Watertown Industrial Center gets $250,000 in loans until state grant arrives
TIMES STAFF WRITER
The Watertown Industrial Center Local Development Corp. has arranged for two loans that will fill a temporary $217,000 shortfall while it waits for a state grant to come through this spring.
The WIC board formally voted on Wednesday morning to approve $125,000 loans from the Watertown Local Development Corp. and the Jefferson County Industrial Development Agency. The WIC board intends to pay back the two loans after receiving an expected $250,000 grant from the state Empire State Development Corp. to help pay for roof repairs at the center, 800 Starbuck Ave.
This past year, the WIC board had to use $734,000 in capital reserves and arrange for other financing to pay for the $1.3 million work to repair persistent leaky roofs, but the projects cost more than had been anticipated.
Board member Carolyn D. Fitzpatrick, who also serves as the chairwoman of the Jefferson County Board of Legislators, said Wednesday that bad luck caused the center to go through the difficult financial times.
“It wasn’t negligence,” she said. “It was because of unforeseen circumstances that this happened.”
Board Comptroller Lyle V. Eaton told the board that the center is now about $100,000 “in the negative,” but the two loans would get the center through the next several months, noting that he expects that it will be about $100,000 “in the positive” by the end of 2012.
Two weeks ago, the WIC board talked informally about going after the two $125,000 loans but could not approve a resolution that day because it did not have a quorum, so board members scheduled Wednesday’s special meeting. WIC board members had originally hoped to put money from the loans into a capital reserve account that would mainly be used for emergencies.
Board members originally were going to request the loans to be for 10 years, but the JCIDA Revolving Loan Committee decided last week to lend it for only until the state loan arrives.
“The banker in me, I can understand that,” said board President Donald W. Rutherford, who is also the CEO of the Watertown Local development Corp.
The JCIDA full board meets Thursday to act on the loan, while the WLDC, also known as the Watertown Trust, plans to take up its $125,000 loan later this month.
