By Luke Parsnow, Spectrum News
President Joe Biden was in Syracuse Thursday to celebrate Micron Technology’s plan to invest $100 billion over the next 20-plus years to build a leading-edge memory megafab, saying Central New York “is poised to lead the world in advanced manufacturing.”
Flanked by U.S. Sens. Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand, as well as Gov. Kathy Hochul, the president visited Onondaga Community College, which along with the county, will invest $10 million, with Micron investing $5 million over 10 years, to build and outfit a “clean room” and support development of the school's technical curriculum.
“We’re here to celebrate one of the most significant investments in American history. Again, not hyperbole, one of the most significant investments in American history,” Biden said. “And it’s going to ensure that the future is made in America. One of the bright spots in the country that should give us a sense of optimism and hope about who we are as a nation.”
Micron plans to build a chip manufacturing facility in the White Pine Commerce Park in the town of Clay, which will be roughly 40 football fields in size, making it one of the largest construction projects in North America.
“Big enough to fit the Carrier Dome four times inside it and still have space left over,” Biden said. “It’s amazing what’s going to happen here. You have no idea yet. And it’s going to run entirely on renewable energy. 9,000 jobs.”
Biden said the project will help make the U.S. a leader in the semiconductor manufacturing industry and give relief to a region that has a rich history in manufacturing.
“A century ago, this region was the heart of manufacturing. And when I was up here as a law student, you had Kodak, Corning, General Electric. Governors always believed it could be that way again,” Biden said.
Biden also used the visit and the Micron deal as a sort of economic closing argument ahead of the midterm elections in two weeks.