Ë®¹ûÅÉAV

Last fall, Gould convened a meeting with local leaders to discuss how to attract new businesses to Cayuga County. Less than two weeks later, there was a major announcement. 

Micron, a leading semiconductor chip company, plans to invest $100 billion over 20 years to build a manufacturing facility in neighboring Onondaga County. The project would create 9,000 new jobs, plus over 40,000 more in supporting industries. 

Gould told Ë®¹ûÅÉAV that he met with his staff and formed a committee to explore ways to capitalize on the Micron project. That committee, consisting of public and private sector leaders, led to the creation of four subcommittees focusing on employment and training, energy, housing and planning. 

Jennifer Haines, director of the city of Auburn's Office of Planning and Economic Development, chairs the housing subcommittee. Steve Lynch, who heads the county's Department of Planning and Economic Development, leads the planning subcommittee. Kelly King, the county's director of employment and training, is chair of the employment subcommittee. Legislator Robert Shea leads the energy panel. 

The subcommittees meet regularly — sometimes twice a month — and the full committee meets on a similar schedule. 

Beyond the committee and subcommittees, Gould said he has participated on videoconferences with regional leaders, notably Onondaga County Executive Ryan McMahon. He has met with Micron officials and a company representative attended a recent subcommittee meeting. 

"I think we're ahead of the curve," he said. "We're staying ahead of the curve. We want to be the leader." 

Micron's arrival is expected to have a large regional impact — and Cayuga County stands to benefit from the project. 

The memory chip manufacturing facility will be located in the town of Clay. With parts of Cayuga County about 30 minutes away from the proposed site, it could be a place that Micron workers call home. 

Michael Miller, executive director of the Cayuga Economic Development Agency, said that the committee is assessing its existing housing inventory. While some of the focus has been on the city of Auburn, they have also looked at the Weedsport area, which is near the Thruway. 

The panels are also examining the county's workforce development needs to help Micron fulfill this project. Miller noted that in meetings with the company representatives, they have expressed interest in the trades. 

"Building out this facility is going to be a massive undertaking," Miller said. "They're not only interested in those trades but working locally to source that work and finding the right vendors, as well... We at CEDA are really interested in making sure that existing businesses here in Auburn and Cayuga County can play a role in building out that facility and, as best possible, servicing what those tertiary businesses may be bringing as well." 

With Micron setting up shop in Onondaga County, it will need certain supply chain businesses. One goal for Miller and CEDA is to attract one of those businesses to Cayuga County. 

It may take time to see benefits from the Micron project. Site preparation will begin this year, with construction scheduled to start in 2024. But it will take two decades to build out the entire facility, which will consist of four 600,000-square-foot cleanrooms. 

Because of that early start in September 2022, Cayuga County is well positioned to reap the rewards of Micron's investment in central New York. 

"It's been a partnership through a lot of people, a lot of important people, that need to be part of this," Gould said. "We'll continue this."