SYRACUSE, N.Y. (WSYR-TV) — JMA Wireless is getting the most attention for its name going up on the Dome the last week, but there’s a lot of work going on down the street too, where the company is planning to expand its one-year-old campus on South Salina Street.
The company has proposed a 100,000-square-foot warehouse behind its current headquarters, but needs more land.
JMA Wireless has multiple contracts set to acquire neighboring property, but according to its proposal submitted to the City of Syracuse, it needed help convincing two hold-outs after failed negotiations.
SIDA signaled willingness to invoke eminent domain, a threat that swayed one of the two properties: Tompkins USA which is now selling its property.
The owner for Tompkins USA tells NewsChannel 9 a move seems impossible, so the 180-year-old making of industrial knitting machines and its 11 employees will likely go out of business.
There’s still one property out of JMA’s control: Horizon Transport.
The company is listed as non-emergency medical transport, but it appears to be a lot full of dilapidated vehicles.
Because both JMA and the Syracuse Industrial Development Agency failed to reach an agreement with the owner, SIDA filed a lawsuit in State Supreme Court asking to enact eminent domain.
SIDA’s attorney, Susan Katzoff, tells NewsChannel 9 the business is “illegal,” operating without a permit to be an “impound lot.”
Katzoff said, “It will take a property that has historically been tax delinquent, it will restore it to a taxable status in a way that generates taxable revenue for the city. It will create jobs. It will improve the area as a gateway to the city.”
Horizon Transport has not responded to NewsChannel 9’s request for comment.
John Puskar, a spokesperson for JMA, tells NewsChannel 9: “JMA is building a transformative project, as we expand the only US-owned 5G campus in the country, right here in downtown Syracuse. We are grateful for the support of SIDA as we continue to invest in Central New York.”
