Town to help SUNY housing

CANTON — The town is considering creation of a corporation that would issue bonds to build a dormitory at SUNY Canton and net the town about $100,000 in the process.

"It's a win for everyone involved," said David M. Gerlach, executive director of Canton College Foundation and Grasse River LLC. "Our students will win. We'll have premier housing for juniors and seniors. The community wins. The state wins and the taxpayer wins."

The Town Council will have a special meeting at 8 a.m. Saturday in the municipal building to discuss creating the corporation.

"The university came to us a few months ago to talk to us about this method that has been used by some of its sister campuses to get construction going," Supervisor David T. Button said. "We've uncovered no downsides."

About 10 SUNY projects have been funded through the establishment of capital resource corporations, Mr. Gerlach said.

"We're not blazing the trail," he said.

Mr. Button said all of the municipal officials contacted by Canton were upbeat about the corporations they created on behalf of educational institutions.

"The benefit for the general community is it's not state tax dollars that are being used to advance our project," Mr. Gerlach said. "It will be a privately financed project."

Under the plan, SUNY will agree to general conditions that make the tax-exempt bonds marketable, such as guaranteeing the rooms will be filled with students. The school's Alumni Association will lease from the state about five acres near the university police building on campus. It will sublet the property to Grasse River LLC, which is a subsidiary of the Foundation.

As the issuer of the bonds, the town would receive a fee of approximately $100,000.

Mr. Button said he would prefer the money go toward economic development rather than operating expenses.

"I'd like to use it in support of some of our community development issues," he said. "This is sort of a bonus to our community."

The residence hall, estimated at up to $22 million, would provide apartment-style living for more than 300 upperclassmen. The school wants it completed by August 2011.

"We desperately need this housing to continue our growth," Mr. Gerlach said.