Montgomery County Executive Matt Ossenfort and Montgomery County Business Development CEO Ken Rose issued a joint statement on May 31 supporting the plans by KCG Development to build a 132 unit apartment complex and a restaurant/banquet hall at the site of the former Chalmers building on the south side of the City of Amsterdam.
Residents voiced multiple concerns about the project at a public meeting held last week, which was also attended by both Ossenfort and Rose.
Some of the key points in the statement include:
We must climb the rungs of the proverbial economic ladder to attract broader, high risk investments. In the meanwhile, we need to leverage the incentives and tools to stabilize and continue recent momentum in attracting new job centers, hospitality and yes, housing options.
The Lanzis agreeing to start, from scratch, the first major event banquet facility is a big achievement for keeping local, the spending that almost always goes to neighboring counties. It also will bring new eyeballs to the beautification of Amsterdam prominently on display by the Mohawk Valley Gateway Overlook (MVGO) pedestrian bridge its guests will gaze out upon.
More broadly, we compete for job creators and have had success in the nearby Florida Business Park and Florida Business Park Extension landing over 1,300 jobs, not including Dollar General, which is building a distribution center expected to add 400 more jobs in the next year. These are good paying jobs. Along with healthcare sector workers across the river in downtown and at St. Mary’s Healthcare, civic service professionals, especially young teachers, fire, police or EMTs do well living at reasonable rates near the places they serve. In all instances, recruitment of willing workforce to Amsterdam is challenged by dearth of modern, lifestyle friendly community options. The Chalmers Mill Lofts, combined with the recreational amenities, food and beverage operations, and proximity to major road thoroughfares will offer this quality of place.
In summary, there are a range of positive impacts building on the blocks we have been working hard to lay down. We need to keep advancing the ball for Amsterdam to thrive and attract additional investment.
