S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
8331
2011-2012 Regular Sessions
I N A S S E M B L Y
June 13, 2011
___________
Introduced by M. of A. McENENY, CANESTRARI, REILLY, TEDISCO -- read once
and referred to the Committee on Higher Education
AN ACT in relation to authorizing the lease of lands located at the
state university of New York at Albany
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. Legislative findings. The legislature finds that the state
university of New York at Albany, ("University") is in need of addi-
tional facilities to fulfill its legislatively mandated mission of
research, education, and workforce training. Specifically, additional
instructional, laboratory, and residential and support spaces are
required to support the academic and research programs of the Universi-
ty, including those necessary to realize a Biomedical and Information
Innovation Research initiative and those necessary for a growth and
revitalization initiative for the University's Alumni Quad, a residen-
tial complex in the Education District of the City of Albany, both
initiatives (hereinafter described as "the project") to be funded, in
part, by active partnerships between government and private industry.
Furthermore, these activities will promote enhanced research, technology
deployment, improved undergraduate education, neighborhood revitaliza-
tion, and economic outreach across the capital region of New York state.
The legislature further finds that granting the trustees of the state
university of New York the authority and power to lease and otherwise
contract to make available grounds and facilities of the campus of the
state university of New York at Albany will ensure such activity will
promote enhanced research, technology deployment, improved undergraduate
education, neighborhood revitalization, and economic outreach across the
capital region of New York state.
S 2. As used in this act "the UA Corporation" shall mean the Universi-
ty at Albany Development Corporation, which will be a not-for-profit
corporation established for the purpose of facilitating the educational,
EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD13062-01-1
A. 8331 2
research and economic development activities related to the mission of
the state university of New York by constructing, developing and operat-
ing facilities which support economic development, academic and research
activities and the mission of the state university of New York and its
University at Albany campus.
S 3. Notwithstanding any other law to the contrary, the state univer-
sity trustees are hereby authorized and empowered, without any public
bidding, to lease and otherwise contract to make available to the UA
Corporation a portion of the lands of the state university of New York
at Albany generally described as all that real property consisting of
approximately 25 acres of land on the Uptown and Alumni Quad campuses of
the University at Albany, for the purpose of constructing and operating
research, education, residential, and student support facilities to
provide additional instructional, laboratory, residential, and student
support spaces required to support the academic programs and the mission
of the state university of New York. Such lease or contract shall be for
a period not exceeding 40 years without any fee simple conveyance and
otherwise upon terms and conditions determined by such trustees, subject
to the approval of the director of the division of the budget, the
attorney general and the state comptroller. In the event that the real
property that is the subject of such lease or contract shall cease to be
used for the purpose described in this act, such lease or contract shall
immediately terminate and the real property and any improvements thereon
shall revert to the state university of New York. Any lease or contract
entered into pursuant to this act shall provide that the real property
that is the subject of such lease or contract and any improvements ther-
eon shall revert to the state university of New York on the expiration
of such contract or lease.
S 4. Any contract or lease entered into pursuant to this act shall be
deemed to be a state contract for purposes of article 15-A of the execu-
tive law, and any contractor, subcontractor, lessee or sublessee enter-
ing into such contract or lease for the construction, demolition, recon-
struction, excavation, rehabilitation, repair, renovation, alteration or
improvement authorized pursuant to this act shall be deemed a state
agency for the purposes of article 15-A of the executive law and subject
to the provisions of such article.
S 5. Notwithstanding any general, special or local law or judicial
decision to the contrary, all work performed on a project authorized by
this act where all or any portion thereof involves a lease or agreement
for construction, demolition, reconstruction, excavation, rehabili-
tation, repair, renovation, alteration or improvement shall be deemed
public work and shall be subject to and performed in accordance with the
provisions of article 8 of the labor law to the same extent and in the
same manner as a contract of the state, and compliance with all the
provisions of article 8 of the labor law shall be required of any
lessee, sublessee, contractor and/or subcontractor performing on the
project, including the enforcement of prevailing wage requirements by
the fiscal officer as defined in paragraph e of subdivision 5 of section
220 of the labor law to the same extent as a contract of the state.
S 6. Nothing in this act shall be deemed to waive or impair any rights
or benefits of employees of the state university of New York that other-
wise would be available to them pursuant to the terms of agreements
between the certified representatives of such employees and the state of
New York pursuant to article 14 of the civil service law; all work
performed on such property that ordinarily would be performed by employ-
A. 8331 3
ees subject to article 14 of the civil service law shall continue to be
performed by such employees.
S 7. Notwithstanding the provisions of any general, special, or local
law or judicial decision to the contrary:
(a) The UA Corporation may require a contractor awarded a contract,
subcontract lease, grant, bond, covenant or other agreement for any
single construction project exceeding ten million dollars in the aggre-
gate, for which more than twenty-five percent of such aggregate amount
is to be paid from appropriations furnished by the state of New York or
the state university of New York, to enter into a project labor agree-
ment during and for the work involved with such project when such
requirement is part of UA Corporation request for proposals for the
project and when UA Corporation determines that the record supporting
the decision to enter into such an agreement establishes that the inter-
ests underlying the competitive bidding laws are best met by requiring a
project labor agreement including: obtaining the best work at the
lowest possible price; preventing favoritism, fraud and corruption; the
impact of delay; the possibility of cost savings; and any local history
of labor unrest. For the purposes of this act, "project labor agreement"
shall mean work at the property authorized by this act to be leased to
the UA Corporation as described in this act that involves the design,
construction, reconstruction, demolition, excavating, rehabilitation,
repair, renovation, alteration or improvements.
(b) If the UA Corporation does not require a project labor agreement,
then any contractor, subcontractor, lease, grant, bond, covenant or
other agreements for a project shall be awarded pursuant to section 135
of the state finance law.
S 8. Without limiting the determination of the terms and conditions of
such contracts or leases, such terms and conditions may provide for
leasing, subleasing, construction, reconstruction, rehabilitation,
improvement, operation and management of and provision of services and
assistance and the granting of licenses, easements and other arrange-
ments with regard to such grounds and facilities by the UA Corporation,
and parties contracting with the UA Corporation, and, in connection with
such activities, the obtaining of funding or financing, whether public
or private, unsecured or secured (including, but not limited to, secured
by leasehold mortgages and assignments of rents and leases), by the UA
Corporation and parties contracting with the UA Corporation for the
purposes of completing the project described in this act.
S 9. Such lease shall include an indemnity provision whereby the
lessee or sublessee promises to indemnify, hold harmless and defend the
lessor against all claims, suits, actions, and liability to all persons
on the leased premises, including tenant, tenant's agents, contractors,
subcontractors, employees, customers, guests, licensees, invitees and
members of the public, for damage to any such person's property, whether
real or personal, or for personal injuries arising out of tenant's use
or occupation of the demised premises.
S 10. The property authorized by this act to be leased to the UA
Corporation is generally described as those parcels of real property
with improvements thereon, consisting of a total of approximately 25
acres, situated on the Uptown and Alumni campuses of the state universi-
ty of New York at Albany. The descriptions in this section of the
parcels to be made available pursuant to this act are not meant to be
legal descriptions, but are intended only to generally identify the
parcels:
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FIRST PARCEL: All or portions of that tract, piece or parcel of land
situate on the Uptown Campus of the state university of New York at
Albany, portions of which lie in the Town of Guilderland, County of
Albany, State of New York and portions of which lie in the City of Alba-
ny, County of Albany, State of New York, the total consisting of approx-
imately 14.5 acres, subject to any and all easements, restrictions, and
rights of way of record, and being more particularly bounded on the
south by Justice Drive, on the west by Chemistry Lane and Life Sciences
Lane, on the north by State Drive, and on the east by University Drive.
SECOND PARCEL: All or portions of that tract, piece or parcel of land
situate on the Alumni Quad Campus of the state university of New York at
Albany in the City of Albany, County of Albany, State of New York,
consisting of approximately 10.5 acres, subject to any and all ease-
ments, restrictions, and rights of way of record, and being more partic-
ularly bounded on the south by Western Avenue, on the west by O'Leary
Boulevard, on the north by State Street, and on the east by Ontario
Street.
S 11. The state university of New York shall not lease lands described
in this act unless any such lease shall be executed within three years
of the effective date of this act.
S 12. Insofar as the provisions of this act are inconsistent with the
provisions of any law, general, special or local, the provisions of this
act shall be controlling.
S 13. This act shall take effect immediately.