Landfill Remediation and Brewery Development (2015 LGAA)

Village of Goshen (Winner)
County: Orange County
Population: Less than 10,000
Village Hall: (845) 294-6750

In 2003, the Village of Goshen oversaw the construction of a new Waste Water Treatment Plant. Part of this process required the excavation and removal of an old Village landfill. This landfill material was put on trucks and moved to a Village owned parcel on the outskirts of the Village. This was a temporary solution. Beginning in 2009, the Village worked to have the landfill removed and used for a discounted "beneficial reuse" price at multiple landfills. After this was concluded, the Village and its consultants worked with NYS Department of Environmental Conservation to complete required testing to verify that proper remediation had taken place. After it was clear that the property was environmentally safe, the Village used various strategies to market the property and ultimately the property was purchased by an international brewery, Kikkerfrosch, LLC. Kikkerfrosch and the Village negotiated a $1.7M sale price and the property will be coming back on the tax rolls.

This additional revenue and taxable land will have a monumental impact on the Village finances. It will be used to beautify the Village, strengthen our infrastructure, and improve our programming. This project will result in over 80 permanent jobs, many construction jobs, and numerous business partnerships. Specifically. a local beer distributor has already partnered with the brewery for distribution. Local accountants, attorneys, planners, and other professionals have been engaged by Kikkerfrosch as well. This project also saved the Village money as it is less land the Village has to maintain. By getting rid of the landfill, the Village no longer has to maintain a landfill system or lechate collection system. There is also no longer a need for testing and monitoring of the site and surrounding environmental areas.

The Village worked with several entities to make this project a success. A citizens advocacy group called Joint Economic Development Initiative advocated for the plan. The Orange County Partnership helped the Village market the site along with a real estate professional. This organization helped get the word out about the site to site selectors. The Village was also able to get the Town of Goshen to agree to allowing Town land to be annexed into the Village. Even though the Village owned the whole parcel, half of it was located in the Town. This would have required any developer to undergo two approval processes which would have made the parcel unattractive. The Town agreed to allow the Village to annex the land. Additionally, the Village undertook foresting some trees on the site and then sold the lumber. This sale funded some of the initial engineering on site that made it more shovel-ready.

Other municipalities can duplicate this effort and find similar success in turning challenges into opportunities. With appropriate long-term planning, it is possible to take other environmental challenges and develop them economically. This model of remediation followed by marketing and development can be accomplished by other local governments throughout New York.