NORWICH – Though taking effect nearly one year later than anticipated, the Chenango County Board of Supervisors last week unanimously agreed to enter a payment in lieu of tax (PILOT) agreement with the Greek yogurt manufacturer Chobani.

The newly adopted PILOT is in connection with Chobani’s latest expansion project in the Town of Columbus (colloquially referred to as the “Phase Three Expansion Project”). As stipulated in the resolution passed by the county board, the PILOT grants certain financial assistance for Chobani’s recent $134 million expansion project in the form of an exemption from sales and use taxes on construction materials and equipment rentals, as well as a ten-year partial exemption from the payment of real property taxes.

In accordance with the PILOT, the partial property tax exemption takes effect on March 1. During the first year of the ten-year agreement, Chobani will receive a 95 percent real property tax exemption in the county, Town of Columbus and Unadilla Valley School District. This tax abatement will then diminish by ten percent every following year until the facility reaches full taxable value in 2024.

According to the Chenango County Industrial Development Agency (CCIDA), the total benefit for Chobani hovers $3.8 million over ten years (with sales tax exemption currently estimated at $3.37 million and real property tax savings estimated at $461,297).

However, initial figures of the expansion project - now nearly complete - also project creation of 106 new full-time employees for Chobani. The project includes: addition of an 85,000 square foot cooler storage facility; a 12,000 square foot space to house filling lines and packing equipment; a four-story wellness building; a three-story addition for processing expansion; two new receiving bays; 300 space parking lot; construction of a boiler building; and improvements to the main plant.

Initial plans were to have the PILOT agreement in place after a bulk of the construction was completed last year. However, due to discrepancies between the actual completion of the expansion project and the start of a new tax year, the agreement will go not go into effect until next year.