Utica, N.Y.-based Mohawk Valley Health System will create a fund of up to $1 million to help offset relocation costs for property owners in the footprint of its planned healthcare campus in downtown Utica, according to The Oneida Daily Dispatch.
Relocation assistance will be capped, though officials did not specify what that cap was. It will be determined on a case-by-case basis. The proposed downtown plan will create a new regional campus for Mohawk Valley, though many local residents have voiced opposition to the plan.
The hospital is still negotiating to buy the necessary properties, and Mohawk Valley officials say it is too early to consider eminent domain measures. The Community Foundation of Oneida and Herkimer Counties hired a coordinator to act as the point of contact for business owners affected by the plan.
"Once the coordinator is on board, we will also focus on supporting MVHS's ongoing work with its design partners by studying the most effective ways to join the new hospital campus with neighborhoods, destinations and services outside the footprint area," said Community Foundation President and CEO Alicia Dicks, according to The Oneida Daily Dispatch. "We're committed to supporting the downtown project because our community, neighborhoods and our entire region will benefit for generations to come."