Aug 1, 2017
BATAVIA — A 25,000 square-foot spec building in the town of Batavia is envisioned as the first of five phases of Gallina Development Corporation’s plans at the Gateway II Corporate Park.
According to the Genesee County Economic Development Center, Gateway GS LLC — a newly-formed company under Gallina’s umbrella — will construct a shell of a building at the site. It will be marketed to warehousing, distribution, light manufacturing, technology and office space tenants.
No officials tenants have been revealed, and a request for comments to Gallina Development was not returned as of 5 p.m. Monday.
GCEDC officials told The Daily News that the project is a long-desired piece of the county’s economic arsenal. Marketing Director Rachael Tabelski said businesses are actively seeking flexible facilities that they can shape to their needs, with an initial newsletter about the project immediately generating requests for tours of the un-built site.
“Over the last decade we’ve seen projects that have been looking for space, and they’ve either found it in our region or we’ve lost that opportunity,” GCEDC Vice President Chris Suozzi said. “We want to move quickly to capture that market share and (Gallina) sees that as well.”
The developer’s plans will go before an initial review by the GCEDC board Thursday. According to the meeting agenda, the GCEDC is considering $139,775 in property and sales tax abatements.
“The building will be engineered as a shell so that prospective tenants, who will ultimately lease the space, will control the buildout,” stated a project description included in the agency’s review of the project’s compliance with tax incentive policies. “This type of development is more flexible than fitting out the entire building at the on-set and is more attractive to prospective tenants.”
Gallina, based in Rochester, has primarily focused its efforts in Monroe County. Among the company’s latest projects is the redevelopment of The Metropolitan, formerly the Chase Tower in downtown Rochester.
Gateway GS LLC would invest $2.625 million into the site and is projected to begin construction either this fall or next spring. The company expects to bring 16 temporary construction jobs with the project, at an average salary of $49,104.
According to Suozzi, Gallina would seek to build in stages on land south of the Ashley Furniture warehouse on Call Parkway, similar to a residential development. Once the first building is sold, another 25,000 square-foot space would be built on what he estimated was “upward of 25 acres” with Thruway visibility.
“This is the first time we’ve looked at a spec building relationship, and it’s because of the confidence in the marketplace that has developed over time, and Gallina taking notice,” Suozzi said. “With a low volume of building supply, we feel this will move quickly.”
