"It's a really good thing for all of us," said Raymond H. Fountain, IDA chief executive officer. "Tamarack wanted to find a use for it, and Atlantic Testing is a company that has an interest in the future here."

Atlantic Testing has been leasing the property for the past three years, Mrs. Remington said, using it as a maintenance shop.

"We're anticipating a January closing," she said. "It houses our mechanic shop and our drilling operations for the whole company, and we have 10 offices. We put all of our vehicles through that shop, plus we have our drilling operations there."

Mrs. Remington said 15 people work in the maintenance shop. The company employs about 200 people throughout its 10 offices, she said.

"We have other facilities throughout New York. Albany and Utica have shop space, but it made sense to retain those jobs here if we could get the IDA to agree to finance this building," she said.

This is the second time the IDA has stepped up to help Atlantic Testing keep its north country roots, she said. The company has operated in Canton since Spencer F. Thew founded it in 1967.

"We worked with them in 2007 to partially finance the buyout of Atlantic Testing Laboratories from the founding president," she said. "The IDA has supported us in allowing us to expand and keeping jobs in Northern New York."